The JWST has ushered in a new era in atmospheric characterisations of temperate low-mass exoplanets with recent detections of carbon-bearing molecules in the candidate Hycean world K2-18 b.
Spectroscopy
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Elemental Abundances In The Diffuse ISM From Joint FUV and X-ray Spectroscopy: Iron, Oxygen, Carbon and Sulfur
In this study, we investigate interstellar absorption lines along the line of sight toward the galactic low-mass X-ray binary Cygnus X-2. We combine absorption line data obtained from high-resolution X-ray […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Status Report
Ices On Pebbles In Protoplanetary Discs
The formation of solid macroscopic grains (pebbles) in protoplanetary discs is the first step toward planet formation. We aim to study the distribution of pebbles and the chemical composition of […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Transiting Exoplanets With The Mid-InfraRed JWST Instrument: From Simulations To Observations
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has now started its exploration of exoplanetary worlds. In particular, the Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI) with its Low-Resolution Spectrometer (LRS) carries out transit, eclipse, and […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
The First Spatially-resolved Detection of 13CN in a Protoplanetary Disk and Evidence for Complex Carbon Isotope Fractionation
Recent measurements of carbon isotope ratios in both protoplanetary disks and exoplanet atmospheres have suggested a possible transfer of significant carbon isotope fractionation from disks to planets.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Origins Of Decimeter-sized Particles Around Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Methods. We algorithmically tracked thousands of individual particles through four OSIRIS/NAC image sequences of 67P’s near-nucleus coma. We then traced concentrated particle groups back to the nucleus surface, and estimated […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
QRIS: A Quantitative Reflectance Imaging System for the Pristine Sample of Asteroid Bennu
The Quantitative Reflectance Imaging System (QRIS) is a laboratory-based spectral imaging system constructed to image the sample of asteroid Bennu delivered to Earth by the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Space Weather & Heliophysics, Status Report
Connections Between Planetary Populations And The Chemical Characteristics Of Their Host Stars
Chemical anomalies in planet-hosting stars (PHSs) are studied in order to assess how the planetary nature and multiplicity affect the atmospheric chemical abundances of their host stars.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
Astronomers Reveal A New Link Between Water And Planet Formation
Researchers have found water vapour in the disc around a young star exactly where planets may be forming. Water is a key ingredient for life on Earth, and is also […]
![Best-fit free retrieval of the JWST NIRSpec and HST WFC3 data for WASP-77A b. The coloured regions show the individual contribution of three species (H2O, CO, and TiO) and Collision Induced Absorption (CIA), while the inset shows the 1, 2, and 3σ confidence intervals for the retrieved temperature-pressure (T − p) profile. These three species are detected in the HST and JWST data, allowing us to place constraints on elemental ratios for this atmosphere. The best-fit T − p profile has a positive lapse rate (i.e, no evidence for a thermal inversion) in the pressure region probed by our observations (p ∈ [105 , 100] Pa). -- astro-ph.EP](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/MeasuringTracers.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Status Report, Stellar Cartography
Measuring Tracers of Planet Formation in the Atmosphere of WASP-77A b: Sub-stellar O/H and C/H ratios, with a stellar C/O ratio and a potentially Super-stellar Ti/H ratio
We present a comprehensive atmospheric retrieval study of the hot Jupiter WASP-77A b using eclipse observations from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and JWST.