Terrestrial Planet Archives

Schematic of the 1D thermal evolution model used in this work. 𝑄𝑅 is the radiated flux, 𝑄𝑀𝑂 is the heat flux from the magma ocean, 𝑄𝑀𝑆 the heat flux from the magma mush, 𝑄𝑆 the flux from solid rock and 𝑄𝑐 the flux from the core. 𝑄𝐻 is the heat removed from the day-side and added to the night-side when we include horizontal heat transport. 𝑄𝑇 is the tidal heating when tidal dissipation is included in the model. The light blue line is the geotherm of the mantle while the line "L" (dark blue line) is the mantle liquidus and "S" (green line) is the mantle solidus. The pressure increases in the downward direction while the temperature increases to the right. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Habitable Zones, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Thermal Evolution Of Lava Planets

by Keith CowingSeptember 20, 2024September 20, 2024

Rocky planets are thought to form with a magma ocean that quickly solidifies. The horizontal and vertical extent of this magma ocean depends on the interior thermal evolution of the […]

Contour plot showing the planetary dayside temperature of Gl 486b as a function of Bond albedo (AB) and heat redistribution factor (ε). The solid line shows a contour of the median planetary temperature inferred for Gl 486b, and the surrounding dotted lines show 1σ, 2σ, and 3σ intervals. The yellow arrow on the colorbar shows the maximum dayside temperature predicted for Gl 486b if it had zero Bond albedo and no heat redistribution. Gray, light blue, red, green, and yellow dots show approximate values for the solar system bodies Moon, Mercury, Mars, Earth, and Venus, respectively. Our observations of Gl 486b are most consistent with airless bodies like the Moon and Mercury that have slight non-zero albedos, and it is highly inconsistent with a thick Earth-like or Venus-like atmosphere. -- astro-ph.EP

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

No Thick Atmosphere On The Terrestrial Exoplanet Gl 486b

by Keith CowingAugust 29, 2024August 28, 2024

A primary science goal for JWST is to detect and characterize the atmospheres of terrestrial planets orbiting M dwarfs (M-Earths). The existence of atmospheres on M-Earths is highly uncertain because […]

(a) Temporal evolution of the gas surface density. Different lines indicate disks with different αrϕ parameter. (b) Migration map for the disk with αrϕ = 10−4 at t = 1 Myr. The colors indicate the direction of migration, with red indicating outward migration and blue inward migration. The solid line shows the zero migration curve, which separates the regions of inward and outward migration. Note that the map depends on the eccentricity and inclination, which are set to 0.005.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Status Report

Super-Earth Formation With Slow migration From A Ring In An Evolving Peaked Disk Compatible With Terrestrial Planet Formation

by Keith CowingJuly 25, 2024July 25, 2024

For the origin of the radially concentrated solar system’s terrestrial planets, planet formation from a ring of solids at about 1 au from the Sun with convergent/suppressed type I migration […]

JWST-MIRI/MRS spectrum of Sz28 labelling the detected molecular species and the dust features. The spectrum from Spitzer is depicted in grey. The red question mark (?) symbol depicts the unidentified spectral features and the red horizontal lines show their wavelength range. The Q-branch of the molecules are shown in solid lines along with their identified isotopologues, if any, in dotted lines. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

MINDS. Hydrocarbons Detected By JWST/MIRI In The Inner Disk of Sz28 Consistent With A High C/O Gas-phase chemistry

by Keith CowingJuly 24, 2024

With the advent of JWST, we acquire unprecedented insights into the physical and chemical structure of the inner regions of planet-forming disks where terrestrial planet formation occurs.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Status Report, Stellar Cartography

NASA ROSES-24 Amendment 29: New Opportunity D.20 Exoplanet Mass Measurement Program

by Keith CowingJuly 13, 2024

D.20 Exoplanet Mass Measurement Program (EMMP) solicits investigations that will identify and mitigate systematics that currently limit the precision of radial velocity or astrometry observations from measuring the masses of temperate […]

Effect of relative luminosity, S/S⊕, on simulated steady-state atmospheres (pCO2 , temperature). A Terrestrial exoplanets in the mobile-lid (ML) interior convection regime. B Terrestrial exoplanets in the stagnant-lid (SL) regime. C,D Distributions of simulations across a discretized range of S/S⊕. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Press Release, Venus, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Interior Convection Regime, Host Star Luminosity, And Predicted Atmospheric CO2 Abundance In Terrestrial Exoplanets

by Keith CowingJune 26, 2024June 26, 2024

Terrestrial planets in the Habitable Zone of Sun-like stars are priority targets for detection and observation by the next generation of powerful space telescopes.

The mass of the late veneer, measured relatively to planet’s final mass, versus the time of the last giant impact on the Earth-sized planets of our simulations. We also plot the same quantities for the best 10 simulations of Nesvorny et al. (2021) as black crosses. The blue shaded region indicates the range of possible times of the Moon-forming event inferred from combining several lunar chronometers (Kleine and Nimmo, 2024). The red shaded region indicates the relative amount of late veneer accreted by Earth as deduced from the abundance of highly siderophile elements in the bulk silicate Earth (Walker, 2009). --astro-ph.EP

Astrogeology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Status Report

Terrestrial Planet Formation From A Ring: Long-term Simulations Accounting For The Giant Planet Instability

by Keith CowingApril 29, 2024April 29, 2024

The process leading to the formation of the terrestrial planet remains elusive. In a previous publication, we have shown that, if the first generation of planetesimals forms in a ring […]

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Status Report

From Stars To Diverse Mantles, Melts, Crusts And Atmospheres Of Rocky Exoplanets

by Keith CowingApril 29, 2024

This review is focused on describing the logic by which we make predictions of exoplanetary compositions and mineralogies, and how these processes could lead to compositional diversity among rocky exoplanets.

Planets formed in 37 optimal 4-P systems. Green-, magenta-, cyan- and red-filled symbols indicate the planet analogs of Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, respectively. Error bars indicate variation in heliocentric distance based on the object’s perihelion and aphelion. Large open triangles represent the terrestrial planets of the solar system. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Saturn, Status Report, Venus, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Formation Of The Four Terrestrial Planets In The Jupiter-Saturn Chaotic Excitation Scenario: Fundamental Properties And Water Delivery

by Keith CowingApril 23, 2024April 23, 2024

The Jupiter-Saturn chaotic excitation (JSCE) scenario proposes that the protoplanetary disk was dynamically excited and depleted beyond ~1-1.5 au in a few Myr, offering a new and plausible explanation for […]

Emblematic direct imaging discoveries (not exhaustive): 2M1207 & AB Pic [24,25], RXJ 1609 [26], κ And [27], HR 8799 [28], β Pic [29], HD 95086 b [30], GJ 504 [31], 51 Eri b [32], HIP 65426 b [33], TYC 8998-760-1 b [34], and b Cen b [35]. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gas Giants, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Stellar Cartography, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Direct Imaging Of Exoplanets: Legacy And Prospects

by Keith CowingApril 18, 2024

Understanding how giant and terrestrial planets form and evolve, what is their internal structure and that of their atmosphere, represents one of the major challenges of modern astronomy, which is […]

Terrestrial Planet

Thermal Evolution Of Lava Planets

No Thick Atmosphere On The Terrestrial Exoplanet Gl 486b

Super-Earth Formation With Slow migration From A Ring In An Evolving Peaked Disk Compatible With Terrestrial Planet Formation

MINDS. Hydrocarbons Detected By JWST/MIRI In The Inner Disk of Sz28 Consistent With A High C/O Gas-phase chemistry

NASA ROSES-24 Amendment 29: New Opportunity D.20 Exoplanet Mass Measurement Program

Interior Convection Regime, Host Star Luminosity, And Predicted Atmospheric CO2 Abundance In Terrestrial Exoplanets

Terrestrial Planet Formation From A Ring: Long-term Simulations Accounting For The Giant Planet Instability

From Stars To Diverse Mantles, Melts, Crusts And Atmospheres Of Rocky Exoplanets

Formation Of The Four Terrestrial Planets In The Jupiter-Saturn Chaotic Excitation Scenario: Fundamental Properties And Water Delivery

Direct Imaging Of Exoplanets: Legacy And Prospects

Crossing The Functional Desert: Cascade-Driven Assembly And Feasibility Transitions In Early Life

Robotic Lava Tube Mapping And Multimodal Data Collection Using Quadruped And LiDAR

Thickly Frosted Polar Gullies On Mars

From Meteorites to Membrane Rafts: Ganglioside-Incorporating Prebiotic Vesicles and the Emergence of Membrane Domain Organization

Pandora Mission Begins A Study Of Exoplanets And Their Host Stars