Waster planet Archives - Astrobiology

Kernel density estimates of the bulk elemental mass fractions of the initial planet population. The population is separated into planets that formed inside and outside the water ice line. Planets formed outside the ice line exhibit systematically higher oxygen and hydrogen mass fractions, reflecting enhanced accretion of volatile-rich material, which in turn leads to a relative depletion of refractory elements such as magnesium, iron, sulfur, and silicon. High bulk nitrogen and carbon abundances are exclusively associated with planets that formed outside the ice line. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

The Role of Formation Location in Shaping Sulfur-, Nitrogen-, and Carbon-Bearing Species in Super-Earth and Sub-Neptune Atmospheres

by Keith CowingMay 17, 2026May 17, 2026

Atmospheric compositions of sub-Neptunes and super-Earths are often interpreted as tracers of formation location relative to volatile ice lines.