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Chemical diversity of the atmospheres and interiors of sub-Neptunes : a case study of GJ 436 b
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Guzmán-Mesa, Andrea, Kitzmann, Daniel, Mordasini, Christoph and Heng, Kevin (2022) Chemical diversity of the atmospheres and interiors of sub-Neptunes : a case study of GJ 436 b. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 513 (3). pp. 4015-4036. doi:10.1093/mnras/stac1066 ISSN 0035-8711.
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stac1066
Abstract
The atmospheres of sub-Neptunes are expected to exhibit considerable chemical diversity, beyond what is anticipated for gas-giant exoplanets. In the current study, we construct self-consistent radiative transfer and equilibrium chemistry models to explore this chemical diversity. We use GJ 436 b as a case study to further study joint atmosphere-interior models. In particular, we constrain the properties of the interior and atmosphere of the planet based on the available Spitzer measurements. While it is possible to fit the emission spectrum of GJ 436 b using a high-metallicity model, we demonstrate that such an atmosphere is inconsistent with physically plausible interior structures. It remains the case that no existing study can adequately fit the 4.5-μm Spitzer secondary eclipse measurement, which is probably caused by chemical disequilibrium. Finally, an information content analysis reveals that emission and transmission spectra constrain the carbon-to-oxygen ratio and metallicity at different wavelengths, but the former are less susceptible to flat spectra stemming from highly metal-enriched atmospheres. With the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope, we recommend that future analysis of emission and transmission spectra of sub-Neptune planets are carried out self-consistently using both the atmospheric and interior structure models.
| Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Subjects: | Q Science > QB Astronomy | ||||||||||||||||||
| Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Physics | ||||||||||||||||||
| Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Extrasolar planets, Extrasolar planets -- Atmospheres | ||||||||||||||||||
| Journal or Publication Title: | Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society | ||||||||||||||||||
| Publisher: | Oxford University Press | ||||||||||||||||||
| ISSN: | 0035-8711 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Official Date: | 20 April 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Dates: |
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| Volume: | 513 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Number: | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Page Range: | pp. 4015-4036 | ||||||||||||||||||
| DOI: | 10.1093/mnras/stac1066 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||||||||||||
| Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||||||||||||
| Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date of first compliant deposit: | 28 June 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date of first compliant Open Access: | 29 June 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||
| RIOXX Funder/Project Grant: |
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