1
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Dyrek A, Min M, Decin L, Bouwman J, Crouzet N, Mollière P, Lagage PO, Konings T, Tremblin P, Güdel M, Pye J, Waters R, Henning T, Vandenbussche B, Ardevol Martinez F, Argyriou I, Ducrot E, Heinke L, van Looveren G, Absil O, Barrado D, Baudoz P, Boccaletti A, Cossou C, Coulais A, Edwards B, Gastaud R, Glasse A, Glauser A, Greene TP, Kendrew S, Krause O, Lahuis F, Mueller M, Olofsson G, Patapis P, Rouan D, Royer P, Scheithauer S, Waldmann I, Whiteford N, Colina L, van Dishoeck EF, Östlin G, Ray TP, Wright G. SO 2, silicate clouds, but no CH 4 detected in a warm Neptune. Nature 2024; 625:51-54. [PMID: 37967578 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06849-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023]
Abstract
WASP-107b is a warm (approximately 740 K) transiting planet with a Neptune-like mass of roughly 30.5 M⊕ and Jupiter-like radius of about 0.94 RJ (refs. 1,2), whose extended atmosphere is eroding3. Previous observations showed evidence for water vapour and a thick, high-altitude condensate layer in the atmosphere of WASP-107b (refs. 4,5). Recently, photochemically produced sulfur dioxide (SO2) was detected in the atmosphere of a hot (about 1,200 K) Saturn-mass planet from transmission spectroscopy near 4.05 μm (refs. 6,7), but for temperatures below about 1,000 K, sulfur is predicted to preferably form sulfur allotropes instead of SO2 (refs. 8-10). Here we report the 9σ detection of two fundamental vibration bands of SO2, at 7.35 μm and 8.69 μm, in the transmission spectrum of WASP-107b using the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) of JWST. This discovery establishes WASP-107b as the second irradiated exoplanet with confirmed photochemistry, extending the temperature range of exoplanets exhibiting detected photochemistry from about 1,200 K down to about 740 K. Furthermore, our spectral analysis reveals the presence of silicate clouds, which are strongly favoured (around 7σ) over simpler cloud set-ups. Furthermore, water is detected (around 12σ) but methane is not. These findings provide evidence of disequilibrium chemistry and indicate a dynamically active atmosphere with a super-solar metallicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Achrène Dyrek
- Université Paris Cité, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
| | - Michiel Min
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jeroen Bouwman
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Paul Mollière
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Pierre-Olivier Lagage
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | | | - Pascal Tremblin
- Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, CNRS, CEA, Maison de la Simulation, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Manuel Güdel
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Astrophysics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - John Pye
- Space Research Centre, School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Rens Waters
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Department of Astrophysics/IMAPP, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- HFML-FELIX, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Thomas Henning
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Francisco Ardevol Martinez
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Elsa Ducrot
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Linus Heinke
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | | | - David Barrado
- Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, Madrid, Spain
| | - Pierre Baudoz
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, CNRS, Université Paris Cité, Sorbonne Université, Meudon, France
| | - Anthony Boccaletti
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, CNRS, Université Paris Cité, Sorbonne Université, Meudon, France
| | - Christophe Cossou
- Département d'Electronique des Détecteurs et d'Informatique pour la Physique, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Alain Coulais
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- LERMA, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Billy Edwards
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - René Gastaud
- Département d'Electronique des Détecteurs et d'Informatique pour la Physique, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Alistair Glasse
- UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Adrian Glauser
- Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Thomas P Greene
- Space Science and Astrobiology Division, NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - Sarah Kendrew
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Oliver Krause
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Fred Lahuis
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Michael Mueller
- Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Goran Olofsson
- Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, AlbaNova University Center, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Polychronis Patapis
- Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Daniel Rouan
- Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, Madrid, Spain
| | - Pierre Royer
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Ingo Waldmann
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - Niall Whiteford
- Department of Astrophysics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA
| | - Luis Colina
- Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Göran Östlin
- Université Paris Cité, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- Department of Astronomy, Oskar Klein Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Tom P Ray
- School of Cosmic Physics, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Gillian Wright
- UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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2
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Barrado D, Mollière P, Patapis P, Min M, Tremblin P, Ardevol Martinez F, Whiteford N, Vasist M, Argyriou I, Samland M, Lagage PO, Decin L, Waters R, Henning T, Morales-Calderón M, Guedel M, Vandenbussche B, Absil O, Baudoz P, Boccaletti A, Bouwman J, Cossou C, Coulais A, Crouzet N, Gastaud R, Glasse A, Glauser AM, Kamp I, Kendrew S, Krause O, Lahuis F, Mueller M, Olofsson G, Pye J, Rouan D, Royer P, Scheithauer S, Waldmann I, Colina L, van Dishoeck EF, Ray T, Östlin G, Wright G. 15NH 3 in the atmosphere of a cool brown dwarf. Nature 2023; 624:263-266. [PMID: 37931645 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06813-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/08/2023]
Abstract
Brown dwarfs serve as ideal laboratories for studying the atmospheres of giant exoplanets on wide orbits, as the governing physical and chemical processes within them are nearly identical1,2. Understanding the formation of gas-giant planets is challenging, often involving the endeavour to link atmospheric abundance ratios, such as the carbon-to-oxygen (C/O) ratio, to formation scenarios3. However, the complexity of planet formation requires further tracers, as the unambiguous interpretation of the measured C/O ratio is fraught with complexity4. Isotope ratios, such as deuterium to hydrogen and 14N/15N, offer a promising avenue to gain further insight into this formation process, mirroring their use within the Solar System5-7. For exoplanets, only a handful of constraints on 12C/13C exist, pointing to the accretion of 13C-rich ice from beyond the CO iceline of the disks8,9. Here we report on the mid-infrared detection of the 14NH3 and 15NH3 isotopologues in the atmosphere of a cool brown dwarf with an effective temperature of 380 K in a spectrum taken with the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) of JWST. As expected, our results reveal a 14N/15N value consistent with star-like formation by gravitational collapse, demonstrating that this ratio can be accurately constrained. Because young stars and their planets should be more strongly enriched in the 15N isotope10, we expect that 15NH3 will be detectable in several cold, wide-separation exoplanets.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Barrado
- Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, Madrid, Spain.
| | - Paul Mollière
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Polychronis Patapis
- Institute of Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Michiel Min
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Pascal Tremblin
- Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, CNRS, CEA, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Francisco Ardevol Martinez
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Kapteyn Institute of Astronomy, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Niall Whiteford
- Department of Astrophysics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA
| | | | | | | | - Pierre-Olivier Lagage
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Rens Waters
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Department of Astrophysics/IMAPP, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Thomas Henning
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Manuel Guedel
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
- Institute of Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
- Department of Astrophysics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | | | - Pierre Baudoz
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris Cité, Meudon, France
| | - Anthony Boccaletti
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris Cité, Meudon, France
| | - Jeroen Bouwman
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Alain Coulais
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- LERMA, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - René Gastaud
- Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, IRFU, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Alistair Glasse
- UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Adrian M Glauser
- Institute of Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Inga Kamp
- Kapteyn Institute of Astronomy, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Sarah Kendrew
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Oliver Krause
- Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Fred Lahuis
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Michael Mueller
- Kapteyn Institute of Astronomy, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Göran Olofsson
- Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, AlbaNova University Center, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - John Pye
- School of Physics & Astronomy, Space Research Centre, Space Park Leicester, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Daniel Rouan
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris Cité, Meudon, France
| | - Pierre Royer
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Ingo Waldmann
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - Luis Colina
- Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Tom Ray
- School of Cosmic Physics, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Göran Östlin
- Department of Astronomy, Oskar Klein Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Gillian Wright
- UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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3
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Coulombe LP, Benneke B, Challener R, Piette AAA, Wiser LS, Mansfield M, MacDonald RJ, Beltz H, Feinstein AD, Radica M, Savel AB, Dos Santos LA, Bean JL, Parmentier V, Wong I, Rauscher E, Komacek TD, Kempton EMR, Tan X, Hammond M, Lewis NT, Line MR, Lee EKH, Shivkumar H, Crossfield IJM, Nixon MC, Rackham BV, Wakeford HR, Welbanks L, Zhang X, Batalha NM, Berta-Thompson ZK, Changeat Q, Désert JM, Espinoza N, Goyal JM, Harrington J, Knutson HA, Kreidberg L, López-Morales M, Shporer A, Sing DK, Stevenson KB, Aggarwal K, Ahrer EM, Alam MK, Bell TJ, Blecic J, Caceres C, Carter AL, Casewell SL, Crouzet N, Cubillos PE, Decin L, Fortney JJ, Gibson NP, Heng K, Henning T, Iro N, Kendrew S, Lagage PO, Leconte J, Lendl M, Lothringer JD, Mancini L, Mikal-Evans T, Molaverdikhani K, Nikolov NK, Ohno K, Palle E, Piaulet C, Redfield S, Roy PA, Tsai SM, Venot O, Wheatley PJ. A broadband thermal emission spectrum of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-18b. Nature 2023; 620:292-298. [PMID: 37257843 PMCID: PMC10412449 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06230-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Close-in giant exoplanets with temperatures greater than 2,000 K ('ultra-hot Jupiters') have been the subject of extensive efforts to determine their atmospheric properties using thermal emission measurements from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and Spitzer Space Telescope1-3. However, previous studies have yielded inconsistent results because the small sizes of the spectral features and the limited information content of the data resulted in high sensitivity to the varying assumptions made in the treatment of instrument systematics and the atmospheric retrieval analysis3-12. Here we present a dayside thermal emission spectrum of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-18b obtained with the NIRISS13 instrument on the JWST. The data span 0.85 to 2.85 μm in wavelength at an average resolving power of 400 and exhibit minimal systematics. The spectrum shows three water emission features (at >6σ confidence) and evidence for optical opacity, possibly attributable to H-, TiO and VO (combined significance of 3.8σ). Models that fit the data require a thermal inversion, molecular dissociation as predicted by chemical equilibrium, a solar heavy-element abundance ('metallicity', [Formula: see text] times solar) and a carbon-to-oxygen (C/O) ratio less than unity. The data also yield a dayside brightness temperature map, which shows a peak in temperature near the substellar point that decreases steeply and symmetrically with longitude towards the terminators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louis-Philippe Coulombe
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada.
- Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada.
| | - Björn Benneke
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Ryan Challener
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Anjali A A Piette
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Lindsey S Wiser
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | | | - Ryan J MacDonald
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Hayley Beltz
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Adina D Feinstein
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Michael Radica
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Arjun B Savel
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
- Center for Computational Astrophysics, Flatiron Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Jacob L Bean
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Vivien Parmentier
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | - Ian Wong
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - Emily Rauscher
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | | | - Eliza M-R Kempton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Xianyu Tan
- Tsung-Dao Lee Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Mark Hammond
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Neil T Lewis
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Michael R Line
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Elspeth K H Lee
- Center for Space and Habitability, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Hinna Shivkumar
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ian J M Crossfield
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Matthew C Nixon
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Benjamin V Rackham
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Luis Welbanks
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Natalie M Batalha
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Zachory K Berta-Thompson
- Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Quentin Changeat
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - Jean-Michel Désert
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Jayesh M Goyal
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences (SEPS), National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Jatni, India
| | - Joseph Harrington
- Planetary Sciences Group, Department of Physics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
- Florida Space Institute, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Heather A Knutson
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Avi Shporer
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - David K Sing
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | | | - Eva-Maria Ahrer
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Munazza K Alam
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Taylor J Bell
- Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - Jasmina Blecic
- Department of Physics, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Center for Astro, Particle, and Planetary Physics (CAP3), New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Claudio Caceres
- Instituto de Astrofisica, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago, Chile
- Núcleo Milenio de Formación Planetaria (NPF), Valparaíso, Chile
- Centro de Astrofisica y Tecnologias Afines (CATA), Santiago, Chile
| | - Aarynn L Carter
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Sarah L Casewell
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Patricio E Cubillos
- INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino, Pino Torinese, Italy
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jonathan J Fortney
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Neale P Gibson
- School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Kevin Heng
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Universitäts-Sternwarte München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, München, Germany
- ARTORG Center for Biomedical Engineering Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | | | - Nicolas Iro
- Institute of Planetary Research (PF), German Aerospace Center (DLR), Berlin, Germany
| | - Sarah Kendrew
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Pierre-Olivier Lagage
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Jérémy Leconte
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Monika Lendl
- Département d'Astronomie, Université de Genève, Sauverny, Switzerland
| | | | - Luigi Mancini
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino, Pino Torinese, Italy
- Department of Physics, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
| | | | - Karan Molaverdikhani
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Universitäts-Sternwarte München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, München, Germany
- Exzellenzcluster Origins, Garching, Germany
| | | | - Kazumasa Ohno
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Enric Palle
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
| | - Caroline Piaulet
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Seth Redfield
- Astronomy Department, Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
| | - Pierre-Alexis Roy
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Shang-Min Tsai
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
| | - Olivia Venot
- Université Paris Cité and Université Paris-Est Creteil, CNRS, LISA, Paris, France
| | - Peter J Wheatley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
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4
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Tsai SM, Lee EKH, Powell D, Gao P, Zhang X, Moses J, Hébrard E, Venot O, Parmentier V, Jordan S, Hu R, Alam MK, Alderson L, Batalha NM, Bean JL, Benneke B, Bierson CJ, Brady RP, Carone L, Carter AL, Chubb KL, Inglis J, Leconte J, Line M, López-Morales M, Miguel Y, Molaverdikhani K, Rustamkulov Z, Sing DK, Stevenson KB, Wakeford HR, Yang J, Aggarwal K, Baeyens R, Barat S, de Val-Borro M, Daylan T, Fortney JJ, France K, Goyal JM, Grant D, Kirk J, Kreidberg L, Louca A, Moran SE, Mukherjee S, Nasedkin E, Ohno K, Rackham BV, Redfield S, Taylor J, Tremblin P, Visscher C, Wallack NL, Welbanks L, Youngblood A, Ahrer EM, Batalha NE, Behr P, Berta-Thompson ZK, Blecic J, Casewell SL, Crossfield IJM, Crouzet N, Cubillos PE, Decin L, Désert JM, Feinstein AD, Gibson NP, Harrington J, Heng K, Henning T, Kempton EMR, Krick J, Lagage PO, Lendl M, Lothringer JD, Mansfield M, Mayne NJ, Mikal-Evans T, Palle E, Schlawin E, Shorttle O, Wheatley PJ, Yurchenko SN. Photochemically produced SO 2 in the atmosphere of WASP-39b. Nature 2023; 617:483-487. [PMID: 37100917 PMCID: PMC10191860 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05902-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2023]
Abstract
Photochemistry is a fundamental process of planetary atmospheres that regulates the atmospheric composition and stability1. However, no unambiguous photochemical products have been detected in exoplanet atmospheres so far. Recent observations from the JWST Transiting Exoplanet Community Early Release Science Program2,3 found a spectral absorption feature at 4.05 μm arising from sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the atmosphere of WASP-39b. WASP-39b is a 1.27-Jupiter-radii, Saturn-mass (0.28 MJ) gas giant exoplanet orbiting a Sun-like star with an equilibrium temperature of around 1,100 K (ref. 4). The most plausible way of generating SO2 in such an atmosphere is through photochemical processes5,6. Here we show that the SO2 distribution computed by a suite of photochemical models robustly explains the 4.05-μm spectral feature identified by JWST transmission observations7 with NIRSpec PRISM (2.7σ)8 and G395H (4.5σ)9. SO2 is produced by successive oxidation of sulfur radicals freed when hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is destroyed. The sensitivity of the SO2 feature to the enrichment of the atmosphere by heavy elements (metallicity) suggests that it can be used as a tracer of atmospheric properties, with WASP-39b exhibiting an inferred metallicity of about 10× solar. We further point out that SO2 also shows observable features at ultraviolet and thermal infrared wavelengths not available from the existing observations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shang-Min Tsai
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA.
| | - Elspeth K H Lee
- Center for Space and Habitability, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Diana Powell
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Peter Gao
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Olivia Venot
- Université de Paris Cité and Univ. Paris Est Creteil, CNRS, LISA, Paris, France
| | - Vivien Parmentier
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | - Sean Jordan
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Renyu Hu
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Munazza K Alam
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Lili Alderson
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Natalie M Batalha
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Jacob L Bean
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Björn Benneke
- Department of Physics and Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Carver J Bierson
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Ryan P Brady
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - Ludmila Carone
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
| | - Aarynn L Carter
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Katy L Chubb
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Julie Inglis
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jérémy Leconte
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Michael Line
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | | | - Yamila Miguel
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, the Netherlands
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Karan Molaverdikhani
- Universitäts-Sternwarte München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Exzellenzcluster Origins, Munich, Germany
| | - Zafar Rustamkulov
- Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - David K Sing
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | | | - Jeehyun Yang
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | | | - Robin Baeyens
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Saugata Barat
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | | | - Tansu Daylan
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Jonathan J Fortney
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Kevin France
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Jayesh M Goyal
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences (SEPS), National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Odisha, India
| | - David Grant
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - James Kirk
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | | | - Amy Louca
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Sarah E Moran
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Sagnick Mukherjee
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | | | - Kazumasa Ohno
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Benjamin V Rackham
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Seth Redfield
- Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
| | - Jake Taylor
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Physics and Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Pascal Tremblin
- Maison de la Simulation, CEA, CNRS, Univ. Paris-Sud, UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Channon Visscher
- Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO, USA
- Chemistry and Planetary Sciences, Dordt University, Sioux Center, IA, USA
| | - Nicole L Wallack
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Luis Welbanks
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | | | - Eva-Maria Ahrer
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | | | - Patrick Behr
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Zachory K Berta-Thompson
- Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Jasmina Blecic
- Department of Physics, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Center for Astro, Particle, and Planetary Physics (CAP3), New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - S L Casewell
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Ian J M Crossfield
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Patricio E Cubillos
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
- INAF - Turin Astrophysical Observatory, Pino Torinese, Italy
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jean-Michel Désert
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Adina D Feinstein
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Neale P Gibson
- School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Joseph Harrington
- Planetary Sciences Group, Department of Physics and Florida Space Institute, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Kevin Heng
- Universitäts-Sternwarte München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | | | - Eliza M-R Kempton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Jessica Krick
- Infrared Processing and Analysis Center (IPAC), California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Pierre-Olivier Lagage
- Maison de la Simulation, CEA, CNRS, Univ. Paris-Sud, UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Monika Lendl
- Département d'Astronomie, Université de Genève, Sauverny, Switzerland
| | | | | | - N J Mayne
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | | | - Enric Palle
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
| | | | - Oliver Shorttle
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Peter J Wheatley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Sergei N Yurchenko
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
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5
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West NA, Li LHD, Millar TJ, Van de Sande M, Rutter E, Blitz MA, Lehman JH, Decin L, Heard DE. Experimental and theoretical study of the low-temperature kinetics of the reaction of CN with CH 2O and implications for interstellar environments. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2023; 25:7719-7733. [PMID: 36876874 PMCID: PMC10015628 DOI: 10.1039/d2cp05043a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/07/2023]
Abstract
Rate coefficients for the reaction of CN with CH2O were measured for the first time below room temperature in the range 32-103 K using a pulsed Laval nozzle apparatus together with the Pulsed Laser Photolysis-Laser-Induced Fluorescence technique. The rate coefficients exhibited a strong negative temperature dependence, reaching (4.62 ± 0.84) × 10-11 cm3 molecule-1 s-1 at 32 K, and no pressure dependence was observed at 70 K. The potential energy surface (PES) of the CN + CH2O reaction was calculated at the CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pVTZ//M06-2X/aug-cc-pVTZ level of theory, with the lowest energy channel to reaction characterized by the formation of a weakly-bound van der Waals complex, bound by 13.3 kJ mol-1, prior to two transition states with energies of -0.62 and 3.97 kJ mol-1, leading to the products HCN + HCO or HNC + HCO, respectively. For the formation of formyl cyanide, HCOCN, a large activation barrier of 32.9 kJ mol-1 was calculated. Reaction rate theory calculations were performed with the MESMER (Master Equation Solver for Multi Energy well Reactions) package on this PES to calculate rate coefficients. While this ab initio description provided good agreement with the low-temperature rate coefficients, it was not capable of describing the high-temperature experimental rate coefficients from the literature. However, increasing the energies and imaginary frequencies of both transition states allowed MESMER simulations of the rate coefficients to be in good agreement with data spanning 32-769 K. The mechanism for the reaction is the formation of a weakly-bound complex followed by quantum mechanical tunnelling through the small barrier to form HCN + HCO products. MESMER calculations showed that channel generating HNC is not important. MESMER simulated the rate coefficients from 4-1000 K which were used to recommend best-fit modified Arrhenius expressions for use in astrochemical modelling. The UMIST Rate12 (UDfa) model yielded no significant changes in the abundances of HCN, HNC, and HCO for a variety of environments upon inclusion of rate coefficients reported here. The main implication from this study is that the title reaction is not a primary formation route to the interstellar molecule formyl cyanide, HCOCN, as currently implemented in the KIDA astrochemical model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niclas A West
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
| | | | - Tom J Millar
- Astrophysics Research Centre, School of Mathematics and Physics, Queen's University Belfast, University Road, Belfast BT7 1NN, UK
| | - Marie Van de Sande
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
| | - Edward Rutter
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
| | - Mark A Blitz
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
| | - Julia H Lehman
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
| | - Leen Decin
- Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Dwayne E Heard
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
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6
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Ahrer EM, Stevenson KB, Mansfield M, Moran SE, Brande J, Morello G, Murray CA, Nikolov NK, Petit Dit de la Roche DJM, Schlawin E, Wheatley PJ, Zieba S, Batalha NE, Damiano M, Goyal JM, Lendl M, Lothringer JD, Mukherjee S, Ohno K, Batalha NM, Battley MP, Bean JL, Beatty TG, Benneke B, Berta-Thompson ZK, Carter AL, Cubillos PE, Daylan T, Espinoza N, Gao P, Gibson NP, Gill S, Harrington J, Hu R, Kreidberg L, Lewis NK, Line MR, López-Morales M, Parmentier V, Powell DK, Sing DK, Tsai SM, Wakeford HR, Welbanks L, Alam MK, Alderson L, Allen NH, Anderson DR, Barstow JK, Bayliss D, Bell TJ, Blecic J, Bryant EM, Burleigh MR, Carone L, Casewell SL, Changeat Q, Chubb KL, Crossfield IJM, Crouzet N, Decin L, Désert JM, Feinstein AD, Flagg L, Fortney JJ, Gizis JE, Heng K, Iro N, Kempton EMR, Kendrew S, Kirk J, Knutson HA, Komacek TD, Lagage PO, Leconte J, Lustig-Yaeger J, MacDonald RJ, Mancini L, May EM, Mayne NJ, Miguel Y, Mikal-Evans T, Molaverdikhani K, Palle E, Piaulet C, Rackham BV, Redfield S, Rogers LK, Roy PA, Rustamkulov Z, Shkolnik EL, Sotzen KS, Taylor J, Tremblin P, Tucker GS, Turner JD, de Val-Borro M, Venot O, Zhang X. Early Release Science of the exoplanet WASP-39b with JWST NIRCam. Nature 2023; 614:653-658. [PMID: 36623551 PMCID: PMC9946836 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05590-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Measuring the metallicity and carbon-to-oxygen (C/O) ratio in exoplanet atmospheres is a fundamental step towards constraining the dominant chemical processes at work and, if in equilibrium, revealing planet formation histories. Transmission spectroscopy (for example, refs. 1,2) provides the necessary means by constraining the abundances of oxygen- and carbon-bearing species; however, this requires broad wavelength coverage, moderate spectral resolution and high precision, which, together, are not achievable with previous observatories. Now that JWST has commenced science operations, we are able to observe exoplanets at previously uncharted wavelengths and spectral resolutions. Here we report time-series observations of the transiting exoplanet WASP-39b using JWST's Near InfraRed Camera (NIRCam). The long-wavelength spectroscopic and short-wavelength photometric light curves span 2.0-4.0 micrometres, exhibit minimal systematics and reveal well defined molecular absorption features in the planet's spectrum. Specifically, we detect gaseous water in the atmosphere and place an upper limit on the abundance of methane. The otherwise prominent carbon dioxide feature at 2.8 micrometres is largely masked by water. The best-fit chemical equilibrium models favour an atmospheric metallicity of 1-100-times solar (that is, an enrichment of elements heavier than helium relative to the Sun) and a substellar C/O ratio. The inferred high metallicity and low C/O ratio may indicate significant accretion of solid materials during planet formation (for example, refs. 3,4,) or disequilibrium processes in the upper atmosphere (for example, refs. 5,6).
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva-Maria Ahrer
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
| | | | | | - Sarah E Moran
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Jonathan Brande
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Giuseppe Morello
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
- Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Tenerife, Spain
- INAF- Palermo Astronomical Observatory, Piazza del Parlamento, Palermo, Italy
| | - Catriona A Murray
- Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
| | | | | | | | - Peter J Wheatley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Sebastian Zieba
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Jayesh M Goyal
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences (SEPS), National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), HBNI, Jatani, India
| | - Monika Lendl
- Département d'Astronomie, Université de Genève, Sauverny, Switzerland
| | | | - Sagnick Mukherjee
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Kazumasa Ohno
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Natalie M Batalha
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- Astrobiology Program, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Matthew P Battley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Jacob L Bean
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Thomas G Beatty
- Department of Astronomy, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Björn Benneke
- Department of Physics and Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | | | - Aarynn L Carter
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Patricio E Cubillos
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
- INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino, Pino Torinese, Italy
| | - Tansu Daylan
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Néstor Espinoza
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Peter Gao
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington DC, USA
| | - Neale P Gibson
- School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Samuel Gill
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Joseph Harrington
- Planetary Sciences Group, Department of Physics and Florida Space Institute, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Renyu Hu
- Astrophysics Section, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | | | - Nikole K Lewis
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Michael R Line
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | | | - Vivien Parmentier
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | - Diana K Powell
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - David K Sing
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Shang-Min Tsai
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Luis Welbanks
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Munazza K Alam
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington DC, USA
| | - Lili Alderson
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Natalie H Allen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - David R Anderson
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Joanna K Barstow
- School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - Daniel Bayliss
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Taylor J Bell
- BAER Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, CA, USA
| | - Jasmina Blecic
- Department of Physics, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Center for Astro, Particle and Planetary Physics (CAP3), New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Edward M Bryant
- Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Dorking, UK
| | | | - Ludmila Carone
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
| | - S L Casewell
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Quentin Changeat
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - Katy L Chubb
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Ian J M Crossfield
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jean-Michel Désert
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Adina D Feinstein
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Laura Flagg
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Jonathan J Fortney
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - John E Gizis
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Kevin Heng
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- University Observatory Munich, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany
- ARTORG Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Nicolas Iro
- Institute for Astrophysics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Eliza M-R Kempton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Sarah Kendrew
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - James Kirk
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Heather A Knutson
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | | | - Pierre-Olivier Lagage
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Jérémy Leconte
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | | | - Ryan J MacDonald
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Luigi Mancini
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Physics, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
- INAF - Turin Astrophysical Observatory, Pino Torinese, Italy
| | - E M May
- Johns Hopkins APL, Laurel, MD, USA
| | - N J Mayne
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Yamila Miguel
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | | | - Karan Molaverdikhani
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- University Observatory Munich, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany
- Exzellenzcluster Origins, Garching, Germany
| | - Enric Palle
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
| | - Caroline Piaulet
- Department of Physics and Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Benjamin V Rackham
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Seth Redfield
- Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
| | - Laura K Rogers
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Pierre-Alexis Roy
- Department of Physics and Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Zafar Rustamkulov
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Evgenya L Shkolnik
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Kristin S Sotzen
- Johns Hopkins APL, Laurel, MD, USA
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jake Taylor
- Department of Physics and Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - P Tremblin
- Maison de la Simulation, CEA, CNRS, Univ. Paris-Sud, UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | | | - Jake D Turner
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | | | - Olivia Venot
- Université de Paris Cité and Univ Paris Est Creteil, CNRS, LISA, Paris, France
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
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7
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Feinstein AD, Radica M, Welbanks L, Murray CA, Ohno K, Coulombe LP, Espinoza N, Bean JL, Teske JK, Benneke B, Line MR, Rustamkulov Z, Saba A, Tsiaras A, Barstow JK, Fortney JJ, Gao P, Knutson HA, MacDonald RJ, Mikal-Evans T, Rackham BV, Taylor J, Parmentier V, Batalha NM, Berta-Thompson ZK, Carter AL, Changeat Q, Dos Santos LA, Gibson NP, Goyal JM, Kreidberg L, López-Morales M, Lothringer JD, Miguel Y, Molaverdikhani K, Moran SE, Morello G, Mukherjee S, Sing DK, Stevenson KB, Wakeford HR, Ahrer EM, Alam MK, Alderson L, Allen NH, Batalha NE, Bell TJ, Blecic J, Brande J, Caceres C, Casewell SL, Chubb KL, Crossfield IJM, Crouzet N, Cubillos PE, Decin L, Désert JM, Harrington J, Heng K, Henning T, Iro N, Kempton EMR, Kendrew S, Kirk J, Krick J, Lagage PO, Lendl M, Mancini L, Mansfield M, May EM, Mayne NJ, Nikolov NK, Palle E, Petit Dit de la Roche DJM, Piaulet C, Powell D, Redfield S, Rogers LK, Roman MT, Roy PA, Nixon MC, Schlawin E, Tan X, Tremblin P, Turner JD, Venot O, Waalkes WC, Wheatley PJ, Zhang X. Early Release Science of the exoplanet WASP-39b with JWST NIRISS. Nature 2023; 614:670-675. [PMID: 36623550 PMCID: PMC9946829 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05674-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The Saturn-mass exoplanet WASP-39b has been the subject of extensive efforts to determine its atmospheric properties using transmission spectroscopy1-4. However, these efforts have been hampered by modelling degeneracies between composition and cloud properties that are caused by limited data quality5-9. Here we present the transmission spectrum of WASP-39b obtained using the Single-Object Slitless Spectroscopy (SOSS) mode of the Near Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (NIRISS) instrument on the JWST. This spectrum spans 0.6-2.8 μm in wavelength and shows several water-absorption bands, the potassium resonance doublet and signatures of clouds. The precision and broad wavelength coverage of NIRISS/SOSS allows us to break model degeneracies between cloud properties and the atmospheric composition of WASP-39b, favouring a heavy-element enhancement ('metallicity') of about 10-30 times the solar value, a sub-solar carbon-to-oxygen (C/O) ratio and a solar-to-super-solar potassium-to-oxygen (K/O) ratio. The observations are also best explained by wavelength-dependent, non-grey clouds with inhomogeneous coverageof the planet's terminator.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adina D Feinstein
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
| | - Michael Radica
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Luis Welbanks
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Catriona Anne Murray
- Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Kazumasa Ohno
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Louis-Philippe Coulombe
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Néstor Espinoza
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jacob L Bean
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Johanna K Teske
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Björn Benneke
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Michael R Line
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Zafar Rustamkulov
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Arianna Saba
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - Angelos Tsiaras
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
- INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Florence, Italy
| | - Joanna K Barstow
- School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - Jonathan J Fortney
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Peter Gao
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Heather A Knutson
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Ryan J MacDonald
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | | | - Benjamin V Rackham
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jake Taylor
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Vivien Parmentier
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France
| | - Natalie M Batalha
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- Astrobiology Program, UC Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Zachory K Berta-Thompson
- Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Aarynn L Carter
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Quentin Changeat
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Neale P Gibson
- School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Jayesh M Goyal
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences (SEPS), National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Jatani, India
| | | | | | | | - Yamila Miguel
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Karan Molaverdikhani
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Universitäts-Sternwarte, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Exzellenzcluster Origins, Garching, Germany
| | - Sarah E Moran
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Giuseppe Morello
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
- Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Tenerife, Spain
- INAF - Palermo Astronomical Observatory, Palermo, Italy
| | - Sagnick Mukherjee
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - David K Sing
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kevin B Stevenson
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD, USA
| | | | - Eva-Maria Ahrer
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Munazza K Alam
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Lili Alderson
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Natalie H Allen
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Taylor J Bell
- Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - Jasmina Blecic
- Department of Physics, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Center for Astro, Particle, and Planetary Physics (CAP3), New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Jonathan Brande
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Claudio Caceres
- Instituto de Astrofísica, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago, Chile
- Núcleo Milenio de Formación Planetaria (NPF), Valparaíso, Chile
- Centro de Astrofísica y Tecnologías Afines (CATA), Santiago, Chile
| | - S L Casewell
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Katy L Chubb
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Ian J M Crossfield
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Patricio E Cubillos
- INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino, Pino Torinese, Italy
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jean-Michel Désert
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Joseph Harrington
- Planetary Sciences Group, Department of Physics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
- Florida Space Institute, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Kevin Heng
- Universitäts-Sternwarte, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- ARTORG Center for Biomedical Engineering Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | | | - Nicolas Iro
- Institute for Astrophysics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Eliza M-R Kempton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Sarah Kendrew
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - James Kirk
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Jessica Krick
- Infrared Processing and Analysis Center (IPAC), California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Pierre-Olivier Lagage
- Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, CEA, CNRS, AIM, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Monika Lendl
- Département d'Astronomie, Université de Genève Sauverny, Versoix, Switzerland
| | - Luigi Mancini
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Physics, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
- INAF - Turin Astrophysical Observatory, Pino Torinese, Italy
| | | | - E M May
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD, USA
| | - N J Mayne
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | | | - Enric Palle
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
| | | | - Caroline Piaulet
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Diana Powell
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Seth Redfield
- Astronomy Department, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
- Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
| | - Laura K Rogers
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Michael T Roman
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
- Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Campus Peñalolén, Santiago, Chile
| | - Pierre-Alexis Roy
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Matthew C Nixon
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Xianyu Tan
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - P Tremblin
- Maison de la Simulation, CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, Université Versailles St Quentin, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Jake D Turner
- Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Olivia Venot
- Université de Paris Cité and Université Paris-Est Creteil, CNRS, LISA, Paris, France
| | - William C Waalkes
- Astrophysics & Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Peter J Wheatley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
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8
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Rustamkulov Z, Sing DK, Mukherjee S, May EM, Kirk J, Schlawin E, Line MR, Piaulet C, Carter AL, Batalha NE, Goyal JM, López-Morales M, Lothringer JD, MacDonald RJ, Moran SE, Stevenson KB, Wakeford HR, Espinoza N, Bean JL, Batalha NM, Benneke B, Berta-Thompson ZK, Crossfield IJM, Gao P, Kreidberg L, Powell DK, Cubillos PE, Gibson NP, Leconte J, Molaverdikhani K, Nikolov NK, Parmentier V, Roy P, Taylor J, Turner JD, Wheatley PJ, Aggarwal K, Ahrer E, Alam MK, Alderson L, Allen NH, Banerjee A, Barat S, Barrado D, Barstow JK, Bell TJ, Blecic J, Brande J, Casewell S, Changeat Q, Chubb KL, Crouzet N, Daylan T, Decin L, Désert J, Mikal-Evans T, Feinstein AD, Flagg L, Fortney JJ, Harrington J, Heng K, Hong Y, Hu R, Iro N, Kataria T, Kempton EMR, Krick J, Lendl M, Lillo-Box J, Louca A, Lustig-Yaeger J, Mancini L, Mansfield M, Mayne NJ, Miguel Y, Morello G, Ohno K, Palle E, Petit Dit de la Roche DJM, Rackham BV, Radica M, Ramos-Rosado L, Redfield S, Rogers LK, Shkolnik EL, Southworth J, Teske J, Tremblin P, Tucker GS, Venot O, Waalkes WC, Welbanks L, Zhang X, Zieba S. Early Release Science of the exoplanet WASP-39b with JWST NIRSpec PRISM. Nature 2023; 614:659-663. [PMID: 36623548 PMCID: PMC9946832 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05677-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Transmission spectroscopy1-3 of exoplanets has revealed signatures of water vapour, aerosols and alkali metals in a few dozen exoplanet atmospheres4,5. However, these previous inferences with the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes were hindered by the observations' relatively narrow wavelength range and spectral resolving power, which precluded the unambiguous identification of other chemical species-in particular the primary carbon-bearing molecules6,7. Here we report a broad-wavelength 0.5-5.5 µm atmospheric transmission spectrum of WASP-39b8, a 1,200 K, roughly Saturn-mass, Jupiter-radius exoplanet, measured with the JWST NIRSpec's PRISM mode9 as part of the JWST Transiting Exoplanet Community Early Release Science Team Program10-12. We robustly detect several chemical species at high significance, including Na (19σ), H2O (33σ), CO2 (28σ) and CO (7σ). The non-detection of CH4, combined with a strong CO2 feature, favours atmospheric models with a super-solar atmospheric metallicity. An unanticipated absorption feature at 4 µm is best explained by SO2 (2.7σ), which could be a tracer of atmospheric photochemistry. These observations demonstrate JWST's sensitivity to a rich diversity of exoplanet compositions and chemical processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Z Rustamkulov
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - D K Sing
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - S Mukherjee
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - E M May
- Johns Hopkins APL, Laurel, MD, USA
| | - J Kirk
- Center for Astrophysics, Harvard and Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - E Schlawin
- Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - M R Line
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - C Piaulet
- Institute of Research on Exoplanets, Department of Physics, University of Montreal, Montreal, Québec, Canada
| | - A L Carter
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - N E Batalha
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - J M Goyal
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), HBNI, Jatani, India
| | - M López-Morales
- Center for Astrophysics, Harvard and Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - J D Lothringer
- Department of Physics, Utah Valley University, Orem, UT, USA
| | - R J MacDonald
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - S E Moran
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | | | - H R Wakeford
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, Bristol, UK
| | - N Espinoza
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - J L Bean
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - N M Batalha
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - B Benneke
- Institute of Research on Exoplanets, Department of Physics, University of Montreal, Montreal, Québec, Canada
| | - Z K Berta-Thompson
- Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - I J M Crossfield
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - P Gao
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC, USA
| | - L Kreidberg
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - D K Powell
- Harvard and Smithsonian, Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - P E Cubillos
- INAF - Astrophysics Observatory at Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - N P Gibson
- School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - J Leconte
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - K Molaverdikhani
- University Observatory Munich, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany
- Exzellenzcluster Origins, Garching, Germany
| | - N K Nikolov
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - V Parmentier
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - P Roy
- Institute of Research on Exoplanets, Department of Physics, University of Montreal, Montreal, Québec, Canada
| | - J Taylor
- Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - J D Turner
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - P J Wheatley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - K Aggarwal
- Indian Institute of Technology, Indore, Indore, India
| | - E Ahrer
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - M K Alam
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC, USA
| | - L Alderson
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, Bristol, UK
| | - N H Allen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - A Banerjee
- School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - S Barat
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - D Barrado
- Centre for Astrobiology (CSIC-INTA), European Space Astronomy Centre Campus, University of Maria de Maeztu, Madrid, Spain
| | - J K Barstow
- School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - T J Bell
- BAER Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, Mountain View, CA, USA
| | - J Blecic
- New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Center for Astro, Particle and Planetary Physics (CAP3), New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - J Brande
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - S Casewell
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Q Changeat
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Baltimore Office, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | - K L Chubb
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - N Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - T Daylan
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - L Decin
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - J Désert
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - T Mikal-Evans
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - A D Feinstein
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - L Flagg
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - J J Fortney
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - J Harrington
- Planetary Science Group, Department of Physics and Florida Space Institute, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - K Heng
- University Observatory Munich, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany
| | - Y Hong
- Department of Astronomy and Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - R Hu
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - N Iro
- Institute for Astrophysics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - T Kataria
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - E M-R Kempton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - J Krick
- California Institute of Technology, IPAC, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - M Lendl
- Department of Astronomy, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - J Lillo-Box
- Centre for Astrobiology (CSIC-INTA), European Space Astronomy Centre Campus, University of Maria de Maeztu, Madrid, Spain
| | - A Louca
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | | | - L Mancini
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- INAF - Astrophysics Observatory at Turin, Turin, Italy
- Department of Physics, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | - M Mansfield
- Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - N J Mayne
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Y Miguel
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - G Morello
- Institute for Astrophysics of Canarias (IAC), La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
- Department of Astrophysics, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
- INAF Äì Palermo Astronomical Observatory, Palermo, Italy
| | - K Ohno
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - E Palle
- Institute for Astrophysics of Canarias (IAC), La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | | | - B V Rackham
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - M Radica
- Institute of Research on Exoplanets, Department of Physics, University of Montreal, Montreal, Québec, Canada
| | - L Ramos-Rosado
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - S Redfield
- Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
| | - L K Rogers
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK
| | - E L Shkolnik
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - J Southworth
- Astrophysics Group, Keele University, Staffordshire, UK
| | - J Teske
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC, USA
| | - P Tremblin
- UVSQ, CNRS, CEA, Maison de la Simulation, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - G S Tucker
- Department of Physics, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - O Venot
- Université de Paris Cité and Univ Paris Est Creteil, CNRS, LISA, Paris, France
| | - W C Waalkes
- Astrophysics and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - L Welbanks
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - X Zhang
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - S Zieba
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
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9
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Alderson L, Wakeford HR, Alam MK, Batalha NE, Lothringer JD, Adams Redai J, Barat S, Brande J, Damiano M, Daylan T, Espinoza N, Flagg L, Goyal JM, Grant D, Hu R, Inglis J, Lee EKH, Mikal-Evans T, Ramos-Rosado L, Roy PA, Wallack NL, Batalha NM, Bean JL, Benneke B, Berta-Thompson ZK, Carter AL, Changeat Q, Colón KD, Crossfield IJM, Désert JM, Foreman-Mackey D, Gibson NP, Kreidberg L, Line MR, López-Morales M, Molaverdikhani K, Moran SE, Morello G, Moses JI, Mukherjee S, Schlawin E, Sing DK, Stevenson KB, Taylor J, Aggarwal K, Ahrer EM, Allen NH, Barstow JK, Bell TJ, Blecic J, Casewell SL, Chubb KL, Crouzet N, Cubillos PE, Decin L, Feinstein AD, Fortney JJ, Harrington J, Heng K, Iro N, Kempton EMR, Kirk J, Knutson HA, Krick J, Leconte J, Lendl M, MacDonald RJ, Mancini L, Mansfield M, May EM, Mayne NJ, Miguel Y, Nikolov NK, Ohno K, Palle E, Parmentier V, Petit Dit de la Roche DJM, Piaulet C, Powell D, Rackham BV, Redfield S, Rogers LK, Rustamkulov Z, Tan X, Tremblin P, Tsai SM, Turner JD, de Val-Borro M, Venot O, Welbanks L, Wheatley PJ, Zhang X. Early Release Science of the exoplanet WASP-39b with JWST NIRSpec G395H. Nature 2023; 614:664-669. [PMID: 36623549 PMCID: PMC9946835 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05591-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Measuring the abundances of carbon and oxygen in exoplanet atmospheres is considered a crucial avenue for unlocking the formation and evolution of exoplanetary systems1,2. Access to the chemical inventory of an exoplanet requires high-precision observations, often inferred from individual molecular detections with low-resolution space-based3-5 and high-resolution ground-based6-8 facilities. Here we report the medium-resolution (R ≈ 600) transmission spectrum of an exoplanet atmosphere between 3 and 5 μm covering several absorption features for the Saturn-mass exoplanet WASP-39b (ref. 9), obtained with the Near Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) G395H grating of JWST. Our observations achieve 1.46 times photon precision, providing an average transit depth uncertainty of 221 ppm per spectroscopic bin, and present minimal impacts from systematic effects. We detect significant absorption from CO2 (28.5σ) and H2O (21.5σ), and identify SO2 as the source of absorption at 4.1 μm (4.8σ). Best-fit atmospheric models range between 3 and 10 times solar metallicity, with sub-solar to solar C/O ratios. These results, including the detection of SO2, underscore the importance of characterizing the chemistry in exoplanet atmospheres and showcase NIRSpec G395H as an excellent mode for time-series observations over this critical wavelength range10.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lili Alderson
- School of Physics, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.
| | - Hannah R Wakeford
- School of Physics, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.
| | - Munazza K Alam
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
| | | | | | - Jea Adams Redai
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Saugata Barat
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jonathan Brande
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Mario Damiano
- Astrophysics Section, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Tansu Daylan
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Néstor Espinoza
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Laura Flagg
- Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Jayesh M Goyal
- School of Earth and Planetary Sciences (SEPS), National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Jatani, India
| | - David Grant
- School of Physics, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Renyu Hu
- Astrophysics Section, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Julie Inglis
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Elspeth K H Lee
- Center for Space and Habitability, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Pierre-Alexis Roy
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Nicole L Wallack
- Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Natalie M Batalha
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Jacob L Bean
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Björn Benneke
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | | | - Aarynn L Carter
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Quentin Changeat
- European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, UK
| | | | - Ian J M Crossfield
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Jean-Michel Désert
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Neale P Gibson
- School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | | | - Michael R Line
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | | | - Karan Molaverdikhani
- University Observatory Munich, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
- Exzellenzcluster Origins, Garching, Germany
| | - Sarah E Moran
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Giuseppe Morello
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
- Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Tenerife, Spain
- INAF - Palermo Astronomical Observatory, Palermo, Italy
| | | | - Sagnick Mukherjee
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | | | - David K Sing
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kevin B Stevenson
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD, USA
| | - Jake Taylor
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Eva-Maria Ahrer
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Natalie H Allen
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Joanna K Barstow
- School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - Taylor J Bell
- Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - Jasmina Blecic
- Department of Physics, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Center for Astro, Particle, and Planetary Physics (CAP3), New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Sarah L Casewell
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Katy L Chubb
- Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Nicolas Crouzet
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Patricio E Cubillos
- INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino, Pino Torinese, Italy
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
| | - Leen Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Adina D Feinstein
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Joanthan J Fortney
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Joseph Harrington
- Planetary Sciences Group, Department of Physics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
- Florida Space Institute, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Kevin Heng
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Universitäts-Sternwarte, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Nicolas Iro
- Institute for Astrophysics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Eliza M-R Kempton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - James Kirk
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Heather A Knutson
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Jessica Krick
- California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Jérémy Leconte
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Monika Lendl
- Département d'Astronomie, Université de Genève Sauverny, Versoix, Switzerland
| | - Ryan J MacDonald
- Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Luigi Mancini
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Physics, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
- INAF - Turin Astrophysical Observatory, Pino Torinese, Italy
| | | | - Erin M May
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD, USA
| | - Nathan J Mayne
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Yamila Miguel
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | | | - Kazumasa Ohno
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Enric Palle
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
| | - Vivien Parmentier
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | | | - Caroline Piaulet
- Department of Physics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Institute for Research on Exoplanets, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Diana Powell
- Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Benjamin V Rackham
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Seth Redfield
- Astronomy Department, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
- Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA
| | - Laura K Rogers
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Zafar Rustamkulov
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Xianyu Tan
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - P Tremblin
- Maison de la Simulation, CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, Université Versailles St Quentin, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Shang-Min Tsai
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Jake D Turner
- Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Carl Sagan Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | | | - Olivia Venot
- Université de Paris Cité and Université Paris-Est Creteil, CNRS, LISA, Paris, France
| | - Luis Welbanks
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Peter J Wheatley
- Centre for Exoplanets and Habitability, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
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10
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Quintana-Lacaci G, Velilla L, Fonfría JP, Cernicharo J, Castro-Carrizo A, Agúndez M, Decin L. History of two mass loss processes in VY CMa. Proc Int Astron Union 2023; 669:A56. [PMID: 38125701 PMCID: PMC7615397 DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/202244396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
Red Supergiant stars (RSGs) are known to eject large amounts of material during this evolutionary phase. However, the processes powering the mass ejection in low- and intermediate-mass stars do not work for RSGs and the mechanism that drives the ejection remains unknown. Different mechanisms have been proposed as responsible for this mass ejection including Alfvén waves, large convective cells, and magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) disturbances at the photosphere, but so far little is known about the actual processes taking place in these objects. Here we present high angular resolution interferometric ALMA maps of VY CMa continuum and molecular emission, which resolve the structure of the ejecta with unprecedented detail. We reconstructed the 3D structure of the gas traced by the different species. It allowed us to study the morphology and kinematics of the gas traced by the different species surrounding VY CMa. Two types of ejecta are clearly observed: extended, irregular, and vast ejecta surrounding the star that are carved by localized fast outflows. The structure of the outflows is found to be particularly flat. We present a 3D reconstruction of these outflows and proof of the carving. This indicates that two different mass loss processes take place in this massive star. We tentatively propose the physical cause for the formation of both types of structures. These results provide essential information on the mass loss processes of RSGs and thus of their further evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Quintana-Lacaci
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
| | - L Velilla
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
| | - J P Fonfría
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
| | - J Cernicharo
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
| | - A Castro-Carrizo
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
| | - M Agúndez
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
| | - L Decin
- Dept. of Molecular Astrophysics. IFF-CSIC; Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA; Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven; Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimétrique
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11
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Decin L, Montargès M, Richards AMS, Gottlieb CA, Homan W, McDonald I, El Mellah I, Danilovich T, Wallström SHJ, Zijlstra A, Baudry A, Bolte J, Cannon E, De Beck E, De Ceuster F, de Koter A, De Ridder J, Etoka S, Gobrecht D, Gray M, Herpin F, Jeste M, Lagadec E, Kervella P, Khouri T, Menten K, Millar TJ, Müller HSP, Plane JMC, Sahai R, Sana H, Van de Sande M, Waters LBFM, Wong KT, Yates J. (Sub)stellar companions shape the winds of evolved stars. Science 2020; 369:1497-1500. [PMID: 32943524 DOI: 10.1126/science.abb1229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Binary interactions dominate the evolution of massive stars, but their role is less clear for low- and intermediate-mass stars. The evolution of a spherical wind from an asymptotic giant branch (AGB) star into a nonspherical planetary nebula (PN) could be due to binary interactions. We observed a sample of AGB stars with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and found that their winds exhibit distinct nonspherical geometries with morphological similarities to planetary nebulae (PNe). We infer that the same physics shapes both AGB winds and PNe; additionally, the morphology and AGB mass-loss rate are correlated. These characteristics can be explained by binary interaction. We propose an evolutionary scenario for AGB morphologies that is consistent with observed phenomena in AGB stars and PNe.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Decin
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium. .,School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
| | - M Montargès
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - A M S Richards
- Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - C A Gottlieb
- Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - W Homan
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - I McDonald
- Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.,School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
| | - I El Mellah
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium.,Centre for mathematical Plasma Astrophysics, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - T Danilovich
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - A Zijlstra
- Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.,Laboratory for Space Research, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
| | - A Baudry
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux, 33615 Pessac, France
| | - J Bolte
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - E Cannon
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - E De Beck
- Onsala Space Observatory, Chalmers University of Technology, 43992 Onsala, Sweden
| | - F De Ceuster
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - A de Koter
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium.,nton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, 1090 GE Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - J De Ridder
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - S Etoka
- Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - D Gobrecht
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - M Gray
- Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.,National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand, Chiangmai 50180, Thailand
| | - F Herpin
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux, 33615 Pessac, France
| | - M Jeste
- Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, 53121 Bonn, Germany
| | - E Lagadec
- Laboratoire Lagrange, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, Université Côte d'Azur, F-06304 Nice Cedex 4, France
| | - P Kervella
- Laboratoire d'Etudes Spatiales et d'Instrumentation en Astrophysique, Observatoire de Paris, Université Paris Sciences et Lettres, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, 92195 Meudon, France
| | - T Khouri
- Onsala Space Observatory, Chalmers University of Technology, 43992 Onsala, Sweden
| | - K Menten
- Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, 53121 Bonn, Germany
| | - T J Millar
- Astrophysics Research Centre, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, UK
| | - H S P Müller
- I. Physikalisches Institut, Universität zu Köln, 50937 Köln, Germany
| | - J M C Plane
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
| | - R Sahai
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - H Sana
- Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - L B F M Waters
- nton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, 1090 GE Amsterdam, Netherlands.,SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, NL-3584 CA Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - K T Wong
- Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique, 38406 Saint Martin d'Hères, France
| | - J Yates
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
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12
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Schmidt MR, He JH, Szczerba R, Bujarrabal V, Alcolea J, Cernicharo J, Decin L, Justtanont K, Teyssier D, Menten KM, Neufeld DA, Olofsson H, Planesas P, Marston AP, Sobolev AM, de Koter A, Schöier FL. Herschel/HIFI observations of the circumstellar ammonia lines in IRC+10216. Astron Astrophys 2016; 592:A131. [PMID: 28065983 PMCID: PMC5217166 DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201527290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
CONTEXT A discrepancy exists between the abundance of ammonia (NH3) derived previously for the circumstellar envelope (CSE) of IRC+10216 from far-IR submillimeter rotational lines and that inferred from radio inversion or mid-infrared (MIR) absorption transitions. AIMS To address the discrepancy described above, new high-resolution far-infrared (FIR) observations of both ortho- and para-NH3 transitions toward IRC+10216 were obtained with Herschel, with the goal of determining the ammonia abundance and constraining the distribution of NH3 in the envelope of IRC+10216. METHODS We used the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared (HIFI) on board Herschel to observe all rotational transitions up to the J = 3 level (three ortho- and six para-NH3 lines). We conducted non-LTE multilevel radiative transfer modelling, including the effects of near-infrared (NIR) radiative pumping through vibrational transitions. The computed emission line profiles are compared with the new HIFI data, the radio inversion transitions, and the MIR absorption lines in the ν2 band taken from the literature. RESULTS We found that NIR pumping is of key importance for understanding the excitation of rotational levels of NH3. The derived NH3 abundances relative to molecular hydrogen were (2.8 ± 0.5) × 10-8 for ortho-NH3 and [Formula: see text] for para-NH3, consistent with an ortho/para ratio of 1. These values are in a rough agreement with abundances derived from the inversion transitions, as well as with the total abundance of NH3 inferred from the MIR absorption lines. To explain the observed rotational transitions, ammonia must be formed near to the central star at a radius close to the end of the wind acceleration region, but no larger than about 20 stellar radii (1σ confidence level).
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Affiliation(s)
- M. R. Schmidt
- N. Copernicus Astronomical Center, Rabiańska 8, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
| | - J. H. He
- Key Laboratory for the Structure and Evolution of Celestial Objects, Yunnan Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 110, Kunming, Yunnan Province, China
| | - R. Szczerba
- N. Copernicus Astronomical Center, Rabiańska 8, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
| | - V. Bujarrabal
- Observatorio Astronómico Nacional. Ap 112, E-28803 Alcalá de Henares, Spain
| | - J. Alcolea
- Observatorio Astronómico Nacional (IGN), Alfonso XII N°3, E-28014 Madrid, Spain
| | - J. Cernicharo
- ICMM, CSIC, group of Molecular Astrophysics, C/Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz N3, 28049 Cantoblanco (Madrid), Spain
| | - L. Decin
- Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
- Sterrenkundig Instituut Anton Pannekoek, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, NL-1098 Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - K. Justtanont
- Chalmers University of Technology, Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Onsala Space Observatory, S-439 92 Onsala, Sweden
| | - D. Teyssier
- European Space Astronomy Centre, ESA, P.O. Box 78, E-28691 Villanueva de la Cañada, Madrid, Spain
| | - K. M. Menten
- Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
| | | | - H. Olofsson
- Chalmers University of Technology, Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Onsala Space Observatory, S-439 92 Onsala, Sweden
- Department of Astronomy, AlbaNova University Center, Stockholm University, SE–10691 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - P. Planesas
- Observatorio Astronómico Nacional (IGN), Alfonso XII N°3, E-28014 Madrid, Spain
| | - A. P. Marston
- European Space Astronomy Centre, ESA, P.O. Box 78, E-28691 Villanueva de la Cañada, Madrid, Spain
| | - A. M. Sobolev
- Ural Federal University, Astronomical Observatory, 620000 Ekaterinburg, Russian Federation
| | - A. de Koter
- Sterrenkundig Instituut Anton Pannekoek, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, NL-1098 Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - F. L. Schöier
- Chalmers University of Technology, Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Onsala Space Observatory, S-439 92 Onsala, Sweden
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Cernicharo J, Teyssier D, Quintana-Lacaci G, Daniel F, Agúndez M, Prieto LV, Decin L, Guélin M, Encrenaz P, García-Lario P, de Beck E, Barlow MJ, Groenewegen MAT, Neufeld D, Pearson J. Discovery of Time Variation of the Intensity of Molecular Lines in IRC+10216 in The Submillimeter and Far Infrared Domains. Astrophys J Lett 2014; 796:L21. [PMID: 26722620 PMCID: PMC4693957 DOI: 10.1088/2041-8205/796/1/l21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
We report on the discovery of strong intensity variations in the high rotational lines of abundant molecular species towards the archetypical circumstellar envelope of IRC+10216. The observations have been carried out with the HIFI instrument on board Herschel and with the IRAM 30-m telescope. They cover several observing periods spreading over 3 years. The line intensity variations for molecules produced in the external layers of the envelope most probably result from time variations in the infrared pumping rates. We analyze the main implications this discovery has on the interpretation of molecular line emission in the envelopes of Mira-type stars. Radiative transfer calculations have to take into account both the time variability of infrared pumping and the possible variation of the dust and gas temperatures with stellar phase in order to reproduce the observation of molecular lines at different epochs. The effect of gas temperature variations with stellar phase could be particularly important for lines produced in the innermost regions of the envelope. Each layer of the circumstellar envelope sees the stellar light radiation with a different lag time (phase). Our results show that this effect must be included in the models. The sub-mm and FIR lines of AGB stars cannot anymore be considered as safe intensity calibrators.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Cernicharo
- Group of Molecular Astrophysics. ICMM. CSIC. C/Sor Juana Inés de La Cruz N3. E-28049, Madrid. Spain
| | - D Teyssier
- ESA. ESAC. P.O. Box 78, Villanueva de la Cañada E-28691 Madrid. Spain
| | - G Quintana-Lacaci
- Group of Molecular Astrophysics. ICMM. CSIC. C/Sor Juana Inés de La Cruz N3. E-28049, Madrid. Spain
| | - F Daniel
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, IPAG, F-38000 Grenoble, France CNRS, IPAG, F-38000 Grenoble, France
| | - M Agúndez
- Group of Molecular Astrophysics. ICMM. CSIC. C/Sor Juana Inés de La Cruz N3. E-28049, Madrid. Spain
| | - L Velilla Prieto
- Group of Molecular Astrophysics. ICMM. CSIC. C/Sor Juana Inés de La Cruz N3. E-28049, Madrid. Spain
| | - L Decin
- Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - M Guélin
- Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique, 300 rue de la Piscine, F-38406, St-Martin d'Hères, France
| | - P Encrenaz
- LERMA, Observatoire de Paris, 61 Av. de l'Observatoire, F-75014 Paris, France
| | - P García-Lario
- ESA. ESAC. P.O. Box 78, Villanueva de la Cañada E-28691 Madrid. Spain
| | - E de Beck
- Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Chalmers University of Technology, Onsala Space Observatory, SE 43992 Onsala, Sweden
| | - M J Barlow
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - M A T Groenewegen
- Koninklijke Sterrenwacht van België, Ringlaan 3, B-1180, Brussel, Belgium
| | - D Neufeld
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - J Pearson
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91109, USA
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Richards AMS, Davis RJ, Decin L, Etoka S, Harper GM, Lim JJ, Garrington ST, Gray MD, McDonald I, O’Gorman E, Wittkowski M. e-MERLIN resolves Betelgeuse at λ 5 cm: hotspots at 5 R⋆. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2013. [DOI: 10.1093/mnrasl/slt036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
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de Vries BL, Acke B, Blommaert JADL, Waelkens C, Waters LBFM, Vandenbussche B, Min M, Olofsson G, Dominik C, Decin L, Barlow MJ, Brandeker A, Di Francesco J, Glauser AM, Greaves J, Harvey PM, Holland WS, Ivison RJ, Liseau R, Pantin EE, Pilbratt GL, Royer P, Sibthorpe B. Comet-like mineralogy of olivine crystals in an extrasolar proto-Kuiper belt. Nature 2012; 490:74-6. [PMID: 23038467 DOI: 10.1038/nature11469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2011] [Accepted: 08/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Some planetary systems harbour debris disks containing planetesimals such as asteroids and comets. Collisions between such bodies produce small dust particles, the spectral features of which reveal their composition and, hence, that of their parent bodies. A measurement of the composition of olivine crystals (Mg(2-2x)Fe(2x)SiO(4)) has been done for the protoplanetary disk HD 100546 (refs 3, 4) and for olivine crystals in the warm inner parts of planetary systems. The latter compares well with the iron-rich olivine in asteroids (x ≈ 0.29). In the cold outskirts of the β Pictoris system, an analogue to the young Solar System, olivine crystals were detected but their composition remained undetermined, leaving unknown how the composition of the bulk of Solar System cometary olivine grains compares with that of extrasolar comets. Here we report the detection of the 69-micrometre-wavelength band of olivine crystals in the spectrum of β Pictoris. Because the disk is optically thin, we can associate the crystals with an extrasolar proto-Kuiper belt a distance of 15-45 astronomical units from the star (one astronomical unit is the Sun-Earth distance), determine their magnesium-rich composition (x = 0.01 ± 0.001) and show that they make up 3.6 ± 1.0 per cent of the total dust mass. These values are strikingly similar to those for the dust emitted by the most primitive comets in the Solar System, even though β Pictoris is more massive and more luminous and has a different planetary system architecture.
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Affiliation(s)
- B L de Vries
- Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, 3001 Leuven, Belgium.
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Decin L, Agúndez M, Barlow MJ, Daniel F, Cernicharo J, Lombaert R, De Beck E, Royer P, Vandenbussche B, Wesson R, Polehampton ET, Blommaert JADL, De Meester W, Exter K, Feuchtgruber H, Gear WK, Gomez HL, Groenewegen MAT, Guélin M, Hargrave PC, Huygen R, Imhof P, Ivison RJ, Jean C, Kahane C, Kerschbaum F, Leeks SJ, Lim T, Matsuura M, Olofsson G, Posch T, Regibo S, Savini G, Sibthorpe B, Swinyard BM, Yates JA, Waelkens C. Warm water vapour in the sooty outflow from a luminous carbon star. Nature 2010; 467:64-7. [PMID: 20811453 DOI: 10.1038/nature09344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2010] [Accepted: 07/07/2010] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The detection of circumstellar water vapour around the ageing carbon star IRC +10216 challenged the current understanding of chemistry in old stars, because water was predicted to be almost absent in carbon-rich stars. Several explanations for the water were postulated, including the vaporization of icy bodies (comets or dwarf planets) in orbit around the star, grain surface reactions, and photochemistry in the outer circumstellar envelope. With a single water line detected so far from this one carbon-rich evolved star, it is difficult to discriminate between the different mechanisms proposed. Here we report the detection of dozens of water vapour lines in the far-infrared and sub-millimetre spectrum of IRC +10216 using the Herschel satellite. This includes some high-excitation lines with energies corresponding to approximately 1,000 K, which can be explained only if water is present in the warm inner sooty region of the envelope. A plausible explanation for the warm water appears to be the penetration of ultraviolet photons deep into a clumpy circumstellar envelope. This mechanism also triggers the formation of other molecules, such as ammonia, whose observed abundances are much higher than hitherto predicted.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Decin
- Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, 3001 Leuven, Belgium.
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