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Lothringer JD, Sing DK, Rustamkulov Z, Wakeford HR, Stevenson KB, Nikolov N, Lavvas P, Spake JJ, Winch AT. UV absorption by silicate cloud precursors in ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-178b. Nature 2022; 604:49-52. [PMID: 35388193 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-04453-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Aerosols have been found to be nearly ubiquitous in substellar atmospheres1-3. The precise temperature at which these aerosols begin to form in exoplanets has yet to be observationally constrained. Theoretical models and observations of muted spectral features indicate that silicate clouds play an important role in exoplanets between at least 950 and 2,100 K (ref. 4). Some giant planets, however, are thought to be hot enough to avoid condensation altogether5,6. Here we report the near-ultraviolet transmission spectrum of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-178b (approximately 2,450 K), which exhibits substantial absorption. Bayesian retrievals indicate the presence of gaseous refractory species containing silicon and magnesium, which are the precursors to condensate clouds at lower temperatures. SiO, in particular, has not previously, to our knowledge, been detected in exoplanets, but the presence of SiO in WASP-178b is consistent with theoretical expectations as the dominant Si-bearing species at high temperatures. These observations allow us to re-interpret previous observations of HAT-P-41b and WASP-121b that did not consider SiO, to suggest that silicate cloud formation begins on exoplanets with equilibrium temperatures between 1,950 and 2,450 K.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua D Lothringer
- Department of Physics, Utah Valley University, Orem, UT, USA. .,Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - David K Sing
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA. .,Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - Zafar Rustamkulov
- Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hannah R Wakeford
- School of Physics, University of Bristol, HH Wills Physics Laboratory, Bristol, UK
| | - Kevin B Stevenson
- Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.,Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD, USA
| | | | - Panayotis Lavvas
- Groupe de Spectrométrie Moléculaire et Atmosphérique, Université de Reims, Champagne-Ardenne, CNRS UMR F-7331, Reims, France
| | - Jessica J Spake
- Department of Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Autumn T Winch
- Department of Physics, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA, USA
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Coustenis A, Jennings DE, Achterberg RK, Bampasidis G, Nixon CA, Lavvas P, Cottini V, Flasar FM. SEASONAL EVOLUTION OF TITAN'S STRATOSPHERE NEAR THE POLES. Astrophys J Lett 2018; 854:L30. [PMID: 32373309 PMCID: PMC7199715 DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/aaadbd] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
In this paper we report the monitoring of seasonal evolution near Titan's poles. We find Titan's south pole to exhibit since 2010 a strong temperature decrease and a dramatic enhancement of several trace species such as complex hydrocarbons and nitriles (HC3N and C6H6 in particular) previously only observed at high northern latitudes (Coustenis et al. 2016 and references therein). This results from the seasonal change on Titan going from winter (2002) to summer (2017) in the north and, at the same time, the onset of winter in the south pole. During this transition period atmospheric components with longer chemical lifetimes linger in the north undergoing slow photochemical destruction, while those with shorter lifetimes decrease and reappear in the south. An opposite effect was expected in the north, but not observed with certainty until now. We present here an analysis of high-resolution nadir spectra acquired by Cassini/CIRS at in the past years and describe the temperature and composition variations near Titan's poles. From 2013 until 2016, the northern polar region has shown a temperature increase of 10 K, while the south has shown a more significant decrease (up to 25 K) in a similar period of time. While the south polar region is continuously enhanced since about 2012, the chemical content in the north is finally showing a clear depletion for most molecules only since 2015. This is indicative of a non-symmetrical response to the seasons in Titan's stratosphere that can set constraints on photochemical and GCM models.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Coustenis
- Laboratoire d'Etudes Spatiales et d'Instrumentation en Astrophysique (LESIA), Observatoire de Paris, CNRS, UPMC Univ. Paris 06, Univ. Paris-Diderot, 5, place Jules Janssen, 92195 Meudon Cedex, France
| | - D E Jennings
- Planetary Systems Laboratory, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - R K Achterberg
- Planetary Systems Laboratory, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - G Bampasidis
- Faculty of Physics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, 15783 Zographos, Athens, Greece
| | - C A Nixon
- Planetary Systems Laboratory, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - P Lavvas
- GSMA, Reims Champagne-Ardenne, 51687 Reims, France
| | - V Cottini
- Planetary Systems Laboratory, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - F M Flasar
- Planetary Systems Laboratory, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
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Gladstone GR, Stern SA, Ennico K, Olkin CB, Weaver HA, Young LA, Summers ME, Strobel DF, Hinson DP, Kammer JA, Parker AH, Steffl AJ, Linscott IR, Parker JW, Cheng AF, Slater DC, Versteeg MH, Greathouse TK, Retherford KD, Throop H, Cunningham NJ, Woods WW, Singer KN, Tsang CCC, Schindhelm E, Lisse CM, Wong ML, Yung YL, Zhu X, Curdt W, Lavvas P, Young EF, Tyler GL, Bagenal F, Grundy WM, McKinnon WB, Moore JM, Spencer JR, Andert T, Andrews J, Banks M, Bauer B, Bauman J, Barnouin OS, Bedini P, Beisser K, Beyer RA, Bhaskaran S, Binzel RP, Birath E, Bird M, Bogan DJ, Bowman A, Bray VJ, Brozovic M, Bryan C, Buckley MR, Buie MW, Buratti BJ, Bushman SS, Calloway A, Carcich B, Conard S, Conrad CA, Cook JC, Cruikshank DP, Custodio OS, Ore CMD, Deboy C, Dischner ZJB, Dumont P, Earle AM, Elliott HA, Ercol J, Ernst CM, Finley T, Flanigan SH, Fountain G, Freeze MJ, Green JL, Guo Y, Hahn M, Hamilton DP, Hamilton SA, Hanley J, Harch A, Hart HM, Hersman CB, Hill A, Hill ME, Holdridge ME, Horanyi M, Howard AD, Howett CJA, Jackman C, Jacobson RA, Jennings DE, Kang HK, Kaufmann DE, Kollmann P, Krimigis SM, Kusnierkiewicz D, Lauer TR, Lee JE, Lindstrom KL, Lunsford AW, Mallder VA, Martin N, McComas DJ, McNutt RL, Mehoke D, Mehoke T, Melin ED, Mutchler M, Nelson D, Nimmo F, Nunez JI, Ocampo A, Owen WM, Paetzold M, Page B, Pelletier F, Peterson J, Pinkine N, Piquette M, Porter SB, Protopapa S, Redfern J, Reitsema HJ, Reuter DC, Roberts JH, Robbins SJ, Rogers G, Rose D, Runyon K, Ryschkewitsch MG, Schenk P, Sepan B, Showalter MR, Soluri M, Stanbridge D, Stryk T, Szalay JR, Tapley M, Taylor A, Taylor H, Umurhan OM, Verbiscer AJ, Versteeg MH, Vincent M, Webbert R, Weidner S, Weigle GE, White OL, Whittenburg K, Williams BG, Williams K, Williams S, Zangari AM, Zirnstein E. The atmosphere of Pluto as observed by New Horizons. Science 2016; 351:aad8866. [PMID: 26989258 DOI: 10.1126/science.aad8866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 179] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- G. Randall Gladstone
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
- University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - S. Alan Stern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - Kimberly Ennico
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | | | - Harold A. Weaver
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | | | | | - David P. Hinson
- Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Andrew F. Cheng
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | | | | | - Kurt D. Retherford
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
- University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - Henry Throop
- The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Carey M. Lisse
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - Yuk L. Yung
- California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - Xun Zhu
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - Werner Curdt
- Max-Planck-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, 37191 Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany
| | - Panayotis Lavvas
- Groupe de Spectroscopie Moléculaire et Atmosphérique, Université Reims Champagne-Ardenne, 51687 Reims, France
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Thissen R, Vuitton V, Lavvas P, Lemaire J, Dehon C, Dutuit O, Smith MA, Turchini S, Catone D, Yelle RV, Pernot P, Somogyi A, Coreno M. Laboratory Studies of Molecular Growth in the Titan Ionosphere. J Phys Chem A 2009; 113:11211-20. [DOI: 10.1021/jp9050353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Roland Thissen
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Veronique Vuitton
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Panayotis Lavvas
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Joel Lemaire
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Christophe Dehon
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Odile Dutuit
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Mark A. Smith
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Stefano Turchini
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Daniele Catone
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Roger V. Yelle
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Pascal Pernot
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Arpad Somogyi
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
| | - Marcello Coreno
- Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS, Université J. Fourier, UMR 5109, Grenoble, France, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, UMR 8000, Orsay, France, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, CNR-ISM, Roma, Italy, and CNR-IMIP & INFM-TASC, Elettra Sincrotrone, Trieste, Italy
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