Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission
More than a thousand exoplanets have been discovered over the last decade. Perhaps more excitingly, probing their atmospheres has become possible. With current data we have glimpsed the diversity of exoplanet atmospheres that will be revealed over the coming decade. However, numerous questions conce...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer Netherlands
2016
|
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/105780 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2415-2191 |
| _version_ | 1826202764693209088 |
|---|---|
| author | Parmentier, Vivien Showman, Adam P. de Wit, Julien |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences Parmentier, Vivien Showman, Adam P. de Wit, Julien |
| author_sort | Parmentier, Vivien |
| collection | MIT |
| description | More than a thousand exoplanets have been discovered over the last decade. Perhaps more excitingly, probing their atmospheres has become possible. With current data we have glimpsed the diversity of exoplanet atmospheres that will be revealed over the coming decade. However, numerous questions concerning their chemical composition, thermal structure, and atmospheric dynamics remain to be answered. More observations of higher quality are needed. In the next years, the selection of a space-based mission dedicated to the spectroscopic characterization of exoplanets would revolutionize our understanding of the physics of planetary atmospheres. Such a mission was proposed to the ESA cosmic vision program in 2014. Our paper is therefore based on the planned capabilities of the Exoplanet Characterization Observatory (EChO), but it should equally apply to any future mission with similar characteristics. With its large spectral coverage (0.4 − 16 μm), high spectral resolution (λ/Δλ > 300 below 5 μm and λ/Δλ > 30 above 5 μm) and 1.5m mirror, a future mission such as EChO will provide spectrally resolved transit lightcurves, secondary eclipses lightcurves, and full phase curves of numerous exoplanets with an unprecedented signal-to-noise ratio. In this paper, we review some of today’s main scientific questions about gas giant exoplanets atmospheres, for which a future mission such as EChO will bring a decisive contribution. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T12:16:59Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/105780 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T12:16:59Z |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publisher | Springer Netherlands |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/1057802022-09-28T00:56:28Z Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission Parmentier, Vivien Showman, Adam P. de Wit, Julien Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences de Wit, Julien More than a thousand exoplanets have been discovered over the last decade. Perhaps more excitingly, probing their atmospheres has become possible. With current data we have glimpsed the diversity of exoplanet atmospheres that will be revealed over the coming decade. However, numerous questions concerning their chemical composition, thermal structure, and atmospheric dynamics remain to be answered. More observations of higher quality are needed. In the next years, the selection of a space-based mission dedicated to the spectroscopic characterization of exoplanets would revolutionize our understanding of the physics of planetary atmospheres. Such a mission was proposed to the ESA cosmic vision program in 2014. Our paper is therefore based on the planned capabilities of the Exoplanet Characterization Observatory (EChO), but it should equally apply to any future mission with similar characteristics. With its large spectral coverage (0.4 − 16 μm), high spectral resolution (λ/Δλ > 300 below 5 μm and λ/Δλ > 30 above 5 μm) and 1.5m mirror, a future mission such as EChO will provide spectrally resolved transit lightcurves, secondary eclipses lightcurves, and full phase curves of numerous exoplanets with an unprecedented signal-to-noise ratio. In this paper, we review some of today’s main scientific questions about gas giant exoplanets atmospheres, for which a future mission such as EChO will bring a decisive contribution. 2016-12-09T18:38:56Z 2016-12-09T18:38:56Z 2014-05 2014-01 2016-08-18T15:19:47Z Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 0922-6435 1572-9508 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/105780 Parmentier, Vivien, Adam P. Showman, and Julien de Wit. “Unveiling the Atmospheres of Giant Exoplanets with an EChO-Class Mission.” Exp Astron 40, no. 2–3 (May 30, 2014): 481–500. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2415-2191 en http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10686-014-9395-0 Experimental Astronomy Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht application/pdf Springer Netherlands Springer Netherlands |
| spellingShingle | Parmentier, Vivien Showman, Adam P. de Wit, Julien Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission |
| title | Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission |
| title_full | Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission |
| title_fullStr | Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission |
| title_full_unstemmed | Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission |
| title_short | Unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an EChO-class mission |
| title_sort | unveiling the atmospheres of giant exoplanets with an echo class mission |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/105780 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2415-2191 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT parmentiervivien unveilingtheatmospheresofgiantexoplanetswithanechoclassmission AT showmanadamp unveilingtheatmospheresofgiantexoplanetswithanechoclassmission AT dewitjulien unveilingtheatmospheresofgiantexoplanetswithanechoclassmission |