NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
Challenges in Discerning Atmospheric Composition in Directly Imaged PlanetsOne of the justifications motivating efforts to detect and characterize young extrasolar giant planets has been to measure atmospheric composition for comparison with that of the primary star. If the enhancement of heavy elements in the atmospheres of extrasolar giant planets, like it is for their solar system analogs, is inversely proportional to mass, then it is likely that these worlds formed by core accretion. However in practice it has been very difficult to constrain metallicity because of the complex effect of clouds. Cloud opacity varies both vertically and, in some cases, horizontally through the atmosphere. Particle size and composition, both of which impact opacity, are difficult challenges both for forward modeling and retrieval studies. In my presentation I will discuss systematic efforts to improve cloud studies to enable more reliable determinations of atmospheric composition. These efforts are relevant both to discerning composition of directly imaged young planets from ground based telescopes and future space based missions, such as WFIRST and LUVOIR.
Document ID
20170006528
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Marley, Mark S.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA United States)
Date Acquired
July 13, 2017
Publication Date
July 10, 2017
Subject Category
Astronomy
Report/Patent Number
ARC-E-DAA-TN41577
Meeting Information
Meeting: Exo-Frontiers 2017, Kavli Symposium on "Connecting Exoplanetary Atmospheres to their Formation Conditions"
Location: Cambridge
Country: United Kingdom
Start Date: July 10, 2017
End Date: July 12, 2017
Sponsors: Cambridge Univ.
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
Keywords
young extrasolar giant planets
core accretion
No Preview Available