How surfaces shape the climate of habitable exoplanets

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ABSTRACT

Large ground- and space-based telescopes will be able to observe Earth-like planets in the near future. We explore how different planetary surfaces can strongly influence the climate, atmospheric composition, and remotely detectable spectra of terrestrial rocky exoplanets in the habitable zone depending on the host star’s incident irradiation spectrum for a range of Sun-like host stars from F0V to K7V. We update a well-tested 1D climate-photochemistry model to explore the changes of a planetary environment for different surfaces for different host stars. Our results show that using a wavelength-dependent surface albedo is critical for modelling potentially habitable rocky exoplanets.

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Most cited references 61

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Mass-independent fractionation of sulfur isotopes in Archean sediments: strong evidence for an anoxic Archean atmosphere.

A. A. Pavlov, J. Kasting (2002)

Mass-independent fractionation (MIF) of sulfur isotopes has been reported in sediments of Archean and Early Proterozoic Age (> 2.3 Ga) but not in younger rocks. The only fractionation mechanism that is consistent with the data on all four sulfur isotopes involves atmospheric photochemical reactions such as SO2 photolysis. We have used a one-dimensional photochemical model to investigate how the isotopic fractionation produced during SO2 photolysis would have been transferred to other gaseous and particulate sulfur-bearing species in both low-O2 and high-O2 atmospheres. We show that in atmospheres with O2 concentrations or = 10(-5) PAL, all sulfur-bearing species would have passed through the oceanic sulfate reservoir before being incorporated into sediments, so any signature of MIF would have been lost. We conclude that the atmospheric O2 concentration must have been < 10(-5) PAL prior to 2.3 Ga.

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Habitable planets around the star Gliese 581?

F Selsis, J. Kasting, B Levrard … (2007)

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Remote Sensing of Planetary Properties and Biosignatures on Extrasolar Terrestrial Planets

David Des Marais, Martin O. Harwit, Kenneth W. Jucks … (2002)

The major goals of NASA's Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF) and the European Space Agency's Darwin missions are to detect terrestrial-sized extrasolar planets directly and to seek spectroscopic evidence of habitable conditions and life. Here we recommend wavelength ranges and spectral features for these missions. We assess known spectroscopic molecular band features of Earth, Venus, and Mars in the context of putative extrasolar analogs. The preferred wavelength ranges are 7-25 microns in the mid-IR and 0.5 to approximately 1.1 microns in the visible to near-IR. Detection of O2 or its photolytic product O3 merits highest priority. Liquid H2O is not a bioindicator, but it is considered essential to life. Substantial CO2 indicates an atmosphere and oxidation state typical of a terrestrial planet. Abundant CH4 might require a biological source, yet abundant CH4 also can arise from a crust and upper mantle more reduced than that of Earth. The range of characteristics of extrasolar rocky planets might far exceed that of the Solar System. Planetary size and mass are very important indicators of habitability and can be estimated in the mid-IR and potentially also in the visible to near-IR. Additional spectroscopic features merit study, for example, features created by other biosignature compounds in the atmosphere or on the surface and features due to Rayleigh scattering. In summary, we find that both the mid-IR and the visible to near-IR wavelength ranges offer valuable information regarding biosignatures and planetary properties; therefore both merit serious scientific consideration for TPF and Darwin.

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Author and article information

Journal

Title: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)

ISSN (Print): 0035-8711

ISSN (Electronic): 1365-2966

Publication date Created: June 2020

Publication date Created: June 11 2020

Publication date Other: June 2020

Publication date (Print): June 11 2020

Publication date (Electronic): February 11 2020

Volume: 495

Issue: 1

Pages: 1-11

Affiliations

[1 ]Astronomy and Space Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA

[2 ]Carl Sagan Institute, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA

Article

DOI: 10.1093/mnras/staa387

SO-VID: 36fa5b42-c0ed-42e2-97db-7f6b611a9240

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https://academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/funder_policies/chorus/standard_publication_model

How surfaces shape the climate of habitable exoplanets

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Most cited references 61

Mass-independent fractionation of sulfur isotopes in Archean sediments: strong evidence for an anoxic Archean atmosphere.

Habitable planets around the star Gliese 581?

Remote Sensing of Planetary Properties and Biosignatures on Extrasolar Terrestrial Planets

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