The energy associated with giant impacts is large enough to generate global magma oceans during Earth's accretion. However, geochemical evidence requiring a terrestrial magma ocean is scarce. Here we present evidence for at least two separate magma ocean outgassing episodes on Earth based on the ratio of primordial 3He to 22Ne in the present-day mantle. We demonstrate that the depleted mantle 3He/22Ne ratio is at least 10 while a more primitive mantle reservoir has a 3He/22Ne ratio of 2.3 to 3. The 3He/22Ne ratios of the mantle reservoirs are higher than possible sources of terrestrial volatiles, including the solar nebula ratio of 1.5. Therefore, a planetary process must have raised the mantle's 3He/22Ne ratio. We show that long-term plate tectonic cycling is incapable of raising the mantle 3He/22Ne ratio and may even lower it. However, ingassing of a gravitationally accreted nebular atmosphere into a magma ocean on the proto-Earth explains the 3He/22Ne and 20Ne/22Ne ratios of the primitive mantle reservoir. Increasing the mantle 3He/22Ne ratio to a value of 10 in the depleted mantle requires at least two episodes of atmospheric blow-off and magma ocean outgassing associated with giant impacts during subsequent terrestrial accretion. The preservation of a low 3He/22Ne ratio in a primitive reservoir sampled by plumes suggests that the later giant impacts, including the Moon-forming giant impact, did not generate a whole mantle magma ocean. Atmospheric loss episodes associated with giant impacts provide an explanation for Earth's subchondritic C/H, N/H, and Cl/F elemental ratios while preserving chondritic isotopic ratios. If so, a significant proportion of terrestrial water and potentially other major volatiles were accreted prior to the last giant impact, otherwise the fractionated elemental ratios would have been overprinted by the late veneer.
Terrestrial planets with large water inventories are likely ubiquitous and will be among the first Earth-sized planets to be characterized with upcoming telescopes. It has previously been argued that waterworlds-particularly those possessing more than 1% H$_2$O-experience limited melt production and outgassing due to the immense pressure overburden of their overlying oceans, unless subject to high internal heating. But an additional, underappreciated obstacle to outgassing on waterworlds is the high solubility of volatiles in high-pressure melts. Here, we investigate this phenomenon and show t…
The magma ocean (MO) is a crucial stage in the build-up of terrestrial planets. Its solidification and the accompanying outgassing of volatiles set the conditions for important processes occurring later or even simultaneously, such as solid-state mantle convection and atmospheric escape. To constrain the duration of a global-scale Earth MO we have built and applied a 1D interior model coupled alternatively with a grey H2O/CO2 atmosphere or with a pure H2O atmosphere treated with a line-by-line model described in a companion paper by Katyal et al. (2019). We study in detail the effects of sever…
Massive steam and CO$_2$ atmospheres have been proposed for magma ocean outgassing of Earth and terrestrial planets. Yet formation of such atmospheres depends on volatile exchange with the molten interior, governed by volatile solubilities and redox reactions. We determine the evolution of magma ocean--atmosphere systems for a range of oxygen fugacities, C/H ratios and hydrogen budgets that include redox reactions for hydrogen (H$_2$--H$_2$O), carbon (CO--CO$_2$), methane (CH$_4$), and solubility laws for H$_2$O and CO$_2$. We find that small initial budgets of hydrogen, high C/H ratios, and o…
Planetary atmospheres are commonly thought to result from the efficient outgassing of cooling magma oceans. During this stage, vigorous convective motions in the molten interior are believed to rapidly transport the dissolved volatiles to shallow depths where they exsolve and burst at the surface. This assumption of efficient degassing and atmosphere formation has important implications for planetary evolution, but has never been tested against fluid dynamics considerations. Yet, during a convective cycle, only a finite fraction of the magma ocean can reach the shallow depths where volatiles e…
Volcanic gases supplied a large part of Earth's early atmosphere, but constraints on their flux are scarce. Here we model how C-O-H outgassing could have evolved through the late Hadean and early Archean, under the conditions that global plate tectonics had not yet initiated, all outgassing was subaerial, and graphite was the stable carbon phase in the melt source regions. The model fully couples numerical mantle convection, partitioning of volatiles into the melt, and chemical speciation in the gas phase. The mantle oxidation state (which may not have reached late Archean values in the Hadean…
The magma ocean period was a critical phase determining how Earth atmosphere developed into habitability. However there are major uncertainties in the role of key processes such as outgassing from the planetary interior and escape of species to space that play a major role in determining the atmosphere of early Earth. We investigate the influence of outgassing of various species and escape of H$_2$ for different mantle redox states upon the composition and evolution of the atmosphere for the magma ocean period. We include an important new atmosphere-interior coupling mechanism namely the redox…
Atmospheric evolution through outgassing and escape on young molten rocky exoplanets
Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen（格罗宁根大学卡普坦天文研究所）；Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge（剑桥大学天文学研究所）；Atmospheric Oceanic and Planetary Physics, University of Oxford（牛津大学大气海洋与行星物理系）；Netherlands eScience Center（荷兰电子科学中心）；Interuniversity Micro Electronics Centre（大学微电子中心）；Space Research Organisation Netherlands（荷兰太空研究组织）
Low-mass M stars are plentiful in the Universe and often host small, rocky planets detectable with the current instrumentation. Recently, seven small planets have been discovered orbiting the ultracool dwarf TRAPPIST-1\cite{Gillon16,Gillon17}. We examine the role of electromagnetic induction heating of these planets, caused by the star's rotation and the planet's orbital motion. If the stellar rotation and magnetic dipole axes are inclined with respect to each other, induction heating can melt the upper mantle and enormously increase volcanic activity, sometimes producing a magma ocean below t…
Many of the confirmed short period super-Earths and smaller sub-Neptunes are sufficiently irradiated for the surface silicates to be sustained in a long-lasting molten state. While there is no direct evidence of magma ocean influence on exoplanets, theory suggests that due to outgassing and diverse evolution paths, a wide range of resulting atmospheric compositions should be possible. Atmospheric contamination caused by the outgassing of the underlying magma ocean is potentially detectable using low resolution spectroscopy. The James Webb Space Telescope provides the necessary spectral coverag…
The evolution of Earth's early atmosphere and the emergence of habitable conditions on our planet are intricately coupled with the development and duration of the magma ocean phase during the early Hadean period (4 to 4.5 Ga). In this paper, we deal with the evolution of the steam atmosphere during the magma ocean period. We obtain the outgoing longwave radiation using a line-by-line radiative transfer code GARLIC. Our study suggests that an atmosphere consisting of pure H$_{2}$O, built as a result of outgassing extends the magma ocean lifetime to several million years. The thermal emission as…
During accretion, the young rocky planets are so hot that they become endowed with a magma ocean. From that moment, the mantle convective thermal flux control the cooling of the planet and an atmosphere is created by outgassing. This atmosphere will then play a key role during this cooling phase. Studying this cooling phase in details is a necessary step to explain the great diversity of the observed telluric planets and especially to assess the presence of surface liquid water. We used here a radiative-convective 1D atmospheric model (H2O, CO2) to study the impact of the Bond albedo on the ev…
Here we discuss the current state of knowledge on how atmospheric escape processes can fractionate noble gas isotopes and moderately volatile rock-forming elements that populate primordial atmospheres, magma ocean related environments, and catastrophically outgassed steam atmospheres. Variations of isotopes and volatile elements in different planetary reservoirs keep information about atmospheric escape, composition and even the source of accreting material. We summarize our knowledge on atmospheric isotope ratios and discuss the latest evidence that proto-Venus and Earth captured small H$_2$-…
Volatile molecules containing hydrogen, carbon, and nitrogen are key components of planetary atmospheres. In the pebble accretion model for rocky planet formation, these volatile species are accreted during the main planetary formation phase. For this study, we modelled the partitioning of volatiles within a growing planet and the outgassing to the surface. The core stores more than 90\% of the hydrogen and carbon budgets of Earth for realistic values of the partition coefficients of H and C between metal and silicate melts. The magma oceans of Earth and Venus are sufficiently deep to undergo …
The Moon-forming giant impact extensively melts and partially vaporizes the silicate Earth and delivers a substantial mass of metal to Earth's core. Subsequent evolution of the magma ocean and overlying atmosphere has been described by theoretical models but observable constraints on this epoch have proved elusive. Here, we report calculations of the primordial atmosphere during the magma ocean and water ocean epochs and forge new links with observations to gain insight into the behavior of volatiles on the early Earth. As Earth's magma ocean crystallizes, it outgasses the bulk of the volatile…
A terrestrial planet is molten during formation and may remain so if subject to intense insolation or tidal forces. Observations continue to favour the detection and characterisation of hot planets, potentially with large outgassed atmospheres. We aim to determine the radius of hot Earth-like planets with large outgassed atmospheres and explore differences between molten and solid silicate planets and their influence on the mass-radius relationship and transmission and emission spectra. An interior-atmosphere model, combined with static structure calculations, tracks the evolving radius of a r…
We report the detection of an atmosphere on a rocky exoplanet, GJ 1132 b, which is similar to Earth in terms of size and density. The atmospheric transmission spectrum was detected using Hubble WFC3 measurements and shows spectral signatures of aerosol scattering, HCN, and CH$_{4}$ in a low mean molecular weight atmosphere. We model the atmospheric loss process and conclude that GJ 1132 b likely lost the original H/He envelope, suggesting that the atmosphere that we detect has been reestablished. We explore the possibility of H$_{2}$ mantle degassing, previously identified as a possibility for…
Planetary embryos form protoplanets via mutual collisions, which can lead to the development of magma oceans. During their solidification, large amounts of the mantles' volatile contents may be outgassed. The resulting H$_2$O/CO$_2$ dominated steam atmospheres may be lost efficiently via hydrodynamic escape due to the low gravity and the high stellar EUV luminosities. Protoplanets forming later from such degassed building blocks could therefore be drier than previously expected. We model the outgassing and subsequent hydrodynamic escape of steam atmospheres from such embryos. The efficient out…
Hydrogen in rocky planet atmospheres has been invoked in arguments for extending the habitable zone via N2-H2 and CO2-H2 greenhouse warming, and providing atmospheric conditions suitable for efficient production of prebiotic molecules. On Earth and Super-Earth-sized bodies, where H2-rich primordial envelopes are quickly lost to space, volcanic outgassing can act as a hydrogen source, provided it balances with the loss rate from the top of the atmosphere. Here, we show that both Earth-like and Mars-like planets can sustain atmospheric H2 fractions of several percent across relevant magmatic fO2…
The deuterium-to-hydrogen (D/H or 2H/1H) ratio of Martian atmospheric water (~6x standard mean ocean water, SMOW) is higher than that of known sources, requiring planetary enrichment. A recent measurement by NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity of >3 Gyr clays yields a D/H ratio ~3x SMOW, demonstrating that most enrichment occurs early in Mars's history. As on Venus, Mars's D/H enrichment is thought to reflect preferential loss to space of 1H (protium) relative to 2H (deuterium), but the global environmental context of large and early hydrogen losses remain to be determined. Here, we…
MESSENGER observations suggest a magma ocean formed on proto-Mercury, during which evaporation of metals and outgassing of C- and H-bearing volatiles produced an early atmosphere. Atmospheric escape subsequently occurred by plasma heating, photoevaporation, Jeans escape, and photoionization. To quantify atmospheric loss, we combine constraints on the lifetime of surficial melt, melt composition, and atmospheric composition. Consideration of two initial Mercury sizes and four magma ocean compositions determine the atmospheric speciation at a given surface temperature. A coupled interior-atmosph…
Mantle Convection and Nightside Volcanism on Lava World K2-141 b
University of Oxford（牛津大学）；Bayerisches Geoinstitut, University of Bayreuth（拜罗伊特大学巴伐利亚地球研究所）；Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen（格罗宁根大学卡普坦天文研究所）；Institute of Geophysics, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, ETH Zurich（苏黎世联邦理工学院地球与行星科学系地球物理研究所）；School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds（利兹大学物理与天文学学院）
Low-mass low-density planets discovered by Kepler in the super-Earth mass regime typically have large radii for their inferred masses, implying the presence of H$_2$-He atmospheres. These planets are vulnerable to atmospheric mass loss due to heating by the parent star's XUV flux. Models coupling atmospheric mass loss with thermal evolution predicted a bimodal distribution of planetary radii, which has gained observational support. However, a key component that has been ignored in previous studies is the dissolution of these gases into the molten core of rock and iron that constitute most of t…
The earliest atmospheres of rocky planets originate from extensive volatile release during magma ocean epochs that occur during assembly of the planet. These establish the initial distribution of the major volatile elements between different chemical reservoirs that subsequently evolve via geological cycles. Current theoretical techniques are limited in exploring the anticipated range of compositional and thermal scenarios of early planetary evolution, even though these are of prime importance to aid astronomical inferences on the environmental context and geological history of extrasolar plan…
The initial abundance of radioactive heat producing isotopes in the interior of a terrestrial planet are important drivers of its thermal evolution and the related tectonics and possible evolution to an Earth-like habitat. The moderately volatile element K can be outgassed from a magma ocean into H$_2$-dominated primordial atmospheres of protoplanets with assumed masses between 0.55-1.0$ M_{\rm Earth}$ at the time when the gas disk evaporated. We estimate this outgassing and let these planets grow through impacts of depleted and non-depleted material that resembles the same $^{40}$K abundance …
Coupled atmospHere Interior modeL Intercomparison (CHILI). I. Evolutionary Modelling -- Primordial Magma Oceans of Earth and Venus
Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge（剑桥大学天文学研究所）；University of Washington（华盛顿大学）；Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen（格罗宁根大学卡普坦天文研究所）；Stanford University（斯坦福大学）；National Astronomical Observatory of Japan（日本国立天文台）；Laboratoire de Mathématiques de Versailles（凡尔赛数学实验室）；Université Paris Cité, Institut de physique du globe de Paris, CNRS（巴黎西岱大学，巴黎地球物理学院，法国国家科学研究中心）；University of Central Florida（中佛罗里达大学）；Johns Hopkins University（约翰斯·霍普金斯大学）；SRON Netherlands Research Organisation（荷兰研究组织SRON）；Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden（莱顿大学莱登天文台）；School of Physics, University of Bristol（布里斯托大学物理学院）；Institut für Geologische Wissenschaften, Freie Universität Berlin（柏林自由大学地质科学研究所）
Coupled atmospHere Interior modeL Intercomparison (CHILI) Protocol Version 1.0: A CUISINES Intercomparison Project of Magma Ocean Models
Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen（格罗宁根大学卡佩因天文研究所）；Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Stanford University（斯坦福大学地球与行星科学系）；Department of Earth and Space Sciences / Astrobiology Program, University of Washington（华盛顿大学地球与空间科学系/天体生物学项目）；Leiden Observatory（莱顿天文台）；SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research（荷兰空间研究研究所）；School of Physics, University of Bristol（布里斯托尔大学物理学院）；Department of Earth Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin（柏林自由大学地球科学系）；Harvard Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences（哈佛保罗森工程与应用科学学院）；Department of Physics, McGill University（麦吉尔大学物理系）
The disequilibrium combination of abundant methane and carbon dioxide has been proposed as a promising exoplanet biosignature that is readily detectable with upcoming telescopes such as the James Webb Space Telescope. However, few studies have explored the possibility of non-biological CH4 and CO2 and related contextual clues. Here, we investigate whether magmatic volcanic outgassing on terrestrial planets can produce atmospheric CH4 and CO2 with a thermodynamic model. Our model suggests that volcanoes are unlikely to produce CH4 fluxes comparable to biological fluxes. Improbable cases where v…
Aims: The secondary atmospheres of terrestrial planets form and evolve as a consequence of interaction with the interior over geological time. We aim to quantify the influence of planetary bulk composition on the interior--atmosphere evolution for Earth-sized terrestrial planets to aid in the interpretation of future observations of terrestrial exoplanet atmospheres. Methods: We used a geochemical model to determine the major-element composition of planetary interiors (MgO, FeO, and SiO2) following the crystallization of a magma ocean after planet formation, predicting a compositional profile …
