Spectral slopes in optical transmission spectra of exoplanetary atmospheres encapsulate information on the properties of exotic clouds. The slope is usually attributed to the Rayleigh scattering caused by tiny aerosol particles, whereas recent retrieval studies have suggested that the slopes are often steeper than the canonical Rayleigh slopes. Here, we propose that photochemical haze formed in vigorously mixing atmospheres can explain such super-Rayleigh slopes. We first analytically show that the spectral slope can be steepened by the vertical opacity gradient in which atmospheric opacity increases with altitude. Using a microphysical model, we demonstrate that such opacity gradient can be naturally generated by photochemical haze, especially when the eddy mixing is substantially efficient. The transmission spectra of hazy atmospheres can be demarcated into four typical regimes in terms of the haze mass flux and eddy diffusion coefficient. We find that the transmission spectrum can have the spectral slope 2--4 times steeper than the Rayleigh slope if the eddy diffusion coefficient is sufficiently high and the haze mass flux falls into a moderate value. Based on the eddy diffusion coefficient suggested by a recent study of atmospheric circulations, we suggest that photochemical haze preferentially generates super-Rayleigh slopes at planets with equilibrium temperature of 1000--1500 K, which might be consistent with results of recent retrieval studies. Our results would help to interpret the observations of spectral slopes from the perspective of haze formation.
Constraints on the Microphysics of Pluto's Photochemical Haze from New Horizons Observations
新视野号飞越冥王星证实了其大气层中存在薄雾。观测到的高相亮度与低相亮度之比很大,再加上霾的蓝色,表明霾粒子是分形聚集体,类似于土卫六上的光化学霾。因此,研究冥王星的薄雾可以揭示冥王星和泰坦大气之间的相似性和差异。我们使用社区气溶胶和大气辐射模型来模拟雾霾分布,假设分布是由来自光化学的颗粒的沉降和凝聚形成的。被认为是由纯粹的球形和纯粹的分形聚集体颗粒的霾。当光化学产物的向下通量等于柱积分甲烷破坏率~1.2 $\times$ 10 $^{-14}$ g cm $^{-2}$ s $^{-1}$时,模型结果与掩星观测结果之间的一致性可通过聚集粒子获得,而对于球形粒子,质量通量必须大2-3倍。这一通量几乎与以前通过将微物理模型结果与卡西尼号观测结果进行比较而获得的土卫六的霾产生通量相同。根据前向散射测量,聚集体粒子半径对粒子带电很敏感,粒子荷径比为30 e-/μm是在冥王星表面附近产生约0.1-0.2 μm聚集体所必需的。这样的粒子荷径比以前在土卫六上获得的粒子荷径比高2-4倍。由具有相同粒子荷径比的球体组成的雾具有小4倍的粒子。这些结果进一步表明,烟雾颗粒是分形聚集体。我们还考虑了HCN和C $_{2}$ -碳氢化合物的凝结对霾颗粒的影响,这可能在形成它们的分布中起重要作用。
Refractive indices of photochemical haze analogs for Solar System and exoplanet applications : a cross-laboratory comparative study between the PAMPRE and COSmIC experimental set-ups
Three dimensional temporal evolution of photochemical haze in exoplanet atmospheres I. Description and test application to HD 189733b
Center for Space and Habitability, University of Bern(伯尔尼大学太空与宜居性中心);University of Chicago(芝加哥大学);National Astronomical Observatory of Japan(日本国立天文台);University of California, Santa Cruz(加州大学圣克鲁兹分校)
Flow-Driven Limb-Asymmetry of Haze Distribution Part I: An Analytical Framework for Predicting the Size Distribution of Photochemical Hazes Across the Two Limbs of hot-Jupiters
University of Oxford(牛津大学);University of Exeter(埃克塞特大学);Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学)
Optical Constants of Photochemical Haze Analogs in N2-CH4-CO Atmospheres from 0.4 to 28.6 μm
National Key Laboratory of Deep Space Exploration/School of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China(中国科学技术大学地球与空间科学学院深空探测重点实验室);Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学地球与行星科学系);Space Telescope Science Institute(太空望远镜科学研究所)
The atmosphere of K2-18 b: The role of hazes, clouds and photoelectrons
Université Reims Champagne Ardenne(兰斯香槟阿登大学);Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, UMR CNRS 7095(巴黎天体物理研究所);University College London(伦敦大学学院);King’s College London(伦敦国王学院);Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, CY Cergy Paris Université, CNRS(巴黎天文台)
Seasonal Variability of Pluto's Haze Formation Revealed by Laboratory Simulations
University of Science and Technology of China(中国科学技术大学);Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学);Space Telescope Science Institute(太空望远镜科学研究所);NASA Goddard Space Flight Center(美国宇航局戈达德太空飞行中心);Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG(格勒诺布尔阿尔卑斯大学,法国国家科学研究中心,IPAG);Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学材料科学与工程系)
Chemistry of Temperate Super-Earth and Mini-Neptune Atmospheric Hazes from Laboratory Experiments
很少有实验工作来探索在与外太阳系或早期地球的大气成分或温度非常不同的大气中形成的光化学烟雾的性质。随着太阳系外行星的发现数量达到数千,这个未开发的相空间值得探索。这项研究提出了测量的化学性质的烟雾颗粒产生的实验室模拟系外行星大气。我们使用甚高分辨率质谱仪测量大气室实验中产生的固体颗粒的化学成分。检测到许多复杂的分子种类,其化学通式为C $_w$ H $_x$ N $_y$ O $_z$。我们检测的数据,包括单糖甘油醛,各种氨基酸和核苷酸碱基,和几个糖衍生物的分子式的益生元的利益。此外,实验性的系外行星霾类似物表现出不同的溶解度特性,这为进一步了解超级地球和迷你海王星大气中光化学霾的化学或物理变化的可能性提供了见解。这些系外行星模拟粒子可以帮助我们更好地了解化学大气过程,并提出遥远世界原位大气生物前化学的可能来源。
Hydrolyzed Hazes on Water-rich Exoplanets: Optical Constants and Detectability
Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学);NASA Goddard Space Flight Center(美国宇航局戈达德太空飞行中心);Space Telescope Science Institute(空间望远镜科学研究所);University of Science and Technology of China(中国科学技术大学);Univ. Grenoble Alpes(格勒诺布尔阿尔卑斯大学)
我们使用1D模型来解决光化学和可能的烟雾形成的照射温暖的木星,51波江座b。本计划的重点是碳,但硫的光化学结果是重要的。有机光化学烟雾的情况是有趣的,但缺乏令人信服的。如果有机烟雾形成,如果51 Eri b的垂直混合比木星弱,它们最有可能这样做,并且它们将在甲烷和水光解的高度以下被发现。更新颖的结果是,光化学将H $_2$ S转化为元素硫,在此处理为S $_8$。在较冷的模型中,S $_8$预计会凝结成固体硫颗粒的光学厚云,而在较暖的模型中,S $_8$与其他几种硫同素异形体一起保持蒸汽状态,这些硫同素异形体在视觉上引人注目,并且可能是可观察的。对于51 Eri b,有和没有冷凝硫的模型之间的分界线是在700 K的有效温度,这是在其实际有效温度的误差范围内;硫冷凝的局部温度在280和320 K之间。我们讨论的硫光化学反应非常普遍,应该在广泛的温度范围内的各种世界中发现,无论是比这里研究的650-750 K范围更冷还是更热,我们表明硫光化学反应的产物在紫外线辐射比51 Eri b弱几个数量级的行星上几乎同样丰富。
Ultraviolet Radiation Effects on the Optical Properties of Water-Dominated Exoplanet Hazes
University of Arizona(亚利桑那大学);Space Telescope Science Institute(太空望远镜科学研究所);Jet Propulsion Laboratory(喷气推进实验室);University of Science and Technology of China(中国科学技术大学);Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学);Planetary Science Institute(行星科学研究所);Cornell University(康奈尔大学)
Wet Removal and Cloud Enhancement: The Microphysics of Cloud-Haze Interactions on Sub-Neptunes
Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, the University of Chicago(芝加哥大学天文与天体物理系);Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany(马克斯·普朗克天文研究所);Earth & Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, 5241 Broad Branch Road NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA(卡内基科学研究所地球与行星实验室)
Piercing through the Haze: Characterizing Titan-like terrestrial exoplanets with JWST
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学应用物理实验室);University of Wyoming, School of Computing(怀俄明大学计算机学院);NASA Goddard Space Flight Center(美国宇航局戈达德太空飞行中心);NASA Ames Research Center(美国宇航局艾姆斯研究中心);Bay Area Environmental Research Institute(湾区环境研究所)
Detectable molecular features above hydrocarbon haze via transmission spectroscopy with JWST: Case studies of GJ 1214b-, GJ 436b-, HD 97658b-, and Kepler-51b-like planets
Cloudy mornings and clear evenings on a gas giant exoplanet
Johns Hopkins University(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学);University of California, Santa Cruz(加州大学圣克鲁兹分校);Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory(约翰斯·霍普金斯大学应用物理实验室);University of Exeter(埃克塞特大学);University of Oxford(牛津大学);Max Planck Institute for Astronomy(马克斯·普朗克天文学研究所)