Water vapour in the atmosphere of a transiting extrasolar planet

Tinetti, Giovanna; Vidal‐Madjar, A.; Liang, Mao‐Chang; Beaulieu, J. P.; Yung, Yuk L.; Carey, Sean; Barber, R. J.; Tennyson, Jonathan; Ribas, I.; Allard, N. F.; Ballester, G. E.; Sing, David K.; Selsis, F.

doi:10.1038/nature06002

Cited by 512 publications

(452 citation statements)

References 31 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

437

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Even more exciting is that the first planets are now being discovered within the habitable zones around other nearby, Sun-like stars (e.g., Selsis et al, 2007;von Bloh et al, 2007). Water vapor and water ice are now being detected in circumstellar disks and even the atmospheres of some exoplanets (e.g., Watson et al, 2007;Tinetti et al, 2007). The study of water in exoplanets and of the nature of extrasolar habitable zones is just beginning.…”

Section: Habitable Zones and Water On Other Planetsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water on Planets

Bell

2009

Proc. IAU

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract.Water is an abundant molecule in the Cosmos. It has exploitable and unique spectroscopic and physical properties and has been found to be ubiquitous in places that we would expect in the standard model of solar system formation and nebular condensation: beyond the snow line in outer solar system planets, moons, asteroids, and comets. However, water is also an important constituent of planetary bodies (dominating at least one of their surfaces) in the inner solar system, likely indicating significant mixing between inner and outer solar system reservoirs of water during planetary accretion and the early history of the solar system. Water has played a critical role in the differential evolution of the terrestrial planets Venus, Earth, and Mars, and the concept of the "habitable zone" where liquid water could be stable on an Earth-like planet provides a starting point for assessing the habitability of worlds in our solar system and beyond. Examples of potentially habitable environments outside this zone in our own solar system warn us that this concept should only be a guide, however-important exceptions will no doubt occur. Recent discoveries of past liquid water and abundant present subsurface ice on Mars, of water reservoirs in unexpected places like the poles of Mercury and the Moon and the subsurface of Enceladus, of water in circumstellar disks and in the atmospheres of extrasolar planets, and the expectation of the discovery of water on Earth-like worlds in the habitable zones around other stars make this an exciting time in the study of water on planets both in our own solar system, and beyond.

show abstract

Section: Habitable Zones and Water On Other Planetsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water on Planets

Bell

2009

Proc. IAU

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the case of HD 189733b, this method recently yielded the detection of water (Tinetti et al 2007), methane (Swain et al 2008), and the likely presence of small-particle clouds or hazes (Pont et al 2008). The technique of secondary eclipse observations at infrared wavelengths (Charbonneau et al 2005;Deming et al 2005; sometimes referred to as occultation spectroscopy) has borne tremendous fruit owing to the remarkable stability of the Spitzer Space Telescope (resulting in part from its heliocentric orbit).…”

Section: Constraints On Exoplanet Physical Structures and Atmospheresmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Rise of the Vulcans

Charbonneau

2008

Proc. IAU

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. In this introductory review, I summarize the path from the initial 1995 radial-velocity discovery of hot Jupiters to the current rich panoply of investigations that are afforded when such objects are observed to transit their parent stars. Forty transiting exoplanets are now known, and the time for that population to double has dropped below one year. Only for these objects do we have direct estimates of their masses and radii, and can we (at the current time) undertake direct studies of the chemistries and dynamics of their atmospheres. Informed by the successes of hot Jupiter studies, I outline a path for the spectroscopic study of certain habitable exoplanets that obviates the need for direct imaging.

show abstract

“…On a large scale, the transmission spectra of hot-Jupiters seem to be dominated by the signature of water vapour (Barman 2007(Barman , 2008Beaulieu et al 2010;Burrows et al 2007Burrows et al , 2008Burrows et al , 2010Charbonneau et al 2008;Grillmair et al 2008;Knutson et al 2008;Madhusudhan and Seager (2009);Tinetti et al 2007aTinetti et al , 2007b, whereas warm Neptunes, such as GJ 436b and GJ 3470b, are expected to be methane-rich (Beaulieu et al 2011;Fukui et al 2013). The analysis of GJ 436b cannot be considered conclusive, though, given the activity of the star (Knutson et al 2011) and the lack of spectroscopic data: only photometric data, often recorded at different times, are available for this target.…”

Section: Primary Transit Observationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spectroscopy of planetary atmospheres in our Galaxy

Tinetti

Encrenaz

Coustenis

2013

Astron Astrophys Rev

Self Cite

128

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

About 20 years after the discovery of the first extrasolar planet, the number of planets known has grown by three orders of magnitude, and continues to increase at neck breaking pace. For most of these planets we have little information, except for the fact that they exist and possess an address in our Galaxy. For about one third of them, we know how much they weigh, their size and their orbital parameters. For less than 20, we start to have some clues about their atmospheric temperature and composition. How do we make progress from here?We are still far from the completion of a hypothetical Hertzsprung-Russell diagram for planets comparable to what we have for stars, and today we do not even know whether such classification will ever be possible or even meaningful for planetary objects. But one thing is clear: planetary parameters such as mass, radius and temperature alone do not explain the diversity revealed by current observations. The chemical composition of these planets is needed to trace back their formation history and evolution, as happened for the planets in our Solar System. As in situ measurements are and will remain off-limits for exoplanets, to study their chemical composition we will have to rely on remote sensing spectroscopic observations of their gaseous envelopes.

show abstract

Water vapour in the atmosphere of a transiting extrasolar planet

Cited by 512 publications

References 31 publications

Water on Planets

Water on Planets

The Rise of the Vulcans

Spectroscopy of planetary atmospheres in our Galaxy

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About