New data, discovered by examining one of the most extreme exoplanets known,
could help us understand the complex atmosphere layers of other planets,
including Earth-like planets.
A group of researchers peered into the atmosphere of one of the most extreme
planets, the exoplanet WASP-189b. Researchers say WASP-189b is a hot
Jupiter-like planet.
This planet was first studied using the CHEOPS space telescope. Now,
researchers have discovered that WASP-189b has an atmosphere very similar to
Earth's.
The research team, consisting of the Bern University and Geneva University
teams, recently analyzed WASP-189b's atmosphere. Researchers from PlanetS's
National Center of Competence in Research (NCCRs) also joined in.
Quoted from BGR, they found that the exoplanet's atmosphere is very similar
to Earth's. Instead of just being a single layer as many previously
believed, the planet's atmosphere is made up of different 3D layers.
Their in-depth study of the atmosphere layers of exoplanets was published in
the journal Nature Astronomy. During their study, the team discovered that
the planet has an atmosphere very similar to Earth's ozone layer.
"We measured the light coming from the planet's host star and passing
through the planet's atmosphere," Bibiana Prinoth said in a statement to the
media.
The gases in its atmosphere absorb some of the star's light, much like ozone
absorbs some of the sunlight in Earth's atmosphere. Prinoth is the lead
author of the study and a doctoral student at Lund University.
Prinoth says the starlight then leaves "fingerprints" behind, and
researchers can study it using the HARPS spectrograph at La Silla
Observatory.
They found that the gases remaining in the exoplanet's atmosphere included
iron, vanadium, chromium, manganese and magnesium.
So what do the results of this study mean for the development of exoplanet
research? Seeing the "ozone layer" on a planet as hot as WASP-189b is
surprising. After all, the planet is 20 times closer to its parent star than
Earth is to the Sun.
So close, the planet experiences daytime temperatures that reach 3,200
degrees Celsius. In comparison, Mercury, the planet closest to our Sun, only
reaches a temperature of 430 degrees Celsius during the day.
This new information refutes the long-held belief that exoplanetary
atmospheres are uniform layers. Using the new data, the researchers hope
they can better understand the exoplanet's atmosphere.
In addition, researchers also hope that this study provides new knowledge
about Earth-like exoplanets, which includes a better understanding of how
the exoplanet's atmosphere layers work.
Unfortunately, many believe this requires innovation in data analysis
techniques, as well as computer modeling and atmospheric theory.
