| Full text | |
| Author(s): |
Estrela, Raissa
[1, 2]
;
Swain, Mark R.
[1]
;
Gupta, Akash
[3]
;
Sotin, Christophe
[1]
;
Valio, Adriana
[2]
Total Authors: 5
|
| Affiliation: | [1] CALTECH, Jet Prop Lab, 4800 Oak Grove Dr, Pasadena, CA 91109 - USA
[2] Univ Prebiteriana Mackenzie, Ctr Radioastron & Astrophys Mackenzie, R Consolacao 896, BR-01301000 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil
[3] Univ Calif Los Angeles, Dept Earth Planetary & Space Sci, Los Angeles, CA 90095 - USA
Total Affiliations: 3
|
| Document type: | Journal article |
| Source: | ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL; v. 898, n. 2 AUG 2020. |
| Web of Science Citations: | 0 |
| Abstract | |
The observational detection of a localized reduction in the small planet occurrence rate, sometimes termed a ``gap,{''} is an exciting discovery because of the implications for planet evolutionary history. This gap appears to define a transition region in which sub-Neptune planets are believed to have lost their H/He envelopes, potentially by photoevaporation or core powered mass loss, and have thus been transformed into bare core terrestrial planets. Here we investigate the transition between sub-Neptunes and super-Earths using a real sample of observed small close-in planets and applying envelope evolution models of the H/He envelope together with the mass-radius diagram and a photoevaporation model. We find that photoevaporation can explain the H/He envelope loss of most super-Earths in 100 Myr, although an additional loss mechanism appears necessary in some planets. We explore the possibility that these planets' families have different core masses and find a continuum in the primordial population of the strongly irradiated super-Earths and the sub-Neptunes. Our analysis also shows that close-orbiting sub-Neptunes withR R(circle plus)typically lose similar to 30% of their primordial envelope. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 16/25901-9 - Star-planet magnetic interactions and its consequences for planetary habitability |
| Grantee: | Raissa de Lourdes Freitas Estrela |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate |
| FAPESP's process: | 18/09984-7 - Unveiling haze formation and energy balance in the exoplanets atmospheres with the Hubble Space Telescope |
| Grantee: | Raissa de Lourdes Freitas Estrela |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate |