75 research outputs found
Escape of the martian protoatmosphere and initial water inventory
Latest research in planet formation indicate that Mars formed within a few
million years (Myr) and remained a planetary embryo that never grew to a more
massive planet. It can also be expected from dynamical models, that most of
Mars' building blocks consisted of material that formed in orbital locations
just beyond the ice line which could have contained ~0.1-0.2 wt. % of H2O. By
using these constraints, we estimate the nebula-captured and catastrophically
outgassed volatile contents during the solidification of Mars' magma ocean and
apply a hydrodynamic upper atmosphere model for the study of the soft X-ray and
extreme ultraviolet (XUV) driven thermal escape of the martian protoatmosphere
during the early active epoch of the young Sun. The amount of gas that has been
captured from the protoplanetary disk into the planetary atmosphere is
calculated by solving the hydrostatic structure equations in the protoplanetary
nebula. Depending on nebular properties such as the dust grain depletion
factor, planetesimal accretion rates and luminosities, hydrogen envelopes with
masses >=3x10^{19} g to <=6.5x10^{22} g could have been captured from the
nebula around early Mars. Depending of the before mentioned parameters, due to
the planets low gravity and a solar XUV flux that was ~100 times stronger
compared to the present value, our results indicate that early Mars would have
lost its nebular captured hydrogen envelope after the nebula gas evaporated,
during a fast period of ~0.1-7.5 Myr. After the solidification of early Mars'
magma ocean, catastrophically outgassed volatiles with the amount of ~50-250
bar H2O and ~10-55 bar CO2 could have been lost during ~0.4-12 Myr, if the
impact related energy flux of large planetesimals and small embryos to the
planet's surface lasted long enough, that the steam atmosphere could have been
prevented from condensing. If this was not the case... (continued)Comment: 47 pages, 10 figures, 3 tables, submitted to PS
Investigating magnetic activity in very stable stellar magnetic fields: long-term photometric and spectroscopic study of the fully convective M4 dwarf V374 Peg
The ultrafast-rotating () fully convective
single M4 dwarf V374 Peg is a well-known laboratory for studying intense
stellar activity in a stable magnetic topology. As an observable proxy for the
stellar magnetic field, we study the stability of the light curve, and thus the
spot configuration. We also measure the occurrence rate of flares and coronal
mass ejections (CMEs). We analyse spectroscopic observations,
photometry covering 5 years, and additional photometry that expands the
temporal base over 16 years. The light curve suggests an almost rigid-body
rotation, and a spot configuration that is stable over about 16 years,
confirming the previous indications of a very stable magnetic field. We
observed small changes on a nightly timescale, and frequent flaring, including
a possible sympathetic flare. The strongest flares seem to be more concentrated
around the phase where the light curve indicates a smaller active region.
Spectral data suggest a complex CME with falling-back and re-ejected material,
with a maximal projected velocity of 675km/s. We observed a CME rate
much lower than expected from extrapolations of the solar flare-CME relation to
active stars.Comment: 15 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in A&
UV Radiation of the Young Sun and its Implications for Life in the Solar System
UV radiation is thought to have played an important role in the origin of life on Earth. To estimate these levels of UV radiation, we computed the UVC uxes from
HST/STIS and IUE spectra of the young solar analogs κ 1 Cet and χ 1 Ori. In the future experiments with extremophilic microorganisms we will use these resulting UVC-levels to test the probability of the survival, and therefore, the existence of this kind of life at Early Earth, Early Mars and Early Europa.Fil: Abrevaya, Ximena Celeste. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciónes Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio. - Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio; ArgentinaFil: Hanslmeier, A.. Institute of Physics; AustriaFil: Leitzinger, M.. Institute of Physics; AustriaFil: Odert, P.. Institute of Physics; Austria. Space Research Institute; AustriaFil: Mauas, Pablo Jacobo David. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciónes Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio. - Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio; ArgentinaFil: Buccino, Andrea Paola. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciónes Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio. - Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio; Argentin
Modeling the Ly transit absorption of the hot Jupiter HD 189733b
Hydrogen-dominated atmospheres of hot exoplanets expand and escape due to the
intense heating by the X-ray and extreme ultraviolet (XUV) irradiation of their
host stars. Excess absorption of neutral hydrogen has been observed in the
Ly line during transits of several close-in exoplanets, indicating such
extended atmospheres. For the hot Jupiter HD 189733b, this absorption shows
temporal variability. Variations in stellar XUV emission and/or stellar wind
conditions have been invoked to explain this effect. We apply a 1D hydrodynamic
upper atmosphere model and a 3D MHD stellar wind flow model to study the effect
of variations of the stellar XUV and wind conditions on the neutral hydrogen
distribution, including the production of energetic neutral atoms (ENAs), and
the related Ly transit signature. We obtain comparable, albeit slightly
higher Ly absorption as observed in 2011 with a stellar XUV flux of
erg cm s, rather typical activity conditions for
this star. Flares similar to the one observed 8 h before the transit are
unlikely to have caused a significant modulation of the transit signature. The
resulting Ly absorption is dominated by atmospheric broadening, whereas
the contribution of ENAs is negligible, as they are formed inside the bow shock
from decelerated wind ions that are heated to high temperatures. Thus, within
our modeling framework and assumptions, we find an insignificant dependence on
the stellar wind parameters. Since the transit absorption can be modeled with
typical stellar XUV and wind conditions, it is possible that the non-detection
of the absorption in 2010 was affected by less typical stellar activity
conditions, such as a very different magnitude and/or shape of the star's
spectral XUV emission, or temporal/spatial variations in Ly affecting
the determination of the transit absorption.Comment: 22 pages, 19 figures, 4 tables; A&A, publishe
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