501 research outputs found
A magnetic field evolution scenario for brown dwarfs and giant planets
Very little is known about magnetic fields of extrasolar planets and brown
dwarfs. We use the energy flux scaling law presented by Christensen et al.
(2009) to calculate the evolution of average magnetic fields in extrasolar
planets and brown dwarfs under the assumption of fast rotation, which is
probably the case for most of them. We find that massive brown dwarfs of about
70 M_Jup can have fields of a few kilo-Gauss during the first few hundred
Million years. These fields can grow by a factor of two before they weaken
after deuterium burning has stopped. Brown dwarfs with weak deuterium burning
and extrasolar giant planets start with magnetic fields between ~100G and ~1kG
at the age of a few Myr, depending on their mass. Their magnetic field weakens
steadily until after 10Gyr it has shrunk by about a factor of 10. We use
observed X-ray luminosities to estimate the age of the known extrasolar giant
planets that are more massive than 0.3M_Jup and closer than 20pc. Taking into
account the age estimate, and assuming sun-like wind-properties and radio
emission processes similar to those at Jupiter, we calculate their radio flux
and its frequency. The highest radio flux we predict comes out as 700mJy at a
frequency around 150MHz for Boob, but the flux is below 60mJy for the
rest. Most planets are expected to emit radiation between a few Mhz and up to
100MHz, well above the ionospheric cutoff frequency.Comment: 7 pages, accepted by A&
Predicting low-frequency radio fluxes of known extrasolar planets
Context. Close-in giant extrasolar planets (''Hot Jupiters'') are believed to
be strong emitters in the decametric radio range.
Aims. We present the expected characteristics of the low-frequency
magnetospheric radio emission of all currently known extrasolar planets,
including the maximum emission frequency and the expected radio flux. We also
discuss the escape of exoplanetary radio emission from the vicinity of its
source, which imposes additional constraints on detectability.
Methods. We compare the different predictions obtained with all four existing
analytical models for all currently known exoplanets. We also take care to use
realistic values for all input parameters.
Results. The four different models for planetary radio emission lead to very
different results. The largest fluxes are found for the magnetic energy model,
followed by the CME model and the kinetic energy model (for which our results
are found to be much less optimistic than those of previous studies). The
unipolar interaction model does not predict any observable emission for the
present exoplanet census. We also give estimates for the planetary magnetic
dipole moment of all currently known extrasolar planets, which will be useful
for other studies.
Conclusions. Our results show that observations of exoplanetary radio
emission are feasible, but that the number of promising targets is not very
high. The catalog of targets will be particularly useful for current and future
radio observation campaigns (e.g. with the VLA, GMRT, UTR-2 and with LOFAR).Comment: 4 figures; Table 1 is available in electronic form at the CDS via
anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via
http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/475/35
The Sun in Time: Age, Rotation, and Magnetic Activity of the Sun and Solar-type Stars and Effects on Hosted Planets
Multi-wavelength studies of solar analogs (G0-5 V stars) with ages from ~50
Myr to 9 Gyr have been carried out as part of the "Sun in Time" program for
nearly 20 yrs. From these studies it is inferred that the young (ZAMS) Sun was
rotating more than 10x faster than today. As a consequence, young solar-type
stars and the early Sun have vigorous magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) dynamos and
correspondingly strong coronal X-ray and transition region / chromospheric
FUV-UV emissions. To ensure continuity and homogeneity for this program, we use
a restricted sample of G0-5 V stars with masses, radii, T(eff), and internal
structure (i.e. outer convective zones) closely matching those of the Sun. From
these analogs we have determined reliable rotation-age-activity relations and
X-ray - UV (XUV) spectral irradiances for the Sun (or any solar-type star) over
time. These XUV irradiance measures serve as input data for investigating the
photo-ionization and photo-chemical effects of the young, active Sun on the
paleo-planetary atmospheres and environments of solar system planets. These
measures are also important to study the effects of these high energy emissions
on the numerous exoplanets hosted by solar-type stars of different ages.
Recently we have extended the study to include lower mass, main-sequence
(dwarf) dK and dM stars to determine relationships among their rotation
spin-down rates and coronal and chromospheric emissions as a function of mass
and age. From rotation-age-activity relations we can determine reliable ages
for main-sequence G, K, M field stars and, subsequently, their hosted planets.
Also inferred are the present and the past XUV irradiance and plasma flux
exposures that these planets have endured and the suitability of the hosted
planets to develop and sustain life.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures; to appear in the proceedings of IAU 258: The
Ages of Star
Candidates for detecting exoplanetary radio emissions generated by magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling
In this paper we consider the magnetosphere-ionosphere (M-I) coupling at
Jupiter-like exoplanets with internal plasma sources such as volcanic moons,
and we have determined the best candidates for detection of these radio
emissions by estimating the maximum spectral flux density expected from planets
orbiting stars within 25 pc using data listed in the NASA/IPAC/NExScI Star and
Exoplanet Database (NStED). In total we identify 91 potential targets, of which
40 already host planets and 51 have stellar X-ray luminosity 100 times the
solar value. In general, we find that stronger planetary field strength,
combined with faster rotation rate, higher stellar XUV luminosity, and lower
stellar wind dynamic pressure results in higher radio power. The top two
targets for each category are Eri and HIP 85523, and CPD-28 332 and
FF And.Comment: Accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical
Society Letter
Atmospheric effects of stellar cosmic rays on Earth-like exoplanets orbiting M-dwarfs
M-dwarf stars are generally considered favourable for rocky planet detection.
However, such planets may be subject to extreme conditions due to possible high
stellar activity. The goal of this work is to determine the potential effect of
stellar cosmic rays on key atmospheric species of Earth-like planets orbiting
in the habitable zone of M-dwarf stars and show corresponding changes in the
planetary spectra. We build upon the cosmic rays model scheme of Grenfell et
al. (2012), who considered cosmic ray induced NOx production, by adding further
cosmic ray induced production mechanisms (e.g. for HOx) and introducing primary
protons of a wider energy range (16 MeV - 0.5 TeV). Previous studies suggested
that planets in the habitable zone that are subject to strong flaring
conditions have high atmospheric methane concentrations, while their ozone
biosignature is completely destroyed. Our current study shows, however, that
adding cosmic ray induced HOx production can cause a decrease in atmospheric
methane abundance of up to 80\%. Furthermore, the cosmic ray induced HOx
molecules react with NOx to produce HNO, which produces strong HNO
signals in the theoretical spectra and reduces NOx-induced catalytic
destruction of ozone so that more than 25\% of the ozone column remains. Hence,
an ozone signal remains visible in the theoretical spectrum (albeit with a
weaker intensity) when incorporating the new cosmic ray induced NOx and HOx
schemes, even for a constantly flaring M-star case. We also find that HNO
levels may be high enough to be potentially detectable. Since ozone
concentrations, which act as the key shield against harmful UV radiation, are
affected by cosmic rays via NOx-induced catalytic destruction of ozone, the
impact of stellar cosmic rays on surface UV fluxes is also studied.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figure
Galactic cosmic rays on extrasolar Earth-like planets I. Cosmic ray flux
(abridged abstract) Theoretical arguments indicate that close-in terrestial
exoplanets may have weak magnetic fields, especially in the case of planets
more massive than Earth (super-Earths). Planetary magnetic fields, however,
constitute one of the shielding layers that protect the planet against
cosmic-ray particles. In particular, a weak magnetic field results in a high
flux of Galactic cosmic rays that extends to the top of the planetary
atmosphere. We wish to quantify the flux of Galactic cosmic rays to an
exoplanetary atmosphere as a function of the particle energy and of the
planetary magnetic moment. We numerically analyzed the propagation of Galactic
cosmic-ray particles through planetary magnetospheres. We evaluated the
efficiency of magnetospheric shielding as a function of the particle energy (in
the range 16 MeV E 524 GeV) and as a function of the planetary
magnetic field strength (in the range 0 {M} 10
). Combined with the flux outside the planetary magnetosphere, this
gives the cosmic-ray energy spectrum at the top of the planetary atmosphere as
a function of the planetary magnetic moment. We find that the particle flux to
the planetary atmosphere can be increased by more than three orders of
magnitude in the absence of a protecting magnetic field. For a weakly
magnetized planet (), only particles with energies
below 512 MeV are at least partially shielded. For a planet with a magnetic
moment similar to Earth, this limit increases to 32 GeV, whereas for a strongly
magnetized planet (), partial shielding extends up to 200
GeV. We find that magnetic shielding strongly controls the number of cosmic-ray
particles reaching the planetary atmosphere. The implications of this increased
particle flux are discussed in a companion article.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures; accepted in A&
Planet-Induced Emission Enhancements in HD 179949: Results from McDonald Observations
We monitored the Ca II H and K lines of HD 179949, a notable star in the
southern hemisphere, to observe and confirm previously identified planet
induced emission (PIE) as an effect of star-planet interaction. We obtained
high resolution spectra (R ~ 53,000) with a signal-to-noise ratio S/N >~ 50 in
the Ca II H and K cores during 10 nights of observation at the McDonald
Observatory. Wide band echelle spectra were taken using the 2.7 m telescope.
Detailed statistical analysis of Ca II K revealed fluctuations in the Ca II K
core attributable to planet induced chromospheric emission. This result is
consistent with previous studies by Shkolnik et al. (2003). Additionally, we
were able to confirm the reality and temporal evolution of the phase shift of
the maximum of star-planet interaction previously found. However, no
identifiable fluctuations were detected in the Ca II H core. The Al I lambda
3944 A line was also monitored to gauge if the expected activity enhancements
are confined to the chromospheric layer. Our observations revealed some
variability, which is apparently unassociated with planet induced activity.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, 5 tables; Publications of the Astronomical
Society of Australia (in press
On the protection of extrasolar Earth-like planets around K/M stars against galactic cosmic rays
Previous studies have shown that extrasolar Earth-like planets in close-in
habitable zones around M-stars are weakly protected against galactic cosmic
rays (GCRs), leading to a strongly increased particle flux to the top of the
planetary atmosphere. Two main effects were held responsible for the weak
shielding of such an exoplanet: (a) For a close-in planet, the planetary
magnetic moment is strongly reduced by tidal locking. Therefore, such a
close-in extrasolar planet is not protected by an extended magnetosphere. (b)
The small orbital distance of the planet exposes it to a much denser stellar
wind than that prevailing at larger orbital distances. This dense stellar wind
leads to additional compression of the magnetosphere, which can further reduce
the shielding efficiency against GCRs. In this work, we analyse and compare the
effect of (a) and (b), showing that the stellar wind variation with orbital
distance has little influence on the cosmic ray shielding. Instead, the weak
shielding of M star planets can be attributed to their small magnetic moment.
We further analyse how the planetary mass and composition influence the
planetary magnetic moment, and thus modify the cosmic ray shielding efficiency.
We show that more massive planets are not necessarily better protected against
galactic cosmic rays, but that the planetary bulk composition can play an
important role.Comment: 7 figure
Galactic cosmic rays on extrasolar Earth-like planets: II. Atmospheric implications
(abridged abstract) Theoretical arguments indicate that close-in terrestial
exoplanets may have weak magnetic fields. As described in the companion article
(Paper I), a weak magnetic field results in a high flux of galactic cosmic rays
to the top of the planetary atmosphere. We investigate effects that may result
from a high flux of galactic cosmic rays both throughout the atmosphere and at
the planetary surface. Using an air shower approach, we calculate how the
atmospheric chemistry and temperature change under the influence of galactic
cosmic rays for Earth-like (N_2-O_2 dominated) atmospheres. We evaluate the
production and destruction rate of atmospheric biosignature molecules. We
derive planetary emission and transmission spectra to study the influence of
galactic cosmic rays on biosignature detectability. We then calculate the
resulting surface UV flux, the surface particle flux, and the associated
equivalent biological dose rates. We find that up to 20% of stratospheric ozone
is destroyed by cosmic-ray protons. The reduction of the planetary ozone layer
leads to an increase in the weighted surface UV flux by two orders of magnitude
under stellar UV flare conditions. The resulting biological effective dose rate
is, however, too low to strongly affect surface life. We also examine the
surface particle flux: For a planet with a terrestrial atmosphere, a reduction
of the magnetic shielding efficiency can increase the biological radiation dose
rate by a factor of two. For a planet with a weaker atmosphere (with a surface
pressure of 97.8 hPa), the planetary magnetic field has a much stronger
influence on the biological radiation dose, changing it by up to two orders of
magnitude.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, published in A&
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