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Angerhausen D, Ottiger M, Dannert F, Miguel Y, Sousa-Silva C, Kammerer J, Menti F, Alei E, Konrad BS, Wang HS, Quanz SP. Large Interferometer for Exoplanets: VIII. Where Is the Phosphine? Observing Exoplanetary PH 3 with a Space-Based Mid-Infrared Nulling Interferometer. Astrobiology 2023; 23:183-194. [PMID: 36576793 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2022.0010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Phosphine could be a key molecule in the understanding of exotic chemistry that occurs in (exo)planetary atmospheres. While phosphine has been detected in the Solar System's giant planets, it has not been observed in exoplanets to date. In the exoplanetary context, however, it has been theorized to be a potential biosignature molecule. The goal of our study was to identify which illustrative science cases for PH3 chemistry are observable with a space-based mid-infrared nulling interferometric observatory like the Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE) concept. We identified a representative set of scenarios for PH3 detections in exoplanetary atmospheres that vary over the whole dynamic range of the LIFE mission. We used chemical kinetics and radiative transfer calculations to produce forward models of these informative, prototypical observational cases for LIFEsim, our observation simulator software for LIFE. In a detailed, yet first order approximation, it takes a mission like LIFE: (i) about 1 h to find phosphine in a warm giant around a G star at 10 pc, (ii) about 10 h in H2 or CO2 dominated temperate super-Earths around M star hosts at 5 pc, (iii) and even in 100 h it seems very unlikely that phosphine would be detectable in a Venus-Twin with extreme PH3 concentrations at 5 pc. Phosphine in concentrations previously discussed in the literature is detectable in 2 out of the 3 cases, and it is detected about an order of magnitude faster than in comparable cases with James Webb Space Telescope. We show that there is a significant number of objects accessible for these classes of observations. These results will be used to prioritize the parameter range for the next steps with more detailed retrieval simulations. They will also inform timely questions in the early design phase of a mission like LIFE and guide the community by providing easy-to-scale first estimates for a large part of detection space of such a mission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Angerhausen
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- National Center of Competence in Research PlanetS, Bern, Switzerland
- Blue Marble Space Institute of Science, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Maurice Ottiger
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Felix Dannert
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Yamila Miguel
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Clara Sousa-Silva
- Center for Astrophysics, Harvard-Smithsonian, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
- Division of Science, Mathematics, and Computing, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, USA
| | - Jens Kammerer
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Franziska Menti
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Eleonora Alei
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- National Center of Competence in Research PlanetS, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Björn S Konrad
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- National Center of Competence in Research PlanetS, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Haiyang S Wang
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- National Center of Competence in Research PlanetS, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Sascha P Quanz
- Department of Physics, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- National Center of Competence in Research PlanetS, Bern, Switzerland
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Janson M, Gratton R, Rodet L, Vigan A, Bonnefoy M, Delorme P, Mamajek EE, Reffert S, Stock L, Marleau GD, Langlois M, Chauvin G, Desidera S, Ringqvist S, Mayer L, Viswanath G, Squicciarini V, Meyer MR, Samland M, Petrus S, Helled R, Kenworthy MA, Quanz SP, Biller B, Henning T, Mesa D, Engler N, Carson JC. A wide-orbit giant planet in the high-mass b Centauri binary system. Nature 2021; 600:231-234. [PMID: 34880428 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-04124-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Planet formation occurs around a wide range of stellar masses and stellar system architectures1. An improved understanding of the formation process can be achieved by studying it across the full parameter space, particularly towards the extremes. Earlier studies of planets in close-in orbits around high-mass stars have revealed an increase in giant planet frequency with increasing stellar mass2 until a turnover point at 1.9 solar masses (M⊙), above which the frequency rapidly decreases3. This could potentially imply that planet formation is impeded around more massive stars, and that giant planets around stars exceeding 3 M⊙ may be rare or non-existent. However, the methods used to detect planets in small orbits are insensitive to planets in wide orbits. Here we demonstrate the existence of a planet at 560 times the Sun-Earth distance from the 6- to 10-M⊙ binary b Centauri through direct imaging. The planet-to-star mass ratio of 0.10-0.17% is similar to the Jupiter-Sun ratio, but the separation of the detected planet is about 100 times wider than that of Jupiter. Our results show that planets can reside in much more massive stellar systems than what would be expected from extrapolation of previous results. The planet is unlikely to have formed in situ through the conventional core accretion mechanism4, but might have formed elsewhere and arrived to its present location through dynamical interactions, or might have formed via gravitational instability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Janson
- Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | | | - Laetitia Rodet
- Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science, Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Arthur Vigan
- Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, CNES, LAM (Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille), UMR 7326, Marseille, France
| | | | | | - Eric E Mamajek
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Sabine Reffert
- Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Lukas Stock
- Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Gabriel-Dominique Marleau
- Institut für Astronomie und Astrophysik, Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Physikalisches Institut, Universität Bern, Bern, Switzerland.,Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Maud Langlois
- CRAL, UMR 5574, CNRS, Université Lyon 1, Saint Genis Laval, France
| | - Gaël Chauvin
- Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, Grenoble, France.,Unidad Mixta Internacional Franco-Chilena de Astronomía, CNRS/INSU UMI 3386 and Departamento de Astronomía, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | | | - Simon Ringqvist
- Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Lucio Mayer
- Center for Theoretical Physics and Cosmology, Institute for Computational Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Vito Squicciarini
- INAF Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Padova, Italy.,Department of Physics and Astronomy "Galileo Galilei", University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Michael R Meyer
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Matthias Samland
- Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Simon Petrus
- Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, Grenoble, France
| | - Ravit Helled
- Center for Theoretical Physics and Cosmology, Institute for Computational Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Sascha P Quanz
- ETH Zurich, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Beth Biller
- SUPA, Institute for Astronomy, Royal Observatory, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Dino Mesa
- INAF Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Natalia Engler
- ETH Zurich, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Joseph C Carson
- College of Charleston, Department of Physics & Astronomy, Charleston, SC, USA
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3
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Quanz SP, Absil O, Benz W, Bonfils X, Berger JP, Defrère D, van Dishoeck E, Ehrenreich D, Fortney J, Glauser A, Grenfell JL, Janson M, Kraus S, Krause O, Labadie L, Lacour S, Line M, Linz H, Loicq J, Miguel Y, Pallé E, Queloz D, Rauer H, Ribas I, Rugheimer S, Selsis F, Snellen I, Sozzetti A, Stapelfeldt KR, Udry S, Wyatt M. Atmospheric characterization of terrestrial exoplanets in the mid-infrared: biosignatures, habitability, and diversity. Exp Astron (Dordr) 2021; 54:1197-1221. [PMID: 36915622 PMCID: PMC9998579 DOI: 10.1007/s10686-021-09791-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Exoplanet science is one of the most thriving fields of modern astrophysics. A major goal is the atmospheric characterization of dozens of small, terrestrial exoplanets in order to search for signatures in their atmospheres that indicate biological activity, assess their ability to provide conditions for life as we know it, and investigate their expected atmospheric diversity. None of the currently adopted projects or missions, from ground or in space, can address these goals. In this White Paper, submitted to ESA in response to the Voyage 2050 Call, we argue that a large space-based mission designed to detect and investigate thermal emission spectra of terrestrial exoplanets in the mid-infrared wavelength range provides unique scientific potential to address these goals and surpasses the capabilities of other approaches. While NASA might be focusing on large missions that aim to detect terrestrial planets in reflected light, ESA has the opportunity to take leadership and spearhead the development of a large mid-infrared exoplanet mission within the scope of the "Voyage 2050" long-term plan establishing Europe at the forefront of exoplanet science for decades to come. Given the ambitious science goals of such a mission, additional international partners might be interested in participating and contributing to a roadmap that, in the long run, leads to a successful implementation. A new, dedicated development program funded by ESA to help reduce development and implementation cost and further push some of the required key technologies would be a first important step in this direction. Ultimately, a large mid-infrared exoplanet imaging mission will be needed to help answer one of humankind's most fundamental questions: "How unique is our Earth?"
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Affiliation(s)
- Sascha P. Quanz
- ETH Zurich, Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Oliver Krause
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | | | | | - Hendrik Linz
- Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jérôme Loicq
- Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands
| | | | - Enric Pallé
- Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| | | | - Heike Rauer
- German Aerospace Center (DLR), Berlin, Germany
| | - Ignasi Ribas
- Institut de Ciencies de l’Espai, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Franck Selsis
- Laboratoire d’astrophysique de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
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Wagner K, Boehle A, Pathak P, Kasper M, Arsenault R, Jakob G, Käufl U, Leveratto S, Maire AL, Pantin E, Siebenmorgen R, Zins G, Absil O, Ageorges N, Apai D, Carlotti A, Choquet É, Delacroix C, Dohlen K, Duhoux P, Forsberg P, Fuenteseca E, Gutruf S, Guyon O, Huby E, Kampf D, Karlsson M, Kervella P, Kirchbauer JP, Klupar P, Kolb J, Mawet D, N'Diaye M, de Xivry GO, Quanz SP, Reutlinger A, Ruane G, Riquelme M, Soenke C, Sterzik M, Vigan A, de Zeeuw T. Author Correction: Imaging low-mass planets within the habitable zone of α Centauri. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2651. [PMID: 33953194 PMCID: PMC8099858 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23145-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- K Wagner
- Dept. of Astronomy and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA. .,NASA Nexus for Exoplanet System Science, Earths in Other Solar Systems Team, Tucson, AZ, USA.
| | - A Boehle
- Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - P Pathak
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - M Kasper
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - R Arsenault
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - G Jakob
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - U Käufl
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - S Leveratto
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - A-L Maire
- STAR Institute, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - E Pantin
- AIM, CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - R Siebenmorgen
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - G Zins
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - O Absil
- STAR Institute, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - N Ageorges
- Kampf Telescope Optics, München, Germany
| | - D Apai
- Dept. of Astronomy and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.,NASA Nexus for Exoplanet System Science, Earths in Other Solar Systems Team, Tucson, AZ, USA.,Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - A Carlotti
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, Grenoble, France
| | - É Choquet
- Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, CNES, LAM, Marseille, France
| | - C Delacroix
- STAR Institute, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - K Dohlen
- Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, CNES, LAM, Marseille, France
| | - P Duhoux
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - P Forsberg
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Ångström Laboratory, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - E Fuenteseca
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - S Gutruf
- Kampf Telescope Optics, München, Germany
| | - O Guyon
- Dept. of Astronomy and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.,Subaru Telescope, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS), Hilo, HI, USA.,The Breakthrough Initiatives, NASA Research Park, Moffett Field, CA, USA.,James C. Wyant College of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - E Huby
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Meudon, France
| | - D Kampf
- Kampf Telescope Optics, München, Germany
| | - M Karlsson
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Ångström Laboratory, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - P Kervella
- LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Meudon, France
| | - J-P Kirchbauer
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - P Klupar
- The Breakthrough Initiatives, NASA Research Park, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - J Kolb
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - D Mawet
- California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - M N'Diaye
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | | | - S P Quanz
- Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | | | - G Ruane
- California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA.,Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - M Riquelme
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - C Soenke
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - M Sterzik
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - A Vigan
- Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, CNES, LAM, Marseille, France
| | - T de Zeeuw
- European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany.,Sterrewacht Leiden, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, Garching, Germany
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Quanz SP, Amara A, Meyer MR, Girard JH, Kenworthy MA, Kasper M. CONFIRMATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF THE PROTOPLANET HD 100546 b—DIRECT EVIDENCE FOR GAS GIANT PLANET FORMATION AT 50 AU. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015. [DOI: 10.1088/0004-637x/807/1/64] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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7
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Reggiani M, Quanz SP, Meyer MR, Pueyo L, Absil O, Amara A, Anglada G, Avenhaus H, Girard JH, Gonzalez CC, Graham J, Mawet D, Meru F, Milli J, Osorio M, Wolff S, Torrelles JM. DISCOVERY OF A COMPANION CANDIDATE IN THE HD 169142 TRANSITION DISK AND THE POSSIBILITY OF MULTIPLE PLANET FORMATION. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014. [DOI: 10.1088/2041-8205/792/1/l23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 132] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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Krause O, Rieke GH, Birkmann SM, Le Floc'h E, Gordon KD, Egami E, Bieging J, Hughes JP, Young ET, Hinz JL, Quanz SP, Hines DC. Infrared Echoes near the Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A. Science 2005; 308:1604-6. [PMID: 15947181 DOI: 10.1126/science.1112035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Two images of Cassiopeia A obtained at 24 micrometers with the Spitzer Space Telescope over a 1-year time interval show moving structures outside the shell of the supernova remnant to a distance of more than 20 arc minutes. Individual features exhibit apparent motions of 10 to 20 arc seconds per year, independently confirmed by near-infrared observations. The observed tangential velocities are at roughly the speed of light. It is likely that the moving structures are infrared echoes, in which interstellar dust is heated by the explosion and by flares from the compact object near the center of the remnant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver Krause
- Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, 933 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA.
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