What question did this study set out to answer?

Assess whether temperate sub-Neptunes with hydrogen-rich atmospheres can sustain observable magma oceans using a coupled interior-atmosphere model.

October 28, 2024The Astrophysical JournalOpen Access

Toward a Self-consistent Evaluation of Gas Dwarf Scenarios for Temperate Sub-Neptunes

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Authors

FRF. RigbyUniversity of Cambridge LPLorenzo Pica-CiamarraUniversity of Cambridge MHMåns HolmbergSpace Telescope Science Institute

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Implication

Theoretical modeling study reveals that observed atmospheric compositions rule out magma oceans on temperate sub-Neptunes like K2-18 b, indicating distinct interior-atmosphere dynamics.

Key Points

Assess whether temperate sub-Neptunes with hydrogen-rich atmospheres can sustain observable magma oceans using a coupled interior-atmosphere model.
Developed a coupled interior-atmosphere modeling framework integrating internal structure, mineral composition, volatile solubility, and atmospheric chemistry.
Applied the framework to observational data for the habitable-zone sub-Neptune K2-18 b as a benchmark case study.
Demonstrated that surface–atmosphere interactions and observable gas abundances depend sensitively on planetary thermal structure, mineral composition, and volatile solubility.
Showed that the observed atmospheric composition of the temperate sub-Neptune K2-18 b is incompatible with a magma ocean scenario.
Identified atmospheric abundances of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, ammonia, and sulfur-bearing species as critical diagnostics for probing sub-Neptune surface conditions.

Cite This Study

Rigby et al. (2024) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a1d344a10242160940503df https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad6c38

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Implication

Theoretical modeling study reveals that observed atmospheric compositions rule out magma oceans on temperate sub-Neptunes like K2-18 b, indicating distinct interior-atmosphere dynamics.

Toward a Self-consistent Evaluation of Gas Dwarf Scenarios for Temperate Sub-Neptunes

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Implication

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Cite This Study

Toward a Self-consistent Evaluation of Gas Dwarf Scenarios for Temperate Sub-Neptunes

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Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

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