SO$_2$, silicate clouds, but no CH$_4$ detected in a warm Neptune
WASP-107b is a warm ($\sim$740 K) transiting planet with a Neptune-like mass of $\sim$30.5 $M_{\oplus}$ and Jupiter-like radius of $\sim$0.94 $R_{\rm J}$, whose extended atmosphere is eroding. Previous observations showed evidence for water vapour and a thick high-altitude condensate layer in WASP-1...
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Zusammenfassung: | WASP-107b is a warm ($\sim$740 K) transiting planet with a Neptune-like mass
of $\sim$30.5 $M_{\oplus}$ and Jupiter-like radius of $\sim$0.94 $R_{\rm J}$,
whose extended atmosphere is eroding. Previous observations showed evidence for
water vapour and a thick high-altitude condensate layer in WASP-107b's
atmosphere. Recently, photochemically produced sulphur dioxide (SO$_2$) was
detected in the atmosphere of a hot ($\sim$1,200 K) Saturn-mass planet from
transmission spectroscopy near 4.05 $\mu$m, but for temperatures below
$\sim$1,000 K sulphur is predicted to preferably form sulphur allotropes
instead of SO$_2$. Here we report the 9$\sigma$-detection of two fundamental
vibration bands of SO$_2$, at 7.35 $\mu$m and 8.69 $\mu$m, in the transmission
spectrum of WASP-107b using the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) of the JWST.
This discovery establishes WASP-107b as the second irradiated exoplanet with
confirmed photochemistry, extending the temperature range of exoplanets
exhibiting detected photochemistry from $\sim$1,200 K down to $\sim$740 K.
Additionally, our spectral analysis reveals the presence of silicate clouds,
which are strongly favoured ($\sim$7$\sigma$) over simpler cloud setups.
Furthermore, water is detected ($\sim$12$\sigma$), but methane is not. These
findings provide evidence of disequilibrium chemistry and indicate a
dynamically active atmosphere with a super-solar metallicity. |
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DOI: | 10.48550/arxiv.2311.12515 |