Cloudy with a chance of rain

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• Hannah Wakeford (NASA/GSFC)
• Wednesday 20 April 2016, 16:00-17:00
• Martin Ryle Seminar Room, Kavli Institute.

If you have a question about this talk, please contact Dr B.-O. Demory.

Deciphering the role of clouds is central to our understanding of exoplanet atmospheres, as they have a direct impact on the temperature and pressure structure, and observability of the planet. It is expected that, like all the planetary bodies in our solar system, exoplanet atmospheres will also have substantial cloud coverage, and evidence is mounting for clouds in a number of hot Jupiters. Examining the condensation chemistry across vast temperature ranges reveals the probable cloud species responsible for masking and obscuring transmission spectral features. We use these species, and two key exoplanet examples, to determine the observable properties of clouds for exoplanets to determine if atmospheric information key to observations and models can be retained. For condensate clouds vibrational mode features are shown to be prominent when the clouds are composed of small sub-micron sized particles and can be associated with an accompanying optical scattering slope. These infrared features have potential implications for future exoplanetary atmosphere studies conducted with JWST , where such vibrational modes distinguishing condensate species can be probed at longer wavelengths.

This talk is part of the Exoplanet Seminars series.

This talk is included in these lists:

• Cambridge Astronomy Talks
• Combined External Astrophysics Talks DAMTP
• Cosmology, Astrophysics and General Relativity
• Exoplanet Seminars
• Institute of Astronomy Talk Lists
• LCLU Departmental Talks
• Martin Ryle Seminar Room, Kavli Institute

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