Deciphering thermal phase curves of dry, tidally locked terrestrial planets

TL;DR

This paper analyzes how thermal phase curves of dry, tidally locked terrestrial exoplanets can reveal atmospheric properties, especially surface pressure and atmospheric mass, using models and upcoming telescope data.

Contribution

It identifies key nondimensional parameters influencing phase curves and demonstrates how combined observations can constrain planetary atmospheric characteristics.

Findings

Phase curves are primarily sensitive to two nondimensional parameters.

The peak-to-trough amplitude of phase curves is most sensitive to atmospheric properties.

A single JWST phase curve can constrain the atmospheric mass of a nearby super-Earth.

Abstract

Next-generation space telescopes will allow us to characterize terrestrial exoplanets. To do so effectively it will be crucial to make use of all available data. We investigate which atmospheric properties can, and cannot, be inferred from the broadband thermal phase curve of a dry and tidally locked terrestrial planet. First, we use dimensional analysis to show that phase curves are controlled by six nondimensional parameters. Second, we use an idealized general circulation model (GCM) to explore the relative sensitivity of phase curves to these parameters. We find that the feature of phase curves most sensitive to atmospheric parameters is the peak-to-trough amplitude. Moreover, except for hot and rapidly rotating planets, the phase amplitude is primarily sensitive to only two nondimensional parameters: 1) the ratio of dynamical to radiative timescales, and 2) the longwave optical depth at the surface. As an application of this technique, we show how phase curve measurements can be combined with transit or emission spectroscopy to yield a new constraint for the surface pressure and atmospheric mass of terrestrial planets. We estimate that a single broadband phase curve, measured over half an orbit with the James Webb Space Telescope, could meaningfully constrain the atmospheric mass of a nearby super-Earth. Such constraints will be important for studying the atmospheric evolution of terrestrial exoplanets as well as characterizing the surface conditions on potentially habitable planets.