Simulating the cloudy atmospheres of HD 209458 b and HD 189733 b with the 3D Met Office Unified Model

TL;DR

This study uses a 3D atmospheric model to simulate cloud formation and distribution on exoplanets HD 209458 b and HD 189733 b, revealing complex cloud dynamics and their impact on thermal profiles and observable signals.

Contribution

It introduces a coupled 3D model with detailed cloud physics and radiative feedback, providing new insights into cloud effects on exoplanet atmospheres.

Findings

Extensive cloud formation observed on both planets.

Cooler temperatures in HD 189733 b lead to higher cloud densities.

Cloud scattering causes atmospheric cooling and variability.

Abstract

To understand and compare the 3D atmospheric structure of HD 209458 b and HD 189733 b, focusing on the formation and distribution of cloud particles, as well as their feedback on the dynamics and thermal profile. We couple the 3D Met Office Unified Model (UM), including detailed treatments of atmospheric radiative transfer and dynamics, to a kinetic cloud formation scheme. The resulting model self--consistently solves for the formation of condensation seeds, surface growth and evaporation, gravitational settling and advection, cloud radiative feedback via absorption and, crucially, scattering. Fluxes directly obtained from the UM are used to produce synthetic SEDs and phase curves. Our simulations show extensive cloud formation in both planets, however, cooler temperatures in the HD 189733 b result in higher cloud particle number densities. Sub-micron particles are suspended by vertical flows leading to extensive upper-atmosphere cloud cover. A combination of meridional advection and efficient cloud formation in cooler high latitude regions, result in enhanced cloud coverage for latitudes > 30 degrees and leads to a zonally banded structure for all our simulations. The cloud bands extend around the entire planet(s), as the temperatures, even on the day side, remain below the condensation temperature of silicates and oxides. Therefore, our simulated optical phase curve for HD 209458 b shows no `offset', in contrast to observations. Efficient scattering by cloud results an atmospheric cooling of up to 250K, and an advection-driven fluctuating cloud opacity causes temporal variability in the thermal emission. The inclusion of this fundamental cloud-atmosphere radiative feedback leads to significant differences with approaches neglecting these physical elements and suggests both a note of caution of interpretations neglecting such cloud feedback and scattering, and merits further study.