A dark, bare rock for TOI-1685 b from a JWST NIRSpec G395H phase curve

TL;DR

This study uses JWST NIRSpec observations to analyze TOI-1685 b, a hot rocky super-Earth, revealing a featureless spectrum consistent with an airless, blackbody-like planet with no significant atmosphere or heat redistribution.

Contribution

First detailed phase curve analysis of TOI-1685 b with JWST NIRSpec, constraining its atmospheric properties and noise characteristics, highlighting instrumental systematics in long-duration observations.

Findings

No detectable thick or secondary atmospheres.

Emission spectrum consistent with a blackbody.

Instrumental noise dominates the observed systematics.

Abstract

We report JWST NIRSpec/G395H observations of TOI-1685 b, a hot rocky super-Earth orbiting an M2.5V star, during a full orbit. We obtain transmission and emission spectra of the planet and characterize the properties of the phase curve, including its amplitude and offset. The transmission spectrum rules out clear H$_2$-dominated atmospheres, while secondary atmospheres (made of water, methane, or carbon dioxide) cannot be statistically distinguished from a flat line. The emission spectrum is featureless and consistent with a blackbody-like brightness temperature, helping rule out thick atmospheres with high mean molecular weight. Collecting all evidence, the properties of TOI-1685 b are consistent with a blackbody with no heat redistribution and a low albedo, with a dayside brightness temperature 0.98$\pm$0.07 times that of a perfect blackbody in the NIRSpec NRS2 wavelength range (3.823-5.172 um). Our results add to the growing number of seemingly airless M-star rocky planets, thus constraining the location of the "Cosmic Shoreline". Three independent data reductions have been carried out, all showing a high-amplitude correlated noise component in the white and spectroscopic light curves. The correlated noise properties are different between the NRS1 and NRS2 detectors - importantly the timescales of the strongest components (4.5 hours and 2.5 hours, respectively) - suggesting the noise is from instrumental rather than astrophysical origins. We encourage the community to look into the systematics of NIRSpec for long time-series observations.