Taking A Tour to Understand Photochemical Hazes in Exoplanets: Implications for Habitability, Chemistry, JWST Observations, and Future Flagship Missions
by
Tsung-Dao Lee Institute/S4F-SW - Open Area
Tsung-Dao Lee Institute
Host: Xianyu Tan
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Abstract:
Photochemical hazes are a common occurrence in exo-planetary atmospheres. However, the lack of comprehensive, self-consistent studies hinder our understanding of their interpretation of observations, potentially introducing significant biases in retrieved atmospheric properties. I will present a 3D framework which the impact of hazes for both rocky planets and gas giants using the UK Met Office Unified Model. I reveal that haze can enhance the habitability of rocky planets, and explore implications for future missions e.g., the Habitable World Observatory and Large Interferometer for Exoplanets. I also demonstrate the impact of hazes on the dynamical and chemical structure of hot Jupiter atmospheres, and how these shape observations comparing to existing, and ongoing JWST programmes I am involved in. Finally, I introduce a novel framework for diagnosing the presence of hazes in hot Jupiters using limb asymmetry, offering a computationally efficient alternative to full 3D simulations in planning of observations.
Biography:
Dr. Mei Ting Mak is an astrophysicist specialising in aerosols and exo-planetary climate modelling. She is currently a Croucher Fellow based at the University of Oxford, developing and applying cutting-edge haze schemes in a state-of-the-art 3D model to study impact of haze on habitability and observability of exoplanets. Previously, she secured the prestigious Bell Burnell Graduate Scholarship Fund to investigate the role of haze in exoplanetary atmospheres for her PhD.
