Continental Orientation and the Climate of Land-dominated, Arid Planets
The climate and habitability of exoplanets are particularly difficult to constrain due to a lack of planetary information (e.g., obliquity and rotation rate) alongside current observational limitations. Surface water content is one of the most highly sought variables given its connections to the ori...
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Planetary Science Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/adccb6 |
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| Summary: | The climate and habitability of exoplanets are particularly difficult to constrain due to a lack of planetary information (e.g., obliquity and rotation rate) alongside current observational limitations. Surface water content is one of the most highly sought variables given its connections to the origins of life on Earth. Unfortunately, surface water is impossible to constrain due to uncertainties in (i) water content observations and (ii) surface–mantle water differentiation. Global ocean scenarios are prevalent in the literature, but it is vital to investigate the alternative arid scenarios with varied continental orientations and surface water abundances. Here, we use an ensemble of ROCKE-3D global climate model simulations to investigate the potential habitability of single-continent, land-dominated planets. This ensemble simulates climate over a range of water surface areas (WSAs; global ocean coverage) and continental orientations (pole- and equator-centered continents). We find that pole-centered orientations are 2°C–5°C warmer than equator-centered orientations across most WSAs due to the lack of highlands in the northern pole preventing snow and ice accumulation. These differences between continental orientations are completely diminished under the most arid scenarios. This is due to water limitation that results in a breakdown of the ice-albedo feedback, causing warming. Our results show that both WSA and continental orientation play roles in the global mean surface temperature of exoplanets. Future direct imaging missions, such as the Habitable Worlds Observatory, will play a crucial role in constraining the climate of exoplanets due to their ability to assess surface water and land dichotomies. |
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| ISSN: | 2632-3338 |