Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d
The nearby TRAPPIST-1 system, with its seven small rocky planets orbiting a late-type M8 star, offers an unprecedented opportunity to search for secondary atmospheres on temperate terrestrial worlds. In particular, the 0.8 R _⊕ TRAPPIST-1 d lies at the edge of the habitable zone ( T _eq,A=0.3 = 262...
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| author | Caroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb Björn Benneke Martin Turbet Keavin Moore Pierre-Alexis Roy Olivia Lim René Doyon Thomas J. Fauchez Loïc Albert Michael Radica Louis-Philippe Coulombe David Lafrenière Nicolas B. Cowan Danika Belzile Kamrul Musfirat Mehramat Kaur Alexandrine L’Heureux Doug Johnstone Ryan J. MacDonald Romain Allart Lisa Dang Lisa Kaltenegger Stefan Pelletier Jason F. Rowe Jake Taylor Jake D. Turner |
| author_facet | Caroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb Björn Benneke Martin Turbet Keavin Moore Pierre-Alexis Roy Olivia Lim René Doyon Thomas J. Fauchez Loïc Albert Michael Radica Louis-Philippe Coulombe David Lafrenière Nicolas B. Cowan Danika Belzile Kamrul Musfirat Mehramat Kaur Alexandrine L’Heureux Doug Johnstone Ryan J. MacDonald Romain Allart Lisa Dang Lisa Kaltenegger Stefan Pelletier Jason F. Rowe Jake Taylor Jake D. Turner |
| author_sort | Caroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The nearby TRAPPIST-1 system, with its seven small rocky planets orbiting a late-type M8 star, offers an unprecedented opportunity to search for secondary atmospheres on temperate terrestrial worlds. In particular, the 0.8 R _⊕ TRAPPIST-1 d lies at the edge of the habitable zone ( T _eq,A=0.3 = 262 K). Here we present the first 0.6–5.2 μ m NIRSpec/PRISM transmission spectrum of TRAPPIST-1 d from two transits with JWST. We find that stellar contamination from unocculted bright heterogeneities introduces 500–1000 ppm visit-dependent slopes, consistent with constraints from the out-of-transit stellar spectrum. Once corrected, the transmission spectrum is flat within ±100–150 ppm, showing no evidence for a haze-like slope or molecular absorption despite NIRSpec/PRISM’s sensitivity to CH _4 , H _2 O, CO, SO _2 , and CO _2 . Our observations exclude clear, hydrogen-dominated atmospheres with high confidence (>3 σ ). We leverage our constraints on even trace amounts of CH _4 , H _2 O, and CO _2 to further reject high mean molecular weight compositions analogous to a haze-free Titan, a cloud-free Venus, early Mars, and both Archean Earth and a cloud-free modern Earth scenario (>95% confidence). If TRAPPIST-1 d retains an atmosphere, it is likely extremely thin or contains high-altitude aerosols, with water cloud formation at the terminator predicted by 3D global climate models. Alternatively, if TRAPPIST-1 d is airless, our evolutionary models indicate that TRAPPIST-1 b, c, and d must have formed with ≲4 Earth oceans of water, though this would not preclude atmospheres on the cooler habitable-zone planets TRAPPIST-1 e, f, and g. |
| format | Article |
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| spelling | doaj-art-e1f9d414aee3410fab46e1dd45fdc9422025-08-20T03:36:30ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-01989218110.3847/1538-4357/adf207Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 dCaroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2875-917XBjörn Benneke1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5578-1498Martin Turbet2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2260-9856Keavin Moore3Pierre-Alexis Roy4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6809-3520Olivia Lim5https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4676-0622René Doyon6https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5485-4675Thomas J. Fauchez7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5967-9631Loïc Albert8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0475-9375Michael Radica9https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3328-1203Louis-Philippe Coulombe10https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2195-735XDavid Lafrenière11https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6780-4252Nicolas B. Cowan12https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6129-5699Danika Belzile13https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6298-9802Kamrul Musfirat14https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6653-6165Mehramat Kaur15https://orcid.org/0009-0004-9827-2481Alexandrine L’Heureux16https://orcid.org/0009-0005-6135-6769Doug Johnstone17https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6773-459XRyan J. MacDonald18https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4816-3469Romain Allart19https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1199-9759Lisa Dang20https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4987-6591Lisa Kaltenegger21https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0436-1802Stefan Pelletier22https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8573-805XJason F. Rowe23https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5904-1865Jake Taylor24https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4844-9838Jake D. Turner25https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7836-1787Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.edu; Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Chicago , 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USATrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.edu; Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, University of California , Los Angeles, CA 90095, USALaboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique/IPSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université , Ecole Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, Ecole Polytechnique, 75005 Paris, France; Laboratoire d’astrophysique de Bordeaux, Université de Bordeaux , CNRS, B18N, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 33615 Pessac, FranceDepartment of Physics, McGill University , Montréal, QC, Canada; Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University , Montréal, QC, CanadaTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduNASA Goddard Space Flight Center , 8800 Greenbelt Road, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA; Integrated Space Science and Technology Institute, Department of Physics, American University , Washington DC, USA; NASA GSFC Sellers Exoplanet Environments Collaboration , USATrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.edu; Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Chicago , 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USATrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduDepartment of Physics, McGill University , Montréal, QC, Canada; Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University , Montréal, QC, CanadaDepartment of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montréal, QC, Canada; Dawson College , Montréal, QC, CanadaDepartment of Physiology, McGill University , Montréal, QC, CanadaÉcole secondaire Cavalier-De LaSalle , Montréal, QC, CanadaTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduNRC Herzberg Astronomy and Astrophysics , 5071 West Saanich Road, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada; Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Victoria , Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, CanadaDepartment of Astronomy, University of Michigan , 1085 South University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USATrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.eduCarl Sagan Institute, Cornell University , Ithaca, NY, USA; Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science, Cornell University , Ithaca, NY 14853, USA; Astronomy Department, Cornell University , Ithaca, NY 14853, USATrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.edu; Observatoire astronomique de l’Université de Genève , 51 Chemin Pegasi, 1290 Versoix, SwitzerlandDepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Bishop’s University , 2600 Rue College, Sherbrooke, QC J1M 1Z7, CanadaTrottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and Department of Physics, Université de Montréal , Montreal, QC, Canada ; carolinepiaulet@uchicago.edu; Department of Physics, University of Oxford , Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PU, UKCarl Sagan Institute, Cornell University , Ithaca, NY, USA; Astronomy Department, Cornell University , Ithaca, NY 14853, USAThe nearby TRAPPIST-1 system, with its seven small rocky planets orbiting a late-type M8 star, offers an unprecedented opportunity to search for secondary atmospheres on temperate terrestrial worlds. In particular, the 0.8 R _⊕ TRAPPIST-1 d lies at the edge of the habitable zone ( T _eq,A=0.3 = 262 K). Here we present the first 0.6–5.2 μ m NIRSpec/PRISM transmission spectrum of TRAPPIST-1 d from two transits with JWST. We find that stellar contamination from unocculted bright heterogeneities introduces 500–1000 ppm visit-dependent slopes, consistent with constraints from the out-of-transit stellar spectrum. Once corrected, the transmission spectrum is flat within ±100–150 ppm, showing no evidence for a haze-like slope or molecular absorption despite NIRSpec/PRISM’s sensitivity to CH _4 , H _2 O, CO, SO _2 , and CO _2 . Our observations exclude clear, hydrogen-dominated atmospheres with high confidence (>3 σ ). We leverage our constraints on even trace amounts of CH _4 , H _2 O, and CO _2 to further reject high mean molecular weight compositions analogous to a haze-free Titan, a cloud-free Venus, early Mars, and both Archean Earth and a cloud-free modern Earth scenario (>95% confidence). If TRAPPIST-1 d retains an atmosphere, it is likely extremely thin or contains high-altitude aerosols, with water cloud formation at the terminator predicted by 3D global climate models. Alternatively, if TRAPPIST-1 d is airless, our evolutionary models indicate that TRAPPIST-1 b, c, and d must have formed with ≲4 Earth oceans of water, though this would not preclude atmospheres on the cooler habitable-zone planets TRAPPIST-1 e, f, and g.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adf207Extrasolar rocky planetsExoplanet atmospheresExoplanetsM dwarf starsStellar activityStarspots |
| spellingShingle | Caroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb Björn Benneke Martin Turbet Keavin Moore Pierre-Alexis Roy Olivia Lim René Doyon Thomas J. Fauchez Loïc Albert Michael Radica Louis-Philippe Coulombe David Lafrenière Nicolas B. Cowan Danika Belzile Kamrul Musfirat Mehramat Kaur Alexandrine L’Heureux Doug Johnstone Ryan J. MacDonald Romain Allart Lisa Dang Lisa Kaltenegger Stefan Pelletier Jason F. Rowe Jake Taylor Jake D. Turner Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d The Astrophysical Journal Extrasolar rocky planets Exoplanet atmospheres Exoplanets M dwarf stars Stellar activity Starspots |
| title | Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d |
| title_full | Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d |
| title_fullStr | Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d |
| title_full_unstemmed | Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d |
| title_short | Strict Limits on Potential Secondary Atmospheres on the Temperate Rocky Exo-Earth TRAPPIST-1 d |
| title_sort | strict limits on potential secondary atmospheres on the temperate rocky exo earth trappist 1 d |
| topic | Extrasolar rocky planets Exoplanet atmospheres Exoplanets M dwarf stars Stellar activity Starspots |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adf207 |
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