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Juno Jupiter image

Prof. Patrick Irwin

Professor of Planetary Physics

Research theme

  • Exoplanets and planetary physics

Sub department

  • Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics

Research groups

  • Exoplanet atmospheres
  • Planetary atmosphere observation analysis
  • Solar system
patrick.irwin@physics.ox.ac.uk
Telephone: 01865 (2)72083
Atmospheric Physics Clarendon Laboratory, room 306
Personal research page
NEMESIS
  • About
  • Publications

Telling twins apart: Exo-Earths and Venuses with transit spectroscopy

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Oxford University Press 458:3 (2016) 2657-2666

Authors:

JK Barstow, Suzanne Aigrain, Patrick GJ Irwin, Sarah Kendrew, Leigh N Fletcher

Abstract:

The planned launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in 2018 will herald a new era of exoplanet spectroscopy. JWST will be the first telescope sensitive enough to potentially characterize terrestrial planets from their transmission spectra. In this work, we explore the possibility that terrestrial planets with Venus-type and Earth-type atmospheres could be distinguished from each other using spectra obtained by JWST. If we find a terrestrial planet close to the liquid water habitable zone of an M5 star within a distance of 10 parsec, it would be possible to detect atmospheric ozone if present in large enough quantities, which would enable an oxygen-rich atmosphere to be identified. However, the cloudiness of a Venus-type atmosphere would inhibit our ability to draw firm conclusions about the atmospheric composition, making any result ambiguous. Observing small, temperate planets with JWST requires significant investment of resources, with single targets requiring of the order of 100 transits to achieve sufficient signal to noise. The possibility of detecting a crucial feature such as the ozone signature would need to be carefully weighed against the likelihood of clouds obscuring gas absorption in the spectrum.
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Exposed water ice on the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko

Nature Springer Nature 529:7586 (2016) 368-372

Authors:

G Filacchione, MC De Sanctis, F Capaccioni, A Raponi, F Tosi, M Ciarniello, P Cerroni, G Piccioni, MT Capria, E Palomba, G Bellucci, S Erard, D Bockelee-Morvan, C Leyrat, G Arnold, MA Barucci, M Fulchignoni, B Schmitt, E Quirico, R Jaumann, K Stephan, A Longobardo, V Mennella, A Migliorini, E Ammannito, J Benkhoff, JP Bibring, A Blanco, MI Blecka, R Carlson, U Carsenty, L Colangeli, M Combes, M Combi, J Crovisier, P Drossart, T Encrenaz, C Federico, U Fink, S Fonti, WH Ip, P Irwin, E Kuehrt, Y Langevin, G Magni, T McCord, L Moroz, S Mottola, V Orofino, U Schade, F Taylor, D Tiphene, GP Tozzi, P Beck, N Biver, L Bonal, J-Ph Combe, D Despan, E Flamini, M Formisano, S Fornasier, A Frigeri, D Grassi, MS Gudipati, D Kappel, F Mancarella, K Markus, F Merlin, R Orosei, G Rinaldi, M Cartacci, A Cicchetti, S Giuppi, Y Hello, F Henry, S Jacquinod, JM Reess, R Noschese, R Politi, G Peter
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Seasonal variability of Saturn’s tropospheric temperatures, winds and para-H2 from Cassini far-IR spectroscopy

Icarus Elsevier 264 (2016) 137-159

Authors:

Leigh N Fletcher, PGJ Irwin, RK Achterberg, GS Orton, FM Flasar
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Aerosol influence on energy balance of the middle atmosphere of Jupiter

Nature Communications Springer Nature 6:1 (2015) 10231

Authors:

Xi Zhang, Robert A West, Patrick GJ Irwin, Conor A Nixon, Yuk L Yung
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Exoplanet atmospheres with EChO: spectral retrievals using EChOSim

Experimental Astronomy Springer Nature 40:2-3 (2015) 545-561

Authors:

Joanna K Barstow, Neil E Bowles, Suzanne Aigrain, Leigh N Fletcher, Patrick GJ Irwin, Ryan Varley, Enzo Pascale
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