Quantification of carbonates, oxychlorines, and chlorine generated by heterogeneous electrochemistry induced by Martian dust activity

Geophysical Research Letters American Geophysical Union 50:4 (2023) e2022GL102127

Authors:

Alian Wang, Andrew W Jackson, Neil C Sturchio, Jen Houghton, Chuck YC Yan, Kevin S Olsen, Quincy HK Qu

Abstract:

Heterogeneous electrochemistry induced by Martian dust activity is an important type of atmosphere-surface interaction that affects geochemical processes at the Martian surface and in the Martian atmosphere. We have experimentally demonstrated that heterogeneous electrochemistry stimulated by mid-strength dust events can decompose common chloride salts, which is accompanied by the release of chlorine atoms into the atmosphere and the generation of (per)chlorates (chlorates and perchlorates) and carbonates. In this study, we present quantitative analyses on the above products from 26 heterogeneous electrochemical experiments on chloride salts. Based on these quantifications, our calculation indicates that such atmosphere-surface interaction during a portion of Amazonian period could accumulate the observed abundance of (per)chlorates, carbonates, and HCl by landed and orbital missions, and thus can be considered as a major driving force of the global chlorine-cycle on Mars. This study emphasizes the importance of measuring the electrical properties of dust activity on Mars.

Measuring the variability of directly imaged exoplanets using vector Apodizing Phase Plates combined with ground-based differential spectrophotometry

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Oxford University Press (OUP) 520:3 (2023) 4235-4257

Authors:

Ben J Sutlieff, Jayne L Birkby, Jordan M Stone, David S Doelman, Matthew A Kenworthy, Vatsal Panwar, Alexander J Bohn, Steve Ertel, Frans Snik, Charles E Woodward, Andrew J Skemer, Jarron M Leisenring, Klaus G Strassmeier, David Charbonneau

The Roasting Marshmallows Program with IGRINS on Gemini South I: Composition and Climate of the Ultrahot Jupiter WASP-18 b

The Astronomical Journal IOP Publishing 165:3 (2023) 91-91

Authors:

Matteo Brogi, Vanessa Emeka-Okafor, Michael R Line, Siddharth Gandhi, Lorenzo Pino, Eliza M-R Kempton, Emily Rauscher, Vivien Parmentier, Jacob L Bean, Gregory N Mace, Nicolas B Cowan, Evgenya Shkolnik, Joost P Wardenier, Megan Mansfield, Luis Welbanks, Peter Smith, Jonathan J Fortney, Jayne L Birkby, Joseph A Zalesky, Lisa Dang, Jennifer Patience, Jean-Michel Désert

Abstract:

Abstract We present high-resolution dayside thermal emission observations of the exoplanet WASP-18 b using IGRINS on Gemini South. We remove stellar and telluric signatures using standard algorithms, and we extract the planet signal via cross-correlation with model spectra. We detect the atmosphere of WASP-18 b at a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of 5.9 using a full chemistry model, measure H 2 O (S/N = 3.3), CO (S/N = 4.0), and OH (S/N = 4.8) individually, and confirm previous claims of a thermal inversion layer. The three species are confidently detected (>4 σ ) with a Bayesian inference framework, which we also use to retrieve abundance, temperature, and velocity information. For this ultrahot Jupiter (UHJ), thermal dissociation processes likely play an important role. Retrieving abundances constant with altitude and allowing the temperature–pressure profile to adjust freely results in a moderately super-stellar carbon-to-oxygen ratio (C/O = 0.75 − 0.17 + 0.14 ) and metallicity ([M/H] = 1.03 − 1.01 + 0.65 ). Accounting for undetectable oxygen produced by thermal dissociation leads to C/O = 0.45 − 0.10 + 0.08 and [M/H] = 1.17 − 1.01 + 0.66 . A retrieval that assumes radiative–convective–thermochemical equilibrium and naturally accounts for thermal dissociation constrains C/O < 0.34 (2 σ ) and [M/H] = 0.48 − 0.29 + 0.33 , in line with the chemistry of the parent star. Looking at the velocity information, we see a tantalizing signature of different Doppler shifts at the level of a few kilometers per second for different molecules, which might probe dynamics as a function of altitude and/or location on the planet disk. Our results demonstrate that ground-based, high-resolution spectroscopy at infrared wavelengths can provide meaningful constraints on the compositions and climate of highly irradiated planets. This work also elucidates potential pitfalls with commonly employed retrieval assumptions when applied to the spectra of UHJs.

Venus, the Planet: Introduction to the Evolution of Earth’s Sister Planet

Space Science Reviews Springer 219:1 (2023) 10

Authors:

Joseph G O’Rourke, Colin F Wilson, Madison E Borrelli, Paul K Byrne, Caroline Dumoulin, Richard Ghail, Anna JP Gülcher, Seth A Jacobson, Oleg Korablev, Tilman Spohn, MJ Way, Matt Weller, Frances Westall

Abstract:

Misconceptions are understandings of concepts that are not in accordance with scientific concepts. Teachers have the potential to experience misconceptions and misconceptions that occur in teachers can result in students also experiencing misconceptions. Research that examines science misconceptions in elementary school teachers is still rare, so there is a need for research examining science misconceptions in elementary school teachers, especially in elementary school teachers who are certified educators. Therefore, this study aims at determining whether science misconceptions occur in elementary school teachers with teaching certificates or not and how much misconceptions are experienced and the misconceptions occurred. This study employs descriptive quantitative by involving 17 certified elementary school teachers who are classroom teachers teaching several subjects in elementary schools including science subjects. Data collection was done by conducting a four tier misconception diagnosis test and the result was analyzed using by referring to four tier test concept developed by various researchers. The findings indicated that primary school teachers possessing teaching certificates exhibited science misconceptions at a rate of 22%, placing them in the low category of scientific understanding at 66%. Despite the relatively low occurrence of misconceptions, it is advisable for certified primary school teachers to further enhance their grasp of the concepts they impart to prevent any potential hindrance to the learning process

Measuring the variability of directly imaged exoplanets using vector Apodizing Phase Plates combined with ground-based differential spectrophotometry

(2023)

Authors:

Ben J Sutlieff, Jayne L Birkby, Jordan M Stone, David S Doelman, Matthew A Kenworthy, Vatsal Panwar, Alexander J Bohn, Steve Ertel, Frans Snik, Charles E Woodward, Andrew J Skemer, Jarron M Leisenring, Klaus G Strassmeier, David Charbonneau