ExoGemS Detection of a Metal Hydride in an Exoplanet Atmosphere at High Spectral Resolution
ExoGemS Detection of a Metal Hydride in an Exoplanet Atmosphere at High Spectral Resolution
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DOI：
10.3847/2041-8213/ace529
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发表时间：
2023-07
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
L. Flagg;J. Turner;E. Deibert;A. Ridden-Harper;E. D. de Mooij;R. MacDonald;R. Jayawardhana;
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
L. Flagg;J. Turner;E. Deibert;A. Ridden-Harper;E. D. de Mooij;R. MacDonald;R. Jayawardhana;
系外行星大气研究通常通过与褐矮星类似物的协同作用而丰富。然而，褐矮星中常见的许多关键分子尚未在系外行星大气中得到证实。一个重要的例子是氢化铬（CrH），它通常用于探测大气温度并将褐矮星分类为光谱类型。最近，在热木星 WASP-31b 的低分辨率透射光谱中报道了 CrH 的初步证据。在这里，我们展示了 GRACES/Gemini North 和 UVES/甚大望远镜对 WASP-31b 透射光谱的高光谱分辨率观测结果。我们以 5.6σ 的置信度检测到 CrH，这是首次在系外行星大气中以高光谱分辨率检测到金属氢化物。我们的发现是理解金属氢化物在系外行星大气中的作用的关键一步。
Exoplanet atmosphere studies are often enriched by synergies with brown dwarf analogs. However, many key molecules commonly seen in brown dwarfs have yet to be confirmed in exoplanet atmospheres. An important example is chromium hydride (CrH), which is often used to probe atmospheric temperatures and classify brown dwarfs into spectral types. Recently, tentative evidence for CrH was reported in the low-resolution transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter WASP-31b. Here, we present high spectral resolution observations of WASP-31b’s transmission spectrum from GRACES/Gemini North and UVES/Very Large Telescope. We detect CrH at 5.6σ confidence, representing the first metal hydride detection in an exoplanet atmosphere at high spectral resolution. Our findings constitute a critical step in understanding the role of metal hydrides in exoplanet atmospheres.