paper

A temperature inversion with atomic iron in the ultra-hot dayside atmosphere of WASP-189b

arXiv:2007.02716 · doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202038294

Abstract

Temperature inversion layers are predicted to be present in ultra-hot giant planet atmospheres. Although such inversion layers have recently been observed in several ultra-hot Jupiters, the chemical species responsible for creating the inversion remain unidentified. Here, we present observations of the thermal emission spectrum of an ultra-hot Jupiter, WASP-189b, at high spectral resolution using the HARPS-N spectrograph. Using the cross-correlation technique, we detect a strong Fe I signal. The detected Fe I spectral lines are found in emission, which is direct evidence of a temperature inversion in the planetary atmosphere. We further performed a retrieval on the observed spectrum using a forward model with an MCMC approach. When assuming a solar metallicity, the best-fit result returns a temperature of K at the top of the inversion, which is significantly hotter than the planetary equilibrium temperature (2641 K). The temperature at the bottom of the inversion is determined as K. Such a strong temperature inversion is probably created by the absorption of atomic species like Fe I.

arXiv comment9 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics, in press

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