Observations Of Disintegrating, Evaporating And Hot Planet Atmospheres With Transmission Spectra

Abstract

Hot exoplanets with semi-major axes smaller than 0.05 AU can go considerable alteration from the high energy radiation of their host stars radiation from driving winds to altering the thermal profiles to disintegrating nearby planets. A variety of exoplanets are studied in this high irradiation environment with different consequences on their atmospheres. The escaping winds from the transiting hot Jupiter HD 209458b are measured with a novel limb brightened transit model for ultraviolet wavelengths. The hot exoplanet CoRoT-1b is used as a test case for the hypothesis that TiO and VO molecules (which can exist in equilibrium at high temperatures) can create a temperature inversion in the planet by absorbing stellar ultraviolet radiation. Finally, the escaping debris from the disintegrating planet candidate KIC 12557548b are characterized with spectroscopy to constrain the size of dust particless in its escaping winds.