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96 records · Page 6

An Unusual Transmission Spectrum for the Sub-Saturn KELT-11b Suggestive of a Subsolar Water Abundance

We present an optical-to-infrared transmission spectrum of the inflated sub-Saturn KELT-11b measured with the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 G141 spectroscopic grism, and the Spitzer Space Telescope (Spitzer) at 3.6 μm, in addition to a Spitzer 4.5 μm secondary eclipse. The precise HST transmission spectrum notably reveals a low-amplitude water feature with an unusual shape. Based on free-retrieval analyses with varying molecular abundances, we find strong evidence for water absorption. Depending on model assumptions, we also find tentative evidence for other absorbers (HCN, TiO, and AlO). The retrieved water abundance is generally ≲0.1× solar (0.001–0.7× solar over a range of model assumptions), several orders of magnitude lower than expected from planet formation models based on the solar system metallicity trend. We also consider chemical-equilibrium and self-consistent 1D radiative-convective equilibrium model fits and find that they, too, prefer low metallicities ([M/H] ≲ -2, consistent with the free-retrieval results). However, all of the retrievals should be interpreted with some caution because they either require additional absorbers that are far out of chemical equilibrium to explain the shape of the spectrum or are simply poor fits to the data. Finally, we find that the Spitzer secondary eclipse is indicative of full heat redistribution from KELT-11b’s dayside to nightside, assuming a clear dayside. These potentially unusual results for KELT-11b’s composition are suggestive of new challenges on the horizon for atmosphere and formation models in the face of increasingly precise measurements of exoplanet spectra.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

The Hubble PanCET Program: A Metal-rich Atmosphere for the Inflated Hot Jupiter HAT-P-41b

We present a comprehensive analysis of the 0.3–5 μm transit spectrum for the inflated hot Jupiter HAT-P-41b. The planet was observed in transit with Hubble STIS and WFC3 as part of the Hubble Panchromatic Comparative Exoplanet Treasury (PanCET) program, and we combine those data with warm Spitzer transit observations. We extract transit depths from each of the data sets, presenting the STIS transit spectrum (0.29–0.93 μm) for the first time. We retrieve the transit spectrum both with a free-chemistry retrieval suite (AURA) and a complementary chemical equilibrium retrieval suite (PLATON) to constrain the atmospheric properties at the day–night terminator. Both methods provide an excellent fit to the observed spectrum. Both AURA and PLATON retrieve a metal-rich atmosphere for almost all model assumptions (most likely O/H ratio of log{sub 10}Z/Z{sub ⊙}=1.46{sub −0.68}{sup +0.53} and log{sub 10}Z/Z{sub ⊙}=2.33{sub −0.25}{sup +0.23}, respectively); this is driven by a 4.9σ detection of H{sub 2}O as well as evidence of gas absorption in the optical (>2.7σ detection) due to Na, AlO, and/or VO/TiO, though no individual species is strongly detected. Both retrievals determine the transit spectrum to be consistent with a clear atmosphere, with no evidence of haze or high-altitude clouds. Interior modeling constraints on the maximum atmospheric metallicity (log{sub 10}Z/Z{sub ⊙}<1.7) favor the AURA results. The inferred elemental oxygen abundance suggests that HAT-P-41b has one of the most metal-rich atmospheres of any hot Jupiters known to date. Overall, the inferred high metallicity and high inflation make HAT-P-41b an interesting test case for planet formation theories.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Diel variation in CO 2 flux is substantial in many lakes

Lakes play a significant role in the global carbon cycle, acting as sources and sinks of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). In situ measurements of CO 2 flux (FCO 2 ) from lakes have generally been collected during daylight, despite indications of significant diel variability. This introduces bias when scaling up to whole-lake annual aquatic carbon budgets. We conducted an international sampling program to ascertain the extent of diel variation in FCO 2 across lakes. We sampled 21 lakes over 41 campaigns and measured FCO 2 at 4-h intervals over a full diel cycle. Rates of FCO 2 ranged from −3.16 to 4.39 mmol m −2 h −1 . Integrated over a day, FCO 2 ranged from −381.68 to 878.49 mg C m −2 d −1 (mean = 76.54) across campaigns. We identified three characteristic diel patterns in FCO 2 related to trophic status and show that for half of the campaigns, daily flux estimates were biased by > 50% if based on a single (daytime) measurement.

de Eyto, Elvira [Marine Institute, Mayo (Ireland)]↗

Depth-resolved carbon dioxide and methane concentrations in 522 lakes, ponds, and reservoirs worldwide

Lakes, ponds, and reservoirs (hereafter: “lakes”) are important sources of the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and methane (CH 4 ). Emissions of CO 2 and CH 4 from lakes are regulated in part by in-lake processes, including the production and storage of gases in the lower parts of the water column (bottom waters). However, while substantial efforts have been made to improve estimates of greenhouse gas emissions from lakes, limited data on gas concentrations along depth profiles have prevented the incorporation of bottom-water processes in global emission estimates. Here, we present GHG-depths: the largest existing dataset of depth-profile CO 2 and CH 4 measurements worldwide, including 522 lakes across 38 countries and all seven continents. These data include contributions from 45 research teams and 56 published studies, totaling 2558 discrete sampling events. As global change continues to alter biogeochemical cycling in lakes, these data can help improve mechanistic models to better predict greenhouse gas production and emission from lakes worldwide.

Rabaey, Joseph S. [University of Minnesota, Duluth↗

Mercury Remediation Technology Development for Lower East Fork Poplar Creek—FY 2021 Update

Mercury remediation is a high priority for the US Department of Energy (DOE) Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management. Mercury contamination in the environment can be found at all three DOE facilities in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, but the greatest environmental risk concern relative to Hg on the Oak Ridge Reservation is likely associated with historical Hg losses at and near the Y-12 National Security Complex (Y-12). Mercury in water and fish from East Fork Poplar Creek (EFPC) downstream of Y-12 exceeds regulatory thresholds. Because of the complexities of Hg transport and fate in the aquatic environment, conventional remedial options for EFPC are highly uncertain. DOE is using a phased adaptive management approach to Hg remediation at Y-12, with a focus in the next few years on construction of the Mercury Treatment Facility (MTF) to treat the most contaminated Y-12 outfall entering EFPC (DOE 2017a; DOE 2017b). Once operational, the MTF will provide additional protection against inadvertent releases of Hg into the stream from decontamination and decommissioning of Y-12 Hg-use buildings. Although the MTF is anticipated to substantially decrease Hg water concentrations and flux in upper EFPC (UEFPC), research and technology development are needed to develop appropriate and longer-term remedial solutions for the downstream environment. Since late 2014, the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management and URS | CH2M Oak Ridge LLC/Restoration Services Inc. have supported DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Environmental Sciences Division staff in conducting field and laboratory studies to develop Hg remedial technology solutions for lower EFPC (LEFPC). Whereas previous annual reporting updates for Hg remediation technology development for LEFPC have focused on presenting detailed results from the previous fiscal year, this FY 2021 update takes a comprehensive, higher-level approach to the research and technology development activities conducted since 2014. The report is organized to be consistent with the three tasks defined in the LEFPC strategic plan

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

A framework for ensemble modelling of climate change impacts on lakes worldwide: the ISIMIP Lake Sector

Abstract. Empirical evidence demonstrates that lakes and reservoirs are warming across the globe. Consequently, there is an increased need to project future changes in lake thermal structure and resulting changes in lake biogeochemistry in order to plan for the likely impacts. Previous studies of the impacts of climate change on lakes have often relied on a single model forced with limited scenario-driven projections of future climate for a relatively small number of lakes. As a result, our understanding of the effects of climate change on lakes is fragmentary, based on scattered studies using different data sources and modelling protocols, and mainly focused on individual lakes or lake regions. This has precluded identification of the main impacts of climate change on lakes at global and regional scales and has likely contributed to the lack of lake water quality considerations in policy-relevant documents, such as the Assessment Reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Here, we describe a simulation protocol developed by the Lake Sector of the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISIMIP) for simulating climate change impacts on lakes using an ensemble of lake models and climate change scenarios for ISIMIP phases 2 and 3. The protocol prescribes lake simulations driven by climate forcing from gridded observations and different Earth system models under various representative greenhouse gas concentration pathways (RCPs), all consistently bias-corrected on a 0.5∘ × 0.5∘ global grid. In ISIMIP phase 2, 11 lake models were forced with these data to project the thermal structure of 62 well-studied lakes where data were available for calibration under historical conditions, and using uncalibrated models for 17 500 lakes defined for all global grid cells containing lakes. In ISIMIP phase 3, this approach was expanded to consider more lakes, more models, and more processes. The ISIMIP Lake Sector is the largest international effort to project future water temperature, thermal structure, and ice phenology of lakes at local and global scales and paves the way for future simulations of the impacts of climate change on water quality and biogeochemistry in lakes.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗