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The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899 and based in Washington, DC, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. Its membership of about 7,000 individuals also includes physicists, mathematicians, geologists, engineers, and others whose research and educational interests lie within the broad spectrum of subjects comprising contemporary astronomy. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity's scientific understanding of the universe.

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Mass-Radius Relationships for Solid Exoplanets

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© 2007. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A.
,,Citation S. Seageret al 2007ApJ669 1279DOI 10.1086/521346

S. Seager

AFFILIATIONS

Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC 20015

Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 01742

M. Kuchner

AFFILIATIONS

Exoplanets and Stellar Astrophysics Laboratory, Code 667, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771

C. A. Hier-Majumder

AFFILIATIONS

Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC 20015

B. Militzer

AFFILIATIONS

Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC 20015

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Dates

  1. Received2006 December 25
  2. Accepted2007 June 21
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0004-637X/669/2/1279

Abstract

We use new interior models of cold planets to investigate the mass-radius relationships of solid exoplanets, considering planets made primarily of iron, silicates, water, and carbon compounds. We find that the mass-radius relationships for cold terrestrial mass planets of all compositions we considered follow a generic functional form that is not a simple power law: log10Rs =k1 +log10(Ms) -k2M for up toMp ≈ 20M, whereMs andRs are scaled mass and radius values. This functional form arises because the common building blocks of solid planets all have equations of state that are well approximated by a modified polytrope of the form ρ = ρ0 +cPn. We find that highly detailed planet interior models, including temperature structure and phase changes, are not necessary to derive solid exoplanet bulk composition from mass and radius measurements. For solid exoplanets with no substantial atmosphere we have also found the following: with 5% fractional uncertainty in planet mass and radius it is possible to distinguish among planets composed predominantly of iron or silicates or water ice but not more detailed compositions; with ~5% uncertainty water ice planets with ≳25% water by mass may be identified; the minimum plausible planet size for a given mass is that of a pure iron planet; and carbon planet mass-radius relationships overlap with those of silicate and water planets due to similar zero-pressure densities and equations of state. We propose a definition of "super-Earths" based on the clear distinction in radii between planets with significant gas envelopes and those without.

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10.1086/521346

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