Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations

We report on the critical influence of small-scale flow structures (e.g., fronts, vortices, and waves) that immediately arise in hot exoplanet atmosphere simulations initialized with a resting state. A hot, 1:1 spin–orbit synchronized Jupiter is used here as a clear example; but, the phenomenon is g...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: J. W. Skinner, J. Y-K. Cho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:The Astrophysical Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb0ce
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850221406970707968
author J. W. Skinner
J. Y-K. Cho
author_facet J. W. Skinner
J. Y-K. Cho
author_sort J. W. Skinner
collection DOAJ
description We report on the critical influence of small-scale flow structures (e.g., fronts, vortices, and waves) that immediately arise in hot exoplanet atmosphere simulations initialized with a resting state. A hot, 1:1 spin–orbit synchronized Jupiter is used here as a clear example; but, the phenomenon is generic and important for any type of a hot synchronized planet—gaseous, oceanic, or telluric. When the early time structures are not captured in simulations (due to, e.g., poor resolution and/or too much dissipation), the flow behavior is markedly different at later times, in an observationally significant way; for example, the flow at large scales is smoother and much less dynamic. This results in the temperature field, and its corresponding thermal flux, to be incorrectly predicted in numerical simulations, even when the quantities are spatially averaged.
format Article
id doaj-art-441a60b0c3a443bd892ac05da3d4faeb
institution OA Journals
issn 1538-4357
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher IOP Publishing
record_format Article
series The Astrophysical Journal
spelling doaj-art-441a60b0c3a443bd892ac05da3d4faeb2025-08-20T02:06:44ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198216410.3847/1538-4357/adb0ceEarly Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere SimulationsJ. W. Skinner0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5263-385XJ. Y-K. Cho1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4525-5651Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology , 1200 E California Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA ; jskinner@caltech.edu; Martin A. Fisher School of Physics, Brandeis University , 415 South Street, Waltham, MA 02453, USAMartin A. Fisher School of Physics, Brandeis University , 415 South Street, Waltham, MA 02453, USAWe report on the critical influence of small-scale flow structures (e.g., fronts, vortices, and waves) that immediately arise in hot exoplanet atmosphere simulations initialized with a resting state. A hot, 1:1 spin–orbit synchronized Jupiter is used here as a clear example; but, the phenomenon is generic and important for any type of a hot synchronized planet—gaseous, oceanic, or telluric. When the early time structures are not captured in simulations (due to, e.g., poor resolution and/or too much dissipation), the flow behavior is markedly different at later times, in an observationally significant way; for example, the flow at large scales is smoother and much less dynamic. This results in the temperature field, and its corresponding thermal flux, to be incorrectly predicted in numerical simulations, even when the quantities are spatially averaged.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb0ceExoplanet atmospheresExoplanet atmospheric dynamicsAtmospheric dynamicsExoplanet atmospheric variabilityExoplanetsHydrodynamics
spellingShingle J. W. Skinner
J. Y-K. Cho
Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations
The Astrophysical Journal
Exoplanet atmospheres
Exoplanet atmospheric dynamics
Atmospheric dynamics
Exoplanet atmospheric variability
Exoplanets
Hydrodynamics
title Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations
title_full Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations
title_fullStr Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations
title_full_unstemmed Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations
title_short Early Time Small-scale Structures in Hot Exoplanet Atmosphere Simulations
title_sort early time small scale structures in hot exoplanet atmosphere simulations
topic Exoplanet atmospheres
Exoplanet atmospheric dynamics
Atmospheric dynamics
Exoplanet atmospheric variability
Exoplanets
Hydrodynamics
url https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb0ce
work_keys_str_mv AT jwskinner earlytimesmallscalestructuresinhotexoplanetatmospheresimulations
AT jykcho earlytimesmallscalestructuresinhotexoplanetatmospheresimulations