Model bond albedos of extrasolar giant planets

C. R. Gelino, M. Marley, D. Stephens, J. Lunine, R. Freedman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

The atmospheres of extrasolar giant planets are modeled with various effective temperatures and gravities, with and without clouds. Bond albedos are computed by calculating the ratio of the flux reflected by a planet (integrated over wavelength) to the total stellar flux incident on the planet. This quantity is useful for estimating the effective temperature and evolution of a planet. We find it is sensitive to the stellar type of the primary. For a 5 M(Jup) planet the Bond albedo varies from 0.4 to 0.3 to 0.06 as the primary star varies from A5V to G2V to M2V in spectral type. It is relatively insensitive to the effective temperature and gravity for cloud-free planets. Water clouds increase the reflectivity of the planet in the red, which increases the Bond albedo. The Bond albedo increases by an order of magnitude for a 13 M(Jup) planet with an M2V primary when water clouds are present. Silicate clouds, on the other hand, can either increase or decrease the Bond albedo, depending on whether there are many small grains (the former) or few large grains (the latter).

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)573-578
Number of pages6
JournalPhysics and Chemistry of the Earth, Part C: Solar, Terrestrial and Planetary Science
Volume24
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - 1999
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Earth and Planetary Sciences

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