Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Oct 2010
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010dps....42.2715y&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #42, #27.15; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 42, p.1062
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
Scientific paper
The intense irradiation received by hot Jupiters suppresses convection to a depth well below the photosphere. This stably stratified region may be turbulent. Atmospheric circulation from day to night sides has been proposed as a source of turbulence. Turbulence has also been invoked to explain stratospheric thermal inversions, because mixing is required to keep opacity sources such as TiO aloft. We develop a model for steady state energy balance that includes turbulence in radiative zones. We discover a "mechanical greenhouse effect" whereby turbulence in stably stratified atmospheres provides a downward flux of heat. This mechanism is precisely opposite to the outward flux of heat in convective zones. Since the mechanical flux of heat penetrates below the photosphere, it behaves analogously to the deep penetration of visible light in the standard greenhouse effect. We find that low levels of turbulence push the radiative convective boundary deeper in the planet, suppressing its cooling rate. Stronger turbulence can directly inflate by planet, as overshoot will inject heat and entropy into the convective core. We estimate that the turbulence needed to explain thermal inversions via TiO absorption may be excessive, in that the planet would over-inflate and evaporate. More modest turbulence could explain the inflated states of many transiting hot Jupiters. I will discuss prospects for incorporating our semi-analytic model into detailed simulations of the evolution and atmospheric dynamics of hot Jupiters.
Mitchell Jeffrey J.
Youdin Andrew
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