[Interview+] Remember Hycean Worlds? Well, Looks Like They Shouldn't Exist
Recently we heard a lot about hyaena planets. They are supposed to be sub-neptunes with thick Hydrogen atmosphere which allows them to maintain a planet-wide liquid ocean in a vast range of conditions. The most famous example of such a planet is K2-18b which was recently observed by JWST. But the latest studies and simulations show that, in fact, hycean worlds are probably much drier and thus the ocean worlds we were envisioning shouldn't exist.
Watch the video here (with no ads) or at YouTube: https://youtu.be/lDAIAXQkNrg
Comments (5)
the omni present 3 body problem in modeling worlds …curious if/what size satellite planet or moon it would take for a sub neptune planet to de-ice from gravity fields pulling magma cores/chambers resulting in potential h2o oceans ? Great interview!
Loving the autocorrect typo in the first line (hycean has become hyaena) :D
Yeees Munich represent! Love to see active people in the field from my city! Lovely interview, thanks both of you!
What is the empirical evidence for Hycean worlds. Is there spectral evidence and other astronomical observations consisten with the hypothesis?
The oceans on Earth look blue because they reflect the blue light scattered by dust in the atmosphere. Water in general tends to absorb light and so on a planet it would perhaps just be dark compared to lighter land masses, if both existed of course.