The habitability of stagnant-lid Earths around dwarf stars

The habitability of a planet depends on various factors, such as delivery of water during the formation, the coevolution of the interior and the atmosphere, as well as the stellar irradiation which changes in time. Since an unknown number of rocky extrasolar planets may operate in a one-plate convective regime, i.e., without plate tectonics, we aim at understanding under which conditions planets in such a stagnant-lid regime may support habitable surface conditions. Understanding the interaction of the planetary interior and outgassing of volatiles in combination with the evolution of the host star is crucial to determine the potential habitability. M-dwarf stars in particular possess a high-luminosity pre-main sequence phase which endangers the habitability of planets around them via water loss.

In a recent study we therefore explore the potential of secondary outgassing from the planetary interior to rebuild a water reservoir allowing for habitability at a later stage. The boundaries of the habitable zone around M, K, G, and F-dwarf stars are computed using a 1D cloud-free radiative-convective climate model accounting for the outgassing history of CO2 and H2O from an interior evolution and outgassing model for different interior compositions and stellar luminosity evolutions. We show that Earth-like stagnant-lid planets allow for habitable surface conditions within a continuous habitable zone that is dependent on interior composition. Secondary outgassing from the interior may allow for habitability of planets around M-dwarf stars after severe water loss during the high-luminosity pre-main sequence phase by rebuilding a surface water reservoir.

Date: 
15/11/2018 - 12:30
Speaker: 
Dra. Mareike Godolt
Filiation: 
Centre of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Technology in Berlin, Germany


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