Volatile-Rich Earth-Mass Planets in the Habitable Zone
نویسنده
چکیده
Planets that form beyond the snow line with too little mass to seed rapid gas accretion (. 10 M⊕) should be rich in volatile ices like H2O and NH3. Some of these planets should migrate inward by interacting with a circumstellar disk or with other planets. Such objects can retain their volatiles for billions of years or longer at ∼ 1 AU as their atmospheres undergo slow hydrodynamic escape. These objects could appear in future surveys for extrasolar Earth analogs. Subject headings: astrobiology — planetary systems
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