2025 Project Description

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Exploring atmospheric circulations on hot Jupiters

Keywords:

Exoplanetary science, Theoretical Astrophysics

Supervisors

Pin-Gao Gu
Find out more about supervisors on ASIAA website

Task Description and Goals

Hot Jupiters were the first type of exoplanets discovered, resulting in the Nobel Prize in Physics awarded in 2019. A key feature of these planets is their global atmospheric circulation, which carries stellar heat from day to night side, providing insights into potential habitability for small planets. Observations, along with numerical simulations, indicate that these tidally locked planets exhibit an equatorial super-rotating flow in their hot atmospheres. The strength of this flow appears related to the stellar irradiation of these scorching worlds, which is not entirely understood. This summer project primarily analyzes numerical data from various global circulation models to explore the underlying physics that may influence circulation efficiencies.

Required Background

Basic knowledge of physics, mathematics, and Python programming is desirable.