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Bio-signatures of Planet Earth from Spectropolarimetry

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 July 2015

M. F. Sterzik ,
S. Bagnulo  and
C. Emde
M. F. Sterzik
Affiliation:
European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild-Str 2, D-85748 Garching, Germany email: [email protected]
S. Bagnulo
Affiliation:
Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh BT61 9DG, Northern Ireland, UK
C. Emde
Affiliation:
Meteorological Institute, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Theresienstr. 37, D-80333 Munich, Germany
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Abstract

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Polarimetry is routinely used to characterise the surfaces of bodies in our solar system. In the near future, polarisation measurements of the starlight reflected by exoplanets will become a common and powerful tool to constrain the atmospheres and the surface properties of other worlds.

If extra-terrestial life has similar signatures as the life we know, then astronomical observations of planet Earth represent a benchmark to eventually probe bio-signatures also on other planets. In fact, linear polarisation spectra of Earthshine (the sunlight that has been first reflected by Earth and then reflected back to Earth by the Moon), allow us to detect the presence of oxygen, ozone, and water in the atmosphere of our planet. Surface properties such as fractional contributions of clouds and ocean, as well as vegetation can be inferred. Ultimately, Earthshine observations provide strong observational constraints on model predictions for Earth-like exoplanets.

In this contribution, we review the most recent observations of Earthshine by polarimetry. We highlight some advances in the interpretation and modelling of whole Earth polarisation, which will be of paramount importance to interpret possible bio-signatures of Earth-like planets in the habitable zone of nearby stars in the future.

Keywords

polarisationradiative transferscatteringatmospheric effectsEarthMoon
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 10 , Symposium S305: Polarimetry: From the Sun to Stars and Stellar Environments , December 2014 , pp. 305 - 312
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2015 

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