Highlights from Exoplanet Observations by the James Webb Space Telescope
2025/05/26 by Néstor Espinoza, Marshall D. Perrin, Espinoza, Néstor +1 · 4 citations
Physics and Astronomy · Engineering · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Space Exploration and Technology
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2505.20520
Abstract
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has started a revolution in exoplanetary science. From studying in exquisite detail the chemical inventories and physical processes in gas giant exoplanets, the structure and chemical diversity of the enigmatic sub-Neptune population to even providing constraints on the atmospheric make-up of rocky exoplanets, the observatory is enabling cutting-edge science that is touching virtually every sub-area in the field. In this review Chapter, we showcase key highlights from exoplanet science being conducted with this state-of-the-art space observatory, which we believe is representative of the transformational science it is producing. One of the key takeaways from these pioneering JWST observations is how they are starting to reshape not only how we think, study and interpret exoplanet observations -- but how they are also reshaping our intuition about our very own Solar System planets.
Citations
- JWST COMPASS: NIRSpec/G395H Transmission Observations of TOI-776 c, a 2 Rearth M Dwarf Planet
- Stellar Models Also Limit Exoplanet Atmosphere Studies in Emission
- Evidence for a sub-jovian planet in the young TWA7 disk
- GEMS JWST: Transmission spectroscopy of TOI-5205b reveals significant stellar contamination and a metal-poor atmosphere
- Evidence for a volcanic atmosphere on the sub-Earth L98-59b
- A Comprehensive Reanalysis of K2-18 b's JWST NIRISS+NIRSpec Transmission Spectrum
- Highly reflective white clouds on the western dayside of an exo-Neptune
- A Disintegrating Rocky World Shrouded in Dust and Gas: Mid-infrared Observations of K2-22 b Using JWST
- Statistical trends in JWST transiting exoplanet atmospheres
- TOI-421 b: A Hot Sub-Neptune with a Haze-Free, Low Mean Molecular Weight Atmosphere
- First unambiguous detection of ammonia in the atmosphere of a planetary mass companion with JWST/MIRI coronagraphs
- Transmission spectroscopy of WASP-52 b with JWST NIRISS: Water and helium atmospheric absorption, alongside prominent star-spot crossings
- Stellar Contamination Correction Using Back-to-Back Transits of TRAPPIST-1 b and c
- Combined analysis of the 12.8 and 15 μm JWST/MIRI eclipse observations of TRAPPIST-1 b
- Population-level Hypothesis Testing with Rocky Planet Emission Data: A Tentative Trend in the Brightness Temperatures of M-Earths
- First Calculations of Starspot Spectra based on 3D Radiative Magnetohydrodynamics Simulations
- Reproduction package for Spectroscopically resolved partial phase curve of the rapid heating and cooling of the highly-eccentric Hot Jupiter HAT-P-2b with WFC3
- A Possible Metal-Dominated Atmosphere Below the Thick Aerosols of GJ 1214 b Suggested by its JWST Panchromatic Transmission Spectrum
- Considerations for Photochemical Modeling of Possible Hycean Worlds
- Possible Carbon Dioxide Above the Thick Aerosols of GJ 1214 b
- Promise and Peril: Stellar Contamination and Strict Limits on the Atmosphere Composition of TRAPPIST-1c from JWST NIRISS Transmission Spectra
- Quartz Clouds in the Dayside Atmosphere of the Quintessential Hot Jupiter HD 189733 b
- Reliable Detections of Atmospheres on Rocky Exoplanets with Photometric JWST Phase Curves
- The MIRI Exoplanets Orbiting White Dwarfs (MEOW) Survey: Mid-Infrared Excess Reveals a Giant Planet Candidate around a Nearby White Dwarf
- Atmospheric Retrievals Suggest the Presence of a Secondary Atmosphere and Possible Sulfur Species on L98-59 d from JWST Nirspec G395H Transmission Spectroscopy
- Data Behind the Figures: No Thick Atmosphere on the Terrestrial Exoplanet Gl 486b
- JWST Thermal Emission of the Terrestrial Exoplanet GJ 1132b
- Seasonal Changes in the Atmosphere of HD 80606b Observed with JWST's NIRSpec/G395H
- New insights into the internal structure of GJ 1214 b informed by JWST
- Probing Cold-to-Temperate Exoplanetary Atmospheres: The Role of Water Condensation on Surface Identification with JWST
- Hydrogen sulfide and metal-enriched atmosphere for a Jupiter-mass exoplanet
- Transmission Spectroscopy of the Habitable Zone Exoplanet LHS 1140 b with JWST/NIRISS
- The Hycean Paradigm in the Search for Life Elsewhere
- Information content of JWST spectra of WASP-39b
- Two-Dimensional Eclipse Mapping of the Hot Jupiter WASP-43b with JWST MIRI/LRS
- Exoplanet Geology: What can we learn from current and future observations?
- Report of the Working Group on Strategic Exoplanet Initiatives with HST and JWST
- JWST COMPASS: A NIRSpec/G395H Transmission Spectrum of the Sub-Neptune TOI-836c
- Biogenic sulfur gases as biosignatures on temperate sub-Neptune waterworlds
- JWST Reveals CH4, CO2, and H2O in a Metal-rich Miscible Atmosphere on a Two-Earth-Radius Exoplanet
- Possible Hycean conditions in the sub-Neptune TOI-270 d
- JWST Directly Images Giant Planet Candidates Around Two Metal-Polluted White Dwarf Stars
- Nightside clouds and disequilibrium chemistry on the hot Jupiter WASP-43b
- TRAPPIST-1 and its compact system of temperate rocky planets
- JWST observations of K2-18b can be explained by a gas-rich mini-Neptune with no habitable surface
- Are There Terrestrial Planets Lurking in the Outer Solar System?
- SO2, silicate clouds, but no CH4 detected in a warm Neptune
- Coupling haze and cloud microphysics in WASP-39b's atmosphere based on JWST observations
- New Mass and Radius Constraints on the LHS 1140 Planets -- LHS 1140 b is Either a Temperate Mini-Neptune or a Water World
- Clouds and Clarity: Revisiting Atmospheric Feature Trends in Neptune-size Exoplanets
- JWST-TST DREAMS: Quartz Clouds in the Atmosphere of WASP-17b
- JWST-TST DREAMS: Quartz Clouds in the Atmosphere of WASP-17b
- The Comprehensive Archive of Substellar and Planetary Accretion Rates
- The Eclipse Mapping Null Space: Comparing Theoretical Predictions with Observed Maps
- Carbon-bearing Molecules in a Possible Hycean Atmosphere
- Methane Throughout the Atmosphere of the Warm Exoplanet WASP-80b
- Atmospheric Reconnaissance of TRAPPIST-1 b with JWST/NIRISS: Evidence for Strong Stellar Contamination in the Transmission Spectra
- Detection of Carbon Monoxide in the Atmosphere of WASP-39b Applying Standard Cross-Correlation Techniques to JWST NIRSpec G395H Data
- Potential Atmospheric Compositions of TRAPPIST-1 c constrained by JWST/MIRI Observations at 15 μm
- The Transient Outgassed Atmosphere of 55 Cancri e
- Investigating the visible phase-curve variability of 55 Cnc e
- The Mid-infrared Instrument for JWST and Its In-flight Performance
- Toward Robust Corrections for Stellar Contamination in JWST Exoplanet Transmission Spectra
- Performance of NIRCam on JWST in Flight
- The transmission spectrum of the potentially rocky planet L 98-59 c
- WASP-39b: exo-Saturn with patchy cloud composition, moderate metallicity, and underdepleted S/O
- Early Insights for Atmospheric Retrievals of Exoplanets Using JWST Transit Spectroscopy
- The JWST Early Release Science Program for Direct Observations of Exoplanetary Systems I: High Contrast Imaging of the Exoplanet HIP 65426 b from 2−16 µm
- JWST/NIRCam Coronagraphy: Commissioning and First On-Sky Results
- Performance of near-infrared high-contrast imaging methods with JWST from commissioning
- The IAU Working Definition of an Exoplanet
- The Effect of Stellar Contamination on Low-resolution Transmission Spectroscopy: Needs Identified by NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Program Study Analysis Group 21
- Chemical equilibrium between Cores, Mantles, and Atmospheres of Super-Earths and Sub-Neptunes, and Implications for their Compositions, Interiors and Evolution
- Debris Disks: Structure, Composition, and Variability
- The Near-Infrared Transmission Spectra of TRAPPIST-1 Planets b, c, d, e, f, and g and Stellar Contamination in Multi-Epoch Transit Spectra
- Illusion and Reality in the Atmospheres of Exoplanets
- The Mid-Infrared Instrument for theJames Webb Space Telescope, IV: The Low-Resolution Spectrometer
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