A Combined Ground-based and JWST Atmospheric Retrieval Analysis: Both IGRINS and NIRSpec Agree that the Atmosphere of WASP-77A b Is Metal-poor

Abstract

Ground-based high-resolution and space-based low-resolution spectroscopy are the two main avenues through which transiting exoplanet atmospheres are studied. Both methods provide unique strengths and shortcomings, and combining the two can be a powerful probe into an exoplanet’s atmosphere. Within a joint atmospheric retrieval framework, we combined JWST NIRSpec/G395H secondary eclipse spectra and Gemini South/IGRINS pre- and post-eclipse thermal emission observations of the hot Jupiter WASP-77A b. Our inferences from the IGRINS and NIRSpec data sets are consistent with each other, and combining the two allows us to measure the gas abundances of H _2 O and CO, as well as the vertical thermal structure, with higher precision than either data set provided individually. We confirm WASP-77A b’s subsolar metallicity ([(C+O)/H] = −0.61 ${}_{-0.09}^{+0.10})$ and solar C/O ratio (C/O = 0.57 ${}_{-0.06}^{+0.06})$ . The two types of data are complementary, and our abundance inferences are mostly driven by the IGRINS data, while inference of the thermal structure is driven by the NIRSpec data. Our ability to draw inferences from the post-eclipse IGRINS data is highly sensitive to the number of singular values removed in the detrending process, potentially due to high and variable humidity. We also search for signatures for atmospheric dynamics in the IGRINS data and find that propagated ephemeris error can manifest as either an orbital eccentricity or a strong equatorial jet. Neither are detected when using more up-to-date ephemerides. However, we find moderate evidence of thermal inhomogeneity and measure a cooler nightside that presents itself in the later phases after secondary eclipse.

Keywords

• Exoplanets
• Exoplanet astronomy
• Extrasolar gaseous planets
• Hot Jupiters
• Exoplanet atmospheres
• Exoplanet atmospheric composition