A retrieval challenge exercise for the Ariel mission. (arXiv:2203.00482v2 [astro-ph.EP] UPDATED)
<a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Barstow_J/0/1/0/all/0/1">Joanna K. Barstow</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Changeat_Q/0/1/0/all/0/1">Quentin Changeat</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Chubb_K/0/1/0/all/0/1">Katy L.Chubb</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Cubillos_P/0/1/0/all/0/1">Patricio E. Cubillos</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Edwards_B/0/1/0/all/0/1">Billy Edwards</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+MacDonald_R/0/1/0/all/0/1">Ryan J. MacDonald</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Min_M/0/1/0/all/0/1">Michiel Min</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Waldmann_I/0/1/0/all/0/1">Ingo P. Waldmann</a>
The Ariel mission, due to launch in 2029, will obtain spectroscopic
information for 1000 exoplanets, providing an unprecedented opportunity for
comparative exoplanetology. Retrieval codes – parameteric atmospheric models
coupled with an inversion algorithm – represent the tool of choice for
interpreting Ariel data. Ensuring that reliable and consistent results can be
produced by these tools is a critical preparatory step for the mission. Here,
we present the results of a retrieval challenge. We use five different
exoplanet retrieval codes to analyse the same synthetic datasets, and test a)
the ability of each to recover the correct input solution and b) the
consistency of the results. We find that generally there is very good agreement
between the five codes, and in the majority of cases the correct solutions are
recovered. This demonstrates the reproducibility of retrievals for transit
spectra of exoplanets, even when codes are not previously benchmarked against
each other.
The Ariel mission, due to launch in 2029, will obtain spectroscopic
information for 1000 exoplanets, providing an unprecedented opportunity for
comparative exoplanetology. Retrieval codes – parameteric atmospheric models
coupled with an inversion algorithm – represent the tool of choice for
interpreting Ariel data. Ensuring that reliable and consistent results can be
produced by these tools is a critical preparatory step for the mission. Here,
we present the results of a retrieval challenge. We use five different
exoplanet retrieval codes to analyse the same synthetic datasets, and test a)
the ability of each to recover the correct input solution and b) the
consistency of the results. We find that generally there is very good agreement
between the five codes, and in the majority of cases the correct solutions are
recovered. This demonstrates the reproducibility of retrievals for transit
spectra of exoplanets, even when codes are not previously benchmarked against
each other.
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