This paper reports 8-µm photometric observations of the planet HD 80606b during a 30-hour interval bracketing the periastron passage of its extremely eccentric 111.4 day orbit. As the planet received its strongest irradiation its 8-µm brightness temperature increased from ∼800 K to ∼1500 K over a six-hour period. The radiative time constant at the planet's 8-µm photosphere is ∼4.5 hours, as compared to 3–5 days in Earth's stratosphere.
- Gregory Laughlin
- Drake Deming
- Stefano Meschiari