arXiv subjects

Michael Line

Publications and source records attributed to Michael Line.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

New and Updated Rossiter-McLaughlin Measurements for Three Hot Jupiter-Hosting M Dwarfs

Evidence suggests that Kozai-Lidov high-eccentricity migration (HEM) is the dominant migration channel for short-period Giant Exoplanets around M dwarf Stars (GEMS). However, it is unlikely that all short-period GEMS form via HEM, given that most systems lack known massive companions capable of driving HEM. Characterizing the stellar obliquities of GEMS via the Rossiter-McLaughlin (RM) effect can help shed light on the dynamical histories of GEMS. We present RM effect detections for the GEMS TOI-5205 b, TIC 46432937 b, and TOI-3714 b using the Gemini-North/MAROON-X spectrograph, bringing the total number of GEMS with RM detections to five. Our systems are well-aligned, with sky-projected obliquities of $\lambda = 0 \pm 6^\circ$, $3_{-3}^{+4}$$^\circ$, and $15_{-8}^{+12}$$^\circ$, respectively, and we measure a deprojected obliquity of $\psi = 24_{-8}^{+7}$ $^\circ$ for TOI-3714. We analyze archival radial velocities, astrometry, and speckle imaging data to search for additional companions around all five known GEMS with RM detections. We find tentative evidence for a new massive companion around one of these GEMS, TOI-5293 A, in Gaia DR2+DR3 data, though further follow-up is needed for confirmation. We rule out massive companions between $\sim 1-10\textrm{ AU}$ in the remaining systems, but cannot rule out all companions capable of driving HEM. Our findings present further evidence that short-period GEMS are preferentially aligned. While current results remain consistent with both primordial alignment and HEM plus tidal damping, we offer future directions for studies to further constrain the dominant migration channel for GEMS.

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arXiv2026

A parameterised approach to disequilibrium retrievals in the JWST era: Application to NIRCam observations of HD 189733b

Atmospheric retrievals are a widely used technique for inferring the physical and chemical properties of exoplanetary atmospheres from observed spectra. A common simplifying assumption in such analyses is that the atmosphere is in thermochemical equilibrium, which allows the use of precomputed chemical abundance grids as a function of pressure, temperature, metallicity ([M/H]), and carbon-to-oxygen ratio (C/O). However, exoplanet atmospheres often deviate from equilibrium, particularly at lower temperatures or in the presence of strong vertical mixing. In this work, we investigate the impact of disequilibrium chemistry on retrieval outcomes by generating synthetic James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) observations of HD\,189733\,b with varying strengths of vertical mixing. We demonstrate that assuming thermochemical equilibrium can lead to significant biases in the retrieved atmospheric parameters, including incorrect estimates of C/O and [M/H]. To address this, we incorporate transport-induced quenching of carbon and nitrogen-bearing species into the retrieval framework by allowing the quench pressures to be free parameters. We show that this approach recovers the correct bulk atmospheric properties in most cases. Finally, we apply our disequilibrium retrieval model to published JWST/NIRCam transmission observations of HD\,189733\,b and find tentative evidence for quenching. We also find tentative evidence for the photochemically active region of the atmosphere via a newly developed H$_2$S parameterisation, this is the first time this has been constrained in a hot Jupiter atmosphere.

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arXiv2026

The EXoplanet Climate Infrared TElescope (EXCITE): A balloon-borne mission to measure spectroscopic phase curves of transiting hot Jupiters

The EXoplanet Climate Infrared TElescope (EXCITE) is a balloon-borne mission dedicated to measuring spectroscopic phase curves of hot Jupiter-type exoplanets. Phase curve measurements can be used to characterize an exoplanet's longitude-dependent atmospheric composition and energy circulation patterns. EXCITE carries a 0.5 m primary mirror and moderate resolution diffraction-limited spectrograph with spectral coverage from 0.8--3.5 um. EXCITE is designed to fly from a long-duration balloon (LDB). EXCITE will observe through the peak of a target's spectral energy distribution (SED) and through spectral signatures of hydrogen and carbon-containing molecules. In this paper, we present the science goals of EXCITE, detail the as-built instrument, and discuss its performance during a 2024 engineering flight from Fort Sumner, New Mexico.

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arXiv2025

The Sonora Substellar Atmosphere Models VI. Red Diamondback: Extending Diamondback with SPHINX for Brown Dwarf Early Evolution

We extend the Sonora Diamondback brown dwarf evolution models to higher effective temperatures to treat the evolution of younger, higher mass objects. Due to an upper temperature limit of $T_\mathrm{eff}=$2400 K in the original Sonora Diamondback model grid, high mass objects ($M\geq$ 0.05 $M_\mathrm{\odot}=$ 52.4 $M_\mathrm{J}$) were limited to ages of $\gtrsim$ 100 Myr. To include the early evolution of brown dwarfs at $T_\mathrm{eff}>$ 2400 K, we use existing and new SPHINX cloud-free model atmosphere calculations of temperature structures of M-type atmospheres. These atmospheres range from $T_\mathrm{eff}$ 2000--4000 K, log($g$) 3.0--5.5, and metallicity [M/H] $-$0.5 to $+$0.5. This combination of Diamondback and SPHINX atmospheres, with a transition across $T_\mathrm{eff}$ 2000--2400 K, allows us to calculate evolution tracks, and infrared photometry and colors, for ages $>$ 1 Myr and masses from above the hydrogen burning minimum mass down to planetary masses. The Hayashi phase of massive brown dwarf evolution (ages $<$ 10--100 Myr) at low surface gravity leads to nearly constant $T_\mathrm{eff}$ values, at effective temperatures much lower than would be obtained from simply extrapolating backwards from evolution tracks at older ages.

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arXiv2025

Silicate Precursor Silane detected in Cold Low-Metallicity Brown Dwarf

Within 20 pc of the Sun there are currently 29 known cold brown dwarfs, sources with measured distances and an estimated effective temperature between that of Jupiter (170K) and ~500K. These sources are almost all isolated and are the closest laboratories we have for detailed atmospheric studies of giant planets formed outside the solar system. Here we report JWST observations of one such source, WISEA J153429.75-104303.3 (W1534), which we confirm is a substellar mass member of the Galactic halo with a metallicity <0.01xsolar. Its spectrum reveals methane (CH4), water (H2O), and silane (SiH4) gas. Although SiH4 is expected to serve as a key reservoir for the cloud-forming element Si in gas giant worlds, it eluded detection until now because it is removed from observable atmospheres by the formation of silicate clouds at depth. These condensates are favored with increasing metallicity, explaining why SiH4 remains undetected on well studied, metal-rich solar system worlds like Jupiter and Saturn. On the metal-poor world W1534, we detect a clear signature of SiH4 centered at ~4.55 microns with an abundance of 19+/-2 parts per billion (ppb). Our chemical modelling suggests that this SiH4 abundance may be quenched at ~kilobar levels just above the silicate cloud layers, whereupon vertical atmospheric mixing can transport SiH4 to the observable photosphere. The formation and detection of SiH4 demonstrates key coupled relationships between composition, cloud formation, and atmospheric mixing in cold brown dwarf and planetary atmospheres.

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arXiv2025

Aligned Stellar Obliquities for Two Hot Jupiter-hosting M Dwarfs Revealed by MAROON-X: Implications for Hot Jupiter Formation

Hot Jupiters (HJs) are $2-3\times$ less common around early M dwarfs than around AFGK stars, suggesting that HJs may form and/or migrate via distinct pathways around different types of stars. One source of insight into HJ formation mechanisms is to trace their dynamical histories through measurements of host stellar obliquities via the Rossiter-McLaughlin (RM) effect. Here we present measurements of the RM effect for the HJs TOI-3714 b and TOI-5293 A b using the Gemini-North/MAROON-X spectrograph. Our measurements represent just the second and third hot Jupiters around M dwarfs (HJMD) with a detection of the RM effect. We find that both systems are well-aligned with sky-projected obliquities of $\lambda = 21^{+14}_{-11}$$\mathrm{^{\circ}}$ and $-12^{+19}_{-14}$$\mathrm{^{\circ}}$ and deprojected obliquities of $\psi = 26^{+11}_{-10}$$\mathrm{^{\circ}}$ and $24^{+11}_{-10}$$\mathrm{^{\circ}}$ for TOI-3714 and TOI-5293 A, respectively. Both stars are in wide binary systems. We refine the stellar parameters by decontaminating their unresolved $K_s$-band photometry and constrain the binary orbits using Gaia DR3 astrometry. We find that the minimum mutual inclination of the planet and binary companion in the TOI-5293 system is sufficiently large to drive Kozai-Lidov (KL) migration while the result for TOI-3714 is inconclusive. We present a population-level analysis of HJs around AFGK versus early M dwarfs and argue that KL migration is more efficient around the latter, which is expected to produce misaligned stellar obliquities in HJMD systems in the absence of efficient tidal damping. The emerging population of well-aligned HJMD hosts supports the expectation that M dwarfs, with their deep convective envelopes, do efficiently dampen misaligned obliquities.

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arXiv2024

Spectroscopically resolved partial phase curve of the rapid heating and cooling of the highly-eccentric Hot Jupiter HAT-P-2b with WFC3

The extreme environments of transiting close-in exoplanets in highly-eccentric orbits are ideal for testing exo-climate physics. Spectroscopically resolved phase curves not only allow for the characterization of their thermal response to irradiation changes but also unveil phase-dependent atmospheric chemistry and dynamics. We observed a partial phase curve of the highly-eccentric close-in giant planet HAT-P-2b ($e=0.51,M=9M_{\rm{Jup}}$) with the Wide Field Camera 3 aboard the Hubble Space Telescope. Using these data, we updated the planet's orbital parameters and radius, and retrieved high-frequency pulsations consistent with the planet-induced pulsations reported in Spitzer data. We found that the peak in planetary flux occurred at $6.7\pm0.6$ hr after periastron, with a heating and cooling timescales of $9.0^{+3.5}_{-2.1}$ hr, and $3.6^{+0.7}_{-0.6}$ hr, respectively. We compare the light-curve to various 1-dimensional and 3-dimensional forward models, varying the planet's chemical composition. The strong contrast in flux increase and decrease timescales before and after periapse indicates an opacity term that emerges during the planet's heating phase, potentially due to more H$^{-}$ than expected from chemical equilibrium models. The phase-resolved spectra are largely featureless, that we interpret as indicative an inhomogeneous dayside. However, we identified an anomalously high flux in the spectroscopic bin coinciding with the hydrogen Paschen $\beta$ line and that is likely connected to the planet's orbit. We interpret this as due to shock heating of the upper atmosphere given the short timescale involved, or evidence for other star-planet interactions.

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arXiv2024

A Comprehensive Analysis Spitzer 4.5 $\mu$m Phase Curve of Hot Jupiters

Although exoplanetary science was not initially projected to be a substantial part of the Spitzer mission, its exoplanet observations set the stage for current and future surveys with JWST and Ariel. We present a comprehensive reduction and analysis of Spitzer's 4.5 micron phase curves of 29 hot Jupiters on low-eccentricity orbits. The analysis, performed with the Spitzer Phase Curve Analysis (SPCA) pipeline, confirms that BLISS mapping is the best detrending scheme for most, but not all, observations. Visual inspection remains necessary to ensure consistency across detrending methods due to the diversity of phase curve data and systematics. Regardless of the model selection scheme - whether using the lowest-BIC or a uniform detrending approach - we observe the same trends, or lack thereof. We explore phase curve trends as a function of irradiation temperature, orbital period, planetary radius, mass, and stellar effective temperature. We discuss the trends that are robustly detected and provide potential explanations for those that are not observed. While it is almost tautological that planets receiving greater instellation are hotter, we are still far from confirming dynamical theories of heat transport in hot Jupiter atmospheres due to the sample's diversity. Even among planets with similar temperatures, other factors like rotation and metallicity vary significantly. Larger, curated sample sizes and higher-fidelity phase curve measurements from JWST and Ariel are needed to firmly establish the parameters governing day-night heat transport on synchronously rotating planets.

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arXiv2024

Hydrogen sulfide and metal-enriched atmosphere for a Jupiter-mass exoplanet

As the closest transiting hot Jupiter to Earth, HD 189733b has been the benchmark planet for atmospheric characterization. It has also been the anchor point for much of our theoretical understanding of exoplanet atmospheres from composition, chemistry, aerosols to atmospheric dynamics, escape, and modeling techniques. Prior studies of HD 189733b have detected carbon and oxygen-bearing molecules H2O and CO in the atmosphere. The presence of CO2 and CH4 has been claimed but later disputed. The inferred metallicity based on these measurements, a key parameter in tracing planet formation locations, varies from depletion to enhancement, hindered by limited wavelength coverage and precision of the observations. Here we report detections of H2O (13.4 sigma), CO2 (11.2 sigma), CO (5 sigma), and H2S (4.5 sigma) in the transmission spectrum (2.4-5 micron) of HD 189733b. With an equilibrium temperature of ~1200K, H2O, CO, and H2S are the main reservoirs for oxygen, carbon, and sulfur. Based on the measured abundances of these three major volatile elements, we infer an atmospheric metallicity of 3-5 times stellar. The upper limit on the methane abundance at 5 sigma is 0.1 ppm which indicates a low carbon-to-oxygen ratio (<0.2), suggesting formation through the accretion of water-rich icy planetesimals. The low oxygen-to-sulfur and carbon-to-sulfur ratios also support the planetesimal accretion formation pathway.

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arXiv2024

Multiple Clues for Dayside Aerosols and Temperature Gradients in WASP-69 b from a Panchromatic JWST Emission Spectrum

WASP-69 b is a hot, inflated, Saturn-mass planet 0.26 Mjup with a zero-albedo equilibrium temperature of 963 K. Here, we report the JWST 2 to 12 um emission spectrum of the planet consisting of two eclipses observed with NIRCam grism time series and one eclipse observed with MIRI LRS. The emission spectrum shows absorption features of water vapor, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, but no strong evidence for methane. WASP-69 b's emission spectrum is poorly fit by cloud-free homogeneous models. We find three possible model scenarios for the planet: 1) a Scattering Model that raises the brightness at short wavelengths with a free Geometric Albedo parameter 2) a Cloud Layer model that includes high altitude silicate aerosols to moderate long wavelength emission and 3) a Two-Region model that includes significant dayside inhomogeneity and cloud opacity with two different temperature-pressure profiles. In all cases, aerosols are needed to fit the spectrum of the planet. The Scattering model requires an unexpectedly high Geometric Albedo of 0.64. Our atmospheric retrievals indicate inefficient redistribution of heat and an inhomogeneous dayside distribution, which is tentatively supported by MIRI LRS broadband eclipse maps that show a central concentration of brightness. Our more plausible models (2 and 3) retrieve chemical abundances enriched in heavy elements relative to solar composition by 6x to 14x solar and a C/O ratio of 0.65 to 0.94, whereas the less plausible highly reflective scenario (1) retrieves a slightly lower metallicity and lower C/O ratio.

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arXiv2024

High-precision atmospheric characterization of a Y dwarf with JWST NIRSpec G395H spectroscopy: isotopologue, C/O ratio, metallicity, and the abundances of six molecular species

The launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) marks a pivotal moment for precise atmospheric characterization of Y dwarfs, the coldest brown dwarf spectral type. In this study, we leverage moderate spectral resolution observations (R $\sim$ 2700) with the G395H grating of the Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) onboard of JWST to characterize the nearby (9.9 pc) Y dwarf WISEPA J182831.08+265037.8 (WISE 1828). With the NIRSpec G395H 2.88-5.12 $\mathrm{\mu}$m spectrum, we measure the abundances of CO, CO$_2$, CH$_4$, H$_2$S, NH$_3$, and H$_2$O, which are the major carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur bearing species in the atmosphere. Based on the retrieved volume mixing ratios with the atmospheric retrieval framework CHIMERA, we report that the C/O ratio is $0.45 \pm 0.01$, close to the solar C/O value of 0.55, and the metallicity to be +0.30 $\pm$ 0.02 dex. Comparison between the retrieval results with the forward modeling results suggests that the model bias for C/O and metallicity could be as high as 0.03 and 0.97 dex respectively. We also report a lower limit of the $^{12}$CO/$^{13}$CO ratio of $>40 $, being consistent with the nominal solar value of 90. Our results highlight the potential of JWST in measuring the C/O ratios down to percent-level precision and characterizing isotopologues of cold planetary atmospheres similar to WISE 1828.

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arXiv2023

A Combined Ground-based and JWST Atmospheric Retrieval Analysis: Both IGRINS and NIRSpec Agree The Atmosphere of WASP-77A b is Metal-Poor

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 eclipse 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 metallicty ([(C+O)/H]=-0.61$^{+0.10}_{-0.09}$) 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 both 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.

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arXiv2023

A Non-Detection of Iron in the First High-Resolution Emission Study of the Lava Planet 55 Cnc e

Close-in lava planets represent an extreme example of terrestrial worlds, but their high temperatures may allow us to probe a diversity of crustal compositions. The brightest and most well-studied of these objects is 55 Cancri e, a nearby super-Earth with a remarkably short 17-hour orbit. However, despite numerous studies, debate remains about the existence and composition of its atmosphere. We present upper limits on the atmospheric pressure of 55 Cnc e derived from high-resolution time-series spectra taken with Gemini-N/MAROON-X. Our results are consistent with current crustal evaporation models for this planet which predict a thin $\sim$ 100 mbar atmosphere. We conclude that, if a mineral atmosphere is present on 55 Cnc e, the atmospheric pressure is below 100 mbar.

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arXiv2023

Confirmation of sub-solar metallicity for WASP-77Ab from JWST thermal emission spectroscopy

We present the dayside thermal emission spectrum of WASP-77Ab from 2.8 -- 5.2 $\mu$m as observed with the NIRSpec instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). WASP-77Ab was previously found to have a sub-solar metallicity and a solar carbon-to-oxygen (C/O) ratio from H$_2$O and CO absorption lines detected using high-resolution spectroscopy. By performing atmospheric retrievals on the JWST spectrum assuming chemical equilibrium, we find a sub-solar metallicity [M/H]=$-0.91^{+0.24}_{-0.16}$ and C/O ratio $0.36^{+0.10}_{-0.09}$. We identify H$_2$O and CO and constrain their abundances, and we find no CO$_2$ in the spectrum. The JWST and high-resolution spectroscopy results agree within $\sim1\sigma$ for the metallicity and within 1.8$\sigma$ for the C/O ratio. However, our results fit less well in the picture painted by the shorter wavelength spectrum measured by HST WFC3. Comparing the JWST thermal emission spectra of WASP-77Ab and HD 149026b shows that both hot Jupiters have nearly identical brightness temperatures in the near-infrared, but distinctly different atmospheric compositions. Our results reaffirm high-resolution spectroscopy as a powerful and reliable method to measure molecular abundances. Our results also highlight the incredible diversity of hot Jupiter atmospheric compositions.

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arXiv2023

Towards Robust Atmospheric Retrieval on Cloudy L Dwarfs: The Impact of Thermal and Abundance Profile Assumptions

Constraining L dwarf properties from their spectra is challenging. Near-infrared spectra probe a limited range of pressures, while many species condense within their photospheres. Condensation creates two complexities: gas-phase species "rain out" (decreasing in abundances by many orders of magnitude) and clouds form. We designed tests using synthetic data to determine the best approach for retrieving L dwarf spectra, isolating the challenges in the absence of cloud opacity. We conducted atmospheric retrievals on synthetic cloud-free L dwarf spectra derived from the Sonora Bobcat models at SpeX resolution using a variety of thermal and chemical abundance profile parameterizations. For objects hotter than L5 (T$_{eff}$ ~ 1700 K), the limited pressure layers probed in the near-IR are mostly convective; parameterized PT profiles bias results and free, unsmoothed profiles should be used. Only when many layers both above and below the radiative-convective boundary are probed can parameterized profiles provide accurate results. Furthermore, a nonuniform abundance profile for iron hydride (FeH) is needed to accurately retrieve bulk properties of early- to mid- L dwarfs. Nonuniform prescriptions for other gases in near-IR retrievals may also be warranted near the L/T transition (CH$_{4}$) and early Y dwarfs (Na and K). We demonstrate the utility of using realistic self-consistent models to benchmark retrievals and suggest how they can be used in the future.

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arXiv2022

On the Application of Bayesian Leave-One-Out Cross-Validation to Exoplanet Atmospheric Analysis

Over the last decade, exoplanetary transmission spectra have yielded an unprecedented understanding about the physical and chemical nature of planets outside our solar system. Physical and chemical knowledge is mainly extracted via fitting competing models to spectroscopic data, based on some goodness-of-fit metric. However, current employed metrics shed little light on how exactly a given model is failing at the individual data point level and where it could be improved. As the quality of our data and complexity of our models increases, there is an urgent need to better understand which observations are driving our model interpretations. Here we present the application of Bayesian leave-one-out cross-validation to assess the performance of exoplanet atmospheric models and compute the expected log pointwise predictive density (elpd$_\text{LOO}$). elpd$_\text{LOO}$ estimates the out-of-sample predictive accuracy of an atmospheric model at data point resolution providing interpretable model criticism. We introduce and demonstrate this method on synthetic HST transmission spectra of a hot Jupiter. We apply elpd$_\text{LOO}$ to interpret current observations of HAT-P-41b and assess the reliability of recent inferences of H$^-$ in its atmosphere. We find that previous detections of H$^{-}$ are dependent solely on a single data point. This new metric for exoplanetary retrievals complements and expands our repertoire of tools to better understand the limits of our models and data. elpd$_\text{LOO}$ provides the means to interrogate models at the single data point level, a prerequisite for robustly interpreting the imminent wealth of spectroscopic information coming from JWST.

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arXiv2022

Photochemically-produced SO$_2$ in the atmosphere of WASP-39b

Photochemistry is a fundamental process of planetary atmospheres that regulates the atmospheric composition and stability. However, no unambiguous photochemical products have been detected in exoplanet atmospheres to date. Recent observations from the JWST Transiting Exoplanet Early Release Science Program found a spectral absorption feature at 4.05 $\mu$m arising from SO$_2$ in the atmosphere of WASP-39b. WASP-39b is a 1.27-Jupiter-radii, Saturn-mass (0.28 M$_J$) gas giant exoplanet orbiting a Sun-like star with an equilibrium temperature of $\sim$1100 K. The most plausible way of generating SO$_2$ in such an atmosphere is through photochemical processes. Here we show that the SO$_2$ distribution computed by a suite of photochemical models robustly explains the 4.05 $\mu$m spectral feature identified by JWST transmission observations with NIRSpec PRISM (2.7$\sigma$) and G395H (4.5$\sigma$). SO$_2$ is produced by successive oxidation of sulphur radicals freed when hydrogen sulphide (H$_2$S) is destroyed. The sensitivity of the SO$_2$ feature to the enrichment of the atmosphere by heavy elements (metallicity) suggests that it can be used as a tracer of atmospheric properties, with WASP-39b exhibiting an inferred metallicity of $\sim$10$\times$ solar. We further point out that SO$_2$ also shows observable features at ultraviolet and thermal infrared wavelengths not available from the existing observations.

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arXiv2022

The UV-SCOPE Mission: Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Characterization Of Planets and their Environments

UV-SCOPE is a mission concept to determine the causes of atmospheric mass loss in exoplanets, investigate the mechanisms driving aerosol formation in hot Jupiters, and study the influence of the stellar environment on atmospheric evolution and habitability. As part of these investigations, the mission will generate a broad-purpose legacy database of time-domain ultraviolet (UV) spectra for nearly 200 stars and planets. The observatory consists of a 60 cm, f/10 telescope paired to a long-slit spectrograph, yielding simultaneous, almost continuous coverage between 1203 {\AA} and 4000 {\AA}, with resolutions ranging from 6000 to 240. The efficient instrument provides throughputs > 4% (far-UV; FUV) and > 15% (near-UV; NUV), comparable to HST/COS and much better than HST/STIS, over the same spectral range. A key design feature is the LiF prism, which serves as a dispersive element and provides high throughput even after accounting for radiation degradation. The use of two delta-doped Electron-Multiplying CCD detectors with UV-optimized, single-layer anti-reflection coatings provides high quantum efficiency and low detector noise. From the Earth-Sun second Lagrangian point, UV-SCOPE will continuously observe planetary transits and stellar variability in the full FUV-to-NUV range, with negligible astrophysical background. All these features make UV-SCOPE the ideal instrument to study exoplanetary atmospheres and the impact of host stars on their planets. UV-SCOPE was proposed to NASA as a Medium Explorer (MidEx) mission for the 2021 Announcement of Opportunity. If approved, the observatory will be developed over a 5-year period. Its primary science mission takes 34 months to complete. The spacecraft carries enough fuel for 6 years of operations.

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