Is the Hot, Dense Sub-Neptune TOI-824 b an Exposed Neptune Mantle? Spitzer Detection of the Hot Dayside and Reanalysis of the Interior Composition

Abstract

The Kepler and TESS missions revealed a remarkable abundance of sub-Neptune exoplanets. Despite this abundance, our understanding of the nature and compositional diversity of sub-Neptunes remains limited, to a large part because atmospheric studies via transmission spectroscopy almost exclusively have aimed for low-density sub-Neptunes, and even those were often affected by high-altitude clouds. The recent TESS discovery of the hot, dense TOI-824 b (2.93 R_⊕ and 18.47 M_⊕) opens a new window into sub-Neptune science by enabling the study of a dense sub-Neptune via secondary eclipses. Here, we present the detection of TOI-824 b's hot dayside via Spitzer secondary-eclipse observations in the 3.6 and 4.5 μm channels, combined with a reanalysis of its interior composition. The measured eclipse depths (142⁺⁵⁷₋₅₂ and 245⁺⁷⁵₋₇₇ ppm) and brightness temperatures (1463⁺¹⁸³₋₁₉₆ and 1484⁺¹⁸⁰₋₂₀₂ K) indicate a poor heat redistribution (f < 0.49) and a low Bond albedo (A_B < 0.26). We conclude that TOI-824 b could be an "exposed Neptune mantle": a planet with a Neptune-like water-rich interior that never accreted a hydrogen envelope or that subsequently lost it. The hot dayside temperature is then naturally explained by a high-metallicity envelope reemitting the bulk of the incoming radiation from the dayside. TOI-824 b's density is also consistent with a massive rocky core that accreted up to 1% of hydrogen, but the observed eclipse depths favor our high-metallicity general circulation model (GCM) simulation to a solar-metallicity GCM simulation with a likelihood ratio of 7:1. The new insights into TOI-824 b's nature suggest that the sub-Neptune population may be more diverse than previously thought, with some of the dense hot sub-Neptunes potentially not hosting a hydrogen-rich envelope as generally assumed for sub-Neptunes.