崛起的新行星:超级地球和亚海王星

The Rise of New Planets:Super-Earths and Sub-Neptunes

随着观测技术的发展,发现太阳系外行星是预料之中的.然而,不曾料到的是,近几年探测发现的大多数系外行星却在太阳系中找不到一个对应的模版.它们的大小介于地球和海王星之间,被称为超级地球和亚海王星.简要地介绍这一类崛起的新行星物种,归纳和总结目前对它们的物理性质、轨道性质以及形成起源的理解.最后展望未来这方面的一些期待.

With the ceaseless progress of detecting technology, over 3500 exoplanets have been discovered. It is interesting but unexpected that the majority of the detected exoplanets are unlike any planet in our solar system. They have sizes and masses between the Earth and Neptune, and thus called Super-Earths or Sub-Neptunes. In this article, I introduce these newly rising planets and review our current knowledge of their physical properties, orbital properties, and origins. Finally, I discuss the promising and exciting prospects.