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Exciting Phenomenon That Could Help Us Find Oceans on Other Planets

2025-08-11 Science & Technology
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Anton Petrov
Anton Petrov
1.6m subscribers

Decoding Exoplanet Oceans Using Sunglint and Multi-Phase Mapping

Discover how analyzing specular reflection, or sunglint, provides a definitive path to map and confirm liquid oceans on distant exoplanets.

Short Summary

  • Multi-phase mapping models reveal that liquid surfaces cause dramatic, phase-dependent brightness increases (up to 16x) over land features.
  • Sunglint confirms the presence of smooth liquid bodies but requires contextual analysis (like orbital distance) to infer water over methane/ethane.
  • Future detection hinges on next-generation instruments designed specifically to overcome the current limits of Inner Working Angle and photometric precision.

This discussion details the physics behind sunglint and presents a novel, multi-phase observational technique designed to differentiate surface liquids from clouds or ice on alien worlds. Confirming surface liquid moves us closer to verifying extraterrestrial habitability by providing concrete evidence beyond atmospheric characterization.

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Description

Support this channel on Patreon to help me make this a full time job: https://www.patreon.com/whatdamath (Unreleased videos, extra footage, DMs, no ads) Alternatively, PayPal donations can be sent here: http://paypal.me/whatdamath Get a Wonderful Person Tee: https://teespring.com/stores/whatdamath More cool designs are on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3QFIrFX Hello and welcome! My name is Anton and in this video, we will talk about an intriguing technique that uses sunglint and could help us find water on other planets Links: https://aasnova.org/2025/04/25/sun-glitter-and-sunglint-on-titans-hydrocarbon-seas/ https://arxiv.org/pdf/1901.05011 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunglint Other videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMp4QKhEOE4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZaqUZl0IzE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7ux7bVpwGY #exoplanet #habitable #astronomy 0:00 Natural mirrors from space - sunglint 1:50 How this could be used - lambertian reflection 4:00 Titan lakes and waves 5:00 How we usually study planets - transmission spectroscopy 6:00 New techniques that could be used by using sunglint 8:00 How this can tell various reflections 9:50 How this could be done 10:50 JWST and Hubble and issues right now 12:10 Conclusions Enjoy and please subscribe Bitcoin/Ethereum to spare? Donate them here to help this channel grow! bc1qnkl3nk0zt7w0xzrgur9pnkcduj7a3xxllcn7d4 or ETH: 0x60f088B10b03115405d313f964BeA93eF0Bd3DbF Thank you to all Patreon supporters of this channel Special thanks also goes to all the wonderful supporters of the channel through YouTube Memberships Credit: Heslar et al. 2020 NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/University of Idaho Isna 'Kasamee CC BY 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Star_types_T_through_O.png Licenses used: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ and relevant Creative Commons licenses

Top Comments (10)

@theanthill22 2025-08-11

Hope you fixed all your flood damage, brother!

25
@glike2 2025-08-11

I love how Anton always pronounces habitability just like Chekov from Star Trek 😊

54 3 replies
@WaterShowsProd 2025-08-11

I remember how mind-blowing it was the first time they found an exoplanet. Now they're talking about the feasibility of detecting water glinting on the surface of exoplanets. Truly an amazing period of scientific advancement and discovery. If only certain leaders would realise the legacy they create by continuing to fund, rather than destroying, such endeavours.

90 12 replies
@user-vg4cg4uw9c 2025-08-12

I live on a lake facing east. On clear calm mornings the glint effectively doubles the solar influx for about an hour. 😎

11
@geoffmarcy677 2025-08-11

Absolutely right - periodic glints during rotation of an exoplanet can tell us about the oceans and continents on them.

20 1 replies
@surgearachne 2025-08-11

Imagine if we use this effect to discover water on exoplanets, and we figure out that the vast majority of rocky planets are either completely dry or completely flooded

22 1 replies
@dicerosautismambient4894 2025-08-11

I think this method could also find Earth like exomoons orbiting Gas giants in the habitable zone. At the right angle this could also help to find planets that may have orbital inclinations that may not align with the plain of most stars. Even planets that may not have been discovered so far due to it recently being difficult to detect due to longer period orbits

8
@GustavoValdiviesso 2025-08-12

Hey Anton, Sabine just used one of your thumbnails on a video of hers. What an infamous privilege 😂

2
@samitdigitalart 2025-08-31

The main challenge is that these planets are incredibly far away, and their host stars are a billion times brighter. Trying to see a small planet next to a blazing star is like trying to spot a firefly next to a lighthouse from hundreds of miles away. Hopefully, Sunglint could help us find liquid water on distant planets

1
@barryelverson9486 2025-08-11

Anton makes it easier for us to understand. No reading pages and pages of mind numbing technobabble. Us casual science types are still curious.

33

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