The East Capital has posted on carbon-monoxide worlds. The research deals with K, G, and F stars - which firstly might have an Earth-warm planet outside tidal-lock, and secondly won't explode (or implode) during a reasonable time.
Carbon's monoxide happens when its dioxide is irradiated. The planets should fall into equilibrium states. This paper suggests that a "runaway" effect happens - like subNeptune planets becoming superEarths, or like various ozones, or like Venus becoming the dioxide-supreme hellhole it is. Only here, the dioxide becomes monoxide. We are all assuming no life on these worlds (F stars might not even allow the time for it).
When should the runaway happen? When there's a water ocean. This creates a carbon cycle. Hydroxyl ions, called "radicals" here, would normally clean monoxide out the air, at cool water-liquid temperatures (277 K). 0.2 bar (of partial-pressure carbon-dioxide) should suffice to stop that, thus leaving the sun to monoxidate the place. If warmer (perhaps because of, oh, a greenhouse effect), the partial-pressure needs higher for that runaway.
It follows that if/where we see CO ratio within this gap, some other process must be holding that equilibrium. I must ask how come Venus with no ocean and high-pressure and 1.911 irradiance, has not lost its atmo to monoxides. Is the atmo too recent? Is the acid cloud layer serving as the "ocean"? I suspect volcanoes.
For other planets, anomalous CO/CO2 may or may not mean life. I don't know if CO can be used in place of O2 for (animal) life.
Anyway CO-dominant worlds, although bearing no Life As We Know It, have potential. Any chloroplasts in shallow water would (obviously) knock all of this out.
BACKDATE 2/13 - I had Projects last weekend.
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