Abstract
We present here observational evidence that the snowline plays a significant role in the formation and evolution of gas giant planets. When considering the population of observed exoplanets, we find a boundary in mass-semimajor axis space that suggests planets are preferentially found beyond the snowline prior to undergoing gap-opening inward migration and associated gas accretion. This is consistent with theoretical models suggesting that sudden changes in opacity -- as would occur at the snowline -- can influence core migration. Furthermore, population synthesis modelling suggests that this boundary implies that gas giant planets accrete ~ 70 % of the inward flowing gas, allowing ~ 30$ % through to the inner disc. This is qualitatively consistent with observations of transition discs suggesting the presence of inner holes, despite there being ongoing gas accretion.
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