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Secondary eclipses and phase curves reveal information about the reflectivityand heat distribution in exoplanet atmospheres. The phase curve is composed ofa combination of reflected, and thermally emitted light from the planet, andfor circular orbits the phase curve peaks during the secondary eclipse or at anorbital phase of 0.5. Physical mechanisms have been discovered which shift thephase curve maximum of tidally locked close in planets to the right, or left,of the secondary eclipse. These mechanisms include cloud formations, andatmospheric superrotation, both of which serve to shift the thermally brighthot-spot, or highly reflective bright spot, of the atmosphere away from thesub-stellar point. Here we present a methodology for optimizing observingstrategies for both secondary eclipses and phase curves with the goal ofmaximizing the information gained about the planetary atmosphere whileminimizing the (assumed) continuous observation time. We show that we canincrease the duty cycle of observations aimed at the measurements of phasecurve characteristics (Amplitude, Phase offset) by up to $50\%$ for futureplatforms such as CHEOPS and JWST. We apply this methodology to the test casesof the Spitzer phase curve of 55-Cancri-e, which displays an eastward shift inits phase curve maximum, as well as model-generated observations of anultra-short period planet observed with CHEOPS.

Analyzing Exoplanet Phase Curve Information Content: Toward Optimized Observing Strategies