| 1. |
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| 2. |
- Tinetti, Giovanna, et al.
(författare)
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The EChO science case
- 2015
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Ingår i: Experimental astronomy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0922-6435 .- 1572-9508. ; 40:2-3, s. 329-391
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The discovery of almost two thousand exoplanets has revealed an unexpectedly diverse planet population. We see gas giants in few-day orbits, whole multi-planet systems within the orbit of Mercury, and new populations of planets with masses between that of the Earth and Neptune-all unknown in the Solar System. Observations to date have shown that our Solar System is certainly not representative of the general population of planets in our Milky Way. The key science questions that urgently need addressing are therefore: What are exoplanets made of? Why are planets as they are? How do planetary systems work and what causes the exceptional diversity observed as compared to the Solar System? The EChO (Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory) space mission was conceived to take up the challenge to explain this diversity in terms of formation, evolution, internal structure and planet and atmospheric composition. This requires in-depth spectroscopic knowledge of the atmospheres of a large and well-defined planet sample for which precise physical, chemical and dynamical information can be obtained. In order to fulfil this ambitious scientific program, EChO was designed as a dedicated survey mission for transit and eclipse spectroscopy capable of observing a large, diverse and well-defined planet sample within its 4-year mission lifetime. The transit and eclipse spectroscopy method, whereby the signal from the star and planet are differentiated using knowledge of the planetary ephemerides, allows us to measure atmospheric signals from the planet at levels of at least 10(-4) relative to the star. This can only be achieved in conjunction with a carefully designed stable payload and satellite platform. It is also necessary to provide broad instantaneous wavelength coverage to detect as many molecular species as possible, to probe the thermal structure of the planetary atmospheres and to correct for the contaminating effects of the stellar photosphere. This requires wavelength coverage of at least 0.55 to 11 mu m with a goal of covering from 0.4 to 16 mu m. Only modest spectral resolving power is needed, with R similar to 300 for wavelengths less than 5 mu m and R similar to 30 for wavelengths greater than this. The transit spectroscopy technique means that no spatial resolution is required. A telescope collecting area of about 1 m(2) is sufficiently large to achieve the necessary spectro-photometric precision: for the Phase A study a 1.13 m(2) telescope, diffraction limited at 3 mu m has been adopted. Placing the satellite at L2 provides a cold and stable thermal environment as well as a large field of regard to allow efficient time-critical observation of targets randomly distributed over the sky. EChO has been conceived to achieve a single goal: exoplanet spectroscopy. The spectral coverage and signal-to-noise to be achieved by EChO, thanks to its high stability and dedicated design, would be a game changer by allowing atmospheric composition to be measured with unparalleled exactness: at least a factor 10 more precise and a factor 10 to 1000 more accurate than current observations. This would enable the detection of molecular abundances three orders of magnitude lower than currently possible and a fourfold increase from the handful of molecules detected to date. Combining these data with estimates of planetary bulk compositions from accurate measurements of their radii and masses would allow degeneracies associated with planetary interior modelling to be broken, giving unique insight into the interior structure and elemental abundances of these alien worlds. EChO would allow scientists to study exoplanets both as a population and as individuals. The mission can target super-Earths, Neptune-like, and Jupiter-like planets, in the very hot to temperate zones (planet temperatures of 300-3000 K) of F to M-type host stars. The EChO core science would be delivered by a three-tier survey. The EChO Chemical Census: This is a broad survey of a few-hundred exoplanets, which allows us to explore the spectroscopic and chemical diversity of the exoplanet population as a whole. The EChO Origin: This is a deep survey of a subsample of tens of exoplanets for which significantly higher signal to noise and spectral resolution spectra can be obtained to explain the origin of the exoplanet diversity (such as formation mechanisms, chemical processes, atmospheric escape). The EChO Rosetta Stones: This is an ultra-high accuracy survey targeting a subsample of select exoplanets. These will be the bright "benchmark" cases for which a large number of measurements would be taken to explore temporal variations, and to obtain two and three dimensional spatial information on the atmospheric conditions through eclipse-mapping techniques. If EChO were launched today, the exoplanets currently observed are sufficient to provide a large and diverse sample. The Chemical Census survey would consist of > 160 exoplanets with a range of planetary sizes, temperatures, orbital parameters and stellar host properties. Additionally, over the next 10 years, several new ground- and space-based transit photometric surveys and missions will come on-line (e.g. NGTS, CHEOPS, TESS, PLATO), which will specifically focus on finding bright, nearby systems. The current rapid rate of discovery would allow the target list to be further optimised in the years prior to EChO's launch and enable the atmospheric characterisation of hundreds of planets.
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| 3. |
- Hawthorn, F., et al.
(författare)
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TOI-836: A super-Earth and mini-Neptune transiting a nearby K-dwarf
- 2023
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Ingår i: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 520:3, s. 3649-3668
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the discovery of two exoplanets transiting TOI-836 (TIC 440887364) using data from TESS Sector 11 and Sector 38. TOI-836 is a bright (T = 8.5 mag), high proper motion (∼200 mas yr−1), low metallicity ([Fe/H]≈−0.28) K-dwarf with a mass of 0.68 ± 0.05 M and a radius of 0.67 ± 0.01 R. We obtain photometric follow-up observations with a variety of facilities, and we use these data sets to determine that the inner planet, TOI-836 b, is a 1.70 ± 0.07 R super-Earth in a 3.82-d orbit, placing it directly within the so-called ‘radius valley’. The outer planet, TOI-836 c, is a 2.59 ± 0.09 R mini-Neptune in an 8.60-d orbit. Radial velocity measurements reveal that TOI-836 b has a mass of 4.5 ± 0.9 M, while TOI-836 c has a mass of 9.6 ± 2.6 M. Photometric observations show Transit Timing Variations (TTVs) on the order of 20 min for TOI-836 c, although there are no detectable TTVs for TOI-836 b. The TTVs of planet TOI-836 c may be caused by an undetected exterior planet.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Psaridi, A., et al.
(författare)
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Discovery of two warm mini-Neptunes with contrasting densities orbiting the young K3V star TOI-815
- 2024
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 685
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the discovery and characterization of two warm mini-Neptunes transiting the K3V star TOI-815 in a K–M binary system. Analysis of its spectra and rotation period reveal the star to be young, with an age of 200+−400200 Myr. TOI-815b has a 11.2-day period and a radius of 2.94 ± 0.05 R+ with transits observed by TESS, CHEOPS, ASTEP, and LCOGT. The outer planet, TOI-815c, has a radius of 2.62 ± 0.10 R+, based on observations of three nonconsecutive transits with TESS; targeted CHEOPS photometry and radial velocity follow-up with ESPRESSO were required to confirm the 35-day period. ESPRESSO confirmed the planetary nature of both planets and measured masses of 7.6 ± 1.5 M+ (ρP = 1.64+−003331 g cm−3) and 23.5 ± 2.4 M+ (ρP = 7.2+−1110 g cm−3), respectively. Thus, the planets have very different masses, which is unusual for compact multi-planet systems. Moreover, our statistical analysis of mini-Neptunes orbiting FGK stars suggests that weakly irradiated planets tend to have higher bulk densities compared to those undergoing strong irradiation. This could be ascribed to their cooler atmospheres, which are more compressed and denser. Internal structure modeling of TOI-815b suggests it likely has a H-He atmosphere that constitutes a few percent of the total planet mass, or higher if the planet is assumed to have no water. In contrast, the measured mass and radius of TOI-815c can be explained without invoking any atmosphere, challenging planetary formation theories. Finally, we infer from our measurements that the star is viewed close to pole-on, which implies a spin-orbit misalignment at the 3σ level. This emphasizes the peculiarity of the system’s orbital architecture, and probably hints at an eventful dynamical history.
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| 6. |
- Balkenius, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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The Approach Behaviour of the Hawkmoth Manduca sexta toward Multi-modal Stimuli: A Simulation Model
- 2010
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Ingår i: From Animals to Animats 11 : 11th International Conference on Simulation of Adaptive Behavior, SAB 2010, Paris - Clos Lucé, France, August 25-28, 2010. Proceedings - 11th International Conference on Simulation of Adaptive Behavior, SAB 2010, Paris - Clos Lucé, France, August 25-28, 2010. Proceedings. - 9783642151927 - 9783642151934 ; 6226, s. 232-241
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)
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| 9. |
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| 11. |
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| 14. |
- Cabrera, J., et al.
(författare)
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Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission: XXVII. CoRoT-28b, a planet orbiting an evolved star, and CoRoT-29b, a planet showing an asymmetric transit
- 2015
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 579
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- © ESO, 2015. Context. We present the discovery of two transiting extrasolar planets by the satellite CoRoT. Aims. We aim at a characterization of the planetary bulk parameters, which allow us to further investigate the formation and evolution of the planetary systems and the main properties of the host stars. Methods. We used the transit light curve to characterize the planetary parameters relative to the stellar parameters. The analysis of HARPS spectra established the planetary nature of the detections, providing their masses. Further photometric and spectroscopic ground-based observations provided stellar parameters (log g, Teff, vsini) to characterize the host stars. Our model takes the geometry of the transit to constrain the stellar density into account, which when linked to stellar evolutionary models, determines the bulk parameters of the star. Because of the asymmetric shape of the light curve of one of the planets, we had to include the possibility in our model that the stellar surface was not strictly spherical. Results. We present the planetary parameters of CoRoT-28b, a Jupiter-sized planet (mass 0.484 ± 0.087 MJup; radius 0.955 ± 0.066 RJup) orbiting an evolved star with an orbital period of 5.208 51 ± 0.000 38 days, and CoRoT-29b, another Jupiter-sized planet (mass 0.85 ± 0.20 MJup; radius 0.90 ± 0.16 RJup) orbiting an oblate star with an orbital period of 2.850 570 ± 0.000 006 days. The reason behind the asymmetry of the transit shape is not understood at this point. Conclusions. These two new planetary systems have very interesting properties and deserve further study, particularly in the case of the star CoRoT-29.
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| 15. |
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| 16. |
- Deleuil, M., et al.
(författare)
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Planets, candidates, and binaries from the CoRoT/Exoplanet programme: The CoRoT transit catalogue
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 619
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The CoRoT space mission observed 163 665 stars over 26 stellar fields in the faint star channel. The exoplanet teams detected a total of 4123 transit-like features in the 177 454 light curves. We present the complete re-analysis of all these detections carried out with the same softwares so that to ensure their homogeneous analysis. Although the vetting process involves some human evaluation, it also involves a simple binary flag system over basic tests: Detection significance, presence of a secondary, difference between odd and even depths, colour dependence, V-shape transit, and duration of the transit. We also gathered the information from the large accompanying ground-based programme carried out on the planet candidates and checked how useful the flag system could have been at the vetting stage of the candidates. From the initial list of transit-like features, we identified and separated 824 false alarms of various kind, 2269 eclipsing binaries among which 616 are contact binaries and 1653 are detached ones, 37 planets and brown dwarfs, and 557 planet candidates. We provide the catalogue of all these transit-like features, including false alarms. For the planet candidates, the catalogue gives not only their transit parameters but also the products of their light curve modelling: Reduced radius, reduced semi-major axis, and impact parameter, together with a summary of the outcome of follow-up observations when carried out and their current status. For the detached eclipsing binaries, the catalogue provides, in addition to their transit parameters, a simple visual classification. Among the planet candidates whose nature remains unresolved, we estimate that eight (within an error of three) planets are still to be identified. After correcting for geometric and sensitivity biases, we derived planet and brown dwarf occurrences and confirm disagreements with Kepler estimates, as previously reported by other authors from the analysis of the first runs: Small-size planets with orbital period less than ten days are underabundant by a factor of three in the CoRoT fields whereas giant planets are overabundant by a factor of two. These preliminary results would however deserve further investigations using the recently released CoRoT light curves that are corrected of the various instrumental effects and a homogeneous analysis of the stellar populations observed by the two missions.
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| 17. |
- Ebrahimi-Fakhari, Darius, et al.
(författare)
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Defining the clinical, molecular and imaging spectrum of adaptor protein complex 4-associated hereditary spastic paraplegia
- 2020
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Ingår i: Brain. - OXFORD ENGLAND : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0006-8950 .- 1460-2156. ; 143:10, s. 2929-2944
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Bi-allelic loss-of-function variants in genes that encode subunits of the adaptor protein complex 4 (AP-4) lead to prototypical yet poorly understood forms of childhood-onset and complex hereditary spastic paraplegia: SPG47 (AP4B1), SPG50 (AP4M1), SPG51 (AP4E1) and SPG52 (AP4S1). Here, we report a detailed cross-sectional analysis of clinical, imaging and molecular data of 156 patients from 101 families. Enrolled patients were of diverse ethnic backgrounds and covered a wide age range (1.0-49.3 years). While the mean age at symptom onset was 0.8 +/- 0.6 years [standard deviation (SD), range 0.2-5.0], the mean age at diagnosis was 10.2 +/- 8.5 years (SD, range 0.1-46.3). We define a set of core features: early-onset developmental delay with delayed motor milestones and significant speech delay (50% non-verbal); intellectual disability in the moderate to severe range; mild hypotonia in infancy followed by spastic diplegia (mean age: 8.4 +/- 5.1 years, SD) and later tetraplegia (mean age: 16.1 +/- 9.8 years, SD); postnatal microcephaly (83%); foot deformities (69%); and epilepsy (66%) that is intractable in a subset. At last follow-up, 36% ambulated with assistance (mean age: 8.9 +/- 6.4 years, SD) and 54% were wheelchair-dependent (mean age: 13.4 +/- 9.8 years, SD). Episodes of stereotypic laughing, possibly consistent with a pseudobulbar affect, were found in 56% of patients. Key features on neuroimaging include a thin corpus callosum (90%), ventriculomegaly (65%) often with colpocephaly, and periventricular white-matter signal abnormalities (68%). Iron deposition and polymicrogyria were found in a subset of patients. AP4B1-associated SPG47 and AP4M1-associated SPG50 accounted for the majority of cases. About two-thirds of patients were born to consanguineous parents, and 82% carried homozygous variants. Over 70 unique variants were present, the majority of which are frameshift or nonsense mutations. To track disease progression across the age spectrum, we defined the relationship between disease severity as measured by several rating scales and disease duration. We found that the presence of epilepsy, which manifested before the age of 3 years in the majority of patients, was associated with worse motor outcomes. Exploring genotype-phenotype correlations, we found that disease severity and major phenotypes were equally distributed among the four subtypes, establishing that SPG47, SPG50, SPG51 and SPG52 share a common phenotype, an 'AP-4 deficiency syndrome'. By delineating the core clinical, imaging, and molecular features of AP-4-associated hereditary spastic paraplegia across the age spectrum our results will facilitate early diagnosis, enable counselling and anticipatory guidance of affected families and help define endpoints for future interventional trials.
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| 18. |
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| 19. |
- Klintenberg, Mattias, et al.
(författare)
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The use of molecular dynamics to simulate the temperature dependence of the calculated absorption spectrum for Nd3+:YAG
- 1999
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Ingår i: Materials Science Forum. - 0255-5476. ; 315-317, s. 42-50
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The use of molecular dynamics (MD) and the inclusion of configuration interaction (CI) effects have been shown to be important in the simulation of polarized absorption spectra for rare-earth doped compounds. This work, focuses on how well the MD approach can account for the temperature dependence of the calculated absorption spectrum for Nd3+:YAG, using the standard MD pair-potential of the Born-Mayer-Huggins form. All simulated spectra are compared to the corresponding experimental spectra. The results indicate that the simple pair-potential must be replaced by a many-body potential to describe the motion of the ions with sufficient accuracy. They also suggest that an “effective temperature” (T') should be used in the MD simulation of the form T'=aT+b
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| 20. |
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| 21. |
- Morbidelli, A., et al.
(författare)
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Fossilized condensation lines in the Solar System protoplanetary disk
- 2016
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Ingår i: Icarus. - : Elsevier BV. - 0019-1035. ; 267, s. 368-376
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The terrestrial planets and the asteroids dominant in the inner asteroid belt are water poor. However, in the protoplanetary disk the temperature should have decreased below water-condensation level well before the disk was photo-evaporated. Thus, the global water depletion of the inner Solar System is puzzling. We show that, even if the inner disk becomes cold, there cannot be direct condensation of water. This is because the snowline moves towards the Sun more slowly than the gas itself. Thus the gas in the vicinity of the snowline always comes from farther out, where it should have already condensed, and therefore it should be dry. The appearance of ice in a range of heliocentric distances swept by the snowline can only be due to the radial drift of icy particles from the outer disk. However, if a planet with a mass larger than 20 Earth mass is present, the radial drift of particles is interrupted, because such a planet gives the disk a super-Keplerian rotation just outside of its own orbit. From this result, we propose that the precursor of Jupiter achieved this threshold mass when the snowline was still around 3 AU. This effectively fossilized the snowline at that location. In fact, even if it cooled later, the disk inside of Jupiter's orbit remained ice-depleted because the flow of icy particles from the outer system was intercepted by the planet. This scenario predicts that planetary systems without giant planets should be much more rich in water in their inner regions than our system. We also show that the inner edge of the planetesimal disk at 0.7 AU, required in terrestrial planet formation models to explain the small mass of Mercury and the absence of planets inside of its orbit, could be due to the silicate condensation line, fossilized at the end of the phase of streaming instability that generated the planetesimal seeds. Thus, when the disk cooled, silicate particles started to drift inwards of 0.7. AU without being sublimated, but they could not be accreted by any pre-existing planetesimals.
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| 22. |
- Mousis, O., et al.
(författare)
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Scientific rationale for Saturn's in situ exploration
- 2014
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Ingår i: Planetary and Space Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0032-0633 .- 1873-5088. ; 104, s. 29-47
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Remote sensing observations meet some limitations when used to study the bulk atmospheric composition of the giant planets of our solar system. A remarkable example of the superiority of in situ probe measurements is illustrated by the exploration of Jupiter, where key measurements such as the determination of the noble gases' abundances and the precise measurement of the helium mixing ratio have only been made available through in situ measurements by the Galileo probe. This paper describes the main scientific goals to be addressed by the future in situ exploration of Saturn placing the Galileo probe exploration of Jupiter in a broader context and before the future probe exploration of the more remote ice giants. In situ exploration of Saturn's atmosphere addresses two broad themes that are discussed throughout this paper: first, the formation history of our solar system and second, the processes at play in planetary atmospheres. In this context, we detail the reasons why measurements of Saturn's bulk elemental and isotopic composition would place important constraints on the volatile reservoirs in the protosolar nebula. We also show that the in situ measurement of CO (or any other disequilibrium species that is depleted by reaction with water) in Saturn's upper troposphere may help constraining its bulk O/H ratio. We compare predictions of Jupiter and Saturn's bulk compositions from different formation scenarios, and highlight the key measurements required to distinguish competing theories to shed light on giant planet formation as a common process in planetary systems with potential applications to most extrasolar systems. In situ measurements of Saturn's stratospheric and tropospheric dynamics, chemistry and cloud-forming processes will provide access to phenomena unreachable to remote sensing studies. Different mission architectures are envisaged, which would benefit from strong international collaborations, all based on an entry probe that would descend through Saturn's stratosphere and troposphere under parachute down to a minimum of 10 bar of atmospheric pressure. We finally discuss the science payload required on a Saturn probe to match the measurement requirements.
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| 23. |
- Pearson, A. D. J., et al.
(författare)
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Paediatric Strategy Forum for medicinal product development for acute myeloid leukaemia in children and adolescents ACCELERATE in collaboration with the European Medicines Agency with participation of the Food and Drug Administration
- 2020
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Ingår i: European Journal of Cancer. - : Elsevier BV. - 0959-8049. ; 136, s. 116-129
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: The current standard-of-care for front-line therapy for acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) results in short-term and long-term toxicity, but still approximately 40% of children relapse. Therefore, there is a major need to accelerate the evaluation of innovative medicines, yet drug development continues to be adult-focused. Furthermore, the large number of competing agents in rare patient populations requires coordinated prioritisation, within the global regulatory framework and cooperative group initiatives. Methods: The fourth multi-stakeholder Paediatric Strategy Forum focused on AML in children and adolescents. Results: CD123 is a high priority target and the paediatric development should be accelerated as a proof-of-concept. Efforts must be coordinated, however, as there are a limited number of studies that can be delivered. Studies of FLT3 inhibitors in agreed paediatric investigation plans present challenges to be completed because they require enrolment of a larger number of patients than actually exist. A consensus was developed by industry and academia of optimised clinical trials. For AML with rare mutations that are more frequent in adolescents than in children, adult trials should enrol adolescents and when scientifically justified, efficacy data could be extrapolated. Methodologies and definitions of minimal residual disease need to be standardised internationally and validated as a new response criterion. Industry supported, academic sponsored platform trials could identify products to be further developed. The Leukaemia and Lymphoma Society PedAL/EUpAL initiative has the potential to be a major advance in the field. Conclusion: These initiatives continue to accelerate drug development for children with AML and ultimately improve clinical outcomes. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 24. |
- Rey, J., et al.
(författare)
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Brown dwarf companion with a period of 4.6 yr interacting with the hot Jupiter CoRoT-20b
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 619
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report the discovery of an additional substellar companion in the CoRoT-20 system based on six years of HARPS and SOPHIE radial velocity follow-up. CoRoT-20 c has a minimum mass of 17 ± 1 MJup and orbits the host star in 4.59 ± 0.05 yr, with an orbital eccentricity of 0.60 ± 0.03. This is the first identified system with an eccentric hot Jupiter and an eccentric massive companion. The discovery of the latter might be an indication of the migration mechanism of the hot Jupiter, via the Lidov-Kozai effect. We explore the parameter space to determine which configurations would trigger this type of interactions.
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| 25. |
- Shoaie, Saeed, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Quantifying Diet-Induced Metabolic Changes of the Human Gut Microbiome
- 2015
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Ingår i: Cell Metabolism. - : Elsevier BV. - 1550-4131 .- 1932-7420. ; 22:2, s. 320-331
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The human gut microbiome is known to be associated with various human disorders, but a major challenge is to go beyond association studies and elucidate causalities. Mathematical modeling of the human gut microbiome at a genome scale is a useful tool to decipher microbe-microbe, diet-microbe and microbe-host interactions. Here, we describe the CASINO (Community And Systems-level INteractive Optimization) toolbox, a comprehensive computational platform for analysis of microbial communities through metabolic modeling. We first validated the toolbox by simulating and testing the performance of single bacteria and whole communities in vitro. Focusing on metabolic interactions between the diet, gut microbiota, and host metabolism, we demonstrated the predictive power of the toolbox in a diet-intervention study of 45 obese and overweight individuals and validated our predictions by fecal and blood metabolomics data. Thus, modeling could quantitatively describe altered fecal and serum amino acid levels in response to diet intervention.
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| 26. |
- Tinetti, G., et al.
(författare)
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EChO : Exoplanet characterisation observatory
- 2012
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Ingår i: Experimental astronomy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0922-6435 .- 1572-9508. ; 34:2, s. 311-353
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A dedicated mission to investigate exoplanetary atmospheres represents a major milestone in our quest to understand our place in the universe by placing our Solar System in context and by addressing the suitability of planets for the presence of life. EChO-the Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory-is a mission concept specifically geared for this purpose. EChO will provide simultaneous, multi-wavelength spectroscopic observations on a stable platform that will allow very long exposures. The use of passive cooling, few moving parts and well established technology gives a low-risk and potentially long-lived mission. EChO will build on observations by Hubble, Spitzer and ground-based telescopes, which discovered the first molecules and atoms in exoplanetary atmospheres. However, EChO's configuration and specifications are designed to study a number of systems in a consistent manner that will eliminate the ambiguities affecting prior observations. EChO will simultaneously observe a broad enough spectral region-from the visible to the mid-infrared-to constrain from one single spectrum the temperature structure of the atmosphere, the abundances of the major carbon and oxygen bearing species, the expected photochemically-produced species and magnetospheric signatures. The spectral range and resolution are tailored to separate bands belonging to up to 30 molecules and retrieve the composition and temperature structure of planetary atmospheres. The target list for EChO includes planets ranging from Jupiter-sized with equilibrium temperatures Teq up to 2,000 K, to those of a few Earth masses, with Teq \u223c 300 K. The list will include planets with no Solar System analog, such as the recently discovered planets GJ1214b, whose density lies between that of terrestrial and gaseous planets, or the rocky-iron planet 55 Cnc e, with day-side temperature close to 3,000 K. As the number of detected exoplanets is growing rapidly each year, and the mass and radius of those detected steadily decreases, the target list will be constantly adjusted to include the most interesting systems. We have baselined a dispersive spectrograph design covering continuously the 0. 4-16 μm spectral range in 6 channels (1 in the visible, 5 in the InfraRed), which allows the spectral resolution to be adapted from several tens to several hundreds, depending on the target brightness. The instrument will be mounted behind a 1. 5 m class telescope, passively cooled to 50 K, with the instrument structure and optics passively cooled to \u223c45 K. EChO will be placed in a grand halo orbit around L2. This orbit, in combination with an optimised thermal shield design, provides a highly stable thermal environment and a high degree of visibility of the sky to observe repeatedly several tens of targets over the year. Both the baseline and alternative designs have been evaluated and no critical items with Technology Readiness Level (TRL) less than 4-5 have been identified. We have also undertaken a first-order cost and development plan analysis and find that EChO is easily compatible with the ESA M-class mission framework. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
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| 27. |
- Tinetti, Giovanna, et al.
(författare)
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The science of EChO
- 2010
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union. - 1743-9213 .- 1743-9221. ; 6:S276, s. 359-370
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The science of extra-solar planets is one of the most rapidly changing areas of astrophysics and since 1995 the number of planets known has increased by almost two orders of magnitude. A combination of ground-based surveys and dedicated space missions has resulted in 560-plus planets being detected, and over 1200 that await confirmation. NASA's Kepler mission has opened up the possibility of discovering Earth-like planets in the habitable zone around some of the 100,000 stars it is surveying during its 3 to 4-year lifetime. The new ESA's Gaia mission is expected to discover thousands of new planets around stars within 200 parsecs of the Sun. The key challenge now is moving on from discovery, important though that remains, to characterisation: what are these planets actually like, and why are they as they are In the past ten years, we have learned how to obtain the first spectra of exoplanets using transit transmission and emission spectroscopy. With the high stability of Spitzer, Hubble, and large ground-based telescopes the spectra of bright close-in massive planets can be obtained and species like water vapour, methane, carbon monoxide and dioxide have been detected. With transit science came the first tangible remote sensing of these planetary bodies and so one can start to extrapolate from what has been learnt from Solar System probes to what one might plan to learn about their faraway siblings. As we learn more about the atmospheres, surfaces and near-surfaces of these remote bodies, we will begin to build up a clearer picture of their construction, history and suitability for life. The Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory, EChO, will be the first dedicated mission to investigate the physics and chemistry of Exoplanetary Atmospheres. By characterising spectroscopically more bodies in different environments we will take detailed planetology out of the Solar System and into the Galaxy as a whole. EChO has now been selected by the European Space Agency to be assessed as one of four M3 mission candidates. © International Astronomical Union 2011.
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