1. |
- Carleo, Ilaria, et al.
(author)
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The Multiplanet System TOI-421*
- 2020
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In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 1538-3881 .- 0004-6256. ; 160:3
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report the discovery of a warm Neptune and a hot sub-Neptune transiting TOI-421 (BD-14 1137, TIC 94986319), a bright (V = 9.9) G9 dwarf star in a visual binary system observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) space mission in Sectors 5 and 6. We performed ground-based follow-up observations-comprised of Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope transit photometry, NIRC2 adaptive optics imaging, and FIbre-fed Echelle Spectrograph, CORALIE, High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher, High Resolution echelle Spectrometer, and Planet Finder Spectrograph high-precision Doppler measurements-and confirmed the planetary nature of the 16 day transiting candidate announced by the TESS team. We discovered an additional radial velocity signal with a period of five days induced by the presence of a second planet in the system, which we also found to transit its host star. We found that the inner mini-Neptune, TOI-421 b, has an orbital period of P-b = 5.19672 +/- 0.00049 days, a mass of M-b = 7.17 +/- 0.66 M-circle plus, and a radius of R-b = R-circle plus, whereas the outer warm Neptune, TOI-421 c, has a period of P-c = 16.06819 +/- 0.00035 days, a mass of M-c = 16.42(-1.04)(+1.06)M(circle plus), a radius of R-c = 5.09(-0.15)(+0.16)R(circle plus), and a density of rho(c) = 0.685(-0.072)(+0.080) cm(-3). With its characteristics, the outer planet (rho(c) = 0.685(-0.0072)(+0.080) cm(-3)) is placed in the intriguing class of the super-puffy mini-Neptunes. TOI-421 b and TOI-421 c are found to be well-suited for atmospheric characterization. Our atmospheric simulations predict significant Ly alpha transit absorption, due to strong hydrogen escape in both planets, as well as the presence of detectable CH4 in the atmosphere of TOI-421 c if equilibrium chemistry is assumed.
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2. |
- Geem, Jooyeon, et al.
(author)
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(3200) Phaethon polarimetry in the negative branch: new evidence for the anhydrous nature of the DESTINY+ target asteroid
- 2022
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In: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters. - : Oxford University Press. - 1745-3925 .- 1745-3933. ; 516:1, s. L53-L57
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report on the first polarimetric study of (3200) Phaethon, the target of JAXA’s DESTINY+ mission, in the negative branch to ensure its anhydrous nature and to derive an accurate geometric albedo. We conducted observations at low phase angles (Sun-target-observer angle, α = 8.8–32.4°) from 2021 October to 2022 January and found that Phaethon has a minimum polarization degree Pmin = −1.3 ± 0.1 per cent, a polarimetric slope h = 0.22 ± 0.02 per cent deg−1, and an inversion angle α0 = 19.9 ± 0.3°. The derived geometric albedo is pV = 0.11 (in the range of 0.08–0.13). These polarimetric properties are consistent with anhydrous chondrites, contradict hydrous chondrites, and typical cometary nuclei.
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3. |
- Knudstrup, Emil, et al.
(author)
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A puffy polar planet The low density, hot Jupiter TOI-640 b is on a polar orbit
- 2023
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 671
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- TOI-640 b is a hot, puffy Jupiter with a mass of 0.57 +/- 0.02 M-J and radius of 1.72 +/- 0.05 R-J, orbiting a slightly evolved F-type star with a separation of 6.33(-0.06)(+0.07) R-star. Through spectroscopic in-transit observations made with the HARPS spectrograph, we measured the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect, analysing both in-transit radial velocities and the distortion of the stellar spectral lines. From these observations, we find the host star to have a projected obliquity of lambda = 184 +/- 3 degrees. From the TESS light curve, we measured the stellar rotation period, allowing us to determine the stellar inclination, i(star) = 23(-2)(+3 degrees), meaning we are viewing the star pole-on. Combining this with the orbital inclination allowed us to calculate the host star obliquity, psi = 104 +/- 2(degrees). TOI-640 b joins a group of planets orbiting over stellar poles within the range 80(degrees)-125 degrees. The origin of this orbital configuration is not well understood.
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4. |
- Lam, Kristine W. F., et al.
(author)
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It Takes Two Planets in Resonance to Tango around K2-146
- 2020
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In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 1538-3881 .- 0004-6256. ; 159:3
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- K2-146 is a cool, 0.358M dwarf that was found to host a mini-Neptune with a 2.67 day period. The planet exhibited strong transit timing variations (TTVs) of greater than 30 minutes, indicative of the presence of an additional object in the system. Here we report the discovery of the previously undetected outer planet in the system, K2-146 c, using additional photometric data. K2-146 c was found to have a grazing transit geometry and a 3.97 day period. The outer planet was only significantly detected in the latter K2 campaigns presumably because of precession of its orbital plane. The TTVs of K2-146 b and c were measured using observations spanning a baseline of almost 1200 days. We found strong anti -correlation in the TTVs, suggesting the two planets are gravitationally interacting. Our TTV and transit model analyses revealed that K2-146 b has a radius of 2.25 0.10 Re and a mass of 5.6 0.7 Me, whereas K2-146 c has a radius of 2.591 Re and a mass of 7.1 0.9 Me. The inner and outer planets likely have moderate eccentricities of e = 0.14 0.07 and 0.16 0.07, respectively. Long-term numerical integrations of the two -planet orbital solution show that it can be dynamically stable for at least 2 Myr. We show that the resonance angles of the planet pair are librating, which may be an indication that K2-146 b and c are in a 3:2 mean motion resonance. The orbital architecture of the system points to a possible convergent migration origin.
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5. |
- Nowak, Grzegorz, et al.
(author)
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K2-280 b - a low density warm sub-Saturn around a mildly evolved star
- 2020
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In: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 497:4, s. 4423-4435
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present an independent discovery and detailed characterization of K2-280 b, a transiting low density warm sub-Saturn in a 19.9-d moderately eccentric orbit (e = 0.35(-0.04)(+0.05)) from K2 campaign 7. A joint analysis of high precision HARPS, HARPS-N, and FIES radial velocity measurements and K2 photometric data indicates that K2-280 b has a radius of R-b = 7.50 +/- 0.44 R-circle plus and a mass of M-b = 37.1 +/- 5.6 M-circle plus, yielding a mean density of rho(b) = 0.48(-0.10)(+0.13) g cm(-3). The host star is a mildly evolved G7 star with an effective temperature of T-eff = 5500 +/- 100 K, a surface gravity of log g(star) = 4.21 +/- 0.05 (cgs), and an iron abundance of [Fe/H] = 0.33 +/- 0.08 dex, and with an inferred mass of M-star = 1.03 +/- 0.03 M-circle dot and a radius of R-star = 1.28 +/- 0.07 R-circle dot. We discuss the importance of K2-280 b for testing formation scenarios of sub-Saturn planets and the current sample of this intriguing group of planets that are absent in the Solar system.
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6. |
- Persson, Carina, 1964, et al.
(author)
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Greening of the brown-dwarf desert EPIC 212036875b: a 51 M-J object in a 5-day orbit around an F7V star
- 2019
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 628
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Context. Although more than 2000 brown dwarfs have been detected to date, mainly from direct imaging, their characterisation is difficult due to their faintness and model-dependent results. In the case of transiting brown dwarfs, however, it is possible to make direct high-precision observations. Aims. Our aim is to investigate the nature and formation of brown dwarfs by adding a new well-characterised object, in terms of its mass, radius and bulk density, to the currently small sample of less than 20 transiting brown dwarfs. Methods. One brown dwarf candidate was found by the KESPRINT consortium when searching for exoplanets in the K2 space mission Campaign 16 field. We combined the K2 photometric data with a series of multicolour photometric observations, imaging, and radial velocity measurements to rule out false positive scenarios and to determine the fundamental properties of the system. Results. We report the discovery and characterisation of a transiting brown dwarf in a 5.17-day eccentric orbit around the slightly evolved F7V star EPIC 212036875. We find a stellar mass of 1.15 +/- 0.08 M-circle dot, a stellar radius of 1.41 +/- 0.05 R-circle dot, and an age of 5.1 +/- 0.9 Gyr. The mass and radius of the companion brown dwarf are 51 +/- 2 M-J and 0.83 +/- 0.03 R-J, respectively, corresponding to a mean density of 108(-13)(+15) g cm(-3). Conclusions. EPIC 212036875 b is a rare object that resides in the brown-dwarf desert. In the mass-density diagram for planets, brown dwarfs, and stars, we find that all giant planets and brown dwarfs follow the same trend from similar to 0.3 M-J to the turn-over to hydrogen burning stars at similar to 73 M-J. EPIC 212036875 b falls close to the theoretical model for mature H/He dominated objects in this diagram as determined by interior structure models. We argue that EPIC 212036875 b formed via gravitational disc instabilities in the outer part of the disc, followed by a quick migration. Orbital tidal circularisation may have started early in its history for a brief period when the brown dwarf's radius was larger. The lack of spin-orbit synchronisation points to a weak stellar dissipation parameter (Q(star)' greater than or similar to 10(8)), which implies a circularisation timescale of greater than or similar to 23 Gyr, or suggests an interaction between the magnetic and tidal forces of the star and the brown dwarf.
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7. |
- Seidel, Julia V., et al.
(author)
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Detection of atmospheric species and dynamics in the bloated hot Jupiter WASP-172 b with ESPRESSO
- 2023
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 678
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Context. The population of strongly irradiated Jupiter-sized planets has no equivalent in the Solar System. It is characterised by strongly bloated atmospheres and large atmospheric scale heights. Recent space-based observations of SO2 photochemistry have demonstrated the knowledge that can be gained about Earth's uniqueness from detailed atmospheric studies of these unusual planets. Aims. Here we explore the atmosphere of WASP-172 b, a planet similar in terms of temperature and bloating to the recently studied HD 149026 b. We characterise the atmospheric composition and subsequently the atmospheric dynamics of this prime target. Methods. We observed a particular transit of WASP-172 b in front of its host star with ESO's ESPRESSO spectrograph and analysed the spectra obtained before, during, and after transit. Results. We detect the absorption of starlight by WASP-172 b's atmosphere by sodium (5.6 ) and hydrogen (19.5 ) and obtained a tentative detection of iron (4.1 ). We detect strong yet varying blueshifts, relative to the planetary rest frame, of all of these absorption features. This allows for a preliminary study of the atmospheric dynamics of WASP-172 b. Conclusions. With only one transit, we were able to detect a wide variety of species that clearly track different atmospheric layers with possible jets. WASP-172 b is a prime follow-up target for a more in-depth characterisation with both ground- and space-based observatories. If the detection of Fe is confirmed, this may suggest that radius inflation is an important determinant for the detectability of Fe in hot Jupiters, as several non-detections of Fe have been published for planets that are hotter but less inflated than WASP-172 b.
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8. |
- Subjak, Jan, et al.
(author)
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TOI-503: The First Known Brown-dwarf Am-star Binary from the TESS Mission
- 2020
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In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 1538-3881 .- 0004-6256. ; 159:4
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report the discovery of an intermediate-mass transiting brown dwarf (BD), TOI-503b, from the TESS mission. TOI-503b is the first BD discovered by TESS, and it has circular orbit around a metallic-line A-type star with a period of P.=.3.6772.+/-.0.0001 days. The light curve from TESS indicates that TOI-503b transits its host star in a grazing manner, which limits the precision with which we measure the BD's radius ( = R 1.34+ R b 0.150.26 J). We obtained highresolution spectroscopic observations with the FIES, Ondr.ejov, PARAS, Tautenburg, and TRES spectrographs, and measured the mass of TOI-503b to be Mb.=.53.7.+/-.1.2 MJ. The host star has a mass of Ma.=.1.80.+/-.0.06Me, a radius of Ra.=.1.70.+/-.0.05Re, an effective temperature of Teff.=.7650.+/-.160 K, and a relatively high metallicity of 0.61.+/-.0.07 dex. We used stellar isochrones to derive the age of the system to be 180 Myr, which places its age between that of RIK 72b (a 10 Myr old BD in the Upper Scorpius stellar association) and AD 3116b (a 600 Myr old BD in the Praesepe cluster). Given the difficulty in measuring the tidal interactions between BDs and their host stars, we cannot precisely say whether this BD formed in situ or has had its orbit circularized by its host star over the relatively short age of the system. Instead, we offer an examination of plausible values for the tidal quality factor for the star and BD. TOI-503b joins a growing number of known short-period, intermediate-mass BDs orbiting mainsequence stars, and is the second such BD known to transit an A star, after HATS-70b. With the growth in the population in this regime, the driest region in the BD desert (35-55MJ sin i) is reforesting.
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9. |
- Tran, Quang H., et al.
(author)
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TOI-1670 b and c: An Inner Sub-Neptune with an Outer Warm Jupiter Unlikely to Have Originated from High-eccentricity Migration
- 2022
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In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 1538-3881 .- 0004-6256. ; 163:5
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report the discovery of two transiting planets around the bright (V = 9.9 mag) main-sequence F7 star TOI-1670 by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite. TOI-1670 b is a sub-Neptune (R-b = 2.06(-0.15)(+0.19) R-circle plus) on a 10.9 day orbit, and TOI-1670 c is a warm Jupiter (R-c= 0.987(-0.025)(+0.025) R-Jup) on a 40.7 day orbit. Using radial velocity observations gathered with the Tull Coude Spectrograph on the Harlan J. Smith telescope and HARPS-N on the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo, we find a planet mass of M-c = 0.63(-0.08)(+0.09) M(Jup )for the outer warm Jupiter, implying a mean density of rho(c) = 0.81(-0.11)(+0.13) g cm(-3). The inner sub-Neptune is undetected in our radial velocity data (M-b < 0.13 M-Jup at the 99% confidence level). Multiplanet systems like TOI-1670 hosting an outer warm Jupiter on a nearly circular orbit (l(e) = 0.09(-0.04)(+0.05)) and one or more inner coplanar planets are more consistent with "gentle" formation mechanisms such as disk migration or in situ formation rather than high-eccentricity migration. Of the 11 known systems with a warm Jupiter and a smaller inner companion, eight (73%) are near a low-order mean-motion resonance, which can be a signature of migration. TOI-1670 joins two other systems (27% of this subsample) with period commensurabilities greater than 3, a common feature of in situ formation or halted inward migration. TOI-1670 and the handful of similar systems support a diversity of formation pathways for warm Jupiters.
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