120 research outputs found
The GTC exoplanet transit spectroscopy survey X. Stellar spots versus Rayleigh scattering: the case of HAT-P-11b
Rayleigh scattering in a hydrogen-dominated exoplanet atmosphere can be
detected from ground or space based telescopes, however, stellar activity in
the form of spots can mimic Rayleigh scattering in the observed transmission
spectrum. Quantifying this phenomena is key to our correct interpretation of
exoplanet atmospheric properties. We obtained long-slit optical spectroscopy of
two transits of HAT-P-11b with the Optical System for Imaging and
low-Intermediate-Resolution Integrated Spectroscopy (OSIRIS) at Gran Telescopio
Canarias (GTC) on August 30 2016 and September 25 2017. We integrated the
spectrum of HAT-P-11 and one reference star in several spectroscopic channels
across the 400-785 nm region, creating numerous light curves of
the transits. We fit analytic transit curves to the data taking into account
the systematic effects and red noise present in the time series in an effort to
measure the change of the planet-to-star radius ratio
() across wavelength. By fitting both transits
together, we find a slope in the transmission spectrum showing an increase of
the planetary radius towards blue wavelengths. A closer inspection to the
transmission spectrum of the individual data sets reveals that the first
transit presents this slope while the transmission spectrum of the second data
set is flat. Additionally we detect hints of Na absorption in the first night,
but not in the second. We conclude that the transmission spectrum slope and Na
absorption excess found in the first transit observation are caused by
unocculted stellar spots. Modeling the contribution of unocculted spots to
reproduce the results of the first night we find a spot filling factor of
and a spot-to-photosphere temperature difference
of K.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics, 13 page
Detection of sodium in the atmosphere of WASP-69b
Transit spectroscopy is one of the most commonly used methods to characterize
exoplanets atmospheres. From the ground, these observations are very
challenging due to the terrestrial atmosphere and its intrinsic variations, but
high-spectral resolution observations overcome this difficulty by resolving the
spectral lines and taking advantage of the different Doppler velocities of the
Earth, the host star and the exoplanet. We analyze the transmission spectrum
around the Na I doublet at 589 nm of the exoplanet WASP-69b, a hot Jupiter
orbiting a K-type star with a period of 3.868 days, and compare the analysis to
that of the well-know hot Jupiter HD 189733b. We also present the analysis of
the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect for WASP-69b. Two transits of WASP-69b were
observed with the HARPS-North spectrograph (R = 115 000) at the TNG telescope.
We perform a telluric contamination subtraction based on the comparison between
the observed spectra and a telluric water model. Then, the common steps of the
differential spectroscopy are followed to extract the transmission spectrum.
The method is tested with archival transit data of the extensively studied
exoplanet HD 189733b, obtained with the HARPS-South spectrograph at ESO 3.6m
telescope, and then applied to WASP-69b data. For HD 189733b, we spectrally
resolve the Na I doublet and measure line contrasts of (D2) and
(D1), and FWHMs of {\AA} (D2) and
{\AA} (D1), in agreement with previously published results. A net
blueshift of {\AA} is measured. For WASP-69b only the contrast of
the D2 line is measured (). Even if this corresponds to a
detection at the -level of excess absorption of in a
passband of {\AA}, more transits are needed to fully characterize the
lines profiles and retrieve accurate atmospheric properties.Comment: 15 pages, 14 figure
The GTC exoplanet transit spectroscopy survey. VI. A spectrally-resolved Rayleigh scattering slope in GJ 3470b
Aims. As a sub-Uranus-mass low-density planet, GJ 3470b has been found to
show a flat featureless transmission spectrum in the infrared and a tentative
Rayleigh scattering slope in the optical. We conducted an optical transmission
spectroscopy project to assess the impacts of stellar activity and to determine
whether or not GJ 3470b hosts a hydrogen-rich gas envelop. Methods. We observed
three transits with the low-resolution OSIRIS spectrograph at the 10.4 m Gran
Telescopio Canarias, and one transit with the high-resolution UVES spectrograph
at the 8.2 m Very Large Telescope. Results. From the high-resolution data, we
find that the difference of the Ca II H+K lines in- and out-of-transit is only
0.67 +/- 0.22%, and determine a magnetic filling factor of about 10-15%. From
the low-resolution data, we present the first optical transmission spectrum in
the 435-755 nm band, which shows a slope consistent with Rayleigh scattering.
Conclusions. After exploring the potential impacts of stellar activity in our
observations, we confirm that Rayleigh scattering in an extended
hydrogen/helium atmosphere is currently the best explanation. Further
high-precision observations that simultaneously cover optical and infrared
bands are required to answer whether or not clouds and hazes exist at
high-altitude.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in A&
The eclipsing post-common envelope binary CSS21055: a white dwarf with a probable brown-dwarf companion
We report photometric observations of the eclipsing close binary CSS21055
(SDSS J141126+200911) that strongly suggest that the companion to the
carbon-oxygen white dwarf is a brown dwarf with a mass between 0.030 and 0.074
Msun. The measured orbital period is 121.73min and the totality of the eclipse
lasts 125s. If confirmed, CSS21055 would be the first detached eclipsing WD+BD
binary. Spectroscopy in the eclipse could provide information about the
companion's evolutionary state and atmospheric structure.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
The GTC exoplanet transit spectroscopy survey XI. Possible detection of Rayleigh scattering in the atmosphere of the Saturn-mass planet WASP-69b
One of the main atmospheric features in exoplanet atmospheres, detectable
both from ground- and space-based facilities, is Rayleigh scattering. In
hydrogen-dominated planetary atmospheres, Rayleigh scattering causes the
measured planetary radius to increase toward blue wavelengths in the optical
range. We obtained a spectrophotometric time series of one transit of the
Saturn-mass planet WASP-69b using the OSIRIS instrument at the Gran Telescopio
Canarias. From the data we constructed 19 spectroscopic transit light curves
representing 20 nm wide wavelength bins spanning from 515 nm to 905 nm. We
derived the transit depth for each curve individually by fitting an analytical
model together with a Gaussian process to account for systematic noise in the
light curves. We find that the transit depth increases toward bluer
wavelengths, indicative of a larger effective planet radius. Our results are
consistent with space-based measurements obtained in the near infrared using
the Hubble Space Telescope, which show a compatible slope of the transmission
spectrum. We discuss the origin of the detected slope and argue between two
possible scenarios: a Rayleigh scattering detection originating in the planet's
atmosphere or a stellar activity induced signal from the host star.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, 6 tables. Accepted for publication in A&A.
Language corrected versio
Na I and H absorption features in the atmosphere of MASCARA-2b/KELT-20b
We have used the HARPS-North high resolution spectrograph (=115
000) at TNG to observe one transit of the highly irradiated planet
MASCARA-2b/KELT-20b. Using only one transit observation, we are able to clearly
resolve the spectral features of the atomic sodium (Na I) doublet and the
H line in its atmosphere, measuring absorption depths of
0.170.03 and 0.590.08 for a 0.75 passband,
respectively. These absorptions are corroborated with the transmission measured
from their respective transmission light curves, which show a large
Rossiter-McLaughlin effect. In case of H, this absorption corresponds
to an effective radius of =1.200.04. While the S/N of the
final transmission spectrum is not sufficient to adjust different temperature
profiles to the lines, we find that higher temperatures than the equilibrium
are needed to explain the lines contrast. Particularly, we find that the Na I
lines core require a temperature of T=4210180K and that H requires
T=4330520K. MASCARA-2b, like other planets orbiting A-type stars, receives
a large amount of UV energy from its host star. This energy excites the atomic
hydrogen and produces H absorption, leading to the expansion and
abrasion of the atmosphere. The study of other Balmer lines in the transmission
spectrum would allow the determination of the atmospheric temperature profile
and the calculation of the lifetime of the atmosphere. In the case of
MASCARA-2b, residual features are observed in the H and H lines,
but they are not statistically significant. More transit observations are
needed to confirm our findings in Na I and H, and to build up enough
S/N to explore the presence of H and H planetary absorptions.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figure
A temperature inversion with atomic iron in the ultra-hot dayside atmosphere of WASP-189b
Temperature inversion layers are predicted to be present in ultra-hot giant
planet atmospheres. Although such inversion layers have recently been observed
in several ultra-hot Jupiters, the chemical species responsible for creating
the inversion remain unidentified. Here, we present observations of the thermal
emission spectrum of an ultra-hot Jupiter, WASP-189b, at high spectral
resolution using the HARPS-N spectrograph. Using the cross-correlation
technique, we detect a strong Fe I signal. The detected Fe I spectral lines are
found in emission, which is direct evidence of a temperature inversion in the
planetary atmosphere. We further performed a retrieval on the observed spectrum
using a forward model with an MCMC approach. When assuming a solar metallicity,
the best-fit result returns a temperature of K at the top
of the inversion, which is significantly hotter than the planetary equilibrium
temperature (2641 K). The temperature at the bottom of the inversion is
determined as K. Such a strong temperature inversion is
probably created by the absorption of atomic species like Fe I.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysics, in pres
High angular resolution imaging and infrared spectroscopy of CoRoT candidates
Studies of transiting extrasolar planets are of key importance for
understanding the nature of planets outside our solar system because their
masses, diameters, and bulk densities can be measured. An important part of
transit-search programmes is the removal of false-positives. The critical
question is how many of the candidates that passed all previous tests are false
positives. For our study we selected 25 CoRoT candidates that have already been
screened against false-positives using detailed analysis of the light curves
and seeing-limited imaging, which has transits that are between 0.7 and 0.05%
deep. We observed 20 candidates with the adaptive optics imager NaCo and 18
with the high-resolution infrared spectrograph CRIRES. We found previously
unknown stars within 2 arcsec of the targets in seven of the candidates. All of
these are too faint and too close to the targets to have been previously
detected with seeing-limited telescopes in the optical. Our study thus leads to
the surprising results that if we remove all candidates excluded by the
sophisticated analysis of the light-curve, as well as carrying out deep imaging
with seeing-limited telescopes, still 28-35% of the remaining candidates are
found to possess companions that are bright enough to be false-positives. Given
that the companion-candidates cluster around the targets and that the J-K
colours are consistent with physical companions, we conclude that the
companion-candidates are more likely to be physical companions rather than
unrelated field stars.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figures, A&A in pres
- …