Orbital structure of the GJ876 extrasolar planetary system, based on the latest Keck and HARPS radial velocity data

We use full available array of radial velocity data, including recently published HARPS and Keck observatory sets, to characterize the orbital configuration of the planetary system orbiting GJ876. First, we propose and describe in detail a fast method to fit perturbed orbital configuration, based on the integration of the sensitivity equations inferred by the equations of the original $N$-body problem. Further, we find that it is unsatisfactory to treat the available radial velocity data for GJ876 in the traditional white noise model, because the actual noise appears autocorrelated (and demonstrates non-white frequency spectrum). The time scale of this correlation is about a few days, and the contribution of the correlated noise is about 2 m/s (i.e., similar to the level of internal errors in the Keck data). We propose a variation of the maximum-likelihood algorithm to estimate the orbital configuration of the system, taking into account the red noise effects. We show, in particular, that the non-zero orbital eccentricity of the innermost planet \emph{d}, obtained in previous studies, is likely a result of misinterpreted red noise in the data. In addition to offsets in some orbital parameters, the red noise also makes the fit uncertainties systematically underestimated (while they are treated in the traditional white noise model). Also, we show that the orbital eccentricity of the outermost planet is actually ill-determined, although bounded by $\sim 0.2$. Finally, we investigate possible orbital non-coplanarity of the system, and limit the mutual inclination between the planets \emph{b} and \emph{c} orbits by $5^\circ-15^\circ$, depending on the angular position of the mutual orbital nodes.Comment: 36 pages, 11 figures, 3 tables; Accepted to Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronom

Benchmarking the power of amateur observatories for TTV exoplanets detection

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of the following article: Roman v. Baluev, et al, ‘Benchmarking the power of amateur observatories for TTV exoplanets detection’, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 450(3): 3101-3113, first published online 9 May 2015. The version of record is available at doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stv788 © 2015 The Authors. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.We perform an analysis of ~80000 photometric measurements for the following 10 stars hosting transiting planets: WASP-2, -4, -5, -52, Kelt-1, CoRoT-2, XO-2, TrES-1, HD 189733, GJ 436. Our analysis includes mainly transit lightcurves from the Exoplanet Transit Database, public photometry from the literature, and some proprietary photometry privately supplied by other authors. Half of these lightcurves were obtained by amateurs. From this photometry we derive 306 transit timing measurements, as well as improved planetary transit parameters. Additionally, for 6 of these 10 stars we present a set of radial velocity measurements obtained from the spectra stored in the HARPS, HARPS-N, and SOPHIE archives using the HARPS-TERRA pipeline. Our analysis of these TTV and RV data did not reveal significant hints of additional orbiting bodies in almost all of the cases. In the WASP-4 case, we found hints of marginally significant TTV signals having amplitude 10-20 sec, although their parameters are model-dependent and uncertain, while radial velocities did not reveal statistically significant Doppler signals.Peer reviewe

Структура земной коры Онежско-Кандалакшского палеорифта по данным комплексного анализа аномального магнитного поля акватории Белого моря

Geological and geophysical studies recently conducted in the White Sea and the adjacent territory have provided new data on the deep structure of this region. Our study aims to conduct complex analysis of the anomalous magnetic field and the geological and geophysical data on the Onega-Kandalaksha paleorift located in the White Sea basin and the adjacent southeastern land area, and to develop a model showing its deep structure. The basis for analysing the magnetic field is the anomalous magnetic field (AMF) map constructed by the authors using the magnetic survey data consolidated by the Marine Arctic Geological Expedition (MAGE) in 2003–2008 and supplemented by the survey data of the Institute of Oceanology RAS in 2001–2004. The parameters of the magnetically active layer are estimated by the independent complementary methods of quantitative interpretation developed by the Laboratory of Geophysical Fields, P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology RAS. This article describes a model showing the structure and formation of the magnetically active layer of the White Sea paleorift. Our study shows that the magnetically active layer of the paleorift system has a complex structure reflecting all the main stages in the evolution of tectonic activity in the White Sea region, from the Middle and Late Riphean to the last glaciation of the Quaternary period. The model includes three structural layers, each corresponding to a certain stage. The bottom structural layer is the base of the magnetically active layer, which reflects the continental rifting stage in the evolution of the White Sea mobile belt in the Middle and Late Riphean. The middle structural layer reflects the Middle Paleozoic (Late Devonian) stage of rifting reactivation, which is characterized by alkaline-ultrabasic magmatism and represented by swarms of alkaline dykes and diatremes, including kimberlite pipes. The top structural layer reflecting a high-frequency component of the AMF is related to the highly magnetic sources of anomalies located in the upper part of this structural layer. The characteristics of the top structural layer suggest that it formed in the Late Pleistocene – Holocene and developed during the final stage the tectonic activation of this region. The deep crustal structure of the White Sea basin is specified in our model showing the magnetically active layer for the low-frequency component of the AMF. In the southeastern part of the basin, magmatism products of the basic (Riphean – Vendian) and alkaline-ultrabasic (Middle Paleozoic) composition are abundant in the crust and provide for a strong magnetic source of anomalies, the lower edges of which are traced at the depths to 30 km. This probably reflects the most active plume-lithospheric interaction. Wedging and uplifting of the magnetically active layer northwestward along the Onega-Kandalaksha rift is related to the White Sea (Belomorsky) deep fault. This fault is a long-lived conduit that channels magma from the central portion of the plume, as evidenced by the igneous bodies of the basic composition in the basement and central parts of the sedimentary wedge in the Kandalaksha graben. The complex analysis of the AMF in the White Sea region suggests the presence of morphologically different igneous bodies in the upper crust in the study region.Благодаря геолого-геофизическим исследованиям последних лет акватории Белого моря и прилегающей территории появились новые данные о глубинном строении Беломорского региона. Основная цель представляемой работы – составление на основе комплексного анализа аномального магнитного поля и других геолого-геофизических данных модели глубинного строения Онежско-Кандалакшского палеорифта, расположенного в Беломорском бассейне и на прилегающей с юго-востока суше. Основой для анализа магнитного поля Белого моря послужила сводная карта аномального магнитного поля (АМП), составленная авторами по материалам магнитных съемок, выполненных ОАО «Морская арктическая геологоразведочная экспедиция» (МАГЭ) в 2003–2008 гг., которые были дополнены материалами съемок, выполненных Институтом океанологии РАН в 2001–2004 гг. Для решения этой задачи и оценки параметров магнитоактивного слоя в работе были использованы независимые взаимодополняющие методы количественной интерпретации, разработанные в лаборатории геофизических полей Института океанологии им. П.П. Ширшова РАН. В результате анализа и комплексной интерпретации аномального магнитного поля и других геолого-геофизических данных авторами была создана модель строения и формирования магнитоактивного слоя палеорифтовой системы Белого моря. Исследования показали, что магнитоактивный слой палеорифтовой системы Белого моря имеет сложное строение, которое отражает все основные этапы тектонической активности Беломорского региона – от среднего и позднего рифея до событий последнего оледенения четвертичного периода. Модель магнитоактивного слоя представлена тремя структурными уровнями (горизонтами), каждый из которых отражает определенный этап формирования изучаемой площади. Нижний структурный уровень (основание магнитоактивного слоя) отражает рифтовый этап эволюции Беломорского подвижного пояса в среднем и позднем рифее, характеризующийся проявлением континентального рифтогенеза. Средний структурный горизонт отражает среднепалеозойский (позднедевонский) этап реактивации рифтовой системы, который характеризуется проявлением щелочно-ультраосновного магматизма и представлен роями щелочных даек и трубок взрыва, в том числе и кимберлитового состава. Верхний структурный уровень отражает высокочастотную составляющую аномального магнитного поля и связан с сильномагнитными источниками аномалий, расположенными в верхней части выделяемого структурного уровня. Характеристики этого структурного уровня позволяют предполагать, что верхний горизонт мог быть сформирован во время последнего этапа (поздний плейстоцен – голоцен) тектонической активизации этого региона. Модель магнитоактивного слоя для низкочастотной составляющей АМП отражает глубинное строение земной коры Беломорского бассейна, в юго-восточной части которого сильномагнитным источником аномалий с глубиной нижних кромок до 30 км является насыщенность коры продуктами проявлений магматизма основного (рифей – венд) и щелочно-ультраосновного (средний палеозой) состава, что, вероятно, отражает наиболее активное плюм-литосферное взаимодействие. Выклинивание и воздымание магнитоактивного слоя к северо-западу вдоль простирания Онежско-Кандалакшского рифта связывается с Беломорским глубинным разломом, который являлся долгоживущим магмоподводящим каналом от центральной части плюма, что подтверждается наличием магматических тел основного состава в фундаменте и в центральной части осадочного клина, выполняющего Кандалакшский рифтогенный грабен. Комплексный анализ АМП в пределах акватории Белого моря позволил также спрогнозировать наличие магматических тел различной морфологии в верхней части земной коры

On the dynamics of Extrasolar Planetary Systems under dissipation. Migration of planets

We study the dynamics of planetary systems with two planets moving in the same plane, when frictional forces act on the two planets, in addition to the gravitational forces. The model of the general three-body problem is used. Different laws of friction are considered. The topology of the phase space is essential in understanding the evolution of the system. The topology is determined by the families of stable and unstable periodic orbits, both symmetric and non symmetric. It is along the stable families, or close to them, that the planets migrate when dissipative forces act. At the critical points where the stability along the family changes, there is a bifurcation of a new family of stable periodic orbits and the migration process changes route and follows the new stable family up to large eccentricities or to a chaotic region. We consider both resonant and non resonant planetary systems. The 2/1, 3/1 and 3/2 resonances are studied. The migration to larger or smaller eccentricities depends on the particular law of friction. Also, in some cases the semimajor axes increase and in other cases they are stabilized. For particular laws of friction and for special values of the parameters of the frictional forces, it is possible to have partially stationary solutions, where the eccentricities and the semimajor axes are fixed.Comment: Accepted in Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronom

TIME CONSTRAINTS ON THE FORMATION OF THE KANDALAKSHA AND KERETSK GRABENS OF THE WHITE SEA PALEO-RIFT SYSTEM FROM NEW ISOTOPIC GEOCHRONOLOGICAL DATA

Initially, the age and stratigraphic position of the Tersk formation were determined with respect to the fact that this formation overlaps the Early Proterozoic granitoids. Its top was marked by the rocks penetrated by the Late Devonian alkaline intrusions, including explosion pipes.This article presents the U-Pb isotopic dating of detrital zircon grains (dZr) from sandstones of the Tersk formation. It describes the geochemical compositions of the rocks and the Sm-Nd study results. In our study, the weighted average age of four youngest dZr grains from the sandstones of the Tersk formation is 1145±20 Ma, which suggests that the rocks above the studied rock layer (see the Tersk formation cross-section) are is not older than the end of the Middle Riphean. The U-Pb isotopic ages of dZr grains (provenance signals) from the sandstones of the Tersk formation were compared to the ages of other Upper Precambrian clastic strata in the northeastern East European platform (EEP) and adjacent areas. Our comparative analysis shows that these rocks significantly differ in age. This conclusion is in good agreement with the idea that at the end of the Middle and during the Late Riphean, several small (mainly closed) basins separated by uplifts dominated in the paleogeographic setting of the area wherein the White Sea rift system (WSRS) formed and developed. Temporal connections of these basins with the ocean were possible. Such paleogeographic setting does not favour the development of large rivers; this is why the grabens are mainly filled with local rock materials. The Keretsk and Kandalaksha grabens (WSRS) are filled with marine sediments eroded from the grabens walls. The local sediment sources include eclogite complexes (~1.9 Ga), which basic magmatism is dated at ~2.4–2.5 and ~2.7–2.9 Ga. Any potential primary sources for dZr grains are lacking in the area near the Keretsk graben. We suggest that such grains occurred due to recycling of the secondary sources of zircon, i.e. originated from ancient local sedimentary formations

О ВРЕМЕНИ И УСЛОВИЯХ ФОРМИРОВАНИЯ ШОКШИНСКИХ КВАРЦИТОПЕСЧАНИКОВ ЮЖНО-ОНЕЖСКОЙ ВПАДИНЫ В СВЕТЕ НОВЫХ ДАННЫХ ИЗОТОПНОЙ ГЕОХРОНОЛОГИИ

The first results of U-Pb isotope dating of detrital zircons (dZr) from red-colored quartzitic-sandstones of the Shoksha formation (Shoksha horizon) are presented. The Shoksha formation completes the Vepsian sub-horizon (Vepsian) of the Lower Proterozoic of Karelia and is distributed within the South Onega trough. A sample (KL-555) of red-colored quartzitic sandstones was taken from the lower part of the section of the Shoksha formation in the same name deposit within the southwestern Cis-Onega Lake region. The 79 dZr grains isolated from this sample were analyzed by the staff of the Chemistry-Isotopic Analytic Laboratory of the GIN RAS using the equipment of the Shared Research Facilities of the GIN RAS. The weighted average of the three youngest U-Pb isotope dates for dZr grains is 1906±13 Ma. Taking into account the known isotopic dates of gabbro-dolerites from the Ropruchei sill, that cuts through the Shoksha formation, it makes possible to constrain the time of the Shoksha formation accumulation by ~1.90–1.75 Ga. A significant part of the carried out analyzes has yielded a high degree of discordance of the dates. The features of the distribution of the figurative points of these analyzes in the diagram with concordia suggest that the rocks of the studied section of the Shoksha formation were subjected to the alteration that disturbed the U-Pb isotope system of these zircon grains in the Phanerozoic.The set of obtained dates for dZr grains has been compared with the known ages of the crystalline complexes of the basement of the East European Platform. The age sets of dZr grains from sample KL-555 and rocks of the Ladoga group, developed along the margin of the Svecofennian accretionary orogen, are very similar (p similarity coefficient in Kolmogorov – Smirnov test is 0.27) and characterize mainly tectonic–magmatic events that had immediately preceded the manifestation of the Svecofennian orogeny (1.9–1.87 Ga). Therefore, the rocks of the Ladoga group could highly probably be a secondary source for the Shoksha quartzites. Based on a comparative analysis of ages and thorium-uranium ratios (Th/U) in dZr grains from sample KL-555, it was concluded that some of the studied dZr grains with high Th/U>1.5 originate from Ludicovian mafic rocks, but those with low Th/U<0.1 originate from ultra-high-pressure formations, such as eclogites known in the Salma, Kuru-Vaara and Gridino.A paleo-geographic scheme for the Late Vepsian is proposed, showing that the highly mature Shoksha sandstones were generated under continental conditions in a local basin due to the accumulation of clastic material carried by an extensive and branched Представлены первые результаты U-Pb изотопного датирования зерен детритового циркона (dZr) из красноцветных кварцитопесчаников шокшинской свиты (шокшинского горизонта). Шокшинская свита завершает разрез вепсийского надгоризонта (вепсия) нижнего протерозоя Карелии и распространена в Южно-Онежском прогибе (мульде). Проба (KL-555) красноцветных кварцитопесчаников отобрана из нижней части разреза шокшинской свиты на одноименном месторождении, расположенном в Юго-Западном Прионежье. Выделенные из этой пробы 79 зерен dZr проанализированы сотрудниками лаборатории химико-аналитических исследований ГИН РАН с использованием оборудования ЦКП ГИН РАН. Средневзвешенное значение трех наиболее молодых датировок зерен dZr – 1906±13 млн лет. С учетом известных изотопных датировок габбро-долеритов Ропручейского силла, прорывающего шокшинскую свиту, это дает возможность ограничить время формирования шокшинской свиты ~1.90–1.75 млрд лет. Значительная часть выполненных U-Pb анализов имеет высокую степень дискордантности вычисленных по ним датировок. Особенности распределения фигуративных точек анализов на диаграмме с конкордией позволяют предположить, что в фанерозое породы изученного разреза шокшинской свиты были подвержены воздействию, нарушившему U-Pb изотопную систему цирконовых зерен.Набор полученных датировок зерен dZr сопоставлен с известными значениями возраста кристаллических комплексов фундамента Восточно-Европейской платформы. Наборы возрастов зерен dZr из пробы KL-555 и пород ладожской серии, развитой вдоль окраины Свекофеннского аккреционного орогена, очень сходны (р-коэффициент сходства теста Колмогорова – Смирнова – 0.27) и характеризуют главным образом тектономагматические события, непосредственно предшествовавшие проявлению главного этапа свекофеннского тектогенеза (1.90–1.87 млрд лет), поэтому образования ладожской серии с высокой степенью вероятности могли быть вторичным источником для шокшинских кварцитов. На основании сравнительного анализа возрастов и торий-урановых отношений (Th/U) в зернах dZr из пробы KL-555 сделан вывод о том, что часть изученных зерен dZr с высокими Th/U(>1.5) происходят из базитов людиковия, а с низкими (<0.1) – из ультравысокобарических образований (таких, как эклогиты), развитых в районах Салма, Куру-Ваара и Гридино.Разработана палеогеографическая схема для поздневепсийского времени, показывающая, что высокозрелые шокшинские песчаники формировались в континентальных условиях в локальном бассейне за счет накопления обломочного материала, переносимого обширным и разветвленным седиментационным потоком в направлении с севера и северо-запада на юг и юг-юго-восток.

Benchmarking the power of amateur observatories for TTV exoplanets detection

We perform an analysis of ~80 000 photometric measurements for the following 10 stars hosting transiting planets:WASP-2, -4, -5, -52, Kelt-1, CoRoT-2, XO-2, TrES-1, HD 189733, GJ 436. Our analysis includes mainly transit light curves from the Exoplanet Transit Database, public photometry from the literature, and some proprietary photometry privately supplied by other authors. Half of these light curves were obtained by amateurs. From this photometry we derive 306 transit timing measurements, as well as improved planetary transit parameters. Additionally, for 6 of these 10 stars we present a set of radial velocity measurements obtained from the spectra stored in the HARPS, HARPS-N and SOPHIE archives using the HARPS- TERRA pipeline. Our analysis of these transit timing and radial velocity data did not reveal significant hints of additional orbiting bodies in almost all of the cases. In the WASP-4 case, we found hints of marginally significant TTV signals having amplitude 10-20 s, although their parameters are model dependent and uncertain, while radial velocities did not reveal statistically significant Doppler signals.Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y GeofísicasInstituto de Astrofísica de La Plat

Two planets around Kapteyn's star: a cold and a temperate super-Earth orbiting the nearest halo red dwarf

This article has been accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society - Letters. ©: 2014 The Author(s). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.Exoplanets of a few Earth masses can be now detected around nearby low-mass stars using Doppler spectroscopy. In this Letter, we investigate the radial velocity variations of Kapteyn's star, which is both a sub-dwarf M-star and the nearest halo object to the Sun. The observations comprise archival and new HARPS (High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher), High Resolution Echelle Spectrometer (HIRES) and Planet Finder Spectrograph (PFS) Doppler measurements. Two Doppler signals are detected at periods of 48 and 120 d using likelihood periodograms and a Bayesian analysis of the data. Using the same techniques, the activity indices and archival All Sky Automated Survey (ASAS-3) photometry show evidence for low-level activity periodicities of the order of several hundred days. However, there are no significant correlations with the radial velocity variations on the same time-scales. The inclusion of planetary Keplerian signals in the model results in levels of correlated and excess white noise that are remarkably low compared to younger G, K and M dwarfs. We conclude that Kapteyn's star is most probably orbited by two super-Earth mass planets, one of which is orbiting in its circumstellar habitable zone, becoming the oldest potentially habitable planet known to date. The presence and long-term survival of a planetary system seem a remarkable feat given the peculiar origin and kinematic history of Kapteyn's star. The detection of super-Earth mass planets around halo stars provides important insights into planet-formation processes in the early days of the Milky Way.Peer reviewe

Bayesian search for low-mass planets around nearby M dwarfs. Estimates for occurrence rate based on global detectability statistics

Mikko Tuomi, 'Bayesian search for low-mass planets around nearby M dwarfs - estimates for occurrence rate based on global detectability statistics', Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 441 (2): 1545-1569, first published online 8 May 2014. The version of record is available online at doi: 10.1093/mnras/stu358 © 2014 The Authors. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.Due to their higher planet-star mass ratios, M dwarfs are the easiest targets for detection of low-mass planets orbiting nearby stars using Doppler spectroscopy. Furthermore, because of their low masses and luminosities, Doppler measurements enable the detection of lowmass planets in their habitable zones that correspond to closer orbits than for solar-type stars. We re-analyse literature Ultraviolet and Visual Echelle Spectrograph (UVES) radial velocities of 41 nearby Mdwarfs in a combination with new velocities obtained from publicly available spectra from the HARPS-ESO spectrograph of these stars in an attempt to constrain any low-amplitude Keplerian signals. We apply Bayesian signal detection criteria, together with posterior sampling techniques, in combination with noise models that take into account correlations in the data and obtain estimates for the number of planet candidates in the sample. More generally, we use the estimated detection probability function to calculate the occurrence rate of low-mass planets around nearby M dwarfs. We report eight new planet candidates in the sample (orbiting GJ 27.1, GJ 160.2, GJ 180, GJ 229, GJ 422, and GJ 682), including two new multiplanet systems, and confirm two previously known candidates in the GJ 433 system based on detections of Keplerian signals in the combined UVES and High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) radial velocity data that cannot be explained by periodic and/or quasi-periodic phenomena related to stellar activities. Finally, we use the estimated detection probability function to calculate the occurrence rate of low-mass planets around nearby M dwarfs. According to our results, M dwarfs are hosts to an abundance of low-mass planets and the occurrence rate of planets less massive than 10M? is of the order of one planet per star, possibly even greater. Our results also indicate that planets with masses between 3 and 10 M⊕ are common in the stellar habitable zones of M dwarfs with an estimated occurrence rate of 0.21+0.03 -0.05 planets per star.Peer reviewe