271 research outputs found
Enhanced exoplanet biosignature detection from an interferometer addition to low resolution spectrographs
The physics of molecular vibration causes absorption spectra of atmospheric molecules to be a group of approximately periodic fine lines. This is fortuitous for detecting exoplanet biosignificant molecules, since it approximately matches the periodic sinusoidal transmission of an interferometer. The series addition of a 0.6 cm interferometer with a dispersive spectrograph creates moire patterns. These enhance detection by several orders of magnitude for initially low resolution spectrographs. We simulate the Gemini Planet Imager integral field spectrograph observing a telluric spectrum of native resolutions 40 and 70 for 1.65 and 2 micron bands– too low to resolve the fine lines. The interferometer addition increases the detectability of the molecular signal, relative to photon noise, to a level similar to a R=4400 (at 1.65 micron) or R=3900 (at 2 micron) spectrograph.First author draf
Two Small Planets Transiting HD 3167
We report the discovery of two super-Earth-sized planets transiting the
bright (V = 8.94, K = 7.07) nearby late G-dwarf HD 3167, using data collected
by the K2 mission. The inner planet, HD 3167 b, has a radius of 1.6 R_e and an
ultra-short orbital period of only 0.96 days. The outer planet, HD 3167 c, has
a radius of 2.9 R_e and orbits its host star every 29.85 days. At a distance of
just 45.8 +/- 2.2 pc, HD 3167 is one of the closest and brightest stars hosting
multiple transiting planets, making HD 3167 b and c well suited for follow-up
observations. The star is chromospherically inactive with low rotational
line-broadening, ideal for radial velocity observations to measure the planets'
masses. The outer planet is large enough that it likely has a thick gaseous
envelope which could be studied via transmission spectroscopy. Planets
transiting bright, nearby stars like HD 3167 are valuable objects to study
leading up to the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope.Comment: Accepted by ApJL. 6 pages, 1 figure, 2 table
High-resolution broadband spectroscopy using externally dispersed interferometry at the Hale telescope: Part 1, data analysis and results
High-resolution broadband spectroscopy at near-infrared wavelengths (950 to 2450 nm) has been performed using externally dispersed interferometry (EDI) at the Hale telescope at Mt. Palomar. Observations of stars were performed with the “TEDI” interferometer mounted within the central hole of the 200-in. primary mirror in series with the comounted TripleSpec near-infrared echelle spectrograph. These are the first multidelay EDI demonstrations on starlight, as earlier measurements used a single delay or laboratory sources. We demonstrate very high (10×) resolution boost, from original 2700 to 27,000 with current set of delays (up to 3 cm), well beyond the classical limits enforced by the slit width and detector pixel Nyquist limit. Significantly, the EDI used with multiple delays rather than a single delay as used previously yields an order of magnitude or more improvement in the stability against native spectrograph point spread function (PSF) drifts along the dispersion direction. We observe a dramatic (20×) reduction in sensitivity to PSF shift using our standard processing. A recently realized method of further reducing the PSF shift sensitivity to zero is described theoretically and demonstrated in a simple simulation which produces a 350× times reduction. We demonstrate superb rejection of fixed pattern noise due to bad detector pixels—EDI only responds to changes in pixel intensity synchronous to applied dithering. This part 1 describes data analysis, results, and instrument noise. A section on theoretical photon limited sensitivity is in a companion paper, part 2
Characterizing the Cool KOIs. VI. H- and K-band Spectra of Kepler M Dwarf Planet-Candidate Hosts
We present H- and K-band spectra for late-type Kepler Objects of Interest
(the "Cool KOIs"): low-mass stars with transiting-planet candidates discovered
by NASA's Kepler Mission that are listed on the NASA Exoplanet Archive. We
acquired spectra of 103 Cool KOIs and used the indices and calibrations of
Rojas-Ayala et al. to determine their spectral types, stellar effective
temperatures and metallicities, significantly augmenting previously published
values. We interpolate our measured effective temperatures and metallicities
onto evolutionary isochrones to determine stellar masses, radii, luminosities
and distances, assuming the stars have settled onto the main-sequence. As a
choice of isochrones, we use a new suite of Dartmouth predictions that reliably
include mid-to-late M dwarf stars. We identify five M4V stars: KOI-961
(confirmed as Kepler 42), KOI-2704, KOI-2842, KOI-4290, and the secondary
component to visual binary KOI-1725, which we call KOI-1725 B. We also identify
a peculiar star, KOI-3497, which has a Na and Ca lines consistent with a dwarf
star but CO lines consistent with a giant. Visible-wavelength adaptive optics
imaging reveals two objects within a 1 arc second diameter; however, the
objects' colors are peculiar. The spectra and properties presented in this
paper serve as a resource for prioritizing follow-up observations and planet
validation efforts for the Cool KOIs, and are all available for download online
using the "data behind the figure" feature.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Supplement
Series (ApJS). Data and table are available in the sourc
Discovery of a Transiting Adolescent Sub-Neptune Exoplanet with K2
The role of stellar age in the measured properties and occurrence rates of
exoplanets is not well understood. This is in part due to a paucity of known
young planets and the uncertainties in age-dating for most exoplanet host
stars. Exoplanets with well-constrained ages, particularly those which are
young, are useful as benchmarks for studies aiming to constrain the
evolutionary timescales relevant for planets. Such timescales may concern
orbital migration, gravitational contraction, or atmospheric photo-evaporation,
among other mechanisms. Here we report the discovery of an adolescent
transiting sub-Neptune from K2 photometry of the low-mass star K2-284. From
multiple age indicators we estimate the age of the star to be 120 Myr, with a
68% confidence interval of 100-760 Myr. The size of K2-284 b ( = 2.8
0.1 ) combined with its youth make it an intriguing case study for
photo-evaporation models, which predict enhanced atmospheric mass loss during
early evolutionary stages.Comment: Accepted to AJ, 36 pages, 17 figures, 5 table
The TESS Objects of Interest Catalog from the TESS Prime Mission
We present 2241 exoplanet candidates identified with data from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) during its 2 yr Prime Mission. We list these candidates in the TESS Objects of Interest (TOI) Catalog, which includes both new planet candidates found by TESS and previously known planets recovered by TESS observations. We describe the process used to identify TOIs, investigate the characteristics of the new planet candidates, and discuss some notable TESS planet discoveries. The TOI catalog includes an unprecedented number of small planet candidates around nearby bright stars, which are well suited for detailed follow-up observations. The TESS data products for the Prime Mission (sectors 1-26), including the TOI catalog, light curves, full-frame images, and target pixel files, are publicly available at the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes
Five Planets Transiting a Ninth Magnitude Star
The Kepler mission has revealed a great diversity of planetary systems and
architectures, but most of the planets discovered by Kepler orbit faint stars.
Using new data from the K2 mission, we present the discovery of a five planet
system transiting a bright (V = 8.9, K = 7.7) star called HIP 41378. HIP 41378
is a slightly metal-poor late F-type star with moderate rotation (v sin(i) = 7
km/s) and lies at a distance of 116 +/- 18 from Earth. We find that HIP 41378
hosts two sub-Neptune sized planets orbiting 3.5% outside a 2:1 period
commensurability in 15.6 and 31.7 day orbits. In addition, we detect three
planets which each transit once during the 75 days spanned by K2 observations.
One planet is Neptune sized in a likely ~160 day orbit, one is sub-Saturn sized
likely in a ~130 day orbit, and one is a Jupiter sized planet in a likely ~1
year orbit. We show that these estimates for the orbital periods can be made
more precise by taking into account dynamical stability considerations. We also
calculate the distribution of stellar reflex velocities expected for this
system, and show that it provides a good target for future radial velocity
observations. If a precise orbital period can be determined for the outer
Jovian planet through future observations, it will be an excellent candidate
for follow-up transit observations to study its atmosphere and measure its
oblateness.Comment: Accepted by ApJL. 12 pages, 6 figures, 2 table
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