1 research outputs found
RoSETZ: Roman Survey of the Earth Transit Zone -- a SETI-optimized survey for habitable-zone exoplanets
In this White Paper for Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (Roman) science, we
propose the Roman Survey of the Earth Transit Zone (RoSETZ), a transit search
for rocky planets within the habitable zones (HZs) of stars located within the
Earth Transit Zone (ETZ). The ETZ holds special interest in the search for
extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI) - observers on planets within the ETZ can
see Earth as a transiting planet. RoSETZ would augment the Roman Galactic Bulge
Time Domain Survey (GBTDS) as an additional field located ~degrees away
from other GBTDS fields. Our simulations show that RoSETZ alone can find from
120 to 630 Earth-sized HZ planets around K- and M-type hosts, with the range
reflecting different survey design assumptions. These yields are 5-20 times the
number currently known. Such a sample will transform our knowledge of
``Eta-Earth'' () -- the occurrence of Earth-sized HZ planets --
and would be the first catalogue of exoplanets selected in a manner optimized
according to the Mutual Detectability targetted-SETI strategy. If it can be
accommodated alongside the existing GBTDS design, we favour a RoSETZ-Max design
that is observed for the duration of the GBTDS. If not, we show that a
slimmed-down RoSETZ-Lite design, occupying two GBTDS seasons, would not
significantly impact overall GBTDS exoplanet yields, even if time allocated to
it had to come from time allocations to other fields. We argue that the angular
separation of RoSETZ from other GBTDS fields permits self-calibration of
systematic uncertainties that would otherwise hamper exoplanet demographic
modelling of both microlensing and transit datasets. Other science possible
with RoSETZ data include studies of small solar system bodies and high
resolution 3D extinction mapping.Comment: 20 pages. Submission to the NASA Roman Core Community Surveys White
Paper Cal