Exoplanets and Astrobiology

    General
    Description

    The search for life in the universe has been driven by recent discoveries of planets around other stars (known as exoplanets), becoming one of the most active fields in modern astrophysics. The growing number of new exoplanets discovered in recent years and the recent advance on the study of their atmospheres are not only providing new valuable information about its physical properties, but also allowing to constrain the properties of the Solar system's planets within a more global context. The field is approaching to the important discovery of the first potentially habitable planets and encouraging more detailed studies of them. With the launching of upcoming related satellites like JWST, CHEOPS, TESS, ARIEL and PLATO, the exoplanets field faces a bright future.

    It is for this reason that this field is aid of, and at the same time promotes, the development of increasingly sensitive and stable instrumentation for both, ground-based telescopes and space missions. Our group is particularly prepared for these two fronts. On the one hand, during the last years we have developed observational and reduction techniques of exoplanet transits data for the ORM telescopes, ours being one of the most productive groups in the exploitation of GTC. On the other hand, all ESA space missions (present and future) related to exoplanets have one or more components of the project as CoIs. Within the frame of this project, we intend that IAC researchers maintain an advantageous position regarding the operation of OSIRIS and CanariCam, first light

    GTC's instruments, and participate in the construction, commissioning and operation of new instruments such as the high resolution optical spectrograph HORUS at GTC. The exploitation of the photometry and spectroscopy of transits with LIRIS at WHT is also one of our principal interests, especially in preparation for the installation in 2015 of EMIR on the GTC .

    To summarize, the project "Exoplanets and Astrobiology" will focus on these four action lines:

    1) The characterization of atmospheric and physical properties of exoplanets (GTC, WHT, ARIEL, HARPSN, CARMENES, ESPRESSO, etc. ..)

    2) The search and confirmation of exoplanets by transits techniques (CoRoT, Kepler, K2, CHEOPS, XO, LCOGT, W FC, DISH, etc. ..)

    3) The search and confirmation of exoplanet by radial velocity techniques (HARPSN, HORUS, LCOGT, SONG, CARMENES)

    4) Astrobiology

    Principal investigator
    1. Detection of He in the atmosphere of an exoplanet from the ground, published in Science
    2. Detection of a super-earth around Barnard star, published in Nature
    3. Detection of the first TESS planets, with several papers of high relevance
    4. Discovery of Na and Halpha features in the spectrum of KELT-20b with TNG
    5. Publication of the Handbook of Exoplanets, the most extensive work of reference in the field of exoplanets. The Handbook was edited by members of our group, and includes contributions by about 300 experts worldwide, including 12 members of IAC.

    Related publications

    • Identification of carbon dioxide in an exoplanet atmosphere

      Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a key chemical species that is found in a wide range of planetary atmospheres. In the context of exoplanets, CO2 is an indicator of the metal enrichment (that is, elements heavier than helium, also called ‘metallicity’)1–3 , and thus the formation processes of the primary atmospheres of hot gas giants4–6 . It is also one of

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    • HD 20329b: An ultra-short-period planet around a solar-type star found by TESS

      Context. Ultra-short-period (USP) planets are defined as planets with orbital periods shorter than one day. This type of planets is rare, highly irradiated, and interesting because their formation history is unknown. Aims: We aim to obtain precise mass and radius measurements to confirm the planetary nature of a USP candidate found by the

      Livingston, J. et al.

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      2022
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    • Characterization of the HD 108236 system with CHEOPS and TESS Confirmation of a fifth transiting planet

      Context. The HD 108236 system was first announced with the detection of four small planets based on TESS data. Shortly after, the transit of an additional planet with a period of 29.54 d was serendipitously detected by CHEOPS. In this way, HD 108236 (V = 9.2) became one of the brightest stars known to host five small transiting planets (Rp < 3 R⊕)

      Hoyer, S. et al.

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    • CHEOPS finds KELT-1b darker than expected in visible light. Discrepancy between the CHEOPS and TESS eclipse depths

      Recent studies based on photometry from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) have suggested that the dayside of KELT-1b, a strongly irradiated brown dwarf, is significantly brighter in visible light than what would be expected based on Spitzer observations in the infrared. We observed eight eclipses of KELT-1b with CHaracterising

      Parviainen, H. et al.

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      2022
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    • Lower-than-expected flare temperatures for TRAPPIST-1

      Aims: Stellar flares emit thermal and nonthermal radiation in the X-ray and ultraviolet (UV) regime. Although high energetic radiation from flares is a potential threat to exoplanet atmospheres and may lead to surface sterilization, it might also provide the extra energy for low-mass stars needed to trigger and sustain prebiotic chemistry. Despite

      Maas, A. J. et al.

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    • Atmospheric characterization of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-33b. Detection of Ti and V emission lines and retrieval of a broadened line profile

      Ultra-hot Jupiters are highly irradiated gas giant exoplanets on close-in orbits around their host stars. The dayside atmospheres of these objects strongly emit thermal radiation due to their elevated temperatures, making them prime targets for characterization by emission spectroscopy. We analyzed high-resolution spectra from CARMENES, HARPS-N

      Cont, D. et al.

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      12
      2022
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    • A CHEOPS-enhanced view of the HD 3167 system,★

      Much remains to be understood about the nature of exoplanets smaller than Neptune, most of which have been discovered in compact multi-planet systems. With its inner ultra-short period planet b aligned with the star and two larger outer planets d-c on polar orbits, the multi-planet system HD 3167 features a peculiar architecture and offers the

      Bourrier, V. et al.

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      2022
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    • Phase curve and geometric albedo of WASP-43b measured with CHEOPS, TESS, and HST WFC3/UVIS

      Context. Observations of the phase curves and secondary eclipses of extrasolar planets provide a window onto the composition and thermal structure of the planetary atmospheres. For example, the photometric observations of secondary eclipses lead to the measurement of the planetary geometric albedo, Ag, which is an indicator of the presence of

      Scandariato, G. et al.

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      2022
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    • Density, not radius, separates rocky and water-rich small planets orbiting M dwarf stars

      Exoplanets smaller than Neptune are common around red dwarf stars (M dwarfs), with those that transit their host star constituting the bulk of known temperate worlds amenable for atmospheric characterization. We analyze the masses and radii of all known small transiting planets around M dwarfs, identifying three populations: rocky, water-rich, and

      Luque, Rafael et al.

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      9
      2022
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    • TOI-3884 b: A rare 6-R<SUB>E</SUB> planet that transits a low-mass star with a giant and likely polar spot

      The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite mission identified a deep and asymmetric transit-like signal with a periodicity of 4.5 days orbiting the M4 dwarf star TOI-3884. The signal has been confirmed by follow-up observations collected by the ExTrA facility and Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope, which reveal that the transit is chromatic

      Almenara, J. M. et al.

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      11
      2022
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    • Brown dwarf companions in microlensing binaries detected during the 2016-2018 seasons

      Aims: With the aim of finding microlensing binaries containing brown dwarf (BD) companions, we investigate the microlensing survey data collected during the 2016-2018 seasons. Methods: For this purpose, we first modeled lensing events with light curves exhibiting anomaly features that are likely to be produced by binary lenses. We then sorted out

      Han, Cheongho et al.

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      2022
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    • Two temperate super-Earths transiting a nearby late-type M dwarf

      Context. In the age of JWST, temperate terrestrial exoplanets transiting nearby late-type M dwarfs provide unique opportunities for characterising their atmospheres, as well as searching for biosignature gases. In this context, the benchmark TRAPPIST-1 planetary system has garnered the interest of a broad scientific community. Aims: We report here

      Delrez, L. et al.

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      8
    • Non-detection of He I in the Atmosphere of GJ 1214b with Keck/NIRSPEC, at a Time of Minimal Telluric Contamination

      Observations of helium in exoplanet atmospheres may reveal the presence of large gaseous envelopes and indicate ongoing atmospheric escape. Orell-Miquel et al. (2022) used CARMENES to measure a tentative detection of helium for the sub-Neptune GJ 1214b, with a peak excess absorption reaching over 2% in-transit depth at 10830 Å. However, several non

      Spake, Jessica J. et al.

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    • A quarter century of spectroscopic monitoring of the nearby M dwarf Gl 514. A super-Earth on an eccentric orbit moving in and out of the habitable zone

      Context. Statistical analyses based on Kepler data show that most of the early-type M dwarfs host multi-planet systems consisting of Earth- to sub-Neptune-sized planets with orbital periods of up to ~250 days, and that at least one such planet is likely located within the habitable zone. M dwarfs are therefore primary targets to search for

      Damasso, M. et al.

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      10
      2022
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    • TOI-2196 b: Rare planet in the hot Neptune desert transiting a G-type star

      The hot Neptune desert is a region hosting a small number of short-period Neptunes in the radius-instellation diagram. Highly irradiated planets are usually either small (R ≲ 2 R⊕) and rocky or they are gas giants with radii of ≳1 RJ. Here, we report on the intermediate-sized planet TOI-2196 b (TIC 372172128.01) on a 1.2 day orbit around a G-type

      Persson, Carina M. et al.

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      2022
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    • Precise mass determination for the keystone sub-Neptune planet transiting the mid-type M dwarf G 9-40

      Context. Despite being a prominent subset of the exoplanet population discovered in the past three decades, the nature and provenance of sub-Neptune-sized planets is still one of the open questions in exoplanet science. Aims: For planets orbiting bright stars, precisely measuring the orbital and planet parameters of the system is the best approach

      Luque, R. et al.

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      2022
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    • TOI-1468: A system of two transiting planets, a super-Earth and a mini-Neptune, on opposite sides of the radius valley

      We report the discovery and characterization of two small transiting planets orbiting the bright M3.0V star TOI-1468 (LSPM J0106+1913), whose transit signals were detected in the photometric time series in three sectors of the TESS mission. We confirm the planetary nature of both of them using precise radial velocity measurements from the CARMENES

      Chaturvedi, P. et al.

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    • Confirmation and characterisation of three giant planets detected by TESS from the FIES/NOT and Tull/McDonald spectrographs

      We report the confirmation and characterisation of TOI-1820 b, TOI-2025 b, and TOI-2158 b, three Jupiter-sized planets on short-period orbits around G-type stars detected by TESS. Through our ground-based efforts using the FIES and Tull spectrographs, we have confirmed these planets and characterised their orbits, and find periods of around 4.9 d

      Knudstrup, Emil et al.

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    • The HD 93963 A transiting system: A 1.04 d super-Earth and a 3.65 d sub-Neptune discovered by TESS and CHEOPS

      We present the discovery of two small planets transiting HD 93963A (TOI-1797), a GOV star (M* = 1.109 ± 0.043M⊙, R* = 1.043 ± 0.009 R⊙) in a visual binary system. We combined TESS and CHEOPS space-borne photometry with MuSCAT 2 ground-based photometry, `Alopeke and PHARO high-resolution imaging, TRES and FIES reconnaissance spectroscopy, and SOPHIE

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    • Is binning always sinning? The impact of time-averaging for exoplanet phase curves

      We explore how finite integration time or temporal binning can affect the analysis of exoplanet phase curves. We provide analytical formulae to account for this effect or, if neglected, to estimate the potential biases in the retrieved parameters. As expected, due to their smoother variations over longer time-scales, phase curves can be binned more

      Morello, Giuseppe et al.

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