A comprehensive analysis of three microlensing planet candidates with the planet/binary degeneracy

Zhang, Jiyuan; Zang, Weicheng; Ryu, Yoon-Hyun; Sumi, Takahiro; Udalski, Andrzej; Mao, Shude; Albrow, Michael D.; Chung, Sun-Ju; Gould, Andrew; Han, Cheongho; Hwang, Kyu-Ha; Jung, Youn Kil; Shin, In-Gu; Shvartzvald, Yossi; Yee, Jennifer C.; Yang, Hongjing; Cha, Sang-Mok; Kim, Dong-Jin; Kim, Seung-Lee; Lee, Chung-Uk; Lee, Dong-Joo; Lee, Yongseok; Park, Byeong-Gon; Pogge, Richard W.; Tang, Yunyi; de Almeida, Leandro; Maoz, Dan; Qian, Qiyue; Zhu, Wei; Abe, Fumio; Bando, Ken; Bennett, David P.; Bhattacharya, Aparna; Bond, Ian A.; Fukui, Akihiko; Hamada, Ryusei; Hamada, Shunya; Hamasaki, Naoto; Hirao, Yuki; Silva, Stela Ishitani; Koshimoto, Naoki; Matsubara, Yutaka; Miyazaki, Shota; Muraki, Yasushi; Nagai, Tutumi; Nunota, Kansuke; Olmschenk, Greg; Ranc, Clément; Rattenbury, Nicholas J.; Satoh, Yuki; Suzuki, Daisuke; Terry, Sean K.; Tristram, Paul J.; Vandorou, Aikaterini; Yama, Hibiki; Mróz, Przemek; Szymański, Michał K.; Skowron, Jan; Poleski, Radoslaw; Soszyński, Igor; Pietrukowicz, Paweł; Kozłowski, Szymon; Rybicki, Krzysztof A.; Iwanek, Patryk; Ulaczyk, Krzysztof; Wrona, Marcin; Gromadzki, Mariusz; Mróz, Mateusz J.
Bibliographical reference

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Advertised on:
2
2026
Number of authors
68
IAC number of authors
1
Citations
0
Refereed citations
0
Description
We present observations and analyses of three high-magnification microlensing events: KMT-2022-BLG-0954, KMT-2024-BLG-0697, and MOA-2024-BLG-018. All three exhibit the 'Planet/Binary' degeneracy, with planetary solutions corresponding to mass ratios in the range $-3.7 < \log q < -2.2$, while the binary solutions yield $\log q > -2.0$. For KMT-2022-BLG-0954, we identify a previously unrecognized degeneracy among planetary solutions, involving different mass ratios and normalized source radii. In all three cases, single-lens binary-source models are excluded. Bayesian analyses suggest that the planetary solutions correspond to gas giants orbiting M/K dwarfs beyond the snow line, while KMT-2022-BLG-0954 also admits an alternative interpretation as a super-Earth orbiting a late-type M dwarf. The binary solutions imply a diverse set of systems, including M-dwarf pairs and M-dwarf─brown-dwarf binaries. A review of known events subject to the 'Planet/Binary' degeneracy shows that in most cases the degeneracy cannot be resolved through follow-up high-resolution imaging, particularly in the presence of the newly identified degeneracy.