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
    Project staff
    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

    • 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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      11
      2022
      Citations
      7
    • 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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      11
      2022
      Citations
      38
    • 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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      11
      2022
      Citations
      19
    • 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
      Citations
      14
    • 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 R J. 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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      10
      2022
      Citations
      13
    • 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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      10
      2022
      Citations
      7
    • 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.

      Advertised on:

      10
      2022
      Citations
      13
    • 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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      11
      2022
      Citations
      9
    • 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

      Advertised on:

      11
      2022
      Citations
      11
    • 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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      12
      2022
      Citations
      4
    • The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. Stable radial-velocity variations at the rotation period of AD Leonis: A test case study of current limitations to treating stellar activity
      Context. A challenge with radial-velocity (RV) data is disentangling the origin of signals either due to a planetary companion or to stellar activity. In fact, the existence of a planetary companion has been proposed, as well as contested, around the relatively bright, nearby M3.0 V star AD Leo at the same period as the stellar rotation of 2.23
      Kossakowski, D. et al.

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      10
      2022
      Citations
      17
    • The stable climate of KELT-9b,★
      Even among the most irradiated gas giants, so-called ultra-hot Jupiters, KELT-9b stands out as the hottest planet thus far discovered with a dayside temperature of over 4500 K. At these extreme irradiation levels, we expect an increase in heat redistribution efficiency and a low Bond albedo owed to an extended atmosphere with molecular hydrogen
      Jones, K. et al.

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      10
      2022
      Citations
      13
    • Detection of barium in the atmospheres of the ultra-hot gas giants WASP-76b and WASP-121b. Together with new detections of Co and Sr+ on WASP-121b
      Context. High-resolution spectroscopy studies of ultra-hot Jupiters have been key in our understanding of exoplanet atmospheres. Observing into the atmospheres of these giant planets allows for direct constraints on their atmospheric compositions and dynamics while laying the groundwork for new research regarding their formation and evolution
      Azevedo Silva, T. et al.

      Advertised on:

      10
      2022
      Citations
      21
    • Detection of Na and K in the Atmosphere of the Hot Jupiter HAT-P-1b with P200/DBSP
      We present a new optical transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter HAT-P-1b based on two transits observed with the Double Spectrograph (DBSP) on the Palomar 200-inch (P200) telescope. The DBSP transmission spectrum, covering a wavelength range from 3250 to 10007 Å, is consistent with that observed with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), but the
      Chen, Guo et al.

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      11
      2022
      Citations
      6
    • Fundamental physics with ESPRESSO: Constraining a simple parametrisation for varying α
      Context. The spectrograph ESPRESSO recently obtained a limit on the variation of the fine-structure constant, α, through measurements along the line of sight of a bright quasar with a precision of 1.36 ppm at 1σ level. This imposes new constraints on cosmological models with a varying α. We assume such a model where the electromagnetic sector is
      da Fonseca, Vitor et al.

      Advertised on:

      10
      2022
      Citations
      5
    • Validation and atmospheric exploration of the sub-Neptune TOI-2136b around a nearby M3 dwarf
      Context. The NASA space telescope TESS is currently in the extended mission of its all-sky search for new transiting planets. Of the thousands of candidates that TESS is expected to deliver, transiting planets orbiting nearby M dwarfs are particularly interesting targets since they provide a great opportunity to characterize their atmospheres by
      Kawauchi, K. et al.

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      10
      2022
      Citations
      8
    • A hot sub-Neptune in the desert and a temperate super-Earth around faint M dwarfs. Color validation of TOI-4479b and TOI-2081b
      Aims: We report the discovery and validation of two TESS exoplanets orbiting faint M dwarfs: TOI-4479b and TOI-2081b. Methods: We jointly analyzed space (TESS mission) and ground-based (MuSCAT2, MuSCAT3 and SINISTRO instruments) light curves using our multicolor photometry transit analysis pipeline. This allowed us to compute contamination limits
      Esparza-Borges, E. et al.

      Advertised on:

      10
      2022
      Citations
      4
    • HD 23472: a multi-planetary system with three super-Earths and two potential super-Mercuries
      Context. Comparing the properties of planets orbiting the same host star, and thus formed from the same accretion disc, helps in constraining theories of exoplanet formation and evolution. As a result, the scientific interest in multi-planetary systems is growing with the increasing number of detections of planetary companions. Aims: We report the
      Barros, S. C. C. et al.

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      9
      2022
      Citations
      17
    • A detailed analysis of the Gl 486 planetary system
      Context. The Gl 486 system consists of a very nearby, relatively bright, weakly active M3.5 V star at just 8 pc with a warm transiting rocky planet of about 1.3 R ⊕ and 3.0 M ⊕. It is ideal for both transmission and emission spectroscopy and for testing interior models of telluric planets. Aims: To prepare for future studies, we aim to thoroughly
      Caballero, J. A. et al.

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      9
      2022
      Citations
      29
    • GJ 3090 b: one of the most favourable mini-Neptune for atmospheric characterisation
      We report the detection of GJ 3090 b (TOI-177.01), a mini-Neptune on a 2.9-day orbit transiting a bright (K = 7.3 mag) M2 dwarf located at 22 pc. The planet was identified by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite and was confirmed with the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher radial velocities. Seeing-limited photometry and speckle
      Almenara, J. M. et al.

      Advertised on:

      9
      2022
      Citations
      5

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