No Arabic abstract
We report the discovery of a low-mass companion orbiting the metal-rich, main sequence F star TYC 2949-00557-1 during the MARVELS (Multi-object APO Radial Velocity Exoplanet Large-area Survey) Pilot Project. The host star has an effective temperature T_eff = 6135 +/- 40 K, log(g) = 4.4 +/- 0.1 and [Fe/H] = 0.32 +/- 0.01, indicating a mass of M = 1.25 +/- 0.09 M_odot and R = 1.15 +/- 0.15 R_odot. The companion has an orbital period of 5.69449 +/- 0.00023 days and straddles the hydrogen burning limit with a minimum mass of 64 M_J, and may thus be an example of the rare class of brown dwarfs orbiting at distances comparable to those of Hot Jupiters. We present relative photometry that demonstrates the host star is photometrically stable at the few millimagnitude level on time scales of hours to years, and rules out transits for a companion of radius greater than 0.8 R_J at the 95% confidence level. Tidal analysis of the system suggests that the star and companion are likely in a double synchronous state where both rotational and orbital synchronization have been achieved. This is the first low-mass companion detected with a multi-object, dispersed, fixed-delay interferometer.
Radial velocity (RV) searches for exoplanets have surveyed many of the nearest and brightest stars for long-term velocity variations indicative of a companion body. Such surveys often detect high-amplitude velocity signatures of objects that lie outside the planetary mass regime, most commonly those of a low-mass star. Such stellar companions are frequently discarded as false-alarms to the main science goals of the survey, but high-resolution imaging techniques can be employed to either directly detect or place significant constraints on the nature of the companion object. Here, we present the discovery of a compact companion to the nearby star HD~118475. Our Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) RV data allow the extraction of the full Keplerian orbit of the companion, found to have a minimum mass of 0.445~$M_odot$. Follow-up speckle imaging observations at the predicted time of maximum angular separation rule out a main sequence star as the source of the RV signature at the 3.3$sigma$ significance level, implying that the companion must be a low-luminosity compact object, most likely a white dwarf. We provide an isochrone analysis combined with our data that constrain the possible inclinations of the binary orbit. We discuss the eccentric orbit of the companion in the context of tidal circularization timescales and show that non-circular orbit was likely inherited from the progenitor. Finally, we emphasize the need for utilizing such an observation method to further understand the demographics of white dwarf companions around nearby stars.
The $sim500$, Myr A2IV star HR 1645 has one of the most significant low-amplitude accelerations of nearby early-type stars measured from a comparison of the {it Hipparcos} and {it Gaia} astrometric catalogues. This signal is consistent with either a stellar companion with a moderate mass ratio ($qsim0.5$) on a short period ($P<1$,yr), or a substellar companion at a separation wide enough to be resolved with ground-based high contrast imaging instruments; long-period equal mass ratio stellar companions that are also consistent with the measured acceleration are excluded with previous imaging observations. The small but significant amplitude of the acceleration made HR 1645 a promising candidate for targeted searches for brown dwarf and planetary-mass companions around nearby, young stars. In this paper we explore the origin of the astrometric acceleration by modelling the signal induced by a wide-orbit M8 companion discovered with the Gemini Planet Imager, as well as the effects of an inner short-period spectroscopic companion discovered a century ago but not since followed-up. We present the first constraints on the orbit of the inner companion, and demonstrate that it is a plausible cause of the astrometric acceleration. This result demonstrates the importance of vetting of targets with measured astrometric acceleration for short-period stellar companions prior to conducting targeted direct imaging surveys for wide-orbit substellar companions.
We present the direct imaging discovery of a substellar companion to the nearby Sun-like star, HD 33632 Aa, at a projected separation of $sim$ 20 au, obtained with SCExAO/CHARIS integral field spectroscopy complemented by Keck/NIRC2 thermal infrared imaging. The companion, HD 33632 Ab, induces a 10.5$sigma$ astrometric acceleration on the star as detected with the $Gaia$ and $Hipparcos$ satellites. SCExAO/CHARIS $JHK$ (1.1--2.4 $mu$m) spectra and Keck/NIRC2 $L_{rm p}$ (3.78 $mu$m) photometry are best matched by a field L/T transition object: an older, higher gravity, and less dusty counterpart to HR 8799 cde. Combining our astrometry with $Gaia/Hipparcos$ data and archival Lick Observatory radial-velocities, we measure a dynamical mass of 46.4 $pm$ 8 $M_{rm J}$ and an eccentricity of $e$ $<$0.46 at 95% confidence. HD 33632 Abs mass and mass ratio (4.0% $pm$ 0.7%) are comparable to the low-mass brown dwarf GJ 758 B and intermediate between the more massive brown dwarf HD 19467 B and the (near-)planet mass companions to HR 2562 and GJ 504. Using $Gaia$ to select for direct imaging observations with the newest extreme adaptive optics systems can reveal substellar or even planet-mass companions on solar system-like scales at an increased frequency compared to blind surveys.
We report the discovery of a low-mass companion to the nearby (d = 47 pc) F7V star HD 984. The companion is detected 0.19 away from its host star in the L band with the Apodizing Phase Plate on NaCo/VLT and was recovered by L-band non-coronagraphic imaging data taken a few days later. We confirm the companion is co-moving with the star with SINFONI integral field spectrograph H+K data. We present the first published data obtained with SINFONI in pupil-tracking mode. HD 984 has been argued to be a kinematic member of the 30 Myr-old Columba group, and its HR diagram position is not altogether inconsistent with being a ZAMS star of this age. By consolidating different age indicators, including isochronal age, coronal X-ray emission, and stellar rotation, we independently estimate a main sequence age of 115$pm$85 Myr (95% CL) which does not rely on this kinematic association. The mass of directly imaged companions are usually inferred from theoretical evolutionary tracks, which are highly dependent on the age of the star. Based on the age extrema, we demonstrate that with our photometric data alone, the companions mass is highly uncertain: between 33 and 96 M$_{rm Jup}$ (0.03-0.09 M$_{odot}$) using the COND evolutionary models. We compare the companions SINFONI spectrum with field dwarf spectra to break this degeneracy. Based on the slope and shape of the spectrum in the H-band, we conclude that the companion is an M$6.0pm0.5$ dwarf. The age of the system is not further constrained by the companion, as M dwarfs are poorly fit on low-mass evolutionary tracks. This discovery emphasizes the importance of obtaining a spectrum to spectral type companions around F-stars.
We present the discovery of a planetary-mass companion to CFHTWIR-Oph 98, a low-mass brown dwarf member of the young Ophiuchus star-forming region, with a wide 200-au separation (1.46 arcsec). The companion was identified using Hubble Space Telescope images, and confirmed to share common proper motion with the primary using archival and new ground-based observations. Based on the very low probability of the components being unrelated Ophiuchus members, we conclude that Oph 98 AB forms a binary system. From our multi-band photometry, we constrain the primary to be an M9-L1 dwarf, and the faint companion to have an L2-L6 spectral type. For a median age of 3 Myr for Ophiuchus, fits of evolutionary models to measured luminosities yield masses of $15.4pm0.8$ M$_mathrm{Jup}$ for Oph 98 A and $7.8pm0.8$ M$_mathrm{Jup}$ for Oph 98 B, with respective effective temperatures of $2320pm40$ K and $1800pm40$ K. For possible system ages of 1-7 Myr, masses could range from 9.6-18.4 M$_mathrm{Jup}$ for the primary, and from 4.1-11.6 M$_mathrm{Jup}$ for the secondary. The low component masses and very large separation make this binary the lowest binding energy system imaged to date, indicating that the outcome of low-mass star formation can result in such extreme, weakly-bound systems. With such a young age, Oph 98 AB extends the growing population of young free-floating planetary-mass objects, offering a new benchmark to refine formation theories at the lowest masses.