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Register a new userThe Hubble PanCET program: An extensive search for metallic ions in the exosphere of GJ 436 b
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Added by
Leonardo A. dos Santos
Publication date
2019
fields
Physics
and research's language is
English
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(Abridged) The quiet M2.5 star GJ 436 hosts a warm Neptune that displays an extended atmosphere that dwarfs its own host star. Predictions of atmospheric escape in such planets state that H atoms escape from the upper atmosphere in a collisional regime and that the flow can drag heavier atoms to the upper atmosphere. It is unclear, however, what astrophysical mechanisms drive the process. Our objective is to leverage the extensive coverage of HST/COS observations of the far-ultraviolet (FUV) spectrum of GJ 436 to search for signals of metallic ions in the upper atmosphere of GJ 436 b. We analyzed flux time-series of species present in the FUV spectrum of GJ 436, as well as the Lyman-$alpha$ line. GJ 436 displays FUV flaring events with a rate of $sim$10 d$^{-1}$. There is evidence for a possibly long-lived active region or longitude that modulates the FUV metallic lines of the star with amplitudes up to 20%. Despite the strong geocoronal contamination in the COS spectra, we detected in-transit excess absorption signals of $sim$50% and $sim$30% in the blue and red wings, respectively, of the Lyman-$alpha$ line. We rule out a wide range of excess absorption levels in the metallic lines of the star during the transit. The large atmospheric loss of GJ 436 b observed in Lyman-$alpha$ transmission spectra is stable over the timescale of a few years, and the red wing signal supports the presence of a variable hydrogen absorption source besides the stable exosphere. The previously claimed in-transit absorption in the Si III line is likely an artifact resulting from the stellar magnetic cycle. The non-detection of metallic ions in absorption could indicate that the escape is not hydrodynamic or that the atmospheric mixing is not efficient in dragging metals high enough for sublimation to produce a detectable escape rate of ions to the exosphere.
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The detection of small planets orbiting nearby stars is an important step towards the identification of Earth twins. In previous work using the Spitzer Space Telescope, we found evidence to support at least one sub-Earth-sized exoplanet orbiting the nearby mid-M dwarf star GJ 436. As a follow up, here we used the Hubble Space Telescope to investigate the existence of one of these candidate planets, UCF-1.01, by searching for two transit signals as it passed in front of its host star. Interpretation of the data hinges critically on correctly modeling and removing the WFC3 instrument systematics from the light curves. Building on previous HST work, we demonstrate that WFC3 analyses need to explore the use of a quadratic function to fit a visit-long time-dependent systematic. This is important for establishing absolute transit and eclipse depths in the white light curves of all transiting systems. The work presented here exemplifies this point by putatively detecting the primary transit of UCF-1.01 with the use of a linear trend. However, using a quadratic trend, we achieve a better fit to the white light curves and a reduced transit depth that is inconsistent with previous Spitzer measurements. Furthermore, quadratic trends with or without a transit model component produce comparable fits to the available data. Using extant WFC3 transit light curves for GJ436b, we further validate the quadratic model component by achieving photon-limited model fit residuals and consistent transit depths over multiple epochs. We conclude that, when we fit for a quadratic trend, our new data contradict the prediction of a sub-Earth-sized planet orbiting GJ 436 with the size, period, and ephemeris posited from the Spitzer data by a margin of 3.1{sigma}.
(Abridged) Short-period gas giant exoplanets are susceptible to intense atmospheric escape due to their large scale heights and strong high-energy irradiation. This process is thought to occur ubiquitously, but to date we have only detected direct evidence of atmospheric escape in hot Jupiters and warm Neptunes. The paucity of cases for intermediate, Saturn-sized exoplanets at varying levels of irradiation precludes a detailed understanding of the underlying physics in atmospheric escape of hot gas giants. Our objectives here are to assess the high-energy environment of the warm ($T_mathrm{eq} = 970$ K) Saturn WASP-29 b and search for signatures of atmospheric escape. We used far-ultraviolet (FUV) observations from the Hubble Space Telescope to analyze the flux time series of H I, C II, Si III, Si IV, and N V during the transit of WASP-29 b. At 3$sigma$ confidence, we rule out any in-transit absorption of H Ilarger than 92% in the Lyman-$alpha$ blue wing and 19% in the red wing. We found an in-transit flux decrease of $39%^{+12%}_{-11%}$ in the ground-state C II emission line at 133.45 nm. But due to this signal being significantly present in only one visit, it is difficult to attribute a planetary or stellar origin for the ground-state C II signal. We place 3$sigma$ absorption upper limits of 40%, 49% and 24% for Si III, Si IV, and for excited-state C II at 133.57 nm, respectively. Low activity levels and the faint X-ray luminosity suggest that WASP-29 is an old, inactive star. An energy-limited approximation combined with the reconstructed EUV spectrum of the host suggests that the planet is losing its atmosphere at a rate of $4 times 10^9$ g s$^{-1}$. The non-detection at Lyman-$alpha$ could be partly explained by a low fraction of escaping neutral hydrogen, or by the state of fast radiative blow-out we infer from the reconstructed stellar Lyman-$alpha$ line.
We present a comprehensive analysis of the 0.3--5,$mu$m transit spectrum for the inflated hot Jupiter HAT-P-41b. The planet was observed in transit with Hubble STIS and WFC3 as part of the Hubble Panchromatic Comparative Exoplanet Treasury (PanCET) program, and we combine those data with warm textit{Spitzer} transit observations. We extract transit depths from each of the data sets, presenting the STIS transit spectrum (0.29--0.93,$mu$m) for the first time. We retrieve the transit spectrum both with a free-chemistry retrieval suite (AURA) and a complementary chemical equilibrium retrieval suite (PLATON) to constrain the atmospheric properties at the day-night terminator. Both methods provide an excellent fit to the observed spectrum. Both AURA and PLATON retrieve a metal-rich atmosphere for almost all model assumptions (most likely O/H ratio of $log_{10}{Z/Z_{odot}} = 1.46^{+0.53}_{-0.68}$ and $log_{10}{Z/Z_{odot}} = 2.33^{+0.23}_{-0.25}$, respectively); this is driven by a 4.9-$sigma$ detection of H$_2$O as well as evidence of gas absorption in the optical ($>$2.7-$sigma$ detection) due to Na, AlO and/or VO/TiO, though no individual species is strongly detected. Both retrievals determine the transit spectrum to be consistent with a clear atmosphere, with no evidence of haze or high-altitude clouds. Interior modeling constraints on the maximum atmospheric metallicity ($log_{10}{Z/Z_{odot}} < 1.7$) favor the AURA results. The inferred elemental oxygen abundance suggests that HAT-P-41b has one of the most metal-rich atmospheres of any hot Jupiters known to date. Overall, the inferred high metallicity and high inflation make HAT-P-41b an interesting test case for planet formation theories.
Context. GJ 1148 is an M-dwarf star hosting a planetary system composed of two Saturn-mass planets in eccentric orbits with periods of 41.38 and 532.02 days. Aims. We reanalyze the orbital configuration and dynamics of the GJ 1148 multi-planetary system based on new precise radial velocity (RV) measurements taken with CARMENES. Methods. We combined new and archival precise Doppler measurements from CARMENES with those available from HIRES for GJ 1148 and modeled these data with a self-consistent dynamical model. We studied the orbital dynamics of the system using the secular theory and direct N-body integrations. The prospects of potentially habitable moons around GJ 1148 b were examined. Results. The refined dynamical analyses show that the GJ 1148 system is long-term stable in a large phase-space of orbital parameters with an orbital configuration suggesting apsidal alignment, but not in any particular high-order mean-motion resonant commensurability. GJ 1148 b orbits inside the optimistic habitable zone (HZ). We find only a narrow stability region around the planet where exomoons can exist. However, in this stable region exomoons exhibit quick orbital decay due to tidal interaction with the planet. Conclusions. The GJ 1148 planetary system is a very rare M-dwarf planetary system consisting of a pair of gas giants, the inner of which resides in the HZ. We conclude that habitable exomoons around GJ 1148 b are very unlikely to exist.
The late-type dwarf GJ 436 is known to host a transiting Neptune-mass planet in a 2.6-day orbit. We present results of our interferometric measurements to directly determine the stellar diameter ($R_{star} = 0.455 pm 0.018 R_{odot}$) and effective temperature ($T_{rm EFF} = 3416 pm 54$ K). We combine our stellar parameters with literature time-series data, which allows us to calculate physical and orbital system parameters, including GJ 436s stellar mass ($M_{star} = 0.507^{+ 0.071}_{- 0.062} M_{odot}$) and density ($rho_* = 5.37^{+ 0.30}_{- 0.27} rho_odot$), planetary radius ($R_{p} = 0.369^{+ 0.015}_{- 0.015} R_{Jupiter}$), planetary mass ($M_{p} = 0.078^{+ 0.007}_{- 0.008} M_{Jupiter}$), implying a mean planetary density of $rho_{p} = 1.55^{+ 0.12}_{- 0.10} rho_{Jupiter}$. These values are generally in good agreement with previous literature estimates based on assumed stellar mass and photometric light curve fitting. Finally, we examine the expected phase curves of the hot Neptune GJ 436b, based on various assumptions concerning the efficiency of energy redistribution in the planetary atmosphere, and find that it could be constrained with {it Spitzer} monitoring observations.
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