Start year
2013
Organizational Unit
Organizing institutions
Grants related:
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
Members
Principal investigator
Enric
Pallé Bago
Project staff
Hans Jörg
Deeg Deeg
Nicolas Cédric
Lodieu
Javier Andrés
Licandro Goldaracena
Víctor Javier
Sánchez Bejar
Juan Antonio
Belmonte Avilés
Roi
Alonso Sobrino
Grzegorz
Nowak
Patricia
Chinchilla Gallego
A. L. Cabrera Lavers
Felipe Andrés
Murgas Alcaino
Hannu
Parviainen
Collaborators
Dr.
Paulo Miles Paez
Dr.
Maria Rosa Zapatero Osorio
Dr.
M. Mas Hesse
Dr.
M. Deleuil
Dr.
D. Gandolfi
Dr.
M. Fridlund
Dr.
L. Doyle
Dr.
H. Rauer
Dr.
J. Cabrera
Dr.
Sz. Csizmadia
Dr.
D. Pollacco
Dr.
A. Hatzes
Dr.
T. Mazeh
Dr.
T. Boyajian
Dr.
B. Tingley
Dr.
D. Martin
Dr.
A Triaud
Dr.
D. Fabrycky
Antonio Cabrera Lavers
Results
- Detection of He in the atmosphere of an exoplanet from the ground, published in Science
- Detection of a super-earth around Barnard star, published in Nature
- Detection of the first TESS planets, with several papers of high relevance
- Discovery of Na and Halpha features in the spectrum of KELT-20b with TNG
- 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.
Scientific activity
Related publications
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A 5M<SUB>Jup</SUB> non-transiting coplanar circumbinary planet around Kepler-1660ABOver a dozen transiting circumbinary planets have been discovered around eclipsing binaries. Transit detections are biased towards aligned planet and binary orbits, and indeed all of the known planets have mutual inclinations less than 4.5 ○. One path to discovering circumbinary planets with misaligned orbits is through eclipse timing variationsGoldberg, Max et al.
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Investigating the visible phase-curve variability of 55 Cnc e★Context. 55 Cnc e is an ultra-short period super-Earth transiting a Sun-like star. Previous observations in the optical range detected a time-variable flux modulation that is phased with the planetary orbital period, whose amplitude is too large to be explained by reflected light and thermal emission alone. Aims: The goal of the study is toMeier Valdés, E. A. et al.
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92023 -
Company for the Ultra-high Density, Ultra-short Period Sub-Earth GJ 367 b: Discovery of Two Additional Low-mass Planets at 11.5 and 34 DaysGJ 367 is a bright (V ≈ 10.2) M1 V star that has been recently found to host a transiting ultra-short period sub-Earth on a 7.7 hr orbit. With the aim of improving the planetary mass and radius and unveiling the inner architecture of the system, we performed an intensive radial velocity follow-up campaign with the HARPS spectrograph-collecting 371Goffo, Elisa et al.
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92023 -
Confirmation of an He I evaporating atmosphere around the 650-Myr-old sub-Neptune HD 235088 b (TOI-1430 b) with CARMENESHD 235088 (TOI-1430) is a young star known to host a sub-Neptune-sized planet candidate. We validated the planetary nature of HD 235088 b with multiband photometry, refined its planetary parameters, and obtained a new age estimate of the host star, placing it at 600-800 Myr. Previous spectroscopic observations of a single transit detected an excessOrell-Miquel, J. et al.
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92023 -
TOI-2084 b and TOI-4184 b: Two new sub-Neptunes around M dwarf starsWe present the discovery and validation of two TESS exoplanets orbiting nearby M dwarfs: TOI-2084 b, and TOI-4184b. We characterized the host stars by combining spectra from Shane/Kast and Magellan/FIRE, spectral energy distribution analysis, and stellar evolutionary models. In addition, we used Gemini-South/Zorro & -North/Alopeke high-resolutionBarkaoui, K. et al.
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92023 -
TOI-1416: A system with a super-Earth planet with a 1.07 d periodTOI-1416 (BD+42 2504, HIP 70705) is a V =10 late G- or early K-type dwarf star. TESS detected transits in its Sectors 16, 23, and 50 with a depth of about 455 ppm and a period of 1.07 days. Radial velocities (RVs) confirm the presence of the transiting planet TOI-1416 b, which has a mass of 3.48 ± 0.47 M ⊕ and a radius of 1.62 ± 0.08 R ⊕, implyingDeeg, H. J. et al.
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92023 -
Modeling the Chromosphere and Transition Region of Planet-hosting Star GJ 436Ahead of upcoming space missions intending to conduct observations of low-mass stars in the ultraviolet (UV) spectral region it becomes imperative to simultaneously conduct atmospheric modeling from the UV to the visible (VIS) and near-infrared (NIR). Investigations on extended spectral regions will help to improve the overall understanding of theHintz, Dominik et al.
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92023 -
Long-term trends in albedo as seen from a lunar observatoryThe Earth's albedo is the fraction of short-wave solar radiation that is reflected back to space, and is key to understand the observed trends in climate change. Although there have been many observational approaches to estimate the Earth's albedo, different methods have their own drawbacks, for example, artificial satellites have a finite lifeWu, Jie et al.
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92023 -
A broadband thermal emission spectrum of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-18bClose-in giant exoplanets with temperatures greater than 2,000 K (`ultra-hot Jupiters') have been the subject of extensive efforts to determine their atmospheric properties using thermal emission measurements from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and Spitzer Space Telescope 1-3. However, previous studies have yielded inconsistent results becauseCoulombe, Louis-Philippe et al.
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82023 -
The mass of TOI-519 b: A close-in giant planet transiting a metal-rich mid-M dwarfWe report on the determination of the mass of TOI-519 b, a transiting substellar object around a mid-M dwarf. We carried out radial velocity measurements using Subaru/InfraRed Doppler (IRD), revealing that TOI-519 b is a planet with a mass of $0.463^{+0.082}_{-0.088}\, M_{\rm Jup}$. We also found that the host star is metal rich ([Fe/H] = 0.27 ± 0Kagetani, Taiki et al.
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82023 -
An M dwarf accompanied by a close-in giant orbiter with SPECULOOSIn the last decade, a dozen close-in giant planets have been discovered orbiting stars with spectral types ranging from M0 to M4, a mystery since known formation pathways do not predict the existence of such systems. Here, we confirm TOI-4860 b, a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting an M4.5 host, a star at the transition between fully and partiallyTriaud, Amaury H. M. J. et al.
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102023 -
TOI-1130: A photodynamical analysis of a hot Jupiter in resonance with an inner low-mass planetThe TOI-1130 is a known planetary system around a K-dwarf consisting of a gas giant planet, TOI-1130 c on an 8.4-day orbit that is accompanied by an inner Neptune-sized planet, TOI-1130 b, with an orbital period of 4.1 days. We collected precise radial velocity (RV) measurements of TOI-1130 with the HARPS and PFS spectrographs as part of ourKorth, J. et al.
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72023 -
A Mini-Neptune Orbiting the Metal-poor K Dwarf BD+29 2654We report the discovery and Doppler mass measurement of a 7.4 days 2.3 R ⊕ mini-Neptune around a metal-poor K dwarf BD+29 2654 (TOI-2018). Based on a high-resolution Keck/HIRES spectrum, the Gaia parallax, and multiwavelength photometry from the UV to the mid-infrared, we found that the host star has ${T}_{\mathrm{eff}}={4174}_{-42}^{+34}$ K, $Dai, Fei et al.
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82023 -
The planetary system around HD 190622 (TOI-1054). Measuring the gas content of low-mass planets orbiting F-starsContext. Giant planets are known to dominate the long-term stability of planetary systems due to their prevailing gravitational interactions, but they are also thought to play an important role in planet formation. Observational constraints improve our understanding of planetary formation processes such as the delivery of volatile-richCabrera, J. et al.
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72023 -
Two sub-Neptunes around the M dwarf TOI-1470Aims: A transiting planet candidate with a sub-Neptune radius orbiting the nearby (d = 51.9 ± 0.07 pc) M1.5 V star TOI-1470 with a period of ~2.5 d was announced by the NASA Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), which observed the field of TOI-1470 in four different sectors. We aim to validate its planetary nature using precise radialGonzález-Álvarez, E. et al.
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72023 -
The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. A sub-Neptunian mass planet in the habitable zone of HN LibWe report the discovery of HN Lib b, a sub-Neptunian mass planet orbiting the nearby (d ≈ = 6.25 pc) M4.0 V star HN Lib detected by our CARMENES radial-velocity (RV) survey. We determined a planetary minimum mass of M b sin i = 5.46 ± 0.75 M ⊕ and an orbital period of P b = 36.116 ± 0.029 d, using ~5 yr of CARMENES data, as well as archival RVsGonzález-Álvarez, E. et al.
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72023 -
Featureless transmission spectra of 12 giant exoplanets observed by GTC/OSIRISContext. Exoplanet atmospheres are the key to understanding the nature of exoplanets. To this end, transit spectrophotometry provides us opportunities to investigate the physical properties and chemical compositions of exoplanet atmospheres. Aims: We aim to detect potential atmospheric signatures in 12 gaseous giant exoplanets using transitJiang, C. et al.
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72023 -
An unusually low-density super-Earth transiting the bright early-type M-dwarf GJ 1018 (TOI-244)Context. Small planets located at the lower mode of the bimodal radius distribution are generally assumed to be composed of iron and silicates in a proportion similar to that of the Earth. However, recent discoveries are revealing a new group of low-density planets that are inconsistent with that description. Aims: We intend to confirm andCastro-González, A. et al.
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72023 -
GRB 201015A and the nature of low-luminosity soft gamma-ray burstsGRB 201015A is a peculiarly low luminosity, spectrally soft gamma-ray burst (GRB), with T 90 = 9.8 ± 3.5 s (time interval of detection of 90 per cent of photons from the GRB), and an associated supernova (likely to be type Ic or Ic-BL). GRB 201015A has an isotropic energy $E_{\gamma , \rm iso}$$= 1.75 ^{+0.60} _{-0.53} \times 10^{50}$ erg, andPatel, M. et al.
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82023 -
Exploring the stellar surface phenomena of WASP-52 and HAT-P-30 with ESPRESSOWe analyse spectroscopic and photometric transits of the hot Jupiters WASP-52 b and HAT-P30 b obtained with ESPRESSO, Eulercam and NGTS for both targets, and additional TESS data for HAT-P-30. Our goal is to update the system parameters and refine our knowledge of the host star surfaces. For WASP-52, the companion planet has occulted starspots inCegla, H. M. et al.
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