We present a general framework for matching the point-spread function (PSF), photometric scaling and sky background between two images, a subject which is commonly referred to as difference image ...analysis (DIA). We introduce the new concept of a spatially varying photometric scale factor which will be important for DIA applied to wide-field imaging data in order to adapt to transparency and airmass variations across the field-of-view. Furthermore, we demonstrate how to separately control the degree of spatial variation of each kernel basis function, the photometric scale factor and the differential sky background. We discuss the common choices for kernel basis functions within our framework, and we introduce the mixed-resolution delta basis functions to address the problem of the size of the least-squares problem to be solved when using delta basis functions. We validate and demonstrate our algorithm on simulated and real data. We also describe a number of useful optimizations that may be capitalized on during the construction of the least-squares matrix and which have not been reported previously. We pay special attention to presenting a clear notation for the DIA equations which are set out in a way that will hopefully encourage developers to tackle the implementation of DIA software.
Abstract
Galactic science encompasses a wide range of subjects in the study of the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds, from young stellar objects to X-ray binaries. Mapping these populations, and ...exploring transient phenomena within them, are among the primary science goals of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time. While early versions of the survey strategy dedicated relatively few visits to the Galactic Plane region, more recent strategies under consideration envision a higher cadence within selected regions of high scientific interest. The range of galactic science presents a challenge in evaluating which strategies deliver the highest scientific returns. Here we present metrics designed to evaluate Rubin survey strategy simulations, based on the cadence of observations they deliver within regions of interest to different topics in galactic science, using variability categories defined by timescale. We also compare the fractions of exposures obtained in each filter with those recommended for the different science goals. We find that the
baseline
_
v2.x
simulations deliver observations of the high-priority regions at sufficiently high cadence to reliably detect variability on timescales >10 days or more. Follow-up observations may be necessary to properly characterize variability, especially transients, on shorter timescales. Combining the regions of interest for all the science cases considered, we identify those areas of the Galactic Plane and Magellanic Clouds of highest priority. We recommend that these refined survey footprints be used in future simulations to explore rolling cadence scenarios, and to optimize the sequence of observations in different bandpasses.
Abstract During the last 25 yr, hundreds of binary stars and planets have been discovered toward the Galactic bulge by microlensing surveys. Thanks to a new generation of large-sky surveys, it is now ...possible to regularly detect microlensing events across the entire sky. The OMEGA Key Projet at the Las Cumbres Observatory carries out automated follow-up observations of microlensing events alerted by these surveys with the aim of identifying and characterizing exoplanets as well as stellar remnants. In this study, we present the analysis of the binary lens event Gaia20bof. By automatically requesting additional observations, the OMEGA Key Project obtained dense time coverage of an anomaly near the peak of the event, allowing characterization of the lensing system. The observed anomaly in the lightcurve is due to a binary lens. However, several models can explain the observations. Spectroscopic observations indicate that the source is located at ≤2.0 kpc, in agreement with the parallax measurements from Gaia. While the models are currently degenerate, future observations, especially the Gaia astrometric time series as well as high-resolution imaging, will provide extra constraints to distinguish between them.
ABSTRACT We present the analysis of the first circumbinary planet microlensing event, OGLE-2007-BLG-349. This event has a strong planetary signal that is best fit with a mass ratio of q 3.4 × 10−4, ...but there is an additional signal due to an additional lens mass, either another planet or another star. We find acceptable light-curve fits with two classes of models: two-planet models (with a single host star) and circumbinary planet models. The light curve also reveals a significant microlensing parallax effect, which constrains the mass of the lens system to be ML 0.7 . Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images resolve the lens and source stars from their neighbors and indicate excess flux due to the star(s) in the lens system. This is consistent with the predicted flux from the circumbinary models, where the lens mass is shared between two stars, but there is not enough flux to be consistent with the two-planet, one-star models. So, only the circumbinary models are consistent with the HST data. They indicate a planet of mass mc = 80 13 , orbiting a pair of M dwarfs with masses of MA = 0.41 0.07 and MB = 0.30 0.07, which makes this the lowest-mass circumbinary planet system known. The ratio of the separation between the planet and the center of mass to the separation of the two stars is ∼40, so unlike most of the circumbinary planets found by Kepler, the planet does not orbit near the stability limit.
We present optical-infrared photometric and spectroscopic observations of Gaia 18dvy, located in the Cygnus OB3 association at a distance of 1.88 kpc. Gaia 18dvy was noted by the Gaia alerts system ...when its light curve exhibited a 4 mag rise in 2018-2019. The brightening was also observable at mid-infared wavelengths. The infrared colors of Gaia 18dvy became bluer as the outburst progressed. Its optical and near-infrared spectroscopic characteristics in the outburst phase are consistent with those of bona fide FU Orionis-type young eruptive stars. The progenitor of the outburst is probably a low-mass K-type star with an optical extinction of ∼3 mag. A radiative transfer modeling of the circumstellar structure, based on the quiescent spectral energy distribution, indicates a disk with a mass of 4 × 10−3 M . Our simple accretion disk modeling implies that the accretion rate had been exponentially increasing for more than 3 yr until mid-2019, when it reached a peak value of 6.9 × 10−6 M yr−1. In many respects, Gaia 18dvy is similar to the FU Ori-type object HBC 722.
ABSTRACT We report the detection of a cold Neptune mplanet = 21 2 M⊕ orbiting a 0.38 M M dwarf lying 2.5-3.3 kpc toward the Galactic center as part of a campaign combining ground-based and Spitzer ...observations to measure the Galactic distribution of planets. This is the first time that the complex real-time protocols described by Yee et al., which aim to maximize planet sensitivity while maintaining sample integrity, have been carried out in practice. Multiple survey and follow up teams successfully combined their efforts within the framework of these protocols to detect this planet. This is the second planet in the Spitzer Galactic distribution sample. Both are in the near to mid-disk and are clearly not in the Galactic bulge.
Abstract The Robotic Observations of Microlensing Events/Reactive Event Assessment Survey was a Key Project at Las Cumbres Observatory (hereafter LCO) which continuously monitored 20 selected fields ...(3.76 sq.deg) in the Galactic Bulge throughout their seasonal visibility window over a three-year period, between 2017 March and 2020 March. Observations were made in three optical passbands (SDSS − g ′ , − r ′ , − i ′ ), and LCO’s multi-site telescope network enabled the survey to achieve a typical cadence of ∼10 hr in i ′ and ∼15 hr in g ′ and r ′ . In addition, intervals of higher cadence (<1 hr) data were obtained during monitoring of key microlensing events within the fields. This paper describes the Difference Image Analysis data reduction pipeline developed to process these data, and the process for combining the photometry from LCO’s three observing sites in the Southern Hemisphere. The full timeseries photometry for all ∼8 million stars, down to a limiting magnitude of i ∼ 18 mag is provided in the data release accompanying this paper, and samples of the data are presented for exemplar microlensing events, illustrating how the tri-band data are used to derive constraints on the microlensing source star parameters, a necessary step in determining the physical properties of the lensing object. The timeseries data also enables a wealth of additional science, for example in characterizing long-timescale stellar variability, and a few examples of the data for known variables are presented.
Context.
Due to their scarcity, microlensing events in the Galactic disk are of great interest and high-cadence photometric observations, supplemented by spectroscopic follow-up, are necessary for ...constraining the physical parameters of the lensing system. In particular, a precise estimate of the source characteristics is required to accurately measure the lens distance and mass.
Aims.
We conducted a spectroscopic follow-up of microlensing event Gaia19bld to derive the properties of the microlensing source and, ultimately, to estimate the mass and distance of the lens.
Methods.
We obtained low- and high-resolution spectroscopy from multiple sites around the world during the course of the event. The spectral lines and template matching analysis has led to two independent, consistent characterizations of the source.
Results.
We found that the source is a red giant located at ~8.5 kpc from the Earth. Combining our results with the photometric analysis has led to a lens mass of
M
l
~ 1.1
M
⊙
at a distance of
D
l
~ 5.5 kpc. We did not find any significant blend light in the spectra (with an upper detection limit of
V
≤ 17 mag), which is in agreement with photometric observations. Therefore, we cannot exclude the possibility that the lens is a main-sequence star. Indeed, we predict in this scenario a lens brightness of
V
~ 20 mag, a value that would make it much fainter than the detection limit.
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Context. The ability to automatically select scientifically-important transient events from an alert stream of many such events, and to conduct follow-up observations in response, will become ...increasingly important in astronomy. With wide-angle time domain surveys pushing to fainter limiting magnitudes, the capability to follow-up on transient alerts far exceeds our follow-up telescope resources, and effective target prioritization becomes essential. The RoboNet-II microlensing program is a pathfinder project, which has developed an automated target selection process (RoboTAP) for gravitational microlensing events, which are observed in real time using the Las Cumbres Observatory telescope network. Aims. Follow-up telescopes typically have a much smaller field of view compared to surveys, therefore the most promising microlensing events must be automatically selected at any given time from an annual sample exceeding 2000 events. The main challenge is to select between events with a high planet detection sensitivity, with the aim of detecting many planets and characterizing planetary anomalies. Methods. Our target selection algorithm is a hybrid system based on estimates of the planet detection zones around a microlens. It follows automatic anomaly alerts and respects the expected survey coverage of specific events. Results. We introduce the RoboTAP algorithm, whose purpose is to select and prioritize microlensing events with high sensitivity to planetary companions. In this work, we determine the planet sensitivity of the RoboNet follow-up program and provide a working example of how a broker can be designed for a real-life transient science program conducting follow-up observations in response to alerts; we explore the issues that will confront similar programs being developed for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) and other time domain surveys.
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Gaia16aye was a binary microlensing event discovered in the direction towards the northern Galactic disc and was one of the first microlensing events detected and alerted to by the
Gaia
space ...mission. Its light curve exhibited five distinct brightening episodes, reaching up to
I
= 12 mag, and it was covered in great detail with almost 25 000 data points gathered by a network of telescopes. We present the photometric and spectroscopic follow-up covering 500 days of the event evolution. We employed a full Keplerian binary orbit microlensing model combined with the motion of Earth and
Gaia
around the Sun to reproduce the complex light curve. The photometric data allowed us to solve the microlensing event entirely and to derive the complete and unique set of orbital parameters of the binary lensing system. We also report on the detection of the first-ever microlensing space-parallax between the Earth and
Gaia
located at L2. The properties of the binary system were derived from microlensing parameters, and we found that the system is composed of two main-sequence stars with masses 0.57 ± 0.05
M
⊙
and 0.36 ± 0.03
M
⊙
at 780 pc, with an orbital period of 2.88 years and an eccentricity of 0.30. We also predict the astrometric microlensing signal for this binary lens as it will be seen by
Gaia
as well as the radial velocity curve for the binary system. Events such as Gaia16aye indicate the potential for the microlensing method of probing the mass function of dark objects, including black holes, in directions other than that of the Galactic bulge. This case also emphasises the importance of long-term time-domain coordinated observations that can be made with a network of heterogeneous telescopes.
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