Context
. Multi-planet systems are important sources of information regarding the evolution of planets. However, the long-period planets in these systems often escape detection. These objects in ...particular may retain more of their primordial characteristics compared to close-in counterparts because of their increased distance from the host star. HD 22946 is a bright (
G
= 8.13 mag) late F-type star around which three transiting planets were identified via Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) photometry, but the true orbital period of the outermost planet d was unknown until now.
Aims
. We aim to use the Characterising Exoplanet Satellite (CHEOPS) space telescope to uncover the true orbital period of HD 22946d and to refine the orbital and planetary properties of the system, especially the radii of the planets.
Methods
. We used the available TESS photometry of HD 22946 and observed several transits of the planets b, c, and d using CHEOPS. We identified two transits of planet d in the TESS photometry, calculated the most probable period aliases based on these data, and then scheduled CHEOPS observations. The photometric data were supplemented with ESPRESSO (Echelle SPectrograph for Rocky Exoplanets and Stable Spectroscopic Observations) radial velocity data. Finally, a combined model was fitted to the entire dataset in order to obtain final planetary and system parameters.
Results
. Based on the combined TESS and CHEOPS observations, we successfully determined the true orbital period of the planet d to be 47.42489 ± 0.00011 days, and derived precise radii of the planets in the system, namely 1.362 ± 0.040
R
⊕
, 2.328 ± 0.039
R
⊕
, and 2.607 ± 0.060
R
⊕
for planets b, c, and d, respectively. Due to the low number of radial velocities, we were only able to determine 3
σ
upper limits for these respective planet masses, which are 13.71
M
⊕
, 9.72
M
⊕
, and 26.57
M
⊕
. We estimated that another 48 ESPRESSO radial velocities are needed to measure the predicted masses of all planets in HD 22946. We also derived stellar parameters for the host star.
Conclusions
. Planet c around HD 22946 appears to be a promising target for future atmospheric characterisation via transmission spectroscopy. We can also conclude that planet d, as a warm sub-Neptune, is very interesting because there are only a few similar confirmed exoplanets to date. Such objects are worth investigating in the near future, for example in terms of their composition and internal structure.
Context. Tidal orbital decay is suspected to occur for hot Jupiters in particular, with the only observationally confirmed case of this being WASP-12b. By examining this effect, information on the ...properties of the host star can be obtained using the so-called stellar modified tidal quality factor Q * ′ , which describes the efficiency with which the kinetic energy of the planet is dissipated within the star. This can provide information about the interior of the star.
Aims. In this study, we aim to improve constraints on the tidal decay of the KELT-9, KELT-16, and WASP-4 systems in order to find evidence for or against the presence of tidal orbital decay. With this, we want to constrain the Q * ′ value for each star. In addition, we aim to test the existence of the transit timing variations (TTVs) in the HD 97658 system, which previously favoured a quadratic trend with increasing orbital period.
Methods. Making use of newly acquired photometric observations from CHEOPS (CHaracterising ExOplanet Satellite) and TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite), combined with archival transit and occultation data, we use Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms to fit three models to the data, namely a constant-period model, an orbital-decay model, and an apsidal-precession model.
Results. We find that the KELT-9 system is best described by an apsidal-precession model for now, with an orbital decay trend at over 2 σ being a possible solution as well. A Keplerian orbit model with a constant orbital period provides the best fit to the transit timings of KELT-16 b because of the scatter and scale of their error bars. The WASP-4 system is best represented by an orbital decay model at a 5 σ significance, although apsidal precession cannot be ruled out with the present data. For HD 97658 b, using recently acquired transit observations, we find no conclusive evidence for a previously suspected strong quadratic trend in the data.
Context . The HD 15337 (TIC 120896927, TOI-402) system was observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), revealing the presence of two short-period planets situated on opposite sides ...of the radius gap. This offers an excellent opportunity to study theories of formation and evolution, as well as to investigate internal composition and atmospheric evaporation. Aims . We aim to constrain the internal structure and composition of two short-period planets situated on opposite sides of the radius valley: HD 15337 b and c. We use new transit photometry and radial velocity data. Methods . We acquired 6 new transit visits with the CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite (CHEOPS) and 32 new radial velocity measurements from the High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) to improve the accuracy of the mass and radius estimates for both planets. We re-analysed the light curves from TESS sectors 3 and 4 and analysed new data from sector 30, correcting for long-term stellar activity. Subsequently, we performed a joint fit of the TESS and CHEOPS light curves, along with all available RV data from HARPS and the Planet Finder Spectrograph (PFS). Our model fit the planetary signals, stellar activity signal, and instrumental decorrelation model for the CHEOPS data simultaneously. The stellar activity was modelled using a Gaussian-process regression on both the RV and activity indicators. Finally, we employed a Bayesian retrieval code to determine the internal composition and structure of the planets. Results . We derived updated and highly precise parameters for the HD 15337 system. Our improved precision on the planetary parameters makes HD 15337 b one of the most precisely characterised rocky exoplanets, with radius and mass measurements achieving a precision better than 2% and 7%, respectively. We were able to improve the precision of the radius measurement of HD 15337 c to 3%. Our results imply that the composition of HD 15337 b is predominantly rocky, while HD 15337 c exhibits a gas envelope with a mass of at least 0.01 M ⊕ . Conclusions . Our results lay the groundwork for future studies, which can further unravel the atmospheric evolution of these exoplanets and offer new insights into their composition and formation history as well as the causes behind the radius gap.
Context.
The TOI-178 system consists of a nearby late K-dwarf transited by six planets in the super-Earth to mini-Neptune regime, with radii ranging from ~1.1 to 2.9
R
⊕
and orbital periods between ...1.9 and 20.7 days. All planets but the innermost one form a chain of Laplace resonances. Mass estimates derived from a preliminary radial velocity (RV) dataset suggest that the planetary densities do not decrease in a monotonic way with the orbital distance to the star, contrary to what one would expect based on simple formation and evolution models.
Aims.
To improve the characterisation of this key system and prepare for future studies (in particular with JWST), we performed a detailed photometric study based on 40 new CHEOPS visits, one new TESS sector, and previously published CHEOPS, TESS, and NGTS data.
Methods.
First we updated the parameters of the host star using the new parallax from
Gaia
EDR3. We then performed a global analysis of the 100 transits contained in our data to refine the physical and orbital parameters of the six planets and study their transit timing variations (TTVs). We also used our extensive dataset to place constraints on the radii and orbital periods of potential additional transiting planets in the system.
Results.
Our analysis significantly refines the transit parameters of the six planets, most notably their radii, for which we now obtain relative precisions of ≲3%, with the exception of the smallest planet, b, for which the precision is 5.1%. Combined with the RV mass estimates, the measured TTVs allow us to constrain the eccentricities of planets c to g, which are found to be all below 0.02, as expected from stability requirements. Taken alone, the TTVs also suggest a higher mass for planet d than that estimated from the RVs, which had been found to yield a surprisingly low density for this planet. However, the masses derived from the current TTV dataset are very prior-dependent, and further observations, over a longer temporal baseline, are needed to deepen our understanding of this iconic planetary system.
Context.
Tidal orbital decay is suspected to occur for hot Jupiters in particular, with the only observationally confirmed case of this being WASP-12b. By examining this effect, information on the ...properties of the host star can be obtained using the so-called stellar modified tidal quality factor
Q
*
′
, which describes the efficiency with which the kinetic energy of the planet is dissipated within the star. This can provide information about the interior of the star.
Aims.
In this study, we aim to improve constraints on the tidal decay of the KELT-9, KELT-16, and WASP-4 systems in order to find evidence for or against the presence of tidal orbital decay. With this, we want to constrain the
Q
*
′
value for each star. In addition, we aim to test the existence of the transit timing variations (TTVs) in the HD 97658 system, which previously favoured a quadratic trend with increasing orbital period.
Methods.
Making use of newly acquired photometric observations from CHEOPS (CHaracterising ExOplanet Satellite) and TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite), combined with archival transit and occultation data, we use Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms to fit three models to the data, namely a constant-period model, an orbital-decay model, and an apsidal-precession model.
Results.
We find that the KELT-9 system is best described by an apsidal-precession model for now, with an orbital decay trend at over 2
σ
being a possible solution as well. A Keplerian orbit model with a constant orbital period provides the best fit to the transit timings of KELT-16 b because of the scatter and scale of their error bars. The WASP-4 system is best represented by an orbital decay model at a 5
σ
significance, although apsidal precession cannot be ruled out with the present data. For HD 97658 b, using recently acquired transit observations, we find no conclusive evidence for a previously suspected strong quadratic trend in the data.
We aim to constrain the internal structure and composition of HD 15337 b and c, two short-period planets situated on opposite sides of the radius valley, using new transit photometry and radial ...velocity data. We acquire 6 new transit visits with the CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite (CHEOPS) and 32 new radial velocity measurements from the High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) to improve the accuracy of the mass and radius estimates for both planets. We reanalyse light curves from TESS sectors 3 and 4 and analyse new data from sector 30, correcting for long-term stellar activity. Subsequently, we perform a joint fit of the TESS and CHEOPS light curves, and all available RV data from HARPS and the Planet Finder Spectrograph (PFS). Our model fits the planetary signals, the stellar activity signal and the instrumental decorrelation model for the CHEOPS data simultaneously. The stellar activity was modelled using a Gaussian-process regression on both the RV and activity indicators. We finally employ a Bayesian retrieval code to determine the internal composition and structure of the planets. We derive updated and highly precise parameters for the HD 15337 system. Our improved precision on the planetary parameters makes HD 15337 b one of the most precisely characterised rocky exoplanets, with radius and mass measurements achieving a precision better than 2\% and 7\%, respectively. We are able to improve the precision of the radius measurement of HD 15337 c to 3\%. Our results imply that the composition of HD 15337 b is predominantly rocky, while HD 15337 c exhibits a gas envelope with a mass of at least \(0.01\ M_\oplus\).Our results lay the groundwork for future studies, which can further unravel the atmospheric evolution of these exoplanets and give new insights into their composition and formation history and the causes behind the radius gap.
PDF