The NASA K2 (Kepler-2) mission uses photometry to find planets transiting stars of various types. M dwarfs are of high interest since they host more short-period planets than any other type of ...main-sequence star and transiting planets around M dwarfs have deeper transits compared to other main-sequence stars. In this paper, we present stellar parameters from K and M dwarfs hosting transiting planet candidates discovered by our team. Using the SOFI (Son OF Isaac - ESA's earlier, similar instrument) spectrograph on the European Southern Observatory's New Technology Telescope, we obtained R approximately equal to 1000 J-, H-, and K-band (0.95-2.52 micron) spectra of 34 late-type K2 planet and candidate planet host systems and 12 bright K4-M5 dwarfs with interferometrically measured radii and effective temperatures. Out of our 34 late-type K2 targets, we identify 27 of these stars as M dwarfs. We measure equivalent widths of spectral features, derive calibration relations using stars with interferometric measurements, and estimate stellar radii, effective temperatures, masses, and luminosities for the K2 planet hosts. Our calibrations provide radii and temperatures with median uncertainties of 0.059 solar radii (16.09 percent) and 160 degrees Kelvin (4.33 percent), respectively. We then reassess the radii and equilibrium temperatures of known and candidate planets based on our spectroscopically derived stellar parameters. Since a planet's radius and equilibrium temperature depend on the parameters of its host star, our study provides more precise planetary parameters for planets and candidates orbiting late-type stars observed with K2. We find a median planet radius and an equilibrium temperature of approximately 3 solar radii and 500 degrees Kelvin, respectively, with several systems (K2-18b and K2-72e) receiving near-Earth-like levels of incident irradiation.
With JWST's successful deployment and unexpectedly high fuel reserves, measuring the masses of sub-Neptunes transiting bright, nearby stars will soon become the bottleneck for characterizing the ...atmospheres of small exoplanets via transmission spectroscopy. Using a carefully curated target list and more than two years' worth of APF-Levy and Keck-HIRES Doppler monitoring, the TESS-Keck Survey is working toward alleviating this pressure. Here we present mass measurements for 11 transiting planets in eight systems that are particularly suited to atmospheric follow-up with JWST. We also report the discovery and confirmation of a temperate super-Jovian-mass planet on a moderately eccentric orbit. The sample of eight host stars, which includes one subgiant, spans early-K to late-F spectral types (\(T_\mathrm{eff} =\) 5200--6200 K). We homogeneously derive planet parameters using a joint photometry and radial velocity modeling framework, discuss the planets' possible bulk compositions, and comment on their prospects for atmospheric characterization.
We report the discovery and Doppler mass measurement of a 7.4-day 2.3-\(R_\oplus\) 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 multi-wavelength photometry from the ultraviolet to the mid-infrared, we found that the host star has \(T_{\text{eff}}=4174^{+34}_{-42}\) K, \(\log{g}=4.62^{+0.02}_{-0.03}\), \(\text{Fe/H}=-0.58\pm0.18\), \(M_{\ast}=0.57\pm0.02~M_{\odot}\), and \(R_{\ast}=0.62\pm0.01~R_{\odot}\). Precise Doppler measurements with Keck/HIRES revealed a planetary mass of \(M_{\text{p}}=9.2\pm2.1~M_{\oplus}\) for TOI-2018 b. TOI-2018 b has a mass and radius that are consistent with an Earth-like core with a \(\sim1\%\)-by-mass hydrogen/helium envelope, or an ice-rock mixture. The mass of TOI-2018 b is close to the threshold for run-away accretion and hence giant planet formation. Such a threshold is predicted to be around 10\(M_\oplus\) or lower for a low-metallicity (low-opacity) environment. If TOI-2018 b is a planetary core that failed to undergo run-away accretion, it may underline the reason why giant planets are rare around low-metallicity host stars (one possibility is their shorter disk lifetimes). With a K-band magnitude of 7.1, TOI-2018 b may be a suitable target for transmission spectroscopy with the James Webb Space Telescope. The system is also amenable to metastable Helium observation; the detection of a Helium exosphere would help distinguish between a H/He enveloped planet and a water world.
•A data acquisition method captured the details of every pulse applied during PEF processing.•Strawberry purée was pasteurized in a pilot-scale PEF unit.•The PEF pasteurized product had a good fresh ...flavor and a good, bright, red color.
An inexpensive data acquisition method was developed to validate the exact number and shape of the pulses applied during pulsed electric field (PEF) processing. The novel validation method was evaluated in conjunction with developing a PEF process for pasteurizing strawberry purée. Both buffered peptone water (BPW) and fresh strawberry purée (pH 2.4) were inoculated with Escherichia coli (ATCC 35218) and processed using a pilot plant PEF system at field strengths of 24.0–33.6kV/cm, outlet temperatures of 45.0–57.5°C and a flow rate of 100l/hr. An accelerated aging storage study was performed on the quality of a strawberry beverage made from the strawberry purée. The populations of E. coli were reduced by 6.5log in BPW at 30kV/cm and 57.5°C and 7.3 log in strawberry purée at 24kV/cm and 52.5°C. The taste and color of strawberry beverage initially made from PEF processed purée was fresh and bright red, respectively. The color remained good for the first 3months-equivalent of storage and there was only a very slight drop in flavor. The data acquisition system captured the details of every pulse applied at a rate of 400Hz for 1h for a total of over 1.4 million pulses. Strawberry purée was pasteurized in a pilot-scale PEF unit. In addition, a data acquisition system was developed to validate the process which should aid in obtaining FDA approval of the PEF process.
ABSTRACT
Pseudomonas putida
strain PP3 produces two hydrolytic dehalogenases encoded by
dehI
and
dehII
, which are members of different
deh
gene families. The 9.74-kb
DEH
transposon containing
dehI
...and its cognate regulatory gene,
dehR
I
, was isolated from strain PP3 by using the TOL plasmid pWW0.
DEH
was fully sequenced and shown to have a composite transposon structure, within which
dehI
and
dehR
I
were divergently transcribed and were flanked on either side by 3.73-kb identical direct repeats. The flanking repeat unit, designated IS
Ppu12
, had the structure of an insertion sequence in that it was bordered by 24-bp near-perfect inverted repeats and contained four open reading frames (ORFs), one of which was identified as
tnpA
, putatively encoding an ISL
3
family transposase. A putative lipoprotein signal peptidase was encoded by an adjacent ORF,
lspA
, and the others, IS
Ppu12 orf1
and
orf2
, were tentatively identified as a truncated cation efflux transporter gene and a PbrR family regulator gene, respectively. The
orf1
-
orf2
intergenic region contained an exact match with a previously described active, outward-orientated promoter, Pout. Transposition of
DEH
-IS
Ppu12
was investigated by cloning the whole transposon into a suicide plasmid donor, pAWT34, and transferring the construct to various recipients. In this way
DEH
-IS
Ppu12
was shown to transpose in a broad range of
Proteobacteria
. Transposition of IS
Ppu12
independently from
DEH
, and inverse transposition, whereby the vector DNA and IS
Ppu12
inserted into the target genome without the
deh
genes, were also observed to occur at high frequencies in
P. putida
PaW340. Transposition of a second
DEH
-IS
Ppu12
derivative introduced exogenously into
P. putida
PP3 via the suicide donor pAWT50 resulted in silencing of resident
dehI
and
dehII
genes in about 10% of transposition transconjugants and provided a genetic link between transposition of IS
Ppu12
and dehalogenase gene silencing. Database searches identified IS
Ppu12
-related sequences in several bacterial species, predominantly associated with plasmids and xenobiotic degradative genes. The potential role of IS
Ppu12
in gene silencing and activation, as well as the adaptation of bacteria to degrade xenobiotic compounds, is discussed.
Primary pulmonary osteosarcoma is an extremely rare malignancy. To date, only 12 cases have been reported, with a high mortality rate. The authors report on a newly diagnosed patient and describe ...investigations that were performed using immunohistochemistry and comparative genomic hybridization (CGH).
The clinical course of a woman age 37 years is presented. Along with routine histologic examination, immunohistochemistry was used to demonstrate differentiation-associated proteins, oncoproteins, and other markers; CGH analysis for genomic alterations; and histochemistry to demonstrate alkaline phosphatase activity.
Immunohistochemical analysis showed varying expression patterns using antibodies against a panel of tumor markers. Most notable was high overexpression of BCL-2 and cyclin D. CGH analysis showed that this neoplasm contained a much higher level of genetic aberrations compared with skeletal osteosarcoma.
This tumor exhibited features common to skeletal osteosarcomas but also had some unique features. Genome analysis suggests that this tumor has several genetic aberrations in common with extraskeletal osteosarcoma. The novel regions of instability identified within the tumor genome may contribute toward the unique tumor phenotype and relative chemoresistance.
ABSTRACT We analyze full-orbit phase curve observations of the transiting hot Jupiters WASP-19b and HAT-P-7b at 3.6 and 4.5 m, obtained using the Spitzer Space Telescope. For WASP-19b, we measure ...secondary eclipse depths of and at 3.6 and 4.5 m, which are consistent with a single blackbody with effective temperature 2372 60 K. The measured 3.6 and 4.5 m secondary eclipse depths for HAT-P-7b are and , which are well described by a single blackbody with effective temperature 2667 57 K. Comparing the phase curves to the predictions of one-dimensional and three-dimensional atmospheric models, we find that WASP-19b's dayside emission is consistent with a model atmosphere with no dayside thermal inversion and moderately efficient day-night circulation. We also detect an eastward-shifted hotspot, which suggests the presence of a superrotating equatorial jet. In contrast, HAT-P-7b's dayside emission suggests a dayside thermal inversion and relatively inefficient day-night circulation; no hotspot shift is detected. For both planets, these same models do not agree with the measured nightside emission. The discrepancies in the model-data comparisons for WASP-19b might be explained by high-altitude silicate clouds on the nightside and/or high atmospheric metallicity, while the very low 3.6 m nightside planetary brightness for HAT-P-7b may be indicative of an enhanced global C/O ratio. We compute Bond albedos of 0.38 0.06 and 0 ( at ) for WASP-19b and HAT-P-7b, respectively. In the context of other planets with thermal phase curve measurements, we show that WASP-19b and HAT-P-7b fit the general trend of decreasing day-night heat recirculation with increasing irradiation.
Cervical spondylolysis is a rare defect of unknown etiology. Five cases of cervical spondylolysis as well as two cases of fractures of the pedicles of C2 in infants are presented. Comparison of the ...cases suggests that a fracture at birth or in infancy may be the cause of some cases of cervical spondylolysis.
NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission promises to improve our understanding of hot Jupiters by providing an all-sky, magnitude-limited sample of transiting hot Jupiters suitable ...for population studies. Assembling such a sample requires confirming hundreds of planet candidates with additional follow-up observations. Here, we present twenty hot Jupiters that were detected using TESS data and confirmed to be planets through photometric, spectroscopic, and imaging observations coordinated by the TESS Follow-up Observing Program (TFOP). These twenty planets have orbital periods shorter than 7 days and orbit relatively bright FGK stars (\(10.9 < G < 13.0\)). Most of the planets are comparable in mass to Jupiter, although there are four planets with masses less than that of Saturn. TOI-3976 b, the longest period planet in our sample (\(P = 6.6\) days), may be on a moderately eccentric orbit (\(e = 0.18\pm0.06\)), while observations of the other targets are consistent with them being on circular orbits. We measured the projected stellar obliquity of TOI-1937A b, a hot Jupiter on a 22.4 hour orbit with the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect, finding the planet's orbit to be well-aligned with the stellar spin axis (\(|\lambda| = 4.0\pm3.5^\circ\)). We also investigated the possibility that TOI-1937 is a member of the NGC 2516 open cluster, but ultimately found the evidence for cluster membership to be ambiguous. These objects are part of a larger effort to build a complete sample of hot Jupiters to be used for future demographic and detailed characterization work.
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