High resolution transit spectroscopy has proven to be a reliable technique for the characterization of the chemical composition of exoplanet atmospheres. Taking advantage of the broad spectral ...coverage of the CARMENES spectrograph, we initiated a survey aimed at characterizing a broad range of planetary systems. Here, we report our observations of three transits of GJ 3470 b with CARMENES in search of He (2
3
S) absorption. On one of the nights, the He
I
region was heavily contaminated by OH
−
telluric emission and, thus, it was not useful for our purposes. The remaining two nights had a very different signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) due to weather. They both indicate the presence of He (2
3
S) absorption in the transmission spectrum of GJ 3470 b, although a statistically valid detection can only be claimed for the night with higher S/N. For that night, we retrieved a 1.5 ± 0.3% absorption depth, translating into a
R
p
(
λ
)∕
R
p
= 1.15 ± 0.14 at this wavelength. Spectro-photometric light curves for this same night also indicate the presence of extra absorption during the planetary transit with a consistent absorption depth. The He (2
3
S) absorption is modeled in detail using a radiative transfer code, and the results of our modeling efforts are compared to the observations. We find that the mass-loss rate,
Ṁ
, is confined to a range of 3 × 10
10
g s
−1
for
T
= 6000 K to 10 × 10
10
g s
−1
for
T
= 9000 K. We discuss the physical mechanisms and implications of the He
I
detection in GJ 3470 b and put it in context as compared to similar detections and non-detections in other Neptune-size planets. We also present improved stellar and planetary parameter determinations based on our visible and near-infrared observations.
CARMENES input catalogue of M dwarfs Alonso-Floriano, F J; Morales, J C; Caballero, J A ...
Astronomy and astrophysics (Berlin),
5/2015, Volume:
577
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
CARMENES is a stabilized, high-resolution, double-channel spectrograph at the 3.5 m Calar Alto telescope. It is optimally designed for radial-velocity surveys of M dwarfs with potentially habitable ...Earth-mass planets. We prepare a list of the brightest, single M dwarfs in each spectral subtype observable from the northern hemisphere, from which we will select the best planet-hunting targets for CARMENES. In this first paper on the preparation of our input catalogue, we compiled a large amount of public data and collected low-resolution optical spectroscopy with CAFOS at the 2.2 m Calar Alto telescope for 753 stars. We derived accurate spectral types using a dense grid of standard stars, a double least-squares minimization technique, and 31 spectral indices previously defined by other authors. We calculated spectral types for all 753 stars, of which 305 are new and 448 are revised. This collection of low-resolution spectroscopic data serves as a candidate target list for the CARMENES survey and can be highly valuable for other radial-velocity surveys of M dwarfs and for studies of cool dwarfs in the solar neighbourhood.
Ultra-hot Jupiters are emerging as a new class of exoplanets. Studying their chemical compositions and temperature structures will improve our understanding of their mass loss rate as well as their ...formation and evolution. We present the detection of ionized calcium in the two hottest giant exoplanets – KELT-9b and WASP-33b. By using transit datasets from CARMENES and HARPS-N observations, we achieved high-confidence-level detections of Ca II using the cross-correlation method. We further obtain the transmission spectra around the individual lines of the Ca II H&K doublet and the near-infrared triplet, and measure their line profiles. The Ca II H&K lines have an average line depth of 2.02 ± 0.17% (effective radius of 1.56 Rp) for WASP-33b and an average line depth of 0.78 ± 0.04% (effective radius of 1.47 Rp) for KELT-9b, which indicates that the absorptions are from very high upper-atmosphere layers close to the planetary Roche lobes. The observed Ca II lines are significantly deeper than the predicted values from the hydrostatic models. Such a discrepancy is probably a result of hydrodynamic outflow that transports a significant amount of Ca II into the upper atmosphere. The prominent Ca II detection with the lack of significant Ca I detection implies that calcium is mostly ionized in the upper atmospheres of the two planets.
Context. M dwarfs are known to generate the strongest magnetic fields among main-sequence stars with convective envelopes, but we are still lacking a consistent picture of the link between the ...magnetic fields and underlying dynamo mechanisms, rotation, and activity. Aims. In this work we aim to measure magnetic fields from the high-resolution near-infrared spectra taken with the CARMENES radial-velocity planet survey in a sample of 29 active M dwarfs and compare our results against stellar parameters. Methods. We used the state-of-the-art radiative transfer code to measure total magnetic flux densities from the Zeeman broadening of spectral lines and filling factors. Results. We detect strong kG magnetic fields in all our targets. In 16 stars the magnetic fields were measured for the first time. Our measurements are consistent with the magnetic field saturation in stars with rotation periods P < 4 d. The analysis of the magnetic filling factors reveal two different patterns of either very smooth distribution or a more patchy one, which can be connected to the dynamo state of the stars and/or stellar mass. Conclusions. Our measurements extend the list of M dwarfs with strong surface magnetic fields. They also allow us to better constrain the interplay between the magnetic energy, stellar rotation, and underlying dynamo action. The high spectral resolution and observations at near-infrared wavelengths are the beneficial capabilities of the CARMENES instrument that allow us to address important questions about the stellar magnetism.
CARMENES input catalogue of M dwarfs Cifuentes, C.; Caballero, J. A.; Cortés-Contreras, M. ...
Astronomy and astrophysics (Berlin),
10/2020, Volume:
642
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Context.
The relevance of M dwarfs in the search for potentially habitable Earth-sized planets has grown significantly in the last years.
Aims.
In our on-going effort to comprehensively and ...accurately characterise confirmed and potential planet-hosting M dwarfs, in particular for the CARMENES survey, we have carried out a comprehensive multi-band photometric analysis involving spectral energy distributions, luminosities, absolute magnitudes, colours, and spectral types, from which we have derived basic astrophysical parameters.
Methods.
We have carefully compiled photometry in 20 passbands from the ultraviolet to the mid-infrared, and combined it with the latest parallactic distances and close-multiplicity information, mostly from
Gaia
DR2, of a sample of 2479 K5 V to L8 stars and ultracool dwarfs, including 2210 nearby, bright M dwarfs. For this, we made extensive use of Virtual Observatory tools.
Results.
We have homogeneously computed accurate bolometric luminosities and effective temperatures of 1843 single stars, derived their radii and masses, studied the impact of metallicity, and compared our results with the literature. The over 40 000 individually inspected magnitudes, together with the basic data and derived parameters of the stars, individual and averaged by spectral type, have been made public to the astronomical community. In addition, we have reported 40 new close multiple systems and candidates (
ρ
< 3.3 arcsec) and 36 overluminous stars that are assigned to young Galactic populations.
Conclusions.
In the new era of exoplanet searches around M dwarfs via transit (e.g. TESS, PLATO) and radial velocity (e.g. CARMENES, NIRPS+HARPS), this work is of fundamental importance for stellar and therefore planetary parameter determination.
Abstract
The aim of this article is making use of the Gaia DR3 catalogue and virtual observatory tools, to confirm and characterize 428 binary and multiple stellar systems classified as neglected ...(only one observation) in the Washington Double Star Catalogue (WDS). The components of the stellar systems have the same parallax and proper motion (within the errors) and are separated by less than 50,000 AU, which minimizes the number of by‐chance counterparts. Effective temperatures calculated using
VOSA
were used to estimate stellar masses. Binding energies were calculated for 42 binary systems confirming they are physical pairs. Also we found 75 pairs with F/G‐ M spectral types, which are very interesting to improve the determination of the metallicity of the M star from the higher mass component.
Aims
. With the latest
Gaia
DR3 data, we analyse the widest pairs in the Washington Double Star (WDS) catalogue with angular separations,
ρ
, greater than 1000 arcsec.
Methods
. We confirmed the ...pairs’ membership to stellar systems based on common proper motions, parallaxes, and (when available) radial velocities, together with the locii of the individual components in colour-magnitude diagrams. We also looked for additional closer companions to the ultrawide pairs, either reported by WDS or found by us with a new
Gaia
astrometric search. In addition, we determined masses for each star (and white dwarf) and, with the projected physical separation, computed the gravitational potential energy, |
U
g
*
|, of the systems.
Results
. Of the 155 159 pairs currently catalogued by WDS, there are 504 with
ρ
> 1000 arcsec. Of these, only 2 ultrawide pairs have not been identified, 10 do not have any available astrometry, 339 have not passed a conservative filtering in proper motion or parallax, 59 are members of young stellar kinematic groups, associations or open clusters, and only 94 remain as bona fide ultrawide pairs in the galactic field. Accounting for the additional members at shorter separations identified in a complementary astrometric and bibliographic search, we found 79 new stars (39 reported, plus 40 not reported by WDS) in 94 ultrawide stellar systems. This sample is expanded when including new close binary candidates with large
Gaia
DR3
RUWE
,
σ
Vr
, or a proper motion anomaly. Furthermore, the large fraction of subsystems and the non-hierarchical configurations of many wide systems with three or more stars is remarkable. In particular, we found 14 quadruple, 2 quintuple, 3 sextuple, and 2 septuple systems. The minimum computed binding energies, |
U
g
*
| ~ 10
33
J, are in line with theoretical predictions of tidal destruction by the Galactic gravitational potential. The most fragile and massive systems have huge projected physical separations of well over 1 pc. Therefore, they are either in the process of disruption or they are part of unidentified juvenile stellar kinematic groups.
Aims
. We determine the radii and masses of 293 nearby, bright M dwarfs of the CARMENES survey. This is the first time that such a large and homogeneous high-resolution (
R
> 80 000) spectroscopic ...survey has been used to derive these fundamental stellar parameters.
Methods
. We derived the radii using Stefan–Boltzmann’s law. We obtained the required effective temperatures
T
eff
from a spectral analysis and we obtained the required luminosities
L
from integrated broadband photometry together with the
Gaia
DR2 parallaxes. The mass was then determined using a mass-radius relation that we derived from eclipsing binaries known in the literature. We compared this method with three other methods: (1) We calculated the mass from the radius and the surface gravity log
g
, which was obtained from the same spectral analysis as
T
eff
. (2) We used a widely used infrared mass-magnitude relation. (3) We used a Bayesian approach to infer stellar parameters from the comparison of the absolute magnitudes and colors of our targets with evolutionary models.
Results
. Between spectral types M0 V and M7 V our radii cover the range 0.1
R
⊙
<
R
< 0.6
R
⊙
with an error of 2–3% and our masses cover 0.09 ℳ
⊙
< ℳ< 0.6ℳ
⊙
with an error of 3–5%. We find good agreement between the masses determined with these different methods for most of our targets. Only the masses of very young objects show discrepancies. This can be well explained with the assumptions that we used for our methods.
ABSTRACT
We present the first release of the Calar Alto CAFOS direct imaging data, a project led by the Spanish Virtual Observatory with the goal of enhancing the use of the Calar Alto archive by the ...astrophysics community. Data Release 1 contains 23 903 reduced and astrometrically calibrated images taken from 2008 March to 2019 July with a median of the mean uncertainties in the astrometric calibration of 0.04 arcsec. The catalogue associated to 6132 images in the Sloan griz filters provides accurate astrometry and PSF calibrated photometry for 139 337 point-like detections corresponding to 21 985 different sources extracted from a selection of 2338 good-quality images. The mean internal astrometric and photometric accuracies are 0.05 arcsec and 0.04 mag, respectively. In this work we describe the approach followed to process and calibrate the images, and the construction of the associated catalogue, together with the validation quality tests carried out. Finally, we present three cases to prove the science capabilities of the catalogue: discovery and identification of asteroids, identification of potential transients, and identification of cool and ultracool dwarfs.
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