We present time series photometric observations of 13 transits in the planetary systems WASP-24, WASP-25 and WASP-26. All three systems have orbital obliquity measurements, WASP-24 and WASP-26 have ...been observed with Spitzer, and WASP-25 was previously comparatively neglected. Our light curves were obtained using the telescope-defocussing method and have scatters of 0.5–1.2 mmag relative to their best-fitting geometric models. We use these data to measure the physical properties and orbital ephemerides of the systems to high precision, finding that our improved measurements are in good agreement with previous studies. High-resolution Lucky Imaging observations of all three targets show no evidence for faint stars close enough to contaminate our photometry. We confirm the eclipsing nature of the star closest to WASP-24 and present the detection of a detached eclipsing binary within 4.25 arcmin of WASP-26.
Context. The formation and dynamical history of hot Jupiters is currently debated, with wide stellar binaries having been suggested as a potential formation pathway. Additionally, contaminating light ...from both binary companions and unassociated stars can significantly bias the results of planet characterisation studies, but can be corrected for if the properties of the contaminating star are known. Aim. We search for binary companions to known transiting exoplanet host stars, in order to determine the multiplicity properties of hot Jupiter host stars. We also search for and characterise unassociated stars along the line of sight, allowing photometric and spectroscopic observations of the planetary system to be corrected for contaminating light. Methods. We analyse lucky imaging observations of 97 Southern hemisphere exoplanet host stars, using the Two Colour Instrument on the Danish 1.54 m telescope. For each detected companion star, we determine flux ratios relative to the planet host star in two passbands, and measure the relative position of the companion. The probability of each companion being physically associated was determined using our two-colour photometry. Results. A catalogue of close companion stars is presented, including flux ratios, position measurements, and estimated companion star temperature. For companions that are potential binary companions, we review archival and catalogue data for further evidence. For WASP-77AB and WASP-85AB, we combine our data with historical measurements to determine the binary orbits, showing them to be moderately eccentric and inclined to the line of sight (and hence planetary orbital axis). Combining our survey with the similar Friends of Hot Jupiters survey, we conclude that known hot Jupiter host stars show a deficit of high mass stellar companions compared to the field star population; however, this may be a result of the biases in detection and target selection by ground-based surveys.
We report the spectroscopic confirmation and modeling of the quadruply imaged quasar GRAL 113100–441959, the first gravitational lens (GL) to be discovered from a machine learning technique that only ...relies on the relative positions and fluxes of the observed images without considering colour informations. Follow-up spectra obtained with Keck/LRIS reveal the lensing nature of this quadruply imaged quasar with redshift zs = 1.090 ± 0.002, but show no evidence of the central lens galaxy. Using the image positions and G-band flux ratios provided by Gaia Data Release 2 as constraints, we modeled the system with a singular power-law elliptical mass distribution (SPEMD) plus external shear, to different levels of complexity. We show that relaxing the isothermal constraint of the SPEMD does not lead to statistically significant different results in terms of fitting the lensing data. We thus simplified the SPEMD to a singular isothermal ellipsoid to estimate the Einstein radius of the main lens galaxy θE = 0.″851 θ E =0 . ″ 851 $ \theta_{{\rm E}} = 0{{\overset{\prime\prime}{.}}}851 $ , the intensity and position angle of the external shear (γ,θγ) = (0.044, 11.°5) (γ, θ γ )=(0.044,11 . ° 5) $ (\gamma,\theta_{\gamma}) = (0.044,11{{\overset{\circ}{.}}}5) $ , and we predict the lensing galaxy position to be (θgal,1, θgal,2) = (−0.″424, −0.″744) ( θ gal,1 , θ gal,2 )=(−0 . ″ 424,−0 . ″ 744) $ (\theta_{{\rm gal},1},\theta_{{\rm gal},2}) = (-0{{\overset{\prime\prime}{.}}}424,-0{{\overset{\prime\prime}{.}}}744) $ with respect to image A. We provide time delay predictions for pairs of images, assuming a plausible range of lens redshift values zl between 0.5 and 0.9. Finally, we examine the impact on time delays of the so-called source position transformation, a family of degeneracies existing between different mass density profiles that reproduce most of the lensing observables equally well. We show that this effect contributes significantly to the time delay error budget and cannot be ignored during the modeling. This has implications for robust cosmography applications of lensed systems. GRAL 113100–441959 is the first in a series of seven new spectroscopically confirmed GLs discovered from Gaia Data Release 2.
Spectra of Triton between 1.8 and 5.5 {mu}m, obtained in 2007 May and 2009 November, have been analyzed to determine the global surface composition. The spectra were acquired with the grism and the ...prism of the Infrared Camera on board AKARI with spectral resolutions of 135 and 22, respectively. The data from 4 to 5 {mu}m are shown in this Letter and compared to the spectra of N{sub 2}, CO, and CO{sub 2}, i.e., all the known ices on this moon that have distinct bands in this previously unexplored wavelength range. We report the detection of a 4{sigma} absorption band at 4.76 {mu}m (2101 cm{sup -1}), which we attribute tentatively to the presence of solid HCN. This is the sixth ice to be identified on Triton and an expected component of its surface because it is a precipitating photochemical product of Triton's thin N{sub 2} and CH{sub 4} atmosphere. It is also formed directly by irradiation of mixtures of N{sub 2} and CH{sub 4} ices. Here we consider only pure HCN, although it might be dissolved in N{sub 2} on the surface of Triton because of the evaporation and recondensation of N{sub 2} over its seasonal cycle. The AKARI spectrum of Triton also covers the wavelengths of the fundamental (1-0) band of {beta}-phase N{sub 2} ice (4.296 {mu}m, 2328 cm{sup -1}), which has never been detected in an astronomical body before, and whose presence is consistent with the overtone (2-0) band previously reported. Fundamental bands of CO and CO{sub 2} ices are also present.
The 2 m Liverpool Telescope (LT), owned by Liverpool John Moores University, is located in La Palma (Canary Islands) and operates in fully robotic mode. In 2005, the LT began conducting an automatic ...gamma‐ray burst (GRB) follow‐up program. On receiving an automatic GRB alert from a gamma‐ray observatory (Swift,INTEGRAL,HETE‐2, or IPN), the LT initiates a special override mode that conducts follow‐up observations within 2–3 minutes of the GRB onset. This follow‐up procedure begins with an initial sequence of short (10 s) exposures acquired through an
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band filter. These images are reduced, analyzed, and interpreted automatically using pipeline software developed by our team, called LT‐TRAP (Liverpool Telescope Transient Rapid Analysis Pipeline); the automatic detection and successful identification of an unknown and potentially fading optical transient triggers a subsequent multicolor imaging sequence. In the case of a candidate brighter than
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, either a polarimetric (from 2006) or a spectroscopic observation (from 2007) will be triggered on the LT. If no candidate is identified, the telescope continues to obtain
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,
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, and
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band imaging with increasingly longer exposure times. Here we present a detailed description of the LT‐TRAP and briefly discuss the illustrative case of the afterglow of GRB 050502a, whose automatic identification by the LT just 3 minutes after the GRB led to the acquisition of the first early‐time (<1 hr) multicolor light curve of a GRB afterglow.
Context. We show the benefits of using electron-multiplying CCDs and the shift-and-add technique as a tool to minimise the effects of atmospheric turbulence, such as blending between stars in crowded ...fields, and to avoid saturated stars in the fields observed. We intend to complete, or improve on, the census of the variable star population in globular cluster NGC 6715. Aims. Our aim is to obtain high-precision time-series photometry of the very crowded central region of this stellar system via the collection of better angular resolution images than has been previously achieved with conventional CCDs on ground-based telescopes. Methods. Observations were carried out using the Danish 1.54-m telescope at the ESO La Silla observatory in Chile. The telescope is equipped with an electron-multiplying CCD that enables short-exposure-time images to be obtained (ten images per second) that were stacked using the shift-and-add technique to produce the normal-exposure-time images (minutes). The high precision photometry was performed via difference image analysis employing the DanDIA pipeline. We attempted automatic detection of variable stars in the field. Results. We statistically analysed the light curves of 1405 stars in the crowded central region of NGC 6715 to automatically identify the variable stars present in this cluster. We found light curves for 17 previously known variable stars near the edges of our reference image (16 RR Lyrae and 1 semi-regular) and we discovered 67 new variables (30 RR Lyrae, 21 irregular (long-period type), 3 semi-regular, 1 W Virginis, 1 eclipsing binary, and 11 unclassified). Photometric measurements for these stars are available in electronic form through the Strasbourg Astronomical Data Centre.
We present new photometric observations of WASP-15 and WASP-16, two transiting extrasolar planetary systems with measured orbital obliquities but without photometric follow-up since their discovery ...papers. Our new data for WASP-15 comprise observations of one transit simultaneously in four optical passbands using GROND on the MPG/European Southern Observatory (ESO) 2.2 m telescope, plus coverage of half a transit from DFOSC on the Danish 1.54 m telescope, both at ESO La Silla. For WASP-16 we present observations of four complete transits, all from the Danish telescope. We use these new data to refine the measured physical properties and orbital ephemerides of the two systems. Whilst our results are close to the originally determined values for WASP-15, we find that the star and planet in the WASP-16 system are both larger and less massive than previously thought.
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