Examinando por Autor "Herrero, Enrique"

Mostrando 1 - 9 de 9

Acceso Abierto
A giant exoplanet orbiting a very-low-mass star challenges planet formation models
(American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2019-09-27) Morales, J. C.; Mustill, A. J.; Ribas, I.; Davies, M. B.; Reiners, A.; Bauer, F. F.; Kossakowski, D.; Herrero, Enrique; Rodríguez, E.; López González, M. J.; Rodríguez López, C.; Stock, S.; Zechmeister, M.; Luque, R.; Gesa, L.; Pedraz, S.; Baroch, D.; Sarkis, P.; Lafarga, M.; Johnson, E. N.; Anglada Escudé, G.; González Álvarez, E.; Perryman, M. A. C.; Dreizler, S.; Sarmiento, L. F.; Tal Or, L.; Labarga, F.; Reffert, S.; Rebolo, R.; Schweitzer, A.; Schäfer, S.; Hagen, H. J.; Lázaro, F. J.; Quirrenbach, A.; Perger, M.; Guenther, E. W.; Schlecker, M.; Montes, D.; Jeffers, S. V.; Cortés Contreras, M.; Kürster, M.; Schmitt, J. H. M. M.; Aceituno, Francisco José; Abellán, F. J.; Rosich, A.; Aceituno, J.; Schöfer, P.; Arroyo Torres, B.; Amado, P. J.; Antona, R.; Solano, Enrique; Benítez, D.; Kaminski, A.; Becerril Jarque, S.; Sota, A.; Kehr, M.; Abril, M.; Brinkmöller, M.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Ammler von Eiff, M.; Calvo Ortega, R.; Zapatero Osorio, M. R.; Barrado, D.; Cardona Guillén, C.; Yan, F.; Bergond, G.; Casanova, V.; Klahr, H.; Chaturvedi, P.; Nagel, E.; Claret, A.; Trifonov, T.; Czesla, S.; Henning, T.; Dorda, R.; Seifert, W.; Fernández Hernández, Maite; Alonso Floriano, F. J.; Azzaro, M.; Berdiñas, Z. M.; Del Burgo, C.; Cano, J.; Carro, J.; Casasayas Barris, N.; Cifuentes, C.; Colomé, J.; Díez Alonso, E.; Emsenhuber, A.; Guàrdia, J.; Guijarro, A.; De Guindos, E.; Hatzes, Artie; Hauschildt, P. H.; Hedrosa, R. P.; Hermelo, I.; Hernández Arabi, R.; Hernández Otero, F.; Hintz, D.; Klüter, J.; González Peinado, R.; González Hernández, J. I.; González Cuesta, L.; De Juan, E.; Stahl, O.; Burn, R.; Kim, M.; Fernández Martín, A.; Lara, L. M.; Mordasini, C.; Labiche, N.; Cárdenas, M. C.; Lampón, M.; Ferro, I. M.; López del Fresno, M.; Passegger, V. M.; Lizon, Jean Louis; Casal, E.; Lodieu, N.; Fuhrmeister, B.; Mancini, L.; López Santiago, J.; Kemmer, J.; Mall, U.; Galadí Enríquez, D.; Martín Fernández, P.; Marfil, E.; Lalitha, S.; Martín, Eduardo L.; Gallardo Cava, I.; Mirabet, E.; Llamas, M.; Marvin, E. L.; García Vargas, M. L.; Nortmann, L.; Magán Madinabeitia, H.; Nelson, Richard; García Piquer, A.; Pallé, E.; Marín Molina, J. A.; Pascual Granado, J.; Caballero, J. A.; Martínez Rodríguez, H.; Pérez Medialdea, D.; Huke, P.; Naranjo, V.; Rabaza, O.; Huber, A.; Ofir, A.; Redondo, P.; Holgado, G.; Rodler, F.; Klutsch, A.; Sabotta, S.; Launhardt, R.; Salz, M.; López Salas, F. J.; Sánchez Carrasco, M. A.; Mandel, H.; Sanz Forcada, J.; Martín Ruiz, S.; Moya, A.; Nowak, G.; Pavlov, Alexander; Pérez Calpena, A.; Ramón Ballesta, A.; Rix, H. W.; Rodríguez Trinidad, A.; Sadegi, S.; Sánchez Blanco, E.; Sánchez López, A.; Stürmer, J.; Suárez, J. C.; Tabernero, H. M.; Tulloch, S. M.; Veredas, G.; Vico Linares, J. I.; Vilardell, F.; Wagner, K.; Winkler, J.; Wolthoff, V.; Johansen, A.; Stuber, T.; Israel Science Foundation (ISF); Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico (FONDECYT); Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF); Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR); Ministero dell'Istruzione, dell'Università e della Ricerca (MIUR); European Research Council (ERC); Generalitat de Catalunya; Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG); Queen Mary University of London; Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT); Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737; Morales, J. C. [0000-0003-0061-518X]; Mustill, A. J. [0000-0002-2086-3642]; Ribas, I. [0000-0002-6689-0312]; Davies, M. B. [0000-0001-6080-1190]; Bauer, F. F. [0000-0003-1212-5225]; Herrrero, E. [0000-0001-8602-6639]; Rodríguez, E. [0000-0001-6827-9077]; López González, M. J. [0000-0001-8104-5128]; Rodríguez López, C. [0000-0001-5559-7850]; López González, M. J. [0000-0001-8104-5128]; Rodríguez López, C. [0000-0001-5559-7850]; Sarkis, P. [0000-0001-8128-3126]; López Santiago, J. [0000-0003-2402-8166]; Vilardell, F. [0000-0003-0441-1504]; Winkler, J. [0000-0003-0568-8820]; Nowak, G. [0000-0002-7031-7754]; Béjar, V. J. S. [0000-0002-5086-4232]; Luque, R. [0000-0002-4671-2957]; Pérez Calpena, A. [0000-0001-7361-9240]; Sota, A. [https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9404-6952]; Klahr, H. [0000-0002-8227-5467]; Mordasini, C. [0000-0002-1013-2811]; Rodler, F. [0000-0003-0650-5723]; Tabernero, H. [0000-0002-8087-4298]; Cortés Contreras, M. [0000-0003-3734-9866]; Lafarga, M. [0000-0002-8815-9416]; Sánchez López, A. [0000-0002-0516-7956]; Yan, F. [0000-0001-9585-9034]; Reffert, S. [0000-0002-0460-8289]; Rosich, A. [0000-0002-9141-3067]; Sarmiento, L. F. [0000-0002-8475-9705]; Perger, M. [0000-0001-7098-0372]; Sabotta, S. [0000-0001-9078-5574]; Guenther, E. W. [0000-0002-9130-6747]; Kaminski, A. [0000-0003-0203-8208]; Schmitt, J. H. M. M. [0000-0003-2554-9916]; Aceituno, J. [0000-0003-0487-1105]; Alonso Floriano, F. J. [0000-0003-1202-5734]; Stock, S. [0000-0002-1166-9338]; Nagel, E. [0000-0002-4019-3631]; Barrado, D. [0000-0002-5971-9242]; Tulloch, S. [0000-0003-0840-8521]; Trifonov, T. [0000-0002-0236-775X]; Bergond, G. [0000-0003-3132-9215]; Burn, R. [0000-0002-9020-7309]; Zapatero Osorio, M. R. [0000-0001-5664-2852]; Montes, D. [0000-0002-7779-238X]; Cano, J. [0000-0003-1984-5401]; Cardona Guillén, C. [0000-0002-2198-4200]; Baroch, D. [0000-0001-7568-5161]; Ammler-von Eiff, M. [0000-0001-9565-1698]; Chaturvedi, P. [0000-0002-1887-1192]; Cifuentes, C. [0000-0003-1715-5087]; Anglada Escudé, G. [0000-0002-3645-5977]; Becerril Jarque, S. [0000-0001-9009-1150]; González Cuesta, L. [0000-0002-1241-5508]; Díez Alonso, E. [0000-0002-5826-9892]; Emsenhuber, A. [0000-0002-8811-1914]; Passegger, V. M. [0000-0002-8569-7243]; García Vargas, M. L. [0000-0002-2058-3528]; González Álvarez, E. [0000-0002-4820-2053]; Amado, P. J. [0000-0002-8388-6040]; Carro, J. [0000-0002-0838-3603]; Guàrdia, J. [0000-0002-7191-9001]; Abellán, F. J. [0000-0002-5724-1636]; Colomé, J. [0000-0002-1678-2241]; Hermelo, I. [0000-0001-9178-694X]; Hintz, D. [0000-0002-5274-2589]; Arroyo Torres, B. [0000-0002-3392-4694]; Fuhrmeister, B. [0000-0001-8321-5514]; Johnson, E. [0000-0003-2260-5134]; De Juan Fernández, E. [0000-0002-9382-4505]; Berdiñas, Z. M. [0000-0002-6057-6461]; González Hernández, J. I. [0000-0002-0264-7356]; Klüter, J. [0000-0002-3469-5133]; Klutsch, A. [0000-0001-7869-3888]; Calvo Ortega, R. [0000-0003-3693-6030]; Guijarro, A. [0000-0001-5518-1759]; Aceituno, F. J. [0000-0001-8074-4760]; Lara, L. M. [0000-0002-7184-920X]; Launhardt, R. [0000-0002-8298-2663]; Casasayas Barris, N. [0000-0002-2891-8222]; López del Fresno, M. [0000-0002-9479-7780]; Magan Madinabeitia, H. [0000-0003-1243-4597]; Czesla, S. [0000-0002-4203-4773]; Kehr, M. [0000-0002-7420-7368]; Marín Molina, J. A. [0000-0002-3525-0806]; Galadí Enríquez, D. [0000-0003-4946-5653]; Labarga, F. [0000-0002-7143-0206]; Martínez Rodríguez, H. [0000-0002-1919-228X]; Marvin, C. J. [0000-0002-2249-2611]; González Peinado, R. [0000-0002-6658-8930]; Lizon, J. L. [0000-0001-8928-2566]; Naranjo, V. [0000-0003-0097-1061]; Nelson, R. [0000-0002-9687-8779]; De Guindos, E. [0000-0002-8124-9101]; Manici, L. [0000-0002-9428-8732]; Ofir, A. [0000-0002-9152-5042]; Pascual Granado, J. [0000-0003-0139-6951]; Huke, P. [0000-0001-5913-2743]; Martín, E. [0000-0002-1208-4833]; García Piquer, A. [0000-0002-6872-4262]; Rabaza, O. [0000-0003-2766-2103]; Ramón Ballesta, A. [0000-0002-4323-0610]; Kim, M. [0000-0001-6218-2004]; Rodríguez Trinidad, A. [0000-0002-3356-8634]; Sadegi, S. [0000-0001-9897-6121]; Lampón, M. [0000-0002-0183-7158]; Nortmann, L. [0000-0001-8419-8760]; Sanz Forcada, J. [0000-0002-1600-7835]; Lodieu, N. [0000-0002-3612-8968]; Pedraz, S. [0000-0003-1346-208X]; Schäfer, S. [0000-0001-8597-8048]; Schlecker, M. [0000-0001-8355-2107]; Marfil, E. [0000-0001-8907-4775]; Redondo, P. G. [0000-0001-5992-5778]; Schöfer, P. [0000-0002-5969-3708]; Solano, E. [0000-0003-1885-5130]; Martín Ruiz, S. [0000-0002-9006-7182]; Sánchez Carrasco, M. A. [0000-0001-5533-3660]; Stuber, T. [0000-0003-2185-0525]; Suárez, J. C. [0000-0003-3649-8384]; Moya, A. [0000-0003-1665-5389]; Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFISICA DE ANDALUCIA (IAA), SEV-2017-0709
Surveys have shown that super-Earth and Neptune-mass exoplanets are more frequent than gas giants around low-mass stars, as predicted by the core accretion theory of planet formation. We report the discovery of a giant planet around the very-low-mass star GJ 3512, as determined by optical and near-infrared radial-velocity observations. The planet has a minimum mass of 0.46 Jupiter masses, very high for such a small host star, and an eccentric 204-day orbit. Dynamical models show that the high eccentricity is most likely due to planet-planet interactions. We use simulations to demonstrate that the GJ 3512 planetary system challenges generally accepted formation theories, and that it puts constraints on the planet accretion and migration rates. Disk instabilities may be more efficient in forming planets than previously thought.Copyright © 2019 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science
Restringido
A nearby transiting rocky exoplanet that is suitable for atmospheric investigation
(Science, 2021-03-05) Trifonov, T.; Caballero, J. A.; Morales, J. C.; Seifahrt, A.; Reiners, A.; Bean, J. L.; Luque, R.; Parviainen, H.; Pallé, E.; Stock, S.; Zechmeister, M.; Amado, P. J.; Anglada Escudé, G.; Azzaro, M.; Barclay, T.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Bluhm, P.; Casasayas Barris, N.; Cifuentes, C.; Collins, K. A.; Collins, K. I.; Cortés Contreras, M.; De Leon, J. P.; Dreizler, S.; Dressing, C. D.; Esparza Borges, E.; Espinoza, N.; Fausnaugh, M.; Fukui, A.; Hatzes, Artie; Hellier, C.; Henning, T.; Henze, C. E.; Herrero, Enrique; Jeffers, S. V.; Jenkins, J. M.; Jensen, E. L. N.; Kaminski, A.; Kasper, D.; Kossakowski, D.; Kürster, M.; Lafarga, M.; Latham, D. W.; Mann, A. W.; Molaverdikhani, K.; Montes, D.; Montet, B. T.; Murgas Alcaino, F.; Narita, N.; Oshagh, M.; Passegger, V. M.; Pollacco, D.; Quinn, S. N.; Quirrenbach, A.; Ricker, George; Rodríguez López, C.; Sanz Forcada, J.; Schwarz, R. P.; Schweitzer, A.; Seager, S.; Shporer, A.; Stangret, M.; Stürmer, J.; Tan, T. G.; Tenenbaum, P.; Twicken, J. D.; Vanderspek, R.; Winn, J. N.; Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG); Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); European Research Council (ERC); Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS); La Caixa; Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST); Trifonov, T. [0000-0002-0236-775X]; Caballero, J. A. [0000-0002-7349-1387]; Morales, J. C. [0000-0003-0061-518X]; Seifahrt, A. [0000-0003-4526-3747]; Ribas, I. [0000-0002-6689-0312]; Bean, J. [0000-0003-4733-6532]; Luque, R. [0000-0002-4671-2957]; Parviainen, H. [0000-0001-5519-1391]; Pallé, E. [0000-0003-0987-1593]; Stock, S. [0000-0002-1166-9338]; Zechmeister, M. [0000-0002-6532-4378]; Amado, P. J. [0000-0002-8388-6040]; Anglada Escudé, G. [0000-0002-3645-5977]; Azzaro, M. [0000-0002-1317-0661]; Barclay, T. [0000-0001-7139-2724]; Béjar, V. J. S. [0000-0002-5086-4232]; Bluhm, P. [0000-0002-0374-8466]; Casasayas Barris, N. [0000-0002-2891-8222]; Cifuentes, C. [0000-0003-1715-5087]; Collins, K. A. [0000-0001-6588-9574]; Collins, K. I. [0000-0003-2781-3207]; Cortés Contreras, M. [0000-0003-3734-9866]; Dreizler, S. [0000-0001-6187-5941]; Dressing, C. D. [0000-0001-8189-0233]; Esparza Borges, E. [0000-0002-2341-3233]; Espinoza, N. [0000-0001-9513-1449]; Fausnaugh, M. [0000-0002-9113-7162]; Fukui, A. [0000-0002-4909-5763]; Hatzes, A. P. [0000-0002-3404-8358]; Hellier, C. [0000-0002-3439-1439]; Henning, T. [0000-0002-1493-300X]; Herrero, E. [0000-0001-8602-6639]; Jeffers, S. V. [0000-0003-2490-4779]; Jenkins, J. M. [0000-0002-4715-9460]; Jensen, E. L. N. [0000-0002-4625-7333]; Kaminski, A. [0000-0003-0203-8208]; Kasper, D. [0000-0003-0534-6388]; Kossakowski, D. [0000-0002-0436-7833]; Lafarga, M. [0000-0002-8815-9416]; Latham, D. W. [0000-0001-9911-7388]; Mann, A. W. [0000-0003-3654-1602]; Molaverdikhani, K. [0000-0002-0502-0428]; Montes, D. [0000-0002-7779-238X]; Montet, B. T. [0000-0001-7516-8308]; Murgas, F. [0000-0001-9087-1245]; Narita, N. [0000-0001-8511-2981]; Oshagh, M. [0000-0002-0715-8789]; Passegger, V. M. [0000-0002-8569-7243]; Pollacco, D. [0000-0001-9850-9697]; Quinn, S. N. [0000-0002-8964-8377]; Rodríguez López, C. [0000-0001-5559-7850]; Sanz Forcada, J. [0000-0002-1600-7835]; Schwarz, R. P. [0000-0001-8227-1020]; Schweitzer, A. [0000-0002-1624-0389]; Seager, S. [0000-0002-6892-6948]; Stangret, M. [0000-0002-1812-8024]; Stürmer, J. [0000-0002-4410-4712]; Tan, T. G. [0000-0001-5603-6895]; Tenenbaum, P. [0000-0002-1949-4720]; Twicken, J. D. [0000-0002-6778-7552]; Vanderspek, R. [0000-0001-6763-6562]; Winn, J. N. [0000-0002-4265-047X]; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFISICA DE ANDALUCIA (IAA), SEV-2017-0709; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFÍSICA DE CANARIAS (IAC), SEV-2015-0548; Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737
Spectroscopy of transiting exoplanets can be used to investigate their atmospheric properties and habitability. Combining radial velocity (RV) and transit data provides additional information on exoplanet physical properties. We detect a transiting rocky planet with an orbital period of 1.467 days around the nearby red dwarf star Gliese 486. The planet Gliese 486 b is 2.81 Earth masses and 1.31 Earth radii, with uncertainties of 5%, as determined from RV data and photometric light curves. The host star is at a distance of ~8.1 parsecs, has a J-band magnitude of ~7.2, and is observable from both hemispheres of Earth. On the basis of these properties and the planet’s short orbital period and high equilibrium temperature, we show that this terrestrial planet is suitable for emission and transit spectroscopy.
Acceso Abierto
A super-Earth on a close-in orbit around the M1V star GJ 740 A HADES and CARMENES collaboration
(EDP Sciences, 2021-04-07) Toledo Padrón, B.; Suárez Mascareño, A.; González Hernández, J. I.; Rebolo, R.; Pinamonti, M.; Perger, M.; Scandariato, G.; Damasso, M.; Sozzetti, A.; Moldonado, J.; Desidera, S.; Ribas, I.; Micela, G.; Affer, L.; González Álvarez, E.; Leto, G.; Pagano, I.; Zanmar Sánchez, R.; Giacobbe, P.; Herrero, Enrique; Morales, J. C.; Amado, P. J.; Caballero, J. A.; Quirrenbach, A.; Reiners, A.; Zechmeister, M.; Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO); Generalitat de Catalunya
Context. M-dwarfs have proven to be ideal targets for planetary radial velocity (RV) searches due to their higher planet-star mass contrast, which favors the detection of low-mass planets. The abundance of super-Earth and Earth-like planets detected around this type of star motivates further such research on hosts without reported planetary companions. Aims. The HADES and CARMENES programs are aimed at carrying out extensive searches of exoplanetary systems around M-type stars in the northern hemisphere, allowing us to address, in a statistical sense, the properties of the planets orbiting these objects. In this work, we perform a spectroscopic and photometric study of one of the program stars (GJ 740), which exhibits a short-period RV signal that is compatible with a planetary companion. Methods. We carried out a spectroscopic analysis based on 129 HARPS-N spectra taken over a time span of 6 yr combined with 57 HARPS spectra taken over 4 yr, as well as 32 CARMENES spectra taken during more than 1 yr, resulting in a dataset with a time coverage of 10 yr. We also relied on 459 measurements from the public ASAS survey with a time-coverage of 8 yr, along with 5 yr of photometric magnitudes from the EXORAP project taken in the V, B, R, and I filters to carry out a photometric study. Both analyses were made using Markov chain Monte Carlo simulations and Gaussian process regression to model the activity of the star. Results. We present the discovery of a short-period super-Earth with an orbital period of 2.37756−0.00011+0.00013 d and a minimum mass of 2.96−0.48+0.50 M⊕. We offer an update to the previously reported characterization of the magnetic cycle and rotation period of the star, obtaining values of Prot = 35.563 ± 0.071 d and Pcycle = 2800 ± 150 d. Furthermore, the RV time series exhibits a possibly periodic long-term signal, which might be related to a Saturn-mass planet of ~100 M⊕.
Acceso Abierto
Gliese 49: activity evolution and detection of a super-Earth A HADES and CARMENES collaboration
(EDP Sciences, 2019-04-24) Perger, M.; Scandariato, G.; Ribas, I.; Morales, J. C.; Affer, L.; Azzaro, M.; Amado, P. J.; Anglada Escudé, G.; Baroch, D.; Barrado, D.; Bauer, F. F.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Caballero, J. A.; Cortés Contreras, M.; Damasso, M.; Dreizler, S.; González Cuesta, L.; González Hernández, J. I.; Guenther, E. W.; Henning, T.; Herrero, Enrique; Jeffers, S. V.; Kaminski, A.; Kürster, M.; Lafarga, M.; Leto, G.; López González, M. J.; Maldonado, J.; Micela, G.; Montes, D.; Pinamonti, M.; Quirrenbach, A.; Rebolo, R.; Reiners, A.; Rodríguez, E.; Rodríguez López, C.; Schimitt, J. H. M. M.; Sozzetti, A.; Suárez Mascareño, A.; Toledo Padrón, B.; Zanmar Sánchez, R.; Zapatero Osorio, M. R.; Zechmeister, M.; Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO); European Commission (EC); Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); 0000-0001-7098-0372; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFISICA DE ANDALUCIA (IAA), SEV-2017-0709; Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737
Context. Small planets around low-mass stars often show orbital periods in a range that corresponds to the temperate zones of their host stars which are therefore of prime interest for planet searches. Surface phenomena such as spots and faculae create periodic signals in radial velocities and in observational activity tracers in the same range, so they can mimic or hide true planetary signals. Aims. We aim to detect Doppler signals corresponding to planetary companions, determine their most probable orbital configurations, and understand the stellar activity and its impact on different datasets. Methods. We analyzed 22 yr of data of the M1.5 V-type star Gl 49 (BD+61 195) including HARPS-N and CARMENES spectrographs, complemented by APT2 and SNO photometry. Activity indices are calculated from the observed spectra, and all datasets are analyzed with periodograms and noise models. We investigated how the variation of stellar activity imprints on our datasets. We further tested the origin of the signals and investigate phase shifts between the different sets. To search for the best-fit model we maximize the likelihood function in a Markov chain Monte Carlo approach. Results. As a result of this study, we are able to detect the super-Earth Gl 49b with a minimum mass of 5.6 M⊕. It orbits its host star with a period of 13.85 d at a semi-major axis of 0.090 au and we calculate an equilibrium temperature of 350 K and a transit probability of 2.0%. The contribution from the spot-dominated host star to the different datasets is complex, and includes signals from the stellar rotation at 18.86 d, evolutionary timescales of activity phenomena at 40–80 d, and a long-term variation of at least four years.
Acceso Abierto
HADES RV programme with HARPS-N at TNG XIV. A candidate super-Earth orbiting the M-dwarf GJ 9689 with a period close to half the stellar rotation period
(EDP Sciences, 2021-07-12) Maldonado, J.; Petralia, A.; Damasso, M.; Pinamonti, M.; Scandariato, G.; González Álvarez, E.; Affer, L.; Micela, G.; Lanza, A. F.; Leto, G.; Poretti, E.; Sozzetti, A.; Perger, M.; Giacobbe, P.; Zanmar Sánchez, R.; Maggio, A.; González Hernández, J. I.; Rebolo, R.; Ribas, I.; Suárez Mascareño, A.; Toledo Padrón, B.; Bignamini, A.; Molinari, E.; Covino, E.; Claudi, R.; Desidera, S.; Herrero, Enrique; Morales, J. C.; Pagano, I.; Piotto, G.; Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); Generalitat de Catalunya; Maldonado, J. [0000-0002-2218-5689]; Petralia, A. [0000-0002-9882-1020]; Damasso, M. [0000-0001-9984-4278]; Pinamonti, M. [0000-0002-4445-1845]; Affer, L. [0000-0001-5600-3778]; Lanza, A. F. [0000-0001-5928-7251]; Leto, G. [0000-0002-0040-5011]; Poretti, E. [0000-0003-1200-0473]; Sozzetti, A. [0000-0002-7504-365X]; Perger, M. [0000-0001-7098-0372]; Zanmar Sánchez, R. [0000-0002-6997-0887]; Maggio, A. [0000-0001-5154-6108]; González Hernández, J. I. [0000-0002-0264-7356]; Ribas, I. [0000-0002-6689-0312]; Toledo Padrón, B. [0000-0002-8194-215X]; Bignamini, A. [0000-0002-5606-6354]; Molinari, E. [0000-0002-1742-7735]; Covino, E. [0000-0002-7579-2298]; Claudi, R. [0000-0001-7707-5105]; Desidera, S. [0000-0001-8613-2589]
Context. It is now well-established that small, rocky planets are common around low-mass stars. However, the detection of such planets is challenged by the short-term activity of host stars. Aims. The HARPS-N red Dwarf Exoplanet Survey programme is a long-term project at the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo aimed at monitoring nearby, early-type, M dwarfs, using the HARPS-N spectrograph to search for small, rocky planets. Methods. A total of 174 HARPS-N spectroscopic observations of the M0.5V-type star GJ 9689 taken over the past seven years have been analysed. We combined these data with photometric measurements to disentangle signals related to the stellar activity of the star from possible Keplerian signals in the radial velocity data. We ran an MCMC analysis, applying Gaussian process regression techniques to model the signals present in the data. Results. We identify two periodic signals in the radial velocity time series, with periods of 18.27 and 39.31 d. The analysis of the activity indexes, photometric data, and wavelength dependency of the signals reveals that the 39.31 d signal corresponds to the stellar rotation period. On the other hand, the 18.27 d signal shows no relation to any activity proxy or the first harmonic of the rotation period. We, therefore, identify it as a genuine Keplerian signal. The best-fit model describing the newly found planet, GJ 9689 b, corresponds to an orbital period of Pb = 18.27 ± 0.01 d and a minimum mass of MP sini = 9.65 ± 1.41 M⊕.
Acceso Abierto
The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs Convective shift and starspot constraints from chromatic radial velocities
(EDP Sciences, 2020-09-10) Baroch, D.; Morales, J. C.; Ribas, I.; Herrero, Enrique; Rosich, A.; Perger, M.; Anglada Escudé, G.; Reiners, A.; Caballero, J. A.; Quirrenbach, A.; Amado, P. J.; Jeffers, S. V.; Cifuentes, C.; Passegger, V. M.; Schweitzer, A.; Lafarga, M.; Bauer, F. F.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Colomé, J.; Cortés Contreras, M.; Dreizler, S.; Galadí Enríquez, D.; Hatzes, Artie; Henning, T.; Kaminski, A.; Kürster, M.; Montes, D.; Rodríguez López, C.; Zechmeister, M.; Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG); Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); Baroch, D. [0000-0001-7568-5161]; Ribas, I. [0000-0002-6689-0312]; Montes, D. [0000-0002-7779-238X]; Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFÍSICA DE CANARIAS (IAC), SEV-2015-0548; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFISICA DE ANDALUCIA (IAA), SEV-2017-0709
Context. Variability caused by stellar activity represents a challenge to the discovery and characterization of terrestrial exoplanets and complicates the interpretation of atmospheric planetary signals. Aims. We aim to use a detailed modeling tool to reproduce the effect of active regions on radial velocity measurements, which aids the identification of the key parameters that have an impact on the induced variability. Methods. We analyzed the effect of stellar activity on radial velocities as a function of wavelength by simulating the impact of the properties of spots, shifts induced by convective motions, and rotation. We focused our modeling effort on the active star YZ CMi (GJ 285), which was photometrically and spectroscopically monitored with CARMENES and the Telescopi Joan Oró. Results. We demonstrate that radial velocity curves at different wavelengths yield determinations of key properties of active regions, including spot-filling factor, temperature contrast, and location, thus solving the degeneracy between them. Most notably, our model is also sensitive to convective motions. Results indicate a reduced convective shift for M dwarfs when compared to solar-type stars (in agreement with theoretical extrapolations) and points to a small global convective redshift instead of blueshift. Conclusions. Using a novel approach based on simultaneous chromatic radial velocities and light curves, we can set strong constraints on stellar activity, including an elusive parameter such as the net convective motion effect.
Acceso Abierto
The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs Three temperate-to-warm super-Earths
(EDP Sciences, 2020-11-10) Stock, S.; Nagel, E.; Kemmer, J.; Passegger, V. M.; Reffert, S.; Quirrenbach, A.; Caballero, J. A.; Czesla, S.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Cardona Guillén, C.; Díez Alonso, E.; Herrero, Enrique; Lalitha, S.; Schlecker, M.; Tal Or, L.; Rodríguez, E.; Rodríguez López, C.; Ribas, I.; Reiners, A.; Amado, P. J.; Bauer, F. F.; Bluhm, P.; Cortés Contreras, M.; González Cuesta, L.; Dreizler, S.; Hatzes, Artie; Henning, T.; Jeffers, S. V.; Kaminski, A.; Kürster, M.; Lafarga, M.; López González, M. J.; Montes, D.; Morales, J. C.; Pedraz, S.; Schöfer, P.; Schweitzer, A.; Trifonov, T.; Zapatero Osorio, M. R.; Zechmeister, M.; Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); Generalitat de Catalunya; National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); Tel-Aviv University (Israel); Stock, S. [0000-0002-1166-9338]; Nagel, E. [0000-0002-4019-3631]; Kemmer, J. [0000-0003-3929-1442]; Reffert, S. [0000-0002-0460-8289]; Caballero, J. A. [0000-0002-7349-1387]; Cardona, C. [0000-0002-2198-4200]; Schlecker, M. [0000-0001-8355-2107]; Tal Or, L. [0000-0003-3757-1440]; Rodríguez, E. [0000-0001-6827-9077]; Ribas, I. [0000-0002-6689-0312]; Amado, P. J. [0000-0002-8388-6040]; Cortés Contreras, M. [0000-0003-3734-9866]; González Cuesta, L. [0000-0002-1241-5508]; López González, M. J. [0000-0001-8104-5128]; Zapatero Osorio, M. R. [0000-0001-5664-2852]; Zechmeister, M. [0000-0002-6532-4378]; Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFISICA DE ANDALUCIA (IAA), SEV-2017-0709; Centros de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, INSTITUTO DE ASTROFÍSICA DE CANARIAS (IAC), SEV-2015-0548
We announce the discovery of two planets orbiting the M dwarfs GJ 251 (0.360 ± 0.015M⊙) and HD 238090 (0.578 ± 0.021M⊙) based on CARMENES radial velocity (RV) data. In addition, we independently confirm with CARMENES data the existence of Lalande 21185 b, a planet that has recently been discovered with the SOPHIE spectrograph. All three planets belong to the class of warm or temperate super-Earths and share similar properties. The orbital periods are 14.24 d, 13.67 d, and 12.95 d and the minimum masses are 4.0 ± 0.4 M⊕, 6.9 ± 0.9 M⊕, and 2.7 ± 0.3 M⊕ for GJ 251 b, HD 238090 b, and Lalande 21185 b, respectively. Based on the orbital and stellar properties, we estimate equilibrium temperatures of 351.0 ± 1.4 K for GJ 251 b, 469.6 ± 2.6 K for HD 238090 b, and 370.1 ± 6.8 K for Lalande 21185 b. For the latter we resolve the daily aliases that were present in the SOPHIE data and that hindered an unambiguous determination of the orbital period. We find no significant signals in any of our spectral activity indicators at the planetary periods. The RV observations were accompanied by contemporaneous photometric observations. We derive stellar rotation periods of 122.1 ± 2.2 d and 96.7 ± 3.7 d for GJ 251 and HD 238090, respectively. The RV data of all three stars exhibit significant signals at the rotational period or its first harmonic. For GJ 251 and Lalande 21185, we also find long-period signals around 600 d, and 2900 d, respectively, which we tentatively attribute to long-term magnetic cycles. We apply a Bayesian approach to carefully model the Keplerian signals simultaneously with the stellar activity using Gaussian process regression models and extensively search for additional significant planetary signals hidden behind the stellar activity. Current planet formation theories suggest that the three systems represent a common architecture, consistent with formation following the core accretion paradigm.
Acceso Abierto
The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs: Radial velocities and activity indicators from cross-correlation functions with weighted binary masks
(EDP Sciences, 2020-04-13) Lafarga, M.; Ribas, I.; Lovis, C.; Perger, M.; Zechmeister, M.; Bauer, F. F.; Kürster, M.; Cortés Contreras, M.; Morales, J. C.; Herrero, Enrique; Rosich, A.; Baroch, D.; Reiners, A.; Caballero, J. A.; Quirrenbach, A.; Amado, P. J.; Alacid, J. M.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Dreizler, S.; Hatzes, Artie; Henning, T.; Jeffers, S. V.; Kaminski, A.; Montes, D.; Pedraz, S.; Rodríguez López, C.; Schmitt, H. M. M.; 0000-0002-8815-9416; 0000-0002-6532-4378; 0000-0002-7349-1387; 0000-0001-9224-0455; Unidad de Excelencia Científica María de Maeztu Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737
Context. For years, the standard procedure to measure radial velocities (RVs) of spectral observations consisted in cross-correlating the spectra with a binary mask, that is, a simple stellar template that contains information on the position and strength of stellar absorption lines. The cross-correlation function (CCF) profiles also provide several indicators of stellar activity. Aims. We present a methodology to first build weighted binary masks and, second, to compute the CCF of spectral observations with these masks from which we derive radial velocities and activity indicators. These methods are implemented in a python code that is publicly available. Methods. To build the masks, we selected a large number of sharp absorption lines based on the profile of the minima present in high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) spectrum templates built from observations of reference stars. We computed the CCFs of observed spectra and derived RVs and the following three standard activity indicators: full-width-at-half-maximum as well as contrast and bisector inverse slope. Results. We applied our methodology to CARMENES high-resolution spectra and obtain RV and activity indicator time series of more than 300 M dwarf stars observed for the main CARMENES survey. Compared with the standard CARMENES template matching pipeline, in general we obtain more precise RVs in the cases where the template used in the standard pipeline did not have enough S/N. We also show the behaviour of the three activity indicators for the active star YZ CMi and estimate the absolute RV of the M dwarfs analysed using the CCF RVs. © ESO 2020.
Acceso Abierto
The EChO science case
(Springer Link, 2015-11-29) Tinetti, G.; Drossart, P.; Eccleston, P.; Hartogh, P.; Isaak, K.; Linder, M.; Lovis, C.; Micela, G.; Olliver, M.; Puig, L.; Ribas, I.; Sicardy, B.; Kehoe, T.; Deeg, H.; Petrov, R.; Doel, P.; Tennyson, J.; Filacchione, G.; Varley, R.; Temple, J.; Lahav, O.; MacTavish, C.; Wisniowski, T.; Piccioni, G.; Guàrdia, J.; Cavarroc, C.; Jones, G.; Ade, P.; Sanromá, E.; Frith, J.; Lognonné, P.; Pantin, E.; Crook, J.; Colomé, J.; Allard, F.; Azzollini, R.; Burston, R.; Parviainen, H.; Malaguti, G.; Gerard, J. C.; Stamper, R.; Barrado, D.; Maldonado, J.; Morales, J. C.; Yurchenko, S. N.; Lagage, P. O.; Prinja, R.; Koskinen, T.; Waldmann, I.; Venot, O.; Heiter, U.; Lim, T.; Pace, E.; Moya Bedon, A.; Irwin, P.; Michaut, C.; Monteiro, M.; Jones, H.; Wawer, P.; Fouqué, P.; Widemann, T.; Alonso Floriano, F. J.; Eiroa, C.; Savini, G.; Stixrude, L.; Damasso, M.; Rataj, M.; Glasse, A.; Koskinen, T.; Bulgarelli, A.; Ciaravella, A.; Hollis, M.; Schmider, F. X.; Kerschbaum, F.; Licandro Goldaracena, J.; Claret, A.; Rocchetto, M.; López Valverde, Miguel Ángel; Fossey, S.; Leto, G.; Ramos Zapata, G.; Beaulieu, J. P.; Balado, A.; Luzzi, D.; Rebordao, J.; Encrenaz, T.; Adriani, A.; Alcala, J.; Guedel, M.; Morales Calderón, M.; Peña Ramírez, K. Y.; Herrero, Enrique; Focardi, M.; Montalto, M.; Wright, G.; Danielski, C.; Burleigh, M. R.; Medvedev, A.; Murgas Alcaino, F.; Chadney, J.; Bowles, N.; Maxted, Pierre; Kerschbaum, F.; Ward Thompson, D.; Laken, B.; Börne, P.; Christian Jessen, N.; Dominic, C.; López Morales, M.; Miles Paez, P.; Achilleos, N.; Biondi, D.; White, G.; Heredero, R. L.; De Kok, R.; Frith, J.; Grodent, D.; Rank Lüftinger, T.; Scholz, A.; Villaver, E.; Dobrijévic, M.; Alard, C.; Demangeon, O. D. S.; De Witt, J.; Machado, P.; Cordier, D.; Charnoz, S.; Rodler, F.; Gerard, J. C.; Sousa, S. G.; Viti, S.; Cole, R.; Blecka, M.; Barber, R. J.; Middleton, K.; Griffin, M.; Giro, E.; Cho, J.; Covino, E.; Turrini, D.; Moro Martín, A.; Decin, L.; Ramos, A. A.; Schrader, J. R.; Massi, F.; Abe, L.; Mauskopf, P.; Batista, V.; Agnor, C.; Bordé, P.; Fabrizio, N.; Bakos, G.; Rengel, M.; Gustin, J.; Hueso, R.; Fernández Hernández, Maite; Ray, T.; Claudi, R.; Femenía Castella, B.; Rebolo, R.; Sethenadh, J.; Luntzer, A.; Mueller Wodarg, I.; Delgado Mena, E.; Brown, L.; De Sio, A.; González Hernández, J.; Selsis, F.; Leconte, J.; Del Vecchio, C.; Budaj, J.; Scandariato, G.; Pagano, I.; García Piquer, A.; Guillot, T.; Terenzi, L.; Tabernero, H. M.; Forget, F.; Hargrave, P.; North, C.; Heyrovsky, D.; Cerulli, R.; Adybekian, V.; Read, P.; Pinsard, Frederic; Parmentier, V.; Collura, A.; Hubert, B.; Lanza, N.; Graczyk, R.; Fouqué, P.; Giuranna, M.; Valdivieso, M. L.; Pérez Hoyos, S.; Andersen, A.; Mall, U.; Buchhave, L. A.; Yelle, R.; Rickman, H.; Ballerini, P.; Affer, L.; Maruquette, J. B.; Sánchez Béjar, V. J.; Nelson, Richard; Fletcher, L.; Radioti, A.; Turrini, D.; Montes, D.; Gizon, L.; Galand, M.; Gómez, H.; Eymet, V.; Esposito, M.; Smith, A.; Morello, G.; Allende Prieto, C.; Justtanot, K.; Bryson, I.; Pallé, E.; Amado, P. J.; Figueira, P.; Shore, Steven; Focardi, M.; Strazzulla, G.; Giani, E.; Pietrzak, R.; González Merino, B.; Lo Cicero, Ugo; Gaulme, P.; Sozzetti, A.; Femenía Castella, B.; Maillard, J. P.; Cabral, A.; Iro, N.; Magnes, W.; Pinfield, David J.; Swain, M.; Showman, A.; Bellucci, G.; Kerins, E.; Maurin, A. S.; Poretti, E.; Boisse, I.; Barton, E. J.; Kervella, P.; Guio, P.; Norgaard Nielsen, H. U.; Bézard, B.; Montañés Rodríguez, P.; Banaszkiewicz, M.; Kovács, G.; Baffa, C.; Del Val Borro, M.; Belmonte Avilés, J. A.; Palla, F.; Hersant, F.; Correira, A.; Yung, Y.; Cockell, Charles S.; Vinatier, S.; Pilat Lohinger, E.; Krupp, N.; Orton, G.; Vakili, F.; Pezzuto, S.; Di Giorgio, A.; Waltham, D.; Testi, L.; Stiepen, A.; Deroo, P.; Capria, M. T.; Eales, S.; Irshad, R.; Stolarski, M.; Zapatero Osorio, M. R.; Swinyard, B.; Griffith, C.; Winek, W.; Bouy, H.; Thompson, S.; Maggio, A.; Moses, J.; Liu, S. J.; Lithgow Bertelloni, C.; Coudé du Foresto, V.; Martín Torres, Javier; Fletcher, L.; Barlow, M.; Coustenis, A.; Berry, D.; López Puertas, M.; Banaszkiewicz, M.; Lundgaard Rasmussen, I.; Hoogeveen, Ruud; Morais, H.; Watkins, C.; Oliva, E.; Scuderi, S.; Aylward, A.; Bonford, B.; Sitek, P.; Haigh, J.; Prisinzano, L.; Soret, L.; Wawrzaszk, A.; Lammer, H.; Figueira, P.; Gianotti, F.; Readorn, K.; Tanga, P.; Israelian, G.; Gesa, L.; Peralta, J.; Gómez Leal, I.; Cassan, A.; Tecsa, M.; Tessenyi, M.; Pancrazzi, M.; Coates, A.; Gambicorti, L.; Gear, W.; Winter, B.; Piskunov, N.; Álvarez Iglesias, C. A.; Polichtchouk, I.; Altieri, F.; Ottensamer, R.; Watson, D.; Rezac, L.; Vandenbussche, B.; Waters, R.; Dorfi, E.; Morgante, G.; Pascale, E.; Hornstrup, A.; Snellen, Ignas; Lodieu, N.; Lellouch, E.; Espinoza Contreras, M.; Jarchow, C.; Agúndez, Marcelino; Filacchione, G.; Abreu, M.; Grassi, D.; Tingley, B. W.; Sánchez Lavega, Agustín; Tozzi, A.; Sanz Forcada, J.; Kipping, D.; Chamberlain, S.; Trifoglio, M.; Barstow, J. K.; Santos, Nuno C.; Gillon, M.; Hébrard, E.; Cecchi Pestellini, C.; Fossey, S.; García López, Ramón; Thrastarson, H.; Rees, J. M.; Selig, A.; Galand, M.; Jacquemoud, S.; Branduardi Raymont, Graziella; Rebordao, J. [0000-0002-7418-0345]; Kerschbaum, F. [0000-0001-6320-0980]; Abreu, M. [0000-0002-0716-9568]; Tabernero, H. [0000-0002-8087-4298]; López Puertas, M. [0000-0003-2941-7734]; Jacquemoud, S. [0000-0002-1500-5256]; Tennyson, J. [0000-0002-4994-5238]; Focardi, M. [0000-0002-3806-4283]; Leto, G. [0000-0002-0040-5011]; Lodieu, N. [0000-0002-3612-8968]; Tinetti, G. [0000-0001-6058-6654]; Danielski, C. [0000-0002-3729-2663]; Hornstrup, A. [0000-0002-3363-0936]; Kervella, P. [0000-0003-0626-1749]; Sánchez Bejar, V. [0000-0002-5086-4232]; López Heredero, R. [0000-0002-2197-8388]; Sanz Forcada, J. [0000-0002-1600-7835]; Rickman, H. [0000-0002-9603-6619]; Maggio, A. [0000-0001-5154-6108]; Medved, A. [0000-0003-2713-8977]; Tinetti, G. [0000-0001-6058-6654]; Fletcher, L. [0000-0001-5834-9588]; Haigh, J. [0000-0001-5504-4754]; Bakos, G. [0000-0001-7204-6727]; Stixrude, L. [0000-0003-3778-2432]; Amado, P. J. [0000-0002-8388-6040]; Martín Torres, J. [0000-0001-6479-2236]; Correira, A. [0000-0002-8946-8579]; Yurchenko, S. [0000-0001-9286-9501]; Rataj, M. [0000-0002-2978-9629]; Guedel, M. [0000-0001-9818-0588]; Piskunov, N. [0000-0001-5742-7767]; Filacchione, G. [0000-0001-9567-0055]; Adibekyan, V. [0000-0002-0601-6199]; Budaj, J. [0000-0002-9125-7340]; Poretti, E. [0000-0003-1200-0473]; Pascale, E. [0000-0002-3242-8154]; Claudi, R. [0000-0001-7707-5105]; Piccioni, G. [0000-0002-7893-6808]; Ribas, I. [0000-0002-6689-0312]; Sanroma, E. [0000-0001-8859-7937]; Agundez, M. [0000-0003-3248-3564]; Montes, D. [0000-0002-7779-238X]; Lognonne, P. [0000-0002-1014-920X]; Abreu, M. [0000-0002-0716-9568]; Montes, D. [0000-0002-7779-238X]; Morais, M. H. [0000-0001-5333-2736]; Tanga, P. [0000-0002-2718-997X]; Peralta, J. [0000-0002-6823-1695]; Hueso, R. [0000-0003-0169-123X]; Leto, G. [0000-0002-0040-5011]; Morales, J. C. [0000-0003-0061-518X]; Pérez Hoyos, S. [0000-0002-2587-4682]; Santos, N. [0000-0003-4422-2919]; Lithgow Bertelloni, C. [0000-0003-0924-6587]; Delgado, M. E. [0000-0003-4434-2195]; Barlow, M. [0000-0002-3875-1171]; Deeg, H. [0000-0003-0047-4241]; Bouy, H. [0000-0002-7084-487X[; Grassi, D. [0000-0003-1653-3066]; Figueira, P. [0000-0001-8504-283X]; Barton, E. [0000-0001-5945-9244]; Coates, A. [0000-0002-6185-3125]; García Ramón, J. [0000-0002-8204-6832]; Watson, D. [0000-0002-4465-8264]; Morales Calderon, M. [0000-0001-9526-9499]; Demangeon, O. [0000-0001-7918-0355]; Ray, T. [0000-0002-2110-1068]; Guio, P. [0000-0002-1607-5862]; Gillon, M. [0000-0003-1462-7739]; Bulgarelli, A. [0000-0001-6347-0649]; Prisinzano, L. [0000-0002-8893-2210]; Barstow, J. [0000-0003-3726-5419]; Pancrazzi, M. [0000-0002-3789-2482]; Barrado Navascues, D. [0000-0002-5971-9242]; Balado, A. [0000-0003-4268-2516]; Malaguti, G. [0000-0001-9872-3378]; Zapatero Osorio, M. R. [0000-0001-5664-2852]; Affer, L. [0000-0001-5600-3778]; Ciaravella, A. [0000-0002-3127-8078]; Guillot, T. [0000-0002-7188-8428]; Altieri, F. [0000-0002-6338-8300]; Covino, E. [0000-0002-6187-6685]; Venot, O. [0000-0003-2854-765X]; López Valverde, M. A. [0000-0002-7989-4267]; Cabral, A. [0000-0002-9433-871X]; Selsis, F. [0000-0001-9619-5356]; Turrini, D. [0000-0002-1923-7740]; Ward Thompson, D. [0000-0003-1140-2761]; Rebolo, R. [0000-0003-3767-7085]; Damasso, M. [0000-0001-9984-4278]; Tizzi, A. [0000-0002-6725-3825]; Morgante, G. [0000-0001-9234-7412]; Pena Ramírez, K. [0000-0002-5855-401X]; Galand, M. [0000-0001-5797-914X]; Pace, E. [0000-0001-5870-1772]; Pilat Lohinger, E. [0000-0002-5292-1923]; Sánchez Lavega, A. [0000-0001-7234-7634]; Waldmann, I. [0000-0002-4205-5267]; Claret, A. [0000-0002-4045-8134]; Olivia, E. [0000-0002-9123-0412]; Kovacs, G. [0000-0002-2365-2330]; Gómez, H. [0000-0003-3398-0052]; Monteiro, M. [0000-0001-5644-0898]; Bellucci, G. [0000-0003-0867-8679]; Baffa, C. [0000-0002-4935-100X]; Scholz, A. [0000-0001-8993-5053]; Bezard, B. [0000-0002-5433-5661]; Scuderi, Salvatore [0000-0002-8637-2109]; Hersant, F. [0000-0002-2687-7500]; Maldonado, J. [0000-0002-4282-1072]; Gear, W. [0000-0001-6789-6196]; Sousa, S. [0000-0001-9047-2965]; Irwin, P. [0000-0002-6772-384X]; Pinfield, D. [0000-0002-7804-4260]; Kipping, D. [0000-0002-4365-7366]; Ade, P. [0000-0002-5127-0401]; Vandenbussche, B. [0000-0002-1368-3109]; Burleigh, M. [0000-0003-0684-7803]; Chadney, J. [0000-0002-5174-2114]; Moro Martín, A. [0000-0001-9504-8426]; Scandariato, G. [0000-0003-2029-0626]; Rodríguez, P. [0000-0002-6855-9682]; Maldonado, J. [0000-0002-2218-5689]; Michaut, C. [0000-0002-2578-0117]; Pérez Hoyos, S. [0000-0001-9797-4917]
The discovery of almost two thousand exoplanets has revealed an unexpectedly diverse planet population. We see gas giants in few-day orbits, whole multi-planet systems within the orbit of Mercury, and new populations of planets with masses between that of the Earth and Neptune—all unknown in the Solar System. Observations to date have shown that our Solar System is certainly not representative of the general population of planets in our Milky Way. The key science questions that urgently need addressing are therefore: What are exoplanets made of? Why are planets as they are? How do planetary systems work and what causes the exceptional diversity observed as compared to the Solar System? The EChO (Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory) space mission was conceived to take up the challenge to explain this diversity in terms of formation, evolution, internal structure and planet and atmospheric composition. This requires in-depth spectroscopic knowledge of the atmospheres of a large and well-defined planet sample for which precise physical, chemical and dynamical information can be obtained. In order to fulfil this ambitious scientific program, EChO was designed as a dedicated survey mission for transit and eclipse spectroscopy capable of observing a large, diverse and well-defined planet sample within its 4-year mission lifetime. The transit and eclipse spectroscopy method, whereby the signal from the star and planet are differentiated using knowledge of the planetary ephemerides, allows us to measure atmospheric signals from the planet at levels of at least 10−4 relative to the star. This can only be achieved in conjunction with a carefully designed stable payload and satellite platform. It is also necessary to provide broad instantaneous wavelength coverage to detect as many molecular species as possible, to probe the thermal structure of the planetary atmospheres and to correct for the contaminating effects of the stellar photosphere. This requires wavelength coverage of at least 0.55 to 11 μm with a goal of covering from 0.4 to 16 μm. Only modest spectral resolving power is needed, with R ~ 300 for wavelengths less than 5 μm and R ~ 30 for wavelengths greater than this. The transit spectroscopy technique means that no spatial resolution is required. A telescope collecting area of about 1 m2 is sufficiently large to achieve the necessary spectro-photometric precision: for the Phase A study a 1.13 m2 telescope, diffraction limited at 3 μm has been adopted. Placing the satellite at L2 provides a cold and stable thermal environment as well as a large field of regard to allow efficient time-critical observation of targets randomly distributed over the sky. EChO has been conceived to achieve a single goal: exoplanet spectroscopy. The spectral coverage and signal-to-noise to be achieved by EChO, thanks to its high stability and dedicated design, would be a game changer by allowing atmospheric composition to be measured with unparalleled exactness: at least a factor 10 more precise and a factor 10 to 1000 more accurate than current observations. This would enable the detection of molecular abundances three orders of magnitude lower than currently possible and a fourfold increase from the handful of molecules detected to date. Combining these data with estimates of planetary bulk compositions from accurate measurements of their radii and masses would allow degeneracies associated with planetary interior modelling to be broken, giving unique insight into the interior structure and elemental abundances of these alien worlds. EChO would allow scientists to study exoplanets both as a population and as individuals. The mission can target super-Earths, Neptune-like, and Jupiter-like planets, in the very hot to temperate zones (planet temperatures of 300–3000 K) of F to M-type host stars. The EChO core science would be delivered by a three-tier survey. The EChO Chemical Census: This is a broad survey of a few-hundred exoplanets, which allows us to explore the spectroscopic and chemical diversity of the exoplanet population as a whole. The EChO Origin: This is a deep survey of a subsample of tens of exoplanets for which significantly higher signal to noise and spectral resolution spectra can be obtained to explain the origin of the exoplanet diversity (such as formation mechanisms, chemical processes, atmospheric escape). The EChO Rosetta Stones: This is an ultra-high accuracy survey targeting a subsample of select exoplanets. These will be the bright “benchmark” cases for which a large number of measurements would be taken to explore temporal variations, and to obtain two and three dimensional spatial information on the atmospheric conditions through eclipse-mapping techniques. If EChO were launched today, the exoplanets currently observed are sufficient to provide a large and diverse sample. The Chemical Census survey would consist of > 160 exoplanets with a range of planetary sizes, temperatures, orbital parameters and stellar host properties. Additionally, over the next 10 years, several new ground- and space-based transit photometric surveys and missions will come on-line (e.g. NGTS, CHEOPS, TESS, PLATO), which will specifically focus on finding bright, nearby systems. The current rapid rate of discovery would allow the target list to be further optimised in the years prior to EChO’s launch and enable the atmospheric characterisation of hundreds of planets.