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A He I upper atmosphere around the warm Neptune GJ 3470 b

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 plane...

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Main Authors: Pallé, Enric (Author) , Nortmann, L. (Author) , Casasayas-Barris, N. (Author) , Lampon, M. (Author) , Lopez-Puertas, M. (Author) , Caballero, J. A. (Author) , Sanz-Forcada, J. (Author) , Lara, L. M. (Author) , Nagel, E. (Author) , Yan, F. (Author) , Alonso-Floriano, F. J. (Author) , Amado, P. J. (Author) , Chen, G. (Author) , Cifuentes, C. (Author) , Cortes-Contreras, M. (Author) , Czesla, S. (Author) , Molaverdikhani, K. (Author) , Montes, D. (Author) , Passegger, V. M. (Author) , Quirrenbach, Andreas (Author) , Reiners, A. (Author) , Ribas, I. (Author) , Sanchez-Lopez, A. (Author) , Schweitzer, A. (Author) , Stangret, M. (Author) , Zapatero Osorio, M. R. (Author) , Zechmeister, M. (Author)
Format: Article (Journal)
Language:English
Published: 11 June 2020
In: Astronomy and astrophysics
Year: 2020, Volume: 638
ISSN:1432-0746
DOI:10.1051/0004-6361/202037719
Online Access:Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202037719
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Author Notes:E. Palle, L. Nortmann, N. Casasayas-Barris, M. Lampon, M. Lopez-Puertas, J. A. Caballero, J. Sanz-Forcada, L. M. Lara, E. Nagel, F. Yan, F. J. Alonso-Floriano, P. J. Amado, G. Chen, C. Cifuentes, M. Cortes-Contreras, S. Czesla, K. Molaverdikhani, D. Montes, V. M. Passegger, A. Quirrenbach, A. Reiners, I. Ribas, A. Sanchez-Lopez, A. Schweitzer, M. Stangret, M. R. Zapatero Osorio, and M. Zechmeister
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Summary: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 aR(p)(lambda)/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, (M) over dot, is confined to a range of 3 x 10(10)g s(-1)forT= 6000 K to 10 x 10(10)g s(-1)forT= 9000 K. We discuss the physical mechanisms and implications of the HeIdetection 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.
Item Description:Gesehen am 16.04.2021
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:1432-0746
DOI:10.1051/0004-6361/202037719

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