Transiting planets with the CoRoT space mission
Lead Research Organisation:
UNIVERSITY OF EXETER
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
In this Rolling Grant application, we describe an interdisciplinary programme of observational and theoretical research in extrasolar planets, to be conducted at the University of Exeter, through a new collaboration between the Astrophysics Group in the School of Physics and the Centre for Geophysical and Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics (CGAFD) in the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics (SECaM). The research programme combines state-of-the-art observations and theoretical calculations to detect, determine the properties of, and model the formation and evolution of extrasolar planets. We will perform three-dimensional self-gravitating radiation hydrodynamical simulations of gas accretion by a protoplanet core to form giant planets to produce more accurate models of young gas giant planets. We will directly image gas giant planets around young nearby stars using adaptive optics on the VLT and the Gemini Planet Imager and use these observations to test the models. We will undertake space-based observations of transiting planets using HST and Spitzer to understand the chemistry and dynamics of the atmospheres of giant planets that are very close to their stars and model these atmospheres using convective three-dimensional simulations. Finally, we will analyse the data from CoRoT, the first space-based transiting planet search mission, to detect and characterise planets of Neptune-mass and below and the systems they are part of, as well as search for light reflected by giant planets.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Suzanne Aigrain (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Sing David K.
(2016)
HST hot-Jupiter transmission spectral survey: from clear to cloudy exoplanets
in American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #227
Fischer Patrick D.
(2016)
HST hot-Jupiter transmission spectral survey: Clear skies for cool Saturn WASP-39b
in ArXiv e-prints
Fletcher Leigh N.
(2014)
Exploring the Diversity of Jupiter-Class Planets (Discussion Meeting Contribution)
in arXiv e-prints
Erikson A
(2012)
Planetary transit candidates in the CoRoT-SRc01 field
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Deleuil M
(2012)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XX. CoRoT-20b: A very high density, high eccentricity transiting giant planet
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Barros S
(2014)
Revisiting the transits of CoRoT-7b at a lower activity level
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Hebb L
(2010)
MML 53: a new low-mass, pre-main sequence eclipsing binary in the Upper Centaurus-Lupus region discovered by SuperWASP
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Parviainen H
(2014)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXV. CoRoT-27b: a massive and dense planet on a short-period orbit?
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Abe L
(2013)
The secondary eclipses of WASP-19b as seen by the ASTEP 400 telescope from Antarctica
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Cabrera J
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XIII. CoRoT-13b: a dense hot Jupiter in transit around a star with solar metallicity and super-solar lithium content
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Bonomo A
(2012)
Detection of Neptune-size planetary candidates with CoRoT data Comparison with the planet occurrence rate derived from Kepler
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Alonso R
(2014)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXVI. CoRoT-24: a transiting multiplanet system
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Gandolfi D
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XIV. CoRoT-11b: a transiting massive "hot-Jupiter" in a prograde orbit around a rapidly rotating F-type star?
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Ollivier M
(2012)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXII. CoRoT-16b: a hot Jupiter with a hint of eccentricity around a faint solar-like star???
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Rouan D
(2012)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XIX. CoRoT-23b: a dense hot Jupiter on an eccentric orbit
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Cabrera J
(2015)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXVII. CoRoT-28b, a planet orbiting an evolved star, and CoRoT-29b, a planet showing an asymmetric transit
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Pätzold M
(2012)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXIII. CoRoT-21b: a doomed large Jupiter around a faint subgiant star
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Lanza A
(2010)
Photospheric activity, rotation, and star-planet interaction of the planet-hosting star CoRoT-6
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Carone L
(2012)
Planetary transit candidates in the CoRoT LRa01 field
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Bouchy F
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XV. CoRoT-15b: a brown-dwarf transiting companion
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Almenara J
(2013)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXIV. CoRoT-25b and CoRoT-26b: two low-density giant planets
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Csizmadia S
(2015)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXVIII. CoRoT-33b, an object in the brown dwarf desert with 2:3 commensurability with its host star
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Csizmadia S
(2010)
Transit timing analysis of CoRoT-1b
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Lanza A
(2010)
Photospheric activity, rotation, and radial velocity variations of the planet-hosting star CoRoT-7
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Gillon M
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XII. CoRoT-12b: a short-period low-density planet transiting a solar analog star
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Alencar S
(2010)
Accretion dynamics and disk evolution in NGC 2264: a study based on CoRoT photometric observations
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Bouchy F.
(2011)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission: XV. CoRoT-15b: A brown-dwarf transiting companion
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Bordé P
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XI. CoRoT-8b: a hot and dense sub-Saturn around a K1 dwarf
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Gaulme P
(2010)
Possible detection of phase changes from the non-transiting planet HD 46375b by CoRoT
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Fridlund M
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission IX. CoRoT-6b: a transiting "hot Jupiter" planet in an 8.9d orbit around a low-metallicity star
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Crouzet N
(2010)
ASTEP South: an Antarctic Search for Transiting ExoPlanets around the celestial south pole
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Bonomo A
(2010)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission X. CoRoT-10b: a giant planet in a 13.24 day eccentric orbit
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Bonnefoy M
(2010)
Near-infrared integral-field spectra of the planet/brown dwarf companion AB Pictoris b
in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Cavarroc C
(2011)
Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission Resolving the nature of transit candidates for the LRa03 and SRa03 fields
in Astrophysics and Space Science
Aigrain Suzanne
(2012)
Probing the Physics of Planets and Stars with Transit Data
in IAU Symposium
Gibson N
(2012)
A Gaussian process framework for modelling instrumental systematics: application to transmission spectroscopy Gaussian processes for modelling systematics
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Moutou C
(2014)
CoRoT-22 b: a validated 4.9 R? exoplanet in 10-d orbit?†
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Gibson N
(2013)
The optical transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter HAT-P-32b: clouds explain the absence of broad spectral features?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Gibson N
(2012)
Probing the haze in the atmosphere of HD 189733b with Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 transmission spectroscopy WFC3 transmission spectroscopy of HD 189733b
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Aigrain S
(2012)
A simple method to estimate radial velocity variations due to stellar activity using photometry? Activity-induced RV variations from photometry
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Gibson N
(2013)
A Gemini ground-based transmission spectrum of WASP-29b: a featureless spectrum from 515 to 720 nm
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Sing D
(2015)
HST hot-Jupiter transmission spectral survey: detection of potassium in WASP-31b along with a cloud deck and Rayleigh scattering
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Evans T
(2015)
A uniform analysis of HD 209458b Spitzer/IRAC light curves with Gaussian process models
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pont F
(2013)
The prevalence of dust on the exoplanet HD 189733b from Hubble and Spitzer observations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Nikolov N
(2015)
HST hot-Jupiter transmission spectral survey: haze in the atmosphere of WASP-6b
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pont F
(2011)
Reassessing the radial-velocity evidence for planets around CoRoT-7 CoRoT-7 planet (s)
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pont F
(2010)
The spin-orbit angle of the transiting hot Jupiter CoRoT-1b? The spin-orbit angle of CoRoT-1
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Ofir A
(2010)
The SARS algorithm: detrending CoRoT light curves with Sysrem using simultaneous external parameters
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Gibson N
(2010)
Ground-based detection of thermal emission from the exoplanet WASP-19b
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Sing DK
(2016)
A continuum from clear to cloudy hot-Jupiter exoplanets without primordial water depletion.
in Nature
Description | This grant funded me and a PDRA for three years to work on the detection and characterisation of transiting planets, mainly using data from the CoRoT space mission, the Hubble Space Telescope and the Gemini telescopes. One of the main outcomes was the development of novel methods to model instrumental systematic effects and / or stellar variability using a technique known as Gaussian Process regression, which we introduced to the exoplanet community, and where it is now becoming widely used. |
Exploitation Route | The novel light curve analysis methods we developed are becoming widely used in the community. This work also contributed to establishing the prevalence of clouds in the atmospheres of numerous hot Jupiter planets, which is prompting renewed interest in modelling and understanding clouds in hot Jupiters and brown dwarfs. |
Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education |
Description | The main impact of this research beyond its immediate subject matter is educational: we were the first to apply Gaussian Process regression to exoplanet time-series data, and this has had a significant impact in the way in which researchers and students now approach the analysis of such datasets, including in other areas of astronomy that involve time-series or correlated datasets (e.g pulsar science and CMB cosmology) |
First Year Of Impact | 2012 |
Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education |