Twin High-Resolution, High-Speed Imagers for the Gemini Telescopes: Instrument Description and Science Verification Results

Scott, Nicholas J.; Howell, Steve B.; Gnilka, Crystal L.; Stephens, Andrew W.; Salinas, R.; Matson, Rachel A.; Furlan, Elise; Horch, Elliott; Everett, Mark E.; Ciardi, David R.; Mills, Dave; Quigley, Emmett

doi:10.3389/fspas.2021.716560

Cited by 105 publications

(78 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…We employed the NN-EXPLORE Exoplanet and Stellar Speckle Imager (NESSI; ) at the 3.5 m WIYN telescope, the Differential Speckle Survey Instrument (DSSI; Horch et al 2009) at the 4.3 m Lowell Discovery Telescope (LDT), and the 'Alopeke Scott et al 2021) and Zorro (Scott 2019;Scott et al 2021) speckle imagers at the 8.1 m Gemini North and Gemini South telescopes to carry out our speckle observations of M-dwarf TOIs. NESSI, DSSI, 'Alopeke, and Zorro are similar dual-channel imagers that use a dichroic filter to split the collimated beam at ∼700 nm into two channels, which are then imaged on separate high-speed readout EMCCDs.…”

Section: Observational Routinementioning

confidence: 99%

A Dearth of Close-in Stellar Companions to M-dwarf TESS Objects of Interest

Clark¹,

Belle²,

Ciardi³

et al. 2022

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TESS has proven to be a powerful resource for finding planets, including those that orbit the most prevalent stars in our galaxy: M dwarfs. Identification of stellar companions (both bound and unbound) has become a standard component of the transiting planet confirmation process in order to assess the level of light-curve dilution and the possibility of the target being a false positive. Studies of stellar companions have also enabled investigations into stellar multiplicity in planet-hosting systems, which has wide-ranging implications for both exoplanet detection and characterization, as well as for the formation and evolution of planetary systems. Speckle and AO imaging are some of the most efficient and effective tools for revealing close-in stellar companions; we therefore present observations of 58 M-dwarf TOIs obtained using a suite of speckle imagers at the 3.5 m WIYN telescope, the 4.3 m Lowell Discovery Telescope, and the 8.1 m Gemini North and South telescopes. These observations, as well as near-infrared adaptive optics images obtained for a subset (14) of these TOIs, revealed only two close-in stellar companions. Upon surveying the literature, and cross-matching our sample with Gaia, SUPERWIDE, and the catalog from El-Badry et al., we reveal an additional 15 widely separated common proper motion companions. We also evaluate the potential for undetected close-in companions. Taking into consideration the sensitivity of the observations, our findings suggest that the orbital period distribution of stellar companions to planet-hosting M dwarfs is shifted to longer periods compared to the expected distribution for field M dwarfs.

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Section: Observational Routinementioning

confidence: 99%

A Dearth of Close-in Stellar Companions to M-dwarf TESS Objects of Interest

Clark¹,

Belle²,

Ciardi³

et al. 2022

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“…We observed TOI-2236 and TOI-2567 with the Zorro and 'Alopeke imaging instruments on the Gemini-South and Gemini-North telescopes, respectively (Scott & Howell 2018;Scott et al 2021). No companions were detected in either set of observations, down to the instrumental detection limits.…”

Section: High-resolution Imagingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The TESS Grand Unified Hot Jupiter Survey. I. Ten TESS Planets

Yee

Winn

Hartman

et al. 2022

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Hot Jupiters—short-period giant planets—were the first extrasolar planets to be discovered, but many questions about their origin remain. NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an all-sky search for transiting planets, presents an opportunity to address these questions by constructing a uniform sample of hot Jupiters for demographic study through new detections and unifying the work of previous ground-based transit surveys. As the first results of an effort to build this large sample of planets, we report here the discovery of 10 new hot Jupiters (TOI-2193A b, TOI-2207b, TOI-2236b, TOI-2421b, TOI-2567b, TOI-2570b, TOI-3331b, TOI-3540A b, TOI-3693b, TOI-4137b). All of the planets were identified as planet candidates based on periodic flux dips observed by TESS, and were subsequently confirmed using ground-based time-series photometry, high-angular-resolution imaging, and high-resolution spectroscopy coordinated with the TESS Follow-up Observing Program. The 10 newly discovered planets orbit relatively bright F and G stars (G < 12.5, T eff between 4800 and 6200 K). The planets’ orbital periods range from 2 to 10 days, and their masses range from 0.2 to 2.2 Jupiter masses. TOI-2421b is notable for being a Saturn-mass planet and TOI-2567b for being a “sub-Saturn,” with masses of 0.322 ± 0.073 and 0.195 ± 0.030 Jupiter masses, respectively. We also measured a detectably eccentric orbit (e = 0.17 ± 0.05) for TOI-2207b, a planet on an 8 day orbit, while placing an upper limit of e < 0.052 for TOI-3693b, which has a 9 day orbital period. The 10 planets described here represent an important step toward using TESS to create a large and statistically useful sample of hot Jupiters.

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“…Thus, to search for close-in companions unresolved in TESS or other ground-based followup observations, we obtained high-resolution imaging observations of TOI-1246. TOI-1246 was observed on 2021 June 25 UT using the 'Alopeke speckle instrument on the Gemini North 8 m telescope (Scott et al 2021). 'Alopeke provides simultaneous speckle imaging in two bands (562 nm and 832 nm) and produced a reconstructed image with robust contrast limits on companion detections (e.g., Howell et al 2016).…”

Section: Speckle and Lucky Observationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The TESS-Keck Survey. XI. Mass Measurements for Four Transiting Sub-Neptunes Orbiting K Dwarf TOI–1246

Turtelboom

Weiss

Dressing

et al. 2022

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Multiplanet systems are valuable arenas for investigating exoplanet architectures and comparing planetary siblings. TOI-1246 is one such system, with a moderately bright K dwarf (V = 11.6, K = 9.9) and four transiting sub-Neptunes identified by TESS with orbital periods of 4.31, 5.90, 18.66, and 37.92 days. We collected 130 radial velocity observations with Keck/HIRES and TNG/HARPS-N to measure planet masses. We refit the 14 sectors of TESS photometry to refine planet radii (2.97 ± 0.06 R ⊕, 2.47 ± 0.08 R ⊕, 3.46 ± 0.09 R ⊕, and 3.72 ± 0.16 R ⊕) and confirm the four planets. We find that TOI-1246 e is substantially more massive than the three inner planets (8.1 ± 1.1 M ⊕, 8.8 ± 1.2 M ⊕, 5.3 ± 1.7 M ⊕, and 14.8 ± 2.3 M ⊕). The two outer planets, TOI-1246 d and TOI-1246 e, lie near to the 2:1 resonance (P e/P d = 2.03) and exhibit transit-timing variations. TOI-1246 is one of the brightest four-planet systems, making it amenable for continued observations. It is one of only five systems with measured masses and radii for all four transiting planets. The planet densities range from 0.70 ± 0.24 to 3.21 ± 0.44 g cm−3, implying a range of bulk and atmospheric compositions. We also report a fifth planet candidate found in the RV data with a minimum mass of 25.6 ± 3.6 M ⊕. This planet candidate is exterior to TOI-1246 e, with a candidate period of 93.8 days, and we discuss the implications if it is confirmed to be planetary in nature.

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Twin High-Resolution, High-Speed Imagers for the Gemini Telescopes: Instrument Description and Science Verification Results

Cited by 105 publications

References 31 publications

A Dearth of Close-in Stellar Companions to M-dwarf TESS Objects of Interest

A Dearth of Close-in Stellar Companions to M-dwarf TESS Objects of Interest

The TESS Grand Unified Hot Jupiter Survey. I. Ten TESS Planets

The TESS-Keck Survey. XI. Mass Measurements for Four Transiting Sub-Neptunes Orbiting K Dwarf TOI–1246

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