Transit Method to Detect

Exoplanets

Randeer Pratap Gautam

(email- randeer.gautam@studium.uni-hamburg.de)
Date: 20 January,2020
 Contents

1. Introduction

2. Limb Darkening and Time of Ingress

3. Deductions from Transit Light Curve

4. Kepler 186f

5.CoRot –Exo-4b

6. Kepler

7. Atmosphere of Transiting Planets

8. Demerits of Transit Photometry

9. Astrometry

10. References
 The Transit Method
• In 2000 two independent groups, Charbonneau et al. (2000) and Henry et al. (2000), reported
the first observation of the transit of the planet HD 209458b.
• Transit Method is the minute dimming of a star at regular intervals. The intensity of dimming of
the star reflects the size of exoplanet.
• Most effectively and Most widely used method for detection of Exo-Planet. Not just detecting
the size but also helpful in detecting the atmosphere of exoplanets.(Transmission Spectroscopy
and Secondary Transit Observation)
• Till Date, 1189 out of 1822 exoplanets have been confirmed by Transit Method.

Credits:https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~avanderb/tutorial/tutorial.html

Credits: https://arxiv.org/pdf/1805.02771.pdf
 Limb Darkening & Time of Ingress
Total Duration and Full Duration: (For radius of orbit):
• Also known as duration completely in ingress and in
egress.

Credits:http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1998
ASPC..134..216D

Limb Darkening:
• Roundness of bottom of light curve is Limb Darkening; Caused
due to non uniformity
• It strongly Depends on the wavelength and is stronger at
higher frequency.
• The Variation of Transit Depth with wavelength can also occur
due to the absorption of certain wavelength by the
atmosphere of exoplanets.
• Linear Limb Darkening Law:
𝑰(µ)
= (𝟏 − 𝒖)(𝟏 − µ)
𝑰(𝟏)
Credits: NASA
 Deductions from Light Curve
• Size of the exoplanet: 2
𝐹‫ ٭‬− 𝐹‫ ٭‬, 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡 ∆𝐹‫٭‬ 𝑅𝑝
= =
𝐹‫٭‬ 𝐹‫٭‬ 𝑅‫٭‬
• Since there is a dip of 0.6% and the radius of parent star is 𝑅‫= ٭‬2 𝑅o ⇒ 𝑅𝑝 =1.5(Radius of Jupiter).
• Combined with the data of Radial velocity, the density can be estimated too.
• The Radius of the Parent star(and other parameters) can be found spectroscopically or by Photometric
Calculations

Kepler Light Curve of HAT-P-7-b

Credits:https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~avanderb/tutorial/tutorial2.html
 Deductions from Transit Method
• Parameter known from Light Curve: ∆F [The depth of Transit], tT , tF
,(Duration of transit completely inside ingress and egress and P[Time
Period])
• The main parameters to be found are: Radius of Star( 𝑅‫ ;) ٭‬Radius of
Orbit(a);Stellar Mass( 𝑀‫ ;) ٭‬inclination Angle(i); Radius of Planet
orbiting(𝑅𝑝 ).

𝑴‫٭‬ 𝝆‫٭‬ 𝟏
• Stellar Mass: = (𝒌 𝟑
) 𝟏−𝟑𝒙 ; From 𝑅‫ ; 𝑥 ٭𝑀𝑘 = ٭‬k=1; x≈0.8( MS
𝑴𝒐 𝝆𝒐
Stars)
𝑅‫٭‬ 𝑀‫٭‬ 1 𝜌‫٭‬ 𝑥 Source for Images and Equations: https://arxiv.org/pdf/astro-ph/0206228.pdf
• Stellar Radius: = 𝑘( )𝑥 = (𝑘 𝑥 )1−3𝑥 ;
𝑅𝑜 𝑀𝑜 𝜌𝑜
𝑹𝒑 𝑹‫٭‬ 𝟏 𝝆‫٭‬ 𝒙
• Radius of Exo-Planet: = ∆𝑭 = (𝒌 𝒙 ) 𝟏−𝟑𝒙 ∆𝑭
𝑹𝒐 𝑹𝒐 𝝆𝒐

𝑅‫٭‬
• Angle of Inclination: 𝑖 = cos −1 (𝑏 ); b→ Impact Parameter
𝑎

3 𝑀𝑠𝑦𝑠 𝐺𝑇 2
• Orbit Radius: 𝑎 = ; From Kepler’s Third Law
4𝜋2
 Kepler-186f
• Habitable zone or Godilocks Zone: Not too hot nor too cold region around star where Liquid can exist.
• Kepler 186 is a M1 Type Dwarf Star, Radius 0.47Ro ⇒Planet to star radius ratio=0.021
• Kepler Planets(b-e) orbiting has radius<1.5Ro; 3.9days<T<22.4 days

Source for all Images: https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1404/1404.5667.pdf

 CoRoT-Exo-4b
• Stands out as this exoplanet is the first exoplanet whose host star appears to rotate in sync
with the planet’s orbit. Similarity in orbital period of exoplanet and rotation period of Star.

HJD is the Heliocentric Julian Day

Image and Table Credits: https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/pdf/2008/35/aa10246-08.pdf;
https://sci.esa.int/web/corot/-/43160-corot-exoplanet-stands-out-from-the-crowd

CoRoT-Exo-4b
Mass (Jupiter masses) 0.72 (±0.08) Parent Star:
CoRoT-Exo-4
Radius (Jupiter radii) 1.10 (+0.06/-0.05) Mass (solar masses) 1.16 (+0.03/-0.02)
Orbital period (days) 9.20205 (±0.00037) Radius (solar radii) 1.17 (+0.01/-0.03)
0.525 (±0.15) Rotation period (days) 8.87 (±1.12)
Density (g/cm³)
Age (Gyr) 1 (+1.0/-0.3)
i( ◦) 90.000
Effective Temperature
6190 (±60)
Rp/Rs 0.1047+0.0041 (Teff)
−0.0022 Surface gravity (log g) 4.41 (± 0.05)
 Major Projects(Kepler)
• Launched in 2008 and as of 2013 has detected
2700 exoplanet candidates.
Kepler’s field of view,
• Kepler is a photometer coupled to a Schmidt near the Cygnus
telescope, equipped with a 1.4 m primary constellation and slightly
mirror, and has a Field Of View of 105◦ × 105◦. above the galactic plane.
Image Source:
• It operates by pointing its photometer https://www.imprshd.mpg.de
/73443/thesis_Ciceri.pdf
continuously on a single field and simultaneously
monitor 100,000 stars for 3.5 years.
• Magnitude range of these stars was V = 9–16
mag
• The only instrument installed on the spacecraft
is an array of 42 back-side illuminated CCDs,
each composed by 2200 × 1024 27 µm pixels
K2-Mission:
• In 2013, after failure of 2 reaction wheel for
pointing stability
• Number of Pulsating stars and brown Dwarfs
were detected

Image Source: NASA.gov

 Atmosphere of a Transiting Planet
Primary Transit:
• The starlight passing through the planet’s atmosphere is refracted,
diffused, absorbed or transmitted to different degrees at different
wavelengths.
• Different Transit Depths at different wavelengths.
• The variation of Radius of an Exoplanet at different wavelengths due
to its atmosphere is:
2
𝑅𝑝 +10𝐻 𝑅𝑝 2
δ≅ −( ) ; where 𝐻 = 𝑆𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒 𝐻𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡
𝑅‫٭‬ 𝑅‫٭‬
𝑘𝑇(𝑇𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑡)
= Planetary Transit of HD 209458b
µg
Credits:https://www.imprs-hd.mpg.de/73443/thesis_Ciceri.pdf
• Planets with large Scale Height are more preferred; Typical Hot Jupiter
δ ~0.01%; Observed Spectra are compared to atmosphere models.
• Examples: HD 189733 b where water absorption features were detected
or the presence of potassium in XO-2 b
Secondary Eclipse:
• Preferred near IR measurement: High Contrast of Planet-Star and
Minimum Limp Darkening.
• Observed when the planet goes behind the Parent Star.
• Additionally, Temperature of planet measured from Dayside
Reflection from Planet. Kepler Light Curve of HAT-P-7-b
Credits:https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~avanderb/tutorial/tutorial2.html
 Demerits of Transit Photometry
• The Major Drawback in this method is there should always be a Transit for Detection.
• False Positives: A transit can be mistaken with pulsations of Red Giant Branch Stars or a Binary Star
System
• Some exoplanets have too large orbital revolving time to confirm a planetary transit.

Scheme of common false positives: (a) grazing binaries, (b) statistical

Source: The Transit Method for Exoplanet Detection[ Kennedy Izuagbe Jr].
false positive or photometric variation, (c) binaries with a small
companion, (d) binaries with a blended third star
Source: https://www.imprs-hd.mpg.de/73443/thesis_Ciceri.pdf
 Astrometry
• The presence of one or more objects (other stars or planets)
orbiting a star perturbs its motion.
• This perturbation is reflected in the positions, which do not quite
match a pure stellar motion described with parallax and proper
motion. ⇒ “Independent of any edge on motion”
• Infact more face-on more precise measurement.
• ESA's Gaia mission is observing more than one billion stars over
five years.
• Assuming the stellar orbit(due to wobbling) as ellipse, Angular
Semi Major Axis(in arcsecs) is:
Perturbation orbit for εEri from the paper by
Benedict et al. (2006)

• Objectives of Gaia Mission:

➢ The two-dimensional position of the star on the plane of the sky
at a reference time,
➢ The two-dimensional proper motion (the projection on the sky
of the star's true motion through the Galaxy),
➢ The parallax (the annual shift of the star's apparent position due
to Earth's motion around the Sun).
• VB-10b is the first officially declared exoplanet by Astrometry. The wobble of the Sun on the plane of the sky, if it were
viewed face on from 30 light years distance (Jones 2008)
Source: https://arxiv.org/pdf/1810.08513.pdf
Credits: NASA.gov
 References
• https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~avanderb/tutorial/tutorial2.html
• https://arxiv.org/pdf/1805.02771.pdf
• https://arxiv.org/pdf/astro-ph/0206228.pdf
• https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1404/1404.5667.pdf
• The Transit Method for Exoplanet Detection Kennedy Izuagbe Jr.
• https://www.imprs-hd.mpg.de/73443/thesis_Ciceri.pdf
• https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1803/1803.05565.pdf
• https://arxiv.org/pdf/1810.08513.pdf
• https://sci.esa.int/web/corot/-/43160-corot-exoplanet-stands-out-from-the-crowd
• https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/pdf/2008/35/aa10246-08.pdf
• https://www.planetary.org/
• https://arxiv.org/pdf/astro-ph/0206228.pdf
Danke Schön!
Questions?