Teetering Stars: Resonant Excitation of Stellar Obliquities by Hot and Warm Jupiters with External Companions

Abstract

Stellar spin-orbit misalignments (obliquities) in hot Jupiter systems have been extensively probed. Such obliquities may reveal clues about hot Jupiter dynamical histories. Common explanations for generating obliquities include high-eccentricity migration and primordial disk misalignment. This paper investigates another mechanism for producing stellar spin-orbit misalignments in systems hosting a close-in planet with an external, modestly inclined companion. Spin-orbit misalignment may be excited due to a secular resonance, occurring when the precession rate of the stellar spin axis (driven by the inner planet) becomes comparable to the nodal precession rate of the inner planet (driven by the companion). Due to the spin-down of the host star via magnetic braking, this resonance may be achieved during the star's main-sequence lifetime for a wide range of planet masses and orbital architectures. Obliquity excitation is accompanied by a decrease in mutual inclination between the inner planet and perturber, and can thus erase high inclinations. For hot Jupiters, the stellar spin axis is strongly coupled to the orbital axis, and obliquity excitation by a giant planet companion requires a strong perturber, usually located within 1-2 AU. For warm Jupiters, the spin and orbital axes are more weakly coupled, and the resonance may be achieved for distant giant planet perturbers (at several to tens of AU). Since warm Jupiters have a high occurrence rate of distant planetary companions with appropriate properties for resonant obliquity excitation, stellar obliquities in warm Jupiter systems may be common, particularly for warm Jupiters orbiting cool stars that have undergone significant spin-down.