The Hubble PanCET program: Long-term chromospheric evolution and flaring activity of the M dwarf host GJ 3470

Abstract

Neptune-size exoplanets seem particularly sensitive to atmospheric evaporation, making it essential to characterize the stellar high-energy radiation that drives this mechanism. This is particularly important with M dwarfs, which emit a large and variable fraction of their luminosity in the UV and can display strong flaring behavior. The warm Neptune GJ3470b, hosted by an M2 dwarf, was found to harbor a giant hydrogen exosphere thanks to 3 transits observed with the HST/STIS. Here we report on 3 additional transit observations from the PanCET program, obtained with the HST/COS. These data confirm the absorption signature from GJ3470b's exosphere in the stellar Ly-alpha line and demonstrate its stability over time. No planetary signatures are detected in other lines, setting a 3sigma limit on GJ3470b's FUV radius at 1.3x its Roche lobe radius. We detect 3 flares from GJ3470. They show different spectral energy distributions but peak consistently in the Si III line, which traces intermediate-temperature layers in the transition region. These layers appear to play a particular role in GJ3470's activity as emission lines that form at lower or higher temperatures than Si III evolved differently over the long term. Based on the measured emission lines, we derive synthetic XUV spectra for the 6 observed quiescent phases, covering one year, as well as for the 3 flaring episodes. Our results suggest that most of GJ3470's quiescent high-energy emission comes from the EUV domain, with flares amplifying the FUV emission more strongly. The hydrogen photoionization lifetimes and mass loss derived for GJ3470b show little variation over the epochs, in agreement with the stability of the exosphere. Simulations informed by our XUV spectra are required to understand the atmospheric structure and evolution of GJ3470b and the role played by evaporation in the formation of the hot-Neptune desert.