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Aline A. Vidotto

Publications and source records attributed to Aline A. Vidotto.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Non-Detections of Helium in the Young Sub-Jovian Planets K2-100b, HD 63433b, & V1298 Tau c

We search for excess in-transit absorption of neutral helium at 1.083 $μ$m in the atmospheres of the young (<800 Myr) sub-Jovian (0.2-0.5 $\rm R_{J}$) planets HD 63433b, K2-100b, and V1298 Tau c using high-resolution (R~25,000) transit observations taken with Keck II/NIRSPEC. Our observations do not show evidence of helium absorption for any of the planets in our sample. We calculate 3$σ$ upper limits on the planets' excess helium absorption of <0.47% for HD 63433b, <0.56% for K2-100b, and <1.13% for V1298 Tau c. In terms of equivalent width, we constrain these to <2.52, <4.44, and <8.49 mA for HD 63433b, K2-100b, and V1298 Tau c, respectively. We fit our transmission spectra with one-dimensional Parker wind models to determine upper limits on the planets' mass-loss rates of <7.9$\times10^{10}$, <1.25$\times10^{11}$, and <$7.9\times10^{11}$g s$^{-1}$. Our non-detections align with expectations from one-dimensional hydrodynamic escape models, magnetic fields, and stellar wind confinement. The upper limits we measure for these planets are consistent with predicted trends in system age and He equivalent width from 1D hydrodynamic models.

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Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment Near-Ultraviolet Transmission Spectroscopy of the Ultra-hot Jupiter KELT-9b

We present new near-ultraviolet (NUV, $λ$ = 2479 $-$ 3306 $Å$) transmission spectroscopy of KELT-9b, the hottest known exoplanet, obtained with the Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment ($CUTE$) CubeSat. Two transits were observed on September 28th and September 29th 2022, referred to as Visits 1 and 2 respectively. Using a combined transit and systematics model for each visit, the best-fit broadband NUV light curves are R$_{\text{p}}$/R$_{\star}$ $=$ 0.136$_{0.0146}^{0.0125}$ for Visit 1 and R$_{\text{p}}$/R$_{\star}$ $=$ 0.111$_{0.0190}^{0.0162}$ for Visit 2, appearing an average of 1.54$\times$ larger in the NUV than at optical wavelengths. While the systematics between the two visits vary considerably, the two broadband NUV light curves are consistent with each other. A transmission spectrum with 25 $Å$ bins suggests a general trend of excess absorption in the NUV, consistent with expectations for ultra-hot Jupiters. Although we see an extended atmosphere in the NUV, the reduced data lack the sensitivity to probe individual spectral lines.

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Multiwavelength Campaign Observations of a Young Solar-type Star, EK Draconis. I. Discovery of Prominence Eruptions Associated with Superflares

Young solar-type stars frequently produce superflares, serving as a unique window into the young Sun-Earth environments. Large solar flares are closely linked to coronal mass ejections (CMEs) associated with filament/prominence eruptions, but its observational evidence for stellar superflares remains scarce. Here, we present a 12-day multi-wavelength campaign observation of young solar-type star EK Draconis (G1.5V, 50-120 Myr age) utilizing TESS, NICER, and Seimei telescope. The star has previously exhibited blueshifted H$α$ absorptions as evidence for a filament eruption associated with a superflare. Our simultaneous optical and X-ray observations identified three superflares of $1.5\times10^{33}$ -- $1.2\times10^{34}$ erg. We report the first discovery of two prominence eruptions on a solar-type star, observed as blueshifted H$α$ emissions at speed of 690 and 430 km s$^{-1}$ and masses of $1.1\times10^{19}$ and $3.2\times10^{17}$ g, respectively. The faster, massive event shows a candidate of post-flare X-ray dimming with the amplitude of up to $\sim$10 \%. Several observational aspects consistently point to the occurrence of a fast CME associated with this event. The comparative analysis of the estimated length scales of flare loops, prominences, possible dimming region, and starspots provides the overall picture of the eruptive phenomena. Furthermore, the energy partition of the observed superflares in the optical and X-ray bands is consistent with flares from the Sun, M-dwarfs, and close binaries, yielding the unified empirical relations. These discoveries provide profound implications of impact of these eruptive events on the early Venus, Earth and Mars and young exoplanets.

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Asteroseismology and Spectropolarimetry of the Exoplanet Host Star $λ$ Serpentis

The bright star $λ$ Ser hosts a hot Neptune with a minimum mass of 13.6 $M_\oplus$ and a 15.5 day orbit. It also appears to be a solar analog, with a mean rotation period of 25.8 days and surface differential rotation very similar to the Sun. We aim to characterize the fundamental properties of this system, and to constrain the evolutionary pathway that led to its present configuration. We detect solar-like oscillations in time series photometry from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), and we derive precise asteroseismic properties from detailed modeling. We obtain new spectropolarimetric data, and we use them to reconstruct the large-scale magnetic field morphology. We reanalyze the complete time series of chromospheric activity measurements from the Mount Wilson Observatory, and we present new X-ray and ultraviolet observations from the Chandra and Hubble space telescopes. Finally, we use the updated observational constraints to assess the rotational history of the star and to estimate the wind braking torque. We conclude that the remaining uncertainty on stellar age currently prevents an unambiguous interpretation of the properties of $λ$ Ser, and that the rate of angular momentum loss appears to be higher than for other stars with similar Rossby number. Future asteroseismic observations may help to improve the precision of the stellar age.

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Characterising a World Within the Hot Neptune Desert: Transit Observations of LTT 9779 b with HST WFC3

We present an atmospheric analysis of LTT 9779 b, a rare planet situated in the hot Neptune desert, that has been observed with HST WFC3 G102 and G141. The combined transmission spectrum, which covers 0.8 - 1.6 $μ$m, shows a gradual increase in transit depth with wavelength. Our preferred atmospheric model shows evidence for H$_{\rm 2}$O, CO$_{\rm 2}$ and FeH with a significance of 3.1 $σ$, 2.4 $σ$ and 2.1 $σ$, respectively. In an attempt to constrain the rate of atmospheric escape for this planet, we search for the 1.083 $μ$m Helium line in the G102 data but find no evidence of excess absorption that would indicate an escaping atmosphere using this tracer. We refine the orbital ephemerides of LTT 9779 b using our HST data and observations from TESS, searching for evidence of orbital decay or apsidal precession, which is not found. The phase-curve observation of LTT 9779 b with JWST NIRISS should provide deeper insights into the atmosphere of this planet and the expected atmospheric escape might be detected with further observations concentrated on other tracers such as Lyman $α$.

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The winds of young Solar-type stars in the Pleiades, AB Doradus, Columba and $β$ Pictoris

Solar-type stars, which shed angular momentum via magnetised stellar winds, enter the main sequence with a wide range of rotational periods $P_\text{rot}$. This initially wide range of rotational periods contracts and has mostly vanished by a stellar age $t\sim0.6$ Gyr, after which Solar-type stars spin according to the Skumanich relation $P_\text{rot}\propto\sqrt t$. Magnetohydrodynamic stellar wind models can improve our understanding of this convergence of rotation periods. We present wind models of fifteen young Solar-type stars aged from 24 Myr to 0.13 Gyr. With our previous wind models of stars aged 0.26 Gyr and 0.6 Gyr we obtain thirty consistent three-dimensional wind models of stars mapped with Zeeman-Doppler imaging - the largest such set to date. The models provide good cover of the pre-Skumanich phase of stellar spin-down in terms of rotation, magnetic field, and age. We find that the mass loss rate $\dot M\proptoΦ^{0.9\pm0.1}$ with a residual spread of 150% and that the wind angular momentum loss rate $\dot J\propto{}P_\text{rot}^{-1} Φ^{1.3\pm0.2}$ with a residual spread of 500% where $Φ$ is the unsigned surface magnetic flux. When comparing different magnetic field scalings for each single star we find a gradual reduction in the power-law exponent with increasing magnetic field strength.

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Constraints on Magnetic Braking from the G8 Dwarf Stars 61 UMa and $τ$ Cet

During the first half of their main-sequence lifetimes, stars rapidly lose angular momentum to their magnetized winds, a process known as magnetic braking. Recent observations suggest a substantial decrease in the magnetic braking efficiency when stars reach a critical value of the Rossby number, the stellar rotation period normalized by the convective overturn timescale. Cooler stars have deeper convection zones with longer overturn times, reaching this critical Rossby number at slower rotation rates. The nature and timing of the transition to weakened magnetic braking has previously been constrained by several solar analogs and two slightly hotter stars. In this Letter, we derive the first direct constraints from stars cooler than the Sun. We present new spectropolarimetry of the old G8 dwarf $τ$ Cet from the Large Binocular Telescope, and we reanalyze a published Zeeman Doppler image of the younger G8 star 61 UMa, yielding the large-scale magnetic field strengths and morphologies. We estimate mass-loss rates using archival X-ray observations and inferences from Ly$α$ measurements, and we adopt other stellar properties from asteroseismology and spectral energy distribution fitting. The resulting calculations of the wind braking torque demonstrate that the rate of angular momentum loss drops by a factor of 300 between the ages of these two stars (1.4-9 Gyr), well above theoretical expectations. We summarize the available data to help constrain the value of the critical Rossby number, and we identify a new signature of the long-period detection edge in recent measurements from the Kepler mission.

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The Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment (CUTE) Mission Overview

Atmospheric escape is a fundamental process that affects the structure, composition, and evolution of many planets. The signatures of escape are detectable on close-in, gaseous exoplanets orbiting bright stars, owing to the high levels of extreme-ultraviolet irradiation from their parent stars. The Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment (CUTE) is a CubeSat mission designed to take advantage of the near-ultraviolet stellar brightness distribution to conduct a survey of the extended atmospheres of nearby close-in planets. The CUTE payload is a magnifying NUV (2479~--~3306 Ang) spectrograph fed by a rectangular Cassegrain telescope (206mm x 84mm); the spectrogram is recorded on a back-illuminated, UV-enhanced CCD. The science payload is integrated into a 6U Blue Canyon Technology XB1 bus. CUTE was launched into a polar, low-Earth orbit on 27 September 2021 and has been conducting this transit spectroscopy survey following an on-orbit commissioning period. This paper presents the mission motivation, development path, and demonstrates the potential for small satellites to conduct this type of science by presenting initial on-orbit science observations. The primary science mission is being conducted in 2022~--~2023, with a publicly available data archive coming on line in 2023.

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Radio masers on WX UMa: hints of a Neptune-sized planet, or magnetospheric reconnection?

The nearby M dwarf WX UMa has recently been detected at radio wavelengths with LOFAR. The combination of its observed brightness temperature and circular polarisation fraction suggests that the emission is generated via the electron-cyclotron maser instability. Two distinct mechanisms have been proposed to power such emission from low-mass stars: either a sub-Alfvénic interaction between the stellar magnetic field and an orbiting planet, or reconnection at the edge of the stellar magnetosphere. In this paper, we investigate the feasibility of both mechanisms, utilising the information about the star's surrounding plasma environment obtained from modelling its stellar wind. Using this information, we show that a Neptune-sized exoplanet with a magnetic field strength of 10-100 G orbiting at ~0.034 au can accurately reproduce the observed radio emission from the star, with corresponding orbital periods of 7.4 days. Due to the stellar inclination, a planet in an equatorial orbit is unlikely to transit the star. While such a planet could induce radial velocity semi-amplitudes from 7 to 396 m s$^{-1}$, it is unlikely that this signal could be detected with current techniques due to the activity of the host star. The application of our planet-induced radio emission model here illustrates its exciting potential as a new tool for identifying planet-hosting candidates from long-term radio monitoring. We also develop a model to investigate the reconnection-powered emission scenario. While this approach produces less favourable results than the planet-induced scenario, it nevertheless serves as a potential alternative emission mechanism which is worth exploring further.

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One year of AU Mic with HARPS: II -- stellar activity and star-planet interaction

We present a spectroscopic analysis of a 1-year intensive monitoring campaign of the 22-Myr old planet-hosting M dwarf AU Mic using the HARPS spectrograph. In a companion paper, we reported detections of the planet radial velocity (RV) signatures of the two close-in transiting planets of the system, with respective semi-amplitudes of 5.8 $\pm$ 2.5 m/s and 8.5 $\pm$ 2.5 m/s for AU Mic b and AU Mic c. Here, we perform an independent measurement of the RV semi-amplitude of AU Mic c using Doppler imaging to simultaneously model the activity-induced distortions and the planet-induced shifts in the line profiles. The resulting semi-amplitude of 13.3 $\pm$ 4.1 m/s for AU Mic c reinforces the idea that the planet features a surprisingly large inner density, in tension with current standard models of core accretion. Our brightness maps feature significantly higher spot coverage and lower level of differential rotation than the brightness maps obtained in late 2019 with the SPIRou spectropolarimeter, suggesting that the stellar magnetic activity has evolved dramatically over a $\sim$1-yr time span. Additionally, we report a 3-$σ$ detection of a modulation at 8.33 $\pm$ 0.04 d of the He I D3 (587.562 nm) emission flux, close to the 8.46-d orbital period of AU Mic b. The power of this emission (a few 10$^{17}$ W) is consistent with 3D magnetohydrodynamical simulations of the interaction between stellar wind and the close-in planet if the latter hosts a magnetic field of $\sim$10 G. Spectropolarimetric observations of the star are needed to firmly elucidate the origin of the observed chromospheric variability.

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p-winds: an open-source Python code to model planetary outflows and upper atmospheres

Atmospheric escape is considered to be one of the main channels for evolution in sub-Jovian planets, particularly in their early lives. While there are several hypotheses proposed to explain escape in exoplanets, testing them with atmospheric observations remains a challenge. In this context, high-resolution transmission spectroscopy of transiting exoplanets for the metastable helium triplet (He 2$^3$S) at $1\,083$ nm has emerged as a reliable technique to observe and measure escape. To aid in the prediction and interpretation of metastable He transmission spectroscopy observations, we developed the code p-winds. This is an open-source, fully documented, scalable Python implementation of the one-dimensional, purely H+He Parker wind model for upper atmospheres coupled with ionization balance, ray-tracing, and radiative transfer routines. We demonstrate an atmospheric retrieval by fitting p-winds models to the observed metastable He transmission spectrum of the warm Neptune HAT-P-11 b, and take into account the variation of the in-transit absorption caused by transit geometry. For this planet, our best fit yields a total atmospheric escape rate of approximately $2.5 \times 10^{10}$ g s$^{-1}$ and wind temperature of $7200$ K. The range of retrieved mass loss rates increases significantly when we let the H atom fraction be a free parameter, but the posterior distribution of the latter remains unconstrained by He observations alone. The stellar host limb darkening does not have a significant impact in the retrieved escape rate or outflow temperature for HAT-P-11 b. Based on the non-detection of escaping He for GJ 436 b, we are able to rule out total escape rates higher than $3.4 \times 10^{10}$ g s$^{-1}$ at 99.7% (3$σ$) confidence.

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Atmospheric mass loss and stellar wind effects in young and old systems I: comparative 3D study of TOI-942 and TOI-421 systems

At young ages, when radiation from the host star is high, and the planet is hot and inflated after formation, planetary atmospheric mass loss can be extremely strong compared to older planets. In turn, stellar winds are faster and denser for young stars compared to evolved main-sequence stars. Their interaction with escaping planetary atmospheres can substantially affect atmospheric mass loss rates, as well as the observable signatures of escaping atmospheres, with both effects expected to occur differently for young and evolved planets. We perform a comparative study of two systems around stars of similar masses but very different ages (50~Myr and 9~Gyr): TOI-942 and TOI-421. Both stars host two sub-Neptune-like planets at similar orbits and in similar mass ranges, which allows a direct comparison of the atmospheric escape and interactions with the stellar winds in the young and old systems. We perform the 3D atmospheric modeling of the four planets in TOI-942 and TOI-421 systems and make the theoretical predictions of possible observational signatures in Ly-alpha absorption. We find that accounting for the stellar wind interacting with planetary atmospheres is crucial for the interpretation of the observations for young planets. Additionally, we show that a particular energy distribution along the XUV spectra has a minor effect on the atmospheric mass-loss rates, but it is of crucial importance for modeling the Ly-alpha absorption and therefore for interpretation of observations.

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Atmospheric mass loss and stellar wind effects in young and old systems II: Is TOI-942 the past of TOI-421 system?

The two planetary systems TOI-942 and TOI-421 share many similar characteristics, apart from their ages (50~Myr and 9~Gyr). Each of the stars hosts two sub-Neptune-like planets at similar orbits and in similar mass ranges. In this paper, we aim to investigate whether the similarity of the host stars and the configuration of the planetary systems can be taken as proof that the two systems were formed and evolved in a similar way. In paper I of this series, we performed a comparative study of these two systems using 3D modeling of atmospheric escape and its interaction with the stellar wind, for the four planets. We demonstrated that though the strong wind of the young star has a crucial effect on observable signatures, its effect on the atmospheric mass loss is minor in the evolutionary context. Here, we use atmosphere evolution models to track the evolution of planets in the younger system TOI-942 and also to constrain the past of the TOI-421 system. We demonstrate that despite all the similarities, the two planetary systems are on two very different evolutionary pathways. The inner planet in the younger system, TOI-942, will likely lose all of its atmosphere and become a super-Earth-like planet, while the outer planet will become a typical sub-Neptune. Concerning the older system, TOI-421, our evolution modeling suggests that they must have started their evolution with very substantial envelopes, which can be a hint of formation beyond the snow line.

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The impact of coronal mass ejections and flares on the atmosphere of the hot Jupiter HD189733b

High-energy stellar irradiation can photoevaporate planetary atmospheres, which can be observed in spectroscopic transits of hydrogen lines. For the exoplanet HD189733b, multiple observations in the Ly-$α$ line have shown that atmospheric evaporation is variable, going from undetected to enhanced evaporation in a $1.5$-year interval. Coincidentally or not, when HD189733b was observed to be evaporating, a stellar flare had just occurred 8h prior to the observation. This led to the question of whether this temporal variation in evaporation occurred due to the flare, an unseen associated coronal mass ejection (CME), or even the effect of both simultaneously. In this work, we investigate the impact of flares (radiation), winds, and CMEs (particles) on the atmosphere of HD189733b using 3D radiation hydrodynamic simulations of atmospheric evaporation that self-consistently include stellar photon heating. We study four cases: first- the quiescent phase of the star including stellar wind, second- a flare, third- a CME, and fourth- a flare that is followed by a CME. Compared to the quiescent case, we find that the flare alone increases the evaporation rate by only 25%, while the CME leads to a factor of 4 increase in escape rate. We calculate Ly-$α$ synthetic transits and find that the flare alone cannot explain the observed high blueshifted velocities seen in the Ly-$α$ observation. The CME, however, leads to an increase in the velocity of the escaping atmosphere, enhancing the transit depth at high blueshifted velocities. While the effects of CMEs show a promising potential to explain the blueshifted line feature, our models are not able to fully explain the blueshifted transit depths, indicating that they might require additional physical mechanisms.

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Coronal mass ejections and type II radio emission variability during a magnetic cycle on the solar-type star $ε$ Eridani

We simulate possible stellar coronal mass ejection (CME) scenarios over the magnetic cycle of $ε$ Eridani (18 Eridani; HD 22049). We use three separate epochs from 2008, 2011, and 2013, and estimate the radio emission frequencies associated with these events. These stellar eruptions have proven to be elusive, although a promising approach to detect and characterise these phenomena are low-frequency radio observations of potential type II bursts as CME induced shocks propagate through the stellar corona. Stellar type II radio bursts are expected to emit below 450 MHz, similarly to their solar counterparts. We show that the length of time these events remain above the ionospheric cutoff is not necessarily dependent on the stellar magnetic cycle, but more on the eruption location relative to the stellar magnetic field. We find that these type II bursts would remain within the frequency range of LOFAR for a maximum of 20-30 minutes post-eruption for the polar CMEs, (50 minutes for 2nd harmonics). We find evidence of slower equatorial CMEs, which result in slightly longer observable windows for the 2008 and 2013 simulations. Stellar magnetic geometry and strength has a significant effect on the detectability of these events. We place the CMEs in the context of the stellar mass-loss rate (27-48 $\times$ solar mass-loss rate), showing that they can amount to 3-50% of the stellar wind mass-loss rate for $ε$ Eridani. Continuous monitoring of likely stellar CME candidates with low-frequency radio telescopes will be required to detect these transient events.

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Planetary magnetosphere evolution around post-main-sequence stars

Accompanying the mounting detections of planets orbiting white dwarfs and giant stars are questions about their physical history and evolution, particularly regarding detectability of their atmospheres and potential for habitability. Here we determine how the size of planetary magnetospheres evolve over time from the end of the main sequence through to the white dwarf phase due to the violent winds of red giant and asymptotic giant branch stars. By using a semianalytic prescription, we investigate the entire relevant phase space of planet type, planet orbit and stellar host mass (1-7Msun). We find that a planetary magnetosphere will always be quashed at some point during the giant branch phases unless the planet's magnetic field strength is at least two orders of magnitude higher than Jupiter's current value. We also show that the time variation of the stellar wind and density generates a net increase in wind ram pressure and does not allow a magnetosphere to be maintained at any time for field strengths less than 10^{-5} T (0.1 G). This lack of protection hints that currently potentially habitable planets orbiting white dwarfs would have been previously inhospitable.

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MOVES IV. Modelling the influence of stellar XUV-flux, cosmic rays, and stellar energetic particles on the atmospheric composition of the hot Jupiter HD 189733b

Hot Jupiters provide valuable natural laboratories for studying potential contributions of high-energy radiation to prebiotic synthesis in the atmospheres of exoplanets. In this fourth paper of the MOVES (Multiwavelength Observations of an eVaporating Exoplanet and its Star) programme, we study the effect of different types of high-energy radiation on the production of organic and prebiotic molecules in the atmosphere of the hot Jupiter HD 189733b. Our model combines X-ray and UV observations from the MOVES programme and 3D climate simulations from the 3D Met Office Unified Model to simulate the atmospheric composition and kinetic chemistry with the STAND2019 network. Also, the effects of galactic cosmic rays and stellar energetic particles are included. We find that the differences in the radiation field between the irradiated dayside and the shadowed nightside lead to stronger changes in the chemical abundances than the variability of the host star's XUV emission. We identify ammonium (NH4+) and oxonium (H3O+) as fingerprint ions for the ionization of the atmosphere by both galactic cosmic rays and stellar particles. All considered types of high-energy radiation have an enhancing effect on the abundance of key organic molecules such as hydrogen cyanide (HCN), formaldehyde (CH2O), and ethylene (C2H4). The latter two are intermediates in the production pathway of the amino acid glycine (C2H5NO2) and abundant enough to be potentially detectable by JWST.

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New Observational Constraints on the Winds of M Dwarf Stars

High resolution UV spectra of stellar H I Lyman-alpha lines from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) provide observational constraints on the winds of coronal main sequence stars, thanks to an astrospheric absorption signature created by the interaction between the stellar winds and the interstellar medium. We report the results of a new HST survey of M dwarf stars, yielding six new detections of astrospheric absorption. We estimate mass-loss rates for these detections, and upper limits for nondetections. These new constraints allow us to characterize the nature of M dwarf winds and their dependence on coronal activity for the first time. For a clear majority of the M dwarfs, we find winds that are weaker or comparable in strength to that of the Sun, i.e. Mdot<=1 Mdot_sun. However, two of the M dwarfs have much stronger winds: YZ CMi (M4 Ve; Mdot=30 Mdot_sun) and GJ 15AB (M2 V+M3.5 V; Mdot=10 Mdot_sun). Even these winds are much weaker than expectations if the solar relation between flare energy and coronal mass ejection (CME) mass extended to M dwarfs. Thus, the solar flare/CME relation does not appear to apply to M dwarfs, with important ramifications for the habitability of exoplanets around M dwarfs. There is evidence for some increase in Mdot with coronal activity as quantified by X-ray flux, but with much scatter. One or more other factors must be involved in determining wind strength besides spectral type and coronal activity, with magnetic topology being one clear possibility.

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