arXiv subjects

D. Rouan

Publications and source records attributed to D. Rouan.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Discovery of a brown dwarf companion to the star HIP 64892

We report the discovery of a bright, brown dwarf companion to the star HIP 64892, imaged with VLT/SPHERE during the SHINE exoplanet survey. The host is a B9.5V member of the Lower-Centaurus-Crux subgroup of the Scorpius Centaurus OB association. The measured angular separation of the companion ($1.2705\pm0.0023$") corresponds to a projected distance of $159\pm12$ AU. We observed the target with the dual-band imaging and long-slit spectroscopy modes of the IRDIS imager to obtain its SED and astrometry. In addition, we reprocessed archival NACO L-band data, from which we also recover the companion. Its SED is consistent with a young (<30 Myr), low surface gravity object with a spectral type of M9$_γ\pm1$. From comparison with the BT-Settl atmospheric models we estimate an effective temperature of $T_{\textrm{eff}}=2600 \pm 100$ K, and comparison of the companion photometry to the COND evolutionary models yields a mass of $\sim29-37$ M$_{\text{J}}$ at the estimated age of $16^{+15}_{-7}$ Myr for the system. HIP 64892 is a rare example of an extreme-mass ratio system ($q\sim0.01$) and will be useful for testing models relating to the formation and evolution of such low-mass objects.

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arXiv2017

Discovery of a warm, dusty giant planet around HIP65426

The SHINE program is a large high-contrast near-infrared survey of 600 young, nearby stars. It is aimed at searching for and characterizing new planetary systems using VLT/SPHERE's unprecedented high-contrast and high-angular resolution imaging capabilities. It also intends at placing statistical constraints on the occurrence and orbital properties of the giant planet population at large orbits as a function of the stellar host mass and age to test planet formation theories. We use the IRDIS dual-band imager and the IFS integral field spectrograph of SPHERE to acquire high-constrast coronagraphic differential near-infrared images and spectra of the young A2 star HIP65426. It is a member of the ~17 Myr old Lower Centaurus-Crux association. At a separation of 830 mas (92 au projected) from the star, we detect a faint red companion. Multi-epoch observations confirm that it shares common proper motion with HIP65426. Spectro-photometric measurements extracted with IFS and IRDIS between 0.95 and 2.2um indicate a warm, dusty atmosphere characteristic of young low surface-gravity L5-L7 dwarfs. Hot-start evolutionary models predict a luminosity consistent with a 6-12 MJup, Teff=1300-1600 K and R=1.5 RJup giant planet. Finally, the comparison with Exo-REM and PHOENIX BT-Settl synthetic atmosphere models gives consistent effective temperatures but with slightly higher surface gravity solutions of log(g)=4.0-5.0 with smaller radii (1.0-1.3 RJup). Given its physical and spectral properties, HIP65426b occupies a rather unique placement in terms of age, mass and spectral-type among the currently known imaged planets. It represents a particularly interesting case to study the presence of clouds as a function of particle size, composition, and location in the atmosphere, to search for signatures of non-equilibrium chemistry, and finally to test the theory of planet formation and evolution.

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arXiv2017

Investigation of the inner structures around HD169142 with VLT/SPHERE

We present observations of the Herbig Ae star HD169142 with VLT/SPHERE instruments InfraRed Dual-band Imager and Spectrograph (IRDIS) ($K1K2$ and $H2H3$ bands) and the Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS) ($Y$, $J$ and $H$ bands). We detect several bright blobs at $\sim$180 mas separation from the star, and a faint arc-like structure in the IFS data. Our reference differential imaging (RDI) data analysis also finds a bright ring at the same separation. We show, using a simulation based on polarized light data, that these blobs are actually part of the ring at 180 mas. These results demonstrate that the earlier detections of blobs in the $H$ and $K_S$ bands at these separations in Biller et al. as potential planet/substellar companions are actually tracing a bright ring with a Keplerian motion. Moreover, we detect in the images an additional bright structure at $\sim$93 mas separation and position angle of 355$^{\circ}$, at a location very close to previous detections. It appears point-like in the $YJ$ and $K$ bands but is more extended in the $H$ band. We also marginally detect an inner ring in the RDI data at $\sim$100 mas. Follow-up observations are necessary to confirm the detection and the nature of this source and structure.

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arXiv2017

Dynamical models to explain observations with SPHERE in planetary systems with double debris belts

A large number of systems harboring a debris disk show evidence for a double belt architecture. One hypothesis for explaining the gap between the belts is the presence of one or more planets dynamically carving it. This work aims to investigate this scenario in systems harboring two components debris disks. All the targets in the sample were observed with the SPHERE instrument which performs high-contrast direct imaging. Positions of the inner and outer belts were estimated by SED fitting of the infrared excesses or, when available, from resolved images of the disk. Very few planets have been observed so far in debris disks gaps and we intended to test if such non-detections depend on the observational limits of the present instruments. This aim is achieved by deriving theoretical predictions of masses, eccentricities and semi-major axes of planets able to open the observed gaps and comparing such parameters with detection limits obtained with SPHERE. The relation between the gap and the planet is due to the chaotic zone around the orbit of the planet. The radial extent of this zone depends on the mass ratio between the planet and the star, on the semi-major axis and on the eccentricity of the planet and it can be estimated analytically. We apply the formalism to the case of one planet on a circular or eccentric orbit. We then consider multi-planetary systems: 2 and 3 equal-mass planets on circular orbits and 2 equal-mass planets on eccentric orbits in a packed configuration. We then compare each couple of values (M,a), derived from the dynamical analysis of single and multiple planetary models, with the detection limits obtained with SPHERE. Our results show that the apparent lack of planets in gaps between double belts could be explained by the presence of a system of two or more planets possibly of low mass and on an eccentric orbits whose sizes are below the present detection limits.

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arXiv2017

In-depth study of moderately young but extremely red, very dusty substellar companion HD206893B

The substellar companion HD206893b has recently been discovered by direct imaging of its disc-bearing host star with the SPHERE instrument. We investigate the atypical properties of the companion, which has the reddest near-infrared colours among all known substellar objects, either orbiting a star or isolated, and we provide a comprehensive characterisation of the host star-disc-companion system. We conducted a follow-up of the companion with adaptive optics imaging and spectro-imaging with SPHERE, and a multiinstrument follow-up of its host star. We obtain a R=30 spectrum from 0.95 to 1.64 micron of the companion and additional photometry at 2.11 and 2.25 micron. We carried out extensive atmosphere model fitting for the companions and the host star in order to derive their age, mass, and metallicity. We found no additional companion in the system in spite of exquisite observing conditions resulting in sensitivity to 6MJup (2MJup) at 0.5" for an age of 300 Myr (50 Myr). We detect orbital motion over more than one year and characterise the possible Keplerian orbits. We constrain the age of the system to a minimum of 50 Myr and a maximum of 700 Myr, and determine that the host-star metallicity is nearly solar. The comparison of the companion spectrum and photometry to model atmospheres indicates that the companion is an extremely dusty late L dwarf, with an intermediate gravity (log g 4.5-5.0) which is compatible with the independent age estimate of the system. Though our best fit corresponds to a brown dwarf of 15-30 MJup aged 100-300 Myr, our analysis is also compatible with a range of masses and ages going from a 50 Myr 12MJup planetary-mass object to a 50 MJup Hyades-age brown dwarf...

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arXiv2017

A deeper view of the CoRoT-9 planetary system. A small non-zero eccentricity for CoRoT-9b likely generated by planet-planet scattering

CoRoT-9b is one of the rare long-period (P=95.3 days) transiting giant planets with a measured mass known to date. We present a new analysis of the CoRoT-9 system based on five years of radial-velocity (RV) monitoring with HARPS and three new space-based transits observed with CoRoT and Spitzer. Combining our new data with already published measurements we redetermine the CoRoT-9 system parameters and find good agreement with the published values. We uncover a higher significance for the small but non-zero eccentricity of CoRoT-9b ($e=0.133^{+0.042}_{-0.037}$) and find no evidence for additional planets in the system. We use simulations of planet-planet scattering to show that the eccentricity of CoRoT-9b may have been generated by an instability in which a $\sim 50~M_\oplus$ planet was ejected from the system. This scattering would not have produced a spin-orbit misalignment, so we predict that CoRoT-9b orbit should lie within a few degrees of the initial plane of the protoplanetary disk. As a consequence, any significant stellar obliquity would indicate that the disk was primordially tilted.

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arXiv2016

Understanding Active Galactic Nuclei using near-infrared high angular resolution polarimetry II: Preliminary results

In this second research note of a series of two, we present the first near-infrared results we obtained when modeling Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). Our first proceedings showed the comparison between the MontAGN and STOKES Monte Carlo codes. Now we use our radiative transfer codes to simulate the polarization maps of a prototypical, NGC 1068-like, type-2 radio-quiet AGN. We produced high angular resolution infrared (1 micron) polarization images to be compared with recent observations in this wavelength range. Our preliminary results already show a good agreement between the models and observations but cannot account for the peculiar linear polarization angle of the torus such as observed. Gratadour et al. 2015 found a polarization position angle being perpendicular to the bipolar outflows axis. Further work is needed to improve the models by adding physical phenomena such as dichroism and clumpiness.

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arXiv2016

Direct detection of scattered light gaps in the transitional disk around HD 97048 with VLT/SPHERE

We studied the well known circumstellar disk around the Herbig Ae/Be star HD 97048 with high angular resolution to reveal undetected structures in the disk, which may be indicative of disk evolutionary processes such as planet formation. We used the IRDIS near-IR subsystem of the extreme adaptive optics imager SPHERE at the ESO/VLT to study the scattered light from the circumstellar disk via high resolution polarimetry and angular differential imaging. We imaged the disk in unprecedented detail and revealed four ring-like brightness enhancements and corresponding gaps in the scattered light from the disk surface with radii between 39 au and 341 au. We derived the inclination and position angle as well as the height of the scattering surface of the disk from our observational data. We found that the surface height profile can be described by a single power law up to a separation ~270 au. Using the surface height profile we measured the scattering phase function of the disk and found that it is well consistent with theoretical models of compact dust aggregates. We discuss the origin of the detected features and find that low mass (< 1 M_Jup) nascent planets are a possible explanation.

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arXiv2016

Azimuthal asymmetries in the debris disk around HD61005

Debris disks offer valuable insights into the latest stages of circumstellar disk evolution, and can possibly help us to trace the outcomes of planetary formation processes. In the age range 10 to 100\,Myr, most of the gas is expected to have been removed from the system, giant planets (if any) must have already been formed, and the formation of terrestrial planets may be on-going. Pluto-sized planetesimals, and their debris released in a collisional cascade, are under their mutual gravitational influence, which may result into non-axisymmetric structures in the debris disk. High angular resolution observations are required to investigate these effects and constrain the dynamical evolution of debris disks. Furthermore, multi-wavelength observations can provide information about the dust dynamics by probing different grain sizes. Here we present new VLT/SPHERE and ALMA observations of the debris disk around the 40\,Myr-old solar-type star HD\,61005. We resolve the disk at unprecedented resolution both in the near-infrared (in scattered and polarized light) and at millimeter wavelengths. Thanks to the new observations, we propose a solution for both the radial and azimuthal distribution of the dust grains in the debris disk. We find that the disk has a moderate eccentricity ($e \sim 0.1$) and that the dust density is two times larger at the pericenter compared to the apocenter. With no giant planets detected in our observations, we investigate alternative explanations besides planet-disk interactions to interpret the inferred disk morphology. We postulate that the morphology of the disk could be the consequence of a massive collision between $\sim$\,1000\,km-sized bodies at $\sim$\,61\,au. If this interpretation holds, it would put stringent constraints on the formation of massive planetesimals at large distances from the star.

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arXiv2015

Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXVIII. CoRoT-33b, an object in the brown dwarf desert with 2:3 commensurability with its host star

We report the detection of a rare transiting brown dwarf with a mass of 59 M_Jup and radius of 1.1 R_Jup around the metal-rich, [Fe/H] = +0.44, G9V star CoRoT-33. The orbit is eccentric (e = 0.07) with a period of 5.82 d. The companion, CoRoT-33b, is thus a new member in the so-called brown dwarf desert. The orbital period is within 3% to a 3:2 resonance with the rotational period of the star. CoRoT-33b may be an important test case for tidal evolution studies. The true frequency of brown dwarfs close to their host stars (P < 10 d) is estimated to be approximately 0.2% which is about six times smaller than the frequency of hot Jupiters in the same period range. We suspect that the frequency of brown dwarfs declines faster with decreasing period than that of giant planets.

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arXiv2015

The Mid-Infrared Instrument for the James Webb Space Telescope, V: Predicted Performance of the MIRI Coronagraphs

The imaging channel on the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) is equipped with four coronagraphs that provide high contrast imaging capabilities for studying faint point sources and extended emission that would otherwise be overwhelmed by a bright point-source in its vicinity. Such bright sources might include stars that are orbited by exoplanets and circumstellar material, mass-loss envelopes around post-main-sequence stars, the near-nuclear environments in active galaxies, and the host galaxies of distant quasars. This paper describes the coronagraphic observing modes of MIRI, as well as performance estimates based on measurements of the MIRI flight model during cryo-vacuum testing. A brief outline of coronagraphic operations is also provided. Finally, simulated MIRI coronagraphic observations of a few astronomical targets are presented for illustration.

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arXiv2015

Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXVII. CoRoT-28b, a planet orbiting an evolved star, and CoRoT-29b, a planet showing an asymmetric transit

Context. We present the discovery of two transiting extrasolar planets by the satellite CoRoT. Aims. We aim at a characterization of the planetary bulk parameters, which allow us to further investigate the formation and evolution of the planetary systems and the main properties of the host stars. Methods. We used the transit light curve to characterize the planetary parameters relative to the stellar parameters. The analysis of HARPS spectra established the planetary nature of the detections, providing their masses. Further photometric and spectroscopic ground-based observations provided stellar parameters (log g,Teff,v sin i) to characterize the host stars. Our model takes the geometry of the transit to constrain the stellar density into account, which when linked to stellar evolutionary models, determines the bulk parameters of the star. Because of the asymmetric shape of the light curve of one of the planets, we had to include the possibility in our model that the stellar surface was not strictly spherical. Results. We present the planetary parameters of CoRoT-28b, a Jupiter-sized planet (mass 0.484+/-0.087MJup; radius 0.955+/-0.066RJup) orbiting an evolved star with an orbital period of 5.208 51 +/- 0.000 38 days, and CoRoT-29b, another Jupiter-sized planet (mass 0.85 +/- 0.20MJup; radius 0.90 +/- 0.16RJup) orbiting an oblate star with an orbital period of 2.850 570 +/- 0.000 006 days. The reason behind the asymmetry of the transit shape is not understood at this point. Conclusions. These two new planetary systems have very interesting properties and deserve further study, particularly in the case of the star CoRoT-29.

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arXiv2014

CoRoT-22 b: a validated 4.9 RE exoplanet in 10-day orbit

The CoRoT satellite has provided high-precision photometric light curves for more than 163,000 stars and found several hundreds of transiting systems compatible with a planetary scenario. If ground-based velocimetric observations are the best way to identify the actual planets among many possible configurations of eclipsing binary systems, recent transit surveys have shown that it is not always within reach of the radial-velocity detection limits. In this paper, we present a transiting exoplanet candidate discovered by CoRoT whose nature cannot be established from ground-based observations, and where extensive analyses are used to validate the planet scenario. They are based on observing constraints from radial-velocity spectroscopy, adaptive optics imaging and the CoRoT transit shape, as well as from priors on stellar populations, planet and multiple stellar systems frequency. We use the fully Bayesian approach developed in the PASTIS analysis software, and conclude that the planet scenario is at least 1400 times more probable than any other false positive scenario. The primary star is a metallic solar-like dwarf, with Ms = 1.099+-0.049 Msun and Rs = 1.136 (+0.038,-0.090) Rsun . The validated planet has a radius of Rp = 4.88 (+0.17,-0.39) RE and mass less than 49 ME. Its mean density is smaller than 2.56 g/cm^3 and orbital period is 9.7566+-0.0012 days. This object, called CoRoT-22 b, adds to a large number of validated Kepler planets. These planets do not have a proper measurement of the mass but allow statistical characterization of the exoplanet population.

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arXiv2014

Revisiting the transits of CoRoT-7b at a lower activity level

CoRoT-7b, the first super-Earth with measured radius discovered, has opened the new field of rocky exoplanets characterisation. To better understand this interesting system, new observations were taken with the CoRoT satellite. During this run 90 new transits were obtained in the imagette mode. These were analysed together with the previous 151 transits obtained in the discovery run and HARPS radial velocity observations to derive accurate system parameters. A difference is found in the posterior probability distribution of the transit parameters between the previous CoRoT run (LRa01) and the new run (LRa06). We propose this is due to an extra noise component in the previous CoRoT run suspected to be transit spot occultation events. These lead to the mean transit shape becoming V-shaped. We show that the extra noise component is dominant at low stellar flux levels and reject these transits in the final analysis. We obtained a planetary radius, $R_p= 1.585\pm0.064\,R_{\oplus}$, in agreement with previous estimates. Combining the planetary radius with the new mass estimates results in a planetary density of $ 1.19 \pm 0.27\, ρ_{\oplus}$ which is consistent with a rocky composition. The CoRoT-7 system remains an excellent test bed for the effects of activity in the derivation of planetary parameters in the shallow transit regime.

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arXiv2014

Science Case and Requirements for the MOSAIC Concept for a Multi-Object Spectrograph for the European Extremely Large Telescope

Over the past 18 months we have revisited the science requirements for a multi-object spectrograph (MOS) for the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT). These efforts span the full range of E-ELT science and include input from a broad cross-section of astronomers across the ESO partner countries. In this contribution we summarise the key cases relating to studies of high-redshift galaxies, galaxy evolution, and stellar populations, with a more expansive presentation of a new case relating to detection of exoplanets in stellar clusters. A general requirement is the need for two observational modes to best exploit the large (>40 sq. arcmin) patrol field of the E-ELT. The first mode ('high multiplex') requires integrated-light (or coarsely resolved) optical/near-IR spectroscopy of >100 objects simultaneously. The second ('high definition'), enabled by wide-field adaptive optics, requires spatially-resolved, near-IR of >10 objects/sub-fields. Within the context of the conceptual study for an ELT-MOS called MOSAIC, we summarise the top-level requirements from each case and introduce the next steps in the design process.

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arXiv2014

Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission: XXVI. CoRoT-24: A transiting multi-planet system

We present the discovery of a candidate multiply-transiting system, the first one found in the CoRoT mission. Two transit-like features with periods of 5.11 and 11.76d are detected in the CoRoT light curve, around a main sequence K1V star of r=15.1. If the features are due to transiting planets around the same star, these would correspond to objects of 3.7$\pm$0.4 and 5.0$\pm$0.5 R_earth respectively. Several radial velocities serve to provide an upper limit of 5.7 M_earth for the 5.11~d signal, and to tentatively measure a mass of 28$^{+11}_{-11}$ M_earth for the object transiting with a 11.76~d period. These measurements imply low density objects, with a significant gaseous envelope. The detailed analysis of the photometric and spectroscopic data serve to estimate the probability that the observations are caused by transiting Neptune-sized planets as $>$26$\times$ higher than a blend scenario involving only one transiting planet, and $>$900$\times$ higher than a scenario involving two blends and no planets. The radial velocities show a long term modulation that might be attributed to a 1.5 M_jup planet orbiting at 1.8~A.U. from the host, but more data are required to determine the precise orbital parameters of this companion.

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arXiv2014

Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission XXV. CoRoT-27b: a massive and dense planet on a short-period orbit

We report the discovery of a massive and dense transiting planet CoRoT-27b on a 3.58 day orbit around a 4.2 Gyr-old G2 star. The planet candidate was identified from the CoRoT photometry, and was confirmed as a planet with ground-based spectroscopy. The confirmation of the planet candidate is based on radial velocity observations combined with imaging to rule out blends. The characterisation of the planet and its host star is carried out using a Bayesian approach where all the data (CoRoT photometry, radial velocities, and spectroscopic characterisation of the star) are used jointly. The Bayesian analysis includes a study whether the assumption of white normally distributed noise holds for the CoRoT photometry, and whether the use of a non-normal noise distribution offers advantages in parameter estimation and model selection. CoRoT-27b has a mass of $10.39 \pm 0.55$ $\mathrm{M}_{\rm Jup}$, a radius of $1.01 \pm 0.04$ $\mathrm{R}_{\rm Jup}$, a mean density of $12.6_{-1.67}^{+1.92}$ $\mathrm{g\,cm^{-3}}$, and an effective temperature of $1500 \pm 130$ K. The planet orbits around its host star, a 4.2 Gyr-old G2-star with a mass $M_{\star}=1.06$ $M_{\odot}$, and a radius $R_{\star}=1.05$ $R_{\odot}$, on a $0.048 \pm 0.007$ AU orbit every 3.58 days. The radial velocity observations allow us to exclude highly eccentric orbits, namely, $e<0.065$ with a 99% confidence. Given its high mass and density, theoretical modelling of CoRoT-27b is demanding. We identify two solutions with heavy element mass fractions of $0.11\pm0.08$ $\mathrm{M_{\oplus}}$ and $0.07\pm0.06$ $\mathrm{M_{\oplus}}$, but even solutions void of heavy elements cannot be excluded. We carry out a secondary eclipse search from the CoRoT photometry using a method based on Bayesian model selection, but conclude that the noise level is too high to detect eclipses shallower than 9% of the transit depth.

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arXiv2013

High angular resolution imaging and infrared spectroscopy of CoRoT candidates

Studies of transiting extrasolar planets are of key importance for understanding the nature of planets outside our solar system because their masses, diameters, and bulk densities can be measured. An important part of transit-search programmes is the removal of false-positives. The critical question is how many of the candidates that passed all previous tests are false positives. For our study we selected 25 CoRoT candidates that have already been screened against false-positives using detailed analysis of the light curves and seeing-limited imaging, which has transits that are between 0.7 and 0.05% deep. We observed 20 candidates with the adaptive optics imager NaCo and 18 with the high-resolution infrared spectrograph CRIRES. We found previously unknown stars within 2 arcsec of the targets in seven of the candidates. All of these are too faint and too close to the targets to have been previously detected with seeing-limited telescopes in the optical. Our study thus leads to the surprising results that if we remove all candidates excluded by the sophisticated analysis of the light-curve, as well as carrying out deep imaging with seeing-limited telescopes, still 28-35% of the remaining candidates are found to possess companions that are bright enough to be false-positives. Given that the companion-candidates cluster around the targets and that the J-K colours are consistent with physical companions, we conclude that the companion-candidates are more likely to be physical companions rather than unrelated field stars.

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