Searcharxiv⌕ Search

arXiv subjects

J. C. Morales

Publications and source records attributed to J. C. Morales.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
arXiv2024

Teegarden's Star revisited: A nearby planetary system with at least three planets

The two known planets in the planetary system of Teegarden's Star are among the most Earth-like exoplanets currently known. Revisiting this nearby planetary system with two planets in the habitable zone aims at a more complete census of planets around very low-mass stars. A significant number of new radial velocity measurements from CARMENES, ESPRESSO, MAROON-X, and HPF, as well as photometry from TESS motivated a deeper search for additional planets. We confirm and refine the orbital parameters of the two know planets Teegarden's Star b and c. We also report the detection of a third planet d with an orbital period of 26.13+-0.04 d and a minimum mass of 0.82+-0.17 M_Earth. A signal at 96 d is attributed to the stellar rotation period. The interpretation of a signal at 172 d remains open. The TESS data exclude transiting short-period planets down to about half an Earth radius. We compare the planetary system architecture of very low-mass stars. In the currently known configuration, the planetary system of Teegarden's star is dynamically quite different from that of TRAPPIST-1, which is more compact, but dynamically similar to others such as GJ 1002.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

A resonant sextuplet of sub-Neptunes transiting the bright star HD 110067

Planets with radii between that of the Earth and Neptune (hereafter referred to as sub-Neptunes) are found in close-in orbits around more than half of all Sun-like stars. Yet, their composition, formation, and evolution remain poorly understood. The study of multi-planetary systems offers an opportunity to investigate the outcomes of planet formation and evolution while controlling for initial conditions and environment. Those in resonance (with their orbital periods related by a ratio of small integers) are particularly valuable because they imply a system architecture practically unchanged since its birth. Here, we present the observations of six transiting planets around the bright nearby star HD 110067. We find that the planets follow a chain of resonant orbits. A dynamical study of the innermost planet triplet allowed the prediction and later confirmation of the orbits of the rest of the planets in the system. The six planets are found to be sub-Neptunes with radii ranging from 1.94 to 2.85 Re. Three of the planets have measured masses, yielding low bulk densities that suggest the presence of large hydrogen-dominated atmospheres.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

TOI-1801 b: A temperate mini-Neptune around a young M0.5 dwarf

We report the discovery, mass, and radius determination of TOI-1801 b, a temperate mini-Neptune around a young M dwarf. TOI-1801 b was observed in TESS sectors 22 and 49, and the alert that this was a TESS planet candidate with a period of 21.3 days went out in April 2020. However, ground-based follow-up observations, including seeing-limited photometry in and outside transit together with precise radial velocity (RV) measurements with CARMENES and HIRES revealed that the true period of the planet is 10.6 days. These observations also allowed us to retrieve a mass of 5.74 $\pm$ 1.46 $M_\oplus$, which together with a radius of 2.08 $\pm$ 0.12 $R_\oplus$, means that TOI-1801 b is most probably composed of water and rock, with an upper limit of 2\% by mass of H$_{2}$ in its atmosphere. The stellar rotation period of 16 days is readily detectable in our RV time series and in the ground-based photometry. We derived a likely age of 600--800 Myr for the parent star TOI-1801, which means that TOI-1801 b is the least massive young mini-Neptune with precise mass and radius determinations. Our results suggest that if TOI-1801 b had a larger atmosphere in the past, it must have been removed by some evolutionary mechanism on timescales shorter than 1 Gyr.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. Telluric absorption corrected high S/N optical and near-infrared template spectra of 382 M dwarf stars

Light from celestial objects interacts with the molecules of the Earth's atmosphere, resulting in the production of telluric absorption lines in ground-based spectral data. Correcting for these lines, which strongly affect red and infrared wavelengths, is often needed in a wide variety of scientific applications. Here, we present the template division telluric modeling (TDTM) technique, a method for accurately removing telluric absorption lines in stars that exhibit numerous intrinsic features. Based on the Earth's barycentric motion throughout the year, our approach is suited for disentangling telluric and stellar spectral components. By fitting a synthetic transmission model, telluric-free spectra are derived. We demonstrate the performance of the TDTM technique in correcting telluric contamination using a high-resolution optical spectral time series of the feature-rich M3.0 dwarf star Wolf 294 that was obtained with the CARMENES spectrograph. We apply the TDTM approach to the CARMENES survey sample, which consists of 382 targets encompassing 22357 optical and 20314 near-infrared spectra, to correct for telluric absorption. The corrected spectra are coadded to construct template spectra for each of our targets. This library of telluric-free, high signal-to-noise ratio, high-resolution (R>80000) templates comprises the most comprehensive collection of spectral M-dwarf data available to date, both in terms of quantity and quality, and is available at the project website (http://carmenes.cab.inta-csic.es).

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2023

Planetary companions orbiting the M dwarfs GJ 724 and GJ 3988. A CARMENES and IRD collaboration

We report the discovery of two exoplanets around the M dwarfs GJ 724 and GJ 3988 using the radial velocity (RV) method. We obtained a total of 153 3.5 m Calar Alto/CARMENES spectra for both targets and measured their RVs and activity indicators. We also added archival ESO/HARPS data for GJ 724 and infrared RV measurements from Subaru/IRD for GJ 3988. We searched for periodic and stable signals to subsequently construct Keplerian models, considering different numbers of planets, and we selected the best models based on their Bayesian evidence. Gaussian process (GP) regression was included in some models to account for activity signals. For both systems, the best model corresponds to one single planet. The minimum masses are $10.75^{+0.96}_{-0.87}$ and $3.69^{+0.42}_{-0.41}$ Earth-masses for GJ 724 b and GJ 3988 b, respectively. Both planets have short periods (P < 10 d) and, therefore, they orbit their star closely (a < 0.05 au). GJ 724 b has an eccentric orbit (e = $0.577^{+0.055}_{-0.052}$), whereas the orbit of GJ 3988 b is circular. The high eccentricity of GJ 724 b makes it the most eccentric single exoplanet (to this date) around an M dwarf. Thus, we suggest a further analysis to understand its configuration in the context of planetary formation and architecture. In contrast, GJ 3988 b is an example of a common type of planet around mid-M dwarfs.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. Behaviour of the Paschen lines during flares and quiescence

The hydrogen Paschen lines are known activity indicators, but studies of them in M~dwarfs during quiescence are as rare as their reports in flare studies. This situation is mostly caused by a lack of observations, owing to their location in the near-infrared regime, which is covered by few high-resolution spectrographs. We study the Pa$β$ line, using a sample of 360 M~dwarfs observed by the CARMENES spectrograph. Descending the spectral sequence of inactive M~stars in quiescence, we find the Pa$β$ line to get shallower until about spectral type M3.5 V, after which a slight re-deepening is observed. Looking at the whole sample, for stars with H$α$ in absorption, we find a loose anti-correlation between the (median) pseudo-equivalent widths (pEWs) of H$α$ and Pa$β$ for stars of similar effective temperature. Looking instead at time series of individual stars, we often find correlation between pEW(H$α$) and pEW(Pa$β$) for stars with H$α$ in emission and an anti-correlation for stars with H$α$ in absorption. Regarding flaring activity, we report the automatic detection of 35 Paschen line flares in 20 stars. Additionally we found visually six faint Paschen line flares in these stars plus 16 faint Paschen line flares in another 12 stars. In strong flares, Paschen lines can be observed up to Pa 14. Moreover, we find that Paschen line emission is almost always coupled to symmetric H$α$ line broadening, which we ascribe to Stark broadening, indicating high pressure in the chromosphere. Finally we report a few Pa$β$ line asymmetries for flares that also exhibit strong H$α$ line asymmetries.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2023

Two super-Earths at the edge of the habitable zone of the nearby M dwarf TOI-2095

The main scientific goal of TESS is to find planets smaller than Neptune around stars that are bright enough to allow for further characterization studies. Given our current instrumentation and detection biases, M dwarfs are prime targets in the search for small planets that are in (or near) the habitable zone of their host star. In this work, we use photometric observations and CARMENES radial velocity measurements to validate a pair of transiting planet candidates found by TESS. The data were fitted simultaneously, using a Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) procedure and taking into account the stellar variability present in the photometric and spectroscopic time series. We confirm the planetary origin of the two transiting candidates orbiting around TOI-2095 (LSPM J1902+7525). The star is a nearby M dwarf ($d = 41.90 \pm 0.03$ pc, $T_{\rm eff} = 3759 \pm 87$ K, $V = 12.6$ mag), with a stellar mass and radius of $M_\star = 0.44 \pm 0.02 \; M_\odot$ and $R_\star = 0.44 \pm 0.02 \; R_\odot$, respectively. The planetary system is composed of two transiting planets: TOI-2095b, with an orbital period of $P_b = 17.66484 \pm (7\times 10^{-5})$ days, and TOI-2095c, with $P_c = 28.17232 \pm (14\times 10^{-5})$ days. Both planets have similar sizes with $R_b = 1.25 \pm 0.07 \; R_\oplus$ and $R_c = 1.33 \pm 0.08 \; R_\oplus$ for planet b and planet c, respectively. Although we did not detect the induced RV variations of any planet with significance, our CARMENES data allow us to set stringent upper limits on the masses of these objects. We find $M_b < 4.1 \; M_\oplus$ for the inner and $M_c < 7.4 \; M_\oplus$ for the outer planet (95% confidence level). These two planets present equilibrium temperatures in the range of 300-350 K and are close to the inner edge of the habitable zone of their star.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. A sub-Neptunian mass planet in the habitable zone of HN Lib

We report the discovery of HN Lib b, a sub-Neptunian mass planet orbiting the nearby ($d \approx$ = 6.25 pc) M4.0 V star HN Lib detected by our CARMENES radial-velocity (RV) survey. We determined a planetary minimum mass of $M_\text{b}\sin i = $ 5.46 $\pm$ 0.75 $\text{M}_\oplus$ and an orbital period of $P_\text{b} = $ 36.116 $\pm$ 0.029 d, using $\sim$5 yr of CARMENES data, as well as archival RVs from HARPS and HIRES spanning more than 13 years. The flux received by the planet equals half the instellation on Earth, which places it in the middle of the conservative habitable zone (HZ) of its host star. The RV data show evidence for another planet candidate with $M_\text{[c]}\sin i = $ 9.7 $\pm$ 1.9 $\text{M}_\oplus$ and $P_\text{[c]} = $ 113.46 $\pm$ 0.20 d. The long-term stability of the signal and the fact that the best model for our data is a two-planet model with an independent activity component stand as strong arguments for establishing a planetary origin. However, we cannot rule out stellar activity due to its proximity to the rotation period of HN Lib, which we measured using CARMENES activity indicators and photometric data from a ground-based multi-site campaign as well as archival data. The discovery adds HN Lib b to the shortlist of super-Earth planets in the habitable zone of M dwarfs, but HN Lib [c] probably cannot be inhabited because, if confirmed, it would most likely be an icy giant.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs -- A deep transfer learning method to determine Teff and [M/H] of target stars

The large amounts of astrophysical data being provided by existing and future instrumentation require efficient and fast analysis tools. Transfer learning is a new technique promising higher accuracy in the derived data products, with information from one domain being transferred to improve the accuracy of a neural network model in another domain. In this work, we demonstrate the feasibility of applying the deep transfer learning (DTL) approach to high-resolution spectra in the framework of photospheric stellar parameter determination. To this end, we used 14 stars of the CARMENES survey sample with interferometric angular diameters to calculate the effective temperature, as well as six M dwarfs that are common proper motion companions to FGK-type primaries with known metallicity. After training a deep learning (DL) neural network model on synthetic PHOENIX-ACES spectra, we used the internal feature representations together with those 14+6 stars with independent parameter measurements as a new input for the transfer process. We compare the derived stellar parameters of a small sample of M dwarfs kept out of the training phase with results from other methods in the literature. Assuming that temperatures from bolometric luminosities and interferometric radii and metallicities from FGK+M binaries are sufficiently accurate, DTL provides a higher accuracy than our previous state-of-the-art DL method (mean absolute differences improve by 20 K for temperature and 0.2 dex for metallicity from DL to DTL when compared with reference values from interferometry and FGK+M binaries). Furthermore, the machine learning (internal) precision of DTL also improves as uncertainties are five times smaller on average. These results indicate that DTL is a robust tool for obtaining M-dwarf stellar parameters comparable to those obtained from independent estimations for well-known stars.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2023

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. Guaranteed time observations Data Release 1 (2016-2020)

The CARMENES instrument was conceived to deliver high-accuracy radial velocity (RV) measurements with long-term stability to search for temperate rocky planets around a sample of nearby cool stars. The broad wavelength coverage was designed to provide a range of stellar activity indicators to assess the nature of potential RV signals and to provide valuable spectral information to help characterise the stellar targets. The CARMENES Data Release 1 (DR1) makes public all observations obtained during the CARMENES guaranteed time observations, which ran from 2016 to 2020 and collected 19,633 spectra for a sample of 362 targets. The CARMENES survey target selection was aimed at minimising biases, and about 70% of all known M dwarfs within 10 pc and accessible from Calar Alto were included. The data were pipeline-processed, and high-level data products, including 18,642 precise RVs for 345 targets, were derived. Time series data of spectroscopic activity indicators were also obtained. We discuss the characteristics of the CARMENES data, the statistical properties of the stellar sample, and the spectroscopic measurements. We show examples of the use of CARMENES data and provide a contextual view of the exoplanet population revealed by the survey, including 33 new planets, 17 re-analysed planets, and 26 confirmed planets from transiting candidate follow-up. A subsample of 238 targets was used to derive updated planet occurrence rates, yielding an overall average of 1.44+/-0.20 planets with 1 M_Earth < M sin i < 1000 M_Earth and 1 d < P_orb < 1000 d per star, and indicating that nearly every M dwarf hosts at least one planet. CARMENES data have proven very useful for identifying and measuring planetary companions as well as for additional applications, such as the determination of stellar properties, the characterisation of stellar activity, and the study of exoplanet atmospheres.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs, Wolf 1069 b: Earth-mass planet in the habitable zone of a nearby, very low-mass star

We present the discovery of an Earth-mass planet ($M_b\sin i = 1.26\pm0.21M_\oplus$) on a 15.6d orbit of a relatively nearby ($d\sim$9.6pc) and low-mass ($0.167\pm0.011 M_\odot$) M5.0V star, Wolf 1069. Sitting at a separation of $0.0672\pm0.0014$au away from the host star puts Wolf 1069b in the habitable zone (HZ), receiving an incident flux of $S=0.652\pm0.029S_\oplus$. The planetary signal was detected using telluric-corrected radial-velocity (RV) data from the CARMENES spectrograph, amounting to a total of 262 spectroscopic observations covering almost four years. There are additional long-period signals in the RVs, one of which we attribute to the stellar rotation period. This is possible thanks to our photometric analysis including new, well-sampled monitoring campaigns undergone with the OSN and TJO facilities that supplement archival photometry (i.e., from MEarth and SuperWASP), and this yielded an updated rotational period range of $P_{rot}=150-170$d, with a likely value at $169.3^{+3.7}_{-3.6}$d. The stellar activity indicators provided by the CARMENES spectra likewise demonstrate evidence for the slow rotation period, though not as accurately due to possible factors such as signal aliasing or spot evolution. Our detectability limits indicate that additional planets more massive than one Earth mass with orbital periods of less than 10 days can be ruled out, suggesting that perhaps Wolf 1069 b had a violent formation history. This planet is also the 6th closest Earth-mass planet situated in the conservative HZ, after Proxima Centauri b, GJ 1061d, Teegarden's Star c, and GJ 1002 b and c. Despite not transiting, Wolf 1069b is nonetheless a very promising target for future three-dimensional climate models to investigate various habitability cases as well as for sub-ms$^{-1}$ RV campaigns to search for potential inner sub-Earth-mass planets in order to test planet formation theories.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

A Machine Learning approach for correcting radial velocities using physical observables

Precision radial velocity (RV) measurements continue to be a key tool to detect and characterise extrasolar planets. While instrumental precision keeps improving, stellar activity remains a barrier to obtain reliable measurements below 1-2 m/s accuracy. Using simulations and real data, we investigate the capabilities of a Deep Neural Network approach to produce activity free Doppler measurements of stars. As case studies we use observations of two known stars (Eps Eridani and AUMicroscopii), both with clear signals of activity induced RV variability. Synthetic data using the starsim code are generated for the observables (inputs) and the resulting RV signal (labels), and used to train a Deep Neural Network algorithm. We identify an architecture consisting of convolutional and fully connected layers that is adequate to the task. The indices investigated are mean line-profile parameters (width, bisector, contrast) and multi-band photometry. We demonstrate that the RV-independent approach can drastically reduce spurious Doppler variability from known physical effects such as spots, rotation and convective blueshift. We identify the combinations of activity indices with most predictive power. When applied to real observations, we observe a good match of the correction with the observed variability, but we also find that the noise reduction is not as good as in the simulations, probably due to the lack of detail in the simulated physics. We demonstrate that a model-driven machine learning approach is sufficient to clean Doppler signals from activity induced variability for well known physical effects. There are dozens of known activity related observables whose inversion power remains unexplored indicating that the use of additional indicators, more complete models, and more observations with optimised sampling strategies can lead to significant improvements in our detrending capabilities.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2023

GJ 806 (TOI-4481): A bright nearby multi-planetary system with a transiting hot, low-density super-Earth

One of the main scientific goals of the TESS mission is the discovery of transiting small planets around the closest and brightest stars in the sky. Here, using data from the CARMENES, MAROON-X, and HIRES spectrographs, together with TESS, we report the discovery and mass determination of a planetary system around the M1.5 V star GJ 806 (TOI-4481). GJ 806 is a bright (V=10.8 mag, J=7.3 mag) and nearby (d=12 pc) M dwarf that hosts at least two planets. The innermost planet, GJ 806 b, is transiting and has an ultra-short orbital period of 0.93 d, a radius of 1.331+-0.023 Re, a mass of 1.90+-0.17 Me, a mean density of 4.40+-0.45 g/cm3, and an equilibrium temperature of 940+-10 K. We detect a second, non-transiting, super-Earth planet in the system, GJ 806c, with an orbital period of 6.6 d, a minimum mass of 5.80+-0.30 Me, and an equilibrium temperature of 490+-5 K. The radial velocity data also shows evidence for a third periodicity at 13.6 d, although the current dataset does not provide sufficient evidence to unambiguously distinguish between a third super-Earth mass (Msin(i)=8.50+-0.45 Me) planet or stellar activity. Additionally, we report one transit observation of GJ 806 b taken with CARMENES in search for a possible extended atmosphere of H or He, but we can only place upper limits to its existence. This is not surprising as our evolutionary models support the idea that any possible primordial H/He atmosphere that GJ 806 b might have had, would long have been lost. However, GJ 806b's bulk density makes it likely that the planet hosts some type of volatile atmosphere. In fact, with a transmission spectroscopy metrics (TSM) of 44 and an emission spectroscopy metrics (ESM) of 24, GJ 806 b the third-ranked terrestrial planet around an M dwarf suitable for transmission spectroscopy studies, and the most promising terrestrial planet for emission spectroscopy studies.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2022

Fundamental Properties of Late-Type Stars in Eclipsing Binaries

Evidence from the analysis of eclipsing binary systems revealed that late-type stars are larger and cooler than predicted by models, and that this is probably caused by stellar magnetic activity. In this work, we revisit this problem taking into account the advancements in the last decade. We provide and updated a list of 32 eclipsing binary or multiple systems, including at least one star with a mass $\lesssim 0.7$ M$_{\odot}$ and with mass and radius measured to an accuracy better than 3%. The~comparison with stellar structure and evolution theoretical models reveals an overall discrepancy of about 7% and -4% for the radius and effective temperature, respectively, and that it may be larger than previously found below the full convection boundary. Furthermore, the hypothesis of stellar activity is reinforced by the comparison of different systems with similar components. Further eclipsing binaries with accurately determined masses and radii, and with estimated activity levels, as well as the implementation of magnetic activity in theoretical models will help to improve our knowledge of low-mass stars, which are prime targets for exoplanet surveys.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2022

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. Variability on long timescales as seen in chromospheric indicators

It is clearly established that the Sun has an 11-year cycle that is caused by its internal magnetic field. This cycle is also observed in a sample of M dwarfs. In the framework of exoplanet detection or atmospheric characterisation of exoplanets, the activity status of the host star plays a crucial role, and inactive states are preferable for such studies. This means that it is important to know the activity cycles of these stars. We study systematic long-term variability in a sample of 211 M dwarfs observed with CARMENES, the high-resolution optical and near-infrared spectrograph at Calar Alto Observatory. In an automatic search using time series of different activity indicators, we identified 26 stars with linear or quadratic trends or with potentially cyclic behaviour. Additionally, we performed an independent search in archival R$^{\prime}_{\rm HK}$ data collected from different instruments whose time baselines were usually much longer. These data are available for a subset of 186 of our sample stars. Our search revealed 22 cycle candidates in the data. We found that the percentage of stars showing long-term variations drops dramatically to the latest M dwarfs. Moreover, we found that the pseudo-equivalent width (pEW) of the H$α$ and Ca ii infrared triplet more often triggers automatic detections of long-term variations than the TiO index, differential line width, chromatic index, or radial velocity. This is in line with our comparison of the median relative amplitudes of the different indicators. For stars that trigger our automatic detection, this leads to the highest amplitude variation in R$^{\prime}_{\rm HK}$, followed by pEW(H$α$), pEW(Ca ii IRT), and the TiO index.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2022

HD 191939 revisited: New and refined planet mass determinations, and a new planet in the habitable zone

HD 191939 (TOI-1339) is a nearby (d=54pc), bright (V=9mag), and inactive Sun-like star (G9 V) known to host a multi-planet transiting system. Ground-based spectroscopic observations confirmed the planetary nature of the three transiting sub-Neptunes (HD 191939 b, c, and d) originally detected by TESS and were used to measure the masses for planets b and c with 3$σ$ precision. These previous observations also reported the discovery of an additional Saturn-mass planet (HD 191939 e) and evidence for a further, very long-period companion (HD 191939 f). Here, we report the discovery of a new non-transiting planet in the system and a refined mass determination of HD 191939 d. The new planet, HD 191939 g, has a minimum mass of 13.5$\pm$2.0 M$_\oplus$ and a period of about 280 d. This period places the planet within the conservative habitable zone of the host star, and near a 1:3 resonance with HD 191939 e. The compilation of 362 radial velocity measurements with a baseline of 677 days from four different high-resolution spectrographs also allowed us to refine the properties of the previously known planets, including a 4.6$σ$ mass determination for planet d, for which only a 2$σ$ upper limit had been set until now. We confirm the previously suspected low density of HD 191939 d, which makes it an attractive target for attempting atmospheric characterisation. Overall, the planetary system consists of three sub-Neptunes interior to a Saturn-mass and a Uranus-mass planet plus a high-mass long-period companion. This particular configuration has no counterpart in the literature and makes HD 191939 an exceptional multi-planet transiting system with an unusual planet demographic worthy of future observation.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2022

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs: Stable radial-velocity variations at the rotation period of AD~Leonis -- A test case study of current limitations to treating stellar activity

Context: A challenge with radial-velocity (RV) data is disentangling the origin of signals either due to a planetary companion or to stellar activity. In fact, the existence of a planetary companion has been proposed, as well as contested, around the relatively bright, nearby M3.0V star AD Leo at the same period as the stellar rotation of 2.23d. Aims: We further investigate the nature of this signal. We introduce new CARMENES optical and near-IR RV data and an analysis in combination with archival data taken by HIRES and HARPS, along with more recent data from HARPS-N, GIANO-B, and HPF. Also, we address the confusion concerning the binarity of AD Leo. Methods: We consider possible correlations between the RVs and various stellar activity indicators accessible with CARMENES. We applied models within a Bayesian framework to determine whether a Keplerian model, a red-noise quasi-periodic model using a Gaussian process, or a mixed model would explain the observed data best. We also exclusively focus on spectral lines potentially associated with stellar activity. Results: The CARMENES RV data agree with the previously reported periodicity of 2.23d, correlate with some activity indicators, and exhibit chromaticity. However, when considering the entire RV data set, we find that a mixed model composed of a stable and a variable component performs best. Moreover, when recomputing the RVs using only spectral lines insensitive to activity, there appears to be some residual power at the period of interest. We therefore conclude that it is not possible to determinedly prove that there is no planet orbiting in synchronization with the stellar rotation given our data, current tools, machinery, and knowledge of how stellar activity affects RVs. We do rule out planets more massive than 27M_E (=0.084M_J). We also exclude any binary companion around AD Leo with Msini > 3-6M_J on orbital periods <14yr.

astro-ph.EP↗
arXiv2022

TOI-1468: A system of two transiting planets, a super-Earth and a mini-Neptune, on opposite sides of the radius valley

We report the discovery and characterization of two small transiting planets orbiting the bright M3.0V star TOI-1468 (LSPM J0106+1913), whose transit signals were detected in the photometric time series in three sectors of the TESS mission. We confirm the e planetary nature of both of them using precise radial velocity measurements from the CARMENES and MAROON-X spectrographs, and supplement them with ground-based transit photometry. A joint analysis of all these data reveals that the shorter-period planet, TOI-1468 b ($P_{\rm b}$ = 1.88 d), has a planetary mass of $M_{\rm b} = 3.21\pm0.24$ $M_{\oplus}$ and a radius of $R_{\rm b} =1.280^{+0.038}_{-0.039} R_{\oplus}$, resulting in a density of $ρ_{\rm b} = 8.39^{+ 1.05}_{- 0.92}$ g cm$^{-3}$, which is consistent with a mostly rocky composition. For the outer planet, TOI-1468 c ($P_{\rm c} = 15.53$ d), we derive a mass of $M_{\rm c} = 6.64^{+ 0.67}_{- 0.68}$ $M_{\oplus}$, a radius of $R_{\rm c} = 2.06\pm0.04\,R_{\oplus}$, and a bulk density of $ρ_{c} = 2.00^{+ 0.21}_{- 0.19}$ g cm$^{-3}$, which corresponds to a rocky core composition with a H/He gas envelope. These planets are located on opposite sides of the radius valley, making our system an interesting discovery as there are only a handful of other systems with the same properties. This discovery can further help determine a more precise location of the radius valley for small planets around M dwarfs and, therefore, shed more light on planet formation and evolution scenarios.

astro-ph.EP↗