arXiv subjects

Tianjun Gan

Publications and source records attributed to Tianjun Gan.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

A Possible Alignment Between the Orbits of Planetary Systems and their Visual Binary Companions

Astronomers do not have a complete picture of the effects of wide-binary companions (semimajor axes greater than 100 AU) on the formation and evolution of exoplanets. We investigate these effects using new data from Gaia EDR3 and the TESS mission to characterize wide-binary systems with transiting exoplanets. We identify a sample of 67 systems of transiting exoplanet candidates (with well-determined, edge-on orbital inclinations) that reside in wide visual binary systems. We derive limits on orbital parameters for the wide-binary systems and measure the minimum difference in orbital inclination between the binary and planet orbits. We determine that there is statistically significant difference in the inclination distribution of wide-binary systems with transiting planets compared to a control sample, with the probability that the two distributions are the same being 0.0037. This implies that there is an overabundance of planets in binary systems whose orbits are aligned with those of the binary. The overabundance of aligned systems appears to primarily have semimajor axes less than 700 AU. We investigate some effects that could cause the alignment and conclude that a torque caused by a misaligned binary companion on the protoplanetary disk is the most promising explanation.

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arXiv2022

A pair of Sub-Neptunes transiting the bright K-dwarf TOI-1064 characterised with CHEOPS

We report the discovery and characterisation of a pair of sub-Neptunes transiting the bright K-dwarf TOI-1064 (TIC 79748331), initially detected in TESS photometry. To characterise the system, we performed and retrieved CHEOPS, TESS, and ground-based photometry, HARPS high-resolution spectroscopy, and Gemini speckle imaging. We characterise the host star and determine $T_{\rm eff, \star}=4734\pm67$ K, $R_{\star}=0.726\pm0.007$ $R_{\odot}$, and $M_{\star}=0.748\pm0.032$ $M_{\odot}$. We present a novel detrending method based on PSF shape-change modelling and demonstrate its suitability to correct flux variations in CHEOPS data. We confirm the planetary nature of both bodies and find that TOI-1064 b has an orbital period of $P_{\rm b}=6.44387\pm0.00003$ d, a radius of $R_{\rm b}=2.59\pm0.04$ $R_{\oplus}$, and a mass of $M_{\rm b}=13.5_{-1.8}^{+1.7}$ $M_{\oplus}$, whilst TOI-1064 c has an orbital period of $P_{\rm c}=12.22657^{+0.00005}_{-0.00004}$ d, a radius of $R_{\rm c}=2.65\pm0.04$ $R_{\oplus}$, and a 3$σ$ upper mass limit of 8.5 ${\rm M_{\oplus}}$. From the high-precision photometry we obtain radius uncertainties of $\sim$1.6%, allowing us to conduct internal structure and atmospheric escape modelling. TOI-1064 b is one of the densest, well-characterised sub-Neptunes, with a tenuous atmosphere that can be explained by the loss of a primordial envelope following migration through the protoplanetary disc. It is likely that TOI-1064 c has an extended atmosphere due to the tentative low density, however further RVs are needed to confirm this scenario and the similar radii, different masses nature of this system. The high-precision data and modelling of TOI-1064 b are important for planets in this region of mass-radius space, and it allows us to identify a trend in bulk density-stellar metallicity for massive sub-Neptunes that may hint at the formation of this population of planets.

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arXiv2021

TOI-1842b: A Transiting Warm Saturn Undergoing Re-Inflation around an Evolving Subgiant

The imminent launch of space telescopes designed to probe the atmospheres of exoplanets has prompted new efforts to prioritise the thousands of transiting planet candidates for follow-up characterisation. We report the detection and confirmation of TOI-1842b, a warm Saturn identified by TESS and confirmed with ground-based observations from Minerva-Australis, NRES, and the Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope. This planet has a radius of $1.04^{+0.06}_{-0.05}\,R_{Jup}$, a mass of $0.214^{+0.040}_{-0.038}\,M_{Jup}$, an orbital period of $9.5739^{+0.0002}_{-0.0001}$ days, and an extremely low density ($ρ$=0.252$\pm$0.091 g cm$^{-3}$). TOI-1842b has among the best known combinations of large atmospheric scale height (893 km) and host-star brightness ($J=8.747$ mag), making it an attractive target for atmospheric characterisation. As the host star is beginning to evolve off the main sequence, TOI-1842b presents an excellent opportunity to test models of gas giant re-inflation. The primary transit duration of only 4.3 hours also makes TOI-1842b an easily-schedulable target for further ground-based atmospheric characterisation.

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arXiv2021

TOI-2109b: An Ultrahot Gas Giant on a 16 hr Orbit

We report the discovery of an ultrahot Jupiter with an extremely short orbital period of $0.67247414\,\pm\,0.00000028$ days ($\sim$16 hr). The $1.347 \pm 0.047$ $R_{\rm Jup}$ planet, initially identified by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission, orbits TOI-2109 (TIC 392476080): a $T_{\rm eff} \sim 6500$ K F-type star with a mass of $1.447 \pm 0.077$ $M_{\rm Sun}$, a radius of $1.698 \pm 0.060$ $R_{\rm Sun}$, and a rotational velocity of $v\sin i_* = 81.9 \pm 1.7$ km s$^{-1}$. The planetary nature of TOI-2109b was confirmed through radial velocity measurements, which yielded a planet mass of $5.02 \pm 0.75$ $M_{\rm Jup}$. Analysis of the Doppler shadow in spectroscopic transit observations indicates a well-aligned system, with a sky-projected obliquity of $λ= 1\overset{\circ}{.}7 \pm 1\overset{\circ}{.}7$. From the TESS full-orbit light curve, we measured a secondary eclipse depth of $731 \pm 46$ ppm, as well as phase-curve variations from the planet's longitudinal brightness modulation and ellipsoidal distortion of the host star. Combining the TESS-band occultation measurement with a $K_s$-band secondary eclipse depth ($2012 \pm 80$ ppm) derived from ground-based observations, we find that the dayside emission of TOI-2109b is consistent with a brightness temperature of $3631 \pm 69$ K, making it the second hottest exoplanet hitherto discovered. By virtue of its extreme irradiation and strong planet-star gravitational interaction, TOI-2109b is an exceptionally promising target for intensive follow-up studies using current and near-future telescope facilities to probe for orbital decay, detect tidally driven atmospheric escape, and assess the impacts of H$_2$ dissociation and recombination on the global heat transport.

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arXiv2021

TOI-2076 and TOI-1807: Two young, comoving planetary systems within 50 pc identified by TESS that are ideal candidates for further follow-up

We report the discovery of two planetary systems around comoving stars; TOI-2076 (TIC 27491137) and TOI-1807 (TIC 180695581). TOI-2076 is a nearby (41.9 pc) multi-planetary system orbiting a young (204$\pm$50 Myr), bright (K = 7.115 in TIC v8.1). TOI-1807 hosts a single transiting planet, and is similarly nearby (42.58pc), similarly young (180$\pm$40 Myr), and bright. Both targets exhibit significant, periodic variability due to star spots, characteristic of their young ages. Using photometric data collected by TESS we identify three transiting planets around TOI-2076 with radii of R$_b$=3.3$\pm$0.04$R_\oplus$, R$_c$=4.4$\pm$0.05$R_\oplus$, and R$_d$=4.1$\pm$0.07$R_\oplus$. Planet TOI-2076b has a period of P$_b$=10.356 d. For both TOI 2076c and d, TESS observed only two transits, separated by a 2-year interval in which no data were collected, preventing a unique period determination. A range of long periods (>17d) are consistent with the data. We identify a short-period planet around TOI-1807 with a radius of R$_b$=1.8$\pm$0.04$R_\oplus$ and a period of P$_b$=0.549 d. Their close proximity, and bright, cool host stars, and young ages, make these planets excellent candidates for follow-up. TOI-1807b is one of the best known small ($R<2R_\oplus$) planets for characterization via eclipse spectroscopy and phase curves with JWST. TOI-1807b is the youngest ultra-short period planet discovered to date, providing valuable constraints on formation time-scales of short period planets. Given the rarity of young planets, particularly in multiple planet systems, these planets present an unprecedented opportunity to study and compare exoplanet formation, and young planet atmospheres, at a crucial transition age for formation theory.

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arXiv2021

TOI-530b: A giant planet transiting an M dwarf detected by TESS

We report the discovery of TOI-530b, a transiting giant planet around an M0.5V dwarf, delivered by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The host star is located at a distance of $147.7\pm0.6$ pc with a radius of $R_{\ast}=0.54\pm0.03\ R_{\odot}$ and a mass of $M_{\ast}=0.53\pm0.02\ M_{\odot}$. We verify the planetary nature of the transit signals by combining ground-based multi-wavelength photometry, high resolution spectroscopy from SPIRou as well as high-angular-resolution imaging. With $V=15.4$ mag, TOI-530b is orbiting one of the faintest stars accessible by ground-based spectroscopy. Our model reveals that TOI-530b has a radius of $0.83\pm0.05\ R_{J}$ and a mass of $0.4\pm0.1\ M_{J}$ on a 6.39-d orbit. TOI-530b is the sixth transiting giant planet hosted by an M-type star, which is predicted to be infrequent according to core accretion theory, making it a valuable object to further study the formation and migration history of similar planets. We discuss the potential formation channel of such systems.

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arXiv2021

The Magellan-TESS Survey I: Survey Description and Mid-Survey Results

$Kepler$ revealed that roughly one-third of Sun-like stars host planets orbiting within 100 days and between the size of Earth and Neptune. How do these planets form, what are they made of, and do they represent a continuous population or multiple populations? To help address these questions, we began the Magellan-TESS Survey (MTS), which uses Magellan II/PFS to obtain radial velocity (RV) masses of 30 TESS-detected exoplanets and develops an analysis framework that connects observed planet distributions to underlying populations. In the past, small planet RV measurements have been challenging to obtain due to host star faintness and low RV semi-amplitudes, and challenging to interpret due to the potential biases in target selection and observation planning decisions. The MTS attempts to minimize these biases by focusing on bright TESS targets and employing a quantitative selection function and observing strategy. In this paper, we (1) describe our motivation and survey strategy, (2) present our first catalog of planet density constraints for 27 TESS Objects of Interest (TOIs; 22 in our population analysis sample, 12 that are members of the same systems), and (3) employ a hierarchical Bayesian model to produce preliminary constraints on the mass-radius (M-R) relation. We find that the biases causing previous M-R relations to predict fairly high masses at $1~R_\oplus$ have been reduced. This work can inform more detailed studies of individual systems and offer a framework that can be applied to future RV surveys with the goal of population inferences.

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arXiv2021

HD 183579b: A Warm Sub-Neptune Transiting a Solar Twin Detected by TESS

We report the discovery and characterization of a transiting warm sub-Neptune planet around the nearby bright ($V=8.75$ mag, $K=7.15$ mag) solar twin HD 183579, delivered by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The host star is located $56.8\pm0.1$ pc away with a radius of $R_{\ast}=0.97\pm0.02\ R_{\odot}$ and a mass of $M_{\ast}=1.03\pm0.05\ M_{\odot}$. We confirm the planetary nature by combining space and ground-based photometry, spectroscopy, and imaging. We find that HD 183579b (TOI-1055b) has a radius of $R_{p}=3.53\pm0.13\ R_{\oplus}$ on a $17.47$ day orbit with a mass of $M_{p}=11.2\pm5.4\ M_{\oplus}$ ($3σ$ mass upper limit of $27.4\ M_{\oplus}$). HD 183579b is the fifth brightest known sub-Neptune planet system in the sky, making it an excellent target for future studies of the interior structure and atmospheric properties. By performing a line-by-line differential analysis using the high resolution and signal-to-noise ratio HARPS spectra, we find that HD 183579 joins the typical solar twin sample, without a statistically significant refractory element depletion.

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arXiv2021

Searching For Transiting Planets Around Halo Stars. II. Constraining the Occurrence Rate of Hot Jupiters

Jovian planet formation has been shown to be strongly correlated with host star metallicity, which is thought to be a proxy for disk solids. Observationally, previous works have indicated that jovian planets preferentially form around stars with solar and super solar metallicities. Given these findings, it is challenging to form planets within metal-poor environments, particularly for hot Jupiters that are thought to form via metallicity-dependent core accretion. Although previous studies have conducted planet searches for hot Jupiters around metal-poor stars, they have been limited due to small sample sizes, which are a result of a lack of high-quality data making hot Jupiter occurrence within the metal-poor regime difficult to constrain until now. We use a large sample of halo stars observed by TESS to constrain the upper limit of hot Jupiter occurrence within the metal-poor regime (-2.0 $\leq$ [Fe/H] $\leq$ -0.6). Placing the most stringent upper limit on hot Jupiter occurrence, we find the mean 1-$σ$ upper limit to be 0.18 $\%$ for radii 0.8 -2 R$_{\rm{Jupiter}}$ and periods $0.5- 10$ days. This result is consistent with previous predictions indicating that there exists a certain metallicity below which no planets can form.

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arXiv2021

A transit timing variation observed for the long-period extremely low density exoplanet HIP 41378f

HIP 41378 f is a temperate $9.2\pm0.1 R_{\oplus}$ planet with period of 542.08 days and an extremely low density of $0.09\pm0.02$ g cm$^{-3}$. It transits the bright star HIP 41378 (V=8.93), making it an exciting target for atmospheric characterization including transmission spectroscopy. HIP 41378 was monitored photometrically between the dates of 2019 November 19 and November 28. We detected a transit of HIP 41378 f with NGTS, just the third transit ever detected for this planet, which confirms the orbital period. This is also the first ground-based detection of a transit of HIP 41378 f. Additional ground-based photometry was also obtained and used to constrain the time of the transit. The transit was measured to occur 1.50 hours earlier than predicted. We use an analytic transit timing variation (TTV) model to show the observed TTV can be explained by interactions between HIP 41378 e and HIP 41378 f. Using our TTV model, we predict the epochs of future transits of HIP 41378 f, with derived transit centres of T$_{C,4} = 2459355.087^{+0.031}_{-0.022}$ (May 2021) and T$_{C,5} = 2459897.078^{+0.114}_{-0.060}$ (Nov 2022).

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arXiv2021

Warm Jupiters in TESS Full-Frame Images: A Catalog and Observed Eccentricity Distribution for Year 1

Warm Jupiters -- defined here as planets larger than 6 Earth radii with orbital periods of 8--200 days -- are a key missing piece in our understanding of how planetary systems form and evolve. It is currently debated whether Warm Jupiters form in situ, undergo disk or high eccentricity tidal migration, or have a mixture of origin channels. These different classes of origin channels lead to different expectations for Warm Jupiters' properties, which are currently difficult to evaluate due to the small sample size. We take advantage of the \TESS survey and systematically search for Warm Jupiter candidates around main-sequence host stars brighter than the \TESS-band magnitude of 12 in the Full-Frame Images in Year 1 of the \TESS Prime Mission data. We introduce a catalog of 55 Warm Jupiter candidates, including 19 candidates that were not originally released as \TESS Objects of Interest (TOIs) by the \TESS team. We fit their \TESS light curves, characterize their eccentricities and transit-timing variations (TTVs), and prioritize a list for ground-based follow-up and \TESS Extended Mission observations. Using hierarchical Bayesian modeling, we find the preliminary eccentricity distributions of our Warm-Jupiter-candidate catalog using a Beta distribution, a Rayleigh distribution, and a two-component Gaussian distribution as the functional forms of the eccentricity distribution. Additional follow-up observations will be required to clean the sample of false positives for a full statistical study, derive the orbital solutions to break the eccentricity degeneracy, and provide mass measurements.

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arXiv2021

Precise transit and radial-velocity characterization of a resonant pair: a warm Jupiter TOI-216c and eccentric warm Neptune TOI-216b

TOI-216 hosts a pair of warm, large exoplanets discovered by the TESS Mission. These planets were found to be in or near the 2:1 resonance, and both of them exhibit transit timing variations (TTVs). Precise characterization of the planets' masses and radii, orbital properties, and resonant behavior can test theories for the origins of planets orbiting close to their stars. Previous characterization of the system using the first six sectors of TESS data suffered from a degeneracy between planet mass and orbital eccentricity. Radial velocity measurements using HARPS, FEROS, and PFS break that degeneracy, and an expanded TTV baseline from TESS and an ongoing ground-based transit observing campaign increase the precision of the mass and eccentricity measurements. We determine that TOI-216c is a warm Jupiter, TOI-216b is an eccentric warm Neptune, and that they librate in the 2:1 resonance with a moderate libration amplitude of 60 +/- 2 degrees; small but significant free eccentricity of 0.0222 +0.0005/-0.0003 for TOI-216b; and small but significant mutual inclination of 1.2-3.9 degrees (95% confidence interval). The libration amplitude, free eccentricity, and mutual inclination imply a disturbance of TOI-216b before or after resonance capture, perhaps by an undetected third planet.

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arXiv2021

TESS Delivers Five New Hot Giant Planets Orbiting Bright Stars from the Full Frame Images

We present the discovery and characterization of five hot and warm Jupiters -- TOI-628 b (TIC 281408474; HD 288842), TOI-640 b (TIC 147977348), TOI-1333 b (TIC 395171208, BD+47 3521A), TOI-1478 b (TIC 409794137), and TOI-1601 b (TIC 139375960) -- based on data from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The five planets were identified from the full frame images and were confirmed through a series of photometric and spectroscopic follow-up observations by the $TESS$ Follow-up Observing Program (TFOP) Working Group. The planets are all Jovian size (R$_{\rm P}$ = 1.01-1.77 R$_{\rm J}$) and have masses that range from 0.85 to 6.33 M$_{\rm J}$. The host stars of these systems have F and G spectral types (5595 $\le$ T$_{\rm eff}$ $\le$ 6460 K) and are all relatively bright (9 $ 1.7R$_{\rm J}$, possibly a result of its host star's evolution) and resides on an orbit with a period longer than 5 days. TOI-628 b is the most massive hot Jupiter discovered to date by $TESS$ with a measured mass of $6.31^{+0.28}_{-0.30}$ M$_{\rm J}$ and a statistically significant, non-zero orbital eccentricity of e = $0.074^{+0.021}_{-0.022}$. This planet would not have had enough time to circularize through tidal forces from our analysis, suggesting that it might be remnant eccentricity from its migration. The longest period planet in this sample, TOI-1478 b (P = 10.18 days), is a warm Jupiter in a circular orbit around a near-Solar analogue. NASA's $TESS$ mission is continuing to increase the sample of well-characterized hot and warm Jupiters, complementing its primary mission goals.

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arXiv2020

Revisiting the HD 21749 Planetary System with Stellar Activity Modeling

HD 21749 is a bright ($V=8.1$ mag) K dwarf at 16 pc known to host an inner terrestrial planet HD 21749c as well as an outer sub-Neptune HD 21749b, both delivered by TESS. Follow-up spectroscopic observations measured the mass of HD 21749b to be $22.7\pm2.2\ M_{\oplus}$ with a density of $7.0^{+1.6}_{-1.3}$ g~cm$^{-3}$, making it one of the densest sub-Neptunes. However, the mass measurement was suspected to be influenced by stellar rotation. Here we present new high-cadence PFS RV data to disentangle the stellar activity signal from the planetary signal. We find that HD 21749 has a similar rotational timescale as the planet's orbital period, and the amplitude of the planetary orbital RV signal is estimated to be similar to that of the stellar activity signal. We perform Gaussian Process (GP) regression on the photometry and RVs from HARPS and PFS to model the stellar activity signal. Our new models reveal that HD 21749b has a radius of $2.86\pm0.20\ R_{\oplus}$, an orbital period of $35.6133\pm0.0005$ d with a mass of $M_{b}=20.0\pm2.7\ M_{\oplus}$ and a density of $4.8^{+2.0}_{-1.4}$ g~cm$^{-3}$ on an eccentric orbit with $e=0.16\pm0.06$, which is consistent with the most recent values published for this system. HD 21749c has an orbital period of $7.7902\pm0.0006$ d, a radius of $1.13\pm0.10\ R_{\oplus}$, and a 3$σ$ mass upper limit of $3.5\ M_{\oplus}$. Our Monte Carlo simulations confirm that without properly taking stellar activity signals into account, the mass measurement of HD 21749b is likely to arrive at a significantly underestimated error bar.

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arXiv2020

TOI 122b and TOI 237b, two small warm planets orbiting inactive M dwarfs, found by \textit{TESS}

We report the discovery and validation of TOI 122b and TOI 237b, two warm planets transiting inactive M dwarfs observed by \textit{TESS}. Our analysis shows TOI 122b has a radius of 2.72$\pm$0.18 R$_\rm{e}$ and receives 8.8$\pm$1.0$\times$ Earth's bolometric insolation, and TOI 237b has a radius of 1.44$\pm$0.12 R$_\rm{e}$ and receives 3.7$\pm$0.5$\times$ Earth insolation, straddling the 6.7$\times$ Earth insolation that Mercury receives from the sun. This makes these two of the cooler planets yet discovered by \textit{TESS}, even on their 5.08-day and 5.43-day orbits. Together, they span the small-planet radius valley, providing useful laboratories for exploring volatile evolution around M dwarfs. Their relatively nearby distances (62.23$\pm$0.21 pc and 38.11$\pm$0.23 pc, respectively) make them potentially feasible targets for future radial velocity follow-up and atmospheric characterization, although such observations may require substantial investments of time on large telescopes.

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arXiv2020

TOI-824 b: A New Planet on the Lower Edge of the Hot Neptune Desert

We report the detection of a transiting hot Neptune exoplanet orbiting TOI-824 (SCR J1448-5735), a nearby (d = 64 pc) K4V star, using data from the \textit{Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite} (TESS). The newly discovered planet has a radius, $R_{\rm{p}}$ = 2.93 $\pm$ 0.20 R$_{\oplus}$, and an orbital period of 1.393 days. Radial velocity measurements using the Planet Finder Spectrograph (PFS) and the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) spectrograph confirm the existence of the planet and we estimate its mass to be $M_{\rm{p}}$ = 18.47 $\pm$ 1.84 M$_{\oplus}$. The planet's mean density is $ρ_{\rm{p}}$ = 4.03$^{+0.98}_{-0.78}$ g cm$^{-3}$ making it more than twice as dense as Neptune. TOI-824 b's high equilibrium temperature makes the planet likely to have a cloud free atmosphere, and thus an excellent candidate for follow up atmospheric studies. The detectability of TOI-824 b's atmosphere from both ground and space is promising and could lead to the detailed characterization of the most irradiated, small planet at the edge of the hot Neptune desert that has retained its atmosphere to date.

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arXiv2020

A remnant planetary core in the hot-Neptune desert

The interiors of giant planets remain poorly understood. Even for the planets in the Solar System, difficulties in observation lead to large uncertainties in the properties of planetary cores. Exoplanets that have undergone rare evolutionary processes provide a route to understanding planetary interiors. Planets found in and near the typically barren hot-Neptune 'desert' (a region in mass-radius space that contains few planets) have proved to be particularly valuable in this regard. These planets include HD149026b, which is thought to have an unusually massive core, and recent discoveries such as LTT9779b and NGTS-4b, on which photoevaporation has removed a substantial part of their outer atmospheres. Here we report observations of the planet TOI-849b, which has a radius smaller than Neptune's but an anomalously large mass of $39.1^{+2.7}_{-2.6}$ Earth masses and a density of $5.2^{+0.7}_{-0.8}$ grams per cubic centimetre, similar to Earth's. Interior structure models suggest that any gaseous envelope of pure hydrogen and helium consists of no more than $3.9^{+0.8}_{-0.9}$ per cent of the total planetary mass. The planet could have been a gas giant before undergoing extreme mass loss via thermal self-disruption or giant planet collisions, or it could have avoided substantial gas accretion, perhaps through gap opening or late formation. Although photoevaporation rates cannot account for the mass loss required to reduce a Jupiter-like gas giant, they can remove a small (a few Earth masses) hydrogen and helium envelope on timescales of several billion years, implying that any remaining atmosphere on TOI-849b is likely to be enriched by water or other volatiles from the planetary interior. We conclude that TOI-849b is the remnant core of a giant planet.

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arXiv2020

The First Habitable Zone Earth-sized Planet from TESS. I: Validation of the TOI-700 System

We present the discovery and validation of a three-planet system orbiting the nearby (31.1 pc) M2 dwarf star TOI-700 (TIC 150428135). TOI-700 lies in the TESS continuous viewing zone in the Southern Ecliptic Hemisphere; observations spanning 11 sectors reveal three planets with radii ranging from 1 R$_\oplus$ to 2.6 R$_\oplus$ and orbital periods ranging from 9.98 to 37.43 days. Ground-based follow-up combined with diagnostic vetting and validation tests enable us to rule out common astrophysical false-positive scenarios and validate the system of planets. The outermost planet, TOI-700 d, has a radius of $1.19\pm0.11$ R$_\oplus$ and resides in the conservative habitable zone of its host star, where it receives a flux from its star that is approximately 86% of the Earth's insolation. In contrast to some other low-mass stars that host Earth-sized planets in their habitable zones, TOI-700 exhibits low levels of stellar activity, presenting a valuable opportunity to study potentially-rocky planets over a wide range of conditions affecting atmospheric escape. While atmospheric characterization of TOI-700 d with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be challenging, the larger sub-Neptune, TOI-700 c (R = 2.63 R$_\oplus$), will be an excellent target for JWST and beyond. TESS is scheduled to return to the Southern Hemisphere and observe TOI-700 for an additional 11 sectors in its extended mission, which should provide further constraints on the known planet parameters and searches for additional planets and transit timing variations in the system.

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