A candidate super-Earth planet orbiting near the snow line of Barnard’s star

Ribas, I.; Tuomi, M.; Reiners, A.; Butler, R. P.; Morales, J. C.; Perger, M.; Dreizler, S.; Rodríguez-López, C.; Hernández, J. I. González; Rosich, A.; Feng, F.; Trifonov, T.; Vogt, S. S.; Caballero, J. A.; Hatzes, A.; Herrero, E.; Jeffers, S. V.; Lafarga, M.; Murgas, F.; Nelson, R. P.; Rodríguez, E.; Strachan, J. B. P.; Tal-Or, L.; Teske, J.; Toledo-Padrón, B.; Zechmeister, M.; Quirrenbach, A.; Amado, P. J.; Azzaro, M.; Béjar, V. J. S.; Barnes, J. R.; Berdiñas, Z. M.; Burt, J.; Coleman, G.; Cortés-Contreras, M.; Crane, J.; Engle, S. G.; Guinan, E. F.; Haswell, C. A.; Henning, Th.; Holden, B.; Jenkins, J.; Jones, H. R. A.; Kaminski, A.; Kiraga, M.; Kürster, M.; Lee, M. H.; López-González, M. J.; Montes, D.; Morin, J.; Ofir, A.; Pallé, E.; Rebolo, R.; Reffert, S.; Schweitzer, A.; Seifert, W.; Shectman, S. A.; Staab, D.; Street, R. A.; Mascareño, A. Suárez; Tsapras, Y.; Wang, S. X.; Anglada-Escudé, G.

A candidate super-Earth planet orbiting near the snow line of Barnard’s star

I. Ribas (), M. Tuomi, A. Reiners, R. P. Butler, J. C. Morales, M. Perger, S. Dreizler, C. Rodríguez-López, J. I. González Hernández, A. Rosich, F. Feng, T. Trifonov, S. S. Vogt, J. A. Caballero, A. Hatzes, E. Herrero, S. V. Jeffers, M. Lafarga, F. Murgas, R. P. Nelson, E. Rodríguez, J. B. P. Strachan, L. Tal-Or, J. Teske, B. Toledo-Padrón, M. Zechmeister, A. Quirrenbach, P. J. Amado, M. Azzaro, V. J. S. Béjar, J. R. Barnes, Z. M. Berdiñas, J. Burt, G. Coleman, M. Cortés-Contreras, J. Crane, S. G. Engle, E. F. Guinan, C. A. Haswell, Th. Henning, B. Holden, J. Jenkins, H. R. A. Jones, A. Kaminski, M. Kiraga, M. Kürster, M. H. Lee, M. J. López-González, D. Montes, J. Morin, A. Ofir, E. Pallé, R. Rebolo, S. Reffert, A. Schweitzer, W. Seifert, S. A. Shectman, D. Staab, R. A. Street, A. Suárez Mascareño, Y. Tsapras, S. X. Wang and G. Anglada-Escudé
Additional contact information
I. Ribas: Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
M. Tuomi: University of Hertfordshire
A. Reiners: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
R. P. Butler: Carnegie Institution for Science
J. C. Morales: Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
M. Perger: Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
S. Dreizler: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
C. Rodríguez-López: Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC)
J. I. González Hernández: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
A. Rosich: Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
F. Feng: University of Hertfordshire
T. Trifonov: Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie
S. S. Vogt: UCO/Lick Observatory, University of California at Santa Cruz
J. A. Caballero: Centro de Astrobiología, CSIC-INTA, ESAC
A. Hatzes: Thüringer Landessternwarte
E. Herrero: Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
S. V. Jeffers: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
M. Lafarga: Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
F. Murgas: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
R. P. Nelson: Queen Mary University of London
E. Rodríguez: Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC)
J. B. P. Strachan: Queen Mary University of London
L. Tal-Or: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
J. Teske: Carnegie Institution for Science
B. Toledo-Padrón: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
M. Zechmeister: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
A. Quirrenbach: Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg
P. J. Amado: Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC)
M. Azzaro: Centro Astronómico Hispano-Alemán (CSIC-MPG), Observatorio Astronómico de Calar Alto
V. J. S. Béjar: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
J. R. Barnes: The Open University
Z. M. Berdiñas: Universidad de Chile
J. Burt: Kavli Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
G. Coleman: Physikalisches Institut, Universität Bern
M. Cortés-Contreras: Centro de Astrobiología, CSIC-INTA, ESAC
J. Crane: Carnegie Institution for Science
S. G. Engle: Villanova University
E. F. Guinan: Villanova University
C. A. Haswell: The Open University
Th. Henning: Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie
B. Holden: UCO/Lick Observatory, University of California at Santa Cruz
J. Jenkins: Universidad de Chile
H. R. A. Jones: University of Hertfordshire
A. Kaminski: Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg
M. Kiraga: Warsaw University Observatory
M. Kürster: Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie
M. H. Lee: The University of Hong Kong
M. J. López-González: Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC)
D. Montes: Facultad de Ciencias Físicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
J. Morin: Université de Montpellier, CNRS
A. Ofir: Weizmann Institute of Science
E. Pallé: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
R. Rebolo: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
S. Reffert: Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg
A. Schweitzer: Hamburger Sternwarte, Universität Hamburg
W. Seifert: Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg
S. A. Shectman: Carnegie Institution for Science
D. Staab: The Open University
R. A. Street: Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network
A. Suárez Mascareño: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
Y. Tsapras: Astronomisches Rechen-Institut
S. X. Wang: Carnegie Institution for Science
G. Anglada-Escudé: Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC)

Nature, 2018, vol. 563, issue 7731, 365-368

Abstract: Abstract Barnard’s star is a red dwarf, and has the largest proper motion (apparent motion across the sky) of all known stars. At a distance of 1.8 parsecs1, it is the closest single star to the Sun; only the three stars in the α Centauri system are closer. Barnard’s star is also among the least magnetically active red dwarfs known2,3 and has an estimated age older than the Solar System. Its properties make it a prime target for planetary searches; various techniques with different sensitivity limits have been used previously, including radial-velocity imaging4–6, astrometry7,8 and direct imaging9, but all ultimately led to negative or null results. Here we combine numerous measurements from high-precision radial-velocity instruments, revealing the presence of a low-amplitude periodic signal with a period of 233 days. Independent photometric and spectroscopic monitoring, as well as an analysis of instrumental systematic effects, suggest that this signal is best explained as arising from a planetary companion. The candidate planet around Barnard’s star is a cold super-Earth, with a minimum mass of 3.2 times that of Earth, orbiting near its snow line (the minimum distance from the star at which volatile compounds could condense). The combination of all radial-velocity datasets spanning 20 years of measurements additionally reveals a long-term modulation that could arise from a stellar magnetic-activity cycle or from a more distant planetary object. Because of its proximity to the Sun, the candidate planet has a maximum angular separation of 220 milliarcseconds from Barnard’s star, making it an excellent target for direct imaging and astrometric observations in the future.

Keywords: Planet Candidates; Long-term Modulation; Stellar Rotation Period; American Association Of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO); Zero-point Offsets (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0677-y

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