A remnant planetary core in the hot-Neptune desert

David J. Armstrong (), Théo A. Lopez, Vardan Adibekyan, Richard A. Booth, Edward M. Bryant, Karen A. Collins, Magali Deleuil, Alexandre Emsenhuber, Chelsea X. Huang, George W. King, Jorge Lillo-Box, Jack J. Lissauer, Elisabeth Matthews, Olivier Mousis, Louise D. Nielsen, Hugh Osborn, Jon Otegi, Nuno C. Santos, Sérgio G. Sousa, Keivan G. Stassun, Dimitri Veras, Carl Ziegler, Jack S. Acton, Jose M. Almenara, David R. Anderson, David Barrado, Susana C. C. Barros, Daniel Bayliss, Claudia Belardi, Francois Bouchy, César Briceño, Matteo Brogi, David J. A. Brown, Matthew R. Burleigh, Sarah L. Casewell, Alexander Chaushev, David R. Ciardi, Kevin I. Collins, Knicole D. Colón, Benjamin F. Cooke, Ian J. M. Crossfield, Rodrigo F. Díaz, Elisa Delgado Mena, Olivier D. S. Demangeon, Caroline Dorn, Xavier Dumusque, Philipp Eigmüller, Michael Fausnaugh, Pedro Figueira, Tianjun Gan, Siddharth Gandhi, Samuel Gill, Erica J. Gonzales, Michael R. Goad, Maximilian N. Günther, Ravit Helled, Saeed Hojjatpanah, Steve B. Howell, James Jackman, James S. Jenkins, Jon M. Jenkins, Eric L. N. Jensen, Grant M. Kennedy, David W. Latham, Nicholas Law, Monika Lendl, Michael Lozovsky, Andrew W. Mann, Maximiliano Moyano, James McCormac, Farzana Meru, Christoph Mordasini, Ares Osborn, Don Pollacco, Didier Queloz, Liam Raynard, George R. Ricker, Pamela Rowden, Alexandre Santerne, Joshua E. Schlieder, Sara Seager, Lizhou Sha, Thiam-Guan Tan, Rosanna H. Tilbrook, Eric Ting, Stéphane Udry, Roland Vanderspek, Christopher A. Watson, Richard G. West, Paul A. Wilson, Joshua N. Winn, Peter Wheatley, Jesus Noel Villasenor, Jose I. Vines and Zhuchang Zhan
Additional contact information
David J. Armstrong: University of Warwick
Théo A. Lopez: Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, CNES, LAM
Vardan Adibekyan: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Richard A. Booth: University of Cambridge
Edward M. Bryant: University of Warwick
Karen A. Collins: Harvard and Smithsonian
Magali Deleuil: Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, CNES, LAM
Alexandre Emsenhuber: University of Arizona
Chelsea X. Huang: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
George W. King: University of Warwick
Jorge Lillo-Box: Centro de Astrobiología (CSIC-INTA)
Jack J. Lissauer: NASA Ames Research Center
Elisabeth Matthews: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Olivier Mousis: Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, CNES, LAM
Louise D. Nielsen: Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genéve
Hugh Osborn: Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, CNES, LAM
Jon Otegi: Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genéve
Nuno C. Santos: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Sérgio G. Sousa: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Keivan G. Stassun: Vanderbilt University
Dimitri Veras: University of Warwick
Carl Ziegler: University of Toronto
Jack S. Acton: University of Leicester
Jose M. Almenara: Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG
David R. Anderson: University of Warwick
David Barrado: Centro de Astrobiología (CSIC-INTA)
Susana C. C. Barros: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Daniel Bayliss: University of Warwick
Claudia Belardi: University of Leicester
Francois Bouchy: Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genéve
César Briceño: Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory
Matteo Brogi: University of Warwick
David J. A. Brown: University of Warwick
Matthew R. Burleigh: University of Leicester
Sarah L. Casewell: University of Leicester
Alexander Chaushev: Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, TU Berlin
David R. Ciardi: Caltech/IPAC-NASA Exoplanet Science Institute
Kevin I. Collins: George Mason University
Knicole D. Colón: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Exoplanets and Stellar Astrophysics Laboratory (Code 667)
Benjamin F. Cooke: University of Warwick
Ian J. M. Crossfield: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Rodrigo F. Díaz: Universidad de Buenos Aires
Elisa Delgado Mena: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Olivier D. S. Demangeon: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Caroline Dorn: University of Zurich
Xavier Dumusque: Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genéve
Philipp Eigmüller: German Aerospace Center
Michael Fausnaugh: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Pedro Figueira: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Tianjun Gan: Tsinghua University
Siddharth Gandhi: University of Warwick
Samuel Gill: University of Warwick
Erica J. Gonzales: University of California at Santa Cruz
Michael R. Goad: University of Leicester
Maximilian N. Günther: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Ravit Helled: University of Zurich
Saeed Hojjatpanah: Universidade do Porto, CAUP
Steve B. Howell: NASA Ames Research Center
James Jackman: University of Warwick
James S. Jenkins: Universidad de Chile
Jon M. Jenkins: NASA Ames Research Center
Eric L. N. Jensen: Swarthmore College
Grant M. Kennedy: University of Warwick
David W. Latham: Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Nicholas Law: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Monika Lendl: Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genéve
Michael Lozovsky: University of Zurich
Andrew W. Mann: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Maximiliano Moyano: Universidad Católica del Norte
James McCormac: University of Warwick
Farzana Meru: University of Warwick
Christoph Mordasini: University of Bern
Ares Osborn: University of Warwick
Don Pollacco: University of Warwick
Didier Queloz: University of Cambridge
Liam Raynard: University of Leicester
George R. Ricker: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Pamela Rowden: The Open University
Alexandre Santerne: Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, CNES, LAM
Joshua E. Schlieder: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Exoplanets and Stellar Astrophysics Laboratory (Code 667)
Sara Seager: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Lizhou Sha: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Thiam-Guan Tan: Perth Exoplanet Survey Telescope
Rosanna H. Tilbrook: University of Leicester
Eric Ting: NASA Ames Research Center
Stéphane Udry: Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genéve
Roland Vanderspek: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Christopher A. Watson: Queen’s University Belfast
Richard G. West: University of Warwick
Paul A. Wilson: University of Warwick
Joshua N. Winn: Princeton University
Peter Wheatley: University of Warwick
Jesus Noel Villasenor: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jose I. Vines: Universidad de Chile
Zhuchang Zhan: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Nature, 2020, vol. 583, issue 7814, 39-42

Abstract: Abstract 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’1,2 (a region in mass–radius space that contains few planets) have proved to be particularly valuable in this regard. These planets include HD149026b3, which is thought to have an unusually massive core, and recent discoveries such as LTT9779b4 and NGTS-4b5, 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 $$39.1{\,}_{-2.6}^{+2.7}$$39.1−2.6+2.7 Earth masses and a density of $$5.2{\,}_{-0.8}^{+0.7}$$5.2−0.8+0.7 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 $${3.9}_{-0.9}^{+0.8}$$3.9−0.9+0.8 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 formation6. 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.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2421-7

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