Search Publications
K2-161b: a low-density super-Neptune on an eccentric orbit
Jones, M. I.; Cortés, C.; Rabus, M. +15 more
We report the discovery of K2-161b, which was first identified as a planetary candidate from Kepler K2 photometry of Campaign 14, and whose planetary nature and orbital parameters were then confirmed with precision radial velocities. K2-161b is half as massive as Saturn (M_P= 0.179 ± 0.021 MJ), and has a radius of R_P= 0.840 ± 0.011 R_J…
WASP-180Ab: Doppler tomography of a hot Jupiter orbiting the primary star in a visual binary
Bouchy, F.; Queloz, D.; Ségransan, D. +26 more
We report the discovery and characterization of WASP-180Ab, a hot Jupiter confirmed by the detection of its Doppler shadow and by measuring its mass using radial velocities. We find the 0.9 ± 0.1 MJup, 1.24 ± 0.04 RJup planet to be in a misaligned, retrograde orbit around an F7 star with Teff = 6500 K and a moderat…
Carbonaceous nano-dust emission in proto-planetary discs: the aliphatic-aromatic components
Ysard, N.; Dartois, E.; Habart, E. +3 more
Context. In the interstellar medium, carbon (nano-)grains are a major component of interstellar dust. This solid phase is more vulnerable to processing and destruction than its silicate counterpart. It exhibits a complex, size-dependent evolution that is due to interactions within different radiative and dynamical environments. Infrared signatures…
Studying the physical properties of tidal features - I. Extracting morphological substructure in CANDELS observations and VELA simulations
Bell, Eric F.; Ferguson, Henry C.; Hathi, Nimish P. +17 more
The role of major mergers in galaxy evolution remains a key open question. Existing empirical merger identification methods use non-parametric and subjective visual classifications that can pose systematic challenges to constraining merger histories. As a first step towards overcoming these challenges, we develop and share publicly a new PYTHON-ba…
Evidence for Optically Thick, Eddington-limited Winds Driven by Supercritical Accretion
Feng, Hua; Ho, Luis C.; Yao, Yuhan +1 more
Supercritical accretion onto compact objects powers a massive wind that is optically thick and Eddington-limited. If most of the hard X-rays from the central disk are obscured by the wind, the source will display a blackbody-like spectrum with a luminosity scaled with the mass of the compact object. From the Chandra archive of nearby galaxies, we …
An Investigation of the Pleiades Cluster Using Machine Learning
Gao, Xin-hua
This paper presents an investigation on fundamental astrophysical properties of the Pleiades cluster (M 45) using high-precision astrometric and photometric data from the Gaia Data Release 2 (Gaia-DR2). To obtain reliable cluster members, a machine-learning (ML) method is used to compute membership probabilities for 31462 sample stars within a rad…
The tale of the Milky Way globular cluster NGC 6362 - I. The orbit and its possible extended star debris features as revealed by Gaia DR2
Robin, Annie C.; Minniti, Dante; Fernández-Trincado, José G. +5 more
We report the identification of possible extended star debris candidates beyond the cluster tidal radius of NGC 6362 based on the second Gaia data release (Gaia DR2). We found 259 objects possibly associated with the cluster lying in the vicinity of the giant branch and 1-2 magnitudes fainter/brighter than the main-sequence turn-off in the cluster…
Global mapping of lunar refractory elements: multivariate regression vs. machine learning
Wöhler, C.; Grumpe, A.; Bhatt, M. +2 more
Context. The quantitative estimation of elemental concentrations at the spatial resolution of hyperspectral near-infrared (NIR) images of the lunar surface is an important tool for understanding the processes relevant for the origin and evolution of the Moon.
Aims: We aim to map the abundances of the elements Fe, Ca, and Mg at a typical accur…
Close-range remote sensing of Saturn's rings during Cassini's ring-grazing orbits and Grand Finale
Nicholson, Philip D.; Hedman, Matthew M.; Sotin, Christophe +22 more
Saturn's rings are an accessible exemplar of an astrophysical disk, tracing the Saturn system's dynamical processes and history. We present close-range remote-sensing observations of the main rings from the Cassini spacecraft. We find detailed sculpting of the rings by embedded masses, and banded texture belts throughout the rings. Saturn-orbiting…
Exoplanets in the Antarctic Sky. II. 116 Transiting Exoplanet Candidates Found by AST3-II (CHESPA) within the Southern CVZ of TESS
Wittenmyer, Robert A.; Wang, Lifan; Yang, Ming +37 more
We report first results from the CHinese Exoplanet Searching Program from Antarctica (CHESPA)—a wide-field high-resolution photometric survey for transiting exoplanets carried out using telescopes of the AST3 (Antarctic Survey Telescopes times 3) project. There are now three telescopes (AST3-I, AST3-II, and CSTAR-II) operating at Dome A—the highes…