TESS-Keck Survey. V. Twin Sub-Neptunes Transiting the Nearby G Star HD 63935

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

  • Nicholas Scarsdale
  • Joseph M. Akana Murphy
  • Natalie M. Batalha
  • Ian J. M. Crossfield
  • Courtney D. Dressing
  • Benjamin Fulton
  • Andrew W. Howard
  • Daniel Huber
  • Howard Isaacson
  • Stephen R. Kane
  • Erik A. Petigura
  • Paul Robertson
  • Arpita Roy
  • Lauren M. Weiss
  • Corey Beard
  • Aida Behmard
  • Ashley Chontos
  • Jessie L. Christiansen
  • David R. Ciardi
  • Zachary R. Claytor
  • Karen A. Collins
  • Kevin Collins
  • Fei Dai
  • Paul A. Dalba
  • Diana Dragomir
  • Tara Fetherolf
  • Akihiko Fukui
  • Steven Giacalone
  • Erica J. Gonzales
  • Michelle L. Hill
  • Lea A. Hirsch
  • Eric L. N. Jensen
  • Molly R. Kosiarek
  • Jerome P. de Leon
  • Jack Lubin
  • Michael B. Lund
  • Rafael Luque
  • Teo Mocnik
  • Mayuko Mori
  • Norio Narita
  • Grzegorz Nowak
  • Enric Palle
  • Markus Rabus
  • Lee J. Rosenthal
  • Ryan A. Rubenzahl
  • Joshua E. Schlieder
  • Avi Shporer
  • Keivan G. Stassun
  • Joe Twicken
  • Gavin Wang
  • Daniel A. Yahalomi
  • Jon Jenkins
  • David W. Latham
  • George R. Ricker
  • S. Seager
  • Roland Vanderspek
  • Joshua N. Winn

We present the discovery of two nearly identically sized sub-Neptune transiting planets orbiting HD 63935, a bright (V = 8.6 mag), Sun-like (T (eff) = 5560 K) star at 49 pc. TESS identified the first planet, HD 63935 b (TOI-509.01), in Sectors 7 and 34. We identified the second signal (HD 63935 c) in Keck High Resolution Echelle Spectrometer and Lick Automated Planet Finder radial velocity data as part of our follow-up campaign. It was subsequently confirmed with TESS photometry in Sector 34 as TOI-509.02. Our analysis of the photometric and radial velocity data yielded a robust detection of both planets with periods of 9.0600 +/- 0.007 and 21.40 +/- 0.0019 days, radii of 2.99 +/- 0.14 and 2.90 +/- 0.13 R (circle plus), and masses of 10.8 +/- 1.8 and 11.1 +/- 2.4 M (circle plus). We calculated densities for planets b and c consistent with a few percent of the planet mass in hydrogen/helium envelopes. We also describe our survey's efforts to choose the best targets for James Webb Space Telescope atmospheric follow-up. These efforts suggest that HD 63935 b has the most clearly visible atmosphere of its class. It is the best target for transmission spectroscopy (ranked by the transmission spectroscopy metric, a proxy for atmospheric observability) in the so far uncharacterized parameter space comprising sub-Neptune-sized (2.6 R (circle plus) < R (p) < 4 R (circle plus)), moderately irradiated (100 F (circle plus) < F (p) < 1000 F (circle plus)) planets around G stars. Planet c is also a viable target for transmission spectroscopy, and given the indistinguishable masses and radii of the two planets, the system serves as a natural laboratory for examining the processes that shape the evolution of sub-Neptune planets.

Original languageEnglish
Article number215
JournalAstronomical Journal
Volume162
Issue number5
Number of pages17
ISSN0004-6256
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 26 Oct 2021

    Research areas

  • ERROR-CORRECTION, PLANET, LIGHT, EXOPLANETS, TELESCOPE, DENSITY, II., I.

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