The Exogravity Project: Using Single Mode Interferometry to Characterize Exoplanets

Authors

S. Lacour, Sorbonne Université
J. J. Wang, California Institute of Technology
M. Nowak, Institute of Astronomy
L. Pueyo, Space Telescope Science Institute
F. Eisenhauer, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
A. M. Lagrange, Sorbonne Université
P. Mollière, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
R. Abuter, European Southern Observatory
A. Amorin, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa
R. Asensio-Torres, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
M. Bauböck, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
M. Benisty, Université Grenoble Alpes
J. P. Berger, Université Grenoble Alpes
H. Beust, Université Grenoble Alpes
S. Blunt, California Institute of Technology
A. Boccaletti, Sorbonne Université
A. Bohn, Sterrewacht Leiden
M. Bonnefoy, Université Grenoble Alpes
H. Bonnet, European Southern Observatory
W. Brandner, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
F. Cantalloube, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
P. Caselli, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
B. Charnay, Sorbonne Université
G. Chauvin, Université Grenoble Alpes
E. Choquet, Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille
V. Christiaens, Monash University
Y. Clénet, Sorbonne Université
A. Cridland, Sterrewacht Leiden
P. T. De Zeeuw, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
R. Dembet, European Southern Observatory
J. Dexter, Université Grenoble Alpes
A. Drescher, Université Grenoble Alpes
Kimberly Ward-Duong, Amherst CollegeFollow
et al, Various Institutions

Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication Date

1-1-2020

Publication Title

Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering

Abstract

Combining adaptive optics and interferometric observations results in a considerable contrast gain compared to single-telescope, extreme AO systems. Taking advantage of this, the ExoGRAVITY project is a survey of known young giant exoplanets located in the range of 0.1"to 2"from their stars. The observations provide astrometric data of unprecedented accuracy, being crucial for refining the orbital parameters of planets and illuminating their dynamical histories. Furthermore, GRAVITY will measure non-Keplerian perturbations due to planet-planet interactions in multi-planet systems and measure dynamical masses. Over time, repetitive observations of the exoplanets at medium resolution (R = 500) will provide a catalogue of K-band spectra of unprecedented quality, for a number of exoplanets. The K-band has the unique properties that it contains many molecular signatures (CO, H2O, CH4, CO2). This allows constraining precisely surface gravity, metallicity, and temperature, if used in conjunction with self-consistent models like Exo-REM. Further, we will use the parameter-retrieval algorithm petitRADTRANS to constrain the C/O ratio of the planets. Ultimately, we plan to produce the first C/O survey of exoplanets, kick-starting the difficult process of linking planetary formation with measured atomic abundances.

Keywords

Exoplanets, Optical interferometry, Planet formation

Volume

11446

DOI

10.1117/12.2561667

ISSN

0277786X

Comments

Peer reviewed accepted manuscript.

Recommended Citation

Lacour, S.; Wang, J. J.; Nowak, M.; Pueyo, L.; Eisenhauer, F.; Lagrange, A. M.; Mollière, P.; Abuter, R.; Amorin, A.; Asensio-Torres, R.; Bauböck, M.; Benisty, M.; Berger, J. P.; Beust, H.; Blunt, S.; Boccaletti, A.; Bohn, A.; Bonnefoy, M.; Bonnet, H.; Brandner, W.; Cantalloube, F.; Caselli, P.; Charnay, B.; Chauvin, G.; Choquet, E.; Christiaens, V.; Clénet, Y.; Cridland, A.; De Zeeuw, P. T.; Dembet, R.; Dexter, J.; Drescher, A.; Ward-Duong, Kimberly; and al, et, "The Exogravity Project: Using Single Mode Interferometry to Characterize Exoplanets" (2020). Astronomy: Faculty Publications, Smith College, Northampton, MA.
https://scholarworks.smith.edu/ast_facpubs/113