WASP-4b arrived early for the TESS mission
Name
Bouma_2019_AJ_157_217.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
9.45 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
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Author(s)
Daylan, Tansu
Villasenor, Jesus Noel Samonte
Ricker, George R.
Vanderspek, Roland K.
Seager, Sara
Fausnaugh, Michael
Glidden, Ana
Guerrero, Natalia
Date Issued
June 2019
Journal
Astronomical journal
Publisher
American Astronomical Society
Citation
Bouma, L.G., et al., "WASP-4b arrived early for the TESS mission." Astronomical journal 157, 6 (June 2019): no. 217 doi 10.3847/1538-3881/AB189F ©2019 Author(s)
Version
Final published version
Abstract
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) recently observed 18 transits of the hot Jupiter WASP-4b. The sequence of transits occurred 81.6 ± 11.7 s earlier than had been predicted, based on data stretching back to 2007. This is unlikely to be the result of a clock error, because TESS observations of other hot Jupiters (WASP-6b, 18b, and 46b) are compatible with a constant period, ruling out an 81.6 s offset at the 6.4σ level. The 1.3 day orbital period of WASP-4b appears to be decreasing at a rate of ms per year. The apparent period change might be caused by tidal orbital decay or apsidal precession, although both interpretations have shortcomings. The gravitational influence of a third body is another possibility, though at present there is minimal evidence for such a body. Further observations are needed to confirm and understand the timing variation. ©2019
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research
Terms of Use
Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/AB189F
