Other
Scientific paper
May 2008
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008aas...212.4403h&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #212, #44.03; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 40, p.243
Other
1
Scientific paper
Epsilon Eridani (eps Eri) is the nearest star that has a known planet detected by both the radial velocity variations and the astrometric perturbation it imposes on its parent star. The combination of data from both methods yields a full orbit solution with ephemerides predicting the future position angle and separation of the planet. This makes the system a promising target for deep AO observations intended to image the planet, because they can be targeted to provide especially good sensitivity at the known location of the planet. The planet has eluded imaging so far because of its low mass (1.55 Jupiter masses) and its relatively old age (500-800 Myr). We analyze the sensitivity of our deep M-band (4.8 micron) observation of eps Eri using the Clio camera on the MMT, and find that for the specific case of this very nearby star, the rarely used, long wavelength M-band offers far better prospects of successfully imaging the planet than any other method that has yet been attempted. Even without improvements, a 25-hour (five-night) M-band integration with Clio on the MMT could likely detect eps Eri b when it is at maximum separation from its star in 2010. Such an intensive observing program is warranted to achieve the goal of making the first direct image of a planet orbiting an ordinary star. We note that besides the deep M-band AO imaging we propose here, no observation strategy in existence could image eps Eri b, even with a multi-night integration. Improvements to Clio and MMT AO, especially the use of the phase plate coronagraph that has been developed for Clio, may make the detection of eps Eri b possible with a shorter integration, though at least two nights would be required to ensure detection with good significance.
Heinze Aren
Hinz Phil
Kenworthy Matthew
Sivanandam Suresh
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