Pixel-Level Analysis Techniques for False-Positive Identification in Kepler Data

Details Pixel-Level Analysis Techniques for False-Positive Identification in Kepler Data Pixel-Level Analysis Techniques for False-Positive Identification in Kepler Data

Jan 2011

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011aas...21714005b&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #217, #140.05; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 43, 2011

Mathematics

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Scientific paper

The Kepler mission seeks to identify Earth-size exoplanets by detecting transits of their parent star. The resulting transit signature will be small ( 100 ppm). Several astrophysical phenomena can mimic an Earth-size transit signature, most notably background eclipsing binaries (BGEBs). As part of a larger false-positive identification effort, pixel-level analysis of the Kepler data has proven crucial in identifying the likelihood of these confounding signals. Pixel-level analysis is primarily useful for the case of the transit being a BGEB. Several analysis techniques are presented, including:
- measurement of centroid motion in and out of transit compared with detailed modeling of expected centroid motion, including an estimate of the transit source location
- transit source location determination through a high-precision PSF-fit of the difference between in- and out-of-transit pixels, directly measuring the location of the transit source
- source location determination through fitting the observed summed flux time series (or the light curve derived from the transit model) to each pixel's time series data.
These techniques have been automated and are being considered for inclusion in the Kepler Science Operations Center Data Analysis Pipeline. They are supplemented by various diagnostic plots of the Kepler data as well as comparison with background stars identified by the Kepler Follow-up Observing Program (FOP). The final determination of whether an observed transit is a false positive integrates several sources, including pixel-level analysis and FOP results. Pixel-level techniques can identify BGEBs that are separated from the Kepler target star by more than a certain radius, called the "radius of confusion". The determination of the radius of confusion, and the role it plays in assigning the probability of the transit being due to a planet, is briefly discussed. The statistics from the latest false-positive list are provided.
Funding for this mission provided by NASA's Discovery Program Office, SMD.

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