1. Obliquity Constraints for the Extremely Eccentric Sub-Saturn Kepler-1656 b
- Author
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Ryan A. Rubenzahl, Andrew W. Howard, Samuel Halverson, Cristobal Petrovich, Isabel Angelo, Guđmundur Stefánsson, Fei Dai, Aaron Householder, Benjamin Fulton, Steven R. Gibson, Arpita Roy, Abby P. Shaum, Howard Isaacson, Max Brodheim, William Deich, Grant M. Hill, Bradford Holden, Daniel Huber, Russ R. Laher, Kyle Lanclos, Joel N. Payne, Erik A. Petigura, Christian Schwab, Josh Walawender, Sharon X. Wang, Lauren M. Weiss, Joshua N. Winn, and Jason T. Wright
- Subjects
Exoplanet migration ,Exoplanet dynamics ,Elliptical orbits ,Prograde orbit ,Astrophysics ,QB460-466 - Abstract
The orbits of close-in exoplanets provide clues to their formation and evolutionary history. Many close-in exoplanets likely formed far out in their protoplanetary disks and migrated to their current orbits, perhaps via high-eccentricity migration (HEM), a process that can also excite obliquities. A handful of known exoplanets are perhaps caught in the act of HEM, as they are observed on highly eccentric orbits with tidal circularization timescales shorter than their ages. One such exoplanet is Kepler-1656 b, which is also the only known nongiant exoplanet ( 0.8 to have its obliquity constrained; expanding this population will help establish the degree to which orbital misalignment accompanies migration. Future work that constrains the mutual inclinations of outer perturbers will be key for distinguishing plausible mechanisms.
- Published
- 2024
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