Constraining the shape and composition of K2-141 b

Le résumé fourni par la source

Rocky exoplanets that orbit very near their Roche limits may assume non-spherical equilibrium shapes. These unusual planet geometries are dependent upon the planet composition, so accurately predicting the tidal distortion of a particular exoplanet requires detailed interior structure modeling across a range of materials and compositions. Observationally confirming any tidal distortion is possible with transit photometry, but stellar limb darkening can mask the signal of the distortion. We present a framework for characterizing ultra-short-period rocky exoplanets. The first component, sisyphus, computes self-consistent models of their interior structures, constrained by known properties (mass, transit radius, etc.). The second component, greenlantern, efficiently generates forward models of their phase curves, transits, and secondary eclipses. Including multi-color photometry and predictions from stellar model grids may break degeneracies between tidal distortion and stellar limb darkening. We apply our methods to K2-141 b, a super-Earth on a 6.7-hour orbit. By combining our physically-motivated shape and composition constraints with an analysis of photometry from K2, MIRI, and NIRSpec, we constrain the shape and composition of K2-141 b.

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