Starspots and spin-orbit alignment for Kepler cool host stars

R. Sanchis-Ojeda, J. N. Winn, D. C. Fabrycky

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

12 Scopus citations

Abstract

The angle between the spin axis of the host star and the orbit of its planets (i.e., the stellar obliquity) is precious information about the formation and evolution of exoplanetary systems. Measurements of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect revealed that many stars that host a hot-Jupiter have high obliquities, suggesting that hot-Jupiter formation involves excitation of orbital inclinations. In this contribution we show how the passage of the planet over starspots can be used to measure the obliquity of exoplanetary systems. This technique is used to obtain - for the first time - the obliquity of a system with several planets that lie in a disk, Kepler-30, with the result that the star has an obliquity smaller than 10 degrees. The implications for the formation of exoplanetary systems, in particular the hot-Jupiter population, are also discussed.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)180-183
Number of pages4
JournalAstronomische Nachrichten
Volume334
Issue number1-2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2013
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Space and Planetary Science

Keywords

  • Planetary systems
  • Starspots
  • Techniques: photometric

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