[FPSPACE] Finding Solar System Analogs With SIM and HIPPARCOS: A White Paper for the ExoPl

[LARRY KLAES]

Finding Solar System Analogs With SIM and HIPPARCOS: A White Paper for the 
ExoPlanet Task Force

Authors: Rob P. Olling

(Submitted on 23 Apr 2007)

Abstract: The astrometric signature imposed by a planet on its primary 
increases substantially towards longer periods (proportinal to P^2/3), so 
that long-period planets can be more easily detected, in principle. For 
example, a one Solar-mass (M_Sun) star would be pulled by roughly 1 mas by a 
one Jupiter-mass (M_J) planet with a period of one-hundred years at a 
distance of 20 pc. Such position accuracies can now be obtained with both 
ground-based and space-based telescopes. The difficulty was that it often 
takes many decades before a detectable position shift will occur. However, 
by the time the next generation of astrometric missions such as SIM will be 
taking data, several decades will have past since the first astrometric 
mission, HIPPARCOS. Here we propose to use a new astrometric method that 
employs a future, highly accurate SIM Quick-Look survey and HIPPARCOS data 
taken twenty years prior. Using position errors for SIM of 4 muas, this 
method enables the detection and characterization of Solar-system analogs 
(SOSAs) with periods up to 240 (500) years for 1 (10) M_J companions. 
Because many tens of thousands nearby stars can be surveyed this way for a 
modest expenditure of SIM time and SOSAs may be quite abundant, we expect to 
find many hundreds of extra-solar planets with long-period orbits. Such a 
data set would nicely complement the short-period systems found by the 
radial-velocity method. Brown dwarfs and low-mass stellar companions can be 
found and characterized if their periods are shorter than about 500 years. 
This data set will provide invaluable constraints on models of planet 
formation, as well as a database for systems where the location of the giant 
planets allow for the formation of low-mass planets in the habitable zone. 
[Abridged]

Comments:

A White Paper for the ExoPlanet Task Force: 7 pages

Subjects:

Astrophysics (astro-ph)

Cite as:

arXiv:0704.3059v1 [astro-ph]

Submission history

From: Rob P. Olling [view email]

[v1] Mon, 23 Apr 2007 18:42:10 GMT (22kb)

http://arxiv.org/abs/0704.3059