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A candidate super-Earth planet orbiting near the snow line of Barnard’s star

Author

Listed:
  • I. Ribas

    (Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
    Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC))

  • M. Tuomi

    (University of Hertfordshire)

  • A. Reiners

    (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen)

  • R. P. Butler

    (Carnegie Institution for Science)

  • J. C. Morales

    (Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
    Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC))

  • M. Perger

    (Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
    Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC))

  • S. Dreizler

    (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen)

  • C. Rodríguez-López

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC))

  • J. I. González Hernández

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Departamento de Astrofísica)

  • A. Rosich

    (Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
    Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC))

  • F. Feng

    (University of Hertfordshire)

  • T. Trifonov

    (Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie)

  • S. S. Vogt

    (UCO/Lick Observatory, University of California at Santa Cruz)

  • J. A. Caballero

    (Centro de Astrobiología, CSIC-INTA, ESAC)

  • A. Hatzes

    (Thüringer Landessternwarte)

  • E. Herrero

    (Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
    Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC))

  • S. V. Jeffers

    (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen)

  • M. Lafarga

    (Institut de Ciències de l’Espai (ICE, CSIC), Campus UAB
    Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC))

  • F. Murgas

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Departamento de Astrofísica)

  • R. P. Nelson

    (Queen Mary University of London)

  • E. Rodríguez

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC))

  • J. B. P. Strachan

    (Queen Mary University of London)

  • L. Tal-Or

    (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
    Raymond and Beverly Sackler Faculty of Exact Sciences, Tel-Aviv University)

  • J. Teske

    (Carnegie Institution for Science)

  • B. Toledo-Padrón

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Departamento de Astrofísica)

  • M. Zechmeister

    (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen)

  • A. Quirrenbach

    (Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg)

  • P. J. Amado

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC))

  • M. Azzaro

    (Centro Astronómico Hispano-Alemán (CSIC-MPG), Observatorio Astronómico de Calar Alto)

  • V. J. S. Béjar

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Departamento de Astrofísica)

  • J. R. Barnes

    (The Open University)

  • Z. M. Berdiñas

    (Universidad de Chile)

  • J. Burt

    (Kavli Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

  • G. Coleman

    (Physikalisches Institut, Universität Bern)

  • M. Cortés-Contreras

    (Centro de Astrobiología, CSIC-INTA, ESAC)

  • J. Crane

    (Carnegie Institution for Science)

  • S. G. Engle

    (Villanova University)

  • E. F. Guinan

    (Villanova University)

  • C. A. Haswell

    (The Open University)

  • Th. Henning

    (Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie)

  • B. Holden

    (UCO/Lick Observatory, University of California at Santa Cruz)

  • J. Jenkins

    (Universidad de Chile)

  • H. R. A. Jones

    (University of Hertfordshire)

  • A. Kaminski

    (Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg)

  • M. Kiraga

    (Warsaw University Observatory)

  • M. Kürster

    (Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie)

  • M. H. Lee

    (The University of Hong Kong)

  • M. J. López-González

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC))

  • D. Montes

    (Facultad de Ciencias Físicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid)

  • J. Morin

    (Université de Montpellier, CNRS)

  • A. Ofir

    (Weizmann Institute of Science)

  • E. Pallé

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Departamento de Astrofísica)

  • R. Rebolo

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Departamento de Astrofísica
    Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC))

  • S. Reffert

    (Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg)

  • A. Schweitzer

    (Hamburger Sternwarte, Universität Hamburg)

  • W. Seifert

    (Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg)

  • S. A. Shectman

    (Carnegie Institution for Science)

  • D. Staab

    (The Open University)

  • R. A. Street

    (Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network)

  • A. Suárez Mascareño

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC)
    Observatoire Astronomique de l’Université de Genève)

  • Y. Tsapras

    (Astronomisches Rechen-Institut)

  • S. X. Wang

    (Carnegie Institution for Science)

  • G. Anglada-Escudé

    (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA, CSIC)
    Queen Mary University of London)

Abstract

Barnard’s star is a red dwarf, and has the largest proper motion (apparent motion across the sky) of all known stars. At a distance of 1.8 parsecs1, it is the closest single star to the Sun; only the three stars in the α Centauri system are closer. Barnard’s star is also among the least magnetically active red dwarfs known2,3 and has an estimated age older than the Solar System. Its properties make it a prime target for planetary searches; various techniques with different sensitivity limits have been used previously, including radial-velocity imaging4–6, astrometry7,8 and direct imaging9, but all ultimately led to negative or null results. Here we combine numerous measurements from high-precision radial-velocity instruments, revealing the presence of a low-amplitude periodic signal with a period of 233 days. Independent photometric and spectroscopic monitoring, as well as an analysis of instrumental systematic effects, suggest that this signal is best explained as arising from a planetary companion. The candidate planet around Barnard’s star is a cold super-Earth, with a minimum mass of 3.2 times that of Earth, orbiting near its snow line (the minimum distance from the star at which volatile compounds could condense). The combination of all radial-velocity datasets spanning 20 years of measurements additionally reveals a long-term modulation that could arise from a stellar magnetic-activity cycle or from a more distant planetary object. Because of its proximity to the Sun, the candidate planet has a maximum angular separation of 220 milliarcseconds from Barnard’s star, making it an excellent target for direct imaging and astrometric observations in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • I. Ribas & M. Tuomi & A. Reiners & R. P. Butler & J. C. Morales & M. Perger & S. Dreizler & C. Rodríguez-López & J. I. González Hernández & A. Rosich & F. Feng & T. Trifonov & S. S. Vogt & J. A. Cabal, 2018. "A candidate super-Earth planet orbiting near the snow line of Barnard’s star," Nature, Nature, vol. 563(7731), pages 365-368, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:563:y:2018:i:7731:d:10.1038_s41586-018-0677-y
    DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0677-y
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