Search for rings and satellites around the exoplanet CoRoT-9b using Spitzer photometry

A. Lecavelier des Etangs, G. Hébrard, S. Blandin, J. Cassier, H.J. Deeg, A.S. Bonomo, F. Bouchy, J.-M. Désert, D. Ehrenreich, M. Deleuil, R.F. Díaz, C. Moutou
(Submitted on 4 May 2017)

Using Spitzer photometry at 4.5 microns, we search for rings and satellites around the long period transiting planet CoRoT-9b. We observed two transits in 2010 and 2011. From their non-detection, we derive upper limits on the plausible physical characteristics of these objects in the planet environment. We show that a satellite larger than about 2.5 Earth radii is excluded at 3-σ for a wide range of elongations at the two epochs of observations. Combining the two observations, we conclude that rings are excluded for a wide variety of sizes and inclination. We find that for a ring extending up to the Roche limit, its inclination angle from the edge-on configuration as seen from the Earth must be lower than 13{\deg} in the case of silicate composition and lower than 3{\deg} in the case of material with water ice density.

Comments:    Accepted for publication in A&A
Subjects:    Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
Cite as:    arXiv:1705.01836 [astro-ph.EP] (or arXiv:1705.01836v1 [astro-ph.EP] for this version)
Submission history
From: Alain Lecavelier des Etangs 
[v1] Thu, 4 May 2017 13:44:43 GMT (254kb)
https://arxiv.org/abs/1705.01836