A COLD NEPTUNE-MASS PLANET OGLE-2007-BLG-368Lb: COLD NEPTUNES ARE COMMON
- Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8601 (Japan)
We present the discovery of a Neptune-mass planet OGLE-2007-BLG-368Lb with a planet-star mass ratio of q = [9.5 +- 2.1] x 10{sup -5} via gravitational microlensing. The planetary deviation was detected in real-time thanks to the high cadence of the Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics survey, real-time light-curve monitoring and intensive follow-up observations. A Bayesian analysis returns the stellar mass and distance at M{sub l} = 0.64{sup +0.21}{sub -0.26} M{sub sun} and D{sub l} = 5.9{sup +0.9}{sub -1.4} kpc, respectively, so the mass and separation of the planet are M{sub p} = 20{sup +7}{sub -8} M{sub +} and a = 3.3{sup +1.4}{sub -0.8} AU, respectively. This discovery adds another cold Neptune-mass planet to the planetary sample discovered by microlensing, which now comprises four cold Neptune/super-Earths, five gas giant planets, and another sub-Saturn mass planet whose nature is unclear. The discovery of these 10 cold exoplanets by the microlensing method implies that the mass ratio function of cold exoplanets scales as dN{sub pl}/dlog q {proportional_to} q {sup -0.7+}-{sup 0.2} with a 95% confidence level upper limit of n < -0.35 (where dN{sub pl}/dlog q {proportional_to} q{sup n} ). As microlensing is most sensitive to planets beyond the snow-line, this implies that Neptune-mass planets are at least three times more common than Jupiters in this region at the 95% confidence level.
- OSTI ID:
- 21394396
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 710, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1088/0004-637X/710/2/1641; ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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