Discovery of a wide planetary-mass companion to the young M3 star GU PSC

Journal Article · Tue May 20 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Astrophysical Journal

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/787/1/5· OSTI ID:22356892

Naud, Marie-Eve; Artigau, Étienne; Malo, Lison; Albert, Loïc; Doyon, René; Lafrenière, David; Gagné, Jonathan; Boucher, Anne ^[1]; Saumon, Didier ^[2]; Morley, Caroline V. ^[3]; Allard, France; Homeier, Derek ^[4]; Beichman, Charles A.

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1. Département de physique and Observatoire du Mont-Mégantic, Université de Montréal, Montréal H3C 3J7 (Canada)
2. Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States)
3. Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States)
4. Centre de Recherche Astrophysique de Lyon, UMR 5574 CNRS, Université de Lyon, École Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 46 Allée d'Italie, F-69364 Lyon Cedex 07 (France)

We present the discovery of a comoving planetary-mass companion ∼42'' (∼2000 AU) from a young M3 star, GU Psc, a likely member of the young AB Doradus Moving Group (ABDMG). The companion was first identified via its distinctively red i – z color (>3.5) through a survey made with Gemini-S/GMOS. Follow-up Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope/WIRCam near-infrared (NIR) imaging, Gemini-N/GNIRS NIR spectroscopy and Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer photometry indicate a spectral type of T3.5 ± 1 and reveal signs of low gravity which we attribute to youth. Keck/Adaptive Optics NIR observations did not resolve the companion as a binary. A comparison with atmosphere models indicates T {sub eff} = 1000-1100 K and log g = 4.5-5.0. Based on evolution models, this temperature corresponds to a mass of 9-13 M {sub Jup} for the age of ABDMG (70-130 Myr). The relatively well-constrained age of this companion and its very large angular separation to its host star will allow its thorough characterization and will make it a valuable comparison for planetary-mass companions that will be uncovered by forthcoming planet-finder instruments such as Gemini Planet Imager and SPHERE 9.

• OSTI ID: 22356892
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 787, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTROPHYSICS
COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
ATMOSPHERES
COLOR
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
DETECTION
EVOLUTION
GRAVITATION
IMAGES
INFRARED SURVEYS
MASS
NEAR INFRARED RADIATION
OPTICS
PHOTOMETRY
PLANETS
SATELLITES
STARS
TELESCOPES