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Title: Why is there a dearth of close-in planets around fast-rotating stars?

Journal Article · · Astrophysical Journal
 [1];  [2]
  1. National Academic Quiz Tournaments, LLC, 11521 W. 69th Street, Shawnee, KS 66203 (United States)
  2. Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics and The Enrico Fermi Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637 (United States)

We propose that the reported dearth of Kepler objects of interest (KOIs) with orbital periods P {sub orb} ≲ 2-3 days around stars with rotation periods P {sub rot} ≲ 5-10 days can be attributed to tidal ingestion of close-in planets by their host stars. We show that the planet distribution in this region of the log P {sub orb}-log P {sub rot} plane is qualitatively reproduced with a model that incorporates tidal interaction and magnetic braking as well as the dependence on the stellar core-envelope coupling timescale. We demonstrate the consistency of this scenario with the inferred break in the P {sub orb} distribution of close-in KOIs and point out a potentially testable prediction of this interpretation.

OSTI ID:
22356949
Journal Information:
Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 786, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English