Issue |
A&A
Volume 510, February 2010
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | A107 | |
Number of page(s) | 9 | |
Section | Planets and planetary systems | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/200912910 | |
Published online | 18 February 2010 |
Multi-band transit observations of the TrES-2b exoplanet*
1
Hamburger Sternwarte, Gojenbergsweg 112, 21029 Hamburg, Germany e-mail: mdimitri@hs.uni-hamburg.de
2
Argelander-Institut für Astronomie, Auf dem Hügel 71, 53121 Bonn, Germany
Received:
17
July
2009
Accepted:
14
December
2009
We present a new data set of transit observations of the TrES-2b exoplanet taken in spring 2009, using the 1.2 m Oskar-Lühning telescope (OLT) of Hamburg Observatory and the 2.2 m telescope at
Calar Alto Observatory using BUSCA (Bonn University Simultaneous CAmera). Both the new OLT data, taken with the same instrumental setup as our data taken in 2008, as well as the simultaneously recorded multicolor BUSCA data confirm the low
inclination values reported previously, and in fact suggest that the TrES-2b exoplanet has already passed the first inclination threshold and is not eclipsing the full stellar
surface any longer. Using the multi-band BUSCA data we demonstrate that the multicolor light curves can be consistently fitted with a given set of limb darkening coefficients without the need to
adjust these coefficients, and further, we can demonstrate that wavelength dependent stellar radius changes must be small as expected from theory. Our new observations provide further evidence for a
change of the orbit inclination of the transiting extrasolar planet TrES-2b reported previously. We examine in detail possible causes
for this inclination change and argue that the observed change should be interpreted as nodal regression. While the assumption of an oblate host star requires an unreasonably large second harmonic coefficient,
the existence of a third body in the form of an additional planet would provide a very natural explanation for the observed secular orbit change. Given the lack of clearly observed short-term variations of transit timing
and our observed secular nodal regression rate, we predict a period between approximately 50 and 100 days for a putative
perturbing planet of Jovian mass. Such an object should be detectable with present-day radial velocity (RV)
techniques, but would escape detection through transit timing variations.
Key words: planetary systems / techniques: photometric / stars: individual: TrES-2b
Photometric transit data are only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/510/A107
© ESO, 2010
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