The Sdss-iii Multi-object Apo Radial-velocity Exoplanet Large-area Survey (marvels) And Its Early Results
Abstract
MARVELS, as one of the four on-going Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) III survey projects, is conducting the largest ground-based radial velocity planet survey using a next-generation, multiple-object , dispersed fixed-delay interferometer Doppler instrument in 2008-2014. Over the next six years, MARVELS plans on monitoring a total of 11,000 late F, G and K stars (90% main sequence and subgiants; 10% giant stars) with V magnitude 7.6-12 over $\sim$800 square degrees. The survey aims to detect and characterize a single large, statistically well defined sample of hundreds of new giant planets with periods ? days orbiting host stars with well-understood selection biases. The first MARVELS instrument with 60 object capability was commissioned at the SDSS telescope at Apache Point Observatory in September 2008 and will be used to conduct the science survey starting in October 2008. The early commissioning results show that the instrument has reached about 6mK (peak-to-valley) long-term thermal stability, 2-3 m/s Doppler precision with bright calibration light sources, and 20 m/s photon noise error for TrES-2 (a V=11.4 G0V star) in a 40 min exposure. The early science results and instrument performance from the first three months of operation will be reported.
We would like to thank the W.M. Keck Foundation, Sloan Foundation, NSF, NASA and UF for support.- Publication:
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American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #213
- Pub Date:
- January 2009
- Bibcode:
- 2009AAS...21333602G