Are there any more planets in the Kepler / K2 data?
Abstract
The Kepler/K2 mission has been exceptionally successful at detecting transiting exoplanets. The Kepler mission has detected more than 2300 confirmed exoplanets to date, with K2 detecting more than 300 additional confirmed exoplanets. Kepler/K2 is able to identify some of the smallest exoplanets around solar-like stars, owing to its extreme photometric precision and long baseline. Several of these planets have become vital components in our modeling of planet formation and composition, as well as targets for atmospheric characterization. However, there is a wealth of data that is currently under-utilized. In particular, several K2 campaigns have provided fewer exoplanets, due to difficult instrument systematics and crowding complicating data analysis. For example, campaigns 9 and 11 are extremely crowded, causing contamination and diluting exoplanet transits. These campaigns require precise extraction techniques to rebuild subtle exoplanet transits, such as PSF photometry. With the new TESS photometry likely to require more complex extraction techniques, now is the ideal time to revisit Kepler/K2 data and find the planets that remain in this huge dataset. Additionally, there are several campaigns in from the K2 mission that have been underutilized purely because of the sheer volume of data, including the recent campaigns 16, 17 and 18. In this talk I will highlight some of the Kepler/K2 datasets where valuable, undiscovered planets may still be hiding.
- Publication:
-
American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #233
- Pub Date:
- January 2019
- Bibcode:
- 2019AAS...23340502H