A young Saturnian planet orbiting a star in the stellar cluster IC 2602 described in the study: “TOI-837 b: Characterisation, formation, and evolutionary history of an infant warm Saturn-mass planet” of M. Damasso (INAF – OATo)

Analysis of TESS and HARPS observations confirms the existence of a Saturn-like planet orbiting a star associated with the young stellar cluster IC 2602   Stellar clusters are not only beautiful objects to photograph and observe through a telescope, but they also represent an important opportunity for studying stellar evolution. In fact, they are composed of rich samples of stars

» Read more

A sub-neptunian “dynamically hot” orbiting around the star BD+00 444 confirmed with HARPS-N observations.

An intriguing result, obtained thanks to the observational campaign carried out with NASA’s Kepler satellite, is that the most common transiting exoplanets are small planets with a radius smaller than 4 Earth radii and a short orbital period (less than 100 days). In particular, the most frequent planets belong to the sub-Neptune and super-Earth classes, two categories absent in the

» Read more

Formation and evolution of the complex planetary system of V1298 Tau, described in the study: “The GAPS programme at TNG. XLVIII. The unusual formation history of V1298 Tau” of D. Turrini (INAF – OATo)

The study of the exoplanets orbiting around young stars (e.g., younger than a few tens of million of years) offer the important opportunity for studying the early evoalutionary phases of those processes that shape the architecture of planetary systems. However, it is quite difficult to detect and study exoplanets around young stars, because of their low number, the complexity of their

» Read more

A rich and complex planetary system for the star TOI-4010. The paper: “TOI-4010: A System of Three Large Short-period Planets with a Massive Long-period Companion” of M. Kunimoto (MIT) appeared on AJ)

To date (November 2023), we have confirmed the presence of 5539 exoplanets in 4128 planetary systems. These numbers indicate that, in the majority of cases, we have identified one planet per planetary system. This limitation is primarily due to observational constraints, as it remains challenging to detect small exoplanets with long orbital periods (distant from their stars several astronomical units,

» Read more

A planet and a brown dwarf for TOI-179. The paper: “TOI-179: A young system with a transiting compact Neptune-mass planet and a low-mass companion in outer orbit” of S. Desidera (INAF – OAPd) appeared on A&A

Typically, planets did not form at the distance from their central stars where we observe them today. In fact, during their early evolution, planets migrate from their initial orbit until the system reaches its final configuration. Planetary migration can be induced by several processes: the interaction between the newborn planets and the protoplanetary disk where they formed, the gravitational interaction

» Read more

A binary system in orbital synchronization. The study: “The GAPS programme at TNG. XLIII. A massive brown dwarf orbiting the active M dwarf TOI-5375” of J. Maldonado (INAF – OAPA) appeared on A&A

Nature sets a lower limit on stellar masses: objects less massive than 0.07-0.08 solar masses are incapable of initiating the thermonuclear reactions that power more massive stars. Below this threshold lies the realm of brown dwarfs, objects whose mass is too small to qualify as stars, yet too large to be categorized as planets.   The mechanism responsible for the

» Read more

A superflare observed in the M star AD Leo. The study: “The Great Flare of 2021 November 19 on AD Leo. Simultaneous XMM-Newton and TESS observations” of B. Stelzer (Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen) appeared on A&A

Flares are transient and energetic phenomena that occur in most stars and can be observed with high spatial and temporal resolution in the Sun. These phenomena are triggered by a sudden release of energy previously stored in the star’s magnetic field, which, after a sequence of events, leads to extreme heating of the stellar plasma. The heated plasma then rapidly

» Read more

Stellar age and magnetic activity. The study: “The GAPS programme at TNG XXXIV. Activity-rotation, flux–flux relationships, and active-region evolution through stellar age” of J. Maldonado (INAF-OAPA) recently appeared on A&A

Almost all stars in the Universe produce their own magnetic field with a process called stellar dynamo, whose basic ingredients are stellar rotation and convection. In general, magnetic fields are produced and are affected by charged particles, which is what stellar plasma is made of. In stars the magnetic field and plasma thus interact, producing a class of transient phenomena

» Read more

Flares and variability in DS Tucanae A e AU Mic. The study: “Short-term variability of DS Tucanae A observed with TESS” of S. Colombo (INAF – OAPA) recently appeared on A&A

Stars are variable sources over timescales which depend on the phenomena triggering this variability. These phenomena are typically produced by the interaction between the stellar magnetic field and its plasma. Typical examples, observed and studied in great details in the Sun, are: flares (sudden release of a large amount of energy by the magnetic field which heats the gas in

» Read more

Composition of a sub-neptunian exoplanet with TESS and ESPRESSO. The study: “A sub-Neptune and a non-transiting Neptune-mass companion unveiled by ESPRESSO around the bright late-F dwarf HD 5278 (TOI-130)” of A. Sozzetti (INAF-OATo) recently appeared on A&A

The NASA satellite Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) it’s one of the most effective telescopes to search for exoplanets. TESS is designed to find exoplanets with the transits method, e.g. by observing the periodic occultations of stars by their planets during their orbits. To date, about 27% of the exoplanets discovered with TESS belong to the class of the sub-neptunians. These planets have a

» Read more
1 2