Bun’ei Sato

A PLANETARY COMPANION TO THE G-TYPE GIANT STAR HD 104985

We report the detection of a planetary-mass companion to the G9 III giant star HD 104985 from precise Doppler velocity measurements made using the High Dispersion Echelle Spectrograph (HIDES) at Okayama Astrophysical Observatory. The radial velocity variability of this star is best explained by an orbital motion with a period of 198.2 ± 0.3 days, a velocity semiamplitude of 161 ± 2 m s-1, and an eccentricity of 0.03 ± 0.02. Assuming a stellar mass of 1.6 M☉, we obtained a minimum mass and a semimajor axis of 6.3MJ and 0.78 AU, respectively, for the companion. A probable upper limit to the stellar mass of 3 M☉ yielded m2 sin i = 9.6MJ, which falls in the planetary-mass regime. This is the first discovery of a planetary companion orbiting a G-type giant star.

Photospheric Abundances of Volatile and Refractory Elements in Planet-Harboring Stars

By using the high-dispersion spectra of 14 bright planet-harboring stars (along with 4 reference stars) observed with the new coude echelle spectrograph at Okayama Astrophysical Observatory, we investigated the abundances of volatile elements (C, N, O, S, Zn; low condensation temperature Tc) in order to examine whether these show any significant difference compared to the abundances of other refractory elements (Si, Ti, V, Fe, Co, Ni; high Tc) which are known to be generally overabundant in those stars with planets, since a Tc-dependence is expected if the cause of such a metal-richness is due to the accretion of solid planetesimals onto the host star. We found, however, that all elements we studied behave themselves quite similarly to Fe (i.e., [X/Fe]~0) even for the case of volatile elements, which may suggest that the enhanced metallicity in those planet-bearing stars is not so much an acquired character (by accretion of rocky material) as rather primordial.

Chemical Composition of Carbon-Rich, Very Metal-Poor Subgiant LP 625-44 Observed with the Subaru/HDS

We have obtained high-resolution (R ∼ 90000) spectra of the carbon- and s-process-element-rich, very metalpoor ([Fe/H] = −2.7) subgiant LP 625-44, as well as those of HD 140283 (a metal-poor subgiant with normal abundance ratio) for a comparison, with the High Dispersion Spectrograph (HDS) for the Subaru Telescope for detailed abundance study. The excess of oxygen in LP 625-44 seems to be remarkable (perhaps by nearly a factor 10) compared with that of HD 140283 derived from the O I triplet around 7770 u

Search for Low-Mass Planets Around Late-M Dwarfs Using IRD

We have a plan to conduct a Doppler planet search for low-mass planets around nearby middle-to-late M dwarfs using IRD. IRD is the near-infrared high-precision radial velocity instrument for the Subaru 8.2-m telescope. We expect to achieve the accuracy of the radial velocity measurements of 1 m/s using IRD with a frequency comb as a wavelengh calibrator. Thus, we would detect super-Earths in habitable zone and low-mass rocky planets in closein orbits around late-M dwarfs. In this survey, we aim to understand and discuss statistical properties of low-mass planets around low-mass M dwarfs compared with those derived from theoretical simulations.

PLANET ENGULFMENT BY {approx}1.5-3 M{sub sun} RED GIANTS

Recent radial-velocity surveys for GK clump giants have revealed that planets also exist around ~1.5-3 Msun stars. However, no planets have been found inside 0.6 AU around clump giants, in contrast to solar-type main-sequence stars, many of which harbor short-period planets such as hot Jupiters. In this study we examine the possibility that planets were engulfed by host stars evolving on the red-giant branch (RGB). We integrate the orbital evolution of planets in the RGB and helium burning (HeB) phases of host stars, including the effects of stellar tide and stellar mass loss. Then we derive the critical semimajor axis (or the survival limit) inside which planets are eventually engulfed by their host stars after tidal decay of their orbits. Especially, we investigate the impact of stellar mass and other stellar parameters on the survival limit in more detail than previous studies. In addition, we make detailed comparison with measured semimajor axes of planets detected so far, which no previous study did. We find that the critical semimajor axis is quite sensitive to stellar mass in the range between 1.7 and 2.1 Msun, which suggests a need for careful comparison between theoretical and observational limits of existence of planets. Our comparison demonstrates that all those planets are beyond the survival limit, which is consistent with the planet-engulfment hypothesis. However, on the high-mass side (> 2.1 Msun), the detected planets are orbiting significantly far from the survival limit, which suggests that engulfment by host stars may not be the main reason for the observed lack of short-period giant planets. To confirm our conclusion, the detection of more planets around clump giants, especially with masses > 2.5 Msun, is required.