Konstantin Batygin

A primordial origin for misalignments between stellar spin axes and planetary orbits.

The existence of gaseous giant planets whose orbits lie close to their host stars (‘hot Jupiters’) can largely be accounted for by planetary migration associated with viscous evolution of proto-planetary nebulae. Recently, observations of the Rossiter–McLaughlin effect during planetary transits have revealed that a considerable fraction of hot Jupiters are on orbits that are misaligned with respect to the spin axes of their host stars. This observation has cast doubt on the importance of disk-driven migration as a mechanism for producing hot Jupiters. Here I show that misaligned orbits can be a natural consequence of disk migration in binary systems whose orbital plane is uncorrelated with the spin axes of the individual stars. The gravitational torques arising from the dynamical evolution of idealized proto-planetary disks under perturbations from massive distant bodies act to misalign the orbital planes of the disks relative to the spin poles of their host stars. As a result, I suggest that in the absence of strong coupling between the angular momentum of the disk and that of the host star, or of sufficient dissipation that acts to realign the stellar spin axis and the planetary orbits, the fraction of planetary systems (including systems of ‘hot Neptunes’ and ‘super-Earths’) whose angular momentum vectors are misaligned with respect to their host stars will be commensurate with the rate of primordial stellar multiplicity.

FRIENDS OF HOT JUPITERS. I. A RADIAL VELOCITY SEARCH FOR MASSIVE, LONG-PERIOD COMPANIONS TO CLOSE-IN GAS GIANT PLANETS

In this paper we search for distant massive companions to known transiting hot Jupiters that may have influenced the dynamical evolution of these systems. We present new radial velocity observations for a sample of 51 hot Jupiters obtained using the Keck HIRES instrument, and use these observations to search for long-term radial velocity accelerations. We find new, statistically significant accelerations in seven systems, including: HAT-P-10, HAT-P-20, HAT-P-22, HAT-P-29, HAT-P-32, WASP-10, and XO-2. We combine our radial velocity fits with Keck NIRC2 AO imaging data to place constraints on the allowed masses and orbital periods of the companions. The estimated masses of the companions range between 1-500 M_(Jup), with orbital semi-major axes typically between 1-75 AU. A significant majority of the companions detected by our survey are constrained to have minimum masses comparable to or larger than those of the short-period hot Jupiters in these systems, making them candidates for influencing the orbital evolution of the inner hot Jupiters. They also appear to occur preferentially in systems with more metal-rich host stars, and with typical orbital separations that are larger than those of multi-planet systems without hot Jupiters. We estimate a total occurrence rate of 55% +11% / -10% for companions with masses between 1-13 M_(Jup) and orbital semi-major axes between 1-20 AU in our sample. We find no statistically significant difference between the frequency of companions in hot Jupiter systems with misaligned or eccentric orbits and those with well-aligned, circular orbits. We combine our expanded sample of radial velocity measurements with constraints from transit and secondary eclipse observations to provide improved measurements of the physical and orbital characteristics of all of the hot Jupiters included in our survey.

INFLATING HOT JUPITERS WITH OHMIC DISSIPATION

We present a new, magnetohydrodynamic mechanism for inflation of close-in giant extrasolar planets. The idea behind the mechanism is that current, which is induced through interaction of atmospheric winds and the planetary magnetic field, results in significant Ohmic dissipation of energy in the interior. We develop an analytical model for computation of interior Ohmic dissipation, with a simplified treatment of the atmosphere. We apply our model to HD209458b, Tres-4b, and HD189733b. With conservative assumptions for wind speed and field strength, our model predicts a generated power that appears to be large enough to maintain the transit radii, opening an unexplored avenue toward solving a decade-old puzzle of extrasolar gas giant radius anomalies.

Dissipative Divergence of Resonant Orbits

A considerable fraction of multi-planet systems discovered by the observational surveys of extrasolar planets reside in mild proximity to first-order mean-motion resonances. However, the relative remoteness of such systems from nominal resonant period ratios (e.g., 2:1, 3:2, and 4:3) has been interpreted as evidence for lack of resonant interactions. Here, we show that a slow divergence away from exact commensurability is a natural outcome of dissipative evolution and demonstrate that libration of critical angles can be maintained tens of percent away from nominal resonance. We construct an analytical theory for the long-term dynamical evolution of dissipated resonant planetary pairs and confirm our calculations numerically. Collectively, our results suggest that a significant fraction of the near-commensurate extrasolar planets are in fact resonant and have undergone significant dissipative evolution.

EVIDENCE FOR A DISTANT GIANT PLANET IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM

Recent analyses have shown that distant orbits within the scattered disk population of the Kuiper Belt exhibit an unexpected clustering in their respective arguments of perihelion. While several hypotheses have been put forward to explain this alignment, to date, a theoretical model that can successfully account for the observations remains elusive. In this work we show that the orbits of distant Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) cluster not only in argument of perihelion, but also in physical space. We demonstrate that the perihelion positions and orbital planes of the objects are tightly confined and that such a clustering has only a probability of 0.007% to be due to chance, thus requiring a dynamical origin. We find that the observed orbital alignment can be maintained by a distant eccentric planet with mass ≳ 10 m_⊕ whose orbit lies in approximately the same plane as those of the distant KBOs, but whose perihelion is 180° away from the perihelia of the minor bodies. In addition to accounting for the observed orbital alignment, the existence of such a planet naturally explains the presence of high-perihelion Sedna-like objects, as well as the known collection of high semimajor axis objects with inclinations between 60° and 150° whose origin was previously unclear. Continued analysis of both distant and highly inclined outer solar system objects provides the opportunity for testing our hypothesis as well as further constraining the orbital elements and mass of the distant planet.

A super-earth and two Neptunes orbiting the nearby sun-like star 61 Virginis

We present precision radial velocity data that reveal a multiple exoplanet system orbiting the bright nearby G5V star 61 Virginis. Our 4.6 years of combined Keck/HIRES and Anglo-Australian Telescope precision radial velocities indicate the hitherto unknown presence of at least three planets orbiting this well-studied star. These planets are all on low-eccentricity orbits with periods of 4.2, 38.0, and 124.0 days, and projected masses (Msin i) of 5.1, 18.2, and 24.0 M ⊕, respectively. Test integrations of systems consistent with the radial velocity data suggest that the configuration is dynamically stable. Depending on the effectiveness of tidal dissipation within the inner planet, the inner two planets may have evolved into an eccentricity fixed-point configuration in which the apsidal lines of all three planets corotate. This conjecture can be tested with additional observations. We present a 16-year time series of photometric observations of 61 Virginis, which comprise 1194 individual measurements, and indicate that it has excellent photometric stability. No significant photometric variations at the periods of the proposed planets have been detected. This new system is the first known example of a G-type Sun-like star hosting a Super-Earth mass planet. It joins HD 75732 (55 Cnc), HD 69830, GJ 581, HD 40307, and GJ 876 in a growing group of exoplanet systems that have multiple planets orbiting with periods less than an Earth-year. The ubiquity of such systems portends that space-based transit-search missions such as Kepler and CoRoT will find many multi-transiting systems.

Evolution of Ohmically Heated Hot Jupiters

We present calculations of thermal evolution of hot Jupiters with various masses and effective temperatures under ohmic dissipation. The resulting evolutionary sequences show a clear tendency toward inflated radii for effective temperatures that give rise to significant ionization of alkali metals in the atmosphere, compatible with the trend of the data. The degree of inflation shows that ohmic dissipation along with the likely variability in heavy element content can account for all of the currently detected radius anomalies. Furthermore, we find that in the absence of a massive core, low-mass hot Jupiters can overflow their Roche lobes and evaporate on Gyr timescales, possibly leaving behind small rocky cores.

Retention of a Primordial Cold Classical Kuiper Belt in an Instability-Driven Model of Solar System Formation

The cold classical population of the Kuiper Belt exhibits a wide variety of unique physical characteristics, which collectively suggest that its dynamical coherence has been maintained throughout the solar systems lifetime. Simultaneously, the retention of the cold populations relatively unexcited orbital state has remained a mystery, especially in the context of a solar system formation model, that is driven by a transient period of instability, where Neptune is temporarily eccentric. Here, we show that the cold belt can survive the instability, and its dynamical structure can be reproduced. We develop a simple analytical model for secular excitation of cold Kuiper Belt objects and show that comparatively fast apsidal precession and nodal recession of Neptune, during the eccentric phase, are essential for preservation of an unexcited state in the cold classical region. Subsequently, we confirm our results with self-consistent N-body simulations. We further show that contamination of the hot classical and scattered populations by objects of similar nature to that of cold classicals has been instrumental in shaping the vast physical diversity inherent to the Kuiper Belt.

Determination of the Interior Structure of Transiting Planets in Multiple-Planet Systems

Tidal dissipation within a short-period transiting extrasolar planet perturbed by a companion object can drive orbital evolution of the system to a so-called tidal fixed point, in which the apses of the transiting planet and its perturber are aligned, and variations in orbital eccentricities vanish. Significant contribution to the apsidal precession rate is made by gravitational quadrupole fields, created by the transiting planets tidal and rotational distortions. The fixed-point orbital eccentricity of the inner planet is therefore a strong function of its interior structure. We illustrate these ideas in the specific context of the recently discovered HAT-P-13 exoplanetary system, and show that one can already glean important insights into the physical properties of the inner transiting planet. We present structural models of the planet, which indicate that its observed radius can be maintained for a one-parameter sequence of models that properly vary core mass and tidal energy dissipation in the interior. We use an octupole-order secular theory of the orbital dynamics to derive the dependence of the inner planets eccentricity, e_b, on its tidal Love number, k_(2b). We find that the currently measured eccentricity, e_b = 0.021 ± 0.009, implies 0.116 < k_(2b) < 0.425, 0 M_⊕ < M_(core) < 120 M_⊕, and 10,000 < Q_b < 300,000. Improved measurement of the eccentricity will soon allow for far tighter limits to be placed on all of these quantities, and will provide an unprecedented probe into the interior structure of an extrasolar planet.

Formation and evolution of planetary systems in presence of highly inclined stellar perturbers

Context. The presence of highly eccentric extrasolar planets in binary stellar systems suggests that the Kozai effect has played an important role in shaping their dynamical architectures. However, the formation of planets in inclined binary systems poses a considerable theoretical challenge, as orbital excitation due to the Kozai resonance implies destructive, high-velocity collisions among planetesimals. Aims. To resolve the apparent difficulties posed by Kozai resonance, we seek to identify the primary physical processes responsible for inhibiting the action of Kozai cycles in protoplanetary disks. Subsequently, we seek to understand how newly-formed planetary systems transition to their observed, Kozai-dominated dynamical states. Methods. The main focus of this study is on understanding the important mechanisms at play. Thus, we rely primarily on analytical perturbation theory in our calculations. Where the analytical approach fails to suffice, we perform numerical N-body experiments. Results. We find that theoretical difficulties in planet formation arising from the presence of a distant (a ~ 1000 AU) companion star, posed by the Kozai effect and other secular perturbations, can be overcome by a proper account of gravitational interactions within the protoplanetary disk. In particular, fast apsidal recession induced by disk self-gravity tends to erase the Kozai effect, and ensure that the disk’s unwarped, rigid structure is maintained. Subsequently, once a planetary system has formed, the Kozai effect can continue to be wiped out as a result of apsidal precession, arising from planet-planet interactions. However, if such a system undergoes a dynamical instability, its architecture may change in such a way that the Kozai effect becomes operative. Conclusions. The results presented here suggest that planetary formation in highly inclined binary systems is not stalled by perturbations, arising from the stellar companion. Consequently, planet formation in binary stars is probably no different from that around single stars on a qualitative level. Furthermore, it is likely that systems where the Kozai effect operates, underwent a transient phase of dynamical instability in the past.