NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2005A-0351
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2005A-0351 |
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PI: Sarah Robinson, UCSC, ser@astro.ucsc.edu
Address: Astronomy Department, 1156 High St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
CoI: Debra Fischer, SFSU Physics Department
CoI: Mark Ammons, UCSC Astronomy Department
CoI: Gregory Laughlin, UCSC Astronomy Department
CoI: Jay Strader, UCSC Astronomy Department
Title: N2K: The Next Two Thousand Metal-Rich Stars
Abstract: The goal of the N2K collaboration is to identify the next 2000 closest, brightest metal-rich stars that are not on current target lists for radial velocity surveys aimed at detecting Hot Jupiters. Using the knowledge that stars with [Fe/H] >=0.2 have five times the probability of harboring a short-period planet as stars with Solar metallicity, we have developed a planet-search screening technique based on low-resolution spectra that measures stellar metallicity with a precision of +/- 0.08 dex. Our target stars will be pre-screened with a metallicity calibration based on broadband photometry that gives estimates good to +/- 0.2 dex for V=9 stars. Since planet occurrence is such a sensitive function of metallicity, we will observe 3000 stars with the KPNO 2.1m telescope, from which 1500-2000 super- metal-rich stars will be selected for the ongoing Keck Doppler velocity survey. From this dataset, we expect to identify at least ~60 new Hot Jupiters, which have a high probability of exhibiting transits and being members of multiple-planet systems. Identifying short-period planets will constrain the free parameters in orbital circularization theory and help reveal the internal structure of planets and the mechanisms for stopping orbital migration.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2005A-0351 |
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