NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2013B-0319
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2013B-0319 |
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PI: S. Mark Ammons, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, ammons1@llnl.gov
Address: Livermore, CA, 94551-9900, USA
CoI: Christian Marois, Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics
CoI: Bruce Macintosh, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
CoI: Quinn Konopacky, University of Toronto
CoI: Benoit Neichel, Gemini Telescope
CoI: Raphael Galicher, Observatoire de Paire
CoI: Eduardo Bendek, NASA Ames
CoI: Olivier Guyon, University of Arizona
Title: A Test of GEMS Astrometric Precision for Exoplanet Detection and Mass Measurement
Abstract:
Precision astrometry is so far the only mainstream exoplanet detection
technique that has yet to find a new planet. The unique capabilities of GeMS
and GSAOI may finally be what we have been waiting for: the combination of a
large aperture and wide-field AO correction for stable high-resolution
wide-field diffraction-limited imaging. As part of a multi-year program
starting in 2013A, we are observing SCR 1845 and Mu Arae in 2013A to (1)
astrometrically verify the presence and measure the dynamical mass of the
nearby brown dwarf companion orbiting SCR 1845 (Biller et al. 2006) and (2)
measure the dynamical mass of mu Arae e, an RV discovery of 1.9 MJUP with a
signal of approximately 0.5 mas (Pepe et al. 2008). Here, due to visibility
constraints on SCR 1845 and Mu Arae, we propose four new epochs on the
closest brown dwarf pair at 2 pc, WISE J1049-53 (Luhman 2013), newly
discovered with Gemini in 2013 to be the third closest system known. GEMS
will in one year obtain the best available projected relative orbits and a <
1% trigonometric distance, enabling precision masses and luminosity
measurements for both L/T transition components.
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 > 2013B-0319 |
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