Abstract
We discuss the preliminary results of a survey of young (<300 Myr), close (<50 pc) stars with the Simultaneous Differential Extrasolar Planet Imager (SDI) implemented at the VLT and the MMT. SDI uses a quad filter to take images simultaneously at 3 wavelengths surrounding the 1.62 μm methane bandhead found in the spectrum of cool brown dwarfs and gas giants. By performing a difference of images in these filters, speckle noise from the primary can be significantly attenuated, resulting in photon noise limited data. In our survey data, we achieved H band contrasts >25000 (5σ ΔF1(1.575μm)>10 mag, ΔH>11.5 mag for a T6 spectral type) at a separation of 0.5″ from the primary star. With this degree of attenuation, we should be able to image (5σ detection) a 2-4 Jupiter mass planet at 5 AU around a 30 Myr star at 10 pc. We are currently completing our survey of young, nearby stars, with complete datasets for 35 stars in the southern sky (VLT) and 7 stars in the northern sky (MMT). We believe that our SDI images are the highest contrast astronomical images ever made from ground or space for methane rich companions.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 53-60 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union |
Volume | 1 |
Issue number | C200 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2005 |
Keywords
- (Stars:) planetary systems
- Instrumentation: Adaptive optics
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine (miscellaneous)
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Nutrition and Dietetics
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
- Space and Planetary Science