Exoplanets and Stellar Physics

Abstract:

We introduce an imaging modality that, by offsetting pixel-exposure times during capture of a single image frame, embeds temporal information in each frame. This allows simultaneous acquisition of full-resolution images at native detector frame rates and high-speed image sequences at reduced resolution, without increasing bandwidth requirements. We demonstrate this method using macroscopic and microscopic examples, including imaging calcium transients in heart cells at 250 Hz using a 10-Hz megapixel camera.

Abstract:

We measure the angle between the planetary orbit and the stellar rotation axis in the transiting planetary system CoRoT-1, with new HIRES/Keck and FORS/VLT high-accuracy photometry. The data indicate a highly tilted system, with a projected spin-orbit angle λ = 77° ± 11°. Systematic uncertainties in the radial velocity data could cause the actual errors to be larger by an unknown amount, and this result needs to be confirmed with further high-accuracy spectroscopic transit measurements. Spin-orbit alignment has now been measured in a dozen extra-solar planetary systems, and several show strong misalignment. The first three misaligned planets were all much more massive than Jupiter and followed eccentric orbits. CoRoT-1, however, is a jovian-mass close-in planet on a circular orbit. If its strong misalignment is confirmed, it would break this pattern. The high occurrence of misaligned systems for several types of planets and orbits favours planet-planet scattering as a mechanism to bring gas giants on very close orbits. © 2009 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2009 RAS.