Site Map
Contacts
Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter YouTube channel
Centro de Astrofísica da Universidade do Porto

Revisiting the correlation between stellar activity and planetary surface gravity

P. Figueira, M. Oshagh, V. Zh. Adibekyan, N. C. Santos

Abstract
Aims. We re-evaluate the correlation between planetary surface gravity and stellar host activity as measured by the index log (R′HK). This correlation, previously identified by Hartman (2010, ApJ, 717, L138), is now analyzed in light of an extended measurement dataset, roughly three times larger than the original one.
Methods. We calculated the Spearman rank correlation coefficient between the two quantities and its associated p-value. The correlation coefficient was calculated for both the full dataset and the star-planet pairs that follow the conditions proposed by Hartman (2010). To do so, we considered effective temperatures both as collected from the literature and from the SWEET-Cat catalog, which provides a more homogeneous and accurate effective temperature determination.
Results. The analysis delivers significant correlation coefficients, but with a lower value than those obtained by Hartman (2010). The two datasets are compatible, and we show that a correlation coefficient as high as previously published can arise naturally from a small-number statistics analysis of the current dataset. The correlation is recovered for star-planet pairs selected using the different conditions proposed by Hartman (2010). Remarkably, the usage of SWEET-Cat temperatures led to higher correlation coefficient values. We highlight and discuss the role of the correlation betwen different parameters such as effective temperature and activity index. Several additional effects on top of those discussed previously were considered, but none fully explains the detected correlation. In light of the complex issue discussed here, we encourage the different follow-up teams to publish their activity index values in the form of a log (R′HK) index so that a comparison across stars and instruments can be pursued.

Keywords
planetary systems - methods: data analysis - methods: statistical

Astronomy and Astrophysics
Volume 572, Page A51_1
November 2014

>> DOI

Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences

Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences (IA) is a new but long anticipated research infrastructure with a national dimension. It embodies a bold but feasible vision for the development of Astronomy, Astrophysics and Space Sciences in Portugal, taking full advantage and fully realizing the potential created by the national membership of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Southern Observatory (ESO). IA resulted from the merging the two most prominent research units in the field in Portugal: the Centre for Astrophysics of the University of Porto (CAUP) and the Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics of the University of Lisbon (CAAUL). It currently hosts more than two-thirds of all active researchers working in Space Sciences in Portugal, and is responsible for an even greater fraction of the national productivity in international ISI journals in the area of Space Sciences. This is the scientific area with the highest relative impact factor (1.65 times above the international average) and the field with the highest average number of citations per article for Portugal.

Proceed on CAUP's website|Go to IA website