2008/08/13 by Stephen R. Kane, Kaspar von Braun
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Eccentricity (behavior) #Exoplanet #Orbital decay #Orbital elements #Planet #Planetary system #Radial velocity #Scientific Research and Discoveries #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Transit (satellite) #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/592381
7 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ
arxiv created 2008/08/13 · openalex publication_date 2008/11/22 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/06
The orbital parameters of extrasolar planets have a significant impact on the probability that the planet will transit the host star. This was recently demonstrated by the transit detection of HD 17156b, whose favorable eccentricity and argument of periastron dramatically increased its transit likelihood. We present a study which provides a quantitative analysis of how these two orbital parameters affect the geometric transit probability as a function of period. Furthermore, we apply these results to known radial velocity planets and show that there are unexpectedly high transit probabilities for planets at relatively long periods. For a photometric monitoring campaign which aims to determine whether the planet indeed transits, we calculate the expected transiting planet yield and the significance of a potential null result, as well as the subsequent constraints that may be applied to orbital parameters.