2009/08/26 by M. Konacki, Maciej Konacki, Matthew W. Muterspaugh +4 · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astro and Planetary Science #Astronomy #Astrophysics #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Binary number #Binary star #Circumbinary planet #Physics #Planet #Radial velocity #Stars #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph.EP #astro-ph.SR
paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/0004-637x/704/1/513
to appear in ApJ
arxiv created 2009/08/26 · openalex publication_date 2009/09/23 · arxiv updated 2015/05/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We present preliminary results of the first and on-going radial velocity survey for circumbinary planets. With a novel radial velocity technique employing an iodine absorption cell, we achieve an unprecedented radial velocity (RV) precision of up to 2 m s −1 for double-lined binary stars. The high-resolution spectra collected with the Keck I/Hires, TNG/Sarg, and Shane/CAT/Hamspec telescopes/spectrographs over the years 2003–2008 allow us to derive RVs and compute planet detection limits for 10 double-lined binary stars. For this initial sample of targets, we can rule out planets on dynamically stable orbits with masses as small as ∼0.3 to 3 M Jup for the orbital periods of up to ∼5.3 years. Even though the presented sample of stars is too small to make any strong conclusions, it is clear that the search for circumbinary planets is now technique-wise possible and eventually will provide new constraints for the planet formation theories.