MSGID: 1:317/3 6482ab1e   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    'Hot Jupiters' may not be orbiting alone    
      
     Date:   
         June 8, 2023   
     Source:   
         Indiana University   
     Summary:   
         Astronomers challenge longstanding beliefs about the isolation of   
         'hot Jupiters' and proposes a new mechanism for understanding the   
         exoplanets' evolution.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Research led by an Indiana University astronomer challenges longstanding   
   beliefs about the isolation of "hot Jupiters" and proposes a new mechanism   
   for understanding the exoplanets' evolution.   
      
   While our Jupiter is far away from the sun, hot Jupiters are gas giant   
   planets that closely orbit stars outside our solar system for an orbital   
   period of less than 10 days. Previous studies suggested they rarely   
   have any nearby companion planets, leading scientists to believe that   
   hot Jupiters formed and evolved through a violent process that expelled   
   other planets from the area as they moved closer to their host stars. The   
   research team's findings reveal that hot Jupiters do not always orbit   
   alone.   
      
   "Our research shows that at least a fraction of hot Jupiters cannot form   
   through a violent process," said Songhu Wang, assistant professor of   
   astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences. "This is a significant   
   contribution to advance our understanding of hot Jupiter formation,   
   which can help us learn more about our own solar system."  Wang presented   
   the results of the research at the June 2023 meeting of the American   
   Astronomical Society in Albuquerque, New Mexico.   
      
   Researchers analyzed the full, four-year data set for hot and warm   
   Jupiters from NASA's Kepler Mission. Warm Jupiters have a longer orbital   
   period that ranges from 10 to 300 days. Researchers used transit timing   
   variations to determine that at least 12% of hot Jupiters and 70% of   
   warm Jupiters have a nearby planetary companion orbiting their host stars.   
      
   Wang and his collaborators combined their results with existing   
   observational constraints to propose a new framework for explaining   
   the evolution of hot and warm Jupiters and why some have companion   
   planets. They determined that the makeup of hot and warm Jupiter systems   
   depends on the occurrence of gas giants in the system, which impacts   
   how much the planets interact and migrate.   
      
   The findings provide a launching point into future research about   
   exoplanets and our solar system's planets.   
      
   "The ultimate goal for astronomers is to set our solar system into   
   the bigger picture -- 'Are we unique?'" Wang said. "This helps us   
   to understand why we don't have a hot Jupiter in our solar system."   
   Additional collaborators are Dong-Hong Wu, lecturer in the Department of   
   Physics at Anhui Normal University, and Malena Rice, 51 Pegasi b Fellow   
   at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and incoming professor at   
   Yale University.   
      
   Wang has long been interested in the configurations and demographics of   
   exoplanets. He uses observational research to try to understand their   
   dynamics and origins, helping astronomers better understand how our   
   solar system fits into a larger cosmic context.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Space_&_Time   
                   # Extrasolar_Planets # Solar_System # Stars # Sun #   
                   Astronomy # Jupiter # Solar_Flare # Pluto   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Astronomy o Extrasolar_planet o Radio_telescope   
             o Antikythera_mechanism o Dysnomia_(moon_of_Eris) o   
             Stellar_evolution o Astrobiology o Shape_of_the_Universe   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by Indiana_University. Note: Content   
   may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230608195742.htm   
      
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