AI Article Synopsis
- The study discovered a Neptune-mass exoplanet orbiting the low-mass star LHS 3154, which is significantly less massive than the Sun.
- The exoplanet has a short orbital period of 3.7 days and a minimum mass of 13.2 Earth masses, challenging existing theories of planet formation.
- Simulations indicate that the high mass ratio between the planet and its star is unexpected, suggesting that close-in Neptune-mass planets would require much more dust in the protoplanetary disk than typically found around such low-mass stars.
Article Abstract
Theories of planet formation predict that low-mass stars should rarely host exoplanets with masses exceeding that of Neptune. We used radial velocity observations to detect a Neptune-mass exoplanet orbiting LHS 3154, a star that is nine times less massive than the Sun. The exoplanet's orbital period is 3.7 days, and its minimum mass is 13.2 Earth masses. We used simulations to show that the high planet-to-star mass ratio (>3.5 × 10) is not an expected outcome of either the core accretion or gravitational instability theories of planet formation. In the core-accretion simulations, we show that close-in Neptune-mass planets are only formed if the dust mass of the protoplanetary disk is an order of magnitude greater than typically observed around very low-mass stars.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abo0233 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!