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Title: TOI-1696 and TOI-2136: Constraining the Masses of Two Mini-Neptunes with the Habitable-Zone Planet Finder
Abstract We present the validation of two planets orbiting M dwarfs, TOI-1696b and TOI-2136b. Both planets are mini-Neptunes orbiting nearby stars, making them promising prospects for atmospheric characterization with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). We validated the planetary nature of both candidates using high-contrast imaging, ground-based photometry, and near-infrared radial velocities. Adaptive optics images were taken using the ShARCS camera on the 3 m Shane Telescope. Speckle images were taken using the NN-Explore Exoplanet Stellar Speckle Imager on the WIYN 3.5 m telescope. Radii and orbital ephemerides were refined using a combination of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, the diffuser-assisted Astrophysical Research Consortium (ARC) Telescope Imaging Camera (ARCTIC) imager on the 3.5 m ARC telescope at Apache Point Observatory, and the 0.6 m telescope at Red Buttes Observatory. We obtained radial velocities using the Habitable-Zone Planet Finder on the 10 m Hobby–Eberly Telescope, which enabled us to place upper limits on the masses of both transiting planets. TOI-1696b ( P = 2.5 days; R p = 3.24 R ⊕ ; M p < 56.6 M ⊕ ) falls into a sparsely populated region of parameter space considering its host star’s temperature ( T eff = 3168 K, M4.5), as planets of its size are quite rare around mid- to late-M dwarfs. On the other hand, TOI-2136b ( P = 7.85 days; R p = 2.09 R ⊕ ; M p < 15.0 M ⊕ ) is an excellent candidate for atmospheric follow-up with the JWST.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1907622 2108493 1910954 2108801 2108569 2108512 1909506 1852289
PAR ID:
10330707
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more » ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; « less
Date Published:
Journal Name:
The Astronomical Journal
Volume:
163
Issue:
6
ISSN:
0004-6256
Page Range / eLocation ID:
286
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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