skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


This content will become publicly available on November 1, 2025

Title: Analysis of the Full Spitzer Microlensing Sample. I. Dark Remnant Candidates and Gaia Predictions
Abstract In the pursuit of understanding the population of stellar remnants within the Milky Way, we analyze the sample of ∼950 microlensing events observed by the Spitzer Space Telescope between 2014 and 2019. In this study we focus on a subsample of nine microlensing events, selected based on their long timescales, small microlensing parallaxes, and joint observations by the Gaia mission, to increase the probability that the chosen lenses are massive and the mass is measurable. Among the selected events we identify lensing black holes and neutron star candidates, with potential confirmation through forthcoming release of the Gaia time-series astrometry in 2026. Utilizing Bayesian analysis and Galactic models, along with the Gaia Data Release 3 proper-motion data, four good candidates for dark remnants were identified: OGLE-2016-BLG-0293, OGLE-2018-BLG-0483, OGLE-2018-BLG-0662, and OGLE-2015-BLG-0149, with lens masses of 3.0 1.3 + 1.8 M , 4.7 2.1 + 3.2 M , 3.15 0.64 + 0.66 M and 1.40 0.55 + 0.75 M , respectively. Notably, the first two candidates are expected to exhibit astrometric microlensing signals detectable by Gaia, offering the prospect of validating the lens masses. The methodologies developed in this work will be applied to the full Spitzer microlensing sample, populating and analyzing the timescale (tE) versus parallax (πE) diagram to derive constraints on the population of lenses in general and massive remnants in particular.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2206828
PAR ID:
10610715
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more » ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; « less
Corporate Creator(s):
; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
IOP
Date Published:
Journal Name:
The Astrophysical Journal
Volume:
975
Issue:
2
ISSN:
0004-637X
Page Range / eLocation ID:
216
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. Abstract We report on the discovery and analysis of the planetary microlensing event OGLE-2019-BLG-1180 with a planet-to-star mass ratioq∼ 0.003. The event OGLE-2019-BLG-1180 has unambiguous cusp-passing and caustic-crossing anomalies, which were caused by a wide planetary caustic withs≃ 2, wheresis the star–planet separation in units of the angular Einstein radiusθE. Thanks to well-covered anomalies by the Korea Micorolensing Telescope Network (KMTNet), we measure both the angular Einstein radius and the microlens parallax in spite of a relatively short event timescale oftE= 28 days. However, because of a weak constraint on the parallax, we conduct a Bayesian analysis to estimate the physical lens parameters. We find that the lens system is a super-Jupiter-mass planet of M p = 1.75 0.51 + 0.53 M J orbiting a late-type star of M h = 0.55 0.26 + 0.27 M at a distance D L = 6.1 1.3 + 0.9 kpc . The projected star–planet separation is a = 5.19 1.23 + 0.90 au , which means that the planet orbits at about four times the snow line of the host star. Considering the relative lens–source proper motion ofμrel= 6 mas yr−1, the lens will be separated from the source by 60 mas in 2029. At that time one can measure the lens flux from adaptive optics imaging of Keck or a next-generation 30 m class telescope. OGLE-2019-BLG-1180Lb represents a growing population of wide-orbit planets detected by KMTNet, so we also present a general investigation into prospects for further expanding the sample of such planets. 
    more » « less
  2. Abstract The current studies of microlensing planets are limited by small number statistics. Follow-up observations of high-magnification microlensing events can efficiently form a statistical planetary sample. Since 2020, the Korea Microlensing Telescope Network (KMTNet) and the Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO) global network have been conducting a follow-up program for high-magnification KMTNet events. Here, we report the detection and analysis of a microlensing planetary event, KMT-2023-BLG-1431, for which the subtle (0.05 mag) and short-lived (5 hr) planetary signature was characterized by the follow-up from KMTNet and LCO. A binary-lens single-source (2L1S) analysis reveals a planet/host mass ratio ofq= (0.72 ± 0.07) × 10−4, and the single-lens binary-source (1L2S) model is excluded by Δχ2= 80. A Bayesian analysis using a Galactic model yields estimates of the host star mass of M host = 0.57 0.29 + 0.33 M , the planetary mass of M planet = 13.5 6.8 + 8.1 M , and the lens distance of D L = 6.9 1.7 + 0.8 kpc. The projected planet-host separation of a = 2.3 0.5 + 0.5 au or a = 3.2 0.8 + 0.7 au, subject to the close/wide degeneracy. We also find that without the follow-up data, the survey-only data cannot break the degeneracy of central/resonant caustics and the degeneracy of 2L1S/1L2S models, showing the importance of follow-up observations for current microlensing surveys. 
    more » « less
  3. Abstract We report discovering an exoplanet from following up a microlensing event alerted by Gaia. The event Gaia22dkv is toward a disk source rather than the traditional bulge microlensing fields. Our primary analysis yields a Jovian planet with M p = 0.59 0.05 + 0.15 M J at a projected orbital separation r = 1.4 0.3 + 0.8 au, and the host is a ∼1.1Mturnoff star at ∼1.3 kpc. At r 14 , the host is far brighter than any previously discovered microlensing planet host, opening up the opportunity to test the microlensing model with radial velocity (RV) observations. RV data can be used to measure the planet’s orbital period and eccentricity, and they also enable searching for inner planets of the microlensing cold Jupiter, as expected from the “inner–outer correlation” inferred from Kepler and RV discoveries. Furthermore, we show that Gaia astrometric microlensing will not only allow precise measurements of its angular Einstein radiusθEbut also directly measure the microlens parallax vector and unambiguously break a geometric light-curve degeneracy, leading to the definitive characterization of the lens system. 
    more » « less
  4. Abstract We investigate the stellar mass–black hole mass ( * BH ) relation with type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) down to BH = 10 7 M , corresponding to a ≃ −21 absolute magnitude in rest-frame ultraviolet, atz= 2–2.5. Exploiting the deep and large-area spectroscopic survey of the Hobby–Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX), we identify 66 type 1 AGNs with BH ranging from 107–1010Mthat are measured with single-epoch virial method using Civemission lines detected in the HETDEX spectra. * of the host galaxies are estimated from optical to near-infrared photometric data taken with Spitzer, the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, and ground-based 4–8 m class telescopes byCIGALEspectral energy distribution (SED) fitting. We further assess the validity of SED fitting in two cases by host-nuclear decomposition performed through surface brightness profile fitting on spatially resolved host galaxies with the James Webb Space Telescope/NIRCam CEERS data. We obtain the * BH relation covering the unexplored low-mass ranges of BH 10 7 10 8 M , and conduct forward modeling to fully account for the selection biases and observational uncertainties. The intrinsic * BH relation atz∼ 2 has a moderate positive offset of 0.52 ± 0.14 dex from the local relation, suggestive of more efficient black hole growth at higher redshift even in the low-mass regime of BH 10 7 10 8 M . Our * BH relation is inconsistent with the BH suppression at the low- * regime predicted by recent hydrodynamic simulations at a 98% confidence level, suggesting that feedback in the low-mass systems may be weaker than those produced in hydrodynamic simulations. 
    more » « less
  5. Abstract We report the discovery of a close-in (Porb= 3.349 days) warm Neptune with clear transit timing variations (TTVs) orbiting the nearby (d= 47.3 pc) active M4 star, TOI-2015. We characterize the planet's properties using Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) photometry, precise near-infrared radial velocities (RVs) with the Habitable-zone Planet Finder Spectrograph, ground-based photometry, and high-contrast imaging. A joint photometry and RV fit yields a radius R p = 3.37 0.20 + 0.15 R , mass m p = 16.4 4.1 + 4.1 M , and density ρ p = 2.32 0.37 + 0.38 g cm 3 for TOI-2015 b, suggesting a likely volatile-rich planet. The young, active host star has a rotation period ofProt= 8.7 ± 0.9 days and associated rotation-based age estimate of 1.1 ± 0.1 Gyr. Though no other transiting planets are seen in the TESS data, the system shows clear TTVs of super-period P sup 430 days and amplitude ∼100 minutes. After considering multiple likely period-ratio models, we show an outer planet candidate near a 2:1 resonance can explain the observed TTVs while offering a dynamically stable solution. However, other possible two-planet solutions—including 3:2 and 4:3 resonances—cannot be conclusively excluded without further observations. Assuming a 2:1 resonance in the joint TTV-RV modeling suggests a mass of m b = 13.3 4.5 + 4.7 M for TOI-2015 b and m c = 6.8 2.3 + 3.5 M for the outer candidate. Additional transit and RV observations will be beneficial to explicitly identify the resonance and further characterize the properties of the system. 
    more » « less