High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher
The High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) is a high-precision echelle spectrograph installed in 2002 on ESO's 3.6m telescope at La Silla Observatory in Chile. The first light was achieved in February 2003. HARPS has discovered over 130 exoplanets with the first in 2004. It is a second-generation radial-velocity spectrograph, based on experience with the ELODIE and CORALIE instruments.[1]
Characteristics
HARPS can attain a precision of 0.97 m/s (3.5 km/h),[2] with an effective precision of the order of 30 cm s−1,[3] making it one of only two instruments worldwide with such accuracy.[4] This is due to a design in which the target star and a reference spectrum from a thorium lamp are observed simultaneously using two identical optic fibre feeds, and to careful attention to mechanical stability: the instrument sits in a vacuum vessel which is temperature-controlled to within 0.01 kelvins.[5] The precision and sensitivity of the instrument is such that it incidentally produced the best available measurement of the thorium spectrum.[6] Planet-detection is in some cases limited by the seismic pulsations of the star observed rather than by limitations of the instrument.[7]
The principal investigator on HARPS is Michel Mayor who, along with Didier Queloz and Stéphane Udry have used the instrument to characterize the Gliese 581 system, home to one of the smallest known exoplanet orbiting a normal star, and two super-Earths whose orbits lie in the star's habitable zone.[8]
It was initially used for a survey of a thousand stars.
Since October 2012 the HARPS spectrograph has the precision to detect a new category of planets: Habitable super-Earths. This sensitivity was expected from simulations of stellar intrinsic signals, and actual observations of planetary systems. Currently, HARPS can detect habitable super-Earth only around low-mass stars as these are more affected by gravitational tug from planets and have habitable zones close to the host star.[9]
Planets discovered by HARPS
| Planet | Date announced |
|---|---|
| HD 330075 b | 10 February 2004 |
| Mu Arae c | 25 August 2004 |
| HD 2638 b | 22 March 2005 |
| HD 27894 b | 22 March 2005 |
| HD 63454 b | 22 March 2005 |
| HD 93083 b | 30 March 2005 |
| HD 101930 b | 30 March 2005 |
| Gliese 581 b | 8 September 2005 |
| HD 4308 b | 12 October 2005 |
| HD 212301 b | 25 January 2006 |
| HD 69830 b | 18 May 2006 |
| HD 69830 c | 18 May 2006 |
| HD 69830 d | 18 May 2006 |
| Mu Arae d | 14/18 August 2006 |
| Gliese 674 b | 2 April 2007 |
| HD 100777 b | 6 April 2007 |
| HD 190647 b | 6 April 2007 |
| HD 221287 b | 6 April 2007 |
| Gliese 581 c | 23 April 2007 |
| Gliese 581 d | 23 April 2007 |
| HD 171028 b | 7 August 2007 |
| HD 40307 b | 27 June 2008 |
| HD 40307 c | 27 June 2008 |
| HD 40307 d | 27 June 2008 |
| Gliese 176 b shorter period | 4 September 2008 |
| BD-17°63 b | 26 October 2008 |
| HD 20868 b | 26 October 2008 |
| HD 73267 b | 26 October 2008 |
| HD 131664 b M sin i brown dwarf | 26 October 2008 |
| HD 145377 b | 26 October 2008 |
| HD 153950 b | 26 October 2008 |
| HD 47186 b | 9 December 2008 |
| HD 47186 c | 9 December 2008 |
| HD 181433 b | 9 December 2009 |
| HD 181433 c | 9 December 2009 |
| HD 181433 d | 9 December 2009 |
| HD 45364 b | 3 February 2009 |
| HD 45364 c | 3 February 2009 |
| Gliese 581 e | 21 April 2009 |
| Gliese 667 Cb | 19 October 2009 |
| BD-08°2823 b | 16 December 2009 |
| BD-08°2823 c | 16 December 2009 |
| HD 5388 b brown dwarf | 16 December 2009 |
| HD 181720 b | 16 December 2009 |
| HD 190984 b | 16 December 2009 |
| HD 125612 c | 29 December 2009 |
| HD 125612 d | 29 December 2009 |
| HD 215497 b | 29 December 2009 |
| HD 215497 c | 29 December 2009 |
| HIP 5158 b | 29 December 2009 |
| HD 85390 b | 5 October 2010 |
| HD 90156 b | 5 October 2010 |
| HD 103197 b | 5 October 2010 |
| HIP 12961 b | 6 December 2010 |
| HD 1690 b | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 25171 b | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 113538 b | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 113538 c | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 217786 b M sin ibrown dwarf | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 33473 Ab | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 89839 b | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 167677 b | 17 December 2010 |
| HD 10180 b | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 10180 c | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 10180 d | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 10180 e | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 10180 f | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 10180 g | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 10180 h | 23 November 2010 |
| HD 63765 b | 1 July 2011 |
| HD 104067 b | 1 July 2011 |
| HD 125595 b | 1 July 2011 |
| HIP 70849 b | 1 July 2011 |
| HD 137388 b | 8 July 2011 |
| HD 204941 b | 8 July 2011 |
| HD 7199 b | 8 July 2011 |
| HD 7449 b | 8 July 2011 |
| 82 G. Eridani b | 17 August 2011 |
| 82 G. Eridani c | 17 August 2011 |
| 82 G. Eridani d | 17 August 2011 |
| HD 85512 b | 17 August 2011 |
| HR 7722 c | 17 August 2011 |
| HD 1461 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 13808 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 13808 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 20003 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 20003 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 20781 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 20781 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 21693 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 21693 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 31527 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 31527 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 31527 d | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 38858 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 39194 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 39194 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 39194 d | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 45184 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 51608 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 51608 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 93385 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 93385 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 96700 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 96700 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 126525 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 134060 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 134060 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 134606 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 134606 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 134606 d | 12 September 2011 |
| Nu2 Lupi b | 12 September 2011 |
| Nu2 Lupi c | 12 September 2011 |
| Nu2 Lupi d | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 150433 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 154088 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 157172 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 189567 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 204313 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 215152 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 215152 c | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 215456 b | 12 September 2011 |
| HD 215456 c | 12 September 2011 |
| Gliese 667 Cc | 21 November 2011 |
| HD 10180 i | 5 April 2012 |
| HD 10180 j | 5 April 2012 |
| GJ 3470 b | 22 June 2012 |
| Gliese 676 c | 29 June 2012 |
| Gliese 676 d | 29 June 2012 |
| Gliese 676 e | 29 June 2012 |
| Gliese 163 b | 6 September 2012 |
| Gliese 163 c | 6 September 2012 |
| Alpha Centauri Bb | 16 October 2012 |
| Gliese 667 Cd | 25 June 2013 |
| Gliese 667 Ce | 25 June 2013 |
| Gliese 667 Cf | 25 June 2013 |
| Gliese 667 Cg | 25 June 2013 |
- This is not a complete list.
See also
Similar instruments:
- HARPS-N is a copy of this instrument installed in the northern hemisphere in 2012.
- Fiber-optic Improved Next-generation Doppler Search for Exo-Earths, operating at Lick observatory since 2009
- CORALIE spectrograph is a similar instrument also in La Silla,
- SOPHIE échelle spectrograph is a similar instrument.
- ELODIE spectrograph is the precursor instrument.
- Anglo-Australian Planet Search or AAPS is another southern hemisphere planet search program.
- ESPRESSO is a new-generation spectrograph for ESO's VLT.
- Automated Planet Finder, in commissioning at the Lick observatory
Space based detectors :
- COROT, spacecraft operating since 2007
- Kepler, operational since 2009
- Terrestrial Planet Finder, not funded, probably cancelled
- Space Interferometry Mission, construction halted in 2010
- Darwin, early studies for a multi-satellite mission
References
- ↑ Mayor; Pepe, F.; Queloz, D.; Bouchy, F.; Rupprecht, G.; Lo Curto, G.; Avila, G.; Benz, W.; Bertaux, J.-L.; et al. (2003). "Setting New Standards With HARPS" (PDF). ESO Messenger 114: 20. Bibcode:2003Msngr.114...20M.
- ↑ "32 planets discovered outside solar system - CNN.com". CNN. 19 October 2009. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
- ↑ "ESPRESSO – Searching for other Worlds". Centro de Astrofísica da Universidade do Porto. 16 December 2009. Retrieved 2010-10-16.
- ↑ citation needed
- ↑ "The exoplanet hunter HARPS: unequalled accuracy and perspectives toward 1 cm.s-1 precision" (PDF). ESO. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
- ↑ citation needed
- ↑ Carrier; Eggenberger, P; Leyder, J-C (2008). "Asteroseismology of solar-type stars: particular physical effects" (PDF). Journal of Physics: Conference Series 118 (1): 012047. Bibcode:2008JPhCS.118a2047C. doi:10.1088/1742-6596/118/1/012047.
- ↑ Mayor; et al. (2009). "The HARPS search for southern extra-solar planets,XVIII. An Earth-mass planet in the GJ 581 planetary system". Astronomy and Astrophysics 507 (1): 487–494. arXiv:0906.2780. Bibcode:2009A&A...507..487M. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/200912172.
- ↑ An Earth mass planet orbiting Alpha Centauri B
- ↑ http://www.eso.org/public/unitedkingdom/images/ann13075a/
- ↑ "A Sparkling Ribbon of Stars — The Southern Milky Way over La Silla". ESO Picture of the Week. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
External links
- "HARPS Home Page". ESO. Retrieved 2009-04-25.
- "The Exoplanet Hunter HARPS: unequalled accuracy and perspectives towards 1cm/s precision" (PDF). ESO. (Contains list of discoveries from 2005 survey.)
- "New Planet-Hunting Technology Accelerates Discovery of Exo-Planets & Solar Systems". Daily Galaxy. 17 June 2008.
- "Astronomers discover 4 new planets". NASA. 27 March 2007. Archived from the original on 22 April 2007.
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