Title of programme: Axis 3 - Measuring tides that shape planetary systems (TIDES)
Abstract: Ultra-short orbital period planets suffer from intense tidal forces which lead to a deformation of the planet's shape (Correia, 2014; Barros et al. 2022) and shrinkage of the planet's orbit. Measuring the tidal deformation of the planet allows us to estimate the second-degree fluid Love number and gain insight into the planet's internal structure. Moreover, measuring the tidal decay timescale allows us to estimate the stellar tidal quality factor, which is key to constraining stellar physics. Therefore, studying tidal effects in ultra-short orbital period planets gives us a wealth of information on planet-to-star tidal interactions that shape planetary systems. We also propose to estimate the tidal decay of a few hot-Jupiters for which we expect a measurable orbital period decrease within the next 3 years. The longer baseline allowed by the CHEOPS extension will be crucial for our ability to measure the tidal decay of some systems. During the CHEOPS nominal mission, we achieved a breakthrough on the direct detection of the tidal deformation of exoplanets. Building on these results we also propose to better constrain the tidal deformation of WASP-103b and WASP-12b directly from the transit deformation signature (similar to Barros et al. 2022) and also from the signature in the phase curve (similar to Akinsanmi et al. in prep.).
Temporal Coverage
2023-09-15T00:49:00Z / 2023-09-15T09:03:00Z
Version
3.0
Mission Description
CHEOPS (Benz et al., https://doi.org/10.1007/s10686-020-09679-4) is a European Space Agency (ESA) mission in partnership with Switzerland with important contributions to the payload and the ground segment from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
The satellite has a single payload comprising an ultra-high precision photometer covering the 330 - 1100 nm wavelength range in a single photometric band. Observations are made as part of the Guaranteed Time Observing Programme that is formulated by the CHEOPS Science Team, and the Guest Observers Programme through which the Community at large can apply for CHEOPS time.
