Exoclimes_Conference_booklet1

triple stellar system, and a revised planetary mass estimate based on the beaming effect
and the tidal ellipsoidal distortion observed in the Kepler phase curve.
Revealing Distant Worlds with Ground-Based Spectroscopy
Kevin Stevenson — University of Chicago
Uncovering the fundamental properties of exoplanetary atmospheres requires highprecision
spectroscopy over a broad range of wavelengths. We are poised to make
significant advances in our understanding of their composition and chemistry using
currently-available, visible and near-infrared multi-object spectrographs attached to some
of the largest telescopes in the world. With facilities such as Gemini, Keck, and Magellan,
we are conducting an intensive survey of a representative sample of exoplanets to
measure their transmission and dayside emission spectra. We will present high-quality
spectra for several recently-observed exoplanets and discuss how these data constrain
the molecular abundances, thermal profiles, and relevant chemistries of these planetary
atmospheres.
Updated Spitzer Secondary Eclipse Spectroscopy of HD189733b
Kamen Todorov — ETH Zürich
We analyze Spitzer Space Telescope time-series spectroscopy observations of HD
189733b during 18 secondary eclipses at wavelengths between 5 and 14 microns. These
measurements comprise the most extensive emission spectrum of any exoplanet to date.
While some of these data sets have been analyzed previously by Grillmair et al. (2008),
we examine eight of them for the first time. We remove the systematic effects from the
spectral light curves using the most advanced techniques available, and measure the
secondary eclipse depths as a function of wavelength. We use a modified version of a
radiative transfer code by Richardson et al. (2003) to calculate three emergent spectrum
models and compare our observational results with them, and with the best fit model
(Burrows et al. 2008) adopted by Grillmair et al. in their earlier investigation. We can
confidently exclude isothermal and gray atmospheres and confirm the water feature
detected by Grillmair et al.
Phase curves of close-in Kepler planets
Vincent Van Eylen — Aarhus University!
The Kepler satellite has provided a wealth of new data on transiting exoplanets. Its
unprecedented precision allows for more than just analyzing the transit: for hot planets in
an orbit of only a few days, the parts-per-million precision allows for the detection of
planetary light throughout the full phase, as well as its absence during the secondary
eclipse. For those tidally locked planets, the increase in received flux as we view more and
more of the planet's day side allows us to make statements on the planetary reflection
(albedo) and temperature. Measuring the depth of the occultation leads to estimates on
the temperature of the (cold) planetary nightside. I present preliminary results on a
comparative study of the sample of close in transiting exoplanets which were observed by
Kepler.
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