Development of the SPECULOOS exoplanet search project

D. Sebastian; P. P. Pedersen; C. A. Murray; E. Ducrot; L. J. Garcia; A. Burdanov; F. J. Pozuelos; L. Delrez; R. Wells; G. Dransfield; M. Gillon; B.-O. Demory; D. Queloz; A. H. M. J. Triaud; J. De Witt; E. Jehin; Y. Gómez Maqueo Chew; M. N. Günther; P. Niraula; B. V. Rackham; N. Schanche; S. Sohy; S. Thompson

doi:10.1117/12.2563563

13 December 2020 Development of the SPECULOOS exoplanet search project

D. Sebastian, P. P. Pedersen, C. A. Murray, E. Ducrot, L. J. Garcia, A. Burdanov, F. J. Pozuelos, L. Delrez, R. Wells, G. Dransfield, M. Gillon, B.-O. Demory, D. Queloz, A. H. M. J. Triaud, J. De Witt, E. Jehin, Y. Gómez Maqueo Chew, M. N. Günther, P. Niraula, B. V. Rackham, N. Schanche, S. Sohy, S. Thompson

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 11445, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes VIII; 1144521 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2563563
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2020, Online Only

Abstract

SPECULOOS (Search for habitable Planets EClipsing ULtra-cOOl Stars) aims to perform a transit search on the nearest (< 40 pc) ultracool (< 3000K) dwarf stars. The project's main motivation is to discover potentially habitable planets well-suited for detailed atmospheric characterisation with upcoming giant telescopes, like the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and European Large Telescope (ELT). The project is based on a network of 1m robotic telescopes, namely the four ones of the SPECULOOS-Southern Observatory (SSO) in Cerro Paranal, Chile, one telescope of the SPECULOOS-Northern Observatory (SNO) in Tenerife, and the SAINTEx telescope in San Pedro Martir, Mexico. The prototype survey of the SPECULOOS project on the 60 cm TRAPPIST telescope (Chile) discovered the TRAPPIST-1 system, composed of seven temperate Earth-sized planets orbiting a nearby (12 pc) Jupiter-sized star. In this paper, we review the current status of SPECULOOS, its first results, the plans for its development, and its connection to the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and JWST.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

D. Sebastian, P. P. Pedersen, C. A. Murray, E. Ducrot, L. J. Garcia, A. Burdanov, F. J. Pozuelos, L. Delrez, R. Wells, G. Dransfield, M. Gillon, B.-O. Demory, D. Queloz, A. H. M. J. Triaud, J. De Witt, E. Jehin, Y. Gómez Maqueo Chew, M. N. Günther, P. Niraula, B. V. Rackham, N. Schanche, S. Sohy, and S. Thompson "Development of the SPECULOOS exoplanet search project", Proc. SPIE 11445, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes VIII, 1144521 (13 December 2020); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2563563

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available