The strong chromospheric absorption lines Ca H & K are tightly connected to stellar surface magnetic fields. Only for the Sun, spectral activity indices can be related to evolving magnetic features on the solar disk. The Solar Disk-Integrated (SDI) telescope feeds the Potsdam Echelle Polarimetric and Spectroscopic Instrument (PEPSI) of the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) at Mt. Graham International Observatory (MGIO), Arizona, U.S.A. We present high-resolution, high-fidelity spectra that were recorded on 184 & 82 days in 2018 & 2019 and derive the Ca H & K emission ratio, i.e., the S-index. In addition, we compile excess brightness and area indices based on full-disk Ca K line-core filtergrams of the Chromospheric Telescope (ChroTel) at Observatorio del Teide, Tenerife, Spain and full-disk ultraviolet (UV) 1600 Å images of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Thus, Sun-as-a-star spectral indices are related to their counterparts derived from resolved images of the solar chromosphere. All indices display signatures of rotational modulation, even during the very low magnetic activity in the minimum of Solar Cycle 24. Bringing together different types of activity indices has the potential to join disparate chromospheric datasets, yielding a comprehensive description of chromospheric activity across many solar cycles.

Read more: Dineva et al. 2022, AN 343, article id e23996

The rotation rates of main-sequence stars slow over time as they gradually lose angular momentum to their magnetized stellar winds. The rate of angular momentum loss depends on the strength and morphology of the magnetic field, the mass-loss rate, and the stellar rotation period, mass, and radius. Previous observations suggested a shift in magnetic morphology between two F-type stars with similar rotation rates but very different ages (88 Leo and ρ CrB). In this Letter, we identify a comparable transition in an evolutionary sequence of solar analogs with ages between 2–7 Gyr. We present new spectropolarimetry of 18 Sco and 16 Cyg A & B from the Large Binocular Telescope, and we reanalyze previously published Zeeman Doppler images of HD 76151 and 18 Sco, providing additional constraints on the nature and timing of this transition.

Read more: Metcalfe et al. 2022, ApJ Letter, 933, 17; arXiv 2206.08540

The alignment of planetary orbits with respect to the stellar rotation preserves information on their dynamical histories. Measuring this angle for young planets helps illuminate the mechanisms that create misaligned orbits for older planets, as different processes could operate over timescales ranging from a few megayears to a gigayear. We present spectroscopic transit observations of the young exoplanet V1298 Tau b; we update the age of V1298 Tau to be 28 ± 4 Myr based on Gaia EDR3 measurements. We observed a partial transit with Keck/HIRES and LBT/PEPSI, and detected the radial velocity anomaly due to the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect. V1298 Tau b has a prograde, well-aligned orbit, with λ=4+7−10 deg. By combining the spectroscopically measured vsini⋆ and the photometrically measured rotation period of the host star we also find that the orbit is aligned in 3D, ψ=8+4−7 deg. Finally, we combine our obliquity constraints with a previous measurement for the interior planet V1298 Tau c to constrain the mutual inclination between the two planets to be i mut = 0° ± 19°.

Read more:  Johnson et al. 2022, AJ, 163, 247

The study of exoplanets and especially their atmospheres can reveal key insights on their evolution by identifying specific atmospheric species. For such atmospheric investigations, high–resolution transmission spectroscopy has shown great success, especially for Jupiter–type planets. Towards the atmospheric characterization of smaller planets, the super–Earth exoplanet 55 Cnc e is one of the most promising terrestrial exoplanets studied to date. Here, we present a high–resolution spectroscopic transit observation of this planet, acquired with the PEPSI instrument at the Large Binocular Telescope. Assuming the presence of Earth–like crust species on the surface of 55 Cnc e, from which a possible silicate–vapor atmosphere could have originated, we search in its transmission spectrum for absorption of various atomic and ionized species such as Fe , Fe ⁺, Ca , Ca ⁺, Mg and K , among others. Not finding absorption for any of the investigated species, we are able to set absorption limits with a median value of 1.9 × R_P. In conclusion, we do not find evidence of a widely extended silicate envelope on this super–Earth reaching several planetary radii.

Read more: Keles et al. 2022, MNRAS, 513, 1544

Hot Jupiters orbiting rapidly rotating stars on inclined orbits undergo tidally induced nodal precession measurable over several years of observations. The Hot Jupiters WASP–33 b and KELT–9 b are particularly interesting targets as they are among the hottest planets found to date, orbiting relatively massive stars. Here, we analyze archival and new data that span 11 and 5 years for WASP–33 b and KELT–9 b, respectively, in order to to model and improve upon their tidal precession parameters. Our work confirms the nodal precession for WASP–33 b and presents the first clear detection of the precession of KELT–9 b. We determine that WASP–33 and KELT–9 have gravitational quadrupole moments. We estimate the planets’ precession periods to be 1460 years and 890 years, respectively, and that they will cease to transit their host stars around the years 2090CE and 2074CE, respectively. Additionally, we investigate both planets’ tidal and orbital evolution, suggesting that a high–eccentricity tidal migration scenario is possible to produce both system architectures and that they will most likely not be engulfed by their hosts before the end of their main sequence lifetimes.

Read more: Stephan et al. 2022, arXiv:2203.02546v1

Hot Jupiters receive intense irradiation from their stellar hosts. The resulting extreme environments in their atmospheres allow us to study the conditions that drive planetary atmospheric dynamics, e.g., global–scale winds. General circulation models predict day–to–nightside winds and equatorial jets with speeds of the order of a few km s^–1. To test these models, we apply high–resolution transmission spectroscopy using the Potsdam Echelle Polarimetric and Spectroscopic Instrument (PEPSI) spectrograph on the Large Binocular Telescope to study the atmosphere of KELT–9 b, an ultrahot Jupiter and currently the hottest known planet. We measure ~10 km s^–1 day–to–nightside winds traced by Fe II features in the planet’s atmosphere. This is at odds with previous literature (including data taken with PEPSI), which report no significant day–to–nightside winds on KELT–9 b. We identify the cause of this discrepancy as due to an inaccurate ephemeris for KELT–9 b in previous literature.

Read more: Pai Asnodkar et al. 2022, AJ, 163, 155

Transiting hot Jupiters present a unique opportunity to measure absolute planetary masses due to the magnitude of their radial velocity signals and known orbital inclination. Measuring planet mass is critical to understanding atmospheric dynamics and escape under extreme stellar irradiation. Here we present the ultrahot Jupiter system KELT-9 as a double-lined spectroscopic binary. This allows us to directly and empirically constrain the mass of the star and its planetary companion without reference to any theoretical stellar evolutionary models or empirical stellar scaling relations. Using data from the PEPSI, HARPS-N, and TRES spectrographs across multiple epochs, we apply least-squares deconvolution to measure out-of-transit stellar radial velocities. With the PEPSI and HARPS-N data sets, we measure in-transit planet radial velocities using transmission spectroscopy. By fitting the circular orbital solution that captures these Keplerian motions, we recover a planetary dynamical mass of 2.17 ± 0.56 M_J and stellar dynamical mass of 2.11 ± 0.78 M_⊙, both of which agree with the discovery paper. Furthermore, we argue that this system, as well as systems like it, are highly overconstrained, providing multiple independent avenues for empirically cross-validating model-independent solutions to the system parameters. We also discuss the implications of this revised mass for studies of atmospheric escape.

Read more: Pai Asnodkar et al. 2022, AJ, 163, 40P

The O9.7 V star HD 54879 is currently the only massive magnetic star whose magnetic field geometry and rotation period are not constrained. Over the last three years, we gathered additional observations of this star, obtained using various instruments at several astronomical facilities with, the aim to constrain the rotation period and the magnetic field geometry. The new data include the first full Stokes vector observations with the PEPSI spectropolarimeter, installed at the Large Binocular Telescope. The acquired spectropolarimetric observations show a very slow magnetic field variability related to the extremely slow rotation of HD 54879, which is also indicated in a dynamical spectrum, displaying variability of the Hα line.

Generally, magnetic massive O- and B-type stars exhibit a smooth, single-wave variation of the longitudinal magnetic field during the stellar rotation cycle. The approximately sinusoidal variation of ⟨Bz⟩ and the ratio of the values of the ⟨Bz⟩ extrema in previously studied stars suggest that there is an important component of the field that is dipolar. Assuming that the magnetic field of HD 54879 has a pure dipolar configuration and that the negative field extremum is indeed around −570 G and not at a lower value, we fitted a cosine curve to the observed distribution of data points obtained from the high-resolution spectropolarimetric observations and determined a stellar rotation period of 7.2 yr. Certainly, further monitoring of the magnetic field variability is needed to determine the rotation period with more confidence. We note, that magnetic studies of several O-type stars indicate that only one magnetic pole is well visible while the star rotates, implying that the magnetic field structure over the fraction of their invisible surface remains unconstrained.

Read more: Järvinen et al. 2022, MNRAS, 501, 4405. arXiv

We present the first short time scale observations of the roAp star γ Equ in linear polarized light obtained with the PEPSI polarimeter installed at the LBT. These observations are used to search for pulsation variability in Stokes Q and U line profiles belonging to different elements. The atmospheres of roAp stars are significantly stratified with spectral lines of different elements probing different atmospheric depths. roAp stars with strong magnetic fields, such as γ Equ with a magnetic field modulus of 4 kG and a pulsation period of 12.21 min, are of special interest because the effect of the magnetic field on the structure of their atmospheres can be studied with greatest detail and accuracy. Our results show that we may detect changes in the transversal field component in Fe I and rare-earth lines possessing large second-order Landé factors. Such variability can be due to the impact of pulsation on the transverse magnetic field, causing changes in the obliquity angles of the magnetic force lines. Further studies of roAp stars in linear polarized light and subsequent detailed modelling are necessary to improve our understanding of the involved physics.

Read more: Hubrig et al. 2021, MNRAS 508 L17. arXiv:2108.11272

By measuring the elemental abundances of a star, we can gain insight into the composition of its initial gas cloud — the formation site of the star and its planets. Planet formation requires metals, the availability of which is determined by the elemental abundance. In the case where metals are extremely deficient, planet formation can be stifled. To investigate such a scenario requires a large sample of metal-poor stars and a search for planets therein. This paper focuses on the selection and validation of a halo star sample. We select ~17,000 metal-poor halo stars based on their Galactic kinematics, and confirm their low metallicities ([Fe/H] < -0.5), using spectroscopy from the literature. Furthermore, we perform high-resolution spectroscopic observations using LBT/PEPSI and conduct detailed metallicity ([Fe/H]) analyses on a sample of 13 previously known halo stars that also have hot kinematics. We can use the halo star sample presented here to measure the frequency of planets and to test planet formation in extremely metal-poor environments.

Read more: Kolecki et al. 2021, AJ, 162, 125. arXiv:2106.13251