TOI-220 $b$: a warm sub-Neptune discovered by TESS
astro-ph.EP
/ Authors
S. Hoyer, D. Gandolfi, D. J. Armstrong, M. Deleuil, L. Acuña, J. R. de Medeiros, E. Goffo, J. Lillo-Box, E. Delgado Mena, T. A. Lopez
and 70 more authors
A. Santerne, S. Sousa, M. Fridlund, V. Adibekyan, K. A. Collins, L. M. Serrano, P. Cortés-Zuleta, S. B. Howell, H. Deeg, A. Aguichine, O. Barragán, E. M. Bryant, B. L. Canto Martins, K. I. Collins, B. F. Cooke, R. F. Díaz, M. Esposito, E. Furlan, S. Hojjatpanah, J. Jackman, J. M. Jenkins, E. L. N. Jensen, D. W. Latham
/ Abstract
In this paper we report the discovery of TOI-220 $b$, a new sub-Neptune detected by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and confirmed by radial velocity follow-up observations with the HARPS spectrograph. Based on the combined analysis of TESS transit photometry and high precision radial velocity measurements we estimate a planetary mass of 13.8 $\pm$ 1.0 M$_{Earth}$ and radius of 3.03 $\pm$ 0.15 R$_{Earth}$, implying a bulk density of 2.73 $\pm$ 0.47 $\textrm{g cm}^{-3}$. TOI-220 $b$ orbits a relative bright (V=10.4) and old (10.1$\pm$1.4 Gyr) K dwarf star with a period of $\sim$10.69 d. Thus, TOI-220 $b$ is a new warm sub-Neptune with very precise mass and radius determinations. A Bayesian analysis of the TOI-220 $b$ internal structure indicates that due to the strong irradiation it receives, the low density of this planet could be explained with a steam atmosphere in radiative-convective equilibrium and a supercritical water layer on top of a differentiated interior made of a silicate mantle and a small iron core.