Characterization Of Exoplanets Research Articles

The mass-radius relation of exoplanets revisited

Determining the mass-radius ($M$-$R$) relation of exoplanets is important for exoplanet characterization. Here, we present a re-analysis of the $M$-$R$ relations and their transitions using exoplanetary data from the PlanetS catalog, which accounts only for planets with reliable mass and radius determination. We find that "small planets" correspond to planets with masses of up to $ M_ (within 17<!PCT!>) where $R $. Planets with masses between $ and $127 M_ (within 5<!PCT!>) can be viewed as "intermediate-mass" planets, where $R $. Massive planets, or gas giant planets, are found to have masses beyond $127 M_ and an $M$-$R$ relation of $R $. By analyzing the radius-density relation we also find that the transition from "small" to "intermediate" planets occurs at a planetary radius of $ R_ (within 3<!PCT!>). Our results are consistent with previous studies' results and provide an ideal fit for the current measured planetary population.

Direct Detection and Characterization of Exoplanets Using Imaging Fourier Transform Spectroscopy

Space-based direct imaging provides prospects for detection and spectral characterization of exoplanets at optical and near-infrared wavelengths. Integral field spectrographs (IFS) have been historically baselined for these mission concepts. However, multiple studies have revealed that detector noise is a serious obstacle for such instruments when observing extremely faint targets such as Earth-like planets. Imaging Fourier transform spectrographs (iFTS) are generally less sensitive to detector noise, and have several other compelling features such as simultaneous imaging and spectroscopy, smaller-format detector requirements, and variable spectral resolving power. To date, they have not been studied as options for such missions. Here, we compare the capabilities of IFS and iFTS for directly obtaining spectra from an Earth-like planet using both analytic and numerical models. Specifically, we compare the required exposure times to achieve the same signal-to-noise ratio with the two architectures over a range of detector and optical system parameters. We find that for a 6 m telescope, an IFS outperforms an iFTS at optical wavelengths due to the effects of distributed photon noise. In the near-IR, the relative efficiency of an IFS and iFTS depends critically on the instrument design and detector noise. An iFTS will be more efficient than an IFS if the readout noise of the near-IR detector is above ∼2–3 e− pix−1 frame−1 (t frm = 1000 s), which correspond to half to one-third of the state-of-art detector noise. However, if the readout noise is reduced below this threshold, the performance of an IFS will experience a substantial improvement and become more efficient. These results motivate consideration of an iFTS as an alternative option for future direct imaging space missions in the near-IR.

The Fuzzy Cores of Jupiter and Saturn

AbstractNew interior models of Jupiter and Saturn suggest that both planets have “fuzzy cores.” These cores should be viewed as central regions that are enriched with heavy elements but are not distinct from the rest of the deep interior. These cores may contain large amounts of hydrogen and helium though small pure heavy‐element cores may also exist. New measurements along with advanced planetary modeling have revolutionized the way we think about the interiors of giant planets and provide important constraints for planet formation and evolution theories. These developments are also relevant for the characterization of giant exoplanets.

Characterization of starspots on a young M-dwarf K2-25: multi-band observations of stellar photometric variability and planetary transits

Abstract Detailed atmospheric characterization of exoplanets by transmission spectroscopy requires careful consideration of stellar surface inhomogeneities induced by starspots. This effect is particularly problematic for planetary systems around M-dwarfs, and their spot properties are not fully understood. We investigated the stellar activity of the young M-dwarf K2-25 and its effect on transit observations of the sub-Neptune K2-25 b. From multi-band monitoring observations of stellar brightness variability using ground-based telescopes and TESS, we found that the temperature difference between the spots and photosphere is < 190 K and the spot covering fraction is < 61% (2σ). We also investigated the effect of starspot activity using multi-epoch, multi-band transit observations. We rule out cases with extremely low spot temperatures and large spot covering fractions. The results suggest that spots could distort the transmission spectrum of K2-25 b by as much as ∼100 ppm amplitude, corresponding to the precision of JWST/NIRSPEC of the target. Our study demonstrates that simultaneous multi-band observations with current instruments can constrain the spot properties of M-dwarfs with good enough precision to support atmospheric studies of young M-dwarf planets via transmission spectroscopy.

The GAPS Programme at TNG. LV. Multiple molecular species in the atmosphere of HAT-P-11 b and review of the HAT-P-11 planetary system

The atmospheric characterisation of hot and warm Neptune-size exoplanets is challenging mainly due to their relatively small radius and atmospheric scale height, which reduce the amplitude of atmospheric spectral features. The warm-Neptune HAT-P-11\,b is a remarkable target for atmospheric characterisation because of the large brightness of its host star ($V=9.46$\,mag; $H=7.13$\,mag). The aims of this work are to review the main physical and architectural properties of the HAT-P-11 planetary system, and to probe the presence of eight molecular species in the atmosphere of HAT-P-11\,b through near-infrared (NIR) high-resolution transmission spectroscopy. We reviewed the physical and architectural properties of the HAT-P-11 planetary system by analysing transits and occultations of HAT-P-11\,b from the Kepler data set as well as HIRES at Keck archival radial-velocity data. We modelled the latter with Gaussian-process regression and a combined quasi-periodic and squared-exponential kernel to account for stellar variations on both (short-term) rotation and (long-term) activity-cycle timescales. In order to probe the atmospheric composition of HAT-P-11\,b, we observed four transits of this target with the NIR GIANO-B at TNG spectrograph and cross-correlated the data with template atmospheric transmission spectra. We find that the long-period radial-velocity signal previously attributed to the HAT-P-11\,c planet ($P 9.3$\,years; p i J $; $e 0.6$) is more likely due to the stellar magnetic activity cycle. Nonetheless, the Hipparcos-Gaia difference in the proper-motion anomaly suggests that an outer-bound companion might still exist. For HAT-P-11\,b, we measure a radius of p J $, a mass of $M_ p J $, a bulk density of $ p $, and an orbital eccentricity of $e=0.2577^ $. These values are compatible with those from the literature. Probing its atmosphere, we detect the presence of two molecular species H2O and NH3 with a S/N of $5.1$ and $5.3$, and a significance of $3.4\ and $5.0\ respectively. We also tentatively detect the presence of CO2 and CH4 with a S/N of $3.0$ and $4.8$, and a significance of $3.2\ and $2.6\ respectively. We revisit the HAT-P-11 planetary system, confirm the presence of water vapour, and report the detection of NH3 in the atmosphere of HAT-P-11\,b, also finding hints for the presence of CO2 and CH4 that need to be confirmed by further observations.

Kepler main-sequence solar-like stars: surface rotation and magnetic-activity evolution

While the mission’s primary goal was focused on exoplanet detection and characterization, Kepler made and continues to make extraordinary advances in stellar physics. Stellar rotation and magnetic activity are no exceptions. Kepler allowed for these properties to be determined for tens of thousands of stars from the main sequence up to the red giant branch. From photometry, this can be achieved by investigating the brightness fluctuations due to active regions, which cause surface inhomogeneities, or through asteroseismology as oscillation modes are sensitive to rotation and magnetic fields. This review summarizes the rotation and magnetic activity properties of the single main-sequence solar-like stars within the Kepler field. We contextualize the Kepler sample by comparing it to known transitions in the stellar rotation and magnetic-activity evolution, such as the convergence to the rotation sequence (from the saturated to the unsaturated regime of magnetic activity) and the Vaughan-Preston gap. While reviewing the publicly available data, we also uncover one interesting finding related to the intermediate-rotation gap seen in Kepler and other surveys. We find evidence for this rotation gap in previous ground-based data for the X-ray luminosity. Understanding the complex evolution and interplay between rotation and magnetic activity in solar-like stars is crucial, as it sheds light on fundamental processes governing stellar evolution, including the evolution of our own Sun.

Fundamentals for habitable scenarios for Earth-like planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system

ABSTRACT The characterization of rocky exoplanets in the Habitable Zone (HZ) of their stars has entered a new era with the launch of the JWST. The TRAPPIST-1 star system is a particularly interesting target for observations, with its seven Earth-sized planets. An insightful body of work for a wide range of atmospheres has shown them to be intriguing candidates for analysis to learn more about terrestrial planets and their evolution. However, unknowns remain in analyses of changing conditions for planets with Earth-analogue atmospheres (N2-CO2-H2O) for the whole system, as well as what spectral features JWST could search for in such environments. Here, we explore the specific question of how rocky Earth-analogue planets could evolve at the position of the TRAPPIST-1 planets and assess the conditions that could lead to surface temperatures above freezing for the planets in the HZ. We found that three of the seven planets could provide warm surface conditions for Earth-analogue atmospheres. Our models show marked differences in the resulting transmission spectra. The first JWST observation of the atmosphere for TRAPPIST-1 planets have recently been published to exclude widely extended atmospheres without clouds, but more observations are needed to put constrains on models for terrestrial atmospheres.

First light of VLT/HiRISE: High-resolution spectroscopy of young giant exoplanets

A major endeavor of this decade is the direct characterization of young giant exoplanets at high spectral resolution to determine the composition of their atmosphere and infer their formation processes and evolution. Such a goal represents a major challenge owing to their small angular separation and luminosity contrast with respect to their parent stars. Instead of designing and implementing completely new facilities, it has been proposed to leverage the capabilities of existing instruments that offer either high-contrast imaging or high-dispersion spectroscopy by coupling them using optical fibers. In this work, we present the implementation and first on-sky results of the High-Resolution Imaging and Spectroscopy of Exoplanets (HiRISE) instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which combines the exoplanet imager SPHERE with the recently upgraded high-resolution spectrograph CRIRES using single-mode fibers. The goal of HiRISE is to enable the characterization of known companions in the H band at a spectral resolution on the order of R = λ/∆λ = 100 000 in a few hours of observing time. We present the main design choices and the technical implementation of the system, which is constituted of three major parts: the fiber injection module inside of SPHERE, the fiber bundle around the telescope, and the fiber extraction module at the entrance of CRIRES. We also detail the specific calibrations required for HiRISE and the operations of the instrument for science observations. Finally, we detail the performance of the system in terms of astrometry, temporal stability, optical aberrations, and transmission, for which we report a peak value of ~3.9% based on sky measurements in median observing conditions. Finally, we report on the first astrophysical detection of HiRISE to illustrate its potential.

Effects of tidal deformation on planetary phase curves

With the continuous improvement in the precision of exoplanet observations, it has become feasible to probe for subtle effects that can enable a more comprehensive characterization of exoplanets. A notable example is the tidal deformation of ultra-hot Jupiters by their host stars, whose detection can provide valuable insights into the planetary interior structure. In this work we extend previous research on modeling deformation in transit light curves by proposing a straightforward approach to account for tidal deformation in phase curve observations. The planetary shape is modeled as a function of the second fluid Love number for radial deformation h2f. For a planet in hydrostatic equilibrium, h2f provides constraints on the interior structure of the planet. We show that the effect of tidal deformation manifests across the full orbit of the planet as its projected area varies with phase, thereby allowing us to better probe the planet’s shape in phase curves than in transits. Comparing the effects and detectability of deformation by different space-based instruments (JWST, HST, PLATO, CHEOPS, and TESS), we find that the effect of deformation is more prominent in infrared observations where the phase curve amplitude is the largest. A single JWST phase curve observation of a deformed planet, such as WASP-12 b, can allow up to a 17σ measurement of h2f compared to 4σ from transit-only observation. This high-precision h2f measurement can constrain the core mass of the planet to within 19% of the total mass, thus providing unprecedented constraints on the interior structure. Due to the lower phase curve amplitudes in the optical, the other instruments provide ≤ 4σ precision on h2f depending on the number of phase curves observed. We also find that detecting deformation from infrared phase curves is less affected by uncertainty in limb darkening, unlike detection in transits. Finally, the assumption of sphericity when analyzing the phase curve of deformed planets can lead to biases in several system parameters (radius, dayside and nightside temperatures, and hotspot offset, among others), thereby significantly limiting their accurate characterization.

VaTEST III: Validation of eight potential super-earths from TESS data

Abstract NASA’s all-sky survey mission, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), is specifically engineered to detect exoplanets that transit bright stars. Thus far, TESS has successfully identified approximately 400 transiting exoplanets, in addition to roughly 6 000 candidate exoplanets pending confirmation. In this study, we present the results of our ongoing project, the Validation of Transiting Exoplanets using Statistical Tools (VaTEST). Our dedicated effort is focused on the confirmation and characterisation of new exoplanets through the application of statistical validation tools. Through a combination of ground-based telescope data, high-resolution imaging, and the utilisation of the statistical validation tool known as TRICERATOPS, we have successfully discovered eight potential super-Earths. These planets bear the designations: TOI-238b (1.61 $^{+0.09} _{-0.10}$ R $_\oplus$ ), TOI-771b (1.42 $^{+0.11} _{-0.09}$ R $_\oplus$ ), TOI-871b (1.66 $^{+0.11} _{-0.11}$ R $_\oplus$ ), TOI-1467b (1.83 $^{+0.16} _{-0.15}$ R $_\oplus$ ), TOI-1739b (1.69 $^{+0.10} _{-0.08}$ R $_\oplus$ ), TOI-2068b (1.82 $^{+0.16} _{-0.15}$ R $_\oplus$ ), TOI-4559b (1.42 $^{+0.13} _{-0.11}$ R $_\oplus$ ), and TOI-5799b (1.62 $^{+0.19} _{-0.13}$ R $_\oplus$ ). Among all these planets, six of them fall within the region known as ‘keystone planets’, which makes them particularly interesting for study. Based on the location of TOI-771b and TOI-4559b below the radius valley we characterised them as likely super-Earths, though radial velocity mass measurements for these planets will provide more details about their characterisation. It is noteworthy that planets within the size range investigated herein are absent from our own solar system, making their study crucial for gaining insights into the evolutionary stages between Earth and Neptune.

Retrievals Applied to a Decision Tree Framework Can Characterize Earthlike Exoplanet Analogs

Exoplanet characterization missions planned for the future will soon enable searches for life beyond our solar system. Critical to the search will be the development of life detection strategies that can search for biosignatures while maintaining observational efficiency. In this work, we adopted a newly developed biosignature decision tree strategy for remote characterization of Earthlike exoplanets. The decision tree offers a step-by-step roadmap for detecting exoplanet biosignatures and excluding false positives, based on Earth’s biosphere and its evolution over time. We followed the pathways for characterizing a modern-Earth-like planet and an Archean-Earth-like planet and evaluated the observational trades associated with coronagraph bandpass combinations of designs consistent with the Habitable Worlds Observatory precursor studies. With retrieval analyses of each bandpass (or combination), we demonstrate the utility of the decision tree and evaluate the uncertainty on a suite of biosignature chemical species and habitability indicators (i.e., the gas abundances of H2O, O2, O3, CH4, and CO2). Notably for modern Earth, less than an order of magnitude spread in the 1σ uncertainties was achieved for the abundances of H2O and O2, planetary surface pressure, and atmospheric temperature, with three strategically placed bandpasses (two in the visible and one in the near-infrared). For the Archean, CH4 and H2O were detectable in the visible with a single bandpass.

BICEPS: An improved characterization model for low- and intermediate-mass exoplanets

Context. The number of exoplanets with precise mass and radius measurements is constantly increasing thanks to novel ground- and space-based facilities such as HARPS, ESPRESSO, CHEOPS, and TESS. The accuracy and robustness of the planetary characterization largely depends on the quality of the data, but also requires a planetary structure model, capable of accurately modeling the interior and atmospheres of exoplanets over a large range of boundary conditions. Aims. Our goal is to provide an improved characterization model for planets with masses between 0.5 and 30 Earth masses, equilibrium temperatures below <2000 K, and a wide range of planetary compositions and physical phases. Methods. In this work, we present the Bayesian Interior Characterization of ExoPlanetS (BICEPS) model, which combines an adaptive Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling method with a state-of-the-art planetary structure model. BICEPS incorporates many recently developed equations of state suited for large ranges of pressures and temperatures, a description for solid and molten planetary cores and mantles, a gaseous envelope composed of hydrogen, helium, and water (with compositional gradients), and a non-gray atmospheric model. Results. We find that the usage of updated equations of state has a significant impact on the interior structure prediction. The impact varies, depending on the planetary composition. For dense rocky planets, BICEPS predicts radii a few percent different to prior internal structure models. For volatile rich planets, we find differences of 10% or even larger. When applying BICEPS to a particular exoplanet, TOI-130 b, we inferred a 25% larger water mass fraction and a 15% smaller core than previous models. Conclusions. The presented exoplanet characterization model is a robust method applicable over a large range of planetary masses, compositions, and thermal boundary conditions. We show the importance of implementing state-of-the-art equations of state for the encountered thermodynamic conditions of exoplanets. Hence, using BICEPS improves the predictive strength of the characterization process compared to previous methods.

To Sample or Not to Sample: Retrieving Exoplanetary Spectra with Variational Inference and Normalizing Flows

Current endeavours in exoplanet characterization rely on atmospheric retrieval to quantify crucial physical properties of remote exoplanets from observations. However, the scalability and efficiency of said technique are under strain with increasing spectroscopic resolution and forward model complexity. The situation has become more acute with the recent launch of the James Webb Space Telescope and other upcoming missions. Recent advances in machine learning provide optimization-based variational inference as an alternative approach to perform approximate Bayesian posterior inference. In this investigation we developed a normalizing-flow-based neural network, combined with our newly developed differentiable forward model, Diff-τ, to perform Bayesian inference in the context of atmospheric retrievals. Using examples from real and simulated spectroscopic data, we demonstrate the advantages of our proposed framework: (1) training our neural network does not require a large precomputed training set and can be trained with only a single observation; (2) it produces high-fidelity posterior distributions in excellent agreement with sampling-based retrievals; (3) it requires up to 75% fewer forward model calls to converge to the same result; and (4) this approach allows formal Bayesian model selection. We discuss the computational efficiencies of Diff-τ in relation to TauREx3's nominal forward model and provide a “lessons learned” account of developing radiative transfer models in differentiable languages. Our proposed framework contributes toward the latest development of neural network–powered atmospheric retrieval. Its flexibility and significant reduction in forward model calls required for convergence holds the potential to be an important addition to the retrieval tool box for large and complex data sets along with sampling-based approaches.

The Breakthrough Listen Search for Intelligent Life: Detection and Characterization of Anomalous Transits in Kepler Lightcurves

Never before has the detection and characterization of exoplanets via transit photometry been as promising and feasible as it is now, due to the increasing breadth and sensitivity of time domain optical surveys. Past works have made use of phase-folded stellar lightcurves in order to study the properties of exoplanet transits because this provides the highest signal that a transit is present at a given period and ephemeris. Characterizing transits on an individual, rather than phase-folded, basis is much more challenging due to the often low signal-to-noise ratio of lightcurves, missing data, and low sampling rates. However, by phase folding a lightcurve we implicitly assume that all transits have the same expected properties, and lose all information about the nature and variability of the transits. We miss the natural variability in transit shapes, or even the deliberate or inadvertent modification of transit signals by an extraterrestrial civilization (for example, via laser emission or orbiting megastructures). In this work, we develop an algorithm to search stellar lightcurves for individual anomalous (in timing or depth) transits, and we report the results of that search for 218 confirmed transiting exoplanet systems from Kepler.

Real-time Experimental Demonstrations of a Photonic Lantern Wave-front Sensor

The direct imaging of an Earth-like exoplanet will require sub-nanometric wave-front control across large light-collecting apertures to reject host starlight and detect the faint planetary signal. Current adaptive optics systems, which use wave-front sensors that reimage the telescope pupil, face two challenges that prevent this level of control: non-common-path aberrations, caused by differences between the sensing and science arms of the instrument; and petaling modes: discontinuous phase aberrations caused by pupil fragmentation, especially relevant for the upcoming 30 m class telescopes. Such aberrations drastically impact the capabilities of high-contrast instruments. To address these issues, we can add a second-stage wave-front sensor to the science focal plane. One promising architecture uses the photonic lantern (PL): a waveguide that efficiently couples aberrated light into single-mode fibers (SMFs). In turn, SMF-confined light can be stably injected into high-resolution spectrographs, enabling direct exoplanet characterization and precision radial velocity measurements; simultaneously, the PL can be used for focal-plane wave-front sensing. We present a real-time experimental demonstration of the PL wave-front sensor on the Subaru/SCExAO testbed. Our system is stable out to around ±400 nm of low-order Zernike wave-front error and can correct petaling modes. When injecting ∼30 nm rms of low-order time-varying error, we achieve ∼10× rejection at 1 s timescales; further refinements to the control law and lantern fabrication process should make sub-nanometric wave-front control possible. In the future, novel sensors like the PL wave-front sensor may prove to be critical in resolving the wave-front control challenges posed by exoplanet direct imaging.

Mass and orbital solutions of stellar companions from HGCA and lick

Astrometry or radial velocity method, as an exoplanet detection and characterisation method, needs more information to reveal the complete orbit solution of stellar companions. We combine these two methods by cross-calibrating the Hipparcos-Gaia Catalogue of Accelerating Stars and Lick data to generate more precise mass and orbital solutions of stellar companions from the overlap of these two databases. We use an open-source package, orvara, to simulate the posterior parameters of companions from candidate stars. To simplify the simulation, we assume all systems in this research contain only a 2-body Keplerian fit. A final result of 16 candidates is selected, and five companions with the lowest masses are further discussed. Among these five companions, four in system HIP42112, HIP49699, HIP74948 and HIP98819 were discovered and recorded in previous work. This paper has found an undiscovered potential brown dwarf companion near HIP98978. The result of this paper could help future studies of low-mass companions of exoplanets.

Deep PACO: combining statistical models with deep learning for exoplanet detection and characterization in direct imaging at high contrast

ABSTRACT Direct imaging is an active research topic in astronomy for the detection and the characterization of young substellar objects. The very high contrast between the host star and its companions makes the observations particularly challenging. In this context, post-processing methods combining several images recorded with the pupil tracking mode of telescope are needed. In previous works, we have presented a data-driven algorithm, PACO, capturing locally the spatial correlations of the data with a multivariate Gaussian model. PACO delivers better detection sensitivity and confidence than the standard post-processing methods of the field. However, there is room for improvement due to the approximate fidelity of the PACO statistical model to the time evolving observations. In this paper, we propose to combine the statistical model of PACO with supervised deep learning. The data are first pre-processed with the PACO framework to improve the stationarity and the contrast. A convolutional neural network (CNN) is then trained in a supervised fashion to detect the residual signature of synthetic sources. Finally, the trained network delivers a detection map. The photometry of detected sources is estimated by a second CNN. We apply the proposed approach to several data sets from the VLT/SPHERE instrument. Our results show that its detection stage performs significantly better than baseline methods (cADI and PCA), and leads to a contrast improvement up to half a magnitude compared to PACO. The characterization stage of the proposed method performs on average on par with or better than the comparative algorithms (PCA and PACO) for angular separation above 0.5 arcsec.

Analysis of the Precision of CSST Time-domain Photometric Observation

The Chinese Space Station Telescope (CSST) is the first space optical survey telescope of China. It will perform scientific observations and yield important scientific results, e.g. multi-color photometry to find and characterize exoplanets. The precision of time-domain photometry affected by various astrophysical and instrument noises is crucial for exoplanet detection and characterization. This paper constructs a time-domain model to simulate the stellar signal and various noises based on the main technical parameters of CSST published so far. The precision of photometry is analyzed by modeling the signal and noises for an example of the gazing mode in the i-band. We investigate and discuss the contribution of various noise sources in aperture photometry, especially the jitter noise caused by pointing jitter and pixel response inhomogeneity. The test results also provide the recommended aperture sizes for photometry. Jitter noise can be suppressed by reducing jitter amplitude, uniforming pixels, or using differential photometry with reference stars. Our simulation results have broad applications, including precision predictions for time-domain photometry, the refinement of CSST instrumental specifications, the evaluation of exoplanet detection capabilities, and improvements in data reduction progress for CSST.

ATMOSPHERIX: II- Characterizing exoplanet atmospheres through transmission spectroscopy with SPIRou

ABSTRACT In a companion paper, we introduced a publicly available pipeline to characterize exoplanet atmospheres through high-resolution spectroscopy. In this paper, we use this pipeline to study the biases and degeneracies that arise in atmospheric characterization of exoplanets in near-infrared ground-based transmission spectroscopy. We inject synthetic planetary transits into sequences of SPIRou spectra of the well known M dwarf star Gl 15 A, and study the effects of different assumptions on the retrieval. We focus on (i) mass and radius uncertainties, (ii) non-isothermal vertical profiles, and (iii) identification and retrieval of multiple species. We show that the uncertainties on mass and radius should be accounted for in retrievals and that depth-dependent temperature information can be derived from high-resolution transmission spectroscopy data. Finally, we discuss the impact of selecting wavelength orders in the retrieval and the issues that arise when trying to identify a single species in a multispecies atmospheric model. This analysis allows us to understand better the results obtained through transmission spectroscopy and their limitations in preparation to the analysis of actual SPIRou data.

ATMOSPHERIX: I- an open source high-resolution transmission spectroscopy pipeline for exoplanets atmospheres with SPIRou

ABSTRACT Atmospheric characterization of exoplanets from the ground is an actively growing field of research. In this context, we have created the ATMOSPHERIX consortium: a research project aimed at characterizing exoplanets atmospheres using ground-based high-resolution spectroscopy. This paper presents the publicly available data analysis pipeline and demonstrates the robustness of the recovered planetary parameters from synthetic data. Simulating planetary transits using synthetic transmission spectra of a hot Jupiter that were injected into real SPIRou observations of the non-transiting system Gl 15 A, we show that our pipeline is successful at recovering the planetary signal and input atmospheric parameters. We also introduce a deep learning algorithm to optimize data reduction which proves to be a reliable, alternative tool to the commonly used principal component analysis. We estimate the level of uncertainties and possible biases when retrieving parameters such as temperature and composition and hence the level of confidence in the case of retrieval from real data. Finally, we apply our pipeline onto two real transits of HD 189733 b observed with SPIRou and obtain similar results than in the literature. In summary, we have developed a publicly available and robust pipeline for the forthcoming studies of the targets to be observed in the framework of the ATMOSPHERIX consortium, which can easily be adapted to other high resolution instruments than SPIRou (e.g. VLT-CRIRES, MAROON-X, ELT-ANDES).