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Polarimetry as a tool to find and characterise habitable planets orbiting white dwarfs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 July 2015

Luca Fossati ,
Stefano Bagnulo ,
Carole A. Haswell ,
Manish R. Patel ,
Richard Busuttil ,
Piotr M. Kowalski ,
Denis V. Shukyak ,
Michael F. Sterzik  and
Gennady Valyavin
Luca Fossati
Affiliation:
Argelander-Institut für Astronomie der Universität Bonn, Auf dem Hügel 71, 53121 Bonn, Germany email: lfossati@astro.uni-bonn.de
Stefano Bagnulo
Affiliation:
Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh BT61 9DG, Northern Ireland, UK
Carole A. Haswell
Affiliation:
Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
Manish R. Patel
Affiliation:
Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
Richard Busuttil
Affiliation:
Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
Piotr M. Kowalski
Affiliation:
Institute of Energy and Climate Research (IEK-6), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Strasse, D-52425 Jülich, Germany
Denis V. Shukyak
Affiliation:
Institute of Astrophysics, Georg-August-University, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, D-37077, Göttingen, Germany
Michael F. Sterzik
Affiliation:
European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2, D-85748 Garching, Germany
Gennady Valyavin
Affiliation:
Special Astrophysical Observatory of the RAS, 369167, Nizhny Arkhyz, Karachaevo-Cherkesia, Russia
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Abstract

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There are several ways planets can survive the giant phase of the host star, hence one can consider the case of Earth-like planets orbiting white dwarfs. As a white dwarf cools from 6000 K to 4000 K, a planet orbiting at 0.01 AU from the star would remain in the continuous habitable zone (CHZ) for about 8 Gyr. Polarisation due to a terrestrial planet in the CHZ of a cool white dwarf (CWD) is 102 (104) times larger than it would be in the habitable zone of a typical M-dwarf (Sun-like star). Polarimetry is thus a powerful tool to detect close-in planets around white dwarfs. Multi-band polarimetry would also allow one to reveal the presence of a planet atmosphere, even providing a first characterisation. With current facilities a super-Earth-sized atmosphereless planet is detectable with polarimetry around the brightest known CWD. Planned future facilities render smaller planets detectable, in particular by increasing the instrumental sensitivity in the blue. Preliminary habitability study show also that photosynthetic processes can be sustained on Earth-like planets orbiting CWDs and that the DNA-weighted UV radiation dose for an Earth-like planet in the CHZ is less than the maxima encountered on Earth, hence white dwarfs are compatible with the persistence of complex life from the perspective of UV irradiation.

Keywords

Polarisationastrobiologytechniques: photometric(stars:) white dwarfs
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 10 , Symposium S305: Polarimetry: From the Sun to Stars and Stellar Environments , December 2014 , pp. 325 - 332
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2015 

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