Imaging Young Planets From Ground and Space

TL;DR

This paper compares ground-based and space-based high contrast imaging techniques, especially JWST, for detecting and characterizing young gas giant exoplanets at various orbital distances.

Contribution

It provides a detailed comparison of current and future imaging capabilities, including new brightness calculations for planets with masses down to 0.1 Jupiter masses.

Findings

JWST can detect planets as small as 0.2 MJup across various separations.

Ground-based coronagraphs probe within 25 AU of nearby stars.

New brightness models extend to planets as small as 0.1 MJup.

Abstract

High contrast imaging can find and characterize gas giant planets around nearby young stars and the closest M stars, complementing radial velocity and astrometric searches by exploring orbital separations inaccessible to indirect methods. Ground-based coronagraphs are already probing within 25 AU of nearby young stars to find objects as small as ~ 3 Jupiter masses. This paper compares near-term and future ground-based capabilities with high contrast imaging modes of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Monte Carlo modeling reveals that JWST can detect planets with masses as small as 0.2 MJup across a broad range of orbital separations. We present new calculations for planet brightness as a function of mass and age for specific JWST filters and extending to 0.1 MJup.