Searching for Planets with White Dwarf Pulsations: Spurious Detections

TL;DR

This study analyzes 13 years of pulsation data from a white dwarf, revealing that sinusoidal signals previously attributed to planets are inconsistent, challenging the reliability of timing methods for detecting planets around white dwarfs.

Contribution

It demonstrates that pulsation timing signals can mimic planetary signatures but may be spurious, highlighting limitations in current WD planet detection techniques.

Findings

O-C diagrams show sinusoidal patterns

Amplitude and phase inconsistencies in signals

Implications for WD planet search methods

Abstract

We present 13 years of pulsation timing measurements of the DBV white dwarf EC 2005-5234. Each of the four O-C diagrams mimic the sinusoidal behavior typically attributed to a planet + WD system. However, the amplitude and phase of the O-C variations are inconsistent with each other. We discuss the impact of this result on timing based WD planet searches.