Recent Kepler Results On Circumbinary Planets

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent discoveries of circumbinary planets by NASA's Kepler mission, highlighting the rapid increase in known systems, detection techniques, and emerging trends in their characteristics.

Contribution

It provides an overview of the first seven Kepler circumbinary planets, discusses detection methods, and identifies new trends in their properties and behaviors.

Findings

Seven circumbinary planets discovered by Kepler.

Detection of transit timing and duration variations as signatures.

Emerging trends in circumbinary planet characteristics.

Abstract

Ranked near the top of the long list of exciting discoveries made with NASA's Kepler photometer is the detection of transiting circumbinary planets. In just over a year the number of such planets went from zero to seven, including a multi-planet system with one of the planets in the habitable zone (Kepler-47). We are quickly learning to better detect and characterize these planets, including the recognition of their transit timing and duration variation "smoking gun" signature. Even with only a handful of such planets, some exciting trends are emerging.