Fitting Formulae and Constraints for the Existence of S-type and P-type Habitable Zones

TL;DR

This paper provides simple formulae to quickly determine the existence of habitable zones in binary star systems, considering planetary stability and climate constraints, with applications to known exoplanetary systems.

Contribution

It introduces new fitting formulae for assessing habitable zones in binary systems, incorporating updated climate models and observational uncertainties.

Findings

Formulae successfully applied to multiple Kepler systems

Method accounts for planetary orbital stability and climate constraints

Enables straightforward evaluation of habitability in binary systems

Abstract

We derive fitting formulae for the quick determination of the existence of S-type and P-type habitable zones in binary systems. Based on previous work, we consider the limits of the climatological habitable zone in binary systems (which sensitively depend on the system parameters) based on a joint constraint encompassing planetary orbital stability and a habitable region for a possible system planet. Additionally, we employ updated results on planetary climate models obtained by Kopparapu and collaborators. Our results are applied to four P-type systems (Kepler-34, Kepler-35, Kepler-413, and Kepler-1647) and two S-type systems (TrES-2 and KOI-1257). Our method allows to gauge the existence of climatological habitable zones for these systems in a straightforward manner with detailed consideration of the observational uncertainties. Further applications may include studies of other existing systems as well as systems to be identified through future observational campaigns.