SPECULOOS -- Ultracool Dwarf Transit Survey: Target List and Strategy
D. Sebastian, M. Gillon, E. Ducrot, F. J. Pozuelos, L. J. Garcia, M., N. G\"unther, L. Delrez, D. Queloz, B. O. Demory, A. H.M.J. Triaud, A., Burgasser, J. de Wit, A. Burdanov, G. Dransfield, E. Jehin, J. McCormac, C., A. Murray, P. Niraula, P. P. Pedersen, B. V. Rackham

TL;DR
The SPECULOOS survey targets ultracool dwarfs within 40 parsecs to discover temperate Earth-sized exoplanets, aiming to identify candidates suitable for atmospheric study with next-generation telescopes like JWST and ELT.
Contribution
This paper defines a comprehensive target list and observational strategy for the first dedicated transit survey of ultracool dwarfs, including new classifications and optimized monitoring plans.
Findings
Target list includes 1657 ultracool dwarfs, with 260 newly classified.
Survey expects to find dozens of temperate rocky planets.
Some planets will be suitable for atmospheric characterization with JWST.
Abstract
One of the most promising avenues for the detailed study of temperate Earth-sized exoplanets is the detection of such planets in transit in front of stars small and nearby enough to make possible their thorough atmospheric characterisation with next generation telescopes like the James Webb Space telescope (JWST) or Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). In this context, the TRAPPIST-1 planets form an unique benchmark system that has gathered the interest of a large scientific community. The SPECULOOS survey is an exoplanet transit survey, that targets a volume-limited (40 pc) sample of ultracool dwarf stars. We define the SPECULOOS target list as the sum of three non-overlapping sub-programs incorporating the latest type objects (T_eff < 3000K): Program1: 365 dwarfs that are small and nearby enough to make possible the detailed atmospheric characterisation of an `Earth-like' planet with the…
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