Relative astrometry in an annular field

TL;DR

This paper explores an annular field of view concept for space telescopes, demonstrating it can significantly enhance relative astrometry precision and efficiency for exoplanet detection compared to traditional focal plane designs.

Contribution

It introduces an annular field of view design that increases reference star availability and improves astrometric accuracy, offering a novel approach for future space-based astrometry missions.

Findings

Annular field provides 4-7 times more reference stars than conventional fields.

Dedicated observations can constrain exoplanet orbital inclinations to a few degrees.

The design improves observation flexibility and astrometric performance.

Abstract

Background. Relative astrometry at or below the micro-arcsec level with a 1m class space telescope has been repeatedly proposed as a tool for exo-planet detection and characterization, as well as for several topics at the forefront of Astrophysics and Fundamental Physics. Aim. This paper investigates the potential benefits of an instrument concept based on an annular field of view, as compared to a traditional focal plane imaging a contiguous area close to the telescope optical axis. Method. Basic aspects of relative astrometry are reviewed as a function of the distribution on the sky of reference stars brighter than G = 12 mag (from Gaia EDR3). Statistics of field stars for targets down to G = 8 mag is evaluated by analysis and simulation. Results. Observation efficiency benefits from prior knowledge on individual targets, since source model is improved with few measurements. Dedicated observations (10-20 hours) can constrain the orbital inclination of exoplanets to a few degrees. Observing strategy can be tailored to include a sample of stars, materialising the reference frame, sufficiently large to average down the residual catalogue errors to the desired microarcsec level. For most targets, the annular field provides typically more reference stars, by a factor four to seven in our case, than the conventional field. The brightest reference stars for each target are up to 2 mag brighter. Conclusions. The proposed annular field telescope concept improves on observation flexibility and/or astrometric performance with respect to conventional designs. It appears therefore as an appealing contribution to optimization of future relative astrometry missions.