Infrared-Radio-follow-up Observations for Detection of the Magnetic Radio Emission of Extra-Solar Planets: A New Window to Detect Exoplanets

TL;DR

This study proposes a novel method for detecting exoplanets by observing their radio emissions during microlensing events, utilizing the Roman telescope for initial detection and SKA for follow-up, enabling magnetic field measurement.

Contribution

The paper introduces a new radio-based exoplanet detection technique using microlensing events, combining Roman and SKA telescopes, and demonstrates its feasibility through simulations.

Findings

Approximately 1317 exoplanets detectable in radio during 7 seasons

Method enables direct detection and magnetic field measurement of exoplanets

Radio emissions from exoplanets comparable to their stars' emissions

Abstract

There are several methods for indirectly detecting exoplanets, such as transit, radial velocity, astrometry, and the conventional gravitational microlensing approach. These methods rely on observing the effects of exoplanets on the emission or motion of observed stars. All these techniques have focused on the optical or infrared domains. However, an alternative method for exoplanet detection via microlensing events involves planets orbiting the source star, creating a binary source system. In this study, we explore a novel approach to detecting and studying exoplanets exclusively through their radio emissions resulting from magnetospheric processes. We propose utilizing the Roman telescope as a survey observer to detect microlensing events. Subsequently, we investigate the potential for detecting planetary radio signals through follow-up observations of these microlensing events in the radio band using the SKA telescope. This method is viable due to the comparable radio emission levels of exoplanets and their parent stars, unlike optical and infrared emissions. We conduct a Monte Carlo simulation to replicate the observations by the Nancy Roman Telescope, followed by a follow-up observation in radio frequencies using the SKA telescope. We determine that approximately 1317 exoplanets exhibit detectable signals by the SKA telescope during the 7-season observations by the Nancy Roman Telescope. This result indicates that such a method cannot only facilitate the direct detection of exoplanets but also enable the measurement of their magnetic field strength through analysis of their radio emissions.