GJ 238 b: A 0.57 Earth Radius Planet Orbiting an M2.5 Dwarf Star at 15.2 pc

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery and validation of a small transiting planet, GJ 238 b, orbiting an M2.5 dwarf star at 15.2 parsecs, detected by TESS, with detailed characterization of the host star and planet.

Contribution

The study presents the first validation of a sub-Earth-sized planet orbiting an M dwarf using TESS data and follow-up observations, highlighting the detection of a very small planet around a nearby star.

Findings

GJ 238 b has a radius of approximately 0.57 Earth radii.

The planet orbits its host star every 1.74 days.

The host star is a nearby M2.5 dwarf at 15.2 pc.

Abstract

We report the discovery of the transiting planet GJ 238 b, with a radius of $0.566\pm0.014$ R$_{\oplus}$ ($1.064\pm0.026$ times the radius of Mars) and an orbital period of 1.74 day. The transit signal was detected by the TESS mission and designated TOI-486.01. The star's position close to the Southern ecliptic pole allows for almost continuous observations by TESS when it is observing the Southern sky. The host star is an M2.5 dwarf with $V=11.57\pm0.02$ mag, $K=7.030\pm0.023$ mag, a distance of $15.2156\pm0.0030$ pc, a mass of $0.4193_{-0.0098}^{+0.0095}$ M$_{\odot}$, a radius of $0.4314_{-0.0071}^{+0.0075}$ R$_{\odot}$, and an effective temperature of $3{,}485\pm140$ K. We validate the planet candidate by ruling out or rendering highly unlikely each of the false positive scenarios, based on archival data and ground-based follow-up observations. Validation was facilitated by the host star's small size and high proper motion, of $892.633\pm0.025$ mas yr$^{-1}$.