GeminiFocus 2017 Year in Review | Page 50

Figure 13. Using advanced imaging techniques and the special capabilities of the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI), the light from β Pictoris has been suppressed in these images using GPI’s Y, J, H, K1, and K2 filters. The arrow indicates the location of the exoplanet β Pictoris b in in all but the left image. Based on the GPI data, combined with planetary evolution and atmospheric mod- els, Chilcote suggests a “hot-start” planet formation scenario for β Pictoris b, which has a surface temperature of about 1,724 K. He adds, “This is consistent with the disk instability formation mechanism for wide- orbit giant exoplanets.” However, the char- acteristics for the atmosphere of β Pictoris b found in this work best matches that of a low-surface-gravity (L2±1) brown dwarf, not a planet. John Blakeslee is the Chief Scientist at Gemini Ob- servatory and located at Gemini South in Chile. He can be reached at: [email protected] Peter Michaud is the Public Information Out- reach Manager of Gemini Observatory. He can be reached at: [email protected] The team studied β Pictoris b during the verification and commissioning of the Gemini Planet Imager, and as part of an astrometric (position) monitoring program designed to constrain the orbit of the exo- planet (Figure 13). This work is also part of a Gemini Large and Long Program. “With GPI, the Gemini Observatory is at the forefront of exoplanet exploration,” says Chilcote. He adds, “Direct imaging al- lows for the discovery of planets on solar- systems-scale orbits, provides new insight into the formation and characteristics of extrasolar systems, and enables direct spectroscopic observations of their atmo- spheres.” The full results are accepted for publica- tion in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. A preprint is available here. 48 GeminiFocus January 2018 / 2017 Year in Review