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Single-Star Warm-Jupiter Systems Tend to Be Aligned, Even Around Hot Stellar Hosts: No Teff–λ DependencyThe stellar obliquity distribution of warm-Jupiter systems is crucial for constraining the dynamical history of Jovian exoplanets, as the warm Jupiters’ tidal detachment likely preserves their primordial obliquity. However, the sample size of warm-Jupiter systems with measured stellar obliquities has historically been limited compared to that of hot Jupiters, particularly in hot-star systems. In this work, we present newly obtained sky-projected stellar obliquity measurements for the warm-Jupiter systems TOI-559, TOI-2025, TOI-2031, TOI-2485, TOI-2524, and TOI-3972, derived from the Rossiter–McLaughlin effect, and show that all six systems display alignment with a median measurement uncertainty of 13°. Combining these new measurements with the set of previously reported stellar obliquity measurements, our analysis reveals that single-star warm-Jupiter systems tend to be aligned, even around hot stellar hosts. This alignment exhibits a 3.4σ deviation from the Teff–λ dependency observed in hot- Jupiter systems, where planets around cool stars tend to be aligned, while those orbiting hot stars show considerable misalignment. The current distribution of spin–orbit measurements for Jovian exoplanets indicates that misalignments are neither universal nor primordial phenomena affecting all types of planets. The absence of misalignments in single-star warm-Jupiter systems further implies that many hot Jupiters, by contrast, have experienced a dynamically violent history.
Document ID
20250001884
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Accepted Manuscript (Version with final changes)
Authors
Xian-Yu Wang ORCID
(Indiana University Bloomington, United States)
Malena Rice ORCID
(Yale University New Haven, United States)
Songhu Wang
(Indiana University Bloomington, United States)
Shubham Kanodia ORCID
(Carnegie Institution for Science Washington, United States)
Fei Dai ORCID
(University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Honolulu, United States)
Sarah E Logsdon ORCID
(NSF’s NOIRLab Tucson, United States)
Heidi Schweiker ORCID
(NSF’s NOIRLab Tucson, United States)
Johanna K Teske ORCID
(Carnegie Institution for Science Washington, United States)
R Paul Butler ORCID
(Carnegie Institution for Science Washington, United States)
Jeffrey D Crane ORCID
(Carnegie Institution for Science Washington, United States)
Stephen Shectman ORCID
(Carnegie Institution for Science Washington, United States)
Samuel N Quinn ORCID
(Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States)
Veselin Kostov ORCID
(Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Mountain View, United States)
Hugh P Osborn ORCID
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, United States)
Robert F Goeke ORCID
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, United States)
Jason D Eastman ORCID
(Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States)
Avi Shporer ORCID
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, United States)
David Rapetti
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, United States)
Karen A Collins ORCID
(Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States)
Cristilyn N Watkins ORCID
(Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States)
Howard M Relles ORCID
(Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States)
George R Ricker
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, United States)
Sara Seager ORCID
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, United States)
Joshua N Winn ORCID
(Princeton University Princeton, United States)
Jon M Jenkins ORCID
(Ames Research Center Mountain View, United States)
Date Acquired
February 19, 2025
Publication Date
September 17, 2024
Publication Information
Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Publisher: American Astronomical Society
Volume: 973
Issue: 1
Issue Publication Date: September 20, 2024
ISSN: 2041-8205
e-ISSN: 2041-8213
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Astronomy
Funding Number(s)
WBS: 985788.09.04.01
CONTRACT_GRANT: 80NSSC24K0153
CONTRACT_GRANT: 2023-4478
CONTRACT_GRANT: 2023-4050
CONTRACT_GRANT: 51NF40182901
CONTRACT_GRANT: 51NF40205606
OTHER: NNA16BD14C
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Portions of document may include copyright protected material.
Technical Review
External Peer Committee
Keywords
Planetary alignment
Exoplanet dynamics
Exoplanet evolution
Star-planet interactions
Exoplanets
Hot Jupiters
Exoplanet systems
Exoplanet astronomy
Planetary dynamics
Planetary theory
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