TY - JOUR
T1 - A possible correlation between planetary radius and orbital period for small planets
AU - Helled, Ravit
AU - Lozovsky, Michael
AU - Zucker, Shay
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 The Authors Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - We suggest the existence of a correlation between the planetary radius and orbital period for planets with radii smaller than 4 R⊕. Using the Kepler data, we find a correlation coefficient of 0.5120, and suggest that the correlation is not caused solely by survey incompleteness. While the correlation coefficient could change depending on the statistical analysis, the statistical significance of the correlation is robust. Further analysis shows that the correlation originates from two contributing factors. One seems to be a power-law dependence between the two quantities for intermediate periods (3-100 d), and the other is a dearth of planets with radii larger than 2 R⊕ in short periods. This correlation may provide important constraints for small-planet formation theories and for understanding the dynamical evolution of planetary systems.
AB - We suggest the existence of a correlation between the planetary radius and orbital period for planets with radii smaller than 4 R⊕. Using the Kepler data, we find a correlation coefficient of 0.5120, and suggest that the correlation is not caused solely by survey incompleteness. While the correlation coefficient could change depending on the statistical analysis, the statistical significance of the correlation is robust. Further analysis shows that the correlation originates from two contributing factors. One seems to be a power-law dependence between the two quantities for intermediate periods (3-100 d), and the other is a dearth of planets with radii larger than 2 R⊕ in short periods. This correlation may provide important constraints for small-planet formation theories and for understanding the dynamical evolution of planetary systems.
KW - planets and satellites: detection
KW - planets and satellites: dynamical evolution and stability
KW - planets and satellites: formation
KW - planets and satellites: fundamental parameters
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84964861796&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/mnrasl/slv158
DO - 10.1093/mnrasl/slv158
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AN - SCOPUS:84964861796
VL - 455
SP - L96-L98
JO - Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
JF - Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
SN - 1745-3925
IS - 1
ER -