GJ 367b: A dense ultra-short period sub-Earth planet transiting a nearby red dwarf star

Abstract

Ultra-short-period (USP) exoplanets have orbital periods shorter than one day. Precise masses and radii of USPs could provide constraints on their unknown formation and evolution processes. We report the detection and characterization of the USP planet GJ 367b using high precision photometry and radial velocity observations. GJ 367b orbits a bright (V-band magnitude = 10.2), nearby, red (M-type) dwarf star every 7.7 hours. GJ 367b has a radius of $0.718\pm 0.054$ Earth-radii, a mass of $0.546\pm 0.078$ Earth-masses, making it a sub-Earth. The corresponding bulk density is $8.106\pm 2.165$ g cm${}^{-}3$, close to that of iron. An interior structure model predicts the planet has an iron core radius fraction of $86\pm 5\%$, similar to Mercury's interior.

Note: "This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of the AAAS for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Science , (2021-12-03), doi: 10.1126/science.aay3253"