Searching for hot water world candidates with CHEOPS: II. A low-density super-Earth orbiting the K dwarf TOI-2211

Abstract

Small exoplanets on close-in orbits are exposed to high levels of stellar irradiation, which can effectively remove low-mass primordial H/He envelopes through atmospheric escape. Under these conditions, planets whose masses and radii are incompatible with both bare rocky interiors and extended H-dominated atmospheres are therefore expected to host high mean molecular weight atmospheres, making them promising candidates for volatile-rich hot water worlds. We present the first detailed characterisation of the low-density super-Earth TOI-2211 b (P~3.09 d), a recently validated transiting planet orbiting a K type star (G mag: 9.1). Combining TESS and CHEOPS photometry with radial velocity measurements from HARPS, ESPRESSO, and KPF, we precisely constrain the planet's radius and mass to $1.457\pm 0.047$ R${}_{\oplus }$ and $2.69\pm 0.56$ M${}_{\oplus }$. We also identify an outer, non-transiting planetary candidate (P~15.6 d, Msin(i) $=8.53\pm 1.04$ M${}_{\oplus }$) in the radial velocity data. We investigate the internal structure of the transiting planet and assess the stability of the inferred volatile envelopes through a detailed evaporation analysis, thereby identifying TOI-2211 b as a promising hot water world candidate. TOI-2211 b therefore joins the small but growing sample of these close-in low-density super-Earths, which represent particularly interesting targets for testing current planet formation and evolution theories. Additionally, we investigate the full architecture of the planetary system using a generative model of planet formation and evolution, with the resulting posterior distributions showing a clear over-density consistent with the observed orbital period and minimal mass of the non-transiting planetary candidate identified in the radial velocity data.

19 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in A&A