Flux and color variations of the doubly imaged quasar UM673

in Astronomy and Astrophysics (2013)

With the aim of characterizing the flux and color variations of the multiple components of the gravitationally lensed quasar UM673 as a function of time, we have performed multi-epoch and multi-band ... [more ▼]

With the aim of characterizing the flux and color variations of the multiple components of the gravitationally lensed quasar UM673 as a function of time, we have performed multi-epoch and multi-band photometric observations with the Danish 1.54m telescope at the La Silla Observatory. The observations were carried out in the VRi spectral bands during four seasons (2008--2011). We reduced the data using the PSF (Point Spread Function) photometric technique as well as aperture photometry. Our results show for the brightest lensed component some significant decrease in flux between the first two seasons (+0.09/+0.11/+0.05 mag) and a subsequent increase during the following ones (-0.11/-0.11/-0.10 mag) in the V/R/i spectral bands, respectively. Comparing our results with previous studies, we find smaller color variations between these seasons as compared with previous ones. We also separate the contribution of the lensing galaxy from that of the fainter and close lensed component. [less ▲]

MOA-2010-BLG-073L: An M-dwarf with a Substellar Companion at the Planet/Brown Dwarf Boundary

in Astrophysical Journal (2013), 763

We present an analysis of the anomalous microlensing event, MOA-2010-BLG-073, announced by the Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics survey on 2010 March 18. This event was remarkable because the ... [more ▼]

We present an analysis of the anomalous microlensing event, MOA-2010-BLG-073, announced by the Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics survey on 2010 March 18. This event was remarkable because the source was previously known to be photometrically variable. Analyzing the pre-event source light curve, we demonstrate that it is an irregular variable over timescales >200 days. Its dereddened color, (V - I)[SUB] S, 0[/SUB], is 1.221 ± 0.051 mag, and from our lens model we derive a source radius of 14.7 ± 1.3 R [SUB]&sun;[/SUB], suggesting that it is a red giant star. We initially explored a number of purely microlensing models for the event but found a residual gradient in the data taken prior to and after the event. This is likely to be due to the variability of the source rather than part of the lensing event, so we incorporated a slope parameter in our model in order to derive the true parameters of the lensing system. We find that the lensing system has a mass ratio of q = 0.0654 ± 0.0006. The Einstein crossing time of the event, t [SUB]E[/SUB] = 44.3 ± 0.1 days, was sufficiently long that the light curve exhibited parallax effects. In addition, the source trajectory relative to the large caustic structure allowed the orbital motion of the lens system to be detected. Combining the parallax with the Einstein radius, we were able to derive the distance to the lens, D[SUB]L[/SUB] = 2.8 ± 0.4 kpc, and the masses of the lensing objects. The primary of the lens is an M-dwarf with M [SUB] L, 1[/SUB] = 0.16 ± 0.03 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB], while the companion has M [SUB] L, 2[/SUB] = 11.0 ± 2.0 M [SUB]J[/SUB], putting it in the boundary zone between planets and brown dwarfs. [less ▲]

Microlensing Binaries with Candidate Brown Dwarf Companions

in Astrophysical Journal (2012), 760

Brown dwarfs are important objects because they may provide a missing link between stars and planets, two populations that have dramatically different formation histories. In this paper, we present the ... [more ▼]

Brown dwarfs are important objects because they may provide a missing link between stars and planets, two populations that have dramatically different formation histories. In this paper, we present the candidate binaries with brown dwarf companions that are found by analyzing binary microlensing events discovered during the 2004-2011 observation seasons. Based on the low mass ratio criterion of q < 0.2, we found seven candidate events: OGLE-2004-BLG-035, OGLE-2004-BLG-039, OGLE-2007-BLG-006, OGLE-2007-BLG-399/MOA-2007-BLG-334, MOA-2011-BLG-104/OGLE-2011-BLG-0172, MOA-2011-BLG-149, and MOA-201-BLG-278/OGLE-2011-BLG-012N. Among them, we are able to confirm that the companions of the lenses of MOA-2011-BLG-104/OGLE-2011-BLG-0172 and MOA-2011-BLG-149 are brown dwarfs by determining the mass of the lens based on the simultaneous measurement of the Einstein radius and the lens parallax. The measured masses of the brown dwarf companions are 0.02 ± 0.01 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] and 0.019 ± 0.002 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] for MOA-2011-BLG-104/OGLE-2011-BLG-0172 and MOA-2011-BLG-149, respectively, and both companions are orbiting low-mass M dwarf host stars. More microlensing brown dwarfs are expected to be detected as the number of lensing events with well-covered light curves increases with new-generation searches. [less ▲]

A New Type of Ambiguity in the Planet and Binary Interpretations of Central Perturbations of High-magnification Gravitational Microlensing Events

in Astrophysical Journal (2012), 756

High-magnification microlensing events provide an important channel to detect planets. Perturbations near the peak of a high-magnification event can be produced either by a planet or a binary companion ... [more ▼]

High-magnification microlensing events provide an important channel to detect planets. Perturbations near the peak of a high-magnification event can be produced either by a planet or a binary companion. It is known that central perturbations induced by both types of companions can be generally distinguished due to the essentially different magnification pattern around caustics. In this paper, we present a case of central perturbations for which it is difficult to distinguish the planetary and binary interpretations. The peak of a lensing light curve affected by this perturbation appears to be blunt and flat. For a planetary case, this perturbation occurs when the source trajectory passes the negative perturbation region behind the back end of an arrowhead-shaped central caustic. For a binary case, a similar perturbation occurs for a source trajectory passing through the negative perturbation region between two cusps of an astroid-shaped caustic. We demonstrate the degeneracy for two high-magnification events of OGLE-2011-BLG-0526 and OGLE-2011-BLG-0950/MOA-2011-BLG-336. For OGLE-2011-BLG-0526, the χ[SUP]2[/SUP] difference between the planetary and binary model is ~3, implying that the degeneracy is very severe. For OGLE-2011-BLG-0950/MOA-2011-BLG-336, the stellar binary model is formally excluded with Δχ[SUP]2[/SUP] ~ 105 and the planetary model is preferred. However, it is difficult to claim a planet discovery because systematic residuals of data from the planetary model are larger than the difference between the planetary and binary models. Considering that two events observed during a single season suffer from such a degeneracy, it is expected that central perturbations experiencing this type of degeneracy is common. [less ▲]

Characterizing Low-mass Binaries from Observation of Long-timescale Caustic-crossing Gravitational Microlensing Events

in Astrophysical Journal (2012), 755

Despite the astrophysical importance of binary star systems, detections are limited to those located in small ranges of separations, distances, and masses and thus it is necessary to use a variety of ... [more ▼]

Despite the astrophysical importance of binary star systems, detections are limited to those located in small ranges of separations, distances, and masses and thus it is necessary to use a variety of observational techniques for a complete view of stellar multiplicity across a broad range of physical parameters. In this paper, we report the detections and measurements of two binaries discovered from observations of microlensing events MOA-2011-BLG-090 and OGLE-2011-BLG-0417. Determinations of the binary masses are possible by simultaneously measuring the Einstein radius and the lens parallax. The measured masses of the binary components are 0.43 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] and 0.39 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] for MOA-2011-BLG-090 and 0.57 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] and 0.17 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] for OGLE-2011-BLG-0417 and thus both lens components of MOA-2011-BLG-090 and one component of OGLE-2011-BLG-0417 are M dwarfs, demonstrating the usefulness of microlensing in detecting binaries composed of low-mass components. From modeling of the light curves considering full Keplerian motion of the lens, we also measure the orbital parameters of the binaries. The blended light of OGLE-2011-BLG-0417 comes very likely from the lens itself, making it possible to check the microlensing orbital solution by follow-up radial-velocity observation. For both events, the caustic-crossing parts of the light curves, which are critical for determining the physical lens parameters, were resolved by high-cadence survey observations and thus it is expected that the number of microlensing binaries with measured physical parameters will increase in the future. [less ▲]

Characterizing Lenses and Lensed Stars of High-magnification Single-lens Gravitational Microlensing Events with Lenses Passing over Source Stars

in Astrophysical Journal (2012), 751

We present the analysis of the light curves of nine high-magnification single-lens gravitational microlensing events with lenses passing over source stars, including OGLE-2004-BLG-254, MOA-2007-BLG-176 ... [more ▼]

We present the analysis of the light curves of nine high-magnification single-lens gravitational microlensing events with lenses passing over source stars, including OGLE-2004-BLG-254, MOA-2007-BLG-176, MOA-2007-BLG-233/OGLE-2007-BLG-302, MOA-2009-BLG-174, MOA-2010-BLG-436, MOA-2011-BLG-093, MOA-2011-BLG-274, OGLE-2011-BLG-0990/MOA-2011-BLG-300, and OGLE-2011-BLG-1101/MOA-2011-BLG-325. For all of the events, we measure the linear limb-darkening coefficients of the surface brightness profile of source stars by measuring the deviation of the light curves near the peak affected by the finite-source effect. For seven events, we measure the Einstein radii and the lens-source relative proper motions. Among them, five events are found to have Einstein radii of less than 0.2 mas, making the lenses very low mass star or brown dwarf candidates. For MOA-2011-BLG-274, especially, the small Einstein radius of θ[SUB]E[/SUB] ~ 0.08 mas combined with the short timescale of t [SUB]E[/SUB] ~ 2.7 days suggests the possibility that the lens is a free-floating planet. For MOA-2009-BLG-174, we measure the lens parallax and thus uniquely determine the physical parameters of the lens. We also find that the measured lens mass of ~0.84 M [SUB]&sun;[/SUB] is consistent with that of a star blended with the source, suggesting that the blend is likely to be the lens. Although we did not find planetary signals for any of the events, we provide exclusion diagrams showing the confidence levels excluding the existence of a planet as a function of the separation and mass ratio. [less ▲]

A brown dwarf orbiting an M-dwarf: MOA 2009-BLG-411L

in Astronomy and Astrophysics (2012), 547

Context. Caustic crossing is the clearest signature of binary lenses in microlensing. In the present context, this signature is diluted by the large source star but a detailed analysis has allowed the ... [more ▼]

Context. Caustic crossing is the clearest signature of binary lenses in microlensing. In the present context, this signature is diluted by the large source star but a detailed analysis has allowed the companion signal to be extracted. <BR /> Aims: MOA 2009-BLG-411 was detected on August 5, 2009 by the MOA-Collaboration. Alerted as a high-magnification event, it was sensitive to planets. Suspected anomalies in the light curve were not confirmed by a real-time model, but further analysis revealed small deviations from a single lens extended source fit. <BR /> Methods: Thanks to observations by all the collaborations, this event was well monitored. We first decided to characterize the source star properties by using a more refined method than the classical one: we measure the interstellar absorption along the line of sight in five different passbands (VIJHK). Secondly, we model the lightcurve by using the standard technique: make (s,q,α) grids to look for local minima and refine the results by using a downhill method (Markov chain Monte Carlo). Finally, we use a Galactic model to estimate the physical properties of the lens components. <BR /> Results: We find that the source star is a giant G star with radius 9 R[SUB]&sun;[/SUB]. The grid search gives two local minima, which correspond to the theoretical degeneracy s ≡ s[SUP]-1[/SUP]. We find that the lens is composed of a brown dwarf secondary of mass M[SUB]S[/SUB] = 0.05 M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB] orbiting a primary M-star of mass M[SUB]P[/SUB] = 0.18 M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB]. We also reveal a new mass-ratio degeneracy for the central caustics of close binaries. <BR /> Conclusions: As far as we are aware, this is the first detection using the microlensing technique of a binary system in our Galaxy composed of an M-star and a brown dwarf. Appendix is available in electronic form at <A href="http://www.aanda.org">http://www.aanda.org</A> [less ▲]

MOA-2009-BLG-387Lb: a massive planet orbiting an M dwarf

in Astronomy and Astrophysics (2011), 529

<BR /> Aims: We report the discovery of a planet with a high planet-to-star mass ratio in the microlensing event MOA-2009-BLG-387, which exhibited pronounced deviations over a 12-day interval, one of the ... [more ▼]

<BR /> Aims: We report the discovery of a planet with a high planet-to-star mass ratio in the microlensing event MOA-2009-BLG-387, which exhibited pronounced deviations over a 12-day interval, one of the longest for any planetary event. The host is an M dwarf, with a mass in the range 0.07 M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB] < M[SUB]host[/SUB] < 0.49 M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB] at 90% confidence. The planet-star mass ratio q = 0.0132 ± 0.003 has been measured extremely well, so at the best-estimated host mass, the planet mass is m[SUB]p[/SUB] = 2.6 Jupiter masses for the median host mass, M = 0.19 M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB]. <BR /> Methods: The host mass is determined from two "higher order" microlensing parameters. One of these, the angular Einstein radius θ[SUB]E[/SUB] = 0.31 ± 0.03 mas has been accurately measured, but the other (the microlens parallax π[SUB]E[/SUB], which is due to the Earth's orbital motion) is highly degenerate with the orbital motion of the planet. We statistically resolve the degeneracy between Earth and planet orbital effects by imposing priors from a Galactic model that specifies the positions and velocities of lenses and sources and a Kepler model of orbits. <BR /> Results: The 90% confidence intervals for the distance, semi-major axis, and period of the planet are 3.5 kpc < D[SUB]L[/SUB] < 7.9 kpc, 1.1 AU < a < 2.7 AU, and 3.8 yr < P < 7.6 yr, respectively. Photometric data is only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via <A href="http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/529/A102">http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/529/A102</A> [less ▲]

Flux and color variations of the quadruply imaged quasar HE 0435--1223

in Astronomy and Astrophysics (2011), 528

We present VRi photometric observations of the quadruply imaged quasar HE 0435-1223, carried out with the Danish 1.54m telescope at the La Silla Observatory. Our aim was to monitor and study the ... [more ▼]

We present VRi photometric observations of the quadruply imaged quasar HE 0435-1223, carried out with the Danish 1.54m telescope at the La Silla Observatory. Our aim was to monitor and study the magnitudes and colors of each lensed component as a function of time. methods: We monitored the object during two seasons (2008 and 2009) in the VRi spectral bands, and reduced the data with two independent techniques: difference imaging and PSF (Point Spread Function) fitting.results: Between these two seasons, our results show an evident decrease in flux by ~0.2-0.4 magnitudes of the four lensed components in the three filters. We also found a significant increase (~0.05-0.015) in their V-R and R-i color indices. conclusions: These flux and color variations are very likely caused by intrinsic variations of the quasar between the observed epochs. Microlensing effects probably also affect the brightest "A" lensed component. [less ▲]

A sub-Saturn Mass Planet, MOA-2009-BLG-319Lb

in Astrophysical Journal (2011), 1010

We report the gravitational microlensing discovery of a sub-Saturn mass planet, MOA-2009-BLG-319Lb, orbiting a K or M-dwarf star in the inner Galactic disk or Galactic bulge. The high cadence observations ... [more ▼]

We report the gravitational microlensing discovery of a sub-Saturn mass planet, MOA-2009-BLG-319Lb, orbiting a K or M-dwarf star in the inner Galactic disk or Galactic bulge. The high cadence observations of the MOA-II survey discovered this microlensing event and enabled its identification as a high magnification event approximately 24 hours prior to peak magnification. As a result, the planetary signal at the peak of this light curve was observed by 20 different telescopes, which is the largest number of telescopes to contribute to a planetary discovery to date. The microlensing model for this event indicates a planet-star mass ratio of q = (3.95 +/- 0.02) x 10^{-4} and a separation of d = 0.97537 +/- 0.00007 in units of the Einstein radius. A Bayesian analysis based on the measured Einstein radius crossing time, t_E, and angular Einstein radius, \theta_E, along with a standard Galactic model indicates a host star mass of M_L = 0.38^{+0.34}_{-0.18} M_{Sun} and a planet mass of M_p = 50^{+44}_{-24} M_{Earth}, which is half the mass of Saturn. This analysis also yields a planet-star three-dimensional separation of a = 2.4^{+1.2}_{-0.6} AU and a distance to the planetary system of D_L = 6.1^{+1.1}_{-1.2} kpc. This separation is ~ 2 times the distance of the snow line, a separation similar to most of the other planets discovered by microlensing. [less ▲]