Constraining the Densities of the Three Kepler-289 Planets with Transit
Timing Variations
Abstract
Kepler-289 is a three-planet system exhibiting Transit Timing Variations
(TTVs). Kepler-289 contains two sub-Neptunes and one gas giant planet
orbiting a young, Sun-like star whose light curve exhibits significant
variability due to rotational modulation from starspots. All three
planets orbit within 0.52 AU of the host star with orbital periods just
below a 1:2:4 Laplace orbital resonance. We observe a transit of
Kepler-289c with the WIRC instrument on the 200” Hale Telescope at
Palomar Observatory, using diffuser-assisted photometry to achieve
space-like photometric precision from the ground. This new transit
observation extends the original four-year Kepler TTV baseline by an
additional 6.5 years. We re-reduce the archival Kepler data with an
improved stellar activity correction and carry out a joint fit with the
Palomar data to constrain the transit shape and derive updated transit
times. We then model the TTVs to determine the masses of the three
planets and constrain their densities. Our new analysis results in
improved mass and density estimates for all three planets, with the
innermost planet showing the largest improvement.