Exoplanet Detection Map Calculator (Exo-DMC)

Information

This repository includes the first version of the Exo-DMC (Exoplanet Detection Map Calculator), a Monte Carlo tool for the statistical analysis of exoplanet surveys results.

The tool combines the information on the target stars with the instrument detection limits to estimate the probability of detection of a given synthetic planet population, ultimately generating detection probability maps.

Requirements

This package relies on usual packages for data science and astronomy: numpy, scipy, pandas, matplotlib and astropy.

Installation:

The easiest is to install Exo-DMC using pip:

pip install ExoDMC

Otherwise your can download the current repository and install the package manually:

cd ExoDMC/
python setup.py install

Examples

The package is not fully documented, but examples are provided.

If you find a bug or want to suggest improvements, please create a ticket

Credits

The Exo-DMC is the latest (although the first one in Python) rendition of the MESS (Multi-purpose Exoplanet Simulation System).

To understand the DMC's underlying assumptions is therefore useful to read about the MESS in its various iteration:

• MESS (Multi-purpose Exoplanet Simulation System) Bonavita et al. 2012, A&A, 537, A67: first version of the code (note that the link provided in the paper is not working anymore)
• Quick-MESS: A Fast Statistical Tool for Exoplanet Imaging Surveys Bonavita et al. 2013, PASP, 125, 849: quick version of MESS, which abandones the Monte Carlo approach for a faster grid-like one.
• MESS2: Lannier et al. 2017 A&A, 603, A54: designed to combined multiple data sets, both from Direct Imaging and Radial Velocity.

Like MESS, the DMC allows for a high level of flexibility in terms of possible assumptions on the synthetic planet population to be used for the determination of the detection probability.

Although the present version is a very basic one, you can have a glimpse of what's to come by checking out some of the analysis performed with MESS and QMESS:

• Constraints on gian planet occurrence rate
  • for single stars Stone et al. 2018, AJ, 156, 286
  • or binary stars Bonavita et al. 2016, A&A, 593, A38, (Bonavita & Desidera 2020, Galaxies 2020, 8, 16)[https://arxiv.org/abs/2002.11734]
• Constraints on planet formation models
  • Humphries et al. 2019, MNRAS, 488, 4873
  • Vigan et al. 2017, A&A, 603, A3
• Constraints on brown dwarf variability Vos et al. 2019, MNRAS, 483, 480
• Constraints on specific objects Bonavita et al. 2010, A&A, 522, A2

Recent papers using the Exo-DMC:

• Direct imaging of sub-Jupiter mass exoplanets with James Webb Space Telescope coronagraphy Carter, Aarynn L. et al. arXiv:2011.07075

Author and contributors

Mariangela Bonavita <mbonav@roe.ac.uk>, SUPA, Institute for Astronomy, University of Edinburgh

With important contributions from:

• Silvano Desidera (INAF-OAPD)
• Ernst de Moij (CfAR)
• Arthur Vigan (LAM / CNRS)
• Justine Lannier

We are grateful for your effort, and hope that these tools will contribute to your scientific work and discoveries. Please feel free to report any bug or possible improvement to the author(s).

Attribution

Please cite Bonavita 2020 whenever you publish results obtained with the Exo-DMC. Astrophysics Source Code Library reference ascl:2010.008