M dwarf stars are high-priority targets for searches for Earth-size and potentially Earth-like planets, but their planetary systems may form and evolve in very different circumstellar environments than those of solar-type stars. To explore the evolution of these systems, we obtained transit spectroscopy and photometry of the Neptune-size planet orbiting the ≈650-Myr-old Hyades M dwarf K2-25. An analysis of the variation in spectral line shape induced by the Doppler ‘shadow’ of the planet indicates that the planet’s orbit is closely aligned with the stellar equator ($\lambda =-1.7_{-3.7}^{+5.8}$ deg), and that an eccentric orbit found by previous work could arise from perturbations by another planet on a coplanar orbit. We detect no significant variation in the depth of the He i line at 1083 nm during transit. A model of atmospheric escape as an isothermal Parker wind with a solar composition shows that this non-detection is not constraining compared to escape rate predictions of ∼0.1 M⊕ Gyr−1; at such rates, at least several Gyr are required for a Neptune-like planet to evolve into a rocky super-Earth.

We obtained high-resolution spectra of the ultracool M-dwarf TRAPPIST-1 during the transit of its planet “b” using two high-dispersion near-infrared spectrographs, the Infrared Doppler (IRD) instrument on the Subaru 8.2m telescope, and the Habitable Zone Planet Finder (HPF) instrument on the 10 m Hobby–Eberly Telescope. These spectroscopic observations are complemented by a photometric transit observation for planet “b” using the APO/ARCTIC, which assisted us in capturing the correct transit times for our transit spectroscopy. Using the data obtained by the new IRD and HPF observations, as well as the prior transit observations of planets “b,” “e” and “f” from IRD, we attempt to constrain the atmospheric escape of the planet using the He i triplet 10830 Å absorption line. We do not detect evidence for any primordial extended H-He atmospheres in all three planets. To limit any planet-related absorption, we place an upper limit on the equivalent widths of <7.754 mÅ for planet “b,” <10.458 mÅ for planet “e,” <4.143 mÅ for planet “f” at 95% confidence from the IRD data, and <3.467 mÅ for planet “b” at 95% confidence from HPF data. Using these limits along with a solar-like composition isothermal Parker wind model, we attempt to constrain the mass-loss rates for the three planets. For TRAPPIST-1b, our models exclude the highest possible energy-limited rate for a wind temperature <5000 K. This nondetection of extended atmospheres with low mean-molecular weights in all three planets aids in further constraining their atmospheric composition by steering the focus toward the search of high-molecular-weight species in their atmospheres.

Recent discoveries of Earth-sized planets transiting nearby M dwarfs have made it possible to characterize the atmospheres of terrestrial planets via follow-up spectroscopic observations. However, the number of such planets receiving low insolation is still small, limiting our ability to understand the diversity of the atmospheric composition and climates of temperate terrestrial planets. We report the discovery of an Earth-sized planet transiting the nearby (12 pc) inactive M3.0 dwarf Gliese 12 (TOI-6251) with an orbital period (P _orb) of 12.76 days. The planet, Gliese 12 b, was initially identified as a candidate with an ambiguous P _orb from TESS data. We confirmed the transit signal and P _orb using ground-based photometry with MuSCAT2 and MuSCAT3, and validated the planetary nature of the signal using high-resolution images from Gemini/NIRI and Keck/NIRC2 as well as radial velocity (RV) measurements from the InfraRed Doppler instrument on the Subaru 8.2 m telescope and from CARMENES on the CAHA 3.5 m telescope. X-ray observations with XMM-Newton showed the host star is inactive, with an X-ray-to-bolometric luminosity ratio of log L X / L bol ≈ − 5.7 . Joint analysis of the light curves and RV measurements revealed that Gliese 12 b has a radius of 0.96 ± 0.05 R _⊕, a 3σ mass upper limit of 3.9 M _⊕, and an equilibrium temperature of 315 ± 6 K assuming zero albedo. The transmission spectroscopy metric (TSM) value of Gliese 12 b is close to the TSM values of the TRAPPIST-1 planets, adding Gliese 12 b to the small list of potentially terrestrial, temperate planets amenable to atmospheric characterization with JWST.

We present the discovery and validation of a temperate sub-Neptune around the nearby mid-M dwarf TIC 470381900 (TOI-1696), with a radius of 3.09 ± 0.11 R _⊕ and an orbital period of 2.5 days, using a combination of Transiting Exoplanets Survey Satellite (TESS) and follow-up observations using ground-based telescopes. Joint analysis of multiband photometry from TESS, Multicolor Simultaneous Camera for studying Atmospheres of Transiting exoplanets (MuSCAT), MuSCAT3, Sinistro, and KeplerCam confirmed the transit signal to be achromatic as well as refined the orbital ephemeris. High-resolution imaging with Gemini/’Alopeke and high-resolution spectroscopy with the Subaru InfraRed Doppler (IRD) confirmed that there are no stellar companions or background sources to the star. The spectroscopic observations with IRD and Infrared Telescope Facility SpeX were used to determine the stellar parameters, and it was found that the host star is an M4 dwarf with an effective temperature of T _eff = 3185 ± 76 K and a metallicity of [Fe/H] = 0.336 ± 0.060 dex. The radial velocities measured from IRD set a 2σ upper limit on the planetary mass to be 48.8 M _⊕. The large radius ratio (R _p/R _⋆ ∼ 0.1) and the relatively bright near-infrared magnitude (J = 12.2 mag) make this planet an attractive target for further follow-up observations. TOI-1696 b is one of the planets belonging to the Neptunian desert with the highest transmission spectroscopy metric discovered to date, making it an interesting candidate for atmospheric characterizations with JWST.

Searches for helium in the exospheres of exoplanets via the metastable near-infrared triplet have yielded 17 detections and 40 nondetections. We performed a comprehensive reanalysis of published studies to investigate the influence of stellar X-ray and extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) flux and orbital parameters on the detectability of helium in exoplanetary atmospheres. We identified a distinct “orbital sweet spot” for helium detection, 0.03 to 0.08 au from the host star, where the majority of detections occurred. This sweet spot is influenced by the stellar luminosity and planet size. Notably, a lower ratio of XUV flux to mid-UV flux is preferred for planets compared to nondetections. We also found that helium detections occur for planets around stars with effective temperatures of 4400–6500 K (i.e., spectral type K and G stars), with a sharp gap between 5400 and 6000 K, where no detections occur. We also report an upper-limit efficiency of 6% for energy-limited atmospheric escape from our analysis. Additionally, our analysis of the cumulative XUV flux versus escape velocity shows planets with helium detections above the “cosmic shoreline,” where atmospheres are not thought to be present, suggesting the shoreline needs revision. The unexpected trends revealed in our meta-analysis can contribute to a better understanding of star–planet interaction and exosphere evolution.

Kepler showed a paucity of planets with radii of 1.5 – 2 R_⊕ around solar mass stars but this radius-gap has not been well studied for low-mass star planets. Energy-driven escape models like photoevaporation and core-powered mass-loss predict opposing transition regimes between rocky and non-rocky planets when compared to models depicting planets forming in gas-poor environments. Here we present transit observations of three super-Earth sized planets in the radius-gap around low-mass stars using high-dispersion InfraRed Doppler (IRD) spectrograph on the Subaru 8.2m telescope. The planets GJ 9827 b and d orbit around a K6V star and TOI-1235 b orbits a M0.5 star. We limit any planet-related absorption in the 1083.3 nm lines of triplet He I by placing an upper-limit on the equivalent width of 14.71 mÅ, 18.39 mÅ and 1.44 mÅ for GJ 9827 b (99% confidence), GJ 9827 d (99% confidence) and TOI-1235 b (95% confidence) respectively. Using a Parker wind model, we cap the mass-loss at >0.25 M_⊕ Gyr⁻¹ and >0.2 M_⊕ Gyr⁻¹ for GJ 9827 b and d, respectively (99% confidence), and >0.05 M_⊕ Gyr⁻¹ for TOI-1235 b (95% confidence) for a representative wind temperature of 5000 K. Our observed results for the three planets are more consistent with the predictions from photoevaporation and/or core-powered mass-loss models than the gas-poor formation models. However, more planets in the radius-gap regime around the low-mass stars are needed to robustly predict the atmospheric evolution in planets around low-mass stars.