Exoplanet Targets for Unistellar Citizen Scientists Across the World for February 2021

hello exoplanet citizen scientists across the world!

We at the SETI Institute Unistellar Science Team are excited to bring several new year exoplanet science targets for our citizen scientists in Australia, Europe, Japan, Hawaii and the Americas! Some of these exoplanets are “targets of interest” (TOI) for NASA’s current exoplanet finding mission, TESS, and your observation can help exoplanet scientists better understand these distant worlds.

Additionally, we’re excited to bring an exoplanet target to our friends in Australia as our network of eVscopes grows into the Southern Hemisphere. Check out the new Unistellar Community World Map to see where eVscopes are located around the world.

NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), currently in operation, is the follow-up to the successful exoplanet Kepler mission. Its goal is to survey most of the sky for close by exoplanets and find the best Earth or super-Earth sized planets for future missions capable of further characterization, such as determining the makeup of their atmospheres and searching for possible biosignatures, which could indicate the presence of life.

Your data could help verify and/or add to a better understanding of this potential exoplanet’s characteristics.

*Successful observers whose data show a transit will be provided with a transit light curve and we may be able to use this data for other research we’re involved with that may possibly result in scientific publications where observers are credited in publication (no promises, but we hope!). 😃

Please be sure to carefully read over the observation directions PDF below if you have never attempted an exoplanet transit with your Unistellar eVscope or need a review. Thank you to Tom and the SETI Institute Unistellar Science Team for help planning these exciting observations!

Please send questions and observing reports to citizenscience@unistellaroptics.com.

Best,

Dan

OBSERVING INFORMATION REGION

Australia

Local Date: Evening of 23 February
Observation Start – End Time (Australian Eastern Standard Time, UTC+10): 21:30 – 02:45
Target Name: TOI 1019.01
RA: 08:00:36
Dec: -54:52:43
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 16
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=120.148&dec=-54.87855&c=3970&et=3970&g=16&d=1800&t=1614083100000
Additional Target Info: This Hot Jupiter is a candidate planet discovered recently by NASA's TESS space telescope. eVscope observations can help confirm the timing of its 5.2 day orbit around a star 1.5x larger and over 7x brighter than our Sun.

North America (East+Central), Central America + Caribbean (partial), northern South America

Local Date: Evening of 24 February
Observation Start – End Time (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-5): 23:20 – 02:35
Target Name: TOI 1858.01
RA: 13:17:39
Dec: 22:51:00
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 35
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=199.41258&dec=22.8501&c=3970&et=3970&g=35&d=1800&t=1614230820000
Additional Target Info: This would be a record for faintest star with a transit detected by eVscopes (visual magnitude 14). This Hot Jupiter is a candidate planet recently discovered by NASA's TESS space telescope. The gas giant planet has puffed up to nearly twice its expected diameter because it is very hot even though it orbits a star smaller and cooler than our Sun.

North America, West & North (north of ~34 N)

Local Date: Evening of 28 February
Observation Start – End Time (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-8): 21:10 – 01:10
Target Name: TOI 2154.01
RA: 04:44:07
Dec: 84:21:51
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 18
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=71.02817&dec=84.36426&c=3970&et=3970&g=18&d=1800&t=1614577920000
Additional Target Info: This would potentially set the record for the shallowest transit detected by eVscopes. The shallow depth mainly comes from the host star being more massive than the Sun and also perhaps more "evolved", having passed its main phase of hydrogen fusion and growing into its "giant" phase.

All Europe

Local Date: Evening of 20 February
Observation Start – End Time (Central European Time, UTC+1): 01:00 – 04:15
Target Name: TOI 1858.01
RA: 13:17:39
Dec: 22:51:00
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 35
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=199.41258&dec=22.8501&c=3970&et=3970&g=35&d=1800&t=1613869500000
Additional Target Info: This would be a record for faintest star with a transit detected by eVscopes (visual magnitude 14). This Hot Jupiter is a candidate planet recently discovered by NASA's TESS space telescope. The gas giant planet has puffed up to nearly twice its expected diameter because it is very hot even though it orbits a star smaller and cooler than our Sun.

Europe, Northern & Eastern + Scandinavia

Local Date: Evening of 18 February
Observation Start – End Time (Central European Time, UTC+1): 22:45 – 02:00
Target Name: TOI 1858.01
RA: 13:17:39
Dec: 22:51:00
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 35
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=199.41258&dec=22.8501&c=3970&et=3970&g=35&d=1800&t=1613688780000
Elevation range: 30–60 deg
Additional Target Info: This would be a record for faintest star with a transit detected by eVscopes (visual magnitude 14). This Hot Jupiter is a candidate planet recently discovered by NASA's TESS space telescope. The gas giant planet has puffed up to nearly twice its expected diameter because it is very hot even though it orbits a star smaller and cooler than our Sun.

Hawaii

Local Date: Evening of 14 February
Observation Start – End Time (Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time, UTC-10): 20:20 – 00:00
Target Name: WASP-170 b (TOI 1925.01)
RA: 09:01:40
Dec: -20:43:13
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 30
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=135.41638&dec=-20.72044&c=3970&et=3970&g=30&d=1800&t=1613373300000
Elevation range: 38–49 deg
Additional Target Info: Valentine’s day transit! This Hot Jupiter is 2000 F because it is so close to its star, which is very Sun-like. It orbits once every 2.3 days and is the only planet known in this system. eVscopes can help update and maintain its orbital timing.

Japan & eastern China

Local Date: Evening of 12 February
Observation Start – End Time (Japan Standard Time, UTC+9): 00:15 – 03:30
Target Name: TOI 1858.01
RA: 13:17:39
Dec: 22:51:00
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 35
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=199.41258&dec=22.8501&c=3970&et=3970&g=35&d=1800&t=1613146800000
Additional Target Info: This would be a record for faintest star with a transit detected by eVscopes (visual magnitude 14). This Hot Jupiter is a candidate planet recently discovered by NASA's TESS space telescope. The gas giant planet has puffed up to nearly twice its expected diameter because it is very hot even though it orbits a star smaller and cooler than our Sun.

South America, South

Local Date: Evening of 12 February
Observation Start – End Time (Chile Summer Time, UTC-3): 21:20 – 02:35
Target Name: TOI 1019.01
RA: 08:00:36
Dec: -54:52:43
Exposure Time (ms): 3970
Cadence (ms): 3970
Gain (db): 16
Deeplink (click on this with your smartphone to have target coordinates and eVscope settings automatically populated into your Unistellar app): unistellar://science/transit?ra=120.148&dec=-54.87855&c=3970&et=3970&g=16&d=1800&t=1613178660000
Additional Target Info: This Hot Jupiter is a candidate planet discovered recently by NASA's TESS space telescope. eVscope observations can help confirm the timing of its 5.2 day orbit around a star 1.5x larger and over 7x brighter than our Sun.
V=10.89, transit depth=22.24 ppt

Finder Charts (look at image captions for target name)

UNISTELLAR eVSCOPE EXOPLANET OBSERVING DIRECTIONS

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A PDF OF THE DIRECTIONS, OR VIEW THEM BELOW.

IMPORTANT APP UPDATE: There is a new version of the Unistellar app (v1.2) that allows you to use “Exoplanet transits” (see screenshots below). The PDF directions linked above and below have been updated for use with the current app version so make sure to look at them or update your files if you were using the older version that used the Asteroid occultations menu.
Please use Exoplanet mode for this transit. Use cadences mentioned above and 30 minute durations.