Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data

We present I -band time-series photometric variability studies of three known nearby (∼140 pc) and young (∼1 Myr) brown dwarfs (BD) in the Taurus star-forming region in the Perseus molecular cloud. From 10 nights of observations over a time span of 10 yr, with a typical run of 3–6 hr each night, we...

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Main Authors: Samrat Ghosh, Soumen Mondal, Somnath Dutta, Rajib Kumbhakar, Ramkrishna Das, Santosh Joshi, Sneh Lata
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:The Astrophysical Journal
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada955
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author Samrat Ghosh
Soumen Mondal
Somnath Dutta
Rajib Kumbhakar
Ramkrishna Das
Santosh Joshi
Sneh Lata
author_facet Samrat Ghosh
Soumen Mondal
Somnath Dutta
Rajib Kumbhakar
Ramkrishna Das
Santosh Joshi
Sneh Lata
author_sort Samrat Ghosh
collection DOAJ
description We present I -band time-series photometric variability studies of three known nearby (∼140 pc) and young (∼1 Myr) brown dwarfs (BD) in the Taurus star-forming region in the Perseus molecular cloud. From 10 nights of observations over a time span of 10 yr, with a typical run of 3–6 hr each night, we estimated that the BDs show unstable short-scale periodicity from 1.5 to 4.8 hr. Using the long-term photometry from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), we have conducted a time-resolved variability analysis of CFHT-BD-Tau 3 and CFHT-BD-Tau 4, revealing orbital periods of ∼0.96 days and ∼3 days respectively, consistent with earlier studies. We also found two superflares in TESS sector 43 data for CFHT-BD-Tau 4 and estimated the flare energies as 7.09 × 10 ^35 erg and 3.75 × 10 ^36 erg. A magnetic field of ∼3.39 kG is required to generate such flare energies on this BD. We performed spot modeling analysis on CFHT-BD-Tau 3 and CFHT-BD-Tau 4 to address the variability detected in the data using the package BASSMAN. Spectral energy distribution and infrared colors of the sources suggest that they have a sufficient amount of circumstellar material around them.
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spelling doaj-art-2e4f1ed7fae24d36866248dbc93f31e72025-08-20T03:12:50ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198117510.3847/1538-4357/ada955Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS DataSamrat Ghosh0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3354-850XSoumen Mondal1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1457-0541Somnath Dutta2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2338-4583Rajib Kumbhakar3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7277-2577Ramkrishna Das4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5440-7186Santosh Joshi5https://orcid.org/0009-0007-1545-854XSneh Lata6https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9367-1580Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) , Manora Peak, Nainital-263002, India; S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences , Salt Lake, Kolkata 700 106, IndiaS. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences , Salt Lake, Kolkata 700 106, IndiaInstitute of Astronomy and Astrophysics , Academia Sinica, Taipei 10617, TaiwanS. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences , Salt Lake, Kolkata 700 106, IndiaS. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences , Salt Lake, Kolkata 700 106, IndiaAryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) , Manora Peak, Nainital-263002, IndiaAryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) , Manora Peak, Nainital-263002, IndiaWe present I -band time-series photometric variability studies of three known nearby (∼140 pc) and young (∼1 Myr) brown dwarfs (BD) in the Taurus star-forming region in the Perseus molecular cloud. From 10 nights of observations over a time span of 10 yr, with a typical run of 3–6 hr each night, we estimated that the BDs show unstable short-scale periodicity from 1.5 to 4.8 hr. Using the long-term photometry from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), we have conducted a time-resolved variability analysis of CFHT-BD-Tau 3 and CFHT-BD-Tau 4, revealing orbital periods of ∼0.96 days and ∼3 days respectively, consistent with earlier studies. We also found two superflares in TESS sector 43 data for CFHT-BD-Tau 4 and estimated the flare energies as 7.09 × 10 ^35 erg and 3.75 × 10 ^36 erg. A magnetic field of ∼3.39 kG is required to generate such flare energies on this BD. We performed spot modeling analysis on CFHT-BD-Tau 3 and CFHT-BD-Tau 4 to address the variability detected in the data using the package BASSMAN. Spectral energy distribution and infrared colors of the sources suggest that they have a sufficient amount of circumstellar material around them.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada955Brown dwarfsLow mass starsOptical flaresAtmospheric variabilityVariable starsStellar activity
spellingShingle Samrat Ghosh
Soumen Mondal
Somnath Dutta
Rajib Kumbhakar
Ramkrishna Das
Santosh Joshi
Sneh Lata
Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data
The Astrophysical Journal
Brown dwarfs
Low mass stars
Optical flares
Atmospheric variability
Variable stars
Stellar activity
title Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data
title_full Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data
title_fullStr Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data
title_full_unstemmed Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data
title_short Dynamic Photometric Variability in Three Young Brown Dwarfs in Taurus: Detection of Optical Flares with TESS Data
title_sort dynamic photometric variability in three young brown dwarfs in taurus detection of optical flares with tess data
topic Brown dwarfs
Low mass stars
Optical flares
Atmospheric variability
Variable stars
Stellar activity
url https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada955
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