Precision radial velocities with CSHELL

Abstract

Radial velocity (RV) identification of extrasolar planets has historically been dominated by optical surveys. Interest in expanding exoplanet searches to M dwarfs and young stars, however, has motivated a push to improve the precision of near-infrared RV techniques. We present our methodology for achieving 58ms-1 precision in the K band on the M0 dwarf GJ 281 using the CSHELL spectrograph at the 3 m NASA Infrared Telescope Facility. We also demonstrate our ability to recover the known 4 M JUP exoplanet Gl 86 b and discuss the implications for success in detecting planets around 1-3 Myr old T Tauri stars. © 2011. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..