Kepler’s Optical Phase Curve of the Exoplanet HAT-P-7b

• DOI: 10.1126/science.1178312
• Publication Date: 2009-08-06T21:31:34Z
• Authors: W. J. Borucki; D. Koch; J. Jenkins; D. Sasselov; R. Gilliland; N. Batalha; D. W. Latham; D. Caldwell; G. Basri; T. Brown; J. Christensen-Da...; W. D. Cochran; E. DeVore; E. Dunham; A. K. Dupree; T. Gautier; J. Geary; A. Gould; S. Howell; H. Kjeldsen; J. Lissauer; G. Marcy; S. Meibom; D. Morrison; J. Tarter
• Keywords: Occultation; Kepler-69c; Star (game theory)

Ten days of photometric data were obtained during the commissioning phase Kepler mission, including for previously known giant transiting exoplanet HAT-P-7b. The HAT-P-7b show a smooth rise and fall light from planet as it orbits its star, punctuated by drop 130 +/- 11 parts per million in flux when passes behind star. We interpret this variation dayside thermal emission plus reflected star is occulted. depth occultation similar precision to detection Earth-size which mission was designed.