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From Misaligned Sub-Saturns to Aligned Brown Dwarfs: The Highest $M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$ Systems Exhibit Low Obliquities, Even around Hot Stars

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abstract

We present a pattern emerging from stellar obliquity measurements in single-star systems: planets with high planet-to-star mass ratios ($M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$$>$ $2\times10^{-3}$) -- such as super-Jupiters, brown dwarf companions, and M-dwarfs hosting Jupiter-like planets -- tend to be aligned, even around hot stars. This alignment represents a 3.7$\sigma$ deviation from the obliquity distribution observed in systems with lower mass ratios ($M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$$<$ $2\times10^{-3}$), which predominantly include Jupiters and sub-Saturns. The only known outlier system, XO-3, exhibits misalignment confirmed via our newly collected Rossiter-McLaughlin effect measurement ($\lambda=41.8^{+2.1}_{-2.0}$ degrees). However, the relatively large $\textit{Gaia}$ Renormalized Unit Weight Error (RUWE) of XO-3 suggests that it may harbor an undetected binary companion, potentially contributing to its misalignment. Given that tidal realignment mechanisms are weak for hot stars, the observed alignment in high $M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$ systems is likely $\textit{primordial}$ rather than resulting from tidal interactions. One possible explanation is that only dynamically isolated planets can continue accreting gas and evolve into super-Jupiters while maintaining their primordial alignment. Conversely, planets formed in compact configurations may be unable to grow beyond the gap-opening mass, for which our work suggests an empirical boundary $M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$$=$ $2\times10^{-3}$, identified between aligned high $M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$ systems and misaligned low $M_{\rm p}/M{_*}$ systems, with dynamical instabilities contributing to the diverse spin-orbit misalignments observed in the latter.

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astro-ph.EP 1

years

2025 1

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CONDITIONAL 1

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TOI-880 is an Aligned, Coplanar, Multi-planet System

astro-ph.EP · 2025-07-22 · conditional · novelty 5.0

TOI-880 hosts three transiting planets with a sky-projected obliquity of |lambda| = 7.4 +6.8/-7.2 degrees for planet c, consistent with an aligned, coplanar architecture.

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  • TOI-880 is an Aligned, Coplanar, Multi-planet System astro-ph.EP · 2025-07-22 · conditional · none · ref 61 · internal anchor

    TOI-880 hosts three transiting planets with a sky-projected obliquity of |lambda| = 7.4 +6.8/-7.2 degrees for planet c, consistent with an aligned, coplanar architecture.