The Spitzer 24μm Photometric Light Curve of the Eclipsing M-dwarf Binary GU Boötis

Abstract

We present a carefully controlled set of Spitzer 24 μm MIPS time series observations of the low mass eclipsing binary star GU Boötis (GU Boo). Our data cover three secondary eclipses of the system: two consecutive events and an additional eclipse six weeks later. The study's main purpose is the long wavelength characterization of GU Boo's light curve, independent of limb darkening and less sensitive to surface features such as spots. Its analysis allows for independent verification of the results of optical studies of GU Boo. Our mid-infrared results show good agreement with previously obtained system parameters. In addition, the analysis of light curves of other objects in the field of view serves to characterize the photometric stability and repeatability of Spitzer's MIPS-24 at flux densities between approximately 300–2,000μJy. We find that the light curve root mean square about the median level falls into the 1–4% range for flux densities higher than 1 mJy.

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