Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: The ESA PLATO mission aims to detect and characterise Earth-size exoplanets orbiting bright, late-type stars using high-precision photometry and asteroseismology. Precise stellar parameters of host stars are essential for exoplanet characterisation and model benchmarking. This work defines the PLATO benchmark stars (PBS) catalogue, a comprehensive sample of well-characterised stars designed to support all mission phases. We compiled data from eclipsing and spectroscopic binaries, interferometry, asteroseismology, and large spectroscopic and photometric surveys. Fundamental and atmospheric stellar properties (mass, radius, luminosity, age, effective temperature, surface gravity, density, and limb darkening) were assigned quality levels (B1, B2, B3) reflecting their degree of model dependence. Homogenized ancillary parameters (including Gaia DR3 bias-corrected parallaxes, metallicities, bolometric fluxes, extinction, rotation periods, and X-ray fluxes for M dwarfs) are also provided. The PBS catalogue contains 1090 FGKM main-sequence and subgiant stars, divided into three quality tiers based on model-independent (B1) parameters: gold (15 stars with B1 mass, radius, and luminosity), silver (195 with B1 mass and radius), and bronze (416 with at least one B1 property). The remaining stars feature well-characterised model-dependent (B2) or empirical (B3) properties. About 40% of the sample lies within the PLATO fields of view (285 in LOPN1 and 143 in LOPS2). The PBS sample represents the largest catalogue of benchmark stars assembled to date, providing a key resource for validating automated pipelines, testing evolutionary models, and cross-survey calibration. The catalogue is available online at https://astro.ulb.ac.be/pbs and will be updated regularly.
Source: arXiv (Cornell University)
Authors: Merle, T., Maxted, P. F. L., Creevey, O. L., Heiter, U., Palakkatharappi, D. B., Hełminiak, K. G., Gómez, C. C. Aguilera, Bazot, M., Cassisi, S., Ebrahimkutty, N., Giribaldi, R. E., Jofré, P., Kiefer, F., Lund, M. N., Miller, N., Morel, T., Mourard, D., Nardetto, N., Nascimento,, J. -D. do, Jr., Olander, T., Pawar, G. N., Rebassa-Mansergas, A., Raddi, R., Rojas-Ayala, B., Southworth, J.
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funders: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, California Institute of Technology, UK Space Agency, European Space Agency, European Commission, Swedish National Space Agency, Belgian Federal Science Policy Office, Generalitat de Catalunya, Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca, Agencia Estatal de Investigación
Awards: G1060464874, G2064873908, G2140548428, G2462415295, SWIPE: Stars WIth Pulsations and Eclipses, G288263039, G3005324705, G3209474443, G496686534, G5479016945, G5852091828, G5956904458, G6054710752, Benchmark stars for the PLATO mission., G69051668, G7253123855, Astrophysics at Keele: planets, stars and galaxies, G8506347251, CENTRO DE ASTROFISICA Y TECNOLOGIAS AFINES (CATA), G8980176262
OpenAlex ID: W7220451650