![Wavelength distributions of candidate spectral lines retained at each step of the line-selection procedure. The histograms show the initial linelist (light), lines retained after automated vetting (intermediate), and the final manually vetted sample (dark). The shaded background regions indicate approximate wavelength ranges for the Y, J, H, and K-bands.-- [astro-ph.SR]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Elemental.png?fit=1200%2C671&ssl=1)
[astro-ph.SR] Stellar elemental abundances provide important constraints on the chemical environments from which planets form. M and late-K dwarfs are prime targets for the characterization of small exoplanets, yet their complex spectra make accurate elemental abundance measurements challenging.
In this work, we present a spectral synthesis-based framework to derive detailed abundances for cool stars from high-resolution, near-infrared spectra.
We apply our framework to SPIRou YJHK spectra of five planet-host stars–GJ 9827, K2-18, TOI-1201, TOI-1685, and Barnard’s Star–and derive abundances of C, O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Cr, Mn, and Fe for all five stars, plus Sc, V, and Ni for a subset, with typical uncertainties of ≲0.1 dex.
Our recovered metallicities and elemental abundances are broadly consistent with expected trends and previous literature analyses of these stars. We derive stellar ratios of C/O, Mg/Si, Fe/Mg, and Fe/O and find that all five systems are broadly consistent with solar ratios, with the exception of the metal-poor Barnard’s Star ([M/H] =−0.33±0.06 dex), which is substantially iron-poor ([Fe/H] =−0.722±0.085 dex).
Our results establish stellar chemical baselines for interior structure and atmospheric studies of these planetary systems with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), while highlighting the remaining model-dependent limitations of precise abundance analyses for cool stars.
Nicole Gromek, Drew Weisserman, Ryan Cloutier, Alexandrine L’Heureux, Charles Cadieux
Comments: 35 pages, 16 figures, 6 tables. Submitted to PASP
Subjects: Solar and Stellar Astrophysics (astro-ph.SR); Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
Cite as: arXiv:2609.24970 [astro-ph.SR] (or arXiv:2609.24970v1 [astro-ph.SR] for this version)
https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2609.24970
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Submission history
From: Nicole Gromek
[v1] Mon, 21 Sep 2026 17:54:24 UTC (8,560 KB)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.24970
Astrobiology,
