Giant Exoplanets around M-dwarf Stars (GEMS)

In this presentation, we describe the new Giant Exoplanets around M dwarf Stars (GEMS) survey initiated to to understand giant planets transiting around M dwarf stars. This survey will try to understand giant planet formation, by shedding light on big planets around small stars. We will perform a systematic search for these planets in the TESS full frame images, and continue our radial velocity follow up to confirm these planets and measure their masses. As part of this ongoing effort, we have confirmed about half the known Jovian planets around M dwarf stars and plan to triple this sample in three years. This increased sample will be crucial to estimate the TESS detection sensitivity, and thereby quantify the occurrence of these planets as a function of stellar and orbital parameters. Next, we describe how the existence of some of these planets stretches our understanding of planet formation, and necessitates revisiting the mass budget of class II protoplanetary disks. Finally, we discuss how these planets around cool stars with large transit depths are excellent targets for atmospheric characterisation for JWST and ARIEL, especially for equilibrium temperatures conducive to the existence of methane in planetary atmospheres. Through this presentation, we hope to encourage dialogue about planet formation, tidal evolution, atmospheric characterization and RV mass measurements in a hitherto (largely) unexplored regime of planets