Distinctions between TESS and Kepler data of KIC 8462852 and criticism of the circumsolar ring hypotheses

Abstract

KIC 8462852, an F3 main sequence star, has been observed to undergo deep light curve dips whose origin remains unknown. Since the discovery of these deep dips in 2016, numerous hypotheses have been proposed, including but not limited to dust clouds, a family of disrupted comets, and circumstellar gas. In this paper, the possibility of the circumsolar ring hypothesis is explored by evaluating the flux change of surrounding stars and calculating the possible thickness of the ring. This work also analyzes Kepler data and the new TESS data of KIC 8462852, which presents a symmetric transit-like dip that has never been observed. Speculating this is a planet-star transit. This work yields a transit period of 427 days. The analysis of the latest data set provides further evidence for the study and may weaken some predicted periods and hypotheses.