A systematic validation of hot Neptunes in TESS data.

Our galaxy is inhabited by a great variety of exoplanets, much different from those of our own Solar System. The vast majority of close-in planets are massive hot Jupiters capable of holding their atmosphere against the stellar photoevaporation or small rocky planets completely drained by the stellar radiation. However, we observe an unexpected lack of highly irradiated Neptune- and Saturn-like planets orbiting their host star in less than 4--10 days. This poorly populated region of the planetary period-radius space is known as the "Hot Neptune Desert" and represents an open question within the field of theoretical astrophysics. Different physical scenarios have been proposed to explain the boundaries that delimit the Desert region. Here, we will show our latest results uniformly vetting 250 hot Neptune TESS candidates with a two-step vetting technique along with follow-up observations. We found 9 high-priority TESS candidates within the Desert, two of which were statistically validated, $i.e.$, TOI-1288 b and TOI-277 b. Future atmospheric characterization of these objects could offer a unique opportunity to unveil the mistery behind their rarity.