Related papers: Galactic and Extragalactic Distance Scales: The Va…
The current state-of-the-art cosmic distance ladder requires three rungs--geometric distances, primary indicators, and Type Ia Supernovae--to achieve a 1% measurement of the Hubble constant $H_0$. The Habitable Worlds Observatory will have…
Globular clusters are both primary fossils of galactic evolution and formation and are ideal laboratories for constraining the evolution of low-mass and metal-poor stars. RR Lyrae and type II Cepheid variables are low-mass, radially…
We review the use of Cepheids as distance indicators with particular emphasis on the methods which have been applied to HST observations of Cepheids. The calibration of the period-luminosity relations is examined in detail and we identify…
We present the first part of a new catalog of variable stars (OIII-CVS) compiled from the data collected in the course of the third phase of the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE-III). In this paper we describe the catalog of…
We present time-series observations of Population \rom{2} Cepheids in the Large Magellanic Cloud at near-infrared ($JHK_s$) wavelengths. Our sample consists of 81 variables with accurate periods and optical ($VI$) magnitudes from the OGLE…
We use the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) to reduce the uncertainty in the local value of the Hubble constant (H_0) from 3.3% to 2.4%. Improvements come from new, near-infrared observations of Cepheid…
Gravitational lensing by galaxy clusters can create extreme magnification near the cluster caustics, thereby enabling detection of individual luminous stars in high-redshift background galaxies. Those stars can include non-explosive…
We describe the VSNG Project, a collaboration between researchers of Bologna, Padova, Napoli and Merate Observatories, to study variable stars in a number of galaxies in the Local Group. We briefly review results obtained for the galaxies…
We have undertaken several projects with the purpose of determining accurate distances to nearby galaxies to calibrate the extragalactic distance scale. Specifically, I describe the DIRECT project which aims to derive the distance to M31…
We present B, V and I CCD light curves for 101 variable stars belonging to the globular cluster NGC2419, 60 of which are new discoveries, based on datasets obtained at the TNG, SUBARU and HST telescopes. The sample includes 75 RR Lyrae…
We present Cepheids located in the close neighborhood of star clusters from the Magellanic Clouds. 204 and 132 such stars were found in the LMC and SMC, respectively. The lists of objects were constructed based on catalogs of Cepheids and…
Large-amplitude asymptotic giant branch variables potentially rival Cepheid variables as fundamental calibrators of the distance scale, particularly if observations are made in the infrared, or where there is substantial interstellar…
We present results of an optical search for Cepheid variable stars using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) in 19 hosts of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) and the maser-host galaxy NGC 4258, conducted as part of the SH0ES project (Supernovae and…
Flaring and warping of the disk of the Milky Way have been inferred from observations of atomic hydrogen, but stars associated with flaring have not hitherto been reported. In the area beyond the Galactic centre the stars are largely hidden…
We perform a novel test of General Relativity by measuring the gravitational constant in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). The LMC contains six well-studied Cepheid variable stars in detached eclipsing binaries. Radial velocity and…
Increasing samples of pulsating variable stars populating the classical instability strip from the horizontal branch to a few magnitudes brighter are being found in several Local Group galaxies, irrespective of the galaxy morphological…
This study's objective was to exploit infrared VVV (VISTA Variables in the Via Lactea) photometry for high latitude RRab stars to establish an accurate Galactic Centre distance. RRab candidates were discovered and reaffirmed ($n=4194$) by…
The data of 8,852 and 2,927 variable stars detected by OGLE survey in the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are presented. They are cross-identified with the SIRIUS JHK survey data, and their infrared properties are discussed. Variable red…
Distant regions close to the plane of our Galaxy are largely unexplored by optical surveys as they are hidden by dust. We have used near-infrared data (that minimizes dust obscuration) from the ESO Public survey VISTA Variables of the Via…
Intensive monitoring of low-extinction windows towards the galactic bulge has provided in the last years valuable information for studies about the dynamics, kinematics and formation history of this part of the galaxy, mainly by…