Related papers: The Connection Between Pulsation, Mass Loss and Ci…
We present a model for the diffuse interstellar dust that explains the observed wavelength-dependence of extinction, emission, linear and circular polarisation of light. The model is set-up with a small number of parameters. It consists of…
The mass loss process along the AGB phase is crucial for the formation of circumstellar envelopes (CSEs), which in the post-AGB phase will evolve into planetary nebulae (PNe). There are still important issues that need to be further…
Classical Cepheids are the most popular distance indicators and tracers of young stellar populations. The key advantage is that they are bright and they can be easily identified in Local Group and Local Volume galaxies. Their evolutionary…
Using detailed Monte Carlo radiative transfer simulations in realistic models for galactic nuclei, we investigate the influence of interstellar dust in ionized gas discs on the rotation curves and the resulting black hole mass measurements.…
It has been recently discovered that Cepheids harbor circumstellar envelopes (CSEs). RS Pup is the Cepheid that presents the most prominent circumstellar envelope known, the origin of which is not yet understood. Our purpose is to estimate…
The Galactic calibration of the period-luminosity (PL) relation for classical Cepheids is examined using trigonometric, open cluster, and pulsation parallaxes, which help establish independent versions of the relationship. The calibration…
The effect of metallicity on the theoretical and empirical period-luminosity (PL) relations of Cepheid variables is not well understood and remains a highly debated issue. Here, we examine empirical colour-magnitude diagrams (CMDs) of…
Using data obtained by the DIRBE and FIRAS instruments on the COBE spacecraft we present the mean 3.5-1000 um dust spectrum from the high latitude cirrus clouds. These data represent the most comprehensive wavelength coverage of dust…
We present the analysis of multiband time-series data for a sample of 24 Cepheids in the field of the Large Magellanic Cloud cluster NGC1866. Very accurate BVI VLT photometry is combined with archival UBVI data, covering a large temporal…
Classical Cepheids are powerful probes of both stellar evolution and near-field cosmology thanks to their high luminosities, pulsations, and that they follow the Leavitt (Period-Luminosity) Law. However, there still exist a number of…
Classical Cepheids are the archetype of the standard candle, thanks to the period-luminosity relation which allows to measure their intrinsic brightness. They are also relatively young and bright, potentially making them excellent tracers…
IR excesses of white dwarfs (WDs) can be used to diagnose the presence of low-mass companions, planets, and circumstellar dust. Using different combinations of wavelengths and WD temperatures, circumstellar dust at different radial…
The accuracy of the Hubble constant measured with extragalactic Cepheids depends on robust photometry and background estimation in the presence of stellar crowding. The conventional approach accounts for crowding by sampling backgrounds…
We present Period-Luminosity-Color and Period-Luminosity relations of classical Cepheids constructed for about 1280 Cepheids from the LMC and 2140 from the SMC. High quality BVI observations (120-360 epochs in the I-band and 15-40 in the…
Both pulsation and mass loss are commonly observed in stars and are important ingredients for understanding stellar evolution and structure, especially for massive stars. There is a growing body of evidence that pulsation can also drive and…
Theory surrounding the origin of the dust-laden winds from evolved stars remains mired in controversy. Characterizing the formation loci and the dust distribution within approximately the first stellar radius above the surface is crucial…
The thermal emission of dust is one of the most important tracers of the interstellar medium: multi-wavelength photometry in the far-infrared (FIR) and submillimeter (submm) can be fitted with a model, providing estimates of the dust mass.…
Dust particle impacts on the Wind spacecraft were detected with its plasma wave instrument Wind/WAVES. Frequency analysis on this dust impact time series revealed spectral peaks indicative of a solar rotation signature. We investigated…
The physics of galaxy clusters has proven to be influenced by several processes connected with their galactic component which pollutes the ICM with metals, stars and dust. However, it is not clear whether the presence of diffuse dust can…
We present the results of non-linear pulsation modeling of bump Cepheids in the LMC and SMC. By obtaining an optimal fit to the observed MACHO V and R lightcurves we can determine the fundamental parameters of each Cepheid, namely mass,…