Related papers: Accurate dynamical mass determination of a classic…
We report the result of our near-infrared survey of short-period variable stars (P<60d) in a field-of-view of 20'x30' towards the Galactic Centre. Forty-five variables are discovered and we classify the variables based on their light curve…
We examine the multi-wavelength period-luminosity-color relations for Cepheid variables in the Large and Small magellanic Clouds and the Milky Way. From first-principles stellar physics, the luminosity of a Cepheid is determined by its…
The dynamical mass of a star cluster can be derived from the virial theorem, using the measured half-mass radius and line-of-sight velocity dispersion of the cluster. However, this dynamical mass may be a significant overestimation of the…
We present the analysis of photometric and spectroscopic data of two bright Galactic Cepheids, X Puppis and XX Sagittarii. Based on the available data in the literature as well as own observations spanning 75 years, we conclude that both…
The fundamental properties of detached eclipsing binary stars can be measured very accurately, which could make them important objects for constraining the treatment of convection in theoretical stellar models. However, only four or five…
The change in the argument of periastron of eclipsing binaries, i.e., the apsidal motion caused by classical and relativistic effects, can be measured from variations in the difference between the time of minimum light of the primary and…
In spite of the relevance of Classical Cepheids as primary distance indicators, a general consensus on the dependence of the Period-Luminosity (PL) relation on the Cepheid chemical composition has not been achieved yet. From the theoretical…
During the motion of a binary pulsar around the Galactic center, the pulsar and its companion experience a wind of dark-matter particles that can affect the orbital motion through dynamical friction. We show that this effect produces a…
This paper presents and discusses a critical compilation of accurate, fundamental determinations of stellar masses and radii. We have identified 95 detached binary systems containing 190 stars (94 eclipsing systems, and alpha Centauri) that…
Low mass white dwarfs are the remnants of disrupted red giant stars in binary millisecond pulsars and other exotic binary star systems. Some low mass white dwarfs cool rapidly, while others stay bright for millions of years due to stable…
The $\beta$ Cephei stars represent an important class of massive star pulsators probing the evolution of B-type stars and the transition from main sequence to hydrogen-shell burning evolution. By understanding $\beta$ Cep stars, we gain…
Eclipsing binaries are vital for directly determining stellar parameters without reliance on models or scaling relations. Spectroscopically derived parameters of detached and semi-detached binaries allow us to determine component masses…
We present a summary of the current knowledge about Cepheids in binary systems. We focus on the most recent findings and discoveries, such as the highly increasing number of confirmed and candidate spectroscopic binary Cepheids and the…
Distances measured using Cepheid variable stars have been essential for establishing the cosmological distance scale and the value of the Hubble constant. These stars have remained the primary extragalactic distance indicator since 1929…
We present a method for finding binaries among pulsating stars that were observed by the Kepler Mission. We use entire four-year light curves to accurately measure the frequencies of the strongest pulsation modes, then track the pulsation…
Surveys of pulsating stars in the inner Galaxy have been very limited, but recent large-scale surveys are rapidly bringing us new samples of various kinds of variable stars and new insights into stellar populations therein. Because of the…
We report the discovery of a pair of extremely reddened classical Cepheid variable stars located in the Galactic plane behind the bulge, using near-infrared time-series photometry from the VVV Survey. This is the first time that such…
Cepheid masses continue to be important tests of evolutionary tracks for intermediate mass stars as well as important predictors of their future fate. For systems where the secondary is a B star, {\it Hubble Space Telescope} ultraviolet…
The nuclear bulge is a region with a radius of about 200 parsecs around the centre of the Milky Way. It contains stars with ages ranging from a few million years to over a billion years, yet its star-formation history and the triggering…
Full tests to stellar models below 1 Msun have been hindered until now by the scarce number of precise measurements of the stars' most fundamental parameters: their masses and radii. With the current observational techniques, the required…