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Accretion discs are fundamental to much of astronomy. They can occur around stars both young and old, around compact objects they provide a window into the extremes of physics, and around supermassive black holes in galaxy centres they…
Symbiotic stars, interacting binaries composed of a cool giant and a hot compact companion, exhibit complex variability across the electromagnetic spectrum. Over the past decades, large-scale photometric and spectroscopic surveys from…
We review the nuclear astrophysics aspects of accreting neutron stars in X-ray binaries. We summarize open astrophysical questions in light of recent observations and their relation to the underlying nuclear physics. Recent progress in the…
In this review I briefly describe the latest advances in studies of aperiodic variability of accreting X-ray binaries and outline the model which currently describe the majority of observational appearances of variability of accreting…
Theories of how galaxies, the fundamental constituents of large-scale structure, form and evolve have undergone a dramatic paradigm shift in the last few decades. Earlier views were of rapid, early collapse and formation of basic…
As several large scale interferometers are beginning to take data at sensitivities where astrophysical sources are predicted, the direct detection of gravitational waves may well be imminent. This would open the gravitational-wave window to…
Massive stars are essential to understand a variety of branches of astronomy including galaxy and star cluster evolution, nucleosynthesis and supernovae, pulsars and black holes. It has become evident that massive star evolution is very…
Despite the recent discoveries of planets orbiting stars at all evolutionary stages, the evolution of planetary systems remains poorly understood. Studying planetary systems around red giant branch stars can reveal how main sequence…
Variable accretion in young stellar objects reveals itself photometrically and spectroscopically over a continuum of timescales and amplitudes. Most dramatic are the large outbursts (e.g., FU Ori, V1647 Ori, and EX Lup type events), but…
As astronomers, we are living an exciting time for what concerns the search for other worlds. Recent discoveries have already deeply impacted our vision of planetary formation and architectures. Future bio-signature discoveries will…
Understanding stellar evolution and its effect on planetary systems is crucial for correctly interpreting the chemical constraints of exo-planetary material that can be given to us by white dwarfs. This article will describe how asteroids,…
In the last two decades about a dozen methods were invented which derive, from a series of composite spectra over the orbit, the spectra of individual components in binary and multiple systems. Reconstructed spectra can then be analyzed…
Thousands of confirmed and candidate exoplanets have been identified in recent years. Consequently, theoretical research on the formation and dynamical evolution of planetary systems has seen a boost, and the processes of planet-planet…
Studying the physical processes occurring in the region just above the magnetic poles of strongly magnetized, accreting binary neutron stars is essential to our understanding of stellar and binary system evolution. Perhaps more importantly,…
Asteroseismology has grown from its beginnings three decades ago to a mature field teeming with discoveries and applications. This phenomenal growth has been enabled by space photometry with precision $10-100$ times better than ground-based…
We give a brief overview of where we stand with respect to some old and new questions bearing on how massive stars evolve and end their lifetime. We focus on the following key points that are further discussed by other contributions during…
The past few years have seen dramatic breakthroughs and spectacular and puzzling discoveries in astrophysics and cosmology. In many cases, the new observations can only be explained with the introduction of new fundamental physics. Here we…
Over the past 10 years abundant evidence has emerged that many (if not all) stars are born with circumstellar disks. Understanding the evolution of post-accretion disks can provide strong constraints on theories of planet formation and…
Every massive globular cluster (GC) is expected to harbour a significant population of cataclysmic variables (CVs). In this review, I first explain why GC CVs matter astrophysically, how many and what types are theoretically predicted to…
The recent detections of gravitational waves from binary systems of black holes are in remarkable agreement with the predictions of General Relativity. In this pedagogical mini-review, I will go through the physics of the different phases…