Related papers: Probabilities for Solar Siblings
We review some major, open issues in the current modelling of low and intermediate mass, main sequence stars based on seismological studies. In the present paper, the solar case is discussed together with current problems that are common to…
This paper studies the dynamical evolution of young stellar clusters with $N$ = 100 - 1000 members. We use N-body simulations to explore how evolution depends on system size $N$ and the initial conditions. Motivated by recent observations…
The most distant galaxies detected by JWST are assembling in a Universe that is less than 5\% of its present age. At these times, the progenitors of galaxies like the Milky Way are expected to be about 10,000 times less massive than they…
The discovery of true solar analogues is fundamental for a better understanding of the Sun and of the solar system. The open cluster M67 offers a unique opportunity to search for solar analogues because its chemical composition and age are…
To first order, the initial cluster luminosity function appears to be universal. This means that the brightest young cluster in a galaxy can be predicted from the total number of young clusters based purely on statistics. This suggests that…
We conducted a survey of open clusters within 1 kpc from the Sun using the astrometric and photometric data of the Gaia Data Release 2. We found 655 cluster candidates by visual inspection of the stellar distributions in proper motion space…
We probe the evolution of globular clusters that could form in giant molecular clouds within high-redshift galaxies. Numerical simulations demonstrate that the large and dense enough gas clouds assemble naturally in current hierarchical…
The number of known star clusters, associations, and moving groups in the vicinity of the Sun has increased significantly due to the use of Gaia data. We investigated the existence and properties of open superclusters (OSC) within 500 pc of…
An instability among the giant planets' orbits can match many aspects of the Solar System's current orbital architecture. We explore the possibility that this dynamical instability was triggered by the close passage of a star or substellar…
Solar twins, i.e., stars that are nearly identical to the Sun, including their metallicities, in the solar vicinity show ages widely distributed from 0-10 Gyr. This fact matches the orbital history of solar twins in the new paradigm of…
We discuss recent observations of stars located close to the symmetry plane of the Milky Way, and examine them in the context of theories of Galaxy formation and evolution. The kinematics, ages, and compositions of thin disk stars in the…
The formation of massive stars is an outstanding problem in stellar evolution. However, it is expected that they are (predominantly) born in heirarchical environments within massive young clusters, which in turn are located within larger…
Advances in the discovery and characterization of asteroids over the past decade have revealed an unanticipated underlying structure that points to a dramatic early history of the inner Solar System. The asteroids in the main asteroid belt…
We present a comprehensive theoretical study, using a semi-analytical model within the standard LCDM framework, of the photometric properties of the progenitors of present-day early-type galaxies in the redshift range 0<z<1. We explore…
Using proper motion data for 894 stars in the Orion Nebula Cluster (ONC) compiled by Jones & Walker in 1988, we search for binaries with apparent separations in the range 1000-5000 AU, and find an upper limit of three. Using a Monte Carlo…
The discovery of Sedna places new constraints on the origin and evolution of our solar system. Here we investigate the possibility that a close encounter with another star produced the observed edge of the Kuiper belt, at roughly 50 AU, and…
Several mechanisms have been proposed for the formation of brown dwarfs, but there is as yet no consensus as to which -- if any -- are operative in nature. Any theory of brown dwarf formation must explain the observed statistics of brown…
Most stars are born in the crowded environments of gradually forming star clusters. Dynamical interactions between close-passing stars and the evolving UV radiation fields from proximate massive stars are expected to sculpt the…
Recent knowledge of Galactic dynamics suggests that stars radially move on the disk when they encounter transient spiral arms that are naturally generated during the process of disk formation. We argue that a large movement of the solar…
The distribution of young open clusters in the Galactic plane within 3 kpc from the Sun suggests the existence of the outer ring R1R2' in the Galaxy. The optimum value of the solar position angle with respect to the major axis of the bar,…