Related papers: Interferometric imaging diagnostics of X Hya's cir…
We report on our project of coordinated VLTI/VLBA observations of the atmospheres and circumstellar environments of evolved stars. We illustrate in general the potential of interferometric measurements to study stellar atmospheres and…
Using kilometric arrays of air Cherenkov telescopes, intensity interferometry may increase the spatial resolution in optical astronomy by an order of magnitude, enabling images of rapidly rotating stars with structures in their…
Determining the physical properties of microlensing events depends on having accurate angular sizes of the source star. Using long-baseline optical interferometry we are able to measure the angular sizes of nearby stars with uncertainties…
The recent interferometric study of Achernar, leading to the conclusion that its geometrical oblateness cannot be explained in the Roche approximation, has stirred substantial interest in the community, in view of its potential impact in…
Context: With no conclusive detection to date, the search for exomoons, satellites of planets orbiting other stars, remains a formidable challenge. Detecting these objects, compiling a population-level sample and constraining their…
The extreme conditions found near black holes and neutron stars provide a unique opportunity for testing physical theories. Observations of both types of compact objects can be used to probe regions of strong gravity, allowing for tests of…
As part of a reanalysis of galactic Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars at infrared (IR) wavelengths, we discuss a sample (357) of carbon stars for which mass loss rates, near-IR photometry and distance estimates exist. For 252 sources we…
CONTEXT: Simple geometrical ring models account well for near-infrared interferometric observations of dusty disks surrounding pre-main sequence stars of intermediate mass. Such models demonstrate that the dust distribution in these disks…
Context. VX Sgr is a cool, evolved, and luminous red star whose stellar parameters are difficult to determine, which affects its classification. Aims. We aim to spatially resolve the photospheric extent as well as the circumstellar…
We have used near- and mid-infrared interferometry to investigate the pulsating atmosphere and the circumstellar environment of the Mira variable RR Aql. Observations were taken with the VLTI/AMBER (near infrared) and the VLTI/MIDI (mid…
This paper develops a few science cases, using the PRIMA far-IR probe, aimed at achieving several breakthroughs in our understanding of the dust properties and their evolution. We argue that the specific observational capabilities of PRIMA,…
We have imaged the M2Iab supergiant star Alpha Ori at 11.7 micron and 17.9 micron using the Hale 5-m telescope and an array camera with sub-arcsecond angular resolution. Our images reveal the circumstellar dust shell extending out to…
Infrared imaging properties of dusty winds around late-type stars are investigated in detail, employing a self-consistent model that couples the equations of motion and radiative transfer. Because of general scaling properties, the angular…
We present interferometric observations of 7 main-sequence and 3 giant stars with spectral types from B2 to F6 using the PAVO beam combiner at the CHARA array. We have directly determined the angular diameters for these objects with an…
Certain types of large amplitude AGB variable are proving to be powerful distance indicators that will rival Cepheids in the JWST era of high precision infrared photometry. These are predominantly found in old populations and have low mass…
We have performed the near-infrared photometric monitoring observations of two TeV gamma-ray binaries with O-stars (LS 5039 and 1FGL J1018.6-5856), using IRSF/SIRIUS at SAAO, in order to study the stellar parameters and their perturbations…
Context. It has been suggested that convection in Red Supergiant (RSG) stars gives rise to large-scale granules causing observable surface inhomogeneities. This convection is also extremely vigorous, and suspected to be one of the causes of…
Optical-infrared interferometry can provide direct geometrical measurements of the radii of Cepheids and/or reveal unknown binary companions of these stars. Such information is of great importance for a proper calibration of…
We report interferometric observations of the semi-regular variable star RS CrB, a red giant with strong silicate emission features. The data were among the first long baseline mid-infrared stellar fringes obtained between the Keck…
AGB stars, the precursors of Planetary Nebulae, exhibit high rates of mass loss and eject material in the form of a slow (10-20 km/s), dusty molecular wind. The general belief that the dust component of AGB circumstellar envelopes have…