Related papers: Testing microvariability in quasar differential li…

Variability in gravitationally lensed quasars can be due to intrinsic fluctuations of the quasar or due to ``microlensing'' by compact objects along the line of sight. If disentangled from each other, microlens-induced variability can be…

Robust fast methods to classify variable light curves in large sky surveys are becoming increasingly important. While it is relatively straightforward to identify common periodic stars and particular transient events (supernovae, novae,…

The luminosity changes of most types of variable stars are correlated in the different wavelengths, and these correlations may be exploited for several purposes: for variability detection, for distinction of microvariability from noise, for…

HQM is an optical broad-band photometric monitoring program carried out since Sept.~1988. Our main intention is to search for indications of microlensing in a sample of $\sim$\,100 selected quasars; however, we also want to study the…

In this paper we show that to explain the observed distribution of amplitudes in a large sample of quasar lightcurves, a significant contribution from microlensing is required. This implies the existence of a cosmologically distributed…

I discuss some practical aspects of the analysis of millisecond time variability X-ray data obtained from accreting neutron stars and black holes. First I give an account of the statistical methods that are at present commonly applied in…

Quasar microlensing analyses implicitly generate a model of the variability of the source quasar. The implied source variability may be unrealistic yet its likelihood is generally not evaluated. We used the damped random walk (DRW) model…

Aperiodic variability is a characteristic feature of young stars, massive stars, and active galactic nuclei. With the recent proliferation of time domain surveys, it is increasingly essential to develop methods to quantify and analyze…

Combined studies of variable stars and stellar clusters open great horizons, and they allow us to improve our understanding of stellar cluster formation and stellar evolution. In that prospect, the Gaia mission will provide astrometric,…

Detecting any evolution of dimensionless in the ratios of physical quantities, such as the fine structure constant, would prove that the Weak Equivalence Principle is violated and lead to a paradigm shift in physics. High resolution…

We present a quantitative analysis of the effect of microlensing caused by random motion of individual stars in the galaxy which is lensing a background quasar. We calculate a large number of magnification patterns for positions of the…

We describe the construction of a highly reliable sample of approximately 7,000 optically faint periodic variable stars with light curves obtained by the asteroid survey LINEAR across 10,000 sq.deg of northern sky. Majority of these…

The light curves of variable stars are commonly described using simple trigonometric models, that make use of the assumption that the model parameters are constant in time. This assumption, however, is often violated, and consequently, time…

We devise an optimal method to measure the temporal power spectrum of the lensing and intrinsic fluctuations of multiply-imaged strongly lensed quasar light curves, along with the associated time delays. The method is based on a Monte-Carlo…

Many astrophysical phenomena are time-varying, in the sense that their brightness change over time. In the case of periodic stars, previous approaches assumed that changes in period, amplitude, and phase are well described by either…

Variability amplitudes larger than 1 magnitude over time-scales of a few tens of minutes have recently been reported in the optical light-curves of several blazars. In order to independently verify the real occurrence of such extremely…

In the analysis of variable stars, the problem of sampling is central. This article focusses on the determination of the Nyquist frequency. It is well defined in the case of regular sampling. However, the time series of variable stars…

We performed R-band time series observations of the young, metal rich open cluster NGC 2301 for 12 nights in Feb. 2004. B images were also obtained and color magnitude diagrams, having limits of R=19.5 and B=21.5, were produced. Only asmall…

We present optical light curves of 19 radio quiet (RQ) broad absorption line (BAL) QSOs and study their rapid variability characteristics. Systematic CCD observations, aided by a careful data analysis procedure, have allowed us to clearly…

The microlensing signal in the light curves of gravitationally lensed quasars can shed light on the dark matter (DM) composition in their lensing galaxies. Here, we investigate a sample of six lensed quasars from the most recent and best…