Related papers: A possible correlation between planetary radius an…
A number of planet-host stars have been observed to rotate with a period equal to an integer multiple of the orbital period of their close planet. We expand this list by analyzing Kepler data of HAT-P-11 and finding a period ratio of 6:1.…
The surface rotations of some red giants are so fast that they must have been spun up by tidal interaction with a close companion, either another star, a brown dwarf, or a planet. We focus here on the case of red giants that are spun up by…
The multiple-planet systems discovered by the Kepler mission show an excess of planet pairs with period ratios just wide of exact commensurability for first-order resonances like 2:1 and 3:2. In principle, these planet pairs could have both…
(abbreviated) We extend the theory of close encounters of a planet on a parabolic orbit with a star to include the effects of tides induced on the central rotating star. Orbits with arbitrary inclination to the stellar rotation axis are…
A few studies have reported a significant dearth of exoplanets with Neptune mass and radius with orbital periods below $2$--$4$ d. This cannot be explained by observational biases because many Neptunian planets with longer orbital periods…
Population studies of Kepler's multi-planet systems have revealed a surprising degree of structure in their underlying architectures. Information from a detected transiting planet can be combined with a population model to make predictions…
Planet formation is often considered in the context of one circumstellar disk around one star. Yet stellar binary systems are ubiquitous, and thus a substantial fraction of all potential planets must form and evolve in more complex,…
Planets interact with their host stars through gravity, radiation and magnetic fields, and for those giant planets that orbit their stars within ~10 stellar radii (~0.1 AU for a sun-like star), star-planet interactions (SPI) are observable…
To improve our understanding of orbital instabilities in compact planetary systems, we compare suites of $N$-body simulations against numerical integrations of simplified dynamical models. We show that, surprisingly, dynamical models that…
Kepler will monitor enough stars that it is likely to detect single transits of planets with periods longer than the mission lifetime. We show that by combining the Kepler photometry of such transits with precise radial velocity (RV)…
Stellar activity and rotation frustrate the detection of exoplanets through the radial velocity technique. This effect is particularly of concern for M dwarfs, which can remain magnetically active for billions of years. We compile rotation…
The Kepler light curves used to detect thousands of planetary candidates are susceptible to dilution due to blending with previously unknown nearby stars. With the automated laser adaptive optics instrument, Robo-AO, we have observed 620…
In a search of proper motion catalogs for common proper motion stars in the field of the Kepler spacecraft I identified 93 likely binary systems. A comparison of their rotation periods is a test of the gyrochronology concept. To find their…
The discovery of many giant planets in close-in orbits and the effect of planetary and stellar tides in their subsequent orbital decay have been extensively studied in the context of planetary formation and evolution theories. Planets…
The dynamical interaction of minor bodies (such as comets or asteroids) with planets plays an essential role in the planetary system's architecture and evolution. As a result of these interactions, structures like the Kuiper belt and the…
The dynamical history of a planetary system is recorded in the present day architecture of its constituent planets' sizes, orbital periods, and eccentricities. Studying the relationships between these quantities for large populations…
We report on 176 close (<2") stellar companions detected with high-resolution imaging near 170 hosts of Kepler Objects of Interest. These Kepler targets were prioritized for imaging follow-up based on the presence of small planets, so most…
Understanding the distribution of angular momentum during the formation of planetary systems is a key topic in astrophysics. Data from the $\textit{Kepler}$ and $\textit{Gaia}$ missions allow to investigate whether stellar rotation is…
We study the influence of stellar metallicity on the fraction of stars with planets (i.e., the occurrence rate of planetary systems) and the average number of planets per star (i.e., the occurrence rate of planets). The former directly…
Transiting planet surveys like Kepler have provided a wealth of information on the distribution of planetary radii, particularly for the new populations of super-Earth and sub-Neptune sized planets. In order to aid in the physical…