Related papers: Activity induced variation in spin-orbit angles as…
Stellar activity due to different processes (magnetic activity, photospheric flows) affects the measurement of radial velocities (RV). Radial velocities have been widely used to detect exoplanets, although the stellar signal significantly…
We designed and constructed a special instrument to enable the determination of the stellar's spin orientation. The Differential image rotator for Stellar Spin Orientation, DeSSpOt, allows the simultaneous observations of two anti-parallel…
We present high resolution near-infrared spectropolarimetric observations using the SPIRou instrument at CFHT during a transit of the recently detected young planet AU Mic b, with supporting spectroscopic data from iSHELL at IRTF. We detect…
The angle between the spin axis of the host star and the orbit of its planets (i.e., the stellar obliquity) is precious information about the formation and evolution of exoplanetary systems. Measurements of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect…
We investigate the effect of planetary rotation on the transit spectrum of an extrasolar giant planet. During ingress and egress, absorption features arising from the planet's atmosphere are Doppler shifted by of order the planet's…
Long-term observational data have information on the magnetic cycles of active stars and that of the Sun. The changes in the activity of our central star have basic effects on Earth, like variations in the global climate. Therefore…
A new method for determining the stellar rotation period is proposed here, based on the detection of starspots during transits of an extra-solar planet orbiting its host star. As the planet eclipses the star, it may pass in front of a…
The amplitude and morphology of light curves of solar-like stars change substantially with increasing rotation rate: brightness variations get amplified and become more regular, which has so far not been explained. We develop a modelling…
Stellar inclination is an important parameter for many astrophysical studies. Although different techniques allow us to estimate stellar inclinationt for fast rotators, it becomes much more difficult when stars are rotating slower than…
Context. Although the new generation of radial-velocity (RV) instruments such as ESPRESSO are expected to reach the long-term precision required to find other earths, the RV measurements are contaminated by some signal from stellar…
Stellar activity induced by active structures (eg, spots, faculae) is known to strongly impact the radial velocity time series. It then limits the detection of small planetary RV signals (eg, an Earth-mass planet in the habitable zone of a…
M dwarf stars comprise 70-80% of the galaxy's stars and host most of its rocky planets. They also importantly differ from Sunlike stars in that they are "active" for billions of years or more: rotating quickly, flaring often, and emitting…
The radial velocity (RV) method of exoplanet detection requires mitigation of nuisance signals arising from stellar activity. Using analytic cool and facular spot models, we explore the use of central line moments (CLMs) for recovering and…
During the solar magnetic activity cycle the emergence latitudes of sunspots change, leading to the well-known butterfly diagram. This phenomenon is poorly understood for other stars as starspot latitudes are generally unknown. The related…
Due to their low mass and luminosity, M dwarfs are ideal targets if one hopes to find low-mass planets similar to Earth by using the radial velocity (RV) method. However, stellar magnetic cycles could add noise or even mimic the RV signal…
We report new radial velocities of the TrES-4 transiting planetary system, including observations of a full transit, with the High Dispersion Spectrograph of the Subaru 8.2m telescope. Modeling of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect indicates…
Quasi-periodic modulations of the stellar light curve may result from dark spots crossing the visible stellar disc. Due to differential rotation, spots at different latitudes generally have different rotation periods. Hence, by studying…
In this PhD dissertation, I discuss issues of the Radial Velocities (RV) and transit methods. These techniques allow us to derive the mass and radius of an exoplanet, necessary to model its bulk structure and to have insight on its…
The ubiquity of M dwarf stars combined with their low masses and luminosities make them prime targets in the search for nearby, habitable exoplanets. We investigate the effects of starspot-induced radial velocity (RV) jitter on detection…
The angle between the stellar spin-axis and the orbital plane of a stellar or planetary companion has important implications for the formation and evolution of such systems. A study by Hale (1994) found that binaries with separations $a <…