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We present 17 nights of ground-based, near-infrared photometry of the variable L/T transition brown dwarf SIMP J013656.5+093347 and an additional 3 nights of ground-based photometry of the radio-active late M-dwarf TVLM 513-46546. Our TVLM…
We present the peculiar near-infrared spectrum of the newly discovered brown dwarf 2MASS J05185995-2828372, identified in the Two Micron All-Sky Survey. Features characteristic of both L and T dwarfs are present, namely strong carbon…
*Abbreviated abstract* Context: Brown dwarfs in the spectral range L9-T3.5, within the so called L/T transition, have been shown to be variable at higher amplitudes and with greater frequency than other field dwarfs. [...] Now, more…
We present a new suite of atmosphere models with flexible cloud parameters to investigate the effects of clouds on brown dwarfs across the L/T transition. We fit these models to a sample of 13 objects with well-known masses, distances, and…
L dwarfs exhibit low-level, rotationally-modulated photometric variability generally associated with heterogeneous, cloud-covered atmospheres. The spectral character of these variations yields insight into the particle sizes and vertical…
We present spatially resolved photometric and spectroscopic observations of two wide brown dwarf binaries uncovered by the SIMP near-infrared proper motion survey. The first pair (SIMP J1619275+031350AB) has a separation of 0.691" (15.2 AU)…
We have observed the post common envelope binary WD0137-349 in the near infrared $J$, $H$ and $K$ bands and have determined that the photometry varies on the system period (116 min). The amplitude of the variability increases with…
Using SofI on the 3.5m New Technology Telescope, we have conducted an extensive near-infrared monitoring survey of an unbiased sample of 69 brown dwarfs spanning the L0 and T8 spectral range, with at least one example of each spectral type.…
Isolated planetary-mass objects share their mass range with planets but do not orbit a star. They lack the necessary mass to support fusion in their cores and thermally radiate their heat from formation as they cool, primarily at infrared…
Recent atmospheric models for brown dwarfs suggest that the existence of clouds in substellar objects is not needed to reproduce their spectra, nor their rotationally-induced photometric variability, believed to be due to the heterogeneous…
With the discovery of Y dwarfs by the WISE mission, the population of field brown dwarfs now extends to objects with temperatures comparable to those of Solar System planets. To investigate the atmospheres of these newly identified brown…
We have conducted a photometric monitoring program of 3 field late-L brown dwarfs looking for evidence of non-axisymmetric structure or temporal variability in their photospheres. The observations were performed using Spitzer/IRAC 4.5 and 8…
We report the discovery that the nearby ($\sim$ 6 pc) photometrically variable T2.5 dwarf SIMP~J013656.5+093347 is a likely member of the $\sim$ 200 Myr-old Carina-Near moving group with a probability of $>$ 99.9% based on its full…
We present initial results from a wide-field (30,000 deg^2) search for L/T transition brown dwarfs within 25 pc using the Pan-STARRS1 and WISE surveys. Previous large-area searches have been incomplete for L/T transition dwarfs, because…
Directly-imaged planetary-mass companions offer unique opportunities in atmospheric studies of exoplanets. They share characteristics of both brown dwarfs and transiting exoplanets, therefore, are critical for connecting atmospheric…
Time-resolved observations of brown dwarfs' rotational modulations provide powerful insights into the properties of condensate clouds in ultra-cool atmospheres. Multi-wavelength light curves reveal cloud vertical structures, condensate…
We present simultaneous HST WFC3 + Spitzer IRAC variability monitoring for the highly-variable young ($\sim$20 Myr) planetary-mass object PSO J318.5-22. Our simultaneous HST + Spitzer observations covered $\sim$2 rotation periods with…
We report on the results of an I-band photometric variability survey of eighteen L dwarfs. We find that seven exhibit statistically significant variations above the 95.4% confidence level with root-mean-square scatter (including photometric…
Many brown dwarfs exhibit photometric variability at levels from tenths to tens of percents. The photometric variability is related to magnetic activity or patchy cloud coverage, characteristic of brown dwarfs near the L-T transition.…
Only a handful of late-T brown dwarfs have been monitored for spectro-photometric variability, leaving incomplete the study of the atmospheric cloud structures of the coldest brown dwarfs, that share temperatures with some cold,…