Related papers: Rapid multi-band space-based optical timing: revol…
To date, a handful of exoplanets have been photometrically mapped using phase-modulated reflection or emission from their surfaces, but the small amplitudes of such signals have limited previous maps almost exclusively to coarse dipolar…
SPICES (Spectro-Polarimetric Imaging and Characterization of Exoplanetary Systems) is a five-year M-class mission proposed to ESA Cosmic Vision. Its purpose is to image and characterize long-period extrasolar planets and circumstellar disks…
The unprecedented photometric precision of Kepler mission allows searching for Earth-like planets. However, it remains difficult to distinguish these low signal-to-noise planets from the false alarms originating from correlated and…
Optical observations of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) contemporaneous with their prompt high-energy emission are rare, but they can provide insights into the physical processes underlying these explosive events. The Transiting Exoplanet Survey…
In this paper, we explore the astrophysical implications of near-field microlensing and its effects on stellar transit observations, with a special emphasis on the Kepler mission. Kepler is a NASA-approved mission whose goal is to detect a…
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will be conducting a nearly all-sky photometric survey over two years, with a core mission goal to discover small transiting exoplanets orbiting nearby bright stars. It will obtain 30-minute…
Frequency to time mapping is a powerful technique for observing ultrafast phenomena and non-repetitive events in optics. However, many optical sources operate in wavelength regions, or at power levels, that are not compatible with standard…
Over the last two decades, asteroseismology has increasingly proven to be the observational tool of choice for the study of stellar physics, aided by the high quality of data available from space-based missions such as CoRoT, Kepler, K2 and…
A direct measurement of the universe's expansion history could be made by observing in real time the evolution of the cosmological redshift of distant objects. However, this would require measurements of Doppler velocity drifts of about 1…
The EXtreme PREcision Spectrograph (EXPRES) is a new Doppler spectrograph designed to reach a radial velocity measurement precision sufficient to detect Earth-like exoplanets orbiting nearby, bright stars. We report on extensive laboratory…
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)…
Large-scale photometric surveys are revolutionizing astronomy by delivering unprecedented amounts of data. The rich data sets from missions such as the NASA Kepler and TESS satellites, and the upcoming ESA PLATO mission, are a treasure…
Kepler's immense photometric precision to date was maintained through satellite stability and precise pointing. In this white paper, we argue that image modeling--fitting the Kepler-downlinked raw pixel data--can vastly improve the…
Because of the recent technological advances, the key technologies needed for precision space optical astrometry are now in hand. The Microarcsecond Astrometry Probe (MAP) mission concept is designed to find 1 Earth mass planets at 1AU…
Optical gain is a critical process in today's semiconductor technology and it is most often achieved via stimulated emission. In this theoretical study, we find a resonant TE mode in biased low-symmetry two-dimensional metallic systems…
We propose that relative variability on short time-scales of the multiple images of a lensed quasar, after removal of the time delay, may be caused by hot spots or other moving structures in the accretion disk crossing microlens caustics…
The proposed Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will survey the entire sky to locate the nearest and brightest transiting extrasolar planets with orbital periods up to about 36 days. Here we estimate the number and kind of…
Statistical studies of exoplanets and the properties of their host stars have been critical to informing models of planet formation. Numerous trends have arisen in particular from the rich Kepler dataset, including that exoplanets are more…
Research into light curves from stars (temporal variation of brightness) has completely changed how exoplanets are discovered or characterised. This study including star light curves from the Kepler dataset as a way to discover exoplanets…
Timing analysis is a powerful tool used to determine periodic features of physical phenomena. Here we review two applications of timing analysis to gravitational microlensing events. The first one, in particular cases, allows the estimation…