Related papers: Metastable helium in the thermosphere
A scanning helium microscope typically utilises a thermal energy helium atom beam, with an energy and wavelength (<100 meV, ~0.05 nm) particularly sensitive to surface structure. An angular detector stage for a scanning helium microscope is…
The Perseus molecular cloud complex is a ~30pc long chain of molecular clouds most well-known for the two star-forming clusters NGC1333 and IC348 and the well-studied outflow source in B5. However, when studied at mid- to far-infrared…
We obtained high-resolution spectra of the ultra-cool M-dwarf TRAPPIST-1 during the transit of its planet `b' using two high dispersion near-infrared spectrographs, IRD instrument on the Subaru 8.2m telescope and HPF instrument on the 10m…
Absorption of stellar X-ray and Extreme Ultraviolet radiation in the upper atmosphere of close-in exoplanets can give rise to hydrodynamic outflows, which may lead to the gradual shedding of their primordial, light element envelopes. Excess…
Searches for helium in the exospheres of exoplanets via the metastable near-infrared triplet have yielded 17 detections and 40 non-detections. We performed a comprehensive re-analysis of published studies to investigate the influence of…
We investigate the possibility that the recently discovered Hercules Milky Way satellite is in fact a stellar stream in formation, thereby explaining its very elongated shape with an axis ratio of 3 to 1. Under the assumption that Hercules…
We present a simplified model of the outer heliosheath to help interpret the observations of interstellar neutral helium by the IBEX-Lo instruments. We assume that the measured particles are composed of the superposition of a primary beam…
Extreme helium stars (EHes) are low-mass hydrogen-deficient stars thought to be the products of double white dwarf mergers. Despite prolonged ground-based observations, there is no consensus on the properties of their photometric…
The ionization rate of interstellar material by cosmic rays has been a major source of controversy, with different estimates varying by three orders of magnitude. Observational constraints of this rate have all depended on analyzing the…
This paper continues our study of the behaviour of near infrared helium recombination lines in planetary nebula. We find that the 1.7007um 4^3D-3^3P HeI line is a good measure of the HeI recombination rate, since it varies smoothly with the…
Analysis of data from the Interstellar Boundary EXplorer (IBEX) has revealed the presence of a flow of neutral helium through the inner solar system that most likely emanates from the outer heliosheath, where a distinct population of…
In December-2025, the NASA SPHEREx spacecraft re-observed ISO 3I/ATLAS post-perihelion, finding a much more active object compared to August-2025 SPHEREx pre-perihelion observations, with marked evidence for development into an cometary…
We simulated the signal due to neutral He atoms, observed by Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX), assuming that charge exchange collisions between neutral He atoms and He+ ions operate everywhere between the heliopause and a distant…
Atmospheric escape shapes exoplanet evolution and star-planet interactions, with He I 10830 \AA\ absorption serving as a key tracer of mass loss in hot gas giants. However, transit depths vary significantly across observed systems for…
Analysis of IBEX measurements of neutral interstellar He flux brought the inflow velocity vector different from the results of earlier analysis of observations from GAS/Ulysses. Recapitulation of results on the helium inflow direction from…
The near-infrared helium triplet line is a powerful tool for studying atmospheric escape processes of close-in exoplanets, especially irradiated gas giants. Line profile fitting provides direct insight into the mechanisms driving…
The central star of the Helix Nebula is a hot white dwarf with unexpected hard X-ray emission. With an effective temperature of ~100,000 K, the star is a powerful source of H-ionizing radiation; the atmosphere of a stellar or planetary…
The only prominent line of singly ionized helium in the visible spectral range, helium-II 4686 A, is observed together with the helium-I 5015 A singlet and the helium-I 4471 A triplet line in solar prominences. The sodium emission, NaD2, is…
With the velocity vector and temperature of the pristine interstellar neutral (ISN) He recently obtained with high precision from a coordinated analysis summarized by McComas et al.2015b, we analyzed the IBEX observations of neutral He left…
Context: Recently, the He I triplet at 10830 \r{A} has been rediscovered as an excellent probe of the extended and possibly evaporating atmospheres of close-in transiting planets. This has already resulted in detections of this triplet in…