Related papers: Evidence for Cloud Disruption in the L/T Dwarf Tra…
Theoretical arguments and observations suggest that the atmospheres of Brown Dwarfs and planets are very dynamic on chemical and on physical time scales. The modelling of such substellar atmospheres has, hence, been much more demanding than…
Because of their low gravitational energies dwarf galaxies are greatly exposed to energetical influences by the interstellar medium, like e.g. stellar radiation, winds or explosions, or by their environment. While the metallicity depletion…
We present time-resolved near-infrared spectroscopy of two L5 dwarfs, 2MASS J18212815+1414010 and 2MASS J15074759-1627386, observed with the Wide Field Camera 3 instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). We study the wavelength…
The evolution of brown dwarfs from L to T spectral types is one of the least understood aspects of the ultracool population, partly for lack of a large, well-defined, and well-characterized sample in the L/T transition. To improve the…
Over the last decade {\it ab initio} modeling of material properties has become widespread in diverse fields of research. It has proved to be a powerful tool for predicting various properties of matter under extreme conditions. We apply…
In an atmosphere, a cloud condensation region is characterized by a strong vertical gradient in the abundance of the related condensing species. On Earth, the ensuing gradient of mean molecular weight has relatively few dynamical…
Brown Dwarf and extrasolar planet atmospheres form clouds which strongly influence the local chemistry and physics. These clouds are globally neutral obeying dust-gas charge equilibrium which is, on short time scales, inconsistent with the…
We use the Wide Field Camera 3 on the {\sl Hubble Space Telescope} to spectrophotometrically monitor the young L7.5 companion HD~203030B. Our time series reveal photometric variability at 1.27\,$\mu$m and 1.39\,$\mu$m on time scales…
Because of their low gravitational energies dwarf galaxies are greatly exposed to energetical influences by the interstellar medium, like e.g.\ stellar radiation, winds or explosions, or by their environment. While the metallicity depletion…
Lightning is present in all solar system planets which form clouds in their atmospheres. Cloud formation outside our solar system is possible in objects with much higher temperatures than on Earth or on Jupiter: Brown dwarfs and giant…
The thermal and fragmentation properties of star-forming clouds have important consequences on the corresponding characteristic stellar mass. The initial composition of the gas within these clouds is a record of the nucleosynthetic products…
Brown dwarfs that are short period ($<10\,$day) companions to actively flaring M dwarfs may provide a context to directly observe flare-driven photochemistry and structural changes in an extrasolar planet-like atmosphere. To assess the…
Interpreting the spectra of brown dwarfs is key to determining the fundamental physical and chemical processes occurring in their atmospheres. Powerful Bayesian atmospheric retrieval tools have recently been applied to both exoplanet and…
Luhman and collaborators recently discovered an early-T dwarf companion to the G0 dwarf star HN Peg, using Spitzer Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) images. Companionship was established on the basis of the common proper motion inferred from…
We present results from conducting a theoretical chemical analysis of a sample of benchmark companion brown dwarfs whose primary star is of type F, G or K. We summarize the entire known sample of these types of companion systems, termed…
M-dwarfs are the most dominant stars in the Galaxy. Their interiors and atmospheres exhibit complex processes including dust condensation, convective feedback, and magnetic activity-driven heterogeneity. Standard stellar characterization…
Context: The principal mechanism by which brown dwarfs form, and its relation to the formation of higher-mass (i.e. hydrogen-burning) stars, is poorly understood. Aims: We advocate a new model for the formation of brown dwarfs. Methods: In…
The theory for the formation of the first population of stars (Pop III) predicts a IMF composed predominantly of high-mass stars, in contrast to the present-day IMF, which tends to yield stars with masses less than 1 M_Solar. The leading…
Over a large range of equilibrium temperatures, clouds shape the transmission spectrum of hot Jupiter atmospheres, yet their composition remains unknown. Recent observations show that the Kepler lightcurves of some hot Jupiters are…
Ultracool subdwarfs are low luminosity, late-type M and L dwarfs that exhibit spectroscopic indications of subsolar metallicity and halo kinematics. Their recent discovery and ongoing investigation have led to new insights into the role of…