Related papers: Analytic Lightcurves for Planetary Transit Searche…
In order to perform high resolution astrometry of the solar diameter from the ground, through the observations of eclipses, the study of the limb darkening profile is described. Knowing the profile of the solar limb is useful both to…
We present a brief summary of observations of the transiting extrasolar planet, HD 209458 b, designed to detect the secondary eclipse. We employ the method of `occultation spectroscopy', which searches in combined light (star and planet)…
We present a new solution of the direct problem of planet transits based on transformation of double integrals to single ones. On the basis of our direct problem solution we created the code TAC-maker for rapid and interactive calculation…
Atmospheres are not spatially homogeneous. This is particularly true for hot, tidally locked exoplanets with large day-to-night temperature variations, which can yield significant differences between the morning and evening terminators --…
We report a measurement of limb darkening of a solar-like star in the very high magnification microlensing event MOA 2002-BLG-33. A 15 hour deviation from the light curve profile expected for a single lens was monitored intensively in V and…
Asymmetric features in exoplanet transit light curves are often interpreted as a gravity darkening effect especially if there is spectroscopic evidence of a spin-orbit misalignment. Since other processes can also lead to light curve…
A stellar flare can brighten a planet in orbit around its host star, producing a light curve with a faint echo. This echo, and others from subsequent flares, can lead to the planet's discovery, revealing its orbital configuration and…
The recent transit observation of HD 209458 b - an extrasolar planet orbiting a sun-like star - confirmed that it is a gas giant and determined that its orbital inclination is 85 degrees. This inclination makes possible investigations of…
Exoplanet transmission spectra, which measure the absorption of light passing through a planet's atmosphere during transit, are most often assessed globally, resulting in a single spectrum per planetary atmosphere. However, the inherent…
We investigate whether rings around extrasolar planets could be detected from those planets' transit lightcurves. To this end we develop a basic theoretical framework for calculating and interpreting the lightcurves of ringed planet…
Interstellar and atmospheric extinctions redden the observational photometric data and they should be handled rigorously. This paper simulates the effect of reddening for the modest case of two main sequence T1 = 6500K and T2 = 5500K…
We have used four telescopes at different longitudes to obtain near-continuous lightcurve coverage of the star HD 80606 as it was transited by its \sim 4-MJup planet. The observations were performed during the predicted transit windows…
In this work we present the solution of the stellar spot problem using the Kelvin-Stokes theorem. Our result is applicable for any given location and dimension of the spots on the stellar surface. We present explicitely the result up to the…
Limb darkening is a fundamental ingredient for interpreting observations of planetary transits, eclipsing binaries, optical/infrared interferometry and microlensing events. However, this modeling traditionally represents limb darkening by a…
Solar system, exoplanet and stellar science rely on transits, eclipses and occultations for dynamical and physical insight. Often, the geometry of these configurations are modelled by assuming a particular viewpoint. Here, instead, I derive…
[ABRIDGED] In this study, we set out to a) demonstrate the sensitivity to <4 R_E transiting planets with periods of a few days around our program stars, and b) improve our knowledge of some astrophysical properties(e.g., activity, rotation)…
We show that a small, but \textit{measurable} shift in the eclipse mid-point time of eclipsing binary (EBs) stars of $\sim$ 0.1 seconds over a decade baseline can be used to directly measure the Galactic acceleration of stars in the Milky…
We consider the effects of mutual transits by extrasolar planet-companion systems (in a true binary or a planet-satellite system) on light curves. We show that induced changes in light curves depend strongly on a ratio between a…
It has been posited that lunar eclipse observations may help predict the in-transit signature of Earth-like extrasolar planets. However, a comparative analysis of the two phenomena addressing in detail the transport of stellar light through…
It is well-known that the light curve of a transiting planet contains information about the planet's orbital period and size relative to the host star. More recently, it has been demonstrated that a tight constraint on an individual…