Related papers: Eclipsing binaries suitable for distance determina…
The direct detection of binary systems in wide-field surveys is limited by the size of the stars' point-spread-functions (PSFs). A search for elongated objects can find closer companions, but is limited by the precision to which the PSF…
We have conducted a 1.5 year-long variability study of the stars in the Cygnus OB2 association, the region in the northern hemisphere with the highest density of optically visible massive stars. The survey was conducted using four pointings…
We present a detailed light curve analysis of publicly available V band observations of 62 binary stars, mostly contact binaries, obtained by the All Sky Automated Survey (ASAS)-3 project between 2000 and 2009. Eclipsing binaries are…
Great investments of observing time have been dedicated to the study of nearby spiral galaxies with diverse goals ranging from understanding the star formation process to characterizing their dark matter distributions. Accurate distances…
We present results from a detailed analysis of a third eclipsing binary (EB) system in the Large Magellanic Cloud, EROS 1044 (~B2 IV-V + ~B2 III-IV). Our study combines the "classical" EB study of light and radial velocity curves with…
We investigate directly imaging exoplanets around eclipsing binaries, using the eclipse as a natural tool for dimming the binary and thus increasing the planet to star brightness contrast. At eclipse, the binary becomes point-like, making…
In this study we investigate the calibration of surface brightness--color (SBC) relations based solely on eclipsing binary stars. We selected a sample of 35 detached eclipsing binaries with trigonometric parallaxes from Gaia DR1 or…
A recent preprint by Sugiyama et al. reported the discovery of twelve candidates for short-timescale (less than one day) gravitational microlensing events based on high-cadence photometric observations of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) using…
We present the photometric analysis of three ultra-short period total eclipsing binaries in contact configuration, CRTS_J172718.0+431624, OGLE-BLG-ECL-000104, and OGLE-BLG-ECL-000012, mined from massive astronomical surveys. Using the…
We present a new technique for identifying stellar mass black holes in low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs), and apply it to XMM-Newton observations of M31. We examine X-ray time series variability seeking power density spectra (PDS) typical of…
We present the largest sample to-date of intermediate-resolution blue-to-red optical spectra of B-type supergiants in M31 and undertake the first survey of diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) in this galaxy. Spectral classifications, radial…
We build a statistical framework to infer the global properties of the satellite system of the Andromeda galaxy (M31) from the properties of individual dwarf galaxies located in the Pan-Andromeda Archaelogical Survey (PAndAS) and the…
We present the first results of a project aiming to trace the spatial structure of the Milky Way using detached eclipsing binaries (DEBs) as distance indicators. A sample of DEBs from the OGLE-II catalogue was selected and their near…
Eclipsing binaries offer a unique opportunity to determine basic stellar properties. With the advent of wide-field camera and all-sky time-domain surveys, thousands of eclipsing binaries have been charted via light curve classification, yet…
I report on recent results from the POINT-AGAPE pixel-lensing experiment, which is engaged in a search towards the Andromeda galaxy (M31) for gravitational microlensing signatures from massive compact halo objects (Machos). An analysis of…
We present Cousins $R$ and $I$ band photometry of variable stars in a $\sim13'\times 13'$ region in the disk of M31 galaxy, obtained during 141 nights. Of the 26 Cepheid variables present in the region, two are newly discovered, 11 are…
The total mass of a galaxy group, such as the Milky Way (MW) and the Andromeda Galaxy (M 31), is typically determined from the kinematics of satellites within their virial zones. Bahcall and Tremaine (1981) proposed the $v^2r$ estimator as…
This is a personal review of various issues related to massive photometric and astrometric searches. A complete inventory of variable stars down to almost any magnitude limit will improve our understanding of the stellar evolution and the…
We have analyzed the double-lined eclipsing binary system OGLE-051019.64-685812.3 in the LMC which consists of two G4 giant components with very similar effective temperatures. A detailed analysis of the OGLE I-band light curve of the…
Thirty eight long-period (P>10 days), apparently contact binary stars discovered by the OGLE-II project in the SMC appear to be Beta Lyrae-type systems with ellipsoidal variations of the cool components dominating over eclipse effects in…