Related papers: Are Proxima and Alpha Centauri Gravitationally Bou…
The recent discovery of an Earth-like exoplanet around Proxima Centauri has shined a spot light on slowly rotating fully convective M-stars. When such stars rotate rapidly (period $\lesssim 20$ days), they are known to generate very high…
The two main components of the closest star system, {\alpha}-Centauri AB(RA 14h39m, Dec-60o50', J2000.0) is indubitbaly one of the most studied visual double stars. This paper presents the results of our recalculation of orbital and…
We consider the feasibility of testing Newtonian gravity at low accelerations using wide binary (WB) stars separated by $\ge 3$ kAU. These systems probe the accelerations at which galaxy rotation curves unexpectedly flatline, possibly due…
The discovery of Proxima b, a terrestrial temperate planet, presents the opportunity of studying a potentially habitable world in optimal conditions. A key aspect to model its habitability is to understand the radiation environment of the…
We examine the feasibility of detecting auroral emission from the potentially habitable exoplanet Proxima Centauri b. Detection of aurorae would yield an independent confirmation of the planet's existence, constrain the presence and…
We explore the possible Proxima Centauri b's interiors assuming the planet belongs to the class of dense solid planets (rocky with possible addition of water) and derive the corresponding radii. To do so, we use an internal structure model…
How important are gravitational and relativistic effects for interstellar travel? We consider this question in the context of proposed laser-propelled spacecraft missions to neighboring stellar destinations. Our analysis applies to any…
Some tests of gravity theories - periastron shift, geodetic precession, change in mean motion and gravitational redshift - are applied in solar and stellar systems to constrain the cosmological constant. We thus consider a length scale…
We simulate the formation of planetary systems around Alpha Centauri B. The N-body accretionary evolution of a 1/r disk populated with 400-900 lunar-mass protoplanets is followed for 200 Myr. All simulations lead to the formation of…
In most studies of equivalence principle violation by solar system bodies, it is assumed that the ratio of gravitational to inertial mass for a given body deviates from unity by a parameter Delta which is proportional to its gravitational…
The Galactic globular cluster omega Centauri is a prime candidate for hosting an intermediate mass black hole. Recent measurements lead to contradictory conclusions on this issue. We use VLT-FLAMES to obtain new integrated spectra for the…
We have reconstructed possible orbits for a collection of stars located within 0.5 arcsec of Sgr A*. These orbits are constrained by observed stellar positions and angular proper motions. The construction of such orbits serves as a baseline…
At present the possible existence of planets around the stars of a close binary system is still matter of debate. Can planetary bodies form in spite of the strong gravitational perturbations of the companion star? We study in this paper via…
We investigate retrieval of the stellar rotation signal for Proxima Centauri. We make use of high-resolution spectra taken with uves and harps of Proxima Centauri over a 13-year period as well as photometric observations of Proxima Centauri…
(Abridged) Proxies for the stellar collision rates in globular clusters are often used. We present comparisons between these proxies and the full integrated collision rate for King models. Gamma, defined to be rho_0^3/2 r_c^2$, where…
We present proper motions for $>$40 stars at projected distances $\leq1.2''$ from Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*). We find evidence on a $\geq2\sigma$ level for radial anisotropy of the cluster of stars within $1''$ of Sgr A*. We find no evidence…
Solar-like oscillations detected in both components of the binary system alpha Centauri provide strong constraints on the fundamental parameters of the stellar system. We model alpha Centauri by means of a Levenberg-Marquardt minimization…
New measurements of the velocity dispersion of the globular cluster omega Centauri allow to trace its gravitational potential down to an acceleration of 8e-9 cm/s/s. It is found that the dispersion profile remains flat well inside the tidal…
A set of long and nearly continuous observations of alpha Centauri A should allow us to derive an accurate set of asteroseismic constraints to compare to models, and make inferences on the internal structure of our closest stellar…
Because of the high eccentricities (~0.3) of two of the possible planets about the star Upsilon Andromeda, the stability of the system requires careful study. We present results of 1000 numerical simulations which explore the orbital…