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The atmospheres of weakly-magnetized neutron stars expand hydrostatically and rotate differentially during thermonuclear X-ray bursts. Differential rotation is probably related to the frequency drifts of millisecond burst oscillations…
A linear but global numerical model for the magnetorotational instability (MRI) in disk geometry is considered to estimate the instability parameters for galaxies. Similarity rules suggested by a local analysis are applied to reveal a…
We study the system constructed by charged scalar fields linearly coupled to asymptotically flat horizonless compact reflecting stars. We obtain bounds on the charge of the scalar field, below which the scalar hairy star is expected to…
The first and second moments of stellar velocities encode important information about the formation history of the Galactic halo. However, due to the lack of tangential motion and inaccurate distances of the halo stars, the velocity moments…
Infrared observations of stellar orbits about Sgr A* probe the mass distribution in the inner parsec of the Galaxy and provide definitive evidence for the existence of a massive black hole. However, the infrared astrometry is relative and…
Ultra-compact, horizonless objects such as gravastars, boson stars, wormholes and superspinars can mimick most of the properties of black holes. Here we show that these "black hole mimickers" will most likely develop a strong ergoregion…
We consider microlensing of an elliptical source crossing a fold caustic. We derive a simple expression for the light curve of a source with uniform surface brightness that is accurate to third order in the ellipticity e (yielding errors of…
Measurements of the spectrum of the fluctuations of the output current of the quadratic detector of a telescope can be used to find unresolved astronomical gravitational lenses and determine time delays between their image components. These…
We consider the stability properties of the ocean of accreting magnetic neutron stars. It turns out that the ocean is always unstable due to the combined influence of the temperature and chemical composition gradients along the surface and…
A simple, though rarely considered, thought experiment on relativistic rotation is described in which internal inconsistencies in the theory of relativity seem to arise. These apparent inconsistencies are resolved by appropriate insight…
We investigate the evolution of the relative angle between the stellar rotation axis and the circumstellar disc axis of a star that forms in a stellar cluster from the collapse of a turbulent molecular cloud. This is an inherently chaotic…
Present day estimates of the Hubble constant based on Cepheids and on the cosmic microwave background radiation are uncertain by roughly 10% (on the conservative assumption that the universe may not be PERFECTLY flat). Gravitational lens…
A new list of physical characteristics of 4261 astrometric radio sources, including all 717 ICRF-Ext.2 sources has been compiled. Comparison of our data of optical characteristics with the official International Earth Rotation and Reference…
Rotating relativistic stars are receiving significant attention in recent years, because of the information they can yield about the equation of state of matter at extremely high densities and because they are one of the more possible…
We study the possible rotation of cluster galaxies, developing, testing and applying a novel algorithm which identifies rotation, if such does exist, as well as its rotational centre, its axis orientation, rotational velocity amplitude and,…
In the currently accepted paradigm, dark matter is hypothesized as an explanation of the flat rotation curves of galaxies under the assumption of virialized orbits. The use of millisecond pulsar timing as a probe of Galactic dark matter…
We report on the first three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations of secular and dynamical non-axisymmetric instabilities in collapsing, rapidly rotating stellar cores which extend well beyond core bounce. The resulting gravitational…
During some gravitational lensing events, the lens transits the face of the star. This causes a shift in the apparent radial velocity of the star which is proportional to its rotation speed. It also changes the magnification relative to…
The presence of mean motion resonances (MMRs) complicates analysis and fitting of planetary systems observed through the radial velocity (RV) technique. MMR can allow planets to remain stable in regions of phase space where strong…
We present the first calculations of the gravitational radiation produced by nonaxisymmetric dynamical instability in a rapidly rotating compact star. The star deforms into a bar shape, shedding $\sim 4\%$ of its mass and $\sim 17\%$ of its…