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The presence of minor bodies in exoplanetary systems is in most cases inferred through infra-red excesses, with the exception of exocomets. Even if over 35 years have passed since the first detection of exocomets around beta Pic, only ~ 25…
Optical interferometry provides us with a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of stellar structure and evolution. Through direct observation of rotationally distorted photospheres at sub-milliarcsecond scales, we are now able to…
The signatures of waves are seen during many high-quality ground-based refractive stellar occultations by solar system atmospheres. We present a new forward-modeling technique for ground-based stellar occultations based on wavelet…
A variety of terrestrial planets with different physical parameters and exotic atmospheres might plausibly exist outside our Solar System, waiting to be detected by the next generation of space-exploration missions. Some of these planets…
This paper examines how to compare stellar limb-darkening coefficients evaluated from model atmospheres with those derived from photometry. Different characterizations of a given model atmosphere can give quite different numerical results…
Trans-Neptunian objects and Centaurs are small solar system bodies that reside in the outer parts of the solar system. These objects present photometric behaviours that are influenced due to a change in their aspect angle. Using absolute…
The outflows from comets in orbit around G-type main-sequence stars can be detected when they produce transient OH absorption lines in the spectrum near 3100 Angstroms of the host star. There is only about a 3 X 10^{-8} probability of…
The discovery of the first extra-solar planet surrounding a main-sequence star was announced in 1995, based on very precise radial velocity (Doppler) measurements. A total of 34 such planets were known by the end of March 2000, and their…
We present an analysis of the early Kepler observations of the previously discovered transiting planet HAT-P-7b. The light curve shows the transit of the star, the occultation of the planet, and the orbit phase-dependent light from the…
Comets are a remarkable feature in our night sky, visible on their passage through the inner Solar system as the Sun's energy sublimates ices and liberates surface material, generating beautiful comae, dust, and ion tails. Comets are also…
Astrometric monitoring of stars provides a promising method for discovery of low-mass planets around nearby Sun-like stars. The astronomical community has proposed several telescopes designed to perform high-precision astrometric…
The presence of silicate material in known rings in the Solar System raises the possibility of ring systems existing even within the snow line -- where most transiting exoplanets are found. Previous studies have shown that the detection of…
Among the group of extrasolar planets, transiting planets provide a great opportunity to obtain direct measurements for the basic physical properties, such as mass and radius of these objects. These planets are therefore highly important in…
We investigate the astrometric effects of stellar surface structures as a practical limitation to ultra-high-precision astrometry, e.g. in the context of exoplanet searches, and to quantify the expected effects in different regions of the…
Earthshine observations offer a unique opportunity to study Earth as an exoplanet seen from the Moon. As the Sun-Earth-Moon geometry changes, Earth can be observed as a spatially unresolved exoplanet at different phase angles, providing…
Near-infrared photometry of transiting extrasolar planets can be of great scientific value. It is however not straightforward to reach the necessary millimagnitude precision. Here we report on our attempts to observe transits and secondary…
The photometric transit method has been the most effective method to detect and characterize exoplanets as several ground-based as well as space-based survey missions have discovered thousands of exoplanets using this method. With the…
Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are huge expulsions of magnetized matter from the Sun and stars, traversing space with speeds of millions of kilometers per hour. Solar CMEs can cause severe space weather disturbances and consumer power…
Due to their extremely small luminosity compared to the stars they orbit, planets outside our own Solar System are extraordinarily difficult to detect directly in optical light. Careful photometric monitoring of distant stars, however, can…
A reasonable basis for future astronomical investigations of exoplanets lies in our best knowledge of the planets and satellites in the Solar System. Solar System bodies exhibit a wide variety of surface environments, even including…