Search Publications
Luminous red novae: Stellar mergers or giant eruptions?
Drake, A. J.; Sollerman, J.; Djorgovski, S. G. +36 more
We present extensive datasets for a class of intermediate-luminosity optical transients known as luminous red novae. They show double-peaked light curves, with an initial rapid luminosity rise to a blue peak (at -13 to -15 mag), which is followed by a longer-duration red peak that sometimes is attenuated, resembling a plateau. The progenitors of t…
Transient processing and analysis using AMPEL: alert management, photometry, and evaluation of light curves
Sollerman, J.; Gal-Yam, A.; Kowalski, M. +18 more
Context. Both multi-messenger astronomy and new high-throughput wide-field surveys require flexible tools for the selection and analysis of astrophysical transients.
Aims: Here we introduce the alert management, photometry, and evaluation of light curves (AMPEL) system, an analysis framework designed for high-throughput surveys and suited for…
Towards emulating cosmic shear data: revisiting the calibration of the shear measurements for the Kilo-Degree Survey
Hoekstra, Henk; Heymans, Catherine; Kuijken, Konrad +9 more
Exploiting the full statistical power of future cosmic shear surveys will necessitate improvements to the accuracy with which the gravitational lensing signal is measured. We present a framework for calibrating shear with image simulations that demonstrates the importance of including realistic correlations between galaxy morphology, size, and mor…
Observation-based modelling of magnetised coronal mass ejections with EUHFORIA
Mierla, M.; Rodriguez, L.; Poedts, S. +2 more
Context. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are the primary source of strong space weather disturbances at Earth. Their geo-effectiveness is largely determined by their dynamic pressure and internal magnetic fields, for which reliable predictions at Earth are not possible with traditional cone CME models.
Aims: We study two well-observed Earth-dir…
Extended stellar systems in the solar neighborhood. I. The tidal tails of the Hyades
Meingast, Stefan; Alves, João
We report the discovery of two well-defined tidal tails emerging from the Hyades star cluster. The tails were detected in Gaia DR2 data by selecting cluster members in the 3D galactocentric cylindrical velocity space. The robustness of our member selection is reinforced by the fact that the sources depict an almost noiseless, coeval stellar main s…
Signatures of the resonances of a large Galactic bar in local velocity space
Monari, G.; Siebert, A.; Famaey, B. +2 more
The second data release of the Gaia mission has revealed a very rich structure in local velocity space. In terms of in-plane motions, this rich structure is also seen as multiple ridges in the actions of the axisymmetric background potential of the Galaxy. These ridges are probably related to a combination of effects from ongoing phase-mixing and …
The Herschel Dwarf Galaxy Survey. II. Physical conditions, origin of [C II] emission, and porosity of the multiphase low-metallicity ISM
Lebouteiller, V.; Madden, S. C.; Galliano, F. +7 more
The sensitive infrared telescopes, Spitzer and Herschel, have been used to target low-metallicity star-forming galaxies, allowing us to investigate the properties of their interstellar medium (ISM) in unprecedented detail. Interpretation of the observations in physical terms relies on careful modeling of those properties. We have employed a multip…
The ultra-diffuse galaxy NGC 1052-DF2 with MUSE. I. Kinematics of the stellar body
Emsellem, Eric; Müller, Oliver; Lelli, Federico +14 more
The so-called ultra-diffuse galaxy NGC 1052-DF2 was announced to be a galaxy lacking dark matter based on a spectroscopic study of its constituent globular clusters. Here we present the first spectroscopic analysis of the stellar body of this galaxy using the MUSE integral-field spectrograph at the (ESO) Very Large Telescope. The MUSE datacube sim…
Observational constraints on dust disk sizes in tidally truncated protoplanetary disks in multiple systems in the Taurus region
Liu, Y.; Lodato, G.; van der Plas, G. +16 more
The impact of stellar multiplicity on the evolution of planet-forming disks is still the subject of debate. Here we present and analyze disk structures around ten multiple stellar systems that were included in an unbiased, high spatial resolution survey performed with ALMA of 32 protoplanetary disks in the Taurus star-forming region. At the unprec…
Dynamics of cluster-forming hub-filament systems. The case of the high-mass star-forming complex Monoceros R2
Schneider, N.; Tremblin, P.; Didelon, P. +15 more
Context. High-mass stars and star clusters commonly form within hub-filament systems. Monoceros R2 (hereafter Mon R2), at a distance of 830 pc, harbors one of the closest of these systems, making it an excellent target for case studies.
Aims: We investigate the morphology, stability and dynamical properties of the Mon R2 hub-filament system. …