Stable and unstable accretion in the classical T Tauri stars IM Lup and RU Lup as observed by MOST

Published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Results of the time variability monitoring of the two classical T Tauri stars, RU Lup and IM Lup, are presented. Three photometric data sets were utilized:(1) simultaneous (same field) MOST satellite observations over four weeks in each of the years 2012 and 2013,(2) multicolour observations at the South African Astronomical Observatory in April– M...

The established meteor showers as observed by CAMS

Published in Icarus

Orbital elements are presented for 70 of the 95 meteor showers considered “established” by the International Astronomical Union. From 2010 October 21 until 2013 March 31, the low-light-video based Cameras for Allsky Meteor Surveillance project (CAMS) measured a total of 110,367 meteoroid trajectories and pre-atmospheric orbits from mostly− 2 to+ 4 ...

REVISED MASSES AND DENSITIES OF THE PLANETS AROUND KEPLER-10W. MO Keck Observatory.

Published in The Astrophysical Journal

Determining which small exoplanets have stony-iron compositions is necessary for quantifying the occurrence of such planets and for understanding the physics of planet formation. Kepler-10 hosts the stony-iron world Kepler-10b, and also contains what has been reported to be the largest solid silicate-ice planet, Kepler-10c. Using 220 radial velocit...

CAMS confirmation of previously reported meteor showers

Published in Icarus

Leading up to the 2015 IAU General Assembly, the International Astronomical Union s Working List of Meteor Showers included 486 unconfirmed showers, showers that are not certain to exist. If confirmed, each shower would provide a record of past comet or asteroid activity. Now, we report that 41 of these are detected in the Cameras for Allsky Meteor...

CAMS newly detected meteor showers and the sporadic background

Published in Icarus

The Cameras for Allsky Meteor Surveillance (CAMS) video-based meteoroid orbit survey adds 60 newly identified showers to the IAU Working List of Meteor Showers (numbers 427, 445–446, 506–507, and part of 643–750). 28 of these are also detected in the independent SonotaCo survey. In total, 230 meteor showers and shower components are identified in C...

Global Erratum for Kepler Q0 - Q17 & K2 C0 - C5 Short-Cadence Data

Reflectance spectroscopy (0.35–8μm) of ammonium-bearing minerals and qualitative comparison to Ceres-like asteroids

Published in Icarus

Ammonium-bearing minerals have been suggested to be present on Mars, Ceres, and various asteroids and comets. We undertook a systematic study of the spectral reflectance properties of ammonium-bearing minerals and compounds that have possible planetary relevance (ie, ammonium carbonates, chlorides, nitrates, oxalates, phosphates, silicates, and sul...

Present-day aeolian activity in Herschel Crater, Mars

Published in Icarus

We estimate an average dune migration of 0.8 m and a minimum ripple migration of 1.1 m in a time span of 3.7 Earth-years. These dunes and ripples are mainly shaped by prevailing winds coming from the north, however we also report the presence of secondary winds which elongate the barchans horns. Such a complex wind scenario is likely caused by the...

The Last Possible Outposts for Life on Mars.

Published in Astrobiology

The evolution of habitable conditions on Mars is often tied to the existence of aquatic habitats and largely constrained to the first billion years of the planet. Here, we propose an alternate, lasting evolutionary trajectory that assumes the colonization of land habitats before the end of the Hesperian period (ca. 3 billion years ago) at a pace si...