astrobites
stars
Using General Relativity to Measure Properties of Binary Pulsars
Shapiro time delays are one of the four tests of general relativity possible in the solar system. Astronomers can use these timing delays to measure properties of binary pulsar systems.
Checking Out Our New Neighbors
A new brown dwarf system has been discovered only 2 parsec away; Gillon et al. analyze its light curve to study clouds on the surfaces of these stars.
Morpho-Kinematics of a Galactic Nova
Novae are thermonuclear explosions that occur on the surface of a white dwarf following the accretion of matter from a nearby companion star. The authors seek to understand the geometry and velocity of the ejected material.
Evidence for a Universal IMF from a Dwarf Galaxy
Hubble observations of a nearby galaxy show evidence for a universal initial mass function.
Exploding diamonds in the sky
Pakmor et al. propose a new mechanism to make Type 1a supernova explosions from a pair of white dwarfs.
Three’s a Crowd: Potential Triple-Star Systems in the Kepler Field
By looking for variations in the observed periods for eclipsing binary stars, astronomers have found evidence that a sizable fraction of these systems are actually systems of three or more stars.
Finding T Dwarfs with WISE
With the addition of these 87 new T dwarfs, WISE has now tripled the number of known T dwarfs with spectral type later than T5.
The Milky Way is cut back down to size
Everything in our galaxy is moving– you, the earth underneath you, the sun, other stars– everything. However, it turns out that figuring out how fast some of these things are moving is surprisingly difficult, and can have Galactic-sized implications!
The galaxy’s red giant bones
“Galactic archaeology” is the term that has come to refer to using the motions and chemical compositions of stars of different ages to learn about the history of the Milky Way. It seems to me that “galactic paleontology” might be a bit more accurate. I hope to see galactic archaeology v. galactic paleontology fought out in the comments!
Searching for Giant Planets Around Baby Stars
How long does planetary migration take? Crockett et al. look for the answer by searching for hot Jupiters around extremely young stars.
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