Classical Wolf-Rayet stars are evolved, hydrogen depleted massive stars that exhibit strong mass-loss. In theory, these stars can form either by intrinsic mass loss (stellar winds or eruptions), or via mass-removal in binaries. The Wolf-Rayet stars in the Magellanic Clouds are often thought to have originated through binary interaction due to the low ambient metallicity and, correspondingly, reduced wind mass-loss. We performed a complete spectral analysis of all known WR binaries of the nitrogen sequence in the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds, as well as additional orbital analyses, and constrained the evolutionary histories of these stars. We find that the bulk of Wolf-Rayet stars are luminous enough to be explained by single-star evolution. In contrast to prediction, we do not find clear evidence for a large population of low-luminosity Wolf-Rayet stars that could only form via binary interaction, suggesting a discrepancy between predictions and observations.

We have discovered a population of 29 outlying Hα emitters which appear like unresolved blobs in the DR14 data release of the SDSS IV MaNGA integral field unit survey. They do not have any underlying optical continuum emission in deep imaging from the DECam Legacy Survey or Beijing-Arizona Sky Survey. These blobs either lie away from the disc of the host galaxy in the MaNGA IFU and/or have velocities which are different from the velocity map of the host galaxy. Interestingly, all of them show photoionisation due to star formation. These galaxies have very high specific star formation rates compared to the known population of dwarf galaxies. However, their metallicities are consistent with or even lowerthan those of the local volume dwarfs. Thus, we can possibly rule out tidal dwarf galaxies. They could represent a new population of low mass and starbursting dwarf galaxies.

Accurate (< 10%) distances of Galactic star clusters allow a precise estimation of the physical parameters of any physically associated Planetary Nebula (PN) and also that of its central star (CSPN) and its progenitor. The progenitor’s mass can be related to the PN’s chemical characteristics and, furthermore, provides additional data for the widely used white dwarf (WD) initial-to-final mass relation (IFMR) that is crucial for tracing the development of both carbon and nitrogen in entire galaxies. To date, there is only one PN (PHR1315- 6555) confirmed to be physically associated with a Galactic open cluster (ESO 96 -SC04) that has a turn-off mass ∼2Mʘ. Our deep HST photometry was used for the search of the CSPN of this currently unique PN. In this work, we present our results.

Using a novel method for speckle noise suppression from SPHERE-IFS data, we performed a systematic survey for disks in 22 Herbig Ae/Be stars, spatially resolving five disks and detecting seven new companion candidates. The fraction of sources with spatially resolved disks is systematically higher in the Meeus et al. (2001) group I sources, showing that disks are indeed more easily seen in scattered light in this sub-class of Herbig stars, consistent with the interpretation of group I sources having large gaps in their disks.

Photometric passbands are usually characterised through laboratory measurements and once in operations they are refined with true observations of reference sources with known spectral energy distribution. This paper revises the methods to determine those passbands and discusses the limitations encountered. The passbands are not fully constrained by the reference sources used and the method presented here allows to evaluate which is the constrained and the unconstrained component of the passband.

We present our results from a mid-infrared interferometric survey targeted at the planet-forming region in the circumstellar disks around low- and intermediate-mass young stars. Our sample consists of 82 objects, including T Tauri stars, Herbig Ae stars, and young eruptive stars. Our main results are: 1) Disks around T Tauri stars are similar to those around Herbig Ae stars, but are relatively more extended once we account for stellar luminosity. 2) From the distribution of the sizes of the mid-infrared emitting region we find that inner dusty disk holes may be present in roughly half of the sample. 3) Our analysis of the silicate spectral feature reveals that the dust in the inner ~1 au region of disks is generally more processed than that in the outer regions. 4) The dust in the disks of T Tauri stars typically show weaker silicate emission in the N band spectrum, compared to Herbig Ae stars, which may indicate a general difference in the disk structure. Our data products are available at VizieR, and at the following web page: http://konkoly.hu/MIDI_atlas.

Understanding the peculiar properties of Ultra Diffuse Galaxies (UDGs) via spectroscopic analysis is a challenging task that is now becoming feasible. The advent of 10m-class telescopes and high sensitivity instruments is enabling the gathering of high quality spectra even for the faintest systems. In addition, advances in the modelling of stellar populations, stellar libraries, and full-spectral fitting codes are allowing the recovery of the stellar content shaping those spectra with unprecedented reliability. In this contribution we report on the extensive tests we have carried out using the inversion code STECKMAP. The similarities between the Star Formation Histories (SFH) recovered from STECKMAP (applied to high-quality spectra) and deep Colour-Magnitude diagrams fitting (resolved stars) in two Local Group dwarf galaxies (LMC and LeoA) are remarkable, demonstrating the impressive performance of STECKMAP. We exploit the capabilities of STECKMAP and perform one of the most complete and reliable characterisations of the stellar component of UDGs to date using deep spectroscopic data. We measure radial and rotation velocities, SFHs and mean population parameters, such as ages and metallicities, for a sample of five UDG candidates in the Coma cluster. From the radial velocities, we confirm the Coma membership of these galaxies. We find that their rotation properties, if detected at all, are compatible with dwarf-like galaxies. The SFHs of the UDG are dominated by old (∼ 7 Gyr), metal-poor ([M/H] ∼ -1.1) and alpha-enhanced ([Mg/Fe]∼ 0.4) populations followed by a smooth or episodic decline which halted ∼ 2 Gyr ago, possibly a sign of cluster-induced quenching. We find no obvious correlation between individual SFH shapes and any UDG morphological properties. The recovered stellar properties for UDGs are similar to those found for DDO 44, a local UDG analogue resolved into stars. We conclude that the UDGs in our sample are extended dwarfs whose properties are likely the outcome of both internal processes, such as bursty SFHs and/or high-spin haloes, as well as environmental effects within the Coma cluster.

I present our observations and modeling of the 1.3 mm and 3.18 mm dust continuum emission in Class 0 protostars, from the IRAM-PdBI CALYPSO survey. We show that most protostars are better reproduced by models including a disk-like dust continuum component contributing to the flux at small scales, but less than 25% of these candidate protostellar disks are resolved at radii >60 au, which favors magnetized models of rotating protostellar collapse for disk formation (Maury et al. 2019). I also present new ALMA observations of the molecular line emission in the IRAM04191 protostar, suggesting a small counter-rotating disk is detected in this young low-luminosity solar-type protostar. Finally, I show our ALMA observations of the magnetic field topology in the B335 protostar, which when compared to the typical output from protostellar collapse models, suggest the magnetic field might be responsible for constraining the disk size to remain very small in this protostar (Maury et al. 2018).

We report on our search for spectroscopic binaries among a sample of AGB stars. Observations were carried out in the framework of the monitoring of radial velocities of (candidate) binary stars performed at the Mercator 1.2m telescope, using the HERMES spectrograph. We found evidence for duplicity in UV Cam, TU Tau, BL Ori, VZ Per, T Dra, and V Hya.

Silicon carbide together with amorphous carbon are the main components of dust grains in the atmospheres of C-rich AGB stars. Small gaseous Si-C bearing molecules (such as SiC, SiCSi, and SiC2) are efficiently formed close to the stellar photosphere. They likely condense onto dust seeds owing to their highly refractory nature at the lower temperatures (i.e., below about 2500 K) in the dust growth zone which extends a few stellar radii from the photosphere. Beyond this region, the abundances of Si-C bearing molecules are expected to decrease until they are eventually reformed in the outer shells of the circumstellar envelope, owing to the interaction between the gas and the interstellar UV radiation field. Our goal is to understand the time-dependent chemical evolution of Si-C bond carriers probed by molecular spectral line emission in the circumstellar envelope of IRC+10216 at millimeter wavelengths.

Using abundances from the available largest, homogeneous sample of high resolution Barium (Ba) star spectra we calculated the ratios of different hs-like to ls-like elemental ratios and compared to different AGB nucleosynthesis models. The Ba star data show an incontestable increase of the hs-type/ls-type element ratio (for example, [Ce/Y]) with decreasing metallicity. This trend in the Ba star observations is predicted by low mass, non-rotating AGB models where 13C is the main neutron source and is in agreement with Kepler asteroseismology observations.

A common thought in the 1950s was that galaxies rotate because they are remnants of primeval currents, as in turbulence. But this idea is quite unacceptable in an expanding universe described by general relativity theory. Since we are no smarter now than in the 1950s the lesson I draw is that we do well on occasion to pause to consider whether we might be missing something. An example is the pure disk galaxies that are so common nearby and so rare in simulations. We have something to learn from this.

We present an analysis of the stellar and gaseous metallicity gradients in a sample of 260 disc galaxies from the CALIFA survey. The slope of the different components are compared with the main characteristics of the galaxies, such as mass, morphology, presence of a bar, or gas fraction.

. We studied the eclipsing ultraluminous X-ray source CG X-1 in the Circinus galaxy, re-examining two decades of Chandra and XMM-Newton observations. The short binary period (7.21 hr) and high luminosity (LX ≈ 1040 erg s-1) suggest a Wolf-Rayet donor, close to filling its Roche lobe; this is the most luminous Wolf-Rayet X-ray binary known to-date, and a potential progenitor of a gravitational-wave merger. We phase-connect all observations, and show an intriguing dipping pattern in the X-ray lightcurve, variable from orbit to orbit. We interpret the dips as partial occultation of the X-ray emitting region by fast-moving clumps of Compton-thick gas. We suggest that the occulting clouds are fragments of the dense shell swept-up by a bow shock ahead of the compact object, as it orbits in the wind of the more massive donor.

We present observations of nearby red supergiants with SPHERE.

Using the VLT-SPHERE/ZIMPOL adaptive optics imaging polarimeter, images of a sample of nearby red supergiants (RSGs) were obtained in multiple filters. From these data, we obtain information on geometrical structures in the inner wind, the onset radius and spatial distribution of dust grains as well as dust properties such as grain size. As dust grains may play a role in initiating and/or driving the outflow, this could provide us with clues as to the wind driving mechanism.

Trans-Neptunian satellite systems and embryos of the Earth-Moon system could be formed as a result of contraction of rarefied condensations. The angular momenta of rarefied condensations needed for such formation could be acquired at collisions of condensations. The angular momentum of the present Earth-Moon system could be acquired at a collision of two rarefied condensations with a total mass not smaller than 0.1ME, where ME is the mass of the Earth. The mass of the condensation that was a parent for the embryos of the Earth and the Moon could be about 0.01ME, if we take into account the growth of the angular momentum of the embryos with growth of their masses. The Moon embryo could get by an order of magnitude more material ejected from the Earth embryo than that fell directly onto the Moon embryo.

Having disk-to-star accretion rates on the order of 10-4M⊙/yr, FU Orionis-type stars (FUors) are thought to be the visible examples for episodic accretion. FUors are often surrounded by massive envelopes, which replenish the disk material and enable the disk to produce accretion outbursts. We observed the FUor-type star V346 Nor with ALMA at 1.3 mm continuum and in different CO rotational lines. We mapped the density and velocity structure of its envelope and analyzed the results using channel maps, position-velocity diagrams, and spectro-astrometric methods. We discovered a pseudo-disk and a Keplerian disk around a 0.1 M⊙ central star. We determined an infall rate from the envelope onto the disk of 6×10-6M⊙/yr, a factor of few higher than the quiescent accretion rate from the disk onto the star. This hints for a mismatch between the infall and accretion rates as the cause of the eruption.