Local three-dimensional radiation-hydrodynamics simulations of patches of the surfaces of solar-type stars, that are governed by small-scale granular convection, have helped analyzing and interpreting observations for decades. These models contributed considerably to the understanding of the atmospheres and indirectly also of the interiors and the active layers above the surface of these stars. Of great help was of course the availability of a close-by prototype of these stars – the sun.

In the case of an asymptotic-giant-branch (AGB) star, the convective cells have sizes comparable to the radius of the giant. Therefore, the extensions of the solar-type-star simulations to AGB stars have to be global and cover the entire object, including a large part of the convection zone, the molecule-formation layers in the inner atmosphere, and the dust-formation region in the outer atmosphere. Three-dimensional radiation-hydrodynamics simulations with CO5BOLD show how the interplay of large and small convection cells, waves, pulsations, and shocks, but also molecular and dust opacities of AGB stars create conditions very different from those in the solar atmosphere.

Recent CO5BOLD models account for frequency-dependent radiation transport and the formation of two independent dust species for an oxygen-rich composition. The drop of the comparably smooth temperature distribution below a threshold determines to onset of dust formation, further in, at higher temperatures, for aluminium oxides (Al2O3) than for silicates (Mg2SiO4). An uneven dust distribution is mostly caused by inhomogeneities in the density of the shocked gas.

Based on cosmological re-simulations we have shown that the impact of satellite galaxies has a minor effect on the thin disc heating. In contrast satellite galaxies can generate long-lived warps of the outer disc and they can advance or delay bar formation significantly.

Most of the physical processes driving the TP-AGB evolution are not yet fully understood and they need to be modelled with parameterised descriptions. We present the results of the on-going calibration of the TP-AGB phase based on a complete sample of AGB stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SAGE-SMC survey). We computed large grids of TP-AGB models with several combinations of third dredge-up and mass-loss prescriptions with the COLIBRI code. The SMC AGB population is modelled with the population synthesis code TRILEGAL according to the space-resolved star formation history derived with the deep photometry from the VISTA survey of the Magellanic Clouds. We put quantitative constraints on the efficiencies of the third dredge-up and mass loss by requiring the models to reproduce the star counts and the luminosity functions of the observed Oxygen-, Carbon-rich and extreme-AGB stars and we investigate the impact of the best-fitting prescriptions on the chemical yields.

We report on the Bulge Asymmetries and Dynamic Evolution (BAaDE) survey which has observed 19 000 MSX color selected red giant stars for SiO maser emission at 43 GHz with the VLA and is in the process of observing 9 000 of these stars with ALMA at 86 GHz in the Southern sky. Our setup covers the main maser transitions, as well as those of isotopologues and selected lines of carbon-bearing species. Observations of this set of lines allow a far-reaching catalog of line-of-sight velocities in the dust-obscured regions where optical surveys cannot reach. Our preliminary detection rate is close to 70%, predicting a wealth of new information on the distribution of metal rich stars, their kinematics as function of location in the Galaxy, as well as the occurrence of lines and line ratios between the different transitions in combination with the spectral energy distribution from about 1 to 100 μm. Similar to the OH/IR stars, a clear kinematic signature between disk and bulge stars can be seen. Furthermore, the SiO J = →10 (v=3) line plays a prominent role in the derived maser properties.

The earliest generations of stars were produced in galaxies at high redshift. The physical conditions in which these stars formed, produced heavy elements and dust, and subsequently ended their life cycles, however, are vastly different from those in the Milky Way. Nearby low metal-abundance galaxies provide critical laboratories within which it is possible to observe conditions similar to those at high redshift, shedding light on the lifecycle of dust and metals in the early Universe. Does the process of star formation change at low metallicity? How did galaxies in the early Universe produce significant amounts of dust without the elapsed time necessary for stars to evolve to the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) phase and contribute via mass loss? Here we present work cataloging dust-producing sources in the nearby metal-poor galaxy NGC 6822 and outline forthcoming GTO observations of this system and the blue compact dwarf I Zw 18 with JWST.

I discuss the photometric calibration of the SkyMapper Southern Survey, our adopted methods and what we learned from comparisons with external catalogues.

We present a case study of GG Carinae (GG Car), a Galactic B[ e ] supergiant binary having significant eccentricity (0.28), based on Global Jet Watch spectroscopy data which has been collecting high-time-sampled optical spectra since early 2015. GG Car has so far not been observed in the X-ray band, however it is of similar phenomenology to known X-ray binaries and may therefore be an obscured X-ray source. We have discovered that the absorption component of the H-alpha line displays a ∼62-478-day period in both equivalent width and wavelength centroid indicating cycles in the dynamics of the circumstellar environment, such as precession of the circumbinary or circumprimary disk. Circumbinary disk precession is an as-of-yet underexplored origin of super-orbital variations in the X-ray flux of X-ray binaries, since the rate of precession is generally much longer than the orbital period of the inner binary.

The connection between low- and high-mass filaments is a matter of strong debate. In order to bridge these two filamentary regimes, we have investigated the internal structure of the Integral Filament in Orion using ALMA observations of the N2H+ (1-0) emission line in Band 3 in combination with previous single-dish data. Our ALMA mosaics, the largest of its kind carried out so-far in local clouds, reveal the presence of multiple sonic-like fibers inside this massive filament. In combination with the identification of fibers in regions such as Taurus, Musca, and Perseus, the first unambiguous detection of fibers in Orion highlights the importance of these gas substructures as the fundamental building blocks of both low- and high-mass filaments.

We report on the detection of a rich water reservoir in the protostellar envelope of the Class 0 source HH211. In striking contrast to all other molecules detected with Herschel/PACS, water emission peaks around the central source where both ortho and para forms are detected. The measured ortho-to-para ratio of just 0.65 indicates formation of water-ice at very low temperatures and a non-destructive photo-desorption process around the protostar. While part of the H2O emission is likely related to collisional excitation, the centralized morphology around the protostar suggests that radiative excitation is also significant, despite the fact that radiation appears to have a very different impact on the H2O molecules when compared to the terminal outflow shocks. The very low ortho-to-para ratio suggests that H2O around the protostar originates from primordial envelope material that has never been thermally processed before.

Results of long-term studies of circumstellar molecular maser emission of late-type giant and supergiant variable stars are reported. In the 1.35-cm H2O line, the peak flux density correlates with the optical brightness lagging behind it by 0.3–0.4 P (P is the stellar period). “Superperiods” of 10 to 15 P are visible in several stars, demonstrated as high maxima in the visible light curve and associated flares in the H2O maser line. In the 18-cm OH lines, full polarization of the maser emission has been measured. Variable Zeeman patterns suggesting a changing magnetic field of a few milligauss have been detected.

LSST (www.lsst.org) will be a large, wide-field ground-based system designed to obtain repeated images covering the sky visible from Cerro Pachón in northern Chile. The telescope will have an 8.4m (6.5m effective) primary mirror, a 9.6 sq.deg. field of view, and a 3.2 Gigapixel camera. In a continuous observing campaign, LSST will cover the entire observable sky every three nights to a depth of V ∼ 25 per visit (using 30-second exposures and ugrizy filter set), with exquisitely accurate astrometry and photometry. Close to a half of the sky will be visited about 800 times during the nominal 10-year survey. The project is in the construction phase with first light expected in 2020 and the beginning of regular survey operations by 2022. We describe how these data will impact AGB star research and discuss how the system could be further optimized by utilizing narrow-band TiO and CN filters.

Young stellar objects often show photometric variability, which is well examined at optical wavelengths, but more and more infrared data are also available. The wavelength dependence of the variability carries information on the physical cause of the changing brightness. Here, we examine seven T Tauri-type stars known for their large amplitude variability selected from the Campaign 13 field of the Kepler K2 mission. We complemented the K2 light curves by multifilter optical monitoring observations made with the 90 cm Schmidt telescope of Konkoly Observatory, and by 3.6 and 4.5 μm infrared photometry with a 20 hours cadence using the Spitzer Space Telescope. We found that the wavelength dependence of the observed variability is not consistent with changing interstellar extinction. We suggest that the brightness changes are due to variable accretion, causing a variable illumination of the inner disk.

The recent detection of Earth-sized planets in the habitable zone of Proxima Centauri, Trappist-1, and many other nearby M-type stars (which consist some 75% of the stars) has led to speculations, whether liquid water and life actually exist on these planets. Defining the bio-habitable zone, where liquid water and complex organic molecules can survive on at least part of the planetary surface, we suggest that planets orbiting M-type stars may have life-supporting conditions for a wide range of atmospheric properties (Wandel2018). We extend this analysis to synchronously orbiting planets of K- and G-type stars and discuss the implications for the evolution and sustaining of life on planets of M- to G-type stars, in analogy to Earth.

The massive outflows of gas and dust which characterize giant stars on the Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB), build cool circumstellar envelopes readily observed at infrared (IR) and sub-millimeter wavelengths. The observations will give the amount of matter lost by the star, the wind velocity (in the case of spectral line observations), and, when the spatial resolution is sufficient, the wind evolution over time. To gain detailed insight into the mass-loss process, we study the nearby (closer than 1 kpc) stars. Through these investigations we aim to determine the best constrained wind properties available. By combining this with theoretical results, mass-loss estimates for more distant sources can also be significantly improved. ALMA has opened up new opportunities to study the winds of AGB stars. The DEATHSTAR project (www.astro.uu.se/deathstar) has mapped the circumstellar CO emission from so far ∼50 nearby M- and C-type AGB stars. The data will initially be used to give a definitive mass-loss prescription for the sample sources, but the large-bandwidth observations opens for many different legacy projects. The current status and results are presented.

Section 1 of the FM14 focus on bridging the astronomy research and outreach communities - recent highlights, emerging collaborations, best practices and support structures. This paper also contains supplementary materials that point to contributed talks and poster presentations that can be found online.

The standard picture for the origin of magnetic fields in astrophysical systems involves turbulent dynamo amplification of a weak seed field. Dynamos convert kinetic energy of motions to magnetic energy. While it is relatively easy for magnetic energy to grow, explaining the observed degree of coherence of cosmic magnetic fields generated by turbulent dynamos, remains challenging. We outline potential resolution of these challenges. Another intriguing possibility is that magnetic fields originated at some level from the early universe.

The paper discusses possible impacts of the interstellar medium (ISM) on processes on Earth, first of all those, which may affect the Earth biosphere.

The existence of exoplanets around evolved objects is one of the most interesting subjects from the viewpoint of planetary system evolution and its fate. What happens to the exoplanets engulfed in the host star envelope during red giant branch (RGB) phase? Can planets survive this evolutionary stage of the host star? Here, we are showing that at least some of the exoplanetary candidates recently found around a couple of sdBV stars, KIC 5807616 and KIC 10001893, might not be exoplanets after all. One “exoplanetary signal” visible in the light curve FT of KIC 10001893 can be just a frequency combination of stellar pulsation modes, while others are likely artifacts. Similarly, low frequency signals found in KIC 5807616 light curve FT, are beating frequencies of stellar oscillations, rather than resulting from the exoplanetary radiation. We also analyzed frequency and amplitude changes of the signal around 0.256 c/d (∼3.9 day) visible in the light curve FT of the KIC 10449976 sdO star. Our simulations show that it is difficult to reproduce the observed signal frequency variations by the weather changes in the exoplanet atmosphere.