Lines of research: Exoplanetary Systems & Solar System (SEYSS)

Exoplanetary Systems & Solar System (SEYSS)

The area of planetary and solar systems involves several research groups working on Exoplanets, Solar System and Cultural Astronomy. Our main objectives are:

  • The detection and characterization of giant and rocky planets around nearby stars using the most advanced instruments (CARMENES, ESPRESSO, HARPS Norte y Sur, SONG, LCO, MUSCAT2) and space missions (CoRoT, Kepler K2, CHEOPS, TESS and PLATO). The group is particularly interested in the study of terrestrial planets in the habitable zone of their host stars where water can be in liquid form.
  • The characterization of the atmospheres of planets to know their structure and composition, both by transits and direct imaging, using ground-based telescopes such as GTC and space missions such as CHEOPS.
  • Investigate the formation of exoplanet systems by studying the chemical composition of planet host stars, and the dynamical evolution of exoplanets at their early stages of formation.
  • Study the physical properties of different families of minor bodies of the Solar System (asteroids, comets, trans-neptunian objects, etc.) to understand the origin and evolution of Solar System with GTC and space missions such as OSIRIS-REx.
  • The study of ancient cosmologies through cultural astronomy and the defense of cultural heritage through the astronomy.
  • Publication
    The Double Dust Envelopes of R Coronae Borealis Stars
    The study of extended, cold dust envelopes surrounding R Coronae Borealis (RCB) stars began with their discovery by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite. RCB...
  • Publication
    The Dust Environment of Main-Belt Comet P/2010 R2 (La Sagra)
    We present a model of the dust environment of Main-Belt Comet P/2010 R2 (La Sagra) from images acquired during the period 2010 October-2011 January. The tails...
  • Publication
    The Dust Environment of Main-Belt Comet P/2012 T1 (PANSTARRS)
    The Main-Belt Comet P/2012 T1 (PANSTARRS) has been imaged using the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias and the 4.2 m William Herschel Telescope at six epochs in...
  • Publication
    The Earthshine Network: an update 1998-2013
    The amount of energy coming into the Earth's climate system is the combination of two parameters: solar constant, and Earth's albedo (or reflectance). Our main...
  • Publication
    The EBLM project - IX. Five fully convective M-dwarfs, precisely measured with CHEOPS and TESS light curves
    Eclipsing binaries are important benchmark objects to test and calibrate stellar structure and evolution models. This is especially true for binaries with a...
  • Publication
    The EBLM project - VIII. First results for M-dwarf mass, radius, and effective temperature measurements using CHEOPS light curves
    The accuracy of theoretical mass, radius, and effective temperature values for M-dwarf stars is an active topic of debate. Differences between observed and...
  • Publication
    The EBLM Project- XI. Mass, radius, and effective temperature measurements for 23 M-dwarf companions to solar-type stars observed with CHEOPS
    Observations of low-mass stars have frequently shown a disagreement between observed stellar radii and radii predicted by theoretical stellar structure models...
  • Publication
    The EBLM project. II. A very hot, low-mass M dwarf in an eccentric and long-period, eclipsing binary system from the SuperWASP Survey
    In this paper, we derive the fundamental properties of 1SWASPJ011351.29+314909.7 (J0113+31), a metal-poor (-0.40 ± 0.04 dex), eclipsing binary in an eccentric...
  • Publication
    The EChO science case
    The discovery of almost two thousand exoplanets has revealed an unexpectedly diverse planet population. We see gas giants in few-day orbits, whole multi-planet...