We have obtained for the first time 2.10-2.45 μm infrared spectra of the soft-X-ray transient V404 Cygni. We determine a 95 per cent confidence upper limit to the fraction of light arising from the accretion disc of 14 per cent. The effect this has on the mass of the compact object, determined from modelling the infrared ellipsoidal variations, is

We argue that heights of formation (HOFs) should not be assigned to spectral lines since a single line my sample very different layers of the atmosphere, depending on the physical parameter of interest and the technique employed to determine it. HOFs should be assigned to specific measurements. General expressions to compute these HOFs for

Sunspots are restricted to a latitude band within 30degof the solar equator. In contrast, the latitudes of spots on the surfaces of rapidly rotating cool stars can range from their polar regions, for RS CVn systems and for T Tauri stars leaving the Hayashi track, to mid latitudes for stars close to or on the main sequence. In order to find an

Based on photometry of deep CCD frames of the central region of the OB cluster Berkeley 86, we derive the cluster mass function. The absence of current star formation, and the cluster's young age of about 6Myrs, leads to the conclusion that the initial mass function (IMF) and the current mass function are identical for stars with m

In order to provide additional constraints to current models of angular momentum evolution of solar-type stars, we have conducted a period-determination program in the Alpha Perseus cluster. We have selected a sample of 22 Alpha Persei G and K dwarfs on the basis of their seemingly slow rotation rate (vsini

We present the first optical observations of the soft X-ray transient Nova Vela 1993, taken during quiescence in 1995 and 1996. From the R-band photometry with a mean magnitude of 20.6, we find an orbital, ellipsoidal modulation with an amplitude of 0.23 mag at a period of 6.86+/-0.12 h. The optical spectra show only broad double-peaked Hα emission