Aims: RefPlanets is a guaranteed time observation programme that uses the Zurich IMaging POLarimeter (ZIMPOL) of Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet REsearch instrument at the Very Large Telescope to perform a blind search for exoplanets in …
Context. The red dwarf star K2-22 is transited every 9.14 h by an object which is best explained by being a disintegrating rocky exoplanet featuring a variable comet-like dust tail. While the dust is thought to dominate the transit light curve, gas …
Context. The atmospheric and surface characterization of rocky planets is a key goal of exoplanet science. Unfortunately, the measurements required for this are generally out of reach of present-day instrumentation. However, the planet Mercury in our …
Context. Ground-based high-dispersion (R ~ 100 000) spectroscopy (HDS) is proving to be a powerful technique with which to characterize extrasolar planets. The planet signal is distilled from the bright starlight, combining ral and time-differential …
Context. Imaging polarimetry is a powerful tool for detecting and characterizing exoplanets and circumstellar environments. Polarimetry allows a separation of the light coming from an unpolarized source such as a star and the polarized source such as …