On the HU Aquarii planetary system hypothesis

In this work, we investigate the eclipse timing of the polar binary HU Aquarii that has been observed for almost two decades. Recently, Qian et al. attributed large (O-C) deviations between the eclipse ephemeris and observations to a compact system of two massive jovian companions. We improve the Keplerian, kinematic model of the Light Travel Time (LTT) effect and re-analyse the whole currently available data set. We add almost 60 new, yet unpublished, mostly precision light curves obtained using the time high-resolution photo-polarimeter OPTIMA, as well as photometric observations performed at the MONET/N, PIRATE and TCS telescopes. We determine new mid--egress times with a mean uncertainty at the level of 1 second or better. We claim that because the observations that currently exist in the literature are non-homogeneous with respect to spectral windows (ultraviolet, X-ray, visual, polarimetric mode) and the reported mid--egress measurements errors, they may introduce systematics that affect orbital fits. Indeed, we find that the published data, when taken literally, cannot be explained by any unique solution. Many qualitatively different and best-fit 2-planet configurations, including self-consistent, Newtonian N-body solutions may be able to explain the data. However, using high resolution, precision OPTIMA light curves, we find that the (O-C) deviations are best explained by the presence of a single circumbinary companion orbiting at a distance of ~4.5 AU with a small eccentricity and having ~7 Jupiter-masses. This object could be the next circumbinary planet detected from the ground, similar to the announced companions around close binaries HW Vir, NN Ser, UZ For, DP Leo or SZ Her, and planets of this type around Kepler-16, Kepler-34 and Kepler-35.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figures, accepted to Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS

A low-mass triple system with a wide L/T transition brown dwarf component: NLTT 51469AB/SDSS 2131-0119

We demonstrate that the previously identified L/T transition brown dwarf SDSS J213154.43-011939.3 (SDSS 2131-0119) is a widely separated (82 ''.3, similar to 3830 au) common proper motion companion to the low-mass star NLTT 51469, which we reveal to be a close binary itself, separated by 0 ''.64 +/- 0 ''.01 (similar to 30 au). We find the proper motion of SDSS 2131-0119 of mu(alpha) cos delta = -100 +/- 20 mas yr(-1) and mu(delta) = -230 +/- 20 mas yr(-1) consistent with the proper motion of the primary provided by Gaia DR2: mu(alpha) cos delta = -95.49 +/- 0.96 mas yr(-1) and mu(delta) = -239.38 +/- 0.96 mas yr(-1). Based on optical and near-infrared spectroscopy, we classify the primary NLTT 51469A as an M3 +/- 1 dwarf, estimate photometrically the spectral type of its close companion NLTT 51469B at similar to M6, and confirm the spectral type of the brown dwarf to be L9 +/- 1. Using radial velocity, proper motion, and parallax, we derived the UVW Galactic space velocities of NLTT 51469A, showing that the system does not belong to any known young stellar moving group. The high V, W velocities, lack of a 670.8 nm Li I absorption line, and absence of H alpha emission, detected X-rays, or UV excess, indicate that the system is likely a member of the thin disc population and is older than 1 Gyr. For the parallactic distance of 46.6 +/- 1.6 pc from Gaia DR2, we determined luminosities of -1.50(-0.04)(+0.02) and -4.4 +/- 0.1 dex of the M3 and L9, respectively. Considering the spectrophotometric estimation, which yields a slightly lower distance of 34(-13)(+10) pc, the obtained luminosities are -1.78(-0.04)(+0.02) and -4.7(-0.5)(+0.3) dex. We also estimated their effective temperatures and masses, and obtained 3410(-210)(+140) K and 0.42 +/- 0.02 M-circle dot for the primary, and 1400-1650K and 0.05-0.07 M-circle dot for the wide companion. For the similar to M6 component, we estimated T-eff = 2850 +/- 200 K and m = 0.10(-0.01)(+0.06) M-circle dot.BG acknowledges support from the CONICYT through FONDECYT Postdoctoral Fellowship grant no. 3170513. This work is partly financed by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness through the project AYA2016-79425-C3-2-P. NL and VJSB acknowledge support from the SpanishMinistry of Economy and Competitivity through the project AYA2015-69350-C3-2-P. AP acknowledges support from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitivity through the project AYA2015-69350-C3-3-P. Based on observations obtained as part of the VHS, ESO programme, 179.A-2010 (PI: McMahon). Based on observations collected at the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern hemisphere under ESO programme 092.C-0874(B). Based on observations made with the NOT, operated by the Nordic Optical Telescope Scientific Association at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma, Spain, of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias. This paper includes data obtained using the 6.5 m Magellan Clay Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, Chile. This publication makes use of data products from the Two Micron All Sky Survey, which is a joint project of the University of Massachusetts and the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center/California Institute of Technology, funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Science Foundation. This publication makes use of data products from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, which is a joint project of the University of California, Los Angeles, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology, funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This work has made use of data from the European Space Agency (ESA) mission Gaia (https://www.cosmos.esa.int/gaia), processed by the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC, https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/gaia/dpac/consortium).Funding for the DPAC has been provided by national institutions, in particular the institutions participating in the Gaia Multilateral Agreement. This research has made use of NASA's Astrophysics Data System. We have made use of the ROSAT Data Archive of the Max-Planck-Institut fur extraterrestrische Physik (MPE) at Garching, Germany. This research has made use of theWashington Double Star Catalog maintained at the U.S. Naval Observatory

New constraints on the presence of debris disks around G 196-3 B and VHS J125601.92–125723.9 b

Context. The existence of warm (protoplanetary) disks around very young isolated planetary and brown dwarf mass objects is known based on near- and mid-infrared flux excesses and millimeter observations. These disks may later evolve into debris disks or rings, although none have been observed or confirmed so far. Little is known about circum(sub)stellar and debris disks around substellar objects. Aims. We aim to investigate the presence of debris disks around two of the closest (~20 pc), young substellar companions, namely G196-3 B and VHS J125601.92–125723.9 b (VHS J1256–1257 b), whose masses straddle the borderline between planets and brown dwarfs. Both are companions at wide orbits (≥100 au) of M-type dwarfs and their ages (50–100 Myr and 150–300 Myr, respectively) are thought to be adequate for the detection of second-generation disks. Methods. We obtained deep images of G196-3 B and VHS J1256–1257 b with the NOrthern Extended Millimeter Array (NOEMA) at 1.3 mm. These data were combined with recently published Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) and Very Large Array (VLA) data of VHS J1256–1257 b at 0.87 mm and 0.9 cm, respectively. Results. Neither G196-3 B nor VHS J1256–1257 b were detected in the NOEMA, ALMA, and VLA data. At 1.3 mm, we imposed flux upper limits of 0.108 mJy (G196-3 B) and 0.153 mJy (VHS J1256–1257 b) with a 3-σ confidence. Using the flux upper limits at the millimeter and radio wavelength regimes, we derived maximum values of 1.38×10−2 MEarth and 5.46 × 10−3 MEarth for the mass of any cold dust that might be surrounding G196-3 B and VHS J1256–1257 b, respectively. Conclusions. We put our results in the context of other deep millimeter observations of free-floating and companion objects with substellar masses smaller than 20 MJup and ages between approximately one and a few hundred million years. Only two very young (2–5.4 Myr) objects are detected out of a few tens of them. This implies that the disks around these very low-mass objects must have small masses, and possibly reduced sizes, in agreement with findings by other groups. If debris disks around substellar objects scale down (in mass and size) in a similar manner as protoplanetary disks do, millimeter observations of moderately young brown dwarfs and planets must be at least two orders of magnitude deeper to be able to detect and characterize their surrounding debris disks

Large Scale Searches for Brown Dwarfs and Free-Floating Planets

Searches of large scale surveys have resulted in the discovery of over 1000 brown dwarfs in the Solar neighbourhood. In this chapter we review the progress in finding brown dwarfs in large datasets, highlighting the key science goals, and summarising the surveys that have contributed most significantly to the current sample.Comment: Accepted to appear in the Handbook of Exoplanets (Springer); Editors: Hans J. Deeg & Juan Antonio Belmont

Investor-State Dispute Settlement under European Union Law with particular focus on the principle of autonomy of the EU legal order

Podstawowym celem niniejszej pracy jest przedstawienie mechanizmu rozwiązywania sporów inwestycyjnych między inwestorem a państwem (ISDS) w kontekście nowej unijnej polityki inwestycyjnej. Szczególny nacisk został położony na analizę kompetencji UE oraz jej charakteru w obszarze ISDS, a także na zgodność tej formy rozwiązywania sporów inwestycyjnych z zasadą autonomicznego porządku prawnego UE. Pierwszą część stanowi ogólne przedstawienie obecnie istniejącego systemu rozwiązywania sporów inwestycyjnych ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem regulacji przyjętych w Konwencji waszyngtońskiej o rozstrzyganiu sporów inwestycyjnych między państwami i obywatelami innych państw z 1965 roku oraz prowadzenia postępowania arbitrażowego w ramach Międzynarodowego Centrum Rozstrzygania Sporów Inwestycyjnych (ICSID). W następnej kolejności zaprezentowane zostały główne elementy krytyki obecnego systemu ISDS obejmujące m.in. brak transparentności w postępowaniu arbitrażowym, brak procedury odwoławczej oraz faworyzowanie inwestorów w postępowaniu. Część drugą stanowi zaprezentowanie polityki przyjętej przez Unię Europejską po Traktacie z Lizbony w zakresie kształtowania mechanizmu rozwiązywania sporów inwestycyjnych w unijnych umowach handlowych i inwestycyjnych. Przedstawione tu zostały początkowe działania i zamierzenia Komisji Europejskiej w tym zakresie. Dokonano także porównania zaproponowanego przez Komisję Systemu Trybunałów Inwestycyjnych z tradycyjnym systemem ISDS. Część trzecią stanowi, po pierwsze, analiza kompetencji Unii Europejskiej do zawarcia w umowie międzynarodowej mechanizmu rozwiązywania sporów między inwestorem a państwem w świetle opinii 2/15 Trybunału Sprawiedliwości. Po drugie, w tej części pracy została podjęta próba odpowiedzi na pytanie o zgodność systemu ISDS w kształcie zaproponowanym przez Komisję w tekstach negocjowanych bądź zawartych umów handlowych i inwestycyjnych z zasadą autonomicznego porządku prawnego w świetle dotychczasowego orzecznictwa TSUE.The main purpose of this thesis is to present the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism (ISDS) within the context of the new EU investment policy. Particular emphasis was put on the analysis of the EU competence and its character in the field of ISDS, as well as compatibility of said method of investment dispute settlement with the principle of autonomy of EU law. First part introduces the contemporary system of investment dispute settlement. Particular focus was placed on the 1965 Washington Convention on the settlement of investment disputes between States and nationals of other States as well as conducting the arbitral proceedings within the framework of International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Further, the main point of criticism towards ISDS were presented, i.a. lack of transparency of arbitration proceedings, lack of an appellate procedure and a pro-investor bias.Second part focuses on introducing the new EU policy adopted after the Lisbon Treaty with regard to shaping an ISDS mechanism in the future EU trade and investment agreements. The Commission's preliminary actions and intentions regarding the investment policy were presented. Finally this part contains also a comparison of the Investment Court System put forward by the Commission with a traditional ISDS system. Third part comprises, firstly, of an analysis of the European Union competence to include an investor-state dispute settlement mechanism in an international agreement in the light of the Court of Justice 2/15 opinion. Secondly this part of the thesis attempts to answer the question of compatibility of the ISDS as put forward by the Commission in the texts of trade and investment agreements that are being negotiated or have been already concluded with the principle of autonomy of the EU legal order in light of the CJEU jurisprudence

Zmiany w ustawie o odpadach - cyfryzacja systemu gospodarowania odpadami

24 listopada 2017 roku Sejm uchwalił ustawę o zmianie ustawy o odpadach oraz niektórych innych ustaw, która istotnie modyfikuje polski system gospodarowania odpadami. Celem nowych przepisów jest m.in. dostosowanie polskiego prawa do regulacji unijnych oraz ograniczenie tzw. „szarej strefy" i nieprawidłowości w gospodarce odpadami

GTC/CanariCam Deep Mid-infrared Imaging Survey of Northern Stars within 5 pc

© 2021. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, to view a copy of the license, see: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/In this work we present the results of a direct imaging survey for brown dwarf companions around the nearest stars at the mid-infrared 10 micron range (λ c = 8.7 μm, Δλ = 1.1 μm) using the CanariCam instrument on the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC). We imaged the 25 nearest stellar systems within 5 pc of the Sun at declinations δ > −25° (at least half have planets from radial-velocity studies), reaching a mean detection limit of 11.3 ± 0.2 mag (1.5 mJy) in the Si-2 8.7 μm band over a range of angular separations from 1″ to 10″. This would have allowed us to uncover substellar companions at projected orbital separations between ∼2 and 50 au, with effective temperatures down to 600 K and masses greater than 30 M Jup assuming an average age of 5 Gyr and masses down to the deuterium-burning mass limit for objects with ages <1 Gyr. From the nondetection of such companions, we determined upper limits on their occurrence rate at depths and orbital separations yet unexplored by deep imaging programs. For the M dwarfs, the main component of our sample, we found with a 90% confidence level that fewer than 20% of these low-mass stars have L- and T-type brown dwarf companions with m ≳ 30 MJup and Teff ≳ 600 K at ∼3.5–35 au projected orbital separations.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio