TAOS II is a next-generation occultation survey with the goal of measuring the size distribution of the small end of the Kuiper Belt (objects with diameters 0.5–30 km). Such objects have magnitudes r > 30, and are thus undetectable by direct imaging. The project will operate three telescopes at San Pedro Mártir Observatory in Baja California, México. Each telescope will be equipped with a custom-built camera comprised of a focal-plane array of CMOS imagers. The cameras will be capable of reading out image data from 10,000 stars at a cadence of 20 Hz. The telescopes will monitor the same set of stars simultaneously to search for coincident occultation detections, thus minimising the false-positive rate. This talk described the project, and reported on the progress of the development of the survey infrastructure.

The SALT transient follow-up programme began in 2016 and will continue for 5 semesters (until 31 Oct 2018), with an expectation of renewal thereafter. It is currently the only SALT Large Science Programme, and was awarded ~250 ksec. per semester, with a significant fraction (60%) given for the highest priority target-of-opportunity time. The aim is to characterise and study transients across a wide range of classes, currently including (from closest to most distant) cataclysmic variables, novæ and other associated eruptive variables, low- and high-mass X-ray binaries, OGLE and Gaia transients (including tidal disruption events), super-luminous and unusual core-collapse supernovæ, kilonovæ and other candidate optical counterparts to gravitational-wave events, flaring blazars and AGN, and gamma-ray bursts. This programme currently involves four SALT partners, of which South Africa is the major contributor of time (74%) and resources and includes five institutions with over 30 co-investigators. This talk reviewed the nature of the programme and highlighted some of the results to date.

There is a strong correlation between coronal mass ejection transients and chromospheric H-α activity. Solar physicists hope to ascertain what causes coronal disturbances, and in our current investigation we are trying to address that problem by assessing the likelihood that a coronal disturbance is associated with other manifestations of the same abrupt, perturbing event such as a flare. The correlation, if any, between filament and flare can be derived by a method of image processing. Our next approach is to give the results of statistical research by studying a century of chromospheric Hα observations. This poster describes the concept and preliminary experiences of deriving the characteristics of a filament and a flare.

Astrophysical jets have been detected in objects as diverse as protostellar objects and supermassive black holes, yet we still have not answered the key question of what system properties are necessary to launch a jet. This talk described multi-wavelength time-domain studies to determine if two classes of objects at opposite ends of the energy scale are launching jets. First, Cataclysmic Variables (binaries with mass accretion rates of ≤ 10−8 M⊙y−1) were previously thought not to launch jets, and have been used to constrain jet launching models. Nevertheless, recent radio observations have indicated a jet in one system, and have shown that that system is not unique. As regards the other end of the energy scale, we still do not know if the most powerful stellar explosions (Super-Luminous Supernovæ) launch jets. Recent improvements in sensitivity (particularly at radio wavelengths), higher-cadence transient surveys, significantly improved telescope response times and longer-term monitoring have led to substantial advances in these fields. The talk discussed how we are using multi-wavelength studies (with different cadences and coverage times) of these two extremely different classes of object to determine if they launch jets, thereby to constrain the properties necessary to do so.

This poster presented results from a detailed analysis of observed and theoretical light-curves of classical Cepheid variables in the Galaxy and the Magellanic Clouds. The theoretical light-curves were based on non-linear convective hydrodynamical pulsation models; the observational data were taken from ongoing wide-field variability surveys. The variation which we found in theoretical and observed light-curve parameters as a function of period, wavelength and metallicity was used to constrain the input physics to the pulsation models, such as the mass–luminosity relations obeyed by Cepheid variables. We also accounted for the variation in the convective efficiency as entered into the stellar pulsation models and its impact on the theoretical amplitudes and Period-Luminosity relations for Cepheid variables.

This research was prompted by the discovery of 35 new or candidate symbiotic stars during a targeted search in the Local Group of Galaxies. A catalogue of a further 200 or so such objects has now been compiled. Many of them could be identified with counterparts in the POINT-AGAPE Catalogue. However, information in the Catalogue is limited to position, brightness and possible period, and light-curves are not available. The poster presented an example of a light-curve of a symbiotic star retrieved from original Point-Agape Catalogue data.

This talk presented a summary of our study of different types of long-term variability in the high-mass X-ray binary LMC X-4, by taking advantage of more than 43 years of measurements in the X-ray domain. In particular, we investigated the 30-day cycle of modulation of the X-ray emission from the source (super-orbital or precessional variability), and refined the orbital period and its first derivative. We showed that the precession period in the time-interval 1991–2015 is near its equilibrium value of Psup = 30.370 days, while the observed historical changes in the phase of this variability can be interpreted in terms of the ‘red noise’ model. We obtained an analytical law from which the precession phase can be determined to within 5% throughout the entire time-interval under consideration. Our analysis revealed for the first time that the source is displaying near-periodic variations of its spin period, on a time-scale of roughly 6.8 years, thus making LMC X-4 one of the (few) known binary systems that show remarkable long-term spin–torque reversals.

KIC 4851217 is a short period eclipsing binary (P = 2.47 days) in the field of the Kepler K1 mission. As well as variability caused by the eclipses, low-amplitude pulsations are also present in the data. A frequency analysis of the residual light-curve revealed δ Sct pulsations in the frequency range from 15–21 d−1 with amplitudes up to 3.5 mmag. Strong linear coupling (fi = fp + kforb) to orbital frequency was found, indicating tidally locked modes. From an analysis of 5 selected groups of frequencies we identified a radial mode on the secondary component, 3 dipole modes (l = |m| = 1), one of them present on the secondary component, and a quadrupole mode (l = |m| = 2), also located on the secondary component.

In the last decade Astronomy has been transformed by a deluge of data that will grow exponentially when near-future telescopes such as LSST and the SKA begin routine observing. Astroinformatics, a broad field encompassing many techniques in statistics, machine learning and data mining, is the key to extracting meaningful information from large amounts of data. This talk outlined Astroinformatics as a field, and gave a few examples of the use of machine learning and Bayesian statistics from my own work in survey Astronomy. The era of massive surveys in which we now find ourselves has the potential to revolutionise completely many fields, including time-domain Astronomy, but only if coupled with the powerful tools of Astroinformatics.

One of the great challenges in time-domain astronomy is the problem of combining data obtained at various epochs with very different instruments. These problems are mostly discussed from within a specific observational mode, for example photometry, spectroscopy or imaging. This Workshop explored by example diverse pitfalls of time-domain calibration by discussing calibration and standardisation problems across various types of variables.

The recent spectacular progress in machine learning and artificial intelligence opens up exciting opportunities for time-domain and transient astronomy. This talk outlined the fundamental challenges that we will need to overcome in order to realise that potential, from discovering completely new classes to fully-automated follow-up campaigns.

As shown by recent gravitational wave detections, galaxies harbour an unknown population of black holes at high masses. In our Galaxy such dark objects can be found and studied solely via gravitational microlensing methods. This paper described our search for black-hole lenses both in archived OGLE data and among on-going microlensing events found by OGLE and Gaia. That combination of superb time-domain astrometry and photometry will enable us to derive masses and distances to these dark lenses uniquely, and to describe the demographics of the unseen component of the Milky Way.

This talk presented and discussed some recent results obtained from a photometric and spectroscopic optical follow-up survey of bright classical novæ. The survey concerned the role of those objects in Galactic chemical evolution, with particular attention to the production of lithium.

We have identified a new population of luminous, optical, narrow-lined transients (FWHM ∼1000 km s−1) coincident with the nuclear region of Seyfert galaxies. According to extensive spectrophotometric follow-ups of the main event (PS1-10adi), we could exclude both normal active galactic nucleus activity and changing-look quasars as the origin. The integrated energy output and spectral evolution over a time-scale of several years point to two possible paths of origin: a tidal disruption of a star by a supermassive black hole, or an extremely energetic supernova occurring within the Seyfert galaxy’s narrow-line (or broad-line) region. The former model would require invoking a specific variant of a tidal disruption, while the latter would require an extremely efficient conversion of kinetic energy via shock interaction between the supernova ejecta and the dense ambient medium.

In March 2017, the Intermediate Palomar Transient Factory (iPTF) ceased operations. This Symposium was an appropriate opportunity to review the scientific returns from iPTF and its predecessor survey, the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF), and to summarise the lessons learned. Succeeding iPTF on the Palomar Observatory 48-inch Schmidt telescope is the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), a new survey with an order of magnitude faster survey speed that is now being commissioned. I described the design and scientific rationale for ZTF. ZTF is prototyping new alert stream technologies being explored by the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) to distribute millions of transient alerts per night to downstream science users. I described the design of the alert system and discussed it in the context of the wider LSST and community broker ecosystem.

Our poster presented a new analysis of the transit-time variations displayed by the extrasolar planet Kepler-410Ab. We assumed that the observed changes in the transit times are caused by the gravitational influence of another body in the system. To determine the mass of that perturbing body, we considered the light-time effect and an analytical approximation of the perturbation model. The solutions resulting from both methods gave comparable results, with an orbital period of 970 days and a slightly eccentric orbit for the third body. We proposed two possible models of a perturbing body orbiting a common barycentre with Kepler-410A: a single star with mass of at least 0.906 M⊙, or a binary star with a total component mass of at least 2.15 M⊙.

The broad-lined Type Ic Supernovæ (SNe) associated with Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) were long considered the most luminous class as a whole among core-collapse SNe, until the discovery of Superluminous SNe (SLSNe) during the last decade. There are many differences between the two classes, but in recent years events have been discovered which form a link between them. Associated with GRBs but more luminous and hotter, and in one case clearly dissimilar spectrally from any other known GRB-SNe, these sources point the way towards common mechanisms underlying GRBs and SLSNe.

The Berkeley Visible Image Tube (BVIT) has been a user instrument on the SALT 10-m telescope for the past six years. It can observe transient astrophysical phenomena occurring on time-scales of micro-seconds. This overview presented some recent observations of a dMe flare star, and discussed the recent results of our optical Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (OSETI) around nearby exoplanet-hosting stars.

Many distinct classes of high-energy variability have been observed in astrophysical sources, and over a range of time-scales. The widest range, spanning microseconds to decades, is found in accreting, compact, stellar-mass objects, including neutron stars and black holes. Neutron stars are of particular observational interest as they exhibit surface effects giving rise to phenomena – such as thermonuclear bursts and pulsations – not seen in black holes.

This talk reviewed briefly the present understanding of thermonuclear (Type-I) X-ray bursts – events that are powered by an extensive chain of nuclear reactions which in many cases are unique to the environments. Thermonuclear bursts have been exploited over the last few years as an avenue to measure a neutron star’s mass and radius, although the contribution of systematic errors to the measurements remains contentious. We described recent efforts to match burst models to observations better, with a view to resolving some of the astrophysical uncertainties relating to those events. Our efforts have good prospects for providing information that is complementary to nuclear experiments.