Tidal friction is thought to be important in determining the long-term spin-orbit evolution of short-period extrasolar planetary systems. Using a simple model of the orbit-averaged effects of tidal friction (Eggleton et al. 1998), we analyse the effects of the inclusion of stellar magnetic braking on the evolution of such systems. A phase-plane analysis of a simplified system of equations, including only the stellar tide together with a model of the braking torque proposed by Verbunt & Zwaan (1981), is presented. The inclusion of stellar magnetic braking is found to be extremely important in determining the secular evolution of such systems, and its neglect results in a very different orbital history. We then show the results of numerical integrations of the full tidal evolution equations, using the misaligned spin and orbit of the XO-3 system as an example, to study the accuracy of simple timescale estimates of tidal evolution. We find that it is essential to consider coupled evolution of the orbit and the stellar spin in order to model the behaviour accurately. In addition, we find that for typical Hot Jupiters the stellar spin-orbit alignment timescale is of the same order as the inspiral time, which tells us that if a planet is observed to be aligned, then it probably formed coplanar. This reinforces the importance of Rossiter-McLaughlin effect observations in determining the degree of spin-orbit alignment in transiting systems.

The axis-rotational evolution of exoplanets on close orbits strongly depends on their magnetic and tidal interactions with the parent stars. Impulsive perturbations from a star created by periodical activity may accumulate with time and lead to significant long-term perturbations of the planet spin evolution. I consider the spin evolution for different conditions of gravitational, magnetic and tidal perturbations, orbit eccentricity and different angles between the planetary orbit plane and the reference frame of a parent star. In this report I present a summary of analytical and numerical calculations of the spin evolution, and discuss the problem of the star-planet magnetic interaction.

Stereographic projection of Hopf field on the 3-sphere into Euclidean 3-space is used as a model of 3D steady flow of ideal compressible fluid in MHD. In such case, flow lines are Villarceau circles lying on tori corresponding to the levels of Bernoulli function. Existence of an optimal torus with minimal relative surface free energy is shown. Optimal tori are considered as precursors of planetary orbits.

Magnetic field is playing an important role at all stages of star evolution from star formation to the endpoints. The main effects are briefly reviewed. We also show that O–type stars have large convective envelopes, where convective dynamo could work. There, fields in magnetostatic balance have intensities of the order of 100 G.

A few OB stars with strong polar fields (Henrichs et al. 2003a) show large N–enhancements indicating a strong internal mixing. We suggest that the meridional circulation enhanced by an internal rotation law close to uniform in these magnetic stars is responsible for the observed mixing. Thus, it is not the magnetic field itself which makes the mixing, but the strong thermal instability associated to solid body rotation.

A critical question for evolution is whether a dynamo is at work in radiative zones of rotating stars. The Tayler-Spruit (TS) dynamo is the best candidate. We derive some basic relations for dynamos in radiative layers. Evolutionary models with TS dynamo show important effects: internal rotation coupling and enhanced mixing, all model outputs being affected.

This review presents most recent measurements of magnetic fields in various types of stars and substellar objects across the H-R diagram with the emphasis on measurement methods, observational and modeling biases, and the role of magnetic fields in stellar evolution.

The Magnetism in Massive Stars (MiMeS) Project is a consensus collaboration among the foremost international researchers of the physics of hot, massive stars, with the basic aim of understanding the origin, evolution and impact of magnetic fields in these objects. The cornerstone of the project is the MiMeS Large Program at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, which represents a dedication of 640 hours of telescope time from 2008-2012. The MiMeS Large Program will exploit the unique capabilities of the ESPaDOnS spectropolarimeter to obtain critical missing information about the poorly-studied magnetic properties of these important stars, to confront current models and to guide theory.

Direct measurements of magnetic fields in low-mass stars of spectral class M have become available during the last years. This contribution summarizes the data available on direct magnetic measurements in M dwarfs from Zeeman analysis in integrated and polarized light. Strong magnetic fields at kilo-Gauss strength are found throughout the whole M spectral range, and so far all field M dwarfs of spectral type M6 and later show strong magnetic fields. Zeeman Doppler images from polarized light find weaker fields, which may carry important information on magnetic field generation in partially and fully convective stars.

Stellar magnetic fields including a strong dipole component are believed to play a critical role in the early evolution of newly formed stars and their circumstellar accretion disks. It is currently believed that the stellar magnetic field truncates the accretion disk several stellar radii above the star. This action forces accreting material to flow along the field lines and accrete onto the star preferentially at high stellar latitudes. It is also thought that the stellar rotation rate becomes locked to the Keplerian velocity near the radius where the disk is truncated. This paper reviews recent efforts to measure the magnetic field properties of low mass pre-main sequence stars, focussing on how the observations compare with the theoretical expectations. A picture is emerging indicating that quite strong fields do indeed cover the majority of the surface on these stars; however, the dipole component of the field appears to be alarmingly small. The current measurements also suggest that given their strong magnetic fields, T Tauri stars are somewhat faint in X-rays relative to what is expected from simple main sequence star scaling laws.

The coronal structure of main sequence stars continues to puzzle us. While the solar corona is relatively well understood, it has become clear that even stars of the same mass as the Sun can display very non-solar coronal behaviour, particularly if they are rapid rotators or in a binary system. At masses greater than and also less than that of the Sun, the non-solar internal structure appears to affect both the geometry and dynamics of the stellar corona and the nature of the X-ray and radio emission. In this talk I will describe some recent advances in our understanding of the structure of the coronae of some of the most active (and interesting) main sequence stars.

Starspots, just as Sunspots, are among the most obvious tracers and signatures of stellar surface magnetic activity. Emphasized already several decades ago as the origin for the rotationally modulated brightness of cool late-type stars, it is just now that we start to trace individual surface features in great enough detail to understand their magnetic behavior and interaction. Starspots also became the most important “noise” for detecting extra-solar planets and could possibly be decisive when it comes to detect another Earth. Since this is not a review, and because indirect imaging techniques are covered in other papers in this volume, I focus in this paper on some specific detections of starspots and introduce four new facilities particularly suited for starspot research in the near future.

The paper provides an overview on the results of the analyses of spectro-polarimetric observations of white dwarfs, subdwarfs, and central stars of planetary nebulae. It will also discuss the question of the origin of the magnetic fields in white dwarfs.

We have calculated optical spectra of hydrogen-rich (DA) white dwarfs with magnetic field strengths between 1 MG and 1000 MG for temperatures between 7000 K and 50000 K. Through a least-squares minimization scheme, we have analyzed the spectra of 114 magnetic DAs from the Sloan Digital Survey (SDSS; 95 previously published plus 14 newly discovered within SDSS).

The presence of magnetic fields in O-type stars has been suspected for a long time. The discovery of such fields would explain a wide range of well documented enigmatic phenomena in massive stars, in particular cyclical wind variability, Hα emission variations, chemical peculiarity, narrow X-ray emission lines and non-thermal radio/X-ray emission. Here we present the results of our studies of magnetic fields in O-type stars, carried out over the last years.

Cyclical wind variability is an ubiquitous but as yet unexplained feature among OB stars. The O7.5 III(n)((f)) star ξ Persei is the brightest representative of this class on the Northern hemisphere. As its prominent cyclical wind properties vary on a rotational time scale (2 or 4 days) the star has been already for a long time a serious magnetic candidate. As the cause of this enigmatic behavior non-radial pulsations and/or a surface magnetic field are suggested. We present a preliminary report on our attempts to detect a magnetic field in this star with high-resolution measurements obtained with the spectropolarimeter Narval at TBL, France during 2 observing runs of 5 nights in 2006 and 5 nights in 2007. Only upper limits could be obtained, even with the longest possible exposure times. If the star hosts a magnetic field, its surface strength should be less than about 300 G. This would still be enough to disturb the stellar wind significantly. From our new data it seems that the amplitude of the known non-radial pulsations has changed within less than a year, which needs further investigation.

Oe stars are a subset of the O-type stars that exhibit emission lines from a circumstellar disk. The recent detection of magnetic fields in some O-type stars suggests a possible explanation for the stability of disk-like structures around Oe stars. According to this hypothesis, the wind of the star is channeled by a dipolar magnetic field producing a disc in the magnetic equatorial plane. As a test of this model, we have obtained spectropolarimetric observations of the hottest Galactic Oe star HD 155806. Here we discuss its results and implications.

Massive stars are those stars with initial masses above about 8 times that of the sun, eventually leading to catastrophic explosions in the form of supernovae. These represent the most massive and luminous stellar component of the Universe, and are the crucibles in which the lion's share of the chemical elements are forged. These rapidly-evolving stars drive the chemistry, structure and evolution of galaxies, dominating the ecology of the Universe - not only as supernovae, but also during their entire lifetimes - with far-reaching consequences. Although the existence of magnetic fields in massive stars is no longer in question, our knowledge of the basic statistical properties of massive star magnetic fields is seriously incomplete. The Magnetism in Massive Stars (MiMeS) Project represents a comprehensive, multidisciplinary strategy by an international team of recognized researchers to address the “big questions” related to the complex and puzzling magnetism of massive stars. This paper present the first results of the MiMeS Large Program at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope.

We present the results of the continuation of our magnetic survey with FORS 1 at the VLT of a sample of B-type stars consisting of confirmed or candidate β Cephei stars and Slowly Pulsating B stars. Roughly one third of the studied β Cephei stars have detected magnetic fields. The fraction of magnetic Slowly Pulsating B and candidate Slowly Pulsating B stars is found to be higher, up to 50%. We find that the domains of magnetic and non-magnetic pulsating stars in the H-R diagram largely overlap, and no clear picture emerges as to the possible evolution of the magnetic field across the main sequence.

Discoveries of magnetic fields in pulsating B and Be stars have been claimed from low-resolution spectropolarimetric observations with FORS1 at VLT. We used the new generation of high-resolution spectropolarimeters, ESPaDOnS at CFHT and NARVAL at TBL, to check for the existence of these fields. We find that most of the claimed magnetic stars do not host a magnetic field. This work shows the importance of a critical analysis of FORS1 data when searching for weak magnetic fields in early-type stars and the advantage of using ESPaDOnS and NARVAL to study such type of stars.

The slowly pulsating B3V star 16 Pegasi was discovered by Hubrig et al. (2006) to be magnetic, based on low-resolution spectropolarimetric observations with FORS1 at the VLT. We have confirmed the presence of a magnetic field with new measurements with the spectropolarimeters Narval at TBL, France and Espadons at CFHT, Hawaii during 2007. The most likely period is about 1.44 d for the modulation of the field, but this could not be firmly established with the available data set. No variability has been found in the UV stellar wind lines. Although the star was reported once to show Hα in emission, there exists at present no confirmation that the star is a Be star.

We present the results of a new magnetic field survey of Herbig Ae/Be and A debris disk stars. They are used to determine whether magnetic field properties in these stars are correlated with the mass-accretion rate, disk inclinations, companion(s), Silicates, PAHs, or show a more general correlation with age and X-ray emission as expected for the decay of a remnant dynamo.