The splitting of the frequencies of the global resonant acoustic modes of the Sun by large-scale Ñows and rotation permits study of the variation of angular velocity ) with both radius and latitude within the turbulent convection zone and the deeper radiative interior. The nearly uninterrupted Doppler imaging observations, provided by the Solar Oscillations Investigation (SOI) using the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft positioned at the Lagrangian point in continuous sunlight, yield oscillation power spectra with very high signal-to-L 1 noise ratios that allow frequency splittings to be determined with exceptional accuracy. This paper reports on joint helioseismic analyses of solar rotation in the convection zone and in the outer part of the radiative core. Inversions have been obtained for a medium-l mode set (involving modes of angular degree l extending to about 250) obtained from the Ðrst 144 day interval of SOI-MDI observations in 1996. Drawing inferences about the solar internal rotation from the splitting data is a subtle process. By applying more than one inversion technique to the data, we get some indication of what are the more robust and less robust features of our inversion solutions. Here we have used seven di †erent inversion methods. To test the reliability and sensitivity of these methods, we have performed a set of controlled experiments utilizing artiÐcial data. This gives us some conÐdence in the inferences we can draw from the real solar data. The inversions of SOI-MDI data have conÐrmed that the decrease of ) with latitude seen at the surface extends with little radial variation through much of the convection zone, at the base of which is an adjustment layer, called the tachocline, leading to nearly uniform rotation deeper in the radiative interior. A prominent rotational shearing layer in which ) increases just below the surface is discernible at low to mid latitudes. Using the new data, we have also been able to study the solar rotation closer to the poles than has been achieved in previous investigations. The data have revealed that the angular velocity is distinctly lower at high latitudes than the values previously extrapolated from measurements at lower latitudes based on surface Doppler observations and helioseismology. Furthermore, we have found some evidence near latitudes of 75¡ of a submerged polar jet which is rotating more rapidly than its immediate surroundings. Superposed on the relatively smooth latitudinal variation in ) are alternating zonal bands of slightly faster and slower rotation, each extending some 10¡ to 15¡ in latitude. These relatively weak banded Ñows have been followed by inversion to a depth of about 5% of the solar radius and appear to coincide with the evolving pattern of "" torsional oscillations ÏÏ reported from earlier surface Doppler studies.

Splitting of the sun's global oscillation frequencies by large-scale flows can be used to investigate how rotation varies with radius and latitude within the solar interior. The nearly uninterrupted observations by the Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) yield oscillation power spectra with high duty cycles and high signal-to-noise ratios. Frequency splittings derived from GONG observations confirm that the variation of rotation rate with latitude seen at the surface carries through much of the convection zone, at the base of which is an adjustment layer leading to latitudinally independent rotation at greater depths. A distinctive shear layer just below the surface is discernible at low to mid-latitudes.

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The planet orbiting τ Boo at a separation of 0.046 AU could produce a reflected light flux as bright as 1 × 10 −4 relative to that of the star. A spectrum of the system will contain a reflected light component which varies in amplitude and Doppler-shift as the planet orbits the star. Assuming the secondary spectrum is primarily the reflected stellar spectrum, we can limit the relative reflected light flux to be less than 5 × 10 −5 . This implies an upper limit of 0.3 for the planetary geometric albedo near 480 nm, assuming a planetary radius of 1.2 R Jup . This albedo is significantly less than that of any of the giant planets of the solar system, and is not consistent with certain published theoretical predictions.

We report new spectroscopic and photometric observations of the parent stars of the recently discovered transiting planets TrES-3 and TrES-4. A detailed abundance analysis based on high-resolution spectra yields [Fe/H] = −0.19 ± 0.08, T eff = 5650 ± 75 K, and log g = 4.4 ± 0.1 for TrES-3, and [Fe/H] = +0.14 ± 0.09, T eff = 6200 ± 75 K, and log g = 4.0±0.1 for TrES-4. The accuracy of the effective temperatures is supported by a number of independent consistency checks. The spectroscopic orbital solution for TrES-3 is improved with our new radial-velocity measurements of that system, as are the light-curve parameters for both systems based on newly acquired photometry for TrES-3 and a reanalysis of existing photometry for TrES-4. We have redetermined the stellar parameters taking advantage of the strong constraint provided by the light curves in the form of the normalized separation a/R ⋆ (related to the stellar density) in conjunction -2with our new temperatures and metallicities. The masses and radii we derive are M ⋆ = 0.928 +0.028 −0.048 M ⊙ , R ⋆ = 0.829 +0.015 −0.022 R ⊙ , and M ⋆ = 1.404 +0.066 −0.134 M ⊙ , R ⋆ = 1.846 +0.096 −0.087 R ⊙ for TrES-3 and TrES-4, respectively. With these revised stellar parameters we obtain improved values for the planetary masses and radii. We find M p = 1.910 +0.075 −0.080 M Jup , R p = 1.336 +0.031 −0.036 R Jup for TrES-3, and M p = 0.925 ± 0.082 M Jup , R p = 1.783 +0.093 −0.086 R Jup for TrES-4. We confirm TrES-4 as the planet with the largest radius among the currently known transiting hot Jupiters.