Method for spot detection on solar-like stars

As a planet eclipses its parent star, a dark starspot may be occulted, causing a detectable variation in the light curve. This work describes how features on the surface of a solar-like star can be studied by using planetary transits. Images of the Sun were used in order to simulate such transits, with the planet being modeled as a dark disk at various positions along its orbit. From modeling of these transits, it might be possible to infer the physical properties of the spots, such as size, intensity, position, and temperature. Recent transit observations for HD 209458 were used as tests to the model.