Post-Hipparcos Cosmic Candles

This text reviews the changes brought about in the field of astronomy by the release of the Hipparcos catalogue. Chapters by leading experts detail the various approaches of one of the most challenging cosmological issues: the scale of the universe. After summarizing the contribution of the Hipparcos satellite itself, the volume starts with chapters concerning the primary distance indicators (Classical Cepheids, RR Lyrae stars, Miras, subdwarfs). Then our present knowledge of the distance to the Large Magellanic Cloud is reviewed, as well as extragalactic distance determinations with a group of chapters dedicated to secondary indicators. The role of the microlensing surveys is also presented as well as the up-to-date results of stellar evolution theory, together with a frank admission of their limits.