© Mar Carretero

A relevant fraction of massive stars are runaway stars, moving with large peculiar velocities relative to their environment. These fast-moving stars can interact with the interstellar medium, producing structures such as stellar bow shocks. Their runaway origins can be explained by two main mechanisms: dynamical ejections from young stellar clusters and supernova explosions in binary systems. A combination of both mechanisms is also possible. Therefore, massive runaway stars are important to better understand clusters and the late stages of massive binary evolution. In this talk, I will introduce a new method to identify massive runaway stars in the Milky Way using Gaia data, together with their multi-wavelength characterization. I will also present an extensive observational study of their rotation and binarity, providing new insights into runaway ejection mechanisms and their possible connection with high-energy binary systems.