We present H- and Ks-band imaging data resolving the gap in the transitional disk around LkCa 15, revealing the surrounding nebulosity. We detect sharp elliptical contours delimiting the nebulosity on the inside as well as the outside, consistent with the shape, size, ellipticity, and orientation of starlight reflected from the far-side disk wall, whereas the near-side wall is shielded from view by the disk's optically thick bulk. We note that forward-scattering of starlight on the near-side disk surface could provide an alternate interpretation of the nebulosity. In either case, this discovery provides confirmation of the disk geometry that has been proposed to explain the spectral energy distributions (SED) of such systems, comprising an optically thick outer disk with an inner truncation radius of ~46 AU enclosing a largely evacuated gap. Our data show an offset of the nebulosity contours along the major axis, likely corresponding to a physical pericenter offset of the disk gap. This reinforces the leading theory that dynamical clearing by at least one orbiting body is the cause of the gap. Based on evolutionary models, our high-contrast imagery imposes an upper limit of 21 Jupiter masses on companions at separations outside of 0.1" and of 13 Jupiter masses outside of 0.2". Thus, we find that a planetary system around LkCa 15 is the most likely explanation for the disk architecture.
Pulsar Timing Arrays (PTAs) use high accuracy timing of a collection of low timing noise pulsars to search for gravitational waves in the microhertz to nanohertz frequency band. The sensitivity of such a PTA depends on how the available observing time is allocated among the pulsars in the array. Here, we report on a preliminary analysis of observing strategies for the current North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) PTA. We also investigate the affects of an additional pulsar on the array sensitivity, with the goal of suggesting where PTA pulsar searches might be best directed. We demonstrate that there exists a slight advantage to finding a new pulsar near where the array is already most sensitive. Further, the study suggests that more observing time should be dedicated to the already low noise pulsars in order to have the greatest positive effect on the PTA sensitivity. We have made a web-based sensitivity mapping tool available at this http URL
We use high-resolution three-dimensional adaptive mesh refinement simulations to investigate the interaction of high-redshift galaxy outflows with low-mass virialized clouds of primordial composition. While atomic cooling allows star formation in objects with virial temperatures above $10^4$ K, "minihaloes" below this threshold are generally unable to form stars by themselves. However, these objects are highly susceptible to triggered star formation, induced by outflows from neighboring high-redshift starburst galaxies. Here we conduct a study of these interactions, focusing on cooling through non-equilibrium molecular hydrogen (H$_2$) and hydrogen deuteride (HD) formation. Tracking the non-equilibrium chemistry and cooling of 14 species and including the presence of a dissociating background, we show that shock interactions can transform minihaloes into extremely compact clusters of coeval stars. Furthermore, these clusters are all less than $\approx 10^6 M_\odot,$ and they are ejected from their parent dark matter halos: properties that are remarkably similar to those of the old population of globular clusters.
T Pyx is a luminous recurrent nova that accretes at a much higher rate than is expected for its photometrically determined orbital period of about 1.8 hours. We here provide the first spectroscopic confirmation of the orbital period, P =1.829 hours (f=13.118368(11) c/d), based on time-resolved optical spectroscopy obtained at the VLT and the Magellan telescopes. We also derive an upper limit of the velocity semi-amplitude of the white dwarf, K1 = 17.9 +/- 1.6 km/s, and estimate a mass ratio of q = 0.20 +/- 0.03. If the mass of the donor star is estimated using the period-density relation and theoretical main-sequence mass-radius relation for a slightly inflated donor star, we find M2 = 0.14 +/- 0.03 Msun. This implies a mass of the primary white dwarf M1 = 0.7 +/- 0.2 Msun. If the white-dwarf mass is > 1 Msun, as classical nova models imply, the donor mass must be even higher. We therefore rule out the possibility that T Pyx has evolved beyond the period minimum for cataclysmic variables. We find that the system inclination is constrained to be approximately 10 degrees, confirming the expectation that T Pyx is a low-inclination system. We also discuss some of the evolutionary implications of the emerging physical picture of T Pyx. In particular, we show that epochs of enhanced mass transfer (like the present) may accelerate or even dominate the overall evolution of the system, even if they are relatively short-lived. We also point out that such phases may be relevant to the evolution of cataclysmic variables more generally.
Massive evolved stars can produce large amounts of dust, and far-infrared (IR) data are essential for determining the contribution of cold dust to the total dust mass. Using Herschel, we search for cold dust in three very dusty massive evolved stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud: R71 is a Luminous Blue Variable, HD36402 is a Wolf-Rayet triple system, and IRAS05280-6910 is a red supergiant. We model the spectral energy distributions using radiative transfer codes and find that these three stars have mass-loss rates up to 10^-3 solar masses/year, suggesting that high-mass stars are important contributors to the life-cycle of dust. We found far-IR excesses in two objects, but these excesses appear to be associated with ISM and star-forming regions. Cold dust (T < 100 K) may thus not be an important contributor to the dust masses of evolved stars.
In this paper we present the results of a high resolution (5") CARMA and SZA survey of the 3mm continuum emission from 11 of the brightest (at 1.1mm) starless cores in the Perseus molecular cloud. We detect 2 of the 11 cores, both of which are composed of single structures, and the median 3 sigma upper limit for the non-detections is 0.2 M_sun in a 5" beam. These results are consisent with, and as stringent as, the low detection rate of compact 3mm continuum emission in dense cores in Perseus reported by Olmi et al. (2005). From the non-detection of multiple components in any of the eleven cores we conclude that starless core mass functions derived from bolometer maps at resolutions from 10"-30" (e.g. with MAMBO, SCUBA or Bolocam) are unlikely to be significantly biased by the blending of lower mass cores with small separations. These observations provide additional evidence that the majority of starless cores in Perseus have inner density profiles shallower than r^-2.
The emergence of a new discipline called space weather, which aims at understanding and predicting the impact of solar activity on the terrestrial environment and on technological systems, has led to a growing need for analysing solar images in real time. The rapidly growing volume of solar images, however, makes it increasingly impractical to process them for scientific purposes. This situation has prompted the development of novel processing techniques for doing feature recognition, image tracking, knowledge extraction, etc. Here we focus on two particular concepts and list some of their applications. The first one is Blind Source Separation (BSS), which has a great potential for condensing the information that is contained in multispectral images. The second one is multiscale (multiresolution, or wavelet) analysis, which is particularly well suited for capturing scale-invariant structures in solar images. This article provides a brief overview of existing and potential applications to solar images taken in the ultraviolet.
We present deep, high-quality K-band images of complete subsamples of powerful radio and sub-mm galaxies at z=2. The data were obtained in the best available seeing at UKIRT and Gemini North, with integration times scaled to ensure that comparable rest-frame surface brightness levels are reached for all galaxies. We fit two-dimensional axi-symmetric galaxy models to determine galaxy morphologies at rest-frame optical wavelengths > 4000A, varying luminosity, axial ratio, half-light radius, and Sersic index. We find that, while some images show evidence of galaxy interactions, >95% of the rest-frame optical light in all galaxies is well-described by these simple models. We also find a clear difference in morphology between these two classes of galaxy; fits to the individual images and image stacks reveal that the radio galaxies are moderately large (<r{1/2}>=8.4+-1.1kpc; median r{1/2}=7.8), de Vaucouleurs spheroids (<n> = 4.07+-0.27; median n=3.87), while the sub-mm galaxies appear to be moderately compact (<r{1/2}>=3.4+-0.3kpc; median r{1/2}=3.1kpc) exponential discs (<n>=1.44+-0.16; median n=1.08). We show that the z=2 radio galaxies display a well-defined Kormendy relation but that, while larger than other recently-studied high-z massive galaxy populations, they are still ~1.5 times smaller than their local counterparts. The scalelengths of the starlight in the sub-mm galaxies are comparable to those reported for the molecular gas. Their sizes are also similar to those of comparably massive quiescent galaxies at z>1.5. In terms of stellar mass surface density, the majority of the radio galaxies lie within the locus defined by local ellipticals. In contrast, while best modelled as discs, most of the sub-mm galaxies have higher stellar mass densities than local galaxies, and appear destined to evolve into present-day massive ellipticals.
The Antarctic Ross Iceshelf Antenna Neutrino Array (ARIANNA) is a proposed
detector for ultra-high energy astrophysical neutrinos. It will detect coherent
radio Cherenkov emission from the particle showers produced by neutrinos with
energies above about 10^17 eV. ARIANNA will be built on the Ross Ice Shelf just
off the coast of Antarctica, where it will eventually cover about 900 km^2 in
surface area. There, the ice-water interface below the shelf reflects radio
waves, giving ARIANNA sensitivity to downward going neutrinos and improving its
sensitivity to horizontally incident neutrinos. ARIANNA detector stations will
each contain 4-8 antennas which search for brief pulses of 50 MHz to 1 GHz
radio emission from neutrino interactions.
We describe a prototype station for ARIANNA which was deployed in Moore's Bay
on the Ross Ice Shelf in December 2009, discuss the design and deployment, and
present some initial figures on performance. The ice shelf thickness was
measured to be 572 +/- 6 m at the deployment site.
To assess how future progress in gravitational microlensing computation at high optical depth will rely on both hardware and software solutions, we compare a direct inverse ray-shooting code implemented on a graphics processing unit (GPU) with both a widely-used hierarchical tree code on a single-core CPU, and a recent implementation of a parallel tree code suitable for a CPU-based cluster supercomputer. We examine the accuracy of the tree codes through comparison with a direct code over a much wider range of parameter space than has been feasible before. We demonstrate that all three codes present comparable accuracy, and choice of approach depends on considerations relating to the scale and nature of the microlensing problem under investigation. On current hardware, there is little difference in the processing speed of the single-core CPU tree code and the GPU direct code, however the recent plateau in single-core CPU speeds means the existing tree code is no longer able to take advantage of Moore's law-like increases in processing speed. Instead, we anticipate a rapid increase in GPU capabilities in the next few years, which is advantageous to the direct code. We suggest that progress in other areas of astrophysical computation may benefit from a transition to GPUs through the use of "brute force" algorithms, rather than attempting to port the current best solution directly to a GPU language -- for certain classes of problems, the simple implementation on GPUs may already be no worse than an optimised single-core CPU version.
We investigate damping and growth times of the f-mode for rapidly rotating stars and a variety of different polytropic equations of state in the Cowling approximation. We discuss the differences in the eigenfunctions of co- and counterrotating modes and compute the damping times of the f-mode for several EoS and all rotation rates up to the Kepler-limit. This is the first study of the damping/growth time of this type of oscillations for fast rotating neutron stars in a general relativistic framework. We use these frequencies and damping/growth times to create robust empirical formulae which can be used for gravitational wave asteroseismology. The estimation of the damping/growth time is based on the quadrupole formula and our results agree very well with Newtonian ones in the appropriate limit.
The Lorentz factor (LF) of gamma-ray burst (GRB) ejecta may be constrained by observations of high-energy (HE) spectral attenuation. The recent Fermi-LAT observations of prompt GeV emission from several bright GRBs have leaded to conclusions of unexpectedly large LFs, $\Gamma>10^3$. Here we revisit this problem with two main concerns. (1) With one-zone assumption where all photons are assumed to be generated in the same region (radius) and time, we {\em self-consistently} calculate the $\gamma\gamma$ optical depth by adopting a target photon spectrum with HE cutoff. We find that this might be important when the GRB LF is below a few hundreds. (2) Recent Fermi-LAT observations suggest that the bulk MeV-range and HE ($\ga100$ MeV) emission may arise from different regions. We then consider a two-zone case where HE emission is generated in large radii and mainly attenuated by prompt MeV-range emission generated at small radii. We find that the attenuated HE spectrum does not show an exponential spectral cutoff but a slight steepening. This suggests that there may be no abrupt cutoff due to $\gamma\gamma$ attenuation if relaxing the one-zone assumption. By studying the spectra of three bright Fermi-LAT GRBs 080916C, 090510 and 090902B, we show that a bulk LF of $300\la\Gamma\la600$ can be consistent with observations.
We investigate the structure of the wind in the neutron star X-ray binary system Vela X-1 by analyzing its flaring behavior. Vela X-1 shows constant flaring, with some flares reaching fluxes of more than 3.0 Crab between 20-60 keV for several 100 seconds, while the average flux is around 250 mCrab. We analyzed all archival INTEGRAL data, calculating the brightness distribution in the 20-60 keV band, which, as we show, closely follows a log-normal distribution. Orbital resolved analysis shows that the structure is strongly variable, explainable by shocks and a fluctuating accretion wake. Analysis of RXTE ASM data suggests a strong orbital change of N_H. Accreted clump masses derived from the INTEGRAL data are on the order of 5 x 10^19 -10^21 g. We show that the lightcurve can be described with a model of multiplicative random numbers. In the course of the simulation we calculate the power spectral density of the system in the 20-100 keV energy band and show that it follows a red-noise power law. We suggest that a mixture of a clumpy wind, shocks, and turbulence can explain the measured mass distribution. As the recently discovered class of supergiant fast X-ray transients (SFXT) seems to show the same parameters for the wind, the link between persistent HMXB like Vela X-1 and SFXT is further strengthened.
We present a multi-wavelength analysis of a long duration white-light solar flare (M8.9/3B) event that occurred on 4 June 2007 from NOAA AR 10960. The flare was observed by several spaceborne instruments, namely SOHO/MDI, Hinode/SOT, TRACE and STEREO/SECCHI. The flare was initiated near a small, positive-polarity, satellite sunspot at the centre of the AR, surrounded by opposite-polarity field regions. MDI images of the AR show considerable amount of changes in a small positive-polarity sunspot of delta configuration during the flare event. SOT/G-band (4305 A) images of the sunspot also suggest the rapid evolution of the positive-polarity sunspot with highly twisted penumbral filaments before the flare event, which were oriented in the counterclockwise direction. It shows the change in orientation and also remarkable disappearance of twisted penumbral filaments (~35-40%) and enhancement in umbral area (~45-50%) during the decay phase of the flare. TRACE and SECCHI observations reveal the successive activations of two helical twisted structures associated with this sunspot, and the corresponding brightening in the chromosphere as observed by the time-sequence images of SOT/Ca II H line (3968 A). The secondary-helical twisted structure is found to be associated with the M8.9 flare event. The brightening starts 6-7 min prior to the flare maximum with the appearance of secondary helical-twisted structure. The flare intensity maximizes as this structure moves away from the AR. This twisted flux-tube associated with the flare triggering, is found to be failed in eruption. The location of the flare is found to coincide with the activation site of the helical twisted structures. We conclude that the activations of successive helical twists in the magnetic flux tubes/ropes plays a crucial role in the energy build-up process and triggering of M-class solar flare without a CME.
Context: It is thought likely that vast numbers of nanoflares are responsible
for the corona having a temperature of millions of degrees. Current
observational technologies lack the resolving power to confirm the nanoflare
hypothesis. An alternative approach is to construct a magnetohydrodynamic
coronal loop model that has the ability to predict nanoflare energy
distributions.
Aims: This paper presents the initial results generated by such a model. It
predicts heating events with a range of sizes, depending on where the
instability threshold for linear kink modes is encountered. The aims are to
calculate the distribution of event energies and to investigate whether kink
instability can be predicted from a single parameter.
Methods: The loop is represented as a straight line-tied cylinder. The
twisting caused by random photospheric motions is captured by two parameters,
representing the ratio of current density to field strength for specific
regions of the loop. Dissipation of the loop's magnetic energy begins during
the nonlinear stage of the instability, which develops as a consequence of
current sheet reconnection. After flaring, the loop evolves to the state of
lowest energy where, in accordance with relaxation theory, the ratio of current
to field is constant throughout the loop and helicity is conserved.
Results: The results suggest that instability cannot be predicted by any
simple twist-derived property reaching a critical value. The model is applied
such that the loop undergoes repeated episodes of instability followed by
energy-releasing relaxation. Hence, an energy distribution of the nanoflares
produced is collated.
Conclusions: The final energy distribution features two nanoflare populations
that follow different power laws. The power law index for the higher energy
population is more than sufficient for coronal heating.
The characterization of the wind speed vertical distribution V(h) is fundamental for an astronomical site for many different reasons: (1) the wind speed shear contributes to trigger optical turbulence in the whole troposphere, (2) a few of the astroclimatic parameters such as the wavefront coherence time (tau_0) depends directly on V(h), (3) the equivalent velocity V_0, controlling the frequency at which the adaptive optics systems have to run to work properly, depends on the vertical distribution of the wind speed and optical turbulence. Also, a too strong wind speed near the ground can introduce vibrations in the telescope structures. The wind speed at a precise pressure (200 hPa) has frequently been used to retrieve indications concerning the tau_0 and the frequency limits imposed to all instrumentation based on adaptive optics systems, but more recently it has been proved that V_200 (wind speed at 200 hPa) alone is not sufficient to provide exhaustive elements concerning this topic and that the vertical distribution of the wind speed is necessary. In this paper a complete characterization of the vertical distribution of wind speed strength is done above Mt.Graham (Arizona, US), site of the Large Binocular Telescope. We provide a climatological study extended over 10 years using the operational analyses from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), we prove that this is representative of the wind speed vertical distribution at Mt. Graham with exception of the boundary layer and we prove that a mesoscale model can provide reliable nightly estimates of V(h) above this astronomical site from the ground up to the top of the atmosphere (~ 20 km).
We present AKARI near- to far-infrared images of the nearby edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 3079 in 10 photometric bands. The spectral energy distribution consists of continuum emission from dust with a single temperature of 28-33 K together with strong mid-infrared emission features from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). We derive the dust masses of 5.6x10^6 M_sun and 1.4x10^7 M_sun for the central 4 kpc region and the whole galaxy, respectively, and find that a gas-to-dust mass ratio is unusually high in the central region (\sim 1100) and even for the whole galaxy (\sim 860). The ratio of the surface brightness distribution at the wavelength of 7 um to that at 11 um suggests that the properties of PAHs have spatial variations. Emission from ionized and neutral PAHs is relatively strong in the center and the disk regions, respectively, suggesting stronger radiation field and thus relatively active star formation in the center. Yet the total infrared luminosities of the galaxy indicate rather low star formation rates. These results suggest that NGC 3079 is in an early-phase starburst stage.
Non-blazar AGN have been recently established as a class of gamma-ray sources. M87, a nearby representative of this class, show fast TeV variability on timescales of a few days. We suggest a scenario of flare gamma-ray emission in non-blazar AGN based on a red giant interacting with the jet at the base. We solve the hydrodynamical equations that describe the evolution of the envelope of a red giant blown by the impact of the jet. If the red giant is at least slightly tidaly disrupted by the supermassive black hole, enough stellar material will be blown by the jet, expanding quickly until a significant part of the jet is shocked. This process can render suitable conditions for energy dissipation and proton acceleration, which could explain the detected day-scale TeV flares from M87 via proton-proton collisions. Since the produced radiation would be unbeamed, such an events should be mostly detected from non-blazar AGN. They may be frequent phenomena, detectable in the GeV-TeV range even up to distances of $\sim 1$Gpc for the most powerful jets. The counterparts at lower energies are expected to be not too bright. M87, and nearby non-blazar AGN in general, can be fast variable sources of gamma-rays through red giant/jet interactions.
Warm cores (or hot corinos) around low-mass protostellar objects show a rich chemistry with strong spatial variations. This chemistry is generally attributed to the sublimation of icy mantles on dust grains initiated by the warming effect of the stellar radiation. We have used a model of the chemistry in warm cores in which the sublimation process is based on extensive laboratory data; these data indicate that sublimation from mixed ices occurs in several well-defined temperature bands. We have determined the position of these bands for the slow warming by a solar-mass star. The resulting chemistry is dominated by the sublimation process and by subsequent gas-phase reactions; strong spatial and temporal variations in certain molecular species are found to occur, and our results are, in general, consistent with observational results for the well-studied source IRAS 16293-2422. The model used is similar to one that describes the chemistry of hot cores. We infer that the chemistry of both hot cores and warm cores may be described by the same model (suitably adjusted for different physical parameters).
A crucial issue in star formation is to understand the physical mechanism by which mass is accreted onto and ejected by a young star. The visible spectrometer VEGA on the CHARA array can be an efficient means of probing the structure and the kinematics of the hot circumstellar gas at sub-AU. For the first time, we observed the Herbig Ae star AB Aur in the H$\alpha$ emission line, using the VEGA low spectral resolution on two baselines of the array. We computed and calibrated the spectral visibilities between 610 nm and 700 nm. To simultaneously reproduce the line profile and the visibility, we used a 1-D radiative transfer code that calculates level populations for hydrogen atoms in a spherical geometry and synthetic spectro-interferometric observables. We clearly resolved AB Aur in the H$\alpha$ line and in a part of the continuum, even at the smallest baseline of 34 m. The small P-Cygni absorption feature is indicative of an outflow but could not be explained by a spherical stellar wind model. Instead, it favors a magneto-centrifugal X-disk or disk-wind geometry. The fit of the spectral visibilities could not be accounted for by a wind alone, so we considered a brightness asymmetry possibly caused by large-scale nebulosity or by the known spiral structures, inducing a visibility modulation around H$\alpha$. Thanks to the unique capabilities of VEGA, we managed to simultaneously record for the first time a spectrum at a resolution of 1700 and spectral visibilities in the visible range on a target as faint as $m_{V}$ = 7.1. It was possible to rule out a spherical geometry for the wind of AB Aur and provide realistic solutions to account for the H$\alpha$ emission compatible with magneto-centrifugal acceleration. The study illustrates the advantages of optical interferometry and motivates observations of other bright young stars to shed light on the accretion/ejection processes.
In this lecture the basic theory of accretion disks is reviewed, with emphasis on aspects relevant for X-ray binaries and Cataclysmic Variables. The text gives a general introduction as well as a selective discussion of a number of more recent topics.
We perform an extensive analysis of the Civ line in three large spectroscopic
surveys of quasars. Differing approaches for fitting the Civ line can be found
in the literature, and we compare the most common methods to highlight the
relative systematics associated with each. We develop a line fitting procedure
and apply it to the Civ line in spectra from the SDSS, 2QZ and 2SLAQ surveys.
Our results are compared with a previous study of the Mgii line in the same
sample. Civ tends to be broader than the Mgii line in spectra that have both,
and the average ratio between the lines is consistent with a simplistic model
for a photoionised, virialised and stratified broad-line region. There is a
statistically significant correlation between the widths of the Civ and Mgii
lines. However, the correlation is weak, and the scatter around a best fit is
only marginally less than the full dynamic range of line widths.
Motivated by previous work, we examine the dispersion in the distribution of
Civ line widths. We find that the dispersion in Civ line widths is essentially
independent of both redshift and luminosity. This is in stark contrast to the
Mgii line, which shows a strong luminosity dependence.
Finally we consider our results in terms of their implications for virial
black hole mass estimation. The inconsistency between Mgii and Civ line widths
in single spectra, combined with the differing behaviour of the Mgii and Civ
line width distributions, indicates that there must be an inconsistency between
Mgii and Civ virial mass estimators. Furthermore, the level of intrinsic
dispersion in Mgii and Civ line widths contributes less dynamic range to virial
mass estimates than the error associated with the estimates. The indication is
that the line width term in these UV virial mass estimators may be essentially
irrelevant with respect to the typical uncertainty on a mass estimate.
First order phase transitions in the early universe can give rise to a stochastic background of gravitational waves. A hypothetical first order electroweak phase transition is particularly interesting in this respect, since the signal is in the good frequency range to be detectable by the space interferometer LISA. Three main processes lead to the production of the gravitational wave signal: the collision of the broken phase bubbles, the magnetohydrodynamical turbulence in the plasma stirred by the bubble collisions, and the magnetic fields amplified by the magnetohydrodynamical turbulence. The main features of the gravitational wave spectrum, such as the peak frequency, the amplitude, and the slopes both at low and high wave-number can be predicted by general arguments based on the characteristics of the source: in particular, the structure of its space and time correlation. We find that the gravitational wave signal from a first order phase transition occurring at electroweak symmetry breaking falls into the LISA sensitivity range if the phase transition lasts for about one hundredth of the Hubble time and the energy density of the turbulent motions is about twenty percent of the total energy density in the universe at the phase transition time.
Malin 1 is a unique, extraordinarily large low surface brightness galaxy. The structure and the origins of the galaxy are poorly understood. The reason for such a situation is an absence of detailed observational data, especially, of high-resolution kinematics. In this Letter we study the stellar kinematics of the inner part (r < 15 kpc) of Malin 1. We present spectroscopic arguments in favour of a small galaxy - Malin 1B - being a companion probably interacting with the main galaxy - Malin 1. This object is clearly seen in many published images of Malin 1 but is not mentioned in any astronomical databases. Malin 1B is located at the projected distance of 14 kpc from the Malin 1's nucleus and has small - 65$\pm$16 km/s - relative velocity, which we determined for the first time. We suggest that ongoing interaction with Malin 1B can explain main morphological features of the Malin 1's central region - two-armed spiral structure, a bar, and an external one-armed spiral pattern. We also investigated the large scale environment of Malin 1 and postulate that the galaxy SDSS J123708.91+142253.2 might be responsible for the formation of extended low-surface brightness envelope by means of head-on collision with Malin 1 (in the framework of collision scenario proposed by Mapelli et al. 2008). To test the collisional origins of Malin 1 global structure, more observational data and new numerical models are needed.
We report the discovery of burst oscillations at the spin frequency in ten thermonuclear bursts from the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar (AMXP) IGR J17511-3057. The burst oscillation properties are, like those from the AMXPs SAX J1808.4-3658 and XTE J1814-338, anomalous compared to burst oscillations from intermittent pulsars or non-pulsing LMXBs. Like SAX J1808.4-3658 they show frequency drifts in the rising phase rather than the tail. There is also evidence for harmonic content. Where IGR J17511-3057 is unusual compared to the other pulsars is that oscillations are not detected throughout all bursts. As accretion rate drops the bursts get brighter and their rise/decay time scales become shorter, while the oscillation amplitude falls below the detection threshold: first in the burst peak and then also in the rise. None of the bursts from IGR J17511-3057 show evidence for photospheric radius expansion (which might be expected to suppress oscillation amplitude) which allow us to set an upper limit to the distance of 6.9 kpc. We discuss the implications of our results for models of the burst oscillation mechanism.
We report the discovery of HAT-P-15b, a transiting extrasolar planet in the `period valley', a relatively sparsely-populated period regime of the known extrasolar planets. The host star, GSC 2883-01687, is a G5 dwarf with V=12.16. It has a mass of 1.01+/-0.04 M(Sun), radius of 1.08+/-0.04 R(Sun), effective temperature 5568+/-90 K, and metallicity [Fe/H] = +0.22+/-0.08. The planetary companion orbits the star with a period 10.863502+/-0.000027 days, transit epoch Tc = 2454638.56019+/-0.00048 (BJD), and transit duration 0.2285+/-0.0015 days. It has a mass of 1.946+/-0.066 M(Jup), and radius of 1.072+/-0.043 R(Jup) yielding a mean density of 1.96+/-0.22 g/cm3. At an age of 6.8+/-2.1 Gyr, the planet is H/He-dominated and theoretical models require about 2% (10 M(Earth)) worth of heavy elements to reproduce its measured radius. With an estimated equilibrium temperature of 820 K during transit, and 1000 K at occultation, HAT-P-15b is a potential candidate to study moderately cool planetary atmospheres by transmission and occultation spectroscopy.
A high-order scheme for direct numerical simulations of turbulent combustion is discussed. Its implementation in the massively parallel and publicly available Pencil Code is validated with the focus on hydrogen combustion. Ignition delay times (0D) and laminar flame velocities (1D) are calculated and compared with results from the commercially available Chemkin code. The scheme is verified to be fifth order in space. Upon doubling the resolution, a 32-fold increase in the accuracy of the flame front is demonstrated. Finally, also turbulent and spherical flame front velocities are calculated and the implementation of the non-reflecting so-called Navier-Stokes Characteristic Boundary Condition is validated in all three directions.
We present a novel radiation hydrodynamics code, START, which is a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) scheme coupled with accelerated radiative transfer. The basic idea for the acceleration of radiative transfer is parallel to the tree algorithm that is hitherto used to speed up the gravitational force calculation in an N-body system. It is demonstrated that the radiative transfer calculations can be dramatically accelerated, where the computational time is scaled as Np log Ns for Np SPH particles and Ns radiation sources. Such acceleration allows us to readily include not only numerous sources but also scattering photons, even if the total number of radiation sources is comparable to that of SPH particles. Here, a test simulation is presented for a multiple source problem, where the results with START are compared to those with a radiation SPH code without tree-based acceleration. We find that the results agree well with each other if we set the tolerance parameter as < 1.0, and then it demonstrates that START can solve radiative transfer faster without reducing the accuracy. One of important applications with START is to solve the transfer of diffuse ionizing photons, where each SPH particle is regarded as an emitter. To illustrate the competence of START, we simulate the shadowing effect by dense clumps around an ionizing source. As a result, it is found that the erosion of shadows by diffuse recombination photons can be solved. Such an effect is of great significance to reveal the cosmic reionization process.
We studied the effect of the perturbation of the meridional flow in the activity belts detected by local helioseismology on the development and strength of the surface magnetic field at the polar caps. We carried out simulations of synthetic solar cycles with a flux transport model, which follows the cyclic evolution of the surface field determined by flux emergence and advective transport by near-surface flows. In each hemisphere, an axisymmetric band of latitudinal flows converging towards the central latitude of the activity belt was superposed onto the background poleward meridional flow. The overall effect of the flow perturbation is to reduce the latitude separation of the magnetic polarities of a bipolar magnetic region and thus diminish its contribution to the polar field. As a result, the polar field maximum reached around cycle activity minimum is weakened by the presence of the meridional flow perturbation. For a flow perturbation consistent with helioseismic observations, the polar field is reduced by about 18% compared to the case without inflows. If the amplitude of the flow perturbation depends on the cycle strength, its effect on the polar field provides a nonlinearity that could contribute to limiting the amplitude of a Babcock-Leighton type dynamo.
Recently, wavelets and R/S analysis have been used as statistical tools to characterize the optical flickering of cataclysmic variables. Here we present the first comprehensive study of the statistical properties of X-ray flickering of cataclysmic variables in order to link them with physical parameters. We analyzed a sample of 97 X-ray light curves of 75 objects of all classes observed with the XMM-Newton space telescope. By using the wavelets analysis, each light curve has been characterized by two parameters, alpha and Sigma, that describe the energy distribution of flickering on different timescales and the strength at a given timescale, respectively. We also used the R/S analysis to determine the Hurst exponent of each light curve and define their degree of stochastic memory in time. The X-ray flickering is typically composed by long time scales events (1.5 < alpha < 3), with very similar strengths in all the subtypes of cataclysmic variables (-3 < Sigma < -1.5). The X-ray data are distributed in a much smaller area of the alpha-Sigma parameter space with respect to those obtained with optical light curves. The tendency of the optical flickering in magnetic systems to show higher Sigma values than the non-magnetic systems is not encountered in the X-rays. The Hurst exponents estimated for all the light curves in the sample are larger than those found in the visible, being always higher than 0.5, with a peak at 0.82. The X-ray flickering presents a persistent memory in time which seems to be stronger in those objects containing magnetic white dwarf primaries. The similarity of the X-ray flickering in objects of different classes, together with the predominance of a persistent stochastic behavior, can be explained it terms of a magnetically-driven accretion processes acting in a considerable fraction of the analyzed objects.
We study the generation of helical magnetic fields during inflation induced by an axial coupling of the electromagnetic field to the inflaton. During slow roll inflation, we find that such a coupling always leads to a blue spectrum with $B^2 \propto k$. We also show that a short deviation from slow roll does not result in strong modifications to the shape of the spectrum. The magnetic energy density at the end of inflation is too small to back-react on the background dynamics of the inflaton. We calculate the evolution of the correlation length and the field amplitude during the inverse cascade and viscous damping of the helical magnetic field in the radiation era after inflation. The final magnetic fields turn out to be far too weak to provide the seeds for the observed fields in galaxies and clusters.
We present Chandra X-ray data of the NGC 1333 embedded cluster, combining these data with existing Chandra data, Sptizer photometry and ground based spectroscopy of both the NGC 1333 & Serpens North clusters to perform a detailed study of the X-ray properties of two of the nearest embedded clusters to the Sun. In NGC 1333, a total of 95 cluster members are detected in X-rays, of which 54 were previously identified with Spitzer. Of the Spitzer sources, we detect 23% of the Class I protostars, 53% of the Flat Spectrum sources, 52% of the Class II, and 50% of the Transition Disk YSOs. Forty-one Class III members of the cluster are identified, bringing the total identified YSO population to 178. The X-ray Luminosity Functions (XLFs) of the NGC 1333 and Serpens clusters are compared to each other and the Orion Nebula Cluster. Based on this comparison, we obtain a new distance for the Serpens cluster of 360+22/-13 pc. The X-ray luminosity was found to depend on the bolometric luminosity as in previous studies of other clusters, and that Lx depends primarily on the stellar surface area. In the NGC 1333 cluster, the Class III sources have a somewhat higher X-ray luminosity for a given surface area. We also find evidence in NGC 1333 for a jump in the X-ray luminosity between spectral types of M0 and K7, we speculate that this may result from the presence of radiative zones in the K-stars. The gas column density vs. extinction in the NGC 1333 was found to be N_H = 0.89 +/- 0.13 x 10^22 A_K, this is lower than expected of the standard ISM but similar to that found previously in the Serpens Cloud Core.
Herschel was launched on 14 May 2009, and is now an operational ESA space observatory offering unprecedented observational capabilities in the far-infrared and submillimetre spectral range 55-671 {\mu}m. Herschel carries a 3.5 metre diameter passively cooled Cassegrain telescope, which is the largest of its kind and utilises a novel silicon carbide technology. The science payload comprises three instruments: two direct detection cameras/medium resolution spectrometers, PACS and SPIRE, and a very high-resolution heterodyne spectrometer, HIFI, whose focal plane units are housed inside a superfluid helium cryostat. Herschel is an observatory facility operated in partnership among ESA, the instrument consortia, and NASA. The mission lifetime is determined by the cryostat hold time. Nominally approximately 20,000 hours will be available for astronomy, 32% is guaranteed time and the remainder is open to the worldwide general astronomical community through a standard competitive proposal procedure.
Dynamos in the Sun and other bodies tend to produce magnetic fields that possess magnetic helicity of opposite sign at large and small scales, respectively. The build-up of magnetic helicity at small scales provides an important saturation mechanism. In order to understand the nature of the solar dynamo we need to understand the details of the saturation mechanism in spherical geometry. In particular, we want to understand the effects of magnetic helicity fluxes from turbulence and meridional circulation. We consider a model with just radial shear confined to a thin layer (tachocline) at the bottom of the convection zone. The kinetic alpha owing to helical turbulence is assumed to be localized in a region above the convection zone. The dynamical quenching formalism is used to describe the build-up of mean magnetic helicity in the model, which results in a magnetic alpha effect that feeds back on the kinetic alpha effect. In some cases we compare with results obtained using a simple algebraic alpha quenching formula. In agreement with earlier findings, the magnetic alpha effect in the dynamical alpha quenching formalism has the opposite sign compared with the kinetic alpha effect and leads to a catastrophic decrease of the saturation field strength with increasing magnetic Reynolds numbers. However, at high latitudes this quenching effect can lead to secondary dynamo waves that propagate poleward due to the opposite sign of alpha. Magnetic helicity fluxes both from turbulent mixing and from meridional circulation alleviate catastrophic quenching.
We seek the best size estimates of the asteroid (21) Lutetia, the direction of its spin axis, and its bulk density, assuming its shape is well described by a smooth featureless triaxial ellipsoid, and to evaluate the deviations from this assumption. Methods. We derive these quantities from the outlines of the asteroid in 307 images of its resolved apparent disk obtained with adaptive optics (AO) at Keck II and VLT, and combine these with recent mass determinations to estimate a bulk density. Our best triaxial ellipsoid diameters for Lutetia, based on our AO images alone, are a x b x c = 132 x 101 x 93 km, with uncertainties of 4 x 3 x 13 km including estimated systematics, with a rotational pole within 5 deg. of ECJ2000 [long,lat] = [45, -7], or EQJ2000 [RA, DEC] = [44, +9]. The AO model fit itself has internal precisions of 1 x 1 x 8 km, but it is evident, both from this model derived from limited viewing aspects and the radius vector model given in a companion paper, that Lutetia has significant departures from an idealized ellipsoid. In particular, the long axis may be overestimated from the AO images alone by about 10 km. Therefore, we combine the best aspects of the radius vector and ellipsoid model into a hybrid ellipsoid model, as our final result, of 124 +/- 5 x 101 +/- 4 x 93 +/- 13 km that can be used to estimate volumes, sizes, and projected areas. The adopted pole position is within 5 deg. of [long, lat] = [52, -6] or[RA DEC] = [52, +12]. Using two separately determined masses and the volume of our hybrid model, we estimate a density of 3.5 +/- 1.1 or 4.3 +/- 0.8 g cm-3 . From the density evidence alone, we argue that this favors an enstatite-chondrite composition, although other compositions are formally allowed at the extremes (low-porosity CV/CO carbonaceous chondrite or high-porosity metallic). We discuss this in the context of other evidence.
Aims. We determine the physical properties (spin state and shape) of asteroid
(21) Lutetia, target of the ESA/NASA Rosetta mission, to help in preparing for
observations during the flyby on 2010 July 10 by predicting the orientation of
Lutetia as seen from Rosetta.
Methods. We use our novel KOALA inversion algorithm to determine the physical
properties of asteroids from a combination of optical lightcurves,
disk-resolved images, and stellar occultations, although the latter are not
available for (21) Lutetia.
Results. We find the spin axis of (21) Lutetia to lie within 5 degrees of
({\lambda} = 52 deg., {\beta} = -6 deg.) in Ecliptic J2000 reference frame
(equatorial {\alpha} = 52 deg., {\delta} = +12 deg.), and determine an improved
sidereal period of 8.168 270 \pm 0.000 001 h. This pole solution implies the
southern hemisphere of Lutetia will be in "seasonal" shadow at the time of the
flyby. The apparent cross-section of Lutetia is triangular as seen "pole-on"
and more rectangular as seen "equator-on". The best-fit model suggests the
presence of several concavities. The largest of these is close to the north
pole and may be associated with large impacts.
The bright and highly variable X-ray and radio source known as Cygnus X-3 was among the first X-ray sources discovered, yet it remains in many ways an enigma. Its known to consist of a massive, Wolf-Rayet primary in an extremely tight orbit with a compact object. Yet one of the most basic of parameters - the mass of the compact object - is not known. Nor is it even clear whether its is a neutron star or a black hole. In this Paper we present our analysis of the broad-band high-energy continua covering a substantial range in luminosity and spectral morphology. We apply these results to a recently identified scaling relationship which has been demonstrated to provide reliable estimates of the compact object mass in a number of accretion powered binaries. This analysis leads us to conclude that the compact object in Cygnus X-3 has a mass greater than $4.2M_\odot$ thus clearly indicative of a black hole and as such resolving a long-standing issue. The full range of uncertainty in our analysis and from using a range of recently published distance estimates constrains the compact object mass to lie between $4.2M_\odot$ and $14.4M_\odot$. Our favored estimate, based on a 9.0 kpc distance estimate is $\sim 10 M_\odot$ with the error margin of 3.2 solar masses. This result may thus pose challenges to shared-envelope evolutionary models of compact binaries, as well as establishing Cygnus X-3 as the first confirmed accretion-powered galactic gamma-ray source.
A recent observation of the nearby (z=0.042) narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy RE J1034+396 on 2007 May 31 showed strong quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) in the 0.3-10 keV X-ray flux. We present phase-resolved spectroscopy of this observation, using data obtained by the EPIC PN detector onboard XMM. The "low" phase spectrum, associated with the troughs in the light curve, shows (at >4 sigma confidence level) an absorption edge at 0.86+/-0.5 keV with an absorption depth of 0.3+/-0.1. Ionized oxygen edges are hallmarks of X-ray warm absorbers in Seyfert active galactic nuclei (AGN); the observed edge is consistent with H-like O VIII and implies a column density of N_{OVIII}~3x10^{18} cm^{-2}. The edge is not seen in the "high" phase spectrum associated with the crests in the light curve, suggesting the presence of a warm absorber in the immediate vicinity of the supermassive black hole which periodically obscures the continuum emission. If the QPO arises due to Keplerian orbital motion around the central black hole, the periodic appearance of the O VIII edge would imply a radius of ~9.4(M/[4x10^6 Msun])^{-2/3}(P/[1 hr])^{2/3} r_g for the size of the warm absorber.
The Sun's supergranulation refers to a physical pattern covering the surface
of the quiet Sun with a typical horizontal scale of approximately 30000km. Its
most noticeable observable signature is as a fluctuating velocity field whose
components are mostly horizontal. Supergranulation was discovered more than
fifty years ago, however explaining why and how it originates still represents
one of the main challenges of modern solar physics.
A lot of work has been devoted to the subject over the years, but
observational constraints, conceptual difficulties and numerical limitations
have all concurred to prevent a detailed understanding of the supergranulation
phenomenon so far. With the advent of 21st century supercomputing resources and
the availability of unprecedented high-resolution observations of the Sun, the
solar community has now reached a stage at which key progress can be made on
this question. A unifying strategy between observations and modeling is more
than ever required for this to be possible.
The primary aim of this review is therefore to provide readers with a
detailed interdisciplinary description of past and current research on
supergranulation, from the most elaborate observational strategies to recent
theoretical and numerical modeling efforts that have all taken up the challenge
of uncovering the origins of supergranulation. Throughout the text, we attempt
to pick up the most robust findings so far, but we also outline the
difficulties, limitations and open questions that the community has been
confronted with over the years.
In the light of the current understanding of the multiscale dynamics of the
quiet photosphere, we finally suggest a tentative picture of supergranulation
as a dynamical feature of turbulent magnetohydrodynamic convection in an
extended spatial domain, with the aim of stimulating future research and
discussions.
This paper is based on the 100 most cited papers in astronomy for each year from 2000 to 2009 and from 1995 and 1990. The main findings are: The total number of authors of the top 100 articles per year has more than tripled. This is seen most strongly in papers with more than 6 authors. The yearly number of papers with 5 or fewer authors has declined over the same time period. The most highly cited papers tend to have the largest number of authors and visa versa. The distribution of normalized citation counts versus ranking is constant from year to year except for the top ranked half dozen or so papers. It is closely approximated by a power law. The papers that show the most divergence from the power law all have a high number of citations and are based on large surveys. The average page length of the top 100 papers is one and a half times that for astronomy papers in general. The same 5 journals (A&A, AJ, ApJ, ApJS, and MNRAS; Nature and Science are not included here) account for 80 to 85% of the total citations for each year of all the journals in the category "Astronomy and Astrophysics" by ISI's Journal Citation Reports. These same 5 journals account for 77% of the 1000 most cited papers. A significant number of articles originally ranked in the top 100 for a year, drop out after 2 to 3 years and are replaced by other articles. Most of the drop-outs deal with extra-galactic astronomy; their replacements deal with non-extra-galactic topics. Indicators of internet access to astronomical web sites such as data archives and journal repositories show increases of between factors of three and ten or more I propose that there are close complementarities between the communication capabilities that internet usage enables and the strong growth in numbers of authors of the most highly cited papers.
We report unfiltered photometry during the first confirmed superoutburst of the recently discovered dwarf nova, SDSS J073208.11+413008.7 and conclude that it is a member of the SU UMa family. At its brightest, the star was magnitude 15.7. The outburst amplitude was nearly 5 magnitudes and it lasted about 14 days. We determined the mean superhump period from our first 3 nights of observations as Psh = 0.07979(19) d, however analysis of the O-C residuals showed a dramatic evolution in Psh during the outburst. During the first part of the plateau phase the period increased with dPsh/dt = +2.81(9) x 10-3. There was then an abrupt change following which the period decreased with dPsh/dt = -0.78(12)x 10-3.The amplitude of the superhumps also varied, with a maximum amplitude near the beginning of the outburst and a second maximum later in the plateau phase. Analysis of archival data suggests that the star undergoes frequent outbursts: we identified 10 normal outbursts and at least 3 likely superoutbursts over a 4.5 year interval. We estimate that the superoutburst period is around 215 days.
We propose that gravity be intrinsically quantum-mechanical, so that in the absence of quantum mechanics the geometry of the universe would be Minkowski. We show that in such a situation gravity does not require any independent quantization of its own, with it being quantized simply by virtue of its being coupled to the quantized matter fields that serve as its source. We show that when the gravitational and matter fields possess an underlying conformal symmetry, the gravitational field and fermionic matter-field zero-point fluctuations cancel each other identically. Then, when the fermions acquire mass by a dynamical symmetry breaking procedure that induces a cosmological constant in such conformal theories, the zero-point fluctuations readjust so as to cancel the induced cosmological constant identically. The zero-point vacuum problem and the cosmological constant vacuum problems thus mutually solve each other. We illustrate our ideas in a completely solvable conformal-invariant model, namely two-dimensional quantum Einstein gravity coupled to a Nambu-Jona-Lasinio self-consistent fermion.
We reconsider non-minimal \lambda \phi^4 chaotic inflation which includes the gravitational coupling term \xi \mathcal{R} \phi^2, where \phi denotes a gauge singlet inflaton field and \mathcal{R} is the Ricci scalar. For \xi >> 1 we require, following recent discussions, that the energy scale \lambda^{1/4} m_P / \sqrt{\xi} for inflation should not exceed the effective UV cut-off scale m_P / \xi, where m_P denotes the reduced Planck scale. The predictions for the tensor to scalar ratio r and the scalar spectral index n_s are found to lie within the WMAP 1-\sigma bounds for 10^{-12} < \lambda < 10^{-4} and 10^{-3} < \xi < 10^2. In contrast, the corresponding predictions of minimal \lambda \phi^4 chaotic inflation lie outside the WMAP 2-\sigma bounds. We also find that r > 0.002, provided the scalar spectral index n_s > 0.96. In estimating the lower bound on r we take into account possible modifications due to quantum corrections of the tree level inflationary potential.
We investigate thermodynamics of the apparent horizon in $f(R)$ gravity in the Palatini formalism with non-equilibrium and equilibrium descriptions. We demonstrate that it is more transparent to understand the horizon entropy in the equilibrium framework than that in the non-equilibrium one. Furthermore, we show that the second law of thermodynamics can be explicitly verified in both phantom and non-phantom phases for the same temperature of the universe outside and inside the apparent horizon.
This paper considers magnetic field generation by a fluid flow in a system referred to as the Archontis dynamo: a steady nonlinear magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) state is driven by a prescribed body force. The field and flow become almost equal and dissipation is concentrated in cigar-like structures centred on straight-line separatrices. Numerical scaling laws for energy and dissipation are given that extend previous calculations to smaller diffusivities. The symmetries of the dynamo are set out, together with their implications for the structure of field and flow along the separatrices. The scaling of the cigar-like dissipative regions, as the square root of the diffusivities, is explained by approximations near the separatrices. Rigorous results on the existence and smoothness of solutions to the steady, forced MHD equations are given.
Despite being very successful in explaining the wide range of precision experimental results obtained so far, the Standard Model (SM) of elementary particles fails to address the two greatest discoveries of the recent decades: dark matter (DM) and tiny but nonzero neutrino masses. Typically the new models beyond the SM explain only one of these observations. Instead, in the present article, we take the view that they both point towards the same new extension of the Standard Model. The new particles introduced are responsible simultaneously for neutrino masses and for the dark matter of the Universe. The stability of dark matter and the smallness of neutrino masses are guaranteed by a U(1) global symmetry, broken to a remnant Z_2. The canonical seesaw mechanism is forbidden and neutrino masses emerge at the loop level being further suppressed by the small explicit breaking of the U(1) symmetry. The new particles and interactions are invoked at the electroweak scale and lead to a rich phenomenology in colliders, in lepton flavour violating rare decays and in direct and indirect dark matter searches, making the model testable in the coming future.
We establish the evolution equations of the set of independent variables characterizing the 2PN rigorous conservative dynamics of a spinning compact binary, with the inclusion of the leading order spin-orbit, spin-spin and mass quadrupole - mass monopole effects, for generic (noncircular, nonspherical) orbits. More specifically, we give a closed system of first order ordinary differential equations for the orbital elements of the osculating ellipse and for the angles characterizing the spin orientations with respect to the osculating orbit. We also prove that (i) the relative angle of the spins stays constant for equal mass black holes, irrespective of their orientation, and (ii) the special configuration of equal mass black holes with equal, but anti-aligned spins, both laying in the plane of motion (leading to the largest recoil so far) is preserved during the inspiral at 2PN level of accuracy, with leading order spin-orbit, spin-spin and mass quadrupolar contributions included.
The multiplicity distributions produced by the variation of time-dependent gravitational fields in a conformally flat background geometry are computed with particular attention to the dynamical symmetries stemming from the simultaneous conservation of the charge and of the comoving three-momentum. From the analysis of the scaling properties for large average multiplicities it is argued that the obtained gravitational distributions belong to the same class of infinitely divisible distributions found, for fixed centre of mass energies and symmetric (pseudo)rapidity intervals, in charged multiplicities produced in proton-proton, proton-antiproton and in heavy ion collisions. Different classes of multiplicity distributions can be unified in a common expression by using the (positive) discrete representations of the SU(1,1) group. Second-order interference effects are exploited, in full analogy with quantum optics, for interpreting the excess of correlations in comparison with the Poisson case. It is suggested that second-order cross correlations between positively and negatively charged distributions may represent a relevant diagnostic for a closer scrutiny of the multiparticle final state.
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We present a new very fast tree-code which runs on massively parallel Graphical Processing Units (GPU) with NVIDIA CUDA architecture. The tree-construction and calculation of multipole moments is carried out on the host CPU, while the force calculation which consists of tree walks and evaluation of interaction list is carried out on the GPU. In this way we achieve a sustained performance of about 100GFLOP/s and data transfer rates of about 50GB/s. It takes about a second to compute forces on a million particles with an opening angle of $\theta \approx 0.5$. The code has a convenient user interface and is freely available for use\footnote{{\tt this http URL}}.
We use analytical and N-body methods to examine the survival of wide stellar binaries against repeated encounters with dark substructures orbiting in the dark matter haloes of dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSphs). Our models adopt cosmologically-motivated conditions wherein dSphs are dark-matter dominated systems that form hierarchically and orbit about a host galaxy. Our analytical estimates show that wide binaries are disrupted at a rate that is proportional to the local density of dark substructures averaged over the life-time of the binary population. The fact that external tides can efficiently strip dark substructures from the outskirts of dSphs implies that the present number and distribution of binaries is strongly coupled with the mass evolution of individual galaxies. Yet we show that for the range of dynamical masses and Galactocentric distances spanned by Milky Way dSphs, a truncation in the separation function at a_max <~ 0.1 pc is expected in all these galaxies. An exception may be the Sagittarius dSph, which has lost most of is dark matter envelope to tides and is close to full disruption. Our simulations indicate that at separations larger than a_max the perturbed binary distribution scales as dN/da \propto a^{-2.1} independently of the mass and density of substructures. These results may be used to determine whether the binary separation function found in dwarf galaxies is compatible with the scale-free hierarchical picture that envisions the existence of dark substructures in all galactic haloes. We show that the ACS camera on board of the Hubble telescope may be able to test this prediction in dSphs at heliocentric distances <100 kpc, even if the binary fraction amounts only 10% of the stellar population.
Noticeable deviations from the prediction of the fiducial LCDM cosmology are found in the angular power spectrum of the CMB. Besides large-angle anomalies, the WMAP 1st year data revealed a dip in the power spectrum at l \sim 200, which seemed to disappear in the 3rd year and subsequent angular power spectra. Using the WMAP 1st, 3rd, and 5th year data release, we study the intensity and spatial distribution of this feature in order to unveil its origin and its implications for the cosmological parameters. We show that in all WMAP data releases there is a substantial suppression of the first Doppler peak in a region near the north ecliptic pole.
Numerical models of the tidal disruption of the Sagittarius (Sgr) dwarf galaxy have recently been developed that for the first time simultaneously satisfy most observational constraints on the angular position, distance, and radial velocity trends of both leading and trailing tidal streams emanating from the dwarf. We use these dynamical models in combination with extant 3-D position and velocity data for Galactic globular clusters and dSph galaxies to identify those Milky Way satellites that are likely to have originally formed in Sgr and been stripped from it during its extended interaction with the Milky Way. We conclude that the globular clusters Arp 2, M 54, NGC 5634, Terzan 8, and Whiting 1 are likely associated with the Sgr dwarf, and that Berkeley 29, NGC 5053, Pal 12, and Terzan 7 may be as well. The initial Sgr system therefore may have contained 5-9 globular clusters, corresponding to a specific frequency S_N = 5 - 9 for an initial Sgr luminosity M_V = -15.0. Our result is consistent with the 8\pm2 Sgr globular clusters expected from statistical modeling of the Galactic globular cluster distribution and the corresponding false-association rate due to chance alignments with the Sgr streams. These clusters are consistent with previous reconstructions of the Sgr age-metallicity relation, and show no evidence for a second-parameter effect shaping their horizontal branch morphologies. We find no statistically significant evidence to suggest that any of the recently discovered population of ultra-faint dwarf galaxies are conclusively associated with the Sgr tidal streams. (Abridged).
Transit timing variations - deviations from strict periodicity between successive passages of a transiting planet - can be used to probe the structure and dynamics of multiple-planet systems. In this paper, we examine prospects for numerically solving the so-called inverse problem, the determination of the orbital elements of a perturbing body from the transit timing variations it induces. We assume that the planetary systems under examination have a limited number of Doppler velocity measurements, and show that a more extensive radial velocity characterization with precision comparable to the semiamplitude of the perturber may remove degeneracies in the solution. We examine several configurations of interest, including (1) a prototypical non-resonant system, modeled after HD40307 b and c, which contains multiple super-Earth mass planets, (2) a hypothetical system containing a transiting giant planet with a terrestrial-mass companion trapped in low-order mean motion resonance, and (3) the HAT-P-13 system, in which forced precession by an outer perturbing body that is well characterized by Doppler radial velocity measurements can give insight into the interior structure of a perturbing planet, and for which the determination of mutual inclination between the transiting planet and its perturber is a key issue.
Cygnus X-1 was the first X-ray source widely accepted to be a black hole
candidate and remains among the most studied astronomical objects in its class.
The detection of non-thermal radio, hard X-rays and gamma rays reveals the fact
that this kind of objects are capable of accelerating particles up to very high
energies.
In order to explain the electromagnetic emission from Cygnus X-1 in the
low-hard state we present a model of a black hole corona with both relativistic
lepton and hadron content. We characterize the corona as a two-temperature hot
plasma plus a mixed non-thermal population in which energetic particles
interact with magnetic, photon and matter fields. Our calculations include the
radiation emitted by secondary particles (pions, muons and electron/positron
pairs). Finally, we take into account the effects of photon absorption. We
compare the results obtained from our model with data of Cygnus X-1 obtained by
the COMPTEL instrument.
It is well established that both total and spectral solar irradiance are modulated by variable magnetic activity on the solar surface. However, there is still disagreement about the contribution of individual solar features for changes in the solar output, in particular over decadal time scales. Ionized Ca II K line spectroheliograms are one of the major resources for these long-term trend studies, mainly because such measurements have been available now for more than 100 years. In this paper we introduce a new Ca II K plage and active network index time series derived from the digitization of almost 40,000 photographic solar images that were obtained at the 60-foot solar tower, between 1915 and 1985, as a part of the monitoring program of the Mount Wilson Observatory. We describe here the procedure we applied to calibrate the images and the properties of our new defined index, which is strongly correlated to the average fractional area of the visible solar disk occupied by plages and active network. We show that the long-term variation of this index is in an excellent agreement with the 11-year solar cycle trend determined from the annual international sunspot numbers series. Our time series agrees also very well with similar indicators derived from a different reduction of the same data base and other \caii K spectroheliograms long-term synoptic programs, such as those at Kodaikanal Observatory (India), and at the National Solar Observatory at Sacramento Peak (USA). Finally, we show that using appropriate proxies it is possible to extend this time series up to date, making this data set one of the longest Ca II K index series currently available.
Advances in stellar interior modeling are being driven by new data from large-scale surveys and high-precision photometric and spectroscopic observations. Here we focus on single stars in normal evolutionary phases; we will not discuss the many advances in modeling star formation, interacting binaries, supernovae, or neutron stars. We review briefly: 1) updates to input physics of stellar models; 2) progress in two and three-dimensional evolution and hydrodynamic models; 3) insights from oscillation data used to infer stellar interior structure and validate model predictions (asteroseismology). We close by highlighting a few outstanding problems, e.g., the driving mechanisms for hybrid gamma Dor/delta Sct star pulsations, the cause of giant eruptions seen in luminous blue variables such as eta Car and P Cyg, and the solar abundance problem.
Much of the progress in our understanding of dynamo mechanisms has been made within the theoretical framework of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). However, for sufficiently diffuse media, the Hall effect eventually becomes non-negligible. We present results from three dimensional simulations of the Hall-MHD equations subjected to random non-helical forcing. We study the role of the Hall effect in the dynamo efficiency for different values of the Hall parameter, using a pseudospectral code to achieve exponentially fast convergence. We also study energy transfer rates among spatial scales to determine the relative importance of the various nonlinear effects in the dynamo process and in the energy cascade. The Hall effect produces a reduction of the direct energy cascade at scales larger than the Hall scale, and therefore leads to smaller energy dissipation rates. Finally, we present results stemming from simulations at large magnetic Prandtl numbers, which is the relevant regime in hot and diffuse media such a the interstellar medium.
Helium core white dwarfs (WDs) with mass M < 0.20 M_sun undergo several Gyrs of stable hydrogen burning as they evolve. We show that in a certain range of WD and hydrogen envelope masses, these WDs may exhibit g-mode pulsations similar to their passively cooling, more massive carbon/oxygen core counterparts, the ZZ Cetis. Our models with stably burning hydrogen envelopes on helium cores yield g-mode periods and period spacings longer than the canonical ZZ Cetis by nearly a factor of two. We show that core composition and structure can be probed using seismology since the g-mode eigenfunctions predominantly reside in the helium core. Though we have not carried out a fully nonadiabatic stability analysis, the scaling of the thermal time in the convective zone with surface gravity highlights several low mass helium WDs that should be observed in search of pulsations: NLTT 11748, SDSS J0822+2753, and the companion to PSR J1012+5307. Seismological studies of these He core WDs may prove especially fruitful, as their luminosity is related (via stable hydrogen burning) to the hydrogen envelope mass, which eliminates one model parameter.
The PICASSO project is using superheated droplets of C$_4$F$_{10}$ for the direct detection of Dark Matter candidates in the {\it spin-dependent} (SD) sector. The total setup includes 32 detectors installed in the SNOLAB underground laboratory in Sudbury (Ontario, Canada). With a concentrated effort in detector purification and with new discrimination tools now available for analysis, Picasso published competitive results in June 2009 \cite{publi2009} and became the leading experiment in the SD sector of direct dark matter searches. The present level of sensitivity is at 0.16 pb on protons at 90% C.L. (M$_W$= 24GeV/c$^2$) following an analysis of two detectors only. The rest of the detectors are now in the process of being analyzed and the experimental search continues in order to further improve the limits or hopefully discover a signal of dark matter. The status of the experiment and the ongoing analysis will be presented.
Dwarf and low surface brightness galaxies are ideal objects to test modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND), because in most of these galaxies the accelerations fall below the threshold below where MOND supposedly applies. We have selected from the literature a sample of 27 dwarf and low surface brightness galaxies. MOND is successful in explaining the general shape of the observed rotation curves for roughly three quarters of the galaxies in the sample presented here. However, for the remaining quarter, MOND does not adequately explain the observed rotation curves. Considering the uncertainties in distances and inclinations for the galaxies in our sample, a small fraction of poor MOND predictions is expected and is not necessarily a problem for MOND. We have also made fits taking the MOND acceleration constant, a_0, as a free parameter in order to identify any systematic trends. We find that there appears to be a correlation between central surface brightness and the best-fit value of a_0, in the sense that lower surface brightness galaxies tend to have lower a_0. However, this correlation depends strongly on a small number of galaxies whose rotation curves might be uncertain due to either bars or warps. Without these galaxies, there is less evidence of a trend, but the average value we find for a_0 ~ 0.7*10^-8 cm s^-2 is somewhat lower than derived from previous studies. Such lower fitted values of a_0 could occur if external gravitational fields are important.
By combining Herschel-SPIRE data with archival Spitzer, HI, and CO maps, we investigate the spatial distribution of gas and dust in the two famous grand-design spirals M99 and M100 in the Virgo cluster. Thanks to the unique resolution and sensitivity of the Herschel-SPIRE photometer, we are for the first time able to measure the distribution and extent of cool, submillimetre (submm)-emitting dust inside and beyond the optical radius. We compare this with the radial variation in both the gas mass and the metallicity. Although we adopt a model-independent, phenomenological approach, our analysis provides important insights. We find the dust extending to at least the optical radius of the galaxy and showing breaks in its radial profiles at similar positions as the stellar distribution. The colour indices f350/f500 and f250/f350 decrease radially consistent with the temperature decreasing with radius. We also find evidence of an increasing gas to dust ratio with radius in the outer regions of both galaxies.
Data from the Fermi-LAT reveal two large gamma-ray bubbles, extending 50 degrees above and below the Galactic center, with a width of about 40 degrees in longitude. The gamma-ray emission associated with these bubbles has a significantly harder spectrum (dN/dE ~ E^-2) than the IC emission from electrons in the Galactic disk, or the gamma-rays produced by decay of pions from proton-ISM collisions. There is no significant spatial variation in the spectrum or gamma-ray intensity within the bubbles, or between the north and south bubbles. The bubbles are spatially correlated with the hard-spectrum microwave excess known as the WMAP haze; the edges of the bubbles also line up with features in the ROSAT X-ray maps at 1.5-2 keV. We argue that these Galactic gamma-ray bubbles were most likely created by some large episode of energy injection in the Galactic center, such as past accretion events onto the central massive black hole, or a nuclear starburst in the last ~10 Myr. Dark matter annihilation/decay seems unlikely to generate all the features of the bubbles and the associated signals in WMAP and ROSAT; the bubbles must be understood in order to use measurements of the diffuse gamma-ray emission in the inner Galaxy as a probe of dark matter physics. Study of the origin and evolution of the bubbles also has the potential to improve our understanding of recent energetic events in the inner Galaxy and the high-latitude cosmic ray population.
The simplest interior magnetic field B_i that can explain the observed uniform rotation of the Sun's radiative envelope is an axial dipole stabilized by a deep toroidal field. It can explain the uniform rotation only if confined in the polar caps. The field must be prevented from diffusing up into the high-latitude convection zone, whose slower rotation must remain decoupled from the radiative interior. This paper describes new analytical and numerical solutions of the relevant magnetohydrodynamic equations showing that such confinement and decoupling is dynamically possible by means of a laminar "magnetic confinement layer" at the bottom of the tachocline. With realistic values of the microscopic diffusivities, a weak laminar downwelling flow U~10^{-5}cm/s over the poles is enough to enforce exponential decay of B_i with altitude, in a confinement layer only a fraction of a megameter thick. Downwelling in the polar tachocline is implied both by helioseismic observations, combined with elementary dynamics, and by theoretical arguments about the "gyroscopic pumping" that would spread differential rotation downward in the absence of B_i. Our confinement-layer solutions are the first to take account of all the relevant physical effects in a self-consistent mathematical model. The effects include magnetic diffusion, baroclinicity and stable stratification (thermal and compositional), Coriolis effects, and thermal relaxation. We discuss how the confinement layers at each pole might fit into a global dynamical picture of the solar tachocline. That picture, in turn, suggests a new insight into the early Sun and solar lithium depletion.
The global-scale interior magnetic field B_i needed to account for the Sun's observed differential rotation can be effective only if confined in the polar caps. Axisymmetric magnetohydrodynamic solutions are obtained showing that such confinement can be brought about by a very weak downwelling flow U~10^{-5}cm/s over each pole. Such downwelling is consistent with the helioseismic evidence. All three components of the magnetic field decay exponentially with altitude across a thin, laminar "magnetic confinement layer" located at the bottom of the tachocline. With realistic parameter values, the thickness of the confinement layer ~10^{-3} of the Sun's radius. Alongside baroclinic effects and stable thermal stratification, the solutions take into account the stable compositional stratification of the helium settling layer, if present as in today's Sun, and the small diffusivity of helium through hydrogen, chi. The small value of chi relative to magnetic diffusivity produces a double boundary-layer structure in which a "helium sublayer" of smaller vertical scale is sandwiched between the top of the helium settling layer and the rest of the confinement layer. Solutions are obtained using both analytical and purely numerical, finite-difference techniques. The confinement-layer flows are magnetostrophic to excellent approximation. More precisely, the principal force balances are between Lorentz, Coriolis, pressure-gradient and buoyancy forces, with relative accelerations negligible to excellent approximation. Viscous forces are also negligible, even in the helium sublayer where shears are greatest. This is despite the kinematic viscosity being somewhat greater than chi. The polar confinement layers, with and without helium settling layers, are key elements in a new hypothesis as to how the Sun's lithium was depleted.
The redshift range from 2.2 to 3, is known as the 'redshift desert' of quasars because quasars with redshift in this range have similar optical colors as normal stars and are thus difficult to be found in optical sky surveys. A quasar candidate, SDSS J085543.40-001517.7, which was selected by a recently proposed criterion involving near-IR $Y-K$ and optical $g-z$ colors, was identified spectroscopically as a new quasar with redshift of 2.427 by the LAMOST commissioning observation in December 2009 and confirmed by the observation made with the NAOC/Xinglong 2.16m telescope in March 2010. This quasar was not targeted in the SDSS spectroscopic survey because it locates in the stellar locus of the optical color-color diagrams, while it is clearly separated from stars in the $Y-K$ vs. $g-z$ diagram. Comparing with other SDSS quasars we found this new quasar with $i$ magnitude of 16.44 is apparently the brightest one in the redshift range from 2.3 to 2.7. From the spectral properties we derived its central black hole mass as $(1.4\sim3.9) \times 10^{10} M_\odot$ and the bolometric luminosity as $3.7\times 10^{48}$ \ergs, which indicates that this new quasar is intrinsically very bright and belongs to the most luminous quasars in the universe. Our identification supports that quasars in the redshift desert can be found by the quasar selection criterion involving the near-IR colors. More missing quasars are expected to be recovered by the future LAMOST spectroscopic surveys, which is important to the study of the cosmological evolution of quasars at redshift higher than 2.2.
In this paper, the cosmological dynamics of Brans-Dicke theory in which there are fermions with a coupling to BD scalar field as well as a self-interaction potential is investigated. The conditions that there exists a solution which is stable and represents a late-time accelerated expansion of the universe are found. The variable mass of fermions can not vanish exactly during the evolution of the universe once it exists initially. It is shown that the late-time acceleration depends completely on the self-interaction of the fermionic field if our investigation is restricted to the theory with positive BD parameter $\omega$. Provided a negative $\omega$ is allowed, there will be another two class of stable solutions describing late-time accelerated expansion of the universe.
Comprehensive VLBI and multi-waveband monitoring indicate that a single superluminal knot can cause a number of gamma-ray flares at different locations. However, the often very rapid variability timescale is a challenge to theoretical models when a given flare (perhaps the majority of those observed) is inferred from observations to lie near the 43 GHz core, parsecs from the central engine. We present some relevant observational results, using the BL Lac object AO 0235+164 as an example. We propose a turbulent cell model leading to a frequency-dependent filling factor of the emission region. This feature of the model can provide a solution to the timescale dilemma and other characteristics of blazar emission.
We present here the final results of the first spectropolarimetric survey of a small sample of active M dwarfs, aimed at providing observational constraints on dynamo action on both sides of the full-convection threshold (spectral type M4). Our two previous studies (Donati et al. 2008b; Morin et al. 2008b) were focused on early and mid M dwarfs. The present paper examines 11 fully convective late M dwarfs (spectral types M5-M8). Tomographic imaging techniques were applied to time-series of circularly polarised profiles of 6 stars, in order to infer their large-scale magnetic topologies. For 3 other stars we could not produce such magnetic maps, because of low variability of the Stokes V signatures, but were able to derive some properties of the magnetic fields. We find 2 distinct categories of magnetic topologies: on the one hand strong axisymmetric dipolar fields (similar to mid M dwarfs), and on the other hand weak fields generally featuring a significant non-axisymmetric component, and sometimes a significant toroidal one. Comparison with unsigned magnetic fluxes demonstrates that the second category of magnetic fields shows less organization (less energy in the large scales), similarly to partly convective early M dwarfs. Stars in both categories have similar stellar parameters, our data do not evidence a separation between these 2 categories in the mass-rotation plane. We also report marginal detection of a large-scale magnetic field on the M8 star VB 10 featuring a significant toroidal axisymmetric component, whereas no field is detectable on VB 8 (M7).
The dispersed fixed-delay interferometer (DFDI) represents a new instrument concept for high-precision radial velocity surveys for extrasolar planets. A combination of Michelson interferometer and medium resolution spectrograph, it has the potential for performing multi-object surveys, where most previous radial velocity techniques have been limited to observing only one target at a time. Because of the large sample of extrasolar planets needed to better understand planetary formation, evolution, and prevalence, this new technique represents a logical next step in instrumentation for radial-velocity extrasolar planet searches, and has been proven with the single-object Exoplanet Tracker (ET) at Kitt Peak National Observatory, and the multi-object W. M. Keck/MARVELS Exoplanet Tracker at Apache Point Observatory. The development of the ET instruments has necessitated fleshing out a detailed understanding of the physical principles of the DFDI technique. Here we summarize the fundamental theoretical material needed to understand the technique and provide an overview of the physics underlying the instrument's working. We also derive some useful analytical formulae that can be used to estimate the level of various sources of error generic to the technique, such as photon shot noise when using a fiducial reference spectrum, contamination by secondary spectra (e.g. crowded sources, spectroscopic binaries, or moonlight contamination), residual interferometer comb, and reference cross-talk error. Following this, we show that the use of a traditional gas absorption fiducial reference with a DFDI can incur significant systematic errors that must be taken into account at the precision levels required to detect extrasolar planets.
We present skeleton studies of non-Gaussianity in the CMB temperature
anisotropy observed in the WMAP5 data. The local skeleton is traced on the 2D
sphere by cubic spline interpolation which leads to more accurate estimation of
the intersection positions between the skeleton and the secondary pixels than
conventional linear interpolation. We demonstrate that the skeleton-based
estimator of non-Gaussianity of the local type (f_NL) - the departure of the
length distribution from the corresponding Gaussian expectation - yields an
unbiased and sufficiently converged f_NL-likelihood.
We analyse the skeleton statistics in the WMAP5 combined V- and W-band data
outside the Galactic base-mask determined from the KQ75 sky-coverage. The
results are consistent with Gaussian simulations of the the best-fitting
cosmological model, but deviate from the previous results determined using the
WMAP1 data. We show that it is unlikely that the improved skeleton tracing
method, the omission of Q-band data, the modification of the
foreground-template fitting method or the absence of 6 extended regions in the
new mask contribute to such a deviation. However, the application of the Kp0
base-mask in data processing does improve the consistency with the WMAP1
results.
The f_NL-likelihoods of the data are estimated at 9 different smoothing
levels. It is unexpected that the best-fit values show positive correlation
with the smoothing scales. Further investigation argues against a point-source
or goodness-of-fit explanation but finds that about 30% of either Gaussian or
f_NL samples having better goodness-of-fit than the WMAP5 show a similar
correlation. We present the estimate f_NL=47.3+/-34.9 (1sigma error) determined
from the first four smoothing angles and f_NL=76.8+/-43.1 for the combination
of all nine. The former result may be overestimated at the 0.21sigma-level
because of point sources.
We present the second report of our systematic search for strongly lensed quasars from the data of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). From extensive follow-up observations of 136 candidate objects, we find 36 lenses in the full sample of 77,429 spectroscopically confirmed quasars in the SDSS Data Release 5. We then define a complete sample of 19 lenses, including 11 from our previous search in the SDSS Data Release 3, from the sample of 36,287 quasars with i<19.1 in the redshift range 0.6<z<2.2, where we require the lenses to have image separations of 1"<\theta<20" and i-band magnitude differences between the two images smaller than 1.25 mag. Among the 19 lensed quasars, 3 have quadruple-image configurations, while the remaining 16 show double images. This lens sample constrains the cosmological constant to be \Omega_\Lambda=0.84^{+0.06}_{-0.08}(stat.)^{+0.09}_{-0.07}(syst.) assuming a flat universe, which is in good agreement with other cosmological observations. We also report the discoveries of 7 binary quasars with separations ranging from 1.1" to 16.6", which are identified in the course of our lens survey. This study concludes the construction of our statistical lens sample in the full SDSS-I data set.
We investigate the virialization of cosmic structures in the framework of flat FLRW cosmological models, in which the vacuum energy density evolves with time. In particular, our analysis focuses on the study of spherical matter perturbations, as the latter decouple from the background expansion and start to "turn around" and finally collapse. We generalize the spherical collapse model in the case when the vacuum energy is a running quantity of the Hubble rate, $\Lambda=\Lambda(H)$. A particularly well motivated model of this type is the so-called quantum field vacuum, in which $\Lambda(H)$ is a quadratic function, $\Lambda(H)=n_0+n_2\,H^2$, with $n_0\neq 0$. This model has been previously studied by our team using the latest high quality cosmological data to constraint its free parameters, as well as the predicted cluster formation rate. It turns out that the corresponding Hubble expansion history resembles that of the traditional $\Lambda$CDM cosmology. We use this $\Lambda(t)$CDM framework to illustrate the fact that the properties of the spherical collapse model (virial density, collapse factor, etc.) depend on the choice of the considered vacuum energy (homogeneous or clustered). In particular, if the distribution of the vacuum energy is clustered, then, under specific conditions, we can produce more concentrated structures with respect to the homogeneous vacuum energy case.
Context: While sub-micron- and micron-sized dust grains are generally well mixed with the gas phase in protoplanetary disks, larger grains will be partially decoupled and as a consequence have a different distribution from that of the gas. This has ramifications for predictions of the observability of protoplanetary disks, for which gas-only studies will provide an inaccurate picture. Specifically, criteria for gap opening in the presence of a planet have generally been studied for the gas phase, whereas the situation can be quite different in the dust layer once grains reach mm sizes, which is what will be observed by ALMA. Aims: We aim to investigate the formation and structure of a planetary gap in the dust layer of a protoplanetary disk with an embedded planet. Methods: We perform 3D, gas+dust SPH simulations of a protoplanetary disk with a planet on a fixed circular orbit at 40 AU to study the evolution of both the gas and dust distributions and densities in the disk. We run a series of simulations in which the planet mass and the dust grain size varies. Results: We show that the gap in the dust layer is more striking than in the gas phase and that it is deeper and wider for more massive planets as well as for larger grains. For a massive enough planet, we note that cm-sized grains remain inside the gap in corotation and that their population in the outer disk shows an asymmetric structure, a signature of disk-planet interactions even for a circular planetary orbit, which should be observable with ALMA.
We study the upward propagation of a localized velocity pulse that is initially launched below the transition region within the solar atmosphere. The pulse quickly steepens into a shock, which may lead to the formation of spicules. We solve two-dimensional time-dependent magnetohydrodynamic equations numerically to find spatial and temporal dynamics of spicules. The numerical simulations show that the strong initial pulse may lead to the quasi periodic rising of chromospheric material into the lower corona in the form of spicules. The periodicity results from the nonlinear wake that is formed behind the pulse in the stratified atmosphere. The superposition of raising and falling off plasma portions resembles the time sequence of single and double (sometimes even triple) spicules, which is consistent with observational findings. The two-dimensional rebound shock model may explain the observed speed, width, and heights of type I spicules, as well as observed multi-structural and bi-directional flows. The model also predicts the appearance of spicules with 3-5 min period due to the consecutive shocks.
The Hubble tuning fork diagram, based on morphology and established in the 1930s, has always been the preferred scheme for classification of galaxies. However, the current large amount of data up to higher and higher redshifts asks for more sophisticated statistical approaches like multivariate analyses. Clustering analyses are still very confidential, and do not take into account the unavoidable characteristics in our Universe: evolution. Assuming branching evolution of galaxies as a 'transmission with modification', we have shown that the concepts and tools of phylogenetic systematics (cladistics) can be heuristically transposed to the case of galaxies. This approach that we call "astrocladistics", has now successfully been applied on several samples of galaxies and globular clusters. Maximum parsimony and distance-based approaches are the most popular methods to produce phylogenetic trees and, like most other studies, we had to discretize our variables. However, since astrophysical data are intrinsically continuous, we are contributing to the growing need for applying phylogenetic methods to continuous characters.
In a pilot project to study the relationship between star formation and
molecular gas properties in nearby normal early-type galaxies, we used the IRAM
30m telescope to observe the 13CO(J=1-0), 13CO(J=2-1), HCN(J=1-0) and
HCO+(J=1-0) line emission in the four galaxies of the SAURON sample with the
strongest 12CO emission. We report the detection of 13CO emission in all four
SAURON sources and HCN emission in three sources, while no HCO+ emission was
found to our detection limits in any of the four galaxies. We find that the
13CO/12CO ratios of three SAURON galaxies are somewhat higher than those in
galaxies of different Hubble types. The HCN/12CO and HCN/13CO ratios of all
four SAURON galaxies resemble those of nearby Seyfert and dwarf galaxies with
normal star formation rates, rather than those of starburst galaxies. The
HCN/HCO+ ratio is found to be relatively high (i.e., >1) in the three SAURON
galaxies with detected HCN emission, mimicking the behaviour in other
star-forming galaxies but being higher than in starburst galaxies. When
compared to most galaxies, it thus appears that 13CO is enhanced (relative to
12CO) in three out of four SAURON galaxies and HCO+ is weak (relative to HCN)
in three out of three galaxies.
All three galaxies detected in HCN follow the standard HCN-infrared
luminosity and dense gas fraction-star formation efficiency correlations. As
already suggested by 12CO observations, when traced by infrared radiation, star
formation in the three SAURON galaxies thus appears to follow the same physical
laws as in galaxies of different Hubble types. The star formation rate and
fraction of dense molecular gas however do not reach the high values found in
nearby starburst galaxies, but rather resemble those of nearby normal
star-forming galaxies.
The fundamental plane of early-type galaxies is a rather tight three-parameter correlation discovered more than twenty years ago. It has resisted a both global and precise physical interpretation despite a consequent number of works, observational, theoretical or using numerical simulations. It appears that its precise properties depend on the population of galaxies in study. Instead of selecting a priori these populations, we propose to objectively construct homologous populations from multivariate analyses. We have undertaken multivariate cluster and cladistic analyses of a sample of 56 low-redshift galaxy clusters containing 699 early-type galaxies, using four parameters: effective radius, velocity dispersion, surface brightness averaged over effective radius, and Mg2 index. All our analyses are consistent with seven groups that define separate regions on the global fundamental plane, not across its thickness. In fact, each group shows its own fundamental plane, which is more loosely defined for less diversified groups. We conclude that the global fundamental plane is not a bent surface, but made of a collection of several groups characterizing several fundamental planes with different thicknesses and orientations in the parameter space. Our diversification scenario probably indicates that the level of diversity is linked to the number and the nature of transforming events and that the fundamental plane is the result of several transforming events. We also show that our classification, not the fundamental planes, is universal within our redshift range (0.007 - 0.053). We find that the three groups with the thinnest fundamental planes presumably formed through dissipative (wet) mergers. In one of them, this(ese) merger(s) must have been quite ancient because of the relatively low metallicity of its galaxies, Two of these groups have subsequently undergone dry mergers to increase their masses. In the k-space, the third one clearly occupies the region where bulges (of lenticular or spiral galaxies) lie and might also have formed through minor mergers and accretions. The two least diversified groups probably did not form by major mergers and must have been strongly affected by interactions, some of the gas in the objects of one of these groups having possibly been swept out. The interpretation, based on specific assembly histories of galaxies of our seven groups, shows that they are truly homologous. They were obtained directly from several observables, thus independently of any a priori classification. The diversification scenario relating these groups does not depend on models or numerical simulations, but is objectively provided by the cladistic analysis. Consequently, our classification is more easily compared to models and numerical simulations, and our work can be readily repeated with additional observables.
We report the detection of absorption lines by the reactive ions OH+, H2O+ and H3O+ along the line of sight to the submillimeter continuum source G10.6$-$0.4 (W31C). We used the Herschel HIFI instrument in dual beam switch mode to observe the ground state rotational transitions of OH+ at 971 GHz, H2O+ at 1115 and 607 GHz, and H3O+ at 984 GHz. The resultant spectra show deep absorption over a broad velocity range that originates in the interstellar matter along the line of sight to G10.6$-$0.4 as well as in the molecular gas directly associated with that source. The OH+ spectrum reaches saturation over most velocities corresponding to the foreground gas, while the opacity of the H2O+ lines remains lower than 1 in the same velocity range, and the H3O+ line shows only weak absorption. For LSR velocities between 7 and 50 kms$^{-1}$ we estimate total column densities of $N$(OH+) $> 2.5 \times 10^{14}$ cm$^{-2}$, $N$(H2O+) $\sim 6 \times 10^{13}$ cm$^{-2}$ and $N$(H3O+) $\sim 4.0 \times 10^{13}$ cm$^{-2}$. These detections confirm the role of O$^+$ and OH$^+$ in initiating the oxygen chemistry in diffuse molecular gas and strengthen our understanding of the gas phase production of water. The high ratio of the OH+ by the H2O+ column density implies that these species predominantly trace low-density gas with a small fraction of hydrogen in molecular form.
We use deep observations taken with the Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS), on board the Herschel satellite as part of the PACS evolutionary probe (PEP) guaranteed project along with submm ground-based observations to measure the dust mass of a sample of high-z submillimeter galaxies (SMGs). We investigate their dust content relative to their stellar and gas masses, and compare them with local star-forming galaxies. High-z SMGs are dust rich, i.e. they have higher dust-to-stellar mass ratios compared to local spiral galaxies (by a factor of 30) and also compared to local ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs, by a factor of 6). This indicates that the large masses of gas typically hosted in SMGs have already been highly enriched with metals and dust. Indeed, for those SMGs whose gas mass is measured, we infer dust-to-gas ratios similar or higher than local spirals and ULIRGs. However, similarly to other strongly star-forming galaxies in the local Universe and at high-z, SMGs are characterized by gas metalicities lower (by a factor of a few) than local spirals, as inferred from their optical nebular lines, which are generally ascribed to infall of metal-poor gas. This is in contrast with the large dust content inferred from the far-IR and submm data. In short, the metalicity inferred from the dust mass is much higher (by more than an order of magnitude) than that inferred from the optical nebular lines. We discuss the possible explanations of this discrepancy and the possible implications for the investigation of the metalicity evolution at high-z.
Context: The standard cooling models of neutron stars predict temperatures $T<10^{4}$ K for ages $t>10^{7}$ yr. However, the likely thermal emission detected from the millisecond pulsar J0437-4715, of spin-down age $t_s \sim 7\times10^9$ yr, implies a temperature $T\sim 10^5$ K. Thus, a heating mechanism needs to be added to the cooling models in order to obtain agreement between theory and observation. Aims: Several internal heating mechanisms could be operating in neutron stars, such as magnetic field decay, dark matter accretion, crust cracking, superfluid vortex creep, and non-equilibrium reactions ("rotochemical heating"). We study these mechanisms in order to establish which could be the dominant source of thermal emission from old pulsars. Methods: We show by simple estimates that magnetic field decay, dark matter accretion, and crust cracking mechanism are unlikely to have a significant effect on old neutron stars. The thermal evolution for the other mechanisms is computed using the code of Fern\'andez and Reisenegger. Given the dependence of the heating mechanisms on the spin-down parameters, we study the thermal evolution for two types of pulsars: young, slowly rotating "classical" pulsars and old, fast rotating millisecond pulsars. Results: We find that magnetic field decay, dark matter accretion, and crust cracking do not produce detectable heating of old pulsars. Rotochemical heating and vortex creep can be important both for classical pulsars and millisecond pulsars. More restrictive upper limits on the surface temperatures of classical pulsars could rule out vortex creep as the main source of thermal emission. Rotochemical heating in classical pulsars is driven by the chemical imbalance built up during their early spin-down, and therefore strongly sensitive to their initial rotation period.
In order to understand the basic mechanism of the formation of magnetic flux concentrations, we determine by direct numerical simulations the turbulence contributions to the mean magnetic pressure in a strongly stratified isothermal layer, where a weak uniform horizontal mean magnetic field is applied. In a first setup, the turbulent intensity is nearly constant in height, so the kinetic energy density decreases with height due to the decrease in density, while in a second series of numerical experiments, the turbulent intensity increases with height such that the kinetic energy density is nearly independent of height. Turbulent magnetic diffusivity and turbulent pumping velocity are determined with the test-field method for both cases. Corresponding mean-field numerical models are used to assess whether or not a large-scale instability is to be expected. A negative turbulence contribution to the effective mean magnetic pressure is confirmed and found to be in agreement with results of earlier work. The vertical profile of the turbulent magnetic diffusivity is found to agree with what is expected based on simple mixing length expressions, but the turbulent pumping velocity is found to be equal to the negative gradient of turbulent magnetic diffusivity without the 1/2 factor expected from the kinematic mean-field theory. Mean-field numerical modelling confirms the excitation of the instability for both setups, although no large-scale instability is found in the direct numerical simulations.
We use a recent sample of 49 galaxies to show that there is a proportionality relation between the black hole mass M_BH and the quantity \mu =M_G*\sigma /c, where M_G is mass of the spheroidal stellar component and \sigma is the stellar velocity dispersion. \mu is called the momentum parameter and the ratio is M_BH/\mu ~3.3. This result is applied to the penetrating-jet feedback model which argues that the correlation that holds is with a momentum-like parameter, although this feedback mechanism is based on energy balance.
The small-scale magnetic helicity produced as a by-product of the large-scale dynamo is believed to play a major role in dynamo saturation. In a mean-field model the generation of small-scale magnetic helicity can be modelled by using the dynamical quenching formalism. Catastrophic quenching refers to a decrease of the saturation field strength with increasing Reynolds number. It has been suggested that catastrophic quenching only affects the region of non-zero helical turbulence (i.e. where the kinematic alpha operates) and that it is possible to alleviate catastrophic quenching by separating the region of strong shear from the alpha layer. We perform a systematic study of a simple axisymmetric two-layer alpha-omega dynamo in a spherical shell for Reynolds numbers in the range 1 < Rm < 10^5. In the framework of dynamical quenching we show that this may not be the case, suggesting that magnetic helicity fluxes would be necessary.
We study the effect of dark matter (DM) particles in the Sun, focusing in particular on the possible reduction of the solar neutrinos flux due to the energy carried away by DM particles from the innermost regions of the Sun, and to the consequent reduction of the temperature of the solar core. We find that in the very low-mass range between 4 and 10 GeV, recently advocated to explain the findings of the DAMA and CoGent experiments, the effects on neutrino fluxes are detectable only for DM models with very small, or vanishing, self-annihilation cross section, such as the so-called asymmetric DM models, and we study the combination of DM masses and Spin Dependent cross sections which can be excluded with current solar neutrino data. Finally, we revisit the recent claim that DM models with large self-interacting cross sections can lead to a modification of the position of the convective zone, alleviating or solving the solar composition problem. We show that when the `geometric' upper limit on the capture rate is correctly taken into account, the effects of DM are reduced by orders of magnitude, and the position of the convective zone remains unchanged.
In recent years, analyses of eclipsing binary systems have unveiled differences between the observed fundamental properties of low-mass stars and those predicted by stellar structure models. Particularly, radius and effective temperatures computed from models are ~ 5-10% lower and ~ 3-5% higher than observed, respectively. These discrepancies have been attributed to different factors, notably to the high levels of magnetic activity present on these stars. In this paper, we test the effect of magnetic activity both on models and on the observational analysis of eclipsing binaries using a sample of such systems with accurate fundamental properties. Regarding stellar models, we have found that unrealistically high spot coverages need to be assumed to reproduce the observations. Tests considering metallicity effects and missing opacities on models indicate that these are not able to explain the radius discrepancies observed. With respect to the observations, we have tested the effect of several spot distributions on the light curve analysis. Our results show that spots cause systematic deviations on the stellar radii derived from light curve analysis when distributed mainly over the stellar poles. Assuming the existence of polar spots, overall agreement between models and observations is reached when ~ 35% spot coverage is considered on stellar models. Such spot coverage induces a systematic deviation in the radius determination from the light curve analysis of ~ 3% and is also compatible with the modulations observed on the light curves of these systems. Finally, we have found that the effect of activity or rotation on convective transport in partially radiative stars may also contribute to explain the differences seen in some of the systems with shorter orbital periods.
A simple set of diagrammatic rules is formulated for perturbative evaluation of ``in-in" correlators, as is needed in cosmology and other nonequilibrium problems. These rules are both intuitive, and efficient for calculational purposes.
The annihilation cross section of thermal relic dark matter determines both its relic density and indirect detection signals. We determine how large indirect signals may be in scenarios with Sommerfeld-enhanced annihilation, subject to the constraint that the dark matter has the correct relic density. This work refines our previous analysis through detailed treatments of resonant Sommerfeld enhancement and the effect of Sommerfeld enhancement on freeze out. Sommerfeld enhancements raise many interesting issues in the freeze out calculation, and we find that the cutoff of resonant enhancement, force-carrier production and decay rates, the temperature of kinetic decoupling, and the efficiency of self-interactions for preserving thermal velocity distributions all play a role. These effects may have striking consequences; for example, for resonantly-enhanced Sommerfeld annihilation, dark matter freezes out but may then chemically recouple, implying highly suppressed indirect signals, in contrast to naive expectations. In the minimal scenario with standard astrophysical assumptions, and tuning all parameters to maximize the signal, we find that, for force-carrier mass m_\phi = 250 MeV and dark matter masses m_X = 0.1, 0.3, and 1 TeV, the maximal Sommerfeld enhancement factors are S_eff = 7, 30, and 90, respectively. Such boosts are too small to explain both the PAMELA and Fermi excesses. Non-minimal models may require smaller boosts, but the bounds on S_eff could also be more stringent, and dedicated freeze out analyses are required. We consider deviations from standard astrophysical assumptions and non-minimal particle physics models, and we outline the steps required to determine if such considerations may lead to a self-consistent explanation of the PAMELA or Fermi excesses.
The XENON100 and CRESST experiments will directly test the inelastic dark matter explanation for DAMA's 8.9 sigma anomaly. This article discusses how predictions for direct detection experiments depend on uncertainties in quenching factor measurements, the dark matter interaction with the Standard Model and the halo velocity distribution. When these uncertainties are accounted for, an order of magnitude variation is found in the number of expected events at CRESST and XENON100.
We analyze the most salient cosmological features of axions in extensions of the Standard Model with a gauged anomalous extra U(1) symmetry. The model is built by imposing the constraint of gauge invariance in the anomalous effective action, which is extended with Wess-Zumino counterterms. These generate axion-like interactions of the axions to the gauge fields and a gauged shift symmetry. The scalar sector is assumed to acquire a non-perturbative potential after inflation, at the electroweak phase transition, which induces a mixing of the Stuckelberg field of the model with the scalars of the electroweak sector, and at the QCD phase transition. We discuss the possible mechanisms of sequential misalignments which could affect the axions of these models, and generated, in this case, at both transitions. We compute the contribution of these particles to dark matter, quantifying their relic densities as a function of the Stuckelberg mass. We also show that models with a single anomalous U(1) in general do not account for the dark energy, due to the presence of mixed U(1)-SU(3) anomalies.
A new fully quantum method describing penetration of packet from internal well outside with its tunneling through the barrier of arbitrary shape used in problems of quantum cosmology, is presented. The method allows to determine amplitudes of wave function, penetrability $T_{\rm bar}$ and reflection $R_{\rm bar}$ relatively the barrier (accuracy of the method: $|T_{\rm bar}+R_{\rm bar}-1| < 1 \cdot 10^{-15}$), coefficient of penetration (i.e. probability of the packet to penetrate from the internal well outside with its tunneling), coefficient of oscillations (describing oscillating behavior of the packet inside the internal well). Using the method, evolution of universe in the closed Friedmann--Robertson--Walker model with quantization in presence of positive cosmological constant, radiation and component of generalize Chaplygin gas is studied. It is established (for the first time): (1) oscillating dependence of the penetrability on localization of start of the packet; (2) presence of resonant values of energy of radiation $E_{\rm rad}$, at which the coefficient of penetration increases strongly. From analysis of these results it follows: (1) necessity to introduce initial condition into both non-stationary, and stationary quantum models; (2) presence of some definite values for the scale factor $a$, where start of expansion of universe is the most probable; (3) during expansion of universe in the initial stage its radius is changed not continuously, but passes consequently through definite discrete values and tends to continuous spectrum in latter time.
This short review is addressed to cosmologists.
General relativity predicts that space-time comes to an end and physics comes
to a halt at the big-bang. Recent developments in loop quantum cosmology have
shown that these predictions cannot be trusted. Quantum geometry effects can
resolve singularities, thereby opening new vistas. Examples are: The big bang
is replaced by a quantum bounce; the `horizon problem' disappears; immediately
after the big bounce, there is a super-inflationary phase with its own
phenomenological ramifications; and, in presence of a standard inflaton
potential, initial conditions are naturally set for a long, slow roll inflation
independently of what happens in the pre-big bang branch.
In this paper we complete the program of the Noncomutative Geometry inspired black holes, providing the richest possible solution, endowed with mass, charge and angular momentum. After providing a prescription for employing the Newmann-Janis algorithm in case of nonvanishing stress tensors, we find regular axisymmetric charged black holes in the presence of a minimal length. We study also the new thermodynamics and we determine the corresponding higher-dimensional solutions. As a conclusion we make some consideration about possible applications.
In this work we propose a new numerical approach to distinguish between regular and chaotic orbits in Hamiltonian systems, based on the simultaneous integration of the orbit and of the deviation vectors using a symplectic scheme,hereby called global symplectic integrator. In particular, the proposed method allows us to recover the correct orbits character with very large integration time steps, in some cases up to 1000 times larger than the one needed by a non-symplectic scheme. To illustrate the numerical performances of the global symplectic integrator we will apply it to two well-known and widely studied problems: the H\'enon-Heiles model and the restricted three-body problem.
The photon polarization operator in superstrong magnetic fields induces the dynamical photon "mass" which leads to screening of Coulomb potential at small distances $z\ll 1/m$, $m$ is the mass of an electron. We demonstrate that this behaviour is qualitatively different from the case of D=2 QED, where the same formula for a polarization operator leads to screening at large distances as well. Because of screening the ground state energy of the hydrogen atom at the magnetic fields $B \gg m^2/e^3$ has the finite value $E_0 = -me^4/2 \ln^2(1/e^6)$.
We develop a model of string dynamics with back-reaction from both scaling and non-scaling loops taken into account. The evolution of a string network is described by the distribution functions of coherence segments and kinks. We derive two non-linear equations which govern the evolution of the two distributions and solve them analytically in the limit of late times. We also show that the correlation function is an exponential, and solve the dynamics for the corresponding spectrum of scaling loops.
Using effective field theory (EFT) techniques we calculate the next-to-leading order (NLO) spin-orbit contributions to the gravitational potential of inspiralling compact binaries. We use the covariant spin supplementarity condition (SSC), and explicitly prove the equivalence with previous results by Faye et al. in arXiv:gr-qc/0605139. We also show that the direct application of the Newton-Wigner SSC at the level of the action leads to the correct dynamics using a canonical (Dirac) algebra. This paper then completes the calculation of the necessary spin dynamics within the EFT formalism that will be used in a separate paper to compute the spin contributions to the energy flux and phase evolution to NLO.
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The origin of massive field stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has long been an enigma. The recent measurements of large offsets (~100 km/s) between the heliocentric radial velocities of some very massive (O2-type) field stars and the systemic LMC velocity provides a possible explanation of this enigma and suggests that the field stars are runaway stars ejected from their birth places at the very beginning of their parent cluster's dynamical evolution. A straightforward way to prove this explanation is to measure the proper motions of the field stars and to show that they are moving away from one of the nearby star clusters or OB associations. This approach however is complicated by the large distance to the LMC, which makes accurate proper motion measurements difficult. We use an alternative approach for solving the problem, based on the search for bow shocks produced by runaway stars. The geometry of detected bow shocks would allow us to infer the direction of stellar motion and thereby to determine their possible parent clusters. In this paper we present the results of a search for bow shocks around six massive field stars which were suggested in the literature as candidate runaway stars. Using archival (Spitzer Space Telescope) data, we found a bow shock associated with one of our program stars, the O2 V((f*)) star BI 237, which is the first-ever detection of bow shocks in the LMC. Orientation of the bow shock suggests that BI 237 was ejected from the OB association LH 82 (located at ~120 pc in projection from the star). A by-product of our search is the detection of bow shocks generated by four OB stars in the field of the LMC and an arc-like structure attached to the candidate luminous blue variable R81 (HD 269128). The geometry of two of these bow shocks is consistent with the possibility that their associated stars were ejected from the 30 Doradus star forming complex.
We discuss the merger rate, close galaxy environment, and clustering on scales up to a Mpc of the SWIFT BAT hard X-ray sample of nearby (z<0.05), moderate-luminosity active galactic nuclei (AGN). We find a higher incidence of galaxies with signs of disruption compared to a matched control sample (18% versus 1%) and of close pairs within 30 kpc (24% versus 1%). We also find a larger fraction with companions compared to normal galaxies and optical emission line selected AGN at scales up to 250 kpc. We hypothesize that these merging AGN may not be identified using optical emission line diagnostics because of optical extinction and dilution by star formation. In support of this hypothesis, in merging systems we find a higher hard X-ray to [OIII] flux ratio, as well as emission line diagnostics characteristic of composite or star-forming galaxies, and a larger IRAS 60 um to stellar mass ratio.
We use the semi-analytic model GalICS to predict the Tully-Fisher relation in the B, I and for the first time, in the K band, and its evolution with redshift, up to z \sim 1. We refined the determination of the disk galaxies rotation velocity, with a dynamical recipe for the rotation curve, rather than a simple conversion from the total mass to maximum velocity. The new recipe takes into account the disk shape factor, and the angular momentum transfer occurring during secular evolution leading to the formation of bulges. This produces model rotation velocities that are lower by \sim 40-50 km/s in case of Milky Way-like objects, up to ~50-60 km/s at the high-mass end, and up to ~20-30 km/s for the majority of the spirals, amounting to an average effect of ~20-25 %. We implemented stellar population models with a complete treatment of the TP-AGB branch, which leads to a revision of the mass-to-light ratio in the near-IR. Due to this effect, K band luminosities increase by \sim 0.5 mags at redshift z=0 and by ~1 mags at z=3, while in the I band at the same redshifts the increase amounts to \sim 0.3 and \sim 0.5 mags. With these two new recipes in place, the comparison between the predicted Tully-Fisher relation with a series of datasets in the optical and near-IR, at redshifts between 0 and 1, is used as a diagnostics of the assembly and evolution of spiral galaxies in the model. The new model shows a net improvement over its original version of 2003. However, the z=0 predicted Tully-Fisher is too bright in all bands, although the model is able to reproduce the morphological differentiation observed in the K band. At z>0.4 the match between the model and data improves dramatically. We argue that this behavior is caused by inadequate star formation histories in the model galaxies at low redshifts. The SFR declines too slowly, due to continuous gas infall that is not efficiently suppressed.
We study the role of submillimetre galaxies (SMGs) in the galaxy formation process in the Lambda Cold Dark Matter cosmology. We use the Baugh et al. (2005) semi-analytical model, which matches the observed SMG number counts and redshift distribution by assuming a top-heavy initial mass function (IMF) in bursts triggered by galaxy mergers. We build galaxy merger trees and follow the evolution and properties of SMGs and their descendants. Our primary sample of model SMGs consists of galaxies which had 850 mu fluxes brighter than 5 mJy at some redshift z>1. Our model predicts that the present-day descendants of such SMGs cover a wide range of stellar masses ~ 10^{10} - 10^{12} Msun/h, with a median ~ 10^{11} Msun/h, and that more than 70% of these descendants are bulge-dominated. More than 50% of present day galaxies with stellar masses larger than 7 x 10^{11} Msun/h are predicted to be descendants of such SMGs. We find that although SMGs make an important contribution to the total star formation rate at z~2, the final stellar mass produced in the submillimetre phase contributes only 0.2% of the total present-day stellar mass, and 2% of the stellar mass of SMG descendants, in stark contrast to the popular picture in which the SMG phase marks the production of the bulk of the mass of present day massive ellipticals.
We study the effect of the magnetic field when using realistic three-dimensional convection experiments to determine solar element abundances. By carrying out magnetoconvection simulations with a radiation-hydro code (the Copenhagen stagger code) and through a-posteriori spectral synthesis of three Fe I lines, we have obtained evidence that moderate amounts of mean magnetic flux cause a non-negligible line strengthening as compared with a non-magnetic case. The corresponding negative Fe abundance correction for a mean flux density of 100 G is about 0.04 dex. These results are based on space- and time-averaged line profiles over a time span of about 1.5 solar hours in the statistically stationary regime of the convection. The main factors causing the line broadening, namely the Zeeman effect and the change in the temperature stratification, act in different amounts (in some cases in opposite directions) in the different lines in our sample; yet, the resulting abundance correction coincides within a factor two in all of them. We conclude that magnetic effects should be taken into account when discussing precise values of the solar and stellar abundances.
We present a new study of the stellar mass in a sample of ~ 70 submillimeter-selected galaxies (SMGs) with accurate spectroscopic redshifts. We fit combinations of stellar population synthesis models and power laws to the galaxies' observed-frame optical through mid-IR spectral energy distributions to separate stellar emission from non-stellar near-IR continuum. By separating the stellar emission from the non-stellar near-IR continuum, we find that ~ 50% of our sample have non-stellar continuum contributions of less than 10% in rest-frame H-band, but ~ 10% of our sample have non-stellar contributions greater than 50%. We find that the K-band luminosity of the non-stellar continuum emission is correlated with hard X-ray luminosity, indicating an AGN origin of the emission. Upon subtracting this AGN-contributed continuum component from all of the galaxies in our sample, we determine a lower median stellar mass for SMGs than previous studies, ~ 7 x 10^10 M_sun. Our new stellar mass estimates suggest that X-ray detected SMGs fall closer to the local relation between bulge mass and central black hole mass than indicated by previous studies. We combine our new stellar mass estimates with molecular gas mass estimates from observation of CO rotational emission lines to examine the evolutionary status of SMGs, and use constraints of the starburst time-scale from molecular gas studies to estimate the amount of fading our sample would undergo if they passively evolve after the starburst terminates. The results suggest that typical SMGs, while among the most massive galaxies at z ~ 2, are likely to produce descendants of similar mass and luminosity to L* galaxies in the local universe.
Source I in the Orion-KL nebula is believed to be the nearest example of a massive star still in the main accretion phase. It is thus one of the best cases to study the properties of massive protostars to constrain high-mass star formation theories. Near-infrared radiation from source I escapes through the cavity opened by the OMC1 outflow and is scattered by dust towards our line of sight. The reflected spectrum offers a unique possibility to observe the emission from the innermost regions of the system and to probe the nature of source I and its immediate surroundings. We have obtained moderately high spectral resolution (R~9000) observations of the near infrared diffuse emission in several locations around source I/Orion-KL. We observe a widespread rich absorption line spectrum that we compare with cool stellar photospheres and protostellar accretion disk models. The spectrum is broadly similar to strongly veiled, cool, low-gravity stellar photospheres in the range Teff~3500-4500 K, luminosity class I-III. An exact match explaining all features has not been found and a plausible explanation is that a range of different temperatures contribute to the observed absorption spectrum. The 1D velocity dispersions implied by the absorption spectra, sigma~30 km/s, can be explained by the emission from a disk around a massive, mstar~10 Msun, protostar that is accreting at a high rate, mdot~3x10^{-3} Msun/yr. Our observations suggest that the near-infrared reflection spectrum observed in the Orion-KL region is produced close to source I and scattered to our line of sight in the OMC1 outflow cavity. The spectrum allows us to exclude that source I is a very large, massive protostar rotating at breakup speed. We suggest that the absorption spectrum is produced in a disk surrounding a ~10 Msun protostar, accreting from its disk at a high rate of few 10^{-3} Msun/yr.
Aims. We investigate statistical equilibrium of Cr in the atmospheres of late-type stars to show whether the systematic abundance discrepancy between Cr I and Cr II lines, as often encountered in the literature, is due to deviations from LTE. Furthermore, we attempt to interpret the NLTE trend of [Cr/Fe] with [Fe/H] using chemical evolution models for the solar neighborhood. Methods. NLTE calculations are performed for the model of Cr atom, comprising 340 levels and 6806 transitions in total. We make use of the quantum-mechanical photoionization cross-sections of Nahar (2009) and investigate sensitivity of the model to uncertain cross-sections for H I collisions. NLTE line formation is performed for the MAFAGS-ODF model atmospheres of the Sun and 10 metal-poor stars with -3.2 < [Fe/H] < -0.5, and abundances of Cr are derived by comparison of the synthetic and observed flux spectra. Results. We achieve good ionization equilibrium of Cr for the models with different stellar parameters, if inelastic collisions with H I atoms are neglected. The solar NLTE abundance based on Cr I lines is 5.74 dex with {\sigma} = 0.05 dex; it is \sim 0.1 higher than the LTE abundance. For the metal-poor stars, the NLTE abundance corrections to Cr I lines range from +0.3 to +0.5 dex. The resulting [Cr/Fe] ratio is roughly solar for the range of metallicities analyzed here, which is consistent with current views on production of these iron peak elements in supernovae. Conclusions. The tendency of Cr to become deficient with respect to Fe in metal-poor stars is an artifact due to neglect of NLTE effects in the line formation of Cr I, and it has no relation to peculiar physical conditions in the Galactic ISM or deficiencies of nucleosynthesis theory.
We determine the dependence of the initial helium abundance and the present-day helium abundance in the convective envelope of solar models ($\yim$ and $\ysm$ respectively) on the parameters that are used to construct the models. We do so by using reference standard solar models to compute the power-law coefficients of the dependence of $\yim$ and $\ysm$ on the input parameters. We use these dependencies to determine the correlation between $\yim$ and $\ysm$ and use this correlation to eliminate uncertainties in $\yim$ from all solar model input parameters except the microscopic diffusion rate. We find an expression for $\yim$ that depends only on $\ysm$ and the diffusion rate. By adopting the helioseismic determination of solar surface helium abundance, $\ysms= 0.2485\pm0.0035$, and an uncertainty of 20% for the diffusion rate, we find that the initial solar helium abundance, $\yims$, is $0.278 \pm 0.006$ independently of the reference standard solar models (and particularly on adopted the solar abundances) used in the derivation of the correlation between $\yim$ and $\ysm$. When non-standard solar models with extra mixing are used, then we derive $\yims = 0.273 \pm 0.006$. In both cases, the derived $\yims$ value is higher than that directly derived from solar model calibrations when the low metalicity solar abundances (e.g. by Asplund et al.) are adopted in the models.
Embedded clusters are formed in molecular clouds where massive stars can produce HII regions. The detailed embedded-open cluster evolutionary connection as well as the origin of associations are yet to be unveiled. There appears to be a high infant mortality rate among embedded clusters and the few survivors evolve to open clusters. We study the colour-magnitude diagrams and structure of the star clusters related to the Sh2-132 HII region using the 2MASS database. Cluster fundamental and structural parameters are determined via MS and PMS isochrones and stellar radial density profiles. We report the discovery of four clusters. One of them is projected a few diameters away from the optical cluster Teutsch\,127 and appears to be deeply embedded, seen only in the infrared. Evidence is found that we are witnessing the dynamical transition from an embedded to an open cluster. An additional cluster is also close to Teutsch\,127 and might be associated with a bow-shock. We also study the CMD and structure of the open cluster Berkeley\,94 in Sh2-132 and a new cluster which is projected in the outskirts of the complex. Finally, we searched for star clusters around the two known Wolf-Rayet stars in the complex. One of them appears to be related to a compact cluster. Finally, the present analyses suggest early dynamical evolution for young star clusters.
Astrophysical shocks or bursts from a photoionizing source can disturb the typical collisional plasma found in galactic interstellar media or the intergalactic medium. The spectrum emitted by this plasma contains diagnostics that have been used to determine the time since the disturbing event, although this determination becomes uncertain as the elements in the plasma return to ionization equilibrium. A general solution for the equilibrium timescale for each element arises from the elegant eigenvector method of solution to the problem of a non-equilibrium plasma described by Masai (1984) and Hughes & Helfand (1985). In general the ionization evolution of an element Z in a constant electron temperature plasma is given by a coupled set of Z+1 first order differential equations. However, they can be recast as Z uncoupled first order differential equations using an eigenvector basis for the system. The solution is then Z separate exponential functions, with the time constants given by the eigenvalues of the rate matrix. The smallest of these eigenvalues gives the scale of slowest return to equilibrium independent of the initial conditions, while conversely the largest eigenvalue is the scale of the fastest change in the ion population. These results hold for an ionizing plasma, a recombining plasma, or even a plasma with random initial conditions, and will allow users of these diagnostics to determine directly if their best-fit result significantly limits the timescale since a disturbance or is so close to equilibrium as to include an arbitrarily-long time.
The collisionless accretion shock at the outer boundary of a galaxy cluster should primarily heat the ions instead of electrons since they carry most of the kinetic energy of the infalling gas. Near the accretion shock, the density of the intracluster medium is very low and the Coulomb collisional timescale is longer than the accretion timescale. Electrons and ions may not achieve equipartition in these regions. Numerical simulations have shown that the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich observables (e.g., the integrated Comptonization parameter Y) for relaxed clusters can be biased by a few percent. The Y-mass relation can be biased if non-equipartition effects are not properly taken into account. Using a set of hydrodynamical simulations, we have calculated three potential systematic biases in the Y-mass relations introduced by non-equipartition effects during the cross-calibration or self-calibration when using the galaxy cluster abundance technique to constraint cosmological parameters. We then use a semi-analytic technique to estimate the non-equipartition effects on the distribution functions of Y (Y functions) determined from the extended Press-Schechter theory. Depending on the calibration method, we find that non-equipartition effects can induce systematic biases on the Y functions, and the values of the cosmological parameters Omega_8, sigma_8, and the dark energy equation of state parameter w can be biased by a few percent. In particular, non-equipartition effects can introduce an apparent evolution in w of a few percent in all of the systematic cases we considered. Techniques are suggested to take into account the non-equipartition effect empirically when using the cluster abundance technique to study precision cosmology. We conclude that systematic uncertainties in the Y-mass relation of even a few percent can introduce a comparable level of biases in cosmological parameter measurements.
Modified gravity, known as $f(R)$ gravity, has presently been applied to Cosmology as a realistic alternative to dark energy. For this kind of gravity the expansion of the Universe may accelerate while containing only baryonic and cold dark matter. The aim of the present investigation is to place cosmographic constraints on the class of theories of the form $f(R)=R - \alpha/R^n$ within the Palatini approach. Although extensively discussed in recent literature and confronted with several observational data sets, cosmological tests are indeed inconclusive about the true signal of $n$ in this class of theories. This is particularly important to define which kind of corrections (infra-red or high-energy) to general relativity this class of theory indeed represent. We shed some light on this question by examining the evolution of the deceleration parameter $q(z)$ for these theories. We find that for a large range of $\alpha$, models based on $f(R) = R - \alpha/R^{n}$ gravity in the Palatini approach can only have positive values for $n$, placing thus a broad restriction on this class of gravity.
In the last few decades, advances in observational cosmology have given us a standard model of cosmology. We know the content of the universe to within a few percent. With more ambitious experiments on the way, we hope to move beyond the knowledge of what the universe is made of, to why the universe is the way it is. In this review paper we focus on primordial non-Gaussianity as a probe of the physics of the dynamics of the universe at the very earliest moments. We discuss 1) theoretical predictions from inflationary models and their observational consequences in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies; 2) CMB--based estimators for constraining primordial non-Gaussianity with an emphasis on bispectrum templates; 3) current constraints on non-Gaussianity and what we can hope to achieve in the near future; and 4) non-primordial sources of non-Gaussianities in the CMB such as bispectrum due to second order effects, three way cross-correlation between primary-lensing-secondary CMB, and possible instrumental effects.
We derive the equations of linear cosmological perturbations for the general Lagrangian density $f (R,\phi, X)/2+L_c$, where $R$ is a Ricci scalar, $\phi$ is a scalar field, and $X=-(\nabla \phi)^2/2$ is a field kinetic energy. We take into account a nonlinear self-interaction term $L_c$ recently studied in the context of "Galileon" cosmology, which keeps the field equations at second order. Taking into account a scalar-field mass explicitly, the equations of matter density perturbations and gravitational potentials are obtained under a quasi-static approximation on sub-horizon scales. We also derive conditions for the avoidance of ghosts and Laplacian instabilities associated with propagation speeds. Our analysis includes most of modified gravity models of dark energy proposed in literature and thus it is convenient to test the viability of such models from both theoretical and observational points of view.
With its rapid-response, {\it Swift} has revealed plenty of unexpected properties of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Primarily, our current understandings are challenged by the observed complex early X-ray light curves. In this {\it Letter}, based on the public {\it Swift} data of 150 well monitored GRBs with measured redshifts, we find some interesting global features of the X-ray light curves in the rest frame. The distinct spectral behaviors between the prompt emission and the afterglow emission implies dissimilar radiation scenarios. Interestingly, an unforeseen plateau is exhibited in the prompt X-ray light curves despite of being full of spikes, which might reveal a steady central engine. In addition, the redshift distribution for the 150 bursts also reveals a Possion quality.
Aims. Recent ATCA, XMM-Newton and MCELS observations of the Magellanic Clouds
(MCs) cover a number of new and known SNRs which are poorly studied, such as
SNR J0528-6714 . This particular SNR exhibits luminous radio-continuum
emission, but is one of the unusual and rare cases without detectable optical
and very faint X-ray emission (initially detected by ROSAT and listed as object
[HP99] 498). We used new multi-frequency radio-continuum surveys and new
optical observations at H{\alpha}, [S ii] and [O iii] wavelengths, in
combination with XMM-Newton X-ray data, to investigate the SNR properties and
to search for a physical explanation for the unusual appearance of this SNR.
Methods. We analysed the X-ray and Radio-Continuum spectra and present
multi-wavelength morphological studies of this SNR.
Results. We present the results of new moderate resolution ATCA observations
of SNR J0528-6714. We found that this object is a typical older SNR with a
radio spectral index of {\alpha}=-0.36 \pm 0.09 and a diameter of D=52.4 \pm
1.0 pc. Regions of moderate and somewhat irregular polarisation were detected
which are also indicative of an older SNR. Using a non-equilibrium ionisation
collisional plasma model to describe the X-ray spectrum, we find temperatures
kT of 0.26 keV for the remnant. The low temperature, low surface brightness,
and large extent of the remnant all indicate a relatively advanced age. The
near circular morphology indicates a Type Ia event.
Conclusions. Our study revealed one of the most unusual cases of SNRs in the
Local Group of galaxies - a luminous radio SNR without optical counterpart and,
at the same time, very faint X-ray emission. While it is not unusual to not
detect an SNR in the optical, the combination of faint X-ray and no optical
detection makes this SNR very unique.
In this paper, we perform a global constraint on the Ricci dark energy model with both the flat case and the non-flat case, using the Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method and the combined observational data from the cluster X-ray gas mass fraction, Supernovae of type Ia (397), baryon acoustic oscillations, current Cosmic Microwave Background, and the observational Hubble function. In the flat model, we obtain the best fit values of the parameters in $1\sigma, 2\sigma$ regions: $\Omega_{m0}=0.2927^{+0.0420 +0.0542}_{-0.0323 -0.0388}$, $\alpha=0.3823^{+0.0331 +0.0415}_{-0.0418 -0.0541}$, $Age/Gyr=13.48^{+0.13 +0.17}_{-0.16 -0.21}$, $H_0=69.09^{+2.56 +3.09}_{-2.37 -3.39}$. In the non-flat model, the best fit parameters are found in $1\sigma, 2\sigma$ regions:$\Omega_{m0}=0.3003^{+0.0367 +0.0429}_{-0.0371 -0.0423}$, $\alpha=0.3845^{+0.0386 +0.0521}_{-0.0474 -0.0523}$, $\Omega_k=0.0240^{+0.0109 +0.0133}_{-0.0130 -0.0153}$, $Age/Gyr=12.54^{+0.51 +0.65}_{-0.37 -0.49}$, $H_0=72.89^{+3.31 +3.88}_{-3.05 -3.72}$. Compared to the constraint results in the $\Lambda \textmd{CDM}$ model by using the same datasets, it is shown that the current combined datasets prefer the $\Lambda \textmd{CDM}$ model to the Ricci dark energy model.
We consider the questions of whether the damped Lyman-alpha (DLA) and sub-DLA absorbers in quasar spectra differ intrinsically in metallicity, and whether they could arise in galaxies of different masses. Using the recent measurements of the robust metallicity indicators Zn and S in DLAs and sub-DLAs, we confirm that sub-DLAs have higher mean metallicities than DLAs, especially at $z \lesssim 2$. We find that the intercept of the metallicity-redshift relation derived from Zn and S is higher than that derived from Fe by 0.5-0.6 dex. We also show that, while there is a correlation between the metallicity and the rest equivalent width of Mg II $\lambda 2796$ or Fe II $\lambda 2599$ for DLAs, no correlation is seen for sub-DLAs. Given this, and the similar Mg II or Fe II selection criteria employed in the discovery of both types of systems at lower redshifts, the difference between metallicities of DLAs and sub-DLAs appears to be real and not an artefact of selection. This conclusion is supported by our simulations of Mg II $\lambda 2796$ and Fe II $\lambda 2599$ lines for a wide range of physical conditions. On examining the velocity spreads of the absorbers, we find that sub-DLAs show somewhat higher mean and median velocity spreads ($\Delta v$), and an excess of systems with $\Delta v > 150$ km s$^{-1}$, than DLAs. Compared to DLAs, the [Mn/Fe] vs. [Zn/H] trend for sub-DLAs appears to be steeper and closer to the trend for Galactic bulge and thick disk stars, possibly suggesting different stellar populations. The absorber data appear to be consistent with galaxy down-sizing. The data are also consistent with the relative number densities of low-mass and high-mass galaxies. It is thus plausible that sub-DLAs arise in more massive galaxies on average than DLAs.
(abridged) We continue our study of weakly ionized protostellar discs that are threaded by a large-scale magnetic field and power a centrifugally driven wind. It has been argued that in several protostellar systems such a wind transports a significant fraction of the angular momentum from at least some part of the disc. We model this case by considering a radially localized disc model in which the matter is well coupled to the field and the wind is the main repository of excess angular momentum. We consider stationary solutions in which magnetic diffusion counters the shearing and advection of the field lines. In Wardle & K\"onigl we analysed the disc structure in the hydrostatic approximation and presented disc/wind solutions for the ambipolar diffusivity regime. In K\"onigl, Salmeron & Wardle (Paper I) we generalized the hydrostatic analysis to the Hall and Ohm diffusivity domains and identified the parameter sub-regimes in which viable solutions occur. In this paper we test these results by deriving numerical solutions (integrated through the sonic critical surface) of the disc equations in the Hall domain. We confirm the predictions of the hydrostatic analysis and demonstrate its usefulness for clarifying the behaviour of the derived solutions. We show that the solutions can be extended to larger scales (so that they also cross the Alfv\'en critical surface) by matching the localized disc solutions to global wind solutions of the type introduced by Blandford & Payne. To facilitate this matching, we construct a library of wind solutions, which is made available to the community. The results presented in Wardle & K\"onigl, Paper I and this work form a comprehensive framework for the study of wind-driving accretion discs in protostellar and other astrophysical environments. This tool could be useful for interpreting observations and for guiding numerical simulations of such systems.
We performed magnetohydrodynamic simulation of a formation process of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), focusing on interaction (reconnection) between an ejecting flux rope and its ambient field. We examined three cases with different ambient fields: no ambient field, and cases with dipole field of two opposite directions which are parallel and anti-parallel to that of the flux rope surface. As a result, while the flux rope disappears in the anti-parallel case, in other cases the flux ropes can evolve to CMEs and show different amounts of rotation of the flux rope. The results imply that the interaction between an ejecting flux rope and its ambient field is an important process for determining CME formation and CME orientation, and also show that the amount and direction of magnetic flux within the flux rope and the ambient field are key parameters for CME formation. Especially, the interaction (reconnection) plays a significant role to the rotation of the flux rope, with a process similar to "tilting instability" in a spheromak-type experiment of laboratory plasma.
We study horizontal supergranule-scale motions revealed by TRACE observation of the chromospheric emission, and investigate the coupling between the chromosphere and the underlying photosphere. A highly e?cient feature-tracking technique called balltracking has been applied for the first time to the image sequences obtained by TRACE (Transition Region and Coronal Explorer) in the passband of white light and the three ultraviolet passbands centered at 1700 {\AA}, 1600 {\AA}, and 1550 {\AA}. The resulting velocity fields have been spatially smoothed and temporally averaged in order to reveal horizontal supergranule-scale motions that may exist at the emission heights of these passbands. We find indeed a high correlation between the horizontal velocities derived in the white-light and ultraviolet passbands. The horizontal velocities derived from the chromospheric and photospheric emission are comparable in magnitude. The horizontal motions derived in the UV passbands might indicate the existence of a supergranule-scale magnetoconvection in the chromosphere, which may shed new light on the study of mass and energy supply to the corona and solar wind at the height of the chromosphere. However, it is also possible that the apparent motions reflect the chromospheric brightness evolution as produced by acoustic shocks which might be modulated by the photospheric granular motions in their excitation process, or advected partly by the supergranule-scale flow towards the network while propagating upward from the photosphere. To reach a firm conclusion, it is necessary to investigate the role of granular motions in the excitation of shocks through numerical modeling, and future high-cadence chromospheric magnetograms must be scrutinized.
Earlier apodized-pupil Lyot coronagraphs (APLC) have been studied and developed to enable high-contrast imaging for exoplanet detection and characterization with present-day ground-based telescopes. With the current interest in the development of the next generation of telescopes, the future extremely large telescopes (ELTs), alternative APLC designs involving multistage configuration appear attractive. The interest of these designs for application to ELTs is studied. Performance and sensitivity of multistage APLC to ELT specificities are analyzed and discussed, taking into account several ineluctable coronagraphic telescope error sources by means of numerical simulations. Additionally, a first laboratory experiment with a two-stages-APLC in the near-infrared (H-band) is presented to further support the numerical treatment. Multistage configurations are found to be inappropriate to ELTs. The theoretical gain offered by a multistage design over the classical single-stage APLC is largely compromised by the presence of inherent error sources occurring in a coronagraphic telescope, and in particular in ELTs. The APLC remains an attractive solution for ELTs, but rather in its conventional single-stage configuration.
We have systematically studied the X-ray emission properties of globular cluster millisecond pulsars in order to evaluate their spectral properties and luminosities in a uniform way. Cross-correlating the radio timing positions of the cluster pulsars with the high resolution Chandra images revealed 31 X-ray counterparts identified in nine different globular cluster systems, including those in 47 Tuc. Timing analysis has been performed for all sources corresponding to the temporal resolution available in the archival Chandra data. Making use of unpublished data on M28, M4 and NGC 6752 allowed us to obtain further constraints for the millisecond pulsar counterparts located in these clusters. Counting rate and energy flux upper limits were computed for those 36 pulsars for which no X-ray counterparts could be detected. Comparing the X-ray and radio pulse profiles of PSR J1821-2452 in M28 and the 47 Tuc pulsars PSR J0024-7204D,O,R indicated some correspondence between both wavebands. The X-ray efficiency of the globular cluster millisecond pulsars was found to be in good agreement with the efficiency Lx ~ 10^-3 Edot observed in Galactic field rotation-powered pulsars. Millisecond pulsars in the galactic plane and in globular clusters appear to show no distinct differences in their X-ray emission properties.
The interaction of relativistic magnetized ejecta with an ambient medium is studied for a range of structures and magnetization of the unshocked ejecta. We particularly focus on the effect of the ambient medium on the dynamics of an impulsive, high-sigma shell. It is found that for sufficiently high values of the initial magnetization $\sigma_0$ the evolution of the system is significantly altered by the ambient medium well before the shell reaches its coasting phase. The maximum Lorentz factor of the shell is limited to values well below $\sigma_0$; for a shell of initial energy $E=10^{52}E_{52}$ erg and size $r_0=10^{12}T_{30}$ cm expelled into a medium having a uniform density $n_i$ we obtain $\Gamma_{\rm max}\simeq180(E_{52}/T_{30}^3 n_i)^{1/8}$ in the high sigma limit. The reverse shock and any internal shocks that might form if the source is fluctuating are shown to be very weak. The restriction on the Lorentz factor is more severe for shells propagating in a stellar wind. Lower sigma shells start decelerating after reaching the coasting phase and spreading away. The properties of the reverse shock then depend on the density profiles of the coasting shell and the ambient medium. For a self-similar cold shell the reverse shock becomes strong as it propagates inwards, and the system eventually approaches the self-similar solution derived recently by Nakamura & Shigeyama.
Quasi-Periodic Oscillations (QPOs) observed during Soft Gamma Repeaters giant flares are commonly interpreted as the torsional oscillations of magnetars. The oscillatory motion is influenced by the strong interaction between the shear modes of the crust and Alfven-like modes in the core. We study the dynamics which arises through this interaction, and present several new results: (1) We show that global {\it edge modes} frequently reside near the edges of the core Alfven continuum. (2) We compute the magnetar's oscillatory motion for realistic axisymmetric magnetic field configurations and core density profiles, but with a simplified model of the elastic crust. We show that one may generically get multiple gaps in the Alfven continuum. One obtains discrete global {\it gap modes} if the crustal frequencies belong to the gaps. (3) We show that field tangling in the core enhances the role of the core discrete Alfven modes and reduces the role of the core Alfven continuum in the overall oscillatory dynamics of the magnetar. (4) We demonstrate that the system displays transient and/or drifting QPOs when parts of the spectrum of the core Alfven modes contain discrete modes which are densely and regularly spaced in frequency. (5) We show that if the neutrons are coupled into the core Alfven motion, then the post-flare crustal motion is strongly damped and has a very weak amplitude. Thus magnetar QPOs give evidence that the proton and neutron components in the core are dynamically decoupled and that at least one of them is a quantum fluid. (6) We show that it is difficult to identify the high-frequency 625 Hz QPO as being due to the physical oscillatory mode of the magnetar, if the latter's fluid core consists of the standard proton-neutron-electron mixture and is magnetised to the same extent as the crust. (Abstract abridged)
The Westerbork Radio Synthesis Telescope, WSRT, has been used to make a deep radio survey of an ~ 1.7 sq degree field coinciding with the AKARI North Ecliptic Pole Deep Field. The observations, data reduction and source count analysis are presented, along with a description of the overall scientific objectives. The survey consisted of 10 pointings, mosaiced with enough overlap to maintain a similar sensitivity across the central region that reached as low as 21 microJy per beam at 1.4 GHz. A catalogue containing 462 sources detected with a resolution of 17"x15" is presented. The differential source counts calculated from the WSRT data have been compared with those from the shallow VLA-NEP survey of Kollgaard et al 1994, and show a pronounced excess for sources fainter than ~ 1 mJy, consistent with the presence of a population of star forming galaxies at sub-mJy flux levels. The AKARI North Ecliptic Pole Deep field is the focus of a major observing campaign conducted across the entire spectral region. The combination of these data sets, along with the deep nature of the radio observations will allow unique studies of a large range of topics including the redshift evolution of the luminosity function of radio sources, the clustering environment of radio galaxies, the nature of obscured radio-loud active galactic nuclei, and the radio/far-infrared correlation for distant galaxies. This catalogue provides the basic data set for a future series of paper dealing with source identifications, morphologies, and the associated properties of the identified radio sources.
We study the growth of the clustering dipole of galaxies from the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS). We find that the dipole does not converge before the completeness limit of the 2MASS Extended Source Catalog, i.e. up to about 300 Mpc/h. We compare the observed growth of the dipole with the theoretically expected, conditional growth for the LambdaCDM power spectrum and cosmological parameters constrained by WMAP. The observed growth turns out to be within 1-sigma confidence level of the theoretical one, once the proper observational window of the 2MASS flux dipole is included. For a contrast, if the adopted window is a top hat, then the predicted dipole grows significantly faster and converges to its final value at a distance of about 200 Mpc/h. We study the difference between the top-hat window and the window for the flux-limited 2MASS survey and we conclude that the growth of the 2MASS dipole at effective distances greater than 200 Mpc/h is only apparent. Eventually, since for the window function of 2MASS the predicted growth is consistent with the observed one, we can compare the two to evaluate beta = (Omega_m)^0.55 / b. The result is beta = 0.38+-0.05, which gives a rough estimate of Omega_m = 0.2+-0.1.
We present a comprehensive multiwavelength analysis of the hot DB white dwarf PG 0112+104. Our analysis relies on newly-acquired FUSE observations, on medium-resolution FOS and GHRS data, on archival high-resolution GHRS observations, on optical spectrophotometry both in the blue and around Halpha, as well as on time-resolved photometry. From the optical data, we derive a self-consistent effective temperature of 31,300+-500 K, a surface gravity of log g = 7.8 +- 0.1 (M=0.52 Msun), and a hydrogen abundance of log N(H)/N(He) < -4.0. The FUSE spectra reveal the presence of CII and CIII lines that complement the previous detection of CII transitions with the GHRS. The improved carbon abundance in this hot object is log N(C)/N(He) = -6.15 +- 0.23. No photospheric features associated with other heavy elements are detected. We reconsider the role of PG 0112+104 in the definition of the blue edge of the V777 Her instability strip in light of our high-speed photometry, and contrast our results with those of previous observations carried out at the McDonald Observatory.
We show that current cosmic acceleration can be explained by an almost massless scalar field experiencing quantum fluctuations during primordial inflation. Provided its mass does not exceed the Hubble parameter today, this field has been frozen during the cosmological ages to start dominating the universe only recently. By using supernovae data, completed with baryonic acoustic oscillations from galaxy surveys and cosmic microwave background anisotropies, we infer the energy scale of primordial inflation to be around a few TeV, which implies a negligible tensor-to-scalar ratio of the primordial fluctuations. Moreover, our model suggests that inflation lasted for an extremely long period thereby favouring a self-reproducing inflationary model. Dark energy could therefore be a natural consequence of cosmic inflation close to the electroweak energy scale.
We report on the unique nulling properties of PSR B0818-41, using the GMRT at 325 and 610 MHz. We find following interesting behaviour just before and after the nulls: (i) The pulsar's intensity does not switch off abruptly at the null, but fades gradually, taking ~ 10 P1. Just after nulls intensity rises to a maximum over a short (less than one period) time scale. (ii) While the last active pulses before nulls are dimmer, the first few active pulses just after nulls outshine normal ones. This effect is very clear for inner region of pulsar profile, where mean intensity of last few active pulses just after nulls is ~ 2.8 times more than that for last active pulses just before nulls. (iii) There is a significant evolution of shape of the pulsar's profile, around nulls, especially at beginning of bursts: an enhanced bump of intensity in inner region, a change in ratio of strengths of the leading and trailing peaks towards a more symmetric profile, an increase in profile width of about 10%, and a shift of profile centre towards later longitudes. (iv) Just before nulls, the apparent drift rate becomes slower, transitioning to an almost phase stationary drift pattern. Further, when the pulsar comes out of null, the increased intensity is very often accompanied by what looks like a disturbed drift rate behaviour, which settles down to the regular drift pattern as the pulsar intensity returns to normal. Thus, we find some very specific and well correlated changes in the radio emission properties of PSR B0818-41 when the emission restarts after a null. These could imply that the phenomenon of nulling is associated with some kind of a "reset" of the pulsar radio emission engine. We also present plausible explanations for some of the observed behaviour, using the Partially Screened Gap model of the inner pulsar accelerator.
We study the behavior of hybrid stars using an extended hadronic and quark SU(3) non-linear sigma model. The degrees of freedom change naturally, in this model, from hadrons to quarks as the density/temperature increases. At zero temperature, we reproduce massive neutron stars containing a core of hybrid matter of 2 km for the non-rotating case and 1.18 km and 0.87 km, in the equatorial and polar directions respectively, for stars rotating at the Kepler frequency (physical cases lie in between). The cooling of such stars is also analyzed.
Leslie Hodson was an experimental particle physicist who developed cloud and spark chamber techniques in the study of cosmic rays. This note reviews his career and provides a bibliography of his publications.
The detection of ionized bubbles around quasars in redshifted 21-cm maps is possibly one of the most direct future probes of reionization. We consider two models for the growth of spherical ionized bubbles to study the apparent shapes of the bubbles in redshifted 21-cm maps, taking into account the finite light travel time (FLTT) across the bubble. We find that the FLTT, whose effect is particularly pronounced for large bubbles, causes the bubble's image to continue to grow well after it's actual growth is over. There are two distinct FLTT distortions in the bubble's image: (i) its apparent center is shifted along the line of sight (LOS) towards the observer from the quasar; (ii) it's shape is anisotropic along the LOS. The bubble initially appears elongated along the LOS. This is reversed in the later stages of growth where the bubble appears compressed. The FLTT distortions are expected to have an impact on matched filter bubble detection where it is most convenient to use a spherical template for the filter. We find that the best matched spherical filter gives a reasonably good estimate of the size and the shift in the center of the anisotropic image. The mismatch between the spherical filter and the anisotropic image causes a 10 - 20% degradation in the SNR relative to that of a spherical bubble. We conclude that a spherical filter is adequate for bubble detection. The FLTT distortions do not effect the lower limits for bubble detection with 1000 hr of GMRT observations. The smallest spherical filter for which a detection is possible has comoving radii 24 Mpc and 33 Mpc for a 3-sigma and 5-sigma detection respectively, assuming a neutral fraction 0.6 at z \sim 8.
In models of fast magnetic reconnection, flux transfer occurs within a small portion of a current sheet triggering stored magnetic energy to be thermalized by shocks. When the initial current sheet separates magnetic fields which are not perfectly anti-parallel, i.e. they are skewed, magnetic energy is first converted to bulk kinetic energy and then thermalized in slow magnetosonic shocks. We show that the latter resemble parallel shocks or hydrodynamic shocks for all skew angles except those very near the anti-parallel limit. As for parallel shocks, the structures of reconnection-driven slow shocks are best studied using two-fluid equations in which ions and electrons have independent temperature. Time-dependent solutions of these equations can be used to predict and understand the shocks from reconnection of skewed magnetic fields. The results differ from those found using a single-fluid model such as magnetohydrodynamics. In the two-fluid model electrons are heated indirectly and thus carry a heat flux always well below the free-streaming limit. The viscous stress of the ions is, however, typically near the fluid-treatable limit. We find that for a wide range of skew angles and small plasma beta an electron conduction front extends ahead of the slow shock but remains within the outflow jet. In such cases conduction will play a more limited role in driving chromospheric evaporation than has been predicted based on single-fluid, anti-parallel models.
We investigate low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) in the M31 globular cluster (GC) system using data from the 2XMMi catalogue. These X-ray data are based on all publicly available XMM-Newton observations of the galaxy. This new survey provides the most complete and homogeneous X-ray survey of M31's GCs to date, covering >80% of the confirmed old clusters in the galaxy. We associate 41 X-ray sources with confirmed old clusters in the M31 cluster catalogue of Peacock et al. (2010). Comparing these data with previous surveys of M31, it is found that three of these clusters are newly identified, including a bright transient source in the cluster B128. Four additional clusters, that are not detected in these 2XMMi data, have previously been associated with X-ray sources from Chandra or ROSAT observations. Including these clusters, we identify 45 clusters in M31 which are associated with X-ray emission. By considering the latest optical GC catalogues, we identify that three of the previously proposed X-ray clusters are likely to be background galaxies and two have stellar profiles. We consider the properties of LMXB-hosting clusters and confirm significant trends between the presence of an LMXB and the metallicity, luminosity and stellar collision rate of a cluster. We consider the relationship between the luminosity and stellar collision rate of a cluster and note that LMXB hosting clusters have higher than average stellar collision rates for their mass. Our findings strongly suggest that the stellar collision rate is the dominant parameter related to the presence of LMXBs. This is consistent with the formation of LMXBs in GCs through dynamical interactions.
We study the capabilities of the Fermi satellite to constrain particle dark matter properties, as annihilation cross section, mass and branching ratio into dominant annihilation channels. Besides the prompt gamma-ray flux, we also take into account the contribution from the electrons/positrons produced in dark matter annihilations to the gamma-ray signal via inverse Compton scattering off the interstellar photon background, which turns out to be crucial in the case of dark matter annihilations into mu+mu- and e+e- pairs. We study the signal dependence on different parameters like the region of observation, the density profile, the inclusion of systematic uncertainties in the gamma-ray background, the assumptions for the dark matter model and the uncertainties in the propagation model. If Fermi is able to distinguish a possible dark matter signal from the large gamma-ray background, we show that for dark matter masses below ~200 GeV, the Fermi experiment will likely be able to determine dark matter properties with good accuracy.
Our universe may have formed via bubble nucleation in an eternally-inflating background. Furthermore, the background may have a compact dimension--the modulus of which tunnels out of a metastable minimum during bubble nucleation--which subsequently grows to become one of our three large spatial dimensions. Then the reduced symmetry of the background is equivalent to anisotropic initial conditions in our bubble universe. We compute the inflationary spectrum in such a scenario and, as a first step toward understanding the effects of anisotropy, project it onto spherical harmonics. The resulting spectrum exhibits anomalous multipole correlations, their relative amplitude set by the present curvature parameter, which extend to arbitrarily large multipole moments. This raises the possibility of future detection, if slow-roll inflation does not last too long within our bubble. A full understanding of the observational signal must account for the effects of background anisotropy on photon free streaming, and is left to future work.
A general analytic procedure is developed for the post-Newtonian limit of $f(R)$-gravity with metric approach in the Jordan frame by using the harmonic gauge condition. In a pure perturbative framework and by using the Green function method a general scheme of solutions up to $(v/c)^4$ order is shown. Considering the Taylor expansion of a generic function $f$ it is possible to parameterize the solutions by derivatives of $f$. At Newtonian order, $(v/c)^2$, all more important topics about the Gauss and Birkhoff theorem are discussed. The corrections to "standard" gravitational potential ($tt$-component of metric tensor) generated by an extended uniform mass ball-like source are calculated up to $(v/c)^4$ order. The corrections, Yukawa and oscillating-like, are found inside and outside the mass distribution. At last when the limit $f\rightarrow R$ is considered the $f(R)$-gravity converges in General Relativity at level of Lagrangian, field equations and their solutions.
We study collective oscillations of a two-flavor neutrino system with arbitrary but fixed density. In the vacuum limit, modes with different energies quickly de-phase (kinematical decoherence), whereas in the limit of infinite density they lock to each other (synchronization). For intermediate densities, we find different classes of solutions. There is always a phase transition in the sense of partial synchronization occurring only above a density threshold. For small mixing angles, partial or complete decoherence can be induced by a parametric resonance, introducing a new time scale to the problem, the final outcome depending on the spectrum and mixing angle. We derive an analytic relation that allows us to calculate the late-time degree of coherence based on the spectrum alone.
In this paper we construct four Kerr-like spacetimes starting from the loop black hole Schwarzschild solutions (LBH) and applying the Newman-Janis transformation. In previous papers the Schwarzschild LBH was obtained replacing the Ashtekar connection with holonomies on a particular graph in a minisuperspace approximation which describes the black hole interior. Starting from this solution, we use a Newman-Janis transformation and we specialize to two different and natural complexifications inspired from the complexifications of the Schwarzschild and Reissner-Nordstrom metrics. We show explicitly that the space-times obtained in this way are singularity free and thus there are no naked singularities. We show that the transformation move, if any, the causality violating regions of the Kerr metric far from r=0. We study the space-time structure with particular attention to the horizons shape. We conclude the paper with a discussion on a regular Reissner-Nordstrom black hole derived from the Schwarzschild LBH and then applying again the Newmann-Janis transformation.
We briefly review the supersymetric explanation for the cosmic dark matter. Although the neutralino in the minimal supersymmetric model (MSSM), the next-to-minimal supersymmetric model (NMSSM) and the nearly minimal supersymmetric model (nMSSM) can naturaly explain the dark matter relic density, the PAMELA result can hardly be explained in these popular models. In the general singlet extension of the MSSM, both the PAMELA result and the relic density can be explained by the singlino-like neutralino. Such singlino-like neutralinos annihilate into the singlet-like Higgs bosons, which are light enough to decay dominantly to muons or electrons, and the annihilation cross section can be greatly enhanced by the Sommerfeld effect via exchanging a light CP-even singlet-like Higgs boson. In this scenario, in order to meet the stringent LEP constraints, the SM-like Higgs boson tends to decay into the singlet Higgs pairs instead of $b\bar b$ and consequently it will give a multi-muon signal $h_SM->aa->\mu$ or $h_{SM}->hh->4 a ->8 \mu$ at the LHC.
The equivalence between metric and Palatini formalisms in f(R)-gravity can be achieved in the general context of theories with divergence free current. This equivalence is a necessary result of a symmetry which is included in a particular conservation equation of the current. In fact the conservation equation, by an appropriate redefinition of the introduced auxiliary field, may be encoded in a massless scalar field equation.
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Some of the first stars could be cooler and more massive than standard stellar models would suggest, due to the effects of dark matter annihilation in their cores. It has recently been argued that such objects may attain masses in the 10^4--10^7 solar mass range, and that such supermassive dark stars should be within reach of the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope. Notwithstanding theoretical difficulties with this proposal, we argue here that some of these objects should also be readily detectable with both the Hubble Space Telescope and ground-based 8--10 m class telescopes. Existing survey data already place strong constraints 10^7 solar mass dark stars at z~10. We show that such objects must be exceedingly rare or short-lived to have avoided detection.
We show that the black hole-bulge mass scaling relations observed from the local to the high-z Universe can be largely or even entirely explained by a non-causal origin, i.e. they do not imply the need for any physically coupled growth of black hole and bulge mass, for example through feedback by active galactic nuclei (AGN). The creation of the scaling relations can be fully explained by the hierarchical assembly of black hole and stellar mass through galaxy merging, from an initially uncorrelated distribution of BH and stellar masses in the early Universe. We show this with a suite of dark matter halo merger trees for which we make assumptions about (uncorrelated) black hole and stellar mass values at early cosmic times. We then follow the halos in the presence of global star formation and black hole accretion recipes that (i) work without any coupling of the two properties per individual galaxy and (ii) correctly reproduce the observed star formation and black hole accretion rate density in the Universe. With disk-to-bulge conversion in mergers included, our simulations even create the observed slope of ~1.1 for the M_BH-M_bulge-relation at z=0. This also implies that AGN feedback is not a required (though still a possible) ingredient in galaxy evolution. In light of this, other mechanisms that can be invoked to truncate star formation in massive galaxies are equally justified.
We have recently identified a new radial migration mechanism resulting from the overlap of spiral and bar resonances in galactic disks. Here we confirm the efficiency of this mechanism in fully self-consistent, Tree-SPH simulations, as well as high-resolution pure N-body simulations. In all barred cases we clearly identify the effect of spiral-bar resonance overlap by a bimodality in the changes of angular momentum in the disk, dL, with maxima near the bar's corotation and outer Lindblad resonance. This is contrasted to the smooth distribution of dL for a simulation with no stable bar present, where strong radial migration is induced by multiple spirals. The presence of a disk gaseous component appears to increase the rate of angular momentum exchange by about 20%. The efficiency of this mechanism is such that galactic stellar disks can extend to over 10 scale-lengths within 1-3 Gyr in both Milky Way size and low-mass galaxies (circular velocity ~100 km/s). We also show that metallicity gradients can flatten in less than 1 Gyr rendering mixing in barred galaxies an order of magnitude more efficient than previously thought.
We present new models for illuminated accretion disks, their structure and reprocessed emission. We consider the effects of incident X-rays on the surface of an accretion disk by solving simultaneously the equations of radiative transfer, energy balance and ionization equilibrium over a large range of column densities. We assume plane-parallel geometry and azimuthal symmetry, such that each calculation corresponds to a ring at a given distance from the central object. Our models include recent and complete atomic data for K-shell processes of the iron and oxygen isonuclear sequences. We examine the effect on the spectrum of fluorescent K$\alpha$ line emission and absorption in the emitted spectrum. We also explore the dependence of the spectrum on the strength of the incident X-rays and other input parameters, and discuss the importance of Comptonization on the emitted spectrum.
We present here the effective theory of inflation `a la Ginsburg-Landau in which the inflaton potential is a polynomial. The slow-roll expansion becomes a systematic 1/N expansion where N ~ 60. The spectral index and the ratio of tensor/scalar fluctuations are n_s - 1 = O(1/N), r = O(1/N) while the running turns to be d n_s/d \ln k = O(1/N^2) and can be neglected. The energy scale of inflation M ~ 0.7 10^{16} GeV is completely determined by the amplitude of the scalar adiabatic fluctuations. A complete analytic study plus the Monte Carlo Markov Chains (MCMC) analysis of the available CMB+LSS data showed: (a) the spontaneous breaking of the phi -> - phi symmetry of the inflaton potential. (b) a lower bound for r: r > 0.023 (95% CL) and r > 0.046 (68% CL). (c) The preferred inflation potential is a double well, even function of the field with a moderate quartic coupling yielding as most probable values: n_s = 0.964, r = 0.051. This value for r is within reach of forthcoming CMB observations. We investigate the DM properties using cosmological theory and the galaxy observations. Our DM analysis is independent of the particle physics model for DM and it is based on the DM phase-space density rho_{DM}/sigma^3_{DM}. We derive explicit formulas for the DM particle mass m and for the number of ultrarelativistic degrees of freedom g_d (hence the temperature) at decoupling. We find that m turns to be at the keV scale. The keV scale DM is non-relativistic during structure formation, reproduces the small and large scale structure but it cannot be responsible of the e^+ and pbar excess in cosmic rays which can be explained by astrophysical mechanisms (Abridged).
We present the discovery of short GRB 080905A, its optical afterglow and host galaxy. Initially discovered by Swift, our deep optical observations enabled the identification of a faint optical afterglow, and subsequently a face-on spiral host galaxy underlying the GRB position, with a chance alignment probability of <1%. There is no supernova component present in the afterglow to deep limits. Spectroscopy of the galaxy provides a redshift of z=0.1218, the lowest redshift yet observed for a short GRB. The GRB lies offset from the host galaxy centre by ~18.5 kpc, in the northern spiral arm which exhibits an older stellar population than the southern arm. No emission lines are visible directly under the burst position, implying little ongoing star formation at the burst location. These properties would naturally be explained were the progenitor of GRB 080905A a compact binary merger.
We present a simple estimate of the mass 'deficits' in cored spheroids, as a function of galaxy mass and radius within the galaxy. Previous attempts to measure such deficits depended on fitting some functional form to the profile at large radii and extrapolating inwards; this is sensitive to the assumed functional form and does not allow for variation in nuclear profile shapes. We take advantage of larger data sets to directly construct stellar mass profiles of observed systems and measure the stellar mass enclosed in a series of physical radii (M(<R)), for samples of cusp and core spheroids at the same stellar mass. There is a significant bimodality in this distribution at small radii, and we non-parametrically measure the median offset between core and cusp populations (the deficit Delta_M(<R)). We construct the scoured mass profile as a function of radius, without reference to any assumed functional form. The mass deficit rises in power-law fashion (Delta_M(<R) R^{1.3-1.8}) from a significant but small mass at R<10pc, to asymptote to a maximum ~0.5-2 M_BH at ~100pc. At larger radii there is no statistically significant separation between populations; the upper limit to the cumulative scoured mass at ~kpc is ~2-4 M_BH. This does not depend strongly on stellar mass. The dispersion in M(<R) appears larger in the core population, possibly reflecting the fact that scouring increases the scatter in profile shapes. These results are in good agreement with models of scouring from BH binary systems.
Aims: We present for the first time neutrino light curves and energy spectra
for two representative Type Ia supernova explosion models: a pure deflagration
and a delayed detonation model.
Methods: Weak neutrino flux is calculated using NSE abundances convoluted
with the approximate neutrino spectra of the individual nuclei. Thermal
neutrino spectrum (pair+plasma) is calculated using PSNS code.
Results: The two competing explosion scenarios, while producing almost
identical electromagnetic output are shown to be completely different in
neutrinos. We identified the following main contributors to the neutrino
signal: (1) weak electron neutrino emission from electron captures (in
particular on protons, Co55, and Ni56), and numerous beta-active nuclei
produced by the thermonuclear flame and/or detonation front, (2) electron
antineutrinos from positron captures on neutrons, and (3) the thermal emission
from pair annihilation. We estimate that a pure deflagration supernova
explosion at a distance of 1 kpc would trigger about 14 events in future 50 kt
liquid scintillator detector and some 19 events in 0.5 Mt water Cherenkov-type
detector.
Conclusions: In contrast to core-collapse events, neutrinos carry at most a
few percent of the energy released in the thermonuclear supernova explosion.
However, the next generation of neutrino observatories will be able to detect
at least several neutrinos from a nearby SN Ia.
Improved wavelength calibrators for high-resolution astrophysical spectrographs will be essential for precision radial velocity (RV) detection of Earth-like exoplanets and direct observation of cosmological deceleration. The astro-comb is a combination of an octave-spanning femtosecond laser frequency comb and a Fabry-P\'erot cavity used to achieve calibrator line spacings that can be resolved by an astrophysical spectrograph. Systematic spectral shifts associated with the cavity can be 0.1-1 MHz, corresponding to RV errors of 10-100 cm/s, due to the dispersive properties of the cavity mirrors over broad spectral widths. Although these systematic shifts are very stable, their correction is crucial to high accuracy astrophysical spectroscopy. Here, we demonstrate an \emph{in-situ} technique to determine the systematic shifts of astro-comb lines due to finite Fabry-P\'erot cavity dispersion. The technique is practical for implementation at a telescope-based spectrograph to enable wavelength calibration accuracy better than 10 cm/s.
Images of the circumstellar ejecta associated with the post-red supergiant IRC +10420 show a complex ejecta with visual evidence for episodic mass loss. In this paper we describe the transverse motions of numerous knots, arcs and condensations in the inner ejecta measured from second epoch {\it HST/WFPC2} images. When combined with the radial motions for several of the features, the total space motion and direction of the outflows show that they were ejected at different times, in different directions, and presumably from separate regions on the surface of the star. These discrete structures in the ejecta are kinematically distinct from the general expansion of the nebula and their motions are dominated by their transverse velocities. They are apparently all moving within a few degrees of the plane of the sky. We are thus viewing IRC +10420 nearly pole-on and looking nearly directly down onto its equatorial plane. We also discuss the role of surface activity and magnetic fields on IRC +10420's recent mass loss history.
We present new photometric and spectroscopic observations of an unusual luminous blue variable (LBV) in NGC 3432, covering three major outbursts in October 2008, April 2009 and November 2009. Previously, this star experienced an outburst also in 2000 (known as SN 2000ch). During outbursts the star reached an absolute magnitude between -12.1 and -12.8. Its spectrum showed H, He I and Fe II lines with P-Cygni profiles during and soon after the eruptive phases, while only intermediate-width lines in pure emission (including He II 4686A were visible during quiescence. The fast-evolving light curve soon after the outbursts, the quasi-modulated light curve, the peak magnitude and the overall spectral properties are consistent with multiple episodes of variability of an extremely active LBV. However, the widths of the spectral lines indicate unusually high wind velocities (1500-2800 km/s), similar to those observed in Wolf-Rayet stars. Although modulated light curves are typical of LBVs during the S-Dor variability phase, the luminous maxima and the high frequency of outbursts are unexpected in S-Dor variables. Such extreme variability may be associated with repeated ejection episodes during a giant eruption of an LBV. Alternatively, it may be indicative of a high level of instability shortly preceding the core-collapse or due to interaction with a massive, binary companion. In this context, the variable in NGC 3432 shares some similarities with the famous stellar system HD 5980 in the Small Magellanic Cloud, which includes an erupting LBV and an early Wolf-Rayet star.
We present the results of a detailed spectroscopic study of the long period ($P=0.856$ days) RR Lyrae star, KP Cyg. We derived abundances of many chemical elements including the light species, iron-group elements and elements of the s-processes. Most RR Lyrae stars with periods longer than 0.7 days are metal-deficient objects. Surprisingly, our results show that KP Cyg is very metal rich ([Fe/H] $= +0.18\pm 0.23$). By comparison with a number of short period ($P=1\sim 6$ days), metal-rich CWB stars, we suggest that KP Cyg may be a very short period CWB star (BL Her star) rather than an RR Lyrae star. As seen in some CWB stars, KP Cyg shows strong excesses of carbon and nitrogen in its atmosphere. This indicates that the surface of KP Cyg has been polluted by material that has undergone helium burning (to enhance carbon) and proton capture (to transform carbon into nitrogen). We also note that UY CrB, whose period is 0.929 days, also shows an enhancement of C and N, and that two carbon cepheids of short period, V553 Cen and RT TrA, show similar excesses of carbon and nitrogen.
Issues concerning the structure and evolution of core collapse progenitor stars are discussed with an emphasis on interior evolution. We describe a program designed to investigate the transport and mixing processes associated with stellar turbulence, arguably the greatest source of uncertainty in progenitor structure, besides mass loss, at the time of core collapse. An effort to use precision observations of stellar parameters to constrain theoretical modeling is also described.
Cosmological simulations indicate that cold dark matter (CDM) halos should be triaxial. Verifying observationally this theoretical prediction is, however, less than straightforward because the assembly of galaxies is expected to modify the halo shapes and to render them more axisymmetric. We use a suite of N-body simulations to investigate quantitatively the effect of the growth of a central disk galaxy on the shape of triaxial dark matter halos. As expected, the halo responds to the presence of the disk by becoming more spherical. The net effect depends only weakly on the orientation of the disk relative to the halo principal axes or the timescale of disk assembly, but strongly on the overall gravitational importance of the disk. Our results show that exponential disks whose contribution peaks at less than ~50% of their circular velocity are unable to modify noticeably the shape of the gravitational potential of their surrounding halos. Many dwarf and low surface brightness galaxies are expected to be in this regime, and therefore their detailed kinematics could be used to probe halo triaxiality, one of the basic predictions of the CDM paradigm. We argue that the complex disk kinematics of the dwarf galaxy NGC 2976 might be the reflection of a triaxial halo. Such signatures of halo triaxiality should be common in galaxies where the luminous component is subdominant.
The Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) has been used to map class I methanol masers at 36 and 44 GHz in G309.38-0.13. Maser spots are found at nine locations in an area of 50''x30'', with both transitions reliably detected at only two locations. The brightest spot is associated with shocked gas traced by 4.5 micron emission. The data allowed us to make a serendipitous discovery of a high-velocity 36-GHz spectral feature, which is blue-shifted by about 30 km/s from the peak velocity at this frequency, but spatially located close to (within a few arcseconds of) the brightest maser spot. We interpret this as indicating an outflow parallel to the line of sight. Such a high velocity spread of maser features, which has not been previously reported in the class I methanol masers associated with a single molecular cloud, suggests that the outflow most likely interacts with a moving parcel of gas.
The standard \LambdaCDM cosmological model implies that all celestial bodies are embedded in a perfectly uniform dark energy background, represented by Einstein's cosmological constant, and experience its repulsive antigravity action. Can dark energy have strong dynamical effects on small cosmic scales as well as globally? Continuing our efforts to clarify this question, we focus now on the Virgo Cluster and the flow of expansion around it. We interpret the Hubble diagram, from a new database of velocities and distances of galaxies in the cluster and its environment, using a nonlinear analytical model which incorporates the antigravity force in terms of Newtonian mechanics. The key parameter is the zero-gravity radius, the distance at which gravity and antigravity are in balance. Our conclusions are: 1. The interplay between the gravity of the cluster and the antigravity of the dark energy background determines the kinematical structure of the system and controls its evolution. 2. The gravity dominates the quasi-stationary bound cluster, while the antigravity controls the Virgocentric flow, bringing order and regularity to the flow, which reaches linearity and the global Hubble rate at distances \ga 15 Mpc. 3. The cluster and the flow form a system similar to the Local Group and its outflow. In the velocity-distance diagram, the cluster-flow structure reproduces the group-flow structure with a scaling factor of about 10; the zero-gravity radius for the cluster system is also 10 times larger. The phase and dynamical similarity of the systems on the scales of 1-30 Mpc suggests that a two-component pattern may be universal for groups and clusters: a quasi-stationary bound central component and an expanding outflow around it, due to the nonlinear gravity-antigravity interplay with the dark energy dominating in the flow component.
Observations of the water inventory as well as other chemically important species on Jupiter will be performed in the frame of the guaranteed time key project of the Herschel Space Observatory entitled "Water and related chemistry in the Solar system". Among other onboard instruments, PACS (Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer) will provide new data of the spectral atlas in a wide region covering the far-infrared and submillimetre domains, with an improved spectral resolution and a higher sensitivity compared to previous observations carried out by Cassini/CIRS (Composite InfraRed Spectrometer) and by ISO (Infrared Space Observatory). In order to optimise the observational plan and to prepare for the data analysis, we have simulated the expected spectra of PACS Jupiter observations. Our simulation shows that PACS will promisingly detect several H2O emission lines. As PACS is capable of spatially resolving the Jovian disk, we will be able to discern the external oxygen sources in the giant planets by exploring the horizontal distribution of water. In addition to H2O lines, some absorption lines due to tropospheric CH4, HD, PH3 and NH3 lines will be observed with PACS. Furthermore, owing to the high sensitivity of the instrument, the current upper limit on the abundance of hydrogen halides such as HCl will be also improved.
A diffuse non-thermal component has now been observed in massive merging clusters. To better characterise this component, and to extend analyses done for massive clusters down to a lower mass regime, we are conducting a statistical analysis over a large number of X-ray clusters (from ROSAT based catalogues). By means of their stacked radio and X-ray emissions, we are investigating correlations between the non-thermal and the thermal baryonic components. We will present preliminary results on radio-X scaling relations with which we aim to probe the mechanisms that power diffuse radio emission ; to better constrain whether the non-thermal cluster properties are compatible with a hierarchical framework of structure formation ; and to quantify the non-thermal pressure.
Aims. The comparative study of several molecular species at the origin of the gas phase chemistry in the diffuse interstellar medium (ISM) is a key input in unraveling the coupled chemical and dynamical evolution of the ISM. Methods. The lowest rotational lines of HCO+, HCN, HNC, and CN were observed at the IRAM-30m telescope in absorption against the \lambda 3 mm and \lambda 1.3 mm continuum emission of massive star-forming regions in the Galactic plane. The absorption lines probe the gas over kiloparsecs along these lines of sight. The excitation temperatures of HCO+ are inferred from the comparison of the absorptions in the two lowest transitions. The spectra of all molecular species on the same line of sight are decomposed into Gaussian velocity components. Most appear in all the spectra of a given line of sight. For each component, we derived the central opacity, the velocity dispersion, and computed the molecular column density. We compared our results to the predictions of UV-dominated chemical models of photodissociation regions (PDR models) and to those of non-equilibrium models in which the chemistry is driven by the dissipation of turbulent energy (TDR models). Results. The molecular column densities of all the velocity components span up to two orders of magnitude. Those of CN, HCN, and HNC are linearly correlated with each other with mean ratios N(HCN)/N(HNC) = 4.8 $\pm$ 1.3 and N(CN)/N(HNC) = 34 $\pm$ 12, and more loosely correlated with those of HCO+, N(HNC)/N(HCO+) = 0.5 $\pm$ 0.3, N(HCN)/N(HCO+) = 1.9 $\pm$ 0.9, and N(CN)/N(HCO+) = 18 $\pm$ 9. These ratios are similar to those inferred from observations of high Galactic latitude lines of sight, suggesting that the gas sampled by absorption lines in the Galactic plane has the same chemical properties as that in the Solar neighbourhood. The FWHM of the Gaussian velocity components span the range 0.3 to 3 km s-1 and those of the HCO+ lines are found to be 30% broader than those of CN-bearing molecules. The PDR models fail to reproduce simultaneously the observed abundances of the CN-bearing species and HCO+, even for high-density material (100 cm-3 < nH < 104 cm-3). The TDR models, in turn, are able to reproduce the observed abundances and abundance ratios of all the analysed molecules for the moderate gas densities (30 cm-3 < nH < 200 cm-3) and the turbulent energy observed in the diffuse interstellar medium. Conclusions. Intermittent turbulent dissipation appears to be a promising driver of the gas phase chemistry of the diffuse and translucent gas throughout the Galaxy. The details of the dissipation mechanisms still need to be investigated.
Aims: We search new T Tauri star (TTS) candidates with the mid-infrared (MIR) part of the AKARI All-Sky Survey at 9 and 18 um wavelengths. Methods: We used the point source catalogue (PSC), obtained by the Infrared Camera (IRC) on board AKARI. We combined the 2MASS PSC and the 3rd version of the USNO CCD Astrograph Catalogue (UCAC) with the AKARI IRC-PSC, and surveyed 517 known TTSs over a 1800-square-degree part of the Taurus-Auriga region to find criteria to extract TTSs. We considered asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, post-AGB stars, Planetary Nebulae (PNe), and galaxies, which have similar MIR colours, to separate TTSs from these sources. Results: Of the 517 known TTSs, we detected 133 sources with AKARI. Based on the colour-colour and colour-magnitude diagrams made from the AKARI, 2MASS, and UCAC surveys, we propose the criteria to extract TTS candidates from the AKARI All-Sky data. On the basis of our criteria, we selected 176/14725 AKARI sources as TTS candidates which are located around the Taurus-Auriga region. Comparing these sources with SIMBAD, there are 148 previously identified sources including 115 Young Stellar Objects (YSOs), and 28 unidentified sources. Conclusions: Based on SIMBAD identifications, we take the TTS-identification probability using our criteria to be ~75 %. We find 28 TTS candidates, of which we expect 21 to be confirmed once follow-up observations can be obtained. Although the probability of ~75 % is not so high, it is affected by the completeness of the SIMBAD database, and we can search for TTSs over the whole sky, over all star forming regions.
The clustering of galaxies observed in future redshift surveys will provide a wealth of cosmological information. Matching the signal at different redshifts constrains the dark energy driving the acceleration of the expansion of the Universe. In tandem with these geometrical constraints, redshift-space distortions (RSD) depend on the build up of large-scale structure. As pointed out by many authors measurements of these effects are intrinsically coupled. We investigate this link, and argue that it strongly depends on the cosmological assumptions adopted when analysing data. Using representative assumptions for the parameters of the "Euclid" survey in order to provide a baseline future experiment, we show how the derived constraints change due to different model assumptions. We argue that even the assumption of a Friedman-Robertson-Walker (FRW) space-time is sufficient to reduce the importance of the coupling to a significant degree. Taking this idea further, we consider how the data would actually be analysed and argue that we should not expect to be able to simultaneously constrain multiple deviations from the standard $\Lambda$CDM model. We therefore consider different possible ways in which the Universe could deviate from the $\Lambda$CDM model, and show how the coupling between geometrical constraints and structure growth affects the measurement of such deviations.
Applying suitable filters to data is a common way to detect galaxy clusters in blind surveys. Optimal filters are a class of filters that maximise the signal-to-noise ratio from cluster structures. This kind of filtering technique has been applied up to now to weak lensing data. With this work we extend it to cluster search via galaxy overdensities. Our optimal filter for cluster detection in optical surveys uses the information coming from galaxy magnitudes, positions and photometric redshifts. It is based on a model for the spatial and luminosity distribution of galaxies in the clusters and on the observed properties of the field galaxies. The cluster redshift can be estimated even if the galaxy catalogues do not have any redshift information. An analytical estimate of the error on the cluster amplitude is provided, and confirmed through numerical simulations. We apply both the weak lensing and the overdensities optimal filters to the COSMOS field and compare the results with previous cluster detections obtained with different methods. We report a catalogue of 27 galaxy clusters detected with both optimal filtering methods.
Solar supergranulation remains a mystery in spite of decades of intensive studies. Most of the papers about supergranulation deal with its surface properties. Local helioseismology provides an opportunity to look below the surface and see the vertical structure of this convective structure. We present a concept of a (3+1)-D segmentation algorithm capable of recognising individual supergranules in a sequence of helioseismic 3-D flow maps. As an example, we applied this method to the state-of-the-art data and derived descriptive statistical properties of segmented supergranules -- typical size of 20--30 Mm, characteristic lifetime of 18.7 hours, and estimated depth of 15--20 Mm. We present preliminary results obtained on the topic of the three-dimensional structure and evolution of supergranulation. The method has a great potential in analysing the better data expected from the helioseismic inversions, which are being developed.
Recent large scale Galactic Plane H$\alpha$ surveys allow a re-examination of the environs of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars for the presence of a circumstellar nebula. Using the morphologies of WR nebulae known to be composed of stellar ejecta as a guide, we constructed ejecta nebula criteria similar to those of Chu (1991) and searched for likely WR ejecta nebula in the SHS H$\alpha$ survey. A new Wolf-Rayet ejecta nebula around WR 8 is found and its morphology discussed. The fraction of WR stars with ejecta type nebulae is roughly consistent between the MilkyWay (MW) and LMC at around 5-6%, with the MW sample dominated by nitrogen rich WR central stars (WN type) and the LMC stars having a higher proportion of carbon rich WR central stars (WC type). We compare our results with those of previous surveys, including those of Marston (1997) and Miller & Chu (1993), and find broad consistency. We investigate several trends in the sample: most of the clear examples of ejecta nebulae have WNh central stars; and very few ejecta nebulae have binary central stars. Finally, the possibly unique evolutionary status of the nebula around the binary star WR 71 is explored.
We investigate the long-term and large-scale viscous evolution of dense planetary rings using a simple 1D numerical code. We use a physically realistic model derived from N-body simulations (Daisaka et al., 2001), and dependent on the disk's local properties (surface mass density, particle size, distance to the planet). Particularly, we include the effects of gravitational instabilities (wakes) that importantly enhance the disk's viscosity. We show that common estimates of the disk's spreading time-scales with constant viscosity significantly underestimate the rings' lifetime. With a realistic viscosity model, an initially narrow ring undergoes two successive evolutionary stages: (1) a transient rapid spreading when the disk is self-gravitating, with the formation of a density peak inward and an outer region marginally gravitationally stable, and with an emptying time-scale proportional to 1/M_0^2 (where M_0 is the disk's initial mass) (2) an asymptotic regime where the spreading rate continuously slows down as larger parts of the disk become not-self-gravitating due to the decrease of the surface density, until the disk becomes completely not-self-gravitating. At this point its evolution dramatically slows down, with an emptying time-scale proportional to 1/M_0, which significantly increases the disk's lifetime compared to the case with constant viscosity. We show also that the disk's width scales like t^{1/4} with the realistic viscosity model, while it scales like t^{1/2} in the case of constant viscosity, resulting in much larger evolutionary time-scales in our model. We find however that the present shape of Saturn's rings looks like a 100 million-years old disk in our simulations. Concerning Jupiter's, Uranus' and Neptune's rings that are faint today, it is not likely that they were much more massive in the past and lost most of their mass due to viscous spreading alone.
We present preliminary results of 7 years of Arecibo timing of the pulsar-white dwarf binary PSR J1738+0333. We can measure the proper motion, parallax with excellent precision and have detected the orbital decay. Furthermore, the companion has been detected at optical wavelengths and a mass ratio of 8.1 +/- 0.3 has been measured from the orbital variation of its Doppler shift. Once the companion mass is determined from the optical measurements, this system will provide strong limits for the radiation of dipolar gravitational waves. Assuming that general relativity holds, the fast-improving measurement of the orbital decay, combined with the measurement of the mass ratio, will provide an independent and precise measurement of the component masses.
(Shortened) We have used the measured properties of the stars in the 79 exoplanetary systems with one or more planets that have been observed in transit, to estimate each system's present habitability. The measured stellar properties have been used to determine the present location of the classical habitable zone (HZ). To establish habitability we use the estimated distances from the giant planet(s) within which an Earth-like planet would be inside the gravitational reach of the giant. Of the 79 transiting systems known in April 2010, only 2 do not offer safe havens to Earth-like planets in the HZ, and thus could not support life today. We have also estimated whether habitability is possible for 1.7 Gyr into the past i.e. 0.7 Gyr for a heavy bombardment, plus 1.0 Gyr for life to emerge and thus be present today. We find that, for the best estimate of each stellar age, an additional 28 systems do not offer such sustained habitability. If we reduce 1.7 Gyr to 1.0 Gyr this number falls to 22. However, if giant planets orbiting closer to the star than the inner boundary of the HZ, have got there by migration through the HZ, and if this ruled out the subsequent formation of Earth-like planets, then, of course, none of the presently known transiting exoplanetary systems offers habitability. Fortunately, this bleak conclusion could well be wrong. As well as obtaining results on the 79 transiting systems, this paper demonstrates a method for determining the habitability of the cornucopia of such systems that will surely be discovered over the next few years.
We report on the results of a radio interferometric observation of NGC7027 in the CO J=2-1 and 13CO J=2-1 lines. The results are analyzed with morpho-kinematic models developed from the software tool Shape. Our goal is to reveal the morpho-kinematic properties of the central region of the nebula, and to explore the nature of unseen high-velocity jets that may have created the characteristic structure of the central region consisting of molecular and ionized components. A simple ellipsoidal shell model explains the intensity distribution around the systemic velocity, but the high velocity features deviate from the ellipsoidal model. Through the Shape automatic reconstruction model, we found a possible trail of a jet only in one direction, but no other possible holes were created by the passage of a jet.
We describe the effect that new atomic calculations, including fully-relativistic R-matrix calculations of collisional excitation rates and level-specific dielectronic and radiative recombination rates, have on line ratios from the astrophysically significant ion Ne IX. The new excitation rates systematically change some predicted Ne IX line ratios by 25% at temperatures at or below the temperature of maximum emissivity (4x10^6 K), while the new recombination rates lead to systematic changes at higher temperatures. The new line ratios are shown to agree with observations of Capella and sigma^2 CrB significantly better than older line ratios, showing that 25-30% accuracy in atomic rates is inadequate for high-resolution X-ray observations from existing spectrometers.
Over the next decade we will witness the development of a new infrastructure in support of data-intensive scientific research, which includes Astronomy. This new networked environment will offer both challenges and opportunities to our community and has the potential to transform the way data are described, curated and preserved. Based on the lessons learned during the development and management of the ADS, a case is made for adopting the emerging technologies and practices of the Semantic Web to support the way Astronomy research will be conducted. Examples of how small, incremental steps can, in the aggregate, make a significant difference in the provision and repurposing of astronomical data are provided.
We present a new analytical method to calculate the small angle CMB temperature angular power spectrum due to cosmic (super-)string segments. In particular, using our method, we clarify the dependence on the intercommuting probability $P$. We find that the power spectrum is dominated by Poisson-distributed string segments. The power spectrum for a general value of $P$ has a plateau on large angular scales and shows a power-law decrease on small angular scales. The resulting spectrum in the case of conventional cosmic strings is in very good agreement with the numerical result obtained by Fraisse et al.. Then we estimate the upper bound on the dimensionless tension of the string for various values of $P$ by assuming that the fraction of the CMB power spectrum due to cosmic (super-)strings is less than ten percents at various angular scales up to $\ell=2000$. We find that the amplitude of the spectrum increases as the intercommuting probability. As a consequence, strings with smaller intercommuting probabilities are found to be more tightly constrained.
We investigate the impact of massive neutrinos on the distribution of matter in the semi-nonlinear regime (0.1<k<0.6 h Mpc^{-1}). We present a suite of large scale N-body simulations quantifying the scale dependent suppression of the total matter power spectrum, resulting from the free-streaming of massive neutrinos out of high-density regions. Our simulations show a power suppression of 3.5%-90% at k~0.6 h Mpc^{-1} for total neutrino mass, \Sigma m_{\nu}=0.05 eV-1.9 eV respectively. We also discuss the precision levels that future cosmological datasets would have to achieve in order to resolve between the normal and inverted neutrino mass hierarchies.
We derive the Mg/H ratio in the Orion nebula and in 30 Doradus. We also derive the O/H and the Fe/O ratios in the extremely metal poor galaxy SBS 0335-052. We estimate the dust depletions of Mg, Si, and Fe in Galactic and extragalactic H II regions. Based on these depletions we estimate the fraction of O atoms embedded in dust as a function of the O/H ratio. We find an increasing depletion of O with increasing O/H. The O depletion increases from about 0.08 dex, for the metal poorest H II regions known, to about 0.12 dex, for metal rich H II regions. This depletion has to be considered when comparing nebular with stellar abundances.
We present an improved prescription for matter power spectrum in redshift space taking a proper account of both the non-linear gravitational clustering and redshift distortion, which are of particular importance for accurately modeling baryon acoustic oscillations (BAOs). Contrary to the models of redshift distortion phenomenologically introduced but frequently used in the literature, the new model includes the corrections arising from the non-linear coupling between the density and velocity fields associated with two competitive effects of redshift distortion, i.e., Kaiser and Finger-of-God effects. Based on the improved treatment of perturbation theory for gravitational clustering, we compare our model predictions with monopole and quadrupole power spectra of N-body simulations, and an excellent agreement is achieved over the scales of BAOs. Potential impacts on constraining dark energy and modified gravity from the redshift-space power spectrum are also investigated based on the Fisher-matrix formalism. We find that the existing phenomenological models of redshift distortion produce a systematic error on measurements of the angular diameter distance and Hubble parameter by 1~2%, and the growth rate parameter by ~5%, which would become non-negligible for future galaxy surveys. Correctly modeling redshift distortion is thus essential, and the new prescription of redshift-space power spectrum including the non-linear corrections can be used as an accurate theoretical template for anisotropic BAOs.
Fiber-fed spectrographs dedicated to observing massive portions of the sky are increasingly being more demanded within the astronomical community. For all the fiber-fed instruments, the primordial and common problem is the positioning of the fiber ends, which must match the position of the objects of a target field on the sky. Amongst the different approaches found in the state of the art, actuator arrays are one of the best. Indeed, an actuator array is able to position all the fiber heads simultaneously, thus making the reconfiguration time extremely short and the instrument efficiency high. The SIDE group (see this http URL) at the Instituto de Astrof\'isica de Andaluc\'ia, together with the industrial company AVS and the University of Barcelona, has been developing an actuator suitable for a large and scalable array. A real-scale prototype has been built and tested in order to validate its innovative design concept, as well as to verify the fulfillment of the mechanical requirements. The present article describes both the concept design and the test procedures and conditions. The main results are shown and a full justification of the validity of the proposed concept is provided.
The term "false-alarm probability" denotes the probability that at least one out of M independent power values in a prescribed search band of a power spectrum computed from a white-noise time series is expected to be as large as or larger than a given value. The usual formula is based on the assumption that powers are distributed exponentially, as one expects for power measurements of normally distributed random noise. However, in practice one typically examines peaks in an over-sampled power spectrum. It is therefore more appropriate to compare the strength of a particular peak with the distribution of peaks in over-sampled power spectra derived from normally distributed random noise. We show that this leads to a formula for the false-alarm probability that is more conservative than the familiar formula. We also show how to combine these results with a Bayesian method for estimating the probability of the null hypothesis (that there is no oscillation in the time series), and we discuss as an example the application of these procedures to Super-Kamiokande solar neutrino data.
Phase transition from hadronic matter to quark-gluon matter is discussed for
various regimes of temperature and baryon number density. For small and medium
densities, the phase transition is accurately described in the framework of the
Field Correlation Method, whereas at high density predictions are less certain
and leave room for the phenomenological models. We study formation of
multiquark states (MQS) at zero temperature and high density. Relevant MQS
components of the nuclear matter can be described using a previously developed
formalism of the quark compound bags (QCB).
Partial-wave analysis of nucleon-nucleon scattering indicates the existence
of 6QS which manifest themselves as poles of $P$-matrix. In the framework of
the QCB model, we formulate a self-consistent system of coupled equations for
the nucleon and 6QS propagators in nuclear matter and the G-matrix. The
approach provides a link between high-density nuclear matter with the MQS
components and the cumulative effect observed in reactions on the nuclei, which
requires the admixture of MQS in the wave functions of nuclei kinematically.
6QS determine the natural scale of the density for a possible phase
transition into the MQS phase of nuclear matter. Such a phase transition can
lead to dynamic instability of newly born protoneutron stars and dramatically
affect the dynamics of supernovae. Numerical simulations show that the phase
transition may be a good remedy for the triggering supernova explosions in the
spherically symmetric supernova models. A specific signature of the phase
transition is an additional neutrino peak in the neutrino light curve. For a
Galactic core-collapse supernova, such a peak could be resolved by the present
neutrino detectors. The possibility of extracting the parameters of the phase
of transition from observation of the neutrino signal is discussed also.
The $f(T)$ theory, which is an extension of teleparallel, or torsion scalar
$T$, gravity, is recently proposed to explain the present cosmic accelerating
expansion with no need of dark energy. In this paper, we discuss the
constraints on two concrete $f(T)$ models, i.e.,
$f(T)=\alpha (-T)^n$ and $f(T)=-\alpha T(1-e^{pT_0/T})$, proposed by Linder
[arXiv: 1005.3039] from the latest Union2 Type Ia Supernova (Sne Ia) set, the
baryonic acoustic oscillation (BAO) observation, and the Cosmic Microwave
Background (CMB) radiation. Our results show that at the 95% confidence level
$\Omega_{m0}=0.272_{-0.032}^{+0.036}$, $n=0.04_{-0.33}^{+0.22}$ for Model1 and
$\Omega_{m0}=0.272_{-0.034}^{+0.036}$, $p=-0.02_{-0.20}^{+0.31}$ for Model2. A
comparison of these two models with the $\Lambda$CDM by the $\chi^2_{Min}/dof$
(dof: degree of freedom) criterion indicates that $\Lambda$CDM is still favored
slightly by observations. We also study the evolution of the equation of state
for the effective dark energy in the theory and find that Sne Ia favors a
phantom-like dark energy, while Sne Ia + BAO + CMB favors a quintessence-like
one.
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