Considerable recent attention has focussed on the prospects to use the cosmic microwave background (CMB) trispectrum to probe the physics of the early universe. Here we evaluate the probability distribution function (PDF) for the standard estimator tau_nle for the amplitude tau_nl of the CMB trispectrum both for the null-hypothesis (i.e., for Gaussian maps with tau_nl = 0) and for maps with a non-vanishing trispectrum (|tau_nl|>0). We find these PDFs to be highly non-Gaussian in both cases. We also evaluate the variance with which the trispectrum amplitude can be measured, <tau_nle^2>, as a function of its underlying value, tau_nl. We find a strong dependence of this variance on tau_nl. We also find that the variance does not, given the highly non-Gaussian nature of the PDF, effectively characterize the distribution. Detailed knowledge of these PDFs will therefore be imperative in order to properly interpret the implications of any given trispectrum measurement. For example, if a CMB experiment with a maximum multipole of lmax = 1500 (such as the Planck satellite) measures tau_nle = 0 then at the 95% confidence our calculations show that we can conclude tau_nl < 1005; assuming a Gaussian PDF but with the correct tau_nl-dependent variance we would incorrectly conclude tau_nl < 4225; further neglecting the tau_nl-dependence in the variance we would incorrectly conclude tau_nl < 361.
We present derived stellar and disc parameters for a sample of Taurus brown dwarfs both with and without evidence of an associated disc. These parameters have been derived using an online fitting tool (this http URL), which includes a statistically robust derivation of uncertainties, an indication of pa- rameter degeneracies, and a complete treatment of the input photometric and spectroscopic observations. The observations of the Taurus members with indications of disc presence have been fitted using a grid of theoretical models including detailed treatments of physical processes accepted for higher mass stars, such as dust sublimation, and a simple treatment of the accretion flux. This grid of models has been designed to test the validity of the adopted physical mechanisms, but we have also constructed models using parameterisation, for example semi-empirical dust sublimation radii, for users solely interested in parameter derivation and the quality of the fit. The parameters derived for the naked and disc brown dwarf systems are largely consistent with literature observations. However, our inner disc edge locations are consistently closer to the star than previous results and we also derive elevated accretion rates over non-SED based accretion rate derivations. For inner edge locations we attribute these differences to the detailed modelling we have performed of the disc structure, particularly at the crucial inner edge where departures in geometry from the often adopted vertical wall due to dust sublimation (and therefore accretion flux) can compensate for temperature (and therefore distance) changes to the inner edge of the dust disc. In the case of the elevated derived accretion rates, in some cases, this may be caused by the intrinsic stellar luminosities of the targets exceeding that predicted by the isochrones we have adopted.
Outflows are believed to be ubiquitous and fundamentally important in active
galaxies. Despite their importance, key physical properties of outflows remain
poorly unconstrained; this severely limits study of the acceleration process.
It is especially difficult to constrain the column density since most of the
lines are saturated. However, column densities can be measured using ions that
are expected to be relatively rare in the gas, since they are least likely to
be saturated. Phosphorus, specifically the PV doublet at 1118 and 1128A, is
generally regarded as a useful probe of high column densities because of its
low abundance. We have found that the metastable neutral helium triplet is an
equally valuable probe of high column densities in BALQSOs. The significant
advantage is that it can be observed in the infrared (HeI*10830) and the
optical (HeI*3889) bands from the ground in low-redshift (z<1.2) objects.
We report the discovery of the first HeI*10830 BALQSO FBQS J1151+3822, and
discuss constraints on the column density obtained from the optical and IR HeI*
lines. In addition, a new observation revealing MgII and FeII absorption
provides further constraints, and Cloudy modeling of HeI*, MgII, and FeII
suggests that the difference between LoBALs and FeLoBALs is column density
along the line of sight.
We report the first angular diameter measurements of two classical Cepheids, FF Aql and T Vul, that we have obtained with the FLUOR instrument installed at the CHARA interferometric array. We obtain average limb-darkened angular diameters of \theta_LD = 0.878 +/- 0.013 mas and \theta_LD = 0.629 +/- 0.013 mas, respectively for FF Aql and T Vul. Combining these angular diameters with the HST-FGS trigonometric parallaxes leads to linear radii R = 33.6 +/- 2.2 Rsol and R = 35.6 +/- 4.4 Rsol, respectively. The comparison with empirical and theoretical Period-Radius relations leads to the conclusion that these Cepheids are pulsating in their fundamental mode. The knowledge of the pulsation mode is of prime importance to calibrate the Period-Luminosity relation with a uniform sample of fundamental mode Cepheids.
We examine whether disrupted binary stars can fuel black hole growth. In this mechanism, tidal disruption produces a single hypervelocity star (HVS) ejected at high velocity and a former companion star bound to the black hole. After a cluster of bound stars forms, orbital diffusion allows the black hole to accrete stars by tidal disruption at a rate comparable to the capture rate. In the Milky Way, HVSs and the S star cluster imply similar rates of 10^{-5}--10^{-3} yr^{-1} for binary disruption. These rates are consistent with estimates for the tidal disruption rate in nearby galaxies and imply significant black hole growth from disrupted binaries on 10 Gyr time scales.
We report SOFIA/GREAT, Herschel/HIFI, and ground-based velocity-resolved spectroscopy of carbon monoxide (CO) rotational transitions from J=2-1 to J=16-15 toward two positions in the circum-nuclear disk (CND) in our Galactic center. Radiative transfer models were used to derive information on the physical state of the gas traced by CO. The excitation of the CO gas cannot be explained by a single physical component, but is clearly the superposition of various warm gas phases. In a two-component approach, our large velocity gradient (LVG) analysis suggests high temperatures of ~200 K with moderate gas densities of only ~10^4.5 cm^-3 for the bulk of the material. A higher excited phase, carrying ~20-30% of the column densities, is warmer (~300-500 K) but only slightly denser ~10^5.3 cm^-3. These densities are too low to self-stabilize the clumps against their high internal turbulence and fall below the Roche density (>10^7 cm^-3) at 1.5 pc galactocentric distance. We conclude that the bulk of the material in the CND is not organized by self-gravity nor stable against tidal disruption, and must be transient.
I review two cosmological paradigms which are alternative to the current inflationary scenario. The first alternative is the "matter bounce", a non-singular bouncing cosmology with a matter-dominated phase of contraction. The second is an "emergent" scenario, which can be implemented in the context of "string gas cosmology". I will compare these scenarios with the inflationary one and demonstrate that all three lead to an approximately scale-invariant spectrum of cosmological perturbations.
Competing geophysical/geochemical hypotheses for how Earth's surface became oxygenated - organic carbon burial, hydrogen escape to space, and changes in the redox state of volcanic gases - are examined and a more biologically-based hypothesis is offered in response. It is argued that organic carbon burial is of minor importance to the accumulation of oxygen in a mainly anoxic world where aerobic respiration is not globally significant. Thus, for the Great Oxidation Event (GOE) ~ 2.4 Gyr ago, an increasing flux of O2 due to its production by an expanding population of cyanobacteria is parameterized as the primary source of O2. Various factors would have constrained cyanobacterial proliferation and O2 production during most of the Archean and therefore a long delay between the appearance of cyanobacteria and oxygenation of the atmosphere is to be expected. Destruction of O2 via CH4 oxidation in the atmosphere was a major O2 sink during the Archean, and the GOE is explained to a significant extent by a large decline in the methanogen population and corresponding CH4 flux which, in turn, was caused primarily by partial oxygenation of the surface ocean. The partially oxygenated state of these waters also made it possible for an aerobic methanotroph population to become established. This further contributed to the large reduction in the CH4 flux to the atmosphere by increasing the consumption of CH4 diffusing upwards from the deeper anoxic depths of the water column as well as any CH4 still being produced in the upper layer. The reduction in the CH4 flux lowered the CH4 oxidation sink for O2 at about the same time the metamorphic and volcanic gas sinks for O2 also declined. As the O2 source increased from an expanding population of cyanobacteria - triggered by a burst of continent formation ~ 2.7-2.4 Gyr ago - the atmosphere flipped and became permanently oxygenated.
We propose a new exponential f(R) gravity model with f(R)=(R-\lambda c)e^{\lambda(c/R)^n} and n>3, \lambda\geq 1, c>0 to explain late-time acceleration of the universe. At the high curvature region, the model behaves like the \LambdaCDM model. In the asymptotic future, it reaches a stable de-Sitter spacetime. It is a cosmologically viable model and can evade the local gravity constraints easily. This model share many features with other f(R) dark energy models like Hu-Sawicki model and Exponential gravity model. In it the dark energy equation of state is of an oscillating form and can cross phantom divide line \omega_{de}=-1. In particular, in the parameter range 3< n\leq 4, \lambda \sim 1, the model is most distinguishable from other models. For instance, when n=4, \lambda=1, the dark energy equation of state will cross -1 in the earlier future and has a stronger oscillating form than the other models, the dark energy density in asymptotical future is smaller than the one in the high curvature region. This new model can evade the local gravity tests easily when n>3 and \lambda>1.
Astronomical adaptive optics (AO) has come into its own. Major O/IR telescopes are achieving diffraction-limited imaging; major facilities are being built with AO as an integral part. To the layperson, it may seem that AO has developed along a serpentine path. However, with a little illumination, the mark of Galileo's heirs becomes apparent in explaining the success of AO.
This paper presents the analysis of 3D evolution of solar wind density turbulence and speed at various levels of solar activity between solar cycles 22 and 24. The solar wind data has been obtained from interplanetary scintillation (IPS) measurements made at the Ooty Radio Telescope. Results show that (i) on the average, there was a downward trend in density turbulence from the maximum of cycle 22 to the deep minimum phase of cycle 23; (2) the scattering diameter of the corona around the Sun shrunk steadily towards the Sun, starting from 2003 to the smallest size at the deepest minimum, and it corresponded to a reduction of ~50% in density turbulence between maximum and minimum phases of cycle 23; (3) The latitudinal distribution of solar wind speed was significantly different between minima of cycles 22 and 23. At the minimum phase of solar cycle 22, when the underlying solar magnetic field was simple and nearly dipole in nature, the high-speed streams were observed from poles to ~30 deg. latitudes in both hemispheres. In contrast, in the long-decay phase of cycle 23, the sources of high-speed wind at both poles, in accordance with the weak polar fields, occupied narrow latitude belts from poles to ~60 deg. latitudes. Moreover, in agreement with the large amplitude of heliospheric current sheet, the low-speed wind prevailed the low- and mid-latitude regions of the heliosphere. (4) At the transition phase between cycles 23 and 24, the high levels of density and density turbulence were observed close to the heliospheric equator and the low-speed speed wind extended from equatorial- to mid-latitude regions. Results are consistent with the onset of the current cycle 24, from middle of 2009 and it has almost reached near to the maximum phase at the northern hemisphere of the Sun, but activity not yet developed in the southern hemisphere.
We place tight constraints on the growth index $\gamma$ by using the recent growth history results of 2dFGRS, SDSS-LRG, VIMOS-VLT deep Survey (VVDS) and WiggleZ datasets. In particular, we investigate several parametrizations of the growth index $\gamma(z)$, by comparing their cosmological evolution using observational growth rate data at different redshifts. Utilizing a standard likelihood analysis we find that the use of the combined growth data provided by the 2dFGRS, SDSS-LRG, VVDS and {\em WiggleZ} galaxy surveys, puts the most stringent constraints on the value of the growth index. As an example, assuming a constant growth index we obtain that $\gamma=0.602\pm 0.055$ for the concordance $\Lambda$CDM expansion model. Concerning the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati gravity model, we find $\gamma=0.503\pm 0.06$ which is lower, and almost $3\sigma$ away, from the theoretically predicted value of $\gamma_{DGP}\simeq 11/16$. Finally, based on a time varying growth index we also confirm that the combined growth data disfavor the DGP gravity.
We present optical ($B$, $V$, $R_{\rm c}$, $I_{\rm c}$ and $y$) and near infrared ($J$, $H$ and $K_{\rm s}$) photometric and spectroscopic observations of a classical nova V1280 Scorpii for five years from 2007 to 2011. Our photometric observations show a declining event in optical bands shortly after the maximum light which continues $\sim$ 250 days. The event is most probably caused by a dust formation. The event is accompanied by a short ($\sim$ 30 days) re-brightening episode ($\sim$ 2.5 mag in $V$), which suggests a re-ignition of the surface nuclear burning. After 2008, the $y$ band observations show a very long plateau at around $y$ = 10.5 for more than 1000 days until April 2011 ($\sim$ 1500 days after the maximum light). The nova had taken a very long time ($\sim$ 50 months) before entering the nebular phase (clear detection of both [\ion{O}{iii}] 4959 and 5007) and is still continuing to generate the wind caused by H-burning. The finding suggests that V1280 Sco is going through the historically slowest evolution. The interval from the maximum light (2007 February 16) to the beginning of the nebular phase is longer than any previously known slow novae: V723 Cas (18 months), RR Pic (10 months), or HR Del (8 months). It suggests that the mass of a white dwarf in the V1280 Sco system might be 0.6 $M_\mathrm{\sun}$ or smaller. The distance, based on our measurements of the expansion velocity combined with the directly measured size of the dust shell, is estimated to be 1.1 $\pm$ 0.5 kpc.
In this note we describe the Chameleon software we developed for the event
reconstruction of KM3 detector. This software package's developement started as
a standalone application before the endorcement from the KM3NeT consortium of
the SeaTray software framework, but it was adapted to it on the course.
Chapter 1 outlines the techniques we developed for the pattern recognition
and the track fitting.
In Chapter 2, we demonstrate the performance of the Chameleon Reconstruction.
We implemented a novel technique to perform the collective spectral analysis of sets of multiple gamma-ray point sources using the data collected by the Large Area Telescope onboard the Fermi satellite. The energy spectra of the sources are reconstructed starting from the photon counts and without assuming any spectral model for both the sources and the background. In case of faint sources, upper limits on their fluxes are evaluated with a Bayesian approach. This analysis technique is very useful when several sources with similar spectral features are studied, such as sources of gamma rays from annihilation of dark matter particles. We present the results obtained by applying this analysis to a sample of dwarf spheroidal galaxies and to the Milky Way dark matter halo. The analysis of dwarf spheroidal galaxies yields upper limits on the product of the dark matter pair annihilation cross section and the relative velocity of annihilating particles that are well below those predicted by the canonical thermal relic scenario in a mass range from a few GeV to a few tens of GeV for some annihilation channels.
Observations of the early rise and propagation phases of solar eruptive prominences can provide clues about the forces acting on them through the behavior of their acceleration with height. We have analyzed such an event, observed on 13 April 2010 by SWAP on PROBA2 and EUVI on STEREO. A feature at the top of the erupting prominence was identified and tracked in images from the three spacecraft. The triangulation technique was used to derive the true direction of propagation of this feature. The reconstructed points were fitted with two mathematical models: i) a power-law polynomial function and ii) a cubic smoothing spline, in order to derive the accelerations. The first model is characterized by five degrees of freedom while the second one is characterized by ten degrees of freedom. The results show that the acceleration increases smoothly and it is continuously increasing with height. We conclude that the prominence is not accelerated immediately by local reconnection but rather is swept away as part of a large-scale relaxation of the coronal magnetic field.
We describe the extension to multiple datasets of a coherent method for the search of continuous gravitational wave signals, based on the computation of 5-vectors. In particular, we show how to coherently combine different datasets belonging to the same detector or to different detectors. In the latter case the coherent combination is the way to have the maximum increase in signal-to-noise ratio. If the datasets belong to the same detector the advantage comes mainly from the properties of a quantity called {\it coherence} which is helpful (in both cases, in fact) in rejecting false candidates. The method has been tested searching for simulated signals injected in Gaussian noise and the results of the simulations are discussed.
Some of local sources of the slow solar wind can be associated with spectroscopically detected plasma outflows at edges of active regions accompanied with specific signatures in the inner corona. The EUV telescopes (e.g. SPIRIT/CORONAS-F, TESIS/CORONAS-Photon and SWAP/PROBA2) sometimes observed extended ray-like structures seen at the limb above active regions in 1MK iron emission lines and described as "coronal rays". To verify the relationship between coronal rays and plasma outflows, we analyze an isolated active region (AR) adjacent to small coronal hole (CH) observed by different EUV instruments in the end of July - beginning of August 2009. On August 1 EIS revealed in the AR two compact outflows with the Doppler velocities V =10-30 km/s accompanied with fan loops diverging from their regions. At the limb the ARCH interface region produced coronal rays observed by EUVI/STEREO-A on July 31 as well as by TESIS on August 7. The rays were co-aligned with open magnetic field lines expanded to the streamer stalks. Using the DEM analysis, it was found that the fan loops diverged from the outflow regions had the dominant temperature of ~1 MK, which is similar to that of the outgoing plasma streams. Parameters of the solar wind measured by STEREO-B, ACE, WIND, STEREO-A were conformed with identification of the ARCH as a source region at the Wang-Sheeley-Arge map of derived coronal holes for CR 2086. The results of the study support the suggestion that coronal rays can represent signatures of outflows from ARs propagating in the inner corona along open field lines into the heliosphere.
We place observational constraints on models with the late-time cosmic acceleration based on a number of parametrizations allowing fast transitions for the equation of state of dark energy. In addition to the model of Linder and Huterer where the dark energy equation of state $w$ monotonically grows or decreases in time, we propose two new parametrizations in which $w$ has an extremum. We carry out the likelihood analysis with the three parametrizations by using the observational data of supernovae type Ia, cosmic microwave background, and baryon acoustic oscillations. Although the transient cosmic acceleration models with fast transitions can give rise to the total chi square smaller than that in the $\Lambda$-Cold-Dark-Matter ($\Lambda$CDM) model, the Akaike information criterion shows that these models are not favored over the $\Lambda$CDM model.
We investigate the effect of a variable, i.e. time-dependent, background on the standing acoustic (i.e. longitudinal) modes generated in a hot coronal loop. A theoretical model of 1D geometry describing the coronal loop is applied. The background temperature is allowed to change as a function of time and undergoes an exponential decay with characteristic cooling times typical for coronal loops. The magnetic field is assumed to be uniform. Thermal conduction is the dominant mechanism of cooling the hot background plasma in the presence of an unspecified thermodynamic source that maintains the initial equilibrium. The influence of the rapidly cooling background plasma on the behaviour of standing acoustic (longitudinal) waves is investigated analytically. The temporally evolving dispersion relation and wave amplitude are derived by using the WKB theory. An analytic solution for the time-dependent amplitude that describes the influence of thermal conduction on the standing longitudinal (acoustic) wave is obtained by exploiting the properties of Sturm-Liouville problems. Next, numerical evaluations further illustrate the behaviour of the standing acoustic waves in a system with variable, time dependent background. The results are applied to a number of detected loop oscillations. We find a remarkable agreement between the theoretical predictions and the observations. The cooling of the background plasma due to thermal conduction is found to cause a strong damping for the slow standing magneto-acoustic waves in hot coronal loops in general. Further to this, the increase in the value of thermal conductivity leads to a strong decay in the amplitude of the longitudinal standing slow MHD waves.
Vacuum energy remains the simplest model of dark energy which could drive the accelerated expansion of the Universe without necessarily introducing any new degrees of freedom. Inhomogeneous vacuum energy is necessarily interacting in general relativity. Although the four-velocity of vacuum energy is undefined, an interacting vacuum has an energy transfer and the vacuum energy defines a particular foliation of spacetime with spatially homogeneous vacuum energy in cosmological solutions. It is possible to give a consistent description of vacuum dynamics and in particular the relativistic equations of motion for inhomogeneous perturbations given a covariant prescription for the vacuum energy, or equivalently the energy transfer four-vector, and we construct gauge-invariant vacuum perturbations. We show that any dark energy cosmology can be decomposed into an interacting vacuum+matter cosmology whose inhomogeneous perturbations obey simple first-order equations.
Aims. We present photometric data of debris disks around HIP 103389 (HD 199260), HIP 107350 (HN Peg, HD206860), and HIP 114948 (HD 219482), obtained in the context of our Herschel Open Time Key Program DUNES (DUst around NEarby Stars). Methods. We used Herschel/PACS to detect the thermal emission of the three debris disks with a 3 sigma sensitivity of a few mJy at 100 um and 160 um. In addition, we obtained Herschel/PACS photometric data at 70 um for HIP 103389. Two different approaches are applied to reduce the Herschel data to investigate the impact of data reduction on the photometry. We fit analytical models to the available spectral energy distribution (SED) data. Results. The SEDs of the three disks potentially exhibit an unusually steep decrease at wavelengths > 70 um. We investigate the significance of the peculiar shape of these SEDs and the impact on models of the disks provided it is real. Our modeling reveals that such a steep decrease of the SEDs in the long wavelength regime is inconsistent with a power-law exponent of the grain size distribution -3.5 expected from a standard equilibrium collisional cascade. In contrast, a very distinct range of grain sizes is implied to dominate the thermal emission of such disks. However, we demonstrate that the understanding of the data of faint sources obtained with Herschel is still incomplete and that the significance of our results depends on the version of the data reduction pipeline used. Conclusions. A new mechanism to produce the dust in the presented debris disks, deviations from the conditions required for a standard equilibrium collisional cascade (grain size exponent of -3.5), and/or significantly different dust properties would be necessary to explain the potentially steep SED shape of the three debris disks presented. (abridged)
We present 75"x75" size maps of M82 at 6.4 micron, 6.6 micron, 7.7 micron, 31.5 micron, and 37.1 micron with a resolution of ~4" that we have obtained with the mid-IR camera FORCAST on SOFIA. We find strong emission from the inner 60" (~1kpc) along the major axis, with the main peak 5" west-southwest of the nucleus and a secondary peak 4" east-northeast of the nucleus. The detailed morphology of the emission differs among the bands, which is likely due to different dust components dominating the continuum emission at short mid-IR wavelengths and long mid-IR wavelengths. We include Spitzer-IRS and Herschel/PACS 70 micron data to fit spectral energy distribution templates at both emission peaks. The best fitting templates have extinctions of A_V = 18 and A_V = 9 toward the main and secondary emission peak and we estimated a color temperature of 68 K at both peaks from the 31 micron and 37 micron measurement. At the emission peaks the estimated dust masses are on the order of 10^{4} M_sun.
The disc formation mechanism of B[e] supergiants is one of the puzzling phenomena in massive star evolution. Rapid stellar rotation seems to play an important role for the non-spherically symmetric mass-loss leading to a high-density disc or ring-like structure of neutral material around these massive and luminous objects. The radial density and temperature structure as well as the kinematics within this high-density material are, however, not well studied. Based on high-resolution optical spectra of a sample of B[e] supergiants in the Magellanic Clouds we especially searched for tracers of the kinematics within their discs. Besides the well-known [O I] lines, we discovered the [Ca II] {\lambda}{\lambda}7291, 7324 lines that can be used as a complementary set of disc tracers. We find that these lines originate from very high-density regions, located closer to the star than the [O I] {\lambda}5577 line-forming region. The line profiles of both the [O I] and the [Ca II] lines indicate that the discs or rings of high-density material are in Keplerian rotation. We estimate plausible ranges of disc inclination angles for the sample of B[e] supergiants and suggest that the star LHA 120-S 22 might have a spiral arm rather than a disc.
The SphinX X-ray spectrophotometer on the CORONAS-PHOTON spacecraft measured soft X-ray emission in the 1-15 keV energy range during the deep solar minimum of 2009 with a sensitivity much greater than GOES. Several intervals are identified when the X-ray flux was exceptionally low, and the flux and solar X-ray luminosity are estimated. Spectral fits to the emission at these times give temperatures of 1.7-1.9 MK and emission measures between 4 x 10^47 cm^-3 and 1.1 x 10^48 cm^-3. Comparing SphinX emission with that from the Hinode X-ray Telescope, we deduce that most of the emission is from general coronal structures rather than confined features like bright points. For one of 27 intervals of exceptionally low activity identified in the SphinX data, the Sun's X-ray luminosity in an energy range roughly extrapolated to that of ROSAT (0.1-2.4 keV) was less than most nearby K and M dwarfs.
The H3+ ion plays a key role in the chemistry of dense interstellar gas
clouds where stars and planets are forming. The low temperatures and high
extinctions of such clouds make direct observations of H3+ impossible, but lead
to large abundances of H2D+ and D2H+ which are very useful probes of the early
stages of star and planet formation. Maps of H2D+ and D2H+ pure rotational line
emission toward star-forming regions show that the strong deuteration of H3+ is
the result of near-complete molecular depletion of CNO-bearing molecules onto
grain surfaces, which quickly disappears as cores warm up after stars have
formed.
In the warmer parts of interstellar gas clouds, H3+ transfers its proton to
other neutrals such as CO and N2, leading to a rich ionic chemistry. The
abundances of such species are useful tracers of physical conditions such as
the radiation field and the electron fraction. Recent observations of HF line
emission toward the Orion Bar imply a high electron fraction, and we suggest
that observations of OH+ and H2O+ emission may be used to probe the electron
density in the nuclei of external galaxies.
Detection of magnetic fields has been reported in several sdO and sdB stars. Recent literature has cast doubts on the reliability of most of these detections. We revisit data previously published in the literature, and we present new observations to clarify the question of how common magnetic fields are in subdwarf stars. We consider a sample of about 40 hot subdwarf stars. About 30 of them have been observed with the FORS1 and FORS2 instruments of the ESO VLT. Here we present new FORS1 field measurements for 17 stars, 14 of which have never been observed for magnetic fields before. We also critically review the measurements already published in the literature, and in particular we try to explain why previous papers based on the same FORS1 data have reported contradictory results. All new and re-reduced measurements obtained with FORS1 are shown to be consistent with non-detection of magnetic fields. We explain previous spurious field detections from data obtained with FORS1 as due to a non-optimal method of wavelength calibration. Field detections in other surveys are found to be uncertain or doubtful, and certainly in need of confirmation. There is presently no strong evidence for the occurrence of a magnetic field in any sdB or sdO star, with typical longitudinal field uncertainties of the order of 2-400 G. It appears that globally simple fields of more than about 1 or 2 kG in strength occur in at most a few percent of hot subdwarfs, and may be completely absent at this strength. Further high-precision surveys, both with high-resolution spectropolarimeters and with instruments similar to FORS1 on large telescopes, would be very valuable.
Transition disk objects are pre-main-sequence stars with little or no near-IR excess and significant far-IR excess, implying inner opacity holes in their disks. Here we present a multifrequency study of transition disk candidates located in Lupus I, III, IV, V, VI, Corona Australis, and Scorpius. Complementing the information provided by Spitzer with adaptive optics (AO) imaging (NaCo, VLT), submillimeter photometry (APEX), and echelle spectroscopy (Magellan, Du Pont Telescopes), we estimate the multiplicity, disk mass, and accretion rate for each object in our sample in order to identify the mechanism potentially responsible for its inner hole. We find that our transition disks show a rich diversity in their spectral energy distribution morphology, have disk masses ranging from lsim1 to 10 M JUP, and accretion rates ranging from lsim10-11 to 10-7.7 M \odot yr-1. Of the 17 bona fide transition disks in our sample, three, nine, three, and two objects are consistent with giant planet formation, grain growth, photoevaporation, and debris disks, respectively. Two disks could be circumbinary, which offers tidal truncation as an alternative origin of the inner hole. We find the same heterogeneity of the transition disk population in Lupus III, IV, and Corona Australis as in our previous analysis of transition disks in Ophiuchus while all transition disk candidates selected in Lupus V, VI turned out to be contaminating background asymptotic giant branch stars. All transition disks classified as photoevaporating disks have small disk masses, which indicates that photoevaporation must be less efficient than predicted by most recent models. The three systems that are excellent candidates for harboring giant planets potentially represent invaluable laboratories to study planet formation with the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array.
The "point mass singularity" inherent in Newton's law for gravitation represents a major difficulty in accurately determining the potential and forces inside continuous bodies. Here we report a simple and efficient analytical method to bypass the singular Green kernel 1/|r-r'| inside the source without altering the nature of the interaction. We build an equivalent kernel made up of a "cool kernel", which is fully regular (and contains the long-range -GM/r asymptotic behavior), and the gradient of a "hyperkernel", which is also regular. Compared to the initial kernel, these two components are easily integrated over the source volume using standard numerical techniques. The demonstration is presented for three-dimensional distributions in cylindrical coordinates, which are well-suited to describing rotating bodies (stars, discs, asteroids, etc.) as commonly found in the Universe. An example of implementation is given. The case of axial symmetry is treated in detail, and the accuracy is checked by considering an exact potential/surface density pair corresponding to a flat circular disc. This framework provides new tools to keep or even improve the physical realism of models and simulations of self-gravitating systems, and represents, for some of them, a conclusive alternative to softened gravity.
It is shown that the tension between recent neutrino oscillation experiments, favoring sterile neutrinos with mass of order of 1 eV, and cosmological data which impose stringent constraints on neutrino masses from the free streaming suppression of density fluctuations, can be resolved in models of the present accelerated expansion of the Universe based on $f(R)$ gravity.
The statistical properties of the ellipticities of galaxy images test the paradigm of structure formation and galaxy evolution, and constrain models of galaxy morphology, which are key to the removal of the intrinsic alignment contamination of cosmological weak lensing surveys. We construct such models based on the halo properties of the Millennium Simulation and confront them with a sample of 150,000 galaxies from the COSMOS Survey, covering 4 decades in luminosity and redshifts out to z=2. The ellipticity measurements are corrected for effects of PSF smearing, spurious image distortions, and measurement noise. We find that early-type galaxies have a 25% lower intrinsic ellipticity dispersion than late-type galaxies, which is quantitatively reproduced by our best models. None of the samples shows evidence for redshift evolution, while the ellipticity dispersion for late-type galaxies scales strongly with absolute magnitude at the bright end. The low ellipticity dispersions predicted by models based on reduced inertia tensors of simulated haloes are generally disfavoured by the observations. The fraction of close to circular late-type galaxy images in COSMOS is much lower than expected for a sample of circular inclined thick disks, indicating a substantial fraction of galaxies with irregular morphology.
Direct Dark Matter detection with cryodetectors is briefly discussed, with particular mention of the possibility of the identification of the recoil nucleus. Preliminary results from the CREEST II Dark Matter search, with 730 kg-days of data, are presented. Major backgrounds and methods of identifying and dealing with them are indicated.
The theory for the formation of the first population of stars (Pop III) predicts an initial mass function (IMF) dominated by high-mass stars, in contrast to the present-day IMF, which tends to yield mostly stars with masses less than 1 M_Sol. The leading theory for the transition in the characteristic stellar mass predicts that the cause is the extra cooling provided by increasing metallicity. In particular, dust can overtake H_2 as the leading coolant at very high densities. The aim of this work is to determine the influence of dust cooling on the fragmentation of very low metallicity gas. To investigate this, we make use of high-resolution hydrodynamic simulations with sink particles to replace contracting protostars, and analyze the collapse and further fragmentation of star-forming clouds. We follow the thermodynamic response of the gas by solving the full thermal energy equation, and also track the behavior of the dust temperature and the chemical evolution of the gas. We model four clouds with different metallicities (10^{-4}, 10^{-5}, 10^{-6} Z_Sol, and 0), and determine the properties of each cloud at the point at which it undergoes gravitational fragmentation. We find evidence for fragmentation in all four cases, and hence conclude that there is no critical metallicity below which fragmentation is impossible. Nevertheless, there is a clear change in the behavior of the clouds at Z = 10^{-5} Z_Sol, caused by the fact that at this metallicity, fragmentation takes longer to occur than accretion, leading to a flat mass function at lower metallicities.
We calculate the conditions required to produce a large local trispectrum during two-field slow-roll inflation. This is done by extending and simplifying the 'heatmap' approach developed by Byrnes et al. The conditions required to generate a large trispectrum are broadly the same as those that can produce a large bispectrum. We derive a simple relation between tauNL and fNL for models with separable potentials, and furthermore show that gNL and tauNL can be related in specific circumstances. Additionally, we interpret the heatmaps dynamically, showing how they can be used as qualitative tools to understand the evolution of non-Gaussianity during inflation. We also show how fNL, tauNL and gNL are sourced by generic shapes in the inflationary potential, namely ridges, valleys and inflection points.
We investigate the long-term evolution of an initially buoyant magnetic flux tube emerging into a gravitationally-stratified coronal hole environment and report on the resulting oscillations and outflows. We perform 2.5D nonlinear numerical simulations, generalizing the models of McLaughlin et al. (2009) and Murray et al. (2009). We find that the physical mechanism of oscillatory reconnection naturally generates quasi-periodic vertical outflows, with a transverse/swaying aspect. The vertical outflows consist of both a periodic aspect and evidence of a positively-directed flow. The speed of the vertical outflow (20-60 km/s) is comparable to those reported in the observational literature. We also perform a parametric study varying the magnetic strength of the buoyant flux tube and find a range of associated periodicities: 1.75-3.5 min. Thus, the mechanism of oscillatory reconnection may provide a physical explanation to some of the high-speed, quasi-periodic, transverse outflows/jets recently reported by a multitude of authors and instruments.
We consider X-ray binaries (XBs) as potential sources of stellar feedback. XBs observationally appear able to deposit a high fraction of their power output into their local interstellar medium, which may make them a non-negligible source of energy input. The formation rate of the most luminous XBs rises with decreasing metallicity, which should increase their significance during galaxy formation in the early universe. We also argue that stochastic effects are important to XB feedback (XBF) and may dominate the systematic changes due to metallicity in many cases. Large stochastic variation in the magnitude of XBF at low absolute star formation rates provides a natural reason for diversity in the evolution of dwarf galaxies which were initially almost identical, with several percent of such halos experiencing energy input from XBs roughly two orders of magnitude above the most likely value. These probability distributions suggest that the effect of XBF is most commonly significant for total stellar masses between ~10^7 and 10^8 Msun, which might resolve a current problem with modelling populations of such galaxies. We explain how XBs might inject energy before luminous supernovae (SNe) contribute significantly to feedback and how XBs can assist in keeping gas hot long after the last core-collapse SN has exploded. [...] XBF could be especially important to some dwarf galaxies, potentially heating gas without expelling it; the properties of XBF also match those previously derived as allowing episodic star formation. We also argue that the efficiency of SN feedback (SNF) might be reduced when XBF has had the opportunity to act first. In addition, we note that the effect of SNF is unlikely to be scale-free; galaxies smaller than ~100 pc might well experience less effective SNF. (Slightly abbreviated to fit arXiv size limit.)
As part of an ongoing program aiming to characterize a large number of Spitzer-selected transition disks (disks with reduced levels of near-IR and/or mid- IR excess emission), we have obtained (sub)millimeter wavelength photometry, high-resolution optical spectroscopy, and adaptive optics near-infrared imaging for a sample of 31 transition objects located in the Perseus, Taurus, and Auriga molecular clouds. We use these ground-based data to estimate disk masses, multiplicity, and accretion rates in order to investigate the mechanisms potentially responsible for their inner holes. Following our previous studies in other regions, we combine disk masses, accretion rates and multiplicity data with other information, such as SED morphology and fractional disk luminosity to classify the disks as strong candidates for the following categories: grain-growth dominated disks (7 objects), giant planet-forming disks (6 objects), photoevaporating disks (7 objects), debris disks (11 objects), and cicumbinary disks (1 object, which was also classified as a photoeavaporating disk). Combining our sample of 31 transition disks with those from our previous studies results in a sample of 74 transition objects that have been selected, characterized, and classified in an homogenous way. We discuss this combined high-quality sample in the context of the current paradigm of the evolution and dissipation of protoplanetary disks and use its properties to constrain different aspects of the key processes driving their evolution. We find that the age distribution of disks that are likely to harbor recently formed giant planets favors core accretion as the main planet formation mechanism and a ~2-3 Myr formation timescale
We have used new, deep, visible and near infrared observations of the compact starburst cluster in the giant HII region NGC 3603 and its surroundings with the WFC3 on HST and HAWK-I on the VLT to study in detail the physical properties of its intermediate mass (~ 1 - 3 M_sun) stellar population. We show that after correction for differential extinction and actively accreting stars, and the study of field star contamination, strong evidence remains for a continuous spread in the ages of pre-main sequence stars in the range ~ 2 to ~ 30 Myr within the temporal resolution available. Existing differences among presently available theoretical models account for the largest possible variation in shape of the measured age histograms within these limits. We also find that this isochronal age spread in the near infrared and visible Colour-Magnitude Diagrams cannot be reproduced by any other presently known source of astrophysical or instrumental scatter that could mimic the luminosity spread seen in our observations except, possibly, episodic accretion. The measured age spread and the stellar spatial distribution in the cluster are consistent with the hypothesis that star formation started at least 20-30 Myrs ago progressing slowly but continuously up to at least a few million years ago. All the stars in the considered mass range are distributed in a flattened oblate spheroidal pattern with the major axis oriented in an approximate South-East - North-West direction, and with the length of the equatorial axis decreasing with increasing age. This asymmetry is most likely due to the fact that star formation occurred along a filament of gas and dust in the natal molecular cloud oriented locally in this direction.
In this paper I review and discuss the basic concepts of accretion disks, focused especially on the case of accretion disks around black holes. The well known alpha-model is revisited, showing the strengths and weaknesses of the model. Other turbulent viscosity prescription, based on the Reynolds number, that may improve our understanding of the accretion paradigm is discussed. A simple but efficient mathematical model of a self-gravitating accretion disk, as well as observational evidence of these objects, are also included.
We present secure [NII[ detections in two mm-bright, strongly lensed objects at high redshift, APM08279+5255 (z=3.911) and MM18423+5938 (z=3.930), using the IRAM Plateau de Bure Interferometer. Due to its ionization energy [NII] is a good tracer of the ionized gas phase in the interstellar medium. The measured fluxes are S([NII])=(4.8+/-0.8) Jy km/s and (7.4+/-0.5) Jy km/s respectively, yielding line luminosities of L([NII]) =(1.8+/-0.3) x 10^9 \mu^{-1} Lsun for APM08279+5255 and L([NII]) =(2.8+/-0.2) x 10^9 \mu^{-1} Lsun for MM18423+5938. Our high-resolution map of the [NII] and 1 mm continuum emission in MM18423+5938 clearly resolves an Einstein ring in this source, and reveals a velocity gradient in the dynamics of the ionized gas. A comparison of these maps with high-resolution EVLA CO observations enables us to perform the first spatially-resolved study of the dust continuum-to-molecular gas surface brightness (Sigma_{FIR} Sigma_{CO}^N, which can be interpreted as the star formation law) in a high-redshift object. We find a steep relation (N=1.4+/-0.2), consistent with a starbursting environment. We measure a [NII]/FIR luminosity ratio in APM0828+5255 and MM18423+5938 of 9.0 x 10^{-6} and 5.8 x 10^{-6}, respectively. This is in agreement with the decrease of the [NII]/FIR ratio at high FIR luminosities observed in local galaxies.
We present evidence for a Galactic North-South asymmetry in the number density and bulk velocity of solar neighborhood stars. The number density profile, which is derived from main-sequence stars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, shows a (North - South)/(North + South) deficit at |z| ~ 400 pc and an excess at |z| ~ 800 pc. The bulk velocity profile, which is derived from the Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration, shows a gradual trend across the Galactic midplane as well as smaller-scale features. We speculate that the North-South asymmetry, which has the appearance of a wavelike perturbation, is intrinsic to the disk. We explore the physics of this phenomenon through an analysis of the linearized Boltzmann and Poisson equations and through one-dimensional simulations. The perturbation may be excited by the passage of a satellite galaxy or dark matter subhalo through the Galactic disk, in which case we are witnessing a recent disk-heating event.
We show that the squeezed limit of (N+1)-point functions of primordial correlation functions in which one of the modes has a very small wavenumber can be inferred from the spatial variation of locally measured N-point function. We then show how in single clock inflation a long wavelength perturbation can be re-absorbed in the background cosmology and how in computing correlation functions the integrals of the interaction Hamiltonian are dominated by conformal times of order of the short wavelength modes, when the long mode is already outside of the horizon. This allows us to generalize the consistency condition for N-point functions to the case in which the short wavelength fluctuations are inside the horizon and derivatives acts on them. We further discuss the consistency condition in the soft internal squeezed limit in which in an (N+M)-point function with (N+M) short modes the sum of the first N modes is a very soft momentum. These results are very useful to study infrared effects in Inflation.
We present three near-infrared spectra of Pluto taken with the IRTF and SpeX, an optical spectrum of Triton taken with the MMT and the Red Channel Spectrograph, and previously published spectra of Pluto, Triton, and Eris. We combine these observations with a two-phase Hapke model, and gain insight into the ice mineralogy on Pluto, Triton, and Eris. Specifically, we measure the methane-nitrogen mixing ratio across and into the surfaces of these icy dwarf planets. In addition, we present a laboratory experiment that demonstrates it is essential to model methane bands in spectra of icy dwarf planets with two methane phases - one highly-diluted by nitrogen and the other rich in methane. For Pluto, we find bulk, hemisphere-averaged, methane abundances of 9.1 \pm 0.5%, 7.1 \pm 0.4%, and 8.2 \pm 0.3% for sub-Earth longitudes of 10\degree, 125\degree, and 257\degree. Application of the Wilcoxon rank sum test to our measurements finds these small differences are statistically significant. For Triton, we find bulk, hemisphere-averaged, methane abundances of 5.0 \pm 0.1% and 5.3 \pm 0.4% for sub-Earth longitudes of 138\degree and 314\degree. Application of the Wilcoxon rank sum test to our measurements finds the differences are not statistically significant. For Eris, we find a bulk, hemisphere-averaged, methane abundance of 10 \pm 2%. Pluto, Triton, and Eris do not exhibit a trend in methane-nitrogen mixing ratio with depth into their surfaces over the few cm range probed by these observations. This result is contrary to the expectation (Grundy & Stansberry 2000) that since visible light penetrates deeper into a nitrogen-rich surface than the depths from which thermal emission emerges, net radiative heating at depth would drive preferential sublimation of nitrogen leading to an increase in the methane abundance with depth.
In 2011 the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for the 1998 discovery of the nonzero cosmological constant. This discovery is very important and surely worth to receive the Nobel Prize. However, years earlier several papers had been published (Paal, Horvath, & Lukacs 1992; Holba et al. 1992, Holba et al. 1994) about a very similar discovery from observational data.
We introduce a natural model of quintessence in string theory where the light rolling scalar is radiatively stable and couples to Standard Model matter with weaker-than- Planckian strength. The model is embedded in an anisotropic type IIB compactification with two exponentially large extra dimensions and TeV-scale gravity. The bulk turns out to be nearly supersymmetric since the scale of the gravitino mass is of the order of the observed value of the cosmological constant. The quintessence field is a modulus parameterising the size of an internal four-cycle which naturally develops a potential of the order (gravitino mass)^4, leading to a small dark energy scale without tunings. The mass of the quintessence field is also radiatively stable since it is protected by supersymmetry in the bulk. Moreover, this light scalar couples to ordinary matter via its mixing with the volume mode. Due to the fact that the quintessence field is a flat direction at leading order, this mixing is very small, resulting in a suppressed coupling to Standard Model particles which avoids stringent fifth-force constraints. On the other hand, if dark matter is realised in terms of Kaluza-Klein states, unsuppressed couplings between dark energy and dark matter can emerge, leading to a scenario of coupled quintessence within string theory. We study the dynamics of quintessence in our set-up, showing that its main features make it compatible with observations.
In 2011, the XENON100 experiment has set unprecedented constraints on dark matter-nucleon interactions, excluding dark matter candidates with masses down to 6 GeV if the corresponding cross section is as large as 10^{-39} cm^2. The dependence of the exclusion limit in terms of the scintillation efficiency (Leff) has been debated at length. To overcome possible criticisms XENON100 performed an analysis in which Leff was considered as a nuisance parameter and its uncertainties were profiled out by using a Gaussian likelihood in which the mean value corresponds to the best fit Leff value smoothly extrapolated to zero below 3 keVnr. Although such a method seems fairly robust, it does not account for more extreme types of extrapolation nor does it enable to anticipate on how much the exclusion limit would vary if new data were to support a flat behaviour for Leff below 3 keVnr, for example. Yet, such a question is crucial for dark matter models which are close to the published XENON100 limit. To answer this issue, we use a maximum Likelihood ratio analysis, as done by the XENON100 collaboration, but do not consider Leff as a nuisance parameter. Instead, Leff is obtained directly from the fits to the data. This enables us to define frequentist confidence intervals by marginalising over Leff.
The eternally inflating multiverse provides a consistent framework to understand coincidences and fine-tuning in the universe. As such, it provides the possibility of finding another coincidence: if the amount of slow-roll inflation was only slightly more than the anthropic threshold, then spatial curvature might be measurable. We study this issue in detail, particularly focusing on the question: "If future observations reveal nonzero curvature, what can we conclude?" We find that whether an observable signal arises or not depends crucially on three issues: the cosmic history just before the observable inflation, the measure adopted to define probabilities, and the nature of the correlation between the tunneling and slow-roll parts of the potential. We find that if future measurements find positive curvature at \Omega_k < -10^-4, then the framework of the eternally inflating multiverse is excluded with high significance. If the measurements instead reveal negative curvature at \Omega_k > 10^-4, then we can conclude (1) diffusive (new or chaotic) eternal inflation did not occur in our immediate past; (2) our universe was born by a bubble nucleation; (3) the probability measure does not reward volume increase; and (4) the origin of the observed slow-roll inflation is an accidental feature of the potential, not due to a theoretical mechanism. Discovery of \Omega_k > 10^-4 would also give us nontrivial information about the correlation between tunneling and slow-roll; e.g. a strong correlation favoring large N would be excluded in certain measures. We also ask whether the current constraint on \Omega_k is consistent with multiverse expectations, finding that the answer is yes, except for certain cases. In the course of this work we were led to consider vacuum decay branching ratios, and found that it is more likely than one might guess that the decays are dominated by a single channel.
Studies of the initial conditions for inflation have conflicting predictions from exponential suppression to inevitability. At the level of phase space, this conflict arises from the competing intuitions of CPT invariance and thermodynamics. After reviewing this conflict, we enlarge the ensemble beyond phase space to include scalar potential data. We show how this leads to an important contribution from inflection point inflation, enhancing the likelihood of inflation to an inverse cubic power law. In the process, we emphasize the attractor dynamics of the gravity-scalar system and the existence of universality classes from inflection point inflation. Finally, we comment on the predictivity of inflation in light of these results.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1204, contact, help (Access key information)
Shock-induced H2O masers are important magnetic field tracers at very high density gas. Water masers are found in both high- and low-mass star-forming regions, acting as a powerful tool to compare magnetic field morphologies in both mass regimes. In this paper, we show one of the first magnetic field determinations in the low-mass protostellar core IRAS 16293-2422 at volume densities as high as 10^(8-10) cm^-3. Our goal is to discern if the collapsing regime of this source is controlled by magnetic fields or other factors like turbulence. We used the Very Large Array (VLA) to carry out spectro-polarimetric observations in the 22 GHz Zeeman emission of H2O masers. From the Stokes V line profile, we can estimate the magnetic field strength in the dense regions around the protostar. A blend of at least three maser features can be inferred from our relatively high spatial resolution data set (~ 0.1"), which is reproduced in a clear non-Gaussian line profile. The emission is very stable in polarization fraction and position angle across the channels. The maser spots are aligned with some components of the complex outflow configuration of IRAS 16293-2422, and they are excited in zones of compressed gas produced by shocks. The post-shock particle density is in the range of 1-3 x 10^9 cm^-3, consistent with typical water masers pumping densities. Zeeman emission is produced by a very strong line-of-sight magnetic field (B ~ 113 mG). The magnetic field pressure derived from our data is comparable to the ram pressure of the outflow dynamics. This indicates that the magnetic field is energetically important in the dynamical evolution of IRAS 16293-2422.
We use the recently proposed scale-free mass estimators to determine the masses of the Milky Way (MW) and Andromeda (M31) galaxy in a dark matter only Constrained Local UniversE Simulation (CLUES). While these mass estimators work rather well for isolated spherical host systems, we examine here their applicability to a simulated binary system with a unique satellite population similar to the observed satellites of MW and M31. We confirm that the scale-free estimators work also very well in our simulated Local Group galaxies with the right number of satellites which follow the observed radial distribution. In the isotropic case and under the assumption that the satellites are tracking the total gravitating mass, the power-law index of the radial satellite distribution $N(<r)\propto r^{3-\gamma}$ is directly related to the host's mass profile $M(<r)\propto r^{1-\alpha}$ as $\alpha=\gamma-2$. The use of this relation for any given $\gamma$ leads to highly accurate mass estimations which is a crucial point for observer, since they do not know a priori the mass profile of the MW and M31 haloes. We discuss possible bias in the mass estimators and conclude that the scale-free mass estimators can be satisfactorily applied to the real MW and M31 system.
The radiative cooling timescales at the centers of hot atmospheres surrounding elliptical galaxies, groups, and clusters are much shorter than their ages. Therefore, hot atmospheres are expected to cool and to form stars. Cold gas and star formation are observed in central cluster galaxies but at levels below those expected from an unimpeded cooling flow. X-ray observations have shown that wholesale cooling is being offset by mechanical heating from radio active galactic nuclei. Feedback is widely considered to be an important and perhaps unavoidable consequence of the evolution of galaxies and supermassive black holes. We show that cooling X-ray atmospheres and the ensuing star formation and nuclear activity are probably coupled to a self-regulated feedback loop. While the energetics are now reasonably well understood, other aspects of feedback are not. We highlight the problems of atmospheric heating and transport processes, accretion, and nuclear activity, and we discuss the potential role of black hole spin. We discuss X-ray imagery showing that the chemical elements produced by central galaxies are being dispersed on large scales by outflows launched from the vicinity of supermassive black holes. Finally, we comment on the growing evidence for mechanical heating of distant cluster atmospheres by radio jets and its potential consequences for the excess entropy in hot halos and a possible decline in the number of distant cooling flows.
The dynamical evolution of planetary systems leaves observable signatures in debris disks. Optical images trace micron-sized grains, which are strongly affected by stellar radiation and need not coincide with their parent body population. Observations of mm-size grains accurately trace parent bodies, but previous images lack the resolution and sensitivity needed to characterize the ring's morphology. Here we present ALMA 350 GHz observations of the Fomalhaut debris ring. These observations demonstrate that the parent body population is 13-19 AU wide with a sharp inner and outer boundary. We discuss three possible origins for the ring, and suggest that debris confined by shepherd planets is the most consistent with the ring's morphology.
(Abridged) Water is a key tracer of dynamics and chemistry in low-mass protostars, but spectrally resolved observations have so far been limited in sensitivity and angular resolution. In this first systematic survey of spectrally resolved water emission in low-mass protostellar objects, H2O was observed in the ground-state transition at 557 GHz with HIFI on Herschel in 29 embedded Class 0 and I protostars. Complementary far-IR and sub-mm continuum data (including PACS data from our program) are used to constrain the spectral energy distribution of each source. H2O intensities are compared to inferred envelope and outflow properties and CO 3-2 emission. H2O emission is detected in all objects except one. The line profiles are complex and consist of several kinematic components. The profiles are typically dominated by a broad Gaussian emission feature, indicating that the bulk of the water emission arises in outflows, not the quiescent envelope. Several sources show multiple shock components in either emission or absorption, thus constraining the internal geometry of the system. Furthermore, the components include inverse P-Cygni profiles in 7 sources (6 Class 0, 1 Class I) indicative of infalling envelopes, and regular P-Cygni profiles in 4 sources (3 Class I, 1 Class 0) indicative of expanding envelopes. "Bullets" moving at >50 km/s are seen in 4 Class 0 sources; 3 of these are new detections. In the outflow, the H2O/CO abundance ratio as a function of velocity is nearly the same for all sources, increasing from 10^-3 at <5 km/s to >10^-1 at >10 km/s. The H2O abundance in the outer envelope is low, ~10^-10. The different H2O profile components show a clear evolutionary trend: in the Class 0 sources, emission is dominated by outflow components originating inside an infalling envelope. When the infall diminishes during the Class I phase, the outflow weakens and H2O emission disappears.
The Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) is an on-going HST Multicycle Treasury program to image ~1/3 of M31's star forming disk in 6 filters, from the UV to the NIR. The full survey will resolve the galaxy into more than 100 million stars with projected radii from 0-20 kpc over a contiguous 0.5 square degree area in 828 orbits, producing imaging in the F275W and F336W filters with WFC3/UVIS, F475W and F814W with ACS/WFC, and F110W and F160W with WFC3/IR. The resulting wavelength coverage gives excellent constraints on stellar temperature, bolometric luminosity, and extinction for most spectral types. The photometry reaches SNR=4 at F275W=25.1, F336W=24.9, F475W=27.9, F814W=27.1, F110W=25.5, and F160W=24.6 for single pointings in the uncrowded outer disk; however, the optical and NIR data are crowding limited, and the deepest reliable magnitudes are up to 5 magnitudes brighter in the inner bulge. All pointings are dithered and produce Nyquist-sampled images in F475W, F814W, and F160W. We describe the observing strategy, photometry, astrometry, and data products, along with extensive tests of photometric stability, crowding errors, spatially-dependent photometric biases, and telescope pointing control. We report on initial fits to the structure of M31's disk, derived from the density of RGB stars, in a way that is independent of the assumed M/L and is robust to variations in dust extinction. These fits also show that the 10 kpc ring is not just a region of enhanced recent star formation, but is instead a dynamical structure containing a significant overdensity of stars with ages >1 Gyr. (Abridged)
The relationship between observed tracers such as galaxies and the underlying dark matter distribution is crucial in extracting cosmological information. As the linear bias model breaks down at quasi-linear scales, the standard perturbative approach of the nonlinear Eulerian bias model (EBM) is not accurate enough in describing galaxy clustering. In this paper, we discuss such a model in the context of resummed perturbation theory, and further generalize it to incorporate the subsequent gravitational evolution by combining with a Lagrangian description of galaxies' motion. The multipoint propagators we constructed for such model also exhibit exponential damping similar to their dark matter counterparts, therefore the convergence property of statistics built upon these quantities is improved. This is achieved by applying both Eulerian and Lagrangian resummation techniques of dark matter field developed in recent years. As inherited from the Lagrangian description of galaxy density evolution, our approach automatically incorporates the non-locality induced by gravitational evolution after the formation of the tracer, and also allows us to include a continuous galaxy formation history by temporally weighted-averaging relevant quantities with the galaxy formation rate.
Debris dust in the habitable zones of stars - otherwise known as exozodiacal dust - comes from extrasolar asteroids and comets and is thus an expected part of a planetary system. Background flux from the Solar System's zodiacal dust and the exozodiacal dust in the target system is likely to be the largest source of astrophysical noise in direct observations of terrestrial planets in the habitable zones of nearby stars. Furthermore, dust structures like clumps, thought to be produced by dynamical interactions with exoplanets, are a possible source of confusion. In this paper, we qualitatively assess the primary impact of exozodical dust on high-contrast direct imaging at optical wavelengths, such as would be performed with a coronagraph. Then we present the sensitivity of previous, current, and near-term facilities to thermal emission from debris dust at all distances from nearby solar-type stars, as well as our current knowledge of dust levels from recent surveys. Finally, we address the other method of detecting debris dust, through high-contrast imaging in scattered light. This method is currently far less sensitive than thermal emission observations, but provides high spatial resolution for studying dust structures. This paper represents the first report of NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Program Analysis Group (ExoPAG).
We use the Mitchell Spectrograph (formerly VIRUS-P) to observe 12 nearby disk galaxies. We successfully measure ages in the outer disk in six systems. In three cases (NGC 2684, NGC 6155, and NGC 7437), we find that a downward break in the disk surface brightness profile corresponds with a change in the dominant stellar population with the interior being dominated by active star formation and the exterior having older stellar populations that are best-fit with star formation histories that decline with time. The observed increase in average stellar ages beyond a profile break is similar to theoretical models that predict surface brightness breaks are caused by stellar migration, with the outer disk being populated from scattered old interior stars. In three more cases (IC 1132, NGC 4904, and NGC 6691), we find no significant change in the stellar population as one crosses the break radius. In these galaxies, both the inner and outer disks are dominated by active star formation and younger stellar populations. While radial migration can contribute to the stellar populations beyond the break, it appears more than one mechanism is required to explain all of our observed stellar profile breaks.
We present new radial velocity and X-ray observations of extremely low-mass (ELM, 0.2 Msol) white dwarf candidates in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7 area. We identify seven new binary systems with 1-18 h orbital periods. Five of the systems will merge due to gravitational wave radiation within 10 Gyr, bringing the total number of merger systems found in the ELM Survey to 24. The ELM Survey has now quintupled the known merger white dwarf population. It has also discovered the eight shortest period detached binary white dwarf systems currently known. We discuss the characteristics of the merger and non-merger systems observed in the ELM Survey, including their future evolution. About half of the systems have extreme mass ratios. These are the progenitors of the AM Canum Venaticorum systems and supernovae .Ia. The remaining targets will lead to the formation of extreme helium stars, subdwarfs, or massive white dwarfs. We identify three targets that are excellent gravitational wave sources. These should be detected by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA)-like missions within the first year of operation. The remaining targets are important indicators of what the Galactic foreground may look like for gravitational wave observatories.
We present the first results of a Kepler survey of 41 eclipsing binaries that we undertook to search for third star companions. Such tertiaries will periodically alter the eclipse timings through light travel time and dynamical effects. We discuss the prevalence of starspots and pulsation among these binaries and how these phenomena influence the eclipse times. There is no evidence of short period companions (P < 700 d) among this sample, but we do find evidence for long term timing variations in 14 targets (34%). We argue that this finding is consistent with the presence of tertiary companions among a significant fraction of the targets, especially if many have orbits measured in decades. This result supports the idea that the formation of close binaries involves the deposition of angular momentum into the orbital motion of a third star.
As the universe expands astronomical observables such as brightness and angular size on the sky change in ways that differ from our simple Cartesian expectation. We show how observed quantities depend on the expansion of space and demonstrate how to calculate such quantities using the Friedmann equations. The general solution to the Friedmann equations requires a numerical solution which is easily coded in any computing language (including EXCEL). We use these numerical calculations in four student projects that help to build their understanding of high-redshift phenomena and cosmology. Instructions for these projects are available as supplementary materials.
We study the behavior of orbits in two different galactic dynamical models, describing the motion in the central parts of a triaxial elliptical galaxy with a dense nucleus. Numerical experiments show that both models display regular motion together with extended chaotic regions. A detailed investigation of the properties of motion is made for the 2D and 3D Hamiltonian systems, using a number of different dynamical parameters, such as the Poincare surface of section, the maximal Lyapunov Characteristic Exponent, the S(c) spectrum, the S(w) spectrum and the P(f) indicator. The numerical calculations suggest that the properties of motion in both potentials are very similar. Our results show that one may use different kinds of gravitational potentials in order to describe the motion in triaxial galaxies while obtaining quantitatively similar results.
We use coronal imaging observations with SDO/AIA, and Hinode/EIS spectral data, to explore the potential of narrow band EUV imaging data for diagnosing the presence of hot (T >~5MK) coronal plasma in active regions. We analyze observations of two active regions (AR 11281, AR 11289) with simultaneous AIA imaging, and EIS spectral data, including the CaXVII line (at 192.8A) which is one of the few lines in the EIS spectral bands sensitive to hot coronal plasma even outside flares. After careful coalignment of the imaging and spectral data, we compare the morphology in a 3 color image combining the 171, 335, and 94A AIA spectral bands, with the image obtained for CaXVII emission from the analysis of EIS spectra. We find that in the selected active regions the CaXVII emission is strong only in very limited areas, showing striking similarities with the features bright in the 94A (and 335A) AIA channels and weak in the 171A band. We conclude that AIA imaging observations of the solar corona can be used to track hot plasma (6-8MK), and so to study its spatial variability and temporal evolution at high spatial and temporal resolution.
We present optical photometry and spectroscopy of the peculiar Type IIn/Ibn supernova SN2011hw. Its light curve exhibits a slower decline rate than normal SNeIbc, with a peak absolute magnitude of -19.5 (unfiltered) and a secondary peak of -18.3 mag (R). Spectra of SN2011hw are unusual compared to normal SN types, most closely resembling the spectra of SNeIbn. We center our analysis on comparing SN 2011hw to the well-studied TypeIbn SN2006jc. While the two SNe have many important similarities, the differences are quite telling: compared to SN2006jc, SN2011hw has weaker HeI and CaII lines and relatively stronger H lines, its light curve has a higher luminosity and slower decline rate, and emission lines associated with the progenitor's CSM are narrower. One can reproduce the unusual continuum shape of SN2011hw with equal contributions of a 6000K blackbody and a spectrum of SN2006jc. We attribute this emission component and many other differences between the two SNe to extra opacity from a small amount of additional H in SN2011hw, analogous to the small H mass that makes SNeIIb differ from SNeIb. Slower speeds in the CSM and elevated H content suggest a connection between the progenitor of SN2011hw and the class of Ofpe/WN9 stars, which have been associated with LBVs in their hot quiescent phases between outbursts, and are H-poor - but not H-free like classical Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars. We conclude that the similarities and differences between SN2011hw and SN2006jc can be largely understood if their progenitors exploded at different points in the transitional evolution from an LBV to a WR star.
Observational and theoretical arguments suggest that the momentum carried in mass outflows from AGN can reach several times L / c, corresponding to outflow rates of hundreds of solar masses per year. Radiation pressure on lines alone may not be sufficient to provide this momentum deposition, and the transfer of reprocessed IR radiation in dusty nuclear gas has been postulated to provide the extra enhancement. The efficacy of this mechanism, however, will be sensitive to multi-dimensional effects such as the tendency for the reprocessed radiation to preferentially escape along sight-lines of lower column density. We use Monte Carlo radiative transfer calculations to determine the radiation force on dusty gas residing within approximately 10 parsecs from an accreting super-massive black hole. We calculate the net rate of momentum deposition in the surrounding gas and estimate the mass-loss rate in the resulting outflow as a function of solid angle for different black hole luminosities, sightline-averaged column densities, clumping parameters, and opening angles of the dusty gas. We find that these dust-driven winds carry momentum fluxes of 1-5 times $L/c$ and correspond to mass-loss rates of 10-100 solar masses per year for a $10^8$ solar mass black hole radiating at or near its Eddington limit. These results help to explain the origin of high velocity molecular and atomic outflows in local ULIRGs, and can inform numerical simulations of galaxy evolution including AGN feedback.
Forthcoming instruments designed for high-cadence large-area surveys, such as the Dark Energy Survey and Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, will generate several GB of data products every few minutes during survey operations. Since such surveys are designed to operate with minimal observer interaction, automated real-time analysis of these large images is necessary to ensure uninterrupted production of science-quality data. We describe a software infrastructure suite designed to support such surveys, focusing particularly on ImageHealth, a tool for near-real-time processing of large images. These image manipulation and analysis algorithms were applied to simulated data from the Dark Energy Survey, as well as observed data collected by the Y4KCam on the CTIO 1m telescope and the Mosaic camera on the Blanco telescope. The accuracy and speed of the ImageHealth code in particular were benchmarked against results from SourceExtractor, a standard image analysis tool ubiquitous in the astronomical community. ImageHealth is shown to provide comparable accuracy to SourceExtractor, but with significantly shorter execution time. Based on the importance of real-time analysis in reaching the Dark Energy Survey's science goals, ImageHealth and other aspects of this analysis package were incorporated (in modified form) into the Survey Image System Process Integration, the Dark Energy Camera software control environment. The original ImageHealth code, however, is completely instrument-independent, and is freely available for use within other observational data-taking environments.
Barred galaxies are known to possess magnetic fields that may affect the properties of bar substructures such as dust lanes and nuclear rings. We use two-dimensional high-resolution magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations to investigate the effects of magnetic fields on the formation and evolution of such substructures as well as on the mass inflow rates to the galaxy center. The gaseous medium is assumed to be infinitesimally-thin, isothermal, non-self-gravitating, and threaded by initially uniform, azimuthal magnetic fields. We find that there exists an outermost x1-orbit relative to which gaseous responses to an imposed stellar bar potential are completely different between inside and outside. Inside this orbit, gas is shocked into dust lanes and infalls to form a nuclear ring. Magnetic fields are compressed in dust lanes, reducing their peak density. Magnetic stress removes further angular momentum of the gas at the shocks, temporarily causing the dust lanes to bend into an 'L' shape and eventually leading to a smaller and more centrally distributed ring than in unmagnetized models. The mass inflow rates in magnetized models correspondingly become larger, by more than two orders of magnitude when the initial fields have an equipartition value with thermal energy, than in the unmagnetized counterparts. Outside the outermost x1-orbit, on the other hand, an MHD dynamo due to the combined action of the bar potential and background shear operates near the corotation and bar-end regions, efficiently amplifying magnetic fields. The amplified fields shape into trailing magnetic arms with strong fields and low density. The base of the magnetic arms has a thin layer in which magnetic fields with opposite polarity reconnect via a tearing-mode instability. This produces numerous magnetic islands with large density which propagate along the arms to turn the outer disk into a highly chaotic state.
The impact of quasars on their galaxy neighbours is an important factor in the understanding of galaxy evolution models. The aim of this work is to characterize the intermediate-scale environments of quasars at low redshift (z $<$ 0.2) with the most statistically complete sample to date using the seventh data release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We have used 305 quasar-galaxy associations with spectroscopically measured redshifts within the projected distance range of 350 kpc, to calculate how surface densities of galaxies, colors, degree of ionization, dust extinction and star-formation rates change as a function of the distance to our quasar sample. We also identify the companion Active Galactic Nuclei from our main galaxy sample and calculate surface density for different galaxy types. We have done this in three different quasar-galaxy redshift difference ranges $|\Delta$z$|<$ 0.001, 0.006, and 0.012. Our results suggest that there is a significant increase of the surface density of blue neighbours around our low-redshift quasar sample that is steeper than around non-active field galaxies of the same luminosity and redshift range. This may indicate that quasar formation is accomplished via a merging scenario. No significant changes in star formation rate, dust extinction, degree of ionization or color as a function of distance from the quasars was observed. We could not observe any effects from quasars on their companion galaxies.
A photometric solution of an A-type W UMa binary, GSC 0763-0572 is examined with a revised orbital period. The overcontect degree is found as f = 40.66 %, with low mass ratio of q = 0.2554. The result demonstrates unambiguously increase of the orbital period with a relative period change of Delta(P)/P = +5.69x10^(-7) d yr^(-1). This indicates that GSC 0763-0572 is ongoing a process of mass transfer from the secondary component to primary one with a rate of relative mass change of Delta(m_1)/m = +5.18x10^(-8) yr^(-1), for conservative case of mass transfer. We find that GSC 0763-0572 might transform into a rapidly rotating star, if total spin angular momentum increases until greater than one-third of the orbital angular momentum, with non-breaking contact configuration.
The discovery of extrasolar planets is one of the major scientific advances
of the last two decades. Hundreds of planets have now been detected and
astronomers are beginning to characterise their composition and physical
characteristics. To do this requires a huge quantity of spectroscopic data most
of which is not available from laboratory studies. The ExoMol project will
offer a comprehensive solution to this problem by providing spectroscopic data
on all the molecular transitions of importance in the atmospheres of
exoplanets. These data will be widely applicable to other problems and will be
used for studies on cool stars, brown dwarfs and circumstellar environments.
This paper lays out the scientific foundations of this project and reviews
previous work in this area.
A mixture of first principles and empirically-tuned quantum mechanical
methods will be used to compute comprehensive and very large rotation-vibration
and rotation-vibration-electronic (rovibronic) line lists. Methodologies will
be developed for treating larger molecules such as methane and nitric acid.
ExoMol will rely on these developments and the use of state-of-the-art
computing.
When dark matter structures form and equilibrate they have to release a significant amount of energy in order to obey the virial theorem. Since dark matter is believed to be unable to radiate, this implies that some of the accreted dark matter particles must be ejected with high velocities. These ejected particles may then later hit other cosmological structures and deposit their momentum within these structures. This induces a pressure between the cosmological structures which opposes the effect of gravity and may therefore mimic a cosmological constant. We estimate the magnitude of this effect and find that it may be as large as the observed accelerated expansion. Our estimate is accurate only within a few orders of magnitude. It is therefore important to make a much more careful calculation of this redshift dependent effect, before beginning to interpret the observed accelerated expansion as a time dependent generalization of a cosmological constant.
Accurate line lists for three molecules, BeH, MgH and CaH, in their ground electronic states are presented. These line lists are suitable for temperatures relevant to exoplanetary atmospheres and cool stars (up to 2000K). A combination of empirical and \textit{ab initio} methods is used. The rovibrational energy levels of BeH, MgH and CaH are computed using the programs Level and DPotFit in conjunction with `spectroscopic' potential energy curves (PECs). The PEC of BeH is taken from the literature, while the PECs of CaH and MgH are generated by fitting to the experimental transition energy levels. Both spin-rotation interactions (except for BeH, for which it is negligible) and non-adiabatic corrections are explicitly taken into account. Accurate line intensities are generated using newly computed \textit{ab initio} dipole moment curves for each molecule using high levels of theory. Full line lists of rotation-vibration transitions for $^9$BeH, $^{24}$MgH, $^{25}$MgH, $^{26}$MgH and $^{40}$CaH are made available in an electronic form as supplementary data to this article and at \url{www.exomol.com}.
We find evidence that the mass MBH of central supermassive black holes (SMBHs) correlates with the velocity dispersion sigma_GC of globular cluster systems of their host galaxies. This extends the well-known MBH - sigma_b relation between black hole mass and velocity dispersion of the host spheroidal component. We compile published measurements of both MBH and sigma_GC for a sample of 13 systems and find the relation log(MBH) = alpha + beta log(sigma_GC/200) with alpha = 8.64 \pm 0.09 and beta = 3.78 \pm 0.53. We also consider blue (metal-poor) and red (metal-rich) globular clusters sub-populations separately and obtain a tighter correlation using only the velocity dispersion sigma_GC^red of the red clusters with an intrinsic scatter eps_0 = 0.20 dex compared to eps_0 = 0.27 dex for the MBH - sigma_b of our sample. We use our MBH - sigma_GC relation to predict the masses of black holes in 5 galaxies for which sigma_GC^red is measured. This correlation can also be used to distinguish between different scenarios of the origin of the MBH - sigma_b relation.
We examine the absorption of cosmic microwave background (CMB) photons by formaldehyde (H2CO) over cosmic time. The K-doublet rotational transitions of H2CO become "refrigerated" - their excitation temperatures are driven below the CMB temperature - via collisional pumping by molecular hydrogen (H2). "Anti-inverted" H2CO line ratios thus provide an accurate measurement of the H2 density in molecular clouds. Using a radiative transfer model, we demonstrate that H2CO centimeter wavelength line excitation and detectability are nearly independent of redshift or gas kinetic temperature. Since the H2CO K-doublet lines absorb CMB light, and since the CMB lies behind every galaxy and provides an exceptionally uniform extended illumination source, H2CO is a distance-independent, extinction-free molecular gas mass-limited tracer of dense gas in galaxies. A Formaldehyde Deep Field could map the history of cosmic star formation in a uniquely unbiased fashion and may be possible with large bandwidth wide-field radio interferometers whereby the silhouettes of star-forming galaxies would be detected across the epoch of galaxy evolution. We also examine the possibility that H2CO lines may provide a standardizable galaxy ruler for cosmology similar to the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect in galaxy clusters but applicable to much higher redshifts and larger samples. Finally, we explore how anti-inverted meterwave H2CO lines in galaxies during the peak of cosmic star formation may contaminate HI 21 cm tomography of the Epoch of Reionization.
Extreme value statistics (EVS) is applied to the distribution of galaxy luminosities in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We analyze the DR8 Main Galaxy Sample (MGS), divided into red and blue subsamples, as well as the Luminous Red Galaxies (LRG). Maximal luminosities are sampled from batches consisting of elongated pencil beams in the radial direction of sight. For the MGS, results suggest a small and positive tail index $\xi$, effectively ruling out the possibility of having a finite maximum cutoff luminosity, and implying that the luminosity distribution function may decay as a power law at the high luminosity end. Assuming, however, $\xi=0$, a non-parametric comparison of the maximal luminosities with the Fisher-Tippett-Gumbel distribution (limit distribution for variables distributed by the Schechter fit) indicates a good agreement provided uncertainties arising both from the finite batch size and from the batch size distribution are accounted for. For a volume limited sample of LRGs, results show that they can be described as being the extremes of a luminosity distribution with an exponentially decaying tail, having had these uncertainties considered as well.
The heating, acceleration, and pitch-angle scattering of charged particles by
MHD turbulence are important in a wide range of astrophysical environments,
including the solar wind, accreting black holes, and galaxy clusters. We
simulate the interaction of high-gyrofrequency test particles with fully
dynamical simulations of subsonic MHD turbulence, focusing on the parameter
regime with beta ~ 1, where beta is the ratio of gas to magnetic pressure. We
use the simulation results to calibrate analytical expressions for test
particle velocity-space diffusion coefficients and provide simple fits that can
be used in other work.
The test particle velocity diffusion in our simulations is due to a
combination of two processes: interactions between particles and magnetic
compressions in the turbulence (as in linear transit-time damping; TTD) and
what we refer to as Fermi Type-B (FTB) interactions, in which charged particles
moving on field lines may be thought of as beads spiralling around moving
wires. We show that test particle heating rates are consistent with a TTD
resonance which is broadened according to a decorrelation prescription that is
Gaussian in time. TTD dominates the heating for v_s >> v_A (e.g. electrons),
where v_s is the thermal speed of species s and v_A is the Alfven speed, while
FTB dominates for v_s << v_A (e.g. minor ions). Proton heating rates for beta ~
1 are comparable to the turbulent cascade rate. Finally, we show that velocity
diffusion of collisionless, large gyrofrequency particles due to large-scale
MHD turbulence does not produce a power-law distribution function.
In the present article, we use an axially symmetric galactic gravitational model with a disk-halo and a spherical nucleus, in order to investigate the transition from regular to chaotic motion for stars moving in the meridian (r,z) plane. We study in detail the transition from regular to chaotic motion, in two different cases: the time independent model and the time evolving model. In the time dependent model, we follow the evolution of orbits as the galaxy develops a dense and massive nucleus in its core, as mass is transported exponentially from the disk to the galactic center. In addition, we construct some numerical diagrams in which we present the correlations between the main parameters of our galactic model. Our numerical calculations indicate, that stars with values of angular momentum Lz less than or equal to a critical value Lzc, moving near to the galactic plane, are scattered to the halo upon encountering the nuclear region and subsequently display chaotic motion. A linear relationship exists between the critical value of the angular momentum Lzc and the mass of the nucleus Mn. Furthermore, the extent of the chaotic region increases as the value of the mass of the nucleus increases. Moreover, our simulations indicate that the degree of chaos increases linearly, as the mass of the nucleus increases. These results strongly indicate that the ordered or chaotic nature of orbits, depends on the presence of massive objects in the galactic cores of the galaxies. Our results suggest, that for disk galaxies with massive and prominent nuclei, the low angular momentum stars in the associated central regions of the galaxy, must be in predominantly chaotic orbits. Some theoretical arguments to support the numerically derived outcomes are presented. Comparison with similar previous works is also made.
We study the nature of motion in a logarithmic galactic dynamical model, with an additional external perturbation. Two different cases are investigated. In the first case the external perturbation is fixed, while in the second case it is varying with the time. Numerical experiments suggest, that responsible for the chaotic phenomena is the external perturbation, combined with the dense nucleus. Linear relationships are found to exist, between the critical value of the angular momentum and the dynamical parameters of the galactic system that is, the strength of the external perturbation, the flattening parameter and the radius of the nucleus. Moreover, the extent of the chaotic regions in the phase plane, increases linearly as the strength of the external perturbation and the flattening parameter increases. On the contrary, we observe that the percentage covered by chaotic orbits in the phase plane, decreases linearly, as the scale length of the nucleus increases, becoming less dense. Theoretical arguments are used to support and explain the numerically obtained outcomes. A comparison of the present outcomes with earlier results is also presented.
Spectral characterization of sub-stellar companions is essential to understand their composition and formation processes. However, the large contrast ratio of the brightness of each object to that of its parent star limits our ability to extract a clean spectrum, free from any significant contribution from the star. During the development of the long slit spectroscopy (LSS) mode of IRDIS, the dual-band imager and spectrograph of SPHERE, we proposed a data analysis method to estimate and remove the contributions of the stellar spectrum. This method has never been tested on real data because of the lack of instrumentation capable of combining adaptive optics (AO), coronagraphy, and LSS. Nonetheless, a similar attenuation of the star can be obtained using a particular observing configuration. Test data were acquired using the AO-assisted spectrograph VLT/NACO. We obtained new J- and H-band spectra of SCR J1845-6357 B, a T6 companion to a nearby (3.85\pm0.02 pc) M8 star. This system is a well-suited benchmark as it is relatively wide (~1.0") with a modest contrast ratio (~4 mag), and a previously published JHK spectrum is available for reference. We demonstrate that (1) our method is efficient at estimating and removing the stellar contribution, (2) it allows to properly recover the spectral shape of the companion, and (3) it is essential to obtain an unbiased estimation of physical parameters. We also show that the slit configuration associated with this method allows us to use long exposure times with high throughput producing high signal-to-noise ratio data. However, the signal of the companion gets over-subtracted, particularly in our J-band data, compelling us to use a fake companion spectrum to estimate and compensate for the loss of flux. Finally, we report a new astrometric measurement of the position of the companion (sep = 0.817", PA = 227.92 deg).
The question of how to increase the number of women and minorities in astronomy has been approached from several directions in the United States including examination of admission policies, mentoring, and hiring practices. These point to departmental efforts to improve conditions for some of the students which has the overall benefit of improving conditions for all of the students. However, women and minority astronomers have managed to obtain doctorates even within the non-welcoming environment of certain astronomy and physics departments. I present here six strategies used by African American men and women to persevere if not thrive long enough to earn their doctorate. Embedded in this analysis is the idea of 'astronomy culture' and experiencing astronomy culture as a cross-cultural experience including elements of culture shock. These survival strategies are not exclusive to this small subpopulation but have been used by majority students, too.
We present aluminium, magnesium, and silicon abundances in the metal-poor globular cluster NGC 6752 for a sample of more than 130 red giants with homogeneous oxygen and sodium abundances. We find that [Al/Fe] shows a spread of about 1.4 dex among giants in NGC 6752 and is anticorrelated with [Mg/Fe] and [O/Fe] and correlated with [Na/Fe] and [Si/Fe]. These relations are not continuous in nature, but the distribution of stars is clearly clustered around three distinct Al values, low, intermediate, and high. These three groups nicely correspond to the three distinct sequences previously detected using Stromgren photometry along the red giant branch. These two independent findings strongly indicate the existence of three distinct stellar populations in NGC 6752. Comparing the abundances of O and Mg, we find that the population with intermediate chemical abundances cannot originate from material with the same composition of the most O- and Mg-poor population, diluted by material with that of the most O- and Mg-rich one. This calls for different polluters.
It is now generally accepted that long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are due to the collapse of massive rotating stars. The precise collapse process itself, however, is not yet fully understood. Strong winds, outbursts, and intense ionizing UV radiation from single stars or strongly interacting binaries are expected to destroy the molecular cloud cores that give birth to them and create highly complex circumburst environments for the explosion. Such environments might imprint features on GRB light curves that uniquely identify the nature of the progenitor and its collapse. We have performed numerical simulations of realistic environments for a variety of long-duration GRB progenitors with ZEUS-MP and have developed an analytical method for calculating detailed GRB light curves in these profiles. We find that, in the context of the standard afterglow model, massive shells around GRBs produce strong signatures in their light curves, and that this clearly distinguishes them from those occurring in uniform media or steady winds. These features can constrain the mass of the shell and the properties of the wind before and after the ejection. Moreover, the interaction of the GRB with the circumburst shell is seen to produce features that are consistent with observed X-ray flares that are often attributed to delayed energy injection by the central engine. Our algorithm for computing light curves is also applicable to GRBs in a variety of environments such as those in high-redshift cosmological halos or protogalaxies, both of which will soon be targets of future surveys such as JANUS or Lobster.
We present a model for the evolution of the magnetic properties of habitable terrestrial planets and their effects on the protection of planetary atmosphere against the erosive action of stellar wind. Using up-to-date thermal evolution models and dynamo scaling laws we predict the evolution of the planetary dipole moment as a function of planetary mass and rotation rate. Combining these results with models for the evolution of the stellar wind, stellar XUV fluxes and planetary exosphere characteristics, we determine the properties of the magnetosphere and the exobase radius in order to estimate the level of atmospheric mass losses. We use this model to evaluate the magnetic protection of the potentially habitable super-Earths GJ 667Cc, Gl 581d and HD 85512b. We confirm that Earth-like planets, even under the highest attainable magnetic field strengths, will lose a significant fraction of their atmospheric volatiles if they are tidally locked in the habitable zone of dM stars, or even if having N/O-rich atmospheres they are in habitable zones closer than $\sim$ 0.8 AU. Similar mass-dependent inner limits have been found for super-Earths $M_p\gtrsim 3 M_\oplus$ that in any case seem to have better chances of preserving their atmospheres even if they are tidally locked. We predict that the atmosphere of GJ 667Cc has probably already been obliterated and it is presently uninhabitable. On the other hand, our model predicts that the atmospheres of Gl 581d and HD 85512b would be well protected by intrinsic magnetic fields, even under the worst expected conditions of stellar aggression. (abrigded abstract).
We estimate Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) polarisation power spectra, and temperature-polarisation cross-spectra, from 7-year data of the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP). Foreground cleaning is implemented using needlet decompositions of sky maps for all WMAP channels, to produce maps for CMB temperature anisotropies (T-mode) and polarisation (E-mode and B-mode), for seven different years of observation. Power spectra are computed using a pixel-weighted scheme, from averages of independent cross-power estimates using foreground-cleaned maps for the different years. Error bars are estimated from the scatter of all possible independent measurements of the band-averaged power spectra, and hence are independent of any detailed model of the WMAP noise.
We show that an upper limit on the maximum brightness temperature for a self-absorbed incoherent synchrotron radio source is obtained from the size of its gyro orbits, which in turn must lie well within the confines of the total source extent. These temperature limits are obtained without recourse to inverse Compton effects or the condition of equipartition of energy between magnetic fields and relativistic particles. For radio variables, the intra-day variability (IDV) implies brightness temperatures $\sim 10^{19}$ K in the co-moving rest frame of the source. This, if interpreted purely due to an incoherent synchrotron emission, would imply gyro radii $>10^{28}$ cm, the size of the universe, while from the causality arguments the inferred maximum size of the source in such a case is $\stackrel{<}{_{\sim}} 10^{15}$ cm. Such high brightness temperatures are sometimes modeled in the literature as some coherent emission process where bunches of non-thermal particles are somehow formed that radiate in phase. We show that, unlike in case of curvature radiation models proposed in pulsars, in the synchrotron radiation mechanism the oppositely charged particles would contribute together to the coherent phenomenon without the need to form separate bunches of the opposite charges. At the same time we show that bunches would disperse over dimensions larger than a wavelength in time shorter than the gyro orbital period ($\stackrel{<}{_{\sim}}0.1$ sec). Therefore a coherent emission by bunches cannot be a plausible explanation of the high brightness temperatures inferred in extragalactic radio sources showing variability over a few hours or longer.
In the present article, we present a new gravitational galactic model, describing motion in elliptical as well as in disk galaxies, by suitably choosing the dynamical parameters. Moreover, a new dynamical parameter, the S(g) spectrum, is introduced and used, in order to detect islandic motion of resonant orbits and the evolution of the sticky regions. We investigate the regular or chaotic character of motion, with emphasis in the different dynamical models and make an extensive study of the sticky regions of the system. We use the classical method of the Poincare (r-pr) phase plane and the new dynamical parameter of the S(g) spectrum. The LCE is used, in order to make an estimation of the degree of chaos in our galactic model. In both cases, the numerical calculations, suggest that our new model, displays a wide variety of families of regular orbits, compared to other galactic models. In addition to the regular motion, this new model displays also chaotic regions. Furthermore, the extent of the chaotic regions increases, as the value of the flatness parameter b of the model increases. Moreover, our simulations indicate, that the degree of chaos in elliptical galaxies, is much smaller than that in dense disk galaxies. In both cases numerical calculations show, that the degree of chaos increases linearly, as the flatness parameter b increases. In addition, a linear relationship between the critical value of angular momentum and the b parameter if found, in both cases (elliptical and disk galaxies). Some theoretical arguments to support the numerical outcomes are presented. Comparison with earlier work is also made.
A 3D-dynamical model is constructed for the study of motion in the central regions of a disk galaxy with a double nucleus. Using the results of the 2D-model, we find the regions of initial conditions in the (x,px,z,py)=EJ, (y=pz=0) phase space producing regular or chaotic orbits. The majority of stars are on chaotic orbits. All chaotic orbits come arbitrary close to one or to both nuclei. Regular orbits are those starting near the stable periodic orbits of the 2D-system with small values of z0. All regular orbits circulate around only one of the two nuclei.
It is shown that recently reported result by the OPERA Collaboration (arXive:1109.4897) of an early arrival time of muon neutrinos with respect to the speed of light in vacuum does not violate standard physical laws. We show that vacuum polarization effects in intensive external fields may form a wormhole-like object. The simplest theory of such an effect is presented and basic principles of formation of an artificial wormhole are also considered.
The emission of fundamental and harmonic frequency radio waves of type II radio bursts are assumed to be products of three-wave interaction processes of beam-excited Langmuir waves. Using a particle-in-cell code, we have performed simulations of the assumed emission region, a CME foreshock with two counterstreaming electron beams. Analysis of wavemodes within the simulation shows self-consistent excitation of beam driven modes, which yield interaction products at both fundamental and harmonic emission frequencies. Through variation of the beam strength, we have investigated the dependence of energy transfer into electrostatic and electromagnetic modes, confirming the quadratic dependence of electromagnetic emission on electron beam strength.
The regular and chaotic character of orbits is investigated in a 3D potential describing motion in the central parts of a barred galaxy. This potential is an extension in the 3D space of a 2D potential based on a family of figure-eight orbits, which was produced using the theory of the inverse problem. Starting from the results obtained from the 2D system, we proceed to locate the regions in the phase space of the 3D potential, producing regular or chaotic orbits. In order to obtain this we use a new dynamical parameter, the S(c) spectrum, which proves to be a useful and fast indicator in order to distinguish regular motion from chaos in 3D potentials. Comparison with other methods for detecting chaos is also discussed.
Space plasmas are collisionpoor and kinetic effects prevail leading to wave fluctuations, which transfer the energy to small scales: wave-particle interactions replace collisions and enhance dispersive effects heating particles and producing suprathermal populations observed at any heliospheric distance in the solar wind. At large distances collisions are not efficient, and the selfgenerated instabilities constrain the solar wind anisotropy including the thermal core and the suprathermal components. The generalized power-laws of Kappa-type are the best fitting model for the observed distributions of particles, and a convenient mathematical tool for modeling their dynamics. But the anisotropic Kappa models are not correlated with the observations leading, in general, to inconsistent effects. This review work aims to reconcile some of the existing Kappa models with the observations.
Seyfert's Sextet (a.k.a HCG 79) is one of the most compact and isolated galaxy groups in the local Universe. It shows a prominent diffuse light component that accounts for ~50% of the total observed light. This likely indicates that the group is in an advanced evolutionary phase, which would predict a significant hot gaseous component. Previous X-ray observations had suggested a low luminosity for this system, but with large uncertainties and poor resolution. We present the results from a deep (70 ks), high resolution Chandra observation of Seyfert's Sextet, requested with the aim of separating the X-ray emission associated with the individual galaxies from that of a more extended inter-galactic component. We discuss the spatial and spectral characteristics of this group we derive with those of a few similar systems also studied in the X-ray band. The high resolution X-ray image indicates that the majority of the detected emission does not arise in the compact group but is concentrated towards the NW and corresponds to what appears to be a background galaxy cluster. The emission from the group alone has a total luminosity of ~1x10^40 erg/s in the (0.5-5) keV band. Most of the luminosity can be attributed to the individual sources in the galaxies, and only ~2x10^39 erg/s is due to a gaseous component. However, we find that this component is also mostly associated with the individual galaxies of the Sextet, leaving little or no residual in a truly IGM component. The extremely low luminosity of the diffuse emission in Seyfert's Sextet might be related to its small total mass.
We revisit the problem of phantom behaviour of effective dark energy in scalar-tensor gravity. The main focus is on the properties of the functions defining the model. We find that models with the present phantom behavior can be made consistent with all constraints, but one of these functions must have rather contrived shape, and the initial data must be strongly fine-tuned. Also, the phantom stage must have begun fairly recently, at $z\lesssim 1$. All this disfavors the effective phantom behaviour in the scalar-tensor gravity.
We investigate how observations of strong lensing can be used to infer cosmological parameters, in particular the equation of state of dark energy. We focus on the growth of the critical lines of lensing clusters with the source redshift as this behaviour depends on the distance-redshift relation and is therefore cosmologically sensitive. Purely analytical approaches are generally insufficient because they rely on axisymmetric mass distributions and thus cannot take irregular critical curves into account. We devise a numerical method based on the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm: an elliptical generalization of the NFW density profile is used to fit a lens model to an observed configuration of giant luminous arcs while simultaneously optimizing the geometry. A semi-analytic method, which derives geometric parameters from critical points, is discussed as a faster alternative. We test the approaches on mock observations of gravitational lensing by a numerically simulated cluster. We find that no constraints can be derived from observations of individual clusters if no knowledge of the underlying mass distribution is assumed. Uncertainties are improved if a fixed lens model is used for a purely geometrical optimization, but the choice of a parametric model may produce strong biases.
While automatic detection of point sources in astronomical images has experienced a great degree of success, less effort has been directed towards the detection of extended and low-surface brightness features. At present, existing telescopes still rely on human expertise to reduce the raw data to usable images and then to analyse the images for non-pointlike objects. However, the next generation of radio telescopes will generate unprecedented volumes of data making manual data reduction and object extraction infeasible. Without developing new methods of automatic detection for extended and diffuse objects such as supernova remnants, bent-tailed galaxies, radio relics and halos, a wealth of scientifically important results will not be uncovered. In this paper we explore the response of the Circle Hough Transform to a representative sample of different extended circular or arc-like astronomical objects. We also examine the response of the Circle Hough Transform to input images containing noise alone and inputs including point sources.
The star formation rates in starburst galaxies are orders of magnitude higher than in local star-forming regions, and the origin of this difference is not well understood. We use sub-mm spectral line maps to characterize the physical conditions of the molecular gas in the luminous Galactic star-forming region W49A and compare them with the conditions in starburst galaxies. We probe the temperature and density structure of W49A using H_2CO and HCN line ratios over a 2'x2' (6.6x6.6 pc) field with an angular resolution of 15" (~0.8 pc) provided by the JCMT Spectral Legacy Survey. We analyze the rotation diagrams of lines with multiple transitions with corrections for optical depth and beam dilution, and estimate excitation temperatures and column densities. Comparing the observed line intensity ratios with non-LTE radiative transfer models, our results reveal an extended region (about 1'x1', equivalent to ~3x3 pc at the distance of W49A) of warm (> 100 K) and dense (>10^5 cm^-3) molecular gas, with a mass of 2x10^4 - 2x10^5 M_Sun (by applying abundances derived for other regions of massive star-formation). These temperatures and densities in W49A are comparable to those found in clouds near the center of the Milky Way and in starburst galaxies. The highly excited gas is likely to be heated via shocks from the stellar winds of embedded, O-type stars or alternatively due to UV irradiation, or possibly a combination of these two processes. Cosmic rays, X-ray irradiation and gas-grain collisional heating are less likely to be the source of the heating in the case of W49A.
In gravitationally stratified fluids, length scales are normally much greater in the horizontal direction than in the vertical one. When modelling these fluids it can be advantageous to use the hydrostatic approximation, which filters out vertically propagating sound waves and thus allows a greater timestep. We briefly review this approximation, which is commonplace in atmospheric physics, and compare it to other approximations used in astrophysics such as Boussinesq and anelastic, finding that it should be the best approximation to use in context such as radiative stellar zones, compact objects, stellar or planetary atmospheres and other contexts. We describe a finite-difference numerical scheme which uses this approximation, which includes magnetic fields.
We present Herschel/HIFI observations of fourteen water lines in W43-MM1, a massive protostellar object in the luminous star cluster-forming region W43. We analyze the gas dynamics from the line profiles using Herschel-HIFI observations (WISH-KP) of fourteen far-IR water lines (H2O, H217O, H218O), CS(11-10), and C18O(9-8) lines, and using our modeling of the continuum spectral energy distribution. As for lower mass protostellar objects, the molecular line profiles are a mix of emission and absorption, and can be decomposed into 'medium', and 'broad' velocity components. The broad component is the outflow associated with protostars of all masses. Our modeling shows that the remainder of the water profiles can be well fitted by an infalling and passively heated envelope, with highly supersonic turbulence varying from 2.2 km/s in the inner region to 3.5 km/s in the outer envelope. Also, W43-MM1 has a high accretion rate, between 4.0 x 10^{-4} and 4.0 x 10^{-2} \msun /yr, derived from the fast (0.4-2.9 km/s) infall observed. We estimate a lower mass limit of gaseous water of 0.11 \msun and total water luminosity of 1.5 \lsun (in the 14 lines presented here). The central hot core is detected with a water abundance of 1.4 x 10^{-4} while the water abundance for the outer envelope is 8 x10^{-8}. The latter value is higher than in other sources, most likely related to the high turbulence and the micro-shocks created by its dissipation. Examining water lines of various energies, we find that the turbulent velocity increases with the distance to the center. While not in clear disagreement with the competitive accretion scenario, this behavior is predicted by the turbulent core model. Moreover, the estimated accretion rate is high enough to overcome the expected radiation pressure.
Since the initial discovery of cometary charge exchange emission, more than 20 comets have been observed with a variety of X-ray and UV observatories. This observational sample offers a broad variety of comets, solar wind environments and observational conditions. It clearly demonstrates that solar wind charge exchange emission provides a wealth of diagnostics, which are visible as spatial, temporal, and spectral emission features. We review the possibilities and limitations of each of those in this contribution.
Recent polarimetric surveys of extragalactic radio sources (ERS) at frequencies \nu>1GHz are reviewed. By exploiting all the most relevant data on the polarized emission of ERS we study the frequency dependence of polarization properties of ERS between 1.4 and 86GHz. For flat-spectrum sources the median (mean) fractional polarization increases from 1.5% (2-2.5%) at 1.4GHz to 2.5-3% (3-3.5%) at \nu>10GHz. Steep-spectrum sources are typically more polarized, especially at high frequencies where Faraday depolarization is less relevant. As a general result, we do not find that the fractional polarization of ERS depends on the total flux density at high radio frequencies, i.e >20GHz. Moreover, in this frequency range, current data suggest a moderate increase of the fractional polarization of ERS with frequency. A formalism to estimate ERS number counts in polarization and the contribution of unresolved polarized ERS to angular power spectra at Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) frequencies is also developed and discussed. As a first application, we present original predictions for the Planck satellite mission. Our current results show that only a dozen polarized ERS will be detected by the Planck Low Frequency Instrument (LFI), and a few tens by the High Frequency Instrument (HFI). As for CMB power spectra, ERS should not be a strong contaminant to the CMB E-mode polarization at frequencies \nu>70GHz. On the contrary, they can become a relevant constraint for the detection of the cosmological B--mode polarization if the tensor-to-scalar ratio is <0.01.
The influence of the environment on gas surface density and star formation efficiency of cluster spiral galaxies is investigated. We extend previous work on radial profiles by a pixel-to pixel analysis looking for asymmetries due to environmental interactions. The star formation rate is derived from GALEX UV and Spitzer total infrared data. As in field galaxies, the star formation rate for most Virgo galaxies is approximately proportional to the molecular gas mass. Except for NGC 4438, the cluster environment does not affect the star formation efficiency with respect to the molecular gas. Gas truncation is not associated with major changes in the total gas surface density distribution of the inner disk of Virgo spiral galaxies. In three galaxies, possible increases in the molecular fraction and the star formation efficiency with respect to the total gas, of factors of 1.5 to 2, are observed on the windward side of the galactic disk. A significant increase of the star formation efficiency with respect to the molecular gas content on the windward side of ram pressure-stripped galaxies is not observed. The ram-pressure stripped extraplanar gas of 3 highly inclined spiral galaxies shows a depressed star formation efficiency with respect to the total gas, and one of them (NGC 4438) shows a depressed rate even with respect to the molecular gas. The interpretation is that stripped gas loses the gravitational confinement and associated pressure of the galactic disk, and the gas flow is diverging, so the gas density decreases and the star formation rate drops. However, the stripped extraplanar gas in one highly inclined galaxy (NGC 4569) shows a normal star formation efficiency with respect to the total gas. We propose this galaxy is different because it is observed long after peak pressure, and its extraplanar gas is now in a converging flow as it resettles back into the disk.
High-quality integrated radio profiles of some pulsars contain bifurcated, highly symmetric emission components (BECs). They are observed when our line of sight traverses through a split-fan shaped emission beam. It is shown that for oblique cuts through such a beam, the features appear asymmetric at nearly all frequencies, except from a single `frequency of symmetry' nu_sym, at which both peaks in the BEC have the same height. Around nu_sym the ratio of flux in the two peaks of a BEC evolves in a way resembling the multifrequency behaviour of J1012+5307. Because of the inherent asymmetry resulting from the oblique traverse of sightline, each minimum in double notches can be modelled independently. Such a composed model reproduces the double notches of B1929+10 if the fitted function is the microscopic beam of curvature radiation in the orthogonal polarisation mode. These results confirm our view that some of the double components in radio pulsar profiles directly reveal the microscopic nature of the emitted radiation beam as the microbeam of curvature radiation polarised orthogonally to the trajectory of electrons.
The accuracy and robustness of a simple method to estimate the total mass profile of a galaxy is tested using a sample of 65 cosmological zoom-simulations of individual galaxies. The method only requires information on the optical surface brightness and the projected velocity dispersion profiles and therefore can be applied even in case of poor observational data. In the simulated sample massive galaxies ($\sigma \simeq 200-400$ $\kms$) at redshift $z=0$ have almost isothermal rotation curves for broad range of radii (RMS $\simeq 5%$ for the circular speed deviations from a constant value over $0.5R_{\rm eff} < r < 3R_{\rm eff}$). For such galaxies the method recovers the unbiased value of the circular speed. The sample averaged deviation from the true circular speed is less than $\sim 1%$ with the scatter of $\simeq 5-8%$ (RMS) up to $R \simeq 5R_{\rm eff}$. Circular speed estimates of massive non-rotating simulated galaxies at higher redshifts ($z=1$ and $z=2$) are also almost unbiased and with the same scatter. For the least massive galaxies in the sample ($\sigma < 150$ $\kms$) at $z=0$ the RMS deviation is $\simeq 7-9%$ and the mean deviation is biased low by about $1-2%$. We also derive the circular velocity profile from the hydrostatic equilibrium (HE) equation for hot gas in the simulated galaxies. The accuracy of this estimate is about RMS $\simeq 4-5%$ for massive objects ($M > 6.5\times 10^{12} M_\odot$) and the HE estimate is biased low by $\simeq 3-4%$, which can be traced to the presence of gas motions. This implies that the simple mass estimate can be used to determine the mass of observed massive elliptical galaxies to an accuracy of $5-8 %$ and can be very useful for galaxy surveys.
We present results of a comprehensive analysis of the X-ray pulsar X Persei over the period 1996 to 2011, encompassing the quite low state and subsequent strong outburst activity. Using data from the RXTE and Swift observatories we detected several consecutive outbursts, during which the source luminosity increased by a factor of ~5 up to L_x~1.2x10^{35} erg/s. Previously the source was observed in a high state only once. The source spectrum in a standard energy band (4-25 keV) is independent of the flux change and can be described by a model that includes both thermal and non-thermal components. With the help of the INTEGRAL observatory data we registered the highly significant cyclotron absorption line in the source spectrum and, for the first time, significantly detected a hard X-ray emission from the pulsar up to ~160 keV. We also report drastic changes of the pulse period during the outburst activity: a long episode of spin-down was changed to spin-up with a rate of Pdot/P = -(3-5)x10^{-4} yr^{-1}, that is several times higher than previous rates of spin-up and spin-down. To search for a correlation between the X-ray and optical lightcurves we took data from the AAVSO International Database. No significant correlation between optical and X-ray fluxes at any time lag from dozens of days to years was found.
The LCDM cosmology offers a picture for galaxy formation that is broadly promising but difficult to reconcile with the evidence that environment has had strikingly little effect on the evolution of ellipticals and pure disk spiral galaxies. Reconciliation might be aided by adding to LCDM an evanescent component of matter with evolving mass and a fifth force large enough to aid early assembly of more nearly isolated protogalaxies. I present a simple illustration.
Presolar grains in meteorites and interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) carry non-solar isotopic signatures pointing to origins in supernovae, giant stars, and possibly other stellar sources. There have been suggestions that some of these grains condensed in the ejecta of classical nova outbursts, but the evidence is ambiguous. We report neon and helium compositions in particles captured on stratospheric collectors flown to sample materials from comets 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup and 55P/Tempel-Tuttle that point to condensation of their gas carriers in the ejecta of a neon (ONe) nova. The absence of detectable 3He in these particles indicates space exposure to solar wind (SW) irradiation of a few decades at most, consistent with origins in cometary dust streams. Measured 4He/20Ne, 20Ne/22Ne, 21Ne/22Ne and 20Ne/21Ne isotope ratios, and a low upper limit on 3He/4He, are in accord with calculations of nucleosynthesis in neon nova outbursts. Of these, the uniquely low 4He/20Ne and high 20Ne/22Ne ratios are the most diagnostic, reflecting the large predicted 20Ne abundances in the ejecta of such novae. The correspondence of measured Ne and He compositions in cometary matter with theoretical predictions is evidence for the presence of presolar grains from novae in the early solar system.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), and the Jansky Very Large Array (JVLA) have recently begun probing the Universe. Both provide the largest collecting area available at locations on a high dry site, endowing them with unparalleled potential for sensitive spectral line observations. Over the next few years, these telescopes will be joined by other telescopes to provide advances in maser science, including NOEMA and the LMT. Other instruments of note for maser science which may commence construction include the North American Array, the CCAT, and an enlarged worldwide VLB network outfitted to operate into the millimeter wavelength regime.
We have generated complementary halo mass estimates for all groups in the Galaxy And Mass Assembly Galaxy Group Catalogue (GAMA G3Cv1) using a modified caustic mass estimation algorithm, originally developed by Diaferio & Geller (1997). We calibrate the algorithm by applying it on a series of 9 GAMA mock galaxy light cones and investigate the effects of using different definitions for group centre and size. We select the set of parameters that provide median-unbiased mass estimates when tested on mocks, and generate mass estimates for the real group catalogue. We find that on average, the caustic mass estimates agree with dynamical mass estimates within a factor of 2 in 90.8 +/- 6.1% groups and compares equally well to velocity dispersion based mass estimates for both high and low multiplicity groups over the full range of masses probed by the G3Cv1.
Detailed non-LTE calculations for red supergiant stars are presented to investigate the influence of NLTE on the formation of atomic iron and titanium lines in the J-band. With their enormous brightness at J-band red supergiant stars are ideal probes of cosmic abundances. Recent LTE studies have found that metallicities accurate to 0.15 dex can be determined from medium resolution spectroscopy of individual red supergiants in galaxies as distant as 10 Mpc. The non-LTE results obtained in this investigation support these findings. Non-LTE abundance corrections for iron are smaller than 0.05 dex for effective temperatures between 3400K to 4200K and 0.1 dex at 4400K. For titanium the non-LTE abundance corrections vary smoothly between -0.4 dex and +0.2 dex as a function of effective temperature. For both elements, the corrections also depend on stellar gravity and metallicity. The physical reasons behind the non-LTE corrections and the consequences for extragalactic J-band abundance studies are discussed.
We remark on the existence of non-linearly realized conformal symmetries for scalar adiabatic perturbations in cosmology. These conformal symmetries are present for any cosmological background, beyond any slow-roll or quasi-de Sitter approximation. The dilatation transformation shifts the curvature perturbation by a constant, and corresponds to the well-known symmetry under spatial rescaling. We argue that the scalar sector is also invariant under special conformal transformations, which shift the curvature perturbation by a term linear in the spatial coordinates. We discuss whether these conformal symmetries can be extended to include tensor perturbations. Tensor modes introduce their own set of non-linearly realized symmetries. We identify an infinite set of large gauge transformations which maintain the transverse, traceless gauge condition, while shifting the tensor mode non-trivially.
We study a fermionic Dark Matter particle carrying magnetic dipole moment and analyze its impact on direct detection experiments. In particular we show that it can accommodate the DAMA, CoGeNT and CRESST experimental results. Assuming conservative bounds, this candidate is shown not to be ruled out by the CDMS, XENON and PICASSO experiments. We offer an analytic understanding of how the long-range interaction modifies the experimental allowed regions, in the cross section versus Dark Matter mass parameter space, with respect to the typically assumed contact interaction. Finally, in the context of a symmetric Dark Matter sector, we determine the associated thermal relic density, and further provide relevant constraints imposed by indirect searches and colliders.
We study spontaneous breakdown of chiral symmetry during the nonlinear evolution of the Tayler instability. We start with an initial stationary state of zero helicity. Within linearized perturbation calculations, helical perturbations of this initial state have the same growth rate for either sign of helicity. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of the fully nonlinear equations however shows that an infinitesimal excess of one sign of helicity in the initial perturbation gives rise to a saturated helical state. We further show that this symmetry-breaking can be described by weakly nonlinear finite amplitude equations with undetermined coefficients which can be deduced solely from symmetry consideration. By fitting solutions of the amplitude equations to data from DNS we further determine the coefficients of the amplitude equations.
A nonminimal coupling single scalar field theory, when transformed from its original Jordan frame to Einstein frame, can act like a minimal coupling one. Making use of this property, we investigate how a nonminimal coupling theory with scale-invariant power spectrum could be reconstructed from its minimal coupling counterpart, which can be applied in the early universe. Thanks to the coupling to gravity, the equation of state of our universe for a scale-invariant power spectrum can be relaxed, and the relation between the parameters in the action can be obtained. This approach also provides a means to address the Big-Bang puzzles and anisotropy problem in the nonminimal coupling model within Jordan frame. Due to the equivalence between the two frames, one may be able to find models that are free of the horizon, flatness, singularity as well as anisotropy problems.
We consider a phenomenological extension of the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) which incorporates non-minimal chaotic inflation, driven by a quadratic potential in conjunction with a linear term in the frame function. Inflation is followed by a Peccei-Quinn phase transition, based on renormalizable superpotential terms, which resolves the strong CP and mu problems of MSSM and provide masses lower than about 10^12 GeV for the right-handed (RH) (s)neutrinos. Baryogenesis occurs via non-thermal leptogenesis, realized by the out-of-equilibrium decay of the RH sneutrinos which are produced by the inflaton's decay. Confronting our scenario with the current observational data on the inflationary observables, the light neutrino masses, the baryon asymmetry of the universe and the gravitino limit on the reheat temperature, we constrain the strength of the gravitational coupling to rather large values (~45-2950) and the Dirac neutrino masses to values lower than about 10 GeV.
I present here a measurement of pi as determined for the largest observable circles. Intriguingly, the value of 16/5 asserted by the House of Representatives of the State of Indiana in 1897 is still viable, although strongly disfavored relative to 22/7, another popular value. The oft-used `small-circle' value of 3 is ruled out at greater than 5\sigma. We discuss connections with string theory, sterile neutrinos, and possibilities for (very large) lower limits to the size of the Universe.
We show that the free light scalar fields that may exist in the inflationary Universe can change the predictions of the hybrid inflation model. Possible signatures are discussed, which can be used to discriminate the sources of the spectrum.
In this article we have calculated the structure properties of a strange quark star in static model in the presence of a strong magnetic field using MIT bag model with a density dependent bag constant. To parameterize the density dependence of bag constant, we have used our results for the lowest order constrained variational calculation of the asymmetric nuclear matter. By calculating the equation of state of strange quark matter, we have shown that the pressure of this system increases by increasing both density and magnetic field. Finally, we have investigated the effect of density dependence of bag constant on the structure properties of strange quark star.
We consider the dynamics of a charged particle interacting with background electromagnetic field under the influence of linearized gravitational waves in the long wave-length and low-velocity limit. Following the prescription in \cite{speli}, the system is quantized and the Hamiltonian is then solved by using standard algebraic iterative methods. The solution is in conformity with the classical analysis and shows the possibility of tuning the frequency by changing the magnetic field to set up resonance.
We discuss opportunities that may arise from subjecting high-multiplicity events in relativistic heavy ion collisions to an analysis similar to the one used in cosmology for the study of fluctuations of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). To this end, we discuss examples of how pertinent features of heavy ion collisions including global characteristics, signatures of collective flow and event-wise fluctuations are visually represented in a Mollweide projection commonly used in CMB analysis, and how they are statistically analyzed in an expansion over spherical harmonic functions. If applied to the characterization of purely azimuthal dependent phenomena such as collective flow, the expansion coefficients of spherical harmonics are seen to contain redundancies compared to the set of harmonic flow coefficients commonly used in heavy ion collisions. Our exploratory study indicates, however, that these redundancies may offer novel opportunities for a detailed characterization of those event-wise fluctuations that remain after subtraction of the dominant collective flow signatures. By construction, the proposed approach allows also for the characterization of more complex collective phenomena like higher-order flow and other sources of fluctuations, and it may be extended to the characterization of phenomena of non-collective origin such as jets.
Within the theory of general relativity gravitational phenomena are usually attributed to the curvature of four-dimensional spacetime. In this context we are often confronted with the question of how the concept of ordinary physical three-dimensional space fits into this picture. In this work we present a simple and intuitive model of space for both the Schwarzschild spacetime and the de Sitter spacetime in which physical space is defined as a specified set of freely moving reference particles. Using a combination of orthonormal basis fields and the usual formalism in a coordinate basis we calculate the physical velocity field of these reference particles. Thus we obtain a vivid description of space in which space behaves like a river flowing radially toward the singularity in the Schwarzschild spacetime and radially toward infinity in the de Sitter spacetime. We also consider the effect of the river of space upon light rays and material particles and show that the river model of space provides an intuitive explanation for the behavior of light and particles at and beyond the event horizons associated with these spacetimes.
We study the sensitivity of the r-process abundance pattern to neutron capture rates along the rare earth region (A~150 to A~180). We introduce the concepts of large nuclear flow and flow saturation which determine the neutron capture rates that are influential in setting the rare earth abundances. We illustrate the value of the two concepts by considering high entropy conditions favorable for rare earth peak production and identifying important neutron capture rates among the rare earth isotopes. We also show how these rates influence nuclear flow and specific sections of the abundance pattern.
The symmetry energy contribution to the nuclear Equation of State (EoS) impacts various phenomena in nuclear astrophysics, nuclear structure, and nuclear reactions. Its determination is a key objective of contemporary nuclear physics with consequences for the understanding of dense matter within neutron stars. We examine the results of laboratory experiments that have provided initial constraints on the nuclear symmetry energy and its density dependence at and somewhat below normal nuclear matter density. Some of these constraints have been derived from properties of nuclei. Others have been derived from the nuclear response to electroweak and hadronic probes. We also examine the most frequently used theoretical models that predict the symmetry energy and its slope. By comparing existing constraints on the symmetry pressure to theories, we demonstrate how the contribution of the three-body force, an essential ingredient in neutron matter models, can be determined.
We report a non-detection, to a limiting magnitude of V = 18.4 (9), of the elusive entity commonly described as the Tooth Fairy. We review various physical models and conclude that follow-up observations must precede an interpretation of our result.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1204, contact, help (Access key information)
We present results from a new set of 3D general-relativistic hydrodynamic simulations of rotating iron core collapse. We assume octant symmetry and focus on axisymmetric collapse, bounce, the early postbounce evolution, and the associated gravitational wave (GW) and neutrino signals. We employ a finite-temperature nuclear equation of state, parameterized electron capture in the collapse phase, and a multi-species neutrino leakage scheme after bounce. The latter captures the important effects of deleptonization, neutrino cooling and heating and enables approximate predictions for the neutrino luminosities in the early evolution after core bounce. We consider 12-solar-mass and 40-solar-mass presupernova models and systematically study the effects of (i) rotation, (ii) progenitor structure, and (iii) postbounce neutrino leakage on dynamics, GW, and, neutrino signals. We demonstrate, that the GW signal of rapidly rotating core collapse is practically independent of progenitor mass and precollapse structure. Moreover, we show that the effects of neutrino leakage on the GW signal are strong only in nonrotating or slowly rotating models in which GW emission is not dominated by inner core dynamics. In rapidly rotating cores, core bounce of the centrifugally-deformed inner core excites the fundamental quadrupole pulsation mode of the nascent protoneutron star. The ensuing global oscillations (f~700-800 Hz) lead to pronounced oscillations in the GW signal and correlated strong variations in the rising luminosities of antineutrino and heavy-lepton neutrinos. We find these features in cores that collapse to protoneutron stars with spin periods <~ 2.5 ms and rotational energies sufficient to drive hyper-energetic core-collapse supernova explosions. Hence, joint GW + neutrino observations of a core collapse event could deliver strong evidence for or against rapid core rotation. [abridged]
The precise nature of spiral structure in galaxies remains uncertain. Recent studies suggest that spiral arms result from interactions between disks and satellite galaxies. Instead, leaving aside the grand bisymmetric spirals, here we consider the possibility that the multi-armed spiral features originate from density inhomogeneities orbiting within disks. Using high-resolution N-body simulations, we follow the motions of stars under the influence of gravity, and show that mass concentrations with properties similar to those of giant molecular clouds can induce the development of spiral arms through a process termed swing amplification. However, unlike in earlier work, we demonstrate that the eventual response of the disk can be highly non-linear, significantly modifying the formation and longevity of the resulting patterns. Contrary to expectations, ragged spiral structures can survive at least in a statistical sense long after the original perturbing influence has been removed. Our findings thus motivate a new interpretation of many phenomena, including disk heating, radial migration, and galaxy pattern speeds.
(Abridged) Present cosmological constraints and the absence of a direct detection and identification of any dark matter particle candidate leave room to the possibility that the dark sector of the Universe be actually more complex than it is normally assumed. In particular, more than one new fundamental particle could be responsible for the observed dark matter density in the Universe, and possible new interactions between dark energy and dark matter might characterize the dark sector. In the present work, we investigate the possibility that two dark matter particles exist in nature, with identical physical properties except for the sign of their coupling constant to dark energy. Extending previous works on similar scenarios, we study the evolution of the background cosmology as well as the growth of linear density perturbations for a wide range of parameters of such model. Interestingly, our results show how the simple assumption that dark matter particles carry a "charge" with respect to their interaction with the dark energy field allows for new long-range scalar forces of gravitational strength in the dark sector without conflicting with present observations both at the background and linear levels. Our scenario does not introduce new parameters with respect to the case of a single dark matter species for which such strong dark interactions have been already ruled out.
We use dark matter only and full hydrodynamical Constrained Local UniversE Simulations (CLUES) of the formation of the Local Group to study the density profile of subhaloes of the simulated Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies. We show that the Einasto model provides the best description of the subhaloes' density profile, as opposed to the more commonly used NFW profile or any generalisation of it. We further find that the Einasto shape parameter \nEin\ is strongly correlated with the total subhalo mass, pointing towards the notion of a non-universality of the subhaloes' density profile. Assuming now that the dSphs of our Galaxy thus follow the Einasto profile and using the maximum and minimum values of \nEin\ from our SPH simulations as a gauge, we can improve the observational constraints on the \Rmax-\Vmax\ pairs obtained for the brightest satellite galaxies of the Milky Way. When considering only the subhaloes with $-13.2\lesssim M_V\lesssim-8.8$, i.e. the range of luminosity of the classical dwarfs, we find that all our simulated objects are consistent with the observed dSphs if their haloes follow the Einasto model with $1.6\lesssim n_{\rm E} \lesssim5.3$. The numerically motivated Einasto profile for the observed dSphs as well as the observationally motivated magnitude cut for the simulated subhaloes will eliminate the "massive failures" problem and results in a perfect agreement with observations.
(Abridged) We use the combined data-sets of the Millennium I and II N-body cosmological simulations to revisit the impact of mergers in the growth of bulges in central galaxies in the LCDM scenario. To do so, we seed galaxies within the growing CDM haloes at each epoch using empirical relations to assign stellar and gaseous masses, and an analytical treatment to estimate the transfer of stellar mass to the bulge after a galaxy merger. Our results show that this model roughly reproduces the observed correlation between the bulge-to-total (B/T) mass ratio and stellar mass in present-day central galaxies as well as their observed demographics, although low-mass B/T < 0.1 (bulgeless) galaxies might be scarce relative to the observed abundance. In our merger-driven scenario, bulges have a composite stellar population made of (i) stars acquired from infalling satellites, (ii) stars transferred from the primary disc due to the strong merger-induced perturbations, and (iii) newly formed stars in starbursts triggered by mergers. We find that the first two are the main channels of mass assembly, with the first (second) one being dominant for massive (low- and intermediate mass) galaxies and creating large (small) bulges with a different (similar) stellar population to that of the inner disc. We associate the dominion of the first (second) channel to classical (pseudo) bulges, and compare the predicted fractions of these types to observations. We emphasize that our treatment does not include intrinsic secular processes in the disc as a mechanism of bulge formation. Interestingly, we find that the evolution of the stellar and gaseous contents of the satellite as it spirals towards the central galaxy is a key ingredient in setting the morphology of the remnant, and that a good match to observations of the morphological mixture occurs when this evolution proceeds closely to that of the central galaxy.
Small galaxies consisting entirely of population III (pop III) stars may form at high redshifts, and could constitute one of the best probes of such stars. Here, we explore the prospects of detecting gravitationally lensed pop III galaxies behind the galaxy cluster J0717.5+3745 (J0717) with both the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). By projecting simulated catalogs of pop III galaxies at z~7-15 through the cluster magnification maps, we estimate the lensed number counts as a function of flux detection threshold. We find that the ongoing HST survey CLASH, targeting a total of 25 galaxy clusters including J0717, potentially could detect a small number of pop III galaxies with intrinsic luminosities a factor of ~5 lower than those detectable in the deepest current HST images of unlensed fields. The situation for JWST is similar - relatively short JWST exposures of J0717 should be able to detect population III galaxies with intrinsic luminosities a factor of a few lower than those detectable even in ultra-deep JWST observations of unlensed fields, and in just a fraction of the exposure time spent on the latter. Galaxies in which as little at ~1e-3 of the baryons within the host halo have turned into pop III stars can in principle be detected this way. We also argue that the galaxy luminosity function at z=7-10 can be used to place upper limits on the typical star formation efficiencies of pop III galaxies, and present the constraints derived from current luminosity function measurements.
We use high spatial resolution maps of stellar mass and infrared flux of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) to calibrate a conversion between 3.6 and 4.5 micron fluxes and stellar mass, M_* = 10^{5.65} * F_{3.6}^{2.85} * F_{4.5}^{-1.85} * (D/0.05)^2 M_solar, where fluxes are in Jy and D is the luminosity distance to the source in Mpc, and to provide an approximate empirical estimate of the fractional internal uncertainty in M_* of 0.3*sqrt{N/10^6}, where N is the number of stars in the region. We find evidence that young stars and hot dust contaminate the measurements, but attempts to remove this contamination using data that is far superior than what is generally available for unresolved galaxies resulted in marginal gains in accuracy. The scatter among mass estimates for regions in the LMC is comparable to that found by previous investigators when modeling composite populations, and so we conclude that our simple conversion is as precise as possible for the data and models currently available. Our results allow for a reasonably bottom-heavy initial mass function, such as Salpeter or heavier, and moderately disfavor lighter versions such as a diet-Salpeter or Chabrier initial mass function.
In previous papers we discussed results from fully time-dependent radiative transfer models for core-collapse supernova (SN) ejecta, including the Type II-peculiar SN 1987A, the more "generic" SN II-Plateau, and more recently Type IIb/Ib/Ic SNe. Here we describe the modifications to our radiative modeling code, CMFGEN, which allowed those studies to be undertaken. The changes allow for time-dependent radiative transfer of SN ejecta in homologous expansion. In the modeling we treat the entire SN ejecta, from the innermost layer that does not fall back on the compact remnant out to the progenitor surface layers. From our non-LTE time-dependent line-blanketed synthetic spectra, we compute the bolometric and multi-band light curves: light curves and spectra are thus calculated simultaneously using the same physical processes and numerics. These upgrades, in conjunction with our previous modifications which allow the solution of the time dependent rate equations, will improve the modeling of SN spectra and light curves, and hence facilitate new insights into SN ejecta properties, the SN progenitors and the explosion mechanism(s). CMFGEN can now be applied to the modeling of all SN types
To examine the distribution of rotational rates for chips of asteroid 4 Vesta, lightcurve observation of seven V-type asteroids (2511 Patterson, 2640 Hallstorm, 2653 Principia, 2795 Lapage, 3307 Athabasca, 4147 Lennon, and 4977 Rauthgundis) were performed from fall 2003 to spring 2004. Distribution of spin rates of V-type main-belt asteroids from the past and our observations have three peaks. This result implies that age of catastrophic impact making Vesta family may be not as young as Karin and Iannini families but as old as Eos and Koronis families.
We present spatially resolved observations of the canonical transition disk object TW Hya at 8.74 {\mu}m, 11.66 {\mu}m, and 18.30 {\mu}m, obtained with the T-ReCS instrument on the Gemini telescope. These observations are a result of a novel observing mode at Gemini that enables speckle imaging. Using this technique, we image our target with short enough exposure times to achieve diffraction limited images. We use Fourier techniques to reduce our data, which allows high-precision calibration of the instrumental point spread function. Our observations span two epochs and we present evidence for temporal variability at 11.66 {\mu}m in the disk of TW Hya. We show that previous models of TW Hya's disk from the literature are incompatible with our observations, and construct a model to explain the discrepancies. We detect marginal asymmetry in our data, most significantly at the shortest wavelengths. To explain our data, we require a model that includes an optically thin inner disk extending from 0.02 to 3.9 AU, an optically thick ring representing the outer disk wall at 3.9 AU and extending to 4.6 AU, and a hotter-than-disk-equilibrium source of emission located at ~3.5 AU.
We observed the globular cluster NGC 6652 with Chandra for 47.5 ks, detecting six known X-ray sources, as well as five previously undetected X-ray sources. Source A (XB 1832-330) is a well-known bright low-mass X-ray binary (LXMB). The second brightest source, B, has a spectrum that fits well to either a power-law model (Gamma ~ 1.3) or an absorbed hot gas emission model (kT ~ 34 keV). Its unabsorbed 0.5-10 keV luminosity (L_X = 1.6+-0.1*10^34 erg/s) is suggestive of a neutron star primary; however, Source B exhibits unusual variability for a LMXB, varying by over an order of magnitude on timescales of ~ 100 s. Source C's spectrum contains a strong low-energy component below 1 keV. Its spectrum is well fit to a simplified magnetic cataclysmic variable (CV) model, thus the soft component may be explained by a hot polar cap of a magnetic CV. Source D has an average L_X (0.5-10 keV) ~ 9*10^32 erg/s, and its spectrum is well fit to a neutron star atmosphere model. This is indicative of a quiescent neutron star LXMB, suggesting Source D may be the third known LMXB in NGC 6652. Source E has L_X (0.5-10 keV) ~ 3*10^32 erg/s, while Source F has L_X (0.5-10 keV) ~ 1*10^32 erg/s. Their relatively hard X-ray spectra are well-fit by power-law or plasma emission models. Five newly detected fainter sources have luminosities between 1-5*10^31 erg/s. NGC 6652 has an unusually flat X-ray luminosity function compared to other globular clusters, which may be connected to its extremely high central density.
NGC 1097 is a nearby Seyfert 1 galaxy with a bright circumnuclear starburst ring, a strong large-scale bar and an active nucleus. We present a detailed study of the spatial variation of the far infrared (FIR) [CII]158um and [OI]63um lines and mid-infrared H2 emission lines as tracers of gas cooling, and of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) bands as tracers of the photoelectric heating, using Herschel-PACS, and Spitzer-IRS infrared spectral maps. We focus on the nucleus and the ring, and two star forming regions (Enuc N and Enuc S). We estimated a photoelectric gas heating efficiency ([CII]158um+[OI]63um)/PAH in the ring about 50% lower than in Enuc N and S. The average 11.3/7.7um PAH ratio is also lower in the ring, which may suggest a larger fraction of ionized PAHs, but no clear correlation with [CII]158{\mu}m/PAH(5.5 - 14um) is found. PAHs in the ring are responsible for a factor of two more [CII]158um and [OI]63um emission per unit mass than PAHs in the Enuc S. SED modeling indicates that at most 25% of the FIR power in the ring and Enuc S can come from high intensity photodissociation regions (PDRs), in which case G0 ~ 10^2.3 and nH ~ 10^3.5 cm^-3 in the ring. For these values of G0 and nH PDR models cannot reproduce the observed H2 emission. Much of the the H2 emission in the starburst ring could come from warm regions in the diffuse ISM that are heated by turbulent dissipation or shocks.
The RCW41 star-forming region is embedded within the Vela Molecular Ridge, hosting a massive stellar cluster surrounded by a conspicuous HII region. Understanding the role of interstellar magnetic fields and studying the newborn stellar population is crucial to build a consistent picture of the physical processes acting on this kind of environment. We have carried out a detailed study of the interstellar polarization toward RCW41, with data from an optical and near-infrared polarimetric survey. Additionally, deep near-infrared images from the NTT 3.5m telescope have been used to study the photometric properties of the embedded young stellar cluster, revealing several YSO's candidates. By using a set of pre-main sequence isochrones, a mean cluster age in the range 2.5 - 5.0 million years was determined, and evidence of sequential star formation were revealed. An abrupt decrease in R-band polarization degree is noticed toward the central ionized area, probably due to low grain alignment efficiency caused by the turbulent environment and/or weak intensity of magnetic fields. The distortion of magnetic field lines exhibit a dual behavior, with the mean orientation outside the area approximately following the borders of the star-forming region, and directed radially toward the cluster inside the ionized area, in agreement with simulations of expanding HII regions. The spectral dependence of polarization allowed a meaningful determination of the total-to-selective extinction ratio by fittings of the Serkowski relation. Furthermore, a large rotation of polarization angle as a function of wavelength is detected toward several embedded stars.
The formation of double and triple C-C bonds from the processing of pure c-C6H12 (cyclohexane) and mixed H2O:NH3:c-C6H12 (1:0.3:0.7) ices by highly-charged, and energetic ions (219 MeV O^{7+} and 632 MeV Ni^{24+}) is studied. The experiments simulate the physical chemistry induced by medium-mass and heavy-ion cosmic rays in interstellar ices analogs. The measurements were performed inside a high vacuum chamber at the heavy-ion accelerator GANIL (Grand Accel\'erat\'eur National d'Ions Lourds) in Caen, France. The gas samples were deposited onto a polished CsI substrate previously cooled to 13 K. In-situ analysis was performed by a Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry at different ion fluences. Dissociation cross section of cyclohexane and its half-life in astrophysical environments were determined. A comparison between spectra of bombarded ices and young stellar sources indicates that the initial composition of grains in theses environments should contain a mixture of H2O, NH3, CO (or CO2), simple alkanes, and CH3OH. Several species containing double or triple bounds were identified in the radiochemical products, such as hexene, cyclohexene, benzene, OCN-, CO, CO2, as well as several aliphatic and aromatic alkenes and alkynes. The results suggest an alternative scenario for the production of unsaturated hydrocarbons and possibly aromatic rings (via dehydrogenation processes) in interstellar ices induced by cosmic ray bombardment.
GRB 100418A is a long burst at z=0.624 without detection of any associated supernova (SN). Its lightcurves in both the prompt and afterglow phases are similar to GRB 060614, a nearby long GRB without an associated SN. We analyze the observational data of this event and discuss the possible origins of its multi-wavelength emission. We show that its joint lightcurve at 1 keV derived from Swift BAT and XRT observations is composed of two distinguished components. The first component, whose spectrum is extremely soft (\Gamma = 4.32), ends with a steep decay segment, indicating the internal origin of this component. The second component is a slowly-rising, broad bump which peaks at ~10^5 seconds post the BAT trigger. Assuming that the late bump is due to onset of the afterglow, we derive the initial Lorentz factor (Gamma_0) of the GRB fireball and find that it significantly deviates from the relation between the Gamma_0 and Eiso of typical GRBs. We also check whether it follows the same anti-correlation between X-ray luminosity and the break time observed in the shallow decay phase of many typical GRBs, which is usually regarded as a signal of late energy injection from the GRB central engine. However, we find that it does not obey this correlation. We propose that the late bump could be contributed by a two-component jet. We fit the second component with an off-axis jet model for a constant medium density and find the late bump can be represented by the model. The derived jet half-opening angle is 0.30 rad and the viewing angle is 0.315 rad. The medium density is 0.05 cm^-3, possibly suggesting that it may be from a merger of compact stars. The similarity between GRBs 060614 and 100418A may indicate that the two GRBs are from the same population and the late bump observed in the two GRBs may be a signal of a two-component jet powered by the GRB central engine.
We present results of a search for a supernova (SN) component associated with GRB 100418A at the redshift of 0.624. The field of GRB 100418A was observed with FOCAS on Subaru 8.2m telescope under a photometric condition (seeing 0.3"-0.4") on 2010 May 14 (UT). The date corresponds to 25.6 days after the burst trigger (15.8 days in the restframe). We did imaging observations in V, Rc, and Ic bands, and two hours of spectrophotometric observations. We got the resolved host galaxy image which elongated 1.6" (= 11 kpc) from north to south. No point source was detected on the host galaxy. The time variation of Rc-band magnitude shows that the afterglow of GRB 100418A has faded to Rc \sim > 24 without SN like rebrightening, when we compare our measurement to the reports in GCN circulars. We could not identify any SN feature such as broad emission-lines or bumps in our spectrum. Assuming the SN is fainter than the 3{\sigma} noise spectrum of our observation, we estimate the upper limit on the SN absolute magnitude MIc,obs > -17.2 in observer frame Ic-band. This magnitude is comparable to the faintest type Ic SNe. We also estimate host galaxy properties from the spectrum. The host galaxy of GRB 100418A is relatively massive (log M_{star}/M_{sun} = 9.54) compared to typical long GRB host galaxies, and has 12+log(O/H) = 8.75.
We report the discovery of 6.035GHz hydroxyl (OH) maser flares toward the massive star forming region IRAS18566+0408 (G37.55+0.20), which is the only region known to show periodic formaldehyde (4.8 GHz H2CO) and methanol (6.7 GHz CH3OH) maser flares. The observations were conducted between October 2008 and January 2010 with the 305m Arecibo Telescope in Puerto Rico. We detected two flare events, one in March 2009, and one in September to November 2009. The OH maser flares are not simultaneous with the H2CO flares, but may be correlated with CH3OH flares from a component at corresponding velocities. A possible correlated variability of OH and CH3OH masers in IRAS18566+0408 is consistent with a common excitation mechanism (IR pumping) as predicted by theory.
Recently, it has been observed the extreme metal-poor stars in the Galactic halo, which must be formed just after Pop III objects. On the other hand, the first gas clouds of mass $\sim 10^6 M_{\odot}$ are supposed to be formed at $ z \sim $ 10, 20, and 30 for the $1\sigma$, $2\sigma $ and $3\sigma$, where the density perturbations are assumed of the standard $\Lambda$CDM cosmology. If we could apply this gaussian distribution to the extreme small probability, the gas clouds would be formed at $ z \sim $40, 60, and 80 for the $4\sigma$, $6\sigma$, and $8\sigma$. The first gas clouds within our galaxy must be formed around $z\sim 40$. Even if the gas cloud is metal poor, there is a lot of possibility to form the planets around such stars. The first planetary systems could be formed within $\sim 6\times 10^7$ years after the Big Bang in the universe. Even in our galaxies, it could be formed within $\sim 1.7\times 10^8$ years. It is interesting to wait the observations of planets around metal-poor stars. For the panspermia theory, the origin of life could be expected in such systems.
The Carina Nebula represents one of the most massive galactic star forming regions and displays a high level of massive star feedback. We used SPIRE and PACS onboard of Herschel to map the full spatial extent of the clouds in the Carina Nebula complex at wavelengths between 70 and 500 micrometer. We determine color temperatures and column densities of the clouds in the complex. Our Herschel maps show that the clouds have a very complex and filamentary structure that is dominated by the radiation and wind feedback from the massive stars. In most locations, the column density of the clouds is N_H < 2x10^22 cm^-2; denser cloud structures are restricted to just a few locations. We find a clear large scale temperature gradient from 35-40 K in the central region to <20 K at the periphery and in the densest parts of individual pillars. The total mass of the clouds seen by Herschel in the central (1 deg radius) region is ~656000 M_sun. A simple radiative transfer model for the global spectral energy distribution suggests that the total mass of all the gas (including a warmer component that is not well traced by Herschel) is <=890000 M_sun. Despite the strong feedback from numerous massive stars that is going on since several million years, there are still several 10000 M_sun of cool cloud material present at column-densities sufficient for further star formation. Comparison of our total gas mass estimates to molecular cloud masses derived from CO line mapping suggests that as much as about 75% of all the gas is in atomic rather than molecular form.
We present estimates of initial spin periods, $P_0$, for radio pulsars associated with supernova remnants. By using the published data on 30 objects, we were able to derive a reliable estimate for the initial spin period, assuming standard magneto-dipole spin-down (braking index n=3), in many cases. Our set of estimates is still not sufficient to infer the exact shape of the initial period distribution. However, we show that a gaussian distribution with mean and deviation $\sim 0.1$ s is consistent with our results, while flat, wide distributions and very narrow ones are disfavored.
The recent availability of ESO's high-resolution spectrograph CRIRES offers now the opportunity to study numerous spectral features in the near-IR in intermediate-mass main-sequence and pre-main-sequence stars. High-resolution CRIRES spectra were obtained in three spectral regions, two regions around 1mu and one region around 1.57mu containing magnetically sensitive Fe I lines. The largest number of near-IR spectral features was detected and identified in the well-studied magnetic Ap star gamma Equ. Nearly 30% of the spectral lines in the Ap star HD154708, with one of the strongest magnetic fields known among the Ap stars of the order of 25kG, remain unidentified due to a lack of atomic data. Only very few lines belonging to the rare earth element group have been identified in both Ap stars. A number of spectral lines including the Ce III and Dy II lines appear magnetically split due to the presence of a strong magnetic field in their atmospheres. Variable behaviour of lines of the elements He, N, Mg, Si, and Fe over the rotation period in the spectra of HD101412 confirm our previous finding of variability in the optical region. Due to the very fast rotation of 51Oph, only a few spectral lines have been identified with certainty.
The evolution of chaotic motion in a galactic dynamical model with a disk, a dense nucleus and a flat biaxial dark halo component is investigated. Two cases are studied: (i) the case where the halo component is oblate and (ii) the case where a prolate halo is present. In both cases, numerical calculations show that the extent of the chaotic regions decreases exponentially as the scale-length of the dark halo increases. On the other hand, a linear relationship exists between the extent of the chaotic regions and the flatness parameter of the halo component. A linear relationship between the critical value of the angular momentum and the flatness parameter is also found. Some theoretical arguments to support the numerical outcomes are presented. An estimation of the degree of chaos is made by computing the Lyapunov Characteristic Exponents. Comparison with earlier work is also made.
We study the amplification of magnetic fields during the formation of primordial halos. The turbulence generated by gravitational infall motions during the formation of the first stars and galaxies can amplify magnetic fields very efficiently and on short timescales up to dynamically significant values. Using the Kazantsev theory, which describes the so-called small-scale dynamo - a magnetohydrodynamical process converting kinetic energy from turbulence into magnetic energy - we can then calculate the growth rate of the small-scale magnetic field. Our calculations are based on a detailed chemical network and we include non-ideal magnetohydrodynamical effects such as ambipolar diffusion and Ohmic dissipation. We follow the evolution of the magnetic field up to larger scales until saturation occurs on the Jeans scale. Assuming a weak magnetic seed field generated by the Biermann battery process, both Burgers and Kolmogorov turbulence lead to saturation within a rather small density range. Such fields are likely to become relevant after the formation of a protostellar disk and, thus, could influence the formation of the first stars and galaxies in the Universe.
The development of multi-layer optics which allow to focus photons up to 100 keV and more promises an enormous jump in sensitivity in the hard X-ray energy band. This technology is already planned to be exploited by future missions dedicated to spectroscopy and imaging at energies >10 keV, e.g. Astro-H and NuSTAR. Nevertheless, our understanding of the hard X-ray sky would greatly benefit from carrying out contemporaneous polarimetric measurements, because the study of hard spectral tails and of polarized emission often are two complementary diagnostics of the same non-thermal and acceleration processes. At energies above a few tens of keV, the preferred technique to detect polarization involves the determination of photon directions after a Compton scattering. Many authors have asserted that stacked detectors with imaging capabilities can be exploited for this purpose. If it is possible to discriminate those events which initially interact in the first detector by Compton scattering and are subsequently absorbed by the second layer, the direction of scattering is singled out from the hit pixels in the two detectors. In this paper we give the first detailed discussion of the sensitivity of such a generic design to the X-ray polarization. The efficiency and the modulation factor are calculated analytically from the geometry of the instruments and then compared with the performance as derived by means of Geant4 Monte Carlo simulations.
Trans-Neptunian objects (TNO) represent the leftovers of the formation of the Solar System. Their physical properties provide constraints to the models of formation and evolution of the various dynamical classes of objects in the outer Solar System. Based on a sample of 19 classical TNOs we determine radiometric sizes, geometric albedos and beaming parameters. Our sample is composed of both dynamically hot and cold classicals. We study the correlations of diameter and albedo of these two subsamples with each other and with orbital parameters, spectral slopes and colors. We have done three-band photometric observations with Herschel/PACS and we use a consistent method for data reduction and aperture photometry of this sample to obtain monochromatic flux densities at 70.0, 100.0 and 160.0 \mu m. Additionally, we use Spitzer/MIPS flux densities at 23.68 and 71.42 \mu m when available, and we present new Spitzer flux densities of eight targets. We derive diameters and albedos with the near-Earth asteroid thermal model (NEATM). As auxiliary data we use reexamined absolute visual magnitudes from the literature and data bases, part of which have been obtained by ground based programs in support of our Herschel key program. We have determined for the first time radiometric sizes and albedos of eight classical TNOs, and refined previous size and albedo estimates or limits of 11 other classicals. The new size estimates of 2002 MS4 and 120347 Salacia indicate that they are among the 10 largest TNOs known. Our new results confirm the recent findings that there are very diverse albedos among the classical TNOs and that cold classicals possess a high average albedo (0.17 +/- 0.04). Diameters of classical TNOs strongly correlate with orbital inclination in our sample. We also determine the bulk densities of six binary TNOs.
Here I present a review of the work done on the presence and effects of chaos in elliptical galaxies plus some recent results we obtained on this subject. The fact that important fractions of the orbits that arise in potentials adequate to represent elliptical galaxies are chaotic is nowadays undeniable. Alternatively, it has been difficult to build selfconsistent models of elliptical galaxies that include significant fractions of chaotic orbits and, at the same time, are stable. That is specially true for cuspy models of elliptical galaxies which seem to best represent real galaxies. I argue here that there is no physical impediment to build such models and that the difficulty lies in the method of Schwarzschild, widely used to obtain such models. Actually, I show that there is no problem in obtaining selfconsistent models of elliptical galaxies, even cuspy ones, that contain very high fractions of chaotic orbits and are, nevertheless, highly stable over time intervals of the order of a Hubble time.
We present a time-resolved spectral analysis of 51 long and 11 short bright GRBs observed with the {\em Femri}/GBM, paying special attention to $E_{\rm p}$ evolution within a same burst. Among 8 single-pulse long GRBs, 5 show hard-to-soft evolution, while 3 show intensity-tracking. The multi-pulse long GRBs have more complicated patterns. Among the GRBs whose time-resolved spectrum is available for the first pulse, almost half (15/32 GRBs) show clear hard-to-soft evolution, and the other half (17/32 GRBs) show clear intensity-tracking. Later pulses typically show the tracking behavior, although a hard-to-soft evolution pattern was identified in the 2nd pulse of 2 GRBs whose pulses are well separated. Statistically, the hard-to-soft evolution pulses tend to be more asymmetric than the intensity-tracking ones, with a steeper rising wing than the falling wing. Short GRBs have $E_{\rm p}$ tracking intensity exclusively with the 16ms time resolution analysis. We performed a simulation analysis, and suggest that at least for some bursts, the late intensity-tracking pulses could be a consequence of overlapping hard-to-soft pulses. However, the fact that the intensity-tracking pattern exists in the first pulse of multi-pulse long GRBs and some single-pulse GRBs suggest that intensity tracking is an independent component, which may operate in some late pulses as well. For the GRBs with measured redshifts, we present a time-resolved $E_{\rm p}-L_{\gamma, \rm iso}$ correlation analysis and show that the scatter of the correlation is comparable to that of the global Amati/Yonetoku relation. We discuss the predictions of various radiation models regarding $E_{\rm p}$ evolution, as well as the possibility of a precession jet in GRBs. It seems that the data pose great challenge to all these models, and hold the key to unveil the physics of GRB prompt emission.
We investigate the stability of gravitational accretion of an ideal gas onto a compact object moving through a uniform medium at Mach 3. Previous three-dimensional simulations have shown that such accretion is not stable, and that strong rotational 'disk-like' flows are generated and accreted on short time scales. We re-address this problem using overset spherical grids that provide a factor of seven improvement in spatial resolution over previous simulations. With our higher spatial resolution we found these 3D accretion flows remained remarkably axisymmetric. We examined two cases of accretion with different sized accretors. The larger accretor produced very steady flow, with the mass accretion rate varying by less than 0.02% over 30 flow times. The smaller accretor exhibited an axisymmetric breathing mode that modulated the mass accretion rate by a constant 20%. Nonetheless, the flow remained highly axisymmetric with only negligible accretion of angular momentum in both cases.
We investigate the nature of 48 low-level stellar overdensities (from Froebrich, Scholz, and Raftery catalogue - FSR07) projected towards the Galactic anticentre and derive fundamental parameters for the confirmed clusters, thus improving the open cluster (OC) census in that direction. Parameters are derived with field-star decontaminated photometry, colour-magnitude filters and stellar radial density profiles. Among the 48 targets, we identified 18 star clusters, 6 previously studied OCs, and 7 probable clusters that require deeper photometry to establish the nature. We discovered 7 new clusters, 6 of them forming an association of clusters with BPI 14, FSR 777, Kronberger 1, and Stock 8 in the region of the nebula IC 417 and related to the Aur OB2 association, and one embedded in the nebula Sh2-229. We also derive parameters for these three non-FSR07 clusters, because they are important in determining the structure of the Galactic anticentre. Thus, 58 objects are analysed in this work and we could derive fundamental parameters for 28 of them. The scenario in the IC 417 star forming region is consistent with a sequential event. FSR 888 and FSR 890 are embedded in Sh2-249 within the Gem OB1 association. According to the distance derived for these clusters and those in the association of clusters, both Aur OB2 and Gem OB1 are located in the Perseus arm.
It is widely accepted that solar active regions including sunspots are formed by the emerging magnetic flux from the deep convection zone. In previous numerical simulations, we found that the horizontal divergent flow (HDF) occurs before the flux emergence at the photospheric height. This Paper reports the HDF detection prior to the flux emergence of NOAA AR 11081, which is located away from the disk center. We use SDO/HMI data to study the temporal changes of the Doppler and magnetic patterns from those of the reference quiet Sun. As a result, the HDF appearance is found to come before the flux emergence by about 100 minutes. Also, the horizontal speed of the HDF during this time gap is estimated to be 0.6 to 1.5 km s^-1, up to 2.3 km s^-1. The HDF is caused by the plasma escaping horizontally from the rising magnetic flux. And the interval between the HDF and the flux emergence may reflect the latency during which the magnetic flux beneath the solar surface is waiting for the instability onset to the further emergence. Moreover, SMART Halpha images show that the chromospheric plages appear about 14 min later, located co-spatial with the photospheric pores. This indicates that the plages are caused by plasma flowing down along the magnetic fields that connect the pores at their footpoints. One importance of observing the HDF may be the possibility to predict the sunspot appearances that occur in several hours.
Recent isotopic studies of Martian meteorites by Dauphas & Pourmond (2011) have established that large (~ 3000 km radius) planetary embryos existed in the solar nebula at the same time that chondrules - millimeter-sized igneous inclusions found in meteorites - were forming. We model the formation of chondrules by passage through bow shocks around such a planetary embryo on an eccentric orbit. We numerically model the hydrodynamics of the flow, and find that such large bodies retain an atmosphere, with Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities allowing mixing of this atmosphere with the gas and particles flowing past the embryo. We calculate the trajectories of chondrules flowing past the body, and find that they are not accreted by the protoplanet, but may instead flow through volatiles outgassed from the planet's magma ocean. In contrast, chondrules are accreted onto smaller planetesimals. We calculate the thermal histories of chondrules passing through the bow shock. We find that peak temperatures and cooling rates are consistent with the formation of the dominant, porphyritic texture of most chondrules, assuming a modest enhancement above the likely solar nebula average value of chondrule densities (by a factor of 10), attributable to settling of chondrule precursors to the midplane of the disk or turbulent concentration. We calculate the rate at which a planetary embryo's eccentricity is damped and conclude that a single planetary embryo scattered into an eccentric orbit can, over ~ 10e5 years, produce ~ 10e24 g of chondrules. In principle, a small number (1-10) of eccentric planetary embryos can melt the observed mass of chondrules in a manner consistent with all known constraints.
We considered the effects of convection on the radiatively inefficient accretion flows (RIAF) in the presence of resistivity and toroidal magnetic field. We discussed the effects of convection on transports of angular momentum and energy. We established two cases for the resistive and magnetized RIAFs with convection: assuming the convection parameter as a free parameter and using mixing-length theory to calculate convection parameter. A self-similar method was used to solve the integrated equations that govern the behavior of the presented model. The solutions showed that the accretion and rotational velocities decrease by adding the convection parameter, while the sound speed increases. Moreover, by using mixing-length theory to calculate convection parameter, we found that the convection can be important in RIAFs with magnetic field and resistivity.
The lunar sodium tail extends long distances due to radiation pressure on sodium atoms in the lunar exosphere. Our earlier observations measured the average radial velocity of sodium atoms moving down the lunar tail beyond Earth (i.e., near the anti-lunar point) to be $\sim 12.5$ km/s. Here we use the Wisconsin H-alpha Mapper to obtain the first kinematically resolved maps of the intensity and velocity distribution of this emission over a $15 \times 15 \deg$ region on the sky near the anti-lunar point. We present both spatially and spectrally resolved observations obtained over four nights bracketing new Moon in October 2007. The spatial distribution of the sodium atoms is elongated along the ecliptic with the location of the peak intensity drifting $3 \deg$ east along the ecliptic per night. Preliminary modeling results suggest the spatial and velocity distributions in the sodium exotail are sensitive to the near surface lunar sodium velocity distribution. Future observations of this sort along with detailed modeling offer new opportunities to describe the time history of lunar surface sputtering over several days.
We study the non-Gaussian features in single-field slow-roll inflationary scenario where inflation is preceded by a radiation era. In such a scenario both bispectrum and trispectrum non-Gaussianities are enhanced. Interestingly, the trispectrum in this scenario does not depend up on the slow-roll parameters and thus $\tau_{NL}$ is larger than $f_{NL}$ which can be a signature of such a pre-inflationary radiation era.
While space-based telescopes have had a part to play ultimately I feel that it is telescopes like myself that have contributed the most to pushing the boundaries of our knowledge. With current advances in optical engineering we have the ability to create segmented mirrors of considerable size. The scientific possibilities of a single 100m reflecting telescope are considerable, for example, allowing for the detection of biological components in exoplanet atmospheres. One such project was OWL, a project very close to my heart and one that was sadly cancelled before it even began. In light of the breakthroughs that such an instrument could have given the community I recommend the cancellation of the OWL to be reconsidered and for funding to be reinstated to the project.
We present a family of spherically symmetric multi-horizon spacetimes with a vacuum dark fluid, associated with a time-dependent and spatially inhomogeneous cosmological term. The vacuum dark fluid is defined in a model-independent way by the symmetry of its stress-energy tensor, i.e., its invariance under Lorentz boosts in a distinguished spatial direction ($p_r=-\rho$ for spherical symmetry), which makes the dark fluid essentially anisotropic and allows its density to evolve. The related cosmological models belong to the Lemaitre class of models with anisotropic fluids and describe a universe with several scales of vacuum energy related to phase transitions during its evolution. The typical behavior of solutions and the number of spacetime horizons are determined by the number of vacuum scales. We study in detail a model with three vacuum scales: GUT, QCD and that responsible for the present accelerated expansion. The model parameters are fixed by the observational data and by analyticity and causality conditions. We find that our Universe has three horizons. During the first inflation the Universe enters a T-region which makes the expansion irreversible. After the second phase transition at the QCD scale the Universe enters an R-region, where for a long time its geometry remains almost pseudo-Euclidean. After crossing the third horizon related to the present vacuum density, the Universe should enter the next T-region with inevitable expansion.
We investigate the plausibility of some models emerging from an algorithm devised to generate a one-parameter family of interior solutions for the Einstein equations. It is explored how their physical variables change as the family-parameter varies. The models studied correspond to anisotropic spherical matter configurations having a non local equation of state. This particular type of equation of state with no causality problems provides, at a given point, the radial pressure not only as a function of the density but as a functional of the enclosed matter distribution. We have found that there are several model-independent tendencies as the parameter increases: the equation of state tends to be stiffer and the total mass becomes half of its external radius. Profiting from the concept of cracking of materials in General Relativity, we obtain that those models become more stable as the family parameter increases.
We construct a cosmological model which is physically reasonable, mathematically tractable, and extends the study of CDM models to the case where the equations of state (EoS) for matter and dark energy (DE) vary with time. It is based on the assumptions of (i) flatness, (ii) validity of general relativity, (iii) the presence of a DE component that varies between two asymptotic values, (iv) the matter of the universe smoothly evolves from an initial radiation stage - or a barotropic perfect fluid - to a phase where it behaves as cosmological dust at late times. The model approximates the CDM ones for small $z$ but significantly differ from them for large $z$. We focus our attention on how the evolving EoS for matter and DE can modify the CDM paradigm. We discuss a number of physical scenarios. One of them includes, as a particular case, the so-called generalized Chaplygin gas models where DE evolves from non-relativistic dust. Another kind of models shows that the current accelerated expansion is compatible with a DE that behaves like pressureless dust at late times. We also find that a universe with variable DE can go from decelerated to accelerated expansion, and vice versa, several times.
We show that the gamma ray spectrum observed with the HESS array of Cherenkov telescopes coming from the Galactic Center (GC) region and identified with the source HESS J1745-290, is well fitted by the secondary photons coming from dark matter (DM) annihilation over a diffuse power-law background. The amount of photons and morphology of the signal localized within a region of few parsecs, require compressed DM profiles as those resulting from baryonic contraction, which offer $\sim 10^3$ enhancements in the signal over DM alone simulations. The fitted background from HESS data is consistent with recent Fermi-LAT observations of the same region.
We use latest data from solar system planetary orbital motions to put constraints on some Galileon-induced precessional effects.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1204, contact, help (Access key information)
The analysis of the physical properties of low-redshift Ly$\alpha$ emitters (LAEs) can provide clues in the study of their high-redshift analogues. At $z \sim 0.3$, LAEs are bright enough to be detected over almost the entire electromagnetic spectrum and it is possible to carry out a more precise and complete study than at higher redshifts. In this study, we examine the UV and IR emission, dust attenuation, SFR and morphology of a sample of 23 GALEX-discovered star-forming (SF) LAEs at $z \sim 0.3$ with direct UV (GALEX), optical (ACS) and FIR (PACS and MIPS) data. Using the same UV and IR limiting luminosities, we find that LAEs at $z\sim 0.3$ tend to be less dusty, have slightly higher total SFRs, have bluer UV continuum slopes, and are much smaller than other galaxies that do not exhibit Ly$\alpha$ emission in their spectrum (non-LAEs). These results suggest that at $z \sim 0.3$ Ly$\alpha$ photons tend to escape from small galaxies with low dust attenuation. Regarding their morphology, LAEs belong to Irr/merger classes, unlike non-LAEs. Size and morphology represent the most noticeable difference between LAEs and non-LAEs at $z \sim 0.3$. Furthermore, the comparison of our results with those obtained at higher redshifts indicates that either the Ly$\alpha$ technique picks up different kind of galaxies at different redshifts or that the physical properties of LAEs are evolving with redshift.
H2D+ is a primary ion which dominates the gas-phase chemistry of cold dense gas. Therefore it is hailed as a unique tool in probing the earliest, prestellar phase of star formation. Observationally, its abundance and distribution is however just beginning to be understood in low-mass prestellar and cluster-forming cores. In high mass star forming regions, H2D+ has been detected only in two cores, and its spatial distribution remains unknown. Here we present the first map of the 372 GHz ortho-H2D+ and N2H+ 4-3 transition in the DR21 filament of Cygnus-X with the JCMT, and N2D+ 3--2 and dust continuum with the SMA. We have discovered five very extended (<= 34000 AU diameter) weak structures in H2D+ in the vicinity of, but distinctly offset from embedded protostars. More surprisingly, the H2D+ peak is not associated with either a dust continuum or N2D+ peak. We have therefore uncovered extended massive cold dense gas that was undetected with previous molecular line and dust continuum surveys of the region. This work also shows that our picture of the structure of cores is too simplistic for cluster forming cores and needs to be refined: neither dust continuum with existing capabilities, nor emission in tracers like N2D+ can provide a complete census of the total prestellar gas in such regions. Sensitive H2D+ mapping of the entire DR21 filament is likely to discover more of such cold quiescent gas reservoirs in an otherwise active high mass star-forming region.
We present a dust analysis of Andromeda (M31), using Herschel images sampling the entire far-infrared peak (100-500 micron) observed as part of the HELGA survey. We fit a modified-blackbody model to ~4000 quasi-independant pixels and find that a variable dust-emissivity index (beta) is required to adequately fit the data. We find no significant long-wavelength excess above this model which would suggest the presence of a cold dust component. The gas-to-dust ratio has an exponential dependence with radius, increasing from ~20 in the centre to ~70 in the star-forming ring at 10kpc. The gas-to-dust gradient is consistent with the metallicity gradient if a constant fraction of metals is taken up by the dust grains. In the main 10kpc star-forming ring an average beta of ~1.9 is determined, in good agreement with values determined for the Milky Way. However, in contrast to the Milky Way, we find significant radial variations in beta, which increases from 1.9 at 10kpc to a peak value of ~2.5 at a radius of 3.1kpc and then decreases to 1.7 in the centre of the galaxy. The dust temperature is fairly constant in the 10kpc ring with values between 17-20K, but increases strongly in the bulge to values around 30K. In the inner 3.1kpc we find the dust temperature is highly correlated with the 3.6 micron flux, suggesting the old stars in the bulge are the dominant source of dust heating. At radii greater than 3.1kpc there is a weak correlation between the star formation rate and dust temperature. We were unable to detect any `dark gas', possibly due to the gas mass being largely dominated by the atomic component or line-of-sight averaging affects. We obtained an estimate of the CO X-factor by minimising the dispersion in the gas-to-dust ratio obtaining a value of (1.9+/-0.4)x10^20 cm^-2 [K kms^-1]^-1 (or expressed as alpha(CO) = 4.1+/-0.9 Msun pc^-2 [K kms^-1]^-1).
We present a method that uses observations of galaxies to simultaneously constrain cosmological parameters and the galaxy-dark matter connection (aka halo occupation statistics). The latter describes how galaxies are distributed over dark matter haloes, and is an imprint of the poorly understood physics of galaxy formation. A generic problem of using galaxies to constrain cosmology is that galaxies are a biased tracer of the mass distribution, and this bias is generally unknown. The great advantage of simultaneously constraining cosmology and halo occupation statistics is that this effectively allows cosmological constraints marginalized over the uncertainties regarding galaxy bias. Not only that, it also yields constraints on the galaxy-dark matter connection, this time properly marginalized over cosmology, which is of great value to inform theoretical models of galaxy formation. We use a combination of the analytical halo model and the conditional luminosity function to describe the galaxy-dark matter connection, which we use to model the abundance, clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing properties of the galaxy population. We use a Fisher matrix analysis to gauge the complementarity of these different observables, and present some preliminary results from an analysis based on data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Our results are complementary to and perfectly consistent with the results from the 7 year data release of the WMAP mission, strengthening the case for a true 'concordance' cosmology.
The detailed abundances of 23 elements in nine bright RGB stars in the Carina dSph are presented based on high resolution spectra gathered at the VLT and Magellan telescopes. A spherical model atmospheres analysis is applied using standard methods to spectra ranging from 380 to 680 nm. The stars in this analysis range from -2.9 < [Fe/H] < -1.3, and adopting the ages determined by Lemasle et al. (2012), we are able to examine the chemical evolution of Carina's old and intermediate-aged populations. One of the main results from this work is the evidence for inhomogeneous mixing in Carina; a large dispersion in [Mg/Fe] indicates poor mixing in the old population, an offset in the [alpha/Fe] ratios between the old and intermediate-aged populations (when examined with previously published results) suggests that the second star formation event occurred in alpha-enriched gas, and one star, Car-612, seems to have formed in a pocket enhanced in SN Ia/II products. This latter star provides the first direct link between the formation of stars with enhanced SN Ia/II ratios in dwarf galaxies to those found in the outer Galactic halo (Ivans et al. 2003). Another important result is the potential evidence for SN II driven winds. We show that the very metal-poor stars in Carina have not been enhanced in AGB or SN Ia products, and therefore their very low ratios of [Sr/Ba] suggests the loss of contributions from the early SNe II. Low ratios of [Na/Fe], [Mn/Fe], and [Cr/Fe] in two of these stars support this scenario, with additional evidence from the low [Zn/Fe] upper limit for one star. It is interesting that the chemistry of the metal-poor stars in Carina is not similar to those in the Galaxy, most of the other dSphs, or the UFDs, and suggests that Carina may be at the critical mass where some chemical enrichment events are lost through SN II driven winds.
We have carried out a search for 18-cm OH megamaser (OHM) emission with the Green Bank Telescope. The targeted galaxies comprise a sample of 121 ULIRGs at 0.09<z<1.5, making this the first large, systematic search for OHMs at z>0.25. Nine new detections of OHMs are reported, all at redshifts z<0.25. For the remainder of the galaxies, observations constrain the upper limit on OH emission; this rules out OHMs of moderate brightness (L_OH > 10^3 L_sun) for 26% of the sample, and extremely bright OHM emission (L_OH > 10^4 L_sun) for 73% of the sample. Losses from RFI result in the OHM detection fraction being significantly lower than expected for galaxies with L_IR >10^12 L_sun. The new OHM detections are used to calculate an updated OH luminosity function, with \Phi[L]\simL_OH^{-0.66}; this slope is in agreement with previous results. Non-detections of OHMs in the COSMOS field constrain the predicted sky density of OHMs; the results are consistent with a galaxy merger rate evolving as (1+z)^m, where m<6.
Whether a correlation exists between the radio and gamma-ray flux densities of blazars is a long-standing question, and one that is difficult to answer confidently because of various observational biases which may either dilute or apparently enhance any intrinsic correlation between radio and gamma-ray luminosities. We introduce a novel method of data randomization to evaluate quantitatively the effect of these biases and to assess the intrinsic significance of an apparent correlation between radio and gamma-ray flux densities of blazars. The novelty of the method lies in a combination of data randomization in luminosity space (to ensure that the randomized data are intrinsically, and not just apparently, uncorrelated) and significance assessment in flux space (to explicitly avoid Malmquist bias and automatically account for the limited dynamical range in both frequencies). The method is applicable even to small samples that are not selected with strict statistical criteria. For larger samples we describe a variation of the method in which the sample is split in redshift bins, and the randomization is applied in each bin individually; this variation is designed to yield the equivalent to luminosity-function sampling of the underlying population in the limit of very large, statistically complete samples. We show that for a smaller number of redshift bins, the method yields a worse significance, and in this way it is conservative in that it does not assign a stronger, artificially enhanced significance. We demonstrate how our test performs as a function of number of sources, strength of correlation, and number of redshift bins used, and we show that while our test is robust against common-distance biases and associated false positives for uncorrelated data, it retains the power of other methods in rejecting the null hypothesis of no correlation for correlated data.
AGN outflows are the heat given up when gas in a galaxy evolves towards thermodynamic equilibrium. Indeed, while AGN feedback regulates the growth of massive galaxies, its origins can be understood as the spontaneous thermodynamic process which ensures that the (Gibbs) free energy of the system always decreases, enabling the galaxy to reach a more energetically favourable state. In particular, it is shown that feedback heating processes will be favoured whenever the hot atmosphere of a galaxy would effectively gain energy as a result of cooling. For example, as the hot atmosphere of a galaxy cools and contracts, the work done by gravity will be thermalised, with a fraction of the gas also being captured by stars and the supermassive black hole at the centre of the galaxy. If this gain of energy exceeds the loss of energy that occurs when cooling gas drops out of the atmosphere, the Gibbs free energy of the system would increase overall. Since this is energetically unfavourable, feedback heating is initiated which acts to reduce the net cooling rate of the atmosphere, thereby preventing any build-up of energy. The Gibbs free energy can also decrease in the absence of feedback heating, but only if the loss of energy due to mass dropping out of the atmosphere exceeds the gains of energy described above. Therefore, to ensure that the Gibbs free energy always decreases, a galaxy will necessarily flip between these two states, experiencing episodes of heating and cooling. Due to the close long-term balance between heating and cooling, the gas in a galaxy will evolve quasi-statically towards thermodynamic equilibrium, which has the observable appearance of galaxy growth being regulated by AGN feedback. The same mechanism also provides an explanation for why strong AGN feedback occurs more frequently in cool-core galaxy clusters than in non cool-core clusters.
We combine the galaxy formation model GALFORM with the Photon Dominated Region code UCL_PDR to study the emission from the rotational transitions of 12CO (CO) in galaxies from z=0 to z=6 in the LambdaCDM framework. GALFORM is used to predict the molecular (H_2) and atomic hydrogen (HI) gas contents of galaxies using the pressure-based empirical star formation relation of Blitz & Rosolowsky. From the predicted H_2 mass and the conditions in the interstellar medium, we estimate the CO emission by applying the UCL_PDR model to each galaxy. We find that deviations from the Milky-Way CO-H_2 conversion factor come mainly from variations in metallicity, and in the average gas and star formation rate surface densities. In the local universe, the model predicts a CO(1-0) luminosity function (LF), CO-to-total infrared (IR) luminosity ratios for multiple CO lines and a CO spectral line energy distribution (SLED) which are in good agreement with observations of luminous and ultra-luminous IR galaxies. At high redshifts, the predicted CO SLED of the brightest IR galaxies reproduces the shape and normalization of the observed CO SLED. The model predicts little evolution in the CO-to-IR luminosity ratio for different CO transitions, in good agreement with observations up to z~5. We use this new hybrid model to explore the potential of using colour selected samples of high-redshift star-forming galaxies to characterise the evolution of the cold gas mass in galaxies through observations with the Atacama Large Millimeter Array.
We evaluate the prompt observational signatures of the merger between a massive close-in planet (a `hot Jupiter') and its host star, events with an estimated Galactic rate of ~0.1-1/yr. Depending on the ratio of the mean density of the planet rho_p to that of the star rho_star, a merger results in three possible outcomes. If rho_p/rho_star > 5, then the planet directly plunges below the stellar atmosphere before being disrupted by tidal forces. Dissipation of orbital energy creates a hot wake behind the planet, producing a EUV/soft X-ray transient as the planet sinks below the stellar surface. The peak luminosity L_X ~ 1e36 erg/s is achieved weeks-months prior to merger, after which the stellar surface is enshrouded by an outflow. The final inspiral is accompanied by an optical transient powered by the recombination of hydrogen in the outflow, which peaks at L~1e37-38 erg/s on a timescale ~days. If instead rho_planet/rho_star < 5, then Roche Lobe overflow occurs above the stellar surface. For rho_p/rho_star < 1, mass transfer is stable, resulting the planet being accreted on a relatively slow timescale. However, for 1 < rho_p/rho_star < 5, mass transfer may instead be unstable, resulting in the planet being dynamically disrupted into an accretion disk around the star. Super-Eddington outflows from the disk power an optical transient with L~1e37-38 erg/s and characteristic duration ~week-months. The disk itself becomes visible once the accretion rate become sub-Eddington, resulting in a bolometric brightening and spectral shift to the UV. Optical transients from planet merger events may resemble classical novae, but are distinguished by lower ejecta mass and velocity ~100s km/s, and by hard pre- and post-cursor emission, respectively. Promising search strategies include combined optical, UV, and X-ray surveys of nearby massive galaxies with cadences from days to months.
Modern theoretical models of astrophysical jets combine accretion, rotation, and magnetic fields to launch and collimate supersonic flows from a central source. Near the source, magnetic field strengths must be large enough to collimate the jet requiring that the Poynting flux exceeds the kinetic-energy flux. The extent to which the Poynting flux dominates kinetic energy flux at large distances from the engine distinguishes two classes of models. In magneto-centrifugal launch (MCL) models, magnetic fields dominate only at scales of order 100 engine radii or less, after which the jets become hydrodynamically dominated (HD). By contrast, in Poynting flux dominated (PFD) magnetic tower models, the field dominates even out to much larger scales. To compare the large distance propagation differences of these two paradigms, we perform 3-D ideal MHD AMR simulations of both HD and PFD jets formed via the same energy flux. We also compare how thermal energy losses and rotation of the jet base affects the stability in these jets. For the conditions described, we show that PFD and HD exhibit observationally distinguishable features: PFD jets are lighter, slower, and less stable than HD jets. Unlike HD jets, PFD jets develop current-driven instabilities that are exacerbated as cooling and rotation increase, resulting in jets that are clumpier than those in the HD limit. Our PFD jet simulations also resemble the magnetic towers that have been recently created in laboratory astrophysical jet experiments.
We extend the abundance matching technique (AMT) to infer the satellite-subhalo and central-halo mass relations (MRs) of galaxies, as well as the corresponding satellite conditional mass functions (CMFs). We use the observed galaxy stellar mass function (GSMF) decomposed into centrals and satellites and the LCDM halo/subhalo mass functions as inputs. We explore the effects of defining the subhalo mass at the time of accretion (m_acc) vs. at the time of observation (m_obs). We test the standard assumption that centrals and satellites follow the same MRs, showing that this assumption leads to predictions in disagreement with observations, specially for m_obs. Instead, when the satellite-subhalo MRs are constrained following our AMT, they are always different from the central-halo MR: the smaller the stellar mass (Ms), the less massive is the subhalo of satellites as compared to the halo of centrals of the same Ms. On average, for Ms<2x10^11Msol, the dark mass of satellites decreased by 60-65% with respect to their masses at accretion time. The resulting MRs for both definitions of subhalo mass yield satellite CMFs in agreement with observations. Also, when these MRs are used in a HOD model, the predicted correlation functions agree with observations. We show that the use of m_obs leads to less uncertain MRs than m_acc, and discuss implications of the obtained satellite-subhalo MR. For example, we show that the tension between abundance and dynamics of MW satellites in LCDM gives if the slope of the GSMF faint-end slope upturns to -1.6.
The 22.2 GHz water masers are often associated with the 6.7 GHz methanol masers but owing to the different excitation conditions they likely probe independent spatial and kinematic regions around the powering young massive star. We compared the emission of these two maser species on milliarcsecond scales to determine in which structures the masers arise and to test a disc-outflow scenario where the methanol emission arises in a circumstellar disc while the water emission comes from an outflow. We obtained high-angular and spectral resolution 22.2 GHz water maser observations of the two sources G31.581+00.077 and G33.641-00.228 using the EVN. In both objects the water maser spots form complex and filamentary structures of sizes 18-160 AU. The emission towards the source G31.581+00.077 comes from two distinct regions of which one is related to the methanol maser source of ring-like shape. In both targets the main axis of methanol distribution is orthogonal to the water maser distribution. Most of water masers appear to trace shocks on a working surface between an outflow/jet and a dense envelope. Some spots are possibly related to the disc-wind interface which is as close as 100-150 AU to the regions of methanol emission.
In this paper acoustic transmitters that were developed for use in underwater neutrino telescopes are presented. Firstly, an acoustic transceiver has been developed as part of the acoustic positioning system of neutrino telescopes. These infrastructures are not completely rigid and require a positioning system in order to monitor the position of the optical sensors which move due to sea currents. To guarantee a reliable and versatile system, the transceiver has the requirements of reduced cost, low power consumption, high pressure withstanding (up to 500 bars), high intensity for emission, low intrinsic noise, arbitrary signals for emission and the capacity of acquiring and processing received signals. Secondly, a compact acoustic transmitter array has been developed for the calibration of acoustic neutrino detection systems. The array is able to mimic the signature of ultra-high-energy neutrino interaction in emission directivity and signal shape. The technique of parametric acoustic sources has been used to achieve the proposed aim. The developed compact array has practical features such as easy manageability and operation. The prototype designs and the results of different tests are described. The techniques applied for these two acoustic systems are so powerful and versatile that may be of interest in other marine applications using acoustic transmitters.
Far-infrared and optical [O III] lines are useful temeprature-density diagnostics of nebular as well as dust obscured astrophysical sources. Fine structure transitions among the ground state levels 1s^22s^22p^3 \ ^3P_{0,1,2} give rise to the 52 and 88 micron lines, whereas transitions among the $^3P_{0,1,2}, ,^1D_2, ^1S_0$ levels yield the well-known optical lines 4363, 4959 and 5007 Angstroms. These lines are excited primarily by electron impact excitation. But despite their importance in nebular diagnostics collision strengths for the associated fine structure transitions have not been computed taking full account of relativistic effects. We present Breit-Pauli R-matrix calculations for the collision strengths with highly resolved resonance structures. We find significant differences of up to 20% in the Maxwellian averaged rate coefficients from previous works. We also tabulate these to lower temperatures down to 100 K to enable determination of physical conditions in cold dusty environments such photo-dissociation regions and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies observed with the Herschel space observatory. We also examine the effect of improved collision strengths on temperature and density sensitive line ratios.
Photometric data in the UBV(RI)c system have been acquired for 80 solar analog stars for which we have previously derived highly precise atmospheric parameters Teff, log g, and [Fe/H] using high resolution, high signal-to-noise ratio spectra. UBV and (RI)c data for 46 and 76 of these stars, respectively, are published for the first time. Combining our data with those from the literature, colors in the UBV(RI)c system, with ~0.01 mag precision, are now available for 112 solar analogs. Multiple linear regression is used to derive the solar colors from these photometric data and the spectroscopically derived Teff, log g, and [Fe/H] values. To minimize the impact of systematic errors in the model-dependent atmospheric parameters, we use only the data for the ten stars that most closely resemble our Sun, i.e., the solar twins, and derive the following solar colors: (B-V)=0.653+/-0.005, (U-B)=0.166+/-0.022, (V-R)=0.352+/-0.007, and (V-I)=0.702+/-0.010. These colors are consistent, within the 1 sigma errors, with those derived using the entire sample of 112 solar analogs. We also derive the solar colors using the relation between spectral line-depth ratios and observed stellar colors, i.e., with a completely model-independent approach, and without restricting the analysis to solar twins. We find: (B-V)=0.653+/-0.003, (U-B)=0.158+/-0.009, (V-R)=0.356+/-0.003, and (V-I)=0.701+/-0.003, in excellent agreement with the model-dependent analysis.
The increasingly deep limit on the neutrino emission from gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) with IceCube observations has reached the level that could put useful constraints on the fireball properties. We first present a revised analytic calculation of the neutrino flux, which predicts a flux an order of magnitude lower than that obtained by the IceCube collaboration. For benchmark model parameters (e.g. the bulk Lorentz factor is \Gamma=10^{2.5}, the observed variability time for long GRBs is t_v=0.01 s and the ratio between the energy in accelerated protons and in radiation is \eta_p=10 for every burst) in the standard internal shock scenario, the predicted neutrino flux from 215 bursts during the period of the 40-string and 59-string configurations is found to be a factor of ~3 below the IceCube sensitivity. However, if we accept the recently found inherent relation between the bulk Lorentz factor and burst energy, the expected neutrino flux increases significantly and the spectral peak shifts to lower energy. In this case, the non-detection then implies that the baryon loading ratio should be \eta_p<10 if the variability time of long GRBs is fixed to t_v=0.01 s. Instead, if we relax the standard internal shock scenario but keep to assume \eta_p=10, the non-detection constrains the dissipation radius to be R>4x10^{12} cm assuming the same dissipation radius for every burst and benchmark parameters for fireballs. We also calculate the diffuse neutrino flux from GRBs for different luminosity functions existing in literature. The expected flux exceeds the current IceCube limit for some luminosity functions, and thus the non-detection constrains \eta_p<10 in such cases when the variability time of long GRBs is fixed to t_v=0.01 s.
We report on the discovery of high-energy (HE; E > 0.1 GeV) and very high-energy (VHE; E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from the high-frequency-peaked BL Lac object RBS 0413. VERITAS, a ground-based gamma-ray observatory, detected VHE gamma rays from RBS 0413 with a statistical significance of 5.5 standard deviations (sigma) and a gamma-ray flux of (1.5 \pm 0.6stat \pm 0.7syst) \times 10^(-8) photons m^(-2) s^(-1) (\sim 1% of the Crab Nebula flux) above 250 GeV. The observed spectrum can be described by a power law with a photon index of 3.18 \pm 0.68stat \pm 0.30syst. Contemporaneous observations with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope detected HE gamma rays from RBS 0413 with a statistical significance of more than 9 sigma, a power-law photon index of 1.57 \pm 0.12stat +0.11sys -0.12sys and a gamma-ray flux between 300 MeV and 300 GeV of (1.64 \pm 0.43stat +0.31sys -0.22sys) \times 10^(-5) photons m^(-2) s^(-1). We present the results from Fermi-LAT and VERITAS, including a spectral energy distribution modeling of the gamma-ray, quasi-simultaneous X-ray (Swift-XRT), ultraviolet (Swift-UVOT) and R-band optical (MDM) data. We find that, if conditions close to equipartition are required, both the combined synchrotron self-Compton/external-Compton and the lepto-hadronic models are preferred over a pure synchrotron self-Compton model.
We report on the absorption spectra of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules anthracene, phenanthrene, and pyrene carrying either an ethynyl (-C2H) or a butadiynyl (-C4H) group. Measurements were carried out in the mid infrared at room temperature on grains embedded in CsI pellets and in the near ultraviolet at cryogenic temperature on molecules isolated in Ne matrices. The infrared measurements show that interstellar populations of polyynyl-substituted PAHs would give rise to collective features in the same way non-substituted PAHs give rise to the aromatic infrared bands. The main features characteristic of the substituted molecules correspond to the acetylenic CH stretching mode near 3.05 mum and to the almost isoenergetic acetylenic CCH in- and out-of-plane bending modes near 15.9 mum. Sub-populations defined by the length of the polyynyl side group cause collective features which correspond to the various acetylenic CC stretching modes. The ultraviolet spectra reveal that the addition of an ethynyl group to a non-substituted PAH molecule results in all its electronic transitions being redshifted. Due to fast internal energy conversion, the bands at shorter wavelengths are significantly broadened. Those at longer wavelengths are only barely affected in this respect. As a consequence, their relative peak absorption increases. The substitution with the longer butadiynyl chain causes the same effects with a larger magnitude, resulting in the spectra to show a prominent if not dominating pi-pi* transition at long wavelength. After discussing the relevance of polyynyl-substituted PAHs to astrophysics, we conclude that this class of highly conjugated, unsaturated molecules are valid candidates for the carriers of the diffuse interstellar bands.
Tidal interactions between Saturn and its satellites play a crucial role in both the orbital migration of the satellites and the heating of their interiors. Therefore constraining the tidal dissipation of Saturn (here the ratio k2/Q) opens the door to the past evolution of the whole system. If Saturn's tidal ratio can be determined at different frequencies, it may also be possible to constrain the giant planet's interior structure, which is still uncertain. Here, we try to determine Saturn's tidal ratio through its current effect on the orbits of the main moons, using astrometric data spanning more than a century. We find an intense tidal dissipation (k2/Q= (2.3 \pm 0.7) \times 10-4), which is about ten times higher than the usual value estimated from theoretical arguments. As a consequence, eccentricity equilibrium for Enceladus can now account for the huge heat emitted from Enceladus' south pole. Moreover, the measured k2/Q is found to be poorly sensitive to the tidal frequency, on the short frequency interval considered. This suggests that Saturn's dissipation may not be controlled by turbulent friction in the fluid envelope as commonly believed. If correct, the large tidal expansion of the moon orbits due to this strong Saturnian dissipation would be inconsistent with the moon formations 4.5 Byr ago above the synchronous orbit in the Saturnian subnebulae. But it would be compatible with a new model of satellite formation in which the Saturnian satellites formed possibly over longer time scale at the outer edge of the main rings. In an attempt to take into account for possible significant torques exerted by the rings on Mimas, we fitted a constant rate da/dt on Mimas semi-major axis, also. We obtained an unexpected large acceleration related to a negative value of da/dt= -(15.7 \pm 4.4) \times 10-15 au/day.
We present estimates of the basic physical properties (size and albedo) of (90377) Sedna, a prominent member of the detached trans-Neptunian object population and the recently discovered scattered disk object 2010 EK139, based on the recent observations acquired with the Herschel Space Observatory, within the "TNOs are Cool!" key programme. Our modeling of the thermal measurements shows that both objects have larger albedos and smaller sizes than the previous expectations, thus their surfaces might be covered by ices in a significantly larger fraction. The derived diameter of Sedna and 2010 EK139 are 995 +/- 80 km and 470 +35/-10 km, while the respective geometric albedos are pV 0.32 +/- 0.06 and 0.25 +0.02/-0.05. These estimates are based on thermophysical model techniques.
In this paper, we present the acoustic transceiver developed for the positioning system in underwater neutrino telescopes. These infrastructures are not completely rigid and need a positioning system in order to monitor the position of the optical sensors of the telescope which have some degree of motion due to sea currents. To have a highly reliable and versatile system in the infrastructure, the transceiver has the requirements of reduced cost, low power consumption, high intensity for emission, low intrinsic noise, arbitrary signals for emission and the capacity of acquiring and processing the received signal on the board. The solution proposed and presented here consists of an acoustic transducer that works in the 20-40 kHz region and withstands high pressures (up to 500 bars). The electronic-board can be configured from shore and is able to feed the transducer with arbitrary signals and to control the transmitted and received signals with very good timing precision. The results of the different tests done on the transceiver in the laboratory are described here, as well as the change implemented for its integration in the Instrumentation Line of ANTARES for the in situ tests. We consider the transceiver design is so versatile that it may be used in other kinds of marine positioning systems, alone or combined with other marine systems, or integrated in different Earth-Sea Observatories, where the localization of the sensors is an issue.
We present the results of our studies of the aperiodic optical flux variability for SS Cyg, an accreting binary systemwith a white dwarf. The main set of observational data presented here was obtained with the ANDOR/iXon DU-888 photometer mounted on the RTT-150 telescope, which allowed a record(for CCD photometers) time resolution up to 8 ms to be achieved. The power spectra of the source's flux variability have revealed that the aperiodic variability contains information about the inner boundary of the optically thick flow in the binary system. We show that the inner boundary of the optically thick accretion disk comes close to the white dwarf surface at the maximum of the source's bolometric light curve, i.e., at the peak of the instantaneous accretion rate onto the white dwarf, while the optically thick accretion disk is truncated at distances 8.5e9 cm ~10 R_{WD} in the low state. We suggest that the location of the inner boundary of the accretion disk in the binary can be traced by studying the parameters of the power spectra for accreting white dwarfs. In particular, this allows the mass of the accreting object to be estimated.
Infrared-dark high-mass clumps are among the most promising objects to study the initial conditions of the formation process of high-mass stars and rich stellar clusters. In this work, we have observed the (3-2) rotational transition of C18O with the APEX telescope, and the (1,1) and (2,2) inversion transitions of NH3 with the Australia Telescope Compact Array in 21 infrared-dark clouds already mapped in the 1.2 mm continuum, with the aim of measuring basic chemical and physical parameters such as the CO depletion factor (fD), the gas kinetic temperature and the gas mass. In particular, the C18O (3-2) line allows us to derive fD in gas at densities higher than that traced by the (1-0) and (2-1) lines, typically used in previous works. We have detected NH3 and C18O in all targets. The clumps possess mass, H2 column and surface densities consistent with being potentially the birthplace of high-mass stars. We have measured fD in between 5 and 78, with a mean value of 32 and a median of 29. These values are, to our knowledge, larger than the typical CO depletion factors measured towards infrared-dark clouds and high-mass dense cores, and are comparable to or larger than the values measured in low-mass pre-stellar cores close to the onset of the gravitational collapse. This result suggests that the earliest phases of the high-mass star and stellar cluster formation process are characterised by fD larger than in low-mass pre-stellar cores. Thirteen out of 21 clumps are undetected in the 24 {\mu}m Spitzer images, and have slightly lower kinetic temperatures, masses and H2 column densities with respect to the eight Spitzer-bright sources. This could indicate that the Spitzer-dark clumps are either less evolved or are going to form less massive objects.
The Universe is inhomogeneous, and yet it seems to be incredibly well-characterised by a homogeneous relativistic model. One of the current challenges is to accurately characterise the properties of such a model. In this paper we explore how inhomogeneities may affect the overall optical properties of the Universe by quantifying how they can bias the redshift-distance relation in a number of toy models that mimic the real Universe. The models that we explore are statistically homogeneous on large scales. We find that the effect of inhomogeneities is of order of a few percent, which can be quite important in precise estimation of cosmological parameters. We discuss what lessons can be learned to help us tackle a more realistic inhomogeneous universe.
The Skyrme model is a low energy, effective field theory for QCD which when coupled to a gravitational field provides an ideal semi-classical model to describe neutron stars. We use the Skyrme crystal solution composed of a lattice of $\alpha$-like particles as a building block to construct minimum energy neutron star configurations, allowing the crystal to be strained anisotropically. We find that below 1.49 solar masses the stars' crystal deforms isotropically and that above this critical mass, it undergoes anisotropic strain. We then find that the maximum mass allowed for a neutron star is 1.90 solar masses, in close agreement with a recent observation of the most massive neutron star yet found. The radii of the computed solutions also match the experimentally estimated values of approximately 10km.
We describe our programme to identify and analyse binary stars among the bright subdwarfs selected in the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) survey. Radial velocity time-series helped us identify subdwarfs with low-mass or compact stellar companions: We describe work conducted on the bright binaries GALEX J0321+4727 and GALEX J2349+3844, and we present a radial velocity study of several objects that include three new likely binaries. We also carried out photometric observations that allowed us to detect long period pulsations in the subdwarf components in two of the close binaries.
We study the relations between the multimodality of galaxy clusters drawn from the SDSS DR8 and the environment where they reside. As cluster environment we consider the global luminosity density field, supercluster membership, and supercluster morphology. We use 3D normal mixture modelling, the Dressler-Shectman test, and the peculiar velocity of cluster main galaxies as signatures of multimodality of clusters. We calculate the luminosity density field to study the environmental densities around clusters, and to find superclusters where clusters reside. We determine the morphology of superclusters with the Minkowski functionals and compare the properties of clusters in superclusters of different morphology. We apply principal component analysis to study the relations between the multimodality parametres of clusters and their environment simultaneously. We find that multimodal clusters reside in higher density environment than unimodal clusters. Clusters in superclusters have higher probability to have substructure than isolated clusters. The superclusters can be divided into two main morphological types, spiders and filaments. Clusters in superclusters of spider morphology have higher probabilities to have substructure and larger peculiar velocities of their main galaxies than clusters in superclusters of filament morphology. The most luminous clusters are located in the high-density cores of rich superclusters. Five of seven most luminous clusters, and five of seven most multimodal clusters reside in spider-type superclusters; four of seven most unimodal clusters reside in filament-type superclusters. Our study shows the importance of the role of superclusters as high density environment which affects the properties of galaxy systems in them.
Recent modeling of multi-waveband spectroscopic and maser observations suggests that the ionized outflows in the nuclear region of the archetypal Seyfert-2 galaxy NGC 1068 are inclined with respect to the vertical axis of the obscuring torus. Based on this suggestion, we build a complex reprocessing model of NGC 1068 for the optical/UV band. We apply the radiative transfer code STOKES to compute polarization spectra and images. The effects of electron and dust scattering and the radiative coupling occurring in the inner regions of the multi-component object are taken into account and evaluated at different polar and azimuthal viewing angles. The observed type-1/type-2 polarization dichotomy of active galactic nuclei is reproduced. At the assumed observer's inclination toward NGC 1068, the polarization is dominated by scattering in the polar outflows and therefore it indicates their tilting angle with respect to the torus axis. While a detailed analysis of our model results is still in progress, we briefly discuss how they relate to existing polarization observations of NGC 1068.
A thermal active galactic nucleus (AGN) consist of a powerful, broad-band continuum source that is surrounded by several reprocessing media with different geometries and compositions. Here we investigate the expected spectropolarimetric signatures in the optical/UV and X-ray wavebands as they arise from the complex radiative coupling between different, axis-symmetric AGN media. Using the latest version of the Monte-Carlo radiative transfer code STOKES, we obtain spectral fluxes, polarization percentages, and polarization position angles. In the optical/UV, we assume unpolarized photons coming from a compact source that are reprocessed by an optically-thick, dusty torus and by equatorial and polar electron-scattering regions. In the X-ray band, we additionally assume a lamp-post geometry with an X-ray source irradiating the accretion disk from above. We compare our results for the two wavebands and thereby provide predictions for future X-ray polarimetric missions. These predictions can be based on present-day optical/UV spectropolarimetric observations. In particular, we conclude that the observed polarization dichotomy in the optical/UV band should extend into the X-ray range.
GRB 080503, detected by Swift, belongs to the class of bursts whose prompt phase consists of an initial short spike followed by a longer soft tail. It did not show any transition to a regular afterglow at the end of the prompt emission but exhibited a surprising rebrightening after one day. We aim to explain this rebrightening with two different scenarios - refreshed shocks or a density clump in the circumburst medium - and two models for the origin of the afterglow, the standard one where it comes from the forward shock, and an alternative one where it results from a long-lived reverse shock. We computed afterglow light curves either using a single-zone approximation for the shocked region or a detailed multizone method that more accurately accounts for the compression of the material. We find that in several of the considered cases the detailed model must be used to obtain a reliable description of the shock dynamics. The density clump scenario is not favored. We confirm previous results that the presence of the clump has little effect on the forward shock emission, except if the microphysics parameters evolve when the shock enters the clump. Moreover, we find that the rebrightening from the reverse shock is also too weak when it is calculated with the multi-zone method. On the other hand, in the refreshed-shock scenario both the forward and reverse shock models provide satisfactory fits of the data under some additional conditions on the distribution of the Lorentz factor in the ejecta and the beaming angle of the relativistic outflow.
The Rosse Solar-Terrestrial Observatory (RSTO; www.rosseobservatory.ie) was established at Birr Castle, Co. Offaly, Ireland (53{\deg}05'38.9", 7{\deg}55'12.7") in 2010 to study solar radio bursts and the response of the Earth's ionosphere and geomagnetic field. To date, three Compound Astronomical Low-cost Low-frequency Instrument for Spectroscopy and Transportable Observatory (CAL- LISTO) spectrometers have been installed, with the capability of observing in the frequency range 10-870 MHz. The receivers are fed simultaneously by biconical and log-periodic antennas. Nominally, frequency spectra in the range 10-400 MHz are obtained with 4 sweeps per second over 600 channels. Here, we describe the RSTO solar radio spectrometer set-up, and present dynamic spectra of a sample of Type II, III and IV radio bursts. In particular, we describe fine-scale structure observed in Type II bursts, including band splitting and rapidly varying herringbone features.
NGC 3147 is so far the most convincing case of a "true" Seyfert 2 galaxy,
i.e. a source genuinely lacking the Broad Line Regions. We obtained a Suzaku
observation with the double aim to study in more detail the iron line complex,
and to check the Compton-thick hypothesis for the lack of observed optical
broad lines.
The Suzaku XIS and HXD/PIN spectra of the source were analysed in detail. The
line complex is composed of at least two unresolved lines, one at about 6.45
keV and the other one at about 7 keV, most likely identified with Fe XVII/XIX,
the former, and Fe XXVI, the latter. The high-ionization line can originate
either in a photoionized matter or in an optically thin thermal plasma. In the
latter case, an unusually high temperature is implied. In the photoionized
model case, the large equivalent width can be explained either by an extreme
iron overabundance or by assuming that the source is Compton-thick. In the
Compton-thick hypothesis, however, the emission above 2 keV is mostly due to a
highly ionized reflector, contrary to what is usually found in Compton-thick
Seyfert 2s, where reflection from low ionized matter dominates. Moreover, the
source flux varied between the XMM-Newton and the Suzaku observations, taken
3.5 years apart, confirming previous findings and indicating that the size of
the emitting region must be smaller than a parsec.
The hard X-ray spectrum is also inconclusive on the Compton-thick hypothesis.
Weighting the various arguments, a "true" Seyfert 2 nature of NGC 3147 seems to
be still the most likely explanation, even if the "highly ionized reflector"
Compton-thick hypothesis cannot at present be formally rejected.
A wavelength calibration system based on a laser frequency comb (LFC) was developed in a co-operation between the Kiepenheuer-Institut f\"ur Sonnenphysik, Freiburg, Germany and the Max-Planck-Institut f\"ur Quantenoptik, Garching, Germany for permanent installation at the German Vacuum Tower Telescope (VTT) on Tenerife, Canary Islands. The system was installed successfully in October 2011. By simultaneously recording the spectra from the Sun and the LFC, for each exposure a calibration curve can be derived from the known frequencies of the comb modes that is suitable for absolute calibration at the meters per second level. We briefly summarize some topics in solar physics that benefit from absolute spectroscopy and point out the advantages of LFC compared to traditional calibration techniques. We also sketch the basic setup of the VTT calibration system and its integration with the existing echelle spectrograph.
Four Class I maser sources were detected at 44, 84, and 95 GHz toward chemically rich outflows in the regions of low-mass star formation NGC 1333I4A, NGC 1333I2A, HH25, and L1157. One more maser was found at 36 GHz toward a similar outflow, NGC 2023. Flux densities of the newly detected masers are no more than 18 Jy, being much lower than those of strong masers in regions of high-mass star formation. The brightness temperatures of the strongest peaks in NGC 1333I4A, HH25, and L1157 at 44 GHz are higher than 2000 K, whereas that of the peak in NGC 1333I2A is only 176 K. However, rotational diagram analysis showed that the latter source is also a maser. The main properties of the newly detected masers are similar to those of Class I methanol masers in regions of massive star formation. The former masers are likely to be an extension of the latter maser population toward low luminosities of both the masers and the corresponding YSOs.
We report initial results from a quasi-simultaneous X-ray/optical observing campaign targeting V4046 Sgr, a close, synchronous-rotating classical T Tauri star (CTTS) binary in which both components are actively accreting. V4046 Sgr is a strong X-ray source, with the X-rays mainly arising from high-density (n_e ~ 10^(11-12) cm^(-3)) plasma at temperatures of 3-4 MK. Our multiwavelength campaign aims to simultaneously constrain the properties of this X-ray emitting plasma, the large scale magnetic field, and the accretion geometry. In this paper, we present key results obtained via time-resolved X-ray grating spectra, gathered in a 360 ks XMM-Newton observation that covered 2.2 system rotations. We find that the emission lines produced by this high-density plasma display periodic flux variations with a measured period, 1.22+/-0.01 d, that is precisely half that of the binary star system (2.42 d). The observed rotational modulation can be explained assuming that the high-density plasma occupies small portions of the stellar surfaces, corotating with the stars, and that the high-density plasma is not azimuthally symmetrically distributed with respect to the rotational axis of each star. These results strongly support models in which high-density, X-ray-emitting CTTS plasma is material heated in accretion shocks, located at the base of accretion flows tied to the system by magnetic field lines.
At least two multi-planetary systems in a 4:3 mean motion resonance have been
found by radial velocity surveys. These planets are gas giants and only stable
when protected by a resonance. Additionally the Kepler mission has detected at
least 4 strong candidate planetary systems with a period ratio close to 4:3.
This paper investigates traditional dynamical scenarios for the formation of
these systems. We systematically study migration scenarios with both N-body and
hydro-dynamic simulations. We investigate scenarios involving the in-situ
formation of two planets in resonance. We look at the results from finely tuned
planet-planet scattering simulations with gas disk damping. Finally, we
investigate a formation scenario involving isolation-mass embryos.
Although the combined planet-planet scattering and damping scenario seems
promising, none of the above scenarios is successful in forming enough systems
in 4:3 resonance with planetary masses similar to the observed ones. This is a
negative result but it has important implications for planet formation.
Previous studies were successful in forming 2:1 and 3:2 resonances. This is
generally believed to be evidence of planet migration. We highlight the main
differences between those studies and our failure in forming a 4:3 resonance.
We also speculate on more exotic and complicated ideas. These results will
guide future investigators toward exploring the above scenarios and alternative
mechanisms in a more general framework.
The reliability of astronomical observations at millimeter and sub-millimeter wavelengths closely depends on a low vertical content of water vapor as well as on high atmospheric emission stability. Although Concordia station at Dome C (Antarctica) enjoys good observing conditions in this atmospheric spectral windows, as shown by preliminary site-testing campaigns at different bands and in, not always, time overlapped periods, a dedicated instrument able to continuously determine atmospheric performance for a wide spectral range is not yet planned. In the absence of such measurements, in this paper we suggest a semi-empirical approach to perform an analysis of atmospheric transmission and emission at Dome C to compare the performance for 7 photometric bands ranging from 100 GHz to 2 THz. Radiosoundings data provided by the Routine Meteorological Observations (RMO) Research Project at Concordia station are corrected by temperature and humidity errors and dry biases and then employed to feed ATM (Atmospheric Transmission at Microwaves) code to generate synthetic spectra in the wide spectral range from 100 GHz to 2 THz. To quantify the atmospheric contribution in millimeter and sub-millimeter observations we are considering several photometric bands in which atmospheric quantities are integrated. The observational capabilities of this site at all the selected spectral bands are analyzed considering monthly averaged transmissions joined to the corresponding fluctuations. Transmission and pwv statistics at Dome C derived by our semi-empirical approach are consistent with previous works. It is evident the decreasing of the performance at high frequencies. We propose to introduce a new parameter to compare the quality of a site at different spectral bands, in terms of high transmission and emission stability, the Site Quality Factor.
Planetary satellites are an integral part of the heirarchy of planetary systems. Here we make two predictions concerning their formation. First, primordial satellites, which have an array of distinguishing characteristics, form only around giant planets. If true, the size and duration of a planetary system's protostellar nebula, as well as the location of its snow line, can be constrained by knowing which of its planets possess primordial satellites and which do not. Second, all satellites around terrestrial planets form by impacts. If true, this greatly enhances the constraints that can be placed on the history of terrestrial planets by their satellites' compositions, sizes, and dynamics.
Reliable timing calibration is essential for the accurate comparison of XMM-Newton light curves with those from other observatories, to ultimately use them to derive precise physical quantities. The XMM-Newton timing calibration is based on pulsar analysis. However, as pulsars show both timing noise and glitches, it is essential to monitor these calibration sources regularly. To this end, the XMM-Newton observatory performs observations twice a year of the Crab pulsar to monitor the absolute timing accuracy of the EPIC-pn camera in the fast Timing and Burst modes. We present the results of this monitoring campaign, comparing XMM-Newton data from the Crab pulsar (PSR B0531+21) with radio measurements. In addition, we use five pulsars (PSR J0537-69, PSR B0540-69, PSR B0833-45, PSR B1509-58 and PSR B1055-52) with periods ranging from 16 ms to 197 ms to verify the relative timing accuracy. We analysed 38 XMM-Newton observations (0.2-12.0 keV) of the Crab taken over the first ten years of the mission and 13 observations from the five complementary pulsars. All the data were processed with the SAS, the XMM-Newton Scientific Analysis Software, version 9.0. Epoch folding techniques coupled with \chi^{2} tests were used to derive relative timing accuracies. The absolute timing accuracy was determined using the Crab data and comparing the time shift between the main X-ray and radio peaks in the phase folded light curves. The relative timing accuracy of XMM-Newton is found to be better than 10^{-8}. The strongest X-ray pulse peak precedes the corresponding radio peak by 306\pm9 \mus, which is in agreement with other high energy observatories such as Chandra, INTEGRAL and RXTE. The derived absolute timing accuracy from our analysis is \pm48 \mus.
The object that resulted in the creation of the Moon started in the same orbital path as Earth around the Sun, but at Earth's L4. This proto-Moon (PM) was 4 times less massive than the usual Giant Impact (GI) object "Theia" and was captured into Earth orbit. It had a 32% Iron-Nickel-Sulfur core supporting a dynamo, which explains magnetized lunar rocks. Following capture, it was torn apart by tidal forces and its core of iron plastered itself, with some of its rock mantle, on the surface of Earth at a very flat angle (producing the "Late Veneer"). After tidal stripping, the remaining PM rock was driven away from Earth to about 3.8 times Earth's radius and formed into what is now the Moon. The GI theory has several troubles: The violent collision melts the entire Earth, contrary to geological evidence. The Moon itself also has to condense out of the vapor cloud generated in the collision, but there is evidence that the Moon was not condensed out of vapor. In the new theory, the Moon as we know it may be only 3.8 - 3.9 billion years old, not 4.26 as usually assumed. That is the age of the PM. The minerals in the Moon would be about as old as the Earth, but would have been re-arranged in the capture and temporary disintegration process. If the Moon is as young as suggested, its origin would coincide with the beginning of life on Earth, which is unexplained in the GI theory. The manuscript asks, "Was the Moon Turned Inside-Out" and the answer is "Essentially, Yes."
(abridged) We used HST/ACS to obtain deep V- and I-band images of NGC 1569, one of the closest and strongest starburst galaxies in the Universe. These data allowed us to study the underlying old stellar population, aimed at understanding NGC 1569's evolution over a full Hubble time. We focus on the less-crowded outer region of the galaxy, for which the color-magnitude diagram (CMD) shows predominantly a red giant branch (RGB) that reaches down to the red clump/horizontal branch feature (RC/HB). A simple stellar population analysis gives clear evidence for a more complicated star formation history (SFH) in the outer region. We derive the full SFH using a newly developed code, SFHMATRIX, which fits the CMD Hess diagram by solving a non-negative least squares problem. Our analysis shows that the relative brightnesses of the RGB tip and RC/HB, along with the curvature and color of the RGB, provide enough information to ameliorate the age-metallicity-extinction degeneracy. The distance/reddening combination that best fits the data is E(B-V) = 0.58 +/- 0.03 and D = 3.06 +/- 0.18 Mpc. Star formation began ~ 13 Gyr ago, and this accounts for the majority of the mass in the outer region. However, the initial burst was followed by a relatively low, but constant, rate of star formation until ~ 0.5-0.7 Gyr ago when there may have been a short, low intensity burst of star formation.
In July 2009, the leading spot of the active region NOAA11024 was observed simultaneously and independently with the 'G\"ottingen' FPI at VTT and CRISP at SST, i.e., at two different sites, telescopes, instruments and using different spectral lines. The data processing and data analysis have been carried out independently with different techniques. Maps of physical parameters retrieved from 2D spectro-polarimetric data observed with 'G\"ottingen' FPI and CRISP show an impressive agreement. In addition, the 'G\"ottingen' FPI maps also exhibit a notable resemblance with simultaneous TIP (spectrographic) observations. The consistency in the results demonstrates the excellent capabilities of these observing facilities. Besides, it confirms the solar origin of the detected signals, and the reliability of FPI-based spectro-polarimeters.
A model of protostar mass and luminosity evolution in clusters gives new estimates of cluster age, protostar birthrate, accretion rate and mean accretion time. The model assumes constant protostar birthrate, core-clump accretion, and equally likely accretion stopping. Its parameters are set to reproduce the initial mass function, and to match protostar luminosity distributions in nearby star-forming regions. It obtains cluster ages and birthrates from the observed numbers of protostars and pre-main sequence (PMS) stars, and from the modal value of the protostar luminosity. In 31 embedded clusters and complexes the global cluster age is 1-3 Myr, matching available estimates based on optical spectroscopy and evolutionary tracks. This method of age estimation is simpler than optical spectroscopy, and is more useful for young embedded clusters where optical spectrocopy is not possible. In the youngest clusters, the protostar fraction decreases outward from the densest gas, indicating that the local star-forming age increases outward from a few 0.1 Myr in small protostar-dominated zones to a few Myr in large PMS-dominated zones.
Swift J1822.3-1606 was discovered on 2011 July 14 by the Swift Burst Alert Telescope following the detection of several bursts. The source was found to have a period of 8.4377 s and was identified as a magnetar. Here we present a phase-connected timing analysis and the evolution of the flux and spectral properties using RXTE, Swift, and Chandra observations. We measure a spin frequency of 0.1185154316(5) s$^{-1}$ and a frequency derivative of $-3.5\pm0.2\times10^{-15}$ at MJD 55761.0, in a timing analysis that includes a significant non-zero second frequency derivative that we attribute to timing noise. This corresponds to an estimated spin-down inferred dipole magnetic field of $B\sim5\times10^{13}$ G, consistent with previous estimates though still possibly affected by unmodelled noise. We find that the post-outburst 1--10 keV flux evolution is well modelled with a double-exponential decay with decay timescales of $15.6\pm0.6$ and $148\pm13$ days. However we also fit the light curve with a crustal cooling model which suggests that the cooling results from heat injection into the outer crust and provides constraints on the impurity fraction in the crust. Based on proximity and similarity in absorption column density, we suggest that Swift J1822.3-1606 may have a distance comparable to that of the H{\sc ii} region M17, $1.6\pm0.3$ kpc, making it one of the closest magnetars yet known. We find that the hardness-flux correlation observed in magnetar outbursts also characterizes the outburst of Swift J1822.3-1606. We compare the properties of Swift J1822.3-1606 with those of other magnetars and their outbursts.
The AMBRE Project is a collaboration between the European Southern
Observatory (ESO) and the Observatoire de la Cote d'Azur (OCA) that has been
established in order to carry out the determination of stellar atmospheric
parameters for the archived spectra of four ESO spectrographs.
The analysis of the FEROS archived spectra for their stellar parameters
(effective temperatures, surface gravities, global metallicities, alpha element
to iron ratios and radial velocities) has been completed in the first phase of
the AMBRE Project. From the complete ESO:FEROS archive dataset that was
received, a total of 21551 scientific spectra have been identified, covering
the period 2005 to 2010. These spectra correspond to ~6285 stars.
The determination of the stellar parameters was carried out using the stellar
parameterisation algorithm, MATISSE (MATrix Inversion for Spectral SynthEsis),
which has been developed at OCA to be used in the analysis of large scale
spectroscopic studies in galactic archaeology. An analysis pipeline has been
constructed that integrates spectral reduction and radial velocity correction
procedures with MATISSE in order to automatically determine the stellar
parameters of the FEROS spectra.
Stellar atmospheric parameters (Teff, log g, [M/H] and [alpha/Fe]) were
determined for 6508 (30.2%) of the FEROS archived spectra (~3087 stars). Radial
velocities were determined for 11963 (56%) of the archived spectra. 2370 (11%)
spectra could not be analysed within the pipeline. 12673 spectra (58.8%) were
analysed in the pipeline but their parameters were discarded based on quality
criteria and error analysis determined within the automated process. The
majority of these rejected spectra were found to have broad spectral features
indicating that they may be hot and/or fast rotating stars, which are not
considered within the adopted reference synthetic spectra grid of FGKM stars.
The evolution of the photospheric magnetic field during the declining phase and minimum of Cycle 23 and the recent rise of Cycle 24 are compared with previous cycles. We use longitudinal magnetograms from the NSO's three magnetographs at Kitt Peak, the Synoptic Optical Long-term Investigations of the Sun (SOLIS) Vector Spectro-Magnetograph (VSM), the Spectromagnetograph and the 512-Channel Magnetograph instruments, and longitudinal magnetograms from the Mt. Wilson 150-foot tower. We analyzed 37 years of full-disk observations from these two observatories that have been observing daily, weather permitting, since 1974, offering an opportunity to study the evolving relationship between the active region and polar fields in some detail over several solar cycles. It is found that the annual averages of a proxy for the active region poloidal magnetic field strength, the magnetic field strength of the high-latitude poleward surges, and the time derivative of the polar field strength are all well correlated in each hemisphere. These results support the Babcock-Leighton phenomenological model for the solar activity cycle. There was more hemispheric asymmetry in the activity level, as measured by total and maximum active region flux, during late Cycle 23 (after around 2004), when the southern hemisphere was more active, and Cycle 24 up to the present, when the northern hemisphere has been more active, than at any other time since 1974. The active region net proxy poloidal fields effectively disappeared in both hemispheres around 2004, and the polar fields did not become significantly stronger after this time.
We apply the theory of algebraic polynomials to analytically study the transonic properties of general relativistic hydrodynamic axisymmetric accretion onto non-rotating astrophysical black holes. For such accretion phenomena, the conserved specific energy of the flow, which turns out to be one of the two first integrals of motion in the system studied, can be expressed as a 8$^{th}$ degree polynomial of the critical point of the flow configuration. We then construct the corresponding Sturm's chain algorithm to calculate the number of real roots lying within the astrophysically relevant domain of $\mathbb{R}$. This allows, for the first time in literature, to {\it analytically} find out the maximum number of physically acceptable solution an accretion flow with certain geometric configuration, space-time metric, and equation of state can have, and thus to investigate its multi-critical properties {\it completely analytically}, for accretion flow in which the location of the critical points can not be computed without taking recourse to the numerical scheme. This work can further be generalized to analytically calculate the maximal number of equilibrium points certain autonomous dynamical system can have in general. We also demonstrate how the transition from a mono-critical to multi-critical (or vice versa) flow configuration can be realized through the saddle-centre bifurcation phenomena using certain techniques of the catastrophe theory.
A modified gravity involving a critical acceleration, as empirically established at galactic scales and successfully tested by data on supernovae of type Ia, can fit the measured multipole spectrum of anisotropy in the cosmic microwave background radiation, so that a dark sector of Universe is constructively mimicked as caused by the dynamics beyond the general relativity. Physical consequences, verifiable predictions and falsifiable issues are listed and discussed.
Neutrinos streaming from a supernova (SN) core occasionally scatter in the envelope, producing a small "neutrino halo" with a much broader angle distribution than the primary flux originating directly from the core. Cherry et al. (2012) have recently pointed out that, during the accretion phase, the halo actually dominates neutrino-neutrino refraction at distances exceeding some 100 km. However, the multi-angle matter effect (which increases if the angle distribution is broader) still appears to suppress self-induced flavor conversion during the accretion phase.
We explore the generic motion of cosmic (super)strings when the internal compact dimensions are warped, using the Klebanov-Strassler solution as a prototypical throat geometry. We find that there is no dynamical mechanism which localises the string at the tip of the throat, but rather that the motion seems to explore both internal and external degrees of freedom democratically. This indicates that cosmic (super)strings formed by inflationary brane-antibrane annihilation will have sufficient internal motion for the gravitational wave signals from the string network to be suppressed relative to the signal from a `standard' cosmic string network.
Neutrals sourced directly from Enceladus's plumes are initially confined to a dense neutral torus in Enceladus's orbit around Saturn. This neutral torus is redistributed by charge exchange, impact/photodissociation, and neutral-neutral collisions to produce Saturn's neutral clouds. Here we consider the former processes in greater detail than in previous studies. In the case of dissociation, models have assumed that OH is produced with a single speed of 1 km/s, whereas laboratory measurements suggest a range of speeds between 1 and 1.6 km/s. We show that the high-speed case increases dissociation's range of influence from 9 to 15 Rs. For charge exchange, we present a new modeling approach, where the ions are followed within a neutral background, whereas neutral cloud models are conventionally constructed from the neutrals' point of view. This approach allows us to comment on the significance of the ions' gyrophase at the moment charge exchange occurs. Accounting for gyrophase: (1) has no consequence on the H2O cloud; (2) doubles the local density of OH at the orbit of Enceladus; and (3) decreases the oxygen densities at Enceladus's orbit by less than 10%. Finally, we consider velocity-dependent, as well as species-dependent cross sections and find that the oxygen cloud produced from charge exchange is spread out more than H2O, whereas the OH cloud is the most confined.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1204, contact, help (Access key information)
By means of high-resolution cosmological hydrodynamical simulations of Milky Way-like disc galaxies, we conduct an analysis of the associated stellar metallicity distribution functions (MDFs). After undertaking a kinematic decomposition of each simulation into spheroid and disc sub-components, we compare the predicted MDFs to those observed in the solar neighbourhood and the Galactic bulge. The effects of the star formation density threshold are visible in the star formation histories, which show a modulation in their behaviour driven by the threshold. The derived MDFs show median metallicities lower by 0.2-0.3 dex than the MDF observed locally in the disc and in the Galactic bulge. Possible reasons for this apparent discrepancy include the use of low stellar yields and/or centrally-concentrated star formation. The dispersions are larger than the one of the observed MDF; this could be due to simulated discs being kinematically hotter relative to the Milky Way. The fraction of low metallicity stars is largely overestimated, visible from the more negatively skewed MDF with respect to the observational sample. For our fiducial Milky Way analog, we study the metallicity distribution of the stars born "in situ" relative to those formed via accretion (from disrupted satellites), and demonstrate that this low-metallicity tail to the MDF is populated primarily by accreted stars. Enhanced supernova and stellar radiation energy feedback to the surrounding interstellar media of these pre-disrupted satellites is suggested as an important regulator of the MDF skewness.
We identify four rare "jellyfish" galaxies in Hubble Space Telescope imagery of the major merger cluster Abell 2744. These galaxies harbor trails of star-forming knots and filaments which have formed in-situ in gas tails stripped from the parent galaxies, indicating they are in the process of being transformed by the environment. Further evidence for rapid transformation in these galaxies comes from their optical spectra, which reveal starburst, poststarburst and AGN features. Most intriguingly, three of the jellyfish galaxies lie near ICM features associated with a merging "Bullet-like" subcluster and its shock front detected in Chandra X-ray images. We suggest that the high pressure merger environment may be responsible for the star formation in the gaseous tails. This provides observational evidence for the rapid transformation of galaxies during the violent core passage phase of a major cluster merger.
We show that for a broad range of parameters, hierarchical triple star systems with similar masses are essentially unaffected by the Kozai-Lidov mechanism until the primary in the central binary evolves off the main sequence (MS) and begins mass loss. Subsequently, the primary becomes a white dwarf (WD) or a neutron star (NS) and may then be much less massive than the other components in the ternary, enabling the "eccentric Kozai mechanism:" the mutual inclination between the inner and outer binary can flip signs, driving the inner binary to very high eccentricity, and eventually tidal contact. Even distant binaries with initial semi-major axes larger then tens of AU can be strongly affected. We demonstrate this "Mass-loss Induced Eccentric Kozai" (MIEK) mechanism by considering an example system and explore the MIEK mechanism's dependence on the initial eccentricities and mutual inclination. For uniform distributions of eccentricity and cosine of the mutual inclination, we show that \sim 10% of systems interact tidally while the primary in on the MS. Approximately half of these are due to normal Kozai-Lidov oscillations, while the other half are due to the eccentric Kozai mechanism and may not have been captured by earlier quadrupole-order secular calculations. We then show that fully \sim 30% of systems interact tidally for the first time as the primary swells to AU scales, mostly as a result of the normal Kozai-Lidov mechanism. Finally, we show that \sim 2% of systems interact tidally for the first time after the primary sheds most of its mass and becomes a WD, mostly as a result of the MIEK mechanism. These findings motivate a more detailed study of mass loss in triple systems that includes observationally motivated distributions for the triple system's parameters. We conclude by discussing the implications of MIEK for the formation of close NS/WD-MS and NS/WD-NS/WD binaries.
Deep images of 10 early-type galaxies in low-density environments have been obtained with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) on the Hubble Space Telescope. The global properties of the globular cluster (GC) systems of the galaxies have been derived in order to investigate the role of the environment in galaxy formation and evolution. Using the ACS Virgo Cluster Survey (ACSVCS) as a high-density counterpart, the similarities and differences between the GC properties in high- and low-density environments are presented. We find a strong correlation of the GC mean colours and the degree of colour bimodality with the host galaxy luminosity in low-density environments, in good agreement with high-density environments. In contrast, the GC mean colours at a given host luminosity are somewhat bluer (\Delta(g-z) ~ 0.05) than those for cluster galaxies, indicating more metal-poor (\Delta[Fe/H] ~ 0.10-0.15) and/or younger (\Delta age > 2 Gyr) GC systems than those in dense environments. Furthermore, with decreasing host luminosity, the colour bimodality disappears faster, when compared to galaxies in cluster environments. Our results suggest that: (1) in both high- and low-density environments, the mass of the host galaxy has the dominant effect on GC system properties, (2) the local environment has only a secondary effect on the history of GC system formation, (3) GC formation must be governed by common physical processes across a range of environments.
We show that ongoing direct imaging experiments may detect a new class of long-period, highly luminous, tidally powered extrasolar gas giants. Even though they are hosted by Gyr-"old" main-sequence stars, they can be as "hot" as young Jupiters at ~100 Myr, the prime targets of direct imaging surveys. These planets, with years-long orbits, are presently migrating to "feed" the "hot Jupiters" in steady state. Their existence is expected from a class of "high-e" migration mechanisms, in which gas giants are excited to highly eccentric orbits and then shrink their semi-major axis by factor of ~ 10-100 due to tidal dissipation at successive close periastron passages. The dissipated orbital energy is converted to heat, and if it is deposited deep enough into the planet atmosphere, the planet likely radiates steadily at luminosity ~2-3 orders of magnitude larger than that of our Jupiter during a typical Gyr migration time scale. Their large orbital separations and expected high planet-to-star flux ratios in IR make them potentially accessible to high-contrast imaging instruments on 10m-class telescopes at present and in the near future. A dozen or so such planets are expected to exist around FGK dwarfs within ~50 pc. Long-period planets around nearby stars found by RV are viable candidates to follow up, and in particular, the highly eccentric planet HD 20782b at maximum angular separation ~ 0.08" is the most promising candidate. Directly imaging these tidally powered Jupiters would enable a direct test of high-e migration mechanisms. Once detected, the luminosity would provide a direct measurement of the migration rate, and together with mass (and possibly radius) estimate, they would serve as a laboratory to study planetary spectral formation and tidal physics.
Maser emission plays an important role as a tool in star formation studies. It is widely used for deriving kinematics, as well as the physical conditions of different structures, hidden in the dense environment very close to the young stars, for example associated with the onset of jets and outflows. We will summarize the recent observational and theoretical progress on this topic since the last maser symposium: the IAU Symposium 242 in Alice Springs.
The M81 group member dwarf galaxy IC 2574 hosts a supergiant shell of current and recent star-formation activity surrounding a 1000 x 500 pc hole in the ambient Hi gas distribution. Chandra X-ray Observatory imaging observations reveal a luminous, L_x ~ 6.5 x 10^{38} erg/s in the 0.3 - 8.0 keV band, point-like source within the hole but offset from its center and fainter diffuse emission extending throughout and beyond the hole. The star formation history at the location of the point source indicates a burst of star formation beginning ~25 Myr ago and currently weakening and there is a young nearby star cluster, at least 5 Myr old, bracketing the likely age of the X-ray source at between 5 and ~25 Myr. The source is thus likely a bright high-mass X-ray binary --- either a neutron star or black hole accreting from an early B star undergoing thermal-timescale mass transfer through Roche lobe overflow. The properties of the residual diffuse X-ray emission are consistent with those expected from hot gas associated with the recent star-formation activity in the region.
As 2 black holes bound to each other in a close binary approach merger their inspiral time becomes shorter than the characteristic inflow time of surrounding orbiting matter. Using an innovative technique in which we represent the changing spacetime in the region occupied by the orbiting matter with a 2.5PN approximation and the binary orbital evolution with 3.5PN, we have simulated the MHD evolution of a circumbinary disk surrounding an equal-mass non-spinning binary. Prior to the beginning of the inspiral, the structure of the circumbinary disk is predicted well by extrapolation from Newtonian results. The binary opens a low-density gap whose radius is roughly two binary separations, and matter piles up at the outer edge of this gap as inflow is retarded by torques exerted by the binary; nonetheless, the accretion rate is diminished relative to its value at larger radius by only about a factor of 2. During inspiral, the inner edge of the disk at first moves inward in coordination with the shrinking binary, but as the orbital evolution accelerates, the rate at which the inner edge moves toward smaller radii falls behind the rate of binary compression. In this stage, the rate of angular momentum transfer from the binary to the disk slows substantially, but the net accretion rate decreases by only 10-20%. When the binary separation is tens of gravitational radii, the rest-mass efficiency of disk radiation is a few percent, suggesting that supermassive binary black holes in galactic nuclei could be very luminous at this stage of their evolution. If the luminosity were optically thin, it would be modulated at a frequency that is a beat between the orbital frequency of the disk's surface density maximum and the binary orbital frequency. However, a disk with sufficient surface density to be luminous should also be optically thick; as a result, the periodic modulation may be suppressed.
Star-forming dwarfs are studied to elucidate the physical underpinnings of their fundamental plane. It is confirmed that residuals in the Tully-Fisher relation are correlated with surface brightness, but that even after accommodating the surface brightness dependence through the dwarf fundamental plane, residuals in absolute magnitude are far larger than expected from observational errors. Rather, a more fundamental plane is identified which connects the potential to HI line width and surface brightness. Residuals correlate with the axis ratio in a way which can be accommodated by recognizing the galaxies to be oblate spheroids viewed at varying angles. Correction of surface brightnesses to face-on leads to a correlation among the potential, line width, and surface brightness for which residuals are entirely attributable to observational uncertainties. The mean mass-to-light ratio of the diffuse component of the galaxies is constrained to be 0.88 +/- 0.20 in Ks. Blue compact dwarfs lie in the same plane as dwarf irregulars. The dependence of the potential on line width is less strong than expected for virialized systems, but this may be because surface brightness is acting as a proxy for variations in the mass-to-light ratio from galaxy to galaxy. Altogether, the observations suggest that gas motions are predominantly disordered and isotropic, that they are a consequence of gravity, not turbulence, and that the mass and scale of dark matter haloes scale with the amount and distribution of luminous matter. The tight relationship between the potential and observables offers the promise of determining distances to unresolved star-forming dwarfs to an accuracy comparable to that provided by the Tully-Fisher relation for spirals.
The current cosmological dark sector (dark matter plus dark energy) is challenging our comprehension about the physical processes taking place in the Universe. Recently, some authors tried to falsify the basic underlying assumptions of such dark matter-dark energy paradigm. In this Letter, we show that oversimplifications of the measurement process may produce false positives to any consistency test based on the globally homogeneous and isotropic LCDM model and its expansion history based on distance measurements. In particular, when the local inhomogeneity effects due to clumped matter or voids are taken into account, an apparent violation of the basic assumptions ("Copernican Principle") seems to be present. Furthermore, a new method is devised to reconstruct the effects of the inhomogeneities in a LCDM model, and some suggestions of how to distinguish between clumpiness (or void) effects from different cosmologies are discussed.
The technique of High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) for atmospheric monitoring allows the determination of the aerosol to molecular ratio and can be used in UHECR Observatories using air fluorescence telescopes. By this technique a more accurate estimate of the Cherenkov radiation superimposed to the fluorescence signal can be achieved. A laboratory setup was developed to determine the backscattering coefficients using microparticles diluted in water and diffusion interfaces. In this setup we used a CW SLM laser at 532 nm and a 250 mm Newtonian telescope. Simulations of the above experimental configuration have been made using Scatlab\c{opyright}, FINESSE\c{opyright} 0.99.8 and MATLAB\c{opyright} and are presented in this work. We compare the simulated 2-dimensional Fabry-Perot fringe images of the backscattering signal recorded in the CCD sensor with that of experimental ones. Additionally, we simulated the backscattering of the laser beam by the atmosphere at a height of 2000 m and we have studied the influence of the beam and its diameter on the fringe image.
We present that by combining Crossing Statistic and Smoothing method one can reconstruct the expansion history of the universe with a very high precision without considering any prior on the cosmological quantities such as the equation of state of dark energy. We show that the presented method performs very well in reconstruction of the expansion history of the universe independent of the underlying models and it works well even for non-trivial dark energy models with fast or slow changes in the equation of state of dark energy. Accuracy of the reconstructed quantities along with independence of the method to any prior or assumption gives the proposed method advantages to the other non-parametric methods proposed before in the literature. Applying on the Union 2.1 supernovae combined with WiggleZ BAO data we present the reconstructed results and test the consistency of the two data sets in a model independent manner. Results show that latest available supernovae and BAO data are in good agreement with each other and spatially flat LCDM model is in concordance with the current data.
Multi-epoch Spitzer Space Telescope 24 micron data is utilized from the MIPSGAL and Taurus Legacy surveys to detect asteroids based on their relative motion. These infrared detections are matched to known asteroids and rotationally averaged diameters and albedos are derived using the Near Earth Asteroid Model (NEATM) in conjunction with Monte Carlo simulations for 1835 asteroids ranging in size from 0.2 to 143.6 km. A small subsample of these objects was also detected by IRAS or MSX and the single wavelength albedo and diameter fits derived from this data are within 5% of the IRAS and/or MSX derived albedos and diameters demonstrating the robustness of our technique. The mean geometric albedo of the small main belt asteroids in this sample is p_V = 0.138 with a sample standard deviation of 0.105. The albedo distribution of this sample is far more diverse than the IRAS or MSX samples. The cumulative size-frequency distribution of asteroids in the main belt at small diameters is directly derived. Completeness limits of the optical and infrared surveys are discussed.
We present new spectroscopic observations of the polluted, dusty, helium-dominated atmosphere white dwarf star HE1349-2305. Optical spectroscopy reveals weak CaII infrared triplet emission indicating that metallic gas debris orbits and is accreted by the white dwarf. Atmospheric abundances are measured for magnesium and silicon while upper limits for iron and oxygen are derived from the available optical spectroscopy. HE1349-2305 is the first gas disk-hosting white dwarf star identified amongst previously known polluted white dwarfs. Further characterization of the parent body polluting this star will require ultraviolet spectroscopy.
We present 2-D hydrodynamic simulation of rotating galactic winds driven by radiation. We study the structure and dynamics of the cool and/or warm component($T \simeq 10^4$ K) which is mixed with dust. We have taken into account the total gravity of a galactic system that consists of a disc, a bulge and a dark matter halo. We find that the combined effect of gravity and radiation pressure from a realistic disc drives the gas away to a distance of $\sim 5$ kpc in $\sim 37$ Myr for typical galactic parameters. The outflow speed increases rapidly with the disc Eddington parameter $\Gamma_0(=\kappa I/(2 c G \Sigma)$) for $\Gamma_0 \ge 1.5$. We find that the rotation speed of the outflowing gas is $\lesssim 100$ km s$^{-1}$. The wind is confined in a cone which mostly consist of low angular momentum gas lifted from the central region.
(Abridged) Extremely metal-poor stars contain the fossil records of the chemical composition of the early Galaxy. The NLTE profiles of the calcium lines were computed in a sample of 53 extremely metal-poor stars with a modified version of the program MULTI. With our new model atom we are able to reconcile the abundance of Ca deduced from the Ca I and Ca II lines in Procyon. -We find that [Ca/Fe] = 0.50 $\pm$ 0.09 in the early Galaxy, a value slightly higher than the previous LTE estimations. -The scatter of the ratios [X/Ca] is generally smaller than the scatter of the ratio [X/Mg] where X is a "light metal" (O, Na, Mg, Al, S, and K) with the exception of Al. These scatters cannot be explained by error of measurements, except for oxygen. Surprisingly, the scatter of [X/Fe] is always equal to, or even smaller than, the scatter around the mean value of [X/Ca]. -We note that at low metallicity, the wavelength of the Ca I resonance line is shifted relative to the (weaker) subordinate lines, a signature of the effect of convection. -The Ca abundance deduced from the Ca I resonance line (422.7 nm) is found to be systematically smaller at very low metallicity, than the abundance deduced from the subordinate lines.
The application of the Wavelet analysis and Fourier analysis to the dataset of variations of radiation fluxes of solar-like stars and the Sun is examined. In case of the Sun the wavelet-analysis helped us to see a set of values of periods of cycles besides "11-year" cycle: the long-duration cycles of 22-year, 40-50 year and 100-120 year and short-duration cycles of 2-3,5 years and 1,3-year. We present a method of the chromospheric flux simulation using the 13 late-type stars, which have well-determined cyclic flux variations similar to the 11-year solar activity cycle. Our flux prediction is based on the chromospheric calcium emission time series measurements from the Mount Wilson Observatory and comparable solar dataset. We show that solar three - component modeling well explains the stellar chromospheric observations.
X-ray observations are a powerful diagnostic tool for transport, acceleration, and heating of electrons in solar flares. Height and size measurements of X-ray footpoints sources can be used to determine the chromospheric density and constrain the parameters of magnetic field convergence and electron pitch-angle evolution. We investigate the influence of the chromospheric density, magnetic mirroring and collisional pitch-angle scattering on the size of X-ray sources. The time-independent Fokker-Planck equation for electron transport is solved numerically and analytically to find the electron distribution as a function of height above the photosphere. From this distribution, the expected X-ray flux as a function of height, its peak height and full width at half maximum are calculated and compared with RHESSI observations. A purely instrumental explanation for the observed source size was ruled out by using simulated RHESSI images. We find that magnetic mirroring and collisional pitch-angle scattering tend to change the electron flux such that electrons are stopped higher in the atmosphere compared with the simple case with collisional energy loss only. However, the resulting X-ray flux is dominated by the density structure in the chromosphere and only marginal increases in source width are found. Very high loop densities (>10^{11} cm^{-3}) could explain the observed sizes at higher energies, but are unrealistic and would result in no footpoint emission below about 40 keV, contrary to observations. We conclude that within a monolithic density model the vertical sizes are given mostly by the density scale-height and are predicted smaller than the RHESSI results show.
We use Herschel-PACS far-infrared data, combined with previous multi-band information and mid-IR spectra, to properly account for the presence of an active nucleus and constrain its energetic contribution in luminous infrared (IR) sources at z\sim2. The sample is composed of 24 sources in the GOODS-South field, with typical IR luminosity of 10^{12} Lo. Data from the 4 Ms Chandra X-ray imaging in this field are also used to identify and characterize AGN emission. We reproduce the observed spectral energy distribution (SED), decomposed into a host-galaxy and an AGN component. A smooth-torus model for circum-nuclear dust is used to account for the direct and re-processed contribution from the AGN. We confirm that galaxies with typical L_{8-1000um}\sim10^{12}Lo at z\sim2 are powered predominantly by star-formation. An AGN component is present in nine objects (\sim35% of the sample) at the 3sigma confidence level, but its contribution to the 8-1000 um emission accounts for only \sim5% of the energy budget. The AGN contribution rises to \sim23% over the 5-30 um range (in agreement with Spitzer IRS results) and to \sim60% over the narrow 2-6 um range. The presence of an AGN is confirmed by X-ray data for 3 (out of nine) sources, with X-ray spectral analysis indicating the presence of significant absorption, i.e. NH\sim10^{23}-10^{24} cm^{-2}. An additional source shows indications of obscured AGN emission from X-ray data. The comparison between the mid-IR--derived X-ray luminosities and those obtained from X-ray data suggests that obscuration is likely present also in the remaining six sources that harbour an AGN according to the SED-fitting analysis.
Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) play an important role in astrophysics and are crucial for the studies of stellar evolution, galaxy evolution and cosmology. They are generally thought to be thermonuclear explosions of accreting carbon-oxygen white dwarfs (CO WDs) in close binaries, however, the nature of the mass donor star is still unclear. In this article, we review various progenitor models proposed in the past years and summarize many observational results that can be used to put constraints on the nature of their progenitors. We also discuss the origin of SN Ia diversity and the impacts of SN Ia progenitors on some fields. The currently favourable progenitor model is the single-degenerate (SD) model, in which the WD accretes material from a non-degenerate companion star. This model may explain the similarities of most SNe Ia. It has long been argued that the double-degenerate (DD) model, which involves the merger of two CO WDs, may lead to an accretion-induced collapse rather than a thermonuclear explosion. However, recent observations of a few SNe Ia seem to support the DD model, and this model can produce normal SN Ia explosion under certain conditions. Additionally, the sub-luminous SNe Ia may be explained by the sub-Chandrasekhar mass model. At present, it seems likely that more than one progenitor model, including some variants of the SD and DD models, may be required to explain the observed diversity of SNe Ia.
We present a panoramic narrow-band imaging survey of [OII] emitters in and around the ClG J0218.3-0510 cluster at z=1.62 with Suprime-Cam on Subaru telescope. 352 [OII] emitters were identified on the basis of narrow-band excesses and photometric redshifts. We discovered a huge filamentary structure with some clumps traced by [OII] emitters and found that the ClG J0218.3-0510 cluster is embedded in an even larger super-structure than the one reported previously. 31 [OII] emitters were spectroscopically confirmed with the detection of H-alpha and/or [OIII] emission lines by FMOS observations. In the high density regions such as cluster core and clumps, star-forming [OII] emitters show a high overdensity by a factor of more than 10 compared to the field region. Although the star formation activity is very high even in the cluster core, some massive quiescent galaxies also exits at the same time. Furthermore, the properties of the individual [OII] emitters, such as star formation rates, stellar masses and specific star formation rates, do not show a significant dependence on the local density, either. Such lack of environmental dependence is consistent with our earlier result by Hayashi et al. (2011) on a z=1.5 cluster and its surrounding region. The fact that the star-forming activity of galaxies in the cluster core is as high as that in the field at z~1.6 may suggest that the star-forming galaxies are probably just in a transition phase from a starburst mode to a quiescent mode, and are thus showing comparable level of star formation rates to those in lower density environments. We may be witnessing the start of the reversal of the local SFR--density relation due to the "biased" galaxy formation and evolution in high density regions at high this redshift, beyond which massive galaxies would be forming vigorously in a more biased way in proto-cluster cores.
The aim of this paper is to investigate whether there are any 11-yr or quasi-biennial solar cycle-related variations in solar rotational splitting frequencies of low-degree solar p modes. Although no 11-yr signals were observed, variations on a shorter timescale (~2yrs) were apparent. We show that the variations arose from complications/artifacts associated with the realization noise in the data and the process by which the data were analyzed. More specifically, the realization noise was observed to have a larger effect on the rotational splittings than accounted for by the formal uncertainties. When used to infer the rotation profile of the Sun these variations are not important. The outer regions of the solar interior can be constrained using higher-degree modes. While the variations in the low-l splittings do make large differences to the inferred rotation rate of the core, the core rotation rate is so poorly constrained, even by low-l modes, that the different inferred rotation profiles still agree within their respective 1sigma uncertainties. By contrast, in asteroseismology, only low-l modes are visible and so higher-l modes cannot be used to constrain the rotation profile of stars. Furthermore, we usually only have one data set from which to measure the observed low-l splitting. In such circumstances the inferred internal rotation rate of a main sequence star could differ significantly from estimates of the surface rotation rate, hence leading to spurious conclusions. Therefore, extreme care must be taken when using only the splittings of low-l modes to draw conclusions about the average internal rotation rate of a star.
This paper contains a summary of the results from the first years of observations with the HIFI instrument onboard ESA's Herschel space observatory. The paper starts by outlining the goals and possibilities of far-infrared and submillimeter astronomy, the limitations of the Earth's atmosphere, and the scientific scope of the Herschel-HIFI mission. The presentation of science results from the mission follows the life cycle of gas in galaxies as grouped into five themes: Structure of the interstellar medium, First steps in interstellar chemistry, Formation of stars and planets, Solar system results and Evolved stellar envelopes. The HIFI observations paint a picture where the interstellar medium in galaxies has a mixed, rather than a layered structure; the same conclusion may hold for protoplanetary disks. In addition, the HIFI data show that exchange of matter between comets and asteroids with planets and moons plays a large role. The paper concludes with an outlook to future instrumentation in the far-infrared and submillimeter wavelength ranges.
The dynamics of horizontal plasma flows during the first hours of the emergence of active region magnetic fields in the solar photosphere have been analyzed using SOHO/MDI data. Four active regions emerging near the solar limb have been considered. It has been found that extended regions with different signs of velocity are formed in the first hours of the emergence of magnetic fields in the horizontal velocity field. The flows observed are directly connected with the emergence of the magnetic flux of active regions. They form at the beginning of the appearance of magnetic fields and are present for a few hours. Velocity structures situated in the region of leading magnetic poles are more powerful and exist longer than those in the following ones. The Doppler velocity values exceed substantially the separation velocity of the outer boundaries of the photospheric magnetic flux. The interpretation of the observable flow of photospheric plasma is given.
Context: The commonly accepted mass-luminosity relation of central stars of
planetary nebulae (CSPNs) might not be universally valid. While earlier optical
analyses could not derive masses and luminosities independently (instead taking
them from theoretical evolutionary models) hydrodynamically consistent
modelling of the stellar winds allows using fits to the UV spectra to
consistently determine also stellar radii, masses, and luminosities without
assuming a mass-luminosity relation. Recent application to a sample of CSPNs
raised questions regarding the validity of the theoretical mass-luminosity
relation of CSPNs.
Aims: The results of the earlier UV analysis are reassessed by means of a
simultaneous comparison of observed optical and UV spectra with corresponding
synthetic spectra.
Methods: Using published stellar parameters (a) from a consistent UV analysis
and (b) from fits to optical H and He lines, we calculate simultaneous optical
and UV spectra with our model atmosphere code, which has been improved by
implementing Stark broadening for H and He lines.
Results: Spectra computed with the parameter sets from the UV analysis yield
good agreement to the observations, but spectra computed with the stellar
parameters from the published optical analysis and using corresponding
consistent wind parameters show large discrepancies to both the observed
optical and UV spectra. The published optical analyses give good fits to the
observed spectrum only because the wind parameters assumed in these analyses
are inconsistent with their stellar parameters. By enforcing consistency
between stellar and wind parameters, stellar parameters are obtained which
disagree with the core-mass-luminosity relation for the objects analyzed. This
disagreement is also evident from a completely different approach: an
investigation of the dynamical wind parameters.
We study the transition from regular to chaotic motion in a prolate elliptical galaxy dynamical model with a bulge and a dense nucleus. Our numerical investigation shows that stars with angular momentum Lz less than or equal to a critical value Lzc, moving near the galactic plane, are scattered to higher z, when reaching the central region of the galaxy, thus displaying chaotic motion. An inverse square law relationship was found to exist between the radius of the bulge and the critical value Lzc of the angular momentum. On the other hand, a linear relationship exists between the mass of the nucleus and Lzc. The numerically obtained results are explained using theoretical arguments. Our study shows that there are connections between regular or chaotic motion and the physical parameters of the system, such as the star's angular momentum and mass, the scale length of the nucleus and the radius of the bulge. The results are compared with the outcomes of previous work.
The Blanco Cosmology Survey (BCS) is a 60 night imaging survey of $\sim$80 deg$^2$ of the southern sky located in two fields: ($\alpha$,$\delta$)= (5 hr, $-55^{\circ}$) and (23 hr, $-55^{\circ}$). The survey was carried out between 2005 and 2008 in $griz$ bands with the Mosaic2 imager on the Blanco 4m telescope. The primary aim of the BCS survey is to provide the data required to optically confirm and measure photometric redshifts for Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect selected galaxy clusters from the South Pole Telescope and the Atacama Cosmology Telescope. We process and calibrate the BCS data, carrying out PSF corrected model fitting photometry for all detected objects. The median 10$\sigma$ galaxy (point source) depths over the survey in $griz$ are approximately 23.3 (23.9), 23.4 (24.0), 23.0 (23.6) and 21.3 (22.1), respectively. The astrometric accuracy relative to the USNO-B survey is $\sim45$ milli-arcsec. We calibrate our absolute photometry using the stellar locus in $grizJ$ bands, and thus our absolute photometric scale derives from 2MASS which has $\sim2$% accuracy. The scatter of stars about the stellar locus indicates a systematics floor in the relative stellar photometric scatter in $griz$ that is $\sim$1.9%, $\sim$2.2%, $\sim$2.7% and$\sim$2.7%, respectively. A simple cut in the {\it AstrOmatic} star-galaxy classifier {\tt spread\_model} produces a star sample with good spatial uniformity. We use the resulting photometric catalogs to calibrate photometric redshifts for the survey and demonstrate scatter $\delta z/(1+z)=0.054$ with an outlier fraction $\eta<5$% to $z\sim1$. We highlight some selected science results to date and provide a full description of the released data products.
In the case of Gamma-Ray Bursts with measured redshift, we can calculate the k-correction to get the fluence and energy that were actually produced in the comoving system of the GRB. To achieve this we have to use well-fitted parameters of a GRB spectrum, available in the GCN database. The output of the calculations is the comoving isotropic energy E_iso, but this is not the endpoint: this data can be useful for estimating the {\Omega}M parameter of the Universe and for making a GRB Hubble diagram using Amati's relation.
We re-analyse the HARPS radial velocities of HD 10180 and calculate the probabilities of models with differing numbers of periodic signals in the data. We test the significance of the seven signals, corresponding to seven exoplanets orbiting the star, in the Bayesian framework and perform comparisons of models with up to nine periodicities. We use posterior samplings and Bayesian model probabilities in our analyses together with suitable prior probability densities and prior model probabilities to extract all the significant signals from the data and to receive reliable uncertainties for the orbital parameters of the six, possibly seven, known exoplanets in the system. According to our results, there is evidence for up to nine planets orbiting HD 10180, which would make this this star a record holder in having more planets in its orbits than there are in the Solar system. We revise the uncertainties of the previously reported six planets in the system, verify the existence of the seventh signal, and announce the detection of two additional statistically significant signals in the data. If of planetary origin, these two additional signals would correspond to planets with minimum masses of 5.1$^{+3.1}_{-3.2}$ and 1.9$^{+1.6}_{-1.8}$ M$_{\oplus}$ on orbits with 67.55$^{+0.68}_{-0.88}$ and 9.655$^{+0.022}_{-0.072}$ days periods (denoted using the 99% credibility intervals), respectively.
We consider a relativistic, degenerate electron gas at zero-temperature under the influence of a strong, uniform, static magnetic field, neglecting any form of interactions. Since the density of states for the electrons changes due to the presence of the magnetic field (which gives rise to Landau quantization), the corresponding equation of state also gets modified. In order to investigate the effect of very strong magnetic field, we focus only on systems in which a maximum of either one, two or three Landau level(s) is/are occupied. This is important since, if a very large number of Landau levels are filled, it implies a very low magnetic field strength which yields back Chandrasekhar's celebrated non-magnetic results. The maximum number of occupied Landau levels is fixed by the correct choice of two parameters, namely the magnetic field strength and the maximum Fermi energy of the system. We study the equations of state of these one-level, two-level and three-level systems and compare them by taking three different maximum Fermi energies. We also find the effect of the strong magnetic field on the mass-radius relation of the underlying star composed of the gas stated above. We obtain an interesting result that, it is possible to have an electron degenerate static star, namely magnetized white dwarfs, with a mass significantly greater than the Chandrasekhar limit, provided it has an appropriate magnetic field strength and central density.
We present Herschel dust continuum, James Clerk Maxwell Telescope CO(3-2) observations and a search for [CII] 158 micron and [OI] 63 micron spectral line emission for the brightest early-type dwarf satellite of Andromeda, NGC 205. While direct gas measurements (Mgas ~ 1.5e+6 Msun, HI + CO(1-0)) have proven to be inconsistent with theoretical predictions of the current gas reservoir in NGC 205 (> 1e+7 Msun), we revise the missing interstellar medium mass problem based on new gas mass estimates (CO(3-2), [CII], [OI]) and indirect measurements of the interstellar medium content through dust continuum emission. Based on Herschel observations, covering a wide wavelength range from 70 to 500 micron, we are able to probe the entire dust content in NGC 205 (Mdust ~ 1.1-1.8e+4 Msun at Tdust ~ 18-22 K) and rule out the presence of a massive cold dust component (Mdust ~ 5e+5 Msun, Tdust ~ 12 K), which was suggested based on millimeter observations from the inner 18.4 arcsec. Assuming a reasonable gas-to-dust ratio of ~ 400, the dust mass in NGC 205 translates into a gas mass Mgas ~ 4-7e+6 Msun. The non-detection of [OI] and the low L_[CII]-to-L_CO(1-0) line intensity ratio (~ 1850) imply that the molecular gas phase is well traced by CO molecules in NGC 205. We estimate an atomic gas mass of 1.5e+4 Msun associated with the [CII] emitting PDR regions in NGC 205. From the partial CO(3-2) map of the northern region in NGC 205, we derive a molecular gas mass of M_H2 ~ 1.3e+5 Msun. [abridged]
The field of TeV gamma-ray astronomy has produced many exciting results over the last decade. Both the source catalogue, and the range of astrophysical questions which can be addressed, continue to expand. This article presents a topical review of the field, with a focus on the observational results of the imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescope arrays. The results encompass pulsars and their nebulae, supernova remnants, gamma-ray binary systems, star forming regions and starburst and active galaxies.
We investigate the diffusion of cosmic rays (CR) close to their sources. Propagating individual CRs in purely isotropic turbulent magnetic fields with maximal scale of spatial variations Lmax, we find that CRs diffuse anisotropically at distances r <~ Lmax from their sources. As a result, the CR densities around the sources are strongly irregular and show filamentary structures. We determine the transition time t* to standard diffusion as t* ~ 10^4 yr (Lmax/150 pc)^b (E/PeV)^(-g) (Brms/4 muG)^g, with b \simeq 2 and g = 0.25-0.5 for a turbulent field with Kolmogorov power spectrum. We calculate the photon emission due to CR interactions with gas and the resulting irregular source images.
We investigate the variation of the gas and the radiation pressure in accretion disks during the infall of matter to the black hole and its effect to the flow. While the flow far away from the black hole might be non-relativistic, in the vicinity of the black hole it is expected to be relativistic behaving more like radiation. Therefore, the ratio of gas pressure to total pressure (beta) and the underlying polytropic index (gamma) should not be constant throughout the flow. We obtain that accretion flows exhibit significant variation of beta and then gamma, which affects solutions described in the standard literature based on constant beta. Certain solutions for a particular set of initial parameters with a constant beta do not exist when the variation of beta is incorporated appropriately. We model the viscous sub-Keplerian accretion disk with a nonzero component of advection and pressure gradient around black holes by preserving the conservations of mass, momentum, energy, supplemented by the evolution of beta. By solving the set of five coupled differential equations, we obtain the thermo-hydrodynamical properties of the flow. We show that during infall, beta of the flow could vary upto ~300%, while gamma upto ~20%. This might have a significant impact to the disk solutions in explaining observed data, e.g. super-luminal jets from disks, luminosity, and then extracting fundamental properties from them. Hence any conclusion based on constant gamma and beta should be taken with caution and corrected.
The last few years have seen the discovery of many faint and ultra-faint dwarf spheroidal galaxies around the Milky Way. Among these is a pair of satellites called Leo IV and Leo V. This pair is found at large distances from the Milky Way (154 and 175 kpc respectively). The rather small difference in radial distance, and the fact that they also show a close projected distance on the sky, has led to the idea that we might be seeing a new pair of bound galaxies - like the Magellanic Clouds. In this paper we investigate this speculation by means of a simple integration code (confirming the results with full N-body simulations). As the luminous mass of both faint dwarfs is far too low to allow them to be bound, we simulate the pair assuming extended dark matter haloes. Our results show that the minimum dark matter mass required for the pair to be bound is rather high - ranging from 1.6 x 10^10 Msun to 5.4 x 10^10 Msun (within the virial radii). Computing the mass of dark matter within a commonly adopted radius of 300 pc shows that our models are well within the predicted range of dark matter content for satellites so faint. We therefore conclude that it could be possible that the two galaxies constitute a bound pair.
Beam power is a fundamental parameter that describes, in part, the state of a supermassive black hole system. Determining the beam powers of powerful classical double radio sources requires substantial observing time, so it would be useful to determine the relationship between beam power and radio power so that radio power could be used as a proxy for beam power. A sample of 31 powerful classical double radio sources with previously determined beam and radio powers are studied; the sources have redshifts between about 0.056 and 1.8. It is found that the relationship between beam power, Lj, and radio power, P, is well described by Log(Lj) = 0.84 Log(P) + 2.15, where both L_j and P are in units of 10^(44) erg/s. This indicates that beam power is converted to radio power with an efficiency of about 0.7%. The ratio of beam power to radio power is studied as a function of redshift; there is no significant evidence for redshift evolution of this ratio over the redshift range studied. The relationship is consistent with empirical results obtained by Cavagnolo et al. (2010) for radio sources in gas rich environments, which are primarily FRI sources, and with the theoretical predictions of Willott et al. (1999).
The recently discovered circumbinary planets (Kepler-16 b, Kepler-34 b, Kepler-35 b) represent the first direct evidence of the viability of planet formation in circumbinary orbits. We report on the results of N-body simulations investigating planetesimal accretion in the Kepler-16 b system, focusing on the range of impact velocities under the influence of both stars' gravitational perturbation and friction from a putative protoplanetary disk. Our results show that planet formation might be effectively inhibited for a large range in semi-major axis (1.75 < a_P < 4 AU), suggesting that the planetary core must have either migrated from outside 4 AU, or formed in situ very close to its current location.
A comparison is presented of Sunyaev-Zeldovich measurements for 11 galaxy clusters as obtained by Planck and by the ground-based interferometer, the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager. Assuming a universal spherically-symmetric Generalised Navarro, Frenk & White (GNFW) model for the cluster gas pressure profile, we jointly constrain the integrated Compton-Y parameter (Y_500) and the scale radius (theta_500) of each cluster. Our resulting constraints in the Y_500-theta_500 2D parameter space derived from the two instruments overlap significantly for eight of the clusters, although, overall, there is a tendency for AMI to find the Sunyaev-Zeldovich signal to be smaller in angular size and fainter than Planck. Significant discrepancies exist for the three remaining clusters in the sample, namely A1413, A1914, and the newly-discovered Planck cluster PLCKESZ G139.59+24.18. The robustness of the analysis of both the Planck and AMI data is demonstrated through the use of detailed simulations, which also discount confusion from residual point (radio) sources and from diffuse astrophysical foregrounds as possible explanations for the discrepancies found. For a subset of our cluster sample, we have investigated the dependence of our results on the assumed pressure profile by repeating the analysis adopting the best-fitting GNFW profile shape which best matches X-ray observations. Adopting the best-fitting profile shape from the X-ray data does not, in general, resolve the discrepancies found in this subset of five clusters. Though based on a small sample, our results suggest that the adopted GNFW model may not be sufficiently flexible to describe clusters universally.
We examine the Lagrangian divergence of the displacement field, a more natural object than the density in a Lagrangian description of cosmological large-scale structure. This quantity, which we denote {\psi}, quantifies the stretching and distortion of the initially regular lattice of dark-matter particles in the universe. {\psi} encodes similar information as the density, but we find that even in the limit of vanishing fluctuations, a Gaussian distribution of {\psi} produces a density distribution much more lognormal than Gaussian. A local spherical-collapse-based (SC) fit found by Bernardeau gives a formula for {\psi}'s particle-by-particle behavior that works quite well, better than applying Lagrangian perturbation theory (LPT) at first or second (2LPT) order. In 2LPT, there is a roughly parabolic relation between initial and final {\psi} that can give overdensities in deep voids, so low-redshift, high-resolution 2LPT realizations should be used with caution. The SC fit excels at predicting {\psi} until streams cross; then, for particles forming haloes, {\psi} plummets as in a waterfall to -3. This gives a new method for producing particle realizations. Compared to LPT realizations, such SC realizations give reduced stream-crossing, and better visual and 1-point-PDF correspondence to the results of full gravity. LPT, on the other hand, predicts large-scale flows and the large-scale power-spectrum amplitude better, unless an empirical correction is added to the SC formula.
We have obtained 48 high resolution echelle spectra of the pre-main sequence eclipsing binary system KH~15D (V582 Mon, P = 48.37 d, $e$ $\sim$ 0.6, M$_{A}$ = 0.6 M$_{\odot}$, M$_{B}$ = 0.7 M$_{\odot}$). The eclipses are caused by a circumbinary disk seen nearly edge on, which at the epoch of these observations completely obscured the orbit of star B and a large portion of the orbit of star A. The spectra were obtained over five contiguous observing seasons from 2001/2002 to 2005/2006 while star A was fully visible, fully occulted, and during several ingress and egress events. The H$\alpha$ line profile shows dramatic changes in these time series data over timescales ranging from days to years. A fraction of the variations are due to "edge effects" and depend only on the height of star A above or below the razor sharp edge of the occulting disk. Other observed variations depend on the orbital phase: the H$\alpha$ emission line profile changes from an inverse P Cygni type profile during ingress to an enhanced double-peaked profile, with both a blue and red emission component, during egress. Each of these interpreted variations are complicated by the fact that there is also a chaotic, irregular component present in these profiles. We find that the complex data set can be largely understood in the context of accretion onto the stars from a circumbinary disk with gas flows as predicted by the models of eccentric T Tauri binaries put forward by Artymowicz & Lubow, G\"{u}nther & Kley, and de Val-Borro et al. In particular, our data provide strong support for the pulsed accretion phenomenon, in which enhanced accretion occurs during and after perihelion passage.
There are two main approaches to non-equlibrium statistical mechanics: one using stochastic processes and the other using dynamical systems. To model the dynamics during inflation one usually adopts a stochastic description, which is known to suffer from serious conceptual problems. To overcome the problems and/or to gain more insight, we develop a dynamical systems approach. A key assumption that goes into analysis is the chaotic hypothesis, which is a natural generalization of the ergodic hypothesis to non-Hamiltonian systems. The unfamiliar feature for gravitational systems is that the local phase space trajectories can either reproduce or escape due to the presence of cosmological and black hole horizons. We argue that the effect of horizons can be studied using dynamical systems and apply the so-called thermodynamic formalism to derive the equilibrium (or Sinai-Ruelle-Bowen) measure given by a variational principle. We show that the only physical measure is not the Liouville measure (i.e. no entropy problem), but the equilibrium measure (i.e. no measure problem) defined over local trajectories (i.e. no problem of observables) and supported on only infinite trajectories (i.e. no problem of initial conditions). Phenomenological aspects of the fluctuation theorem are discussed.
We study static, spherically symmetric solutions in a recently proposed ghost-free model of non-linear massive gravity. We focus on a branch of solutions where the helicity-0 mode can be strongly coupled within certain radial regions, giving rise to the Vainshtein effect. We truncate the analysis to scales below the gravitational Compton wavelength, and determine analytically the number and properties of local solutions which exist asymptotically on large scales, and of local (inner) solutions which exist on small scales. We find two kinds of asymptotic solutions, one of which is asymptotically flat, while the other one is not. We find also two types of inner solutions, one of which displays the Vainshtein mechanism, while the other exhibits a self-shielding behaviour of the gravitational field. We analyse in detail in which cases the solutions match in an intermediate region. The asymptotically flat solutions connect only to inner configurations displaying the Vainshtein mechanism, while the non asymptotically flat solutions can connect with both kinds of inner solutions. We show furthermore that there are some regions in the parameter space where global solutions do not exist, and characterise precisely in which regions of the phase space the Vainshtein mechanism takes place.
A cosmological model of a flat Friedmann universe filled with a mixture of anti-Chaplygin gas and dust-like matter exhibits a future soft singularity, where the pressure of the anti-Chaplygin gas diverges (while its energy density vanishes). Despite infinite tidal forces the geodesics pass through the singularity. Due to the dust component, the Hubble parameter has a non-zero value at the encounter with the singularity, therefore the dust implies further expansion. With continued expansion however, the energy density and the pressure of the anti-Chaplygin gas would become ill-defined, hence from the point of view of the anti-Chaplygin gas only a contraction is allowed. Paradoxically, the universe in this cosmological model would have to expand and contract simultaneously. This obviosly could not happen. We solve the paradox by redefining the anti-Chaplygin gas in a distributional sense. Then a contraction could follow the expansion phase at the singularity at the price of a jump in the Hubble parameter. Although such an abrupt change is not common in any cosmological evolution, we explicitly show that the set of Friedmann, Raychaudhuri and continuity equations are all obeyed both at the singularity and in its vicinity. We also prove that the Israel junction conditions are obeyed through the singular spatial hypersurface. In particular we enounce and prove a more general form of the Lanczos equation.
The era of precision cosmology has allowed us to accurately determine many important cosmological parameters, in particular via the CMB. Confronting Loop Quantum Cosmology with these observations provides us with a powerful test of the theory. For this to be possible we need a detailed understanding of the generation and evolution of inhomogeneous perturbations during the early, Quantum Gravity, phase of the universe. Here we describe how Loop Quantum Cosmology provides a completion of the inflationary paradigm, that is consistent with the observed power spectra of the CMB.
In this work we present a class of geometries which describes wormholes in a Randall-Sundrum brane model, focusing on de Sitter backgrounds. Maximal extensions of the solutions are constructed and their causal structures are discussed. A perturbative analysis is developed, where matter and gravitational perturbations are studied. Analytical results for the quasinormal spectra are obtained and an extensive numerical survey is conducted. Our results indicate that the wormhole geometries presented are stable.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1204, contact, help (Access key information)