176 research outputs found
The fading of supernova remnant cassiopeia a from 38 MHz to 16.5 GHz from 1949 to 1999 with new observations at 1405 MHz
We report 1405 MHz measurements of the flux density of the ≈ 320-year-old supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, relative to the flux density of Cygnus A, made between 1995 and 1999. When compared to measurements made between 1957 and 1976, we find that the rate at which Cassiopeia A has been fading at this and nearby frequencies has changed from ≈0.9% yr-1 in the 1960s to ≈0.6%-0.7% yr-1 now. Furthermore, we have collected from the literature measurements of this fading rate at lower (38-300 MHz) and higher (7.8-16.5 GHz) frequencies. We show that the fading rate has dropped by a factor of ≈3 over the past 50 years at the lower frequencies, while remaining relatively constant at the higher frequencies, which is in agreement with the findings of others. Our findings at 1405 MHz, in conjunction with a measurement of the fading rate at the nearby frequency of 927 MHz by Vinyajkin, show an intermediate behavior at intermediate frequencies. We also find that Cassiopeia A, as of ≈1990, was fading at about the same rate, ≈0.6%-0.7% yr-1, at all of these frequencies. Future measurements are required to determine whether the fading rate will continue to decrease at the lower frequencies, or whether Cassiopeia A will now fade at a relatively constant rate at all of these frequencies
Beyond Control-Flow: Extending Business Process Configuration to Roles and Objects
A configurable process model is an integrated representation of multiple variants of a business process. It is designed to be individualized to meet a particular set of requirements. As such, configurable process models promote systematic reuse of proven or common practices. Existing notations for configurable process modeling focus on capturing tasks and control-flow dependencies, neglecting equally important aspects of business processes such as data flow, material flow and resource management. This paper fills this gap by proposing an integrated meta-model for configurable processes with advanced features for capturing resources involved in the performance of tasks (through task-role associations) as well as flow of data and physical artifacts (through task-object associations). Although embodied as an extension of a popular process modeling notation, namely EPC, the meta-model is defined in an abstract and formal manner to make it applicable to other notations
Models for Galactic cosmic-ray propagation
A new numerical model of particle propagation in the Galaxy has been
developed, which allows the study of cosmic-ray and gamma-ray production and
propagation in 2D or 3D, including a full reaction network. This is a further
development of the code which has been used for studies of cosmic ray
reacceleration, Galactic halo size, antiprotons and positrons in cosmic rays,
the interpretation of diffuse continuum gamma rays, and dark matter. In this
paper we illustrate recent results focussing on B/C, sub-Fe/Fe, ACE radioactive
isotope data, source abundances and antiprotons. From the radioactive nuclei we
derive a range of 3-7 kpc for the height of the cosmic-ray halo.Comment: Invited talk at the 33rd COSPAR Scientific Assembly (Warsaw 2000); 10
pages including 10 ps-figures and 2 tables, latex2e, uses cospar.sty. To
appear in Advances in Space Research 2001. More details can be found at
http://www.gamma.mpe-garching.mpg.de/~aws/aws.htm
Spin relaxation: From 2D to 1D
In inversion asymmetric semiconductors, spin-orbit interactions give rise to
very effective relaxation mechanisms of the electron spin. Recent work, based
on the dimensionally constrained D'yakonov Perel' mechanism, describes
increasing electron-spin relaxation times for two-dimensional conducting layers
with decreasing channel width. The slow-down of the spin relaxation can be
understood as a precursor of the one-dimensional limit
Sulfur Cycling as a Viable Metabolism under Simulated Noachian/Hesperian Chemistries
Water present on the surface of early Mars (>3.0 Ga) may have been habitable. Characterising analogue environments and investigating the aspects of their microbiome best suited for growth under simulated martian chemical conditions is key to understanding potential habitability. Experiments were conducted to investigate the viability of microbes from a Mars analogue environment, Colour Peak Springs (Axel Heiberg Island, Canadian High Arctic), under simulated martian chemistries. The fluid was designed to emulate waters thought to be typical of the late Noachian, in combination with regolith simulant material based on two distinct martian geologies. These experiments were performed with a microbial community from Colour Peak Springs sediment. The impact on the microbes was assessed by cell counting and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Changes in fluid chemistries were tested using ICP-OES. Both chemistries were shown to be habitable, with growth in both chemistries. Microbial communities exhibited distinct growth dynamics and taxonomic composition, comprised of sulfur-cycling bacteria, represented by either sulfate-reducing or sulfur-oxidising bacteria, and additional heterotrophic halophiles. Our data support the identification of Colour Peak Springs as an analogue for former martian environments, with a specific subsection of the biota able to survive under more accurate proxies for martian chemistries
On possible interpretations of the high energy electron-positron spectrum measured by the Fermi Large Area Telescope
The Fermi-LAT experiment recently reported high precision measurements of the
spectrum of cosmic-ray electrons-plus-positrons (CRE) between 20 GeV and 1 TeV.
The spectrum shows no prominent spectral features, and is significantly harder
than that inferred from several previous experiments. Here we discuss several
interpretations of the Fermi results based either on a single large scale
Galactic CRE component or by invoking additional electron-positron primary
sources, e.g. nearby pulsars or particle Dark Matter annihilation. We show that
while the reported Fermi-LAT data alone can be interpreted in terms of a single
component scenario, when combined with other complementary experimental
results, specifically the CRE spectrum measured by H.E.S.S. and especially the
positron fraction reported by PAMELA between 1 and 100 GeV, that class of
models fails to provide a consistent interpretation. Rather, we find that
several combinations of parameters, involving both the pulsar and dark matter
scenarios, allow a consistent description of those results. We also briefly
discuss the possibility of discriminating between the pulsar and dark matter
interpretations by looking for a possible anisotropy in the CRE flux.Comment: 29 pages, 12 figures. Final version accepted for publication in
Astroparticle Physic
Gemini/GMOS Transmission Spectroscopy of the Grazing Planet Candidate WD 1856+534 b
WD 1856+534 b is a Jupiter-sized, cool giant planet candidate transiting the white dwarf WD 1856+534. Here, we report an optical transmission spectrum of WD 1856+534 b obtained from ten transits using the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph. This system is challenging to observe due to the faintness of the host star and the short transit duration. Nevertheless, our phase-folded white light curve reached a precision of 0.12%. WD 1856+534 b provides a unique transit configuration compared to other known exoplanets: the planet is 8 larger than its star and occults over half of the stellar disk during mid-transit. Consequently, many standard modeling assumptions do not hold. We introduce the concept of a "limb darkening corrected, time-averaged transmission spectrum"and propose that this is more suitable than for comparisons to atmospheric models for planets with grazing transits. We also present a modified radiative transfer prescription. Though the transmission spectrum shows no prominent absorption features, it is sufficiently precise to constrain the mass of WD 1856+534 b to be >0.84 M J (to 2σ confidence), assuming a clear atmosphere and a Jovian composition. High-altitude cloud decks can allow lower masses. WD 1856+534 b could have formed either as a result of common envelope evolution or migration under the Kozai-Lidov mechanism. Further studies of WD 1856+534 b, alongside new dedicated searches for substellar objects around white dwarfs, will shed further light on the mysteries of post-main-sequence planetary systems
Propagation of secondary antiprotons and cosmic rays in the Galaxy
Recent measurements of the cosmic ray (CR) antiproton flux have been shown to
challenge existing CR propagation models. It was shown that the reacceleration
models designed to match secondary to primary nuclei ratios (e.g., B/C) produce
too few antiprotons. In the present paper we discuss one possibility to
overcome these difficulties. Using the measured antiproton flux AND B/C ratio
to fix the diffusion coefficient, we show that the spectra of primary nuclei as
measured in the heliosphere may contain a fresh local "unprocessed" component
at low energies perhaps associated with the Local Bubble, thus decreasing the
measured secondary to primary nuclei ratio. The independent evidence for SN
activity in the solar vicinity in the last few Myr supports this idea. The
model reproduces antiprotons, B/C ratio, and elemental abundances up to Ni
(Z<=28). Calculated isotopic distributions of Be and B are in perfect agreement
with CR data. The abundances of three "radioactive clock" isotopes in CR, 10Be,
26Al, 36Cl, are all consistent and indicate a halo size z_h~4 kpc based on the
most accurate data taken by the ACE spacecraft.Comment: 6 pages, 5 ps-figures, cospar.sty; Proc. of 34th COSPAR Scientific
Assembly (Houston, 10-19 October 2002). Submitted to Advances in Space
Research. More details can be found at
http://www.gamma.mpe-garching.mpg.de/~aws/aws.htm
A measurement of the tau mass and the first CPT test with tau leptons
We measure the mass of the tau lepton to be 1775.1+-1.6(stat)+-1.0(syst.) MeV
using tau pairs from Z0 decays. To test CPT invariance we compare the masses of
the positively and negatively charged tau leptons. The relative mass difference
is found to be smaller than 3.0 10^-3 at the 90% confidence level.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, Submitted to Phys. Letts.
Measurement of the B0 Lifetime and Oscillation Frequency using B0->D*+l-v decays
The lifetime and oscillation frequency of the B0 meson has been measured
using B0->D*+l-v decays recorded on the Z0 peak with the OPAL detector at LEP.
The D*+ -> D0pi+ decays were reconstructed using an inclusive technique and the
production flavour of the B0 mesons was determined using a combination of tags
from the rest of the event. The results t_B0 = 1.541 +- 0.028 +- 0.023 ps, Dm_d
= 0.497 +- 0.024 +- 0.025 ps-1 were obtained, where in each case the first
error is statistical and the second systematic.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Phys. Lett.
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