713 research outputs found
Spatial Dimensions of Environmental Policies for Transboundary Externalities: A Spatial Price Equilibrium Approach
HE0107-5240, A Chemically Ancient Star.I. A Detailed Abundance Analysis
We report a detailed abundance analysis for HE0107-5240, a halo giant with
[Fe/H]_NLTE=-5.3. This star was discovered in the course of follow-up
medium-resolution spectroscopy of extremely metal-poor candidates selected from
the digitized Hamburg/ESO objective-prism survey. On the basis of
high-resolution VLT/UVES spectra, we derive abundances for 8 elements (C, N,
Na, Mg, Ca, Ti, Fe, and Ni), and upper limits for another 12 elements. A
plane-parallel LTE model atmosphere has been specifically tailored for the
chemical composition of {\he}. Scenarios for the origin of the abundance
pattern observed in the star are discussed. We argue that HE0107-5240 is most
likely not a post-AGB star, and that the extremely low abundances of the
iron-peak, and other elements, are not due to selective dust depletion. The
abundance pattern of HE0107-5240 can be explained by pre-enrichment from a
zero-metallicity type-II supernova of 20-25M_Sun, plus either self-enrichment
with C and N, or production of these elements in the AGB phase of a formerly
more massive companion, which is now a white dwarf. However, significant radial
velocity variations have not been detected within the 52 days covered by our
moderate-and high-resolution spectra. Alternatively, the abundance pattern can
be explained by enrichment of the gas cloud from which HE0107-5240 formed by a
25M_Sun first-generation star exploding as a subluminous SNII, as proposed by
Umeda & Nomoto (2003). We discuss consequences of the existence of HE0107-5240
for low-mass star formation in extremely metal-poor environments, and for
currently ongoing and future searches for the most metal-poor stars in the
Galaxy.Comment: 60 pages, 16 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap
Oxidized and Aggregated Recombinant Human Interferon Beta is Immunogenic in Human Interferon Beta Transgenic Mice
PurposeTo study the effect of oxidation on the structure of recombinant human interferon beta-1a (rhIFNβ-1a) and its immunogenicity in wild-type and immune-tolerant transgenic mice.MethodsUntreated rhIFNβ-1a was degraded by metal-catalyzed oxidation, H2O2-mediated oxidation, and guanidine-mediated unfolding/refolding. Four rhIFNβ-1a preparations with different levels of oxidation and aggregation were injected intraperitoneally in mice 15× during 3 weeks. Both binding and neutralizing antibodies were measured.ResultsAll rhIFNβ-1a preparations contained substantial amounts of aggregates. Metal-catalyzed oxidized rhIFNβ-1a contained high levels of covalent aggregates as compared with untreated rhIFNβ-1a. H2O2-treated rhIFNβ-1a showed an increase in oligomer and unrecovered protein content by HP-SEC; RP-HPLC revealed protein oxidation. Guanidine-treated rhIFNβ-1a mostly consisted of dimers and oligomers and some non-covalent aggregates smaller in size than those in untreated rhIFNβ-1a. All degraded samples showed alterations in tertiary protein structure. Wild-type mice showed equally high antibody responses against all preparations. Transgenic mice were discriminative, showing elevated antibody responses against both metal-catalyzed oxidized and H2O2-treated rhIFNβ-1a as compared to untreated and guanidine-treated rhIFNβ-1a.ConclusionsOxidation-mediated aggregation increased the immunogenicity of rhIFNβ-1a in transgenic mice, whereas aggregated preparations devoid of measurable oxidation levels were hardly immunogenic
The Origin of the Bifurcation in the Sagittarius Stream
The latest Sloan Digital Sky Survey data reveal a prominent bifurcation in
the distribution of debris of the Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal (Sgr) beginning
at a right ascension of roughly 190 degrees. Two branches of the stream (A and
B) persist at roughly the same heliocentric distance over at least 50 degrees
of arc. There is also evidence for a more distant structure (C) well behind the
A branch. This paper provides the first explanation for the bifurcation. It is
caused by the projection of the young leading (A) and old trailing (B) tidal
arms of the Sgr, whilst the old leading arm (C) lies well behind A. This
explanation is only possible if the halo is close to spherical, as the angular
difference between the branches is a measure of the precession of the orbital
plane.Comment: ApJ, in pres
Abundances of metal-weak thick-disc candidates
High resolution spectra of 5 candidate metal-weak thick-disc stars suggested
by Beers & Sommer-Larsen (1995) are analyzed to determine their chemical
abundances. The low abundance of all the objects has been confirmed with
metallicity reaching [Fe/H]=-2.9. However, for three objects, the astrometric
data from the Hipparcos catalogue suggests they are true halo members. The
remaining two, for which proper-motion data are not available, may have
disc-like kinematics. It is therefore clear that it is useful to address
properties of putative metal-weak thick-disc stars only if they possess full
kinematic data. For CS 22894-19 the abundance pattern similar to those of
typical halo stars is found, suggesting that chemical composition is not a
useful discriminant between thick-disc and halo stars. CS 29529-12 is found to
be C enhanced with [C/Fe]=+1.0; other chemical peculiarities involve the s
process elements: [Sr/Fe]=-0.65 and [Ba/Fe]=+0.62, leading to a high [Ba/Sr]
considerably larger than what is found in more metal-rich carbon-rich stars,
but similar to LP 706-7 and LP 625-44 discussed by Norris et al (1997a).
Hipparcos data have been used to calculate the space velocities of 25 candidate
metal-weak thick-disc stars, thus allowing us to identify 3 bona fide members,
which support the existence of a metal-poor tail of the thick-disc, at variance
with a claim to the contrary by Ryan & Lambert (1995).Comment: to be published in MNRA
The Chemical Evolution of the Milky Way
The field of chemical evolution modeling of the Galaxy is experiencing in the
last years a phase of high activity and important achievements. There are,
however, several open questions which still need to be answered. In this review
I summarize what have been the most important achievements and what are some of
the most urgent questions to be answered.Comment: 10 pages including 3 figs, to appear in "The Chemical Evolution of
the Milky Way. Stars vs Clusters", Proceedings of the Sept.1999 Vulcano
Workshop, F.Giovannelli and F.Matteucci eds (Kluwer, Dordrecht) in pres
A Universal Vertical Stellar Density Distribution Law for the Galaxy
We reduced the observational logarithmic space densities in the vertical
direction up to 8 kpc from the galactic plane, for stars with absolute
magnitudes (5,6], (6,7] and [5,10] in the fields #0952+5245 and SA114, to a
single exponential density law. One of three parameters in the quadratic
expression of the density law corresponds to the local space density for stars
with absolute magnitudes in question. There is no need of any definition for
scaleheights or population types. We confirm with the arguments of non-discrete
thin and thick discs for our Galaxy and propose a single structure up to
several kiloparsecs from the galactic plane. The logarithmic space densities
evaluated by this law for the ELAIS field fit to the observational ones.
Whereas, there are considerable offsets for the logarithmic space densities
produced by two sets of classical galactic model parameters from the
observational ones, for the same field.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figure and 10 tables, accepted for publication in
Astrophysics & Space Scienc
A dynamical and kinematical model of the Galactic stellar halo and possible implications for galaxy formation scenarios
We re-analyse the kinematics of the system of blue horizontal branch field
(BHBF) stars in the Galactic halo (in particular the outer halo), fitting the
kinematics with the model of radial and tangential velocity dispersions in the
halo as a function of galactocentric distance r proposed by Sommer-Larsen,
Flynn & Christensen (1994), using a much larger sample (almost 700) of BHBF
stars. The basic result is that the character of the stellar halo velocity
ellipsoid changes markedly from radial anisotropy at the sun to tangential
anisotropy in the outer parts of the Galactic halo (r greater than approx 20
kpc). Specifically, the radial component of the stellar halo's velocity
ellipsoid decreases fairly rapidly beyond the solar circle, from approx 140 +/-
10 km/s at the sun, to an asymptotic value of 89 +/- 19 km/s at large r. The
rapid decrease in the radial velocity dispersion is matched by an increase in
the tangential velocity dispersion, with increasing r.
Our results may indicate that the Galaxy formed hierarchically (partly or
fully) through merging of smaller subsystems - the 'bottom-up' galaxy formation
scenario, which for quite a while has been favoured by most theorists and
recently also has been given some observational credibility by HST observations
of a potential group of small galaxies, at high redshift, possibly in the
process of merging to a larger galaxy (Pascarelle et al 1996).Comment: Latex, 16 pages. 2 postscript figures. Submitted to the Astrophysical
Journal. also available at http://astro.utu.fi/~cflynn/outerhalo.htm
Sources of variability in interceptive movements
In order to successfully intercept a moving target one must be at the right place at the right time. But simply being there is seldom enough. One usually needs to make contact in a certain manner, for instance to hit the target in a certain direction. How this is best achieved depends on the exact task, but to get an idea of what factors may limit performance we asked people to hit a moving virtual disk through a virtual goal, and analysed the spatial and temporal variability in the way in which they did so. We estimated that for our task the standard deviations in timing and spatial accuracy are about 20 ms and 5 mm. Additional variability arises from individual movements being planned slightly differently and being adjusted during execution. We argue that the way that our subjects moved was precisely tailored to the task demands, and that the movement accuracy is not only limited by the muscles and their activation, but also-and probably even mainly-by the resolution of visual perception
A primordial star in the heart of the Lion
Context: The discovery and chemical analysis of extremely metal-poor stars
permit a better understanding of the star formation of the first generation of
stars and of the Universe emerging from the Big Bang. aims: We report the study
of a primordial star situated in the centre of the constellation Leo (SDSS
J102915+172027). method: The star, selected from the low resolution-spectrum of
the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, was observed at intermediate (with X-Shooter at
VLT) and at high spectral resolution (with UVES at VLT). The stellar parameters
were derived from the photometry. The standard spectroscopic analysis based on
1D ATLAS models was completed by applying 3D and non-LTE corrections. results:
An iron abundance of [Fe/H]=--4.89 makes SDSS J102915+172927 one of the lowest
[Fe/H] stars known. However, the absence of measurable C and N enhancements
indicates that it has the lowest metallicity, Z<= 7.40x10^{-7} (metal-mass
fraction), ever detected. No oxygen measurement was possible. conclusions: The
discovery of SDSS J102915+172927 highlights that low-mass star formation
occurred at metallicities lower than previously assumed. Even lower metallicity
stars may yet be discovered, with a chemical composition closer to the
composition of the primordial gas and of the first supernovae.Comment: To be published in A&
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