54,757 research outputs found
Circumstellar environment of the M-type AGB star R Dor. APEX spectral scan at GHz
Our current insights into the circumstellar chemistry of asymptotic giant
branch (AGB) stars are largely based on studies of carbon-rich stars and stars
with high mass-loss rates. In order to expand the current molecular inventory
of evolved stars we present a spectral scan of the nearby, oxygen-rich star R
Dor, a star with a low mass-loss rate (/yr). We
carried out a spectral scan in the frequency ranges 159.0-321.5GHz and
338.5-368.5 GHz (wavelength range 0.8-1.9mm) using the SEPIA/Band-5 and SHeFI
instruments on the APEX telescope and we compare it to previous surveys,
including one of the oxygen-rich AGB star IK Tau, which has a high mass-loss
rate (/yr). The spectrum of R Dor is dominated by
emission lines of SO and the different isotopologues of SiO. We also detect
CO, HO, HCN, CN, PO, PN, SO, and tentatively TiO, AlO, and NaCl.
Sixteen out of approximately 320 spectral features remain unidentified. Among
these is a strong but previously unknown maser at 354.2 GHz, which we suggest
could pertain to HSiO, silanone. With the exception of one, none of these
unidentified lines are found in a similarly sensitive survey of IK Tau
performed with the IRAM 30m telescope. We present radiative transfer models for
five isotopologues of SiO (SiO, SiO, SiO, SiO,
SiO), providing constraints on their fractional abundance and radial
extent. We derive isotopic ratios for C, O, Si, and S and estimate that R Dor
likely had an initial mass in the range 1.3-1.6, in agreement with
earlier findings based on models of HO line emission. From the presence of
spectral features recurring in many of the measured thermal and maser emission
lines we tentatively identify up to five kinematical components in the outflow
of R Dor, indicating deviations from a smooth, spherical wind.Comment: 66 pages, 25 figures, Accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysics. Fully reduced FITS spectrum made available through CD
Partitions with fixed differences between largest and smallest parts
We study the number of partitions of with difference between
largest and smallest parts. Our main result is an explicit formula for the
generating function . Somewhat
surprisingly, is a rational function for ; equivalently,
is a quasipolynomial in for fixed . Our result generalizes to
partitions with an arbitrary number of specified distances.Comment: 5 page
Defect turbulence and generalized statistical mechanics
We present experimental evidence that the motion of point defects in thermal
convection patterns in an inclined fluid layer is well-described by Tsallis
statistics with an entropic index . The dynamical properties of
the defects (anomalous diffusion, shape of velocity distributions, power law
decay of correlations) are in good agreement with typical predictions of
nonextensive models, over a range of driving parameters
Small-scale chromospheric jets above a sunspot light bridge
High-resolution broadband filtergrams of active region NOAA 11271 in Ca ii H
and G band were obtained with the Solar Optical Telescope on board Hinode to
identify the physical driver responsible for the dynamic and small-scale
chromospheric jets above a sunspot light bridge. We identified the jets in the
Ca images using a semi-automatic routine. The chromospheric jets consist of a
bright, triangular-shaped blob that lies on the light bridge, while the apex of
this blob extends into a spike-like structure that is bright against the dark
umbral background. Most of the jets have apparent lengths of less than 1000 km
and about 30% of them have lengths between 1000-1600 km. They are oriented
within +/-35 deg. to the normal of the light bridge axis. Many of them are
clustered near the central part within a 2 arcsec area. The jets are seen to
move rapidly along the light bridge and most of them cannot be identified in
successive images taken with a 2 min cadence. The jets are primarily located on
one side of the light bridge and are directed into the umbral core. The Stokes
profiles at or close to the location of the blobs on the LB exhibit both a
significant net circular polarization and multiple components, including
opposite-polarity lobes. The magnetic field diverges from the light bridge
towards the umbral cores that it separates. In the photosphere there is a
predominantly uni-directional flow with speeds of 100-150 m/s along the light
bridge which is interrupted by a patch of weak motions that also moves along
the light bridge. The dynamic short-lived jets above the LB seem to be guided
by the magnetic field lines. Reconnection events are a likely trigger for such
phenomenon since they occur at locations where the magnetic field changes
orientation sharply. We find no clear relation between the jets and the
photospheric flow pattern.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A, 9 pages, 7 figure
The magnetic field of M31 from multi-wavelength radio polarization observations
The configuration of the regular magnetic field in M31 is deduced from radio
polarization observations at the wavelengths 6, 11 and 20 cm. By fitting the
observed azimuthal distribution of polarization angles, we find that the
regular magnetic field, averaged over scales 1--3 kpc, is almost perfectly
axisymmetric in the radial range 8 to 14 kpc, and follows a spiral pattern with
pitch angles of p\simeq -19\degr to p\simeq -8\degr. In the ring between 6
and 8 kpc a perturbation of the dominant axisymmetric mode may be present,
having the azimuthal wave number m=2. A systematic analysis of the observed
depolarization allows us to identify the main mechanism for wavelength
dependent depolarization -- Faraday rotation measure gradients arising in a
magneto-ionic screen above the synchrotron disk. Modelling of the
depolarization leads to constraints on the relative scale heights of the
thermal and synchrotron emitting layers in M31; the thermal layer is found to
be up to three times thicker than the synchrotron disk. The regular magnetic
field must be coherent over a vertical scale at least similar to the scale
height of the thermal layer, estimated to be h\therm\simeq 1 kpc. Faraday
effects offer a powerful method to detect thick magneto-ionic disks or halos
around spiral galaxies.Comment: 17 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Atmospheric turbulence and superstatistics
Nonequilibrium systems with large-scale fluctuations of a suitable system
parameter are often effectively described by a superposition of two statistics,
a superstatistics. Here we illustrate this concept by analysing experimental
data of fluctuations in atmospheric wind velocity differences at Florence
airport.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. New version to appear in Europhysics News (2005
Common Bulkhead Joint Development and Evaluation Final Report
Optimized composite welded joint design for Saturn booster common bulkhea
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