13,420 research outputs found
Dynamical Effects of Nuclear Rings in Disk Galaxies
We investigate the dynamical response of stellar orbits in a rotating barred
galaxy potential to the perturbation by a nuclear gaseous ring. The change in
3D periodic orbit families is examined as the gas accumulates between the inner
Lindblad resonances. It is found that the phase space allowable to the x2
family of orbits is substantially increased and a vertical instability strip
appears with the growing mass of the ring. A significant distortion of the x1
orbits is observed in the vicinity of the ring, which leads to the intersection
between orbits with different values of the Jacobi integral. We also examine
the dependence of the orbital response to the eccentricity and alignment of the
ring with the bar. Misalignment between an oval ring and a bar can leave
observational footprints in the form of twisted near-infrared isophotes in the
vicinity of the ring. It is inferred that a massive nuclear ring acts to weaken
and dissolve the stellar bar exterior to the ring, whereas only weakly
affecting the orbits interior to the inner Lindblad resonances. Consequences
for gas evolution in the circumnuclear regions of barred galaxies are discussed
as well.Comment: 27 pages, 11 postscript figures included, latex using aastex 4.0,
uuencoded compressed tar file, to appear in Ap
Space probe/satellite ejection apparatus for spacecraft
An ejection apparatus for spinning and propelling objects for ejection from a spacecraft at a desired velocity and rotational speed is discussed. The apparatus includes a launch cradle on which the space object to be ejected rests. The cradle is rotatably supported by a central hub secured to the upper end of the pneumatic cylinder piston shaft. Release mechanisms consisting of a retractable pin and locking lug is utilized to hold the cradle and object to be ejected. The release mechanism has a fixed barrier member which holds the retractable pin in engagement with the locking lug until release by upward movement of the launch cradle beyond the barrier height
The Central Region in M100: Observations and Modeling
We present new high-resolution observations of the center of the late-type
spiral M100 (NGC 4321) supplemented by 3D numerical modeling of stellar and gas
dynamics, including star formation (SF). NIR imaging has revealed a stellar
bar, previously inferred from optical and 21 cm observations, and an
ovally-shaped ring-like structure in the plane of the disk. The K isophotes
become progressively elongated and skewed to the position angle of the bar
(outside and inside the `ring') forming an inner bar-like region. The galaxy
exhibits a circumnuclear starburst in the inner part of the K `ring'. Two
maxima of the K emission have been observed to lie symmetrically with respect
to the nucleus and equidistant from it slightly leading the stellar bar. We
interpret the twists in the K isophotes as being indicative of the presence of
a double inner Lindblad resonance (ILR) and test this hypothesis by modeling
the gas flow in a self-consistent gas + stars disk embedded in a halo, with an
overall NGC4321-like mass distribution. We have reproduced the basic morphology
of the region (the bar, the large scale trailing shocks, two symmetric K peaks
corresponding to gas compression maxima which lie at the caustic formed by the
interaction of a pair of trailing and leading shocks in the vicinity of the
inner ILR, both peaks being sites of SF, and two additional zones of SF
corresponding to the gas compression maxima, referred usually as `twin peaks').Comment: 31 pages, postscript, compressed, uuencoded. 21 figures available in
postscript, compressed form by anonymous ftp from
ftp://asta.pa.uky.edu/shlosman/main100 , mget *.ps.Z. To appear in Ap.
Plasmid Injection and Application of Electric Pulses Alter Endogenous mRNA and Protein Expression in B16.F10 Mouse Melanomas
The application of electric pulses to tissues causes cell membrane destabilization, allowing exogenous molecules to enter the cells. This delivery technique can be used for plasmid gene therapy. Reporter gene expression after plasmid delivery with eight representative published protocols was compared in B16.F10 mouse melanoma tumors. This expression varied significantly based on the pulse parameters utilized for delivery. To observe the possible influence of plasmid injection and/or pulse application on endogenous gene expression, levels of stress-related mRNAs 4 and 24 h after delivery were determined by PCR array. Increases in mRNA levels for several inflammatory chemokines and cytokines were observed in response to plasmid injection, electric pulses alone or the combination. This upregulation was confirmed by individual real-time reverse transcription TaqMan PCR assays. Proteins were extracted at the same time points from identically treated tumors and inflammatory protein levels were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and by a custom multiplex bead array. Increases in inflammatory protein levels generally paralleled mRNA levels. Some differences were observed, which may have been due to differing expression kinetics. The observed upregulated expression of these cytokines and chemokines may aid or inhibit the therapeutic effectiveness of immune-based cancer gene therapies
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