585 research outputs found
The role of light microscopy in aerospace analytical laboratories
Light microscopy has greatly reduced analytical flow time and added new dimensions to laboratory capability. Aerospace analytical laboratories are often confronted with problems involving contamination, wear, or material inhomogeneity. The detection of potential problems and the solution of those that develop necessitate the most sensitive and selective applications of sophisticated analytical techniques and instrumentation. This inevitably involves light microscopy. The microscope can characterize and often identify the cause of a problem in 5-15 minutes with confirmatory tests generally less than one hour. Light microscopy has and will make a very significant contribution to the analytical capabilities of aerospace laboratories
Particle types and sources associated with LDEF
The particulate contamination history of the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) can be resolved by careful analysis of particle types, the LDEF time line, evidence of the relationship between particles and the surface of the LDEF, and a consideration of probable sources. This work is far from complete but was initiated as part of the characterization of the condition of experimental trays that were returned to principle investigators for their analysis. The work presented in this photo-essay is continuing and will be updated in subsequent reports to NASA and at future technical meetings
Molecular films associated with LDEF
The molecular films deposited on the surface of the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) originated from the paints and room-temperature-vulcanized (RTV) silicone materials intentionally used on the satellite and not from residual contaminants. The high silicone content of most of the films and the uniformity of the films indicates a homogenization process in the molecular deposition and suggests a chemically most favored composition for the final film. The deposition on interior surfaces and vents indicated multiple bounce trajectories or repeated deposition-reemission cycles. Exterior surface deposits indicated a significant return flux. Ultraviolet light exposure was required to fix the deposited film as is indicated by the distribution of the films on interior surfaces and the thickness of films at the vent locations. Thermal conditions at the time of exposure to ultraviolet light seems to be an important factor in the thickness of the deposit. Sunrise facing (ram direction) surfaces always had the thicker film. These were the coldest surfaces at the time of their exposure to ultraviolet light. The films have a layered structure suggesting cyclic deposition. As many as 34 distinct layers were seen in the films. The cyclic nature of the deposition and the chemical uniformity of the film one layer to the next suggest an early deposition of the films though there is evidence for the deposition of molecular films throughout the nearly six year exposure of the satellite. A final 'spray' of an organic material associated with water soluble salts occurred very late in the mission. This may have been the result of one of the shuttle dump activities
Interferometric mapping of Magnetic fields: G30.79 FIR 10
We present polarization maps of G30.79 FIR 10 (in W43) from thermal dust
emission at 1.3 mm and from CO J= line emission. The observations were
obtained using the Berkeley-Illinois-Maryland Association array in the period
2002-2004. The G30.79 FIR 10 region shows an ordered polarization pattern in
dust emission, which suggests an hourglass shape for the magnetic field. Only
marginal detections for line polarization were made from this region.
Application of the Chandrashkar-Fermi method yielded mG
and a statistically corrected mass to magnetic flux ratio , or essentially critical.Comment: 11 pages, 2 Figures, Published in Ap
A turbulent MHD model for molecular clouds and a new method of accretion on to star-forming cores
We describe the results of a sequence of simulations of gravitational
collapse in a turbulent magnetized region. The parameters are chosen to be
representative of molecular cloud material. We find that several protostellar
cores and filamentary structures of higher than average density form. The
filaments inter-connect the high density cores. Furthermore, the magnetic field
strengths are found to correlate positively with the density, in agreement with
recent observations. We make synthetic channel maps of the simulations and show
that material accreting onto the cores is channelled along the magnetized
filamentary structures. This is compared with recent observations of S106, and
shown to be consistent with these data. We postulate that this mechanism of
accretion along filaments may provide a means for molecular cloud cores to grow
to the point where they become gravitationally unstable and collapse to form
stars.Comment: Accepted by MNRA
SCUBA polarisation observations of the magnetic fields in the prestellar cores L1498 and L1517B
We have mapped linearly polarized dust emission from the prestellar cores
L1498 and L1517B with the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) using the
Submillimetre Common User Bolometer Array (SCUBA) and its polarimeter SCUBAPOL
at a wavelength of 850um. We use these measurements to determine the
plane-of-sky magnetic field orientation in the cores. In L1498 we see a
magnetic field across the peak of the core that lies at an offset of 19 degrees
to the short axis of the core. This is similar to the offsets seen in previous
observations of prestellar cores. To the southeast of the peak, in the
filamentary tail of the core, we see that the magnetic field has rotated to lie
almost parallel to the long axis of the filament. We hypothesise that the field
in the core may have decoupled from the field in the filament that connects the
core to the rest of the cloud. We use the Chandrasekhar-Fermi (CF) method to
measure the plane-of-sky field strength in the core of L1498 to be 10 +/- 7 uG.
In L1517B we see a more gradual turn in the field direction from the northern
part of the core to the south. This appears to follow a twist in the filament
in which the core is buried, with the field staying at a roughly constant 25
degree offset to the short axis of the filament, also consistent with previous
observations of prestellar cores. We again use the CF method and calculate the
magnetic field strength in L1517B also to be 30 +/- 10 uG. Both cores appear to
be roughly virialised. Comparison with our previous work on somewhat denser
cores shows that, for the denser cores, thermal and non-thermal (including
magnetic) support are approximately equal, while for the lower density cores
studied here, thermal support dominates.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures; accepted for publication by MNRA
VLA OH and H I Zeeman Observations of the NGC 6334 Complex
We present OH and H I Zeeman observations of the NGC 6334 complex taken with
the Very Large Array. The OH absorption profiles associated with the complex
are relatively narrow (del-v_FWHM ~ 3 km s^1) and single-peaked over most of
the sources. The H I absorption profiles contain several blended velocity
components. One of the compact continuum sources in the complex (source A) has
a bipolar morphology. The OH absorption profiles toward this source display a
gradient in velocity from the northern continuum lobe to the southern continuum
lobe; this velocity gradient likely indicates a bipolar outflow of molecular
gas from the central regions to the northern and southern lobes. Magnetic
fields of the order of 200 microG have been detected toward three discrete
continuum sources in the complex. Virial estimates suggest that the detected
magnetic fields in these sources are of the same order as the critical magnetic
fields required to support the molecular clouds associated with the sources
against gravitational collapse.Comment: 14 pages, 9 postscript figures, accepted for publication in the
Astrophysical Journal (ApJ), tentatively scheduled for vol. 533, Apr. 20,
2000; also available at
http://www.pa.uky.edu/~sarma/RESEARCH/aps_research.htm
Two Bipolar Outflows and Magnetic Fields in a Multiple Protostar System, L1448 IRS 3
We performed spectral line observations of CO J=2-1, 13CO J=1-0, and C18O
J=1-0 and polarimetric observations in the 1.3 mm continuum and CO J=2-1 toward
a multiple protostar system, L1448 IRS 3, in the Perseus molecular complex at a
distance of ~250 pc, using the BIMA array. In the 1.3 mm continuum, two sources
(IRS 3A and 3B) were clearly detected with estimated envelope masses of 0.21
and 1.15 solar masses, and one source (IRS 3C) was marginally detected with an
upper mass limit of 0.03 solar masses. In CO J=2-1, we revealed two outflows
originating from IRS 3A and 3B. The masses, mean number densities, momentums,
and kinetic energies of outflow lobes were estimated. Based on those estimates
and outflow features, we concluded that the two outflows are interacting and
that the IRS 3A outflow is nearly perpendicular to the line of sight. In
addition, we estimated the velocity, inclination, and opening of the IRS 3B
outflow using Bayesian statistics. When the opening angle is ~20 arcdeg, we
constrain the velocity to ~45 km/s and the inclination angle to ~57 arcdeg.
Linear polarization was detected in both the 1.3 mm continuum and CO J=2-1. The
linear polarization in the continuum shows a magnetic field at the central
source (IRS 3B) perpendicular to the outflow direction, and the linear
polarization in the CO J=2-1 was detected in the outflow regions, parallel or
perpendicular to the outflow direction. Moreover, we comprehensively discuss
whether the binary system of IRS 3A and 3B is gravitationally bound, based on
the velocity differences detected in 13CO J=1-0 and C18O J=1-0 observations and
on the outflow features. The specific angular momentum of the system was
estimated as ~3e20 cm^2/s, comparable to the values obtained from previous
studies on binaries and molecular clouds in Taurus.Comment: ApJ accepted, 20 pages, 2 tables, 10 figure
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