4,076 research outputs found
Performance analysis of elite lifesavers during competition: effects related to gender, turn of competition, and age category
The aim of this study was to analyse elite lifesavers' official performances according to specific intermediate times recorded during each speciality, and comparing them in relation to genders, turns of competition (qualifications; finales), and age (seniors; youths) categories. For this purpose, the intermediate times of 825 (female: 423, male: 402) individual performances were recorded by means of the official stopwatch of championship and two video cameras synchronised with the official stopwatch of competition. A linear mixed-effects model was applied to verify subgroup differences (p <= 0.05). For single specialty, differences emerged for each observed variables (p <= 0.001). Differences (p range: <0.001-0.03) were confirmed for the interactions with specific intermediate times, excepting for those in "Manikin Tow with Fins - 100 m" with each variable, in "Manikin Carry with Fins - 100 m" with age, and in "Obstacle Swim - 200 m" with gender and age. Therefore, elite lifesaving coaches will be able to benefit from the results of this study, considering specific performances, avoiding any generalisation, and promoting more aware training sessions
Multi-wavelength analysis of the field of the dark burst GRB 031220
We have collected and analyzed data taken in different spectral bands (from
X-ray to optical and infrared) of the field of GRB031220 and we present results
of such multiband observations. Comparison between images taken at different
epochs in the same filters did not reveal any strong variable source in the
field of this burst. X-ray analysis shows that only two of the seven Chandra
sources have a significant flux decrease and seem to be the most likely
afterglow candidates. Both sources do not show the typical values of the R-K
colour but they appear to be redder. However, only one source has an X-ray
decay index (1.3 +/- 0.1) that is typical for observed afterglows. We assume
that this source is the best afterglow candidate and we estimate a redshift of
1.90 +/- 0.30. Photometric analysis and redshift estimation for this object
suggest that this GRB can be classified as a Dark Burst and that the
obscuration is the result of dust extinction in the circum burst medium or
inside the host galaxy.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication on A&
Infrared Behavior of Interacting Bosons at Zero Temperature
We exploit the symmetries associated with the stability of the superfluid
phase to solve the long-standing problem of interacting bosons in the presence
of a condensate at zero temperature. Implementation of these symmetries poses
strong conditions on the renormalizations that heal the singularities of
perturbation theory. The renormalized theory gives: For d>3 the Bogoliubov
quasiparticles as an exact result; for 1<d<=3 a nontrivial solution with the
exact exponent for the singular longitudinal correlation function, with phonons
again as low-lying excitations.Comment: Minor Changes. 4 pages, RevTeX, no figures, uses multicol.sty e-mail:
[email protected]
The use and calibration of read-out streaks to increase the dynamic range of the Swift Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope
The dynamic range of photon counting micro-channel-plate (MCP) intensified
charged-coupled device (CCD) instruments such as the Swift Ultraviolet/Optical
Telescope (UVOT) and the XMM-Newton Optical Monitor (XMM-OM) is limited at the
bright end by coincidence loss, the superposition of multiple photons in the
individual frames recorded by the CCD. Photons which arrive during the brief
period in which the image frame is transferred for read out of the CCD are
displaced in the transfer direction in the recorded images. For sufficiently
bright sources, these displaced counts form read-out streaks. Using UVOT
observations of Tycho-2 stars, we investigate the use of these read-out streaks
to obtain photometry for sources which are too bright (and hence have too much
coincidence loss) for normal aperture photometry to be reliable. For
read-out-streak photometry, the bright-source limiting factor is coincidence
loss within the MCPs rather than the CCD. We find that photometric measurements
can be obtained for stars up to 2.4 magnitudes brighter than the usual
full-frame coincidence-loss limit by using the read-out streaks. The resulting
bright-limit Vega magnitudes in the UVOT passbands are UVW2=8.80, UVM2=8.27,
UVW1=8.86, u=9.76, b=10.53, v=9.31 and White=11.71; these limits are
independent of the windowing mode of the camera. We find that a photometric
precision of 0.1 mag can be achieved through read-out streak measurements. A
suitable method for the measurement of read-out streaks is described and all
necessary calibration factors are given.Comment: 11 pages, accepted for publication in MNRAS. Code available from the
calibration link at http://www.mssl.ucl.ac.uk/www_astro/uvo
Prompt optical observations of GRB050319 with the Swift UVOT
The UVOT telescope on the Swift observatory has detected optical afterglow
emission from GRB 050319. The flux declines with a power law slope of alpha =
-0.57 between the start of observations some 230 seconds after the burst onset
(90s after the burst trigger) until it faded below the sensitivity threshold of
the instrument after ~5 x 10^4s. There is no evidence for the rapidly declining
component in the early light curve that is seen at the same time in the X-ray
band. The afterglow is not detected in UVOT shortward of the B-band, suggesting
a redshift of about 3.5. The optical V-band emission lies on the extension of
the X-ray spectrum, with an optical to X-ray slope of beta = -0.8. The
relatively flat decay rate of the burst suggests that the central engine
continues to inject energy into the fireball for as long as a few x 10^4s after
the burst.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, accepted by Ap
The Swift-UVOT ultraviolet and visible grism calibration
We present the calibration of the Swift UVOT grisms, of which there are two,
providing low-resolution field spectroscopy in the ultraviolet and optical
bands respectively. The UV grism covers the range 1700-5000 Angstrom with a
spectral resolution of 75 at 2600 Angstrom for source magnitudes of u=10-16
mag, while the visible grism covers the range 2850-6600 Angstrom with a
spectral resolution of 100 at 4000 Angstrom for source magnitudes of b=12-17
mag. This calibration extends over all detector positions, for all modes used
during operations. The wavelength accuracy (1-sigma) is 9 Angstrom in the UV
grism clocked mode, 17 Angstrom in the UV grism nominal mode and 22 Angstrom in
the visible grism. The range below 2740 Angstrom in the UV grism and 5200
Angstrom in the visible grism never suffers from overlapping by higher spectral
orders. The flux calibration of the grisms includes a correction we developed
for coincidence loss in the detector. The error in the coincidence loss
correction is less than 20%. The position of the spectrum on the detector only
affects the effective area (sensitivity) by a few percent in the nominal modes,
but varies substantially in the clocked modes. The error in the effective area
is from 9% in the UV grism clocked mode to 15% in the visible grism clocked
mode .Comment: 27 pages, 31 figures; MNRAS accepted 23 February 201
Swift-UVOT Observations of the X-Ray Flash 050406
We present Swift-UVOT data on the optical afterglow of the X-ray flash of
2005 April 6 (XRF 050406) from 88s to \sim 10^5s after the initial prompt
gamma-ray emission. Our observations in the V, B and U bands are the earliest
that have been taken of an XRF optical counterpart. Combining the early -time
optical temporal and spectral properties with \gamma- and simultaneous X-ray
data taken with the BAT and XRT telescopes on-board Swift, we are able to
constrain possible origins of the XRF. The prompt emission had a FRED profile
(fast-rise, exponential decay) with a duration of T_90 = 5.7\pm 0.2s, putting
it at the short end of the long-burst duration distribution. The absence of
photoelectric absorption red-ward of 4000 \AA in the UV/optical spectrum
provides a firm upper limit of z\leq 3.1 on the redshift, thus excluding a high
redshift as the sole reason for the soft spectrum. The optical light curve is
consistent with a power-law decay with slope alpha = -0.75\pm 0.26
(F_{\nu}\propto t^{\alpha}), and a maximum occurring in the first 200s after
the initial gamma-ray emission. The softness of the prompt emission is well
described by an off-axis structured jet model, which is able to account for the
early peak flux and shallow decay observed in the optical and X-ray bands.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ; typos corrected
and upper limits in table 1 changed from background subtracted count rate in
extraction region to the error associated with thi
Swift-UVOT detection of GRB 050318
We present observations of GRB 050318 by the Ultra-Violet and Optical
Telescope (UVOT) on-board the Swift observatory. The data are the first
detections of a Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) afterglow decay by the UVOT instrument,
launched specifically to open a new window on these transient sources. We
showcase UVOTs ability to provide multi-color photometry and the advantages of
combining UVOT data with simultaneous and contemporaneous observations from the
high-energy detectors on the Swift spacecraft. Multiple filters covering
1,800-6,000 Angstroms reveal a red source with spectral slope steeper than the
simultaneous X-ray continuum. Spectral fits indicate that the UVOT colors are
consistent with dust extinction by systems at z = 1.2037 and z = 1.4436,
redshifts where absorption systems have been pre-identified. However, the data
can be most-easily reproduced with models containing a foreground system of
neutral gas redshifted by z = 2.8 +/- 0.3. For both of the above scenarios,
spectral and decay slopes are, for the most part, consistent with fireball
expansion into a uniform medium, provided a cooling break occurs between the
energy ranges of the UVOT and Swifts X-ray instrumentation.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures, ApJ Letters, in pres
Evidence for chromatic X-ray light-curve breaks in Swift GRB afterglows and their theoretical implications
The power-law decay of the X-ray emission of GRB afterglows 050319, 050401,
050607, 050713A, 050802 and 050922C exhibits a steepening at about 1--4 hours
after the burst which, surprisingly, is not accompanied by a break in the
optical emission. If it is assumed that both the optical and X-ray afterglows
arise from the same outflow then, in the framework of the standard forward
shock model, the chromaticity of the X-ray light-curve breaks indicates that
they do not arise solely from a mechanism related to the outflow dynamics (e.g.
energy injection) or the angular distribution of the blast-wave kinetic energy
(structured outflows or jets). The lack of a spectral evolution accompanying
the X-ray light-curve breaks shows that these breaks do not arise from the
passage of a spectral break (e.g. the cooling frequency) either. Under these
circumstances, the decoupling of the X-ray and optical decays requires that the
microphysical parameters for the electron and magnetic energies in the forward
shock evolve in time, whether the X-ray afterglow is synchrotron or
inverse-Compton emission. For a steady evolution of these parameters with the
Lorentz factor of the forward shock and an X-ray light-curve break arising from
cessation of energy injection into the blast-wave, the optical and X-ray
properties of the above six Swift afterglows require a circumburst medium with
a r^{-2} radial stratification, as expected for a massive star origin for long
GRBs. Alternatively, the chromatic X-ray light-curve breaks may indicate that
the optical and X-ray emissions arise from different outflows. Neither feature
(evolution of microphysical parameters or the different origin of the optical
and X-ray emissions) were clearly required by pre-Swift afterglows.Comment: 6 pages, sumbitted to MNRA
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