790 research outputs found
Ten years of INTEGRAL observations of the hard X-ray emission from SGR 1900+14
We exploited the high sensitivity of the INTEGRAL IBIS/ISGRI instrument to
study the persistent hard X-ray emission of the soft gamma-ray repeater SGR
1900+14, based on ~11.6 Ms of archival data. The 22-150 keV INTEGRAL spectrum
can be well fit by a power law with photon index 1.9 +/- 0.3 and flux F_x =
(1.11 +/- 0.17)E-11 erg/cm^2/s (20-100 keV). A comparison with the 20-100 keV
flux measured in 1997 with BeppoSAX, and possibly associated with SGR 1900+14,
shows a luminosity decrease by a factor of ~5. The slope of the power law above
20 keV is consistent within the uncertainties with that of SGR 1806-20, the
other persistent soft gamma-ray repeater for which a hard X-ray emission
extending up to 150 keV has been reported.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics. 4 page
Exploring the role of X-ray reprocessing and irradiation in the anomalous bright optical outbursts of A0538-66
In 1981, the Be/X-ray binary (Be/XRB) A0538-66 showed outbursts characterized
by high peak luminosities in the X-ray and optical bands. The optical outbursts
were qualitatively explained as X-ray reprocessing in a gas cloud surrounding
the binary system. Since then, further important information about A0538-66
have been obtained, and sophisticated photoionization codes have been developed
to calculate the radiation emerging from a gas nebula illuminated by a central
X-ray source. In the light of the new information and tools available, we
studied again the enhanced optical emission displayed by A0538-66 to understand
the mechanisms responsible for these unique events among the class of Be/XRBs.
We performed about 10^5 simulations of a gas envelope photoionized by an X-ray
source. We assumed for the shape of the gas cloud either a sphere or a
circumstellar disc observed edge-on. We studied the effects of varying the main
properties of the envelope and the influence of different input X-ray spectra
on the optical/UV emission emerging from the photoionized cloud. We compared
the computed spectra with the IUE spectrum and photometric UBV measurements
obtained during the outburst of 29 April 1981. We also explored the role played
by the X-ray heating of the surface of the donor star irradiated by the X-ray
emission of the neutron star (NS). We found that reprocessing in a spherical
cloud with a shallow radial density distribution can reproduce the optical/UV
emission. To our knowledge, this configuration has never been observed either
in A0538-66 during other epochs or in other Be/XRBs. We found, contrary to the
case of most other Be/XRBs, that the optical/UV radiation produced by the X-ray
heating of the surface of the donor star irradiated by the NS is
non-negligible, due to the particular orbital parameters of this system that
bring the NS very close to its companion.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics. Abstract
abridged to meet arXiv requirement
Swift monitoring of IGR J16418-4532
We report on the Swift observations of the candidate supergiant fast X-ray
transient (SFXT) IGR J16418-4532, which has an orbital period of ~3.7 d. Our
monitoring, for a total of ~43 ks, spans over three orbits and represents the
most intense and complete sampling along the orbital period of the light curve
of this source. If one assumes a circular orbit, the X-ray emission from this
source can be explained by accretion from a spherically symmetric clumpy wind
from a blue supergiant, composed of clumps with different masses, ranging from
~5x10^16 g to 10^21g.Comment: 4 pages; Proceedings, 5th International Symposium on High-Energy
Gamma-Ray Astronomy, (Gamma2012) Heidelberg, Germany, July 9-13th, 201
XMM-Newton observation of the interacting galaxies NGC1512 and NGC1510
The galaxy NGC1512 is interacting with the smaller galaxy NGC1510 and shows a
peculiar morphology, characterised by two extended arms immersed in an HI disc
whose size is about four times larger than the optical diameter of NGC1512. For
the first time we performed a deep X-ray observation of the galaxies NGC1512
and NGC1510 with XMM-Newton to gain information on the population of X-ray
sources and diffuse emission in a system of interacting galaxies. We identified
and classified the sources detected in the XMM-Newton field of view by means of
spectral analysis, hardness-ratios calculated with a Bayesian method, X-ray
variability, and cross-correlations with catalogues in optical, infrared, and
radio wavelengths. We also made use of archival Swift (X-ray) and Australia
Telescope Compact Array (radio) data to better constrain the nature of the
sources detected with XMM-Newton. We detected 106 sources in the energy range
of 0.2-12 keV, out of which 15 are located within the D_25 regions of NGC1512
and NGC1510 and at least six sources coincide with the extended arms. We
identified and classified six background objects and six foreground stars. We
discussed the nature of a source within the D_25 ellipse of NGC1512, whose
properties indicate a quasi-stellar object or an intermediate ultra-luminous
X-ray source. Taking into account the contribution of low-mass X-ray binaries
and active galactic nuclei, the number of high-mass X-ray binaries detected
within the D_25 region of NGC1512 is consistent with the star formation rate
obtained in previous works based on radio, infrared optical, and UV
wavelengths. We detected diffuse X-ray emission from the interior region of
NGC1512 with a plasma temperature of kT=0.68(0.31-0.87) keV and a 0.3-10 keV
X-ray luminosity of 1.3E38 erg/s, after correcting for unresolved discrete
sources.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics. 20 pages.
Appendix B will be published electronically onl
Optical and near-infrared photometric monitoring of the transient X-ray binary A0538-66 with REM
The transient Be/X-ray binary A0538-66 shows peculiar X-ray and optical
variability. Despite numerous studies, the intrinsic properties underlying its
anomalous behaviour remain poorly understood. Since 2014 September we are
conducting the first quasi-simultaneous optical and near-infrared photometric
monitoring of A0538-66 in seven filters with the Rapid Eye Mount (REM)
telescope, aiming to understand the properties of this binary system. We found
that the REM lightcurves show fast flares lasting one or two days that repeat
almost regularly every ~16.6 days, the orbital period of the neutron star. If
the optical flares are powered by X-ray outbursts through photon reprocessing,
the REM lightcurves indicate that A0538-66 is still active in X-rays: bright
X-ray flares (L_x > 1E37 erg/s) could be observable during the periastron
passages. The REM lightcurves show a long-term variability that is especially
pronounced in the g band and decreases with increasing wavelength, until it no
longer appears in the near-infrared lightcurves. In addition, A0538-66 is
fainter with respect to previous optical observations most likely due to the
higher absorption of the stellar radiation of a denser circumstellar disc. On
the basis of the current models, we interpret these observational results with
a circumstellar disc around the Be star observed nearly edge-on during a
partial depletion phase. The REM lightcurves also show short-term variability
on timescales of ~1 day possibly indicative of perturbations in the density
distribution of the circumstellar disc caused by the tidal interaction with the
neutron star.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic
CFD Analysis of Helicopter Wakes in Ground Effect
The paper presents CFD results for the wake of a helicopter flying a low altitude at different advance ratios.
The wakes are assessed in terms of topology and velocity magnitudes. The structure of the wake near ground
changes rapidly with the advance ratio and its decay appears to be faster than what is suggested by theoretical
analyses. The results show clear the potential of modern CFD for use in helicopter safety and highlights the
need for detailed surveys of helicopter wakes using full-scale physical experiments
Soft X-ray characterisation of the long term properties of Supergiant Fast X-ray Transients
We perform the first high-sensitivity soft X-ray long-term monitoring with
Swift/XRT of three relatively unexplored Supergiant Fast X-ray Transients
(SFXTs), IGR J08408-4503, IGR J16328-4726, and IGR J16465-4507, whose hard
X-ray duty cycles are the lowest measured among the SFXT sample, and compare
their properties with those of the prototypical SFXTs. The behaviour of J08408
and J16328 resembles that of other SFXTs, and it is characterized by a
relatively high inactivity duty cycle (IDC) and pronounced dynamic range (DR)
in the X-ray luminosity. Like the SFXT prototypes, J08408 shows two distinct
populations of flares, the first one associated with the brightest outbursts
( erg s), the second one comprising less
bright events with 10 erg s. This
double-peaked distribution seems to be a ubiquitous feature of the extreme
SFXTs. The lower DR of J16328 suggests it is an intermediate SFXT. We find
J16465 is characterized by IDC5% and DR40, reminiscent of classical
supergiant HMXBs. The duty cycles measured with XRT are found to be comparable
with those reported previously by BAT and INTEGRAL, when the higher limiting
sensitivities of these instruments are taken into account and sufficiently long
observational campaigns are available. We prove that no clear correlation
exists between the duty cycles of the SFXTs and their orbital periods, which
makes it difficult to interpret the SFXT peculiar variability by only using
arguments related to the properties of supergiant star winds. Our findings
favour the idea that a correct interpretation of the SFXT phenomenology
requires a mechanism to strongly reduce the mass accretion rate onto the
compact object during most of its orbit around the companion, as proposed in a
number of theoretical works. [Abridged]Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics. 18 pages, 8
figures, 8 table
The magnetospheric radius of an inclined rotator in the magnetically threaded disk model
The estimate of the magnetospheric radius in a disk-fed neutron star X-ray
binary is a long standing problem in high energy Astrophysics. We review the
magnetospheric radius calculations in the so-called magnetically threaded disk
model, comparing the simplified approach originally proposed by Ghosh & Lamb
(1979) with the revised version proposed by Wang (1987), Wang (1995), and Wang
(1997). We show that for a given set of fixed parameters (assuming also a
comparable screening factor of the neutron star magnetic field by the currents
induced on the disk surface) the revised magnetically threaded disk model
predicts a magnetospheric radius that is significantly smaller than that
derived from the Ghosh & Lamb (1979) treatment. For a fixed value of the
neutron star magnetic field and a wide range of mass accretion rates, the
inclusion of a large inclination angle between the neutron star rotation and
magnetic field axes (60 deg) leads to a further decrease of the
magnetospheric radius. To illustrate the relevance of these calculations, we
consider, as an example, the case of the transitional pulsars. During the
so-called "high mode" of their sub-luminous accretion disk state, these sources
have shown X-ray pulsations interpreted as due to accretion at an unprecedented
low luminosity level compared to other neutron stars in X-ray binaries. In the
context of the magnetic threaded disk model, we show that accretion at
luminosities of 10 erg s (and thus accretion-driven X-ray
pulsations) can be more easily explained when the prescription of the
magnetospheric radius provided by Wang (1997) is used. This avoids the need of
invoking very strong propeller outflows in the transitional pulsars, as
proposed in other literature works.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&
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