13,614 research outputs found
Identification of Potential Weak Target Radio Quasars for ASTRO-G In-Beam Phase-Referencing
We apply an efficient selection method to identify potential weak Very Long
Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) target quasars simply using optical (SDSS) and
low-resolution radio (FIRST) catalogue data. Our search is restricted to within
12" from known compact radio sources that are detectable as phase-reference
calibrators for ASTRO-G at 8.4 GHz frequency. These calibrators have estimated
correlated flux density >20 mJy on the longest ground-space VLBI baselines. The
search radius corresponds to the primary beam size of the ASTRO-G antenna. We
show that ~20 quasars with at least mJy-level expected flux density can be
pre-selected as potential in-beam phase-reference targets for ASTRO-G at 8.4
GHz frequency. Most of them have never been imaged with VLBI. The sample of
these dominantly weak sources offers a good opportunity to study their radio
structures with unprecedented angular resolution provided by Space VLBI. The
method of in-beam phase-referencing is independent from the ability of the
orbiting radio telescope to do rapid position-switching manoeuvres between the
calibrators and the nearby reference sources, and less sensitive to the
satellite orbit determination uncertainties.Comment: 5 pages, accepted for the Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan (Vol. 61, No. 1,
Feb 2009
Exact results for the Kardar--Parisi--Zhang equation with spatially correlated noise
We investigate the Kardar--Parisi--Zhang (KPZ) equation in spatial
dimensions with Gaussian spatially long--range correlated noise ---
characterized by its second moment --- by means of dynamic field theory and the
renormalization group. Using a stochastic Cole--Hopf transformation we derive
{\em exact} exponents and scaling functions for the roughening transition and
the smooth phase above the lower critical dimension . Below
the lower critical dimension, there is a line marking the stability
boundary between the short-range and long-range noise fixed points. For , the general structure of the renormalization-group equations
fixes the values of the dynamic and roughness exponents exactly, whereas above
, one has to rely on some perturbational techniques. We discuss the
location of this stability boundary in light of the exact results
derived in this paper, and from results known in the literature. In particular,
we conjecture that there might be two qualitatively different strong-coupling
phases above and below the lower critical dimension, respectively.Comment: 21 pages, 15 figure
Dynamic Light Scattering from Semidilute Actin Solutions: A Study of Hydrodynamic Screening, Filament Bending Stiffness and the Effect of Tropomyosin/Troponin-Binding
Quasi-elastic light scattering (QELS) is applied to investigate the effect of
the tropomyosin/troponin complex (Tm/Tn) on the stiffness of actin filaments.
The importance of hydrodynamic screening in semidilute solutions is
demonstrated. A new concentration dependent expression for the dynamic
structure factor of semiflexible polymers in semidilute solutions
is used to analyze the experimental QELS data. A concentration independent
value for the bending modulus is thus obtained. It increases by 50\%
as a consequence of Tm/Tn binding in a 7:1:1 molar ratio of actin/Tm/Tn. In
addition a new expression for the initial slope of the dynamic structure factor
of a semiflexible polymer is used to determine the effective hydrodynamic
diameter of the actin filament. Our results confirm the general relevance of
the concept of (intrinsic) semiflexibility to polymer dynamics.Comment: 9 pages, RevTeX, 9 figures, all uuencoded gzipe
e-MERLIN observations of the puzzling TeV source HESS J1943+213
HESS J1943+213 is a TeV source close to the Galactic plane proposed to be a
BL Lac object. Our high resolution EVN observation failed to recover two thirds
of the source flux density detected simultaneously by the WSRT. Our recent
e-MERLIN observations in L and C bands show only a point source with flux
density comparable to the EVN detection. Thus the structure responsible for the
missing flux density has to be larger than 2". It may be related to the
presumed extragalactic source (thus would have a kpc-scale size), or to the
Galactic foreground material close to the line of sight to the source.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, appears in the proceedings of the 12th European
VLBI Network Symposium and Users Meeting (7-10 October 2014, Cagliari,
Italy), eds. A. Tarchi, M. Giroletti & L. Feretti. Proceedings of Science,
PoS(EVN 2014)07
Four hot DOGs eaten up with the EVN
Hot dust-obscured galaxies (hot DOGs) are a rare class of hyperluminous
infrared galaxies recently identified with the Wide-field Infrared Survey
Explorer (WISE) satellite. The majority of the ~1000-member all-sky population
should be at high redshifts (z~2-3), at the peak of star formation in the
history of the Universe. This class most likely represents a short phase during
galaxy merging and evolution, a transition from starburst- to AGN-dominated
phases. For the first time, we observed four hot DOGs with known mJy-level
radio emission using the European VLBI Network (EVN) at 1.7 GHz, in a hope to
find compact radio features characteristic to AGN activity. All four target
sources are detected at ~15-30 mas angular resolution, confirming the presence
of an active nucleus. The sources are spatially resolved, i.e. the flux density
of the VLBI-detected components is smaller than the total flux density,
suggesting that a fraction of the radio emission originates from larger-scale
(partly starburst-related) activity. Here we show the preliminary results of
our e-EVN observations made in 2014 February, and discuss WISE J1814+3412, an
object with kpc-scale symmetric radio structure, in more detail.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure; appears in the proceedings of the 12th European
VLBI Network Symposium and Users Meeting (7-10 October 2014, Cagliari,
Italy), eds. A. Tarchi, M. Giroletti & L. Feretti. JREF Proceedings of
Science, PoS(EVN 2014)003,
http://pos.sissa.it/archive/conferences/230/003/EVN%202014_003.pd
Two in one? A possible dual radio-emitting nucleus in the quasar SDSS J1425+3231
The radio-emitting quasar SDSS J1425+3231 (z=0.478) was recently found to
have double-peaked narrow [O III] optical emission lines. Based on the analysis
of the optical spectrum, Peng et al. (2011) suggested that this object harbours
a dual active galactic nucleus (AGN) system, with two supermassive black holes
(SMBHs) separated on the kpc scale. SMBH pairs should be ubiquitous according
to hierarchical galaxy formation scenarios in which the host galaxies and their
central black holes grow together via interactions and eventual mergers. Yet
the number of presently-confirmed dual SMBHs on kpc or smaller scales remains
small. A possible way to obtain direct observational evidence for duality is to
conduct high-resolution radio interferometric measurements, provided that both
AGN are in an evolutionary phase when some activity is going on in the radio.
We used the technique of Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) to image SDSS
J1425+3231. Observations made with the European VLBI Network (EVN) at 1.7 GHz
and 5 GHz frequencies in 2011 revealed compact radio emission at sub-mJy flux
density levels from two components with a projected linear separation of
\sim2.6 kpc. These two components support the possibility of a dual AGN system.
The weaker component remained undetected at 5 GHz, due to its steep radio
spectrum. Further study will be necessary to securely rule out a jet--shock
interpretation of the less dominant compact radio source. Assuming the dual AGN
interpretation, we discuss black hole masses, luminosities, and accretion rates
of the two components, using available X-ray, optical, and radio data. While
high-resolution radio interferometric imaging is not an efficient technique to
search blindly for dual AGN, it is an invaluable tool to confirm the existence
of selected candidates.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of
the Royal Astronomical Societ
VLBI search for the radio counterpart of HESS J1943+213
HESS J1943+213, a TeV point source close to the Galactic plane recently
discovered by the H.E.S.S. collaboration, was proposed to be an extreme BL
Lacertae object, though a pulsar wind nebula (PWN) nature could not be
completely discarded. To investigate its nature, we performed high-resolution
radio observations with the European Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network
(EVN) and reanalyzed archival continuum and H {\sc i} data. The EVN
observations revealed a compact radio counterpart of the TeV source. The low
brightness temperature and the resolved nature of the radio source are
indications against the beamed BL Lacertae hypothesis. The radio/X-ray source
appears immersed in a 1\arcmin elliptical feature suggesting a possible
galactic origin (PWN nature) for the HESS source. We found that HESS\,J1943+213
is located in the interior of a \sim1\degr diameter H {\sc i} feature, and
explored the possibility of they being physically related.Comment: Significantly revised and extended. Accepted for publication in ApJ
(ApJ, 762, 63). (4 figures.
Effect of Heat Treatment on Oat Seeds
One method of handling oat grain with a moisture content too high for safe storage is artificial drying. This practice involves forcing heated air through the grain until the moisture content is reduced to the 13.5 percent considered safe. Problems inherent with this practice are the maximum grain moisture content at which artificial heat can be applied safely, and the maximum temperatures that can be used for drying
- …