398 research outputs found
Newly Discovered RR Lyrae Stars in the SDSSXPanXSTARRS1XCatalina Footprint
We present the detection of 6,371 RR Lyrae (RRL) stars distributed across
~14,000 deg^2 of the sky from the combined data of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
(SDSS), the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System 1 (PS1), and
the second photometric catalogue from the Catalina Survey (CSDR2), out of
these, ~2,021 RRL stars (~572 RRab and 1,449 RRc) are new discoveries. The RRL
stars have heliocentric distances in the 4--28 kpc distance range. RRL-like
color cuts from the SDSS and variability cuts from the PS1 are used to cull our
candidate list. We then use the CSDR2 multi-epoch data to refine our sample.
Periods were measured using the Analysis of Variance technique while the
classification process is performed with the Template Fitting Method in
addition to the visual inspection of the light curves. A cross-match of our RRL
star discoveries with previous published catalogs of RRL stars yield
completeness levels of ~50% for both RRab and RRc stars, and an efficiency of
~99% and ~87% for RRab and RRc stars, respectively. We show that our method for
selecting RRL stars allows us to recover halo structures. The full lists of all
the RRL stars are made publicly available.Comment: 14 pages, 11 figures. Accepted 2014 March 30. Received 2014 March 12;
in original form 2013 November 2
Four new T dwarfs identified in PanSTARRS 1 commissioning data
A complete well-defined sample of ultracool dwarfs is one of the key science
programs of the Pan-STARRS 1 optical survey telescope (PS1). Here we combine
PS1 commissioning data with 2MASS to conduct a proper motion search
(0.1--2.0\arcsec/yr) for nearby T dwarfs, using optical+near-IR colors to
select objects for spectroscopic followup. The addition of sensitive far-red
optical imaging from PS1 enables discovery of nearby ultracool dwarfs that
cannot be identified from 2MASS data alone. We have searched 3700 sq. deg. of
PS1 y-band (0.95--1.03 um) data to y19.5 mag (AB) and J16.5
mag (Vega) and discovered four previously unknown bright T dwarfs. Three of the
objects (with spectral types T1.5, T2 and T3.5) have photometric distances
within 25 pc and were missed by previous 2MASS searches due to more restrictive
color selection criteria. The fourth object (spectral type T4.5) is more
distant than 25 pc and is only a single-band detection in 2MASS. We also
examine the potential for completing the census of nearby ultracool objects
with the PS1 3 survey.Comment: 25 pages, 8 figures, 5 table, AJ accepted, updated to comply with
Pan-STARRS1 naming conventio
The fastest unbound star in our Galaxy ejected by a thermonuclear supernova
Hypervelocity stars (HVS) travel with velocities so high, that they exceed
the escape velocity of the Galaxy. Several acceleration mechanisms have been
discussed. Only one HVS (US 708, HVS 2) is a compact helium star. Here we
present a spectroscopic and kinematic analysis of US\,708. Travelling with a
velocity of , it is the fastest unbound star in our
Galaxy. In reconstructing its trajectory, the Galactic center becomes very
unlikely as an origin, which is hardly consistent with the most favored
ejection mechanism for the other HVS. Furthermore, we discovered US\,708 to be
a fast rotator. According to our binary evolution model it was spun-up by tidal
interaction in a close binary and is likely to be the ejected donor remnant of
a thermonuclear supernova.Comment: 16 pages report, 20 pages supplementary material
Observations of the GRB afterglow ATLAS17aeu and its possible association with GW170104
We report the discovery and multi-wavelength data analysis of the peculiar
optical transient, ATLAS17aeu. This transient was identified in the skymap of
the LIGO gravitational wave event GW170104 by our ATLAS and Pan-STARRS
coverage. ATLAS17aeu was discovered 23.1hrs after GW170104 and rapidly faded
over the next 3 nights, with a spectrum revealing a blue featureless continuum.
The transient was also detected as a fading x-ray source by Swift and in the
radio at 6 and 15 GHz. A gamma ray burst GRB170105A was detected by 3
satellites 19.04hrs after GW170104 and 4.10hrs before our first optical
detection. We analyse the multi-wavelength fluxes in the context of the known
GRB population and discuss the observed sky rates of GRBs and their afterglows.
We find it statistically likely that ATLAS17aeu is an afterglow associated with
GRB170105A, with a chance coincidence ruled out at the 99\% confidence or
2.6. A long, soft GRB within a redshift range of would be consistent with all the observed multi-wavelength data. The
Poisson probability of a chance occurrence of GW170104 and ATLAS17aeu is
. This is the probability of a chance coincidence in 2D sky location
and in time. These observations indicate that ATLAS17aeu is plausibly a normal
GRB afterglow at significantly higher redshift than the distance constraint for
GW170104 and therefore a chance coincidence. However if a redshift of the faint
host were to place it within the GW170104 distance range, then physical
association with GW170104 should be considered.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, accepted to Ap
Hydrogen-Poor Superluminous Supernovae and Long-Duration Gamma-Ray Bursts Have Similar Host Galaxies
We present optical spectroscopy and optical/near-IR photometry of 31 host
galaxies of hydrogen-poor superluminous supernovae (SLSNe), including 15 events
from the Pan-STARRS1 Medium Deep Survey. Our sample spans the redshift range
0.1 < z < 1.6 and is the first comprehensive host galaxy study of this specific
subclass of cosmic explosions. Combining the multi-band photometry and
emission-line measurements, we determine the luminosities, stellar masses, star
formation rates and metallicities. We find that as a whole, the hosts of SLSNe
are a low-luminosity ( ~ -17.3 mag), low stellar mass ( ~ 2 x 10^8
M_sun) population, with a high median specific star formation rate ( ~ 2
Gyr^-1). The median metallicity of our spectroscopic sample is low, 12 +
log(O/H}) ~ 8.35 ~ 0.45 Z_sun, although at least one host galaxy has solar
metallicity. The host galaxies of H-poor SLSNe are statistically distinct from
the hosts of GOODS core-collapse SNe (which cover a similar redshift range),
but resemble the host galaxies of long-duration gamma-ray bursts (LGRBs) in
terms of stellar mass, SFR, sSFR and metallicity. This result indicates that
the environmental causes leading to massive stars forming either SLSNe or LGRBs
are similar, and in particular that SLSNe are more effectively formed in low
metallicity environments. We speculate that the key ingredient is large core
angular momentum, leading to a rapidly-spinning magnetar in SLSNe and an
accreting black hole in LGRBs.Comment: ApJ in press; updated to match accepted version. Some additional data
added, discussion of selection effects expanded; conclusions unchanged. 22
pages in emulateapj forma
Zooming In on the Progenitors of Superluminous Supernovae With the HST
We present Hubble Space Telescope (HST) rest-frame ultraviolet imaging of the
host galaxies of 16 hydrogen-poor superluminous supernovae (SLSNe), including
11 events from the Pan-STARRS Medium Deep Survey. Taking advantage of the
superb angular resolution of HST, we characterize the galaxies' morphological
properties, sizes and star formation rate (SFR) densities. We determine the
supernova (SN) locations within the host galaxies through precise astrometric
matching, and measure physical and host-normalized offsets, as well as the SN
positions within the cumulative distribution of UV light pixel brightness. We
find that the host galaxies of H-poor SLSNe are irregular, compact dwarf
galaxies, with a median half-light radius of just 0.9 kpc. The UV-derived SFR
densities are high ( ~ 0.1 M_sun/yr/kpc^2), suggesting that SLSNe
form in overdense environments. Their locations trace the UV light of their
host galaxies, with a distribution intermediate between that of long-duration
gamma-ray bursts (LGRBs) (which are strongly clustered on the brightest regions
of their hosts) and a uniform distribution (characteristic of normal
core-collapse SNe), though cannot be statistically distinguished from either
with the current sample size. Taken together, this strengthens the picture that
SLSN progenitors require different conditions than those of ordinary
core-collapse SNe to form, and that they explode in broadly similar galaxies as
do LGRBs. If the tendency for SLSNe to be less clustered on the brightest
regions than are LGRBs is confirmed by a larger sample, this would indicate a
different, potentially lower-mass progenitor for SLSNe than LRGBs.Comment: ApJ in press; matches published version. Minor changes following
referee's comments; conclusions unchange
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