6,287 research outputs found
The Magnetic Electron Ion Spectrometer (MagEIS) Instruments Aboard the Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) Spacecraft
This paper describes the Magnetic Electron Ion Spectrometer (MagEIS) instruments aboard the RBSP spacecraft from an instrumentation and engineering point of view. There are four magnetic spectrometers aboard each of the two spacecraft, one low-energy unit (20–240 keV), two medium-energy units (80–1200 keV), and a high-energy unit (800–4800 keV). The high unit also contains a proton telescope (55 keV–20 MeV). The magnetic spectrometers focus electrons within a selected energy pass band upon a focal plane of several silicon detectors where pulse-height analysis is used to determine if the energy of the incident electron is appropriate for the electron momentum selected by the magnet. Thus each event is a two-parameter analysis, an approach leading to a greatly reduced background. The physics of these instruments are described in detail followed by the engineering implementation. The data outputs are described, and examples of the calibration results and early flight data presented
Seyfert's Sextet: A Slowly Dissolving Stephan's Quintet?
We present a multiwavelength study of the highly evolved compact galaxy group
known as Seyfert's Sextet (HCG79: SS). We interpret SS as a 2-3 Gyr more
evolved analog of Stephan's Quintet (HCG92: SQ). We postulate that SS formed by
sequential acquisition of 4-5 primarily late-type field galaxies. Four of the
five galaxies show an early-type morphology which is likely the result of
secular evolution driven by gas stripping. Stellar stripping has produced a
massive/luminous halo and embedded galaxies that are overluminous for their
size. These are interpreted as remnant bulges of the accreted spirals. H79d
could be interpreted as the most recent intruder being the only galaxy with an
intact ISM and uncertain evidence for tidal perturbation. In addition to
stripping activity we find evidence for past accretion events. H79b (NGC6027)
shows a strong counter-rotating emission line component interpreted as an
accreted dwarf spiral. H79a shows evidence for an infalling component of gas
representing feedback or possible cross fueling by H79d. The biggest challenge
to this scenario involves the low gas fraction in the group. If SS formed from
normal field spirals then much of the gas is missing. Finally, despite its
advanced stage of evolution, we find no evidence for major mergers and infer
that SS (and SQ) are telling us that such groups coalesce via slow dissolution.Comment: 70 pages, 19 figures, 15 tables - accepted for publication in the
Astronomical Journa
Solar Coronal Structures and Stray Light in TRACE
Using the 2004 Venus transit of the Sun to constrain a semi-empirical
point-spread function for the TRACE EUV solar telescope, we have measured the
effect of stray light in that telescope. We find that 43% of 171A EUV light
that enters TRACE is scattered, either through diffraction off the entrance
filter grid or through other nonspecular effects. We carry this result forward,
via known-PSF deconvolution of TRACE images, to identify its effect on analysis
of TRACE data. Known-PSF deconvolution by this derived PSF greatly reduces the
effect of visible haze in the TRACE 171A images, enhances bright features, and
reveals that the smooth background component of the corona is considerably less
bright (and hence much more rarefied) than commonly supposed. Deconvolution
reveals that some prior conlclusions about the Sun appear to have been based on
stray light in the images. In particular, the diffuse background "quiet corona"
becomes consistent with hydrostatic support of the coronal plasma; feature
contrast is greatly increased, possibly affecting derived parameters such as
the form of the coronal heating function; and essentially all existing
differential emission measure studies of small features appear to be affected
by contamination from nearby features. We speculate on further implications of
stray light for interpretation of EUV images from TRACE and similar
instruments, and advocate deconvolution as a standard tool for image analysis
with future instruments such as SDO/AIA.Comment: Accepted by APJ; v2 reformatted to single-column format for online
readabilit
Rotation reduces convective mixing in Jupiter and other gas giants
Recent measurements of Jupiter's gravitational moments by the Juno spacecraft
and seismology of Saturn's rings suggest that the primordial composition
gradients in the deep interior of these planets have persisted since their
formation. One possible explanation is the presence of a double-diffusive
staircase below the planet's outer convection zone, which inhibits mixing
across the deeper layers. However, hydrodynamic simulations have shown that
these staircases are not long-lasting and can be disrupted by overshooting
convection. In this paper we suggests that planetary rotation could be another
factor for the longevity of primordial composition gradients. Using rotational
mixing-length theory and 3D hydrodynamic simulations, we demonstrate that
rotation significantly reduces both the convective velocity and the mixing of
primordial composition gradients. In particular, for Jovian conditions at
after formation, rotation reduces the convective
velocity by a factor of 6, and in turn, the kinetic energy flux available for
mixing gets reduced by a factor of . This leads to an entrainment
timescale that is more than two orders of magnitude longer than without
rotation. We encourage future hydrodynamic models of Jupiter and other gas
giants to include rapid rotation, because the decrease in the mixing efficiency
could explain why Jupiter and Saturn are not fully mixed.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letter
New Spectroscopy of U Gem
We present new optical spectroscopic observations of U Geminorum obtained
during a quiescent stage. We performed a radial velocity analysis of three
Balmer emission lines yielding inconsistent results. Assuming that the radial
velocity semi amplitude accurately reflects the motion of the white dwarf, we
arrive at masses for the primary which are in the range of M_wd= 1.21 - 1.37
M_Sun. Based on the internal radial velocity inconsistencies and results
produced from the Doppler tomography -- wherein we do not detect emission from
the hot spot, but rather an intense asymmetric emission overlaying the disc,
reminiscent of spiral arms -- we discuss the possibility that the
overestimation of the masses may be due to variations of gas opacities and a
partial truncation of the disc.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures, 3 tables, to be published on RevMexAA. arXiv
admin note: text overlap with arXiv:2112.0343
The Influence of Algal Exudate on the Hygroscopicity of Sea Spray Particles
We examined the effect of organic matter released by four different algal species on the hygroscopic growth and droplet activation behaviour of laboratory-generated marine aerosol particles. Hygroscopic growth factors
and dry diameters for activation were reduced by less than 10%, compared to that of sodium chloride or of artificial seawater that was devoid of marine surfactants. Concentration-dependent nonideal behaviour was observed for the artificial seawater. But within measurement uncertainty, the measured hygroscopic growth and droplet activation behaviour for the samples that
contained organic matter were consistent with a hygroscopicity parameter that was constant between the sub- and supersaturated measurement points. Also, the hygroscopic growth measured for hydrated particles after 3 and after 10 seconds was similar, which implies that in this time range no kinetic effects were detected
Determination of pulsation periods and other parameters of 2875 stars classified as MIRA in the All Sky Automated Survey (ASAS)
We have developed an interactive PYTHON code and derived crucial ephemeris
data of 99.4% of all stars classified as 'Mira' in the ASAS data base,
referring to pulsation periods, mean maximum magnitudes and, whenever possible,
the amplitudes among others. We present a statistical comparison between our
results and those given by the AAVSO International Variable Star Index (VSX),
as well as those determined with the machine learning automatic procedure of
Richards et al. 2012. Our periods are in good agreement with those of the VSX
in more than 95% of the stars. However, when comparing our periods with those
of Richards et al, the coincidence rate is only 76% and most of the remaining
cases refer to aliases. We conclude that automatic codes require still more
refinements in order to provide reliable period values. Period distributions of
the target stars show three local maxima around 215, 275 and 330 d, apparently
of universal validity, their relative strength seems to depend on galactic
longitude. Our visual amplitude distribution turns out to be bimodal, however
1/3 of the targets have rather small amplitudes (A 2.5) and could
refer to semi-regular variables (SR). We estimate that about 20% of our targets
belong to the SR class. We also provide a list of 63 candidates for period
variations and a sample of 35 multiperiodic stars which seem to confirm the
universal validity of typical sequences in the double period and in the
Petersen diagramsComment: 14 pages, 14 figures, and 8 tables. Accepted to The Astrophysical
Journal Supplement Series, September 201
Continuous variable entanglement sharing in non-inertial frames
We study the distribution of entanglement between modes of a free scalar
field from the perspective of observers in uniform acceleration. We consider a
two-mode squeezed state of the field from an inertial perspective, and
analytically study the degradation of entanglement due to the Unruh effect, in
the cases of either one or both observers undergoing uniform acceleration. We
find that for two observers undergoing finite acceleration, the entanglement
vanishes between the lowest frequency modes. The loss of entanglement is
precisely explained as a redistribution of the inertial entanglement into
multipartite quantum correlations among accessible and unaccessible modes from
a non-inertial perspective. We show that classical correlations are also lost
from the perspective of two accelerated observers but conserved if one of the
observers remains inertial.Comment: 19 pages, 13 EPS figures (most low-res due to oversize); terminology
revise
The TAOS Project: Upper Bounds on the Population of Small KBOs and Tests of Models of Formation and Evolution of the Outer Solar System
We have analyzed the first 3.75 years of data from TAOS, the Taiwanese
American Occultation Survey. TAOS monitors bright stars to search for
occultations by Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs). This dataset comprises 5e5
star-hours of multi-telescope photometric data taken at 4 or 5 Hz. No events
consistent with KBO occultations were found in this dataset. We compute the
number of events expected for the Kuiper Belt formation and evolution models of
Pan & Sari (2005), Kenyon & Bromley (2004), Benavidez & Campo Bagatin (2009),
and Fraser (2009). A comparison with the upper limits we derive from our data
constrains the parameter space of these models. This is the first detailed
comparison of models of the KBO size distribution with data from an occultation
survey. Our results suggest that the KBO population is comprised of objects
with low internal strength and that planetary migration played a role in the
shaping of the size distribution.Comment: 18 pages, 16 figures, Aj submitte
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