2,272 research outputs found
Effects of the galactic magnetic field upon large scale anisotropies of extragalactic Cosmic Rays
The large scale pattern in the arrival directions of extragalactic cosmic
rays that reach the Earth is different from that of the flux arriving to the
halo of the Galaxy as a result of the propagation through the galactic magnetic
field. Two different effects are relevant in this process: deflections of
trajectories and (de)acceleration by the electric field component due to the
galactic rotation. The deflection of the cosmic ray trajectories makes the flux
intensity arriving to the halo from some direction to appear reaching the Earth
from another direction. This applies to any intrinsic anisotropy in the
extragalactic distribution or, even in the absence of intrinsic anisotropies,
to the dipolar Compton-Getting anisotropy induced when the observer is moving
with respect to the cosmic rays rest frame. For an observer moving with the
solar system, cosmic rays traveling through far away regions of the Galaxy also
experience an electric force coming from the relative motion (due to the
rotation of the Galaxy) of the local system in which the field can be
considered as being purely magnetic. This produces small changes in the
particles momentum that can originate large scale anisotropies even for an
isotropic extragalactic flux.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure
Recent results from the Pierre Auger Observatory
The main results from the Auger Observatory are described. A steepening of
the spectrum is observed at the highest energies, supporting the expectation
that above eV the cosmic ray energies are significantly
degraded by interactions with the CMB photons (the GZK effect). This is further
supported by the correlations observed above eV with the
distribution of nearby active galaxies, which also show the potential of Auger
to start the era of charged particle astronomy. The lack of observation of
photons or neutrinos strongly disfavors top-down models, and these searches may
approach in the long term the sensitivity required to test the fluxes expected
from the secondaries of the very same GZK process. Bounds on the anisotropies
at EeV energies contradict hints from previous experiments that suggested a
large excess from regions near the Galactic centre or the presence of a dipolar
type modulation of the cosmic ray flux.Comment: 6 p., 8 figs., proceedings of the XXIII International Conference on
Neutrino Physics and Astrophysics (Neutrino 08
Pulmonary hypertension in patients with chronic myeloproliferative disorders
Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a major complication of several haematological disorders. Chronic myeloproliferative diseases (CMPDs) associated with pulmonary hypertension have been included in group five of the clinical classification for pulmonary hypertension, corresponding to pulmonary hypertension for which the aetiology is unclear and/or multifactorial. The aim of this review is to discuss the epidemiology, pathogenic mechanism and treatment approaches of the more common forms of pulmonary hypertension in the context of CMPD\u2019s: chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, precapillary pulmonary hypertension and drug-induced PH
Ultrahigh Energy Nuclei in the Galactic Magnetic Field
Observations are consistent with a significant fraction of heavy nuclei in
the cosmic ray flux above a few times 10^19 eV. Such nuclei can be deflected
considerably in the Galactic magnetic field, with important implications for
the search of their sources. We perform detailed simulations of heavy nuclei
propagation within recent Galactic magnetic field models. While such models are
not yet sufficiently constrained to predict deflection maps in detail, we find
general features of the distribution of (de-) magnified flux from sources.
Since in most theoretical models sources of heavy nuclei are located in the
local large scale structure of galaxies, we show examples of images of several
nearby galaxy clusters and of the supergalactic plane. Such general features
may be useful to develop efficient methods for source reconstruction from
observed ultrahigh energy cosmic ray arrival directions.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures. Published in JCA
Cosmic String Spacetime in Dilaton Gravity and Flat Rotation Curves
In dilaton gravity theories, we consider a string-like topological defect
formed during U(1) gauge symmetry-breaking phase transition in the early
Universe, and far from the cosmic string we have vacuum solutions of the
generalized Einstein equation. We discuss how they can be related to the
flatness of galactic rotation curves.Comment: 9 pages, RevTeX4 fil
Lensing of ultra-high energy cosmic rays in turbulent magnetic fields
We consider the propagation of ultra high energy cosmic rays through
turbulent magnetic fields and study the transition between the regimes of
single and multiple images of point-like sources. The transition occurs at
energies around , where is the distance traversed by the
CR's with electric charge in the turbulent magnetic field of root mean
square strength and coherence length . We find that above only sources located in a fraction of a few % of the sky can reach large
amplifications of its principal image or start developing multiple images. New
images appear in pairs with huge magnifications, and they remain amplified over
a significant range of energies. At decreasing energies the fraction of the sky
in which sources can develop multiple images increases, reaching about 50% for
. The magnification peaks become however increasingly narrower and for
their integrated effect becomes less noticeable. If a uniform
magnetic field component is also present it would further narrow down the
peaks, shrinking the energy range in which they can be relevant. Below some kind of scintillation regime is reached, where many demagnified
images of a source are present but with overall total magnification of order
unity. We also search for lensing signatures in the AGASA data studying
two-dimensional correlations in angle and energy and find some interesting
hints.Comment: 30 pages, 16 figures, final version with minor change
New insights in lymphangioleiomyomatosis and pulmonary langerhans cell histiocytosis
Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) and pulmonary Langerhans cell histiocytosis (PLCH) are rare diseases that lead to progressive cystic destruction of the lungs. Despite their distinctive characteristics, these diseases share several features. Patients affected by LAM or PLCH have similar radiological cystic patterns, a similar age of onset, and the possibility of extrapulmonary involvement. In this review, the recent advances in the understanding of the molecular pathogenesis, as well as the current and most promising biomarkers and therapeutic approaches, are described
Weak-Lensing by Large-Scale Structure and the Polarization Properties of Distant Radio-Sources
We estimate the effects of weak lensing by large-scale density
inhomogeneities and long-wavelength gravitational waves upon the polarization
properties of electromagnetic radiation as it propagates from cosmologically
distant sources. Scalar (density) fluctuations do not rotate neither the plane
of polarization of the electromagnetic radiation nor the source image. They
produce, however, an appreciable shear, which distorts the image shape, leading
to an apparent rotation of the image orientation relative to its plane of
polarization. In sources with large ellipticity the apparent rotation is rather
small, of the order (in radians) of the dimensionless shear. The effect is
larger at smaller source eccentricity. A shear of 1% can induce apparent
rotations of around 5 degrees in radio sources with the smallest eccentricity
among those with a significant degree of integrated linear polarization. We
discuss the possibility that weak lensing by shear with rms value around or
below 5% may be the cause for the dispersion in the direction of integrated
linear polarization of cosmologically distant radio sources away from the
perpendicular to their major axis, as expected from models for their magnetic
fields. A rms shear larger than 5% would be incompatible with the observed
correlation between polarization properties and source orientation in distant
radio galaxies and quasars. Gravity waves do rotate both the plane of
polarization as well as the source image. Their weak lensing effects, however,
are negligible.Comment: 23 pages, 2 eps figures, Aastex 4.0 macros. Final version, as
accepted by ApJ. Additional references and some changes in the introduction
and conclusion
Decaying neutron propagation in the Galaxy and the Cosmic Ray anisotropy at 1 EeV
We study the cosmic ray arrival distribution expected from a source of
neutrons in the galactic center at energies around 1 EeV and compare it with
the anisotropy detected by AGASA and SUGAR. Besides the point-like signal in
the source direction produced by the direct neutrons, an extended signal due to
the protons produced in neutron decays is expected. This associated proton
signal also leads to an excess in the direction of the spiral arm. For
realistic models of the regular and random galactic magnetic fields, the
resulting anisotropy as a function of the energy is obtained. We find that for
the anisotropy to become sufficiently suppressed below E\sim 10^{17.9}eV, a
significant random magnetic field component is required, while on the other
hand, this also tends to increase the angular spread of the associated proton
signal and to reduce the excess in the spiral arm direction. The source
luminosity required in order that the right ascension anisotropy be 4% for the
AGASA angular exposure corresponds to a prediction for the point-like flux from
direct neutrons compatible with the flux detected by SUGAR. We also analyse the
distinguishing features predicted for a large statistics southern observatory.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, minor changes to match published versio
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