215 research outputs found
Spectroscopy of Stellar-Like Objects Contained in the Second Byurakan Survey. I
The results of spectroscopic observations of 363 star-like objects from the
Second Byurakan Survey (SBS) are reported. This SBS's subsample has proven to
be a rich source of newly identified quasars, Seyfert type galaxies, degenerate
stars and hot subdwarfs. In the subsample here studied, we identified 35 new
QSOs, 142 White Dwarfs (WDs) the majority of which, 114 are of DA type, 55
subdwarfs (29 of which are sdB-type stars), 10 HBB, 16 NHB, 54 G-type and 25
F-type stars, two objects with composite spectra, four Cataclismic Variables
(CV), two peculiar emission line stars, 17 objects with continuous spectra, as
well as one planetary nebula. Among the 35 QSOs we have found two Broad
Absorption Line (BAL) QSOs, namely SBS 1423+500 and SBS 1435+500A. Magnitudes,
redshifts, and slit spectra for all QSOs, also some typical spectra of the
peculiar stars are presented. We estimate the minimum surface density of bright
QSOs in redshift range 0.3<z<2.2 to be 0.05 per sq. deg. for B<17.0 and 0.10
per sq. deg. for B<17.5.Comment: 22 pages, 3 tables, 4 figures, PASP in pres
Spectroscopic Analysis of H I Absorption Line Systems in 40 HIRES Quasars
We list and analyze H I absorption lines at redshifts 2 < z < 4 with column
density (12 < log(N_HI) < 19) in 40 high-resolutional (FWHM = 8.0 km/s) quasar
spectra obtained with the Keck+HIRES. We de-blend and fit all H I lines within
1,000 km/s of 86 strong H I lines whose column densities are log(N_HI/[cm^-2])
> 15. Unlike most prior studies, we use not only Lya but also all visible
higher Lyman series lines to improve the fitting accuracy. This reveals
components near to higher column density systems that can not be seen in Lya.
We list the Voigt profile fits to the 1339 H I components that we found. We
examined physical properties of H I lines after separating them into several
sub-samples according to their velocity separation from the quasars, their
redshift, column density and the S/N ratio of the spectrum. We found two
interesting trends for lines with 12 < log(N_HI) < 15 which are within 200-1000
km/s of systems with log(N_HI) > 15. First, their column density distribution
becomes steeper, meaning relatively fewer high column density lines, at z <
2.9. Second, their column density distribution also becomes steeper and their
line width becomes broader by about 2-3 km/s when they are within 5,000 km/s of
their quasar.Comment: 32 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in the Astronomical
Journal. A complete version with all tables and figures is available at
http://www.astro.psu.edu/users/misawa/pub/Paper/40hires.ps.g
Optical Microvariability in Quasars: Spectral Variability
We present a method that we developed to discern where the optical
microvariability (OM) in quasars originates: in the accretion disk (related to
thermal processes) or in the jet (related to non-thermal processes). Analyzing
nearly simultaneous observations in three different optical bands of continuum
emission, we are able to determine the origin of several isolated OM events. In
particular, our method indicates that from nine events reported by Ramirez et
al. (2009), three of them are consistent with a thermal origin, three to
non-thermal, and three cannot be discerned. The implications for the emission
models of OM are briefly discussed.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa
The Second Byurakan Survey Galaxies. I. The Optical Database
A database for the entire catalog of the Second Byurakan Survey (SBS)
galaxies is presented. It contains new measurements of their optical parameters
and additional information taken from the literature and other databases. The
measurements were made using Ipg(near-infrared), Fpg(red) and Jpg(blue) band
images from photographic sky survey plates obtained by the Palomar Schmidt
telescope and extracted from the STScI Digital Sky Survey (DSS). The database
provides accurate coordinates, morphological type, spectral and activity
classes, apparent magnitudes and diameters, axial ratios, and position angles,
as well as number counts of neighboring objects in a circle of radius 50 kpc.
The total number of individual SBS objects in the database is now 1676. The 188
Markarian galaxies which were re-discovered by SBS are not included in this
database. We also include redshifts that are now available for 1576 SBS
objects, as well as 2MASS infrared magnitudes for 1117 SBS galaxies.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure, 1 tabl
Physical parameters and classification of eight galactic nuclei from the Second Byurakan Survey
Spectroscopic observations with a resolution of 4.5 Angst were performed for
a sample of eight galactic nuclei extracted from the Second Byurakan Survey,
and one companion galaxy of SBS 1204+505B. The EW and FWHM of the emission
lines were measured, and useful line ratios and diagnostic diagrams were used
for object classification and reddening estimates.
Intrinsic reddening quantities were calculated for all non QSO,i.e. seven
objects. Particularly the amount of reddening, BV color excess, extinction
coefficient and optical depths in the V band, at Halpha and Hbeta wavelengths,
and at 5100 Angst. The broad line region size was also estimated for seven
objects, as well as the central black hole masses. Three mass estimates were
usually performed for each object and compared. A peculiar line, probably He I
lambda 5048, is detected in the QSO SBS 1626+554. Evidence for a stratified
narrow line region is found for the two narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies included
in the sample. A revised classification is proposed for two objects, and the
companion galaxy of SBS 1204+505B is reported as a nuclear starburst galaxy.Comment: To appear in PAS
Very-high energy gamma-ray astronomy: A 23-year success story in high-energy astroparticle physics
Very-high energy (VHE) gamma quanta contribute only a minuscule fraction -
below one per million - to the flux of cosmic rays. Nevertheless, being neutral
particles they are currently the best "messengers" of processes from the
relativistic/ultra-relativistic Universe because they can be extrapolated back
to their origin. The window of VHE gamma rays was opened only in 1989 by the
Whipple collaboration, reporting the observation of TeV gamma rays from the
Crab nebula. After a slow start, this new field of research is now rapidly
expanding with the discovery of more than 150 VHE gamma-ray emitting sources.
Progress is intimately related with the steady improvement of detectors and
rapidly increasing computing power. We give an overview of the early attempts
before and around 1989 and the progress after the pioneering work of the
Whipple collaboration. The main focus of this article is on the development of
experimental techniques for Earth-bound gamma-ray detectors; consequently, more
emphasis is given to those experiments that made an initial breakthrough rather
than to the successors which often had and have a similar (sometimes even
higher) scientific output as the pioneering experiments. The considered energy
threshold is about 30 GeV. At lower energies, observations can presently only
be performed with balloon or satellite-borne detectors. Irrespective of the
stormy experimental progress, the success story could not have been called a
success story without a broad scientific output. Therefore we conclude this
article with a summary of the scientific rationales and main results achieved
over the last two decades.Comment: 45 pages, 38 figures, review prepared for EPJ-H special issue "Cosmic
rays, gamma rays and neutrinos: A survey of 100 years of research
Foldamers of β-peptides : conformational preference of peptides formed by rigid building blocks : The first MI-IR spectra of a triamide nanosystem
To determine local chirality driven conformational preferences of small aminocyclobutane-1-carboxylic acid derivatives, X-(ACBA) n -Y, their matrix-isolation IR spectra were recorded and analyzed. For the very first time model systems of this kind were deposited in a frozen (~10 K) noble gas matrix to reduce line width and thus, the recorded sharp vibrational lines were analyzed in details. For cis-(S,R)-1 monomer two “zigzag” conformers composed of either a six or an eight-membered H-bonded pseudo ring was identified. For trans-(S,S)-2 stereoisomer a zigzag of an eight-membered pseudo ring and a helical building unit were determined. Both findings are fully consistent with our computational results, even though the relative conformational ratios were found to vary with respect to measurements. For the dimers (S,R,S,S)-3 and (S,S,S,R)-4 as many as four different cis,trans and three different trans,cis conformers were localized in their matrix-isolation IR (MI-IR) spectra. These foldamers not only agree with the previous computational and NMR results, but also unambiguously show for the first time the presence of a structure made of a cis,trans conformer which links a “zigzag” and a helical foldamer via a bifurcated H-bond. The present work underlines the importance of MI-IR spectroscopy, applied for the first time for triamides to analyze the conformational pool of small biomolecules. We have shown that the local chirality of a β-amino acid can fully control its backbone folding preferences. Unlike proteogenic α-peptides, β- and especially (ACBA) n type oligopeptides could thus be used to rationally design and influence foldamer’s structural preferences
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