Morphological Classification of galaxies by Artificial Neural Networks

We explore a method for automatic morphological classification of galaxies by an Artificial Neural Network algorithm. The method is illustrated using 13 galaxy parameters measured by machine (ESO-LV), and classified into five types (E, S0, Sa + Sb, Sc + Sd and Irr). A simple Backpropagation algorithm allows us to train a network on a subset of the catalogue according to human classification, and then to predict, using the measured parameters, the classification for the rest of the catalogue. We show that the neural network behaves in our problem as a Bayesian classifier, i.e. it assigns the a posteriori probability for each of the five classes considered. The network highest probability choice agrees with the catalogue classification for 64 percent of the galaxies. If either the first or the second highest probability choice of the network is considered, the success rate is 90 per cent. The technique allows uniform and more objective classification of very large extragalactic data sets

Stellar Collisions and the Interior Structure of Blue Stragglers

Collisions of main sequence stars occur frequently in dense star clusters. In open and globular clusters, these collisions produce merger remnants that may be observed as blue stragglers. Detailed theoretical models of this process require lengthy hydrodynamic computations in three dimensions. However, a less computationally expensive approach, which we present here, is to approximate the merger process (including shock heating, hydrodynamic mixing, mass ejection, and angular momentum transfer) with simple algorithms based on conservation laws and a basic qualitative understanding of the hydrodynamics. These algorithms have been fine tuned through comparisons with the results of our previous hydrodynamic simulations. We find that the thermodynamic and chemical composition profiles of our simple models agree very well with those from recent SPH (smoothed particle hydrodynamics) calculations of stellar collisions, and the subsequent stellar evolution of our simple models also matches closely that of the more accurate hydrodynamic models. Our algorithms have been implemented in an easy to use software package, which we are making publicly available (see http://vassun.vassar.edu/~lombardi/mmas/). This software could be used in combination with realistic dynamical simulations of star clusters that must take into account stellar collisions.Comment: This revised version has 37 pages, 13 figures, 4 tables; submitted to ApJ; for associated software package, see http://vassun.vassar.edu/~lombardi/mmas/ This revised version presents additional comparisons with SPH results and slightly improved merger recipe

Models of Individual Blue Stragglers

This chapter describes the current state of models of individual blue stragglers. Stellar collisions, binary mergers (or coalescence), and partial or ongoing mass transfer have all been studied in some detail. The products of stellar collisions retain memory of their parent stars and are not fully mixed. Very high initial rotation rates must be reduced by an unknown process to allow the stars to collapse to the main sequence. The more massive collision products have shorter lifetimes than normal stars of the same mass, while products between low mass stars are long-lived and look very much like normal stars of their mass. Mass transfer can result in a merger, or can produce another binary system with a blue straggler and the remnant of the original primary. The products of binary mass transfer cover a larger portion of the colour-magnitude diagram than collision products for two reasons: there are more possible configurations which produce blue stragglers, and there are differing contributions to the blended light of the system. The effects of rotation may be substantial in both collision and merger products, and could result in significant mixing unless angular momentum is lost shortly after the formation event. Surface abundances may provide ways to distinguish between the formation mechanisms, but care must be taking to model the various mixing mechanisms properly before drawing strong conclusions. Avenues for future work are outlined.Comment: Chapter 12, in Ecology of Blue Straggler Stars, H.M.J. Boffin, G. Carraro & G. Beccari (Eds), Astrophysics and Space Science Library, Springe

Stellar Collisions and Ultracompact X-ray Binary Formation

(abridged) We report the results of SPH calculations of parabolic collisions between a subgiant or slightly evolved red-giant star and a neutron star (NS). Such collisions are likely to form ultracompact X-ray binaries (UCXBs) observed today in old globular clusters. In particular, we compute collisions of a 1.4 Msun NS with realistically modelled parent stars of initial masses 0.8 and 0.9 Msun, each at three different evolutionary stages (corresponding to three different radii R). The distance of closest approach for the initial orbit varies from 0.04 R (nearly head-on) to 1.3 R (grazing). These collisions lead to the formation of a tight binary, composed of the NS and the subgiant or red-giant core, embedded in an extremely diffuse common envelope (CE) typically of mass ~0.1 to 0.3 Msun. Our calculations follow the binary for many hundreds of orbits, ensuring that the orbital parameters we determine at the end of the calculations are close to final. Some of the fluid initially in the envelope of the (sub)giant, from 0.003 to 0.023 Msun in the cases we considered, is left bound to the NS. The eccentricities of the resulting binaries range from about 0.2 for our most grazing collision to about 0.9 for the nearly head-on cases. In almost all the cases we consider, gravitational radiation alone will cause sufficiently fast orbital decay to form a UCXB within a Hubble time, and often on a much shorter timescale. Our hydrodynamics code implements the recent SPH equations of motion derived with a variational approach by Springel & Hernquist and by Monaghan. Numerical noise is reduced by enforcing an analytic constraint equation that relates the smoothing lengths and densities of SPH particles. We present tests of these new methods to help demonstrate their improved accuracy.Comment: 41 pages, 17 figures, accepted by Ap

Revised Relativistic Hydrodynamical Model for Neutron-Star Binaries

We report on numerical results from a revised hydrodynamic simulation of binary neutron-star orbits near merger. We find that the correction recently identified by Flanagan significantly reduces but does not eliminate the neutron-star compression effect. Although results of the revised simulations show that the compression is reduced for a given total orbital angular momentum, the inner most stable circular orbit moves to closer separation distances. At these closer orbits significant compression and even collapse is still possible prior to merger for a sufficiently soft EOS. The reduced compression in the corrected simulation is consistent with other recent studies of rigid irrotational binaries in quasiequilibrium in which the compression effect is observed to be small. Another significant effect of this correction is that the derived binary orbital frequencies are now in closer agreement with post-Newtonian expectations.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev.

Gravitational radiation from corotating binary neutron stars of incompressible fluid in the first post-Newtonian approximation of general relativity

We analytically study gravitational radiation from corotating binary neutron stars composed of incompressible, homogeneous fluid in circular orbits. The energy and the angular momentum loss rates are derived up to the first post-Newtonian (1PN) order beyond the quadrupole approximation including effects of the finite size of each star of binary. It is found that the leading term of finite size effects in the 1PN order is only $O(GM_{\ast}/c^2 a_{\ast})$ smaller than that in the Newtonian order, where $GM_{\ast}/c^2 a_{\ast}$ means the ratio of the gravitational radius to the mean radius of each star of binary, and the 1PN term acts to decrease the Newtonian finite size effect in gravitational radiation.Comment: 26 pages, revtex, 9 figures(eps), accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Truncated post-Newtonian neutron star model

As a preliminary step towards simulating binary neutron star coalescing problem, we test a post-Newtonian approach by constructing a single neutron star model. We expand the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkov equation of hydrostatic equilibrium by the power of $c^{-2}$, where $c$ is the speed of light, and truncate at the various order. We solve the system using the polytropic equation of state with index $\Gamma=5/3, 2$ and 3, and show how this approximation converges together with mass-radius relations. Next, we solve the Hamiltonian constraint equation with these density profiles as trial functions, and examine the differences in the final metric. We conclude the second `post-Newtonian' approximation is close enough to describe general relativistic single star. The result of this report will be useful for further binary studies. (Note to readers) This paper was accepted for publication in Physical Review D. [access code dsj637]. However, since I was strongly suggested that the contents of this paper should be included as a section in our group's future paper, I gave up the publication.Comment: 5 pages, RevTeX, 3 eps figs, epsf.sty, accepted for publication in PRD (Brief Report), but will not appea