Recent activity of the Be/X-ray binary system SAX J2103.5+4545

Aims. We present a multiwavelength study of the Be/X-ray binary system SAX J2103.5+4545 with the goal of better characterizing the transient behaviour of this source. Methods. SAX J2103.5+4545 was observed by Swift-XRT four times in 2007 from April 25 to May 5, and during quiescence in 2012 August 31. In addition, this source has been monitored from the ground-based astronomical observatories of El Teide (Tenerife, Spain), Roque de los Muchachos (La Palma, Spain) and Sierra Nevada (Granada, Spain) since 2011 August, and from the TUBITAK National Observatory (Antalya, Turkey) since 2009 June. We have performed spectral and photometric temporal analyses in order to investigate the different states exhibited by SAX J2103.5+4545. Results. In X-rays, an absorbed power law model provided the best fit for all the XRT spectra. An iron-line feature at ~6.42 keV was present in all the observations except for that taken during quiescence in 2012. The photon indexes are consistent with previous studies of SAX J2103.5+4545 in high/low luminosity states. Pulsations were found in all the XRT data from 2007 (2.839(2) mHz; MJD 54222.02), but not during quiescence. Both optical outbursts in 2010 and 2012 lasted for about 8/9 months (as the one in 2007 probably did and the current one in 2014 might do) and were most probably caused by mass ejection events from the Be star that eventually fed the circumstellar disc. All of these outbursts started about 3 months before the triggering of the X-ray activity, and about the same period before the maximum of the H_alpha line equivalent width (in emission) was reached at only ~ -5 \AA. In this work we found that the global correlation between the BV variability and the X-ray intensity was also observed at longer wavelengths in the IR domain.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, and online material (2 tables). Submitted to A&A in 2014 Januar

An Instanton Picture O.P.E. <A^2> Condensate?

Gluon two- and three-point Green Functions computed in Landau gauge from the lattice show the existence of power corrections to the purely perturbative expressions, that can be explained through an Operator Product Expansion as the influence of a non gauge invariant mass dimension two condensate. The relationship of this condensate with topological properties of QCD, namely instantons, will be studied, giving a first estimate of the contribution of instantons to this condensate based in the direct lattice measure, after a cooling process, of the instanton liquid properties.Comment: Lattice2002(topology) contribution, 3 pages, 2 figure

The global integrated world ocean assessment: linking observations to science and policy across multiple scales

In 2004, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly approved a Regular Process to report on the environmental, economic and social aspects of the world's ocean. The Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment, including Socioeconomic Aspects produced the first global integrated assessment of the marine environment in December 2016 (known as the first World Ocean Assessment). The second assessment, to be delivered in December 2020, will build on the baselines included in the first assessment, with a focus on establishing trends in the marine environment with relevance to global reporting needs such as those associated with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Central to the assessment process and its outputs are two components. First, is the utilization of ocean observation and monitoring outputs and research to temporally assess physical, chemical, biological, social, economic and cultural components of coastal and marine environments to establish their current state, impacts currently affecting coastal and marine environments, responses to those impacts and associated ongoing trends. Second, is the knowledge brokering of ocean observations and associated research to provide key information that can be utilized and applied to address management and policy needs at local, regional and global scales. Through identifying both knowledge gaps and capacity needs, the assessment process also provides direction to policy makers for the future development and deployment of sustained observation systems that are required for enhancing knowledge and supporting national aspirations associated with the sustainable development of coastal and marine ecosystems. Input from the ocean observation community, managers and policy makers is critical for ensuring that the vital information required for supporting the science policy interface objectives of the Regular Process is included in the assessment. This community white paper discusses developments in linking ocean observations and science with policy achieved as part of the assessment process, and those required for providing strategic linkages into the future.Agência financiadora - United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Seainfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

O.P.E. and Power Corrections to the QCD coupling constant

Lattice data seems to show that power corrections should be convoked to describe appropriately the transition of the QCD coupling constant running from U.V. to I.R. domains. Those power corrections for the Landau-gauge MOM coupling constant in a pure Yang-Mills theory (N_f=0) are analysed in terms of Operator Product Expansion (O.P.E.) of two- and three-point Green functions, the gluon condensate emerging from this study. The semi-classical picture given by instantons can be also used to look for into the nature of the power corrections and gluon condensate.Comment: 5 pages, talk given at XXX International Meeting on Fundamental Physics, Jaca 200

Environmental risk assessment of PPP application in European soils and potential ecosystem service losses considering impacts on non-target organisms

The use of Plant Protection Products (PPPs) is leading to high exposure scenarios with potential risk to soil organisms, including non-target species. Assessment of the effects of PPPs on non-target organisms is one of the most important components of environmental risk assessment (ERA) since they play crucial functions in ecosystems, being main driving forces in different soil processes. As part of the framework, EFSA is proposing the use of the ecosystem services approach for setting specific protection goals. In fact, the services provided by soil organisms can be impacted by the misuse of PPPs in agroecosystems. The aim of this work was to assess PPPs potential risk upon ecosystem services along European soils, considering impacts on earthworms and collembola. Four well-known (2 insecticides-esfenvalerate and cyclaniliprole- and 2 fungicides - picoxystrobin and fenamidone-) worst case application (highest recommended application) were studied; exploring approaches for linked observed effects with impacts on ecosystem services, accounting for their mode of action (MoA), predicted exposure, time-course effects in Eisenia fetida and Folsomia sp. and landscape variability. The selected fungicides exerted more effects than insecticides on E. fetida, whereas few effects were reported for both pesticides regarding Folsomia sp. The most impacted ecosystem services after PPP application to crops appeared to be habitat provision, soil formation and retention, nutrient cycling, biodiversity, erosion regulation, soil remediation/waste treatment and pest and disease regulation. The main factors to be taken into account for a correct PPP use management in crops are discussed.This work has been partially funded by European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) through the grant NP/EFSA/AFSCO/2016/03. The author Miguel J.G. Santos is employed with the EFSA in the PREV Unit. The author Jose V Tarazona was employed by EFSA until October 2022. The present article is published under the sole responsibility of the au thors and may not be considered as an EFSA scientific output. The po sitions and opinions presented in this article are those of the authors alone and do not represent the views of EFSA.S

T35: a small automatic telescope for long-term observing campaigns

The T35 is a small telescope (14") equipped with a large format CCD camera installed in the Sierra Nevada Observatory (SNO) in Southern Spain. This telescope will be a useful tool for the detecting and studying pulsating stars, particularly, in open clusters. In this paper, we describe the automation process of the T35 and show also some images taken with the new instrumentation.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures. Accepted for publication in the special issue "Robotic Astronomy" of Advances of Astronom

The evolution of Balmer jump selected galaxies in the ALHAMBRA survey

We present a new color-selection technique, based on the Bruzual & Charlot models convolved with the bands of the ALHAMBRA survey, and the redshifted position of the Balmer jump to select star-forming galaxies in the redshift range 0.5 < z < 1.5. These galaxies are dubbed Balmer jump Galaxies BJGs. We apply the iSEDfit Bayesian approach to fit each detailed SED and determine star-formation rate (SFR), stellar mass, age and absolute magnitudes. The mass of the haloes where these samples reside are found via a clustering analysis. Five volume-limited BJG sub-samples with different mean redshifts are found to reside in haloes of median masses $\sim 10^{12.5 \pm 0.2} M_\odot$ slightly increasing toward z=0.5. This increment is similar to numerical simulations results which suggests that we are tracing the evolution of an evolving population of haloes as they grow to reach a mass of $\sim 10^{12.7 \pm 0.1} M_\odot$ at z=0.5. The likely progenitors of our samples at z$\sim$3 are Lyman Break Galaxies, which at z$\sim$2 would evolve into star-forming BzK galaxies, and their descendants in the local Universe are elliptical galaxies.Hence, this allows us to follow the putative evolution of the SFR, stellar mass and age of these galaxies. From z$\sim$1.0 to z$\sim$0.5, the stellar mass of the volume limited BJG samples nearly does not change with redshift, suggesting that major mergers play a minor role on the evolution of these galaxies. The SFR evolution accounts for the small variations of stellar mass, suggesting that star formation and possible minor mergers are the main channels of mass assembly.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figures. Submitted to A&A. It includes first referee's comments. Abstract abridged due to arXiv requirement