3,354 research outputs found
Non-Thermal Continuum toward SGRB2(N-LMH)
An analysis of continuum antenna temperatures observed in the Green Bank
Telescope (GBT) spectrometer bandpasses is presented for observations toward
SgrB2(N-LMH). Since 2004, we have identified four new prebiotic molecules
toward this source by means of rotational transitions between low energy
levels; concurrently, we have observed significant continuum in the GBT
spectrometer bandpasses centered at 85 different frequencies in the range of 1
to 48 GHz. The continuum heavily influences the molecular spectral features
since we have observed far more absorption lines than emission lines for each
of these new molecular species. Hence, it is important to understand the
nature, distribution, and intensity of the underlying continuum in the GBT
bandpasses for the purposes of radiative transfer, i.e. the means by which
reliable molecular abundances are estimated. We find that the GBT spectrometer
bandpass continuum is consistent with optically-thin, non thermal (synchrotron)
emission with a flux density spectral index of -0.7 and a Gaussian source size
of ~143" at 1 GHz that decreases with increasing frequency as nu^(-0.52). Some
support for this model is provided by high frequency Very Large Array (VLA)
observations of SgrB2.Comment: Accepted for Publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letter
Blind extraction of an exoplanetary spectrum through Independent Component Analysis
Blind-source separation techniques are used to extract the transmission
spectrum of the hot-Jupiter HD189733b recorded by the Hubble/NICMOS instrument.
Such a 'blind' analysis of the data is based on the concept of independent
component analysis. The de-trending of Hubble/NICMOS data using the sole
assumption that nongaussian systematic noise is statistically independent from
the desired light-curve signals is presented. By not assuming any prior, nor
auxiliary information but the data themselves, it is shown that spectroscopic
errors only about 10 - 30% larger than parametric methods can be obtained for
11 spectral bins with bin sizes of ~0.09 microns. This represents a reasonable
trade-off between a higher degree of objectivity for the non-parametric methods
and smaller standard errors for the parametric de-trending. Results are
discussed in the light of previous analyses published in the literature. The
fact that three very different analysis techniques yield comparable spectra is
a strong indication of the stability of these results.Comment: ApJ accepte
Laboratory and tentative interstellar detection of trans-methyl formate using the publicly available Green Bank Telescope PRIMOS survey
The rotational spectrum of the higher-energy trans conformational isomer of
methyl formate has been assigned for the first time using several pulsed-jet
Fourier transform microwave spectrometers in the 6-60 GHz frequency range. This
species has also been sought toward the Sagittarius B2(N) molecular cloud using
the publicly available PRIMOS survey from the Green Bank Telescope. We detect
seven absorption features in the survey that coincide with laboratory
transitions of trans-methyl formate, from which we derive a column density of
3.1 (+2.6, -1.2) \times 10^13 cm-2 and a rotational temperature of 7.6 \pm 1.5
K. This excitation temperature is significantly lower than that of the more
stable cis conformer in the same source but is consistent with that of other
complex molecular species recently detected in Sgr B2(N). The difference in the
rotational temperatures of the two conformers suggests that they have different
spatial distributions in this source. As the abundance of trans-methyl formate
is far higher than would be expected if the cis and trans conformers are in
thermodynamic equilibrium, processes that could preferentially form
trans-methyl formate in this region are discussed. We also discuss measurements
that could be performed to make this detection more certain. This manuscript
demonstrates how publicly available broadband radio astronomical surveys of
chemically rich molecular clouds can be used in conjunction with laboratory
rotational spectroscopy to search for new molecules in the interstellar medium.Comment: 40 pages, 7 figures, 4 tables; accepted for publication in Ap
Detection of Ketenimine (CH2CNH) in SGRB2(N) Hot Cores
Ketenimine (CH2CNH) has been detected in absorption toward the starforming region Sagittarius B2(N) with the 100-m Green Bank Telescope (GBT) by means of three rotational transitions: 7(sub 16)-8(sub 08) at 41.5 GHz, 8(sub 19)-9(sub 09), at 23.2 GHz, and 9(sub 18)-10(sub 0,10) at 4.9 GHz. Ketenimine has a sparse rotational spectrum below 50 GHz. From transition line strength arguments, the spectral lines found are the ones most likely to be detected and occur in spectral regions that have little possibility of confusion with other molecular species. Partially resolved hyperfine structure is apparent in the 4.9 GHz transition which has energy levels approximately 50 K above ground state level; the absorption seen in this transition appears to be emanating from gas in close proximity to the LMH hot core that has a systemic LSR velocity of +64 kilometers per second. By comparison, the 41.5 GHz and 23.2 GHz transitions have lower energy levels of approximately 33 K and approximately 41 K, respectively; and show absorption against the two star-forming SgrB2(N) hot cores with systematic LSR velocities of +64 (the LMH) and +82 kilometers per second. These ketenimine data show that the hot core at +82 kilometers per second is cooler than the hot core at +64 kilometers per second. Ketenimine is likely formed directly from its isomer methyl cyanide (CH3CN) by tautomerization driven by shocks that pervade the star-forming region
Design of 370-ps Delay Floating-Voltage Level Shifters With 30-V/ns Power Supply Slew Tolerance
A new design method for producing high-performance and power-rail slew-tolerant floating-voltage level shifters is presented, offering increased speed, reduced power consumption, and smaller layout area compared with previous designs. The method uses an energy-saving pulse-triggered input, a high-bandwidth current mirror, and a simple full latch composed of two inverters. A number of optimizations are explored in detail, resulting in a presented design with a dVdd slew immunity of 30 V/ns, and near-zero static power dissipation in a 180-nm technology. Experimental results show a delay of below 370 ps for a level-shift range of 8-20 V. Postlayout simulation puts the energy consumption at 2.6 pJ/bit at 4 V and 7.2 pJ/bit at 20 V, with near symmetric rise and fall delays
The [N II] Kinematics of R Aquarii
We report a kinematic study of the symbiotic star system R Aqr derived from [N H]lambda 6584 emission observations with a Fabry-Perot imaging spectrometer. The [N II] spatial structure of the R Aqr jet, first observed circa 1977, and surrounding hourglass-shaped nebulosity, due to an explosion approximately 660 years ago, are derived from 41 velocity planes spaced at approximately 12 km/s intervals. Fabry-Perot imagery shows the elliptical nebulosity comprising the waist of the hourglass shell is consistent with a circular ring expanding radially at 55 km/s as seen at an inclination angle, i approximately 70 deg. Fabry-Perot imagery shows the two-sided R Aqr jet is collimated flow in opposite directions. The intensity-velocity structure of the strong NE jet component is shown in contrast to the amorphous SW jet component. We offer a idealized schematic model for the R Aqr jet motion which results in a small-scale helical structure forming around a larger-scale helical path. The implications of such a jet model are discussed. We present a movie showing a side-by-side comparison of the spatial structure of the model and the data as a function of the 41 velocity planes
Investigating whether adverse prenatal and perinatal events are associated with non-clinical psychotic symptoms at age 12 years in the ALSPAC birth cohort
Background. Non-clinical psychosis-like symptoms (PLIKS) occur in about 15% of the population. It is not clear
whether adverse events during early development alter the risk of developing PLIKS. We aimed to examine whether
maternal infection, diabetes or pre-eclampsia during pregnancy, gestational age, perinatal cardiopulmonary resuscitation
or 5-min Apgar score were associated with development of psychotic symptoms during early adolescence.
Method. A longitudinal study of 6356 12-year-old adolescents who completed a semi-structured interview for
psychotic symptoms in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) birth cohort. Prenatal and
perinatal data were obtained from obstetric records and maternal questionnaires completed during pregnancy.
Results. The presence of definite psychotic symptoms was associated with maternal infection during pregnancy
[adjusted odds ratio (OR) 1.44, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.11–1.86, p=0.006], maternal diabetes (adjusted OR 3.43,
95% CI 1.14–10.36, p=0.029), need for resuscitation (adjusted OR 1.50, 95% CI 0.97–2.31, p=0.065) and 5-min Apgar
score (adjusted OR per unit decrease 1.30, 95% CI 1.12–1.50, p<0.001). None of these associations were mediated by
childhood IQ score. Most associations persisted, but were less strong, when including suspected symptoms as part of
the outcome. There was no association between PLIKS and gestational age or pre-eclampsia.
Conclusions. Adverse events during early development may lead to an increased risk of developing PLIKS.
Although the status of PLIKS in relation to clinical disorders such as schizophrenia is not clear, the similarity
between these results and findings reported for schizophrenia indicates that future studies of PLIKS may help us to
understand how psychotic experiences and clinical disorders develop throughout the life-course
Characterization of RNA from Noninfectious Virions Produced by Sarcoma Positive-Leukemia Negative Transformed 3T3 Cells
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