2,961 research outputs found
Development and flight test of an experimental maneuver autopilot for a highly maneuverable aircraft
This report presents the development of an experimental flight test maneuver autopilot (FTMAP) for a highly maneuverable aircraft. The essence of this technique is the application of an autopilot to provide precise control during required flight test maneuvers. This newly developed flight test technique is being applied at the Dryden Flight Research Facility of NASA Ames Research Center. The FTMAP is designed to increase the quantity and quality of data obtained in test flight. The technique was developed and demonstrated on the highly maneuverable aircraft technology (HiMAT) vehicle. This report describes the HiMAT vehicle systems, maneuver requirements, FTMAP development process, and flight results
Detection of a Star Forming Galaxy in the Center of a Low-Mass Galaxy Cluster
Brightest Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) residing in the centers of galaxy clusters
are typically quenched giant ellipticals. A recent study hinted that
star-forming galaxies with large disks, so-called superluminous spirals and
lenticulars, are the BCGs of a subset of galaxy clusters. Based on the existing
optical data it was not possible to constrain whether the superluminous disk
galaxies reside at the center of galaxy clusters. In this work, we utilize
XMM-Newton X-ray observations of five galaxy clusters to map the morphology of
the intracluster medium (ICM), characterize the galaxy clusters, determine the
position of the cluster center, and measure the offset between the cluster
center and the superluminous disk galaxies. We demonstrate that one
superluminous lenticular galaxy, 2MASX J10405643-0103584, resides at the center
of a low-mass () galaxy cluster. This
represents the first conclusive evidence that a superluminous disk galaxy is
the central BCG of a galaxy cluster. We speculate that the progenitor of 2MASX
J10405643-0103584 was an elliptical galaxy, whose extended disk was re-formed
due to the merger of galaxies. We exclude the possibility that the other four
superluminous disk galaxies reside at the center of galaxy clusters, as their
projected distance from the cluster center is kpc, which corresponds
to . We conclude that these clusters host quiescent
massive elliptical galaxies at their center.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
Dark Matter Subhalos and the X-ray Morphology of the Coma Cluster
Structure formation models predict that clusters of galaxies contain numerous
massive subhalos. The gravity of a subhalo in a cluster compresses the
surrounding intracluster gas and enhances its X-ray emission. We present a
simple model, which treats subhalos as slow moving and gasless, for computing
this effect. Recent weak lensing measurements by Okabe et al. have determined
masses of ~ 10^13 solar masses for three mass concentrations projected within
300 kpc of the center of the Coma Cluster, two of which are centered on the
giant elliptical galaxies NGC 4889 and NGC 4874. Adopting a smooth spheroidal
beta-model for the gas distribution in the unperturbed cluster, we model the
effect of these subhalos on the X-ray morphology of the Coma Cluster, comparing
our results to Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray data. The agreement between the
models and the X-ray morphology of the central Coma Cluster is striking. With
subhalo parameters from the lensing measurements, the distances of the three
subhalos from the Coma Cluster midplane along our line of sight are all tightly
constrained. Using the model to fit the subhalo masses for NGC 4889 and NGC
4874 gives 9.1 x 10^12 and 7.6 x 10^12 solar masses, respectively, in good
agreement with the lensing masses. These results lend strong support to the
argument that NGC 4889 and NGC 4874 are each associated with a subhalo that
resides near the center of the Coma Cluster. In addition to constraining the
masses and 3-d location of subhalos, the X-ray data show promise as a means of
probing the structure of central subhalos.Comment: ApJ, in press. Matches the published versio
Chandra and ROSAT observations of Abell 194: detection of an X-ray cavity and mapping the dynamics of the cluster
Based on Chandra and ROSAT observations, we investigated the nearby poor
cluster Abell 194, which hosts two luminous radio galaxies, NGC547 (3C 40B) and
NGC541 (3C 40A). We demonstrated the presence of a large X-ray cavity (r~34
kpc) formed by the giant southern radio lobe arising from 3C 40B in NGC547. The
estimated age of the cavity is t=7.9 x 10^7 years and the total work of the AGN
is 3.3 x 10^59 erg, hence the cavity power is P_cav=1.3 x 10^44 erg/s.
Furthermore, in the Chandra images of NGC545 and NGC541 we detected sharp
surface brightness edges, identified as merger cold fronts, and extended tails.
Using the pressure ratios between inside and outside the cold fronts we
estimated that the velocities of NGC545 and NGC541 correspond to Mach-numbers
of M=1.0^{+0.3}_{-0.5} and M=0.9^{+0.2}_{-0.5}, respectively. The low radial
velocities of these galaxies relative to the mean radial velocity of Abell 194
imply that their motion is oriented approximately in the plane of the sky.
Based on these and earlier observations, we concluded that NGC545 and NGC541
are falling through the cluster, whose center is NGC547, suggesting that Abell
194 is undergoing a significant cluster merger event. Additionally, we detected
20 bright X-ray sources around NGC547 and NGC541, a surprisingly large number,
since the predicted number of resolved LMXBs and CXB sources is 2.2 and 4.1,
respectively. To explain the nature of additional sources, different
possibilities were considered, none of which are satisfactory. We also studied
the origin of X-ray emission in Minkowski's Object, and concluded that it is
most likely dominated by the population of HMXBs rather than by hot diffuse
ISM. Moreover, in view of the galaxy dynamics in Abell 194, we explored the
possibility that the starburst in Minkowski's Object was triggered by its past
interaction with NGC541, and concluded that it may be a viable path.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Deep Chandra observations of NGC 1404 : cluster plasma physics revealed by an infalling early-type galaxy
The intracluster medium (ICM), as a magnetized and highly ionized fluid, provides an ideal laboratory to study plasma physics under extreme conditions that cannot yet be achieved on Earth. NGC 1404 is a bright elliptical galaxy that is being gas stripped as it falls through the ICM of the Fornax Cluster. We use the new {\sl Chandra} X-ray observations of NGC 1404 to study ICM microphysics. The interstellar medium (ISM) of NGC 1404 is characterized by a sharp leading edge, 8 kpc from the galaxy center, and a short downstream gaseous tail. Contact discontinuities are resolved on unprecedented spatial scales (0\farcs5=45\,pc) due to the combination of the proximity of NGC 1404, the superb spatial resolution of {\sl Chandra}, and the very deep (670 ksec) exposure. At the leading edge, we observe sub-kpc scale eddies generated by Kelvin-Helmholtz instability and put an upper limit of 5\% Spitzer on the isotropic viscosity of the hot cluster plasma. We also observe mixing between the hot cluster gas and the cooler galaxy gas in the downstream stripped tail, which provides further evidence of a low viscosity plasma. The assumed ordered magnetic fields in the ICM ought to be smaller than 5\,μG to allow KHI to develop. The lack of evident magnetic draping layer just outside the contact edge is consistent with such an upper limit
Hot X-ray coronae around massive spiral galaxies: a unique probe of structure formation models
Luminous X-ray gas coronae in the dark matter halos of massive spiral
galaxies are a fundamental prediction of structure formation models, yet only a
few such coronae have been detected so far. In this paper, we study the hot
X-ray coronae beyond the optical disks of two normal massive spirals, NGC1961
and NGC6753. Based on XMM-Newton X-ray observations, hot gaseous emission is
detected to ~60 kpc - well beyond their optical radii. The hot gas has a
best-fit temperature of kT~0.6 keV and an abundance of ~0.1 Solar, and exhibits
a fairly uniform distribution, suggesting that the quasi-static gas resides in
hydrostatic equilibrium in the potential well of the galaxies. The bolometric
luminosity of the gas in the (0.05-0.15)r_200 region (r_200 is the virial
radius) is ~6e40 erg/s for both galaxies. The baryon mass fractions of NGC1961
and NGC6753 are f_b~0.1, which fall short of the cosmic baryon fraction. The
hot coronae around NGC1961 and NGC6753 offer an excellent basis to probe
structure formation simulations. To this end, the observations are confronted
with the moving mesh code Arepo and the smoothed particle hydrodynamics code
Gadget. Although neither model gives a perfect description, the observed
luminosities, gas masses, and abundances favor the Arepo code. Moreover, the
shape and the normalization of the observed density profiles are better
reproduced by Arepo within ~0.5r_200. However, neither model incorporates
efficient feedback from supermassive black holes or supernovae, which could
alter the simulated properties of the X-ray coronae. With the further advance
of numerical models, the present observations will be essential in constraining
the feedback effects in structure formation simulations.Comment: 19 pages, 13 figures, 6 tables, accepted for publication in Ap
- …