789 research outputs found
Stellar Oscillations Network Group
Stellar Oscillations Network Group (SONG) is an initiative aimed at designing
and building a network of 1m-class telescopes dedicated to asteroseismology and
planet hunting. SONG will have 8 identical telescope nodes each equipped with a
high-resolution spectrograph and an iodine cell for obtaining precision radial
velocities and a CCD camera for guiding and imaging purposes. The main
asteroseismology targets for the network are the brightest (V<6) stars. In
order to improve performance and reduce maintenance costs the instrumentation
will only have very few modes of operation. In this contribution we describe
the motivations for establishing a network, the basic outline of SONG and the
expected performance.Comment: Proc. Vienna Workshop on the Future of Asteroseismology, 20 - 22
September 2006. Comm. in Asteroseismology, Vol. 150, in the pres
Translation affects YoeB and MazF messenger RNA interferase activities by different mechanisms
Prokaryotic toxinâantitoxin loci encode mRNA cleaving enzymes that inhibit translation. Two types are known: those that cleave mRNA codons at the ribosomal A site and those that cleave any RNA site specifically. RelE of Escherichia coli cleaves mRNA at the ribosomal A site in vivo and in vitro but does not cleave pure RNA in vitro. RelE exhibits an incomplete RNase fold that may explain why RelE requires its substrate mRNA to presented by the ribosome. In contrast, RelE homologue YoeB has a complete RNase fold and cleaves RNA independently of ribosomes in vitro. Here, we show that YoeB cleavage of mRNA is strictly dependent on translation of the mRNA in vivo. Non-translated model mRNAs were not cleaved whereas the corresponding wild-type mRNAs were cleaved efficiently. Model mRNAs carrying frameshift mutations exhibited a YoeB-mediated cleavage pattern consistent with the reading frameshift thus giving strong evidence that YoeB cleavage specificity was determined by the translational reading frame. In contrast, site-specific mRNA cleavage by MazF occurred independently of translation. In one case, translation seriously influenced MazF cleavage efficiency, thus solving a previous apparent paradox. We propose that translation enhances MazF-mediated cleavage of mRNA by destabilization of the mRNA secondary structure
Global effects of local sound-speed perturbations in the Sun: A theoretical study
We study the effect of localized sound-speed perturbations on global mode
frequencies by applying techniques of global helioseismology on numerical
simulations of the solar acoustic wave field. Extending the method of
realization noise subtraction (e.g. Hanasoge et al. 2007) to global modes and
exploiting the luxury of full spherical coverage, we are able to achieve very
highly resolved frequency differences that are used to study sensitivities and
the signatures of the thermal asphericities. We find that (1) global modes are
almost twice as sensitive to sound-speed perturbations at the bottom of the
convection zone as in comparison to anomalies well in the radiative interior
(), (2) the -degeneracy is lifted ever so slightly,
as seen in the coefficients, and (3) modes that propagate in the vicinity
of the perturbations show small amplitude shifts ().Comment: Submitted to Solar Physic
Butterfly diagram of a Sun-like star observed using asteroseismology
Stellar magnetic fields are poorly understood but are known to be important
for stellar evolution and exoplanet habitability. They drive stellar activity,
which is the main observational constraint on theoretical models for magnetic
field generation and evolution. Starspots are the main manifestation of the
magnetic fields at the stellar surface. In this study we measure the variation
of their latitude with time, called a butterfly diagram in the solar case, for
the solar analogue HD 173701 (KIC 8006161). To that effect, we use Kepler data,
to combine starspot rotation rates at different epochs and the
asteroseismically determined latitudinal variation of the stellar rotation
rates. We observe a clear variation of the latitude of the starspots. It is the
first time such a diagram is constructed using asteroseismic data.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted in A&A Letter
Invest to Save: Report and Recommendations of the NSF-DELOS Working Group on Digital Archiving and Preservation
Digital archiving and preservation are important areas for research and development, but there is no agreed upon set of priorities or coherent plan for research in this area. Research projects in this area tend to be small and driven by particular institutional problems or concerns. As a consequence, proposed solutions from experimental projects and prototypes tend not to scale to millions of digital objects, nor do the results from disparate projects readily build on each other. It is also unclear whether it is worthwhile to seek general solutions or whether different strategies are needed for different types of digital objects and collections. The lack of coordination in both research and development means that there are some areas where researchers are reinventing the wheel while other areas are neglected.
Digital archiving and preservation is an area that will benefit from an exercise in analysis, priority setting, and planning for future research. The WG aims to survey current research activities, identify gaps, and develop a white paper proposing future research directions in the area of digital preservation. Some of the potential areas for research include repository architectures and inter-operability among digital archives; automated tools for capture, ingest, and normalization of digital objects; and harmonization of preservation formats and metadata. There can also be opportunities for development of commercial products in the areas of mass storage systems, repositories and repository management systems, and data management software and tools.
Stochastic excitation of nonradial modes II. Are solar asymptotic gravity modes detectable?
Detection of solar gravity modes remains a major challenge to our
understanding of the innerparts of the Sun. Their frequencies would enable the
derivation of constraints on the core physical properties while their
amplitudes can put severe constraints on the properties of the inner convective
region. Our purpose is to determine accurate theoretical amplitudes of solar g
modes and estimate the SOHO observation duration for an unambiguous detection.
We investigate the stochastic excitation of modes by turbulent convection as
well as their damping. Input from a 3D global simulation of the solar
convective zone is used for the kinetic turbulent energy spectrum. Damping is
computed using a parametric description of the nonlocal time-dependent
convection-pulsation interaction. We then provide a theoretical estimation of
the intrinsic, as well as apparent, surface velocity. Asymptotic g-mode
velocity amplitudes are found to be orders of magnitude higher than previous
works. Using a 3D numerical simulation, from the ASH code, we attribute this to
the temporal-correlation between the modes and the turbulent eddies which is
found to follow a Lorentzian law rather than a Gaussian one as previously used.
We also find that damping rates of asymptotic gravity modes are dominated by
radiative losses, with a typical life-time of years for the
mode at Hz. The maximum velocity in the considered
frequency range (10-100 Hz) is obtained for the mode at Hz and for the at Hz. Due to uncertainties in the
modeling, amplitudes at maximum i.e. for at 60 Hz can range from
3 to 6 mm s.Comment: 18 pages, 19 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
Asteroseismic detection of latitudinal differential rotation in 13 Sun-like stars
The differentially rotating outer layers of stars are thought to play a role
in driving their magnetic activity, but the underlying mechanisms that generate
and sustain differential rotation are poorly understood. We report the
measurement of latitudinal differential rotation in the convection zones of 40
Sun-like stars using asteroseismology. For the most significant detections, the
stars' equators rotate approximately twice as fast as their mid-latitudes. The
latitudinal shear inferred from asteroseismology is much larger than
predictions from numerical simulations.Comment: 45 pages, 11 figures, 4 tables, published in Scienc
Accurate Determination of the Solar Photospheric Radius
The Solar Diameter Monitor measured the duration of solar meridian transits
during the 6 years 1981 to 1987, spanning the declining half of solar cycle 21.
We have combined these photoelectric measurements with models of the solar
limb-darkening function, deriving a mean value for the solar near-equatorial
radius of 695.508 +- .026 Mm. Annual averages of the radius are identical
within the measurement error of +- .037 Mm.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures Submitted to Astrophys. J. Lett., March 9 1998
Uses AASTeX Macro package aas2pp
Properties of oscillation modes in subgiant stars observed by Kepler
Mixed modes seen in evolved stars carry information on their deeper layers
that can place stringent constraints on their physics and on their global
properties (mass, age, etc...). In this study, we present a method to identify
and measure all oscillatory mode characteristics (frequency, height, width).
Analyzing four subgiants stars, we present the first measure of the effect of
the degree of mixture on the l=1 mixed modes characteristics. We also show that
some stars have measurable l=2 mixed modes and discuss the interest of their
measure to constrain the deeper layers of stars.Comment: Accepted to Ap
Third Order Effect of Rotation on Stellar Oscillations of a -Cephei Star
Here the effect of rotation up to third order in the angular velocity of a
star on the p, f and g modes is investigated. To do this, the third-order
perturbation formalism presented by Soufi et al. (1998) and revised by Karami
(2008), was used. I quantify by numerical calculations the effect of rotation
on the oscillation frequencies of a uniformly rotating -Cephei star with
12 . For an equatorial velocity of 90 , it is found
that the second- and third-order corrections for , for instance,
are of order of 0.07% of the frequency for radial order and reaches up
to 0.6% for .Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures, 10 table
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