151 research outputs found
Clump Distance to the Magellanic Clouds and Anomalous Colors in the Galactic Bulge
I demonstrate that the two unexpected results in the local Universe: 1)
anomalous intrinsic (V-I)_0 colors of the clump giants and RR Lyrae stars in
the Galactic center, and 2) very short distances to the Magellanic Clouds (LMC,
SMC) as inferred from clump giants, are connected with each other. The (V-I)_0
anomaly is partially resolved by using the photometry from the phase-II of the
Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE) rather than phase-I. The need
for V- or I-magnitude-based change in the bulge (V-I)_0 is one option to
explain the remaining color discrepancy. Such change may originate in a
coefficient of selective extinction A_V/E(V-I) smaller than typically assumed.
Application of the (V-I)_0 correction (independent of its source) doubles the
slope of the absolute magnitude - metallicity relation for clump giants, so
that M_I(RC) = -0.23 + 0.19[Fe/H]. Consequently, the estimates of the clump
distances to the LMC and SMC are affected. Udalski's (1998c) distance modulus
of mu_{LMC} = 18.18 +/- 0.06 increases to mu_{LMC} = 18.27 +/- 0.07. The
distance modulus to the SMC increases by 0.12 to mu_{SMC} = 18.77 +/- 0.08. I
argue that a more comprehensive assessment of the metallicity effect on M_I(RC)
is needed.Comment: accepted by ApJ Letters, brief review of the short distance scale
dropped, discussion of the absolute magnitude - metallicity relation for
clump giants shortened and made more qualitative, results basically unchange
An inner ring and the micro lensing toward the Bulge
All current Bulge-Disk models for the inner Galaxy fall short of reproducing
self-consistently the observed micro-lensing optical depth by a factor of two
(). We show that the least mass-consuming way to increase the
optical depth is to add density roughly half-way the observer and the highest
micro-lensing-source density. We present evidence for the existence of such a
density structure in the Galaxy: an inner ring, a standard feature of barred
galaxies. Judging from data on similar rings in external galaxies, an inner
ring can contribute more than 50% of a pure Bulge-Disk model to the
micro-lensing optical depth. We may thus eliminate the need for a small viewing
angle of the Bar. The influence of an inner ring on the event-duration
distribution, for realistic viewing angles, would be to increase the fraction
of long-duration events toward Baade's window. The longest events are expected
toward the negative-longitude tangent point at -22\degr . A properly
sampled event-duration distribution toward this tangent point would provide
essential information about viewing angle and elongation of the over-all
density distribution in the inner Galaxy.Comment: 9 pages, 7(15) figs, LaTeX, AJ (accepted
Searching for periodicities in the MACHO light curve of LMC X-2
Using the exceptional long-term monitoring capabilities of the MACHO project,
we present here the optical history of LMC X-2 for a continuous 6-yr period.
These data were used to investigate the previously claimed periodicities for
this source of 8.15 h and 12.54 d : we find upper amplitude limits of 0.10 mag
and 0.09 mag, respectively.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Minor changes, including title. MNRAS, in pres
The MACHO Project HST Follow-Up: The Large Magellanic Cloud Microlensing Source Stars
We present Hubble Space Telescope (HST) WFPC2 photometry of 13 microlensed
source stars from the 5.7 year Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) survey conducted by
the MACHO Project. The microlensing source stars are identified by deriving
accurate centroids in the ground-based MACHO images using difference image
analysis (DIA) and then transforming the DIA coordinates to the HST frame. None
of these sources is coincident with a background galaxy, which rules out the
possibility that the MACHO LMC microlensing sample is contaminated with
misidentified supernovae or AGN in galaxies behind the LMC. This supports the
conclusion that the MACHO LMC microlensing sample has only a small amount of
contamination due to non-microlensing forms of variability. We compare the
WFPC2 source star magnitudes with the lensed flux predictions derived from
microlensing fits to the light curve data. In most cases the source star
brightness is accurately predicted. Finally, we develop a statistic which
constrains the location of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) microlensing source
stars with respect to the distributions of stars and dust in the LMC and
compare this to the predictions of various models of LMC microlensing. This
test excludes at > 90% confidence level models where more than 80% of the
source stars lie behind the LMC. Exotic models that attempt to explain the
excess LMC microlensing optical depth seen by MACHO with a population of
background sources are disfavored or excluded by this test. Models in which
most of the lenses reside in a halo or spheroid distribution associated with
either the Milky Way or the LMC are consistent which these data, but LMC halo
or spheroid models are favored by the combined MACHO and EROS microlensing
results.Comment: 28 pages with 10 included PDF figures, submitted to Ap
An inhaled bioadhesive hydrogel to shield non-human primates from SARS-CoV-2 infection
The surge of fast-spreading SARS-CoV-2 mutated variants highlights the need for fast, broad-spectrum strategies to counteract viral infections. In this work, we report a physical barrier against SARS-CoV-2 infection based on an inhalable bioadhesive hydrogel, named spherical hydrogel inhalation for enhanced lung defence (SHIELD). Conveniently delivered via a dry powder inhaler, SHIELD particles form a dense hydrogel network that coats the airway, enhancing the diffusional barrier properties and restricting virus penetration. SHIELD’s protective effect is first demonstrated in mice against two SARS-CoV-2 pseudo-viruses with different mutated spike proteins. Strikingly, in African green monkeys, a single SHIELD inhalation provides protection for up to 8 hours, efficiently reducing infection by the SARS-CoV-2 WA1 and B.1.617.2 (Delta) variants. Notably, SHIELD is made with food-grade materials and does not affect normal respiratory functions. This approach could offer additional protection to the population against SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory pathogens
The MACHO Project Hubble Space Telescope Follow-Up: Preliminary Results on the Location of the Large Magellanic Cloud Microlensing Source Stars
We attempt to determine whether the MACHO microlensing source stars are drawn
from the average population of the LMC or from a population behind the LMC by
examining the HST color-magnitude diagram (CMD) of microlensing source stars.
We present WFPC2 HST photometry of eight MACHO microlensing source stars and
the surrounding fields in the LMC. The microlensing source stars are identified
by deriving accurate centroids in the ground-based MACHO images using
difference image analysis (DIA) and then transforming the DIA coordinates to
the HST frame. We consider in detail a model for the background population of
source stars based on that presented by Zhao, Graff & Guhathakurta. In this
model, the source stars have an additional reddening = 0.13 mag and a
slightly larger distance modulus ~ 0.3 mag than the average LMC
population. We also investigate a series of source star models, varying the
relative fraction of source stars drawn from the average and background
populations and the displacement of the background population from the LMC. Due
to the small number of analyzed events the distribution of probabilities of
different models is rather flat. A shallow maximum occurs at a fraction s_LMC ~
0.8 of the source stars in the LMC. This is consistent with the interpretation
that a significant fraction of observed microlensing events are due to lenses
in the Milky Way halo, but does not definitively exclude other models.Comment: revised version, results slightly changed, accepted by Ap
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