JT9D engine diagnostics. Task 2: Feasibility study of measuring in-service flight loads

The feasibility of measuring JT9D propulsion system flight inertia loads on a 747 airplane is studied. Flight loads background is discussed including the current status of 747/JT9D loads knowledge. An instrumentation and test plan is formulated for an airline-owned in-service airplane and the Boeing-owned RA001 test airplane. Technical and cost comparisons are made between these two options. An overall technical feasibility evaluation is made and a cost summary presented. Conclusions and recommendations are presented in regard to using existing inertia loads data versus conducting a flight test to measure inertia loads

Observations of V592 Cas -— an Outflow at Optical Wavelengths

We present new red optical spectra of V592 Cas aimed at exploring the properties of the outflow of this system in a spectral region where the underlying white dwarf and the accretion disk do not contribute significantly to the observed absorption components of the Hα and He I line profiles. We use the Hα emission line to study the wind, which appears as pronounced blueshifted P Cygni absorption troughs whose low velocity end contaminates the blue side of the emission line profile. The wind appears to be episodic in nature, with multiple events reaching velocities of 5000 km s^–1 in Hα. Similar (but weaker) wind signatures appear in the He I 5876 Å line but are absent in He I 6678 Å. Our data suggest that during wind episodes the wind is phase dependent and is visible for half of the orbit of the system. Considering that V592 Cas is viewed almost face-on, the symmetry axis of the outflow cannot be orthogonal to the disk and/or the outflow must have some other inherent asymmetry in outflow geometry. A possible origin of the wind is in a disk hotspot, either at the initial impact point of the accretion stream on the disk edge or as a result of disk overflow (similar to SW Sextantis stars). Simultaneous optical photometry during one night of our spectroscopic observations indicate that there is no clear relationship between the optical brightness variations and the strength of the outflow in this system

Accretion and activity on the post-common-envelope binary RR~Cae

Current scenarios for the evolution of interacting close binaries - such as cataclysmic variables (CVs) - rely mainly on our understanding of low-mass star angular momentum loss (AML) mechanisms. The coupling of stellar wind with its magnetic field, i.e., magnetic braking, is the most promising mechanism to drive AML in these stars. There are basically two properties driving magnetic braking: the stellar magnetic field and the stellar wind. Understanding the mechanisms that drive AML therefore requires a comprehensive understanding of these two properties. RRCae is a well-known nearby (d=20pc) eclipsing DA+M binary with an orbital period of P=7.29h. The system harbors a metal-rich cool white dwarf (WD) and a highly active M-dwarf locked in synchronous rotation. The metallicity of the WD suggests that wind accretion is taking place, which provides a good opportunity to obtain the mass-loss rate of the M-dwarf component. We analyzed multi-epoch time-resolved high-resolution spectra of RRCae in search for traces of magnetic activity and accretion. We selected a number of well-known activity indicators and studied their short and long-term behavior. Indirect-imaging tomographic techniques were also applied to provide the surface brightness distribution of the magnetically active M-dwarf, and reveals a polar feature similar to those observed in fast-rotating solar-type stars. The blue part of the spectrum was modeled using a atmosphere model to constrain the WD properties and its metal enrichment. The latter was used to improve the determination of the mass-accretion rate from the M-dwarf wind. The presence of metals in the WD spectrum suggests that this component arises from accretion of the M-dwarf wind. A model fit to the WD gives Teff=(7260+/-250)K and logg=(7.8+/-0.1) dex with a metallicity of =(-2.8+/-0.1)dex, and a mass-accretion rate of dotMacc=(7+/-2)x1e-16Msun/yr.Comment: 14 pages, 7 Figures, 6 Table

The Amazing Old Nova Q Cygni: A Far Ultraviolet Synthetic Spectral Analysis

Q Cygni (Nova Cygni 1876) is the third oldest old novae (after WY Sge and V841 Oph) with a long orbital period of 10.08 hours and spectroscopic peculiarities in the optical including the presence of variable wind outflow revealed by optical P Cygni profiles in the HeI lines and H alpha beta (Kafka et al. 2003). We have carried out a synthetic spectral analysis of a far ultraviolet IUE archival spectrum of Q Cygni using our optically thick, steady state, accretion disk models and model white dwarf photospheres. We find that the accretion light of a luminous accretion disk dominates the FUV flux of the hot component with a rate of accretion 2-3 1.E-9 Msun/yr. We find that Q Cygni lies at a distance of 741 \pm 110 pc . The implications of our results for theoretical predictions for old novae are presented.Comment: PASP, August 201

Apparent multiple Delta m^2_32 in muon anti-neutrino and muon neutrino survival oscillations from non-standard interaction matter effect

Neutrinos propagating through matter may participate in forward coherent neutral-current-like scattering arising from non-standard interactions as well as from the Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein matter potential $V_e$. We show that at fixed long baselines through matter of constant density, the non-standard interaction potential $\epsilon_{\mu\tau} V_e$ can contribute an additional term to the oscillation phase whose sign differs for \anumu versus \numu propagation in matter. Its presence can cause different apparent $\Delta m^2$ to be erroneously inferred on the basis of oscillations in vacuum, with values lying above (for \anumu) or below (for \numu) the actual $\Delta m^2_{32}$ for the case where $\epsilon_{\mu\tau}$ is predominantly real-valued and of sign opposite to $\Delta m_{32}^2$. An NSI scenario invoking only $\Re(\epsilon_{\mu\tau})$ is shown to be capable of accounting for a disparity recently reported between oscillation survival for \anumu and \numu fluxes measured at $735~\mathrm{km}$ by the MINOS experiment. Implications for mantle traversal by atmospheric neutrinos are examined. The NSI matter potential with non-maximal mixing could evade conventional atmospheric neutrino analyses which do not distinguish \numu from \anumu on an event-by-event basis.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review

What’s Cool About Hot Stars? Cataclysmic Variables in the Mid-Infrared

We review recent results from mid-infrared observations of cataclysmic variables with the Spitzer Space Telescope. In general, these observations have revealed mid-infrared excesses, above the level expected from the stellar and accretion components, in numerous systems. This excess can be modeled as originating from circumstellar and/or circumbinary dust. We present an overview of spectral energy distributions spanning the ultraviolet to the mid-infrared, as well as mid-infrared light curves, of disk-accreting and magnetic cataclysmic variables. Physically realistic models constructed to reproduce these data indicate that the mid-infrared luminosity of many cataclysmic variables is dominated by emission from warm (T < 2000 K) dust. The presence and characteristics of dust in cataclysmic variables has potentially important implications for the secular evolution scenario for interacting binary stars

Time-resolved measurement of single pulse femtosecond laser-induced periodic surface structure formation

Time-resolved diffraction microscopy technique has been used to observe the formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) from the interaction of a single femtosecond laser pulse (pump) with a nano-scale groove mechanically formed on a single-crystal Cu substrate. The interaction dynamics (0-1200 ps) was captured by diffracting a time-delayed, frequency-doubled pulse from nascent LIPSS formation induced by the pump with an infinity-conjugate microscopy setup. The LIPSS ripples are observed to form sequentially outward from the groove edge, with the first one forming after 50 ps. A 1-D analytical model of electron heating and surface plasmon polariton (SPP) excitation induced by the interaction of incoming laser pulse with the groove edge qualitatively explains the time-evloution of LIPSS formation.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure

VV Pup in a low state: secondary-star irradiation or stellar activity?

Aims. Emission lines in polars show complex profiles with multiple components that are typically ascribed to the accretion stream, threading region, accretion spot, and the irradiated secondary-star. In low-state polars the fractional contribution by the accretion stream, and the accretion spot is greatly reduced offering an opportunity to study the effect of the secondary-star irradiation or stellar activity. We observed VV Pup during an exceptional low-state to study and constrain the properties of the line-forming regions and to search for evidence of chromospheric activity and/or irradiation. Methods. We obtained phase-resolved optical spectra at the ESO VLT+FORS1 with the aim of analyzing the emission line profile and radial velocity as a function of the orbital period. We also tailored irradiated secondary-star models to compare the predicted and the observed emission lines and to establish the nature of the line-forming regions. Results. Our observations and data analysis, when combined with models of the irradiated secondary-star, show that, while the weak low ionization metal lines (FeI and MgI) may be consistent with irradiation processes, the dominant Balmer H emission lines, as well as NaI and HeI, cannot be reproduced by the irradiated secondary-star models. We favor the secondary-star chromospheric activity as the main forming region and cause of the observed H, NaI, and He emission lines, though a threading region very close to the L1 point cannot be excluded.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, in press on A&