836 research outputs found
Probing the mass loss history of carbon stars using CO line and dust continuum emission
An extensive modelling of CO line emission from the circumstellar envelopes
around a number of carbon stars is performed. By combining radio observations
and infrared observations obtained by ISO the circumstellar envelope
characteristics are probed over a large radial range. In the radiative transfer
analysis the observational data are consistently reproduced assuming a
spherically symmetric and smooth wind expanding at a constant velocity. The
combined data set gives better determined envelope parameters, and puts
constraints on the mass loss history of these carbon stars. The importance of
dust in the excitation of CO is addressed using a radiative transfer analysis
of the observed continuum emission, and it is found to have only minor effects
on the derived line intensities. The analysis of the dust emission also puts
further constraints on the mass loss rate history. The stars presented here are
not likely to have experienced any drastic long-term mass loss rate
modulations, at least less than a factor of about 5, over the past thousands of
years. Only three, out of nine, carbon stars were observed long enough by ISO
to allow a detection of CO far-infrared rotational lines.Comment: 11pages, 7 figures, accepted by A&
Properties of the intermediate type of gamma-ray bursts
Gamma-ray bursts can be divided into three groups ("short", "intermediate",
"long") with respect to their durations. The third type of gamma-ray bursts -
as known - has the intermediate duration. We show that the intermediate group
is the softest one. An anticorrelation between the hardness and the duration is
found for this subclass in contrast to the short and long groups.Comment: In Sixteenth Maryland Astrophysics Conferenc
Modelling CO emission from Mira's wind
We have modelled the circumstellar envelope of {\it o} Ceti (Mira) using new
observational constraints. These are obtained from photospheric light scattered
in near-IR vibrational-rotational lines of circumstellar CO molecules at 4.6
micron: absolute fluxes, the radial dependence of the scattered intensity, and
two line ratios. Further observational constraints are provided by ISO
observations of far-IR emission lines from highly excited rotational states of
the ground vibrational state of CO, and radio observations of lines from
rotational levels of low excitation of CO. A code based on the Monte-Carlo
technique is used to model the circumstellar line emission.
We find that it is possible to model the radio and ISO fluxes, as well as the
highly asymmetric radio-line profiles, reasonably well with a spherically
symmetric and smooth stellar wind model. However, it is not possible to
reproduce the observed NIR line fluxes consistently with a `standard model' of
the stellar wind. This is probably due to incorrectly specified conditions of
the inner regions of the wind model, since the stellar flux needs to be larger
than what is obtained from the standard model at the point of scattering, i.e.,
the intermediate regions at approximately 100-400 stellar radii (2"-7") away
from the star. Thus, the optical depth in the vibrational-rotational lines from
the star to the point of scattering has to be decreased. This can be
accomplished in several ways. For instance, the gas close to the star (within
approximately 2") could be in such a form that light is able to pass through,
either due to the medium being clumpy or by the matter being in radial
structures (which, further out, developes into more smooth or shell-like
structures).Comment: 18 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
On the Origin of the Dark Gamma-Ray Bursts
The origin of dark bursts - i.e. that have no observed afterglows in X-ray,
optical/NIR and radio ranges - is unclear yet. Different possibilities -
instrumental biases, very high redshifts, extinction in the host galaxies - are
discussed and shown to be important. On the other hand, the dark bursts should
not form a new subgroup of long gamma-ray bursts themselves.Comment: published in Nuovo Ciment
Factor analysis of the long gamma-ray bursts
We study statistically 197 long gamma-ray bursts, detected and measured in
detail by the BATSE instrument of the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory. In the
sample 10 variables, describing for any burst the time behavior of the spectra
and other quantities, are collected. The factor analysis method is used to find
the latent random variables describing the temporal and spectral properties of
GRBs. The application of this particular method to this sample indicates that
five factors and the \REpk spectral variable (the ratio of peak energies in
the spectrum) describe the sample satisfactorily. Both the pseudo-redshifts
inferred from the variability, and the Amati-relation in its original form, are
disfavored.Comment: 5 pages, acceptod to A&
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