11,811 research outputs found
Observations of Hierarchical Solar-Type Multiple Star Systems
Twenty multiple stellar systems with solar-type primaries were observed at
high angular resolution using the PALM-3000 adaptive optics system at the 5 m
Hale telescope. The goal was to complement the knowledge of hierarchical
multiplicity in the solar neighborhood by confirming recent discoveries by the
visible Robo-AO system with new near-infrared observations with PALM-3000. The
physical status of most, but not all, of the new pairs is confirmed by
photometry in the Ks band and new positional measurements. In addition, we
resolved for the first time five close sub-systems: the known astrometric
binary in HIP 17129AB, companions to the primaries of HIP 33555, and HIP
118213, and the companions to the secondaries in HIP 25300 and HIP 101430. We
place the components on a color-magnitude diagram and discuss each multiple
system individually.Comment: Accepted to Astronomical Journa
Electron Temperature of Ultracold Plasmas
We study the evolution of ultracold plasmas by measuring the electron
temperature. Shortly after plasma formation, competition between heating and
cooling mechanisms drives the electron temperature to a value within a narrow
range regardless of the initial energy imparted to the electrons. In agreement
with theory predictions, plasmas exhibit values of the Coulomb coupling
parameter less than 1.Comment: 4 pages, plus four figure
Know the Star, Know the Planet. III. Discovery of Late-Type Companions to Two Exoplanet Host Stars
We discuss two multiple star systems that host known exoplanets: HD 2638 and
30 Ari B. Adaptive optics imagery revealed an additional stellar companion to
both stars. We collected multi-epoch images of the systems with Robo-AO and the
PALM-3000 adaptive optics systems at Palomar Observatory and provide relative
photometry and astrometry. The astrometry indicates that the companions share
common proper motion with their respective primaries. Both of the new
companions have projected separations less than 30 AU from the exoplanet host
star. Using the projected separations to compute orbital periods of the new
stellar companions, HD 2638 has a period of 130 yrs and 30 Ari B has a period
of 80 years. Previous studies have shown that the true period is most likely
within a factor of three of these estimated values. The additional component to
the 30 Ari makes it the second confirmed quadruple system known to host an
exoplanet. HD 2638 hosts a hot Jupiter and the discovery of a new companion
strengthens the connection between hot Jupiters and binary stars. We place the
systems on a color-magnitude diagram and derive masses for the companions which
turn out to be roughly 0.5 solar mass stars.Comment: Accepted to Astronomical Journal, 16 pages, 5 Figure
Improved models of upper-level wind for several astronomical observatories
An understanding of wind speed and direction as a function of height are
critical to the proper modeling of atmospheric turbulence. We have used
radiosonde data from launch sites near significant astronomical observatories
and created mean profiles of wind speed and direction and have also computed
Richardson number profiles. Using data from the last 30 years, we extend the
1977 Greenwood wind profile to include parameters that show seasonal variations
and differences in location. The added information from our models is useful
for the design of adaptive optics systems and other imaging systems. Our
analysis of the Richardson number suggests that persistent turbulent layers may
be inferred when low values are present in our long term averaged data.
Knowledge of the presence of these layers may help with planning for adaptive
optics and laser communications.Comment: 21 pages, 15 Figures, 8 table
A New Method for Characterizing Very Low-Mass Companions with Low-Resolution Near-Infrared Spectroscopy
We present a new and computationally efficient method for characterizing very low-mass companions using low-resolution (R ⌠30), near-infrared (YJH) spectra from high-contrast imaging campaigns with integral field spectrograph (IFS) units. We conduct a detailed quantitative comparison of the efficacy of this method through tests on simulated data comparable in spectral coverage and resolution to the currently operating direct-imaging systems around the world. In particular, we simulate Project 1640 data as an example of the use, accuracy, and precision of this technique. We present results from comparing simulated spectra of M, L, and T dwarfs with a large and finely sampled grid of synthetic spectra using Markov-chain Monte Carlo techniques. We determine the precision and accuracy of effective temperature and surface gravity inferred from fits to PHOENIX dusty and cond, which we find reproduce the low-resolution spectra of all objects within the adopted flux uncertainties. Uncertainties in effective temperature decrease from ± 100â500 K for M dwarfs to as small as ± 30 K for some L and T spectral types. Surface gravity is constrained to within 0.2â0.4 dex for mid-L through T dwarfs, but uncertainties are as large as 1.0 dex or more for M dwarfs. Results for effective temperature from low-resolution YJH spectra generally match predictions from published spectral type-temperature relationships except for LâT transition objects and young objects. Single-band spectra (i.e., narrower wavelength coverage) result in larger uncertainties and often discrepant results, suggesting that high-contrast IFS observing campaigns can compensate for low spectral resolution by expanding the wavelength coverage for reliable characterization of detected companions. We find that S/N ⌠10 is sufficient to characterize temperature and gravity as well as possible given the model grid. Most relevant for direct-imaging campaigns targeting young primary stars is our finding that low-resolution near-infrared spectra of known young objects, compared to field objects of the same spectral type, result in similar best-fit surface gravities but lower effective temperatures, highlighting the need for better observational and theoretical understanding of the entangled effects of temperature, gravity, and dust on near-infrared spectra in cool low-gravity atmospheres
Measurements of Mesospheric Sodium Abundance above the Hawaiian Islands
Laser guide stars have increased the utility of adaptive optics systems by expanding the number of observable objects. The most common type of laser excites sodium in the mesosphere, and mesospheric sodium density is key to the performance of the laser. While a variety of observatories have conducted studies of the mesospheric sodium density, there are no published studies from Hawaii, which is home to some of the largest telescopes in the world. This paper presents mesospheric sodium densities measured by the University of Illinois lidar for 165 hr spanning 25 nights over 3 years. The mean sodium column density is 4.3 x 109 ± 0.2 x 109 cm-2, with a seasonal peak in the winter, as found at many other sites. The variations in a given night can be as high as the seasonal variation. We predict the average photon returns for the 15 W Keck II laser and a proposed 50 W laser at the Advanced Electro-Optical System 3.6 m telescope for the observed sodium abundances
An Analysis of Fundamental Waffle Mode in Early AEOS Adaptive Optics Images
Adaptive optics (AO) systems have significantly improved astronomical imaging
capabilities over the last decade, and are revolutionizing the kinds of science
possible with 4-5m class ground-based telescopes. A thorough understanding of
AO system performance at the telescope can enable new frontiers of science as
observations push AO systems to their performance limits. We look at recent
advances with wave front reconstruction (WFR) on the Advanced Electro-Optical
System (AEOS) 3.6 m telescope to show how progress made in improving WFR can be
measured directly in improved science images. We describe how a "waffle mode"
wave front error (which is not sensed by a Fried geometry Shack-Hartmann wave
front sensor) affects the AO point-spread function (PSF). We model details of
AEOS AO to simulate a PSF which matches the actual AO PSF in the I-band, and
show that while the older observed AEOS PSF contained several times more waffle
error than expected, improved WFR techniques noticeably improve AEOS AO
performance. We estimate the impact of these improved WFRs on H-band imaging at
AEOS, chosen based on the optimization of the Lyot Project near-infrared
coronagraph at this bandpass.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures, 1 table; to appear in PASP, August 200
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