21,210 research outputs found
Mars: Seasonally variable radar reflectivity
The 1971/1973 Mars data set acquired by the Goldstone Solar System Radar was analyzed. It was established that the seasonal variations in radar reflectivity thought to occur in only one locality on the planet (the Solis Lacus radar anomaly) occur, in fact, over the entire subequatorial belt observed by the Goldstone radar. Since liquid water appears to be the most likely cause of the reflectivity excursions, a permanent, year-round presence of subsurface water (frozen or thawed) in the Martian tropics can be inferred
A dynamical trichotomy for structured populations experiencing positive density-dependence in stochastic environments
Positive density-dependence occurs when individuals experience increased
survivorship, growth, or reproduction with increased population densities.
Mechanisms leading to these positive relationships include mate limitation,
saturating predation risk, and cooperative breeding and foraging. Individuals
within these populations may differ in age, size, or geographic location and
thereby structure these populations. Here, I study structured population models
accounting for positive density-dependence and environmental stochasticity i.e.
random fluctuations in the demographic rates of the population. Under an
accessibility assumption (roughly, stochastic fluctuations can lead to
populations getting small and large), these models are shown to exhibit a
dynamical trichotomy: (i) for all initial conditions, the population goes
asymptotically extinct with probability one, (ii) for all positive initial
conditions, the population persists and asymptotically exhibits unbounded
growth, and (iii) for all positive initial conditions, there is a positive
probability of asymptotic extinction and a complementary positive probability
of unbounded growth. The main results are illustrated with applications to
spatially structured populations with an Allee effect and age-structured
populations experiencing mate limitation
A Measurement of Water Vapour amid a Largely Quiescent Environment on Europa
Previous investigations proved the existence of local density enhancements in Europas atmosphere, advancing the idea of a possible origination from water plumes. These measurement strategies, however, were sensitive either to total absorption or atomic emissions, which limited the ability to assess the water content. Here we present direct searches for water vapour on Europa spanning dates from February 2016 to May 2017 with the Keck Observatory. Our global survey at infrared wavelengths resulted in non-detections on 16 out of 17 dates, with upper limits below the water abundances inferred from previous estimates. On one date (26 April 2016) we measured 2,095 658 tonnes of water vapour at Europas leading hemisphere. We suggest that the outgassing ls than previously estimated, with only rare localized events of stronger activity
Fermi-Bose quantum degenerate ^40 K - ^87 Rb mixture with attractive interaction
We report on the achievement of simultaneous quantum degeneracy in a mixed
gas of fermionic ^40 K and bosonic ^87 Rb. Potassium is cooled to 0.3 times the
Fermi temperature by means of an efficient thermalization with evaporatively
cooled rubidium. Direct measurement of the collisional cross-section confirms a
large interspecies attraction. This interaction is shown to affect the
expansion of the Bose-Einstein condensate released form the magnetic trap,
where it is immersed in the Fermi sea.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, replaced one figure plus some change
Mixing-Demixing transition in 1D boson-fermion mixture at low fermion densities
We numerically investigated the mixing-demixing transition of the
boson-fermion mixture on a 1D lattice at an incommensurate filling with the
fermion density being kept below the boson density. The phase diagram we
obtained suggested that the decrease of the number of the fermions drove the
system into the demixing phase
Ground-state properties of trapped Bose-Fermi mixtures: role of exchange-correlation
We introduce Density Functional Theory for inhomogeneous Bose-Fermi mixtures,
derive the associated Kohn-Sham equations, and determine the
exchange-correlation energy in local density approximation. We solve
numerically the Kohn-Sham system and determine the boson and fermion density
distributions and the ground-state energy of a trapped, dilute mixture beyond
mean-field approximation. The importance of the corrections due to
exchange--correlation is discussed by comparison with current experiments; in
particular, we investigate the effect of of the repulsive potential energy
contribution due to exchange--correlation on the stability of the mixture
against collapse.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures (final version as published in Physical Review
Group Strategyproof Pareto-Stable Marriage with Indifferences via the Generalized Assignment Game
We study the variant of the stable marriage problem in which the preferences
of the agents are allowed to include indifferences. We present a mechanism for
producing Pareto-stable matchings in stable marriage markets with indifferences
that is group strategyproof for one side of the market. Our key technique
involves modeling the stable marriage market as a generalized assignment game.
We also show that our mechanism can be implemented efficiently. These results
can be extended to the college admissions problem with indifferences
Strange magnification pattern in the large separation lens SDSS J1004+4112 from optical to X-rays
We present simultaneous XMM-Newton UV and X-ray observations of the quadruply
lensed quasar SDSS J1004+4112 (RBS 825). Simultaneously with the XMM-Newton
observations we also performed integral field spectroscopy on the two closest
lens images A and B using the Calar Alto PMAS spectrograph. In X-rays the
widely spaced components C and D are clearly resolved, while the closer pair of
images A and B is marginally resolved in the XMM-EPIC images. The integrated
X-ray flux of the system has decreased by a factor of 6 since it was observed
in the ROSAT All Sky Survey in 1990, while the X-ray spectrum became much
harder with the power law index evolving from Gamma=-2.3 to -1.86. By
deblending the X-ray images of the lensed QSO we find that the X-ray flux
ratios between the lens images A and B are significantly different from the
simultaneously obtained UV ratios and previously measured optical flux ratios.
Our optical spectrum of lens image A shows an enhancement in the blue emission
line wings, which has been observed in previous epochs as a transient feature.
We propose a scenario where intrinsic UV and X-ray variability gives rise to
line variations which are selectively magnified in image A by microlensing. The
extended emission of the lensing cluster of galaxies is clearly detected in the
EPIC images, we measure a 0.5-2.0 keV luminosity of 1.4 E44 erg/s. Based on the
cluster X-ray properties, we estimate a mass of 2-6 E14 solar masses.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
- …