752 research outputs found
Use of Domestic Violence History Evidence in the Criminal Prosecution: A Common Sense Approach
Effect of UV Radiation on the Spectral Fingerprints of Earth-like Planets Orbiting M dwarfs
We model the atmospheres and spectra of Earth-like planets orbiting the
entire grid of M dwarfs for active and inactive stellar models with =
2300K to = 3800K and for six observed MUSCLES M dwarfs with UV
radiation data. We set the Earth-like planets at the 1AU equivalent distance
and show spectra from the VIS to IR (0.4m - 20m) to compare
detectability of features in different wavelength ranges with JWST and other
future ground- and spaced-based missions to characterize exo-Earths. We focus
on the effect of UV activity levels on detectable atmospheric features that
indicate habitability on Earth, namely: HO, O, CH, NO and
CHCl.
To observe signatures of life - O/O in combination with reducing
species like CH, we find that early and active M dwarfs are the best
targets of the M star grid for future telescopes. The O spectral feature at
0.76m is increasingly difficult to detect in reflected light of later M
dwarfs due to low stellar flux in that wavelength region. NO, another
biosignature detectable in the IR, builds up to observable concentrations in
our planetary models around M dwarfs with low UV flux. CHCl could become
detectable, depending on the depth of the overlapping NO feature.
We present a spectral database of Earth-like planets around cool stars for
directly imaged planets as a framework for interpreting future lightcurves,
direct imaging, and secondary eclipse measurements of the atmospheres of
terrestrial planets in the HZ to design and assess future telescope
capabilities.Comment: in press, ApJ (submitted August 18, 2014), 16 pages, 12 figure
Lyman alpha initiated winds in late-type stars
The IUE survey of late-type stars revealed a sharp division in the HR diagram between stars with solar type spectra (chromosphere and transition region lines) and those with non-solar type spectra (only chromosphere lines). Models of both hot coronae and cool wind flows were calculated using stellar model chromospheres as starting points for stellar wind calculations in order to investigate the possibility of having a supersonic transition locus in the HR diagram dividing hot coronae from cool winds. From these models, it is concluded that the Lyman alpha flux may play an important role in determining the location of a stellar wind critical point. The interaction of Lyman alpha radiation pressure with Alfven waves in producing strong, low temperature stellar winds in the star Arcturus is examined
Hydrogen column density evaluations toward Capella: consequences on the interstellar deuterium abundance
The deuterium abundance evaluation in the direction of Capella has for a long
time been used as a reference for the local interstellar medium (ISM) within
our Galaxy. We show here that broad and weak HI components could be present on
the Capella line of sight, leading to a large new additional systematic
uncertainty on the N(HI) evaluation.
The D/H ratio toward Capella is found to be equal to 1.67 (+/-0.3)x10^-5 with
almost identical chi^2 for all the fits (this range includes only the
systematic error; the 2 sigma statistical one is almost negligible in
comparison). It is concluded that D/H evaluations over HI column densities
below 10^19 cm^-2 (even perhaps below 10^20 cm^-2 if demonstrated by additional
observations) may present larger uncertainties than previously anticipated. It
is mentionned that the D/O ratio might be a better tracer for DI variations in
the ISM as recently measured by the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer
(FUSE).Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letter
C IV fluxes from the Sun as a star, and the correlation with magnetic flux
A total of 144 C IV wavelength 1548 Solar Maximum Mission (SMM)-UVSP spectroheliograms of solar plages were analyzed, some of which are series of exposures of the same region on the same day. Also analyzed were the C IV wavelength 1551 rasters of plages and C IV wavelength 1548 rasters of the quiet sun. The sample contained data on 17 different plages, observed on 50 different days. The center-to-limb variations of the active regions show that the optical thickness effects in the C IV wavelength 1548 line can be neglected in the conversion from intensity to flux density. As expected for the nearly optically thin situation, the C IV wavelength 1548 line is twice as bright as the C IV 1551 line. The average C IV wavelength 1548 flux density for a quiet region is 2700 ergs/cm/s and, with surprisingly little scatter, 18,000 erg/cm/s for plages. The intensity histograms of rasters obtained at disk center can be separated into characteristic plage and quiet sun contributions with variable relative filling factors. The relationship between the C IV and magnetic flux densities for spatially resolved data is inferred to be almost the same, with only an additional factor of order unity in the constant of proportionality
Deuterium Toward WD1634-573: Results from the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) Mission
We use Far Ultraviolet Spectrocopic Explorer (FUSE) observations to study
interstellar absorption along the line of sight to the white dwarf WD1634-573
(d=37.1+/-2.6 pc). Combining our measurement of D I with a measurement of H I
from Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer data, we find a D/H ratio toward WD1634-573
of D/H=(1.6+/-0.5)e-5. In contrast, multiplying our measurements of D I/O
I=0.035+/-0.006 and D I/N I=0.27+/-0.05 with published mean Galactic ISM gas
phase O/H and N/H ratios yields D/H(O)=(1.2+/-0.2)e-5 and
D/H(N)=(2.0+/-0.4)e-5, respectively. Note that all uncertainties quoted above
are 2 sigma. The inconsistency between D/H(O) and D/H(N) suggests that either
the O I/H I and/or the N I/H I ratio toward WD1634-573 must be different from
the previously measured average ISM O/H and N/H values. The computation of
D/H(N) from D I/N I is more suspect, since the relative N and H ionization
states could conceivably vary within the LISM, while the O and H ionization
states will be more tightly coupled by charge exchange.Comment: 23 pages, 5 figures; AASTEX v5.0 plus EPSF extensions in mkfig.sty;
accepted by ApJ Supplemen
X ray observations of late-type stars using the ROSAT all-sky survey
The ROSAT mission made the first x ray survey of the entire sky using an imaging detector. Although ROSAT is a joint NASA/German project and involves direct American participation during its second phase of pointed observations, the all-sky survey remains the sole property of the German investigators. NASA grant represented the first use of ROSAT data analysis funds to support direct American participation in the ROSAT all-sky survey. The project involved a collaborative agreement between the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics (JILA) and the Max-Planck-Institut fur Extraterrestrische Physik (MPE) where JILA supplied MPE with a post-doctoral research associate with experience in the field of stellar (coronal) x ray emission to work within their ROSAT group. In return, members of the cool star research group at JILA were given the opportunity to collaborate on projects involving ROSAT all-sky survey data. Both sides have benefitted (and still benefit) from this arrangement since MPE suffers from a shortage of researchers who are interested in x ray emission from 'normal' stars and white dwarfs. MPE has also drawn upon experience in optical identification of x ray sources from the Einstein Extended Medium Sensitivity Survey in planning their own identification strategies for the ROSAT all-sky survey. The JILA cool stars group has benefitted since access to all-sky survey data has expanded the scope of their already extensive research programs involving multiwavelength observations of late-type stars. ROSAT was successfully launched on 1 June 1990 and conducted the bulk of the survey from 30 July 1990 to 25 January 1991. Data gaps in the survey have subsequently been made up. At the time of this writing (February 1992), the survey data have been processed once with the Standard Analysis Software System (SASS). A second processing will soon begin with improvements made to the SASS to correct errors and bugs found while carrying out scientific projects with data from the first processing. We outline the major research activities of Dr. Fleming over the past year (detailed accounts of his activities during the first two years of this grant can be found in the first-year and second-year status reports on this grant). Regarding the three specific projects which were proposed in the original proposal, two of them (White Dwarfs and Late M Dwarfs) are near completion. The results are described in two conference proceedings which are appended
The FUV spectrum of TW Hya. I. Observations of H Fluorescence
We observed the classical T Tauri star TW Hya with \textit{HST}/STIS using
the E140M grating, from 1150--1700 \AA, with the E230M grating, from 2200--2900
\AA, and with \FUSE from 900--1180 \AA. Emission in 143 Lyman-band H lines
representing 19 progressions dominates the spectral region from 1250--1650 \AA.
The total H emission line flux is erg cm
s, which corresponds to at TW Hya's
distance of 56 pc. A broad stellar \Lya line photoexcites the H from
excited rovibrational levels of the ground electronic state to excited
electronic states. The \ion{C}{2} 1335 \AA doublet, \ion{C}{3} 1175 \AA\
multiplet, and \ion{C}{4} 1550 \AA doublet also electronically excite H.
The velocity shift of the H lines is consistent with the photospheric
radial velocity of TW Hya, and the emission is not spatially extended beyond
the 0\farcs05 resolution of \textit{HST}. The H lines have an intrinsic
FWHM of \kms. One H line is significantly weaker than
predicted by this model because of \ion{C}{2} wind absorption. We also do not
observe any H absorption against the stellar \Lya profile. From these
results, we conclude that the H emission is more consistent with an origin
in a disk rather than in an outflow or circumstellar shell. We also analyze the
hot accretion-region lines (e.g., \ion{C}{4}, \ion{Si}{4}, \ion{O}{6}) of TW
Hya, which are formed at the accretion shock, and discuss some reasons why Si
lines appear significantly weaker than other TR region lines.Comment: accepted by ApJ, 42 pages -- 20 text, 11 figure
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