Nature Of Transition Circumstellar Disks. I. The Ophiuchus Molecular Cloud

We have obtained millimeter-wavelength photometry, high-resolution optical spectroscopy, and adaptive optics near-infrared imaging for a sample of 26 Spitzer-selected transition circumstellar disks. All of our targets are located in the Ophiuchus molecular cloud (d similar to 125 pc) and have spectral energy distributions (SEDs) suggesting the presence of inner opacity holes. We use these ground-based data to estimate the disk mass, multiplicity, and accretion rate for each object in our sample in order to investigate the mechanisms potentially responsible for their inner holes. We find that transition disks are a heterogeneous group of objects, with disk masses ranging from <0.6 to 40 M(JUP) and accretion rates ranging from <10(-11) to 10(-7) M(circle dot) yr(-1), but most tend to have much lower masses and accretion rates than "full disks" (i.e., disks without opacity holes). Eight of our targets have stellar companions: six of them are binaries and the other two are triple systems. In four cases, the stellar companions are close enough to suspect they are responsible for the inferred inner holes. We find that nine of our 26 targets have low disk mass (<2.5 M(JUP)) and negligible accretion (<10(-11) M(circle dot) yr(-1)), and are thus consistent with photoevaporating (or photoevaporated) disks. Four of these nine non-accreting objects have fractional disk luminosities <10(-3) and could already be in a debris disk stage. Seventeen of our transition disks are accreting. Thirteen of these accreting objects are consistent with grain growth. The remaining four accreting objects have SEDs suggesting the presence of sharp inner holes, and thus are excellent candidates for harboring giant planets.NASA 1224608, 1230782, 1230779, 1407FONDECYT 1061199Basal CATA PFB 06/09ALMA FUND 31070021ALMA-Conicyt FUND 31060010National Science Foundation AST0-808144Spitzer Space Telescope Legacy Science ProgramAstronom

The nature of transition circumstellar disks III: Perseus, Taurus, and Auriga

As part of an ongoing program aiming to characterize a large number of Spitzer-selected transition disks (disks with reduced levels of near-IR and/or mid-IR excess emission), we have obtained (sub)millimeter wavelength photometry, high-resolution optical spectroscopy, and adaptive optics near-infrared imaging for a sample of 31 transition objects located in the Perseus, Taurus, and Auriga molecular clouds. We use these ground-based data to estimate disk masses, multiplicity, and accretion rates in order to investigate the mechanisms potentially responsible for their inner holes. Following our previous studies in other regions, we combine disk masses, accretion rates, and multiplicity data with other information, such as spectral energy distribution morphology and fractional disk luminosity, to classify the disks as strong candidates for the following categories: grain-growth-dominated disks (seven objects), giant planet-forming disks (six objects), photoevaporating disks (seven objects), debris disks (11 objects), and cicumbinary disks (one object, which was also classified as a photoevaporating disk). Combining our sample of 31 transition disks with those from our previous studies results in a sample of 74 transition objects that have been selected, characterized, and classified in a homogenous way. We discuss this combined high-quality sample in the context of the current paradigm of the evolution and dissipation of protoplanetary disks and use its properties to constrain different aspects of the key processes driving their evolution. We find that the age distribution of disks that are likely to harbor recently formed giant planets favors core accretion as the main planet formation mechanism and a 2-3Myr formation timescale.Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísica

Qualcomm Brew X Sun J2ME Um comparativo entre soluções para desenvolvimento de jogos em dispositivos móveis

Jogos de celular t&ecirc;m apresentado um surpreendente grau deevolu&ccedil;&atilde;o tecnol&oacute;gica nos &uacute;ltimos anos. O grande interesse nodesenvolvimento deste tipo de software se deve ao seu atrativo comercial, cujo&nbsp;mercado mundial movimenta dezenas de milh&otilde;es de d&oacute;lares. Assim, empresas&nbsp;das &aacute;reas de computa&ccedil;&atilde;o est&atilde;o fazendo pesados investimentos no&nbsp;desenvolvimento de ferramentas e t&eacute;cnicas computacionais sofisticadas, as&nbsp;quais podem ser empregadas no desenvolvimento de jogos para estesdispositivos. Neste artigo apresentamos um comparativo entre as tecnologias&nbsp;Sun J2ME e Qualcomm Brew, focando no desenvolvimento de jogos para&nbsp;dispositivos m&oacute;veis

Qualcomm Brew X Sun J2ME Um comparativo entre soluções para desenvolvimento de jogos em dispositivos móveis

Jogos de celular têm apresentado um surpreendente grau deevolução tecnológica nos últimos anos. O grande interesse nodesenvolvimento deste tipo de software se deve ao seu atrativo comercial, cujo mercado mundial movimenta dezenas de milhões de dólares. Assim, empresas das áreas de computação estão fazendo pesados investimentos no desenvolvimento de ferramentas e técnicas computacionais sofisticadas, as quais podem ser empregadas no desenvolvimento de jogos para estesdispositivos. Neste artigo apresentamos um comparativo entre as tecnologias Sun J2ME e Qualcomm Brew, focando no desenvolvimento de jogos para dispositivos móveis

Bulge and Clump Evolution in Hubble Ultra Deep Field Clump Clusters, Chains and Spiral Galaxies

Clump clusters and chain galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field are examined for bulges in the NICMOS images. Approximately 50% of the clump clusters and 30% of the chains have relatively red and massive clumps that could be young bulges. Magnitudes and colors are determined for these bulge-like objects and for the bulges in spiral galaxies, and for all of the prominent star-formation clumps in these three galaxy types. The colors are fitted to population evolution models to determine the bulge and clump masses, ages, star-formation rate decay times, and extinctions. The results indicate that bulge-like objects in clump cluster and chain galaxies have similar ages and 2 to 5 times larger masses compared to the star-formation clumps, while the bulges in spirals have ~6 times larger ages and 20 to 30 times larger masses than the clumps. All systems appear to have an underlying red disk population. The masses of star-forming clumps are typically in a range from 10^7 to 10^8 Msun; their ages have a wide range around ~10^2 Myr. Ages and extinctions both decrease with redshift. Star formation is probably the result of gravitational instabilities in the disk gas, in which case the large clump mass in the UDF is the result of a high gas velocity dispersion, 30 km/s or more, combined with a high gas mass column density, ~100 Msun/pc^2. Because clump clusters and chains dominate disk galaxies beyond z~1, the observations suggest that these types represent an early phase in the formation of modern spiral galaxies, when the bulge and inner disk formed.Comment: ApJ in press February 2009, vol. 691, 23 pages and 20 figure

Aborted microspores acts as a master regulator of pollen wall formation in Arabidopsis

Mature pollen is covered by durable cell walls, principally composed of sporopollenin, an evolutionary conserved, highly resilient, but not fully characterized, biopolymer of aliphatic and aromatic components. Here, we report that ABORTED MICROSPORES (AMS) acts as a master regulator coordinating pollen wall development and sporopollenin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana. Genome-wide coexpression analysis revealed 98 candidate genes with specific expression in the anther and 70 that showed reduced expression in ams. Among these 70 members, we showed that AMS can directly regulate 23 genes implicated in callose dissociation, fatty acids elongation, formation of phenolic compounds, and lipidic transport putatively involved in sporopollenin precursor synthesis. Consistently, ams mutants showed defective microspore release, a lack of sporopollenin deposition, and a dramatic reduction in total phenolic compounds and cutin monomers. The functional importance of the AMS pathway was further demonstrated by the observation of impaired pollen wall architecture in plant lines with reduced expression of several AMS targets: the abundant pollen coat protein extracellular lipases (EXL5 and EXL6), and CYP98A8 and CYP98A9, which are enzymes required for the production of phenolic precursors. These findings demonstrate the central role of AMS in coordinating sporopollenin biosynthesis and the secretion of materials for pollen wall patterning

ALMA observations of Elias 2–24: a protoplanetary disk with multiple gaps in the Ophiuchus molecular cloud

We present ALMA 1.3 mm continuum observations at 0. 2 (25 au) resolution of Elias 2–24, one of the largest and brightest protoplanetary disks in the Ophiuchus Molecular Cloud, and we report the presence of three partially resolved concentric gaps located at ∼20, 52, and 87 au from the star. We perform radiative transfer modeling of the disk to constrain its surface density and temperature radial profile and place the disk structure in the context of mechanisms capable of forming narrow gaps such as condensation fronts and dynamical clearing by actively forming planets. In particular, we estimate the disk temperature at the locations of the gaps to be 23, 15, and 12 K (at 20, 52, and 87 au, respectively), very close to the expected snowlines of CO (23–28 K) and N2 (12–15 K). Similarly, by assuming that the widths of the gaps correspond to 4–8× the Hill radii of forming planets (as suggested by numerical simulations), we estimate planet masses in the range of 0.2 1.5 – MJup, 1.0 8.0 – MJup, and 0.02 0.15 – MJup for the inner, middle, and outer gap, respectively. Given the surface density profile of the disk, the amount of “missing mass” at the location of each one of these gaps (between 4 and 20 MJup) is more than sufficient to account for the formation of such planets.Fil: Cieza, Lucas A.. Universidad Diego Portales; ChileFil: Casassus, Simon. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Pérez, Sebastian. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Hales, Antonio. Alma Observatory; ChileFil: Cárcamo, Miguel. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Ansdell, Megan. University of California at Berkeley; Estados UnidosFil: Avenhaus, Henning. Universitat Zurich; SuizaFil: Bayo, Amelia. Universidad de Valparaiso; ChileFil: Bertrang, Gesa H.-M.. Universidad Diego Portales; ChileFil: Cánovas, Hector. Agencia Espacial Europea; EspañaFil: Christiaens, Valentin. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Dent, William. Alma Observatory; ChileFil: Ferrero, Gabriel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Gamen, Roberto Claudio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Olofsson, Johan. Universidad de Valparaiso; ChileFil: Orcajo, Santiago. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Osses, Axel. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Peña Ramirez, Karla. Universidad de Antofagasta; ChileFil: Principe, David. Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Estados UnidosFil: Ruíz Rodríguez, Dary. Rochester Institute Of Technology; Estados UnidosFil: Schreiber, Matthias R.. Universidad de Valparaiso; ChileFil: Plas, Gerrit van der. Univ. Grenoble Alpes; SuizaFil: Williams, Jonathan P.. Institute For Astronomy, University Of Hawaii; Estados UnidosFil: Zurlo, Alice. Universidad Diego Portales; Chil