4,848 research outputs found
The Redshift of GRB 970508
GRB 970508 is the second gamma-ray burst (GRB) for which an optical afterglow
has been detected. It is the first GRB for which a distance scale has been
determined: absorption and emission features in spectra of the optical
afterglow place GRB 970508 at a redshift of z >= 0.835 (Metzger et al. 1997a,
1997b). The lack of a Lyman-alpha forest in these spectra further constrains
this redshift to be less than approximately 2.3. I show that the spectrum of
the optical afterglow of GRB 970508, once corrected for Galactic absorption, is
inconsistent with the relativistic blast-wave model unless a second, redshifted
source of extinction is introduced. This second source of extinction may be the
yet unobserved host galaxy. I determine its redshift to be z =
1.09^{+0.14}_{-0.41}, which is consistent with the observed redshift of z =
0.835. Redshifts greater than z = 1.40 are ruled out at the 3 sigma confidence
level.Comment: Accepted to The Astrophysical Journal (Letters), 10 pages, LaTe
The Global Star Formation Rate from the 1.4 GHz Luminosity Function
The decimetric luminosity of many galaxies appears to be dominated by
synchrotron emission excited by supernova explosions. Simple models suggest
that the luminosity is directly proportional to the rate of supernova
explosions of massive stars averaged over the past 30 Myr. The proportionality
may be used together with models of the evolving 1.4 GHz luminosity function to
estimate the global star formation rate density in the era z < 1. The local
value is estimated to be 0.026 solar masses per year per cubic megaparsec, some
50% larger than the value inferred from the Halpha luminosity density. The
value at z ~ 1 is found to be 0.30 solar masses per year per cubic megaparsec.
The 10-fold increase in star formation rate density is consistent with the
increase inferred from mm-wave, far-infrared, ultra-violet and Halpha
observations.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures, Astrophysical Journal Letters (in press); new PS
version has improved figure placemen
Thermal Emission from HII Galaxies: Discovering the Youngest Systems
We studied the radio properties of very young massive regions of star
formation in HII galaxies, with the aim of detecting episodes of recent star
formation in an early phase of evolution where the first supernovae start to
appear. Our sample consists of 31 HII galaxies, characterized by strong
Hydrogen emission lines, for which low resolution VLA 3.5cm and 6cm
observations were obtained. The radio spectral energy distribution has a range
of behaviours; 1) there are galaxies where the SED is characterized by a
synchrotron-type slope, 2) galaxies with a thermal slope, and, 3) galaxies with
possible free-free absorption at long wavelengths. The latter SEDs were found
in a few galaxies and represent a signature of heavily embedded massive star
clusters closely related to the early stages of massive star formation. Based
on the comparison of the star formation rates determined from the recombination
lines and those determined from the radio emission we find that SFR(Ha) is on
average five times higher than SFR(1.4GHz). We confirm this tendency by
comparing the ratio between the observed flux at 20 cm and the expected one,
calculated based on the Ha star formation rates, both for the galaxies in our
sample and for normal ones. This analysis shows that this ratio is a factor of
2 smaller in our galaxies than in normal ones, indicating that they fall below
the FIR/radio correlation. These results suggest that the emission of these
galaxies is dominated by a recent and massive star formation event in which the
first supernovae (SN) just started to explode. We conclude that the systematic
lack of synchrotron emission in those systems with the largest equivalent width
of Hb can only be explained if those are young starbursts of less than 3.5Myr
of age.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap
The star-formation history of the universe - an infrared perspective
A simple and versatile parameterized approach to the star formation history
allows a quantitative investigation of the constraints from far infrared and
submillimetre counts and background intensity measurements.
The models include four spectral components: infrared cirrus (emission from
interstellar dust), an M82-like starburst, an Arp220-like starburst and an AGN
dust torus. The 60 m luminosity function is determined for each chosen
rate of evolution using the PSCz redshift data for 15000 galaxies. The
proportions of each spectral type as a function of 60 m luminosity are
chosen for consistency with IRAS and SCUBA colour-luminosity relations, and
with the fraction of AGN as a function of luminosity found in 12 m
samples. The luminosity function for each component at any wavelength can then
be calculated from the assumed spectral energy distributions. With assumptions
about the optical seds corresponding to each component and, for the AGN
component, the optical and near infrared counts can be accurately modelled.
A good fit to the observed counts at 0.44, 2.2, 15, 60, 90, 175 and 850
m can be found with pure luminosity evolution in all 3 cosmological models
investigated: = 1, = 0.3 ( = 0), and
= 0.3, = 0.7.
All 3 models also give an acceptable fit to the integrated background
spectrum. Selected predictions of the models, for example redshift
distributions for each component at selected wavelengths and fluxes, are shown.
The total mass-density of stars generated is consistent with that observed,
in all 3 cosmological models.Comment: 20 pages, 25 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ. Full details
of models can be found at http://astro.ic.ac.uk/~mrr/countmodel
Critical behaviour in the nonlinear elastic response of hydrogels
In this paper we study the elastic response of synthetic hydrogels to an
applied shear stress. The hydrogels studied here have previously been shown to
mimic the behaviour of biopolymer networks when they are sufficiently far above
the gel point. We show that near the gel point they exhibit an elastic response
that is consistent with the predicted critical behaviour of networks near or
below the isostatic point of marginal stability. This point separates rigid and
floppy states, distinguished by the presence or absence of finite linear
elastic moduli. Recent theoretical work has also focused on the response of
such networks to finite or large deformations, both near and below the
isostatic point. Despite this interest, experimental evidence for the existence
of criticality in such networks has been lacking. Using computer simulations,
we identify critical signatures in the mechanical response of sub-isostatic
networks as a function of applied shear stress. We also present experimental
evidence consistent with these predictions. Furthermore, our results show the
existence of two distinct critical regimes, one of which arises from the
nonlinear stretch response of semi-flexible polymers.
Absence of reflection as a function of the coupling constant
We consider solutions of the one-dimensional equation where is locally integrable, is integrable with supp, and
is a coupling constant. Given a family of solutions
which satisfy for all , we prove that the zeros of , the Wronskian of and , form a discrete set
unless . Setting , one sees that a particular
consequence of this result may be stated as: if the fixed energy scattering
experiment gives rise to a reflection coefficient
which vanishes on a set of couplings with an accumulation point, then .Comment: To appear in Journal of Mathematical Physic
Faint Radio Sources and Star Formation History
Faint extragalactic radio sources provide important information about the
global history of star formation. Sensitive radio observations of the Hubble
Deep Field and other fields have found that sub-mJy radio sources are
predominantly associated with star formation activity rather than AGN. Radio
observations of star forming galaxies have the advantage of being independent
of extinction by dust. We use the FIR-radio correlation to compare the radio
and FIR backgrounds, and make several conclusions about the star forming
galaxies producing the FIR background. We then use the redshift distribution of
faint radio sources to determine the evolution of the radio luminosity
function, and thus estimate the star formation density as a function of
redshift.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, latex using texas.sty, to appear in the CD-ROM
Proceedings of the 19th Texas Symposium on Relativistic Astrophysics and
Cosmology, held in Paris, France, Dec. 14-18, 1998. Eds.: J. Paul, T.
Montmerle, and E. Aubourg (CEA Saclay). No changes to paper, just updated
publication info in this commen
High Redshift Supernovae in the Hubble Deep Field
Two supernovae detected in the Hubble Deep Field using the original December
1995 epoch and data from a shorter (63000 s in F814W) December 1997 visit with
HST are discussed. The supernovae (SNe) are both associated with distinct
galaxies at redshifts of 0.95 (spectroscopic) from Cohen etal. (1996) and 1.32
(photometric) from the work of Fernandez-Soto, Lanzetta, and Yahil (1998).
These redshifts are near, in the case of 0.95, and well beyond for 1.32 the
greatest distance reported previously for SNe. We show that our observations
are sensitive to SNe to z < 1.8 in either epoch for an event near peak
brightness. Detailed simulations are discussed that quantify the level at which
false events from our search phase would start to to arise, and the
completeness of our search as a function of both SN brightness and host galaxy
redshift. The number of Type Ia and Type II SNe expected as a function of
redshift in the two HDF epochs are discussed in relation to several published
predictions and our own detailed calculations. A mean detection frequency of
one SN per epoch for the small HDF area is consistent with expectations from
current theory.Comment: 62 pages, 17 figures, ApJ 1999 in pres
On the nature of the ISO-selected sources in the ELAIS S2 region
We have studied the optical, near-IR and radio properties of a complete
sample of 43 sources detected at 15-micron in one of the deeper ELAIS
repeatedly observed region. The extragalactic objects in this sample have
15-micron flux densities in the range 0.4-10 mJy, where the source counts start
diverging from no evolution models. About 90% of the sources (39 out of 43)
have optical counterparts brighter than I=21 mag. Eight of these 39 sources
have been identified with stars on the basis of imaging data, while for another
22 sources we have obtained optical spectroscopy, reaching a high
identification percentage (30/43, ~70%). All but one of the 28 sources with
flux density > 0.7 mJy are identified. Most of the extragalactic objects are
normal spiral or starburst galaxies at moderate redshift (z_med~0.2); four
objects are Active Galactic Nuclei. We have used the 15-micron, H_alpha and
1.4-GHz luminosities as indicators of star-formation rate and we have compared
the results obtained in these three bands. While 1.4-GHz and 15-micron
estimates are in good agreement, showing that our galaxies are forming stars at
a median rate of ~40 Mo/yr, the raw H_alpha-based estimates are a factor ~5-10
lower and need a mean correction of ~2 mag to be brought on the same scale as
the other two indicators. A correction of ~2 mag is consistent with what
suggested by the Balmer decrements H_alpha/H_beta and by the optical colours.
Moreover, it is intermediate between the correction found locally for normal
spirals and the correction needed for high-luminosity 15-micron objects,
suggesting that the average extinction suffered by galaxies increases with
infrared luminosity.Comment: 19 pages, 11 figures (3 in JPEG format), MNRAS, accepte
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