30,016 research outputs found
Apollo experience report. Guidance and control systems: Orbital rate drive electronics for the Apollo command module and lunar module
A brief record of the development and use of the orbital-rate-drive assembly in the Apollo Program is presented. This device was procured as government-furnished equipment and was used on both the lunar module and the command module. Reviews of design, development, procurement, and flight experience are included
Supernova enrichment and dynamical histories of solar-type stars in clusters
We use N-body simulations of star cluster evolution to explore the hypothesis
that short-lived radioactive isotopes found in meteorites, such as 26-Al, were
delivered to the Sun's protoplanetary disc from a supernova at the epoch of
Solar System formation. We cover a range of star cluster formation parameter
space and model both clusters with primordial substructure, and those with
smooth profiles. We also adopt different initial virial ratios - from cool,
collapsing clusters to warm, expanding associations. In each cluster we place
the same stellar population; the clusters each have 2100 stars, and contain one
massive 25M_Sun star which is expected to explode as a supernova at about
6.6Myr. We determine the number of Solar (G)-type stars that are within 0.1 -
0.3pc of the 25M_Sun star at the time of the supernova, which is the distance
required to enrich the protoplanetary disc with the 26-Al abundances found in
meteorites. We then determine how many of these G-dwarfs are unperturbed
`singletons'; stars which are never in close binaries, nor suffer sub-100au
encounters, and which also do not suffer strong dynamical perturbations.
The evolution of a suite of twenty initially identical clusters is highly
stochastic, with the supernova enriching over 10 G-dwarfs in some clusters, and
none at all in others. Typically only ~25 per cent of clusters contain
enriched, unperturbed singletons, and usually only 1 - 2 per cluster (from a
total of 96 G-dwarfs in each cluster). The initial conditions for star
formation do not strongly affect the results, although a higher fraction of
supervirial (expanding) clusters would contain enriched G-dwarfs if the
supernova occurred earlier than 6.6Myr. If we sum together simulations with
identical initial conditions, then ~1 per cent of all G-dwarfs in our
simulations are enriched, unperturbed singletons.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Component masses of young, wide, non-magnetic white dwarf binaries in the SDSS DR7
We present a spectroscopic component analysis of 18 candidate young, wide,
non-magnetic, double-degenerate binaries identified from a search of the Sloan
Digital Sky Survey Data Release 7 (DR7). All but two pairings are likely to be
physical systems. We show SDSS J084952.47+471247.7 + SDSS J084952.87+471249.4
to be a wide DA+DB binary, only the second identified to date. Combining our
measurements for the components of 16 new binaries with results for three
similar, previously known systems within the DR7, we have constructed a mass
distribution for the largest sample to date (38) of white dwarfs in young,
wide, non-magnetic, double-degenerate pairings. This is broadly similar in form
to that of the isolated field population with a substantial peak around M~0.6
Msun. We identify an excess of ultra-massive white dwarfs and attribute this to
the primordial separation distribution of their progenitor systems peaking at
relatively larger values and the greater expansion of their binary orbits
during the final stages of stellar evolution. We exploit this mass distribution
to probe the origins of unusual types of degenerates, confirming a mild
preference for the progenitor systems of high-field-magnetic white dwarfs, at
least within these binaries, to be associated with early-type stars.
Additionally, we consider the 19 systems in the context of the stellar initial
mass-final mass relation. None appear to be strongly discordant with current
understanding of this relationship.Comment: 20 pages, 5 Tables, 7 figures. accepted for publication in MNRA
Inelastic neutron scattering studies of methyl chloride synthesis over alumina
Not only is alumina the most widely used catalyst support material in the world, it is also an important catalyst in its own right. One major chemical process that uses alumina in this respect is the industrial production of methyl chloride. This is a large scale process (650â000 metric tons in 2010 in the United States), and a key feedstock in the production of silicones that are widely used as household sealants. In this Account, we show how, in partnership with conventional spectroscopic and reaction testing methods, inelastic neutron scattering (INS) spectroscopy can provide additional insight into the active sites present on the catalyst, as well as the intermediates present on the catalyst surface.<p></p>
INS spectroscopy is a form of vibrational spectroscopy, where the spectral features are dominated by modes involving hydrogen. Because of this, most materials including alumina are largely transparent to neutrons. Advantageously, in this technique, the entire âmid-infraredâ, 0â4000 cm<sup>â1</sup>, range is accessible; there is no cut-off at 1400 cm<sup>â1</sup> as in infrared spectroscopy. It is also straightforward to distinguish fundamental modes from overtones and combinations. <p></p>
A key parameter in the catalystâs activity is the surface acidity. In infrared spectroscopy of adsorbed pyridine, the shifts in the ring stretching modes are dependent on the strength of the acid site. However, there is a very limited spectral range available. We discuss how we can observe the low energy ring deformation modes of adsorbed pyridine by INS spectroscopy. These modes can undergo shifts that are as large as those seen with infrared inspectroscopy, potentially enabling finer discrimination between acid sites. <p></p>
Surface hydroxyls play a key role in alumina catalysis, but in infrared spectroscopy, the presence of electrical anharmonicity complicates the interpretation of the OâH stretch region. In addition, the deformations lie below the infrared cut-off. Both of these limitations are irrelevant to INS spectroscopy, and all the modes are readily observable. When we add HCl to the catalyst surface, the acid causes changes in the spectra. We can then deduce both that the surface chlorination leads to enhanced Lewis acidity and that the hydroxyl group must be threefold coordinated. <p></p>
When we react η-alumina with methanol, the catalyst forms a chemisorbed methoxy species. Infrared spectroscopy clearly shows its presence but also indicates the possible coexistence of a second species. Because of INS spectroscopyâs ability to discriminate between fundamental modes and combinations, we were able to unambiguously show that there is a single intermediate present on the surface of the active catalyst. This work represents a clear example where an understanding of the chemistry at the molecular level can help rationalize improvements in a large scale industrial process with both financial and environmental benefits. <p></p>
Weak decays of 4He-Lambda
We measured the lifetime and the mesonic and non-mesonic decay rates of the
4He-Lambda hypernucleus. The hypernuclei were created using a 750 MeV/c
momentum K- beam on a liquid 4He target by the reaction 4He(K-,pi-)4He-Lambda.
The 4He-Lambda lifetime was directly measured using protons from Lambda p -> n
p non-mesonic decay (also referred to as proton-stimulated decay) and was found
to have a value of tau = 245 +/- 24 ps. The mesonic decay rates were determined
from the observed numbers of pi-'s and pi0's as Gamma_pi-/Gamma_tot = 0.270 +/-
0.024 and Gamma_pi0/Gamma_tot = 0.564 +/- 0.036, respectively, and the values
of the proton- and neutron-stimulated decay rates were extracted as
Gamma_p/Gamma_tot = 0.169 +/- 0.019 and Gamma_n/Gamma_tot <= 0.032 (95% CL),
respectively. The effects of final-state interactions and possible 3-body
Lambda N N decay contributions were studied in the context of a simple model of
nucleon-stimulated decay. Nucleon-nucleon coincidence events were observed and
were used in the determination of the non-mesonic branching fractions. The
implications of the results of this analysis were considered for the empirical
Delta I = 1/2 rule and the decay rates of the 4H-Lambda hypernucleus.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures, published in PRC, revised content to match
published versio
On the observational determination of squeezing in relic gravitational waves and primordial density perturbations
We develop a theory in which relic gravitational waves and primordial density
perturbations are generated by strong variable gravitational field of the early
Universe. The generating mechanism is the superadiabatic (parametric)
amplification of the zero-point quantum oscillations. The generated fields have
specific statistical properties of squeezed vacuum quantum states.
Macroscopically, squeezing manifests itself in a non-stationary character of
variances and correlation functions of the fields, the periodic structures of
the metric power spectra, and, as a consequence, in oscillatory behavior of the
higher order multipoles C_l of the cosmic microwave background anisotropy. We
start with the gravitational wave background and then apply the theory to
primordial density perturbations. We derive an analytical formula for the
positions of peaks and dips in the angular power spectrum l(l+1)C_l as a
function of l. This formula shows that the values of l at the peak positions
are ordered in the proportion 1:3:5:..., whereas at the dips they are ordered
as 1:2:3:.... We compare the derived positions with the actually observed
features, and find them to be in reasonably good agreement. It appears that the
observed structure is better described by our analytical formula based on the
(squeezed) metric perturbations associated with the primordial density
perturbations, rather than by the acoustic peaks reflecting the existence of
plasma sound waves at the last scattering surface. We formulate a forecast for
other features in the angular power spectrum, that may be detected by the
advanced observational missions, such as MAP and PLANCK. We tentatively
conclude that the observed structure is a macroscopic manifestation of
squeezing in the primordial metric perturbations.Comment: 34 pages, 3 figures; to appear in Phys. Rev. D66, 0435XX (2002);
includes Note Added in Proofs: "The latest CBI observations (T.J.Pearson et
al., astro-ph/0205388) have detected four peaks, at l ~ 550, 800, 1150, 1500,
and four dips, at l ~ 400, 700, 1050, 1400. These positions are in a very
good agreement with the theoretical formula (6.35) of the present paper. We
interpret this data as confirmation of our conclusion that it is gravity, and
not acoustics, that is responsible for the observed structure.
Constraining ^(26)Al+p resonances using ^(26)Al(^3He,d)^(27)Si
The ^(26)Al(^3He,d)^(27)Si reaction was measured from 0°â€Îž_(c.m.)â€35° at E(^3He)=20 MeV using a quadrupole-dipole-dipole-dipole magnetic spectrometer. States in ^(27)Si were observed above the background at 7652 and 7741 keV and upper limits were set for the state at 7592 keV. Implications for the ^(26)Al(p,Îł)^(27)Si stellar reaction rate are discussed
Particle decay branching ratios for states of astrophysical importance in 19Ne
We have measured proton and alpha-particle branching ratios of excited states
in 19Ne formed using the 19F(3He,t) reaction at a beam energy of 25 MeV. These
ratios have a large impact on the astrophysical reaction rates of
15O(alpha,gamma), 18F(p,gamma) and 18F(p,alpha), which are of interest in
understanding energy generation in x-ray bursts and in interpreting anticipated
gamma-ray observations of novae. We detect decay protons and alpha-particles
using a silicon detector array in coincidence with tritons measured in the
focal plane detector of our Enge split-pole spectrograph. The silicon array
consists of five strip detectors of the type used in the Louvain-Edinburgh
Detector Array, subtending angles from 130 degrees to 165 degrees with
approximately 14% lab efficiency. The correlation angular distributions give
additional confidence in some prior spin-parity assignments that were based on
gamma branchings. We measure Gamma_p/Gamma=0.387+-0.016 for the 665 keV proton
resonance, which agrees well with the direct measurement of Bardayan et al.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, 3 tables. Prepared using RevTex 4 and BibTex.
Further minor revisions, incl. fig. 1 font size increase, 1 table removal,
and minor changes to the tex
Evolution of Currents of Opposite Signs in the Flare Productive Solar Active Region NOAA 10930
Analysis of a time series of high spatial resolution vector magnetograms of
the active region NOAA 10930 available from SOT/SP on-board Hinode revealed
that there is a mixture of upward and downward currents in the two foot-points
of an emerging flux-rope. The flux emergence rate is almost the same in both
the polarities. We observe that along with an increase in magnetic flux, the
net current in each polarity increases initially for about three days after
which it decreases. This net current is characterized by having exactly
opposite signs in each polarities while its magnitude remains almost the same
most of the time. The decrease of net current in both the polarities is due to
the increase of current having a sign opposite to that of the net current. The
dominant current, with same sign as the net current, is seen to increase first
and then decreases during the major X-class flares. Evolution of non-dominant
current appears to be a necessary condition for a flare initiation. The above
observations can have a plausible explanation in terms of the superposition of
two different force-free states resulting in non-zero Lorentz force in the
corona. This Lorentz force then push the coronal plasma and might facilitate
the magnetic reconnection required for flares. Also, the evolution of the net
current is found to follow the evolution of magnetic shear at the polarity
inversion line.Comment: 24 pages, 6 figures, Submitted to Astrophysical Journa
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