355 research outputs found
Fringe tracking performance monitoring: FINITO at VLTI
Since April 2011, realtime fringe tracking data are recorded simultaneously
with data from the VLTI/AMBER interferometric beam combiner. Not only this
offers possibilities to post-process AMBER reduced data to obtain more accurate
interferometric quantities, it also allows to estimate the performance of the
fringe tracking a function of the conditions of seeing, coherence time, flux,
etc. First we propose to define fringe tracking performance metrics in the
AMBER context, in particular as a function of AMBER's integration time. The
main idea is to determine the optimal exposure time for AMBER: short exposures
are dominated by readout noise and fringes in long exposures are completely
smeared out. Then we present this performance metrics correlated with Paranal
local ASM (Ambient Site Monitor) measurements, such as seeing, coherence time
or wind speed for example. Finally, we also present some preliminary results of
attempts to model and predict fringe tracking performances, using Artificial
Neural Networks.Comment: SPIE conference, Optical and Infrared Interferometry II
CHARM: A Catalog of High Angular Resolution Measurements
Wetensch. publicatieFaculteit der Wiskunde en Natuurwetenschappe
A List of Bright Interferometric Calibrators measured at the ESO VLTI
In a previous publication (Richichi & Percheron 2005) we described a program
of observations of candidate calibrator stars at the ESO Very Large Telescope
Interferometer (VLTI), and presented the main results from a statistical point
of view. In the present paper, we concentrate on establishing a new homogeneous
group of bright interferometric calibrators, based entirely on publicly
available K-band VLTI observations carried out with the VINCI instrument up to
July 2004. For this, we have defined a number of selection criteria for the
quality and volume of the observations, and we have accordingly selected a list
of 17 primary and 47 secondary calibrators. We have developed an approach to a
robust global fit for the angular diameters using the whole volume of
quality-controlled data, largely independent of a priori assumptions. Our
results have been compared with direct measurements, and indirect estimates
based on spectrophotometric methods, and general agreement is found within the
combined uncertainties. The stars in our list cover the range K=-2.9 to +3.0
mag in brightness, and 1.3 to 20.5 milliarcseconds in uniform-disk diameter.
The relative accuracy of the angular diameter values is on average 0.4% and 2%
for the primary and secondary calibrators respectively. Our calibrators are
well suited for interferometric observations in the near-infrared on baselines
between ~20m and ~200m, and their accuracy is superior, at least for the
primary calibrators, to other similar catalogues. Therefore, the present list
of calibrators has the potential to lead to significantly improved
interferometric scientific results
CHARM2: An updated Catalog of High Angular Resolution Measurements
We present an update of the Catalog of High Angular Resolution Measurements (CHARM, Richichi & Percheron 2002, A&A, 386, 492), which includes results available until July 2004. CHARM2 is a compilation of direct measurements by high angular resolution methods, as well as indirect estimates of stellar diameters. Its main goal is to provide a reference list of sources which can be used for calibration and verification observations with long-baseline optical and near-IR interferometers. Single and binary stars are included, as are complex objects from circumstellar shells to extragalactic sources. The present update provides an increase of almost a factor of two over the previous edition. Additionally, it includes several corrections and improvements, as well as a cross-check with the valuable public release observations of the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). A total of 8231 entries for 3238 unique sources are now present in CHARM2. This represents an increase of a factor of 3.4 and 2.0, respectively, over the contents of the previous version of CHARM
Aldebaran's angular diameter: how well do we know it?
The bright, well-known K5 giant Aldebaran, alpha Tau, is probably the star
with the largest number of direct angular diameter determinations, achieved
over a long time by several authors using various techniques. In spite of this
wealth of data, or perhaps as a direct result of it, there is not a very good
agreement on a single angular diameter value. This is particularly unsettling
if one considers that Aldebaran is also used as a primary calibrator for some
angular resolution methods, notably for optical and infrared long baseline
interferometry. Directly connected to Aldebaran's angular diameter and its
uncertainties is its effective temperature, which also has been used for
several empirical calibrations. Among the proposed explanations for the
elusiveness of an accurate determination of the angular diameter of Aldebaran
are the possibility of temporal variations as well as a possible dependence of
the angular diameter on the wavelength. We present here a few, very accurate
new determinations obtained by means of lunar occultations and long baseline
interferometry. We derive an average value of 19.96+-0.03 milliarcseconds for
the uniform disk diameter. The corresponding limb-darkened value is 20.58+-0.03
milliarcseconds, or 44.2+-0.9 R(sun). We discuss this result, in connection
with previous determinations and with possible problems that may affect such
measurements.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Recent developments in optical interferometry data standards
A working group on interferometry data standards has been established within IAU Commission 54 (Optical/ Infrared Interferometry). The working group includes members representing the major optical interferometry projects worldwide, and aims to enhance existing standards and develop new ones to satisfy the broad interests of the optical interferometry community. We present the initial work of the group to enhance the OIFITS data exchange standard, and outline the software packages and libraries now available which implement the standard
The basal ganglia and thalamus of the long-tailed macaque in stereotaxic coordinates. A template atlas based on coronal, sagittal and horizontal brain sections
A stereotaxic brain atlas of the basal ganglia and thalamus of Macaca fascicularis presented here is designed with a surgical perspective. In this regard, all coordinates have been referenced to a line linking the anterior and posterior commissures (ac–pc line) and considering the center of the ac at the midline as the origin of the bicommissural space. The atlas comprises of 43 different plates (19 coronal levels, 10 sagittal levels and 14 horizontal levels). In addition to ‘classical’ cyto- and chemoarchitectural techniques such as the Nissl method and the acetylcholinesterase stain, several immunohistochemical stains have been performed in adjacent sections, including the detection of tyrosine hydroxylase, enkephalin, neurofilaments, parvalbumin and calbindin. In comparison to other existing stereotaxic atlases for M. fasicularis, this atlas has two main advantages: firstly, brain cartography is based on a wide variety of cyto- and chemoarchitectural stains carried out on adjacent sections, therefore enabling accurate segmentation. Secondly and most importantly, sagittal and horizontal planes are included. Sagittal planes are very useful for calculating oblique trajectories, whereas, clinical researchers engaged in neuroimaging studies will be more familiar with horizontal sections, as they use horizontal (also called “axial”) brain images in their daily routine of their clinical practices
An overview of the mid-infrared spectro-interferometer MATISSE: science, concept, and current status
MATISSE is the second-generation mid-infrared spectrograph and imager for the
Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) at Paranal. This new interferometric
instrument will allow significant advances by opening new avenues in various
fundamental research fields: studying the planet-forming region of disks around
young stellar objects, understanding the surface structures and mass loss
phenomena affecting evolved stars, and probing the environments of black holes
in active galactic nuclei. As a first breakthrough, MATISSE will enlarge the
spectral domain of current optical interferometers by offering the L and M
bands in addition to the N band. This will open a wide wavelength domain,
ranging from 2.8 to 13 um, exploring angular scales as small as 3 mas (L band)
/ 10 mas (N band). As a second breakthrough, MATISSE will allow mid-infrared
imaging - closure-phase aperture-synthesis imaging - with up to four Unit
Telescopes (UT) or Auxiliary Telescopes (AT) of the VLTI. Moreover, MATISSE
will offer a spectral resolution range from R ~ 30 to R ~ 5000. Here, we
present one of the main science objectives, the study of protoplanetary disks,
that has driven the instrument design and motivated several VLTI upgrades
(GRA4MAT and NAOMI). We introduce the physical concept of MATISSE including a
description of the signal on the detectors and an evaluation of the expected
performances. We also discuss the current status of the MATISSE instrument,
which is entering its testing phase, and the foreseen schedule for the next two
years that will lead to the first light at Paranal.Comment: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation conference, June
2016, 11 pages, 6 Figure
Mid-infrared sizes of circumstellar disks around Herbig Ae/Be stars measured with MIDI on the VLTI
We present the first long baseline mid-infrared interferometric observations of the circumstellar disks surrounding Herbig Ae/Be stars. The observations were obtained using the mid-infrared interferometric instrument MIDI at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope Interferometer VLTI on Cerro Paranal. The 102 m baseline given by the telescopes UT1 and UT3 was employed, which provides a maximum full spatial resolution of 20 milli-arcsec (mas) at a wavelength of 10 μm. The interferometric signal was spectrally dispersed at a resolution of 30, giving spectrally resolved visibility information from 8 μm to 13.5 μm. We observed seven nearby Herbig Ae/Be stars and resolved all objects. The warm dust disk of HD 100546 could even be resolved in single-telescope imaging. Characteristic dimensions of the emitting regions at 10 μm are found to be from 1 AU to 10 AU. The 10 μm sizes of our sample stars correlate with the slope of the 10–25 μm infrared spectrum in the sense that the reddest objects are the largest ones. Such a correlation would be consistent with a different geometry in terms of flaring or flat (self-shadowed) disks for sources with strong or moderate mid-infrared excess, respectively. We compare the observed spectrally resolved visibilities with predictions based on existing models of passive centrally irradiated hydrostatic disks made to fit the SEDs of the observed stars. We find broad qualitative agreement of the spectral shape of visibilities corresponding to these models with our observations. Quantitatively, there are discrepancies that show the need for a next step in modelling of circumstellar disks, satisfying both the spatial constraints such as are now available from the MIDI observations and the flux constraints from the SEDs in a consistent way
Human pallidothalamic and cerebellothalamic tracts: anatomical basis for functional stereotactic neurosurgery
Anatomical knowledge of the structures to be targeted and of the circuitry involved is crucial in stereotactic functional neurosurgery. The present study was undertaken in the context of surgical treatment of motor disorders such as essential tremor (ET) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) to precisely determine the course and three-dimensional stereotactic localisation of the cerebellothalamic and pallidothalamic tracts in the human brain. The course of the fibre tracts to the thalamus was traced in the subthalamic region using multiple staining procedures and their entrance into the thalamus determined according to our atlas of the human thalamus and basal ganglia [Morel (2007) Stereotactic atlas of the human thalamus and basal ganglia. Informa Healthcare Inc., New York]. Stereotactic three-dimensional coordinates were determined by sectioning thalamic and basal ganglia blocks parallel to stereotactic planes and, in two cases, by correlation with magnetic resonance images (MRI) from the same brains prior to sectioning. The major contributions of this study are to provide: (1) evidence that the bulks of the cerebellothalamic and pallidothalamic tracts are clearly separated up to their thalamic entrance, (2) stereotactic maps of the two tracts in the subthalamic region, (3) the possibility to discriminate between different subthalamic fibre tracts on the basis of immunohistochemical stainings, (4) correlations of histologically identified fibre tracts with high-resolution MRI, and (5) evaluation of the interindividual variability of the fibre systems in the subthalamic region. This study should provide an important basis for accurate stereotactic neurosurgical targeting of the subthalamic region in motor disorders such as PD and ET
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