4,340 research outputs found
One Dimensional Dynamical Models of the Carina Nebula Bubble
We have tested the two main theoretical models of bubbles around massive star
clusters, Castor et al. and Chevalier & Clegg, against observations of the well
studied Carina Nebula. The Castor et al. theory over-predicts the X-ray
luminosity in the Carina bubble by a factor of 60 and expands too rapidly, by a
factor of 4; if the correct radius and age are used, the predicted X-ray
luminosity is even larger. In contrast, the Chevalier & Clegg model
under-predicts the X-ray luminosity by a factor of 10. We modify the Castor et
al. theory to take into account lower stellar wind mass loss rates, radiation
pressure, gravity, and escape of or energy loss from the hot shocked gas. We
argue that energy is advected rather than radiated from the bubble. We
undertake a parameter study for reduced stellar mass loss rates and for various
leakage rates and are able to find viable models. The X-ray surface brightness
in Carina is highest close to the bubble wall, which is consistent with
conductive evaporation from cold clouds. The picture that emerges is one in
which the hot gas pressure is far below that found by dividing the
time-integrated wind luminosity by the bubble volume; rather, the pressure in
the hot gas is set by pressure equilibrium with the photoionized gas at T=10^4
K. It follows that the shocked stellar winds are not dynamically important in
forming the bubbles.Comment: Accepted to APJ. 47 pages, 13 figure
Radiative lepton flavor violating decays in the Randall Sundrum background with localized leptons
We study the radiative lepton flavor violating l_i -> l_j\gamma decays in the
two Higgs doublet model, respecting the Randall Sundrum scenario and estimate
the contributions of the KK modes of left (right) handed charged lepton
doublets (singlets) on the branching ratios. We observe that the branching
ratios are sensitive to the contributions of the charged lepton KK modes.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figures, 2 table
Multiwavelength Observations of Massive Stellar Cluster Candidates in the Galaxy
The Galaxy appears to be richer in young, massive stellar clusters than
previously known, due to advances in infrared surveys which have uncovered
deeply embedded regions of star formation. Young, massive clusters can
significantly impact the surrounding interstellar medium (ISM) and hence radio
observations can also be an important tracer of their activity. Several hundred
cluster candidates are now known by examining survey data. Here we report on
multiwavelength observations of six of these candidates in the Galaxy. We
carried out 4.9 and 8.5 GHz VLA observations of the radio emission associated
with these clusters to obtain the physical characteristics of the surrounding
gas, including the Lyman continuum photon flux and ionized gas mass. Spitzer
Infrared Array Camera observations were also made of these regions, and provide
details on the stellar population as well as the dust continuum and polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbon emission. When compared to the known young, massive
clusters in the Galaxy, the six cluster candidates have less powerful Lyman
ionizing fluxes and ionize less of the H II mass in the surrounding ISM.
Therefore, these cluster candidates appear to be more consistent with
intermediate-mass clusters (10^3-10^4 Msun).Comment: 39 pages, 20 figures. Accepted in the Astronomical Journal; to be
published Fall 201
Properties of Cosmic Helium Isotopes Measured by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer
Precision measurements by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) on the International Space Station of He 3 and He 4 fluxes are presented. The measurements are based on 100 million He 4 nuclei in the rigidity range from 2.1 to 21 GV and 18 million He 3 from 1.9 to 15 GV collected from May 2011 to November 2017. We observed that the He 3 and He 4 fluxes exhibit nearly identical variations with time. The relative magnitude of the variations decreases with increasing rigidity. The rigidity dependence of the He 3 /He 4 flux ratio is measured for the first time. Below 4 GV, the He 3 /He 4 flux ratio was found to have a significant long-term time dependence. Above 4 GV, the He 3 /He 4 flux ratio was found to be time independent, and its rigidity dependence is well described by a single power law ∝RΔ with Δ =-0.294 ±0.004 . Unexpectedly, this value is in agreement with the B/O and B/C spectral indices at high energies
Properties of Heavy Secondary Fluorine Cosmic Rays:Results from the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer
Precise knowledge of the charge and rigidity dependence of the secondary cosmic ray fluxes and the secondary-to-primary flux ratios is essential in the understanding of cosmic ray propagation. We report the properties of heavy secondary cosmic ray fluorine F in the rigidity R range 2.15 GV to 2.9 TV based on 0.29 million events collected by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer experiment on the International Space Station. The fluorine spectrum deviates from a single power law above 200 GV. The heavier secondary-to-primary F/Si flux ratio rigidity dependence is distinctly different from the lighter B/O (or B/C) rigidity dependence. In particular, above 10 GV, the F//Si B /O ratio can be described by a power law Rδ with δ =0.052 ±0.007 . This shows that the propagation properties of heavy cosmic rays, from F to Si, are different from those of light cosmic rays, from He to O, and that the secondary cosmic rays have two classes
VLA observations of candidate high-mass protostellar objects at 7 mm
We present radio continuum observations at 7 mm made using the Very Large
Array towards three massive star forming regions thought to be in very early
stages of evolution selected from the sample of Sridharan et al. (2002).
Emission was detected towards all three sources (IRAS 18470-0044, IRAS
19217+1651 and IRAS 23151+5912). We find that in all cases the 7 mm emission
corresponds to thermal emission from ionized gas. The regions of ionized gas
associated with IRAS 19217+1651 and IRAS 23151+5912 are hypercompact with
diameters of 0.009 and 0.0006 pc, and emission measures of 7.0 x 10^8 and 2.3 x
10^9 pc cm^(-6), respectively.Comment: 17 pages, 5 figures, accepted by The Astronomical Journa
Flickering of 1.3 cm Sources in Sgr B2: Towards a Solution to the Ultracompact HII Region Lifetime Problem
Accretion flows onto massive stars must transfer mass so quickly that they
are themselves gravitationally unstable, forming dense clumps and filaments.
These density perturbations interact with young massive stars, emitting
ionizing radiation, alternately exposing and confining their HII regions. As a
result, the HII regions are predicted to flicker in flux density over periods
of decades to centuries rather than increasing monotonically in size as
predicted by simple Spitzer solutions. We have recently observed the Sgr B2
region at 1.3 cm with the VLA in its three hybrid configurations (DnC, CnB and
BnA) at a resolution of 0.25''. These observations were made to compare in
detail with matched continuum observations from 1989. At 0.25'' resolution, Sgr
B2 contains 41 UC HII regions, 6 of which are hypercompact. The new
observations of Sgr B2 allow comparison of relative peak flux densites for the
HII regions in Sgr B2 over a 23 year time baseline (1989-2012) in one of the
most source-rich massive star forming regions in the Milky Way. The new 1.3 cm
continuum images indicate that four of the 41 UC HII regions exhibit
significant changes in their peak flux density, with one source (K3) dropping
in peak flux density, and the other 3 sources (F10.303, F1 and F3) increasing
in peak flux density. The results are consistent with statistical predictions
from simulations of high mass star formation, suggesting that they offer a
solution to the lifetime problem for ultracompact HII regions.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journal Letter
Broad Recombination Line Objects in W49N on 600 AU Scales
High resolution 7 mm observations of the W49N massive star forming region
have detected recombination line emission from the individual ultracompact (UC)
HII regions on 50 milliarcsecond (600 AU) scales. These line observations,
combined with multifrequency, high-resolution continuum imaging of the region
at 7 mm (VLA) and at 3 mm and 1 mm (BIMA), indicate that five to seven of the
eighteen ultracompact sources in W49N are broad recombination line objects
(BRLOs) as described by Jaffe & Martin-Pintado (1999). BRLOs have both broad
radio recombination lines (V60 \kms) and rising spectra
(S), with values greater than 0.4. The broad
line widths of the H52 line are probably related to motions in the
ionized gas rather than pressure broadening. A number of models have been
proposed to explain the long lifetime of UC HII regions, including the
photoevaporated disk model proposed by Hollenbach et al. (1994). This model can
also explain the broad lines, rising spectra and bipolar morphologies of some
sources. We suggestbased on line and continuum observations as well as
source morphologythat in a subset of the W49N ultracompact sources we may be
observing ionized winds that arise from circumstellar disks.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures, to appear in The Astrophysical Journal (v. 600,
no. 1), 1 January 200
Prevalence of Vaccine Type Infections in Vaccinated and Non-Vaccinated Young Women: HPV-IMPACT, a Self-Sampling Study.
Background: The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination program for young girls aged 11⁻26 years was introduced in Switzerland in 2008. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of high- and low-risk HPV in a population of undergraduate students using self-sampling for monitoring the HPV vaccination program's effect.
Undergraduate women aged between 18⁻31 years, attending the Medical School and University of Applied Sciences in Geneva, were invited to participate in the study. Included women were asked to perform vaginal self-sampling for HPV testing using a dry cotton swab.
A total of 409 students participated in the study-aged 18⁻31 years-of which 69% of the participants were vaccinated with Gardasil HPV vaccine and 31% did not received the vaccine. About HPV prevalence, 7.2% of unvaccinated women were HPV 16 or 18 positive, while 1.1% of vaccinated women were infected by HPV 16 or 18 (p < 0.01). Prevalence of HPV 6 and 11 was 8.3% in non-vaccinated women versus 2.1% in vaccinated women (p < 0.02). We observed no cross-protection for the other HPV genotypes of a low- and high-risk strain.
Prevalence of HPV 6/11/16/18 was lower in vaccinated women versus unvaccinated women. Continued assessment of HPV vaccine effectiveness in real population is needed
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