178 research outputs found
The Age and Structure of the Galactic Bulge from Mira Variables
We report periods and JHKL observations for 648 oxygen-rich Mira variables
found in two outer bulge fields at b=-7 degrees and l=+/-8 degrees and combine
these with data on 8057 inner bulge Miras from the OGLE, Macho and 2MASS
surveys, which are concentrated closer to the Galactic centre. Distance moduli
are estimated for all these stars. Evidence is given showing that the bulge
structure is a function of age. The longer period Miras (log P > 2.6, age about
5 Gyr and younger) show clear evidence of a bar structure inclined to the line
of sight in both the inner and outer regions. The distribution of the shorter
period (metal-rich globular cluster age) Miras, appears spheroidal in the outer
bulge. In the inner region these old stars are also distributed differently
from the younger ones and possibly suggest a more complex structure. These data
suggest a distance to the Galactic centre, R0, of 8.9 kpc with an estimated
uncertainty of 0.4 kpc. The possible effect of helium enrichment on our
conclusions is discussed.Comment: Accepted for MNRAS, 12 pages, 12 figure
The HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale XXV. A Recalibration of Cepheid Distances to Type Ia Supernovae and the Value of the Hubble Constant
Cepheid-based distances to seven Type Ia supernovae (SNe)-host galaxies have
been derived using the standard HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance
Scale pipeline. For the first time, this allows for a transparent comparison of
data accumulated as part of three different HST projects, the Key Project, the
Sandage et al. Type Ia SNe program, and the Tanvir et al. Leo I Group study.
Re-analyzing the Tanvir et al. galaxy and six Sandage et al. galaxies we find a
mean (weighted) offset in true distance moduli of 0.12+/-0.07 mag -- i.e., 6%
in linear distance -- in the sense of reducing the distance scale, or
increasing H0. Adopting the reddening-corrected Hubble relations of Suntzeff et
al. (1999), tied to a zero point based upon SNe~1990N, 1981B, 1998bu, 1989B,
1972E and 1960F and the photometric calibration of Hill et al. (1998), leads to
a Hubble constant of H0=68+/-2(random)+/-5(systematic) km/s/Mpc. Adopting the
Kennicutt et al. (1998) Cepheid period-luminosity-metallicity dependency
decreases the inferred H0 by 4%. The H0 result from Type Ia SNe is now in good
agreement, to within their respective uncertainties, with that from the
Tully-Fisher and surface brightness fluctuation relations.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal. 62 pages,
LaTeX, 9 Postscript figures. Also available at
http://casa.colorado.edu/~bgibson/publications.htm
The HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale. XXVIII. Combining the Constraints on the Hubble Constant
Since the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope nine years ago, Cepheid
distances to 25 galaxies have been determined for the purpose of calibrating
secondary distance indicators. A variety of these can now be calibrated, and
the accompanying papers by Sakai, Kelson, Ferrarese, and Gibson employ the full
set of 25 galaxies to consider the Tully-Fisher relation, the fundamental plane
of elliptical galaxies, Type Ia supernovae, and surface brightness
fluctuations.
When calibrated with Cepheid distances, each of these methods yields a
measurement of the Hubble constant and a corresponding measurement uncertainty.
We combine these measurements in this paper, together with a model of the
velocity field, to yield the best available estimate of the value of H_0 within
the range of these secondary distance indicators and its uncertainty.
The result is H_0 = 71 +/- 6 km/sec/Mpc. The largest contributor to the
uncertainty of this 67% confidence level result is the distance of the Large
Magellanic Cloud, which has been assumed to be 50 +/- 3 kpc
A Database of Cepheid Distance Moduli and TRGB, GCLF, PNLF and SBF Data Useful for Distance Determinations
We present a compilation of Cepheid distance moduli and data for four
secondary distance indicators that employ stars in the old stellar populations:
the planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF), the globular cluster
luminosity function (GCLF), the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB), and the
surface brightness fluctuation (SBF) method. The database includes all data
published as of July 15, 1999. The main strength of this compilation resides in
all data being on a consistent and homogeneous system: all Cepheid distances
are derived using the same calibration of the period-luminosity relation, the
treatment of errors is consistent for all indicators, measurements which are
not considered reliable are excluded. As such, the database is ideal for
inter-comparing any of the distance indicators considered, or for deriving a
Cepheid calibration to any secondary distance indicator. Specifically, the
database includes: 1) Cepheid distances, extinctions and metallicities; 2)
apparent magnitudes of the PNLF cutoff; 3) apparent magnitudes and colors of
the turnover of the GCLF (both in the V- and B-bands); 4) apparent magnitudes
of the TRGB (in the I-band) and V-I colors at and 0.5 magnitudes fainter than
the TRGB; 5) apparent surface brightness fluctuation magnitudes I, K', K_short,
and using the F814W filter with the HST/WFPC2. In addition, for every galaxy in
the database we give reddening estimates from DIRBE/IRAS as well as HI maps,
J2000 coordinates, Hubble and T-type morphological classification, apparent
total magnitude in B, and systemic velocity. (Abridged)Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Supplement
Series. Because of space limitations, the figures included are low resolution
bitmap images. Original figures can be found at
http://www.astro.ucla.edu/~laura/pub.ht
Podocalyxin in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer
Kelly M. McNagny, Michael R. Hughes, Marcia L. Graves, Erin J. DeBruin, Kimberly Snyder, Jane Cipollone, Michelle Turvey, Poh C. Tan, Shaun McColl and Calvin D. Roskelle
The HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale XXVI. The Calibration of Population II Secondary Distance Indicators and the Value of the Hubble Constant
A Cepheid-based calibration is derived for four distance indicators that
utilize stars in the old stellar populations: the tip of the red giant branch
(TRGB), the planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF), the globular cluster
luminosity function (GCLF) and the surface brightness fluctuation method (SBF).
The calibration is largely based on the Cepheid distances to 18 spiral galaxies
within cz =1500 km/s obtained as part of the HST Key Project on the
Extragalactic Distance Scale, but relies also on Cepheid distances from
separate HST and ground-based efforts. The newly derived calibration of the SBF
method is applied to obtain distances to four Abell clusters in the velocity
range between 3800 and 5000 km/s, observed by Lauer et al. (1998) using the
HST/WFPC2. Combined with cluster velocities corrected for a cosmological flow
model, these distances imply a value of the Hubble constant of H0 = 69 +/- 4
(random) +/- 6 (systematic) km/s/Mpc. This result assumes that the Cepheid PL
relation is independent of the metallicity of the variable stars; adopting a
metallicity correction as in Kennicutt et al. (1998), would produce a (5 +/-
3)% decrease in H0. Finally, the newly derived calibration allows us to
investigate systematics in the Cepheid, PNLF, SBF, GCLF and TRGB distance
scales.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. 48 pages
(including 13 figures and 4 tables), plus two additional tables in landscape
format. Also available at http://astro.caltech.edu/~lff/pub.htm K' SBF
magnitudes have been update
The HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale. XV. A Cepheid Distance to the Fornax Cluster and Its Implications
Using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) 37 long-period Cepheid variables have
been discovered in the Fornax Cluster spiral galaxy NGC 1365. The resulting V
and I period-luminosity relations yield a true distance modulus of 31.35 +/-
0.07 mag, which corresponds to a distance of 18.6 +/- 0.6 Mpc. This measurement
provides several routes for estimating the Hubble Constant. (1) Assuming this
distance for the Fornax Cluster as a whole yields a local Hubble Constant of 70
+/-18_{random} [+/-7]_{systematic} km/s/Mpc. (2) Nine Cepheid-based distances
to groups of galaxies out to and including the Fornax and Virgo clusters yield
Ho = 73 (+/-16)_r [+/-7]_s km/s/Mpc. (3) Recalibrating the I-band Tully-Fisher
relation using NGC 1365 and six nearby spiral galaxies, and applying it to 15
galaxy clusters out to 100 Mpc gives Ho = 76 (+/-3)_r [+/-8]_s km/s/Mpc. (4)
Using a broad-based set of differential cluster distance moduli ranging from
Fornax to Abell 2147 gives Ho = 72 (+/-)_r [+/-6]_s km/s/Mpc. And finally, (5)
Assuming the NGC 1365 distance for the two additional Type Ia supernovae in
Fornax and adding them to the SnIa calibration (correcting for light curve
shape) gives Ho = 67 (+/-6)_r [+/-7]_s km/s/Mpc out to a distance in excess of
500 Mpc. All five of these Ho determinations agree to within their statistical
errors. The resulting estimate of the Hubble Constant combining all these
determinations is Ho = 72 (+/-5)_r [+/-12]_s km/s/Mpc.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal, Apr. 10 issue
28 pages, 3 tables, 12 figures (Correct figures and abstract
The Hubble Space Telescope Extragalactic Distance Scale Key Project XXIII. The Discovery of Cepheids In NGC 3319
The distance to NGC 3319 has been determined from Cepheid variable stars as
part of the Hubble Space Telescope Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance
Scale. Thirteen and four epochs of observations, using filters F555W (V) and
F814W (I) respectively, were made with the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2.
Thirty-three Cepheid variables between periods of 8 and 47 days were
discovered. Adopting a Large Magellanic Cloud distance modulus of 18.50 +- 0.10
mag and extinction of E(V-I)=0.13 mag, a true reddening-corrected distance
modulus (based on an analysis employing the ALLFRAME software package) of 30.78
+- 0.14 (random) +- 0.10 (systematic) mag and the extinction of E(V-I) = 0.06
mag were determined for NGC 3319. This galaxy is the last galaxy observed for
the HST H0 Key Project.Comment: 22 pages. A gzipped tar file containing 16 figures can be obtained
from http://www.ipac.caltech.edu/H0kp/n3319/n3319.htm
The Hubble Space Telescope Extragalactic Distance Scale Key Project. X. The Cepheid Distance to NGC 7331
The distance to NGC 7331 has been derived from Cepheid variables observed
with HST/WFPC2, as part of the Extragalactic Distance Scale Key Project.
Multi-epoch exposures in F555W (V) and F814W (I), with photometry derived
independently from DoPHOT and DAOPHOT/ALLFRAME programs, were used to detect a
total of 13 reliable Cepheids, with periods between 11 and 42 days. The
relative distance moduli between NGC 7331 and the LMC, imply an extinction to
NGC 7331 of A_V = 0.47+-0.15 mag, and an extinction-corrected distance modulus
to NGC 7331 of 30.89+-0.14(random) mag, equivalent to a distance of 15.1 Mpc.
There are additional systematic uncertainties in the distance modulus of +-0.12
mag due to the calibration of the Cepheid Period-Luminosity relation, and a
systematic offset of +0.05+-0.04 mag if we applied the metallicity correction
inferred from the M101 results of Kennicutt et al 1998.Comment: To be published in The Astrophysical Journal, 1998 July 1, v501 note:
Figs 1 and 2 (JPEG files) and Fig 7 (multipage .eps file) need to be
viewed/printed separatel
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