3,961 research outputs found
Tracing Slow Winds from T Tauri Stars via Low Velocity Forbidden Line Emission
Using Keck/HIRES spectra {\Delta}v ~ 7 km/s, we analyze forbidden lines of [O
I] 6300 {\AA}, [O I] 5577 {\AA} and [S II] 6731 {\AA} from 33 T Tauri stars
covering a range of disk evolutionary stages. After removing a high velocity
component (HVC) associated with microjets, we study the properties of the low
velocity component (LVC). The LVC can be attributed to slow disk winds that
could be magnetically (MHD) or thermally (photoevaporative) driven. Both of
these winds play an important role in the evolution and dispersal of
protoplanetary material.
LVC emission is seen in all 30 stars with detected [O I] but only in 2 out of
eight with detected [S II] , so our analysis is largely based on the properties
of the [O I] LVC. The LVC itself is resolved into broad (BC) and narrow (NC)
kinematic components. Both components are found over a wide range of accretion
rates and their luminosity is correlated with the accretion luminosity, but the
NC is proportionately stronger than the BC in transition disks.
The FWHM of both the BC and NC correlates with disk inclination, consistent
with Keplerian broadening from radii of 0.05 to 0.5 AU and 0.5 to 5 AU,
respectively. The velocity centroids of the BC suggest formation in an MHD disk
wind, with the largest blueshifts found in sources with closer to face-on
orientations. The velocity centroids of the NC however, show no dependence on
disk inclination. The origin of this component is less clear and the evidence
for photoevaporation is not conclusive
A Census of Rotating Radio Transients at 150 MHz with the Irish LOFAR Station
Rotating radio transients (RRATs) are neutron stars that emit detectable
radio bursts sporadically. They are statistically distinct in the neutron star
population, in many observable properties, but by their nature are practically
difficult to study in depth. In this paper, we present the results from 1408 h
of observations of RRAT candidates using the Irish station of the Low Frequency
Array (LOFAR) at 150 MHz. As of October 2022, this census involved observing
113 sources, leading to 29 detections which were then followed up
systematically. Single-pulse emission was detected from 25 sources, and
periodic emission from 14 sources. 18 sources were found to have emission
behaviour that is not discussed in prior works using LOFAR instruments. Four
novel or modified source periods have been determined, ranging from 1.5-3.9 s,
and 8 new or updated phase-coherent pulsar timing ephemerides have been
produced using detected bursts. One unexpected single-pulse with a
clearly-Galactic dispersion measure was detected as a part of this work, but
has not been re-detected in follow-up observations. Observations are ongoing to
expand the number of observed sources and further characterise and improve
ephemerides for the detected sources. This census has demonstrated the
capability for international LOFAR stations to detect, monitor and characterise
a significant fraction of these unique sources.Comment: Accepted by MNRAS. 24 pages, 7 figures, 8 table
Unusual glitch activity in the RRAT J1819-1458: an exhausted magnetar?
We present an analysis of regular timing observations of the
high-magnetic-field Rotating Radio Transient (RRAT) J18191458 obtained using
the 64-m Parkes and 76-m Lovell radio telescopes over the past five years.
During this time, the RRAT has suffered two significant glitches with
fractional frequency changes of and .
Glitches of this magnitude are a phenomenon displayed by both radio pulsars and
magnetars. However, the behaviour of J18191458 following these glitches is
quite different to that which follows glitches in other neutron stars, since
the glitch activity resulted in a significant long-term net decrease in the
slow-down rate. If such glitches occur every 30 years, the spin-down rate, and
by inference the magnetic dipole moment, will drop to zero on a timescale of a
few thousand years. There are also significant increases in the rate of pulse
detection and in the radio pulse energy immediately following the glitches.Comment: accepted for publication in MNRAS, 7 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl
The first interferometric detections of Fast Radio Bursts
We present the first interferometric detections of Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs),
an enigmatic new class of astrophysical transient. In a 180-day survey of the
Southern sky we discovered 3 FRBs at 843 MHz with the UTMOST array, as part of
commissioning science during a major ongoing upgrade. The wide field of view of
UTMOST ( deg) is well suited to FRB searches. The primary beam
is covered by 352 partially overlapping fan-beams, each of which is searched
for FRBs in real time with pulse widths in the range 0.655 to 42 ms, and
dispersion measures 2000 pc cm. Detections of FRBs with the UTMOST
array places a lower limit on their distances of km (limit of
the telescope near-field) supporting the case for an astronomical origin.
Repeating FRBs at UTMOST or an FRB detected simultaneously with the Parkes
radio telescope and UTMOST, would allow a few arcsec localisation, thereby
providing an excellent means of identifying FRB host galaxies, if present. Up
to 100 hours of follow-up for each FRB has been carried out with the UTMOST,
with no repeating bursts seen. From the detected position, we present 3
error ellipses of 15 arcsec x 8.4 deg on the sky for the point of origin for
the FRBs. We estimate an all-sky FRB rate at 843 MHz above a fluence of 11 Jy ms of events sky d at the 95
percent confidence level. The measured rate of FRBs at 843 MHz is of order two
times higher than we had expected, scaling from the FRB rate at the Parkes
radio telescope, assuming that FRBs have a flat spectral index and a uniform
distribution in Euclidean space. We examine how this can be explained by FRBs
having a steeper spectral index and/or a flatter log-log
distribution than expected for a Euclidean Universe.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, 2 table
The UTMOST pulsar timing programme I: overview and first results
We present an overview and the first results from a large-scale pulsar timing
programme that is part of the UTMOST project at the refurbished Molonglo
Observatory Synthesis Radio Telescope (MOST) near Canberra, Australia. We
currently observe more than 400 mainly bright southern radio pulsars with up to
daily cadences. For 205 (8 in binaries, 4 millisecond pulsars) we publish
updated timing models, together with their flux densities, flux density
variability, and pulse widths at 843 MHz, derived from observations spanning
between 1.4 and 3 yr. In comparison with the ATNF pulsar catalogue, we improve
the precision of the rotational and astrometric parameters for 123 pulsars, for
47 by at least an order of magnitude. The time spans between our measurements
and those in the literature are up to 48 yr, which allows us to investigate
their long-term spin-down history and to estimate proper motions for 60
pulsars, of which 24 are newly determined and most are major improvements. The
results are consistent with interferometric measurements from the literature. A
model with two Gaussian components centred at 139 and fits the transverse velocity distribution best. The pulse duty
cycle distributions at 50 and 10 per cent maximum are best described by
log-normal distributions with medians of 2.3 and 4.4 per cent, respectively. We
discuss two pulsars that exhibit spin-down rate changes and drifting subpulses.
Finally, we describe the autonomous observing system and the dynamic scheduler
that has increased the observing efficiency by a factor of 2-3 in comparison
with static scheduling.Comment: 31 pages, 14 figures, 6 tables, accepted for publication in MNRA
Tracing Slow Winds From T Tauri Stars via Low-velocity Forbidden Line Emission
Using Keck/HIRES spectra (Δ v ∼ 7 km s−1) we analyze forbidden lines of [O I] 6300 Å, [O I] 5577 Å and [S II] 6731 Å from 33 T Tauri stars covering a range of disk evolutionary stages. After removing a high-velocity component (HVC) associated with microjets, we study the properties of the low-velocity component (LVC). The LVC can be attributed to slow disk winds that could be magnetically (magnetohydrodynamic) or thermally (photoevaporative) driven. Both of these winds play an important role in the evolution and dispersal of protoplanetary material. LVC emission is seen in all 30 stars with detected [O I] but only in two out of eight with detected [S II], so our analysis is largely based on the properties of the [O I] LVC. The LVC itself is resolved into broad (BC) and narrow (NC) kinematic components. Both components are found over a wide range of accretion rates and their luminosity is correlated with the accretion luminosity, but the NC is proportionately stronger than the BC in transition disks. The full width at half maximum of both the BC and NC correlates with disk inclination, consistent with Keplerian broadening from radii of 0.05 to 0.5 au and 0.5 to 5 au, respectively. The velocity centroids of the BC suggest formation in an MHD disk wind, with the largest blueshifts found in sources with closer to face-on orientations. The velocity centroids of the NC, however, show no dependence on disk inclination. The origin of this component is less clear and the evidence for photoevaporation is not conclusive
Toward a more ecologically informed view of severe forest fires
We use the historical presence of high-severity fire patches in mixed-conifer forests of the western United States to make several points that we hope will encourage development of a more ecologically informed view of severe wildland fire effects. First, many plant and animal species use, and have sometimes evolved to depend on, severely burned forest conditions for their persistence. Second, evidence from fire history studies also suggests that a complex mosaic of severely burned conifer patches was common historically in the West. Third, to maintain ecological integrity in forests born of mixed-severity fire, land managers will have to accept some severe fire and maintain the integrity of its aftermath. Lastly, public education messages surrounding fire could be modified so that people better understand and support management designed to maintain ecologically appropriate sizes and distributions of severe fire and the complex early-seral forest conditions it creates
Electronic and optical properties of electromigrated molecular junctions
Electromigrated nanoscale junctions have proven very useful for studying
electronic transport at the single-molecule scale. However, confirming that
conduction is through precisely the molecule of interest and not some
contaminant or metal nanoparticle has remained a persistent challenge,
typically requiring a statistical analysis of many devices. We review how
transport mechanisms in both purely electronic and optical measurements can be
used to infer information about the nanoscale junction configuration. The
electronic response to optical excitation is particularly revealing. We briefly
discuss surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy on such junctions, and present new
results showing that currents due to optical rectification can provide a means
of estimating the local electric field at the junction due to illumination.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures, invited paper for forthcoming special issue of
Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter. For other related papers, see
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~natelson/publications.htm
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