1,507 research outputs found
Evidence for a Universal Slope of the Period-Luminosity Relation from Direct Distances to Cepheids in the LMC
We have applied the infrared surface brightness (ISB) technique to derive
distances to 13 Cepheid variables in the LMC which have periods from 3-42 days.
The corresponding absolute magnitudes define PL relations in VIWJK bands which
agree exceedingly well with the corresponding Milky Way relations obtained from
the same technique, and are in significant disagreement with the observed LMC
Cepheid PL relations, by OGLE-II and Persson et al., in these bands. Our data
uncover a systematic error in the p-factor law which transforms Cepheid radial
velocities into pulsational velocities. We correct the p-factor law by
requiring that all LMC Cepheids share the same distance. Re-calculating all
Milky Way and LMC Cepheid distances with the revised p-factor law, we find that
the PL relations from the ISB technique both in LMC and in the Milky Way agree
with the OGLE-II and Persson et al. LMC PL relations, supporting the conclusion
of no metallicity effect on the slope of the Cepheid PL relation in
optical/near infrared bands.Comment: 4 pages, to appear in the proceedings of the "Stellar Pulsation and
Evolution" conference, Monte Porzio Catone, June 200
Infrared Surface Brightness Distances to Cepheids: a comparison of Bayesian and linear-bisector calculations
We have compared the results of Bayesian statistical calculations and
linear-bisector calculations for obtaining Cepheid distances and radii by the
infrared surface brightness method. We analyzed a set of 38 Cepheids using a
Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo method that had been recently studied with a
linear-bisector method. The distances obtained by the two techniques agree to
1.5 \pm 0.6% with the Bayesian distances being larger. The radii agree to 1.1%
\pm 0.7% with the Bayesian determinations again being larger. We interpret this
result as demonstrating that the two methods yield the same distances and
radii. This implies that the short distance to the LMC found in recent
linear-bisector studies of Cepheids is not caused by deficiencies in the
mathematical treatment. However, the computed uncertainties in distance and
radius for our dataset are larger in the Bayesian calculation by factors of
1.4-6.7. We give reasons to favor the Bayesian computations of the
uncertainties. The larger uncertainties can have a significant impact upon
interpretation of Cepheid distances and radii obtained from the infrared
surface brightness method.Comment: 27 pages with 9 figure
V(RI)sub(c) Photometry of Cepheids in the Magellanic Clouds
We present V(RI)sub data for thirteen Cepheids in the Large Magellanic Cloud
ans fifty-five in each wavelength band. The median uncertainty in the
photometry iy Moffett, Gieren & Barnes (1998) which contained 1000 measures
( mag) in each wavelength band on 22 variables with periods in the
range 8--133 days.Comment: LaTeX file (9 pages), LaTeX table (1 page), 2 figures of 3 panels
eacs PASP (July
Cepheid variables in the LMC cluster NGC 1866. I. New BVRI CCD photometry
We report BV(RI)c CCD photometric data for a group of seven Cepheid variables
in the young, rich cluster NGC 1866 in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The
photometry was obtained as part of a program to determine accurate distances to
these Cepheids by means of the infrared surface brightness technique, and to
improve the LMC Cepheid database for constructing Cepheid PL and PLC relations.
Using the new data together with data from the literature, we have determined
improved periods for all variables. For five fundamental mode pulsators, the
light curves are now of excellent quality and will lead to accurate distance
and radius determinations once complete infrared light curves and radial
velocity curves for these variables become available.Comment: To appear in ApJ Supp., AASTeX, 24 pages, 8 tables, 8 figure
First radial velocity results from the MINiature Exoplanet Radial Velocity Array (MINERVA)
The MINiature Exoplanet Radial Velocity Array (MINERVA) is a dedicated
observatory of four 0.7m robotic telescopes fiber-fed to a KiwiSpec
spectrograph. The MINERVA mission is to discover super-Earths in the habitable
zones of nearby stars. This can be accomplished with MINERVA's unique
combination of high precision and high cadence over long time periods. In this
work, we detail changes to the MINERVA facility that have occurred since our
previous paper. We then describe MINERVA's robotic control software, the
process by which we perform 1D spectral extraction, and our forward modeling
Doppler pipeline. In the process of improving our forward modeling procedure,
we found that our spectrograph's intrinsic instrumental profile is stable for
at least nine months. Because of that, we characterized our instrumental
profile with a time-independent, cubic spline function based on the profile in
the cross dispersion direction, with which we achieved a radial velocity
precision similar to using a conventional "sum-of-Gaussians" instrumental
profile: 1.8 m s over 1.5 months on the RV standard star HD 122064.
Therefore, we conclude that the instrumental profile need not be perfectly
accurate as long as it is stable. In addition, we observed 51 Peg and our
results are consistent with the literature, confirming our spectrograph and
Doppler pipeline are producing accurate and precise radial velocities.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figures, submitted to PASP, Peer-Reviewed and Accepte
A review of elliptical and disc galaxy structure, and modern scaling laws
A century ago, in 1911 and 1913, Plummer and then Reynolds introduced their
models to describe the radial distribution of stars in `nebulae'. This article
reviews the progress since then, providing both an historical perspective and a
contemporary review of the stellar structure of bulges, discs and elliptical
galaxies. The quantification of galaxy nuclei, such as central mass deficits
and excess nuclear light, plus the structure of dark matter halos and cD galaxy
envelopes, are discussed. Issues pertaining to spiral galaxies including dust,
bulge-to-disc ratios, bulgeless galaxies, bars and the identification of
pseudobulges are also reviewed. An array of modern scaling relations involving
sizes, luminosities, surface brightnesses and stellar concentrations are
presented, many of which are shown to be curved. These 'redshift zero'
relations not only quantify the behavior and nature of galaxies in the Universe
today, but are the modern benchmark for evolutionary studies of galaxies,
whether based on observations, N-body-simulations or semi-analytical modelling.
For example, it is shown that some of the recently discovered compact
elliptical galaxies at 1.5 < z < 2.5 may be the bulges of modern disc galaxies.Comment: Condensed version (due to Contract) of an invited review article to
appear in "Planets, Stars and Stellar
Systems"(www.springer.com/astronomy/book/978-90-481-8818-5). 500+ references
incl. many somewhat forgotten, pioneer papers. Original submission to
Springer: 07-June-201
Measurement of the t t-bar production cross section in the dilepton channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
The t t-bar production cross section (sigma[t t-bar]) is measured in
proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV in data collected by the CMS
experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.3 inverse
femtobarns. The measurement is performed in events with two leptons (electrons
or muons) in the final state, at least two jets identified as jets originating
from b quarks, and the presence of an imbalance in transverse momentum. The
measured value of sigma[t t-bar] for a top-quark mass of 172.5 GeV is 161.9 +/-
2.5 (stat.) +5.1/-5.0 (syst.) +/- 3.6(lumi.) pb, consistent with the prediction
of the standard model.Comment: Replaced with published version. Included journal reference and DO
Search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
A search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu decay
channel, where l = e or mu, in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7
TeV is presented. The data were collected at the LHC, with the CMS detector,
and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 inverse femtobarns. No
significant excess is observed above the background expectation, and upper
limits are set on the Higgs boson production cross section. The presence of the
standard model Higgs boson with a mass in the 270-440 GeV range is excluded at
95% confidence level.Comment: Submitted to JHE
Combined search for the quarks of a sequential fourth generation
Results are presented from a search for a fourth generation of quarks
produced singly or in pairs in a data set corresponding to an integrated
luminosity of 5 inverse femtobarns recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC in
2011. A novel strategy has been developed for a combined search for quarks of
the up and down type in decay channels with at least one isolated muon or
electron. Limits on the mass of the fourth-generation quarks and the relevant
Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix elements are derived in the context of a
simple extension of the standard model with a sequential fourth generation of
fermions. The existence of mass-degenerate fourth-generation quarks with masses
below 685 GeV is excluded at 95% confidence level for minimal off-diagonal
mixing between the third- and the fourth-generation quarks. With a mass
difference of 25 GeV between the quark masses, the obtained limit on the masses
of the fourth-generation quarks shifts by about +/- 20 GeV. These results
significantly reduce the allowed parameter space for a fourth generation of
fermions.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Measurement of the Z/gamma* + b-jet cross section in pp collisions at 7 TeV
The production of b jets in association with a Z/gamma* boson is studied
using proton-proton collisions delivered by the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy
of 7 TeV and recorded by the CMS detector. The inclusive cross section for
Z/gamma* + b-jet production is measured in a sample corresponding to an
integrated luminosity of 2.2 inverse femtobarns. The Z/gamma* + b-jet cross
section with Z/gamma* to ll (where ll = ee or mu mu) for events with the
invariant mass 60 < M(ll) < 120 GeV, at least one b jet at the hadron level
with pT > 25 GeV and abs(eta) < 2.1, and a separation between the leptons and
the jets of Delta R > 0.5 is found to be 5.84 +/- 0.08 (stat.) +/- 0.72 (syst.)
+(0.25)/-(0.55) (theory) pb. The kinematic properties of the events are also
studied and found to be in agreement with the predictions made by the MadGraph
event generator with the parton shower and the hadronisation performed by
PYTHIA.Comment: Submitted to the Journal of High Energy Physic
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