5,811 research outputs found
Stellar Winds on the Main-Sequence I: Wind Model
Aims: We develop a method for estimating the properties of stellar winds for
low-mass main-sequence stars between masses of 0.4 and 1.1 solar masses at a
range of distances from the star.
Methods: We use 1D thermal pressure driven hydrodynamic wind models run using
the Versatile Advection Code. Using in situ measurements of the solar wind, we
produce models for the slow and fast components of the solar wind. We consider
two radically different methods for scaling the base temperature of the wind to
other stars: in Model A, we assume that wind temperatures are fundamentally
linked to coronal temperatures, and in Model B, we assume that the sound speed
at the base of the wind is a fixed fraction of the escape velocity. In Paper II
of this series, we use observationally constrained rotational evolution models
to derive wind mass loss rates.
Results: Our model for the solar wind provides an excellent description of
the real solar wind far from the solar surface, but is unrealistic within the
solar corona. We run a grid of 1200 wind models to derive relations for the
wind properties as a function of stellar mass, radius, and wind temperature.
Using these results, we explore how wind properties depend on stellar mass and
rotation.
Conclusions: Based on our two assumptions about the scaling of the wind
temperature, we argue that there is still significant uncertainty in how these
properties should be determined. Resolution of this uncertainty will probably
require both the application of solar wind physics to other stars and detailed
observational constraints on the properties of stellar winds. In the final
section of this paper, we give step by step instructions for how to apply our
results to calculate the stellar wind conditions far from the stellar surface.Comment: 24 pages, 13 figures, 2 tables, Accepted for publication in A&
VLBI imaging of extremely high redshift quasars at 5 GHz
We present very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) images of ten very high
redshift (z>3) quasars at 5 GHz. The sources 0004+139, 0830+101, 0906+041,
0938+119 and 1500+045 were observed in September 1992 using a global VLBI
array, while 0046+063, 0243+181, 1338+381, 1428+423 and 1557+032 were observed
in October 1996 with the European VLBI Network and Hartebeesthoek, South
Africa. Most of the sources are resolved and show asymmetric structure. The
sample includes 1428+423, the most distant radio loud quasar known to date
(z=4.72). It is barely resolved with an angular resolution of about 2.0*1.4
mas.Comment: Astronomy and Astrophysics, in press, Latex2e, 10 pages, 3 figures
(and lots of sub-figures
Magnetic Effects Change Our View of the Heliosheath
There is currently a controversy as to whether Voyager 1 has already crossed
the Termination Shock, the first boundary of the Heliosphere. The region
between the Termination Shock and the Heliopause, the Helisheath, is one of the
most unknown regions theoretically. In the Heliosheath magnetic effects are
crucial, as the solar magnetic field is compressed at the Termination Shock by
the slowing flow. Recently, our simulations showed that the Heliosheath
presents remarkable dynamics, with turbulent flows and the presence of a jet
flow at the current sheet that is unstable due to magnetohydrodynamic
instabilities \cite{opher,opher1}. In this paper we review these recent
results, and present an additional simulation with constant neutral atom
background. In this case the jet is still present but with reduced intensity.
Further study, e.g., including neutrals and the tilt of the solar rotation from
the magnetic axis, is required before we can definitively address how the
Heliosheath behaves. Already we can say that this region presents remarkable
dynamics, with turbulent flows, indicating that the Heliosheath might be very
different from what we previously thought.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, to appear in IGPP 3rd Annual International
Astrophysics Conference, "PHYSICS OF THE OUTER HELIOSPHERE
VSOP observation of the quasar PKS 2215+020: a new laboratory for core-jet physics at z=3.572
We report results of a VSOP (VLBI Space Observatory Programme) observation of
a high redshift quasar PKS 2215+020 (z=3.572). The ~1 milliarcsecond resolution
image of the quasar reveals a prominent `core-jet' structure on linear scales
from 5/h to 300/h pc ($H_0=100*h km/(s*Mpc). The brightness temperatures and
sizes of bright features identified in the jet are consistent with emission
from relativistic shocks dominated by adiabatic energy losses. The jet is
powered by the central black hole with estimated mass of ~4*10^9 solar masses.
Comparisons with VLA and ROSAT observations indicate a possible presence of an
extended radio/X-ray halo surrounding 2215+020.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, aastex macros; accepted for publication in The
Astrophysical Journal, V.546, N.2 *(January 10 2001
Hall Effect in the coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Magnetohydrodynamics simulations have been carried out in studying the solar
wind and cometary plasma interactions for decades. Various plasma boundaries
have been simulated and compared well with observations for comet 1P/Halley.
The Rosetta mission, which studies comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, challenges
our understanding of the solar wind and comet interactions. The Rosetta Plasma
Consortium observed regions of very weak magnetic field outside the predicted
diamagnetic cavity. In this paper, we simulate the inner coma with the Hall
magnetohydrodynamics equations and show that the Hall effect is important in
the inner coma environment. The magnetic field topology becomes complex and
magnetic reconnection occurs on the dayside when the Hall effect is taken into
account. The magnetic reconnection on the dayside can generate weak magnetic
filed regions outside the global diamagnetic cavity, which may explain the
Rosetta Plasma Consortium observations. We conclude that the substantial change
in the inner coma environment is due to the fact that the ion inertial length
(or gyro radius) is not much smaller than the size of the diamagnetic cavity.Comment: 23 pages, 6 figur
Athena: A New Code for Astrophysical MHD
A new code for astrophysical magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) is described. The
code has been designed to be easily extensible for use with static and adaptive
mesh refinement. It combines higher-order Godunov methods with the constrained
transport (CT) technique to enforce the divergence-free constraint on the
magnetic field. Discretization is based on cell-centered volume-averages for
mass, momentum, and energy, and face-centered area-averages for the magnetic
field. Novel features of the algorithm include (1) a consistent framework for
computing the time- and edge-averaged electric fields used by CT to evolve the
magnetic field from the time- and area-averaged Godunov fluxes, (2) the
extension to MHD of spatial reconstruction schemes that involve a
dimensionally-split time advance, and (3) the extension to MHD of two different
dimensionally-unsplit integration methods. Implementation of the algorithm in
both C and Fortran95 is detailed, including strategies for parallelization
using domain decomposition. Results from a test suite which includes problems
in one-, two-, and three-dimensions for both hydrodynamics and MHD are given,
not only to demonstrate the fidelity of the algorithms, but also to enable
comparisons to other methods. The source code is freely available for download
on the web.Comment: 61 pages, 36 figures. accepted by ApJ
Group A streptococcal vaccine delivery by immunization with a self-adjuvanting M protein-based lipid core peptide construct
Background & objectives: To develop a broad strain coverage GAS vaccine, several strategies have been investigated which included multi-epitope approaches as well as targeting the M protein conserved C-region. These approaches, however, have relied on the use of adjuvants that are toxic for human application. The development of safe and effective adjuvants for human use is a key issue in the development of effective vaccines. In this study, we investigated the lipid polylysine core peptide (LCP) system as a self-adjuvanting GAS vaccine delivery approach. Methods: An LCP-GAS construct was synthesised incorporating multiple copies of a protective peptide epitope (J8) from the conserved carboxy terminal C-repeat region of the M protein. B10.BR mice were immunized parenterally with the LCP-J8 construct, with or without conventional adjuvant, prior to the assessment of immunogenicity and the induction of serum opsonic antibodies. Results: Our data demonstrated immunogenicity of LCP-J8 when coadministered in complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA), or administered in the absence of conventional adjuvant. In both cases, immunization led to the induction of high-titre J8 peptide-specific serum IgG antibody responses, and the induction of heterologous opsonic antibodies that did not cross-react with human heart tissue proteins. Interpretation & conclusion: These data indicated the potential of a novel self-adjuvanting LCP vaccine delivery system incorporating a synthetic GAS M protein C-region peptide immunogen in the induction of broadly protective immune responses, and pointed to the potential application of this system in human vaccine development against infectious diseases
A CO survey on a sample of Herschel cold clumps
Context. The physical state of cold cloud clumps has a great impact on the process and efficiency of star formation and the masses of the forming stars inside these objects. The sub-millimetre survey of the Planck space observatory and the far-infrared follow-up mapping of the Herschel space telescope provide an unbiased, large sample of these cold objects. Aims. We have observed (CO)-C-12(1-0) and (CO)-C-13(1-0) emission in 35 high-density clumps in 26 Herschel fields sampling different environments in the Galaxy. Here, we aim to derive the physical properties of the objects and estimate their gravitational stability. Methods. The densities and temperatures of the clumps were calculated from both the dust continuum and the molecular line data. Kinematic distances were derived using (CO)-C-13(1-0) line velocities to verify previous distance estimates and the sizes and masses of the objects were calculated by fitting 2D Gaussian functions to their optical depth distribution maps on 250 mu m. The masses and virial masses were estimated assuming an upper and lower limit on the kinetic temperatures and considering uncertainties due to distance limitations. Results. The derived excitation temperatures are between 8.5-19.5 K, and for most clumps between 10 15 K, while the Herschel-derived dust colour temperatures are more uniform, between 12 16 K. The sizes (0.1-3 pc), (CO)-C-13 column densities (0.5-44 x 10(15) cm(-2)) and masses (from less than 0.1 M-circle dot to more than 1500 M-circle dot) of the objects all span broad ranges. We provide new kinematic distance estimates, identify gravitationally bound or unbound structures and discuss their nature. Conclusions. The sample contains objects on a wide scale of temperatures, densities and sizes. Eleven gravitationally unbound clumps were found, many of them smaller than 0.3 pc, but large, parsec-scale clouds with a few hundred solar masses appear as well. Colder clumps have generally high column densities but warmer objects appear at both low and higher column densities. The clump column densities derived from the line and dust observations correlate well, but are heavily affected by uncertainties of the dust properties, varying molecular abundances and optical depth effects.Peer reviewe
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