On the Symmetries of the Edgar-Ludwig Metric

The conformal Killing equations for the most general (non-plane wave) conformally flat pure radiation field are solved to find the conformal Killing vectors. As expected fifteen independent conformal Killing vectors exist, but in general the metric admits no Killing or homothetic vectors. However for certain special cases a one-dimensional group of homotheties or motions may exist and in one very special case, overlooked by previous investigators, a two-dimensional homethety group exists. No higher dimensional groups of motions or homotheties are admitted by these metrics.Comment: Plain TeX, 7 pages, No figure

Explicit Kundt type II and N solutions as gravitational waves in various type D and O universes

A particular yet large class of non-diverging solutions which admits a cosmological constant, electromagnetic field, pure radiation and/or general non-null matter component is explicitly presented. These spacetimes represent exact gravitational waves of arbitrary profiles which propagate in background universes such as Minkowski, conformally flat (anti-)de Sitter, Edgar-Ludwig, Bertotti-Robinson, and type D (anti-)Nariai or Plebanski-Hacyan spaces, and their generalizations. All possibilities are discussed and are interpreted using a unifying simple metric form. Sandwich and impulsive waves propagating in the above background spaces with different geometries and matter content can easily be constructed. New solutions are identified, e.g. type D pure radiation or explicit type II electrovacuum waves in (anti-)Nariai universe. It is also shown that, in general, there are no conformally flat Einstein-Maxwell fields with a non-vanishing cosmological constant.Comment: 17 pages, LaTeX 2e. v2: added two references concerning generalized Kerr-Schild transformations, minor changes in the tex

All spacetimes with vanishing curvature invariants

All Lorentzian spacetimes with vanishing invariants constructed from the Riemann tensor and its covariant derivatives are determined. A subclass of the Kundt spacetimes results and we display the corresponding metrics in local coordinates. Some potential applications of these spacetimes are discussed.Comment: 24 page

Conserved superenergy currents

We exploit once again the analogy between the energy-momentum tensor and the so-called ``superenergy'' tensors in order to build conserved currents in the presence of Killing vectors. First of all, we derive the divergence-free property of the gravitational superenergy currents under very general circumstances, even if the superenergy tensor is not divergence-free itself. The associated conserved quantities are explicitly computed for the Reissner-Nordstrom and Schwarzschild solutions. The remaining cases, when the above currents are not conserved, lead to the possibility of an interchange of some superenergy quantities between the gravitational and other physical fields in such a manner that the total, mixed, current may be conserved. Actually, this possibility has been recently proved to hold for the Einstein-Klein-Gordon system of field equations. By using an adequate family of known exact solutions, we present explicit and completely non-obvious examples of such mixed conserved currents.Comment: LaTeX, 19 pages; improved version adding new content to the second section and some minor correction

Geodesic motion in the Kundt spacetimes and the character of envelope singularity

We investigate geodesics in specific Kundt type N (or conformally flat) solutions to Einstein's equations. Components of the curvature tensor in parallelly transported tetrads are then explicitly evaluated and analyzed. This elucidates some interesting global properties of the spacetimes, such as an inherent rotation of the wave-propagation direction, or the character of singularities. In particular, we demonstrate that the characteristic envelope singularity of the rotated wave-fronts is a (non-scalar) curvature singularity, although all scalar invariants of the Riemann tensor vanish there.Comment: 21 pages, 3 figures. To appear in Class. Quantum Gra

Monitoring international migration flows in Europe. Towards a statistical data base combining data from different sources

The paper reviews techniques developed in demography, geography and statistics that are useful for bridging the gap between available data on international migration flows and the information required for policy making and research. The basic idea of the paper is as follows: to establish a coherent and consistent data base that contains sufficiently detailed, up-to-date and accurate information, data from several sources should be combined. That raises issues of definition and measurement, and of how to combine data from different origins properly. The issues may be tackled more easily if the statistics that are being compiled are viewed as different outcomes or manifestations of underlying stochastic processes governing migration. The link between the processes and their outcomes is described by models, the parameters of which must be estimated from the available data. That may be done within the context of socio-demographic accounting. The paper discusses the experience of the U.S. Bureau of the Census in combining migration data from several sources. It also summarizes the many efforts in Europe to establish a coherent and consistent data base on international migration. The paper was written at IIASA. It is part of the Migration Estimation Study, which is a collaborative IIASA-University of Groningen project, funded by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO). The project aims at developing techniques to obtain improved estimates of international migration flows by country of origin and country of destination

Identification of new cataclysmic variables in the 1RXS and USNO-B1.0 catalogs

As a result of applying the original optical variability search method on publicly available data, we have found eight new cataclysmic variables and two possible Optically Violent Variable quasars among the previously unidentified X-ray sources in the ROSAT catalog. We describe the search method and present the characteristics of the newly identified variable stars. The obtained results demonstrate the large potential of the concept of Virtual Observatory for identifying new objects of astrophysical interest.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures, 2 tables; submitted to Astronomy Letter

Static charged perfect fluid spheres in general relativity

Interior perfect fluid solutions for the Reissner-Nordstrom metric are studied on the basis of a new classification scheme. General formulas are found in many cases. Explicit new global solutions are given as illustrations. Known solutions are briefly reviewed.Comment: 23 pages, Revtex (galley), journal version, to appear in Phys.Rev.

Invariant classification and the generalised invariant formalism: conformally flat pure radiation metrics, with zero cosmological constant

Metrics obtained by integrating within the generalised invariant formalism are structured around their intrinsic coordinates, and this considerably simplifies their invariant classification and symmetry analysis. We illustrate this by presenting a simple and transparent complete invariant classification of the conformally flat pure radiation metrics (except plane waves) in such intrinsic coordinates; in particular we confirm that the three apparently non-redundant functions of one variable are genuinely non-redundant, and easily identify the subclasses which admit a Killing and/or a homothetic Killing vector. Most of our results agree with the earlier classification carried out by Skea in the different Koutras-McIntosh coordinates, which required much more involved calculations; but there are some subtle differences. Therefore, we also rework the classification in the Koutras-McIntosh coordinates, and by paying attention to some of the subtleties involving arbitrary functions, we are able to obtain complete agreement with the results obtained in intrinsic coordinates. In particular, we have corrected and completed statements and results by Edgar and Vickers, and by Skea, about the orders of Cartan invariants at which particular information becomes available.Comment: Extended version of GRG publication, with some typos etc correcte

Homothetic perfect fluid space-times

A brief summary of results on homotheties in General Relativity is given, including general information about space-times admitting an r-parameter group of homothetic transformations for r>2, as well as some specific results on perfect fluids. Attention is then focussed on inhomogeneous models, in particular on those with a homothetic group $H_4$ (acting multiply transitively) and $H_3$. A classification of all possible Lie algebra structures along with (local) coordinate expressions for the metric and homothetic vectors is then provided (irrespectively of the matter content), and some new perfect fluid solutions are given and briefly discussed.Comment: 27 pages, Latex file, Submitted to Class. Quantum Gra