1,220 research outputs found
Развитие МБА в современных условиях (региональный аспект)
Precipitation is an important hydro-meteorological variable, and is a primary driver of the water cycle. In large parts of the world, real-time ground-based observations of precipitation are sparse and satellite-derived precipitation products are the only information source.We used changes in satellite-derived soil moisture (SM) and land surface temperature (LST) to reduce uncertainties in the real-time TRMM Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis product (TMPA-RT). The Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model was used to model the response of LST and SM on precipitation, and a particle filter was used to update TMPA-RT. Observations from AMSR-E (LPRM and LSMEM), ASCAT, SMOS and LST from AMSR-E were assimilated to correct TMPA-RT over the continental United States.Assimilation of satellite-based SM observations alone reduced the false detection of precipitation (by 85.4%) and the uncertainty in the retrieved rainfall volumes (5%). However, a higher number of observed rainfall events were not detected after assimilation (34%), compared to the original TMPA-RT (46%). Noise in the retrieved SM changes resulted in a relatively low potential to reduce uncertainties. Assimilation of LST observations alone increased the rainfall detection rate (by 51%), and annual precipitation totals were closer to ground-based precipitation observations. Combined assimilation of both satellite SM and LST, did not significantly reduce the uncertainties compared to the original TMPA-RT, because of the influence of satellite SM over LST. However, in central United States improvements were found after combined assimilation of SM and LST observations. This study shows the potential for reducing the uncertainties in TMPA-RT estimates over sparsely gauged areas
Long-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency
A new case of 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency is described with a relatively benign course
Підтексти драм Лесі Українки
У драмах Лесі Українки має місце діалог з культурою декадансу, який увиразнює тематику меланхолії та похідних від неї мотивів усамітнення, небуття, долі, жертви.In Lesya Ukrainka’s dramas the dialogue with the culture of decadence is conducted that entails the prominent place of the theme of melancholy and the derivative motifs of solitude, non-existence, fate, martyr
Steps Toward Determination of the Size and Structure of the Broad-Line Region in Active Galactic Nuclei. XV. Long-Term Optical Monitoring of NGC 5548
We present the results of three years of ground-based observations of the
Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 5548, which combined with previously reported data, yield
optical continuum and broad-line H-beta light curves for a total of eight
years. The light curves consist of over 800 points, with a typical spacing of a
few days between observations. During this eight-year period, the nuclear
continuum has varied by more than a factor of seven, and the H-beta emission
line has varied by a factor of nearly six. The H-beta emission line responds to
continuum variations with a time delay or lag of 10-20 days, the precise value
varying somewhat from year to year. We find some indications that the lag
varies with continuum flux in the sense that the lag is larger when the source
is brighter.Comment: 29 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ (1999 Jan 10
Reverberation Mapping and the Physics of Active Galactic Nuclei
Reverberation-mapping campaigns have revolutionized our understanding of AGN.
They have allowed the direct determination of the broad-line region size,
enabled mapping of the gas distribution around the central black hole, and are
starting to resolve the continuum source structure. This review describes the
recent and successful campaigns of the International AGN Watch consortium,
outlines the theoretical background of reverberation mapping and the
calculation of transfer functions, and addresses the fundamental difficulties
of such experiments. It shows that such large-scale experiments have resulted
in a ``new BLR'' which is considerably different from the one we knew just ten
years ago. We discuss in some detail the more important new results, including
the luminosity-size-mass relationship for AGN, and suggest ways to proceed in
the near future.Comment: Review article to appear in Astronomical Time Series, Proceedings of
the Wise Observatory 25th Ann. Symposium. 24 pages including 7 figure
Correlated X-ray/Ultraviolet/Optical variability in the very low mass AGN NGC 4395
We report the results of a one year Swift X-ray/UV/optical programme
monitoring the dwarf Seyfert nucleus in NGC 4395 in 2008-2009. The UV/optical
flux from the nucleus was found to vary dramatically over the monitoring
period, with a similar pattern of variation in each of the observed UV/optical
bands (spanning 1900 - 5500 {\AA}). In particular, the luminosity of NGC 4395
in the 1900 {\AA} band changed by more than a factor of eight over the
monitoring period. The fractional variability was smaller in the UV/optical
bands than that seen in the X-rays, with the X-ray/optical ratio increasing
with increasing flux. Pseudo-instantaneous flux measurements in the X-ray and
each UV/optical band were well correlated, with cross correlation coefficients
of >0.7, significant at 99.9 per cent confidence. Archival Swift observations
from 2006 sample the intra-day X-ray/optical variability on NGC 4395. These
archival data show a very strong correlation between the X-ray and b bands,
with a cross-correlation coefficient of 0.84 (significant at >99 per cent
confidence). The peak in the cross correlation function is marginally resolved
and asymmetric, suggesting that X-rays lead the b band, but by 1 hour. In
response to recent (August 2011) very high X-ray flux levels from NGC4395 we
triggered Swift ToO observations, which sample the intra-hour X-ray/UV
variability. These observations indicate, albeit with large uncertainties, a
lag of the 1900 {\AA} band behind the X-ray flux of ~400 s. The tight
correlation between the X-ray and UV/optical lightcurves, together with the
constraints we place on lag time-scale are consistent with the UV/optical
variability of NGC 4395 being primarily due to reprocessing of X-ray photons by
the accretion disc.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA
X-ray Fluctuation Power Spectral Densities of Seyfert 1 Galaxies
By combining complementary monitoring observations spanning long, medium and
short time scales, we have constructed power spectral densities (PSDs) of six
Seyfert~1 galaxies. These PSDs span 4 orders of magnitude in temporal
frequency, sampling variations on time scales ranging from tens of minutes to
over a year. In at least four cases, the PSD shows a "break," a significant
departure from a power law, typically on time scales of order a few days. This
is similar to the behavior of Galactic X-ray binaries (XRBs), lower mass
compact systems with breaks on time scales of seconds. NGC 3783 shows tentative
evidence for a doubly-broken power law, a feature that until now has only been
seen in the (much better-defined) PSDs of low-state XRBs. It is also
interesting that (when one previously-observed object is added to make a small
sample of seven), an apparently significant correlation is seen between the
break time scale and the putative black hole mass , while none
is seen between break time scale and luminosity. The data are consistent with
the linear relation T = M_{\rm BH}/10^{6.5} \Msun; extrapolation over 6--7
orders of magnitude is in reasonable agreement with XRBs. All of this
strengthens the case for a physical similarity between Seyfert~1s and XRBs.Comment: 27 pages, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ. Typo correcte
Probing the Origins of the CIV and Fe Kalpha Baldwin Effect
We use UV/optical and X-ray observations of 272 radio-quiet Type 1 AGNs and
quasars to investigate the CIV Baldwin Effect (BEff). The UV/optical spectra
are drawn from the Hubble Space Telescope, International Ultraviolet Explorer
and Sloan Digital Sky Survey archives. The X-ray spectra are from the Chandra
and XMM-Newton archives. We apply correlation and partial-correlation analyses
to the equivalent widths, continuum monochromatic luminosities, and alpha_ox,
which characterizes the relative X-ray to UV brightness. The equivalent width
of the CIV 1549 emission line is correlated with both alpha_ox and luminosity.
We find that by regressing l_UV with EW(CIV) and alpha_ox, we can obtain
tighter correlations than by regressing l_UV with only EW(CIV). Both
correlation and regression analyses imply that l_UV is not the only factor
controlling the changes of EW(CIV); alpha_ox (or, equivalently, the soft X-ray
emission) plays a fundamental role in the formation and variation of CIV.
Variability contributes at least 60% of the scatter of the EW(CIV)-l_UV
relation and at least 75% of the scatter of the of the EW(CIV)-alpha_ox
relation.
In our sample, narrow Fe Kalpha 6.4 keV emission lines are detected in 50
objects. Although narrow Fe Kalpha exhibits a BEff similar to that of CIV, its
equivalent width has almost no dependence on either alpha_ox or EW(CIV). This
suggests that the majority of narrow Fe Kalpha emission is unlikely to be
produced in the broad emission-line region. We do find suggestive correlations
between the emission-line luminosities of CIV and Fe Kalpha, which could be
potentially used to estimate the detectability of the Fe Kalpha line of quasars
from rest-frame UV spectroscopic observations
Probing Spectroscopic Variability of Galaxies & Narrow-Line Active Galactic Nuclei in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
Under the unified model for active galactic nuclei (AGNs), narrow-line (Type
2) AGNs are, in fact, broad-line (Type 1) AGNs but each with a heavily obscured
accretion disk. We would therefore expect the optical continuum emission from
Type 2 AGN to be composed mainly of stellar light and non-variable on the
time-scales of months to years. In this work we probe the spectroscopic
variability of galaxies and narrow-line AGNs using the multi-epoch data in the
Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 6. The sample contains 18,435
sources for which there exist pairs of spectroscopic observations (with a
maximum separation in time of ~700 days) covering a wavelength range of
3900-8900 angstrom. To obtain a reliable repeatability measurement between each
spectral pair, we consider a number of techniques for spectrophotometric
calibration resulting in an improved spectrophotometric calibration of a factor
of two. From these data we find no obvious continuum and emission-line
variability in the narrow-line AGNs on average -- the spectroscopic variability
of the continuum is 0.07+/-0.26 mag in the g band and, for the emission-line
ratios log10([NII]/Halpha) and log10([OIII]/Hbeta), the variability is
0.02+/-0.03 dex and 0.06+/-0.08 dex, respectively. From the continuum
variability measurement we set an upper limit on the ratio between the flux of
varying spectral component, presumably related to AGN activities, and that of
host galaxy to be ~30%. We provide the corresponding upper limits for other
spectral classes, including those from the BPT diagram, eClass galaxy
classification, stars and quasars.Comment: AJ accepte
Disparate MgII Absorption Statistics towards Quasars and Gamma-Ray Bursts : A Possible Explanation
We examine the recent report by Prochter et al. (2006) that gamma-ray burst
(GRB) sight lines have a much higher incidence of strong MgII absorption than
quasar sight lines. We propose that the discrepancy is due to the different
beam sizes of GRBs and quasars, and that the intervening MgII systems are
clumpy with the dense part of each cloudlet of a similar size as the quasars,
i.e. < 10^16 cm, but bigger than GRBs. We also discuss observational
predictions of our proposed model. Most notably, in some cases the intervening
MgII absorbers in GRB spectra should be seen varying, and quasars with smaller
sizes should show an increased rate of strong MgII absorbers. In fact, our
prediction of variable MgII lines in the GRB spectra has been now confirmed by
Hao et al. (2007), who observed intervening FeII and MgII lines at z=1.48 to be
strongly variable in the multi-epoch spectra of z=4.05 GRB060206.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures; substantially revised model calculation;
accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Science as a Lette
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