3,210 research outputs found
A Measurement of Proper Motions of SiO Maser Sources in the Galactic Center with the VLBA
We report on the high-precision astrometric observations of maser sources
around the Galactic Center in the SiO J=1--0 v=1 and 2 lines with the VLBA
during 2001 -- 2004. With phase-referencing interferometry referred to the
radio continuum source Sgr A*, accurate positions of masers were obtained for
three detected objects: IRS 10 EE (7 epochs), IRS 15NE (2 epochs), and SiO 6
(only 1 epoch). Because circumstellar masers of these objects were resolved
into several components, proper motions for the maser sources were derived with
several different methods. Combining our VLBA results with those of the
previous VLA observations, we obtained the IRS 10EE proper motion of 76+-3 km
s^{-1} (at 8 kpc) to the south relative to Sgr A*. Almost null proper motion of
this star in the east--west direction results in a net transverse motion of the
infrared reference frame of about 30+-9 km s^{-1} to the west relative to Sgr
A*. The proper-motion data also suggests that IRS 10EE is an astrometric binary
with an unseen massive companion.Comment: High-res. figures are available at
ftp://ftp.nro.nao.ac.jp/nroreport/no656.pdf.gz . PASJ 60, No. 1 (2008) in
pres
Yearly variations in the low-latitude topside ionosphere
International audienceObservations made by the Hinotori satellite have been analysed to determine the yearly variations of the electron density and electron temperature in the low-latitude topside ionosphere. The observations reveal the existence of an equinoctial asymmetry in the topside electron density at low latitudes, i.e. the density is higher at one equinox than at the other. The asymmetry is hemisphere-dependent with the higher electron density occurring at the March equinox in the Northern Hemisphere and at the September equinox in the Southern Hemisphere. The asymmetry becomes stronger with increasing latitude in both hemispheres. The behaviour of the asymmetry has no significant longitudinal and magnetic activity variations. A mechanism for the equinoctial asymmetry has been investigated using CTIP (coupled thermosphere ionosphere plasmasphere model). The model results reproduce the observed equinoctial asymmetry and suggest that the asymmetry is caused by the north-south imbalance of the thermosphere and ionosphere at the equinoxes due to the slow response of the thermosphere arising from the effects of the global thermospheric circulation. The observations also show that the relationship between the electron density and electron temperature is different for daytime and nighttime. During daytime the yearly variation of the electron temperature has negative correlation with the electron density, except at magnetic latitudes lower than 10°. At night, the correlation is positive
Diffraction dissociation in proton-proton collisions at = 0.9 TeV, 2.76 TeV and 7 TeV with ALICE at the LHC
The relative rates of single- and double- diffractive processes were measured
with the ALICE detector by studying properties of gaps in the pseudorapidity
distribution of particles produced in proton-proton collisions at =
0.9 TeV, 2.76 TeV and 7 TeV. ALICE triggering efficiencies are determined for
various classes of events, using a detector simulation validated with data on
inclusive particle production. Cross-sections are determined using van der Meer
scans to measure beam properties and obtain a measurement of the luminosity
DNA replication: archaeal oriGINS
GINS is an essential eukaryotic DNA replication factor that is found in a simplified form in Archaea. A new study in this issue of BMC Biology reveals the first structure of the archaeal GINS complex. The structure reveals the anticipated similarity to the previously determined eukaryotic complex but also has some intriguing differences in the relative disposition of subunit domains
Dark matter annihilation at the galactic center
If cold dark matter is present at the galactic center, as in current models
of the dark halo, it is accreted by the central black hole into a dense spike.
Particle dark matter then annihilates strongly inside the spike, making it a
compact source of photons, electrons, positrons, protons, antiprotons, and
neutrinos. The spike luminosity depends on the density profile of the inner
halo: halos with finite cores have unnoticeable spikes, while halos with inner
cusps may have spikes so bright that the absence of a detected neutrino signal
from the galactic center already places interesting upper limits on the density
slope of the inner halo. Future neutrino telescopes observing the galactic
center could probe the inner structure of the dark halo, or indirectly find the
nature of dark matter.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
The MSW Effect in Quantum Field Theory
We show in detail the general relationship between the Schr\"{o}dinger
equation approach to calculating the MSW effect and the quantum field
theoretical S-matrix approach. We show the precise form a generic neutrino
propagator must have to allow a physically meaningful ``oscillation
probability'' to be decoupled from neutrino production fluxes and detection
cross-sections, and explicitly list the conditions---not realized in cases of
current experimental interest---in which the field theory approach would be
useful.Comment: 20 page REVTeX file, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Development and operational experience of magnetic horn system for T2K experiment
A magnetic horn system to be operated at a pulsed current of 320 kA and to
survive high-power proton beam operation at 750 kW was developed for the T2K
experiment. The first set of T2K magnetic horns was operated for over 12
million pulses during the four years of operation from 2010 to 2013, under a
maximum beam power of 230 kW, and protons were exposed to
the production target. No significant damage was observed throughout this
period. This successful operation of the T2K magnetic horns led to the
discovery of the oscillation phenomenon in 2013 by
the T2K experiment. In this paper, details of the design, construction, and
operation experience of the T2K magnetic horns are described.Comment: 22 pages, 40 figures, also submitted to Nuclear Instrument and
Methods in Physics Research,
Super-Kamiokande atmospheric neutrino data, zenith distributions, and three-flavor oscillations
We present a detailed analysis of the zenith angle distributions of
atmospheric neutrino events observed in the Super-Kamiokande (SK) underground
experiment, assuming two-flavor and three-flavor oscillations (with one
dominant mass scale) among active neutrinos. In particular, we calculate the
five angular distributions associated to sub-GeV and multi-GeV \mu-like and
e-like events and to upward through-going muons, for a total of 30 accurately
computed observables (zenith bins). First we study how such observables vary
with the oscillation parameters, and then we perform a fit to the experimental
data as measured in SK for an exposure of 33 kTy (535 days). In the two-flavor
mixing case, we confirm the results of the SK Collaboration analysis, namely,
that \nu_\mu\nu_\tau oscillations are preferred over \nu_\mu\nu_e,
and that the no oscillation case is excluded with high confidence. In the
three-flavor mixing case, we perform our analysis with and without the
additional constraints imposed by the CHOOZ reactor experiment. In both cases,
the analysis favors a dominance of the \nu_\mu\nu_\tau channel. Without
the CHOOZ constraints, the amplitudes of the subdominant \nu_\munu_e and
\nu_e\nu_\tau transitions can also be relatively large, indicating that,
at present, current SK data do not exclude sizable \nu_e mixing by themselves.
After combining the CHOOZ and SK data, the amplitudes of the subdominant
transitions are constrained to be smaller, but they can still play a
nonnegligible role both in atmospheric and other neutrino oscillation searches.
In particular, we find that the \nu_e appearance probability expected in long
baseline experiments can reach the testable level of ~15%.Comment: 35 pages (RevTeX), including 20 ps figures (with epsfig.sty
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