8,279 research outputs found
A Radio--Optical Reference Frame VIII. CCD observations from KPNO and CTIO: internal calibration and first results
In this pilot investigation, precise optical positions in the FK5 system are
presented for a set of 16 compact extragalactic radio sources, which will be
part of the future radio--optical reference frame. The 0.9 m KPNO and CTIO
telescopes equipped with 2K CCD's have been used for this project. The
astrometric properties of these instruments are investigated in detail. New
techniques of using wide field CCD observations for astrometry in general are
developed. An internal precision of 5 to 31 mas in position per single exposure
is found, depending on the brightness of the object. The tie to the primary
optical reference system is established by photographic astrometry using
dedicated astrographs on both hemispheres. An accuracy of mas per
source is estimated for the multi--step reduction procedure when based on the
future Hipparcos catalog, while the FK5--based positions suffer from system
errors of 100 to 200 mas as compared to the radio positions. This work provides
a contribution to the international effort to link the Hipparcos instrumental
coordinate system to the quasi--inertial VLBI radio reference frame. Precise
radio and optical astrometry of a large sample of compact extragalactic sources
will also contribute to the astrophysics of these objects by comparing the
respective centers of emission at the optical and radio wavelengths.Comment: AAS v.4 LaTeX, 2 parts on 1 file (main text + deluxetable), accepted
by AJ, Dec.95, fig. with reprint
The StarScan plate measuring machine: overview and calibrations
The StarScan machine at the U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO) completed measuring
photographic astrograph plates to allow determination of proper motions for the
USNO CCD Astrograph Catalog (UCAC) program. All applicable 1940 AGK2 plates,
about 2200 Hamburg Zone Astrograph plates, 900 Black Birch (USNO Twin
Astrograph) plates, and 300 Lick Astrograph plates have been measured. StarScan
comprises of a CCD camera, telecentric lens, air-bearing granite table, stepper
motor screws, and Heidenhain scales to operate in a step-stare mode. The
repeatability of StarScan measures is about 0.2 micrometer. The CCD mapping as
well as the global table coordinate system has been calibrated using a special
dot calibration plate and the overall accuracy of StarScan x,y data is derived
to be 0.5 micrometer. Application to real photographic plate data shows that
position information of at least 0.65 micrometer accuracy can be extracted from
course grain 103a-type emulsion astrometric plates. Transformations between
"direct" and "reverse" measures of fine grain emulsion plate measures are
obtained on the 0.3 micrometer level per well exposed stellar image and
coordinate, which is at the limit of the StarScan machine.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figures, accepted for PAS
Optimizing sampling strategies in high-resolution paleoclimate records
The aim of paleoclimate studies resolving climate variability from noisy
proxy records can in essence be reduced to a statistical problem. The
challenge is to extract meaningful information about climate variability
from these records by reducing measurement uncertainty through combining
measurements for proxies while retaining the temporal resolution needed to
assess the timing and duration of variations in climate parameters. In this
study, we explore the limits of this compromise by testing different methods
for combining proxy data (smoothing, binning, and sample size optimization)
on a particularly challenging paleoclimate problem: resolving seasonal
variability in stable isotope records. We test and evaluate the effects of
changes in the seasonal temperature and the hydrological cycle as well as
changes in the accretion rate of the archive and parameters such as sampling
resolution and age model uncertainty in the reliability of seasonality
reconstructions based on clumped and oxygen isotope analyses in 33 real and
virtual datasets. Our results show that strategic combinations of clumped
isotope analyses can significantly improve the accuracy of seasonality
reconstructions compared to conventional stable oxygen isotope analyses,
especially in settings in which the isotopic composition of the water is poorly
constrained. Smoothing data using a moving average often leads to an
apparent dampening of the seasonal cycle, significantly reducing the
accuracy of reconstructions. A statistical sample size optimization protocol
yields more precise results than smoothing. However, the most accurate
results are obtained through monthly binning of proxy data, especially in
cases in which growth rate or water composition cycles obscure the seasonal
temperature cycle. Our analysis of a wide range of natural situations
reveals that the effect of temperature seasonality on oxygen isotope records
almost invariably exceeds that of changes in water composition. Thus, in
most cases, oxygen isotope records allow reliable identification of growth
seasonality as a basis for age modeling in the absence of independent
chronological markers in the record. These specific findings allow us to
formulate general recommendations for sampling and combining data in
paleoclimate research and have implications beyond the reconstruction of
seasonality. We briefly discuss the implications of our results for solving
common problems in paleoclimatology and stratigraphy.</p
Retrieval methods of effective cloud cover for the GOME instrument: an intercomparison
International audienceThe radiative scattering by clouds leads to errors in the retrieval of column densities and concentration profiles of atmospheric trace gas species from satellites. Moreover, the presence of clouds changes the UV actinic flux and the photo-dissociation rates of various species significantly. The Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) instrument on the ERS-2 satellite, principally designed to retrieve trace gases in the atmosphere is also capable of detecting clouds. Four cloud fraction retrieval methods for GOME data that have been developed are discussed in this paper (the Initial Cloud Fitting Algorithm, the PMD Cloud Retrieval Algorithm, the Optical Cloud Recognition Algorithm and the Fast Retrieval Scheme for Cloud Observables). Their results of cloud fraction retrieval are compared to each-other and also to synoptic surface observations. It is shown that all studied retrieval methods calculate an effective cloud fraction that is related to a cloud with a high optical thickness. Generally, we found ICFA to produce the lowest cloud fractions, followed by OCRA, then FRESCO and PC2K along four processed tracks (+2%, +10% and +15% compared to ICFA respectively). Synoptical surface observations gave the highest absolute cloud fraction when compared with individual PMD sub-pixels of roughly the same size
Retrieval methods of effective cloud cover from the GOME instrument: an intercomparison
The radiative scattering by clouds leads to errors in the retrieval of column densities and concentration profiles of atmospheric trace gas species from satellites. Moreover, the presence of clouds changes the UV actinic flux and the photo-dissociation rates of various species significantly. The Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) instrument on the ERS-2 satellite, principally designed to retrieve trace gases in the atmosphere, is also capable of detecting clouds. Four cloud fraction retrieval methods for GOME data that have been developed are discussed in this paper (the Initial Cloud Fitting Algorithm, the PMD Cloud Recognition Algorithm, the Optical Cloud Recognition Algorithm (an in-house version and the official implementation) and the Fast Retrieval Scheme for Clouds from the Oxygen A-band). Their results of cloud fraction retrieval are compared to each-other and also to synoptic surface observations. It is shown that all studied retrieval methods calculate an effective cloud fraction that is related to a cloud with a high optical thickness. Generally, we found ICFA to produce the lowest cloud fractions, followed by our in-house OCRA implementation, FRESCO, PC2K and finally the official OCRA implementation along four processed tracks (+2%, +10%, +15% and +25% compared to ICFA respectively). Synoptical surface observations gave the highest absolute cloud fraction when compared with individual PMD sub-pixels of roughly the same size
Development of ultra-light pixelated ladders for an ILC vertex detector
The development of ultra-light pixelated ladders is motivated by the
requirements of the ILD vertex detector at ILC. This paper summarizes three
projects related to system integration. The PLUME project tackles the issue of
assembling double-sided ladders. The SERWIETE project deals with a more
innovative concept and consists in making single-sided unsupported ladders
embedded in an extra thin plastic enveloppe. AIDA, the last project, aims at
building a framework reproducing the experimental running conditions where sets
of ladders could be tested
Stripe-hexagon competition in forced pattern forming systems with broken up-down symmetry
We investigate the response of two-dimensional pattern forming systems with a
broken up-down symmetry, such as chemical reactions, to spatially resonant
forcing and propose related experiments. The nonlinear behavior immediately
above threshold is analyzed in terms of amplitude equations suggested for a
and ratio between the wavelength of the spatial periodic forcing
and the wavelength of the pattern of the respective system. Both sets of
coupled amplitude equations are derived by a perturbative method from the
Lengyel-Epstein model describing a chemical reaction showing Turing patterns,
which gives us the opportunity to relate the generic response scenarios to a
specific pattern forming system. The nonlinear competition between stripe
patterns and distorted hexagons is explored and their range of existence,
stability and coexistence is determined. Whereas without modulations hexagonal
patterns are always preferred near onset of pattern formation, single mode
solutions (stripes) are favored close to threshold for modulation amplitudes
beyond some critical value. Hence distorted hexagons only occur in a finite
range of the control parameter and their interval of existence shrinks to zero
with increasing values of the modulation amplitude. Furthermore depending on
the modulation amplitude the transition between stripes and distorted hexagons
is either sub- or supercritical.Comment: 10 pages, 12 figures, submitted to Physical Review
New interactions: past and future experiments
In this talk I will review the present status and future perspectives of some
popular extensions of the conventional three-neutrino oscillation scenario,
from a purely phenomenological point of view. For concreteness I will focus
only on three specific scenarios: non-standard neutrino interactions with
matters, models with extra sterile neutrinos, and neutrino decay and
decoherence.Comment: LaTeX file using jpconf class, 8 pages, 2 tables. Proceedings of the
"XXIII International Conference on Neutrino Physics and Astrophysics"
(Neutrino 08), Christchurch, New Zealand, May 25-31, 200
Towards future pedestrian-vehicle interactions: Introducing theoretically-supported AR prototypes
The future urban environment may consist of mixed traffic in which pedestrians interact with automated vehicles (AVs). However, it is still unclear how AVs should communicate their intentions to pedestrians. Augmented reality (AR) technology could transform the future of interactions between pedestrians and AVs by offering targeted and individualized communication. This paper presents nine prototypes of AR concepts for pedestrian-AV interaction that are implemented and demonstrated in a real crossing environment. Each concept was based on expert perspectives and designed using theoretically-informed brainstorming sessions. Prototypes were implemented in Unity MARS and subsequently tested on an unmarked road using a standalone iPad Pro with LiDAR functionality. Despite the limitations of the technology, this paper offers an indication of how future AR systems may support future pedestrian-AV interactions
Extended Classical Over-Barrier Model for Collisions of Highly Charged Ions with Conducting and Insulating Surfaces
We have extended the classical over-barrier model to simulate the
neutralization dynamics of highly charged ions interacting under grazing
incidence with conducting and insulating surfaces. Our calculations are based
on simple model rates for resonant and Auger transitions. We include effects
caused by the dielectric response of the target and, for insulators, localized
surface charges. Characteristic deviations regarding the charge transfer
processes from conducting and insulating targets to the ion are discussed. We
find good agreement with previously published experimental data for the image
energy gain of a variety of highly charged ions impinging on Au, Al, LiF and KI
crystals.Comment: 32 pages http://pikp28.uni-muenster.de/~ducree
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