1,650 research outputs found
Low-luminosity Extragalactic Water Masers toward M82, M51, and NGC4051
Sub-arcsecond observations using the Very Large Array (VLA) are presented for
low-luminosity water maser in M82, M51, and NGC4051. New maser features have
been detected within the M82 starburst complex. They are largely associated
with star-forming activity, such as optically identified starburst-driven
winds, H II regions, or the early phase of star formation in the galaxy. The
water maser in M51 consists of blueshifted and redshifted features relative to
thesystemic velocity of the galaxy. The redshifted features are measured to the
northwest of the nuclear radio source, while the location of the blueshifted
counterpart is displaced by about 2" from the radio source. A small velocity
gradient closely aligned with the radio jet is detected from the redshifted
features. The redshifted maser most likely amplifies the background radio
continuum jet, while the blueshifted counterpart marks off-nuclear star
formation in the galaxy. All of the detected maser features in the narrow-line
Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4051 remain unresolved by new VLA observations. Due to the
low luminosity of the maser, the maser excitation is not directly related to
the active galactic nucleus.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in AJ (17/Oct/2006
Effelsberg Observations of Excited-State (6.0 GHz) OH in Supernova Remnants and W3(OH)
While masers in the 1720 MHz transition of OH are detected toward many
supernova remnants (SNRs), no other OH transition is seen as a maser in SNRs.
We present a search for masers at 6049 MHz, which has recently been predicted
to produce masers by pure collisional excitation at conditions similar to that
required for 1720 MHz masing. The Effelsberg 100 m telescope was used to
observe the excited-state 6016, 6030, 6035, and 6049 MHz lines of OH toward
selected SNRs, most of which have previously-detected bright 1720 MHz masers.
No excited-state masers are found toward SNRs, consistent with previous
observations of the 6049 MHz and other excited-state transitions. We do not see
clear evidence of absorption toward SNR target positions, although we do see
evidence of absorption in the molecular cloud at +50 km/s near Sgr A East. Weak
absorption is detected at 6016 MHz toward W3(OH), while stronger, narrower
emission is seen at 6049 MHz, suggesting that the 6049 MHz emission is a
low-gain maser. We conclude that conditions in SNRs are not conducive to
excited-state maser emission, especially in excited-state satellite lines.Comment: 4 pages using emulateapj.cls including 2 tables and 1 figure,
accepted to ApJ
Empirical validity of the evaluation of public policies: models of evaluation and quality of evidence
There is a wide range of evaluation methods. On the basis of which criteria should one method be chosen? On what scientific foundations are the results of numerous evaluations based? How can reliability and empirical validity be tested? The relevance of such questions is heightened in new fields of action such as agri-environmental policy. This paper aims to demonstrate that theoretical advances on level and types of evidence (existence, causality, effectiveness) can help resolve these issues. The main evaluation methods are classified into three main categories, according to their main goal (to learn, measure, understand) and linked to the debate on types of evidence. The analysis is illustrated by comparing evaluation methods in the field of agroenvironmental policies and farm advisory services. Attention is drawn to the shortcomings of each method with respect to corroborating facts as well as existing complementarities and trade-offs between methods in terms of empirical validity.evaluation, evidence, agricultural extension, agri-environment, Agricultural and Food Policy, B49 H83 Q18 Q58,
ALMA observations of TiO around VY Canis Majoris
Titanium dioxide, TiO, is a refractory species that could play a crucial
role in the dust-condensation sequence around oxygen-rich evolved stars. To
date, gas phase TiO has been detected only in the complex environment of
the red supergiant VY CMa. We aim to constrain the distribution and excitation
of TiO around VY CMa in order to clarify its role in dust formation. We
analyse spectra and channel maps for TiO extracted from ALMA science
verification data. We detect 15 transitions of TiO, and spatially resolve
the emission for the first time. The maps demonstrate a highly clumpy,
anisotropic outflow in which the TiO emission likely traces gas exposed to
the stellar radiation field. A roughly east-west oriented, accelerating
bipolar-like structure is found, of which the blue component runs into and
breaks up around a solid continuum component. A distinct tail to the south-west
is seen for some transitions, consistent with features seen in the optical and
near-infrared. We find that a significant fraction of TiO remains in the
gas phase outside the dust-formation zone and suggest that this species might
play only a minor role in the dust-condensation process around extreme
oxygen-rich evolved stars like VY CMa.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics, 25 pages, 20
figure
Full-Polarization Observations of OH Masers in Massive Star-Forming Regions: I. Data
We present full-polarization VLBA maps of the ground-state, main-line, 2 Pi
3/2, J = 3/2 OH masers in 18 Galactic massive star-forming regions. This is the
first large polarization survey of interstellar hydroxyl masers at VLBI
resolution. A total of 184 Zeeman pairs are identified, and the corresponding
magnetic field strengths are indicated. We also present spectra of the NH3
emission or absorption in these star-forming regions. Analysis of these data
will be presented in a companion paper.Comment: 111 pages, including 42 figures and 21 tables, to appear in ApJ
Ground-State SiO Maser Emission Toward Evolved Stars
We have made the first unambiguous detection of vibrational ground-state
maser emission from SiO toward six evolved stars. Using the Very Large Array,
we simultaneously observed the v=0, J=1-0, 43.4-GHz, ground-state and the v=1,
J=1-0, 43.1-GHz, first excited-state transitions of SiO toward the oxygen-rich
evolved stars IRC+10011, o Ceti, W Hya, RX Boo, NML Cyg, and R Cas and the
S-type star chi Cyg. We detected at least one v=0 SiO maser feature from six of
the seven stars observed, with peak maser brightness temperatures ranging from
10,000 K to 108,800 K. In fact, four of the seven v=0 spectra show multiple
maser peaks, a phenomenon which has not been previously observed. Ground-state
thermal emission was detected for one of the stars, RX Boo, with a peak
brightness temperature of 200 K. Comparing the v=0 and the v=1 transitions, we
find that the ground-state masers are much weaker with spectral characteristics
different from those of the first excited-state masers. For four of the seven
stars the velocity dispersion is smaller for the v=0 emission than for the v=1
emission, for one star the dispersions are roughly equivalent, and for two
stars (one of which is RX Boo) the velocity spread of the v=0 emission is
larger. In most cases, the peak flux density in the v=0 emission spectrum does
not coincide with the v=1 maser peak. Although the angular resolution of these
VLA observations were insufficient to completely resolve the spatial structure
of the SiO emission, the SiO spot maps produced from the interferometric image
cubes suggest that the v=0 masers are more extended than their v=1
counterparts
Testing M2T/T2M Transformations
Presentado en: 16th International Conference on Model Driven Engineering Languages and Systems (MODELS 2013). Del 29 de septiembre al 4 de octubre. Miami, EEUU.Testing model-to-model (M2M) transformations is becoming a prominent topic in the current Model-driven Engineering landscape. Current approaches for transformation testing, however, assume having explicit model representations for the input domain and for the output domain of the transformation. This excludes other important transformation kinds, such as model-to-text (M2T) and text-to-model (T2M) transformations, from being properly tested since adequate model representations are missing either for the input domain or for the output domain. The contribution of this paper to overcome this gap is extending Tracts, a M2M transformation testing approach, for M2T/T2M transformation testing. The main mechanism we employ for reusing Tracts is to represent text within a generic metamodel. By this, we transform the M2T/T2M transformation specification problems into equivalent M2M transformation specification problems. We demonstrate the applicability of the approach by two examples and present how the approach is implemented for the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF). Finally, we apply the approach to evaluate code generation capabilities of several existing UML tools.Universidad de MĂĄlaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional AndalucĂa Tech. Proyecto TIN2011-2379
Hot gas and dust in a protostellar cluster near W3(OH
We used the IRAM Interferometer to obtain sub-arcsecond resolution
observations of the high-mass star-forming region W3(OH) and its surroundings
at a frequency of 220 GHz. With the improved angular resolution, we distinguish
3 peaks in the thermal dust continuum emission originating from the hot core
region about 6 arcsec (0.06 pc) east of W3(OH). The dust emission peaks are
coincident with known radio continuum sources, one of which is of non-thermal
nature. The latter source is also at the center of expansion of a powerful
bipolar outflow observed in water maser emission. We determine the hot core
mass to be 15 solar masses based on the integrated dust continuum emission.
Simultaneously many molecular lines are detected allowing the analysis of the
temperature structure and the distribution of complex organic molecules in the
hot core. From HNCO lines, spanning a wide range of excitation, two 200 K
temperature peaks are found coincident with dust continuum emission peaks
suggesting embedded heating sources within them.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figure
Detailed Radio Spectra of Selected Compact Sources in the Nucleus of M82
We have determined detailed radio spectra for 26 compact sources in the
starburst nucleus of M82, between 74 and 1.3 cm. Seventeen show low-frequency
turnovers. One other has a thermal emission spectrum, and we identify it as an
HII region. The low frequency turnovers are due to absorption by the
interstellar gas in M82. New information on the AGN candidate 44.01+595, shows
it to have a non-thermal falling powerlaw spectrum at the highest frequencies,
and that it is strongly absorbed below 2 GHz. We derive large magnetic fields
in the supernova remnants, of order 1-2 milliGauss, hence large pressures in
the sources suggest that the brightest ones are either expanding or are
strongly confined by a dense interstellar medium. From the largest source in
our sample, we derive a supernova rate of 0.016 SN/yr.Comment: 19 pages, 7 tables, 29 figures, LaTeX, requires AAS macros v. 4.0. To
appear in ApJ July 20, 199
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