111 research outputs found
Chandra X-ray Observatory Arcsecond Imaging of the Young, Oxygen-rich Supernova Remnant 1E0102.2-7219
We present observations of the young, Oxygen-rich supernova remnant
1E0102.2-7219 taken by the Chandra X-ray Observatory during Chandra's Orbital
Activation and Checkout phase. The boundary of the blast wave shock is clearly
seen for the first time, allowing the diameter of the remnant and the mean
blast wave velocity to be determined accurately. The prominent X-ray bright
ring of material may be the result of the reverse shock encountering ejecta;
the radial variation of O VII vs. O VIII emission indicates an ionizing shock
propagating inwards, possibly through a strong density gradient in the ejecta.
We compare the X-ray emission to Australia Telescope Compact Array 6 cm radio
observations (Amy and Ball) and to archival Hubble Space Telescope [O III]
observations. The ring of radio emission is predominantly inward of the outer
blast wave, consistent with an interpretation as synchrotron radiation
originating behind the blast wave, but outward of the bright X-ray ring of
emission. Many (but not all) of the prominent optical filaments are seen to
correspond to X-ray bright regions. We obtain an upper limit of ~9e33 erg/s (3
sigma) on any potential pulsar X-ray emission from the central region.Comment: Accepted for pulication in Ap. J. Letters. 4 pages, 6 figures (one
color figure). Formatted with emulateapj5. Revised to incorporate copyediting
changes. High-resolution postscript (3.02MB) and tiff versions of the color
figure are available from
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/cycle1/0015multi/index.htm
Searching for the pulsar in G18.95-1.1: Discovery of an X-ray point source and associated synchrotron nebula with Chandra
Using the Chandra X-ray Observatory, we have pinpointed the location of a
faint X-ray point source (CXOUJ182913.1-125113) and an associated diffuse
nebula in the composite supernova remnant G18.95-1.1. These objects appear to
be the long-sought pulsar and its wind nebula. The X-ray spectrum of the point
source is best described by an absorbed powerlaw model with Gamma=1.6 and an
N_H of ~1x10^(22) cm^(-2). This model predicts a relatively low unabsorbed
X-ray luminosity of about L_X (0.5-8.0keV) = 4.1x10^(31)D_2^2 erg s^(-1), where
D_2 is the distance in units of 2kpc. The best-fitted model of the diffuse
nebula is a combination of thermal (kT = 0.48keV) and non-thermal (1.4 < Gamma
< 1.9) emission. The unabsorbed X-ray luminosity of L_X = 5.4x10^(33)D_2^2 erg
s^(-1) in the 0.5-8keV energy band seems to be largely dominated by the thermal
component from the SNR, providing 87% of L_X in this band. No radio or X-ray
pulsations have been reported for CXOUJ182913.1-125113. If we assume an age of
~5300yr for G18.95-1.1 and use the X-ray luminosity for the pulsar and the wind
nebula together with the relationship between spin-down luminosity (via
magnetic dipole radiation) and period, we estimate the pulsar's period to be P
= 0.4s. Compared to other rotation-powered pulsars, a magnetic field of
2.2x10^(13)G is implied by its location in the P-Pdot diagram, a value which is
close to that of the quantum critical field.Comment: 8 pages, 3 Figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Building Bridges with Boats: Preserving Community History through Intra- and Inter-Institutional Collaboration
This chapter discusses Launching through the Surf: The Dory Fleet of Pacific City, a project which documents the historical and contemporary role of dory fishers in the life of the coastal village of Pacific City, Oregon, U.S. Linfield Collegeâs Department of Theatre and Communication Arts, its Jereld R. Nicholson Library, the Pacific City Arts Association, the Pacific City Dorymen\u27s Association, and the Linfield Center for the Northwest joined forces to engage in a collaborative college and community venture to preserve this important facet of Oregonâs history. Using ethnography as a theoretical grounding and oral history as a method, the project utilized artifacts from the dory fleet to augment interview data, and faculty/student teams created a searchable digital archive available via open access. The chapter draws on the authorsâ experiences to identify a philosophy of strategic collaboration. Topics include project development and management, assessment, and the role of serendipity. In an era of value-added services where libraries need to continue to prove their worth, partnering with internal and external entities to create content is one way for academic libraries to remain relevant to agencies that do not have direct connections to higher education. This project not only developed a positive âtown and gownâ relationship with a regional community, it also benefited partner organizations as they sought to fulfill their missions. The project also serves as a potential model for intra- and inter-agency collaboration for all types of libraries
FUV and X-ray Observations of the Reverse Shock in the SMC SNR 1E 0102.2-7219
We present FUSE and XMM-Newton data for the reverse shock of the O-rich SNR
1E0102.2-7219 in the SMC. The FUSE observations cover three regions with
significantly different optical [O III] intensities, all associated with the
relatively bright part of the X-ray ring. Emission lines of O VI 1032, 1038 are
clearly detected in the FUSE spectra. By combining this O VI doublet emission
with the O VII triplet and O VIII Lyalpha fluxes from the XMM-Newton spectra
and assuming a non-equilibrium ionization model with a single ionization
timescale for the spectra, we are able to find a narrow range of temperatures
and ionization timescales that are consistent with the respective line ratios.
However, if we assume a plane-parallel shock model with a distribution of
ionization timescales, the O VI emission appears to be inconsistent with O VII
and O VIII in X-rays. We also analyze the total XMM-Newton EPIC-MOS 1/2 spectra
for the three regions. The X-ray spectra are dominated by strong emission lines
of O, Ne, and Mg, however, we detect an emission component that accounts for 14
- 25% of the flux and can be attributed to shocked ISM. We find that there is
no consistent set of values for the temperature and ionization timescale which
can explain the observed line ratios for O, Ne, and Mg. This would be
consistent with a structured distribution of the ejecta as the O, Ne, Mg would
have interacted with the reverse shock at different times.Comment: 28 pages, 5 figues, Fig. 1 as JPEG. To be published in ApJ (01 May
2006, v. 642, 1 issue
XMM-Newton observations of the Galactic Supernova Remnant CTB 109 (G109.1-1.0)
We present the analysis of the X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton)
European Photon Imaging Camera (EPIC) data of the Galactic supernova remnant
(SNR) CTB 109 (G109.1-1.0). CTB 109 is associated with the anomalous X-ray
pulsar (AXP) 1E 2259+586 and has an unusual semi-circular morphology in both
the X-ray and the radio, and an extended X-ray bright interior region known as
the `Lobe'. The deep EPIC mosaic image of the remnant shows no emission towards
the west where a giant molecular cloud complex is located. No morphological
connection between the Lobe and the AXP is found. We find remarkably little
spectral variation across the remnant given the large intensity variations. All
spectra of the shell and the Lobe are well fitted by a single-temperature
non-equilibrium ionization model for a collisional plasma with solar abundances
(kT = 0.5 - 0.7 keV, tau = n_e t = 1 - 4 x 10^11 s cm^-3, N_H = 5 - 7 x 10^21
cm^-2). There is no indication of nonthermal emission in the Lobe or the shell.
We conclude that the Lobe originated from an interaction of the SNR shock wave
with an interstellar cloud. Applying the Sedov solution for the undisturbed
eastern part of the SNR, and assuming full equilibration between the electrons
and ions behind the shock front, the SNR shock velocity is derived as v_s = 720
+/- 60 km s^-1, the remnant age as t = (8.8 +/- 0.9) x 10^3 d_3 yr, the initial
energy as E_0 = (7.4 +/- 2.9) x 10^50 d_3^2.5 ergs, and the pre-shock density
of the nuclei in the ambient medium as n_0 = (0.16 +/- 0.02) d_3^-0.5 cm^-3, at
an assumed distance of D = 3.0 d_3 kpc. Assuming CTB 109 and 1E 2259+586 are
associated, these values constrain the age and the environment of the
progenitor of the SNR and the pulsar.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 9 figures. Figs. 1 + 2 are in color
(fig1.jpg, fig2.jpg
2-D Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations of Induced Plasma Dynamics in the Near-Core Region of a Galaxy Cluster
We present results from numerical simulations of the cooling-core cluster
A2199 produced by the two-dimensional (2-D) resistive magnetohydrodynamics
(MHD) code MACH2. In our simulations we explore the effect of anisotropic
thermal conduction on the energy balance of the system. The results from
idealized cases in 2-D axisymmetric geometry underscore the importance of the
initial plasma density in ICM simulations, especially the near-core values
since the radiation cooling rate is proportional to . Heat conduction
is found to be non-effective in preventing catastrophic cooling in this
cluster. In addition we performed 2-D planar MHD simulations starting from
initial conditions deliberately violating both thermal balance and hydrostatic
equilibrium in the ICM, to assess contributions of the convective terms in the
energy balance of the system against anisotropic thermal conduction. We find
that in this case work done by the pressure on the plasma can dominate the
early evolution of the internal energy over anisotropic thermal conduction in
the presence of subsonic flows, thereby reducing the impact of the magnetic
field. Deviations from hydrostatic equilibrium near the cluster core may be
associated with transient activity of a central active galactic nucleus and/or
remnant dynamical activity in the ICM and warrant further study in three
dimensions.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Focal brain trauma in the cryogenic lesion model in mice
The method to induce unilateral cryogenic lesions was first described in 1958 by Klatzo. We describe here an adaptation of this model that allows reliable measurement of lesion volume and vasogenic edema by 2, 3, 5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride-staining and Evans blue extravasation in mice. A copper or aluminium cylinder with a tip diameter of 2.5 mm is cooled with liquid nitrogen and placed on the exposed skull bone over the parietal cortex (coordinates from bregma: 1.5 mm posterior, 1.5 mm lateral). The tip diameter and the contact time between the tip and the parietal skull determine the extent of cryolesion. Due to an early damage of the blood brain barrier, the cryogenic cortical injury is characterized by vasogenic edema, marked brain swelling, and inflammation. The lesion grows during the first 24 hours, a process involving complex interactions between endothelial cells, immune cells, cerebral blood flow, and the intracranial pressure. These contribute substantially to the damage from the initial injury. The major advantage of the cryogenic lesion model is the circumscribed and highly reproducible lesion size and location
Six Years of Chandra Observations of Supernova Remnants
We present a review of the first six years of Chandra X-ray Observatory
observations of supernova remnants. From the official "first-light" observation
of Cassiopeia A that revealed for the first time the compact remnant of the
explosion, to the recent million-second spectrally-resolved observation that
revealed new details of the stellar composition and dynamics of the original
explosion, Chandra observations have provided new insights into the supernova
phenomenon. We present an admittedly biased overview of six years of these
observations, highlighting new discoveries made possible by Chandra's unique
capabilities.Comment: 82 pages, 28 figures, for the book Astrophysics Update
KIF2A silencing inhibits the proliferation and migration of breast cancer cells and correlates with unfavorable prognosis in breast cancer
Background; Kinesin family member 2a (KIF2A), a type of motor protein found in eukaryotic cells, is associated with development and progression of various human cancers. The role of KIF2A during breast cancer tumorigenesis and progression was studied. Methods; Immunohistochemical staining, real time RT-PCR and western blot were used to examine the expression of KIF2A in cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues from breast cancer patients. Patientsâ survival in relation to KIF2A expression was estimated using the KaplanâMeier survival and multivariate analysis. Breast cancer cell line, MDA-MB-231 was used to study the proliferation, migration and invasion of cells following KIF2A-siRNA transfection. Results; The expression of KIF2A in cancer tissues was higher than that in normal adjacent tissues from the same patient (Pâ<â0.05). KIF2A expression in cancer tissue with lymph node metastasis and HER2 positive cancer were higher than that in cancer tissue without (Pâ<â0.05). A negative correlation was found between KIF2A expression levels in breast cancer and the survival time of breast cancer patients (Pâ<â0.05). In addition, multivariate analysis indicated that KIF2A was an independent prognostic for outcome in breast cancer (OR: 16.55, 95% CI: 2.216-123.631, Pâ=â0.006). The proliferation, migration and invasion of cancer cells in vitro were suppressed by KIF2A gene silencing (Pâ<â0.05). Conclusions; KIF2A may play an important role in breast cancer progression and is potentially a novel predictive and prognostic marker for breast cancer
The Chandra view of NGC1800 and the X-ray scaling properties of dwarf starbursts
The superb spatial resolution of Chandra is utilized to study the X-ray
morphology of the dwarf starburst galaxy NGC1800 embedded in a small group of
galaxies. Diffuse galactic emission is detected, extending several kpc above
the galactic plane, with an overall morphology similar to the galactic winds
seen in nearby X-ray bright starburst galaxies. This makes NGC1800 the most
distant dwarf starburst with a clear detection of diffuse X-ray emission. The
diffuse X-ray luminosity of 1.3+/-0.3 *10^38 erg/s accounts for at least 60 per
cent of the total soft X-ray output of the galaxy. A hot gas temperature of
kT=0.25 keV and metallicity Z~0.05Z_Sun are derived, the latter in consistency
with results from optical spectroscopy of the interstellar medium. Our failure
to detect any hot gas associated with the embedding galaxy group translates
into an upper limit to the group X-ray luminosity of L_X<10^41 erg/s. There is
no convincing evidence that the outflowing wind of NGC1800 is currently
interacting with any intragroup gas, and mechanical considerations indicate
that the wind can escape the galaxy and its surrounding HI halo, eventually
delivering energy and metals to the intragroup gas. Properties of NGC1800 are
compared to those of other dwarf starburst galaxies, and a first detailed
discussion of the X-ray scaling properties of this population of objects is
given, set against the equivalent results obtained for normal starburst
galaxies. Results indicate that dwarf starbursts to a large degree behave as
down-scaled versions of normal starburst galaxies.Comment: 18 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
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