Mid-infrared imaging and spectroscopy of the enigmatic cocoon stars in the Quintuplet Cluster

In an attempt to determine the nature of the enigmatic cocoon stars in the Quintuplet Cluster, we have obtained mid-infrared imaging and spectrophotometry of the cluster, using the CAM and SWS instruments on ISO, using SpectroCam-10 on the Palomar 5m telescope, and NICMOS on HST. The spectra show smooth continua with various dust and ice absorption features. These features are all consistent with an interstellar origin, and there is no clear evidence for any circumstellar contribution to these features. We find no spectral line or feature that could elucidate the nature of these sources. Detailed modeling of the silicate absorption features shows that they are best reproduced by the mu Cep profile, which is typical of the interstellar medium, with tau(sil) \sim 2.9. The high spatial resolution mid-IR images show that three of the five cocoon stars have spatially extended and asymmetric envelopes, with diameters of \sim 20,000 AUs. A reddening law similar to that of Lutz (1999) but with silicate features based on the mu Cep profile and normalized to our value of tau(sil) is used to deredden the observed spectrophotometry. The dereddened energy distributions are characterised by temperatures of 750-925 K, somewhat cooler than determined from near IR data alone. Models of optically thin and geometrically thick dust shells, as used by Williams et al. (1987) for very dusty, late-type WC stars, reproduce the observed SEDs from 4 to 17 mic, and imply shell luminosities of log(L/L(sun)) \sim 4.5-4.9 for the brightest four components. An analysis of the various suggestions proposed to explain the nature of the cocoon stars reveals serious problems with all the hypotheses, and the nature of these sources remains an enigma.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures, A&A style. Accepted by A&

The Double-Lined Spectrum of LBV 1806-20

Despite much theoretical and observational progress, there is no known firm upper limit to the masses of stars. Our understanding of the interplay between the immense radiation pressure produced by massive stars in formation and the opacity of infalling material is subject to theoretical uncertainties, and many observational claims of ``the most massive star'' have failed the singularity test. LBV 1806-20 is a particularly luminous object, L~10^6 Lsun, for which some have claimed very high mass estimates (M_initial>200 Msun), based, in part, on its similarity to the Pistol Star. We present high-resolution near-infrared spectroscopy of LBV 1806-20, showing that it is possibly a binary system with components separated in velocity by ~70 kms. If correct, then this system is not the most massive star known, yet it is a massive binary system. We argue that a binary, or merged, system is more consistent with the ages of nearby stars in the LBV 1806-20 cluster. In addition, we find that the velocity of V_LSR=36 kms is consistent with a distance of 11.8 kpc, a luminosity of 10^6.3 Lsun, and a system mass of ~130 Msun.Comment: ApJL, accepte

Explanatory Supplement of the ISOGAL-DENIS Point Source Catalogue

We present version 1.0 of the ISOGAL-DENIS Point Source Catalogue (PSC), containing more than 100,000 point sources detected at 7 and/or 15 micron in the ISOGAL survey of the inner Galaxy with the ISOCAM instrument on board the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). These sources are cross-identified, wherever possible, with near-infrared (0.8-2.2 micron) data from the DENIS survey. The overall surface covered by the ISOGAL survey is about 16 square degrees, mostly (95%) distributed near the Galactic plane (|b| < 1 deg), where the source extraction can become confusion limited and perturbed by the high background emission. Therefore, special care has been taken aimed at limiting the photometric error to ~0.2 magnitude down to a sensitivity limit of typically 10 mJy. The present paper gives a complete description of the entries and the information which can be found in this catalogue, as well as a detailed discussion of the data processing and the quality checks which have been completed. The catalogue is available via the VizieR Service at the Centre de Donn\'ees Astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS, http://vizier.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/VizieR/) and also via the server at the Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris (http://www-isogal.iap.fr/). A more complete version of this paper, including a detailed description of the data processing, is available in electronic form through the ADS service.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figures. A&A in press. Full length version with 32 figures and detailed description of the data processing is available here: http://www-isogal.iap.fr/Publications/ExplSupplFull.ps.g

State of art of small scale solar powered ORC systems: a review of the different typologies and technology perspectives

Abstract Solar thermoelectric, even for small sizes, is continuing to garner more attention, by virtue of maturation of small size organic Rankine cycle generators, and of small size absorption chiller even if cost and reliability are still not optimal. Indeed, solar thermal power technology improvement would consent to stimulate an ambit already present in Europe and Italy with a well-known tradition and established leadership and efforts focused on a single solar technology would bring to positive effects concerning controllable electric and thermal energy uses. In this context, the present work tries to summarize the possible cycles and fluids that can be applied in a small solar thermal power plant. Despite a plethora of simulated and experimental cycles and fluids, the simplest cycle using near isentropic fluids seems to be the best choice for a small ORC-based CHP system, even if particular attention has to be done to all the sizing parameters (electricity, heating and cooling demand; area and type of solar collector; flow and temperature of the thermal carrier; flow, temperature and pressure of the working fluid; storage volumes; etc.). Indeed, efficiency and reliability of the reported systems are very different, but, it seems that global efficiency of even more than 10% and global cost of even less than 10,000 €/kW can be obtained even at size of few kW if adequate systems are constructed and managed

A Second Luminous Blue Variable in the Quintuplet Cluster

H and K band moderate resolution and 4 $\mu$m high resolution spectra have been obtained for FMM#362, a bright star in the Quintuplet Cluster near the Galactic Center. The spectral features in these bands closely match those of the Pistol Star, a luminous blue variable and one of the most luminous stars known. The new spectra and previously-obtained photometry imply a very high luminosity for FMM#362, L $\geq 10^6$ \Lsun, and a temperature of 10,000 - 13,000 K. Based on its luminosity, temperature, photometric variability, and similarities to the Pistol Star, we conclude that FMM#362 is a luminous blue variable.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 4 PostScript figures, 2 table

Euclid preparation: XVII. Cosmic Dawn Survey: Spitzer Space Telescope observations of the Euclid deep fields and calibration fields

Artículo escrito por un elevado núnmero de autores, sólo se referencian el qque aparece en primer lugar, los autores pertenecientes a la UAM y el nombre del grupo de colaboración, si lo hubiereWe present a new infrared survey covering the three Euclid deep fields and four other Euclid calibration fields using Spitzer Space Telescope's Infrared Array Camera (IRAC). We combined these new observations with all relevant IRAC archival data of these fields in order to produce the deepest possible mosaics of these regions. In total, these observations represent nearly 11 % of the total Spitzer Space Telescope mission time. The resulting mosaics cover a total of approximately 71.5 deg2 in the 3.6 and 4.5 μm bands, and approximately 21.8 deg2 in the 5.8 and 8 μm bands. They reach at least 24 AB magnitude (measured to 5σ, in a 2″​​.5 aperture) in the 3.6 μm band and up to ∼5 mag deeper in the deepest regions. The astrometry is tied to the Gaia astrometric reference system, and the typical astrometric uncertainty for sources with 16 "< "[3.6]< 19 is ≲ 0″​​.15. The photometric calibration is in excellent agreement with previous WISE measurements. We extracted source number counts from the 3.6 μm band mosaics, and they are in excellent agreement with previous measurements. Given that the Spitzer Space Telescope has now been decommissioned, these mosaics are likely to be the definitive reduction of these IRAC data. This survey therefore represents an essential first step in assembling multi-wavelength data on the Euclid deep fields, which are set to become some of the premier fields for extragalactic astronomy in the 2020

Multiplicity among T Tauri stars in OB and T associations: implications for binary star formation

We present first results of a survey for companions among X-ray selected pre-main sequence stars, most of them being weak-line T Tauri stars (WTTS). These T Tauri stars have been identified in the course of optical follow-up observations of sources from the ROSAT All Sky Survey associated with star forming regions. The areas surveyed include the T associations of Chamaeleon and Lupus as well as Upper Scorpius, the latter being part of the Scorpius Centaurus OB association (Sco OB 2). Using SUSI at the NTT under subarcsec seeing conditions we observed 195 T Tauri stars through a 1\mum ("Z") filter and identified companions to 31 of them (among these 12 subarcsec binaries). Based on statistical arguments we conclude that almost all of them are indeed physical (i.e. gravitationally bound) binary or multiple systems. For 10 systems located in Upper Scorpius and Lupus, we additionally obtained spatially resolved near-infrared photometry in the J, H, and K bands with the MPIA 2.2m telescope at ESO, La Silla. The near-infrared colours of the secondaries are consistent with those of dwarfs and are clearly distinct from those of late type giant stars. Based on astrometric measurements of some binaries we show that the components of these binaries are common proper motion pairs, very likely in a gravitationally bound orbit around each other. We find that the overall binary frequency among T Tauri stars in a range of separations between 120 and 1800 AU is in agreement with the binary frequency observed among main sequence stars in the solar neighbourhood. However, we note that within individual regions the spatial distribution of binaries -- within a distinct range of separation -- is non-uniform. In particular, in Uppe

Evolution of Hard X-Ray Spectra Along the Branches in Cir X-1

Using the data from the PCA and HEXTE on board the RXTE satellite, we investigate the evolution of the 3-200 keV spectra of the peculiar low mass X-ray binary (LMXB) Cir X-1 along the branches on its hardness-intensity diagram (HID) from the vertical horizontal branch (VHB), through the horizontal horizontal branch (HHB) and normal branch (NB), to the flaring branch (FB). We detect a power-law hard component in the spectra. It is found that the derived photon indices ($\Gamma$) of the power-law hard component are correlated with the position on the HID. The power-law component dominates the X-ray emission of Cir X-1 in the energy band higher than $\sim 20$ keV. The fluxes of the power-law component are compared with those of the bremsstrahlung component in the spectra. A possible origin of the power-law hard component is discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, ApJ Letter accepte