2,382 research outputs found
Revised Coordinates and Proper Motions of the Stars in the Luyten Half-Second Catalogue
We present refined coordinates and proper motion data for the high proper
motion (HPM) stars in the Luyten Half-Second (LHS) catalogue. The positional
uncertainty in the original Luyten catalogue is typically >10" and is often
>30". We have used the digital scans of the Palomar Observatory Sky Survey
(POSS) I and POSS II plates to derive more accurate positions and proper
motions of the objects. Out of the 4470 candidates in the LHS catalogue, 4323
objects were manually re-identified in the POSS I and POSS II scans. A small
fraction of the stars were not found due to the lack of finder charts and
digitized POSS II scans. The uncertainties in the revised positions are
typically ~2", but can be as high as ~8" in a few cases; this is a large
improvement over the original data. Cross-correlation with the Tycho-2 and
Hipparcos catalogues yielded 819 candidates (with m_R < 12). For these brighter
sources, the position and proper motion data have been replaced with the more
accurate Tycho/Hipparcos data. In total, we have revised proper motion
measurements and coordinates for 4040 stars and revised coordinates for 4330
stars, which are presented here.Comment: 108 pages. Accepted for Publication in ApJ Suppl. Some errors caused
by the transcription errors in the original LHS catalogue have been corrected
in this resubmission. The most current version of the catalogue is also
available online at http://www.stsci.edu/~ksahu/lh
Detection of the evolutionary stages of variables in M3
The large number of variables in M3 provides a unique opportunity to study an
extensive sample of variables with the same apparent distance modulus. Recent,
high accuracy CCD time series of the variables show that according to their
mean magnitudes and light curve shapes, the variables belong to four separate
groups. Comparing the properties of these groups (magnitudes and periods) with
horizontal branch evolutionary models, we conclude that these samples can be
unambiguously identified with different stages of the horizontal branch stellar
evolution. Stars close to the zero age horizontal branch (ZAHB) show Oosterhoff
I type properties, while the brightest stars have Oosterhoff II type statistics
regarding their mean periods and RRab/RRc number ratios. This finding
strengthens the earlier suggestion of Lee et al. (1990) connecting the
Oosterhoff dichotomy to evolutionary effects, however, it is unexpected to find
large samples of both of the Oosterhoff type within a single cluster, which is,
moreover, the prototype of the Oosterhoff I class globular clusters. The very
slight difference between the Fourier parameters of the stars (at a given
period) in the three fainter samples spanning over about 0.15 mag range in M_V
points to the limitations of any empirical methods which aim to determine
accurate absolute magnitudes of RR Lyrae stars solely from the Fourier
parameters of the light curves.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Submitted to Astrophys. J. Letter
Identifying decays at the LHC
In this paper we present two machine learning algorithms to identify
mesons from radiative bosons decays at the LHC. The combined algorithm is
able to identify mesons via its hadronic decays with an efficiency of 67%
while suppressing a background of quark and gluon jets by a factor of 100.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure
Characterization and Compensation of the Residual Chirp in a Mach-Zehnder-Type Electro-Optical Intensity Modulator
We utilize various techniques to characterize the residual phase modulation
of a fiber-based Mach-Zehnder electro-optical intensity modulator. A heterodyne
technique is used to directly measure the phase change due to a given change in
intensity, thereby determining the chirp parameter of the device. This chirp
parameter is also measured by examining the ratio of sidebands for sinusoidal
amplitude modulation. Finally, the frequency chirp caused by an intensity pulse
on the nanosecond time scale is measured via the heterodyne signal. We show
that this chirp can be largely compensated with a separate phase modulator. The
various measurements of the chirp parameter are in reasonable agreement.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure
Superflares on Ordinary Solar-Type Stars
Short duration flares are well known to occur on cool main-sequence stars as
well as on many types of `exotic' stars. Ordinary main-sequence stars are
usually pictured as being static on time scales of millions or billions of
years. Our sun has occasional flares involving up to ergs which
produce optical brightenings too small in amplitude to be detected in
disk-integrated brightness. However, we identify nine cases of superflares
involving to ergs on normal solar-type stars. That is,
these stars are on or near the main-sequence, are of spectral class from F8 to
G8, are single (or in very wide binaries), are not rapid rotators, and are not
exceedingly young in age. This class of stars includes many those recently
discovered to have planets as well as our own Sun, and the consequences for any
life on surrounding planets could be profound. For the case of the Sun,
historical records suggest that no superflares have occurred in the last two
millennia.Comment: 16 pages, accepted for publication in Ap
A survey on how preregistration affects the research workflow: better science but more work
The preregistration of research protocols and analysis plans is a main reform innovation to counteract confirmation bias in the social and behavioural sciences. While theoretical reasons to preregister are frequently discussed in the literature, the individually experienced advantages and disadvantages of this method remain largely unexplored. The goal of this exploratory study was to identify the perceived benefits and challenges of preregistration from the researcher’s perspective. To this end, we surveyed 355 researchers, 299 of whom had used preregistration in their own work. The researchers indicated the experienced or expected effects of preregistration on their workflow. The results show that experiences and expectations are mostly positive. Researchers in our sample believe that implementing preregistration improves or is likely to improve the quality of their projects. Criticism of preregistration is primarily related to the increase in work-related stress and the overall duration of the project. While the benefits outweighed the challenges for the majority of researchers with preregistration experience, this was not the case for the majority of researchers without preregistration experience. The experienced advantages and disadvantages identified in our survey could inform future efforts to improve preregistration and thus help the methodology gain greater acceptance in the scientific community
Investigation of the composition of the Luna 16 lunar sample
The concentrations of aluminum, manganese, sodium, chromium, iron, cobalt, and 12 rare earth elements were determined by neutron activation analysis using slow neutrons. Oxygen and silicon were determined using a fast neutron generator. Mossbauer spectroscopy was used to investigate iron compounds in Luna 16 regolith samples from the upper part of the core
Safety and Efficacy of Weekly 30,000 IU Vitamin D Supplementation as a Slower Loading Dose Administration Compared to a Daily Maintenance Schedule in Deficient Patients: a Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial
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