90 research outputs found
Simplified Hydrostatic Carbon Burning in White Dwarf Interiors
We introduce two simplified nuclear networks that can be used in hydrostatic
carbon burning reactions occurring in white dwarf interiors. They model the
relevant nuclear reactions in carbon-oxygen white dwarfs (COWDs) approaching
ignition in Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) progenitors, including the effects of the
main e-captures and \beta-decays that drive the convective Urca process. They
are based on studies of a detailed nuclear network compiled by the authors and
are defined by approximate sets of differential equations whose derivations are
included in the text. The first network, N1, provides a good first order
estimation of the distribution of ashes and it also provides a simple picture
of the main reactions occurring during this phase of evolution. The second
network, N2, is a more refined version of N1 and can reproduce the evolution of
the main physical properties of the full network to the 5% level. We compare
the evolution of the mole fraction of the relevant nuclei, the neutron excess,
the photon energy generation and the neutrino losses between both simplified
networks and the detailed reaction network in a fixed temperature and density
parcel of gas.Comment: 52 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
Deep-HiTS: Rotation Invariant Convolutional Neural Network for Transient Detection
We introduce Deep-HiTS, a rotation invariant convolutional neural network
(CNN) model for classifying images of transients candidates into artifacts or
real sources for the High cadence Transient Survey (HiTS). CNNs have the
advantage of learning the features automatically from the data while achieving
high performance. We compare our CNN model against a feature engineering
approach using random forests (RF). We show that our CNN significantly
outperforms the RF model reducing the error by almost half. Furthermore, for a
fixed number of approximately 2,000 allowed false transient candidates per
night we are able to reduce the miss-classified real transients by
approximately 1/5. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time CNNs
have been used to detect astronomical transient events. Our approach will be
very useful when processing images from next generation instruments such as the
Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). We have made all our code and data
available to the community for the sake of allowing further developments and
comparisons at https://github.com/guille-c/Deep-HiTS
Type IIP supernova light curves affected by the acceleration of red supergiant winds
We introduce the first synthetic light-curve model set of Type IIP supernovae
exploded within circumstellar media in which the acceleration of the red
supergiant winds is taken into account. Because wind acceleration makes the
wind velocities near the progenitors low, the density of the immediate vicinity
of the red supergiant supernova progenitors can be higher than that
extrapolated by using a constant terminal wind velocity. Therefore, even if the
mass-loss rate of the progenitor is relatively low, it can have a dense
circumstellar medium at the immediate stellar vicinity and the early light
curves of Type IIP supernovae are significantly affected by it. We adopt a
simple beta velocity law to formulate the wind acceleration. We provide
bolometric and multicolor light curves of Type IIP supernovae exploding within
such accelerated winds from the combinations of three progenitors, 12 - 16
Msun; five beta, 1-5; seven mass-loss rates, 1e-5 - 1e-2 Msun/yr; and four
explosion energies, 0.5e51 - 2e51 erg. All the light curve models are available
at https://goo.gl/o5phYb. When the circumstellar density is sufficiently high,
our models do not show a classical shock breakout as a consequence of the
interaction with the dense and optically-thick circumstellar media. Instead,
they show a delayed 'wind breakout', substantially affecting early light curves
of Type IIP supernovae. We find that the mass-loss rates of the progenitors
need to be 1e-3 - 1e-2 Msun/yr to explain typical rise times of 5 - 10 days in
Type IIP supernovae assuming a dense circumstellar radius of 1e15 cm.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, 2 tables, accepted by Monthly Notices of the
Royal Astronomical Societ
Discriminating Variable Star Candidates in Large Image Databases from the HiTS Survey Using NMF
AbstractNew instruments and technologies are allowing the acquisition of large amounts of data from astronomical surveys. Nowadays there is a pressing need for autonomous methods to discriminate the interesting astronomical objects in the vast sky. The High Cadence Transient Survey (HiTS) project is an astronomical survey that is trying to find a rare transient event that occurs during the first instants of a supernova. In this paper we propose an autonomous method to discriminate stellar variability from the HiTS database, that uses a feature extraction scheme based on Non-negative matrix factorization (NMF). Using NMF, dictionaries of image prototypes that represent the data in a compact way are obtained. The projections of the dataset into these dictionaries are fed into a random forest classifier. NMF is compared with other feature extraction schemes, on a subset of 500,000 transient candidates from the HiTS survey. With NMF a better class separability at feature level is obtained which enhances the classification accuracy significantly. Using the NMF features less than 4% of the true stellar transients are lost, at a manageable false positive rate of 0.1%
Searching for light echoes due to circumstellar matter in SNe Ia spectra
We present an analytical model for light echoes (LEs) coming from circumstellar material (CSM) around Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia). Using this model we find two spectral signatures at 4100 Å and 6200 Å that are useful to identify LEs during the Lira law phase (between 35 and 80 days after maximum light) coming from nearby CSM at distances of 0.010.25 pc. We analyze a sample of 89 SNe Ia divided into two groups according to their B V decline rate during the Lira law phase, and search for LEs from CSM interaction in the group of SNe with steeper slopes by comparing their spectra with our LE model. We find that a model with LEs + pure extinction from interstellar material (ISM) fits the observed spectra better than a pure ISM extinction model that is constant in time, but we find that a decreasing extinction alone explains the observations better without the need of LEs, possibly implying dust sublimation due to the radiation from the SN.Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y GeofísicasInstituto de Astrofísica de La Plat
Discovery of distant RR Lyrae stars in the Milky Way using DECam
We report the discovery of distant RR Lyrae stars, including the most distant
known in the Milky Way, using data taken in the band with the Dark Energy
Camera as part of the High cadence Transient Survey (HiTS; 2014 campaign). We
detect a total of 173 RR Lyrae stars over a ~120 deg^2 area, including both
known RR Lyrae and new detections. The heliocentric distances d_H of the full
sample range from 9 to >200 kpc, with 18 of them beyond 90 kpc. We identify
three sub-groups of RR Lyrae as members of known systems: the Sextans dwarf
spheroidal galaxy, for which we report 46 new discoveries, and the ultra-faint
dwarf galaxies Leo IV and Leo V. Following an MCMC methodology, we fit
spherical and ellipsoidal profiles of the form rho(R) ~ R^n to the radial
density distribution of RR Lyrae in the Galactic halo. The best fit corresponds
to the spherical case, for which we obtain a simple power-law index of
n=-4.17^{+0.18}_{-0.20}, consistent with recent studies made with samples
covering shorter distances. The pulsational properties of the outermost RR
Lyrae in the sample (d_H>90 kpc) differ from the ones in the halo population at
closer distances. The distribution of the stars in a Period-Amplitude diagram
suggest they belong to Oosterhoff-intermediate or Oosterhoff II groups, similar
to what is found in the ultra-faint dwarf satellites around the Milky Way. The
new distant stars discovered represent an important addition to the few
existing tracers of the Milky Way potential in the outer halo.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa
Potential and nutritional properties of local food plants from Angola to combat malnutrition − suitable alternatives to frequently cultivated crops
The human diet of the local population in the province Uíge, Angola mainly consists of carbohydrate rich plants originating from America or Asia. Acidic soils lead to various deficiency syndromes and low livestock yield. The aim of this study is to evaluate the nutritional potential of 14 native plants from Africa (Aframomum alboviolaceum, Aframomum angustifolium, Aframomum giganteum, Antidesma venosum, Clitandra cymulosa, Landolphia buchananii, Landolphia lanceolata, Landolphia owariensis, Oncoba welwitschii, Parinari capensis, Piper umbellatum, Pseudospondias microcarpa, Tristemma mauritianum, Vitex madiensis subsp. madiensis). The amino acid composition, beta-carotene, vitamin B1, B2, C and E content was determined for the respective edible plant part. Fruits of P. capensis were found to be rich in beta-carotene. The pulp of O. welwitschii shows a high nutritional value (high in vitamin B1, B2, C, E and in indispensable amino acids). Leaves of P. umbellatum are determined as convenient substitutes for the human nutrition containing beta-carotene, vitamin B1, B2, C and E. The integration and cultivation of studied plants indicate positive health effects, supplying different amounts of frequently lacking vitamins and beneficial ratios of indispensable amino acids. Studies examining dependencies between site location, ripeness, storage or transportation are urgently needed as they directly influence the micronutrient content
Serendipitous discovery of RR Lyrae stars in the Leo V ultra-faint galaxy
During the analysis of RR Lyrae stars discovered in the High cadence
Transient Survey (HiTS) taken with the Dark Energy Camera at the 4-m telescope
at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, we found a group of three very
distant, fundamental mode pulsator RR Lyrae (type ab). The location of these
stars agrees with them belonging to the Leo V ultra-faint satellite galaxy, for
which no variable stars have been reported to date. The heliocentric distance
derived for Leo V based on these stars is 173 +/- 5 kpc. The pulsational
properties (amplitudes and periods) of these stars locate them within the locus
of the Oosterhoff II group, similar to most other ultra-faint galaxies with
known RR Lyrae stars. This serendipitous discovery shows that distant RR Lyrae
stars may be used to search for unknown faint stellar systems in the outskirts
of the Milky Way.Comment: Accepted in ApJ Letter
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