13,677 research outputs found
A near-infrared and optical photometric study of the Sculptor dwarf spheroidal galaxy: implications for the metallicity spread
We present here a detailed study of the Sculptor dSph galaxy red giant branch
(RGB) and horizontal branch (HB) morphology, combining new near-infrared
photometry from CIRSI, with optical data from the ESO WFI. For a Sculptor-like
old and generally metal-poor system, the position of RGB stars on the
colour-magnitude diagram is mainly metallicity dependent. The advantage of
using optical-NIR colours is that the position of the RGB locus is much more
sensitive to metallicity than with optical colours alone. In contrast the
horizontal branch (HB) morphology is strongly dependent on both metallicity and
age. Therefore a detailed study of both the RGB in optical-NIR colours and the
HB can help break the age-metallicity degeneracy. Our measured photometric
width of the Sculptor giant branch corresponds to a range in metallicity of
0.75 dex. We detect the RGB and AGB bumps in both the NIR and optical
luminosity functions, and derive from them a mean metallicity of [M/H] = -1.3
+/- 0.1. From isochrone fitting we derive a mean metallicity of [Fe/H] = -1.42
with a dispersion of 0.2 dex. These photometric estimators are for the first
time consistent with individual metallicity measurements derived from
spectroscopic observations. No spatial gradient is detected in the RGB
morphology within a radius of 13 arcmin, twice the core radius. On the other
hand, a significant gradient is observed in the HB morphology index, confirming
the `second parameter problem' present in this galaxy. These observations are
consistent with an early extended period of star formation continuing in time
for a few Gyr. (Abridged)Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA
HETEROGENEITY IN THE HINTERLAND: A TYPOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF OHIO EXURBAN AREAS
Located between suburban and rural regions, exurban areas are among the fastest growing regions in the U.S. To better understand exurban changes and their policy implications, we develop a typology of rural-urban places and use statistical methods to examine township patterns of exurban change in Ohio.Community/Rural/Urban Development,
Sagittarius: The Nearest Dwarf Galaxy
We have discovered a new Galactic satellite galaxy in the constellation of
Sagittarius. The Sagittarius dwarf galaxy is the nearest galaxy known, subtends
an angle of degrees on the sky, lies at a distance of 24 \kpc from the
Sun, \sim 16 \kpc from the centre of the Milky Way. Itis comparable in size
and luminosity to the largest dwarf spheroidal, has a well populated red
horizontal branch with a blue HB extension; a substantial carbon star
population; and a strong intermediate age stellar component with evidence of a
metallicity spread. Isodensity maps show it to be markedly elongated along a
direction pointing towards the Galactic centre and suggest that it has been
tidally distorted. The close proximity to the Galactic centre, the
morphological appearance and the radial velocity of 140 km/s indicate that this
system must have undergone at most very few close orbital encounters with the
Milky Way. It is currently undergoing strong tidal disruption prior to being
integrated into the Galaxy. Probably all of the four globular clusters, M54,
Arp 2, Ter 7 and Ter 8, are associated with the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy, and
will probably share the fate of their progenitor.Comment: MNRAS in press, 22pp uuencoded PS file, 26 printed figures available
on request from [email protected]
Wall Street vs. Main Street: What are the Benefits and Costs of Wal-Mart to Local Communities?
Community/Rural/Urban Development, L81, R52, R58,
Generic advertising impacts on demands for orange juice in fifty Nielsen metropolitan regions
Agribusiness, Demand and Price Analysis,
Triple-crown advertising impacts on demands for orange juice in fifty Nielsen metropolitan regions
Agribusiness, Demand and Price Analysis,
The Birthplace of Low-Mass X-ray Binaries: Field Versus Globular Cluster Populations
Recent Chandra studies of low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) within early-type
galaxies have found that LMXBs are commonly located within globular clusters of
the galaxies. However, whether all LMXBs are formed within globular clusters
has remained an open question. If all LMXBs formed within globular clusters,
the summed X-ray luminosity of the LMXBs in a galaxy should be directly
proportional to the number of globular clusters in the galaxy regardless of
where the LMXBs currently reside. We have compared these two quantities over
the same angular area for a sample of 12 elliptical and S0 galaxies observed
with Chandra and found that the correlation between the two quantities is
weaker than expected if all LMXBs formed within globular clusters. This
indicates that a significant number of the LMXBs were formed in the field, and
naturally accounts for the spread in field-to-cluster fractions of LMXBs from
galaxy to galaxy. We also find that the "pollution" of globular cluster LMXBs
into the field has been minimal within elliptical galaxies, but there is
evidence that roughly half of the LMXBs originally in the globular clusters of
S0 galaxies in our sample have escaped into the field. This is due to higher
globular cluster disruption rates in S0s resulting from stronger gravitational
shocks caused by the passage of globular clusters through the disks of S0
galaxies that are absent in elliptical galaxies.Comment: To appear in ApJ, 1 October 2005, v631 2 issue, 9 pages, 3 figures,
typos and a few minor issues correcte
Optimization of MLS receivers for multipath environments
Optimal design studies of MLS angle-receivers and a theoretical design-study of MLS DME-receivers are reported. The angle-receiver results include an integration of the scan data processor and tracking filter components of the optimal receiver into a unified structure. An extensive simulation study comparing the performance of the optimal and threshold receivers in a wide variety of representative dynamical interference environments was made. The optimal receiver was generally superior. A simulation of the performance of the threshold and delay-and-compare receivers in various signal environments was performed. An analysis of combined errors due to lateral reflections from vertical structures with small differential path delays, specular ground reflections with neglible differential path delays, and thermal noise in the receivers is provided
Bail-Out or Work-Out? Theoretical Considerations
In recent years, we appear to have entered an era of capital account crises. In response, a number of new crisis resolution ideas have been put forward, including the establishment of supranational institutions such as an international lender of last resort or an international bankruptcy court, temporary payments standstills and the inclusion of collective action clauses in debt contracts. This paper assesses these proposals using a theoretical model of crisis. The model underscores the importance of adapting policy interventions to the nature of the crisis at hand. For example, it finds that payments standstills and last-resort lending are an equally efficient means of dealing with liquidity crises, both ex-ante and ex-post, while creditor committees are second-best. It finds that debt-write-downs are a preferred means of dealing with solvency crises than subsidized IMF financing because of the negative moral hazard implications of the latter tool. And it finds that international bankruptcy court proposals may be superior to contractual approaches in securing such write-downscrisis resolution, international lender of last resort, standstills, IMF
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