1,059 research outputs found
A new nearby pulsar wind nebula overlapping the RX J0852.0-4622 supernova remnant
Energetic pulsars can be embedded in a nebula of relativistic leptons which
is powered by the dissipation of the rotational energy of the pulsar. The
object PSR J0855-4644 is an energetic and fast-spinning pulsar (Edot =
1.1x10^36 erg/s, P=65 ms) discovered near the South-East rim of the supernova
remnant (SNR) RX J0852.0-4622 (aka Vela Jr) by the Parkes multibeam survey. The
position of the pulsar is in spatial coincidence with an enhancement in X-rays
and TeV gamma-rays, which could be due to its putative pulsar wind nebula
(PWN).
The purpose of this study is to search for diffuse non-thermal X-ray emission
around PSR J0855-4644 to test for the presence of a PWN and to estimate the
distance to the pulsar. An X-ray observation was carried out with the
XMM-Newton satellite to constrain the properties of the pulsar and its nebula.
The absorption column density derived in X-rays from the pulsar and from
different regions of the rim of the SNR was compared with the absorption
derived from the atomic (HI) and molecular (12CO) gas distribution along the
corresponding lines of sight to estimate the distance of the pulsar and of the
SNR.
The observation has revealed the X-ray counterpart of the pulsar together
with surrounding extended emission thus confirming the existence of a PWN. The
comparison of column densities provided an upper limit to the distance of the
pulsar PSR J0855-4644 and the SNR RX J0852.0-4622 (d<900 pc). Although both
objects are at compatible distances, we rule out that the pulsar and the SNR
are associated. With this revised distance, PSR J0855-4644 is the second most
energetic pulsar, after the Vela pulsar, within a radius of 1 kpc and could
therefore contribute to the local cosmic-ray e-/e+ spectrum.Comment: 10 pages, 9 Figures. Accepted for publication in A&
Theoretical Foundations and the Book's Roadmap
This collection places children's issues at the centre of understandings of human development. Using Amartya Sen's 'Capability Approach', the contributors to this book draw on new tools and theoretical perspectives to understand the role of children in human development. Looking at a wide range of themes including child poverty, microfinance, disability, education, the built environment, the role of emotions and promoting children's active participation, this study furthers the capability approach as a key theoretical perpsective in understanding children and development
Electronic structure and magnetic properties of pyroxenes (Li,Na)TM(Si,Ge)2O6: novel low-dimensional magnets with 90 bonds
The results of the LSDA+U calculations for pyroxenes with diverse magnetic
properties (Li,Na)TM(Si,Ge)O, where TM is the transition metal ion
(Ti,V,Cr,Mn,Fe), are presented. We show that the anisotropic orbital ordering
results in the spin-gap formation in NaTiSiO. The detailed analysis of
different contributions to the intrachain exchange interactions for pyroxenes
is performed both analytically using perturbation theory and basing on the
results of the band structure calculations. The antiferromagnetic
exchange is found to decrease gradually in going from Ti to Fe.
It turns out to be nearly compensated by ferromagnetic interaction between
half-filled and empty orbitals in Cr-based pyroxenes. The
fine-tuning of the interaction parameters by the crystal structure results in
the ferromagnetism for NaCrGeO. Further increase of the total number of
electrons and occupation of sub-shell makes the contribution
and total exchange interaction antiferromagnetic for Mn- and Fe-based
pyroxenes. Strong oxygen polarization was found in Fe-based pyroxenes. It is
shown that this effect leads to a considerable reduction of antiferromagnetic
intrachain exchange. The obtained results may serve as a basis for the analysis
of diverse magnetic properties of pyroxenes, including those with recently
discovered multiferroic behavior.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figure
The XMM-Newton survey of the Small Magellanic Cloud: The X-ray point-source catalogue
Local-Group galaxies provide access to samples of X-ray source populations of
whole galaxies. The XMM-Newton survey of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC)
completely covers the bar and eastern wing with a 5.6 deg^2 area in the
(0.2-12.0) keV band. To characterise the X-ray sources in the SMC field, we
created a catalogue of point sources and sources with moderate extent. Sources
with high extent (>40") have been presented in a companion paper. We searched
for point sources in the EPIC images using sliding-box and maximum-likelihood
techniques and classified the sources using hardness ratios, X-ray variability,
and their multi-wavelength properties. The catalogue comprises 3053 unique
X-ray sources with a median position uncertainty of 1.3" down to a flux limit
for point sources of ~10^-14 erg cm^-2 s^-1 in the (0.2-4.5) keV band,
corresponding to 5x10^33 erg s^-1 for sources in the SMC. We discuss
statistical properties, like the spatial distribution, X-ray colour diagrams,
luminosity functions, and time variability. We identified 49 SMC high-mass
X-ray binaries (HMXB), four super-soft X-ray sources (SSS), 34 foreground
stars, and 72 active galactic nuclei (AGN) behind the SMC. In addition, we
found candidates for SMC HMXBs (45) and faint SSSs (8) as well as AGN (2092)
and galaxy clusters (13). We present the most up-to-date catalogue of the X-ray
source population in the SMC field. In particular, the known population of
X-ray binaries is greatly increased. We find that the bright-end slope of the
luminosity function of Be/X-ray binaries significantly deviates from the
expected universal high-mass X-ray binary luminosity function.Comment: 32 pages, 18 figures, accepted for publication in A&A, catalog will
be available at CD
Spatial identification of the overionized plasma in W49B
Recent Suzaku X-ray observations of the ejecta-dominated supernova remnant
W49B have shown that in the global spectrum there is a clear indication for the
presence of overionized plasma whose physical origin is still under debate. In
order to ascertain the physical origin of such a rapidly cooling plasma, we
focus on the study of its spatial localization within the X-ray emitting
ejecta. We confirm the presence of a saw-edged excess (interpreted as a strong
radiative recombination continuum) in the global spectrum above 8 keV, emerging
above the ionization-equilibrium model. We produce a hardness ratio map to
determine where the plasma is overionized and we perform a spectral analysis of
the regions with and without strong overionization. We find that the
overionized plasma is localized in the center of the remnant and in its western
jet, while it is not detected in the bright eastern jet, where the expansion of
the ejecta is hampered by their interaction with a dense interstellar cloud.
The location of overionized plasma suggests that the inner ejecta are rapidly
cooling by expansion, unlike the outer ejecta, for which expansion is hampered
by interstellar clouds seen in H2Comment: Accepted for publication as a Letter in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Comparison of the meat and carcass quality of lambs raised in organic or conventional production systems.
The ‘organic’ label on a product guarantees that synthetic fertilisers, pesticides and hormones are not used in the production process and that the use of pharmaceutical products and drugs is limited. However, product quality is often questioned and we have to anticipate the consumer demand for product quality guarantees. This study was conducted to compare the sensory and nutritional meat and carcass qualities of lambs raised under an organic (O) or a conventional (C) production system. Comparisons were made with both pasture-fed lambs and lambs that were stall-fed indoors with concentrate and hay. The experiment was conducted over two years for stall-fed lambs (S) (group O, n=24; group C, n=24) and three years for pasture-fed lambs (P) (group O, n=36; group C, n=36). For P lambs, O and C production systems differed in terms of the level of mineral N fertilisation of the pasture. For S lambs, the feed was organic vs. conventional, and the ingredients of O and C concentrates were the same. The nutritional quality of the meat (longissimus dorsi) was assessed in terms of its fatty acid (FA) composition, and the sensory quality of the loin chop was assessed by a trained sensory panel. In stall-fed lambs, the health value of meat FA for human consumption was higher in the O group than in the C group, but there was no difference in the sensory quality of the meat and the carcass between the O and C groups. In pasture-fed lambs, there were no significant differences between the O and C groups in terms of the health value of meat FA. However, in pasture-fed lambs, the loin chops had a higher level of abnormal odour of the fat in the organic than in the conventional group, probably due to a higher proportion of white clover in the diet
A physical interpretation of the jet-like X-ray emission from supernova remnant W49B
In the framework of the study of supernova remnants and their complex
interaction with the interstellar medium and the circumstellar material, we
focus on the galactic supernova remnant W49B. Its morphology exhibits an X-ray
bright elongated nebula, terminated on its eastern end by a sharp perpendicular
structure aligned with the radio shell. The X-ray spectrum of W49B is
characterized by strong K emission lines from Si, S, Ar, Ca, and Fe. There is a
variation of the temperature in the remnant with the highest temperature found
in the eastern side and the lowest one in the western side. The analysis of the
recent observations of W49B indicates that the remnant may be the result of an
asymmetric bipolar explosion where the ejecta are collimated along a jet-like
structure and the eastern jet is hotter and more Fe-rich than the western one.
Another possible scenario associates the X-ray emission with a spherical
explosion where parts of the ejecta are interacting with a dense belt of
ambient material. To overcome this ambiguity we present new results of the
analysis of an XMM-Newton observation and we perform estimates of the mass and
energy of the remnant. We conclude that the scenario of an anisotropic jet-like
explosion explains quite naturally our observation results, but the association
of W49B with a hypernova and a gamma-ray burst, although still possible, is not
directly supported by any evidence.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Advances in Space
Researc
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