Table of contents

In protoplanetary disks, micron-sized dust grains coagulate to form highly porous dust aggregates. Because the optical properties of these aggregates are not completely understood, it is important to investigate how porous dust aggregates scatter light. In this study, the light scattering properties of porous dust aggregates were calculated using a rigorous method, the T-matrix method, and the results were then compared with those obtained using the Rayleigh–Gans–Debye (RGD) theory and Mie theory with the effective medium approximation (EMT). The RGD theory is applicable to moderately large aggregates made of nearly transparent monomers. This study considered two types of porous dust aggregates—ballistic cluster–cluster agglomerates (BCCAs) and ballistic particle–cluster agglomerates. First, the angular dependence of the scattered intensity was shown to reflect the hierarchical structure of dust aggregates; the large-scale structure of the aggregates is responsible for the intensity at small scattering angles, and their small-scale structure determines the intensity at large scattering angles. Second, it was determined that the EMT underestimates the backward scattering intensity by multiple orders of magnitude, especially in BCCAs, because the EMT averages the structure within the size of the aggregates. It was concluded that the RGD theory is a very useful method for calculating the optical properties of BCCAs.

It has been shown recently that magnetic twist and axisymmetric MHD modes are ubiquitous in the solar atmosphere, and therefore the study of resonant absorption for these modes has become a pressing issue because it can have important consequences for heating magnetic flux tubes in the solar atmosphere and the observed damping. In this investigation, for the first time, we calculate the damping rate for axisymmetric MHD waves in weakly twisted magnetic flux tubes. Our aim is to investigate the impact of resonant damping of these modes for solar atmospheric conditions. This analytical study is based on an idealized configuration of a straight magnetic flux tube with a weak magnetic twist inside as well as outside the tube. By implementing the conservation laws derived by Sakurai et al. and the analytic solutions for weakly twisted flux tubes obtained recently by Giagkiozis et al. we derive a dispersion relation for resonantly damped axisymmetric modes in the spectrum of the Alfvén continuum. We also obtain an insightful analytical expression for the damping rate in the long wavelength limit. Furthermore, it is shown that both the longitudinal magnetic field and the density, which are allowed to vary continuously in the inhomogeneous layer, have a significant impact on the damping time. Given the conditions in the solar atmosphere, resonantly damped axisymmetric modes are highly likely to be ubiquitous and play an important role in energy dissipation. We also suggest that, given the character of these waves, it is likely that they have already been observed in the guise of Alfvén waves.

Transit timing variations (TTVs) are deviations of the measured midtransit times from the exact periodicity. One of the most interesting causes of TTVs is the gravitational interaction between planets. Here we consider a case of two planets in a mean motion resonance (orbital periods in a ratio of small integers). This case is important because the resonant interaction can amplify the TTV effect and allow planets to be detected more easily. We develop an analytic model of the resonant dynamics valid for small orbital eccentricities and use it to derive the principal TTV terms. We find that a resonant system should show TTV terms with two basic periods (and their harmonics). The resonant TTV period is proportional (m/M_*)^−2/3, where m and M_* are the planetary and stellar masses. For m = 10⁻⁴M_*, for example, the TTV period exceeds the orbital period by about two orders of magnitude. The amplitude of the resonant TTV terms scales linearly with the libration amplitude. The ratio of the TTV amplitudes of two resonant planets is inversely proportional to the ratio of their masses. These and other relationships discussed in the main text can be used to aid the interpretation of TTV observations.

We investigate the small-scale conformity in color between bright galaxies and their faint companions in the Virgo Cluster. Cluster member galaxies are spectroscopically determined using the Extended Virgo Cluster Catalog and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 12. We find that the luminosity-weighted mean color of faint galaxies depends on the color of adjacent bright galaxy as well as on the cluster-scale environment (gravitational potential index). From this result for the entire area of the Virgo Cluster, it is not distinguishable whether the small-scale conformity is genuine or if it is artificially produced due to cluster-scale variation of galaxy color. To disentangle this degeneracy, we divide the Virgo Cluster area into three sub-areas so that the cluster-scale environmental dependence is minimized: A1 (central), A2 (intermediate), and A3 (outermost). We find conformity in color between bright galaxies and their faint companions (color–color slope significance S ∼ 2.73σ and correlation coefficient $\mathrm{cc}\sim 0.50$) in A2, where the cluster-scale environmental dependence is almost negligible. On the other hand, the conformity is not significant or very marginal (S ∼ 1.75σ and $\mathrm{cc}\sim 0.27$) in A1. The conformity is not significant either in A3 (S ∼ 1.59σ and $\mathrm{cc}\sim 0.44$), but the sample size is too small in this area. These results are consistent with a scenario in which the small-scale conformity in a cluster is a vestige of infallen groups and these groups lose conformity as they come closer to the cluster center.

"Direct collapse black holes" (DCBHs) provide possible seeds for supermassive black holes that exist at $z\sim 7$. We study Lyα radiative transfer through simplified representations of the DCBH scenario. We find that gravitational heating of the collapsing cloud gives rise to a Lyα cooling luminosity of up to $\sim {10}^{38}{({M}_{{\rm{gas}}}/{10}^{6}{M}_{\odot })}^{2}$ erg s⁻¹. Photoionization by a central source boosts the Lyα luminosity to ${L}_{\alpha }\sim {10}^{43}({M}_{{\rm{BH}}}/{10}^{6}\;{M}_{\odot })$ erg s⁻¹, where ${M}_{{\rm{BH}}}$ denotes the mass of the black hole powering this source. We predict that the width and velocity offsets of the Lyα spectral line range from a few tens to few thousands km s⁻¹, depending sensitively on the evolutionary state of the cloud. We apply our predictions to observations of CR7, a luminous Lyα emitter at $z\sim 7$, which may be associated with a DCBH. If CR7 is powered by a black hole, then its Lyα flux requires that ${M}_{{\rm{BH}}}\gt {10}^{7}\;{M}_{\odot }$, which exceeds the mass of DCBHs when they first form. The observed width of the Lyα spectrum favors the presence of only a low column density of hydrogen, $\mathrm{log}[{N}_{\mathrm{HI}}/{{\rm{cm}}}^{-2}]\sim 19\mbox{--}20$. The shape of the Lyα spectrum indicates that this gas is outflowing. These requirements imply that if CR7 harbors a DCBH, then the physical conditions that enabled its formation have been mostly erased, which is in agreement with theoretical expectations. These constraints weaken if the observed Lyα emission represents the central peak of a more extended halo.

We describe a double-arc-like X-ray structure lying ∼15''–30'' (∼0.8–1.7 kpc) south of the NGC 5195 nucleus, visible in the merged exposures of long Chandra pointings of M51. The curvature and orientation of the arcs argues for a nuclear origin. The arcs are radially separated by ∼15'' (∼1 kpc), but are rotated relative to each other by ∼30°. From an archival image, we find a slender Hα-emitting region just outside the outer edge of the outer X-ray arc, suggesting that the X-ray-emitting gas plowed up and displaced the Hα-emitting material from the galaxy core. Star formation may have commenced in that arc. Hα emission is present at the inner arc, but appears more complex in structure. In contrast to an explosion expected to be azimuthally symmetric, the X-ray arcs suggest a focused outflow. We interpret the arcs as episodic outbursts from the central super-massive black hole (SMBH). We conclude that NGC 5195 represents the nearest galaxy exhibiting on-going, large-scale outflows of gas, in particular, two episodes of a focused outburst of the SMBH. The arcs represent a clear demonstration of feedback.

We analyze radial and azimuthal variations of the phase balance between the molecular and atomic interstellar medium (ISM) in the Milky Way (MW) using archival CO(J = 1-0) and HI 21 cm data. In particular, the azimuthal variations—between the spiral arm and interarm regions—are analyzed without any explicit definition of the spiral arm locations. We show that the molecular gas mass fraction, i.e., ${f}_{{\rm{mol}}}={{\rm{\Sigma }}}_{{{\rm{H}}}_{2}}/({{\rm{\Sigma }}}_{\mathrm{HI}}+{{\rm{\Sigma }}}_{{{\rm{H}}}_{2}})$, varies predominantly in the radial direction: starting from $\sim 100\%$ at the center, remaining $\gtrsim 50\%$ to $R\sim 6\;{\rm{kpc}}$ and decreasing to ∼10%–20% at $R=8.5\;{\rm{kpc}}$ when averaged over the whole disk thickness (from ∼100% to ≳60%, then to ∼50% in the midplane). Azimuthal, arm-interarm variations are secondary: only $\sim 20\%$ in the globally molecule-dominated inner MW, but becoming larger, ∼40%–50%, in the atom-dominated outskirts. This suggests that in the inner MW the gas remains highly molecular (${f}_{{\rm{mol}}}\gt 50\%$) as it moves from an interarm region into a spiral arm and back into the next interarm region. Stellar feedback does not dissociate molecules much, and the coagulation and fragmentation of molecular clouds dominate the evolution of the ISM at these radii. The trend differs in the outskirts where the gas phase is globally atomic (${f}_{{\rm{mol}}}\lt 50\%$). The HI and H₂ phases cycle through spiral arm passage there. These different regimes of ISM evolution are also seen in external galaxies (e.g., the LMC, M33, and M51). We explain the radial gradient of ${f}_{{\rm{mol}}}$ using a simple flow continuity model. The effects of spiral arms on this analysis are illustrated in the Appendix.

The spiral arms of the Milky Way are being accurately located for the first time via trigonometric parallaxes of massive star-forming regions with the Bar and Spiral Structure Legacy Survey, using the Very Long Baseline Array and the European VLBI Network, and with the Japanese VLBI Exploration of Radio Astrometry project. Here we describe a computer program that leverages these results to significantly improve the accuracy and reliability of distance estimates to other sources that are known to follow spiral structure. Using a Bayesian approach, sources are assigned to arms based on their (l, b, v) coordinates with respect to arm signatures seen in CO and H i surveys. A source's kinematic distance, displacement from the plane, and proximity to individual parallax sources are also considered in generating a full distance probability density function. Using this program to estimate distances to large numbers of star-forming regions, we generate a realistic visualization of the Milky Way's spiral structure as seen from the northern hemisphere.

Seismic observations have led to doubts or ambiguities concerning the opacity calculations used in stellar physics. Here, we concentrate on the iron-group opacity peak, due to iron, nickel, and chromium, located around T = 200,000 K for densities from ${10}^{-8}\;\mathrm{to}\;{10}^{-4}\;{\rm{g}}\;{\mathrm{cm}}^{-3}$, which creates some convective layers in stellar radiative envelopes for masses between 3 and 18 ${M}_{\odot }$. These conditions were extensively studied in the 1980s. More recently, inconsistencies between OP and OPAL opacity calculations have complicated the interpretation of seismic observations as the iron-group opacity peak excites acoustic and gravity modes in SPB, β Cephei, and sdB stars. We investigate the reliability of the theoretical opacity calculations using the modern opacity codes ATOMIC and SCO-RCG. We show their temperature and density dependence for conditions that are achievable in the laboratory and equivalent to astrophysical conditions. We also compare new theoretical opacity spectra with OP spectra and quantify how different approximations impact the Rosseland mean calculations.This detailed study estimates new ATOMIC and SCO-RCG Rosseland mean values for astrophysical conditions which we compare to OP values. Some puzzling questions are still under investigation for iron, but we find a strong increase in the Rosseland mean nickel opacity of a factor between 2 and 6 compared to OP. This appears to be due to the use of extrapolated atomic data for the Ni opacity within the OP calculations. A study on chromium is also shown.

Observations of debris disks offer a window into the physical and dynamical properties of planetesimals in extrasolar systems through the size distribution of dust grains. In particular, the millimeter spectral index of thermal dust emission encodes information on the grain size distribution. We have made new VLA observations of a sample of seven nearby debris disks at 9 mm, with $3^{\prime\prime}$ resolution and ∼5 μJy beam⁻¹rms. We combine these with archival ATCA observations of eight additional debris disks observed at 7 mm, together with up-to-date observations of all disks at (sub)millimeter wavelengths from the literature, to place tight constraints on the millimeter spectral indices and thus grain size distributions. The analysis gives a weighted mean for the slope of the power-law grain size distribution, $n(a)\propto {a}^{-q}$, of $\langle q\rangle =3.36\pm 0.02$, with a possible trend of decreasing q for later spectral type stars. We compare our results to a range of theoretical models of collisional cascades, from the standard self-similar, steady-state size distribution (q = 3.5) to solutions that incorporate more realistic physics such as alternative velocity distributions and material strengths, the possibility of a cutoff at small dust sizes from radiation pressure, and results from detailed dynamical calculations of specific disks. Such effects can lead to size distributions consistent with the data, and plausibly the observed scatter in spectral indices. For the AU Mic system, the VLA observations show clear evidence of a highly variable stellar emission component; this stellar activity obviates the need to invoke the presence of an asteroid belt to explain the previously reported compact millimeter source in this system.

We analyze the coagulation of dust in and around a gap opened by a Jupiter-mass planet. To this end, we carry out a high-resolution magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation of the gap environment, which is turbulent due to the magnetorotational instability. From the MHD simulation, we obtain values of the gas velocities, densities, and turbulent stresses (a) close to the gap edge, (b) in one of the two gas streams that accrete onto the planet, (c) inside the low-density gap, and (d) outside the gap. The MHD values are then input into a Monte Carlo dust-coagulation algorithm which models grain sticking and compaction. We also introduce a simple implementation for bouncing, for comparison purposes. We consider two dust populations for each region: one whose initial size distribution is monodisperse, with monomer radius equal to 1 μm, and another one whose initial size distribution follows the Mathis–Rumpl–Nordsieck distribution for interstellar dust grains, with an initial range of monomer radii between 0.5 and 10 μm. Without bouncing, our Monte Carlo calculations show steady growth of dust aggregates in all regions, and the mass-weighted (m-w) average porosity of the initially monodisperse population reaches extremely high final values of 98%. The final m-w porosities in all other cases without bouncing range between 30% and 82%. The efficiency of compaction is due to high turbulent relative speeds between dust particles. When bouncing is introduced, growth is slowed down in the planetary wake and inside the gap. Future studies will need to explore the effect of different planet masses and electric charge on grains.

We present results from the first global 3D MHD simulations of accretion disks in cataclysmic variable (CV) systems in order to investigate the relative importance of angular momentum transport via turbulence driven by the magnetorotational instability (MRI) compared with that driven by spiral shock waves. Remarkably, we find that even with vigorous MRI turbulence, spiral shocks are an important component of the overall angular momentum budget, at least when temperatures in the disk are high (so that Mach numbers are low). In order to understand the excitation, propagation, and damping of spiral density waves in our simulations more carefully, we perform a series of 2D global hydrodynamical simulations with various equation of states, both with and without mass inflow via the Lagrangian point (L1). Compared with previous similar studies, we find the following new results. (1) The linear wave dispersion relation fits the pitch angles of spiral density waves very well. (2) We demonstrate explicitly that mass accretion is driven by the deposition of negative angular momentum carried by the waves when they dissipate in shocks. (3) Using Reynolds stress scaled by gas pressure to represent the effective angular momentum transport rate ${\alpha }_{\mathrm{eff}}$ is not accurate when mass accretion is driven by non-axisymmetric shocks. (4) Using the mass accretion rate measured in our simulations to directly measure α defined in standard thin-disk theory, we find $0.02\lesssim {\alpha }_{\mathrm{eff}}\lesssim 0.05$ for CV disks, consistent with observed values in quiescent states of dwarf novae. In this regime, the disk may be too cool and neutral for the MRI to operate and spiral shocks are a possible accretion mechanism. However, we caution that our simulations use unrealistically low Mach numbers in this regime and, therefore, future models with more realistic thermodynamics and non-ideal MHD are warranted.

In recent years, omni-present transverse waves have been observed in all layers of the solar atmosphere. Coronal loops are often modeled as a collection of individual strands in order to explain their thermal behavior and appearance. We perform three-dimensional (3D) ideal magnetohydrodynamics simulations to study the effect of a continuous small amplitude transverse footpoint driving on the internal structure of a coronal loop composed of strands. The output is also converted into synthetic images, corresponding to the AIA 171 and 193 Å passbands, using FoMo. We show that the multi-stranded loop ceases to exist in the traditional sense of the word, because the plasma is efficiently mixed perpendicularly to the magnetic field, with the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability acting as the main mechanism. The final product of our simulation is a mixed loop with density structures on a large range of scales, resembling a power-law. Thus, multi-stranded loops are unstable to driving by transverse waves, and this raises strong doubts on the usability and applicability of coronal loop models consisting of independent strands.

Supermassive black holes observed at high redshift $z\gtrsim 6$ could grow from direct collapse black holes (DCBHs) with masses $\sim {10}^{5}{M}_{\odot }$, which result from the collapse of supermassive stars (SMSs). If a relativistic jet is launched from a DCBH, then it can break out of the collapsing SMS and produce a gamma-ray burst (GRB). Although most GRB jets are off-axis from our line of sight, we show that the energy injected from the jet into a cocoon is huge $\sim {10}^{55-56}\;{\rm{erg}}$, so that the cocoon fireball is observed as an ultra-luminous supernova of $\sim {10}^{45-46}\;\mathrm{erg}\;{{\rm{s}}}^{-1}$ for $\sim 5000[(1+z)/16]\;\mathrm{days}$. They will be detectable by future telescopes with near-infrared bands, such as Euclid, WFIRST, WISH, and JWST up to $z\sim 20$ and $\lesssim 10$ events per year, providing direct evidence of the DCBH scenario.

Protoplanetary disks with non-axisymmetric structures have been observed. The Rossby wave instability (RWI) is considered as one of the origins of the non-axisymmetric structures. We perform linear stability analyses of the RWI in barotropic flow using four representative types of the background flow on a wide parameter space. We find that the co-rotation radius is located at the background vortensity minimum with large concavity if the system is marginally stable to the RWI, and this allows us to easily check the stability against the RWI. We newly derive the necessary and sufficient condition for the onset of the RWI in semi-analytic form. We discuss the applicability of the new condition in realistic systems and the physical nature of the RWI.

NGC 1042 is a late-type bulgeless disk galaxy that hosts low-luminosity active galactic nuclei (AGNs) coincident with a massive nuclear star cluster. In this paper, we present the integral field spectroscopy studies of this galaxy, based on the data obtained with the Mitchell spectrograph on the 2.7 m Harlan J. Smith telescope. In the central 100–300 pc region of NGC 1042, we find a circumnuclear ring structure of gas with enhanced ionization, which we suggest is mainly induced by shocks. Combining this with the harmonic decomposition analysis of the velocity field of the ionized gas, we propose that the shocked gas is the result of gas inflow driven by the inner spiral arms. The inflow velocity is $\sim 32\pm 10\;\mathrm{km}\;{{\rm{s}}}^{-1}$, and the estimated mass-inflow rate is $\sim 1.1\pm 0.3\times {10}^{-3}\ {M}_{\odot }\;{\mathrm{yr}}^{-1}$. The mass-inflow rate is about one hundred times the black hole's mass-accretion rate ($\sim 1.4\times {10}^{-5}\ {M}_{\odot }\;{\mathrm{yr}}^{-1}$) and slightly larger than the star-formation rate in the nuclear star cluster ($7.94\times {10}^{-4}\ {M}_{\odot }\;{\mathrm{yr}}^{-1}$), implying that the inflow material is enough to feed both the AGN activity and star formation in the nuclear star cluster. Our study highlights that secular evolution can be important in late-type unbarred galaxies like NGC 1042.

We investigate the distribution of Faraday rotation measure (RM) in the M87 jet at arcsecond scales by using archival polarimetric Very Large Array data at 8, 15, 22 and 43 GHz. We resolve the structure of the RM in several knots along the jet for the first time. We derive the power spectrum in the arcsecond-scale jet and find indications that the RM cannot be associated with a turbulent magnetic field with a 3D Kolmogorov spectrum. Our analysis indicates that the RM probed on jet scales has a significant contribution of a Faraday screen associated with the vicinity of the jet, in contrast with that on kiloparsec scales, typically assumed to be disconnected from the jet. Comparison with previous RM analyses suggests that the magnetic fields giving rise to the RMs observed in jet scales have different properties and are well less turbulent than those observed in the lobes.

We present observations of the dense molecular gas tracers $\mathrm{HCN}$, $\mathrm{HNC}$, and ${\mathrm{HCO}}^{+}$ in the $J=1-0$ transition using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. We supplement our data sets with previous observations of $\mathrm{CO}$$J=1-0$, which trace the total molecular gas content. We separate the Antennae into seven bright regions in which we detect emission from all three molecules, including the nuclei of NGC 4038 and NGC 4039, five super giant molecular complexes in the overlap region, and two additional bright clouds. We find that the ratio of ${L}_{\mathrm{HCN}}/{L}_{\mathrm{CO}}$, which traces the dense molecular gas fraction, is greater in the two nuclei (${L}_{\mathrm{HCN}}/{L}_{\mathrm{CO}}$$\sim \quad 0.07-0.08$) than in the overlap region (${L}_{\mathrm{HCN}}/{L}_{\mathrm{CO}}$$\lt 0.05$). We attribute this to an increase in pressure due to the stellar potential within the nuclei; a similar effect to what has been seen previously in the Milky Way and nearby spiral galaxies. Furthermore, the ratio of ${L}_{\mathrm{HNC}}/{L}_{\mathrm{HCN}}$$\sim \quad 0.3-0.4$ does not vary by more than a factor of 1.5 between regions. By comparing our measured ratios to photon dominated region (PDR) models including mechanical heating, we find that the ratio of ${L}_{\mathrm{HNC}}/{L}_{\mathrm{HCN}}$ is consistent with mechanical heating contributing ≳5%–10% of the PDR surface heating to the total heating budget. Finally, the ratio of ${L}_{\mathrm{HCN}}/{L}_{\mathrm{HCO}+}$ varies from ∼1 in the nucleus of NGC 4038 down to ∼0.5 in the overlap region. The lower ratio in the overlap region may be due to an increase in the cosmic ray rate from the increased supernova rate within this region.

Current generation low-frequency interferometers constructed with the objective of detecting the high-redshift 21 cm background aim to generate power spectra of the brightness temperature contrast of neutral hydrogen in primordial intergalactic medium. Two-dimensional (2D) power spectra (power in Fourier modes parallel and perpendicular to the line of sight) that formed from interferometric visibilities have been shown to delineate a boundary between spectrally smooth foregrounds (known as the wedge) and spectrally structured 21 cm background emission (the EoR window). However, polarized foregrounds are known to possess spectral structure due to Faraday rotation, which can leak into the EoR window. In this work we create and analyze 2D power spectra from the PAPER-32 imaging array in Stokes I, Q, U, and V. These allow us to observe and diagnose systematic effects in our calibration at high signal-to-noise within the Fourier space most relevant to EoR experiments. We observe well-defined windows in the Stokes visibilities, with Stokes Q, U, and V power spectra sharing a similar wedge shape to that seen in Stokes I. With modest polarization calibration, we see no evidence that polarization calibration errors move power outside the wedge in any Stokes visibility to the noise levels attained. Deeper integrations will be required to confirm that this behavior persists to the depth required for EoR detection.

The IceCube telescope has detected diffuse neutrino emission up to a deposited energy of 2.6 PeV. Neutrinos with higher energies are expected from the Greisen Ztsepin Kuzmin (GZK) effect, namely the interaction of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) with the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and the extragalactic background light (EBL), but have not yet been detected. Models for GZK neutrinos vary greatly due to different assumptions on the UHECR elemental composition, as well as on the cosmological evolution of their sources and of the EBL. We show that the high ratio of EeV to PeV neutrinos in essentially all GZK models excludes the currently detected PeV neutrinos from being due to the GZK effect, because many additional higher-energy neutrinos should have been detected but were not. The non-detection of GZK neutrinos, despite more than essentially 1800 observing days, already rules out at 95% confidence all of the models that predict rates of 0.6 neutrinos yr⁻¹ or more. The non-detection is further used here to quantify the confidence at which classes of GZK models can be ruled out, and to compute the additional IceCube observing time required in order to rule them out with 95% confidence, if no detection is made. Finally, the number of GZK neutrinos expected from various classes of models in the future neutrino telescopes ARA and KM3NeT is estimated.

Numerical simulations of hot accretion flows around black holes have shown the existence of strong wind. Those works focused only on the region close to the black hole and thus it is unknown whether or where the wind production stops at large radii. To address this question, we have recently performed hydrodynamic (HD) simulations by taking into account the gravitational potential of both the black hole and the nuclear star cluster. The latter is assumed to be proportional to ${\sigma }^{2}\mathrm{ln}(r)$, with σ being the velocity dispersion of stars and r the distance from the center of the galaxy. It was found that when the gravity is dominated by nuclear stars, i.e., outside a radius ${R}_{A}\equiv {{GM}}_{{\rm{BH}}}/{\sigma }^{2}$, winds can no longer be produced. That work, however, neglects the magnetic field, which is believed to play a crucial dynamical role in the accretion and thus must be taken into account. In this paper, we revisit this problem by performing magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations. We confirm the result of our previous paper, namely that wind cannot be produced in the region $R\gt {R}_{A}$. Our result, combined with recent results of Yuan et al., indicates that the formula describing the mass flux of wind, ${\dot{M}}_{{\rm{wind}}}={\dot{M}}_{{\rm{BH}}}(r/20{r}_{s})$, can only be applied to the region where the black hole potential is dominant. Here ${\dot{M}}_{{\rm{BH}}}$ is the mass accretion rate at the black hole horizon and the value of R_A is similar to the Bondi radius.

CO is widely used as a tracer of molecular gas. However, there is now mounting evidence that gas phase carbon is depleted in the disk around TW Hya. Previous efforts to quantify this depletion have been hampered by uncertainties regarding the radial thermal structure in the disk. Here we present resolved ALMA observations of ¹³CO 3-2, C¹⁸O 3-2, ¹³CO 6-5, and C¹⁸O 6-5 emission in TW Hya, which allow us to derive radial gas temperature and gas surface density profiles, as well as map the CO abundance as a function of radius. These observations provide a measurement of the surface CO snowline at ∼30 AU and show evidence for an outer ring of CO emission centered at 53 AU, a feature previously seen only in less abundant species. Further, the derived CO gas temperature profile constrains the freeze out temperature of CO in the warm molecular layer to $\lt 21$ K. Combined with the previous detection of HD 1-0, these data constrain the surface density of the warm H₂ gas in the inner ∼30 AU such that ${{\rm{\Sigma }}}_{\mathrm{warm}\mathrm{gas}}={4.7}_{-2.9}^{+3.0}\;{\rm{g}}\;{\mathrm{cm}}^{-2}{(R/10\mathrm{au})}^{-1/2}$. We find that CO is depleted by two orders of magnitude from $R=10\mbox{--}60\;{\rm{AU}}$, with the small amount of CO returning to the gas phase inside the surface CO snowline insufficient to explain the overall depletion. Finally, this new data is used in conjunction with previous modeling of the TW Hya disk to constrain the midplane CO snowline to 17–23 AU.

We solve the radiation-hydrodynamic equations of supercritical accretion flows in the presence of radiation force and outflow by using self-similar solutions. Similar to the pioneering works, in this paper we consider a power-law function for mass inflow rate as $\dot{M}\propto {r}^{s}$. We found that s = 1 when the radiative cooling term is included in the energy equation. Correspondingly, the effective temperature profile with respect to the radius was obtained as ${T}_{\mathrm{eff}}\propto {r}^{-1/2}$. In addition, we investigated the influence of the outflow on the dynamics of the accretion flow. We also calculated the continuum spectrum emitted from the disk surface as well as the bolometric luminosity of the accretion flow. Furthermore, our results show that the advection parameter, f, depends strongly on mass inflow rate.

We empirically evaluate the scheme proposed by Lieu & Duan in which the light curve of a time-steady radio source is predicted to exhibit increased variability on a characteristic timescale set by the sightline's electron column density. Application to extragalactic sources is of significant appeal, as it would enable a unique and reliable probe of cosmic baryons. We examine temporal power spectra for 3C 84, observed at 1.7 GHz with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array and the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. These data constrain the ratio between standard deviation and mean intensity for 3C 84 to less than 0.05% at temporal frequencies ranging between 0.1 and 200 Hz. This limit is 3 orders of magnitude below the variability predicted by Lieu & Duan and is in accord with theoretical arguments presented by Hirata & McQuinn rebutting electron density dependence. We identify other spectral features in the data consistent with the slow solar wind, a coronal mass ejection, and the ionosphere.

We present results based on X-ray, optical, and radio observations of the massive galaxy cluster CIZA J0107.7+5408. We find that this system is a post-core-passage, dissociative, binary merger, with the optical galaxy density peaks of each subcluster leading their associated X-ray emission peaks. This separation occurs because the diffuse gas experiences ram pressure forces, while the effectively collisionless galaxies (and presumably their associated dark matter (DM) halos) do not. This system contains double-peaked diffuse radio emission, possibly a double radio relic with the relics lying along the merger axis and also leading the X-ray cores. We find evidence for a temperature peak associated with the SW relic, likely created by the same merger shock that is powering the relic radio emission in this region. Thus, this system is a relatively rare, clean example of a dissociative binary merger, which can in principle be used to place constraints on the self-interaction cross-section of DM. Low-frequency radio observations reveal ultra-steep spectrum diffuse radio emission that is not correlated with the X-ray, optical, or high-frequency radio emission. We suggest that these sources are radio phoenixes, which are preexisting non-thermal particle populations that have been re-energized through adiabatic compression by the same merger shocks that power the radio relics. Finally, we place upper limits on inverse Compton emission from the SW radio relic.

Improving the capabilities of detecting faint X-ray sources is fundamental for increasing the statistics on faint high-z active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and star-forming galaxies (SFGs). We performed a simultaneous maximum likelihood point-spread function fit in the [0.5–2] keV and [2–7] keV energy bands of the 4 Ms Chandra Deep Field South (CDFS) data at the position of the 34,930 CANDELS H-band selected galaxies. For each detected source we provide X-ray photometry and optical counterpart validation. We validated this technique by means of a ray-tracing simulation. We detected a total of 698 X-ray point sources with a likelihood ${ \mathcal L }\gt 4.98$ (i.e., >2.7σ). We show that prior knowledge of a deep sample of optical–NIR galaxies leads to a significant increase in the detection of faint (i.e., ∼10⁻¹⁷ cgs in the [0.5–2] keV band) sources with respect to "blind" X-ray detections. By including previous X-ray catalogs, this work increases the total number of X-ray sources detected in the 4 Ms CDFS, CANDELS area to 793, which represents the largest sample of extremely faint X-ray sources assembled to date. Our results suggest that a large fraction of the optical counterparts of our X-ray sources determined by likelihood ratio actually coincides with the priors used for the source detection. Most of the new detected sources are likely SFGs or faint, absorbed AGNs. We identified a few sources with putative photometric redshift z > 4. Despite the low number statistics and the uncertainties on the photo z, this sample significantly increases the number of X-ray-selected candidate high-z AGNs.

In this work, we present the results of a spectroscopic study of very massive stars (VMSs) found outside the center of the massive stellar cluster NGC 3603. From the analysis of the associated Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) Telescope spectroscopic data and related optical–near-IR (NIR) photometry, we confirm the existence of several VMSs in the periphery of NGC 3603. The first group of objects (MTT58, WR42e, and RF7) is composed of three new Galactic exemplars of the OIf*/WN type, all of them with probable initial masses well above 100 ${M}_{\odot }$ and estimated ages of about 1 Myr. Based on our Goodman blue-optical spectrum of another source in our sample (MTT68), we can confirm the previous finding in the NIR of the only other Galactic exemplar (besides HD 93129A) of the O2If* type known to date. Based on its position relative to a set of theoretical isochrones in a Hertzprung–Russel (H–R) diagram, we concluded that the new O2If* star could be one of the most massive (150 ${M}_{\odot }$) and luminous (M_V = −7.3) O-stars in the Galaxy. Also, another remarkable result is the discovery of a new O2v star (MTT31), which is the first exemplar of that class so far identified in the Milk Way. From its position in the H–R diagram it is found that this new star probably had an initial mass of 80 ${M}_{\odot }$, as well as an absolute magnitude of M_V = −6.0, corresponding to a luminosity similar to other known O2v stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Finally, we also communicate the discovery of a new Galactic O3.5If* star (RFS8) that is quite an intriguing case. Indeed, it is located far to the south of the NGC 3603 center, in apparent isolation at a large radial projected linear distance of ∼62 pc. Its derived luminosity is similar to that of the other O3.5If* (Sh18) found in NGC 3603's innermost region, and the fact that a such high mass star is observed so isolated in the field led us to speculate that perhaps it could have been expelled from the innermost parts of the complex by a close fly-by dynamical encounter with a very massive hard binary system.

We first revisit the energy loss mechanism known as quantum vacuum friction (QVF), clarifying some of its subtleties. Then we investigate the observables that could easily differentiate QVF from the classical magnetic dipole radiation for pulsars with accurately measured braking indices (n). We show that this is particularly the case for the time evolution of a pulsar's magnetic dipole direction ($\dot{\phi }$) and surface magnetic field (${\dot{B}}_{0}$). As is well known in the context of the classic magnetic dipole radiation, n < 3 would only be possible for positive $({\dot{B}}_{0}/{B}_{0}+\dot{\phi }/\mathrm{tan}\phi )$, which, for instance, leads to ${\dot{B}}_{0}\gt 0$ ($\dot{\phi }\gt 0$) when ϕ (B₀) is constant. On the other hand, we show that QVF can result in very different predictions with respect to those above. Finally, even if ${\dot{B}}_{0}$ has the same sign in both of the aforementioned models for a pulsar, then, for a given ϕ, we show that they give rise to different associated timescales, which could be another way to falsify QVF.

The pairwise kinematic Sunyaev–Zel'dovich (kSZ) signal from galaxy clusters is a probe of their line of sight momenta, and thus a potentially valuable source of cosmological information. In addition to the momenta, the amplitude of the measured signal depends on the properties of the intracluster gas and observational limitations such as errors in determining cluster centers and redshifts. In this work, we simulate the pairwise kSZ signal of clusters at $z\lt 1$, using the output from a cosmological N-body simulation and including the properties of the intracluster gas via a model that can be varied in post-processing. We find that modifications to the gas profile due to star formation and feedback reduce the pairwise kSZ amplitude of clusters by $\sim 50\%$, relative to the naive "gas traces mass" assumption. We demonstrate that miscentering can reduce the overall amplitude of the pairwise kSZ signal by up to 10%, while redshift errors can lead to an almost complete suppression of the signal at small separations. We confirm that a high-significance detection is expected from the combination of data from current generation, high-resolution cosmic microwave background experiments, such as the South Pole Telescope, and cluster samples from optical photometric surveys, such as the Dark Energy Survey. Furthermore, we forecast that future experiments such as Advanced ACTPol in conjunction with data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument will yield detection significances of at least $20\sigma$, and up to $57\sigma$ in an optimistic scenario. Our simulated maps are publicly available at http://www.hep.anl.gov/cosmology/ksz.html.

We consider axially periodic Taylor–Couette geometry with insulating boundary conditions. The imposed basic states are so-called Chandrasekhar states, where the azimuthal flow U_ϕ and magnetic field B_ϕ have the same radial profiles. Mainly three particular profiles are considered: the Rayleigh limit, quasi-Keplerian, and solid-body rotation. In each case we begin by computing linear instability curves and their dependence on the magnetic Prandtl number ${\rm{Pm}}$. For the azimuthal wavenumber m = 1 modes, the instability curves always scale with the Reynolds number and the Hartmann number. For sufficiently small ${\rm{Pm}}$ these modes therefore only become unstable for magnetic Mach numbers less than unity, and are thus not relevant for most astrophysical applications. However, modes with $m\gt 1$ can behave very differently. For sufficiently flat profiles, they scale with the magnetic Reynolds number and the Lundquist number, thereby allowing instability also for the large magnetic Mach numbers of astrophysical objects. We further compute fully nonlinear, three-dimensional equilibration of these instabilities, and investigate how the energy is distributed among the azimuthal (m) and axial (k) wavenumbers. In comparison spectra become steeper for large m, reflecting the smoothing action of shear. On the other hand kinetic and magnetic energy spectra exhibit similar behavior: if several azimuthal modes are already linearly unstable they are relatively flat, but for the rigidly rotating case where m = 1 is the only unstable mode they are so steep that neither Kolmogorov nor Iroshnikov–Kraichnan spectra fit the results. The total magnetic energy exceeds the kinetic energy only for large magnetic Reynolds numbers ${\rm{Rm}}\gt 100$.

For decades a wide variety of observations spanning the radio through optical and on to the X-ray have attempted to uncover signs of type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) interacting with a circumstellar medium (CSM). The goal of these studies is to constrain the nature of the hypothesized SN Ia mass-donor companion. A continuous CSM is typically assumed when interpreting observations of interaction. However, while such models have been successfully applied to core-collapse SNe, the assumption of continuity may not be accurate for SNe Ia, because shells of CSM could be formed by pre-supernova eruptions (novae). In this work, we model the interaction of SNe with a spherical, low-density, finite-extent CSM and create a suite of synthetic radio synchrotron light curves. We find that CSM shells produce sharply peaked light curves. We also identify a fiducial set of models that obey a common evolution and can be used to generate radio light curves for an interaction with an arbitrary shell. The relations obeyed by the fiducial models can be used to deduce CSM properties from radio observations; we demonstrate this by applying them to the nondetections of SN 2011fe and SN 2014J. Finally, we explore a multiple shell CSM configuration and describe its more complicated dynamics and the resultant radio light curves.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory is delivering vector magnetic field observations of the full solar disk with unprecedented temporal and spatial resolution; however, the satellite is in a highly inclined geosynchronous orbit. The relative spacecraft–Sun velocity varies by ±3 km s⁻¹ over a day, which introduces major orbital artifacts in the Helioseismic Magnetic Imager (HMI) data. We demonstrate that the orbital artifacts contaminate all spatial and temporal scales in the data. We describe a newly developed three-stage procedure for mitigating these artifacts in the Doppler data obtained from the Milne–Eddington inversions in the HMI pipeline. The procedure ultimately uses 32 velocity-dependent coefficients to adjust 10 million pixels—a remarkably sparse correction model given the complexity of the orbital artifacts. This procedure was applied to full-disk images of AR 11084 to produce consistent Dopplergrams. The data adjustments reduce the power in the orbital artifacts by 31 dB. Furthermore, we analyze in detail the corrected images and show that our procedure greatly improves the temporal and spectral properties of the data without adding any new artifacts. We conclude that this new procedure makes a dramatic improvement in the consistency of the HMI data and in its usefulness for precision scientific studies.

This is the first of a series of papers presenting the Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA) Isochrones and Stellar Tracks (MIST) project, a new comprehensive set of stellar evolutionary tracks and isochrones computed using MESA, a state-of-the-art open-source 1D stellar evolution package. In this work, we present models with solar-scaled abundance ratios covering a wide range of ages ($5\leqslant \mathrm{log}(\mathrm{Age})\ [\mathrm{year}]\leqslant 10.3$), masses ($0.1\leqslant M/{M}_{\odot }\leqslant 300$), and metallicities ($-2.0\leqslant [{\rm{Z}}/{\rm{H}}]\leqslant 0.5$). The models are self-consistently and continuously evolved from the pre-main sequence (PMS) to the end of hydrogen burning, the white dwarf cooling sequence, or the end of carbon burning, depending on the initial mass. We also provide a grid of models evolved from the PMS to the end of core helium burning for $-4.0\leqslant [{\rm{Z}}/{\rm{H}}]\lt -2.0$. We showcase extensive comparisons with observational constraints as well as with some of the most widely used existing models in the literature. The evolutionary tracks and isochrones can be downloaded from the project website at http://waps.cfa.harvard.edu/MIST/.

We develop a galaxy assignment scheme that populates dark matter halos with galaxies by tracing the most bound member particles (MBPs) of simulated halos. Several merger timescale models based on analytic calculations and numerical simulations are adopted as the survival times of mock satellite galaxies. We build mock galaxy samples from halo merger data of the Horizon Run 4 N-body simulation from z = 12–0. We compare group properties and two-point correlation functions (2pCFs) of mock galaxies with those of volume-limited SDSS galaxies, with r-band absolute magnitudes of ${{ \mathcal M }}_{r}-5\mathrm{log}h\lt -21$ and −20 at z = 0. It is found that the MBP-galaxy correspondence scheme reproduces the observed population of SDSS galaxies in massive galaxy groups ($M\gt {10}^{14}\;{h}^{-1}\;{M}_{\odot }$) and the small-scale 2pCF (${r}_{{\rm{p}}}\lt 10\;{h}^{-1}\;\mathrm{Mpc}$) quite well for the majority of the merger timescale models adopted. The new scheme outperforms the previous subhalo-galaxy correspondence scheme by more than 2σ.

Many astronomical objects are surrounded by dusty environments. In such dusty objects, multiple scattering processes of photons by circumstellar (CS) dust grains can effectively alter extinction properties. In this paper, we systematically investigate the effects of multiple scattering on extinction laws for steady-emission sources surrounded by the dusty CS medium using a radiation transfer simulation based on the Monte Carlo technique. In particular, we focus on whether and how the extinction properties are affected by properties of CS dust grains by adopting various dust grain models. We confirm that behaviors of the (effective) extinction laws are highly dependent on the properties of CS grains, especially the total-to-selective extinction ratio R_V, which characterizes the extinction law and can be either increased or decreased and compared with the case without multiple scattering. We find that the criterion for this behavior is given by a ratio of albedos in the B and V bands. We also find that either small silicate grains or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are necessary for realizing a low value of R_V as often measured toward SNe Ia if the multiple scattering by CS dust is responsible for their non-standard extinction laws. Using the derived relations between the properties of dust grains and the resulting effective extinction laws, we propose that the extinction laws toward dusty objects could be used to constrain the properties of dust grains in CS environments.

We report on radio timing and multiwavelength observations of the 4.66 ms redback pulsar J1048+2339, which was discovered in an Arecibo search targeting the Fermi-Large Area Telescope source 3FGL J1048.6+2338. Two years of timing allowed us to derive precise astrometric and orbital parameters for the pulsar. PSR J1048+2339 is in a 6 hr binary and exhibits radio eclipses over half the orbital period and rapid orbital period variations. The companion has a minimum mass of 0.3 M_⊙, and we have identified a V ∼ 20 variable optical counterpart in data from several surveys. The phasing of its ∼1 mag modulation at the orbital period suggests highly efficient and asymmetric heating by the pulsar wind, which may be due to an intrabinary shock that is distorted near the companion, or to the companion's magnetic field channeling the pulsar wind to specific locations on its surface. We also present gamma-ray spectral analysis of the source and preliminary results from searches for gamma-ray pulsations using the radio ephemeris.

Accreting neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries are candidate high-frequency persistent gravitational wave sources. These may be detectable with next-generation interferometers such as Advanced LIGO/VIRGO within this decade. However, the search sensitivity is expected to be limited principally by the uncertainty in the binary system parameters. We combine new optical spectroscopy of Cyg X-2 obtained with the Liverpool Telescope with available historical radial velocity data, which gives us improved orbital parameter uncertainties based on a 44 year baseline. We obtained an improvement of a factor of 2.6 in the orbital period precision and a factor of 2 in the epoch of inferior conjunction T₀. The updated orbital parameters imply a mass function of 0.65 ± 0.01 M_⊙, leading to a primary mass (M₁) of 1.67 ± 0.22 M_⊙ (for $i\;=\;62.\!\!{}^\circ 5\pm 4^\circ$). In addition, we estimate the likely orbital parameter precision through to the expected Advanced LIGO and VIRGO detector observing period and quantify the corresponding improvement in sensitivity via the required number of templates.

We utilize a Bayesian approach to fit the observed mid-IR-to-submillimeter/millimeter spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of 22 WISE-selected and submillimeter-detected, hyperluminous hot dust-obscured galaxies (Hot DOGs), with spectroscopic redshift ranging from 1.7 to 4.6. We compare the Bayesian evidence of a torus plusgraybody (Torus+GB) model with that of a torus-only (Torus) model and find that the Torus+GB model has higher Bayesian evidence for all 22 Hot DOGs than the torus-only model, which presents strong evidence in favor of the Torus+GB model. By adopting the Torus+GB model, we decompose the observed IR SEDs of Hot DOGs into torus and cold dust components. The main results are as follows. (1) Hot DOGs in our submillimeter-detected sample are hyperluminous (${L}_{\mathrm{IR}}\geqslant {10}^{13}{L}_{\odot }$), with torus emission dominating the IR energy output. However, cold dust emission is non-negligible, contributing on average $\sim 24\%$ of total IR luminosity. (2) Compared to QSO and starburst SED templates, the median SED of Hot DOGs shows the highest luminosity ratio between mid-IR and submillimeter at rest frame, while it is very similar to that of QSOs at $\sim 10\mbox{--}50\;\mu {\rm{m}}$, suggesting that the heating sources of Hot DOGs should be buried AGNs. (3) Hot DOGs have high dust temperatures (${T}_{\mathrm{dust}}\sim 72$ K) and high IR luminosity of cold dust. The ${T}_{\mathrm{dust}}\mbox{--}{L}_{\mathrm{IR}}$ relation of Hot DOGs suggests that the increase in IR luminosity for Hot DOGs is mostly due to the increase of the dust temperature, rather than dust mass. Hot DOGs have lower dust masses than submillimeter galaxies (SMGs) and QSOs within a similar redshift range. Both high IR luminosity of cold dust and relatively low dust mass in Hot DOGs can be expected by their relatively high dust temperatures. (4) Hot DOGs have high dust-covering factors (CFs), which deviate from the previously proposed trend of the dust CF decreasing with increasing bolometric luminosity. Finally, we can reproduce the observed properties in Hot DOGs by employing a physical model of galaxy evolution. This result suggests that Hot DOGs may lie at or close to peaks of both star formation and black hole growth histories, and represent a transit phase during the evolutions of massive galaxies, transforming them from the dusty starburst-dominated phase to the optically bright QSO phase.

We investigate whether varying the dust composition (described by the optical constants) can solve a persistent problem in debris disk modeling—the inability to fit the thermal emission without overpredicting the scattered light. We model five images of the β Pictoris disk: two in scattered light from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph at 0.58 μm and HST/Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC 3) at 1.16 μm, and three in thermal emission from Spitzer/Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS) at 24 μm, Herschel/PACS at 70 μm, and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array at 870 μm. The WFC3 and MIPS data are published here for the first time. We focus our modeling on the outer part of this disk, consisting of a parent body ring and a halo of small grains. First, we confirm that a model using astronomical silicates cannot simultaneously fit the thermal and scattered light data. Next, we use a simple generic function for the optical constants to show that varying the dust composition can improve the fit substantially. Finally, we model the dust as a mixture of the most plausible debris constituents: astronomical silicates, water ice, organic refractory material, and vacuum. We achieve a good fit to all data sets with grains composed predominantly of silicates and organics, while ice and vacuum are, at most, present in small amounts. This composition is similar to one derived from previous work on the HR 4796A disk. Our model also fits the thermal spectral energy distribution, scattered light colors, and high-resolution mid-IR data from T-ReCS for this disk. Additionally, we show that sub-blowout grains are a necessary component of the halo.

Currently, 19 transiting exoplanets have published transmission spectra obtained with the Hubble/WFC3 G141 near-IR grism. Using this sample, we have undertaken a uniform analysis incorporating measurement-error debiasing of the spectral modulation due to H₂O, measured in terms of the estimated atmospheric scale height, ${H}_{s}$. For those planets with a reported H₂O detection (10 out of 19), the spectral modulation due to H₂O ranges from 0.9 to 2.9 ${H}_{s}$ with a mean value of 1.8 ± 0.5 ${H}_{s}$. This spectral modulation is significantly less than predicted for clear atmospheres. For the group of planets in which H₂O has been detected, we find the individual spectra can be coherently averaged to produce a characteristic spectrum in which the shape, together with the spectral modulation of the sample, are consistent with a range of H₂O mixing ratios and cloud-top pressures, with a minimum H₂O mixing ratio of ${17}_{-6}^{+12}$ ppm corresponding to the cloud-free case. Using this lower limit, we show that clouds or aerosols must block at least half of the atmospheric column that would otherwise be sampled by transmission spectroscopy in the case of a cloud-free atmosphere. We conclude that terminator-region clouds with sufficient opacity to be opaque in slant-viewing geometry are common in hot Jupiters.

Ellerman Bombs (EBs) are often found to be co-spatial with bipolar photospheric magnetic fields. We use Hα imaging spectroscopy along with Fe i 6302.5 Å spectropolarimetry from the Swedish 1 m Solar Telescope (SST), combined with data from the Solar Dynamic Observatory, to study EBs and the evolution of the local magnetic fields at EB locations. EBs are found via an EB detection and tracking algorithm. Using NICOLE inversions of the spectropolarimetric data, we find that, on average, (3.43 ± 0.49) × 10²⁴ erg of stored magnetic energy disappears from the bipolar region during EB burning. The inversions also show flux cancellation rates of 10¹⁴–10¹⁵ Mx s⁻¹ and temperature enhancements of 200 K at the detection footpoints. We investigate the near-simultaneous flaring of EBs due to co-temporal flux emergence from a sunspot, which shows a decrease in transverse velocity when interacting with an existing, stationary area of opposite polarity magnetic flux, resulting in the formation of the EBs. We also show that these EBs can be fueled further by additional, faster moving, negative magnetic flux regions.

We investigate the decay of a large-scale magnetic field in the context of incompressible, two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence. It is well established that a very weak mean field, of strength significantly below equipartition value, induces a small-scale field strong enough to inhibit the process of turbulent magnetic diffusion. In light of ever-increasing computer power, we revisit this problem to investigate fluids and magnetic Reynolds numbers that were previously inaccessible. Furthermore, by exploiting the relation between the turbulent diffusion of the magnetic potential and that of the magnetic field, we are able to calculate the turbulent magnetic diffusivity extremely accurately through the imposition of a uniform mean magnetic field. We confirm the strong dependence of the turbulent diffusivity on the product of the magnetic Reynolds number and the energy of the large-scale magnetic field. We compare our findings with various theoretical descriptions of this process.

We present a stacking analysis of the complete sample of early-type galaxies (ETGs) in the Chandra COSMOS (C-COSMOS) survey, to explore the nature of the X-ray luminosity in the redshift and stellar luminosity ranges $0\lt z\lt 1.5$ and ${10}^{9}\lt {L}_{K}/{L}_{\odot }\lt {10}^{13}$. Using established scaling relations, we subtract the contribution of X-ray binary populations to estimate the combined emission of hot ISM and active galactic nuclei (AGNs). To discriminate between the relative importance of these two components, we (1) compare our results with the relation observed in the local universe ${L}_{X,\mathrm{gas}}\propto {L}_{K}^{4.5}$ for hot gaseous halos emission in ETGs, and (2) evaluate the spectral signature of each stacked bin. We find two regimes where the non-stellar X-ray emission is hard, consistent with AGN emission. First, there is evidence of hard, absorbed X-ray emission in stacked bins including relatively high z (∼1.2) ETGs with average high X-ray luminosity (${L}_{X \mbox{-} \mathrm{LMXB}}\gtrsim 6\times {10}^{42}\;{\rm{erg}}\;{{\rm{s}}}^{-1}$). These luminosities are consistent with the presence of highly absorbed "hidden" AGNs in these ETGs, which are not visible in their optical–IR spectra and spectral energy distributions. Second, confirming the early indication from our C-COSMOS study of X-ray detected ETGs, we find significantly enhanced X-ray luminosity in lower stellar mass ETGs (${L}_{K}\lesssim {10}^{11}{L}_{\odot }$), relative to the local ${L}_{X,\mathrm{gas}}\propto {L}_{K}^{4.5}$ relation. The stacked spectra of these ETGs also suggest X-ray emission harder than expected from gaseous hot halos. This emission is consistent with inefficient accretion ${10}^{-5}-{10}^{-4}{\dot{M}}_{\mathrm{Edd}}$ onto ${M}_{\mathrm{BH}}\sim {10}^{6}-{10}^{8}\;{M}_{\odot }$.

We explore full/partial tidal disruption events (TDEs) of stars/planets by stellar compact objects (black holes (BHs) or neutron stars (NSs)), which we term micro-TDEs. Disruption of a star/planet with mass M_⋆ may lead to the formation of a debris disk around the BH/NS. Efficient accretion of a fraction $({f}_{\mathrm{acc}}=0.1$ of the debris may then give rise to bright, energetic, long (10³–10⁴ s), X-ray/gamma-ray flares, with total energies of up to $({f}_{\mathrm{acc}}/0.1)\times {10}^{52}\;({M}_{\star }/0.6\;{M}_{\odot })$ erg, possibly resembling ultra-long gamma-ray bursts (GRBs)/X-ray flashes (XRFs). The energy of such flares depends on the poorly constrained accretion processes. Significantly fainter flares might be produced if most of the disk mass is blown away through strong outflows. We suggest three dynamical origins for such disruptions. In the first, a star/planet is tidally disrupted following a close random encounter with a BH/NS in a dense cluster. We estimate the BH (NS) micro-TDE rates from this scenario to be a few $\times {10}^{-6}$ (a few $\times {10}^{-7}$) ${{\rm{yr}}}^{-1}$ per Milky Way galaxy. Another scenario involves the interaction of wide companions due to perturbations by stars in the field, likely producing comparable but lower rates. Finally, a third scenario involves a BH/NS that gains a natal velocity kick at birth, leading to a close encounter with a binary companion and the tidal disruption of that companion. Such events could be associated with a supernova, or even with a preceding GRB/XRF event, and would likely occur hours to days after the prompt explosion; the rates of such events could be larger than those obtained from the other scenarios, depending on the preceding complex binary stellar evolution.

The mass of a star is arguably its most fundamental parameter. For red giant stars, tracers luminous enough to be observed across the Galaxy, mass implies a stellar evolution age. It has proven to be extremely difficult to infer ages and masses directly from red giant spectra using existing methods. From the Kepler and apogee surveys, samples of several thousand stars exist with high-quality spectra and asteroseismic masses. Here we show that from these data we can build a data-driven spectral model using The Cannon, which can determine stellar masses to ∼0.07 dex from apogee dr12 spectra of red giants; these imply age estimates accurate to ∼0.2 dex (40%). We show that The Cannon constrains these ages foremost from spectral regions with CN absorption lines, elements whose surface abundances reflect mass-dependent dredge-up. We deliver an unprecedented catalog of 70,000 giants (including 20,000 red clump stars) with mass and age estimates, spanning the entire disk (from the Galactic center to $R\sim 20$ kpc). We show that the age information in the spectra is not simply a corollary of the birth-material abundances ${\rm{[Fe/H]}}$ and $[\alpha /\mathrm{Fe}]$, and that, even within a monoabundance population of stars, there are age variations that vary sensibly with Galactic position. Such stellar age constraints across the Milky Way open up new avenues in Galactic archeology.

In an effort to measure the masses of planets discovered by the NASA K2 mission, we have conducted precise Doppler observations of five stars with transiting planets. We present the results of a joint analysis of these new data and previously published Doppler data. The first star, an M dwarf known as K2-3 or EPIC 201367065, has three transiting planets ("b," with radius $2.1\;{R}_{\oplus };$ "c," $1.7\;{R}_{\oplus };$ and "d," $1.5\;{R}_{\oplus }$). Our analysis leads to the mass constraints: ${M}_{b}={8.1}_{-1.9}^{+2.0}\;{M}_{\oplus }$ and M_c < 4.2 M_⊕ (95% confidence). The mass of planet d is poorly constrained because its orbital period is close to the stellar rotation period, making it difficult to disentangle the planetary signal from spurious Doppler shifts due to stellar activity. The second star, a G dwarf known as K2-19 or EPIC 201505350, has two planets ("b," 7.7 R_⊕; and "c," 4.9 R_⊕) in a 3:2 mean-motion resonance, as well as a shorter-period planet ("d," 1.1 R_⊕). We find M_b = ${28.5}_{-5.0}^{+5.4}\;{M}_{\oplus }$, M_c = ${25.6}_{-7.1}^{+7.1}\;{M}_{\oplus }$ and M_d < 14.0 M_⊕ (95% conf.). The third star, a G dwarf known as K2-24 or EPIC 203771098, hosts two transiting planets ("b," 5.7 R_⊕; and "c," 7.8 R_⊕) with orbital periods in a nearly 2:1 ratio. We find M_b = ${19.8}_{-4.4}^{+4.5}\;{M}_{\oplus }$ and M_c = ${26.0}_{-6.1}^{+5.8}\;{M}_{\oplus }$. The fourth star, a G dwarf known as EPIC 204129699, hosts a hot Jupiter for which we measured the mass to be ${1.857}_{-0.081}^{+0.081}\;{M}_{\mathrm{Jup}}$. The fifth star, a G dwarf known as EPIC 205071984, contains three transiting planets ("b," 5.4 R_⊕; "c," 3.5 R_⊕; and "d," 3.8 R_⊕), the outer two of which have a nearly 2:1 period ratio. We find M_b = ${21.1}_{-5.9}^{+5.9}\;{M}_{\oplus }$, M_c < $8.1\;{M}_{\oplus }$ (95% conf.) and M_d < 35 M_⊕ (95% conf.).

In this work we propose a new diagnostic to segregate cool core (CC) clusters from non-CC (NCC) clusters by studying the two-dimensional power spectra of the X-ray images observed with the Chandra X-ray observatory. Our sample contains 41 members ($z=0.01\mbox{--}0.54$) which are selected from the Chandra archive when a high photon count, an adequate angular resolution, a relatively complete detector coverage, and coincident CC–NCC classifications derived with three traditional diagnostics are simultaneously guaranteed. We find that in the log–log space the derived image power spectra can be well represented by a constant model component at large wavenumbers, while at small wavenumbers a power excess beyond the constant component appears in all clusters, with a clear tendency that the excess is stronger in CC clusters. By introducing a new CC diagnostic parameter, i.e., the power excess index (PEI), we classify the clusters in our sample and compare the results with those obtained with three traditional CC diagnostics. We find that the results agree with each other very well. By calculating the PEI values of the simulated clusters, we find that the new diagnostic works well at redshifts up to 0.5 for intermediately sized and massive clusters with a typical Chandra or XMM-Newton pointing observation. The new CC diagnostic has several advantages over its counterparts, e.g., it is free of the effects of the commonly seen centroid shift of the X-ray halo caused by merger event, and the corresponding calculation is straightforward, almost irrelevant to the complicated spectral analysis.

The heavy element ashes of rp-process hydrogen and helium burning in accreting neutron stars are compressed to high density where they freeze, forming the outer crust of the star. We calculate the chemical separation on freezing for a number of different nuclear mixtures resulting from a range of burning conditions for the rp-process. We confirm the generic result that light nuclei are preferentially retained in the liquid and heavy nuclei in the solid. This is in agreement with the previous study of a 17-component mixture of rp-process ashes by Horowitz et al., but extends that result to a much larger range of compositions. We also find an alternative phase separation regime for the lightest ash mixtures which does not demonstrate this generic behavior. With a few exceptions, we find that chemical separation reduces the expected ${Q}_{{\rm{imp}}}$ in the outer crust compared to the initial rp-process ash, where ${Q}_{{\rm{imp}}}$ measures the mean-square dispersion in atomic number Z of the nuclei in the mixture. We find that the fractional spread of Z plays a role in setting the amount of chemical separation and is strongly correlated to the divergence between the two/three-component approximations and the full component model. The contrast in Y_e between the initial rp-process ashes and the equilibrium liquid composition is similar to that assumed in earlier two-component models of compositionally driven convection, except for very light compositions which produce nearly negligible convective driving. We discuss the implications of these results for observations of accreting neutron stars.

In the coming years, high-contrast imaging surveys are expected to reveal the characteristics of the population of wide-orbit, massive, exoplanets. To date, a handful of wide planetary mass companions are known, but only one such multi-planet system has been discovered: HR 8799. For low mass planetary systems, multi-planet interactions play an important role in setting system architecture. In this paper, we explore the stability of these high mass, multi-planet systems. While empirical relationships exist that predict how system stability scales with planet spacing at low masses, we show that extrapolating to super-Jupiter masses can lead to up to an order of magnitude overestimate of stability for massive, tightly packed systems. We show that at both low and high planet masses, overlapping mean-motion resonances trigger chaotic orbital evolution, which leads to system instability. We attribute some of the difference in behavior as a function of mass to the increasing importance of second order resonances at high planet–star mass ratios. We use our tailored high mass planet results to estimate the maximum number of planets that might reside in double component debris disk systems, whose gaps may indicate the presence of massive bodies.

Maps of energetic neutral atom (ENA) fluxes obtained from observations made by the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) revealed a bright structure extending over the sky, subsequently dubbed the IBEX ribbon. The ribbon had not been expected from the existing models and theories prior to IBEX, and a number of mechanisms have since been proposed to explain the observations. In these mechanisms, the observed ENAs emerge from source plasmas located at different distances from the Sun. Since each part of the sky is observed by IBEX twice during the year from opposite sides of the Sun, the apparent position of the ribbon as observed in the sky is shifted due to parallax. To determine the ribbon's parallax, we found the precise location of the maximum signal of the ribbon observed in each orbital arc. The apparent positions obtained were subsequently corrected for the Compton–Getting effect, gravitational deflection, and radiation pressure. Finally, we selected a part of the ribbon where its position is similar in the different IBEX energy passbands. We compared the apparent positions obtained from the viewing locations on the opposite sides of the Sun, and found that they are shifted by a parallax angle of 041 ± 015, which corresponds to a distance of ${140}_{-38}^{+84}$ AU. This finding supports models of the ribbon with the source located just outside the heliopause.

In gravitational microlensing, binary systems may act as lenses or sources. Identifying lens binarity is generally easy, in particular in events characterized by caustic crossing since the resulting light curve exhibits strong deviations from a smooth single-lensing light curve. In contrast, light curves with minor deviations from a Paczyński behavior do not allow one to identify the source binarity. A consequence of gravitational microlensing is the shift of the position of the multiple image centroid with respect to the source star location — the so-called astrometric microlensing signal. When the astrometric signal is considered, the presence of a binary source manifests with a path that largely differs from that expected for single source events. Here, we investigate the astrometric signatures of binary sources taking into account their orbital motion and the parallax effect due to the Earth's motion, which turn out not to be negligible in most cases. We also show that considering the above-mentioned effects is important in the analysis of astrometric data in order to correctly estimate the lens-event parameters.

We revisit the swing amplification model of galactic spiral arms proposed by Toomre. We describe the derivation of the perturbation equation in detail and investigate the amplification process of stellar spirals. We find that the elementary process of the swing amplification is the phase synchronization of the stellar epicycle motion. Regardless of the initial epicycle phase, the epicycle phases of stars in a spiral are synchronized during the amplification. Based on the phase synchronization, we explain the dependence of the pitch angle of spirals on the epicycle frequency. We find the most amplified spiral mode and calculate its pitch angle, wavelengths, and amplification factor, which are consistent with those obtained by the more rigorous model based on the Boltzmann equation by Julian & Toomre.

We analyze full-orbit phase curve observations of the transiting hot Jupiters WASP-19b and HAT-P-7b at 3.6 and 4.5 μm, obtained using the Spitzer Space Telescope. For WASP-19b, we measure secondary eclipse depths of $0.485\%\pm 0.024\%$ and $0.584\%\pm 0.029\%$ at 3.6 and 4.5 μm, which are consistent with a single blackbody with effective temperature 2372 ± 60 K. The measured 3.6 and 4.5 μm secondary eclipse depths for HAT-P-7b are $0.156\%\pm 0.009\%$ and $0.190\%\pm 0.006\%$, which are well described by a single blackbody with effective temperature 2667 ± 57 K. Comparing the phase curves to the predictions of one-dimensional and three-dimensional atmospheric models, we find that WASP-19b's dayside emission is consistent with a model atmosphere with no dayside thermal inversion and moderately efficient day–night circulation. We also detect an eastward-shifted hotspot, which suggests the presence of a superrotating equatorial jet. In contrast, HAT-P-7b's dayside emission suggests a dayside thermal inversion and relatively inefficient day–night circulation; no hotspot shift is detected. For both planets, these same models do not agree with the measured nightside emission. The discrepancies in the model-data comparisons for WASP-19b might be explained by high-altitude silicate clouds on the nightside and/or high atmospheric metallicity, while the very low 3.6 μm nightside planetary brightness for HAT-P-7b may be indicative of an enhanced global C/O ratio. We compute Bond albedos of 0.38 ± 0.06 and 0 ($\lt 0.08$ at $1\sigma$) for WASP-19b and HAT-P-7b, respectively. In the context of other planets with thermal phase curve measurements, we show that WASP-19b and HAT-P-7b fit the general trend of decreasing day–night heat recirculation with increasing irradiation.

The detection of structures in the sky with optical surface brightnesses fainter than 30 mag arcsec⁻² (3σ in 10 × 10 arcsec boxes; r-band) has remained elusive in current photometric deep surveys. Here we show how present-day telescopes of 10 m class can provide broadband imaging 1.5–2 mag deeper than most previous results within a reasonable amount of time (i.e., <10 hr on-source integration). In particular, we illustrate the ability of the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio de Canarias telescope to produce imaging with a limiting surface brightness of 31.5 mag arcsec⁻² (3σ in 10 × 10 arcsec boxes; r-band) using 8.1 hr on source. We apply this power to explore the stellar halo of the galaxy UGC 00180, a galaxy analogous to M31 located at ∼150 Mpc, by obtaining a radial profile of surface brightness down to μ_r ∼ 33 mag arcsec⁻². This depth is similar to that obtained using the star-counts techniques for Local Group galaxies, but is achieved at a distance where this technique is unfeasible. We find that the mass of the stellar halo of this galaxy is ∼4 × 10⁹M_⊙, i.e., (3 ± 1)% of the total stellar mass of the whole system. This amount of mass in the stellar halo is in agreement with current theoretical expectations for galaxies of this kind.

Elaborating on a formalism that was first expressed some 40 years ago, we consider the brightness of low-lying millimeter-wave rotational lines of strongly polar molecules at the threshold of detectability. We derive a simple expression relating the brightness to the line-of-sight integral of the product of the total gas and molecular number densities and a suitably defined temperature-dependent excitation rate into the upper level of the transition. Detectability of a line is contingent only on the ability of a molecule to channel enough of the ambient thermal energy into the line, and the excitation can be computed in bulk by summing over rates without solving the multi-level rate equations, or computing optical depths and excitation temperatures. Results for ${\mathrm{HCO}}^{+}$, HNC, and CS are compared with escape-probability solutions of the rate equations using closed-form expressions for the expected range of validity of our ansatz, with the result that gas number densities as high as ${10}^{4}\;{{\rm{cm}}}^{-3}$ or optical depths as high as 100 can be accommodated in some cases. For densities below a well-defined upper bound, the range of validity of the discussion can be cast as an upper bound on the line brightness which is 0.3 K for the J = 1–0 lines and 0.8–1.7 K for the J = 2–1 lines of these species. The discussion casts new light on the interpretation of line brightnesses under conditions of weak excitation, simplifies derivation of physical parameters, and eliminates the need to construct grids of numerical solutions of the rate equations.

We present new spectral line observations of the CH₃CN molecule in the accretion disk around the massive protostar IRAS 20126+4104 with the Submillimeter Array, which, for the first time, measure the disk density, temperature, and rotational velocity with sufficient resolution (037, equivalent to ∼600 au) to assess the gravitational stability of the disk through the Toomre-Q parameter. Our observations resolve the central 2000 au region that shows steeper velocity gradients with increasing upper state energy, indicating an increase in the rotational velocity of the hotter gas nearer the star. Such spin-up motions are characteristics of an accretion flow in a rotationally supported disk. We compare the observed data with synthetic image cubes produced by three-dimensional radiative transfer models describing a thin flared disk in Keplerian motion enveloped within the centrifugal radius of an angular-momentum-conserving accretion flow. Given a luminosity of 1.3 × 10⁴L_⊙, the optimized model gives a disk mass of 1.5 M_⊙ and a radius of 858 au rotating about a 12.0 M_⊙ protostar with a disk mass accretion rate of 3.9 × 10⁻⁵M_⊙ yr⁻¹. Our study finds that, in contrast to some theoretical expectations, the disk is hot and stable to fragmentation with Q > 2.8 at all radii which permits a smooth accretion flow. These results put forward the first constraints on gravitational instabilities in massive protostellar disks, which are closely connected to the formation of companion stars and planetary systems by fragmentation.

We investigate the evolution of the differential emission measure distribution (DEM[T]) in various phases of a B8.3 flare which occurred on 2009 July 04. We analyze the soft X-ray (SXR) emission in the 1.6–8.0 keV range, recorded collectively by the Solar Photometer in X-rays (SphinX; Polish) and the Solar X-ray Spectrometer (Indian) instruments. We conduct a comparative investigation of the best-fit DEM[T] distributions derived by employing various inversion schemes, namely, single Gaussian, power-law functions and a Withbroe–Sylwester (W–S) maximum likelihood algorithm. In addition, the SXR spectrum in three different energy bands, that is, 1.6–5.0 keV (low), 5.0–8.0 keV (high), and 1.6–8.0 keV (combined), is analyzed to determine the dependence of the best-fit DEM[T] distribution on the selection of the energy interval. The evolution of the DEM[T] distribution, derived using a W–S algorithm, reveals multi-thermal plasma during the rise to the maximum phase of the flare, and isothermal plasma in the post-maximum phase of the flare. The thermal energy content is estimated by considering the flare plasma to be (1) isothermal and (2) multi-thermal in nature. We find that the energy content during the flare, estimated using the multi-thermal approach, is in good agreement with that derived using the isothermal assumption, except during the flare maximum. Furthermore, the (multi-) thermal energy estimated while employing the low-energy band of the SXR spectrum results in higher values than that derived from the combined energy band. On the contrary, the analysis of the high-energy band of the SXR spectrum leads to lower thermal energy than that estimated from the combined energy band.

What intrinsic properties shape the light curves of SNe II? To address this question we derive observational measures that are robust (i.e., insensitive to detailed radiative transfer) and constrain the contribution from ⁵⁶Ni as well as a combination of the envelope mass, progenitor radius, and explosion energy. By applying our methods to a sample of SNe II from the literature, we find that a ⁵⁶Ni contribution is often significant. In our sample, its contribution to the time-weighted integrated luminosity during the photospheric phase ranges between 8% and 72% with a typical value of 30%. We find that the ⁵⁶Ni relative contribution is anti-correlated with the luminosity decline rate. When added to other clues, this in turn suggests that the flat plateaus often observed in SNe II are not a generic feature of the cooling envelope emission, and that without ⁵⁶Ni many of the SNe that are classified as II-P would have shown a decline rate that is steeper by up to 1 mag/100 days. Nevertheless, we find that the cooling envelope emission, and not ⁵⁶Ni contribution, is the main driver behind the observed range of decline rates. Furthermore, contrary to previous suggestions, our findings indicate that fast decline rates are not driven by lower envelope masses. We therefore suggest that the difference in observed decline rates is mainly a result of different density profiles of the progenitors.

We exploit the continuity equation approach and "main-sequence" star formation timescales to show that the observed high abundance of galaxies with stellar masses ≳ a few 10¹⁰M_⊙ at redshift z ≳ 4 implies the existence of a galaxy population featuring large star formation rates (SFRs) ψ ≳ 10²M_⊙ yr⁻¹ in heavily dust-obscured conditions. These galaxies constitute the high-redshift counterparts of the dusty star-forming population already surveyed for z ≲ 3 in the far-IR band by the Herschel Space Observatory. We work out specific predictions for the evolution of the corresponding stellar mass and SFR functions out to z ∼ 10, determining that the number density at z ≲ 8 for SFRs ψ ≳ 30 M_⊙ yr⁻¹ cannot be estimated relying on the UV luminosity function alone, even when standard corrections for dust extinction based on the UV slope are applied. We compute the number counts and redshift distributions (including galaxy-scale gravitational lensing) of this galaxy population, and show that current data from the AzTEC-LABOCA, SCUBA-2, and ALMA-SPT surveys are already addressing it. We demonstrate how an observational strategy based on color preselection in the far-IR or (sub-)millimeter band with Herschel and SCUBA-2, supplemented by photometric data from on-source observations with ALMA, can allow us to reconstruct the bright end of the SFR functions out to z ≲ 8. In parallel, such a challenging task can be managed by exploiting current UV surveys in combination with (sub-)millimeter observations by ALMA and NIKA2 and/or radio observations by SKA and its precursors.

During a period of three days beginning 2013 January 17, twelve recurrent reconnection events occur within a small region of opposing flux embedded within one footpoint of an active region, accompanied by flares and jets observed in EUV and fast and faint structureless "puffs" observed by coronagraphs. During the same period a slow structured CME gradually erupts, with one end anchored close to, or within, the jetting region. Four of the jet events occur in pairs—a narrow, primary jet followed within a few tens of minutes by a wider, more massive, jet. All the jets are slow, with an apparent speed of ∼100 km s⁻¹. The speed of the wide puffs in the coronagraph data is ∼300 km s⁻¹, and the timing of their appearance rules out a direct association with the EUV jetting material. The jet material propagates along large-scale closed-field loops and does not escape to the extended corona. The rapid reconfiguration of the closed loops following reconnection causes an outwardly propagating disturbance, or wave front, which manifests as puffs in coronagraph data. Furthermore, the newly expanded closed flux tube forms a pressure imbalance, which can result in a secondary jet. The reconnection events, through recurrent field reconfiguration, also leads to the gradual eruption of the structured flux tube appearing as the slow CME. Faint propagating coronal disturbances resulting from flares/jets may be common, but are usually obscured by associated ejections. Occasionally, the associated material ejections are absent, and coronal puffs may be clearly observed.

Thus far, KIC 7760680 is the richest slowly pulsating B star, exhibiting 36 consecutive dipole (ℓ = 1) gravity (g-) modes. The monotonically decreasing period spacing of the series, in addition to the local dips in the pattern, confirm that KIC 7760680 is a moderate rotator with clear mode trapping in chemically inhomogeneous layers. We employ the traditional approximation of rotation to incorporate rotational effects on g-mode frequencies. Our detailed forward asteroseismic modeling of this g-mode series reveals that KIC 7760680 is a moderately rotating B star with mass ∼3.25 M_⊙. By simultaneously matching the slope of the period spacing and the number of modes in the observed frequency range, we deduce that the equatorial rotation frequency of KIC 7760680 is 0.4805 day⁻¹, which is 26% of its Roche break up frequency. The relative deviation of the model frequencies and those observed is less than 1%. We succeed in tightly constraining the exponentially decaying convective core overshooting parameter to f_ov ≈ 0.024 ± 0.001. This means that convective core overshooting can coexist with moderate rotation. Moreover, models with exponentially decaying overshoot from the core outperform those with the classical step-function overshoot. The best value for extra diffusive mixing in the radiatively stable envelope is confined to $\mathrm{log}{D}_{{\rm{ext}}}\approx 0.75\pm 0.25$ (with D_ext in cm² s⁻¹), which is notably smaller than theoretical predictions.

Utilizing archived Suzaku data acquired on 2007 December 25 for 46 ks, the X-ray spectroscopic properties of the dipping and eclipsing low-mass X-ray binary EXO 0748−676 were studied. At an assumed distance of 7.1 kpc, the data provided a persistent unabsorbed luminosity of $3.4\times {10}^{36}$ erg cm⁻² s⁻¹ in 0.6−55 keV. The source was in a relatively bright low/hard state, wherein the 0.6−55 keV spectrum can be successfully explained by a "double-seed" Comptonization model incorporating a common corona with an electron temperature of ∼13 keV. The seed photons are thought to be supplied from both the neutron star surface and a cooler truncated disk. Compared to a sample of non-dipping, low-mass X-ray binaries in the low/hard state, the spectrum is subject to stronger Comptonization with a relatively larger Comptonizing y-parameter of ∼1.4 and a larger coronal optical depth of ∼5. This result, when attributed to the high inclination of EXO 0748−676, suggests that the Comptonizing corona may elongate along the disk plane and provide a longer path for the seed photons when viewed from edge-on inclinations.

We report the detection of differences in the ion and neutral velocities in prominences using high-resolution spectral data obtained in 2012 September at the German Vacuum Tower Telescope (Observatorio del Teide, Tenerife). A time series of scans of a small portion of a solar prominence was obtained simultaneously with high cadence using the lines of two elements with different ionization states, namely, Ca ii 8542 Å and He i 10830 Å. The displacements, widths, and amplitudes of both lines were carefully compared to extract dynamical information about the plasma. Many dynamical features are detected, such as counterstreaming flows, jets, and propagating waves. In all of the cases, we find a very strong correlation between the parameters extracted from the lines of both elements, confirming that both lines trace the same plasma. Nevertheless, we also find short-lived transients where this correlation is lost. These transients are associated with ion-neutral drift velocities of the order of several hundred m s⁻¹. The patches of non-zero drift velocity show coherence in time–distance diagrams.

We study the turbulent generation of large-scale magnetic fields using nonlinear dynamo models for solar-type stars in the range of rotational periods from 14 to 30 days. Our models take into account nonlinear effects of dynamical quenching of magnetic helicity, and escape of magnetic field from the dynamo region due to magnetic buoyancy. The results show that the observed correlation between the period of rotation and the duration of activity cycles can be explained in the framework of a distributed dynamo model with a dynamical magnetic feedback acting on the turbulent generation from either magnetic buoyancy or magnetic helicity. We discuss implications of our findings for the understanding of dynamo processes operating in solar-like stars.

We study the characteristics of the TeV binary LS I+61°303 in radio, soft X-ray, hard X-ray, and gamma-ray (GeV and TeV) energies. The long-term variability characteristics are examined as a function of the phase of the binary period of 26.496 days as well as the phase of the superorbital period of 1626 days, dividing the observations into a matrix of 10 × 10 phases of these two periods. We find that the long-term variability can be described by a sine function of the superorbital period, with the phase and amplitude systematically varying with the binary period phase. We also find a definite wavelength-dependent change in this variability description. To understand the radiation mechanism, we define three states in the orbital/superorbital phase matrix and examine the wideband spectral energy distribution. The derived source parameters indicate that the emission geometry is dominated by a jet structure showing a systematic variation with the orbital/superorbital period. We suggest that LS I+61°303 is likely a microquasar with a steady jet.

Recently, both stellar mass segregation and binary fractions were uniformly measured on relatively large samples of Galactic globular clusters (GCs). Simulations show that both sizable binary-star populations and intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) quench mass segregation in relaxed GCs. Thus mass segregation in GCs with a reliable binary-fraction measurement is a valuable probe to constrain IMBHs. In this paper we combine mass-segregation and binary-fraction measurements from the literature to build a sample of 33 GCs (with measured core binary fractions), and a sample of 43 GCs (with binary-fraction measurements in the area between the core radius and the half-mass radius). Within both samples we try to identify IMBH-host candidates. These should have relatively low mass segregation, a low binary fraction (<5%), and a short (<1 Gyr) relaxation time. Considering the core-binary-fraction sample, no suitable candidates emerge. If the binary fraction between the core and the half-mass radius is considered, two candidates are found, but this is likely due to statistical fluctuations. We also consider a larger sample of 54 GCs where we obtained an estimate of the core binary fraction using a predictive relation based on metallicity and integrated absolute magnitude. Also in this case no suitable candidates are found. Finally, we consider the GC core- to half-mass radius ratio, which is expected to be larger for GCs containing either an IMBH or binaries. We find that GCs with large core- to half-mass radius ratios are less mass-segregated (and show a larger binary fraction), confirming the theoretical expectation that the energy sources responsible for the large core are also quenching mass segregation.

With the observations of the Solar Dynamics Observatory, we present the slipping magnetic reconnections with multiple flare ribbons (FRs) during an X1.2 eruptive flare on 2014 January 7. A center negative polarity was surrounded by several positive ones, and three FRs appeared. The three FRs showed apparent slipping motions, and hook structures formed at their ends. Due to the moving footpoints of the erupting structures, one tight semi-circular hook disappeared after the slippage along its inner and outer edges, and coronal dimmings formed within the hook. The east hook also faded as a result of the magnetic reconnection between the arcades of a remote filament and a hot loop that was impulsively heated by the under flare loops. Our results are accordant with the slipping magnetic reconnection regime in three-dimensional standard model for eruptive flares. We suggest that the complex structures of the flare are likely a consequence of the more complex flux distribution in the photosphere, and the eruption involves at least two magnetic reconnections.

The tidal disruption of a star by a massive black hole (MBH) is thought to produce a transient luminous event. Such tidal disruption events (TDEs) may play an important role in the detection and characterization of MBHs, and in probing the properties and dynamics of their nuclear stellar cluster (NSC) hosts. Previous studies estimated the recent rates of TDEs in the local universe. However, the long-term evolution of the rates throughout the history of the universe has been little explored. Here we consider TDE history, using evolutionary models for the evolution of galactic nuclei. We use a 1D Fokker–Planck approach to explore the evolution of MBH-hosting NSCs, and obtain the disruption rates of stars during their evolution. We complement these with an analysis of TDE history based on N-body simulation data, and find them to be comparable. We consider NSCs that are built up from close-in star formation (SF) or from far-out SF/cluster-dispersal, a few pc from the MBH. We also explore cases where primordial NSCs exist and later evolve through additional SF/cluster-dispersal processes. We study the dependence of the TDE history on the type of galaxy, as well as the dependence on the MBH mass. These provide several scenarios, with a continuous increase of the TDE rates over time for cases of far-out SF and a more complex behavior for the close-in SF cases. Finally, we integrate the TDE histories of the various scenarios to provide a total TDE history of the universe, which can be potentially probed with future large surveys (e.g., LSST).

We have surveyed the period 1997–2015 for a rare type of ³He-rich solar energetic particle (SEP) event, with enormously enhanced values of the S/O ratio, that differs from the majority of ³He-rich events, which show enhancements of heavy ions increasing smoothly with mass. Sixteen events were found, most of them small but with solar source characteristics similar to other ³He-rich SEP events. A single event on 2014 May 16 had higher intensities than the others, and curved Si and S spectra that crossed the O spectrum above ∼200 keV nucleon⁻¹. Such crossings of heavy-ion spectra have never previously been reported. The dual enhancement of Si and S suggests that element Q/M ratio is critical to the enhancement since this pair of elements uniquely has very similar Q/M ratios over a wide range of temperatures. Besides ³He, Si, and S, in this same event the C, N, and Fe spectra also showed curved shape and enhanced abundances compared to O. The spectral similarities suggest that all have been produced from the same mechanism that enhances ³He. The enhancements are large only in the high-energy portion of the spectrum, and so affect only a small fraction of the ions. The observations suggest that the accelerated plasma was initially cool (∼0.4 MK) and was then heated to a few million kelvin to generate the preferred Q/M ratio in the range C–Fe. The temperature profile may be the distinct feature of these events that produces the unusual abundance signature.

We propose a new concept for the spectral characterization of transiting exoplanets with future space-based telescopes. This concept, called densified pupil spectroscopy, allows us to perform high, stable spectrophotometry against telescope pointing jitter and deformation of the primary mirror. This densified pupil spectrometer comprises the following three roles: division of a pupil into a number of sub-pupils, densification of each sub-pupil, and acquisition of the spectrum of each sub-pupil with a conventional spectrometer. Focusing on the fact that the divided and densified sub-pupil can be treated as a point source, we discovered that a simplified spectrometer allows us to acquire the spectra of the densified sub-pupils on the detector plane−an optical conjugate with the primary mirror−by putting the divided and densified sub-pupils on the entrance slit of the spectrometer. The acquired multiple spectra are not principally moved on the detector against low-order aberrations such as the telescope pointing jitter and any deformation of the primary mirror. The reliability of the observation result is also increased by statistically treating them. Our numerical calculations show that because this method suppresses the instrumental systematic errors down to 10 ppm under telescopes with modest pointing accuracy, next generation space telescopes with more than 2.5 m diameter potentially provide opportunities to characterize temperate super-Earths around nearby late-type stars through the transmission spectroscopy and secondary eclipse.

We present results on the formation of Population III (Pop III) stars at redshift 7.6 from the Renaissance Simulations, a suite of extremely high-resolution and physics-rich radiation transport hydrodynamics cosmological adaptive-mesh refinement simulations of high-redshift galaxy formation performed on the Blue Waters supercomputer. In a survey volume of about 220 comoving Mpc³, we found 14 Pop III galaxies with recent star formation. The surprisingly late formation of Pop III stars is possible due to two factors: (i) the metal enrichment process is local and slow, leaving plenty of pristine gas to exist in the vast volume; and (ii) strong Lyman–Werner radiation from vigorous metal-enriched star formation in early galaxies suppresses Pop III formation in ("not so") small primordial halos with mass less than ∼3 × 10⁷M_⊙. We quantify the properties of these Pop III galaxies and their Pop III star formation environments. We look for analogs to the recently discovered luminous Ly α emitter CR7, which has been interpreted as a Pop III star cluster within or near a metal-enriched star-forming galaxy. We find and discuss a system similar to this in some respects, however, the Pop III star cluster is far less massive and luminous than CR7 is inferred to be.

Protostellar (class 0/I) disks, which have masses comparable to those of their nascent host stars and are fed continuously from their natal infalling envelopes, are prone to gravitational instability (GI). Motivated by advances in near-infrared (NIR) adaptive optics imaging and millimeter-wave interferometry, we explore the observational signatures of GI in disks using hydrodynamical and Monte Carlo radiative transfer simulations to synthesize NIR scattered light images and millimeter dust continuum maps. Spiral arms induced by GI, located at disk radii of hundreds of astronomical units, are local overdensities and have their photospheres displaced to higher altitudes above the disk midplane; therefore, arms scatter more NIR light from their central stars than inter-arm regions, and are detectable at distances up to 1 kpc by Gemini/GPI, VLT/SPHERE, and Subaru/HiCIAO/SCExAO. In contrast, collapsed clumps formed by disk fragmentation have such strong local gravitational fields that their scattering photospheres are at lower altitudes; such fragments appear fainter than their surroundings in NIR scattered light. Spiral arms and streamers recently imaged in four FU Ori systems at NIR wavelengths resemble GI-induced structures and support the interpretation that FUors are gravitationally unstable protostellar disks. At millimeter wavelengths, both spirals and clumps appear brighter in thermal emission than the ambient disk and can be detected by ALMA at distances up to 0.4 kpc with one hour integration times at ∼01 resolution. Collapsed fragments having masses ≳1 M_J can be detected by ALMA within ∼10 minutes.

We present new binary stellar evolution models that include the effects of tidal forces, rotation, and magnetic torques with the goal of testing planetary nebulae (PNs) shaping via binary interaction. We explore whether tidal interaction with a companion can spin-up the asymptotic giant brach (AGB) envelope. To do so, we have selected binary systems with main-sequence masses of 2.5 M_⊙ and 0.8 M_⊙ and evolve them allowing initial separations of 5, 6, 7, and 8 au. The binary stellar evolution models have been computed all the way to the PNs formation phase or until Roche lobe overflow (RLOF) is reached, whatever happens first. We show that with initial separations of 7 and 8 au, the binary avoids entering into RLOF, and the AGB star reaches moderate rotational velocities at the surface (∼3.5 and ∼2 km s⁻¹, respectively) during the inter-pulse phases, but after the thermal pulses it drops to a final rotational velocity of only ∼0.03 km s⁻¹. For the closest binary separations explored, 5 and 6 au, the AGB star reaches rotational velocities of ∼6 and ∼4 km s⁻¹, respectively, when the RLOF is initiated. We conclude that the detached binary models that avoid entering the RLOF phase during the AGB will not shape bipolar PNs, since the acquired angular momentum is lost via the wind during the last two thermal pulses. This study rules out tidal spin-up in non-contact binaries as a sufficient condition to form bipolar PNs.

We identify four unusually bright (H${}_{160,{AB}}$ < 25.5) galaxies from Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and Spitzer CANDELS data with probable redshifts z ∼ 7–9. These identifications include the brightest-known galaxies to date at z ≳ 7.5. As Y-band observations are not available over the full CANDELS program to perform a standard Lyman-break selection of z > 7 galaxies, we employ an alternate strategy using deep Spitzer/IRAC data. We identify z ∼ 7.1–9.1 galaxies by selecting z ≳ 6 galaxies from the HST CANDELS data that show quite red IRAC [3.6]−[4.5] colors, indicating strong [O iii]+Hβ lines in the 4.5 μm band. This selection strategy was validated using a modest sample for which we have deep Y-band coverage, and subsequently used to select the brightest z ≥ 7 sources. Applying the IRAC criteria to all HST-selected optical dropout galaxies over the full ∼900 arcmin² of the CANDELS survey revealed four unusually bright z ∼ 7.1, 7.6, 7.9, and 8.6 candidates. The median [3.6]−[4.5] color of our selected z ∼ 7.1–9.1 sample is consistent with rest-frame [O iii]+Hβ EWs of ∼1500 Å in the [4.5] band. Keck/MOSFIRE spectroscopy has been independently reported for two of our selected sources, showing Lyα at redshifts of 7.7302 ± 0.0006 and ${8.683}_{-0.004}^{+0.001}$, respectively. We present similar Keck/MOSFIRE spectroscopy for a third selected galaxy with a probable 4.7σ Lyα line at z_spec = 7.4770 ± 0.0008. All three have H₁₆₀-band magnitudes of ∼25 mag and are ∼0.5 mag more luminous (M₁₆₀₀ ∼ −22.0) than any previously discovered z ∼ 8 galaxy, with important implications for the UV luminosity function (LF). Our three brightest and highest redshift z > 7 galaxies all lie within the CANDELS-EGS field, providing a dramatic illustration of the potential impact of field-to-field variance.

The Santa Barbara cluster comparison project revealed that there is a systematic difference between entropy profiles of clusters of galaxies obtained by Eulerian mesh and Lagrangian smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) codes: mesh codes gave a core with a constant entropy, whereas SPH codes did not. One possible reason for this difference is that mesh codes are not Galilean invariant. Another possible reason is the problem of the SPH method, which might give too much "protection" to cold clumps because of the unphysical surface tension induced at contact discontinuities. In this paper, we apply the density-independent formulation of SPH (DISPH), which can handle contact discontinuities accurately, to simulations of a cluster of galaxies and compare the results with those with the standard SPH. We obtained the entropy core when we adopt DISPH. The size of the core is, however, significantly smaller than those obtained with mesh simulations and is comparable to those obtained with quasi-Lagrangian schemes such as "moving mesh" and "mesh free" schemes. We conclude that both the standard SPH without artificial conductivity and Eulerian mesh codes have serious problems even with such an idealized simulation, while DISPH, SPH with artificial conductivity, and quasi-Lagrangian schemes have sufficient capability to deal with it.

In this work we analyze multiple sources of solar wind through a full Carrington Rotation (CR 2053) by analyzing the solar data through spectroscopic observations of the plasma upflow regions and the in situ data of the wind itself. Following earlier authors, we link solar and in situ observations by a combination of ballistic backmapping and potential-field source-surface modeling. We find three sources of fast solar wind that are low-latitude coronal holes. The coronal holes do not produce a steady fast wind, but rather a wind with rapid fluctuations. The coronal spectroscopic data from Hinode's Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer show a mixture of upflow and downflow regions highlighting the complexity of the coronal hole, with the upflows being dominant. There is a mix of open and multi-scale closed magnetic fields in this region whose (interchange) reconnections are consistent with the up- and downflows they generate being viewed through an optically thin corona, and with the strahl directions and freeze-in temperatures found in in situ data. At the boundary of slow and fast wind streams there are three short periods of enhanced-velocity solar wind, which we term intermediate based on their in situ characteristics. These are related to active regions that are located beside coronal holes. The active regions have different magnetic configurations, from bipolar through tripolar to quadrupolar, and we discuss the mechanisms to produce this intermediate wind, and the important role that the open field of coronal holes adjacent to closed-field active regions plays in the process.

The high-mass X-ray binary and accreting X-ray pulsar IGR J16393-4643 was observed by the Nuclear Spectroscope Telescope Array in the 3–79 keV energy band for a net exposure time of 50 ks. We present the results of this observation which enabled the discovery of a cyclotron resonant scattering feature with a centroid energy of ${29.3}_{-1.3}^{+1.1}$ keV. This allowed us to measure the magnetic field strength of the neutron star for the first time: B = (2.5 ± 0.1) × 10¹² G. The known pulsation period is now observed at 904.0 ± 0.1 s. Since 2006, the neutron star has undergone a long-term spin-up trend at a rate of $\dot{P}=-2\times {10}^{-8}$ s s⁻¹ (−0.6 s per year, or a frequency derivative of $\dot{\nu }=3\times {10}^{-14}$ Hz s⁻¹). In the power density spectrum, a break appears at the pulse frequency which separates the zero slope at low frequency from the steeper slope at high frequency. This addition of angular momentum to the neutron star could be due to the accretion of a quasi-spherical wind, or it could be caused by the transient appearance of a prograde accretion disk that is nearly in corotation with the neutron star whose magnetospheric radius is around 2 × 10⁸ cm.

In this paper, we report observations of a peculiar SN Ia iPTF13asv (a.k.a., SN2013cv) from the onset of the explosion to months after its peak. The early-phase spectra of iPTF13asv show an absence of iron absorption, indicating that synthesized iron elements are confined to low-velocity regions of the ejecta, which, in turn, implies a stratified ejecta structure along the line of sight. Our analysis of iPTF13asv's light curves and spectra shows that it is an intermediate case between normal and super-Chandrasekhar events. On the one hand, its light curve shape (B-band ${\rm{\Delta }}{m}_{15}=1.03\pm 0.01$) and overall spectral features resemble those of normal SNe Ia. On the other hand, its large peak optical and UV luminosity (${M}_{B}=-19.84\;{\rm{mag}}$, ${M}_{{uvm}2}=-15.5\;{\rm{mag}}$) and its low but almost constant Si ii velocities of about 10,000 km s⁻¹ are similar to those in super-Chandrasekhar events, and its persistent carbon signatures in the spectra are weaker than those seen commonly in super-Chandrasekhar events. We estimate a ⁵⁶Ni mass of ${0.81}_{-0.18}^{+0.10}{M}_{\odot }$ and a total ejecta mass of ${1.59}_{-0.12}^{+0.45}{M}_{\odot }$. The large ejecta mass of iPTF13asv and its stratified ejecta structure together seemingly favor a double-degenerate origin.

Supersonic outflows from objects as varied as stellar jets, massive stars, and novae often exhibit multiple shock waves that overlap one another. When the intersection angle between two shock waves exceeds a critical value, the system reconfigures its geometry to create a normal shock known as a Mach stem where the shocks meet. Mach stems are important for interpreting emission-line images of shocked gas because a normal shock produces higher postshock temperatures, and therefore a higher-excitation spectrum than does an oblique shock. In this paper, we summarize the results of a series of numerical simulations and laboratory experiments designed to quantify how Mach stems behave in supersonic plasmas that are the norm in astrophysical flows. The experiments test analytical predictions for critical angles where Mach stems should form, and quantify how Mach stems grow and decay as intersection angles between the incident shock and a surface change. While small Mach stems are destroyed by surface irregularities and subcritical angles, larger ones persist in these situations and can regrow if the intersection angle changes to become more favorable. The experimental and numerical results show that although Mach stems occur only over a limited range of intersection angles and size scales, within these ranges they are relatively robust, and hence are a viable explanation for variable bright knots observed in Hubble Space Telescope images at the intersections of some bow shocks in stellar jets.

We present a new algorithm for space telescope high contrast imaging of close-to-face-on planetary disks called Optimized Spatially Filtered (OSFi) normalization. This algorithm is used on HR 8799 Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) coronagraphic archival data, showing an over-luminosity after reference star point-spread function (PSF) subtraction that may be from the inner disk and/or planetesimal belt components of this system. The PSF-subtracted radial profiles in two separate epochs from 2011 and 2012 are consistent with one another, and self-subtraction shows no residual in both epochs. We explore a number of possible false-positive scenarios that could explain this residual flux, including telescope breathing, spectral differences between HR 8799 and the reference star, imaging of the known warm inner disk component, OSFi algorithm throughput and consistency with the standard spider normalization HST PSF subtraction technique, and coronagraph misalignment from pointing accuracy. In comparison to another similar STIS data set, we find that the over-luminosity is likely a result of telescope breathing and spectral difference between HR 8799 and the reference star. Thus, assuming a non-detection, we derive upper limits on the HR 8799 dust belt mass in small grains. In this scenario, we find that the flux of these micron-sized dust grains leaving the system due to radiation pressure is small enough to be consistent with measurements of other debris disk halos.

Observations revealed that various kinds of oscillations are excited in solar flare regions. Quasi-periodic pulsations (QPPs) in flare emissions are commonly observed in a wide range of wavelengths. Recent observations have found that fast-mode magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) waves are quasi-periodically emitted from some flaring sites (quasi-periodic propagating fast-mode magnetoacoustic waves; QPFs). Both QPPs and QPFs imply a cyclic disturbance originating from the flaring sites. However, the physical mechanisms remain puzzling. By performing a set of two-dimensional MHD simulations of a solar flare, we discovered the local oscillation above the loops filled with evaporated plasma (above-the-loop-top region) and the generation of QPFs from such oscillating regions. Unlike all previous models for QPFs, our model includes essential physics for solar flares such as magnetic reconnection, heat conduction, and chromospheric evaporation. We revealed that QPFs can be spontaneously excited by the above-the-loop-top oscillation. We found that this oscillation is controlled by the backflow of the reconnection outflow. The new model revealed that flare loops and the above-the-loop-top region are full of shocks and waves, which is different from the previous expectations based on a standard flare model and previous simulations. In this paper, we show the QPF generation process based on our new picture of flare loops and will briefly discuss a possible relationship between QPFs and QPPs. Our findings will change the current view of solar flares to a new view in which they are a very dynamic phenomenon full of shocks and waves.

We conducted IRAM-30 m C¹⁸O (2–1) and SMA 1.3 mm continuum ¹²CO (2–1) and C¹⁸O (2–1) observations toward the Class 0/I protostar L1455 IRS1 in Perseus. The IRAM-30 m C¹⁸O results show IRS1 in a dense 0.05 pc core with a mass of 0.54 M_⊙, connecting to a filamentary structure. Inside the dense core, compact components of 350 au and 1500 au are detected in the SMA 1.3 mm continuum and C¹⁸O, with a velocity gradient in the latter one perpendicular to a bipolar outflow in ¹²CO, likely tracing a rotational motion. We measure a rotational velocity profile $\propto {r}^{-0.75}$ that becomes shallower at a turning radius of ∼200 au, which is approximately the radius of the 1.3 mm continuum component. These results hint at the presence of a Keplerian disk with a radius <200 au around L1455 IRS1 with a protostellar mass of about 0.28 M_⊙. We derive a core rotation that is about one order of magnitude faster than expected. A significant velocity gradient along a filament toward IRS1 indicates that this filament is dynamically important, providing a gas reservoir and possibly responsible for the faster-than-average core rotation. Previous polarimetric observations show a magnetic field aligned with the outflow axis and perpendicular to the associated filament on a 0.1 pc scale, while on the inner 1000 au scale, the field becomes perpendicular to the outflow axis. This change in magnetic field orientations is consistent with our estimated increase in rotational energy from large to small scales that overcomes the magnetic field energy, wrapping the field lines and aligning them with the disk velocity gradient. These results are discussed in the context of the interplay between filament, magnetic field, and gas kinematics from large to small scales. Possible emerging trends are explored with a sample of 8 Class 0/I protostars.

We present the first detection of the photometric variability in a spectroscopically confirmed Y dwarf. The Infrared Array Camera on board the Spitzer Space Telescope was used to obtain time series photometry of WISE J140518.39+553421.3 at 3.6 and 4.5 μm over a 24-hr period at two different epochs separated by 149 days. Variability is evident at 4.5 μm in the first epoch and at 3.6 and 4.5 μm in the second epoch, which suggests that the underlying cause or causes of this variability change on the timescales of months. The second-epoch [3.6] and [4.5] light curves are nearly sinusoidal in form, in phase, have periods of roughly 8.5 hr, and have semi-amplitudes of 3.5%. We find that a simple geometric spot model with a single bright spot reproduces these observations well. We also compare our measured semi-amplitudes of the second-epoch light curves to predictions of the static, one-dimensional, partly cloudy, and hot spot models of Morley and collaborators, and find that neither set of models can reproduce the observed [3.6] and [4.5] semi-amplitudes simultaneously. Therefore, more advanced two-dimensional or three-dimensional models that include time-dependent phenomena like vertical mixing, cloud formation, and thermal relaxation are sorely needed in order to properly interpret our observations.

Several attempts have been made to find reliable diagnostic tools to determine the state prior to flares and related coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in solar active regions (ARs). Characterization of the level of mixed states is carried out using the Debrecen sunspot Data for 116 flaring ARs. Conditional flare probabilities (CFPs) are calculated for different flaring classes. The association with slow/fast CMEs is examined. Two precursor parameters are introduced: (i) the sum of the (daily averaged) horizontal magnetic gradient G_S (G_DS) and (ii) the separation parameter ${S}_{l-f}$. We found that if ${S}_{l-f}\leqslant 1$ for a flaring AR then the CFP of the expected highest-intensity flare being X-class is more than 70%. If $1\leqslant {S}_{l-f}\leqslant 3$ the CFP is more than 45% for the highest-intensity flare(s) to be M-class, and if $3\leqslant {S}_{l-f}\leqslant 13$ there is larger than 60% CFP that C-class flare(s) may have the strongest intensity within 48 hr. Next, from analyzing G_S for determining CFP we found: if $5.5\leqslant \mathrm{log}({G}_{S})\;\leqslant \;$6.5, then it is very likely that C-class flare(s) may be the most intense; if $6.5\leqslant \mathrm{log}({G}_{S})\leqslant 7.5$ then there is ∼45% CFP that M-class could have the highest intensity; finally, if $7.5\leqslant \mathrm{log}({G}_{S})$ then there is at least 70% chance that the strongest energy release will be X-class in the next 48 hr. ARs are unlikely to produce X-class flare(s) if $13\leqslant {S}_{l-f}$ and log(G_S) $\leqslant$ 5.5. Finally, in terms of providing an estimate of an associated slow/fast CME, we found that, if $\mathrm{log}({S}_{l-f})\;\geqslant$ 0.4 or $\mathrm{log}({G}_{{DS}})\;\leqslant$ 6.5, there is no accompanying fast CME in the following 24 hr.

We estimate the long-duration gamma-ray burst (LGRB) progenitor rate using our recent work on the effects of environmental metallically on LGRB formation in concert with supernovae (SNe) statistics via an approach patterned loosely off the Drake equation. Beginning with the cosmic star formation history, we consider the expected number of broad-line Type Ic events (the SNe type associated with LGRBs) that are in low-metallicity host environments adjusted by the contribution of high-metallicity host environments at a much reduced rate. We then compare this estimate to the observed LGRB rate corrected for instrumental selection effects to provide a combined estimate of the efficiency fraction of these progenitors to produce LGRBs and the fraction of which are beamed in our direction. From this we estimate that an aligned LGRB occurs for approximately every 4000 ± 2000 low-metallically broad-lined SNe Ic. Therefore, if one assumes a semi-nominal beaming factor of 100, then only about one such supernova out of 40 produce an LGRB. Finally, we propose an off-axis LGRB search strategy of targeting only broad-line Type Ic events that occur in low-metallicity hosts for radio observation.

Observations have revealed a relative paucity of red giant (RG) stars within the central 0.5 pc in the Galactic Center (GC). Motivated by this finding we investigate the hypothesis that collisions of stars with a fragmenting accretion disk are responsible for the observed dearth of evolved stars. We use three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations to model a star with radius 10 R_⊙ and mass 1 M_⊙, representative of the missing population of RGs, colliding with high density clumps. We find that multiple collisions with clumps of column density ≳10⁸ g cm⁻² can strip a substantial fraction of the star's envelope and in principle render it invisible to observations. Simulations confirm that repeated impacts are particularly efficient in driving mass loss as partially stripped RGs expand and have increased cross sections for subsequent collisions. Because the envelope is unbound on account of the kinetic energy of the star, any significant amount of stripping of the RG population in the GC should be mirrored by a systematic decay of their orbits and possibly by their enhanced rotational velocity. To be viable, this scenario requires that the total mass of the fragmenting disk has been several orders of magnitude higher than that of the early-type stars which now form the stellar disk in the GC.

The X-ray afterglow of GRB 130831A shows an "internal plateau" with a decay slope of ∼0.8, followed by a steep drop at around 10⁵ s with a slope of ∼6. After the drop, the X-ray afterglow continues with a much shallower decay. The optical afterglow exhibits two segments of plateaus separated by a luminous optical flare, followed by a normal decay with a slope basically consistent with that of the late-time X-ray afterglow. The decay of the internal X-ray plateau is much steeper than what we expect in the simplest magnetar model. We propose a scenario in which the magnetar undergoes gravitational-wave-driven r-mode instability, and the spin-down is dominated by gravitational wave losses up to the end of the steep plateau, so that such a relatively steep plateau can be interpreted as the internal emission of the magnetar wind and the sharp drop can be produced when the magnetar collapses into a black hole. This scenario also predicts an initial X-ray plateau lasting for hundreds of seconds with an approximately constant flux which is compatible with observation. Assuming that the magnetar wind has a negligible contribution in the optical band, we interpret the optical afterglow as the forward shock emission by invoking the energy injection from a continuously refreshed shock following the prompt emission phase. It is shown that our model can basically describe the temporal evolution of the multi-band afterglow of GRB 130831A.

We present Subaru/Faint Object Camera and Spectrograph and Keck/Deep Imaging Multi-Object Spectrometer medium-resolution spectroscopy of a tidally disrupting Milky Way (MW) globular cluster Palomar 5 (Pal 5) and its tidal stream. The observed fields are located to cover an angular extent of ∼17° along the stream, providing an opportunity to investigate a trend in line-of-sight velocities (V_los) along the stream, which is essential to constrain its orbit and underlying gravitational potential of the MW's dark matter halo. A spectral fitting technique is applied to the observed spectra to obtain stellar parameters and metallicities ([Fe/H]) of the target stars. The 19 stars most likely belonging to the central Pal 5 cluster have a mean V_los of −58.1 ± 0.7 km s⁻¹ and metallicity [Fe/H] = −1.35 ± 0.06 dex, both of which are in good agreement with those derived in previous high-resolution spectroscopic studies. Assuming that the stream stars have the same [Fe/H] as the progenitor cluster, the derived [Fe/H] and ${V}_{{\rm{los}}}$ values are used to estimate the possible V_los range of the member stars at each location along the stream. Because of the heavy contamination of the field MW stars, the estimated V_los range depends on prior assumptions about the stream's ${V}_{{\rm{los}}}$, which highlights the importance of more definitely identifying the member stars using proper motion and chemical abundances to obtain unbiased information of V_los in the outer part of the Pal 5 stream. The models for the gravitational potential of the MW's dark matter halo that are compatible with the estimated V_los range are discussed.

Because of the large neutron excess of ²²Ne, sedimentation of this isotope occurs rapidly in the interior of white dwarfs. This process releases an additional amount of energy, thus delaying the cooling times of the white dwarf. This influences the ages of different stellar populations derived using white dwarf cosmochronology. Furthermore, the overabundance of ²²Ne in the inner regions of the star modifies the Brunt–Väisälä frequency, thus altering the pulsational properties of these stars. In this work we discuss the impact of ²²Ne sedimentation in white dwarfs resulting from solar metallicity progenitors (Z = 0.02). We performed evolutionary calculations of white dwarfs with masses of 0.528, 0.576, 0.657, and 0.833 ${M}_{\odot }$ derived from full evolutionary computations of their progenitor stars, starting at the zero-age main sequence all the way through the central hydrogen and helium burning, the thermally pulsing asymptotic giant branch (AGB), and post-AGB phases. Our computations show that at low luminosities ($\mathrm{log}(L/{L}_{\odot })\lesssim -4.25$), ²²Ne sedimentation delays the cooling of white dwarfs with solar metallicity progenitors by about 1 Gyr. Additionally, we studied the consequences of ²²Ne sedimentation on the pulsational properties of ZZ Ceti white dwarfs. We find that ²²Ne sedimentation induces differences in the periods of these stars larger than the present observational uncertainties, particularly in more massive white dwarfs.

We revisited the unusual wind in GRO J1655−40, detected with Chandra in 2005 April, using long-term Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer X-ray data and simultaneous optical/near-infrared photometric data. This wind is the most convincing case for magnetic driving in black hole binaries, as it has an inferred launch radius that is a factor of 10 smaller than the thermal wind prediction. However, the optical and near-infrared (OIR) fluxes monotonically increase around the Chandra observation, whereas the X-ray flux monotonically decreases from 10 days beforehand. Yet the optical and near-infrared fluxes are from the outer, irradiated disk, so for them to increase implies that the X-rays likewise increased. We applied a new irradiated disk model to the multi-wavelength spectral energy distributions. Fitting the OIR fluxes, we estimated the intrinsic luminosity at the Chandra epoch was $\gtrsim 0.7{L}_{{\rm{Edd}}}$, which is more than one order of magnitude larger than the observed X-ray luminosity. These results could be explained if a Compton-thick, almost completely ionized gas was present in the wind and strong scattering reduced the apparent X-ray luminosity. The effects of scattering in the wind should then be taken into account for discussion of the wind-driving mechanism. Radiation pressure and Compton heating may also contribute to powering the wind at this high luminosity.

We present an Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) 106 GHz (Band 3) continuum survey of the complete population of dense cores in the Chamaeleon I molecular cloud. We detect a total of 24 continuum sources in 19 different target fields. All previously known Class 0 and Class I protostars in Chamaeleon I are detected, whereas all of the 56 starless cores in our sample are undetected. We show that the Spitzer+Herschel census of protostars in Chamaeleon I is complete, with the rate at which protostellar cores have been misclassified as starless cores calculated as <1/56, or <2%. We use synthetic observations to show that starless cores collapsing following the turbulent fragmentation scenario are detectable by our ALMA observations when their central densities exceed ∼10⁸ cm⁻³, with the exact density dependent on the viewing geometry. Bonnor–Ebert spheres, on the other hand, remain undetected to central densities at least as high as 10¹⁰ cm⁻³. Our starless core non-detections are used to infer that either the star-formation rate is declining in Chamaeleon I and most of the starless cores are not collapsing, matching the findings of previous studies, or that the evolution of starless cores are more accurately described by models that develop less substructure than predicted by the turbulent fragmentation scenario, such as Bonnor–Ebert spheres. We outline future work necessary to distinguish between these two possibilities.

The data harvest from the Voyagers' (V1 and V2) Ultraviolet Spectrometers (UVS) covers encounters with the outer planets, measurements of the heliosphere sky-background, and stellar spectrophotometry. Because their period of operation overlaps with many ultraviolet missions, the calibration of V1 and V2 UVS with other spectrometers is invaluable. Here we revisit the UVS calibration to assess the intriguing sensitivity enhancements of 243% (V1) and 156% (V2) proposed recently. Using the Lyα airglow from Saturn, observed in situ by both Voyagers, and remotely by International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE), we match the Voyager values to IUE, taking into account the shape of the Saturn Lyα line observed with the Goddard High Resolution Spectrograph on board the Hubble Space Telescope. For all known ranges of the interplanetary hydrogen density, we show that the V1 and V2 UVS sensitivities cannot be enhanced by the amounts thus far proposed. The same diagnostic holds for distinct channels covering the diffuse He i 58.4 nm emission. Our prescription is to keep the original calibration of the Voyager UVS with a maximum uncertainty of 30%, making both instruments some of the most stable EUV/FUV spectrographs in the history of space exploration. In that frame, we reassess the excess Lyα emission detected by Voyager UVS deep in the heliosphere, to show its consistency with a heliospheric but not galactic origin. Our finding confirms results obtained nearly two decades ago—namely, the UVS discovery of the distortion of the heliosphere and the corresponding obliquity of the local interstellar magnetic field ($\sim 40^\circ$ from upwind) in the solar system neighborhood—without requiring any revision of the Voyager UVS calibration.

Radial velocity and transit surveys have found that the fraction of FGKM stars with close-in super-Earth(s) (η_⊕) is around 30%–50%, independent of the stellar mass M_* and metallicity Z_*. In contrast, the fraction of solar-type stars harboring one or more gas giants (η_J) with masses M_p > 100 M_⊕ is nearly 10%–15%, and it appears to increase with both M_* and Z_*. Regardless of the properties of their host stars, the total mass of some multiple super-Earths systems exceeds the core mass of Jupiter and Saturn. We suggest that both super-Earths and supercritical cores of gas giants were assembled from a population of embryos that underwent convergent type I migration from their birthplaces to a transition location between viscously heated and irradiation-heated disk regions. We attribute the cause for the η_⊕–η_J dichotomy to conditions required for embryos to merge and to acquire supercritical core mass (${M}_{{\rm{c}}}\sim 10\;{M}_{\oplus }$) for the onset of efficient gaseous envelope accretion. We translate this condition into a critical disk accretion rate, and our analysis and simulation results show that it weakly depends on M_* and decreases with metallicity of disk gas Z_d. We find that embryos are more likely to merge into supercritical cores around relatively massive and metal-rich stars. This dependence accounts for the observed η_J–M_*. We also consider the ${Z}_{{\rm{d}}}\mbox{--}{Z}_{*}$ dispersed relationship and reproduce the observed η_J–Z_* correlation.

Titan's thermospheric photochemistry is primarily driven by solar radiation. Similarly to other planetary atmospheres, such as Mars', Titan's atmospheric structure is also directly affected by variations in the solar extreme-UV/UV output in response to the 11-year-long solar cycle. Here, we investigate the influence of nitrogen on the vertical production, loss, and abundance profiles of hydrocarbons as a function of the solar cycle. Our results show that changes in the atmospheric nitrogen atomic density (primarily in its ground state N(⁴S)) as a result of photon flux variations have important implications for the production of several minor hydrocarbons. The solar minimum enhancement of CH₃, C₂H₆, and C₃H₈, despite the lower CH₄ photodissociation rates compared with solar maximum conditions, is explained by the role of N(⁴S). N(⁴S) indirectly controls the altitude of termolecular versus bimolecular chemical regimes through its relationship with CH₃. When in higher abundance during solar maximum at lower altitudes, N(⁴S) increases the importance of bimolecular CH₃ + N(⁴S) reactions producing HCN and H₂CN. The subsequent remarkable CH₃ loss and decrease in the CH₃ abundance at lower altitudes during solar maximum affects the overall hydrocarbon chemistry.