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At least 37 records · Page 2

A complete sample of flat-spectrum radio sources from the Parkes 2.7 GHz survey

A complete sample of about 400 flat-spectrum radio sources from the Parkes 2700 MHz catalog with fluxes of greater than 0.5 is presented. The present sample covers all right ascensions and declinations from +10 deg to -45 deg, but excludes the galactic plane. No significant difference is found in the number-magnitude or number-redshift distributions for the flat spectrum and steep-spectrum radio quasars, in agreement with previous results for stronger sources.

Savage, A.↗

Observations of six flat spectrum sources from the 5 GHz survey

Observations at radio, optical, and X-ray wavelengths of six sources from the Bonn-NRAO 5 GHz survey are reported. The sources were selected on the basis of their flux densities and spectral indices at 5 GHz. All have been shown to contain compact radio cores and to emit strongly at X-ray wavelengths; five are strongly polarized at optical wavelengths. The measured flux densities suggest that the sources are of comparable luminosity (per fractional bandwidth) in the X-ray and optical regions. The interpretation of these results in terms of a synchrotron-self-Compton mechanism is briefly discussed.

Biermann, P.↗

Parsec-scale Properties of Steep- and Flat-spectrum Extragalactic Radio Sources from a VLBA Survey of a Complete North Polar Cap Sample

We observed with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) at 2.3 and 8.6 GHz a complete flux-density-limited sample of 482 radio sources with decl. > +75° brighter than 200 mJy at 1.4 GHz drawn from the NVSS catalog. A total of 34% of the sources show parsec-scale emission above the flux density detection limit of 30 mJy; their accurate positions and parsec-scale structure parameters are determined. Among all the sources detected at least at the shortest VLBA baselines, the majority, or 72%, have a steep single-dish spectrum. The fraction of the sources with a detectable parsec-scale structure is above 95% among the flat-spectrum objects and close to 25% among the steep-spectrum objects. We identified 82 compact steep-spectrum source candidates, which make up 17% of the sample; most of them are reported for the first time. The compactness and the brightness temperature of the sources in our sample show a positive correlation with single-dish and VLBA spectral indices. All the sources with a significant 8 GHz variability were detected by the VLBA snapshot observations, which independently confirmed their compactness. We demonstrated that 54% of the sources detected by the VLBA at 2.3 GHz in our sample have a steep VLBA spectrum. The compact radio emission of these sources is likely dominated by optically thin jets or mini-lobes, not by an opaque jet core. These results show that future VLBI surveys aimed at searching for new sources with parsec-scale structure should include not only flat-spectrum sources but also steep-spectrum ones in order to reach an acceptable level of completeness.

A V Popkov↗

Flat-spectrum radio sources from the Parkes 2.7 GHz survey - A study of a complete sample

A complete sample, taken from the Parkes 2.7 GHz catalog, of flat-spectrum radio sources with flux densities greater than 0.5 Jy is described. The sample covers all right ascensions and declinations for +10 deg to -45 deg, excluding the Galactic plane, and contains 403 sources. Attention is drawn to the advantages of radio surveys over optical surveys. The survey is used to highlight some selection effects found in optical surveys. How this sample can be used to give information on the early universe is discussed.

Savage, Ann↗

Power spectrum, correlation function, and tests for luminosity bias in the CfA redshift survey

We describe and apply a method for directly computing the power spectrum for the galaxy distribution in the extension of the Center for Astrophysics Redshift Survey. Tests show that our technique accurately reproduces the true power spectrum for k greater than 0.03 h Mpc(exp -1). The dense sampling and large spatial coverage of this survey allow accurate measurement of the redshift-space power spectrum on scales from 5 to approximately 200 h(exp -1) Mpc. The power spectrum has slope n approximately equal -2.1 on small scales (lambda less than or equal 25 h(exp -1) Mpc) and n approximately -1.1 on scales 30 less than lambda less than 120 h(exp -1) Mpc. On larger scales the power spectrum flattens somewhat, but we do not detect a turnover. Comparison with N-body simulations of cosmological models shows that an unbiased, open universe CDM model (OMEGA h = 0.2) and a nonzero cosmological constant (CDM) model (OMEGA h = 0.24, lambda(sub zero) = 0.6, b = 1.3) match the CfA power spectrum over the wavelength range we explore. The standard biased CDM model (OMEGA h = 0.5, b = 1.5) fails (99% significance level) because it has insufficient power on scales lambda greater than 30 h(exp -1) Mpc. Biased CDM with a normalization that matches the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) anisotropy (OMEGA h = 0.5, b = 1.4, sigma(sub 8) (mass) = 1) has too much power on small scales to match the observed galaxy power spectrum. This model with b = 1 matches both Cosmic Background Explorer Satellite (COBE) and the small-scale power spect rum but has insufficient power on scales lambda approximately 100 h(exp -1) Mpc. We derive a formula for the effect of small-scale peculiar velocities on the power spectrum and combine this formula with the linear-regime amplification described by Kaiser to compute an estimate of the real-space power spectrum. Two tests reveal luminosity bias in the galaxy distribution: First, the amplitude of the pwer spectrum is approximately 40% larger for the brightest 50% of galaxies in volume-limited samples that have M(sub lim) greater than M*. This bias in the power spectrum is independent of scale, consistent with the peaks-bias paradigm for galaxy formation. Second, the distribution of local density around galaxies shows that regions of moderate and high density contain both very bright (M less than M* = -19.2 + 5 log h) and fainter galaxies, but that voids preferentially harbor fainter galaxies (approximately 2 sigma significance level).

Park, Changbom↗

Discovery of a second narrow absorption feature in the near-infrared spectrum of Io

A high resolution survey of the near-IR reflectance spectrum of Io has shown a sharp absorption feature centered at 5045 +/- 1/cm; this feature is not present in laboratory spectra of dilute CO2 in a matrix. Since the spectrum of cold H2S ice crystals exhibits structure near this wavelength, it is suggested that either (1) the difference in width between this feature and that of the much broader Ionian H2S ice may be due to the presence of different phases of ice at different temperatures, so that these are emphasized in the different spectral regions, or (2) H2S is trapped in an SO2 matrix.

Lester, D. F.↗

The Atacama Cosmology Telescope: A Measurement of the Cosmic Microwave Background Power Spectrum at 148 AND 218 GHz from the 2008 Southern Survey

We present measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) power spectrum made by the Atacama Cosmology Telescope at 148 GHz and 218 GHz, as well as the cross-frequency spectrum between the two channels. Our results dearly show the second through the seventh acoustic peaks in the CMB power spectrum. The measurements of these higher-order peaks provide an additional test of the ACDM cosmological model. At l > 3000, we detect power in excess of the primary anisotropy spectrum of the CMB. At lower multipoles 500 < l < 3000, we find evidence for gravitational lensing of the CMB in the power spectrum at the 2.8(sigma) level. We also detect a low level of Galactic dust in our maps, which demonstrates that we can recover known faint, diffuse signals.

Das, Sudeep↗

An X-ray and radio study of steep-spectrum radio soruces. I - Four fields from the Clark Lake Observatory 26 MHz survey

A multifrequency study of fields containing steep-spectrum radio sources is presented. New spectral and spatial data are used to determine the locations and optical identifications of steep-spectrum sources which previously had either poor positions or questionable correspondence to known sources. X-ray images from the Einstein Observatory provide estimates of the extent, temperature, density, and thermal pressure of hot gas associated with galaxies and clusters of galaxies. From the equations relating synchrotron emission to inverse Compton scattering of 3 K background photons, lower limits to the average magnetic field strength in the source are derived. For the resolved radio sources of known distance, the minimum nonthermal pressure and the corresponding magnetic field strength are also calculated. For the four fields discussed in this paper, it is found that three out of five steep-spectrum sources are embedded in a cluster atmosphere and two are unidentified. Except for unresolved radio structures associated with cores of galaxies, the estimated thermal pressure is sufficient to confine the radio sources.

Harris, D. E.↗

Study of electron impact excitation of argon in the extreme ultraviolet - Emission cross section of resonance lines of Ar I, Ar II

In a crossed-beam experiment under optically thin conditions the EUV spectrum of argon produced by electron impact excitation is studied. The cross sections of the resonance lines of Ar I and II are measured. The resonance lines of Ar I at 104.8 nm and 106.7 nm, and of Ar II at 91.96 nm and 93.21 nm are the most prominent features of the EUV spectrum between 40 and 110 nm. The relative-flow technique is used to measure the absolute cross sections of these lines at 200 eV. The measurements are compared with previous estimates. The measured emission cross section values at 200 eV for the Ar I lines at 104.8 nm and 106.7 nm, when compared to the electron energy loss estimates of the direct excitation cross sections, establish that cascading is larger for the Ar I resonance lines than previous emission experiments have indicated. In addition, all the emission cross sections for the Ar I and II Rydberg series in the EUV are measured at 0.5 nm resolution. The FUV spectrum is also surveyed and found to consist of Ar II multiplets from simultaneous ionization-excitation.

Ajello, Joseph M.↗

COBE

Preliminary results are presented from COBE's three observational instruments. These are the FIRAS spectrum experiment, which surveyed over 98 percent of the sky, the IR background experiment, DIRBE which surveyed all of the sky, and the DMR anisotropy experiment. It is found that the cosmic microwave background is very close to a blackbody, with a temperature of 2.735 + or - 0.06 K. The only reliably detected background anisotropy is the 3.3 + or - 0.2 mK-amplitude dipole. The rms quadrupole anisotropy is less than 0.00003 with 95-percent confidence. DIRBE results indicate that the IRAS 60-100 micron diffuse-flux calibrations suffer from gain and offset errors.

Wright, Edward L.↗

1ES 1113+432: Luminous, soft X-ray outburst from a nearby cataclysmic variable (AR Ursae Majoris)

A remarkable X-ray transient from the Einstein Slew Survey, 1 ES 1113+432, is identified with a nearby, short-period cataclysmic variable. Wenzel (1993) has confirmed that the optical counterpart is the variable star, AR UMa (cataloged as 'semiregular'), erroneously reported 5.7 min southeast of the true position. One of the Einstein slew observations recorded a flux of 43 IPC counts/s, which is an order of magnitude above the flux observed from the brightest cataclysmic variables in other X-ray surveys. The outburst spectrum is extremely 'soft,' with an implied blackbody temperature of approximately 22 eV. The optical counterpart (V = 16.5) exhibits a strong UV component, TiO bands from an M star, and broadened Balmer emission lines. Optical states as bright as V approx. 13 were found on photographs from the Harvard Plate Library, confirming outburst behavior in the optical counterpart. The historical photographic record suggests that 1ES 1113+432 remains in a low-accretion state most of the time. Both of the soft X-ray spectrum and the transitions between high and low-accretion states are suggestive of the AM Her (magnetic) subclass. Photometric observations in the I band show 0.18 mag modulations at a period of 0.966 hr. These are interpreted as ellipsiodal variations in the secondary star for a binary period of 1.932 hr, which is near the lower boundary of the 'period gap' in the histogram, of orbital periods of accreting white dwarfs. Thus 1ES 1113+432 provides the rare opportunity to study a secondary star in a cataclysmic binary that has evolved through the period gap. The optical spectral features from the secondary imply a spectral type of approximately M6 and a distance of approximately 88 pc. The peak luminosity in the soft X-ray component (unabsorbed) is then estimated to be 3 X 10(exp 33) ergs/s, assuming emission from a blackbody slab with a temperature of 22 eV. While this luminosity is higher than previous measures of the soft X-ray component, it does not exceed the amount of radiation that could be emitted from the accretion-heated surface of a white dwarf.

Remillard, R. A.↗

A Photometric Machine-Learning Method to Infer Stellar Metallicity

Following its formation, a star's metal content is one of the few factors that can significantly alter its evolution. Measurements of stellar metallicity ([Fe/H]) typically require a spectrum, but spectroscopic surveys are limited to a few x 10(exp 6) targets; photometric surveys, on the other hand, have detected > 10(exp 9) stars. I present a new machine-learning method to predict [Fe/H] from photometric colors measured by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The training set consists of approx. 120,000 stars with SDSS photometry and reliable [Fe/H] measurements from the SEGUE Stellar Parameters Pipeline (SSPP). For bright stars (g' < or = 18 mag), with 4500 K < or = Teff < or = 7000 K, corresponding to those with the most reliable SSPP estimates, I find that the model predicts [Fe/H] values with a root-mean-squared-error (RMSE) of approx.0.27 dex. The RMSE from this machine-learning method is similar to the scatter in [Fe/H] measurements from low-resolution spectra..

machine learning↗

Karhunen-Loeve Estimation of the Power Spectrum Parameters from the Angular Distribution of Galaxies in Early Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data

We present measurements of parameters of the three-dimensional power spectrum of galaxy clustering from 222 square degrees of early imaging data in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The projected galaxy distribution on the sky is expanded over a set of Karhunen-Loeve (KL) eigenfunctions, which optimize the signal-to-noise ratio in our analysis. A maximum likelihood analysis is used to estimate parameters that set the shape and amplitude of the three-dimensional power spectrum of galaxies in the SDSS magnitude-limited sample with r* less than 21. Our best estimates are gamma = 0.188 +/- 0.04 and sigma(sub 8L) = 0.915 +/- 0.06 (statistical errors only), for a flat universe with a cosmological constant. We demonstrate that our measurements contain signal from scales at or beyond the peak of the three-dimensional power spectrum. We discuss how the results scale with systematic uncertainties, like the radial selection function. We find that the central values satisfy the analytically estimated scaling relation. We have also explored the effects of evolutionary corrections, various truncations of the KL basis, seeing, sample size, and limiting magnitude. We find that the impact of most of these uncertainties stay within the 2 sigma uncertainties of our fiducial result.

Szalay, Alexander S.↗

Polyphase-discrete Fourier transform spectrum analysis for the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence sky survey

The sensitivity of a matched filter-detection system to a finite-duration continuous wave (CW) tone is compared with the sensitivities of a windowed discrete Fourier transform (DFT) system and an ideal bandpass filter-bank system. These comparisons are made in the context of the NASA Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) microwave observing project (MOP) sky survey. A review of the theory of polyphase-DFT filter banks and its relationship to the well-known windowed-DFT process is presented. The polyphase-DFT system approximates the ideal bandpass filter bank by using as few as eight filter taps per polyphase branch. An improvement in sensitivity of approx. 3 dB over a windowed-DFT system can be obtained by using the polyphase-DFT approach. Sidelobe rejection of the polyphase-DFT system is vastly superior to the windowed-DFT system, thereby improving its performance in the presence of radio frequency interference (RFI).

Zimmerman, G. A.↗