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DOE OSTI2024

Gravitational wave spectrum of chain inflation

Chain inflation is an alternative to slow-roll inflation in which the inflaton tunnels along a large number of consecutive minima in its potential. In this work we perform the first comprehensive calculation of the gravitational wave (GW) spectrum of chain inflation. In contrast to slow-roll inflation the latter does not stem from quantum fluctuations of the gravitational field during inflation, but rather from the bubble collisions during the first-order phase transitions associated with vacuum tunneling. Our calculation is performed within an effective theory of chain inflation which builds on an expansion of the tunneling rate capturing most of the available model space. The effective theory can be seen as chain inflation’s analog of the slow-roll expansion in rolling models of inflation. The near scale-invariance of the scalar power spectrum translates to a quasiperiodic shape of the inflaton potential in chain inflation, with the tunneling rate changing very slowly during the e-folds leading to cosmic microwave background observables. We show that chain inflation produces a very characteristic double-peak GW spectrum: a faint high-frequency peak associated with the gravitational radiation emitted during inflation, and a strong low-frequency peak associated with the graceful exit from chain inflation (marking the transition to the radiation-dominated epoch). There exist very exciting prospects to test the gravitational wave signal from chain inflation at the aLIGO-aVIRGO-KAGRA network, at LISA and /or at pulsar timing array experiments. A particularly intriguing possibility we point out is that chain inflation could be the source of the stochastic gravitational wave background recently detected by NANOGrav, PPTA, EPTA, and CPTA. We also show that the gravitational wave signal of chain inflation is often accompanied by running/ higher running of the scalar spectral index to be tested at future cosmic microwave background experiments. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Freese, Katherine↗

NASA NTRS2007

Advanced Systems for Monitoring Underwater Sounds

The term "Passive Acoustic Monitoring System" (PAMS) describes a developmental sensing-and-data-acquisition system for recording underwater sounds. The sounds (more precisely, digitized and preprocessed versions from acoustic transducers) are subsequently analyzed by a combination of data processing and interpretation to identify and/or, in some cases, to locate the sources of those sounds. PAMS was originally designed to locate the sources such as fish of species that one knows or seeks to identify. The PAMS unit could also be used to locate other sources, for example, marine life, human divers, and/or vessels. The underlying principles of passive acoustic sensing and analyzing acoustic-signal data in conjunction with temperature and salinity data are not new and not unique to PAMS. Part of the uniqueness of the PAMS design is that it is the first deep-sea instrumentation design to provide a capability for studying soniferous marine animals (especially fish) over the wide depth range described below. The uniqueness of PAMS also lies partly in a synergistic combination of advanced sensing, packaging, and data-processing design features with features adapted from proven marine instrumentation systems. This combination affords a versatility that enables adaptation to a variety of undersea missions using a variety of sensors. The interpretation of acoustic data can include visual inspection of power-spectrum plots for identification of spectral signatures of known biological species or artificial sources. Alternatively or in addition, data analysis could include determination of relative times of arrival of signals at different acoustic sensors arrayed at known locations. From these times of arrival, locations of acoustic sources (and errors in those locations) can be estimated. Estimates of relative locations of sources and sensors can be refined through analysis of the attenuation of sound in the intervening water in combination with water-temperature and salinity data acquired by instrumentation systems other than PAMS. A PAMS is packaged as a battery-powered unit, mated with external sensors, that can operate in the ocean at any depth from 2 m to 1 km. A PAMS includes a pressure housing, a deep-sea battery, a hydrophone (which is one of the mating external sensors), and an external monitor and keyboard box. In addition to acoustic transducers, external sensors can include temperature probes and, potentially, underwater cameras. The pressure housing contains a computer that includes a hard drive, DC-to- DC power converters, a post-amplifier board, a sound card, and a universal serial bus (USB) 4-port hub.

Lane, Michael↗

DOE OSTI2020

Measurements of B-mode polarization of the cosmic microwave background from 500 square degrees of SPTpol data

We report a B-mode power spectrum measurement from the cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization anisotropy observations made using the SPTpol instrument on the South Pole Telescope. This work uses 500 deg 2 of SPTpol data, a five-fold increase over the last SPTpol B-mode release. As a result, the bandpower uncertainties have been reduced by more than a factor of two, and the measurement extends to lower multipoles: 52 < ` < 2301. Data from both 95 and 150 GHz are used, allowing for three cross-spectra: 95 GHz x 95 GHz, 95 GHz x 150 GHz, and 150 GHz x 150 GHz. B-mode power is detected at very high significance; we find P(BB < 0) = 5.8 × 10 -71 , corresponding to a 18.1 σ detection of power. With a prior on the galactic dust from Planck, WMAP and BICEP2/Keck observations, the SPTpol B-mode data can be used to set an upper limit on the tensor-to-scalar ratio, r < 0.44 at 95% confidence (the expected 1 σ constraint on r given the measurement uncertainties is 0.22). We find the measured B-mode power is consistent with the Planck best-fit ΛCDM model predictions. Scaling the predicted lensing B-mode power in this model by a factor A lens , the data prefer A lens = 1.17 ± 0.13. These data are currently the most precise measurements of B-mode power at ℓ > 320.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Lyman-$α$ forest holography: 3D predictions from 1D measurements

Cosmological analyses of Lyman-$α$ forest clustering rely on either one-dimensional correlations along individual sightlines or three-dimensional correlations between different sightlines. Because these observables probe the matter distribution on very different scales, they have traditionally been analyzed independently. In this work, we bridge this gap using ForestFlow, an emulator trained on a suite of cosmological hydrodynamical simulations that provides a unified description of Lyman-$α$ forest clustering from linear to nonlinear scales. This framework enables us to determine the range of three-dimensional clustering models compatible with the DESI one-dimensional flux power spectrum ($P_{\rm 1D}$). The resulting predictions successfully reproduce the large-scale clustering measured by the DESI BAO analysis and provide physically motivated priors on nonlinear clustering that are used in a companion paper presenting the full-shape analysis of the DESI DR2 Lyman-$α$ forest. We validate our methodology using the large-volume, high-resolution hydrodynamical simulation ACCEL-2, demonstrating excellent agreement across the full range of scales considered. Finally, we combine constraints from the $P_{\rm 1D}$ and BAO analyses on the parameter combinations $b_δσ_8$ and $b_ηf σ_8$, finding that the two probes provide comparable constraining power while exhibiting complementary parameter degeneracies. Our results establish a direct connection between one- and three-dimensional Lyman-$α$ forest measurements through ForestFlow, an approach we term Lyman-$α$ holography by analogy with the reconstruction of higher-dimensional structure from lower-dimensional information.

Chaves-Montero, J. [Barcelona, IFAE] (ORCID:000000↗

DOE OSTI2024

Modeling neutrino-induced scale-dependent galaxy clustering for photometric galaxy surveys

Abstract The increasing statistical precision of photometric redshift surveys requires improved accuracy of theoretical predictions for large-scale structure observables to obtain unbiased cosmological constraints. In ΛCDM cosmologies, massive neutrinos stream freely at small cosmological scales, suppressing the small-scale power spectrum. In massive neutrino cosmologies, galaxy bias modeling needs to accurately relate the scale-dependent growth of the underlying matter field to observed galaxy clustering statistics. In this work, we implement a computationally efficient approximation of the neutrino-induced scale-dependent bias (NISDB). Through simulated likelihood analyses of Dark Energy Survey Year 3 (DESY3) and Legacy Survey of Space and Time Year 1 (LSSTY1) synthetic data that contain an appreciable NISDB, we examine the impact of linear galaxy bias and neutrino mass modeling choices on cosmological parameter inference. We find model misspecification of the NISDB approximation and neutrino mass models to decrease the constraining power of photometric galaxy surveys and cause parameter biases in the cosmological interpretation of future surveys. We quantify these biases and devise mitigation strategies.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗

DOE OSTI2023

Density wavenumber spectrum measurements, synthetic diagnostic development, and tests of quasilinear turbulence modeling in the core of electron-heated DIII-D H-mode plasmas

Abstract Measurements of the turbulent density wavenumber spectrum, δ n ˆ e ( k ⊥ ) , using the Doppler Back-Scattering (DBS) diagnostic are reported from DIII-D H-mode plasmas with electron cyclotron heating as the only auxiliary heating method. These electron-heated plasmas have low collisionality, ν e ∗ < 1 , T e / T i > 1 , and zero injected torque—a regime expected to be relevant for future fusion devices. We probe density fluctuations in the core ( ρ ≈ 0.7) over a broad wavenumber range, 0.5 ⩽ k ⊥ ⩽ 16 cm −1 ( 0.1 ⩽ k ⊥ ρ s ⩽ 5 ), to characterize plasma instabilities and compare with theoretical predictions. We present a novel synthetic DBS diagnostic to relate the back-scattered power spectrum, P s ( k ⊥ ) —which is directly measured by DBS—to the underlying electron density fluctuation spectrum, δ n ˆ e ( k ⊥ ) . The synthetic DBS P s ( k ⊥ ) spectrum is calculated by combining the SCOTTY beam-tracing code with a model δ n ˆ e ( k ⊥ ) predicted either analytically or numerically. In this work we use the quasi-linear code Trapped Gyro-Landau Fluid (TGLF) to approximate the δ n ˆ e ( k ⊥ ) spectrum. We find that TGLF, using the experimental profiles, is capable of closely reproducing the DBS measurements. Both the DBS measurements and the TGLF-DBS synthetic diagnostic show a wavenumber spectrum with variable decay. The measurements show weak decay ( k −0.6 ) for k < 3.5 cm −1 , with k −2.6 at intermediate- k ( 3.5 ⩽ k ⩽ 8.5 cm −1 ), and rapid decay ( k −9.4 ) for k > 8.5 cm −1 . Scans of physics parameters using TGLF suggest that the normalized ∇ T e scale-length, R / L T e , is an important factor for distinguishing microturbulence regimes in these plasmas. A combination of DBS observations and TGLF simulations indicate that fluctuations remain peaked at ITG-scales (low k ) while R / L T e -driven TEM/ETG-type modes (intermediate/high k ) are marginally sub-dominant.

synthetic diagnostics↗

DOE OSTI2023

Analysis of Needlet Internal Linear Combination performance on B -mode data from sub-orbital experiments

The observation of primordial B modes in cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarisation data represents the main scientific goal of most of the future CMB experiments. This signal is predicted to be much lower than polarised Galactic emission (foregrounds) in any region of the sky, pointing to the need for effective component separation methods. Aims. Among all the techniques, the blind Needlet Internal Linear Combination (NILC) is of great relevance given our current limited knowledge of the B-mode foregrounds. In this work, we explore the possibility of employing NILC for the analysis of B modes reconstructed from partial-sky data, specifically addressing the complications that such an application yields such as E–B leakage, needlet filtering, and beam convolution. We consider two complementary simulated datasets of future experiments: the balloon-borne Short Wavelength Instrument for the Polarisation Explorer (SWIPE) of the Large Scale Polarisation Explorer, which targets the observation of both reionisation and recombination peaks of the primordial CMB B-mode angular power spectrum, and the ground-based Small Aperture Telescope of Simons Observatory, which, instead, is designed to observe only the recombination bump at ℓ ~ 80. We assessed the performance of the following two alternative techniques to correct for the CMB E–B leakage: the recycling technique and the Zhao-Baskaran method. We find that both techniques reduce the E–B leakage residuals at a negligible level given the sensitivity of the considered experiments, except for the recycling method in the SWIPE footprint at ℓ < 20. Thus, we implemented two extensions of the pipeline, the iterative B decomposition and the diffusive inpainting, which enabled us to recover the input CMB B-mode power for ℓ ≥ 5. For the considered experiments, we demonstrate that needlet filtering and beam convolution do not affect the CMB B-mode reconstruction. Finally, with an appropriate masking strategy, we find that NILC foregrounds subtraction allows one to achieve sensitivities on the tensor-to-scalar ratio in agreement with the targets of the considered CMB experiments.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Dark Energy Survey Year 3 results: Exploiting small-scale information with lensing shear ratios

Using the first three years of data from the Dark Energy Survey (DES), we use ratios of small-scale galaxy-galaxy lensing measurements around the same lens sample to constrain source redshift uncertainties, intrinsic alignments and other systematics or nuisance parameters of our model. Instead of using a simple geometric approach for the ratios as has been done in the past, we use the full modeling of the galaxy-galaxy lensing measurements, including the corresponding integration over the power spectrum and the contributions from intrinsic alignments and lens magnification. We perform extensive testing of the small-scale shear-ratio (SR) modeling by studying the impact of different effects such as the inclusion of baryonic physics, nonlinear biasing, halo occupation distribution descriptions and lens magnification, among others, and using realistic N -body simulations of the DES data. We validate the robustness of our constraints in the data by using two independent lens samples with different galaxy properties, and by deriving constraints using the corresponding large-scale ratios for which the modeling is simpler. The results applied to the DES Y3 data demonstrate how the ratios provide significant improvements in constraining power for several nuisance parameters in our model, especially on source redshift calibration and intrinsic alignments. For source redshifts, SR improves the constraints from the prior by up to 38% in some redshift bins. Such improvements, and especially the constraints it provides on intrinsic alignments, translate to tighter cosmological constraints when shear ratios are combined with cosmic shear and other 2pt functions. In particular, for the DES Y3 data, SR improves S 8 constraints from cosmic shear by up to 31%, and for the full combination of probes ( 3 × 2 pt ) by up to 10%. The shear ratios presented in this work are used as an additional likelihood for cosmic shear, 2 × 2 pt and the full 3 × 2 pt in the fiducial DES Y3 cosmological analysis.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

The Challenge of Observing Patchy Reionization with CMB Optical-Depth Fluctuations

Spatial fluctuations in the Thomson optical depth encode information about the inhomogeneous nature of cosmic reionization. We compute the optical-depth angular power spectrum, $C_\ell^{ττ}$, using past lightcones constructed from five Cosmic Reionization on Computers (CROC) radiation-hydrodynamical simulations. By decomposing the electron-density field into patchy and density components, we quantify the separate contributions of ionization-fraction and baryon-density fluctuations to the optical-depth anisotropy. Because the simulations end at $z\approx5$, we supplement the reionization-era signal with an analytic estimate of the fully ionized low-redshift contribution. We find that baryon-density fluctuations dominate the high-redshift signal over most angular scales, while the accumulated low-redshift contribution exceeds the high-redshift signal across the full multipole range considered. Our results demonstrate that a significant fraction of the optical-depth power is not uniquely associated with reionization morphology, implying that future interpretations of $C_\ell^{ττ}$ must account for the density contribution in addition to patchy ionization.

Takoudes, Nick [Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr↗

NASA NTRS1996

Improved Limits on Gamma-Ray Burst Repetition from BATSE

We tighten previous upper limits on gamma-ray burst repetition by analyzing the angular power spectrum of the BATSE 3B catalog of 1122 bursts. At 95% confidence, we find that no more than 2% of all observed bursts can be labeled as repeaters, even if no sources are observed to repeat more than once. If a fraction f of all observed bursts can be labeled as repeaters that are observed to burst upsilon times each, then all models with (upsilon - 1)f greater than or equal to 0.05 are ruled out at 99% confidence, as compared to the best previous 99% limit (upsilon - 1)f greater than or equal to 0.27. At 95% confidence, our new limit is (upsilon - 1)f greater than or equal to 0.02. Thus, even a cluster of six events from a single source would have caused excess power above that present in the 3B catalog. We conclude that the current BATSE data are consistent with no repetition of classical gamma-ray bursts and that any repeater model is severely constrained by the near-perfect isotropy of their angular distribution.

Tegmark, Max↗

NASA NTRS1996

Improved Limits on Gamma-Ray Burst Repetition from BATSE

We tighten previous upper limits on gamma-ray burst repetition by analyzing the angular power spectrum of the BATSE 3B catalog of 1122 bursts. At 95% confidence, we find that no more than 2% of all observed bursts can be labeled as repeaters, even if no sources are observed to repeat more than once. If a fraction f of all observed bursts can be labeled as repeaters that are observed to burst nu times each, then all models with (nu - 1)f greater than or equal to 0.05 are ruled out at 99% confidence, as compared to the best previous 99% limit (nu - 1)f greater than or equal to 0.27. At 95% confidence, our new limit is (nu - 1)f greater than or equal to 0.02. Thus, even a cluster of six events from a single source would have caused excess power above that present in the 3B catalog. We conclude that the current BATSE data are consistent with no repetition of classical gamma-ray bursts and that any repeater model is severely constrained by the near-perfect isotropy of their angular dis- tribution.

Tegmark, Max↗

DOE OSTI2026

Testing Scale-Dependent Modified Gravity with DESI DR1

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) provides an unprecedented opportunity to test deviations from general relativity (GR) that introduce a new physical scale within its redshift range. Using the connection between a Yukawa-like potential and the Hu-Sawicki $f(R)$ model, we place strong constraints on the range of a hypothetical fifth force mediated by a massive scalar field. We analyze the power spectrum measurements from DESI Data Release 1 using a baseline EFT model that employs the fkpt approach for the loop integrals. We find no evidence for deviations from GR and obtain the constraint $\log_{10} |f_{R_0}| < -4.59$ (95% C.L.). This corresponds to an upper bound at redshift zero on the scale at which corrections to GR become important, $λ< 17.81$ Mpc, or equivalently, a lower bound on the mass of the additional gravitational mediator of $m_ϕ> 3.60 \times 10^{-31}$ eV. We find that the modified gravity parameter $f_{R_0}$ is largely orthogonal to the cosmological parameters in the model, such that no additional projection effects relative to the GR case are introduced in this Full-Shape analysis. Furthermore, a second modified gravity parameter, the power index $n$, which modulates the time-variation of the associated mass, is found to be consistent with previous analyses that fixed it to unity. Adding DESI BAO data or other cosmological probes does not significantly change these results. The conclusions remain similar if the background evolution is described by evolving dark energy instead of a cosmological constant. Additionally, we test the robustness of the baseline model by varying the maximum wavenumber used in the Full-Shape analysis and analyzing the DESI targets separately. Finally, we analyze the degeneracies between the modified-gravity parameters and the sum of neutrino masses.

Gonzalez, D. [Guanajuato U.; UNAM, CCF] (ORCID:000↗

DOE OSTI2023

Simultaneous measurements of kinetic and scalar energy spectrum time evolution in the Richtmyer–Meshkov instability upon reshock

The Richtmyer–Meshkov instability (Richtmyer, Commun. Pure Appl. Maths , vol. 13, issue 2, 1960, pp. 297–319; Meshkov, Fluid Dyn. , vol. 4, issue 5, 1972, pp. 101–104) of a twice-shocked gas interface is studied using both high spatial resolution single-shot (SS) and lower spatial resolution, time-resolved, high-speed (HS) simultaneous planar laser-induced fluorescence and particle image velocimetry in the Wisconsin Shock Tube Laboratory's vertical shock tube. The initial condition (IC) is a shear layer with broadband diffuse perturbations at the interface between a helium–acetone mixture and argon. This IC is accelerated by a shock of nominal strength Mach number $M = 1.75$ , and then accelerated again by the transmitted shock that reflects off the end wall of the tube. An ensemble of experiments is analysed after reshock while the interface mixing width grows linearly with time. The kinetic and scalar energy spectra and the terms of their evolution equation are calculated and compared between SS and HS experiments. The inertial range scaling of the scalar power spectrum is found to follow Gibson's relation (Gibson, Phys. Fluids , vol. 11, issue 11, 1968, pp. 2316–2327) as a function of Schmidt number when the effective turbulent Schmidt number is used in place of the material Schmidt number that controls equilibrium scaling. Further, the spatially integrated scalar flux follows similar behaviour observed for the kinetic energy in large eddy simulation studies by Zeng et al. ( Phys. Fluids , vol. 30, issue 6, 2018, 064106) while the spatially varying scalar flux exhibits back scatter along the centre of the mixing layer and forward energy transfer in the spike and bubble regions.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

SPT-3G D1: Constraints on inflationary gravitational waves with two years of SPT-3G data

Here, we present a measurement of the 𝐵-mode polarization power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background anisotropies at 32 ≤ ℓ < 502 for three bands centered at 95, 150, and 220 GHz using data from the SPT-3G receiver on the South Pole Telescope. This work uses SPT-3G observations from the 2019 and 2020 winter observing seasons of a ∼1500 deg 2 patch of sky that directly overlaps with fields observed with the BICEP/Keck family of telescopes and covers part of the proposed Simons Observatory and CMB-S4 deep fields. Employing new techniques for mitigating polarized atmospheric noise, the SPT-3G data demonstrates a white noise level of 9.3 (6.7) μ⁢K−arcmin at ℓ ∼500 for the 95 GHz (150 GHz) data, with a 1/ℓ noise knee at ℓ = 128 (182). We fit the observed six auto- and cross-frequency 𝐵-mode power spectra to a model including lensed Λ⁢CDM 𝐵-modes and a combination of Galactic and extragalactic foregrounds. This work characterizes foregrounds in the vicinity of the BICEP/Keck survey area, finding foreground power consistent with that reported by the BICEP/Keck collaboration within the same region and a factor of ∼3 higher power over the full SPT-3G survey area. Using SPT-3G data over the BICEP/Keck survey area, we place a 95% upper limit on the tensor-to-scalar ratio of 𝑟 <0.25 and find the statistical uncertainty on 𝑟 to be 𝜎⁡(𝑟) = 0.067.

Zebrowski, J. A. [University of Chicago; Universit↗

DOE OSTI2025

Constraints on Inflationary Gravitational Waves with Two Years of SPT-3G Data

We present a measurement of the $B$-mode polarization power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background anisotropies at 32 $\le$$\ell$$<$ 502 for three bands centered at 95, 150, and 220 GHz using data from the SPT-3G receiver on the South Pole Telescope. This work uses SPT-3G observations from the 2019 and 2020 winter observing seasons of a $\sim$1500 deg$^2$ patch of sky that directly overlaps with fields observed with the BICEP/Keck family of telescopes, and covers part of the proposed Simons Observatory and CMB-S4 deep fields. Employing new techniques for mitigating polarized atmospheric noise, the SPT-3G data demonstrates a white noise level of 9.3 (6.7) $\mu$K-arcmin at $\ell \sim 500$ for the 95 GHz (150 GHz) data, with a $1/\ell$ noise knee at $\ell$=128 (182). We fit the observed six auto- and cross-frequency $B$-mode power spectra to a model including lensed $\Lambda$CDM $B$-modes and a combination of Galactic and extragalactic foregrounds. This work characterizes foregrounds in the vicinity of the BICEP/Keck survey area, finding foreground power consistent with that reported by the BICEP/Keck collaboration within the same region, and a factor of $\sim$ 3 higher power over the full SPT-3G survey area. Using SPT-3G data over the BICEP/Keck survey area, we place a 95% upper limit on the tensor-to-scalar ratio of $r < 0.25$ and find the statistical uncertainty on $r$ to be $\sigma(r) = 0.067$.

Zebrowski, J. A. [Chicago U., KICP; Chicago U., As↗

DOE OSTI2025

Constraining primordial non-Gaussianity from the large scale structure two-point and three-point correlation functions

Surveys of cosmological large-scale structure (LSS) are sensitive to the presence of local primordial non-Gaussianity (PNG), and may be used to constrain models of inflation. Local PNG, characterized by f NL ⁠, the amplitude of the quadratic correction to the potential of a Gaussian random field, is traditionally measured from LSS two-point and three-point clustering via the power spectrum and bi-spectrum. We propose a framework to measure f NL using the configuration space two-point correlation function (2pcf) monopole and three-point correlation function (3pcf) monopole of survey tracers. Our model estimates the effect of the scale-dependent bias induced by the presence of PNG on the 2pcf and 3pcf from the clustering of simulated dark matter haloes. We describe how this effect may be scaled to an arbitrary tracer of the cosmological matter density. The 2pcf and 3pcf of this tracer are measured to constrain the value of f NL ⁠. In LSS surveys, the effect of imaging systematics on two-point statistics is often degenerate with the PNG signal. Our proposed model employs three-point statistics primarily to break this degeneracy. Using simulations of luminous red galaxies observed by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), we demonstrate the accuracy and constraining power of our method. Our forecast indicates the ability to constrain f NL to a precision of σf NL ≈ 22 with one year of DESI survey data, as well as the ability to constrain the imaging systematic weights in situ.

early Universe↗

NASA NTRS1986

An analysis of the role of drift waves in equatorial spread F

An account is given of results of rocket measurements of the wave number spectrum of equatorial spread F irregularities, with emphasis on wavelengths less than 100 m. The measurements were made from two sounding rockets launched from Peru as part of Project Condor. The Condor density fluctuation spectra display a break at a wavelength near 100 m, identical to that found in the PLUMEX experiment (Kelley et al., 1982). The Condor data also confirm a subrange in which the density and the wave potential obey the Boltzmann relation - a strong indication of the presence of low-frequency electrostatic waves with finite wavelength parallel to the magnetic field, perhaps low-frequency drift waves as proposed by Kelley et al. The Condor data are also consistent with the previous conjecture that drift waves only exist above 300 km altitude. To investigate the difference in spectra observed over two altitude ranges, the data must be fitted to a form for the power spectrum taken from Keskinen and Ossakow (1981). The fitted spectrum, along with empirically determined growth and dissipation rates, is used to calculate the energy pumped into the spectrum at long wavelengths as well as the energy dissipated at shorter wavelengths. It is found that the energy is balanced by classical collisional effects in the low-altitude case, but energy balance in the high-altitude case requires an enhanced dissipation of about 500 times that due to classical diffusion. The model is consistent with, but does not uniquely imply, an inverse cascade of drift wave turbulence in equatorial spread F.

Labelle, J.↗

NASA NTRS1999

The X-Ray Spectrum of WZ Sagittae

We carried out an Advanced Satellite for Cosmology and Astrophysics (ASCA) observation of WZ Sagittae, to obtain the first X-ray spec- trum and to search for an X-ray counterpart near the well-known optical signal of 27.87 s. At around the same epoch, we carried out a similar search in ultraviolet radiation with the Faint Object Spectrograph (FOS) aboard the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). These experiments were done to test the hypothesis that the signal arises from rapid white dwarf rotation. The result generally confirmed that hypothesis, because signals were apparently detected at 27.87 s in both UV and hard X-ray light. But the detailed results were somewhat confusing, not exactly as simple as we dreamed in the proposal. The X-ray signal only emerges with fairly subtle methods of data analysis: either a "period-biased" search, or a sorting of X-ray photons into hard/soft - thus the detections are slightly marred by the taint of a posterz'ori reasoning. The UV data suffer a different but also worrisome problem: although 27.87 s is definitely detected, it's weaker than two other signals, at 28.22 and 29.69 s. That's quite surprising - we expected that the UV power spectrum would be simple, on the grounds that the UV flux distribution is nearly a pure white dwarf. Considered in isolation, such behavior from a white dwarf should be considered evidence for the pulsation hypothesis. The X-ray spectrum was interesting, mostly by virtue of what it did not show. It was essentially a pure thermal bremsstrahlung with kT = 5 keV, with only a very weak Fe K complex. This probably signifies origin near the central white dwarf and heating from accretion (propellor heating farther out would give lower densities and more cooling by emission lines). We published a paper reporting most of these details (Patterson et al. (1998), PASP, 110, 403), Much of the world accepts now that WZ Sge contains a rapidly spinning white dwarf - the fastest spin of any accreting white dwarf.

Patterson, Joseph↗