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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 703 records · Page 39
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

GEMINI PLANET IMAGER SPECTROSCOPY OF THE HR 8799 PLANETS c AND d

During the first-light run of the Gemini Planet Imager we obtained K-band spectra of exoplanets HR 8799 c and d. Analysis of the spectra indicates that planet d may be warmer than planet c. Comparisons to recent patchy cloud models and previously obtained observations over multiple wavelengths confirm that thick clouds combined with horizontal variation in the cloud cover generally reproduce the planets' spectral energy distributions. When combined with the 3 to 4 μm photometric data points, the observations provide strong constraints on the atmospheric methane content for both planets. The data also provide further evidence that future modeling efforts must include cloud opacity, possibly including cloud holes, disequilibrium chemistry, and super-solar metallicity.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

HST ROTATIONAL SPECTRAL MAPPING OF TWO L-TYPE BROWN DWARFS: VARIABILITY IN AND OUT OF WATER BANDS INDICATES HIGH-ALTITUDE HAZE LAYERS

We present time-resolved near-infrared spectroscopy of two L5 dwarfs, 2MASS J18212815+1414010 and 2MASS J15074759–1627386, observed with the Wide Field Camera 3 instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). We study the wavelength dependence of rotation-modulated flux variations between 1.1 μm and 1.7 μm. We find that the water absorption bands of the two L5 dwarfs at 1.15 μm and 1.4 μm vary at similar amplitudes as the adjacent continuum. This differs from the results of previous HST observations of L/T transition dwarfs, in which the water absorption at 1.4 μm displays variations of about half of the amplitude at other wavelengths. We find that the relative amplitude of flux variability out of the water band with respect to that in the water band shows a increasing trend from the L5 dwarfs toward the early T dwarfs. We utilize the models of Saumon and Marley and find that the observed variability of the L5 dwarfs can be explained by the presence of spatially varying high-altitude haze layers above the condensate clouds. Therefore, our observations show that the heterogeneity of haze layers—the driver of the variability—must be located at very low pressures, where even the water opacity is negligible. In the near future, the rotational spectral mapping technique could be utilized for other atomic and molecular species to probe different pressure levels in the atmospheres of brown dwarfs and exoplanets and uncover both horizontal and vertical cloud structures.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Modelling populations of kilonovae

Abstract The 2017 detection of a kilonova coincident with gravitational-wave emission has identified neutron star mergers as the major source of the heaviest elements and dramatically constrained alternative theories of gravity. Observing a population of such sources has the potential to transform cosmology, nuclear physics, and astrophysics. However, with only one confident multi-messenger detection currently available, modelling the diversity of signals expected from such a population requires improved theoretical understanding. In particular, models that are quick to evaluate and are calibrated with more detailed multi-physics simulations are needed to design observational strategies for kilonovae detection and to obtain rapid-response interpretations of new observations. We use grey-opacity models to construct populations of kilonovae, spanning ejecta parameters predicted by numerical simulations. Our modelling focuses on wavelengths relevant for upcoming optical surveys, such as the Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). In these simulations, we implement heating rates that are based on nuclear reaction network calculations. We create a Gaussian-process emulator for kilonova grey opacities, calibrated with detailed radiative transfer simulations. Using recent fits to numerical relativity simulations, we predict how the ejecta parameters from binary neutron star (BNS) mergers shape the population of kilonovae, accounting for the viewing-angle dependence. Our simulated population of BNS mergers produce peak i-band absolute magnitudes of −20 ≤ Mi ≤ −11. A comparison with detailed radiative transfer calculations indicates that further improvements are needed to accurately reproduce spectral shapes over the full light curve evolution.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Radiation-induced refraction artifacts in the optical CT readout of polymer gel dosimeters

Purpose: The objective of this work is to demonstrate imaging artifacts that can occur during the optical computed tomography (CT) scanning of polymer gel dosimeters due to radiation-induced refractive index (RI) changes in polyacrylamide gels. Methods: A 1 L cylindrical polyacrylamide gel dosimeter was irradiated with 3 × 3 cm{sup 2} square beams of 6 MV photons. A prototype fan-beam optical CT scanner was used to image the dosimeter. Investigative optical CT scans were performed to examine two types of rayline bending: (i) bending within the plane of the fan-beam and (ii) bending out the plane of the fan-beam. To address structured errors, an iterative Savitzky–Golay (ISG) filtering routine was designed to filter 2D projections in sinogram space. For comparison, 2D projections were alternatively filtered using an adaptive-mean (AM) filter. Results: In-plane rayline bending was most notably observed in optical CT projections where rays of the fan-beam confronted a sustained dose gradient that was perpendicular to their trajectory but within the fan-beam plane. These errors caused distinct streaking artifacts in image reconstructions due to the refraction of higher intensity rays toward more opaque regions of the dosimeter. Out-of-plane rayline bending was observed in slices of the dosimeter that featured dose gradients perpendicular to the plane of the fan-beam. These errors caused widespread, severe overestimations of dose in image reconstructions due to the higher-than-actual opacity that is perceived by the scanner when light is bent off of the detector array. The ISG filtering routine outperformed AM filtering for both in-plane and out-of-plane rayline errors caused by radiation-induced RI changes. For in-plane rayline errors, streaks in an irradiated region (>7 Gy) were as high as 49% for unfiltered data, 14% for AM, and 6% for ISG. For out-of-plane rayline errors, overestimations of dose in a low-dose region (∼50 cGy) were as high as 13 Gy for unfiltered data, 10 Gy for AM, and 3.1 Gy for ISG. The ISG routine also addressed unrelated artifacts that previously needed to be manually removed in sinogram space. However, the ISG routine blurred reconstructions, causing losses in spatial resolution of ∼5 mm in the plane of the fan-beam and ∼8 mm perpendicular to the fan-beam. Conclusions: This paper reveals a new category of imaging artifacts that can affect the optical CT readout of polyacrylamide gel dosimeters. Investigative scans show that radiation-induced RI changes can cause significant rayline errors when rays confront a prolonged dose gradient that runs perpendicular to their trajectory. In fan-beam optical CT, these errors manifested in two ways: (1) distinct streaking artifacts caused by in-plane rayline bending and (2) severe overestimations of opacity caused by rays bending out of the fan-beam plane and missing the detector array. Although the ISG filtering routine mitigated these errors better than an adaptive-mean filtering routine, it caused unacceptable losses in spatial resolution.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2018

Iron X-ray Transmission at Temperature Near 150 eV Using the National Ignition Facility: First Measurements and Paths to Uncertainty Reduction

Discrepancies exist between theoretical and experimental opacity data for iron, at temperatures 180–195 eV and electron densities near 3 × 1022/cm3, relevant to the solar radiative-convective boundary. Another discrepancy, between theory and helioseismic measurements of the boundary’s location, would be ameliorated if the experimental opacity is correct. To address these issues, this paper details the first results from new experiments under development at the National Ignition Facility (NIF), using a different method to replicate the prior experimental conditions. In the NIF experiments, 64 laser beams indirectly heat a plastic-tamped rectangular iron-magnesium sample inside a gold cavity. Another 64 beams implode a spherical plastic shell to produce a continuum X-ray flash which backlights the hot sample. An X-ray spectrometer records the transmitted X-rays, the unattenuated X-rays passing around the sample, and the sample’s self-emission. From these data, X-ray transmission spectra are inferred, showing Mg K-shell and Fe L-shell X-ray transitions from plasma at a temperature of ~150 eV and electron density of ~8 × 1021/cm3. These conditions are similar to prior Z measurements which agree better with theory. The NIF transmission data show statistical uncertainties of 2–10%, but various systematic uncertainties must be addressed before pursuing quantitative comparisons. The paths to reduction of the largest uncertainties are discussed. Once the uncertainty is reduced, future NIF experiments will probe higher temperatures (170–200 eV) to address the ongoing disagreement between theory and Z data.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

THE LEECH EXOPLANET IMAGING SURVEY: CHARACTERIZATION OF THE COLDEST DIRECTLY IMAGED EXOPLANET, GJ 504 b, AND EVIDENCE FOR SUPERSTELLAR METALLICITY

As gas giant planets and brown dwarfs radiate away the residual heat from their formation, they cool through a spectral type transition from L to T, which encompasses the dissipation of cloud opacity and the appearance of strong methane absorption. While there are hundreds of known T-type brown dwarfs, the first generation of directly imaged exoplanets were all L type. Recently, Kuzuhara et al. announced the discovery of GJ 504 b, the first T dwarf exoplanet. GJ 504 b provides a unique opportunity to study the atmosphere of a new type of exoplanet with a ∼500 K temperature that bridges the gap between the first directly imaged planets (∼1000 K) and our own solar system's Jupiter (∼130 K). We observed GJ 504 b in three narrow L-band filters (3.71, 3.88, and 4.00 μm), spanning the red end of the broad methane fundamental absorption feature (3.3 μm) as part of the LBTI Exozodi Exoplanet Common Hunt (LEECH) exoplanet imaging survey. By comparing our new photometry and literature photometry with a grid of custom model atmospheres, we were able to fit GJ 504 b's unusual spectral energy distribution for the first time. We find that GJ 504 b is well fit by models with the following parameters: T{sub eff} = 544 ± 10 K, g < 600 m s{sup −2}, [M/H] = 0.60 ± 0.12, cloud opacity parameter of f{sub sed} = 2–5, R = 0.96 ± 0.07 R{sub Jup}, and log(L) = −6.13 ± 0.03 L{sub ⊙}, implying a hot start mass of 3–30 M{sub jup} for a conservative age range of 0.1–6.5 Gyr. Of particular interest, our model fits suggest that GJ 504 b has a superstellar metallicity. Since planet formation can create objects with nonstellar metallicities, while binary star formation cannot, this result suggests that GJ 504 b formed like a planet, not like a binary companion.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

GLOBAL MODELING OF NEBULAE WITH PARTICLE GROWTH, DRIFT, AND EVAPORATION FRONTS. I. METHODOLOGY AND TYPICAL RESULTS

We model particle growth in a turbulent, viscously evolving protoplanetary nebula, incorporating sticking, bouncing, fragmentation, and mass transfer at high speeds. We treat small particles using a moments method and large particles using a traditional histogram binning, including a probability distribution function of collisional velocities. The fragmentation strength of the particles depends on their composition (icy aggregates are stronger than silicate aggregates). The particle opacity, which controls the nebula thermal structure, evolves as particles grow and mass redistributes. While growing, particles drift radially due to nebula headwind drag. Particles of different compositions evaporate at “evaporation fronts” (EFs) where the midplane temperature exceeds their respective evaporation temperatures. We track the vapor and solid phases of each component, accounting for advection and radial and vertical diffusion. We present characteristic results in evolutions lasting 2 × 10{sup 5} years. In general, (1) mass is transferred from the outer to the inner nebula in significant amounts, creating radial concentrations of solids at EFs; (2) particle sizes are limited by a combination of fragmentation, bouncing, and drift; (3) “lucky” large particles never represent a significant amount of mass; and (4) restricted radial zones just outside each EF become compositionally enriched in the associated volatiles. We point out implications for millimeter to submillimeter SEDs and the inference of nebula mass, radial banding, the role of opacity on new mechanisms for generating turbulence, the enrichment of meteorites in heavy oxygen isotopes, variable and nonsolar redox conditions, the primary accretion of silicate and icy planetesimals, and the makeup of Jupiter’s core.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

DREAMING OF ATMOSPHERES

Here, we introduce the RobERt (Robotic Exoplanet Recognition) algorithm for the classification of exoplanetary emission spectra. Spectral retrieval of exoplanetary atmospheres frequently requires the preselection of molecular/atomic opacities to be defined by the user. In the era of open-source, automated, and self-sufficient retrieval algorithms, manual input should be avoided. User dependent input could, in worst-case scenarios, lead to incomplete models and biases in the retrieval. The RobERt algorithm is based on deep-belief neural (DBN) networks trained to accurately recognize molecular signatures for a wide range of planets, atmospheric thermal profiles, and compositions. Reconstructions of the learned features, also referred to as the “dreams” of the network, indicate good convergence and an accurate representation of molecular features in the DBN. Using these deep neural networks, we work toward retrieval algorithms that themselves understand the nature of the observed spectra, are able to learn from current and past data, and make sensible qualitative preselections of atmospheric opacities to be used for the quantitative stage of the retrieval process.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

ON THE LAUNCHING AND STRUCTURE OF RADIATIVELY DRIVEN WINDS IN WOLF–RAYET STARS

Hydrostatic models of Wolf–Rayet (WR) stars typically contain low-density outer envelopes that inflate the stellar radii by a factor of several and are capped by a denser shell of gas. Inflated envelopes and density inversions are hallmarks of envelopes that become super-Eddington as they cross the iron-group opacity peak, but these features disappear when mass loss is sufficiently rapid. We re-examine the structures of steady, spherically symmetric wind solutions that cross a sonic point at high optical depth, identifying the physical mechanism through which the outflow affects the stellar structure, and provide an improved analytical estimate for the critical mass-loss rate above which extended structures are erased. Weak-flow solutions below this limit resemble hydrostatic stars even in supersonic zones; however, we infer that these fail to successfully launch optically thick winds. WR envelopes will therefore likely correspond to the strong, compact solutions. We also find that wind solutions with negligible gas pressure are stably stratified at and below the sonic point. This implies that convection is not the source of variability in WR stars, as has been suggested; however, acoustic instabilities provide an alternative explanation. Our solutions are limited to high optical depths by our neglect of Doppler enhancements to the opacity, and do not account for acoustic instabilities at high Eddington factors; yet, they do provide useful insights into WR stellar structures.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

ALMA INVESTIGATION OF VIBRATIONALLY EXCITED HCN/HCO{sup +}/HNC EMISSION LINES IN THE AGN-HOSTING ULTRALUMINOUS INFRARED GALAXY IRAS 20551−4250

We present the results of ALMA Cycle 2 observations of the ultraluminous infrared galaxy IRAS 20551−4250 at HCN/HCO{sup +}/HNC J = 3–2 lines at both vibrational ground ( v = 0) and vibrationally excited ( v {sub 2} = 1) levels. This galaxy contains a luminous buried active galactic nucleus (AGN), in addition to starburst activity, and our ALMA Cycle 0 data revealed a tentatively detected vibrationally excited HCN v {sub 2} = 1f J = 4–3 emission line. In our ALMA Cycle 2 data, the HCN/HCO{sup +}/HNC J = 3–2 emission lines at v = 0 are clearly detected. The HCN and HNC v {sub 2} = 1f J = 3–2 emission lines are also detected, but the HCO{sup +} v {sub 2} = 1f J = 3–2 emission line is not. Given the high energy level of v {sub 2} = 1 and the resulting difficulty of collisional excitation, we compared these results with those of the calculation of infrared radiative pumping, using the available infrared 5–35 μ m spectrum. We found that all of the observational results were reproduced if the HCN abundance was significantly higher than that of HCO{sup +} and HNC. The flux ratio and excitation temperature between v {sub 2} = 1f and v = 0, after correction for possible line opacity, suggests that infrared radiative pumping affects rotational ( J -level) excitation at v = 0 at least for HCN and HNC. The HCN-to-HCO{sup +} v = 0 flux ratio is higher than those of starburst-dominated regions, and will increase even more when the derived high HCN opacity is corrected. The enhanced HCN-to-HCO{sup +} flux ratio in this AGN-hosting galaxy can be explained by the high HCN-to-HCO{sup +} abundance ratio and sufficient HCN excitation at up to J = 4, rather than the significantly higher efficiency of infrared radiative pumping for HCN than HCO{sup +}.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

HELIOS: AN OPEN-SOURCE, GPU-ACCELERATED RADIATIVE TRANSFER CODE FOR SELF-CONSISTENT EXOPLANETARY ATMOSPHERES

We present the open-source radiative transfer code named HELIOS, which is constructed for studying exoplanetary atmospheres. In its initial version, the model atmospheres of HELIOS are one-dimensional and plane-parallel, and the equation of radiative transfer is solved in the two-stream approximation with nonisotropic scattering. A small set of the main infrared absorbers is employed, computed with the opacity calculator HELIOS-K and combined using a correlated-k approximation. The molecular abundances originate from validated analytical formulae for equilibrium chemistry. We compare HELIOS with the work of Miller-Ricci and Fortney using a model of GJ 1214b, and perform several tests, where we find: model atmospheres with single-temperature layers struggle to converge to radiative equilibrium; k-distribution tables constructed with ≳0.01 cm{sup −1} resolution in the opacity function (≲10{sup 3} points per wavenumber bin) may result in errors ≳1%–10% in the synthetic spectra; and a diffusivity factor of 2 approximates well the exact radiative transfer solution in the limit of pure absorption. We construct “null-hypothesis” models (chemical equilibrium, radiative equilibrium, and solar elemental abundances) for six hot Jupiters. We find that the dayside emission spectra of HD 189733b and WASP-43b are consistent with the null hypothesis, while the latter consistently underpredicts the observed fluxes of WASP-8b, WASP-12b, WASP-14b, and WASP-33b. We demonstrate that our results are somewhat insensitive to the choice of stellar models (blackbody, Kurucz, or PHOENIX) and metallicity, but are strongly affected by higher carbon-to-oxygen ratios. The code is publicly available as part of the Exoclimes Simulation Platform (exoclime.net).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Gemini/GMOS Transmission Spectral Survey: Complete Optical Transmission Spectrum of the Hot Jupiter WASP-4b

We present the complete optical transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter WASP-4b from 440 to 940 nm at R ∼ 400–1500 obtained with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrometers (GMOS); this is the first result from a comparative exoplanetology survey program of close-in gas giants conducted with GMOS. WASP-4b has an equilibrium temperature of 1700 K and is favorable to study in transmission due to its large scale height (370 km). We derive the transmission spectrum of WASP-4b using four transits observed with the MOS technique. We demonstrate repeatable results across multiple epochs with GMOS, and derive a combined transmission spectrum at a precision about twice above photon noise, which is roughly equal to one atmospheric scale height. The transmission spectrum is well fitted with a uniform opacity as a function of wavelength. The uniform opacity and absence of a Rayleigh slope from molecular hydrogen suggest that the atmosphere is dominated by clouds with condensate grain sizes of ∼1 μ m. This result is consistent with previous observations of hot Jupiters since clouds have been seen in planets with similar equilibrium temperatures to WASP-4b. We describe a custom pipeline that we have written to reduce GMOS time-series data of exoplanet transits, and present a thorough analysis of the dominant noise sources in GMOS, which primarily consist of wavelength- and time-dependent displacements of the spectra on the detector, mainly due to a lack of atmospheric dispersion correction.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Self-luminous and Irradiated Exoplanetary Atmospheres Explored with HELIOS

We present new methodological features and physical ingredients included in the one-dimensional radiative transfer code HELIOS, improving the hemispheric two-stream formalism. We conduct a thorough intercomparison survey with several established forward models, including COOLTLUSTY and PHOENIX, and find satisfactory consistency with their results. Then, we explore the impact of (i) different groups of opacity sources, (ii) a stellar path length adjustment, and (iii) a scattering correction on self-consistently calculated atmospheric temperatures and planetary emission spectra. First, we observe that temperature–pressure (T–P) profiles are very sensitive to the opacities included, with metal oxides, hydrides, and alkali atoms (and ionized hydrogen) playing an important role in the absorption of shortwave radiation (in very hot surroundings). Moreover, if these species are sufficiently abundant, they are likely to induce nonmonotonic T–P profiles. Second, without the stellar path length adjustment, the incoming stellar flux is significantly underestimated for zenith angles above 80°, which somewhat affects the upper atmospheric temperatures and the planetary emission. Third, the scattering correction improves the accuracy of the computation of the reflected stellar light by ∼10%. We use HELIOS to calculate a grid of cloud-free atmospheres in radiative–convective equilibrium for self-luminous planets for a range of effective temperatures, surface gravities, metallicities, and C/O ratios to be used by planetary evolution studies. Furthermore, we calculate dayside temperatures and secondary eclipse spectra for a sample of exoplanets for varying chemistry and heat redistribution. These results may be used to make predictions on the feasibility of atmospheric characterizations with future observations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

The Hubble PanCET Program: Transit and Eclipse Spectroscopy of the Strongly Irradiated Giant Exoplanet WASP-76b

Ultra-hot Jupiters with equilibrium temperatures greater than 2000 K are uniquely interesting targets as they provide us crucial insights into how atmospheres behave under extreme conditions. This class of giant planets receives intense radiation from their host star and usually has strongly irradiated and highly inflated atmospheres. At such a high temperature, cloud formation is expected to be suppressed and thermal dissociation of water vapor could occur. We observed the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-76b with seven transits and five eclipses using the Hubble Space Telescope and the Spitzer Space Telescope (Spitzer) for a comprehensive study of its atmospheric chemical and physical processes. We detected TiO and H{sub 2}O absorption in the optical and near-infrared transit spectrum. Additional absorption by a number of neutral and ionized heavy metals like Fe, Ni, Ti, and SiO help explain the short-wavelength transit spectrum. The secondary eclipse spectrum shows muted water feature but a strong CO emission feature in Spitzer’s 4.5 μm band indicating an inverted temperature pressure profile. We analyzed both the transit and eclipse spectra with a combination of self-consistent PHOENIX models and atmospheric retrieval. Both spectra were well fitted by the self-consistent PHOENIX forward atmosphere model in chemical and radiative equilibrium at solar metallicity, adding to the growing evidence that both TiO/VO and NUV heavy metals opacity are prominent NUV-optical opacity sources in the stratospheres of ultra-hot Jupiters.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2017

Apparent Disk-mass Reduction and Planetisimal Formation in GravitationallyUnstable Disks in Class 0/I Young Stellar Objects

We investigate the dust structure of gravitationally unstable disks undergoing mass accretion from the envelope, envisioning its application to Class 0/I young stellar objects (YSOs). We find that the dust disk quickly settles into a steady state and that, compared to a disk with interstellar medium (ISM) dust-to-gas mass ratio and micron-sized dust, the dust mass in the steady state decreases by a factor of 1/2 to 1/3, and the dust thermal emission decreases by a factor of 1/3 to 1/5. The latter decrease is caused by dust depletion and opacity decrease owing to dust growth. Our results suggest that the masses of gravitationally unstable disks in Class 0/I YSOs are underestimated by a factor of 1/3 to 1/5 when calculated from the dust thermal emission assuming an ISM dust-to-gas mass ratio and micron-sized dust opacity, and that a larger fraction of disks in Class 0/I YSOs is gravitationally unstable than was previously believed. We also investigate the orbital radius r{sub P} within which planetesimals form via coagulation of porous dust aggregates and show that r{sub P} becomes ∼20 au for a gravitationally unstable disk around a solar mass star. Because r{sub P} increases as the gas surface density increases and a gravitationally unstable disk has maximum gas surface density, r{sub P}∼20 au is the theoretical maximum radius for planetesimal formation. We suggest that planetesimal formation in the Class 0/I phase is preferable to that in the Class II phase because a large amount of dust is supplied by envelope-to-disk accretion.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

The Effects of Magnetic Fields on the Dynamics of Radiation Pressure–dominated Massive Star Envelopes

We use three-dimensional radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulations to study the effects of magnetic fields on the energy transport and structure of radiation pressure–dominated main sequence massive star envelopes at the region of the iron opacity peak. We focus on the regime where the local thermal timescale is shorter than the dynamical timescale, corresponding to inefficient convective energy transport. We begin with initially weak magnetic fields relative to the thermal pressure, from 100 to 1000 G in differing geometries. The unstable density inversion amplifies the magnetic field, increasing the magnetic energy density to values close to equipartition with the turbulent kinetic energy density. By providing pressure support, the magnetic field's presence significantly increases the density fluctuations in the turbulent envelope, thereby enhancing the radiative energy transport by allowing photons to diffuse out through low-density regions. Magnetic buoyancy brings small-scale magnetic fields to the photosphere and increases the vertical energy transport, with the energy advection velocity proportional to the Alfvén velocity, although in all cases we study, photon diffusion still dominates the energy transport. The increased radiative and advective energy transport causes the stellar envelope to shrink by several scale heights. We also find larger turbulent velocity fluctuations compared with the purely hydrodynamic case, reaching $\approx 100\,{{\rm{km}}{\rm{s}}}^{-1}$ at the stellar photosphere. The photosphere also shows vertical oscillations with similar averaged velocities and periods of a few hours. The increased turbulent velocity and oscillations will have strong impacts on the line broadening and periodic signals in massive stars.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Local Stability and Global Instability in Iron-opaque Disks

The thermal stability of accretion disks and the possibility of seeing a limit-cycle behavior strongly depends on the ability of the disk plasma to cool down. Various processes connected with radiation–matter interaction appearing in hot accretion disk plasma contribute to opacity. For the case of geometrically thin and optically thick accretion disks, we can estimate the influence of several different components of function κ, given by the Roseland mean. In the case of high temperatures of ∼10{sup 7} K, the electron Thomson scattering is dominant. At lower temperatures, atomic processes become important. The slope dlogκ/dlogT can have a locally stabilizing or destabilizing effect on the disk. Although the local MHD simulation postulates the stabilizing influence of the atomic processes, only the global time-dependent model can reveal the global disk stability range estimation. This is due to the global diffusive nature of those processes. In this paper, using the previously tested GLADIS code with a modified prescription of the viscous dissipation, we examine the stabilizing effect of the iron opacity bump.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Thermal Electrons in Gamma-Ray Burst Afterglows

To date, nearly all multi-wavelength modeling of long-duration γ -ray bursts has ignored synchrotron radiation from the significant population of electrons expected to pass the shock without acceleration into a power-law distribution. We investigate the effect of including the contribution of thermal, non-accelerated electrons to synchrotron absorption and emission in the standard afterglow model, and show that these thermal electrons provide an additional source of opacity to synchrotron self-absorption, and yield an additional emission component at higher energies. The extra opacity results in an increase in the synchrotron self-absorption frequency by factors of 10–100 for fiducial parameters. The nature of the additional emission depends on the details of the thermal population, but is generally observed to yield a spectral peak in the optical brighter than radiation from the nonthermal population by similar factors a few seconds after the burst, remaining detectable at millimeter and radio frequencies several days later.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗