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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 955 records · Page 53
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DOE OSTI2013

SPIRAL ARMS IN THE ASYMMETRICALLY ILLUMINATED DISK OF MWC 758 AND CONSTRAINTS ON GIANT PLANETS

We present the first near-IR scattered light detection of the transitional disk associated with the Herbig Ae star MWC 758 using data obtained as part of the Strategic Exploration of Exoplanets and Disks with Subaru, and 1.1 {mu}m Hubble Space Telescope/NICMOS data. While submillimeter studies suggested there is a dust-depleted cavity with r = 0.''35, we find scattered light as close as 0.''1 (20-28 AU) from the star, with no visible cavity at H, K', or K{sub s} . We find two small-scaled spiral structures that asymmetrically shadow the outer disk. We model one of the spirals using spiral density wave theory, and derive a disk aspect ratio of h {approx} 0.18, indicating a dynamically warm disk. If the spiral pattern is excited by a perturber, we estimate its mass to be 5{sup +3} {sub -4} M{sub J} , in the range where planet filtration models predict accretion continuing onto the star. Using a combination of non-redundant aperture masking data at L' and angular differential imaging with Locally Optimized Combination of Images at K' and K{sub s} , we exclude stellar or massive brown dwarf companions within 300 mas of the Herbig Ae star, and all but planetary mass companions exterior to 0.''5. We reach 5{sigma} contrasts limiting companions to planetary masses, 3-4 M{sub J} at 1.''0 and 2 M{sub J} at 1.''55, using the COND models. Collectively, these data strengthen the case for MWC 758 already being a young planetary system.

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DOE OSTI2013

A LONG-PERIOD TOTALLY ECLIPSING BINARY STAR AT THE TURNOFF OF THE OPEN CLUSTER NGC 6819 DISCOVERED WITH KEPLER

We present the discovery of the totally eclipsing long-period (P = 771.8 days) binary system WOCS 23009 in the old open cluster NGC 6819 that contains both an evolved star near central hydrogen exhaustion and a low-mass (0.45 M {sub Sun }) star. This system was previously known to be a single-lined spectroscopic binary, but the discovery of an eclipse near apastron using data from the Kepler space telescope makes it clear that the system has an inclination that is very close to 90 Degree-Sign . Although the secondary star has not been identified in spectra, the mass of the primary star can be constrained using other eclipsing binaries in the cluster. The combination of the total eclipses and a mass constraint for the primary star allows us to determine a reliable mass for the secondary star and radii for both stars, and to constrain the cluster age. Unlike well-measured stars of similar mass in field binaries, the low-mass secondary is not significantly inflated in radius compared to model predictions. The primary star characteristics, in combination with cluster photometry and masses from other cluster binaries, indicate a best age of 2.62 {+-} 0.25 Gyr, although stellar model physics may introduce systematic uncertainties at the {approx}10% level. We find preliminary evidence that the asteroseismic predictions for red giant masses in this cluster are systematically too high by as much as 8%.

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DOE OSTI2013

A DOUBLE PLANETARY SYSTEM AROUND THE EVOLVED INTERMEDIATE-MASS STAR HD 4732

We report the detection of a double planetary system orbiting around the evolved intermediate-mass star HD 4732 from precise Doppler measurements at Okayama Astrophysical Observatory and Australian Astronomical Observatory. The star is a K0 subgiant with a mass of 1.7 M {sub Sun} and solar metallicity. The planetary system is composed of two giant planets with minimum mass of msin i = 2.4 M {sub J}, orbital period of 360.2 days and 2732 days, and eccentricity of 0.13 and 0.23, respectively. Based on dynamical stability analysis for the system, we set the upper limit on the mass of the planets to be about 28 M {sub J} (i > 5 Degree-Sign ) in the case of coplanar prograde configuration.

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DOE OSTI2013

EXTENDED HOT HALOS AROUND ISOLATED GALAXIES OBSERVED IN THE ROSAT ALL-SKY SURVEY

We place general constraints on the luminosity and mass of hot X-ray-emitting gas residing in extended 'hot halos' around nearby massive galaxies. We examine stacked images of 2165 galaxies from the 2MASS Isolated Galaxy Catalog as well as subsets of this sample based on galaxy morphology and K-band luminosity. We detect X-ray emission at high confidence (ranging up to nearly 10{sigma}) for each subsample of galaxies. The average L{sub X} within 50 kpc is 1.0 {+-} 0.1 (statistical) {+-}0.2 (systematic) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 40} erg s{sup -1}, although the early-type galaxies are more than twice as luminous as the late-type galaxies. Using a spatial analysis, we also find evidence for extended emission around five out of seven subsamples (the full sample, the luminous galaxies, early-type galaxies, luminous late-type galaxies, and luminous early-type galaxies) at 92.7%, 99.3%, 89.3%, 98.7%, and 92.1% confidence, respectively. Several additional lines of evidence also support this conclusion and suggest that about 1/2 of the total emission is extended, and about 1/3 of the extended emission comes from hot gas. For the sample of luminous galaxies, which has the strongest evidence for extended emission, the average hot gas mass is 4 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 9} M {sub Sun} within 50 kpc and the implied accretion rate is 0.4 M {sub Sun} yr{sup -1}.

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DOE OSTI2013

HELIOSEISMOLOGY OF PRE-EMERGING ACTIVE REGIONS. II. AVERAGE EMERGENCE PROPERTIES

We report on average subsurface properties of pre-emerging active regions as compared to areas where no active region emergence was detected. Helioseismic holography is applied to samples of the two populations (pre-emergence and without emergence), each sample having over 100 members, which were selected to minimize systematic bias, as described in Leka et al. We find that there are statistically significant signatures (i.e., difference in the means of more than a few standard errors) in the average subsurface flows and the apparent wave speed that precede the formation of an active region. The measurements here rule out spatially extended flows of more than about 15 m s{sup -1} in the top 20 Mm below the photosphere over the course of the day preceding the start of visible emergence. These measurements place strong constraints on models of active region formation.

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DOE OSTI2013

A SIMPLE MODEL FOR QUASAR DEMOGRAPHICS

We present a simple model for the relationship between quasars, galaxies, and dark matter halos from 0.5 < z < 6. In the model, black hole (BH) mass is linearly related to galaxy mass, and galaxies are connected to dark matter halos via empirically constrained relations. A simple 'scattered' light bulb model for quasars is adopted, wherein BHs shine at a fixed fraction of the Eddington luminosity during accretion episodes, and Eddington ratios are drawn from a lognormal distribution that is redshift independent. This model has two free, physically meaningful parameters at each redshift: the normalization of the M {sub BH}-M {sub gal} relation and the quasar duty cycle; these parameters are fit to the observed quasar luminosity function (LF) over the interval 0.5 < z < 6. This simple model provides an excellent fit to the LF at all epochs and also successfully predicts the observed projected two-point correlation of quasars from 0.5 < z < 2.5. It is significant that a single quasar duty cycle at each redshift is capable of reproducing the extant observations. The data are therefore consistent with a scenario wherein quasars are equally likely to exist in galaxies, and therefore dark matter halos, over a wide range in masses. The knee in the quasar LF is a reflection of the knee in the stellar-mass-halo-mass relation. Future constraints on the quasar LF and quasar clustering at high redshift will provide strong constraints on the model. In the model, the autocorrelation function of quasars becomes a strong function of luminosity only at the very highest luminosities and will be difficult to observe because such quasars are so rare. Cross-correlation techniques may provide useful constraints on the bias of such rare objects. The simplicity of the model allows for rapid generation of quasar mock catalogs from N-body simulations that match the observed LF and clustering to high redshift.

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DOE OSTI2013

FLUORINE VARIATIONS IN THE GLOBULAR CLUSTER NGC 6656 (M22): IMPLICATIONS FOR INTERNAL ENRICHMENT TIMESCALES

Observed chemical (anti)correlations in proton-capture elements among globular cluster stars are presently recognized as the signature of self-enrichment from now extinct, previous generations of stars. This defines the multiple population scenario. Since fluorine is also affected by proton captures, determining its abundance in globular clusters provides new and complementary clues regarding the nature of these previous generations and supplies strong observational constraints to the chemical enrichment timescales. In this paper, we present our results on near-infrared CRIRES spectroscopic observations of six cool giant stars in NGC 6656 (M22): the main objective is to derive the F content and its internal variation in this peculiar cluster, which exhibits significant changes in both light- and heavy-element abundances. Across our sample, we detected F variations beyond the measurement uncertainties and found that the F abundances are positively correlated with O and anticorrelated with Na, as expected according to the multiple population framework. Furthermore, our observations reveal an increase in the F content between the two different sub-groups, s-process rich and s-process poor, hosted within M22. The comparison with theoretical models suggests that asymptotic giant stars with masses between 4 and 5 M {sub Sun} are responsible for the observed chemical pattern, confirming evidence from previous works: the difference in age between the two sub-components in M22 must be not larger than a few hundred Myr.

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DOE OSTI2013

GLOBAL AND LOCAL CUTOFF FREQUENCIES FOR TRANSVERSE WAVES PROPAGATING ALONG SOLAR MAGNETIC FLUX TUBES

It is a well-established result that the propagation of linear transverse waves along a thin but isothermal magnetic flux tube is affected by the existence of the global cutoff frequency, which separates the propagating and non-propagating waves. In this paper, the wave propagation along a thin and non-isothermal flux tube is considered and a local cutoff frequency is derived. The effects of different temperature profiles on this local cutoff frequency are studied by considering different power-law temperature distributions, as well as the semi-empirical VAL C model of the solar atmosphere. The obtained results show that the conditions for wave propagation strongly depend on the temperature gradients. Moreover, the local cutoff frequency calculated for the VAL C model gives constraints on the range of wave frequencies that are propagating in different parts of the solar atmosphere. These theoretically predicted constraints are compared to observational data and are used to discuss the role played by transverse tube waves in the atmospheric heating and dynamics, and in the excitation of solar atmospheric oscillations.

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DOE OSTI2013

TURBULENCE IN THE OUTER REGIONS OF PROTOPLANETARY DISKS. I. WEAK ACCRETION WITH NO VERTICAL MAGNETIC FLUX

We use local numerical simulations to investigate the strength and nature of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence in the outer regions of protoplanetary disks, where ambipolar diffusion is the dominant non-ideal MHD effect. The simulations include vertical stratification and assume zero net vertical magnetic flux. We employ a super time-stepping technique to ameliorate the Courant restriction on the diffusive time step. We find that in idealized stratified simulations, with a spatially constant ambipolar Elsasser number Am, turbulence driven by the magnetorotational instability (MRI) behaves in a similar manner as in prior unstratified calculations. Turbulence dies away for Am {<=} 1, and becomes progressively more vigorous as ambipolar diffusion is decreased. Near-ideal MHD behavior is recovered for Am {>=} 10{sup 3}. In the intermediate regime (10 {<=} Am {<=} 10{sup 3}) ambipolar diffusion leads to substantial increases in both the period of the MRI dynamo cycle and the characteristic scales of magnetic field structures. To quantify the impact of ambipolar physics on disk accretion, we run simulations at 30 AU and 100 AU that include a vertical Am profile based upon far-ultraviolet (FUV) ionized disk models. These models develop a vertically layered structure analogous to the Ohmic dead zone that is present at smaller radii. We find that, although the levels of surface turbulence can be strong (and consistent with constraints on turbulent line widths at these radii), the inferred accretion rates are at least an order of magnitude smaller than those observed in T Tauri stars. This discrepancy is very likely due to the assumption of zero vertical magnetic field in our simulations and suggests that vertical magnetic fields are essential for MRI-driven accretion in the outer regions of protoplanetary disks.

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DOE OSTI2013

HUBBLE PARAMETER MEASUREMENT CONSTRAINTS ON DARK ENERGY

We use 21 Hubble parameter versus redshift data points from Simon et al., Gaztanaga et al., Stern et al., and Moresco et al. to place constraints on model parameters of constant and time-evolving dark energy cosmologies. The inclusion of the eight new measurements results in H(z) constraints more restrictive than those derived by Chen and Ratra. These constraints are now almost as restrictive as those that follow from current Type Ia supernova (SNIa) apparent magnitude versus redshift data, which now more carefully account for systematic uncertainties. This is a remarkable result. We emphasize, however, that SNIa data have been studied for a longer time than the H(z) data, possibly resulting in a better estimate of potential systematic errors in the SNIa case. A joint analysis of the H(z), baryon acoustic oscillation peak length scale, and SNIa data favors a spatially flat cosmological model currently dominated by a time-independent cosmological constant but does not exclude slowly evolving dark energy.

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ON THE TEMPORAL EVOLUTION OF THE DISK COUNTERPART OF TYPE II SPICULES IN THE QUIET SUN

The newly established type II spicule has been speculated to provide enough hot plasma to play an important role in the mass loading and heating of the solar corona. With the identification of rapid blueshifted excursions (RBEs) as the on-disk counterpart of type II spicules we have analyzed three different high-quality timeseries with the CRisp Imaging SpectroPolarimeter (CRISP) at the Swedish Solar Telescope on La Palma and subjected to an automated detection routine to detect a large number of RBEs for statistical purposes. Our observations are of a quiet-Sun region at disk center and we find lower Doppler velocities, 15-40 km s{sup -1}, and Doppler widths, 2-15 km s{sup -1}, of RBEs than in earlier coronal hole studies, 30-50 km s{sup -1} and 7-23 km s{sup -1}, respectively. In addition, we examine the spatial dependence of Doppler velocities and widths along the RBE axis and conclude that there is no clear trend to this over the field of view or in individual RBEs in the quiet Sun at disk center. These differences with previous coronal hole studies are attributed to the more varying magnetic field configuration in quiet-Sun conditions. Using an extremely high-cadence data set has allowed us to improve greatly on the determination of lifetimes of RBEs, which we find to range from 5 to 60 s with an average lifetime of 30 s, as well as the transverse motions in RBEs, with transverse velocities up to 55 km s{sup -1} and averaging 12 km s{sup -1}. Furthermore, our measurements of the recurrence rates of RBEs provide important new constraints on coronal heating by spicules. We also see many examples of a sinusoidal wave pattern in the transverse motion of RBEs with periods averaging 54 s and amplitudes from 21.5 to 129 km which agrees well with previous studies of wave motion in spicules at the limb. We interpret the appearance of RBEs over their full length within a few seconds as the result of a combination of three kinds of motions as is earlier reported for spicules. Finally, we look at the temporal connection between H{alpha} and Ca II 8542 RBEs and find that Ca II 8542 RBEs in addition to being located closer to the footpoint also appear before the H{alpha} RBEs. This connection between Ca II 8542 and H{alpha} supports the idea that heating is occurring in spicules and contributes more weight to the prominence of spicules as a source for heating and mass loading of the corona.

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DOE OSTI2013

SOLAR NEUTRINO PHYSICS OSCILLATIONS: SENSITIVITY TO THE ELECTRONIC DENSITY IN THE SUN'S CORE

Solar neutrinos coming from different nuclear reactions are now detected with high statistics. Consequently, an accurate spectroscopic analysis of the neutrino fluxes arriving on Earth's detectors becomes available, in the context of neutrino oscillations. In this work, we explore the possibility of using this information to infer the radial profile of the electronic density in the solar core. So, we discuss the constraints on the Sun's density and chemical composition that can be determined from solar neutrino observations. This approach constitutes an independent and alternative diagnostic to the helioseismic investigations already done. The direct inversion method, which we propose to obtain the radial solar electronic density profile, is almost independent of the solar model.

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DOE OSTI2013

COSMIC SHEAR RESULTS FROM THE DEEP LENS SURVEY. I. JOINT CONSTRAINTS ON {Omega} {sub M} AND {sigma}{sub 8} WITH A TWO-DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS

We present a cosmic shear study from the Deep Lens Survey (DLS), a deep BVRz multi-band imaging survey of five 4 deg{sup 2} fields with two National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) 4 m telescopes at Kitt Peak and Cerro Tololo. For both telescopes, the change of the point-spread-function (PSF) shape across the focal plane is complicated, and the exposure-to-exposure variation of this position-dependent PSF change is significant. We overcome this challenge by modeling the PSF separately for individual exposures and CCDs with principal component analysis (PCA). We find that stacking these PSFs reproduces the final PSF pattern on the mosaic image with high fidelity, and the method successfully separates PSF-induced systematics from gravitational lensing effects. We calibrate our shears and estimate the errors, utilizing an image simulator, which generates sheared ground-based galaxy images from deep Hubble Space Telescope archival data with a realistic atmospheric turbulence model. For cosmological parameter constraints, we marginalize over shear calibration error, photometric redshift uncertainty, and the Hubble constant. We use cosmology-dependent covariances for the Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis and find that the role of this varying covariance is critical in our parameter estimation. Our current non-tomographic analysis alone constrains the {Omega} {sub M}-{sigma}{sub 8} likelihood contour tightly, providing a joint constraint of {Omega} {sub M} = 0.262 {+-} 0.051 and {sigma}{sub 8} = 0.868 {+-} 0.071. We expect that a future DLS weak-lensing tomographic study will further tighten these constraints because explicit treatment of the redshift dependence of cosmic shear more efficiently breaks the {Omega} {sub M}-{sigma}{sub 8} degeneracy. Combining the current results with the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7 year (WMAP7) likelihood data, we obtain {Omega} {sub M} = 0.278 {+-} 0.018 and {sigma}{sub 8} = 0.815 {+-} 0.020.

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EMPIRICAL PREDICTIONS FOR (SUB-)MILLIMETER LINE AND CONTINUUM DEEP FIELDS

Modern (sub-)millimeter/radio interferometers such as ALMA, JVLA, and the PdBI successor NOEMA will enable us to measure the dust and molecular gas emission from galaxies that have luminosities lower than the Milky Way, out to high redshifts and with unprecedented spatial resolution and sensitivity. This will provide new constraints on the star formation properties and gas reservoir in galaxies throughout cosmic times through dedicated deep field campaigns targeting the CO/[C II] lines and dust continuum emission in the (sub-)millimeter regime. In this paper, we present empirical predictions for such line and continuum deep fields. We base these predictions on the deepest available optical/near-infrared Advanced Camera for Surveys and NICMOS data on the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (over an area of about 12 arcmin{sup 2}). Using a physically motivated spectral energy distribution model, we fit the observed optical/near-infrared emission of 13,099 galaxies with redshifts up to z = 5, and obtain median-likelihood estimates of their stellar mass, star formation rate, dust attenuation, and dust luminosity. We combine the attenuated stellar spectra with a library of infrared emission models spanning a wide range of dust temperatures to derive statistical constraints on the dust emission in the infrared and (sub-)millimeter which are consistent with the observed optical/near-infrared emission in terms of energy balance. This allows us to estimate, for each galaxy, the (sub-)millimeter continuum flux densities in several ALMA, PdBI/NOEMA, and JVLA bands. As a consistency check, we verify that the 850 {mu}m number counts and extragalactic background light derived using our predictions are consistent with previous observations. Using empirical relations between the observed CO/[C II] line luminosities and the infrared luminosity of star-forming galaxies, we infer the luminosity of the CO(1-0) and [C II] lines from the estimated infrared luminosity of each galaxy in our sample. We then predict the luminosities of higher CO transition lines CO(2-1) to CO(7-6) based on two extreme gas excitation scenarios: quiescent (Milky Way) and starburst (M82). We use our predictions to discuss possible deep field strategies with ALMA. The predictions presented in this study will serve as a direct benchmark for future deep field campaigns in the (sub-)millimeter regime.

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THE VELOCITY ANISOTROPY OF DISTANT MILKY WAY HALO STARS FROM HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE PROPER MOTIONS

Based on long baseline (5-7 years) multi-epoch HST/ACS photometry, used previously to measure the proper motion of M31, we present the proper motions (PMs) of 13 main-sequence Milky Way halo stars. The sample lies at an average distance of r {approx_equal} 24 kpc from the Galactic center, with a root-mean-square spread of 6 kpc. At this distance, the median PM accuracy is 5 km s{sup -1}. We devise a maximum likelihood routine to determine the tangential velocity ellipsoid of the stellar halo. The velocity second moments in the directions of the Galactic (l, b) system are {sup 1/2}= 123{sup +29}{sub -23} km s{sup -1}, and {sup 1/2}= 83{sup +24}{sub -16} km s{sup -1}. We combine these results with the known line-of-sight second moment, {sup 1/2}= 105{+-}5 km s{sup -1}, at this (r) to study the velocity anisotropy of the halo. We find approximate isotropy between the radial and tangential velocity distributions, with anisotropy parameter {beta}= 0.0{sup +0.2}{sub -0.4}. Our results suggest that the stellar halo velocity anisotropy out to r {approx} 30 kpc is less radially biased than solar neighborhood measurements. This is opposite to what is expected from violent relaxation, and may indicate the presence of a shell-type structure at r {approx} 24 kpc. With additional multi-epoch HST data, the method presented here has the ability to measure the transverse kinematics of the halo for more stars, and to larger distances. This can yield new improved constraints on the stellar halo formation mechanism, and the mass of the Milky Way.

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ON THE REDSHIFT OF THE VERY HIGH ENERGY BLAZAR 3C 66A

As a bright gamma-ray source, 3C 66A is of great interest to the high-energy astrophysics community, having a potential for placing cosmological constraints on models for the extragalactic background light (EBL) and the processes which contribute to this photon field. No firm spectroscopic redshift measurement has been possible for this blazar due to a lack of intrinsic emission and absorption features in optical spectra. We present new far-ultraviolet spectra from the Hubble Space Telescope/Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (HST/COS) of the BL Lac object 3C 66A covering the wavelength range 1132-1800 A. The data show a smooth continuum with intergalactic medium absorption features which can be used to place a firm lower limit on the blazar redshift of z {>=} 0.3347. An upper limit is set by statistically treating the non-detection of additional absorbers beyond z = 0.3347, indicating a redshift of less than 0.41 at 99% confidence and ruling out z {>=} 0.444 at 99.9% confidence. We conclude by showing how the redshift limits derived from the COS spectra remove the potential for this gamma-ray emitting blazar to place an upper limit on the flux of the EBL using high energy data from a flare in 2009 October.

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Cr-K EMISSION LINE AS A CONSTRAINT ON THE PROGENITOR PROPERTIES OF SUPERNOVA REMNANTS

We perform a survey of the Cr, Mn, and Fe-K emission lines in young supernova remnants (SNRs) with the Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite Suzaku. The Cr and/or Mn emission lines are detected in 3C 397 and 0519-69.0 for the first time. We also confirm the detection of these lines in Kepler, W49B, N103B, and Cas A. We derive the line parameters (i.e., the line centroid energy, flux, and equivalent width (EW)) for these six sources and perform a correlation analysis for the line center energies of Cr, Mn, and Fe. Also included in the correlation analysis are Tycho and G344.7-0.1 for which the Cr, Mn, and Fe-K line parameters were available in the literature through Suzaku observations. We find that the line center energies of Cr correlate very well with that of Fe and that of Mn. This confirms our previous findings that Cr, Mn, and Fe are spatially co-located, share a similar ionization state, and have a common origin in the supernova nucleosynthesis. We find that the ratio of the EW of the Cr emission line to that of Fe ({gamma}{sub Cr/Fe}{identical_to}EW(Cr)/EW(Fe)) provides useful constraints on the SNR progenitors and on the SN explosion mechanisms: for SNRs with {gamma}{sub Cr/Fe} > 2%, a Type Ia origin is favored (e.g., N103B, G344.7-0.1, 3C 397, and 0519-69.0); for SNRs with {gamma}{sub Cr/Fe} < 2%, they could be of either core-collapse origin or carbon-deflagration Ia origin.

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OUTFLOW VERSUS INFALL IN SPIRAL GALAXIES: METAL ABSORPTION IN THE HALO OF NGC 891

Gas accreting onto a galaxy will be of low metallicity while halo gas due to a galactic fountain will be of near-solar metallicity. We test these predictions by measuring the metal absorption line properties of halo gas 5 kpc above the plane of the edge-on galaxy NGC 891, using observations taken with HST/STIS toward a bright background quasar. Metal absorption lines of Fe II, Mg II, and Mg I in the halo of NGC 891 are clearly seen, and when combined with recent deep H I observations, we are able to place constraints on the metallicity of the halo gas for the first time. The H I line width defines the line broadening, from which we model opacity effects in these metal lines, assuming that the absorbing gas is continuously distributed in the halo. The gas-phase metallicities are [Fe/H] = -1.18 {+-} 0.07 and [Mg/H] = -0.23 + 0.36/ - 0.27 (statistical errors) and this difference is probably due to differential depletion onto grains. When corrected for such depletion using Galactic gas as a guide, both elements have approximately solar or even supersolar abundances. This suggests that the gas is from the galaxy disk, probably expelled into the halo by a galactic fountain, rather than from accretion of intergalactic gas, which would have a low metallicity. The abundances would be raised by significant amounts if the absorbing gas lies in a few clouds with thermal widths smaller than the rotational velocity of the halo. If this is the case, both the abundances and [Mg/Fe] would be supersolar.

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