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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

OCCULTATION OF THE T TAURI STAR RW AURIGAE A BY ITS TIDALLY DISRUPTED DISK

RW Aur A is a classical T Tauri star, believed to have undergone a reconfiguration of its circumstellar environment as a consequence of a recent flyby of its stellar companion, RW Aur B. This interaction stripped away part of the circumstellar disk of RW Aur A, leaving a tidally disrupted ''arm'' and a short truncated circumstellar disk. We present photometric observations of the RW Aur system from the Kilodegree Extremely Little Telescope survey showing a long and deep dimming that occurred from 2010 September until 2011 March. The dimming has a depth of ∼2 mag, a duration of ∼180 days, and was confirmed by archival observations from American Association of Variable Star Observers. We suggest that this event is the result of a portion of the tidally disrupted disk occulting RW Aur A, specifically a fragment of the tidally disrupted arm. The calculated transverse linear velocity of the occulter is in excellent agreement with the measured relative radial velocity of the tidally disrupted arm. Using simple kinematic and geometric arguments, we show that the occulter cannot be a feature of the RW Aur A circumstellar disk, and we consider and discount other hypotheses. We also place constraints on the thickness and semimajor axis of the portion of the arm that occulted the star.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

The solar neighborhood. XXXII. The hydrogen burning limit

We construct a Hertzsprung-Russell diagram for the stellar/substellar boundary based on a sample of 63 objects ranging in spectral type from M6V to L4. We report newly observed VRI photometry for all 63 objects and new trigonometric parallaxes for 37 objects. The remaining 26 objects have trigonometric parallaxes from the literature. We combine our optical photometry and trigonometric parallaxes with 2MASS and WISE photometry and employ a novel spectral energy distribution fitting algorithm to determine effective temperatures, bolometric luminosities, and radii. Our uncertainties range from ∼20 K to ∼150 K in temperature, ∼0.01 to ∼0.06 in log (L/L {sub ☉}) and ∼3% to ∼10% in radius. We check our methodology by comparing our calculated radii to radii directly measured via long baseline optical interferometry. We find evidence for the local minimum in the radius-temperature and radius-luminosity trends that signals the end of the stellar main sequence and the start of the brown dwarf sequence at T {sub eff} ∼ 2075 K, log (L/L {sub ☉}) ∼ –3.9, and (R/R {sub ☉}) ∼ 0.086. The existence of this local minimum is predicted by evolutionary models, but at temperatures ∼400 K cooler. The minimum radius happens near the locus of 2MASS J0523–1403, an L2.5 dwarf with V – K = 9.42. We make qualitative arguments as to why the effects of the recent revision in solar abundances accounts for the discrepancy between our findings and the evolutionary models. We also report new color-absolute magnitude relations for optical and infrared colors which are useful for estimating photometric distances. We study the optical variability of all 63 targets and find an overall variability fraction of 36{sub −7}{sup +9}% at a threshold of 15 mmag in the I band, which is in agreement with previous studies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Saturn's inner satellites: Orbits, masses, and the chaotic motion of atlas from new Cassini imaging observations

We present numerically derived orbits and mass estimates for the inner Saturnian satellites, Atlas, Prometheus, Pandora, Janus, and Epimetheus from a fit to 2580 new Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem astrometric observations spanning 2004 February to 2013 August. The observations are provided as machine-readable and Virtual Observatory tables. We estimate GM{sub Atlas} = (0.384 ± 0.001) × 10{sup −3} km{sup 3} s{sup −2}, a value 13% smaller than the previously published estimate but with an order of magnitude reduction in the uncertainty. We also find GM{sub Prometheus} = (10.677 ± 0.006) × 10{sup −3} km{sup 3} s{sup −2}, GM{sub Pandora} = (9.133 ± 0.009) × 10{sup −3} km{sup 3} s{sup −2}, GM{sub Janus} = (126.51 ± 0.03) × 10{sup −3} km{sup 3} s{sup −2}, and GM{sub Epimetheus} = (35.110 ± 0.009) × 10{sup −3} km{sup 3} s{sup −2}, consistent with previously published values, but also with significant reductions in uncertainties. We show that Atlas is currently librating in both the 54:53 co-rotation-eccentricity resonance (CER) and the 54:53 inner Lindblad (ILR) resonance with Prometheus, making it the latest example of a coupled CER-ILR system, in common with the Saturnian satellites Anthe, Aegaeon, and Methone, and possibly Neptune's ring arcs. We further demonstrate that Atlas's orbit is chaotic, with a Lyapunov time of ∼10 years, and show that its chaotic behavior is a direct consequence of the coupled resonant interaction with Prometheus, rather than being an indirect effect of the known chaotic interaction between Prometheus and Pandora. We provide an updated analysis of the second-order resonant perturbations involving Prometheus, Pandora, and Epimetheus based on the new observations, showing that these resonant arguments are librating only when Epimetheus is the innermost of the co-orbital pair, Janus and Epimetheus. We also find evidence that the known chaotic changes in the orbits of Prometheus and Pandora are not confined to times of apse anti-alignment.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

RESONANCES, CHAOS, AND SHORT-TERM INTERACTIONS AMONG THE INNER URANIAN SATELLITES

The Portia group of Uranian satellites, representing 9 of the planet’s 13 tiny innermost moons, form a densely packed dynamical system. Hubble Space Telescope observations indicate that their orbits have changed significantly over two decades, and long-term numerical integrations show that their orbits are unstable over millions of years. To investigate the dynamical interactions of the Portia group satellites on the decade timescale over which orbital changes have been observed, we have performed a suite of 100–1000 yr N-body numerical integrations for a range of assumed satellite masses, which are at present not tightly constrained by observations. As first noted by Dawson et al. and recently investigated independently by Quillen and (Robert) French, the moons are configured in chains of interlinked first- and second-order eccentric resonances that contribute to chaotic behavior. We explore in detail several of the strongest of these interlinked resonances. The first such chain is a quintet of orbital resonances: Bianca is near a resonance with Cressida, which is itself near a resonance with Desdemona. Desdemona, in turn, is near a resonance with Portia, which is itself near a resonance with Juliet. The five participating resonances are: Cressida and Bianca (16:15), Desdemona and Cressida (47:46), Portia and Desdemona (13:12), and Portia and Juliet (51:49). A second such chain is a set of two interlinked resonances: Cupid and Belinda (58:57) and Belinda and Perdita (44:43). We also report the new identification of a companion set of second-order inclination-type resonances (Cressida and Bianca (32:30), Desdemona and Cressida (94:92), Portia and Desdemona (26:24), Portia and Juliet (51:49), Cupid and Belinda (116:114), and Belinda and Perdita (88:86)), some of which result in quite strongly coupled variations in the inclinations of the interacting satellites. Using a robust formulation of orbital elements that accounts for the oblateness of Uranus, we probe the dynamical interactions among the moons in the time and frequency domains, and also in phase space, using numerical integrations of subsets of the inner moons, for a range of assumed masses. Several of the satellites are near mean-motion resonance with more than one neighbor, and undergo orbital variations at two nearly equal resonant frequencies. Such configurations of two interlinked resonances can result in chaotic behavior, associated with the transition of one resonant argument from circulation to libration. We demonstrate that, even on the short timescales investigated here, the dynamical interactions, onset of chaos, and associated Lyapunov times are highly sensitive to the masses of the interacting satellites.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

V409 Tau as another AA Tau: Photometric observations of stellar occultations by the circumstellar disk

AA Tau is a well studied young stellar object (YSO) that presents many of the photometric characteristics of a Classical T Tauri star (CTTS), including short-timescale stochastic variability attributed to spots and/or accretion as well as long-duration dimming events attributed to occultations by vertical features (e.g., warps) in its circumstellar disk. We present new photometric observations of AA Tau from the Kilodegree Extremely Little Telescope North (KELT-North) which reveal a deep, extended dimming event in 2011, which we show supports the interpretation by Bouvier et al. of an occultation by a high-density feature in the circumstellar disk located >8 AU from the star. We also present KELT-North observations of V409 Tau, a relatively unstudied YSO also in Taurus–Auriga, showing short timescale erratic variability, along with two separate long and deep dimming events, one from 2009 January through late 2010 October, and the other from 2012 March until at least 2013 September. We interpret both dimming events to have lasted more than 600 days, each with a depth of ∼1.4 mag. From a spectral energy distribution analysis, we propose that V409 Tau is most likely surrounded by a circumstellar disk viewed nearly edge-on, and using Keplerian timescale arguments we interpret the deep dimmings of V409 Tau as occultations from one or more features within this disk ≳10 AU from the star. In both AA Tau and V409 Tau, the usual CTTS short-timescale variations associated with accretion processes close to the stars continue during the occultations, further supporting the distant occulting material interpretation. Like AA Tau, V409 Tau serves as a laboratory for studying the detailed structure of the protoplanetary environments of T Tauri disks, specifically disk structures that may be signposts of planet formation at many AU out in the disk. We also provide a table of all currently known disk-occulting young stars as a convenient reference for future work on such objects.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

ABUNDANCES IN THE LOCAL REGION. I. G AND K GIANTS

Parameters and abundances for 1133 stars of spectral types F, G, and K of luminosity class III have been derived. In terms of stellar parameters, the primary point of interest is the disagreement between gravities derived with masses determined from isochrones, and gravities determined from an ionization balance. This is not a new result per se, but the size of this sample emphasizes the severity of the problem. A variety of arguments led to the selection of the ionization-balance gravity as the working value. The derived abundances indicate that the giants in the solar region have Sun-like total abundances and abundance ratios. Stellar evolution indicators have also been investigated with the Li abundances and the [C/Fe] and C/O ratios, indicating that standard processing has been operating in these stars. The more salient result for stellar evolution is that the [C/Fe] data across the red-giant clump indicates the presence of mass-dependent mixing in accord with standard stellar evolution predictions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

TIME-SERIES SPECTROSCOPY OF TWO CANDIDATE DOUBLE DEGENERATES IN THE OPEN CLUSTER NGC 6633

SNe Ia are heavily used tools in precision cosmology, yet we still are not certain what the progenitor systems are. General plausibility arguments suggest there is potential for identifying double degenerate SN Ia progenitors in intermediate-age open star clusters. We present time-resolved high-resolution spectroscopy of two white dwarfs (WDs) in the field of the open cluster NGC 6633 that had previously been identified as candidate double degenerates in the cluster. However, three hours of continuous observations of each candidate failed to detect any significant radial velocity variations at the ≳10 km s{sup −1} level, making it highly unlikely that either WD is a double degenerate that will merge within a Hubble Time. The WD LAWDS NGC 6633 4 has a radial velocity inconsistent with cluster membership at the 2.5σ level, while the radial velocity of LAWDS NGC 6633 7 is consistent with cluster membership. We conservatively conclude that LAWDS 7 is a viable massive double degenerate candidate, though unlikely to be a Type Ia progenitor. Astrometric data from GAIA will likely be needed to determine if either WD is truly a cluster member.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

DO HOT HALOS AROUND GALAXIES CONTAIN THE MISSING BARYONS?

Galaxies are missing most of their baryons, and many models predict these baryons lie in a hot halo around galaxies. We establish observationally motivated constraints on the mass and radii of these halos using a variety of independent arguments. First, the observed dispersion measure of pulsars in the Large Magellanic Cloud allows us to constrain the hot halo around the Milky Way: if it obeys the standard Navarro, Frenk, and White (NFW) profile, it must contain less than 4%-5% of the missing baryons from the Galaxy. This is similar to other upper limits on the Galactic hot halo, such as the soft X-ray background and the pressure around high-velocity clouds. Second, we note that the X-ray surface brightness of hot halos with NFW profiles around large isolated galaxies is high enough that such emission should be observed, unless their halos contain less than 10%-25% of their missing baryons. Third, we place constraints on the column density of hot halos using nondetections of O VII absorption along active galactic nucleus (AGN) sightlines: in general they must contain less than 70% of the missing baryons or extend to no more than 40 kpc. Flattening the density profile of galactic hot halos weakens the surface brightness constraint so that a typical L{sub *} galaxy may hold half its missing baryons in its halo, but the O VII constraint remains unchanged, and around the Milky Way a flattened profile may only hold 6%-13% of the missing baryons from the Galaxy ((2-4) x 10{sup 10} M{sub sun}). We also show that AGN and supernovae at low to moderate redshift-the theoretical sources of winds responsible for driving out the missing baryons-do not produce the expected correlations with the baryonic Tully-Fisher relationship and, therefore, are insufficient to explain the missing baryons from galaxies. We conclude that most of missing baryons from galaxies do not lie in hot halos around the galaxies, and that the missing baryons never fell into the potential wells of protogalaxies in the first place. They may have been expelled from the galaxies as part of the process of galaxy formation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

THREE-DIMENSIONAL SIMULATIONS OF MIXING INSTABILITIES IN SUPERNOVA EXPLOSIONS

We present the first three-dimensional (3D) simulations of the large-scale mixing that takes place in the shock-heated stellar layers ejected in the explosion of a 15.5 M{sub sun} blue supergiant star. The blast is initiated and powered by neutrino-energy deposition behind the stalled shock by means of choosing sufficiently high neutrino luminosities from the contracting, nascent neutron star, whose high-density core is excised and replaced by a retreating inner grid boundary. The outgoing supernova shock is followed beyond its breakout from the stellar surface more than 2 hr after the core collapse. Violent convective overturn in the post-shock layer causes the explosion to start with significant large-scale asphericity, which acts as a trigger of the growth of Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities at the composition interfaces of the exploding star. Despite the absence of a strong Richtmyer-Meshkov instability at the H/He interface, which only a largely deformed shock could instigate, deep inward mixing of hydrogen is found as well as fast-moving, metal-rich clumps penetrating with high velocities far into the hydrogen envelope of the star as observed, for example, in the case of Supernova 1987A. Also individual clumps containing a sizeable fraction of the ejected iron-group elements (up to several 10{sup -3} M{sub sun}) are obtained in some models. The metal core of the progenitor is partially turned over with nickel-dominated fingers overtaking oxygen-rich bullets and both nickel and oxygen moving well ahead of the material from the carbon layer. Comparing with corresponding two-dimensional (axially symmetric; 2D) calculations, we determine the growth of the Rayleigh-Taylor fingers to be faster, the deceleration of the dense metal-carrying clumps in the helium and hydrogen layers to be reduced, the asymptotic clump velocities in the hydrogen shell to be higher (up to {approx}4500 km s{sup -1} for the considered progenitor and an explosion energy of 10{sup 51} erg, instead of {approx_lt}2000 km s{sup -1} in 2D), and the outward radial mixing of heavy elements and inward mixing of hydrogen to be more efficient in 3D than in 2D. We present a simple argument that explains these results as a consequence of the different action of drag forces on moving objects in the two geometries.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC ACCRETION DISK WINDS AS X-RAY ABSORBERS IN ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI

We present the two-dimensional ionization structure of self-similar magnetohydrodynamic winds off accretion disks around and irradiated by a central X-ray point source. On the basis of earlier observational clues and theoretical arguments, we focus our attention on a subset of these winds, namely those with radial density dependence n(r) {proportional_to} 1/r (r is the spherical radial coordinate). We employ the photoionization code XSTAR to compute the ionic abundances of a large number of ions of different elements and then compile their line-of-sight (LOS) absorption columns. We focus our attention on the distribution of the column density of the various ions as a function of the ionization parameter {xi} (or equivalently r) and the angle {theta}. Particular attention is paid to the absorption measure distribution (AMD), namely their hydrogen-equivalent column per logarithmic {xi} interval, dN{sub H}/dlog {xi}, which provides a measure of the winds' radial density profiles. For the chosen density profile n(r) {proportional_to} 1/r, the AMD is found to be independent of {xi}, in good agreement with its behavior inferred from the X-ray spectra of several active galactic nuclei (AGNs). For the specific wind structure and X-ray spectrum, we also compute detailed absorption line profiles for a number of ions to obtain their LOS velocities, v {approx} 100-300 km s{sup -1} (at log {xi} {approx} 2-3) for Fe XVII and v {approx} 1000-4000 km s{sup -1} (at log {xi} {approx} 4-5) for Fe XXV, in good agreement with the observation. Our models describe the X-ray absorption properties of these winds with only two parameters, namely the mass-accretion rate m-dot and the LOS angle {theta}. The probability of obscuration of the X-ray ionizing source in these winds decreases with increasing m-dot and increases steeply with the LOS inclination angle {theta}. As such, we concur with previous authors that these wind configurations, viewed globally, incorporate all the requisite properties of the parsec scale 'torii' invoked in AGN unification schemes. We indicate that a combination of the AMD and absorption line profile observations can uniquely determine these model parameters and their bearing on AGN population demographics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

FOLD LENS FLUX ANOMALIES: A GEOMETRIC APPROACH

We develop a new approach for studying flux anomalies in quadruply imaged fold lens systems. We show that in the absence of substructure, microlensing, or differential absorption, the expected flux ratios of a fold pair can be tightly constrained using only geometric arguments. We apply this technique to 11 known quadruple lens systems in the radio and infrared and compare our estimates to the Monte Carlo based results of Keeton et al. We show that a robust estimate for a flux ratio from a smoothly varying potential can be found, and at long wavelengths those lenses deviating from this ratio almost certainly contain significant substructure.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

EARLY DYNAMICAL EVOLUTION OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM: PINNING DOWN THE INITIAL CONDITIONS OF THE NICE MODEL

In the recent years, the 'Nice' model of solar system formation has attained an unprecedented level of success in reproducing much of the observed orbital architecture of the solar system by evolving the planets to their current locations from a more compact configuration. Within the context of this model, the formation of the classical Kuiper Belt requires a phase during which the ice giants have a high eccentricity. An outstanding question of this model is the initial configuration from which the solar system started out. Recent work has shown that multi-resonant initial conditions can serve as good candidates, as they naturally prevent vigorous type-II migration. In this paper, we use analytical arguments, as well as self-consistent numerical N-body simulations to identify fully resonant initial conditions, whose dynamical evolution is characterized by an eccentric phase of the ice giants, as well as planetary scattering. We find a total of eight such initial conditions. Four of these primordial states are compatible with the canonical 'Nice' model, while the others imply slightly different evolutions. The results presented here should prove useful in further development of a comprehensive model for solar system formation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

NEAR-INFRARED THERMAL EMISSION FROM THE HOT JUPITER TrES-2b: GROUND-BASED DETECTION OF THE SECONDARY ECLIPSE

We present near-infrared Ks-band photometry bracketing the secondary eclipse of the hot Jupiter TrES-2b using the Wide-field Infrared Camera on the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. We detect its thermal emission with an eclipse depth of 0.062{sup +0.013}{sub -0.011}% (5{sigma}). Our best-fit secondary eclipse is consistent with a circular orbit (a 3{sigma} upper limit on the eccentricity, e, and argument or periastron, {omega}, of |e cos {omega}| < 0.0090), in agreement with mid-infrared detections of the secondary eclipse of this planet. A secondary eclipse of this depth corresponds to a dayside Ks-band brightness temperature of T{sub B} = 1636{sup +79}{sub -88} K. Our thermal emission measurement, when combined with the thermal emission measurements using Spitzer/IRAC from O'Donovan and collaborators, suggests that this planet exhibits relatively efficient dayside to nightside redistribution of heat and a near isothermal dayside atmospheric temperature structure, whose spectrum is well approximated by a blackbody. It is unclear if the atmosphere of TrES-2b requires a temperature inversion; if it does it is likely due to chemical species other than TiO/VO as the atmosphere of TrES-2b is too cool to allow TiO/VO to remain in gaseous form. Our secondary eclipse has the smallest depth of any detected from the ground, at around 2 {mu}m, to date.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

FEEDBACK FROM CENTRAL BLACK HOLES IN ELLIPTICAL GALAXIES. III. MODELS WITH BOTH RADIATIVE AND MECHANICAL FEEDBACK

We find, from high-resolution hydro simulations, that winds from active galactic nuclei effectively heat the inner parts ({approx}100 pc) of elliptical galaxies, reducing infall to the central black hole; and radiative (photoionization and X-ray) heating reduces cooling flows at the kpc scale. Including both types of feedback with (peak) efficiencies of 3 x 10{sup -4} {approx}< {epsilon}{sub w} {approx}< 10{sup -3} and of {epsilon}{sub EM} {approx_equal} 10{sup -1.3} respectively, produces systems having duty cycles, central black hole masses, X-ray luminosities, optical light profiles, and E+A spectra in accord with the broad suite of modern observations of massive elliptical systems. Our main conclusion is that mechanical feedback (including energy, momentum, and mass) is necessary but the efficiency, based on several independent arguments, must be a factor of 10 lower than is commonly assumed. Bursts are frequent at z > 1 and decline in frequency toward the present epoch as energy and metal-rich gas are expelled from the galaxies into the surrounding medium. For a representative galaxy of final stellar mass {approx_equal}3 x 10{sup 11} M {sub sun}, roughly 3 x 10{sup 10} M {sub sun} of recycled gas has been added to the interstellar medium (ISM) since z {approx_equal} 2 and, of that, roughly 63% has been expelled from the galaxy, 19% has been converted into new metal-rich stars in the central few hundred parsecs, and 2% has been added to the central supermassive black hole (SMBH), with the remaining 16% in the form of hot X-ray emitting ISM. The bursts occupy a total time of {approx_equal}170 Myr, which is roughly 1.4% of the available time. Of this time, the central supermassive black hole would be seen as a UV or optical source for {approx_equal}45% and {approx_equal}71% of the time, respectively. Restricting to the last 8.5 Gyr, the bursts occupy {approx_equal}44 Myr, corresponding to a fiducial duty cycle of {approx_equal}5 x 10{sup -3}.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

DYNAMICAL CONSTRAINTS ON THE ORIGIN OF THE YOUNG B-STARS IN THE GALACTIC CENTER

Regular star formation is thought to be inhibited close to the massive black hole (MBH) in the Galactic center. Nevertheless, tens of young main-sequence B-stars have been observed in an isotropic distribution close to it. These stars are observed to have an apparently continuous distribution from very close to the MBH (<0.01 pc) and up to at least {approx}0.5 pc, suggesting a common origin. Various models have been suggested for the formation of the B-stars closest to the MBH (<0.05 pc; the S-stars), typically involving the migration of these stars from their original birthplace to their currently observed position. Here, we explore the orbital phase space distribution of the B-stars throughout the central parsec expected from the various suggested models for the origin of the B-stars. We find that most of these models have difficulties in explaining, by themselves, both the population of the S-stars (<0.05 pc) and the population of the young B-stars further away (up to 0.5 pc). Most models grossly overpredict the number of B-stars up to 0.5 pc, given the observed number of S-stars. Such models include the intermediate-mass black hole assisted cluster inspiral scenario, Kozai-like perturbations by two disks, spiral density waves migration in a gaseous disk, and some of the eccentric disk instability models. We focus on one of the other models, the massive perturbers induced binary disruption, which is consistent with both the S-stars and the extended population of B-stars further away. For this model, we use analytical arguments and N-body simulations to provide further observational predictions. These could be compared with future observations to further support this model, constrain it, or refute it. These predictions include the radial distribution of the young B-stars, their eccentricity distribution, and its dependence on distance from the MBH (higher eccentricities at larger distances from the MBH), as well as less specific expectations regarding their mass function.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

THE PROGENITORS OF TYPE Ia SUPERNOVAE. II. ARE THEY DOUBLE-DEGENERATE BINARIES? THE SYMBIOTIC CHANNEL

In order for a white dwarf (WD) to achieve the Chandrasekhar mass, M{sub C} , and explode as a Type Ia supernova (SNIa), it must interact with another star, either accreting matter from or merging with it. The failure to identify the class or classes of binaries which produce SNeIa is the long-standing 'progenitor problem'. Its solution is required if we are to utilize the full potential of SNeIa to elucidate basic cosmological and physical principles. In single-degenerate models, a WD accretes and burns matter at high rates. Nuclear-burning white dwarfs (NBWDs) with mass close to M{sub C} are hot and luminous, potentially detectable as supersoft X-ray sources (SSSs). In previous work, we showed that >90%-99% of the required number of progenitors do not appear as SSSs during most of the crucial phase of mass increase. The obvious implication might be that double-degenerate binaries form the main class of progenitors. We show in this paper, however, that many binaries that later become double degenerates must pass through a long-lived NBWD phase during which they are potentially detectable as SSSs. The paucity of SSSs is therefore not a strong argument in favor of double-degenerate models. Those NBWDs that are the progenitors of double-degenerate binaries are likely to appear as symbiotic binaries for intervals >10{sup 6} years. In fact, symbiotic pre-double-degenerates should be common, whether or not the WDs eventually produce SNeIa. The key to solving the Type Ia progenitor problem lies in understanding the appearance of NBWDs. Most of them do not appear as SSSs most of the time. We therefore consider the evolution of NBWDs to address the question of what their appearance may be and how we can hope to detect them.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

THE LICK-CARNEGIE EXOPLANET SURVEY: A URANUS-MASS FOURTH PLANET FOR GJ 876 IN AN EXTRASOLAR LAPLACE CONFIGURATION

Continued radial velocity (RV) monitoring of the nearby M4V red dwarf star GJ 876 with Keck/High Resolution Echelle Spectrograph has revealed the presence of a Uranus-mass fourth planetary companion in the system. The new planet has a mean period of P{sub e} = 126.6 days (over the 12.6-year baseline of the RV observations), and a minimum mass of m{sub e} sin i{sub e} = 12.9 {+-} 1.7 M {sub +}. The detection of the new planet has been enabled by significant improvements to our RV data set for GJ 876. The data have been augmented by 36 new high-precision measurements taken over the past five years. In addition, the precision of all of the Doppler measurements have been significantly improved by the incorporation of a high signal-to-noise template spectrum for GJ 876 into the analysis pipeline. Implementation of the new template spectrum improves the internal rms errors for the velocity measurements taken during 1998-2005 from 4.1 m s{sup -1} to 2.5 m s{sup -1}. Self-consistent, N-body fits to the RV data set show that the four-planet system has an invariable plane with an inclination relative to the plane of the sky of i = 59.{sup 0}5. The fit is not significantly improved by the introduction of a mutual inclination between the planets 'b' and 'c', but the new data do confirm a non-zero eccentricity, e{sub d} = 0.207 {+-} 0.055 for the innermost planet, 'd'. In our best-fit coplanar model, the mass of the new component is m{sub e} = 14.6 {+-} 1.7 M {sub +}. Our best-fitting model places the new planet in a three-body resonance with the previously known giant planets (which have mean periods of P{sub c} = 30.4 and P{sub b} = 61.1 days). The critical argument, {psi}{sub Laplace} = {lambda} {sub c} - 3{lambda} {sub b} + 2{lambda} {sub e}, for the Laplace resonance librates with an amplitude of {Delta}{psi}{sub Laplace} = 40{sup 0} {+-} 13{sup 0} about {psi}{sub Laplace} = 0{sup 0}. Numerical integration indicates that the four-planet system is stable for at least a billion years (at least for the coplanar cases). This resonant configuration of three giant planets orbiting an M dwarf primary differs from the well-known Laplace configuration of the three inner Galilean satellites of Jupiter, which are executing very small librations about {psi}{sub Laplace} = 180{sup 0} and which never experience triple conjunctions. The GJ 876 system, by contrast, comes close to a triple conjunction between the outer three planets once per every orbit of the outer planet, 'e'.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

MID-INFRARED SPECTRAL INDICATORS OF STAR FORMATION AND ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS ACTIVITY IN NORMAL GALAXIES

We investigate the use of mid-infrared (MIR) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) bands, the continuum, and emission lines as probes of star formation (SF) and active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity in a sample of 100 'normal' and local (z {approx} 0.1) emission-line galaxies. The MIR spectra were obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope Infrared Spectrograph as part of the Spitzer-SDSS-GALEX Spectroscopic Survey, which includes multi-wavelength photometry from the ultraviolet to the far-infrared and optical spectroscopy. The continuum and features were extracted using PAHFIT, a decomposition code which we find to yield PAH equivalent widths (EWs) up to {approx}30 times larger than the commonly used spline methods. Despite the lack of extreme objects in our sample (such as strong AGNs, low-metallicity galaxies, or ULIRGs), we find significant variations in PAH, continuum, and emission-line properties, and systematic trends between these MIR properties and optically derived physical properties, such as age, metallicity, and radiation field hardness. We revisit the diagnostic diagram relating PAH EWs and [Ne II]12.8 {mu}m/[O IV]25.9 {mu}m line ratios and find it to be in much better agreement with the standard optical SF/AGN classification than when spline decompositions are used, while also potentially revealing obscured AGNs. The luminosity of individual PAH components, of the continuum, and, with poorer statistics, of the neon emission lines and molecular hydrogen lines are found to be tightly correlated to the total infrared (TIR) luminosity, making individual MIR components good gauges of the total dust emission in SF galaxies. Like the TIR luminosity, these individual components can be used to estimate dust attenuation in the UV and in H{alpha} lines based on energy balance arguments. We also propose average scaling relations between these components and dust-corrected, H{alpha}-derived SF rates.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗