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At least 1,171 records · Page 65
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

Stellar metallicity of the extended disk and distance of the spiral galaxy NGC 3621

Low resolution (∼4.5 Å) ESO VLT/FORS spectra of blue supergiant stars are analyzed to determine stellar metallicities (based on elements such as iron, titanium, and magnesium) in the extended disk of the spiral galaxy, NGC 3621. Mildly subsolar metallicity (–0.30 dex) is found for the outer objects beyond 7 kpc, independent of galactocentric radius and compatible with the absence of a metallicity gradient, confirming the results of a recent investigation of interstellar medium H II region gas oxygen abundances. The stellar metallicities are slightly higher than those from the H II regions when based on measurements of the weak forbidden auroral oxygen line at 4363 Å but lower than the ones obtained with the R {sub 23} strong line method. It is shown that the present level of metallicity in the extended disk cannot be the result of chemical evolution over the age of the disk with the present rate of in situ star formation. Additional mechanisms must be involved. In addition to metallicity, stellar effective temperatures, gravities, interstellar reddening, and bolometric magnitudes are determined. After the application of individual reddening corrections for each target, the flux-weighted gravity-luminosity relationship of blue supergiant stars is used to obtain a distance modulus of 29.07 ± 0.09 mag (distance D = 6.52 ± 0.28 Mpc). This new distance is discussed in relation to Cepheid and the tip of the red giant branch distances.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1991

Molecular hydrogen polarization images of OMC-1

An image of the polarization of the shocked H2 v = 1-0 S(1) line emission in the core of OMC-1 has been obtained. Along the molecular outflow of the source, the line is dichroically polarized by a medium of aligned grains located between the earth and the shock fronts. The polarization pattern traces the magnetic field direction, which is parallel to the outflow axis and to the large-scale field direction determined from far-IR continuum measurements. Close to the IR source IRc2, the likely source of the outflow, the aligned vectors twist, indicating that the magnetic field direction changes. Modeling the line ratios of scattered H2 lines in the reflection nebula, it is concluded that the size distribution of grains there is typical of the small grains in the diffuse interstellar medium. By contrast, the scattered continuum radiation from the core region suggests that the grains there are larger than this.

Burton, Michael G.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Carbonaceous Components in the Comet Halley Dust

Cometary grains containing large amounts of carbon and/or organic matter (CHON) were discovered by in situ measurements of comet Halley dust composition during VEGA and GIOTTO flyby missions. In this paper, we report the classification of these cometary, grains by means of cluster analysis, discuss the resulting compositional groups, and compare them with substances observed or hypothesized in meteorites, interplanetary dust particles, and the interstellar medium. Grains dominated by carbon and/or organic matter (CHON grains) represent approx. 22% of the total population of measured cometary dust particles. They, usually contain a minor abundance of rock-forming elements as well. Grains having organic material are relatively more abundant in the vicinity of the nucleus than in the outer regions of the coma, which suggests decomposition of the organics in the coma environment. The majority of comet Halley organic particles are multicomponent mixtures of carbon phases and organic compounds. Possibly, the cometary CHON grains may be related to kerogen material of an interstellar origin in carbonaceous meteorites. Pure carbon grains, hydrocarbons and polymers of cyanopolyynes, and multi-carbon monoxides are present in cometary dust as compositionally simple and distinctive components among a variety of others. There is no clear evidence of significant presence of pure formaldehyde or HCN polymers in Halley dust particles. The diversity of types of cometary organic compounds is consistent with the inter-stellar dust model of comets and probably reflects differences in composition of precursor dust. Preservation of this heterogeneity among submicron particles suggest the gentle formation of cometary, nucleus by aggregation of interstellar dust in the protosolar nebula without complete mixing or chemical homogenization at the submicron level.

Fomenkova, M. N.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Physical Processing of Cometary Nuclei

Cometary nuclei preserve a cosmo-chemical record of conditions and processes in the primordial solar nebula, and possibly even the interstellar medium. However, that record is not perfectly preserved over the age of the solar system due to a variety of physical processes which act to modify cometary surfaces and interiors. Possible structural and/or internal processes include: collisional accretion, disruption, and reassembly during formation; internal heating by long and short-lived radionuclides; amorphous to crystalline phase transitions, and thermal stresses. Identified surface modification processes include: irradiation by galactic cosmic rays, solar protons, UV photons, and the Sun's T Tauri stage mass outflow; heating by passing stars and nearby supernovae; gardening by debris impacts; the accretion of interstellar dust and gas and accompanying erosion by hypervelocity dust impacts and sputtering; and solar heating with accompanying crust formation. These modification processes must be taken into account in both the planning and the interpretation of the results of a Comet Nucleus Sample Return Mission. Sampling of nuclei should be done at as great a depth below the surface crust as technically feasible, and at vents or fissures leading to exposed volatiles at depth. Samples of the expected cometary crust and near-surface layers also need to be returned for analysis to achieve a better understanding of the effects of these physical processes. We stress that comets are still likely less modified dm any other solar system bodies, but the degree of modification can vary greatly from one comet to the next.

Weissman, Paul R.↗
DOE OSTI2014

Abundant molecular gas and inefficient star formation in intracluster regions: ram pressure stripped tail of the Norma galaxy ESO137-001

For the first time, we reveal large amounts of cold molecular gas in a ram-pressure-stripped tail, out to a large 'intracluster' distance from the galaxy. With the Actama Pathfinder EXperiment (APEX) telescope, we have detected {sup 12}CO(2-1) emission corresponding to more than 10{sup 9} M {sub ☉} of H{sub 2} in three Hα bright regions along the tail of the Norma cluster galaxy ESO 137-001, out to a projected distance of 40 kpc from the disk. ESO 137-001 has an 80 kpc long and bright X-ray tail associated with a shorter (40 kpc) and broader tail of numerous star forming H II regions. The amount of ∼1.5 × 10{sup 8} M {sub ☉} of H{sub 2} found in the most distant region is similar to molecular masses of tidal dwarf galaxies, though the standard Galactic CO-to-H{sub 2} factor could overestimate the H{sub 2} content. Along the tail, we find the amount of molecular gas to drop, while masses of the X-ray-emitting and diffuse ionized components stay roughly constant. Moreover, the amounts of hot and cold gas are large and similar, and together nearly account for the missing gas from the disk. We find a very low SFE (τ{sub dep} > 10{sup 10} yr) in the stripped gas in ESO 137-001 and suggest that this is due to a low average gas density in the tail, or turbulent heating of the interstellar medium that is induced by a ram pressure shock. The unprecedented bulk of observed H{sub 2} in the ESO 137-001 tail suggests that some stripped gas may survive ram pressure stripping in the molecular phase.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

STABILITY OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL GLYCINE UNDER ENERGETIC PARTICLE RADIATION ESTIMATED FROM 2 keV ELECTRON BOMBARDMENT EXPERIMENTS

The destruction of solid glycine under irradiation with 2 keV electrons has been investigated by means of IR spectroscopy. Destruction cross sections, radiolysis yields, and half-life doses were determined for samples at 20, 40, 90, and 300 K. The thickness of the irradiated samples was kept below the estimated penetration depth of the electrons. No significant differences were obtained in the experiments below 90 K, but the destruction cross section at 300 K was larger by a factor of 2. The radiolysis yields and half-life doses are in good accordance with recent MeV proton experiments, which confirms that electrons in the keV range can be used to simulate the effects of cosmic rays if the whole sample is effectively irradiated. In the low temperature experiments, electron irradiation leads to the formation of residues. IR absorptions of these residues are assigned to the presence CO{sub 2}, CO, OCN{sup −}, and CN{sup −} and possibly to amide bands I to III. The protection of glycine by water ice is also studied. A water ice film of ∼150 nm is found to provide efficient shielding against the bombardment of 2 keV electrons. The results of this study show also that current Monte Carlo predictions provide a good global description of electron penetration depths. The lifetimes estimated in this work for various environments ranging from the diffuse interstellar medium to the inner solar system, show that the survival of hypothetical primeval glycine from the solar nebula in present solar system bodies is not very likely.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1994

Observations of interplanetary Lyman-alpha with the Galileo Ultraviolet Spectrometer: Multiple scattering effects at solar maximum

The Galileo Ultravilet Spectrometer Experiment (UVS) obtained a partial celestial sphere map of interplanetary Lyman-alpha (IP L alpha) on 13-14 December 1990 during the first Earth encounter. The Galileo spacecraft was near the downwind axis of the local interstellar medium flow. These UVS measurements sampled the downwind, anti-sunward hemisphere. The data were modeled using a hot model of the interplanetary hydrogen density distribution with the goal of studying multiple scattering effects in the inner solar system. The derived ratio in the downwind direction of the observed brightness and a single scattering model brightness, both normalized to unity in the upwind direction, is 1.82 +/- 0.2. This brightness ratio requires a multiple scattering correction which is 36% larger than can be accounted for by theoretical calculations. The hot model may require: (1) a temperature perturbation of the interstellar wind velocity distribution or (2) an additional downstream source of interplanetary hydrogen. However, a more likely exlanation which affects the hot model is the latitude dependence of the radiation pressure. This dependence, based on the known solar L alpha flux latitude variation at solar maximum, causes a downwind brightness enhancement by preferential focusing of H-atoms with trajectory planes containing the solar poles. This result implies that radiation pressure near the solar poles is nearly independent of solar cycle and is insufficient to lead to a net repulsion of hydrogen atoms by the sun, as can occur near the ecliptic plane during the solar maximum. In addition, the UVS performed 13 observations of IP L alpha while in cruise between Venus and the Earth in 3 directions fixed in ecliptic coordinates.

Ajello, J. M.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Interstellar flow longitude from the symmetry of the pickup ion cutoff at 1 AU

We provide a proof of concept that the pickup ion (PUI) cutoff speed variation with ecliptic longitude can provide the interstellar neutral (ISN) flow longitude λ{sub ISN∞} outside the heliosphere with a precision of the order of 0.°1. We compare 2007–2014 STEREO A PLASTIC observations in the solar wind frame with a simple analytical cutoff model and perform a Pearson correlation of the cutoff as a function of longitude with those values mirrored about a location λ{sub M} that slides in longitude. The resulting maximum correlation at λ{sub M} = 255.°21 ± 0.°04 reflects the ISN upwind direction with a purely statistical uncertainty. This result is consistent with recent ISN flow longitude values, but a precision determination requires the evaluation of underlying systematic effects. Obtaining a precision ISN flow longitude is highly complementary to the IBEX ISN observations, which return a narrow tube in the ISN parameter space that couples flow speed and longitude tightly, but leaves a substantially larger error bar along the tube. The ISN flow provides one cardinal axis of the heliosphere, with a strong leverage on the plane subtended by the ISN velocity and the interstellar magnetic field vector, which controls the shape of the heliosphere and its interaction with the interstellar medium. In addition, a discussion about potential temporal variations of the ISN flow has started. Both issues require a precision determination of the ISN flow velocity over decade-long time intervals. ACE SWICS, STEREO PLASTIC, and SOHO CTOF PUI data allow such long-term studies over almost two decades.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2022

Line Emission Mapper Probing Physics of Cosmic Ecosystems

The Line Emission Mapper (LEM) is an X-ray Probe for the 2030s that will answer the outstanding questions of the Universe’s structure formation. It will also provide transformative new observing capabilities for every area of astrophysics, and to heliophysics and planetary physics as well. LEM’s main goal is a comprehensive look at the physics of galaxy formation, including stellar and black-hole feedback and flows of baryonic matter into and out of galaxies. These processes are best studied in X-rays; as emphasized by the 2020 Decadal Survey, emission-line mapping is the pressing need in this area. LEM will use a large microcalorimeter array/IFU (that builds on Athena XIFU technology developments), covering a 30 × 300 field with 1000 angular resolution, to map the soft Xray line emission from objects that constitute galactic ecosystems. These include supernova remnants, star-forming regions, superbubbles, galactic outflows (such as the Fermi/eROSITA bubbles in the Milky Way and their analogs in other galaxies), the Circumgalactic Medium in the Milky Way and other galaxies, and the Intergalactic Medium at the outskirts and beyond the confines of galaxies and clusters. LEM’s 1–2 eV spectral resolution in the 0.2–2 keV band will make it possible to disentangle the faintest emission lines in those objects from the bright Milky Way foreground, providing groundbreaking measurements of the physics of these plasmas, from temperatures, densities, chemical composition to gas dynamics. While the mission is optimized to provide critical observations that will push our understanding of galaxy formation, LEM will provide transformative capability for all classes of astrophysical objects, from the Earth’s magnetosphere, planets and comets to the interstellar medium and X-ray binaries in nearby galaxies, AGN, and cooling gas in galaxy clusters. In addition to pointed observations, LEM will perform a shallow all-sky survey that will dramatically expand the discovery space.

Ralph Kraft↗
NASA NTRS2002

The Exobiological Role of Interstellar Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Ices

Tremendous strides have been made in our understanding of interstellar material over the past twenty years thanks to significant, parallel developments in observational astronomy and laboratory astrophysics. Before this time, the composition of interstellar dust was largely guessed-at, the presence of ices in interstellar clouds ignored, and the notion that large, gas phase, carbon rich molecules might be abundant and widespread throughout the interstellar medium (ISM) considered impossible. Today, the composition of dust in the ISM is reasonably well constrained to micron-sized cold refractory materials comprised of amorphous and crystalline silicates mixed with an amorphous carbonaceous material containing aromatic structural units and short, branched aliphatic chains. Shrouded within the protective confines of cold, opaque molecular clouds--the birthplace of stars and planets--these cold dust particles secrete mantles of mixed molecular ices whose compositions are also well constrained. Finally, amidst the molecular inventory of these ice mantles are likely to be found polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), shockingly large molecules by the standards of interstellar chemistry, the telltale infrared spectral signature of which is now recognized throughout the Universe. In the first part of this talk, we will review the spectroscopic evidence that forms the basis for the currently accepted abundance and ubiquity of PANs in the ISM. We will then look at a few specific examples which illustrate how experimental and theoretical data can be applied to interpret the interstellar spectra and track how the PAN population evolves as it passes from its formation site in the circumstellar outflows of dying stars, through the various phases of the ISM, and into forn~iing planetary systems. Nevertheless, despite the fact that PANs likely represent the single largest molecular reservoir of organic carbon in evolving planetary systems, they are not what would be considered "biogenic" molecules. Although interesting from a chemical and astrophysical standpoint, in the absence of a mechanism by which this population can be dislodged from the precipitous thermodynamic well afforded by their extensive aromatic networks, they are of little Astrobiological significance. Consequently, for the remainder of the talk, we will consider the photochemical evolution of PANS under conditions similar to those found in the ISM and in proto-planetary systems with an eye toward means by which this rich repository of pre-biotic organic "ore" might be converted into materials of greater importance to Astrobiology.

Hudgins, Douglas M.↗
DOE OSTI2015

A STUBBORNLY LARGE MASS OF COLD DUST IN THE EJECTA OF SUPERNOVA 1987A

We present new Herschel photometric and spectroscopic observations of Supernova 1987A, carried out in 2012. Our dedicated photometric measurements provide new 70 μm data and improved imaging quality at 100 and 160 μm compared to previous observations in 2010. Our Herschel spectra show only weak CO line emission, and provide an upper limit for the 63 μm [O I] line flux, eliminating the possibility that line contaminations distort the previously estimated dust mass. The far-infrared spectral energy distribution (SED) is well fitted by thermal emission from cold dust. The newly measured 70 μm flux constrains the dust temperature, limiting it to nearly a single temperature. The far-infrared emission can be fitted by 0.5 ± 0.1 M {sub ☉} of amorphous carbon, about a factor of two larger than the current nucleosynthetic mass prediction for carbon. The observation of SiO molecules at early and late phases suggests that silicates may also have formed and we could fit the SED with a combination of 0.3 M {sub ☉} of amorphous carbon and 0.5 M {sub ☉} of silicates, totalling 0.8 M {sub ☉} of dust. Our analysis thus supports the presence of a large dust reservoir in the ejecta of SN 1987A. The inferred dust mass suggests that supernovae can be an important source of dust in the interstellar medium, from local to high-redshift galaxies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Sandblasting the r -process: Spallation of Ejecta from Neutron Star Mergers

Neutron star mergers (NSMs) are rapid neutron-capture (r-process) nucleosynthesis sites that expel matter at high velocities, from 0.1c to as high as 0.6c. Nuclei ejected at these speeds are sufficiently energetic to initiate spallation nuclear reactions with interstellar medium (ISM) particles. We adopt a thick-target model for the propagation of high-speed heavy nuclei in the ISM, similar to the transport of cosmic rays. We find that spallation may create observable perturbations to NSM isotopic abundances, particularly around the low-mass edges of the r-process peaks where neighboring nuclei have very different abundances. The extent to which spallation modifies the final NSM isotopic yields depends on: (1) the ejected abundances, which are determined by the NSM astrophysical conditions and the properties of nuclei far from stability, (2) the ejecta velocity distribution and propagation in interstellar matter, and (3) the spallation cross sections. Observed solar and stellar r-process yields could thus constrain the velocity distribution of ejected neutron star matter, assuming NSMs are the dominant r-process source. We suggest avenues for future work, including measurement of relevant cross sections.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1981

Cloud fluid compression and softening in spiral arms and the formation of giant molecular cloud complexes

With regard to the galactodynamics of the cloudy interstellar medium, the paper considers the response of such a gas to a forcing potential in the tight-winding density wave theory. The cloud fluid is treated in the hydrodynamic limit with an equation of state which softens at high densities. It is shown that in the inner regions of the galaxy, cooling of the cloud fluid in the arms can result in gravitational instability and the formation of large bound complexes of clouds which are identified with the giant molecular clouds (GMCs). Masses, dimensions, distributions, and scale heights of the GMCs are predicted by the theory. It is suggested that the interstellar gas density in the disk is regulated by the gravitational instability mechanism in the arms which siphons material into star formation. Implications for the evolution of individual GMCs and for galactic morphology are discussed.

Cowie, L. L.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Spectroscopy of the extreme ultraviolet background radiation

Observations in the FUV and soft X-ray bands suggest that the interstellar medium contains several components of high-temperature gas and should be emitting in the EUV. Indeed, diffuse radiation has been detected in the EUV with photometric instruments, but no special measurements exist below 520 A. A unique grazing-incidence spectrometer has been designed to study the diffuse emission between 80 and 650 A with 10 to 20-A resolution. The instrument was launched on a Black Brant sounding rocket from White Sands Missile Range on April 22, 1986. Preliminary analysis shows the expected geocoronal and interplanetary He I 584-A emission, and possibly other features which may originate in the hot ionized interstellar gas. Flux limits to these possible emission lines are compatible with previous broadband measurements.

Labov, Simon↗
NASA NTRS1992

Cosmic-ray-modified supernova remnant shocks

The evolution of cosmic-ray-modified SNRs during the early Sedov phase is investigated using the time-dependent, two-fluid model for diffusive shock acceleration. Consideration is given to the sensitivity of net acceleration efficiency to model assumptions regarding density structure of the external medium as well as time dependence in the diffusion coefficient and the cosmic-ray adiabatic index. Of the model assumptions explored, the greatest sensitivity was found to time variations in the specific heat ratio to cosmic rays. It was found that if tau is greater than or approximately equal to few times 100, dynamically significant cosmic-ray pressures are produced early in the Sedov inefficient cosmic-ray accelerators. For the SNR models under consideration, the total energy channeled into the cosmic rays can be of order 10 percent of the initial blast energy for both the uniform density and inverse-square density interstellar medium models.

Jones, T. W.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Accurate oscillator strengths for ultraviolet lines of Ar I - Implications for interstellar material

Analysis of absorption from interstellar Ar I in lightly reddened lines of sight provides information on the warm and hot components of the interstellar medium near the sun. The details of the analysis are limited by the quality of the atomic data. Accurate oscillator strengths for the Ar I lines at 1048 and 1067 A and the astrophysical implications are presented. From lifetimes measured with beam-foil spectroscopy, an f-value for 1048 A of 0.257 +/- 0.013 is obtained. Through the use of a semiempirical formalism for treating singlet-triplet mixing, an oscillator strength of 0.064 +/- 0.003 is derived for 1067 A. Because of the accuracy of the results, the conclusions of York and colleagues from spectra taken with the Copernicus satellite are strengthened. In particular, for interstellar gas in the solar neighborhood, argon has a solar abundance, and the warm, neutral material is not pervasive.

Federman, S. R.↗
DOE OSTI2015

VERY LARGE INTERSTELLAR GRAINS AS EVIDENCED BY THE MID-INFRARED EXTINCTION

The sizes of interstellar grains are widely distributed, ranging from a few angstroms to a few micrometers. The ultraviolet (UV) and optical extinction constrains the dust in the size range of a couple hundredths of micrometers to several submicrometers. The near and mid infrared (IR) emission constrains the nanometer-sized grains and angstrom-sized very large molecules. However, the quantity and size distribution of micrometer-sized grains remain unknown because they are gray in the UV/optical extinction and they are too cold and emit too little in the IR to be detected by IRAS, Spitzer, or Herschel. In this work, we employ the ∼3–8 μm mid-IR extinction, which is flat in both diffuse and dense regions to constrain the quantity, size, and composition of the μm-sized grain component. We find that, together with nano- and submicron-sized silicate and graphite (as well as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), μm-sized graphite grains with C/H ≈ 137 ppm and a mean size of ∼1.2 μm closely fit the observed interstellar extinction of the Galactic diffuse interstellar medium from the far-UV to the mid-IR, as well as the near-IR to millimeter thermal emission obtained by COBE/DIRBE, COBE/FIRAS, and Planck up to λ ≲ 1000 μm. The μm-sized graphite component accounts for ∼14.6% of the total dust mass and ∼2.5% of the total IR emission.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

ON THE GEOMETRY OF THE IBEX RIBBON

The Energetic Neutral Atom (ENA) full-sky maps obtained with the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) show an unexpected bright narrow band of increased intensity. This so-called ENA ribbon results from charge exchange of interstellar neutral atoms with protons in the outer heliosphere or beyond. Among other hypotheses it has been argued that this ribbon may be related to a neutral density enhancement, or H-wave, in the local interstellar medium. Here we quantitatively demonstrate, on the basis of an analytical model of the principal large-scale heliospheric structure, that this scenario for the ribbon formation leads to results that are fully consistent with the observed location of the ribbon in the full-sky maps at all energies detected with high-energy sensor IBEX-Hi.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗