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At least 1,693 records · Page 94

Transmission spectroscopy of the hot Jupiter WASP-12b from 0.7 to 5 μm

Since the first report of a potentially non-solar carbon-to-oxygen ratio (C/O) in its dayside atmosphere, the highly irradiated exoplanet WASP-12b has been under intense scrutiny and the subject of many follow-up observations. Additionally, the recent discovery of stellar binary companions ∼1'' from WASP-12 has obfuscated interpretation of the observational data. Here we present new ground-based multi-object transmission-spectroscopy observations of WASP-12b that we acquired over two consecutive nights in the red optical with Gemini-N/GMOS. After correcting for the influence of WASP-12's stellar companions, we find that these data rule out a cloud-free H{sub 2} atmosphere with no additional opacity sources. We detect features in the transmission spectrum that may be attributed to metal oxides (such as TiO and VO) for an O-rich atmosphere or to metal hydrides (such as TiH) for a C-rich atmosphere. We also reanalyzed NIR transit-spectroscopy observations of WASP-12b from HST/WFC3 and broadband transit photometry from Warm Spitzer. We attribute the broad spectral features in the WFC3 data to either H{sub 2}O or CH{sub 4} and HCN for an O-rich or C-rich atmosphere, respectively. The Spitzer data suggest shallower transit depths than the models predict at infrared wavelengths, albeit at low statistical significance. A multi-instrument, broad-wavelength analysis of WASP-12b suggests that the transmission spectrum is well approximated by a simple Rayleigh scattering model with a planet terminator temperature of 1870 ± 130 K. We conclude that additional high-precision data and isolated spectroscopic measurements of the companion stars are required to place definitive constraints on the composition of WASP-12b's atmosphere.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

THE HOMOGENEOUS STUDY OF TRANSITING SYSTEMS (HoSTS). I. THE PILOT STUDY OF WASP-13

We present the fundamental stellar and planetary properties of the transiting planetary system WASP-13 within the framework of the Homogeneous Study of Transiting Systems (HoSTS). HoSTS aims to derive the fundamental stellar (T{sub eff}, [Fe/H], M{sub *}, R{sub *}) and planetary (M{sub pl}, R{sub pl}, T{sub eq}) physical properties of known transiting planets using a consistent methodology and homogeneous high-quality data set. Four spectral analysis techniques are independently applied to a Keck+HIRES spectrum of WASP-13 considering two distinct cases: unconstrained parameters and constrained log g from transit light curves. We check the derived stellar temperature against that from a different temperature diagnostic based on an INT+IDS H{alpha} spectrum. The four unconstrained analyses render results that are in good agreement, and provide an improvement of 50% in the precision of T{sub eff}, and of 85% in [Fe/H] with respect to the WASP-13 discovery paper. The planetary parameters are then derived via the Monte Carlo Markov Chain modeling of the radial velocity and light curves, in iteration with stellar evolutionary models to derive realistic uncertainties. WASP-13 (1.187 {+-} 0.065 M{sub Sun }; 1.574 {+-} 0.048 R{sub Sun }) hosts a Saturn-mass, transiting planet (0.500 {+-} 0.037 M{sub Jup}; 1.407 {+-} 0.052 R{sub Jup}), and is at the end of its main-sequence lifetime (4-5.5 Gyr). Our analysis of WASP-13 showcases that both a detailed stellar characterization and transit modeling are necessary to well determine the fundamental properties of planetary systems, which are paramount in identifying and determining empirical relationships between transiting planets and their hosts.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Solar activity geomagnetic field and terrestrial weather

Spectral analysis is used as an independent test of the reported association between interplanetary-magnetic-field structure and terrestrial weather. Spectra of the Ap geomagnetic activity index and the vorticity area index for the years from 1964 to 1970 are examined for common features that may be associated with solar-related phenomena, specifically for peaks in the power spectra of both time series with periods near 27.1 days. The spectra are compared in three ways, and the largest peak with the smallest probability estimate is found to occur at a period of 27.49 days. This result is considered to be statistically significant at the 98% level. It is concluded that the period derived from the Ap spectrum is related to solar rotation and that the analysis provides supporting evidence for a connection between the vorticity area index and solar activity.

Knight, J. W.↗

Quantitative spectroscopy for the analysis of GOME data

Accurate analysis of the global ozone monitoring experiment (GOME) data to obtain atmospheric constituents requires reliable, traceable spectroscopic parameters for atmospheric absorption and scattering. Results are summarized for research that includes: the re-determination of Rayleigh scattering cross sections and phase functions for the 200 nm to 1000 nm range; the analysis of solar spectra to obtain a high-resolution reference spectrum with excellent absolute vacuum wavelength calibration; Ring effect cross sections and phase functions determined directly from accurate molecular parameters of N2 and O2; O2 A band line intensities and pressure broadening coefficients; and the analysis of absolute accuracies for ultraviolet and visible absorption cross sections of O3 and other trace species measurable by GOME.

Chance, K.↗

AN EXPLORATION OF THE STATISTICAL SIGNATURES OF STELLAR FEEDBACK

All molecular clouds are observed to be turbulent, but the origin, means of sustenance, and evolution of the turbulence remain debated. One possibility is that stellar feedback injects enough energy into the cloud to drive observed motions on parsec scales. Recent numerical studies of molecular clouds have found that feedback from stars, such as protostellar outflows and winds, injects energy and impacts turbulence. We expand upon these studies by analyzing magnetohydrodynamic simulations of molecular clouds, including stellar winds, with a range of stellar mass-loss rates and magnetic field strengths. We generate synthetic {sup 12}CO(1–0) maps assuming that the simulations are at the distance of the nearby Perseus molecular cloud. By comparing the outputs from different initial conditions and evolutionary times, we identify differences in the synthetic observations and characterize these using common astrostatistics. We quantify the different statistical responses using a variety of metrics proposed in the literature. We find that multiple astrostatistics, including the principal component analysis, the spectral correlation function, and the velocity coordinate spectrum (VCS), are sensitive to changes in stellar mass-loss rates and/or time evolution. A few statistics, including the Cramer statistic and VCS, are sensitive to the magnetic field strength. These findings demonstrate that stellar feedback influences molecular cloud turbulence and can be identified and quantified observationally using such statistics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Corotating energetic particle and fast plasma streams in the inner and outer solar system: Radial dependence and energy spectra

Interplanetary acceleration processes are shown as the most plausible explanation for the observed corotating energetic particle events. The relation between the energetic particle events and the properties of the high speed solar wind streams observed at 1 AU were investigated along with the form of the energy spectrum of the corotating energetic particle streams and its variation with respect to CIR boundaries and with radial distance. It is shown that: (1) at 1 AU a correlation exists between the j particle intensity and the solar wind velocity measured during the rising part of the event, of the form I is proportional to exp (V sub sw/V sub o); and (2) the energy spectra from .5 to 20 MeV are well represented by an exponential in momentum of the form dJ/dP = C exp (-P/P sub o). This representation is found to apply from .45 AU to beyond 5 AU. The variation of P sub o with respect to the CIR boundaries was studied using a method of superposed epoch analysis. It is shown that at 1 AU the spectrum remains constant during the first two days and then progressively flattens; between 3-4AU.

Vanhollebeke, M. A. I.↗

Status Report on Scoping Reactor Physics and Sensitivity/Uncertainty Analysis of LR-0 Reactor Molten Salt Experiments

Experiments are being planned at Research Centre Rež (RC Rež) to use the FLiBe (2 7 LiF-BeF 2 ) salt from the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment (MSRE) to perform reactor physics measurements in the LR-0 low power nuclear reactor. These experiments are intended to inform on neutron spectral effects and nuclear data uncertainties for advanced reactor systems utilizing FLiBe salt in a thermal neutron energy spectrum. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is performing sensitivity/uncertainty (S/U) analysis of these planned experiments as part of the ongoing collaboration between the United States and the Czech Republic on civilian nuclear energy research and development. The objective of these analyses is to produce the sensitivity of neutron multiplication to cross section data on an energy-dependent basis for specific nuclides. This report provides a status update on the S/U analyses of critical experiments at the LR-0 Reactor relevant to fluoride salt-cooled high temperature reactor (FHR) and liquid-fueled molten salt reactor (MSR) concepts. The S/U analyses will be used to inform design of FLiBe-based experiments using the salt from MSRE.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

Fan noise caused by the ingestion of anisotropic turbulence - A model based on axisymmetric turbulence theory

An analytical model of fan noise caused by inflow turbulence, a generalization of earlier work by Mani, is presented. Axisymmetric turbulence theory is used to develop a statistical representation of the inflow turbulence valid for a wide range of turbulence properties. Both the dipole source due to rotor blade unsteady forces and the quadrupole source resulting from the interaction of the turbulence with the rotor potential field are considered. The effects of variations in turbulence properties and fan operating conditions are evaluated. For turbulence axial integral length scales much larger than the blade spacing, the spectrum is shown to consist of sharp peaks at the blade passing frequency and its harmonics, with negligible broadband content. The analysis can then be simplified considerably and the total sound power contained within each spectrum peak becomes independent of axial length scale, while the width of the peak is inversely proportional to this parameter. Large axial length scales are characteristic of static fan test facilities, where the transverse contraction of the inlet flow produces highly anisotropic turbulence. In this situation, the rotor/turbulence interaction noise is mainly caused by the transverse component of turbulent velocity.

Kerschen, E. J.↗

FE K EMISSION AND ABSORPTION FEATURES IN THE XMM-EPIC SPECTRUM OF THE SEYFERT GALAXY IC 4329A

We present a re-analysis of the XMM-Newton long-look of the X-ray bright Seyfert galaxy IC 4329a. The Fe K bandpass is dominated by two peaks, consistent with emission from neutral or near-neutral Fe Ka and KP. A relativistic diskline model whereby both peaks are the result of one doubly-peaked diskline profile is found to be a poor description of the data. Models using two relativistic disklines are found to describe the emission profile well. A low-inclination, moderately-relativistic dual-diskline model is possible if the contribution from narrow components, due to distant material, is small or absent. A high-inclination, moderately relativistic profile for each peak is possible if there are roughly equal contributions from both the broad and narrow components. Upper limits on Fe XXV and Fe XXVI emission and absorption at the systemic velocity of IC 4329a are obtained. We also present the results of RXTE monitoring of this source obtained so far; the combined XMM-Newton and RXTE data sets allow us to explore the time-resolved spectral behavior of this source on time scales ranging from hours to 2 years. We find no strong evidence for variability of the Fe Ka emission line on any time scale probed, likely due to the minimal level of continuum variability. We detect a narrow absorption line, at a energy of 7.68 keV in the rest frame of the source; its significance has been confirmed using Monte Carlo simulations. This feature is most likely due to absorption from Fe XXVI blueshifted to approximately 0.1c relative to the systemic velocity, making IC 4329a the lowest-redshift AGN known with a high-velocity, highly-ionized outflow component. As is often the case with similar outflows seen in high-luminosity quasars, the estimated mass outflow rate is larger than the inflow accretion rate, signaling that the outflow represents a substantial portion of the total energy budget of the AGN. The outflow could arise from a radiatively-driven disk wind, or it may be in the form of a discrete, transient blob of ejected material.

Markowitz, A.↗

Observation of a cosmic gamma-ray burst on Apollo 16. I - Temporal variability and energy spectrum

A cosmic gamma-ray event occurring April 27, 1972 at 10.68 UT was observed by gamma-ray and X-ray spectrometers on Apollo 16 as well as by Vela 6A. Analysis has yielded a detailed time profile of the entire event, an energy spectrum covering three order of magnitude (2.0 to 7.9 KeV and 0.067 to 5.1 MeV) and a source location. A well-defined onset prior to the main impulse period and a probable precursor are reported. The total energy of the event over the observed range was 2 x 10 to the minus 4th power ergs/sq cm. The data indicate the presence of a hard component which persists during the entire event, with a softer variable component becoming dominant during the most explosive burst portion.

Metzger, A. E.↗

Determining structure in molecular clouds

We descibe an automatic, objective routine for analyzing the clumpy structure in a spectral line position-position-velocity data cube. The algorithm works by first contouring the data at a multiple of the rms noise of the observations, then searches for peaks of emission which locate the clumps, and then follows them down to lower intensities. No a proiri clump profile is assumed. By creating simulated data, we test the performance of the algorithm and show that a contour map most accurately depicts internal structure at a contouring interval equal to twice the rms noise of the map. Blending of clump emission leads to small errors in mass and size determinations and in severe cases can result in a number of clumps being misidentified as a single unit, flattening the measured clump mass spectrum. The algorithm is applied to two real data sets as an example of its use. The Rosette molecular cloud is a 'typical' star-forming cloud, but in the Maddalena molecular cloud high-mass star formation is completely absent. Comparison of the two clump lists generated by the algorithm show that on a one-to-one basis the clumps in the star-forming cloud have higher peak temperatures, higher average densities, and are more gravitationally bound than in the non-star-forming cloud. Collective properties of the clumps, such as temperature-size-line-width-mass relations appear very similar, however. Contrary to the initial results reported in a previous paper (Williams & Blitz 1993), we find that the current, more thoroughly tes ted analysis finds no significant difference in the clump mass spectrum of the two clouds.

Williams, Jonathan P.↗

Multiphysics Code Demonstrated for Propulsion Applications

The utility of multidisciplinary analysis tools for aeropropulsion applications is being investigated at the NASA Lewis Research Center. The goal of this project is to apply Spectrum, a multiphysics code developed by Centric Engineering Systems, Inc., to simulate multidisciplinary effects in turbomachinery components. Many engineering problems today involve detailed computer analyses to predict the thermal, aerodynamic, and structural response of a mechanical system as it undergoes service loading. Analysis of aerospace structures generally requires attention in all three disciplinary areas to adequately predict component service behavior, and in many cases, the results from one discipline substantially affect the outcome of the other two. There are numerous computer codes currently available in the engineering community to perform such analyses in each of these disciplines. Many of these codes are developed and used in-house by a given organization, and many are commercially available. However, few, if any, of these codes are designed specifically for multidisciplinary analyses. The Spectrum code has been developed for performing fully coupled fluid, thermal, and structural analyses on a mechanical system with a single simulation that accounts for all simultaneous interactions, thus eliminating the requirement for running a large number of sequential, separate, disciplinary analyses. The Spectrum code has a true multiphysics analysis capability, which improves analysis efficiency as well as accuracy. Centric Engineering, Inc., working with a team of Lewis and AlliedSignal Engines engineers, has been evaluating Spectrum for a variety of propulsion applications including disk quenching, drum cavity flow, aeromechanical simulations, and a centrifugal compressor flow simulation.

Lawrence, Charles↗

ACCESS and LRG-BEASTS: A Precise New Optical Transmission Spectrum of the Ultrahot Jupiter WASP-103b

We present a new ground-based optical transmission spectrum of the ultrahot Jupiter WASP-103b (T{sub eq}=2484 K). Our transmission spectrum is the result of combining five new transits from the ACCESS survey and two new transits from the LRG-BEASTS survey with a reanalysis of three archival Gemini/GMOS transits and one VLT/FORS2 transit. Our combined 11-transit transmission spectrum covers a wavelength range of 3900–9450 Å with a median uncertainty in the transit depth of 148 parts per million, which is less than one atmospheric scale height of the planet. In our retrieval analysis of WASP-103b’s combined optical and infrared transmission spectrum, we find strong evidence for unocculted bright regions (4.3σ) and weak evidence for H{sub 2}O (1.9σ), HCN (1.7σ), and TiO (2.1σ), which could be responsible for WASP-103b’s observed temperature inversion. Our optical transmission spectrum shows significant structure that is in excellent agreement with the extensively studied ultrahot Jupiter WASP-121b, for which the presence of VO has been inferred. For WASP-103b, we find that VO can only provide a reasonable fit to the data if its abundance is implausibly high and we do not account for stellar activity. Our results highlight the precision that can be achieved by ground-based observations and the impacts that stellar activity from F-type stars can have on the interpretation of exoplanet transmission spectra.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Quality Assessments of Long-Term Quantitative Proteomic Analysis of Breast Cancer Xenograft Tissues

The identification of protein biomarkers requires large-scale analysis of human specimens to achieve statistical significance. In this study, we evaluated the long-term reproducibility of an iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification) based quantitative proteomics strategy using one channel for universal normalization across all samples. A total of 307 liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometric (LC-MS/MS) analyses were completed, generating 107 one-dimensional (1D) LC-MS/MS datasets and 8 offline two-dimensional (2D) LC-MS/MS datasets (25 fractions for each set) for human-in-mouse breast cancer xenograft tissues representative of basal and luminal subtypes. Such large-scale studies require the implementation of robust metrics to assess the contributions of technical and biological variability in the qualitative and quantitative data. Accordingly, we developed a quantification confidence score based on the quality of each peptide-spectrum match (PSM) to remove quantification outliers from each analysis. After combining confidence score filtering and statistical analysis, reproducible protein identification and quantitative results were achieved from LC-MS/MS datasets collected over a 16 month period.

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory↗

Ground and excited states of zinc phthalocyanine, zinc tetrabenzoporphyrin, and azaporphyrin analogs using DFT and TDDFT with Franck-Condon analysis

The electronic structure of eight zinc-centered porphyrin macrocyclic molecules are investigated using density functional theory for ground-state properties, time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) for excited states, and Franck-Condon (FC) analysis for further characterization of the UV-vis spectrum. Symmetry breaking was utilized to find the lowest energy of the excited states for many states in the spectra. To confirm the theoretical modeling, the spectroscopic result from zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) is used to compare to the TDDFT and FC result. After confirmation of the modeling, five more planar molecules are investigated: zinc tetrabenzoporphyrin (ZnTBP), zinc tetrabenzomonoazaporphyrin (ZnTBMAP), zinc tetrabenzocisdiazaporphyrin (ZnTBcisDAP), zinc tetrabenzotransdiazaporphyrin (ZnTBtransDAP), and zinc tetrabenzotriazaporphyrin (ZnTBTrAP). The two latter molecules are then compared to their phenylated sister molecules: zinc monophenyltetrabenzotriazaporphyrin (ZnMPTBTrAP) and zinc diphenyltetrabenzotransdiazaporphyrin (ZnDPTBtransDAP). The spectroscopic results from the synthesis of ZnMPTBTrAP and ZnDPTBtransDAP are then compared to their theoretical models and non-phenylated pairs. While the Franck-Condon results were not as illuminating for every B-band, the Q-band results were successful in all eight molecules, with a considerable amount of spectral analysis in the range of interest between 300 and 750 nm. The π-π{sup ∗} transitions are evident in the results for all of the Q bands, while satellite vibrations are also visible in the spectra. In particular, this investigation finds that, while ZnPc has a D{sub 4h} symmetry at ground state, a C{sub 4v} symmetry is predicted in the excited-state Q band region. The theoretical results for ZnPc found an excitation energy at the Q-band 0-0 transition of 1.88 eV in vacuum, which is in remarkable agreement with published gas-phase spectroscopy, as well as our own results of ZnPc in solution with Tetrahydrofuran that are provided in this paper.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

A SEYFERT-2-LIKE SPECTRUM IN THE HIGH-MASS X-RAY BINARY MICROQUASAR V4641 SGR

We present an analysis of three archival Chandra observations of the black hole V4641 Sgr, performed during a decline into quiescence. The last two observations in the sequence can be modeled with a simple power law. The first spectrum, however, is remarkably similar to spectra observed in Seyfert-2 active galactic nuclei, which arise through a combination of obscuration and reflection from distant material. This spectrum of V4641 Sgr can be fit extremely well with a model including partial-covering absorption and distant reflection. This model recovers a Γ ≅ 2.0 power-law incident spectrum, typical of black holes at low Eddington fractions. The implied geometry is plausible in a high-mass X-ray binary like V4641 Sgr, and may be as compelling as explanations invoking Doppler-split line pairs in a jet, and/or unusual Comptonization. We discuss potential implications and means of testing these models.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Constraining primordial non-Gaussianity with cosmological weak lensing: shear and flexion

We examine the cosmological constraining power of future large-scale weak lensing surveys on the model of the ESA planned mission Euclid, with particular reference to primordial non-Gaussianity. Our analysis considers several different estimators of the projected matter power spectrum, based on both shear and flexion. We review the covariance and Fisher matrix for cosmic shear and evaluate those for cosmic flexion and for the cross-correlation between the two. The bounds provided by cosmic shear alone are looser than previously estimated, mainly due to the reduced sky coverage and background number density of sources for the latest Euclid specifications. New constraints for the local bispectrum shape, marginalized over σ{sub 8}, are at the level of Δf{sub NL} ∼ 100, with the precise value depending on the exact multipole range that is considered in the analysis. We consider three additional bispectrum shapes, for which the cosmic shear constraints range from Δf{sub NL} ∼ 340 (equilateral shape) up to Δf{sub NL} ∼ 500 (orthogonal shape). Also, constraints on the level of non-Gaussianity and on the amplitude of the matter power spectrum σ{sub 8} are almost perfectly anti-correlated, except for the orthogonal bispectrum shape for which they are correlated. The competitiveness of cosmic flexion constraints against cosmic shear ones depends by and large on the galaxy intrinsic flexion noise, that is still virtually unconstrained. Adopting the very high value that has been occasionally used in the literature results in the flexion contribution being basically negligible with respect to the shear one, and for realistic configurations the former does not improve significantly the constraining power of the latter. Since the shear shot noise is white, while the flexion one decreases with decreasing scale, by considering high enough multipoles the two contributions have to become comparable. Extending the analysis up to l{sub max} = 20,000 cosmic flexion, while being still subdominant, improves the shear constraints by ∼ 10% when added. However on such small scales the highly non-linear clustering of matter, the impact of baryonic physics, and the non-Gaussian part of the covariance matrix make any error estimation uncertain. By considering lower, and possibly more realistic, values of the flexion intrinsic shape noise results in flexion constraining power being a factor of ∼ 2 better than that of shear, and the bounds on σ{sub 8} and f{sub NL} being improved by a factor of ∼ 3 upon their combination.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗