Astrophysics and Astronomy Commons^™

New Eclipsing Close Binary Star In The Constellation Of Sextants, Jeff W. Robertson

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

The June 2008 Flare Of Markarian 421 From Optical To Tev Energies, P. T. Reynolds, Et Al

Physical Sciences Publications

We present optical, X-ray, high-energy (30 GeV) and very high energy (100 GeV; VHE) observations of the high-frequency peaked blazar Mrk 421 taken between 2008 May 24 and June 23. A high-energy γ-ray signal was detected by AGILE with between June 9 and 15, with F(E>100 MeV) = 42+14 –12 × 10–8 photons cm–2 s–1. This flaring state is brighter than the average flux observed by EGRET by a factor of ~3, but still consistent with the highest EGRET flux. In hard X-rays (20-60 keV) SuperAGILE resolved a five-day flare (June 9-15) peaking at ~55 mCrab. SuperAGILE, …

Discovery Of Very High-Energy Gamma-Ray Radiation From The Bl Lac 1es 0806+524, P. T. Reynolds, Et Al

Physical Sciences Publications

The high-frequency-peaked BL Lacertae object 1ES 0806+524, at redshift z = 0.138, was observed in the very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray regime by VERITAS between 2006 November and 2008 April. These data encompass the two- and three-telescope commissioning phases, as well as observations with the full four-telescope array. 1ES 0806+524 is detected with a statistical significance of 6.3 standard deviations from 245 excess events. Little or no measurable variability on monthly timescales is found. The photon spectrum for the period 2007 November to 2008 April can be characterized by a power law with photon index 3.6 ± 1.0stat ± 0.3sys …

The Acs Survey Of Galactic Globular Clusters. Vi. Ngc 6366: A Heavily Stripped Galactic Globular Cluster, Nathaniel E. Q. Paust, Antonio Aparicio, Giampaolo Piotto, I. Neill Reid, Jay Anderson, Ata Sarajedini, Luigi R. Bedin, Brian Chaboyer

Dartmouth Scholarship

We have used observations obtained as part of the Hubble Space Telescope/ACS Survey of Galactic globular clusters (GCs) to construct a color-magnitude diagram for the bulge cluster, NGC 6366. The luminosity function derived from those data extends to M _F606W ~ 9, or masses of ~0.3 M _☉. Unlike most GCs, the mass function peaks near the main-sequence turnoff with significantly fewer low-mass stars even after correction for completeness and mass segregation. Using a multimass King model, we extrapolate the global cluster behavior and find the global mass function to be poorly matched by a power law, with …

Forming Early-Type Galaxies In Groups Prior To Cluster Assembly, Stefan Kautsch, Anthony H. Gonzalez, Christian A. Soto, Kim-Vy H. Tran, Dennis Zaritsky, John Moustakas

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

We study a unique protocluster of galaxies, the supergroup SG1120–1202. We quantify the degree to which morphological transformation of cluster galaxies occurs prior to cluster assembly in order to explain the observed early-type fractions in galaxy clusters at z = 0. SG1120–1202 at z ~ 0.37 is composed of four gravitationally bound groups that are expected to coalesce into a single cluster by z = 0. Using HST ACS observations, we compare the morphological fractions of the supergroup galaxies to those found in a range of environments. We find that the morphological fractions of early-type galaxies (~60%) and the ratio …

Globular Clusters In The Outer Galactic Halo: Am-1 And Palomar 14, Aaron Dotter, Ata Sarajedini, Soung-Chul Yang

Dartmouth Scholarship

AM-1, at ~120 kpc, and Palomar 14 (Pal 14), at ~70 kpc, are two of the most distant Galactic globular clusters (GCs) known. We present Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 photometry of AM-1 and Pal 14 that reveals unprecedented depth and detail in the color-magnitude diagrams of these two clusters. Absolute and relative age measurements confirm that both are younger than the inner halo GC M 3 by 1.5-2 Gyr assuming all three clusters have similar compositions. Thus AM-1 and Pal 14 join Pal 3, Pal 4, and Eridanus as distant GCs with red horizontal branches (HBs) …

Veritas Discovery Of > 200 Gev Gamma-Ray Emission From The Intermediate-Frequency-Peaked Bl Lacertae Object W Comae, P. T. Reynolds, Et Al

Physical Sciences Publications

We report the detection of very high energy γ-ray emission from the intermediate-frequency-peaked BL Lacertae object W Comae (z = 0.102) by VERITAS. The source was observed between 2008 January and April. A strong outburst of γ-ray emission was measured in the middle of March, lasting for only 4 days. The energy spectrum measured during the two highest flare nights is fit by a power law and is found to be very steep, with a differential photon spectral index of Γ = 3.81 ± 0.35stat± 0.34syst. The integral photon flux above 200 GeV during those two nights corresponds to …

The Late Stellar Assembly Of Massive Cluster Galaxies Via Major Merging, Kim-Vy H. Tran, John Moustakas, Anthony H. Gonzalez, Lei Bai, Dennis Zaritsky, Stefan Kautsch

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

We present multiwavelength observations of the brightest galaxies in four X-ray-luminous groups at z ~ 0.37 that will merge to form a cluster comparable in mass to Coma. Ordered by increasing stellar mass, the four brightest group galaxies (BGGs) present a time sequence where BGG-1, 2, and 3 are in merging systems and BGG-4 is a massive remnant (M_* = 6.7 × 10¹¹ M_☉). BGG-1 and 2 have bright, gravitationally bound companions and BGG-3 has two nuclei separated by only 2.5 kpc; thus, merging at z < 0.5 increases the BGG mass by ≳40% (t_MGR < 2 Gyr) and V-band luminosity by ~0.4 mag. The …

Book Review: Guide To Observing Deep-Sky Objects: A Complete Global Resource For Astronomers, T. D. Oswalt

Publications

This document is Dr. Oswalt’s review of Guide to Observing Deep-Sky Objects : a Complete Global Resource for Astronomers by Jeff A. Farinacci. Springer, 2007 189p, 9780387728506 $29.95

Ages And Metallicities Of Early-Type Void Galaxies From Line Strength Measurements, Gary Wegner, Norman A. Grogin

Dartmouth Scholarship

We present spectroscopic observations of 26 galaxies of type E and S0, based on their blue morphologies, located in voids by the study of Grogin & Geller in 1999. Measurements of redshift, velocity dispersion, and four Lick line indices, Mg _b , Fe5270, Fe5335, and Hβ with their errors are given for all of these galaxies, along with Hβ, [O III], Hα, and [N II] emission line strengths for a subset of these objects. These sources are brighter than M* for low-density regions and tend to be bluer than their counterpart early-type objects in high-density regions. Using the models …

Spatially Resolved Spectroscopy Of Coma Cluster Early‐Type Galaxies. Iv. Completing The Data Set, E. M. Corsini, G. Wegner, R. P. Saglia, J. Thomas

Dartmouth Scholarship

The long-slit spectra obtained along the minor axis, offset major axis, and diagonal axis are presented for 12 E and S0 galaxies of the Coma Cluster drawn from a magnitude-limited sample studied before. The rotation curves, velocity dispersion profiles, and the H₃ and H₄ coefficients of the Hermite decomposition of the line-of-sight velocity distribution are derived. The radial profiles of the Hβ, Mg, and Fe line strength indices are measured too. In addition, the surface photometry of the central regions of a subsample of four galaxies recently obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope is presented. The data will …

Near Ultraviolet–Infrared Colours Of Red-Sequence Galaxies In Local Clusters, Timothy D. Rawle, Russell J. Smith, John R. Lucey, Michael J. Hudson, Gary A. Wegner

Dartmouth Scholarship

We present GALEX near‐ultraviolet (NUV) and Two‐Micron All‐Sky Survey J‐band photometry for red‐sequence galaxies in local clusters. We define quiescent samples according to a strict emission threshold, removing galaxies with very recent star formation. We analyse the NUV–J colour–magnitude relation (CMR) and find that the intrinsic scatter is an order of magnitude larger than for the analogous optical CMR (∼0.35 rather than 0.05 mag), in agreement with previous studies. Comparing the NUV–J colours with spectroscopically derived stellar population parameters, we find a strong (>5.5σ) correlation with metallicity, only a marginal trend with …

Structure Formation Inside Triaxial Dark Matter Halos: Galactic Disks, Bulges, And Bars, Clayton Heller, Isaac Shlosman, Evangelie Athanassoula

Physics & Astronomy: Faculty Publications

We investigate formation and evolution of galactic disks immersed in assembling live DM halos. Models have been evolved from cosmological initial conditions and represent the collapse of an isolated density perturbation. The baryons include gas participating in star formation (SF) and stars with the energy feedback onto the ISM. We find that (1) the triaxial halo figure tumbling is insignificant and the angular momentum (J) is channeled into the internal circulation, while the baryonic collapse is stopped by the centrifugal barrier; (2) density response of the (disk) baryons is out of phase with DM, thus washing out the …

Agn Reddening And Ultraviolet Extinction Curves From Hubble Space Telescope Spectra, C. Martin Gaskell, A. J. Benkler

C. Martin Gaskell Publications

We present intrinsic extinction curves for 14 AGNs. The AGNs have reddenings, E(B-V), of up to 0.36 mag. The majority (13 out of 14) of the extinction curves are not steep in the UV. Of the seven best determined extinction curves, five have extinction curves that are as flat as the standard Galactic curve in the optical and near UV, but flatter in the far UV, and without the λ2175 feature. One AGN, B3 0754+394, has a steep SMC-like extinction curve, and another, Mrk 304, has an LMC-like extinction curve, including a probable λ2175 bump. The remaining seven, lower-quality, extinction …

Testing Thermal Reprocessing In Active Galactic Nuclei Accretion Discs, Edward M. Cackett, Keith Horne, Hartmut Winkler

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

The thermal reprocessing hypothesis in active galactic nuclei (AGN), where extreme ultraviolet/X-ray photons are reprocessed by the accretion disc into optical/UV photons, predicts wavelength-dependent time-delays between the optical continuum at different wavelengths. Recent photometric monitoring by Sergeev et al. has shown that the time-delay is observed in 14 AGN, and generally seen to increase with increasing wavelength, as predicted in the reprocessing scenario. We fit the observed time-delays and optical spectral energy distribution using a disc reprocessing model. The model delivers estimates for the nuclear reddening, the product of black hole mass and accretion rate, and the distance to each …

Dynamical Modelling Of Luminous And Dark Matter In 17 Coma Early-Type Galaxies, J. Thomas, R. O. Saglia, R. Bender, D. Thomas, J K. Gebhardt, J. Magorrian, E. M. Corsini, G. Wegner

Dartmouth Scholarship

Dynamical models for 17 early‐type galaxies in the Coma cluster are presented. The galaxy sample consists of flattened, rotating as well as non‐rotating early‐types including cD and S0 galaxies with luminosities between M_B=−18.79 and −22.56. Kinematical long‐slit observations cover at least the major‐axis and minor‐axis and extend to 1–4r_eff. Axisymmetric Schwarzschild models are used to derive stellar mass‐to‐light ratios and dark halo parameters. In every galaxy, the best fit with dark matter matches the data better than the best fit without. The statistical significance is over 95 per cent for eight galaxies, around 90 per …

Ngc 5548 In A Low-Luminosity State: Implications For The Broad-Line Region, Misty C. Bentz, Kelly D. Denney, Edward M. Cackett, Matthias Dietrich, Jeffery K. J. Fogel, Himel Ghosh, Keith Horne, Charles Kuehn, Takeo Minezaki, Christopher A. Onken, Bradley M. Peterson, Richard W. Pogge, Vladimir I. Pronik, Douglas O. Richstone, Sergey G. Sergeev, Marianne Vestergaard, Matthew G. Walker, Yuzuru Yoshii

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We describe results from a new ground-based monitoring campaign on NGC 5548, the best-studied reverberation-mapped AGN. We find that it was in the lowest luminosity state yet recorded during a monitoring program, namely L₅₁₀₀=4.7×10⁴² ergs s^-1. We determine a rest-frame time lag between flux variations in the continuum and the Hβ line of 6.3^+2.6_-2.3 days. Combining our measurements with those of previous campaigns, we determine a weighted black hole mass of M_BH=6.54^+0.26_-0.25×10⁷ M_solar based on all broad emission lines with suitable variability data. We confirm the …

Initial Mass Function Effects On The Colour Evolution Of Disk Galaxies, P. Westera, M. Samland, Stefan Kautsch, R. Buser, K. Ammon

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

Aims. In this work, we want to find out if the IMF can be determined from colour images, integrated colours, or mass-to-light ratios, especially at high redshift, where galaxies cannot be resolved into individual stars, which would enable us to investigate dependencies of the IMF on cosmological epoch.

Methods. We use chemo-dynamical models to investigate the influence of the Initial Mass Function (IMF) on the evolution of a Milky Way-type disk galaxy, in particular of its colours.

Results. We find that the effect of the IMF on the internal gas absorption is larger than its effect on …

The Effect Of Cluster Environment On Galaxy Evolution In The Pegasus I Cluster, Lorenza Levy, James A. Rose, Jacqueline H. Van Gorkom, Brian Chaboyer

Dartmouth Scholarship

We present neutral hydrogen observations of 54 galaxies in the Pegasus Cluster. The observations include single-dish H I measurements, obtained with the Arecibo telescope for all 54 galaxies in the sample, as well as H I images obtained with the Very Large Array (VLA) for 10 of these. The Arecibo profiles reveal an overall H I deficiency in the cluster, with similar to 40% of the galaxies in the core of the cluster showing modest deficiencies of typically a factor of 2-3. The HI morphology of so me galaxies shows that the HI disk is smaller than the optical disk …

Quantization In Astrophysics, Brownian Motion, And Supersymmetry, Florentin Smarandache, Victor Christianto

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

The present book discusses, among other things, various quantization phenomena found in Astrophysics and some related issues including Brownian Motion. With recent discoveries of exoplanets in our galaxy and beyond, this Astrophysics quantization issue has attracted numerous discussions in the past few years. Most chapters in this book come from published papers in various peer-reviewed journals, and they cover different methods to describe quantization, including Weyl geometry, Supersymmetry, generalized Schrödinger, and Cartan torsion method. In some chapters Navier-Stokes equations are also discussed, because it is likely that this theory will remain relevant in Astrophysics and Cosmology While much of the …

The Mass Of The Black Hole In The Seyfert 1 Galaxy Ngc 4593 From Reverberation Mapping, Kelly D. Denney, Misty C. Bentz, Bradley M. Peterson, Richard W. Pogge, Edward M. Cackett, Matthias Dietrich, Jeffrey K. J. Fogel, Himel Ghosh, Keith D. Horne, Charles Kuehn, Takeo Minezaki, Christopher A. Onken, Vladimir I. Pronik, Douglas O. Richstone, Sergey G. Sergeev, Marianne Vestergaard, Matthew G. Walker, Yuzuru Yoshii

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We present new observations leading to an improved black hole mass estimate for the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4593 as part of a reverberation-mapping campaign conducted at the MDM Observatory. Cross-correlation analysis of the Hβ emission-line light curve with the optical continuum light curve reveals an emission-line time delay of τ_cent=3.73+/-0.75 days. By combining this time delay with the Hβ line width, we derive a central black hole mass of M_BH=(9.8+/-2.1)×10⁶ M_solar, an improvement in precision of a factor of several over past results.

A Reverberation-Based Mass For The Central Black Hole In Ngc 4151, Misty C. Bentz, Kelly D. Denney, Edward M. Cackett, Matthias Dietrich, Jeffery K. Fogel, Himel Ghosh, Keith Horne, Charles Kuehn, Takeo Minezaki, Christopher A. Onken, Bradley M. Peterson, Richard W. Pogge, Vladimir I. Pronik, Douglas O. Richstone, Sergey G. Sergeev, Marianne Vestergaard, Matthew G. Walker, Yuzuru Yoshii

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We have undertaken a new ground-based monitoring campaign to improve the estimates of the mass of the central black hole in NGC 4151. We measure the lag time of the broad Hβ line response compared to the optical continuum at 5100 Å and find a lag of 6.6^+1.1_-0.8 days. We combine our data with the recent reanalysis of UV emission lines by Metzroth and coworkers to calculate a weighted mean of the black hole mass, M_BH=(4.57^+0.57_-0.47)×10⁷ M_solar. The absolute calibration of the black hole mass is based on normalization of …

Cooling Of The Quasi-Persistent Neutron Star X-Ray Transients Ks 1731-260 And Mxb 1659-29, Edward M. Cackett, Rudy Wijnands, Manuel Linares, Jon M. Miller, Jeroen Homan, Walter H. G. Lewin

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We present Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray observations that monitor the neutron star cooling of the quasi-persistent neutron star X-ray transients KS 1731-260 and MXB 1659-29 for approximately 4 yr after these sources returned to quiescence from prolonged outbursts. In both sources the outbursts were long enough to significantly heat the neutron star crust out of thermal equilibrium with the core. We analyse the X-ray spectra by fitting absorbed neutron star atmosphere models to the observations. The results of our analysis strengthen the preliminary findings of Wijnands et al. that in both sources the neutron star crust cools down very rapidly …

Xmm-Newton Discovery Of The X-Ray Transient Xmmu J181227.8-181234 In The Galactic Plane, Edward M. Cackett, Rudy Wijnands, Ron Remillard

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We report the discovery of an X-ray transient, observed in outburst with XMM-Newton on 2003 March 20, and with position (J2000, approximate positional error 2arcsec). No known source is present at this position and the source was not detected during published ROSAT or ASCA observations of that region. However, the source may be associated with 1H1812-182 detected by HEAO 1, although the error bars on the HEAO 1 position are very large and the two sources could also be unrelated. Therefore, we name the source XMMU J181227.8-181234. Initially, the source was not detected using the All-Sky Monitor (ASM) on-board the …

Book Review: Evolution Of Stars And Stellar Populations, T. D. Oswalt

Publications

This document is Dr. Oswalt’s review of Evolution of Stars and Stellar Populations by Maurizio Salaris and Santi Cassisi Wiley, 2005 374p, 047009219X $150.00, 047009219X $60.00

Erratum: A Catalog Of Edge-On Disk Galaxies: From Galaxies With A Bulge To Superthin Galaxies, Stefan Kautsch, E. K. Grebel, F. D. Barazza, J. S. Gallagher

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

Erratum

A Chandra X-Ray Observation Of The Globular Cluster Terzan 1, E. M. Cackett, R. Wijnands, C. O. Heinke, D. Pooley, W. H. G. Lewin, J. E. Grindlay, P. D. Edmonds, P. G. Jonker, J. M. Miller

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We present a ~19-ks Chandra Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer (ACIS)-S observation of the globular cluster Terzan 1. 14 sources are detected within 1.4arcmin of the cluster centre with two of these sources predicted to be not associated with the cluster (background active galactic nuclei or foreground objects). The neutron star X-ray transient, X1732-304, has previously been observed in outburst within this globular cluster with the outburst seen to last for at least 12yr. Here, we find four sources that are consistent with the ROSAT position for this transient, but none of the sources are fully consistent with the position of …

The Noao Fundamental Plane Survey - Iii. Variations In The Stellar Populations Of Red-Sequence Galaxies From The Cluster Core To The Virial Radius, Russell J. S. Smith, Michael J. Hudson, John R. Lucey, Jenica E. Nelan, Gary A. Wegner

Dartmouth Scholarship

We analyse absorption line-strength indices for ~3000 red-sequence galaxies in 94 nearby clusters, to investigate systematic variations of their stellar content with location in the host cluster. The data are drawn from the NOAO Fundamental Plane Survey. Our adopted method is a generalization of that introduced by Nelan et al. to determine the global age-mass and metallicity-mass relations from the same survey. We find strong evidence for a change in galaxy properties, at fixed mass, over a range from the cluster centre to the virial radius, R_200. For example, red-sequence galaxies further out in the clusters have weaker Mgb5177 (at …

Photoionized HΒ Emission In Ngc 5548: It Breathes!, Edward M. Cackett, Keith Horne

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

Emission-line regions in active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and other photoionized nebulae should become larger in size when the ionizing luminosity increases. This `breathing' effect is observed for the Hβ emission in NGC 5548 by using Hβ and optical continuum light curves from the 13-yr (1989-2001) AGN Watch monitoring campaign. To model the breathing, we use two methods to fit the observed light curves in detail: (i) parametrized models and, (ii) the MEMECHO reverberation-mapping code. Our models assume that optical continuum variations track the ionizing radiation, and that the Hβ variations respond with time-delays τ due to light travel-time. By fitting …

A Catalog Of Edge-On Disk Galaxies: From Galaxies With A Bulge To Superthin Galaxies, Stefan Kautsch, E. K. Grebel, F. D. Barazza, J. S. Gallagher

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

Spiral galaxies range from bulge-dominated early-type galaxies to late types with little or no bulge. Cosmological models do not predict the formation of disk-dominated, essentially bulgeless galaxies, yet these objects exist. A particularly striking and poorly understood example of bulgeless galaxies are flat or superthin galaxies with large axis ratios. We therefore embarked on a study aimed at a better understanding of these enigmatic objects, starting by compiling a statistically meaningful sample with well-defined properties. The disk axis ratios can be most easily measured when galaxies are seen edge-on. We used data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) in …