adsabs/SciX_UAT_keywords huggingface dataset:
Swift Monitoring of M51: A 38 day Superorbital Period for the Pulsar ULX7 and a New Transient Ultraluminous X-Ray Source

We present the results from a monitoring campaign made with the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory of the M51 galaxies, which contain several variable ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). The ongoing campaign started in 2018 May, and we report here on ∼1.5 yr of observations. The campaign, which consists of 106 observations, has a typical cadence of 3-6 days, and has the goal of determining the long-term X-ray variability of the ULXs. Two of the most variable sources were ULX7 and ULX8, both of which are known to be powered by neutron stars that are exceeding their isotropic Eddington luminosities by factors of up to 100. This is further evidence that neutron-star-powered ULXs are the most variable. Our two main results are, first, that ULX7 exhibits a periodic flux modulation with a period of 38 days varying over a magnitude and a half in flux from peak to trough. Since the orbital period of the system is known to be 2 days, the modulation is superorbital, which is a near-ubiquitous property of ULX pulsars. Second, we identify a new transient ULX, M51 XT-1, the onset of which occurred during our campaign, reaching a peak luminosity of ∼1040 erg s-1, before gradually fading over the next ∼200 days until it slipped below the detection limit of our observations. Combined with the high-quality Swift/X-ray Telescope lightcurve of the transient, serendipitous observations made with Chandra and XMM-Newton provide insights into the onset and evolution of a likely super-Eddington event.

Keywords: x-ray point sources; x-ray transient sources; x-ray photometry; x-ray bright point; x-ray active galactic nuclei; transient sources; light curves; galaxy nuclei; active galactic nuclei
Modeling the Morphology of Fast Radio Bursts and Radio Pulsars with fitburst

We present a framework for modeling astrophysical pulses from radio pulsars and fast radio bursts (FRBs). This framework, called fitburst, generates synthetic representations of dynamic spectra that are functions of several physical and heuristic parameters; the heuristic parameters can nonetheless accommodate a vast range of distributions in spectral energy. fitburst is designed to optimize the modeling of features induced by effects that are intrinsic and extrinsic to the emission mechanism, including the magnitude and frequency dependence of pulse dispersion and scatter broadening. fitburst removes intrachannel smearing through two-dimensional upsampling, and can account for phase-wrapping of "folded" signals that are typically acquired during pulsar-timing observations. We demonstrate the effectiveness of fitburst in modeling data containing pulsars and FRBs observed with the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment telescope.

Keywords: pulsars; radio transient sources; interstellar medium; interstellar scintillation; astronomy software
Global Electron Thermodynamics in Radiatively Inefficient Accretion Flows

In the collisionless plasmas of radiatively inefficient accretion flows, heating and acceleration of ions and electrons are not well understood. Recent studies in the gyrokinetic limit revealed the importance of incorporating both the compressive and Alfvénic cascades when calculating the partition of dissipated energy between the plasma species. In this paper, we use a covariant analytic model of the accretion flow to explore the impact of compressive and Alfvénic heating, Coulomb collisions, compressional heating, and radiative cooling on the radial temperature profiles of ions and electrons. We show that, independent of the partition of heat between the plasma species, even a small fraction of turbulent energy dissipated to the electrons makes their temperature scale with a virial profile and the ion-to-electron temperature ratio smaller than in the case of pure Coulomb heating. In contrast, the presence of compressive cascades makes this ratio larger because compressive turbulent energy is channeled primarily into the ions. We calculate the ion-to-electron temperature in the inner accretion flow for a broad range of plasma properties, mass accretion rates, and black hole spins and show that it ranges between 5 ≲ T i /T e ≲ 40. We provide a physically motivated expression for this ratio that can be used to calculate observables from simulations of black hole accretion flows for a wide range of conditions.

Keywords: black hole physics; astrophysical black holes; plasma astrophysics; plasma physics
Investigating the Disk-Jet Structure in M87 through Flux Separation in the Linear and Circular Polarization Images

For testing different electron temperature (T e) prescriptions in general relativistic magnetohydrodynamics (GRMHD) simulations through observations, we propose to utilize linear polarization (LP) and circular polarization (CP) images. We calculate the polarization images based on a semi-magnetically arrested disk GRMHD model for various T e parameters, bearing M87 in mind. We find an LP-CP separation in the images of the low-T e disk cases at 230GHz; namely, the LP flux mainly originates from downstream of the jet, and the CP flux comes from the counter-side jet, while the total intensity is maximum at the jet base. This can be understood as follows: although the LP flux is generated through synchrotron emission widely around the black hole, most of the LP flux from the jet base does not reach the observer, since it undergoes Faraday rotation ( $\propto {T}_{{\rm{e}}}^{-2}$ ) when passing through the outer cold disk and is thus depolarized. Hence, only the LP flux from the downstream (not passing the cold dense plasmas) can survive. Meanwhile, the CP flux is generated from the LP flux by Faraday conversion ( ∝ T e) in the inner hot region. Stronger CP flux is thus observed from the counter-side jet. Moreover, the LP-CP separation is more enhanced at a lower frequency, such as 86 GHz, but is rather weak at 43 GHz, since the media in the latter case is optically thick for synchrotron self-absorption so that all of the fluxes should come from the photosphere. The same is true for cases with higher mass accretion rates and/or larger inclination angles.

Keywords: black hole physics; active galactic nuclei; radio jets; radiative transfer; polarimetry
The Mouse That Squeaked: A Small Flare from Proxima Cen Observed in the Millimeter, Optical, and Soft X-Ray with Chandra and ALMA

We present millimeter, optical, and soft X-ray observations of a stellar flare with an energy squarely in the regime of typical X1 solar flares. The flare was observed from Proxima Cen on 2019 May 6 as part of a larger multi-wavelength flare monitoring campaign and was captured by Chandra, the Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope, the Iréné du Pont Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array. Millimeter emission appears to be a common occurrence in small stellar flares that had gone undetected until recently, making it difficult to interpret these events within the current multi-wavelength picture of the flaring process. The May 6 event is the smallest stellar millimeter flare detected to date. We compare the relationship between the soft X-ray and millimeter emission to that observed in solar flares. The X-ray and optical flare energies of 1030.3 ± 0.2 and 1028.9 ± 0.1 erg, respectively, the coronal temperature of T = 11.0 ± 2.1 MK, and the emission measure of 9.5 ± 2.2 × 1049 cm-3 are consistent with M-X class solar flares. We find the soft X-ray and millimeter emission during quiescence are consistent with the Güdel-Benz relation, but not during the flare. The millimeter luminosity is >100× higher than that of an equivalent X1 solar flare and lasts only seconds instead of minutes as seen for solar flares.

Keywords: stellar x-ray flares; optical flares; red dwarf flare stars; solar x-ray flares; solar radio flares; solar white-light flares; millimeter astronomy
Anterograde Collisional Analysis of Solar Wind Ions

Owing to its low density and high temperature, the solar wind frequently exhibits strong departures from local thermodynamic equilibrium, which include distinct temperatures for its constituent ions. Prior studies have found that the ratio of the temperatures of the two most abundant ions-protons (ionized hydrogen) and α-particles (ionized helium)-is strongly correlated with the Coulomb collisional age. These previous studies, though, have been largely limited to using observations from single missions. In contrast, this present study utilizes contemporaneous, in situ observations from two different spacecraft at two different distances from the Sun: the Parker Solar Probe (PSP; r = 0.1-0.3 au) and Wind (r = 1.0 au). Collisional analysis, which incorporates the equations of collisional relaxation and large-scale expansion, was applied to each PSP datum to predict the state of the plasma farther from the Sun at r = 1.0 au. The distribution of these predicted α-proton relative temperatures agrees well with that of values observed by Wind. These results strongly suggest that, outside of the corona, relative ion temperatures are principally affected by Coulomb collisions and that the preferential heating of α-particles is largely limited to the corona.

Keywords: solar wind; collision physics; plasma physics
Updated Measurements of [O III] 88 μm, [C II] 158 μm, and Dust Continuum Emission from a z = 7.2 Galaxy

We present updated measurements of the [O III] 88 μm, [C II] 158 μm, and dust continuum emission from a star-forming galaxy at z = 7.212, SXDF-NB1006-2, by utilizing Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) archival data sets analysed in previous studies and data sets that have not been analysed before. The follow-up ALMA observations with higher angular resolution and sensitivity reveal a clumpy structure of the [O III] emission on a scale of 0.32-0.85 kpc. We also combined all the ALMA [O III] ([C II]) data sets and updated the [O III] ([C II]) detection to 5.9σ (3.6σ-4.5σ). The non-detection of [C II] with data from the REBELS large program implies the incompleteness of spectral-scan surveys using [C II] to detect galaxies with high star formation rates (SFRs) but marginal [C II] emission at high-z. The dust continuum at 90 and 160 μm remains undetected, indicating little dust content of <3.9 × 106 M ⊙ (3σ), and we obtained a more stringent constraint on the total infrared luminosity. We updated the [O III]/[C II] luminosity ratios to 10.2 ± 4.7 (6.1 ± 3.5) and 20 ± 12 (9.6 ± 6.1) for the 4.5σ and 3.6σ [C II] detections, respectively, where the ratios in the parentheses are corrected for the surface brightness dimming effect on the extended [C II] emission. We also found a strong [C II] deficit (0.6-1.3 dex) between SXDF-NB1006-2 and the mean L [C II]-SFR relation of galaxies at 0 < z < 9.

Keywords: galaxy formation; galaxy evolution; interstellar medium; high-redshift galaxies
Nature and Scalings of Density Fluctuations of Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Applications to the Solar Wind

The solar wind is a magnetized and turbulent plasma. Its turbulence is often dominated by Alfvénic fluctuations and often deemed as nearly incompressible far away from the Sun, as shown by in situ measurements near 1 au. However, for solar wind closer to the Sun, the plasma β decreases (often lower than unity) while the turbulent Mach number M t increases (can approach unity, e.g., transonic fluctuations). These conditions could produce significantly more compressible effects, characterized by enhanced density fluctuations, as seen by several space missions. In this paper, a series of 3D MHD simulations of turbulence are carried out to understand the properties of compressible turbulence, particularly the generation of density fluctuations. We find that, over a broad range of parameter space in plasma β, cross helicity, and polytropic index, the turbulent density fluctuations scale linearly as a function of M t , with the scaling coefficients showing weak dependence on parameters. Furthermore, through detailed spatiotemporal analysis, we show that the density fluctuations are dominated by low-frequency nonlinear structures, rather than compressible MHD eigenwaves. These results could be important for understanding how compressible turbulence contributes to solar wind heating near the Sun.

Keywords: solar wind; magnetohydrodynamical simulations
Jansky Very Large Array Detections of CO(1-0) Emission in H I-absorption-selected Galaxies at z ≳ 2

We report a Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array search for redshifted CO(1-0) emission from three H I-absorption-selected galaxies at z ≈ 2, identified earlier in their CO(3-2) or CO(4-3) emission. We detect CO(1-0) emission from DLA B1228-113 at z ≈ 2.1933 and DLA J0918+1636 at z ≈ 2.5848; these are the first detections of CO(1-0) emission in high-z H I-selected galaxies. We obtain high molecular gas masses, M mol ≈ 1011 × (α CO/4.36) M ⊙, for the two objects with CO(1-0) detections, which are a factor of ≈1.5-2 lower than earlier estimates. We determine the excitation of the mid-J CO rotational levels relative to the J = 1 level, r J1, in H I-selected galaxies for the first time, obtaining r 31 = 1.00 ± 0.20 and r 41 = 1.03 ± 0.23 for DLA J0918+1636, and r 31 = 0.86 ± 0.21 for DLA B1228-113. These values are consistent with thermal excitation of the J = 3 and J = 4 levels. The excitation of the J = 3 level in the H I-selected galaxies is similar to that seen in massive main-sequence and submillimeter galaxies at z≳2, but higher than that in main-sequence galaxies at z ≈ 1.5; the higher excitation of the galaxies at z ≳ 2 is likely to be due to their higher star formation rate (SFR) surface density. We use Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 imaging to detect the rest-frame near-ultraviolet (NUV) emission of DLA B1228-113, obtaining an NUV SFR of 4.44 ± 0.47 M ⊙ yr-1, significantly lower than that obtained from the total infrared luminosity, indicating significant dust extinction in the z ≈ 2.1933 galaxy.

Keywords: high-redshift galaxies; co line emission; damped lyman-alpha systems
A NICER View of Spectral and Profile Evolution for Three X-Ray-emitting Millisecond Pulsars

We present two years of Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) X-ray observations of three energetic rotation-powered millisecond pulsars (MSPs): PSRs B1937+21, B1821-24, and J0218+4232. We fit Gaussians and Lorentzians to the pulse profiles for different energy sub-bands of the soft X-ray regime to measure the energy dependence of pulse separation and width. We find that the separation between pulse components of PSR J0218+4232 decreases with increasing energy at >3σ confidence. The 95% upper limit on pulse separation evolution for PSRs B1937+21 and B1821-24 is less than 2 milliperiods per keV. Our phase-resolved spectral results provide updated constraints on the non-thermal X-ray emission of these three pulsars. The photon indices of the modeled X-ray emission spectra for each pulse component of PSR B1937+21 are inconsistent with each other at the 90% confidence level, suggesting different emission origins for each pulse. We find that the PSR B1821-24 and PSR J0218+4232 emission spectra are invariant with phase at the 90% confidence level. We describe the implications of our profile and spectral results in the context of equatorial current sheet emission models for these three MSPs with non-thermal, magnetospheric X-ray emission.

Keywords: millisecond pulsars; neutron stars; x-ray astronomy
Merger-driven Growth of Intermediate-mass Black Holes: Constraints from Hubble Space Telescope Imaging of Hyper-luminous X-Ray Sources

Hyper-luminous X-ray sources (HLXs) are extragalactic off-nuclear X-ray sources with luminosities exceeding the theoretical limit for accretion onto stellar-mass compact objects. Many HLXs may represent intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) deposited in galaxy halos through mergers, and the properties of the stellar cores surrounding HLXs provide powerful constraints on this scenario. Therefore, we have systematically built the largest sample of HLX candidates with archival Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging (24) for the first uniform population study of HLX stellar cores down to low masses. Based on their host galaxy redshifts, at least 21 (88%) have stellar core masses ≥ 107 M ⊙ and hence are consistent with accretion onto massive black holes from external galaxies. In 50% of the sample, the HST imaging reveals features connecting the HLXs with their host galaxies, strongly suggesting against the background/foreground contaminant possibility in these cases. Assuming a mass scaling relation for active galactic nuclei and accounting for an estimated contamination fraction of 29%, up to ∼60% of our sample may be associated with IMBHs. Similar to previously known HLXs, the X-ray luminosities are systematically elevated relative to their stellar core masses, possibly from merger-driven accretion rate enhancements. The least massive stellar cores are preferentially found at larger nuclear offsets and are more likely to remain wandering in their host galaxy halos. The HLX galaxy occupation fraction is ∼ 10‑2 and has a strong inverse mass dependence. Up to three of the HLX candidates (12%) are potentially consistent with formation within globular clusters or with exceptionally luminous X-ray binaries.

Keywords: dwarf galaxies; galaxy mergers; intermediate-mass black holes; supermassive black holes; x-ray active galactic nuclei
How to Search for Multiple Messengers—A General Framework Beyond Two Messengers

Quantification of the significance of a candidate multi-messenger detection of cosmic events is an emerging need in the astrophysics and astronomy communities. In this paper we show that a model-independent optimal search does not exist, and we present a general Bayesian method for the optimal model-dependent search, which is scalable to any number and any kind of messengers, and applicable to any model. In the end, we demonstrate it through an example for a joint gravitational wave, high-energy neutrino, short gamma-ray burst event search; which has not been examined heretofore.

Keywords: neutrino astronomy; gravitational wave astronomy; gamma-ray astronomy; astronomical methods; high energy astrophysics; model selection; astrostatistics; astrostatistics strategies; astrostatistics tools; bayesian statistics; astrostatistics techniques
Revisiting High-energy Polarization from Leptonic and Hadronic Blazar Scenarios

X-ray and MeV polarization can be powerful diagnostics for leptonic and hadronic blazar models. Previous predictions are mostly based on a one-zone framework. However, recent IXPE observations of Mrk 421 and 501 strongly favor a multizone framework. Thus, the leptonic and hadronic polarization predictions need to be revisited. Here we identify two generic radiation transfer effects, namely, double depolarization and energy stratification, that can have an impact on the leptonic and hadronic polarization. We show how they are generalized from previously known multizone effects of the primary electron synchrotron radiation. Under our generic multizone model, the leptonic polarization degree is expected to be much lower than the one-zone prediction, unlikely detectable in most cases. The hadronic polarization degree can reach a value as high as the primary electron synchrotron polarization during simultaneous multiwavelength flares, consistent with the one-zone prediction. Therefore, IXPE and future X-ray and MeV polarimeters such as eXTP, COSI, and AMEGO-X, have good chances to detect hadronic polarization during flares. However, the hadronic polarization cannot be well constrained during the quiescent state. Nonetheless, if some blazar jets possess relatively stable large-scale magnetic structures, as suggested by radio observations, a nontrivial polarization degree may show up for the hadronic model after a very long exposure time (≳1 yr).

Keywords: blazars; high energy astrophysics; polarimetry; relativistic jets
Axisymmetric Pulsar Magnetosphere Revisited

We present a global kinetic plasma simulation of an axisymmetric pulsar magnetosphere with self-consistent e ± pair production. We use the particle-in-cell method and log-spherical coordinates with a grid size 4096 × 4096. This allows us to achieve a high voltage induced by the pulsar rotation and investigate pair creation in a young pulsar far from the death line. We find the following: (1) The energy release and e ± creation are strongly concentrated in the thin, Y-shaped current sheet, with a peak localized in a small volume at the Y-point. (2) The Y-point is shifted inward from the light cylinder by ~15% and "breathes" with a small amplitude. (3) The dense e ± cloud at the Y-point is in ultrarelativistic rotation, which we call superrotation, because it exceeds corotation with the star. The cloud receives angular momentum flowing from the star along the poloidal magnetic field lines. (4) Gamma-ray emission peaks at the Y-point and is collimated in the azimuthal direction, tangent to the Y-point circle. (5) The separatrix current sheet between the closed magnetosphere and the open magnetic field lines is sustained by the electron backflow from the Y-point cloud. Its thickness is self-regulated to marginal charge starvation. (6) Only a small fraction of dissipation occurs in the separatrix inward of the Y-point. A much higher power is released in the equatorial plane, including the Y-point where the created dense e ± plasma is spun up and intermittently ejected through the nozzle between the two open magnetic fluxes.

Keywords: rotation powered pulsars; plasma astrophysics; magnetic fields
SPYGLASS. IV. New Stellar Survey of Recent Star Formation within 1 kpc

Young stellar populations provide a powerful record that traces millions of years of star formation history in the solar neighborhood. Using a revised form of the SPYGLASS young star identification methodology, we produce an expanded census of nearby young stars (age < 50 Myr). We then use the HDBSCAN clustering algorithm to produce a new SPYGLASS Catalog of Young Associations, which reveals 116 young associations within 1 kpc. More than 25% of these groups are largely new discoveries, as 20 are substantively different from any previous definition, and 10 have no equivalent in the literature. The new associations reveal a yet undiscovered demographic of small associations with little connection to larger structures. Some of the groups we identify are especially unique for their high transverse velocities, which can differ from the solar velocity by 30-50 km s-1, and for their positions, which can reach up to 300 pc above the galactic plane. These features may suggest a unique origin, matching existing evidence of infalling gas parcels interacting with the disk interstellar medium. Our clustering also suggests links between often-separated populations, hinting to direct structural connections between Orion Complex and Perseus OB2, and between the subregions of Vela. The ~30 Myr old Cepheus-Hercules association is another emerging large-scale structure, with a size and population comparable to Sco-Cen. Cep-Her and other similarly aged structures are also found clustered along extended structures perpendicular to known spiral arm structure, suggesting that arm-aligned star formation patterns have only recently become dominant in the solar neighborhood.

Keywords: stellar associations; young stellar objects; young star clusters; star formation; ob associations; pre-main sequence stars; stellar ages