adsabs/SciX_UAT_keywords huggingface dataset:
Characterization of Turbulent Fluctuations in the Sub-Alfvénic Solar Wind

Parker Solar Probe (PSP) observed sub-Alfvénic solar wind intervals during encounters 8–14, and low-frequency magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence in these regions may differ from that in super-Alfvénic wind. We apply a new mode decomposition analysis to the sub-Alfvénic flow observed by PSP on 2021 April 28, identifying and characterizing entropy, magnetic islands, forward and backward Alfvén waves, including weakly/nonpropagating Alfvén vortices, forward and backward fast and slow magnetosonic (MS) modes. Density fluctuations are primarily and almost equally entropy- and backward-propagating slow MS modes. The mode decomposition provides phase information (frequency and wavenumber k) for each mode. Entropy density fluctuations have a wavenumber anisotropy of k ∥ ≫ k ⊥, whereas slow-mode density fluctuations have k ⊥ > k ∥. Magnetic field fluctuations are primarily magnetic island modes (δ B i ) with an O(1) smaller contribution from unidirectionally propagating Alfvén waves (δ B A+) giving a variance anisotropy of $\langle {\delta {B}^{i}}^{2}\rangle /\langle {\delta {B}^{A}}^{2}\rangle =4.1$ . Incompressible magnetic fluctuations dominate compressible contributions from fast and slow MS modes. The magnetic island spectrum is Kolmogorov-like ${k}_{\perp }^{-1.6}$ in perpendicular wavenumber, and the unidirectional Alfvén wave spectra are ${k}_{\parallel }^{-1.6}$ and ${k}_{\perp }^{-1.5}$ . Fast MS modes propagate at essentially the Alfvén speed with anticorrelated transverse velocity and magnetic field fluctuations and are almost exclusively magnetic due to β p ≪ 1. Transverse velocity fluctuations are the dominant velocity component in fast MS modes, and longitudinal fluctuations dominate in slow modes. Mode decomposition is an effective tool in identifying the basic building blocks of MHD turbulence and provides detailed phase information about each of the modes.

Keywords: interplanetary turbulence; solar coronal waves; magnetohydrodynamics
The Low-mass Stellar Initial Mass Function in Nearby Ultrafaint Dwarf Galaxies

The stellar initial mass function (IMF) describes the distribution of stellar masses that form in a given star formation event. The long main-sequence lifetimes of low-mass stars mean that the IMF in this regime (below ∼ 1 M ⊙) can be investigated through star counts. Ultrafaint dwarf galaxies are low-luminosity systems with ancient, metal-poor stellar populations. We investigate the low-mass IMF in four such systems (Reticulum II, Ursa Major II, Triangulum II, and Segue 1), using Hubble Space Telescope imaging data that reaches to ≲ 0.2 M ⊙ in each galaxy. The analysis techniques that we adopt depend on the number of low-mass stars in each sample. We use Kolmogorov–Smirnov tests for all four galaxies to determine whether their observed apparent magnitude distributions can reject a given combination of IMF parameters and binary fraction for the underlying population. We forward model 1000 synthetic populations for each combination of parameters, and reject those parameters only if each of the 1000 realizations reject the null hypothesis. We find that all four galaxies reject a variety of IMFs, and the IMFs that they cannot reject include those that are identical, or similar, to that of the stellar populations of the Milky Way. We determine the best-fit parameter values for the IMF in Reticulum II and Ursa Major II and find that the IMF in Reticulum II is generally consistent with that of the Milky Way, while the IMF in Ursa Major II is more bottom heavy. The interpretation of the results for Ursa Major II is complicated by possible contamination from two known background galaxy clusters.

Keywords: low mass stars; initial mass function; dwarf spheroidal galaxies; local group
Evidence for a Correlation between Binary Black Hole Mass Ratio and Black Hole Spins

The astrophysical origins of the binary black hole systems seen with gravitational waves are still not well understood. However, features in the distribution of black hole masses, spins, redshifts, and eccentricities provide clues into how these systems form. Much has been learned by investigating these distributions one parameter at a time. However, we can extract additional information by studying the covariance between pairs of parameters. Previous work has shown preliminary support for an anticorrelation between mass ratio q ≡ m 2/m 1 and effective inspiral spin χ eff in the binary black hole population. In this study, we test for the existence of this anticorrelation using updated data from the third gravitational-wave transient catalog and improve our copula-based framework to employ a more robust model for black hole spins. We find evidence for an anticorrelation in (q, χ eff) with 99.7% credibility. This may imply high common-envelope efficiencies, stages of super-Eddington accretion, or a tendency for binary black hole systems to undergo mass-ratio reversal during isolated evolution. Covariance in (q, χ eff) may also be used to investigate the physics of tidal spinup as well as the properties of binary black hole-forming active galactic nuclei.

Keywords: black holes; compact objects; gravitational wave astronomy; gravitational waves
Limb-darkening Coefficients for the Filter CBB

The CBB filter is particularly appropriate for exoplanet differential photometry using smaller (≤1.0 m) telescopes for two primary reasons. First, the CBB filter provides far greater throughput than standard filters (i.e., 92% throughput for CBB compared to 19% for V), which results in significantly greater measurement precision. Second, the CBB significantly reduces the size of air-mass curvature systematic error (8 mmag/airmass for a CBB filter compared to 59 mmag/airmass for a clear filter). In this Research Note we provide the theoretical calculations of the limb-darkening coefficients (LDCs) for the filter CBB adopting the two most used bi-parametric laws: quadratic and power-2 laws. The calculations of LDCs were carried out adopting the ATLAS stellar atmosphere models, plane-parallel version. These grids cover 19 metallicities ranging from 10-5 up to 10 +1 solar abundances, 0 ≤ log g ≤ 5.0 and 3500 K ≤ T eff ≤ 50,000 K (9586 models).

Keywords: stellar atmospheres
A Case of Simultaneous Star and Planet Formation

While it is widely accepted that planets are formed in protoplanetary disks, there is still much debate on when this process happens. In a few cases protoplanets have been directly imaged, but for the vast majority of systems, disk gaps and cavities—seen especially in dust continuum observations—have been the strongest evidence of recent or ongoing planet formation. We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of a nearly edge-on (i = 75°) disk containing a giant gap seen in dust but not in 12CO gas. Inside the gap, the molecular gas has a warm (100 K) component coinciding in position with a tentative free-free emission excess observed with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array. Using 1D hydrodynamic models, we find the structure of the gap is consistent with being carved by a planet with 4-70 MJup. The coincidence of free-free emission inside the planet-carved gap points to the planet being very young and/or still accreting. In addition, the 12CO observations reveal low-velocity large-scale filaments aligned with the disk major axis and velocity coherent with the disk gas that we interpret as ongoing gas infall from the local interstellar medium. This system appears to be an interesting case where both a star (from the environment and the disk) and a planet (from the disk) are growing in tandem.

Keywords: circumstellar disks; protoplanetary disks; star formation; dust continuum emission; molecular gas; planet formation
Magnetohydrodynamic Modeling of the Solar Wind Key Parameters and Current Sheets in the Heliosphere: Radial and Solar Cycle Evolution

We develop an axisymmetric numerical MHD model that allows us to investigate the spatial characteristics of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) and key solar wind plasma parameters from 20 to 400 solar radii over all heliolatitudes. The study is aimed at an analysis of the evolution of the spatial structure of the heliosphere through the solar cycle. We consider various combinations of the relative input of the quadrupole and dipole harmonics of the solar magnetic field to imitate the solar cycle. Self-consistent solutions for the IMF, electric current, solar wind speed, density, thermal pressure, and temperature in the solar wind are obtained. The spatial evolution of the IMF and properties of quasi-stationary current sheets (QCSs) are analyzed during different phases of the solar cycle. It is shown that a classic low-latitude heliospheric current sheet is formed in the solar wind as a part of the system of longitudinal and latitudinal electric currents symmetric in the northern and southern hemispheres only during solar minimum. While the quadrupole magnetic field increases, the second QCS appears. The model successfully describes a smooth transition from the state of the fast solar wind at high heliolatitudes and the slow solar wind at low heliolatitudes at solar minimum to the solar wind speed of the same values in a wide range of heliolatitudes at solar maximum. It reproduces the actively debated phenomenon of the south-north asymmetry of the IMF in the heliosphere and shows the distribution of thermal plasma parameters consistent with observations.

Keywords: solar activity; heliosphere; solar magnetic fields; solar wind; magnetohydrodynamics
The Near-infrared Extinction Law at High and Low Galactic Latitudes

The Milky Way dust extinction curve in the near-infrared (NIR) follows a power-law form, but the value of the slope, β NIR, is debated. Systematic variations in the slope of the Milky Way UV extinction curve are known to be correlated with variations in the optical slope (through R V ), but whether such a dependence extends to the NIR is unclear. Finally, because of low dust column densities, the NIR extinction law is poorly understood at high Galactic latitudes where most extragalactic work takes place. In this paper, we construct extinction curves from 56,649 stars with Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and Two Micron All Sky Survey photometry, based on stellar parameters from SDSS spectra. We use dust maps to identify dust-free stars, from which we calibrate the relation between stellar parameters and intrinsic colors. Furthermore, to probe the low-dust regime at high latitudes, we use aggregate curves based on many stars. We find no systematic variation of β NIR across low-to-moderate dust columns (0.02 < E(B ‑ V) ≲ 1), and report average β NIR = 1.85 ± 0.01, in agreement with the law in the 2019 Fitzpatrick et al. study, but steeper than the Cardelli et al. and 1999 Fitzpatrick laws. Star-to-star scatter in β NIR is relatively small (σ(β NIR) = 0.13). We also find no intrinsic correlation between β NIR and R V (there is an apparent correlation that is the result of the correlated uncertainties in the two values). These results hold for typical sightlines; we do not probe very dusty regions near the Galactic Center, nor rare sightlines with R V > 4. Finally, we find R H = 0.345 ± 0.007 and comment on its bearing on Cepheid calibrations and the determination of H 0.

Keywords: interstellar dust extinction; extinction; interstellar extinction; interstellar dust
The Effect of Supernova Convection On Neutron Star and Black Hole Masses

Our understanding of the convective-engine paradigm driving core-collapse supernovae has been used for two decades to predict the remnant mass distribution from stellar collapse. These predictions improve as our understanding of this engine increases. In this paper, we review our current understanding of convection (in particular, the growth rate of convection) in stellar collapse and study its effect on the remnant mass distribution. We show how the depth of the mass gap between neutron stars and black holes can help probe this convective growth. We include a study of the effects of stochasticity in both the stellar structure and the convective seeds caused by stellar burning. We study the role of rotation and its effect on the pair-instability mass gap. Under the paradigm limiting stellar rotation to those stars in tight binaries, we determine the effect of rotation on the remnant mass distribution.

Keywords: core-collapse supernovae; neutron stars; black holes
M-subdwarf Research. II. Atmospheric Parameters and Kinematics

We applied the revised M subdwarf classification criteria discussed in Zhang et al. to Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) DR7 and combined the result with the M subdwarf sample from Savcheva et al. to construct a new M subdwarf sample for further study. The atmospheric parameters for each object were derived from fitting to the PHOENIX grid, and the sources with available astrometry and photometry from Gaia DR2 were combined for further analysis. The relationship between the gravity and metallicity was explored according to the locus both in the color-absolute magnitude diagram and the reduced proper motion diagram. Objects that have both the largest gravity and the lowest metallicity are located away from the main-sequence cloud and may be considered as the intrinsic M subdwarfs, which can be classified as luminosity class VI. Another group of objects whose spectra show typical M subdwarf characteristics have lower gravity and relatively moderate metal deficiency and occupy part of the ordinary M dwarf region in both diagrams. The Galactic U, V, W space velocity components and their dispersion show that the local Galactic halo population sampled in the solar neighborhood is represented by objects of high gravity and an inconspicuous bimodal metallicity distribution, with a fraction of prograde orbits. The other M subdwarfs seem to belong in part to the thick disk component, with a significant fraction of thin disk, moderately metal-poor objects intricately mixed with them. However, selection effects, especially the favored anticenter direction of investigation in the LAMOST subsample, as well as contamination by multiplicity and parameter coupling, could play important roles and need to be investigated further.

Keywords: m subdwarf stars
Toward Measuring the Microlensing Event Rate in the Galactic Center. I. Event Detection from the UKIRT Microlensing Survey Data

To overcome the high optical extinction, near-infrared (NIR) observations are needed for probing the microlensing events toward the Galactic center. The 2015-2019 UKIRT microlensing survey toward the Galactic center is the first dedicated precursor NIR survey for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. Here, we analyze the online data from the UKIRT microlensing survey, reaching l = b = 0°. Using the event-finder algorithm of KMTNet with the Δχ 2 threshold of 250, we find 522 clear events, 436 possible events, and 27 possible anomalous events. We fit a point-source point-lens (PSPL) model to all the clear events and derive the PSPL parameters with uncertainties using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo method. Assuming perfect detection efficiency, we compute the uncorrected event rates, which should serve as the lower limits on the true event rate. We find that the uncorrected NIR event rates are likely rising toward the Galactic center and are higher than the optical event rates.

Keywords: gravitational microlensing exoplanet detection; exoplanet astronomy; near infrared astronomy; surveys; catalogs
Gravity-darkening Analysis of the Misaligned Hot Jupiter MASCARA-4 b

MASCARA-4 b is a hot Jupiter in a highly misaligned orbit around a rapidly rotating A3V star that was observed for 54 days by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). We perform two analyses of MASCARA-4 b using a stellar gravity-darkened model. First, we measure MASCARA-4 b’s misaligned orbital configuration by modeling its TESS photometric light curve. We take advantage of the asymmetry in MASCARA-4 b’s transit due to its host star’s gravity-darkened surface to measure MASCARA-4 b’s true spin-orbit angle to be 104°{}-{13^\circ }+{7^\circ }. We also detect a ∼4σ secondary eclipse at 0.491 ± 0.007 orbital phase, proving that the orbit is slightly eccentric. Second, we model MASCARA-4 b’s insolation including gravity darkening and find that the planet’s received X-ray and ultraviolet flux varies by 4% throughout its orbit. MASCARA-4 b’s short-period, polar orbit suggests that the planet likely underwent dramatic orbital evolution to end up in its present-day configuration and that it receives a varying stellar irradiance that perpetually forces the planet out of thermal equilibrium. These findings make MASCARA-4 b an excellent target for follow-up characterization to better understand the orbital evolution and present-day environment of planets around high-mass stars.

Keywords: exoplanet systems; exoplanet astronomy; stellar rotation; exoplanets; extrasolar gaseous giant planets; hot jupiters; gravity darkening; von zeipel theorem; planetary alignment; inclination
Tracing the Intrinsic Shapes of Dwarf Galaxies Out to Four Effective Radii: Clues to Low-mass Stellar Halo Formation

Though smooth, extended spheroidal stellar outskirts have long been observed around nearby dwarf galaxies, it is unclear whether dwarfs generically host an extended stellar halo. We use imaging from the Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program (HSC-SSP) to measure the shapes of dwarf galaxies out to four effective radii for a sample of 6758 dwarfs at 0.005 < z < 0.2 and 107.0 < M⋆/M⊙ < 109.6. We find that dwarfs are slightly triaxial, with $\langle B/A\rangle \gtrsim 0.75$ (where the ellipsoid is characterized by three principal semiaxes constrained by C ≤ B ≤ A). At M⋆ > 108.5 M⊙, the galaxies grow from thick disk-like at one effective radius toward the spheroidal extreme at four effective radii. We also see that although blue dwarfs are, on average, characterized by thinner disks than red dwarfs, both blue and red dwarfs grow more spheroidal as a function of radius. This relation also holds true for a comparison between field and satellite dwarfs. This uniform trend toward relatively spheroidal shapes as a function of radius is consistent with an in situ formation mechanism for stellar outskirts around low-mass galaxies, in agreement with proposed models where star formation feedback produces round stellar outskirts around dwarfs.

Keywords: dwarf galaxies; galaxy stellar halos; galaxy structure; observational astronomy
Three Warm Jupiters around Solar-analog Stars Detected with TESS

We report the discovery and characterization of three giant exoplanets orbiting solar-analog stars, detected by the TESS space mission and confirmed through ground-based photometry and radial velocity measurements taken at La Silla observatory with FEROS. TOI-2373 b is a warm Jupiter orbiting its host star every ~13.3 days, and is one of the most massive known exoplanet with a precisely determined mass and radius around a star similar to the Sun, with an estimated mass of m p = ${9.3}_{-0.2}^{+0.2}\,{M}_{\mathrm{jup}}$ and a radius of r p = ${0.93}_{-0.2}^{+0.2}\,{R}_{\mathrm{jup}}$ . With a mean density of $\rho ={14.4}_{-1.0}^{+0.9}\,{\rm{g}}\,{\mathrm{cm}}^{-3}$ , TOI-2373 b is among the densest planets discovered so far. TOI-2416 b orbits its host star on a moderately eccentric orbit with a period of ~8.3 days and an eccentricity of e = ${0.32}_{-0.02}^{+0.02}$ . TOI-2416 b is more massive than Jupiter with m p = ${3.0}_{-0.09}^{+0.10}\,{M}_{\mathrm{jup}}$ , however is significantly smaller with a radius of r p = ${0.88}_{-0.02}^{+0.02},{R}_{\mathrm{jup}}$ , leading to a high mean density of $\rho ={5.4}_{-0.3}^{+0.3}\,{\rm{g}}\,{\mathrm{cm}}^{-3}$ . TOI-2524 b is a warm Jupiter near the hot Jupiter transition region, orbiting its star every ~7.2 days on a circular orbit. It is less massive than Jupiter with a mass of m p = ${0.64}_{-0.04}^{+0.04}\,{M}_{\mathrm{jup}}$ , and is consistent with an inflated radius of r p = ${1.00}_{-0.03}^{+0.02}\,{R}_{\mathrm{jup}}$ , leading to a low mean density of $\rho ={0.79}_{-0.08}^{+0.08}\,{\rm{g}}\,{\mathrm{cm}}^{-3}$ . The newly discovered exoplanets TOI-2373 b, TOI-2416 b, and TOI-2524 b have estimated equilibrium temperatures of ${860}_{-10}^{+10}$ K, ${1080}_{-10}^{+10}$ K, and ${1100}_{-20}^{+20}$ K, respectively, placing them in the sparsely populated transition zone between hot and warm Jupiters. *Based on observations collected at the European Organization for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere under MPG programmes 0104.A-9007(A) and 0106.A-9014(A).

Keywords: radial velocity; exoplanet detection methods; exoplanet systems
Origin of Large Meteoritic SiC Stardust Grains in Metal-rich AGB Stars

Stardust grains that originated in ancient stars and supernovae are recovered from meteorites and carry the detailed composition of their astronomical sites of origin. We present evidence that the majority of large (μm-sized) meteoritic silicon carbide (SiC) grains formed in C-rich asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars that were more metal-rich than the Sun. In the framework of the slow neutron captures (the s process) that occur in AGB stars, the lower-than-solar ${}^{88}$ Sr/ ${}^{86}$ Sr isotopic ratios measured in the large SiC grains can only be accompanied by Ce/Y elemental ratios that are also lower than solar and predominately observed in metal-rich barium stars—the binary companions of AGB stars. Such an origin suggests that these large grains represent the material from high-metallicity AGB stars needed to explain the s-process nucleosynthesis variations observed in bulk meteorites. In the outflows of metal-rich, C-rich AGB stars, SiC grains are predicted to be small (≃0.2 μm); large (≃μm-sized) SiC grains can grow if the number of dust seeds is 2-3 orders of magnitude lower than the standard value of 10-13 times the number of H atoms. We therefore predict that with increasing metallicity, the number of dust seeds might decrease, resulting in the production of larger SiC grains.

Keywords: asymptotic giant branch stars; circumstellar dust; stellar abundances; chemically peculiar stars
JWST Imaging of Edge-on Protoplanetary Disks. I. Fully Vertically Mixed 10 μm Grains in the Outer Regions of a 1000 au Disk

Scattered light imaging of protoplanetary disks provides key insights on the geometry and dust properties in the disk surface. Here, we present James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) 2–21 μm images of a 1000 au radius edge-on protoplanetary disk surrounding an 0.4 M ⊙ young star in Taurus, Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) J04202144 + 2813491. These observations represent the longest wavelengths at which a protoplanetary disk is spatially resolved in scattered light. We combine these observations with Hubble Space Telescope optical images and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array continuum and CO mapping. We find that the changes in the scattered light disk morphology are remarkably small across a factor of 30 in wavelength, indicating that dust in the disk surface layers is characterized by an almost gray opacity law. Using radiative transfer models, we conclude that grains up to ≳10 μm in size are fully coupled to the gas in this system, whereas grains ≳100 μm are strongly settled toward the midplane. Further analyses of these observations, and similar ones of other edge-on disks, will provide strong empirical constraints on disk dynamics and evolution and grain growth models. In addition, the 7.7 and 12. μm JWST images reveal an X-shaped feature located above the warm molecular layer traced by CO line emission. The highest elevations at which this feature is detectable roughly match the maximal extent of the disk in visible wavelength scattered light as well as of an unusual kinematic signature in CO. We propose that these phenomena could be related to a disk wind entraining small dust grains.

Keywords: protoplanetary disks; planet formation; circumstellar matter