adsabs/SciX_UAT_keywords huggingface dataset:
A Robust Study of High-redshift Galaxies: Unsupervised Machine Learning for Characterizing Morphology with JWST up to z ∼ 8

Galaxy morphologies provide valuable insights into their formation processes, tracing the spatial distribution of ongoing star formation and encoding signatures of dynamical interactions. While such information has been extensively investigated at low redshift, it is crucial to develop a robust system for characterizing galaxy morphologies at earlier cosmic epochs. Relying solely on nomenclature established for low-redshift galaxies risks introducing biases that hinder our understanding of this new regime. In this paper, we employ variational autoencoders to perform feature extraction on galaxies at z > 2 using JWST/NIRCam data. Our sample comprises 6869 galaxies at z > 2, including 255 galaxies at z > 5, which have been detected in both the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey Hubble Space Telescope fields and the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science Survey done with JWST, ensuring reliable measurements of redshift, mass, and star formation rates. To address potential biases, we eliminate galaxy orientation and background sources prior to encoding the galaxy features, thereby constructing a physically meaningful feature space. We identify 11 distinct morphological classes that exhibit clear separation in various structural parameters, such as the concentration, asymmetry, and smoothness (CAS) metric and M 20, Sérsic indices, specific star formation rates, and axis ratios. We observe a decline in the presence of spheroidal-type galaxies with increasing redshift, indicating the dominance of disk-like galaxies in the early Universe. We demonstrate that conventional visual classification systems are inadequate for high-redshift morphology classification and advocate the need for a more detailed and refined classification scheme. Leveraging machine-extracted features, we propose a solution to this challenge and illustrate how our extracted clusters align with measured parameters, offering greater physical relevance compared to traditional methods.

Keywords: galaxy evolution; convolutional neural networks; high-redshift galaxies; galaxy classification systems
A Mid-infrared Flare in the Seyfert Galaxy NGC 3786: A Changing-look Event Triggered by an Obscured Tidal Disruption Event?

We report an exceptional mid-infrared flare in the Seyfert 1.8 NGC 3786. In the multiepoch data from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, the nuclear mid-infrared brightness of NGC 3786 appears to vary substantially up to 0.5-0.8 mag around mid-2020. However, there is no evidence of significant variation in the corresponding light curve of the optical band from the Zwicky Transient Facility. This implies that the flare may have been heavily obscured by nuclear dust. Through follow-up spectroscopic observations with Gemini-North after the flare, we find that broad emission lines in Paα and Paβ newly appear, while the broad Hβ emission is marginally detected in the postflare spectrum. In addition, their central wavelengths are systematically redshifted up to 900 km s-1 with respect to the narrow emission lines. This reveals that the flare is associated with the changing-look phenomenon from type 1.8 to type 1. Based on these findings, we argue that the flare is likely to originate from an obscured tidal disruption event, although extreme variation in the accretion rate may not be ruled out completely.

Keywords: active galactic nuclei; tidal disruption; supermassive black holes
Modeling a Coronal Mass Ejection from an Extended Filament Channel. II. Interplanetary Propagation to 1 au

We present observations and modeling results of the propagation and impact at Earth of a high-latitude, extended filament channel eruption that commenced on 2015 July 9. The coronal mass ejection (CME) that resulted from the filament eruption was associated with a moderate disturbance at Earth. This event could be classified as a so-called "problem storm" because it lacked the usual solar signatures that are characteristic of large, energetic, Earth-directed CMEs that often result in significant geoeffective impacts. We use solar observations to constrain the initial parameters and therefore to model the propagation of the 2015 July 9 eruption from the solar corona up to Earth using 3D magnetohydrodynamic heliospheric simulations with three different configurations of the modeled CME. We find the best match between observed and modeled arrival at Earth for the simulation run that features a toroidal flux rope structure of the CME ejecta, but caution that different approaches may be more or less useful depending on the CME-observer geometry when evaluating the space weather impact of eruptions that are extreme in terms of their large size and high degree of asymmetry. We discuss our results in the context of both advancing our understanding of the physics of CME evolution and future improvements to space weather forecasting.

Keywords: quiet sun; solar filament eruptions; solar coronal mass ejections; magnetohydrodynamical simulations; interplanetary magnetic fields; solar-terrestrial interactions; space weather
An Expanding Shell of Neutral Hydrogen Associated with SN 1006: Hints for the Single-degenerate Origin and Faint Hadronic Gamma-Rays

We report new H I observations of the Type Ia supernova remnant (SNR) SN 1006 using the Australia Telescope Compact Array with an angular resolution of $4\buildrel{\,\prime}\over{.} 5\times 1\buildrel{\,\prime}\over{.} 4$ 4.'5×1.'4 (~2 pc at the assumed SNR distance of 2.2 kpc). We find an expanding gas motion in position-velocity diagrams of H I with an expansion velocity of ~4 km s-1 and a mass of ~1000 M ⊙. The spatial extent of the expanding shell is roughly the same as that of SN 1006. We here propose a hypothesis that SN 1006 exploded inside the wind-blown bubble formed by accretion winds from the progenitor system consisting of a white dwarf and a companion star, and then the forward shock has already reached the wind wall. This scenario is consistent with the single-degenerate model. We also derived the total energy of cosmic-ray protons W p to be only ~1.2-2.0 × 1047 erg by adopting the averaged interstellar proton density of ~25 cm-3. The small value is compatible with the relation between the age and W p of other gamma-ray SNRs with ages below ~6 kyr. The W p value in SN 1006 will possibly increase up to several 1049 erg in the next ~5 kyr via the cosmic-ray diffusion into the H I wind shell.

Keywords: supernova remnants; interstellar medium; cosmic ray sources; gamma-ray sources; x-ray sources
SUMER Measurement of the Fe X 3p43d 4D5/2,7/2 Energy Difference

Recent studies have shown that magnetic fields in the solar corona are strong enough to significantly mix the two 3p43d 4D5/2,7/2 levels in Cl-like Fe X. This mixing gives rise to a magnetically induced transition (MIT) component in the bright Fe X 257.3 Å line, commonly observed by current instrumentation, that can be used for coronal magnetic field diagnostics. This line, commonly observed by the still operational EIS spectrometer on board the Hinode satellite since 2007, opens a new window into the coronal magnetic field. However, the strength of this MIT transition depends on the square of the energy difference ΔE of the two ${}^{4}{{\rm{D}}}_{5/\mathrm{2,7}/2}$ levels, so that an accurate determination of ΔE is of critical importance to accurately measure coronal magnetic field strengths. In the present work we present a new measurement of ΔE obtained determining the separation of the two component of the Fe X doublet close to 1603.3 Å from deep-exposure spectra of a quiescent streamer at the solar limb taken with the SUMER instrument on board SoHO. Our measurement of ΔE = 2.29 ± 0.50 cm-1 agrees with, and improves upon, an earlier measurements by Judge et al. by decreasing its uncertainty from 80% to approximately 20%, improving the attainable accuracy of magnetic field strength measurements obtainable with the Fe X 257.26 Å line.

Keywords: solar magnetic fields
Age Distribution of Exoplanet Host Stars: Chemical and Kinematic Age Proxies from GAIA DR3

The GAIA space mission is impacting astronomy in many significant ways by providing a uniform, homogeneous, and precise data set for over 1 billion stars and other celestial objects in the Milky Way and beyond. Exoplanet science has greatly benefited from the unprecedented accuracy of the stellar parameters obtained from GAIA. In this study, we combine photometric, astrometric, and spectroscopic data from the most recent Gaia DR3 to examine the kinematic and chemical age proxies for a large sample of 2611 exoplanets hosting stars whose parameters have been determined uniformly. Using spectroscopic data from the Radial Velocity Spectrometer on board GAIA, we show that stars hosting massive planets are metal-rich and α-poor in comparison to stars hosting small planets. The kinematic analysis of the sample reveals that stellar systems with small planets and those with giant planets differ in key aspects of galactic space velocity and orbital parameters, which are indicative of age. We find that the galactic orbital parameters have a statistically significant difference of 0.06 kpc for Z max and 0.03 for eccentricity, respectively. Furthermore, we estimated the stellar ages of the sample using the MIST-MESA isochrone models. The ages and their proxies for the planet-hosting stars indicate that the hosts of giant planetary systems are younger when compared to the population of stars harboring small planets. These age trends are also consistent with the chemical evolution of the galaxy and the formation of giant planets from the core-accretion process.

Keywords: planet formation; exoplanet formation; gaia; extrasolar gaseous giant planets; stellar kinematics; stellar ages; metallicity; chemical abundances; exoplanets; spectroscopy
Dark Age of Type II Supernova Remnants

Supernova remnants (SNRs) are important objects in terms of their connections with supernova (SN) explosion mechanism(s), progenitor stars, and cosmic-ray acceleration. Nonthermal emission from SNRs is an effective probe of the structure of their surrounding circumstellar media (CSM), which can in turn shed lights on the mechanism and history of the elusive mass loss of massive stars. In this work, we calculate the time evolution of broadband nonthermal emission from SNRs originating from Type II SNe embedded in a CSM environment linked to the mass-loss history of the progenitor. Our results predict that Type II SNRs experience a prolonged period of weak radio and γ-ray emission if they run into a spatially extended bubble of low density and high temperature created by the stellar wind during main sequence. For a typical red supergiant progenitor evolved within an average interstellar medium, this "dark age" corresponds to a range of SNR ages spanning from ~1000 to 5000 yr old. This result suggests that a majority of Type II SNRs are too faint to be detected, which may help explain why the number of known Galactic SNRs is significantly less than what we expect from the SN rate in our Galaxy.

Keywords: core-collapse supernovae; stellar evolution; cosmic rays
Interstellar Pickup Ion Observations Halfway to the Termination Shock

In this study, we extend the prior interstellar pickup ion (PUI) observations from the Solar Wind Around Pluto (SWAP) instrument on New Horizons out to nearly 47 au—essentially halfway to the termination shock in the upwind direction. We also provide significantly improved analyses of these and prior observations, including incorporating a cooling index, α, to characterize the nonadiabatic heating of PUI distributions. We find that the vast majority (93.6%) of all distributions show additional heating above adiabatic cooling. Speed jumps indicate compressional waves and shocks with associated enhancements in core solar wind and PUI densities and temperatures. Interestingly, additional heating of the PUIs as indicated by a peak in the cooling index follows the jumps by about a week. We characterize nearly continuous solar wind and H+ PUI data over ∼22-47 au, producing radial gradients, "fiducial" values at 45 au—halfway to the nominal upstream termination shock—for direct comparison to models, and extrapolated values at the shock. These termination shock values are nPUI = (4.1 ± 0.6) × 10-4 cm-3, TPUI = (5.0 ± 0.4) × 106 K, PPUI = 30 ± 4 fPa, α = 2.9 ± 0.2, nPUI/nTotal = 0.24 ± 0.02, TPUI/TSW = 716 ± 124, PPUI/PSW = 173 ± 32, PPUI/PSW - Dyn = 0.14 ± 0.01. The PUI thermal pressure exceeds by more than an order of magnitude the thermal solar wind and magnetic pressures in the outer heliosphere. SWAP provides the first and only direct observations of interstellar PUIs in the outer heliosphere, which are critical for both inferring the plasma conditions at the termination shock and understanding PUI-mediated shocks in general. This study examines these observations and serves as the citable reference for these critical data.

Keywords: pickup ions; solar wind; heliosphere; interstellar medium; space plasmas; interplanetary shocks; termination shock
The X-Ray Bursts of XTE J1739-285: A NICER Sample

In this work, we report on observations with the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer of the known neutron star X-ray transient XTE J1739-285. We observed the source in 2020 February and March, finding it in a highly active bursting state. Across a 20 day period, we detected 32 thermonuclear X-ray bursts, with an average burst recurrence time of ${2.0}_{-0.3}^{+0.4}\,\mathrm{hr}$ . A timing and spectral analysis of the ensemble of X-ray bursts reveals homogeneous burst properties, evidence for short-recurrence time bursts, and the detection of a 386.5 Hz burst oscillation candidate. The latter is especially notable, given that a previous study of this source claimed a 1122 Hz burst oscillation candidate. We did not find any evidence of variability near 1122 Hz and instead find that the 386.5 Hz oscillation is the more prominent signal of the two burst oscillation candidates. Hence, we conclude it is unlikely that XTE J1739-285 has a submillisecond rotation period.

Keywords: x-ray bursts; low-mass x-ray binary stars
LAMOST J040643.69+542347.8: The Fastest Rotator in the Galaxy

Rotation and binary interaction play important roles in understanding the nature of massive stars (≳8M⊙). Some interesting transients, such as the long-duration gamma-ray bursts, are thought to be originated from fast-rotating massive stars. Because the strong stellar wind can effectively spin down a metal-rich massive star with fast rotation, it is very hard to find single massive stars rotating critically in the Galaxy. In the present work reported is the discovery of the fastest rotator in the Galaxy, LAMOST J040643.69+542347.8, with a projected rotational velocity Ve sin I ∼ 540 km s-1, which is ∼100 km s-1 faster than that of the previous record holder HD 191423. The star has a spectral type of O6.5 Vnnn(f)p. Its He I λ4471 absorption line is blueshifted and asymmetric, while its He II λ4686 and Hα have central absorption reversals in their emissions. It is also a runaway star, which implies an origin in a close binary interaction. Compared to VFTS 285 and VFTS 102 (their Ve sin I ∼ 610 km s-1) in the Large Magellanic Cloud, LAMOST J040643.69+542347.8 has its own peculiar spectral characteristics and earlier spectral type. Moreover, LAMOST J040643.69+542347.8 is bright (B ∼ 13.9 mag) enough to allow future high-resolution spectroscopic follow-up.

Keywords: massive stars; stellar rotation
Nuclear Reaction Screening, Weak Interactions, and r-process Nucleosynthesis in High Magnetic Fields

Coulomb screening and weak interactions in a hot, magnetized plasma are investigated. Coulomb screening is evaluated in a relativistic thermal plasma in which electrons and positrons are in equilibrium. In addition to temperature effects, effects on weak screening from a strong external magnetic field are evaluated. In high fields, the electron transverse momentum components are quantized into Landau levels. The characteristic plasma screening length at high temperatures and at high magnetic fields is explored. In addition to changes to the screening length, changes in weak interaction rates are estimated. It is found that high fields can result in increased β-decay rates as the electron and positron spectra are dominated by Landau levels. Finally, the effects studied here are evaluated in a simple r-process model. It is found that relativistic Coulomb screening has a small effect on the final abundance distribution. While changes in weak interaction rates in strong magnetic fields can have an effect on the r-process evolution and abundance distribution, the field strength required to have a significant effect may be larger than what is currently thought to be typical of the r-process environment in collapsar jets or neutron star mergers. If r-process sites exist in fields $\gtrsim {10}^{14}$ G, effects from fields on weak decays could be significant.

Keywords: r-process; nucleosynthesis; magnetars; magnetic fields; magnetic stars
Atmospheric Dynamics of Temperate Sub-Neptunes. I. Dry Dynamics

Sub-Neptunes (planets with radii between 2 and 4 R ⊕) are abundant around M-dwarf stars, yet the atmospheric dynamics of these planets is relatively unexplored. In this paper, we aim to provide a basic underpinning of the dry dynamics of general low-mean-molecular-weight, temperate sub-Neptune atmospheres. We use the ExoFMS general circulation model (GCM) with an idealized gray-gas radiation scheme to simulate planetary atmospheres with different levels of instellation and rotation rates, using the atmosphere of K2-18b as our control. We find that the atmospheres of tidally locked (TL), temperate sub-Neptunes have weak horizontal temperature gradients owing to their slow rotation rates and hydrogen-dominated composition. The zonal wind structure is dominated by high-latitude cyclostrophic jets driven by the conservation of angular momentum. At low pressures we observe superrotating equatorial jets, which we propose are driven by a Rossby-Kelvin instability similar to the type seen in simulations of idealized atmospheres with axisymmetric forcing. By viewing the flow in TL coordinates, we find the predominant overturning circulation to be between the day side and night side, and we derive scaling relations linking the TL stream function and vertical velocities to instellation. Comparing our results to the only other GCM study of K2-18b, we find significant qualitative differences in dynamics, highlighting the need for further collaboration and investigation into the effects of different dynamical cores and physical parameterizations. This paper provides a baseline for studying the dry dynamics of temperate sub-Neptunes, which will be built on in part II with the introduction of moist effects.

Keywords: exoplanet atmospheres; mini neptunes; atmospheric circulation
Cosmic-Ray Acceleration of Galactic Outflows in Multiphase Gas

We investigate the dynamical interaction between cosmic rays (CRs) and the multiphase interstellar medium (ISM) using numerical magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations with a two-moment CR solver and TIGRESS simulations of star-forming galactic disks. We previously studied the transport of CRs within TIGRESS outputs using a "postprocessing" approach, and we now assess the effects of the MHD backreaction to CR pressure. We confirm our previous conclusion that there are three quite different regimes of CR transport in multiphase ISM gas, while also finding that simulations with "live MHD" predict a smoother CR pressure distribution. The CR pressure near the midplane is comparable to other pressure components in the gas, but the scale height of CRs is far larger. Next, with a goal of understanding the role of CRs in driving galactic outflows, we conduct a set of controlled simulations of the extraplanar region above z = 500 pc, with imposed boundary conditions flowing from the midplane into this region. We explore a range of thermal and kinematic properties for the injected thermal gas, encompassing both hot, fast-moving outflows, and cooler, slower-moving outflows. The boundary conditions for CR energy density and flux are scaled from the supernova rate in the underlying TIGRESS model. Our simulations reveal that CRs efficiently accelerate extraplanar material if the latter is mostly warm/warm-hot gas, in which CRs stream at the Alfvén speed, and the effective sound speed increases as density decreases. In contrast, CRs have very little effect on fast, hot outflows where the Alfvén speed is small, even when the injected CR momentum flux exceeds the injected MHD momentum flux.

Keywords: cosmic rays; interstellar medium; magnetohydrodynamical simulations
Reconstruction of Radio Relics and X-Ray Tails in an Off-axis Cluster Merger: Hydrodynamical Simulations of A115

Although a merging galaxy cluster is a useful laboratory to study many important astrophysical processes and fundamental physics, only limited interpretations are possible without careful analysis of the merger scenario. However, the study is demanding because a thorough comparison of multiwavelength observations with detailed numerical simulations is required. In this paper, we present such a study for the off-axis binary merger A115. The system possesses a number of remarkable observational features, but no convincing merger scenario explaining the shape and location of the radio relic in harmony with the orientation of the cometary X-ray tails has been presented. Our hydrodynamical simulation with adaptive mesh refinement suggests that the cometary X-ray tail of A115 might be a slingshot tail that can arise ∼0.3 Gyr after the impact, before the two subclusters reach their apocenters. This scenario can predict the location and orientation of the giant radio relic, which is parallel to the northern X-ray tail. In addition, our study indicates that diffusive shock acceleration alone cannot generate the observed radio power unless aided by stronger magnetic fields and/or more significant presence of fossil electrons.

Keywords: galaxy clusters; abell clusters; intracluster medium; radio continuum emission; hydrodynamics
First Solar Energetic Particles Measured on the Lunar Far-side

On 2019 May 6 the Lunar Lander Neutron & Dosimetry (LND) Experiment on board the Chang'E-4 lander on the far-side of the Moon detected its first solar energetic particle (SEP) event with proton energies up to 21 MeV. Combined proton energy spectra are studied based on the LND, SOHO/EPHIN, and ACE/EPAM measurements, which show that LND could provide a complementary data set from a special location on the Moon, contributing to our existing observations and understanding of space environment. We applied velocity dispersion analysis to the impulsive electron event and weak proton enhancement and show that electrons are released only 22 minutes after the flare onset and ∼15 minutes after the type II radio burst, while protons are released more than one hour after the electron release. The beam-like in situ electrons and clear velocity dispersion indicate a good magnetic connection between the source and Earth. This is remarkable because stereoscopic remote-sensing observations from Earth and STEREO-A suggest that the SEPs are associated with an active region nearly 113° away from the magnetic footpoint of Earth. This suggests that these SEPs did not propagate along the nominal Parker spiral normally assumed for ballistic mapping and that the release and propagation mechanism of electrons and protons are likely to differ significantly for this event.

Keywords: solar energetic particles; interplanetary physics; lunar surface; solar active regions; solar coronal mass ejection shocks; solar physics; space weather; solar active region magnetic fields; solar instruments