adsabs/SciX_UAT_keywords huggingface dataset:
Multiple Flux Rope Dynamics: MMS Observations and Reconstruction Results

A series of six ion-scale magnetic flux ropes (FR1–6) and a thin current sheet, encountered by Magnetospheric Multiscale spacecraft in the magnetosheath side of the dayside magnetopause boundary layer, are studied for multiple flux rope dynamics in terms of energy conversion and two-dimensional geometry structure. The thin current sheet is identified in between FR1 and FR2. The energy exchange between electromagnetic fields and plasmas is dynamic in FR1–5 and also surrounding the flux ropes, while a low-energy conversion rate is seen in FR6. Different energy conversions exist in the flux ropes: energy dynamo is predominant in FR1 and FR5, while energy dissipation is dominated in FR2–4. Both the energy dynamo and dissipation primarily result from j ∥ E ∥. Strong dissipation, surrounded by an energy dynamo, happens at the thin current sheet and is accompanied by ion agyrotropic behavior. From the reconstructed magnetic field maps, the estimated aspect ratios of the six flux ropes are 0.78, 0.16, 0.66, 0.11, 0.40, and 0.46 in order, and the thickness of the thin current sheet is ∼63 km (∼1.8 ion inertial length). Evidently, the magnetic field map shows that FR4 is a coalescing flux rope where a pronounced dissipation is present. The overall finding agrees with the previous simulation studies of multiple island coalescence.

Keywords: space plasmas; interplanetary physics
Down but Not Out: Properties of the Molecular Gas in the Stripped Virgo Cluster Early-type Galaxy NGC 4526

We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array data on the 3 mm continuum emission, CO isotopologues (12CO, 13CO, and C18O), and high-density molecular tracers (HCN, HCO+, HNC, HNCO, CS, CN, and CH3OH) in NGC 4526. These data enable a detailed study of the physical properties of the molecular gas in a longtime resident of the Virgo Cluster; comparisons to more commonly studied spiral galaxies offer intriguing hints into the processing of molecular gas in the cluster environment. Many molecular line ratios in NGC 4526, along with our inferred abundances and CO/H2 conversion factors, are similar to those found in nearby spirals. One striking exception is the very low observed 12CO/13CO(1-0) line ratio, 3.4 ± 0.3, which is unusually low for spirals though not for Virgo Cluster early-type galaxies. We carry out radiative transfer modeling of the CO isotopologues with some archival (2-1) data, and we use Bayesian analysis with Markov Chain Monte Carlo techniques to infer the physical properties of the CO-emitting gas. We find surprisingly low [12CO/13CO] abundance ratios of ${7.8}_{-1.5}^{+2.7}$ and ${6.5}_{-1.3}^{+3.0}$ at radii of 0.4 kpc and 1 kpc. The emission from the high-density tracers HCN, HCO+, HNC, CS, and CN is also relatively bright, and CN is unusually optically thick in the inner parts of NGC 4526. These features hint that processing in the cluster environment may have removed much of the galaxy's relatively diffuse, optically thinner molecular gas along with its atomic gas. Angular momentum transfer to the surrounding intracluster medium may also have caused contraction of the disk, magnifying radial gradients such as we find in [13CO/C18O]. More detailed chemical evolution modeling would be interesting in order to explore whether the unusual [12CO/13CO] abundance ratio is entirely an environmental effect or whether it also reflects the relatively old stellar population in this early-type galaxy.

Keywords: early-type galaxies; interstellar molecules; co line emission; molecular gas; galaxy evolution; virgo cluster
Optical Variability Modeling of Newly Identified Blazar Candidates behind Magellanic Clouds

We present an optical variability study of 44 newly identified blazar candidates behind the Magellanic Clouds, including 27 flat spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs) and 17 BL Lacertae objects (BL Lacs). All objects in the sample possess high photometric accuracy and irregularly sampled optical light curves (LCs) in I filter from the long-term monitoring conducted by the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment. We investigated the variability properties to look for blazar-like characteristics and to analyze the long-term behavior. We analyzed the LCs with the Lomb-Scargle periodogram to construct power spectral densities (PSDs), found breaks for several objects, and linked them with accretion disk properties. In this way we constrained the black hole (BH) masses of 18 FSRQs to lie within the range $8.18\leqslant \mathrm{log}({M}_{\mathrm{BH}}/{M}_{\odot })\leqslant 10.84$ , assuming a wide range of possible BH spins. By estimating the bolometric luminosities, we applied the fundamental plane of active galactic nuclei variability as an independent estimate, resulting in $8.4\leqslant \mathrm{log}({M}_{\mathrm{BH}}/{M}_{\odot })\leqslant 9.6$ , with a mean error of 0.3. Many of the objects have very steep PSDs, with high-frequency spectral index in the range 3-7. An alternative attempt to classify the LCs was made using the Hurst exponent, H, and the ${ \mathcal A }\mbox{--}{ \mathcal T }$ plane. Two FSRQs and four BL Lacs yielded H > 0.5, indicating presence of long-term memory in the underlying process governing the variability. Additionally, two FSRQs with exceptional PSDs stand out as well in the ${ \mathcal A }\mbox{--}{ \mathcal T }$ plane.

Keywords: active galactic nuclei; active galaxies; bl lacertae objects; magellanic clouds; small magellanic cloud; large magellanic cloud
Quasi-periodic Pulsation Detected in Lyα Emission During Solar Flares

We investigated the quasi-periodic pulsation (QPP) in Lyα, X-ray, and extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) emissions during two solar flares, I.e., an X-class (SOL2012-01-27T) and a C-class (SOL2016-02-08T). The full-disk Lyα and X-ray flux during these solar flares were recorded by the EUV Sensor and X-Ray Sensor on board the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite. The flare regions were located from the EUV images measured by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. The QPP could be identified as a series of regular and periodic peaks in the light curves, and its quasi-periodicity was determined from the global wavelet and Fourier power spectra. A quasi-periodicity at about 3 minutes is detected during the impulsive phase of the X-class flare, which could be explained as the acoustic wave in the chromosphere. Interestingly, a quasi-periodicity at roughly 1 minute is discovered during the entire evolutionary phases of solar flares, including the precursor, impulsive, and gradual phases. This is the first report of 1 minute QPP in the Lyα emission during solar flares, in particular during the flare precursor. It may be interpreted as a self-oscillatory regime of the magnetic reconnection, such as magnetic dripping.

Keywords: solar flares; solar oscillations; solar chromosphere; solar ultraviolet emission; solar x-ray emission
Unusual Emission Variations Near the Eclipse of Black Widow Pulsar PSR J1720-0533

We report on an unusually bright observation of PSR J1720-0533 using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). The pulsar is in a black widow system that was discovered by the Commensal Radio Astronomy FAST Survey (CRAFTS). By coincidence, a bright scintillation maximum was simultaneous with the eclipse in our observation, which allowed for precise measurements of flux density variations, as well as dispersion measure (DM) and polarization. We found that there are quasi-periodic pulse emission variations with a modulation period of ~22 s during the ingress of the eclipse, which could be caused by plasma lensing. No such periodic modulation was found during the egress of the eclipse. The linear polarization of the pulsar disappears before the eclipse, even before there is a visually obvious change in DM. We also found that the pulse scattering may play an important role in the eclipse of PSR J1720-0533.

Keywords: radio pulsars; millisecond pulsars; eclipsing binary stars
Structure in the Magnetic Field of the Milky Way Disk and Halo Traced by Faraday Rotation

Magnetic fields in the ionized medium of the disk and halo of the Milky Way impose Faraday rotation on linearly polarized radio emission. We compare two surveys mapping the Galactic Faraday rotation, one showing the rotation measures of extragalactic sources seen through the Galaxy, and one showing Faraday depth of the diffuse Galactic synchrotron emission from the Global Magneto-Ionic Medium Survey. Comparing the two data sets in 5° × 10° bins shows good agreement at intermediate latitudes, 10° < ∣b∣ < 50°, and little correlation between them at lower and higher latitudes. Where they agree, both tracers show clear patterns as a function of Galactic longitude, ℓ; in the northern hemisphere a strong $\sin \,(2{\ell })$ sin(2ℓ) pattern; and in the southern hemisphere a $\sin \,({\ell }+\pi )$ sin(ℓ+π) pattern. Pulsars with height above or below the plane ∣z∣ > 300 pc show similar ℓ dependence in their rotation measures. Nearby nonthermal structures show rotation measure shadows as does the Orion-Eridanus superbubble. We describe families of dynamo models that could explain the observed patterns in the two hemispheres. We suggest that a field reversal, known to cross the plane a few hundred parsecs inside the solar circle, could shift to positive z with increasing Galactic radius to explain the $\sin \,(2{\ell })$ sin(2ℓ) pattern in the northern hemisphere. Correlation shows that rotation measures from extragalactic sources are one to two times the corresponding rotation measure of the diffuse emission, implying Faraday complexity along some lines of sight, especially in the southern hemisphere.

Keywords: galaxy magnetic fields; interstellar medium; milky way magnetic fields; milky way galaxy physics; milky way galaxy; milky way disk
Reliability Correction is Key for Robust Kepler Occurrence Rates

The Kepler DR25 planet candidate catalog was produced using an automated method of planet candidate identification based on various tests. These tests were tuned to obtain a reasonable but arbitrary balance between catalog completeness and reliability. We produce new catalogs with differing balances of completeness and reliability by varying these tests, and study the impact of these alternative catalogs on occurrence rates. We find that if there is no correction for reliability, different catalogs give statistically inconsistent occurrence rates, while if we correct for both completeness and reliability, we get statistically consistent occurrence rates. This is a strong indication that correction for completeness and reliability is critical for the accurate computation of occurrence rates. Additionally, we find that this result is the same whether using Bayesian Poisson-likelihood Markov Chain Monte Carlo or Approximate Bayesian Computation methods. We also examine the use of a Robovetter disposition score cut as an alternative to reliability correction, and find that while a score cut does increase the reliability of the catalog, it is not as accurate as performing a full reliability correction. We get the same result when performing a reliability correction with and without a score cut. Therefore removing low-score planets removes data without providing any advantage, and should be avoided when possible. We make our alternative catalogs publicly available, and propose that these should be used as a test of occurrence rate methods, with the requirement that a method should provide statistically consistent occurrence rates for all these catalogs.

Keywords: exoplanets; exoplanet catalogs; habitable planets
Discovery of a Double Sequence of Blue Straggler Stars in the Core-collapsed Globular Cluster NGC 6256

We used a combination of high-resolution optical images acquired with the Hubble Space Telescope and near-IR wide-field data to investigate the stellar density profile and the population of blue straggler stars (BSSs) in the Galactic globular cluster NGC 6256, with the aim of probing its current stage of internal dynamical evolution. We found that the inner stellar density profile significantly deviates from a King model, while it is well reproduced by a steep cusp with a power-law slope α cusp = -0.89, thus implying that the cluster is currently in the post-core-collapse (PCC) phase. This is also confirmed by the very high segregation level of the BSS population measured through the ${A}_{\mathrm{rh}}^{+}$ parameter. We also found that the distribution of BSSs in the color-magnitude diagram is characterized by a collimated blue sequence and a red more sparse component, as already observed in three other PCC clusters. A comparison with appropriate collisional models demonstrates that the vast majority of the BSSs lying along the collimated blue sequence is consistent with a generation of coeval (1 Gyr old) stars with different masses originated by an event that highly enhanced the collisional rate of the system (i.e., the core collapse). This study confirms that the segregation level of BSSs is a powerful dynamical diagnostic also of star cluster in a very advanced stage of dynamical evolution. Moreover, it pushes forward the possibility of using the morphology of BSSs in a color-magnitude diagram as a tracer of the core-collapse and subsequent dynamical evolutionary phases.

Keywords: globular star clusters; star clusters; blue straggler stars; stellar populations
SiS Formation in the Interstellar Medium through Si+SH Gas-phase Reactions

Silicon monosulfide is an important silicon-bearing molecule detected in circumstellar envelopes and star-forming regions. Its formation and destruction routes are not well understood, partially due to the lack of detailed knowledge on the involved reactions and their rate coefficients. In this work we have calculated and modeled the potential energy surface (PES) of the HSiS system employing highly accurate multireference electronic structure methods. After obtaining an accurate analytic representation of the PES, which includes long-range energy terms in a realistic way via the DMBE method, we have calculated rate coefficients for the Si+SH → SiS+H reaction over the temperature range of 25-1000 K. This reaction is predicted to be fast, with a rate coefficient of ~1 × 10-10 cm3 s-1 at 200 K, which substantially increases for lower temperatures (the temperature dependence can be described by a modified Arrhenius equation with α = 0.770 × 10-10 cm3 s-1, β = -0.756, and γ = 9.873 K). An astrochemical gas-grain model of a shock region similar to L1157-B1 shows that the inclusion of the Si+SH reaction increases the SiS gas-phase abundance relative to H2 from 5 × 10-10 to 1.4 × 10-8, which perfectly matches the observed abundance of ~2 × 10-8.

Keywords: astrochemistry; reaction rates; chemical abundances
GRB 210121A: A Typical Fireball Burst Detected by Two Small Missions

The Chinese CubeSat Mission, Gamma Ray Integrated Detectors (GRID), recently detected its first gamma-ray burst, GRB 210121A, which was jointly observed by the Gravitational wave high-energy Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM). This burst is confirmed by several other missions, including Fermi and Insight-HXMT. We combined multimission observational data and performed a comprehensive analysis of the burst's temporal and spectral properties. Our results show that the burst is relatively special in its high peak energy, thermal-like low-energy indices, and large fluence. By putting it to the E p -E γ,iso relation diagram with assumed distance, we found that this burst can be constrained at the redshift range of [0.3, 3.0]. The thermal spectral component is also confirmed by the direct fit of the physical models to the observed spectra. Interestingly, the physical photosphere model also constrained a redshift of z ~ 0.3 for this burst, which helps us to identify a host galaxy candidate at such a distance within the location error box. Assuming that the host galaxy is real, we found that the burst can be best explained by the photosphere emission of a typical fireball with an initial radius of r 0 ~ 3.2 × 107 cm.

Keywords: gamma-ray bursts
Millimeter Dust Emission and Planetary Dynamics in the HD 106906 System

Debris disks are dusty, optically thin structures around main-sequence stars. HD 106906AB is a short-period stellar binary, host to a wide-separation planet, HD 106906b, and a debris disk. Only a few known systems include a debris disk and a directly imaged planet, and HD 106906 is the only one in which the planet is exterior to the disk. The debris disk is edge-on and highly asymmetric in scattered light. Here we resolve the disk structure at a resolution of 0.″38 (39 au) with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) at a wavelength of 1.3 mm. We model the disk with both a narrow and broad ring of material, and find that a radially broad, axisymmetric disk between radii of ~50-100 au is able to capture the structure of the observations without evidence of any asymmetry or eccentricity, other than a tentative stellocentric offset. We place stringent upper limits on both the gas and dust contents of a putative circumplanetary disk. We interpret the ALMA data in concert with scattered-light observations of the inner ring and astrometric constraints on the planet's orbit, and find that the observations are consistent with a large-separation, low-eccentricity orbit for the planet. A dynamical analysis indicates that the central binary can efficiently stabilize planetesimal orbits interior to ~100 au, which somewhat relaxes the constraints on the eccentricity and semimajor axis. The observational constraints are consistent with in-situ formation via gravitational instability but cannot rule out a scattering event as the origin for HD 106906b's current orbit.

Keywords: millimeter astronomy; debris disks; circumstellar disks; exoplanet dynamics; exoplanet formation
New Spectropolarimetric Measurements of HD 144941

We report new spectropolarimetric measurements of the magnetic massive He-strong star HD 144941, which is the most extreme member of this class of stars in terms of surface helium abundance. Twelve epochs over a time span of 1.5 times the rotation period were observed with the FOcal Reducer/low dispersion Spectrograph 2 on the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in 2021 July and August, doubling the low-resolution spectropolarimetry data available for the star.

Keywords: massive stars; early-type stars; stellar magnetic fields
New Insights into the H II Region G18.88-0.49: Hub-Filament System and Accreting Filaments

We present an analysis of multiwavelength observations of an area of 0°27 × 0°27 around the Galactic H II region G18.88-0.49, which is powered by an O-type star (age ∼ 105 yr). The Herschel column density map reveals a shell-like feature of extension ∼12 pc × 7 pc and mass ∼2.9 × 104 M⊙ around the H II region; its existence is further confirmed by the distribution of molecular (12CO, 13CO, C18O, and NH3) gas at [60, 70] km s-1. Four subregions are studied toward this shell-like feature and show a mass range of ∼0.8-10.5 × 103 M⊙. These subregions associated with dense gas are dominated by nonthermal pressure and supersonic nonthermal motions. The shell-like feature is associated with the H II region, Class I protostars, and a massive protostar candidate, illustrating the ongoing early phases of star formation (including massive stars). The massive protostar is found toward the position of the 6.7 GHz methanol maser, and is associated with outflow activity. Five parsec-scale filaments are identified in the column density and molecular maps and appear to be radially directed to the dense parts of the shell-like feature. This configuration is referred to as a "hub-filament" system. Significant velocity gradients (0.8-1.8 km s-1 pc-1) are observed along each filament, suggesting that the molecular gas flows toward the central hub along the filaments. Overall, our observational findings favor a global nonisotropic collapse scenario as discussed in Motte et al., which can explain the observed morphology and star formation in and around G18.88-0.49.

Keywords: h ii regions; interstellar medium; star formation; pre-main sequence stars
Constraining the Cosmic Merger History of Intermediate-mass Black Holes with Gravitational Wave Detectors

Intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) have not been detected beyond any reasonable doubt through either dynamical or accretion signatures. Gravitational waves (GWs) represent an unparalleled opportunity to survey the sky and detect mergers of IMBHs, making it possible for the first time to constrain their formation, growth, and merger history across cosmic time. While the current network LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA is significantly limited in detecting mergers of IMBH binaries, the next generation of ground-based observatories and space-based missions promise to shed light on the IMBH population through the detection of several events per year. Here, we assess this possibility by determining the optimal network of the next generation of GW observatories to reconstruct the IMBH merger history across cosmic time. We show that Voyager, the Einstein Telescope, and Cosmic Explorer will be able to constrain the distribution of the primary masses of merging IMBHs up to ~103 M ⊙ and with mass ratio ≳0.1, while LISA will complementary do so at higher mass and smaller mass ratios. Therefore, a network of next-generation ground-based and space-based observatories will potentially reconstruct the merger history of IMBHs. Moreover, IMBHs with masses ≲5 × 103 M ⊙ could be observed in multiband up to a redshift of z ≈ 4, ushering in a new era of GW astronomy.

Keywords: astrophysical black holes; black hole physics; black holes; intermediate-mass black holes; gravitational wave astronomy; gravitational wave detectors; gravitational wave sources; gravitational waves
Deciphering the 18 TeV Photons from GRB 221009A

On 2022 October 9, an extremely powerful gamma-ray burst, GRB 221009A, was detected by several instruments. Despite being obstructed by the Milky Way galaxy, its afterglow outburst outshone all other GRBs seen before. LHAASO detected several thousand very high energy photons extending up to 18 TeV. Detection of such energetic photons is unexpected due to the large opacity of the universe. It is possible that in the afterglow epoch, the intrinsic very high energy photon flux from the source might have increased manifolds, which could compensate for the attenuation by pair production with the extragalactic background light. We propose such a scenario and show that very high energy photons can be observed on the Earth from the interaction of very high energy protons with the seed synchrotron photons in the external forward shock region of the GRB jet.

Keywords: gamma-ray bursts; particle astrophysics
Black Hole Glimmer Signatures of Mass, Spin, and Inclination

Gravitational lensing near a black hole is strong enough that light rays can circle the event horizon multiple times. Photons emitted in multiple directions at a single event, perhaps because of localized, impulsive heating of accreting plasma, take multiple paths to a distant observer. In the Kerr geometry, each path is associated with a distinct light travel time and a distinct arrival location in the image plane, producing black hole glimmer. This sequence of arrival times and locations uniquely encodes the mass and spin of the black hole and can be understood in terms of properties of bound photon orbits. We provide a geometrically motivated treatment of Kerr glimmer and evaluate it numerically for simple hot-spot models to show that glimmer can be measured in a finite-resolution observation. We discuss potential measurement methods and implications for tests of the Kerr hypothesis.

Keywords: black hole physics; strong gravitational lensing; radiative transfer