| 41. |
- Vigren, Erik, et al.
(author)
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Model-Observation Comparisons Of Electron Number Densities In The Coma Of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko During 2015 January
- 2016
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 152:3
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- During 2015 January 9-11, at a heliocentric distance of similar to 2.58-2.57 au, the ESA Rosetta spacecraft resided at a cometocentric distance of similar to 28 km from the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, sweeping the terminator at northern latitudes of 43 degrees N-58 degrees N. Measurements by the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis/Comet Pressure Sensor (ROSINA/COPS) provided neutral number densities. We have computed modeled electron number densities using the neutral number densities as input into a Field Free Chemistry Free model, assuming H2O dominance and ion-electron pair formation by photoionization only. A good agreement (typically within 25%) is found between the modeled electron number densities and those observed from measurements by the Mutual Impedance Probe (RPC/MIP) and the Langmuir Probe (RPC/LAP), both being subsystems of the Rosetta Plasma Consortium. This indicates that ions along the nucleus-spacecraft line were strongly coupled to the neutrals, moving radially outward with about the same speed. Such a statement, we propose, can be further tested by observations of H3O+/H2O+ number density ratios and associated comparisons with model results.
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| 42. |
- Agarwal, Sahil, et al.
(author)
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Minimal Data Fidelity for Stellar Feature and Companion Detection
- 2022
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 163:1, s. 6-
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Technological advances in instrumentation have led to an exponential increase in exoplanet detection and scrutiny of stellar features such as spots and faculae. While the spots and faculae enable us to understand the stellar dynamics, exoplanets provide us with a glimpse into stellar evolution. While the ubiquity of noise (e.g., telluric, instrumental, or photonic) is unavoidable, combining this with increased spectrographic resolution compounds technological challenges. To account for these noise sources and resolution issues, we use a temporal multifractal framework to study data from the Spot Oscillation And Planet 2.0 tool, which simulates a stellar spectrum in the presence of a spot, a facula or a planet. Given these controlled simulations, we vary the resolution as well as the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) to obtain a lower limit on the resolution and S/N required to robustly detect features. We show that a spot and a facula with a 1% coverage of the stellar disk can be robustly detected for a S/N (per pixel) of 35 and 60, respectively, for any spectral resolution above 20,000, while a planet with a radial velocity of 10 m s(-1) can be detected for a S/N (per pixel) of 600. Rather than viewing noise as an impediment, our approach uses noise as a source of information.
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| 43. |
- Alsubai, Khalid, et al.
(author)
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Qatar Exoplanet Survey : Qatar-3b, Qatar-4b, and Qatar-5b
- 2017
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 153:4
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report the discovery of Qatar-3b, Qatar-4b, and Qatar-5b, three new transiting planets identified by the Qatar Exoplanet Survey. The three planets belong to the hot Jupiter family, with orbital periods of P-Q3b = 2.50792 days, P-Q4b = 1.80539 days, and P-Q5b = 2.87923 days. Follow-up spectroscopic observations reveal the masses of the planets to be M-Q3b = 4.31 +/- 0.47 M-J, M-Q4b = 6.10 +/- 0.54 M-J, and M-Q5b = 4.32 +/- 0.18 M-J, while model fits to the transit light curves yield radii of R-Q3b = 1.096 +/- 0.14 RJ, R-Q4b = 1.135 +/- 0.11 R-J, and R-Q5b = 1.107 +/- 0.064 R-J. The host stars are low-mass main sequence stars with masses and radii M-Q3 = 1.145 +/- 0.064 M circle dot, M-Q4 = 0.896 +/- 0.048 M circle dot, M-Q5 = 1.128 +/- 0.056 M circle dot and R-Q3 = 1.272 +/- 0.14 R circle dot, R-Q4 = 0.849 +/- 0.063 R circle dot, and R-Q5 = 1.076 +/- 0.051 R circle dot for Qatar-3, 4, and 5 respectively. The V magnitudes of the three host stars are V-Q3 = 12.88, V-Q4 = 13.60, and V-Q5 = 12.82. All three new planets can be classified as heavy hot Jupiters (M > 4 M-J).
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| 44. |
- Amada, K., et al.
(author)
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Discovery of SiO Masers in the "Water Fountain" Source IRAS 16552-3050
- 2022
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 1538-3881 .- 0004-6256. ; 163:2
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this paper, we report new detections of SiO v = 1 and v = 2 J = 1 -> 0 masers in the "water fountain" source IRAS 16552-3050, which was observed with the Nobeyama 45 m telescope during 2021 March-April. Water fountains are evolved stars whose H2O maser spectra trace high-velocity outflows of >100 km s(-1). This is the second known case of SiO masers in a water fountain, after their prototypical source, W 43A. These SiO masers should shed light on the evolutionary status of this category of evolved stars, which are likely to be at the end of the asymptotic giant branch phase, when the star exhibits the most copious stellar mass loss, followed by development of the complicated morphologies of planetary nebulae. The origin of a large (up to 25 km s(-1)) velocity offset of the SiO masers with respect to the systemic velocity derived from the spectrum of CO J = 2 -> 1 line is discussed here.
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| 45. |
- Aronson, Erik, et al.
(author)
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Model-independent Exoplanet Transit Spectroscopy
- 2018
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In: Astronomical Journal. - : IOP PUBLISHING LTD. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 155:5
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We propose a new data analysis method for obtaining transmission spectra of exoplanet atmospheres and brightness variation across the stellar disk from transit observations. The new method is capable of recovering exoplanet atmosphere absorption spectra and stellar specific intensities without relying on theoretical models of stars and planets. We simultaneously fit both stellar specific intensity and planetary radius directly to transit light curves. This allows stellar models to be removed from the data analysis. Furthermore, we use a data quality weighted filtering technique to achieve an optimal trade-off between spectral resolution and reconstruction fidelity homogenizing the signal-to-noise ratio across the wavelength range. Such an approach is more efficient than conventional data binning onto a low-resolution wavelength grid. We demonstrate that our analysis is capable of reproducing results achieved by using an explicit quadratic limb-darkening equation and that the filtering technique helps eliminate spurious spectral features in regions with strong telluric absorption. The method is applied to the VLT FORS2 observations of the exoplanets GJ 1214 b and WASP-49 b, and our results are in agreement with previous studies. Comparisons between obtained stellar specific intensity and numerical models indicates that the method is capable of accurately reconstructing the specific intensity. The proposed method enables more robust characterization of exoplanetary atmospheres by separating derivation of planetary transmission and stellar specific intensity spectra (that is model-independent) from chemical and physical interpretation.
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| 46. |
- Baron, Frédérique, et al.
(author)
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WEIRD : Wide-orbit Exoplanet Search with InfraRed Direct Imaging
- 2018
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 156:3
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report results from the Wide-orbit Exoplanet search with InfraRed Direct imaging, or WEIRD, a survey designed to search for Jupiter-like companions on very wide orbits (1000-5000 au) around young stars (<120 Myr) that are known members of moving groups in the solar neighborhood (<70 pc). Companions that share the same age, distance, and metallicity as their host while being on large enough orbits to be studied as isolated objects make prime targets for spectroscopic observations, and they are valuable benchmark objects for exoplanet atmosphere models. The search strategy is based on deep imaging in multiple bands across the near-infrared domain For all 177 objects of our sample, z(ab)', J, [3.6], and [4.5] images were obtained with CFHT/MegaCam, GEMINI/GMOS, CFHT/WIRCam, GEMINI/Flamingos-2, and Spitzer IIRAC. Using this set of four images per target, we searched for sources with red z(ab)' and [3.6]-[4.5] colors, typically reaching good completeness down to 2 M-J(up) companions, while going down to 1 M-J(up) for some targets, at separations of 1000-5000 au. The search yielded four candidate companions with the expected colors, but they were all rejected through follow-up proper motion observations. Our results constrain the occurrence of 1-13 M(J)(u)p planetary-mass companions on orbits with a semimajor axis between 1000 and 5000 au at less than 0.03, with a 95% confidence level.
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| 47. |
- Blanton, Michael R., et al.
(author)
-
Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV : Mapping the Milky Way, Nearby Galaxies, and the Distant Universe
- 2017
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : IOP Publishing Ltd. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 154:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We describe the Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV (SDSS-IV), a project encompassing three major spectroscopic programs. The Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment 2 (APOGEE-2) is observing hundreds of thousands of Milky Way stars at high resolution and. high signal-to-noise ratios in the near-infrared. The Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey is obtaining spatially resolved spectroscopy for thousands of nearby galaxies (median z similar to 0.03). The extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (eBOSS) is mapping the galaxy, quasar, and neutral gas distributions between z similar to 0.6 and 3.5 to constrain cosmology using baryon acoustic oscillations, redshift space distortions, and the shape of the power spectrum. Within eBOSS, we are conducting two major subprograms: the SPectroscopic IDentification of eROSITA Sources (SPIDERS), investigating X-ray AGNs. and galaxies in X-ray clusters, and the Time Domain Spectroscopic Survey (TDSS), obtaining spectra of variable sources. All programs use the 2.5 m Sloan Foundation Telescope at the. Apache Point Observatory; observations there began in Summer 2014. APOGEE-2 also operates a second near-infrared spectrograph at the 2.5 m du Pont Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, with observations beginning in early 2017. Observations at both facilities are scheduled to continue through 2020. In keeping with previous SDSS policy, SDSS-IV provides regularly scheduled public data releases; the first one, Data Release 13, was made available in 2016 July.
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| 48. |
- Bolin, Bryce T., et al.
(author)
-
Characterization of the Nucleus, Morphology, and Activity of Interstellar Comet 2I/Borisov by Optical and Near-infrared GROWTH, Apache Point, IRTF, ZTF, and Keck Observations
- 2020
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 160:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present visible and near-infrared (NIR) photometric and spectroscopic observations of interstellar object (ISO) 2I/Borisov taken from 2019 September 10 to 2019 December 20 using the GROWTH, the Apache Point Observatory Astrophysical Research Consortium 3.5 m, and the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility 3.0 m combined with pre- and postdiscovery observations of 2I obtained by the Zwicky Transient Facility from 2019 March 17 to 2019 May 5. Comparison with imaging of distant solar system comets shows an object very similar to mildly active solar system comets with an outgassing rate of similar to 10(27)mol s(-1). The photometry, taken in filters spanning the visible and NIR range, shows a gradual brightening trend of similar to 0.03 mag day(-1)since 2019 September 10 UTC for a reddish object becoming neutral in the NIR. The light curve from recent and prediscovery data reveals a brightness trend suggesting the recent onset of significant H2O sublimation with the comet being active with super volatiles such as CO at heliocentric distances >6 au consistent with its extended morphology. Using the advanced capability to significantly reduce the scattered light from the coma enabled by high-resolution NIR images from Keck adaptive optics taken on 2019 October 4, we estimate a diameter for 2I's nucleus of less than or similar to 1.4 km. We use the size estimates of 1I/'Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov to roughly estimate the slope of the ISO size distribution, resulting in a slope of similar to 3.4 1.2, similar to solar system comets and bodies produced from collisional equilibrium.
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| 49. |
- Brahm, R., et al.
(author)
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HATS-43b, HATS-44b, HATS-45b, and HATS-46b : Four Short-period Transiting Giant Planets in the Neptune-Jupiter Mass Range
- 2018
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 155:3
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report the discovery of four short-period extrasolar planets transiting moderately bright stars from photometric measurements of the HATSouth network coupled to additional spectroscopic and photometric follow-up observations. While the planet masses range from 0.26 to 0.90 M-J, the radii are all approximately a Jupiter radii, resulting in a wide range of bulk densities. The orbital period of the planets ranges from 2.7 days to 4.7 days, with HATS-43b having an orbit that appears to be marginally non-circular (e = 0.173 +/- 0.089). HATS-44 is notable for having a high metallicity ([Fe/H]= 0.320 +/- 0.071). The host stars spectral types range from late F to early K, and all of them are moderately bright (13.3 < V < 14.4), allowing the execution of future detailed follow-up observations. HATS-43b and HATS-46b, with expected transmission signals of 2350 ppm and 1500 ppm, respectively, are particularly well suited targets for atmospheric characterization via transmission spectroscopy.
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| 50. |
- Burris, William A., et al.
(author)
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IRAS 00450+7401 and the Mid-infrared Fade/Burst Cycle of R Coronae Borealis-type Stars
- 2023
-
In: Astronomical Journal. - 1538-3881 .- 0004-6256. ; 166:2
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present optical and infrared imaging and spectroscopy of the R Coronae Borealis-type (R Cor Bor) star IRAS 00450+7401. Optical spectra further confirm its classification as a cool R Cor Bor system, having a hydrogen-deficient carbon star spectral subclass of HdC5 or later. Mid-infrared spectroscopy reveals the typical ∼8 μm “hump” seen in other R Cor Bor stars and no other features. A modern-epoch spectral energy distribution shows bright emission from hot dust having T dust > 600 K. Historical infrared data reveal generally cooler dust color temperatures combined with long-term fading trends, but provide no discernible correlation between flux level and temperature. Investigating the most mid-infrared variable R Cor Bor stars found in IRAS, AKARI, and WISE data reveals similar fading trends, bursts that can show a factor of up to 10 change in flux density between epochs, and blackbody-fit dust color temperatures that span 400-1300 K. While some R Cor Bor stars such as IRAS 00450+7401 appear to undergo fade/burst cycles in the mid-infrared, significant gaps in temporal coverage prevent conclusively identifying any preferred timescale for their mid-infrared variability and circumstellar dust temperature changes.
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