| 1. |
- Capitanio, L., et al.
(author)
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EREBUS: the EuRopean Extinction BUmp Survey
- 2020
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In: Experimental astronomy. - : Springer. - 0922-6435 .- 1572-9508. ; 50:1, s. 145-158
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Dust in the Interstellar Medium (ISM) is intimately linked to the life cycle of stars. Despite being of such fundamental importance to galaxy evolution, the dynamic behaviour and composition of the ISM are not yet fully understood. Observations of reddened Milky Way OB stars have revealed a strong UV extinction feature around 2175 Å and a precipitous extinction rise to the far UV along the lines of sight. Whilst the carrier(s) for this are at present still being debated, multiple laboratory studies suggest carbonate grains to be the key constituent. EREBUS is a mission concept being developed to study the composition of the ISM in both the Milky Way and Local Group Galaxies, primarily by mapping the spatial distribution of the UV extinction features. As these features are sensitive to the dust composition along the line of sight, EREBUS will provide a wealth of information about the spatial distribution and dynamic behaviour of the carrier(s). The mission proposes to deploy a satellite observatory equipped with a coarse UV spectrograph to map the extinction curve variability in the Milky Way in 3 dimensions and in the Local Group in 2 dimensions. In this paper, we discuss the scientific goals for the project, discuss a proposed observation strategy using an iterative process to develop a hierarchical map, and finally outline the instrument requirements and preliminary spacecraft architecture.
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| 2. |
- Anderson, Richard I., et al.
(author)
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VELOcities of CEpheids (VELOCE) : I. High-precision radial velocities of Cepheids
- 2024
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - 0004-6361. ; 686
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the first data release of VELOcities of CEpheids (VELOCE), dedicated to measuring the high-precision radial velocities (RVs) of Galactic classical Cepheids (henceforth, Cepheids). The first data release (VELOCE DR1) comprises 18 225 RV measurements of 258 bona fide classical Cepheids on both hemispheres collected mainly between 2010 and 2022, along with 1161 observations of 164 stars, most of which had previously been misclassified as Cepheids. The median per-observation RV uncertainty for Cepheids is 0.037 km s-1 and reaches 2 m s-1 for the brightest stars observed with Coralie. Non-variable standard stars were used to characterize RV zero-point stability and to provide a base for future cross-calibrations. We determined zero-point differences between VELOCE and 31 literature data sets using template fitting, which we also used to investigate linear period changes of 146 Cepheids. In total, 76 spectroscopic binary Cepheids and 14 candidate binary Cepheids were identified using VELOCE data alone, which are investigated in detail in a companion Paper (VELOCE II). VELOCE DR1 provides a number of new insights into the pulsational variability of Cepheids, most importantly: a) the most detailed description of the Hertzsprung progression based on RVs to date; b) the identification of double-peaked bumps in the pulsation curve; and c) clear evidence that virtually all Cepheids feature spectroscopic variability signals that lead to modulated RV variability at the level of tens to hundreds of m s-1 and that cannot be satisfactorily modeled using single-periodic Fourier series. We identified 36 stars exhibiting such modulated variability, of which 4 also exhibit orbital motion. Linear radius variations depend strongly on pulsation period and a steep increase in slope of the ΔR/p vs. log P-relation is found near 10 days. This effect, combined with significant RV amplitude differences at fixed period, challenges the existence of a tight relation between Baade-Wesselink projection factors and pulsation periods. We investigated the accuracy of RV time series measurements, Uγ, and RV amplitudes published by Gaia's third data release (Gaia DR3) and determined an offset of 0.65 ± 0.11 km s-1 relative to VELOCE. Whenever possible, we recommend adopting a single set of template correlation parameters for distinct classes of large-amplitude variable stars to avoid systematic offsets in Uγ among stars belonging to the same class. The peak-to-peak amplitudes of Gaia RVs exhibit significant (16%) dispersion. Potential differences of RV amplitudes require further inspection, notably in the context of projection factor calibration.
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| 3. |
- Rockström, Johan, et al.
(author)
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The unfolding water drama in the Anthropocene : towards a resilience-based perspective on water for global sustainability
- 2014
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In: Ecohydrology. - : Wiley. - 1936-0584 .- 1936-0592. ; 7:5, s. 1249-1261
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The human influence on the global hydrological cycle is now the dominant force behind changes in water resources across the world and in regulating the resilience of the Earth system. The rise in human pressures on global freshwater resources is in par with other anthropogenic changes in the Earth system (from climate to ecosystem change), which has prompted science to suggest that humanity has entered a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene. This paper focuses on the critical role of water for resilience of social-ecological systems across scales, by avoiding major regime shifts away from stable environmental conditions, and in safeguarding life-support systems for human wellbeing. It highlights the dramatic increase of water crowding: near-future challenges for global water security and expansion of food production in competition with carbon sequestration and biofuel production. It addresses the human alterations of rainfall stability, due to both land-use changes and climate change, the ongoing overuse of blue water, reflected in river depletion, expanding river basin closure, groundwater overexploitation and water pollution risks. The rising water turbulence in the Anthropocene changes the water research and policy agenda, from a water-resource efficiency to a water resilience focus. This includes integrated land and water stewardship to sustain wetness-dependent ecological functions at the landscape scale and a stronger emphasis on green water management for ecosystem services. A new paradigm of water governance emerges, encouraging land-use practices that explicitly take account of the multifunctional roles of water, with adequate attention to planetary freshwater boundaries and cross-scale interactions.
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