Multi-wavelength observations of Asteroid 2100 Ra-Shalom     

Michael K. Shepard  Beth Ellen Clark  Lance A.M. Benner  Jon D. Giorgini  Kandy Jarvis  Lucy F. Lim  James Bell  Andrew Rivkin  Daniel Scheeres 《Icarus》2008,193(1):20-38

We observed near-Earth asteroid (NEA) 2100 Ra-Shalom over a six-year period, obtaining rotationally resolved spectra in the visible, near-infrared, thermal-infrared, and radar wavelengths. We find that Ra-Shalom has an effective diameter of Deff=2.3±0.2 km, rotation period P=19.793±0.001 h, visual albedo pv=0.13±0.03, radar albedo , and polarization ratio μc=0.25±0.04. We used our radar observations to generate a three-dimensional shape model which shows several structural features of interest. Based on our thermal observations, Ra-Shalom has a high thermal inertia of ∼10³ J m⁻² s^−0.5 K⁻¹, consistent with a coarse or rocky surface and the inferences of others [Harris, A.W., Davies, J.K., Green, S.F., 1998. Icarus 135, 441-450; Delbo, M., Harris, A.W., Binzel, R.P., Pravec, P., Davies, J.K., 2003. Icarus 166, 116-130]. Our spectral data indicate that Ra-Shalom is a K-class asteroid and we find excellent agreement between our spectra and laboratory spectra of the CV3 meteorite Grosnaja. Our spectra show rotation-dependent variations consistent with global variations in grain size. Our radar observations show rotation-dependent variations in radar albedo consistent with global variations in the thickness of a relatively thin regolith.  相似文献   

The Huygens scientific data archive: Technical overview     

Olivier Witasse  Lyle Huber  Jean-Pierre Lebreton  David Heather  John Zarnecki  Roland Trautner  Piero Leon Stoppato  Chuck See  Cyril Pennanech  Lisa McFarlane  Bobby Kazeminejad  Brijen Hathi  John Haberman  Francesca Ferri  Lyn Doose  Giacomo Colombatti  Michael Bird  Alessio Aboudan 《Planetary and Space Science》2008,56(5):770-777

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Gemini/GMOS spectroscopy of the spheroid and globular cluster system of NGC 3923     

Mark A. Norris  Ray M. Sharples  Terry Bridges  Karl Gebhardt  Duncan A. Forbes  Robert Proctor  Favio Raul Faifer  Juan Carlos Forte  Michael A. Beasley  Stephen E. Zepf  David A. Hanes 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2008,385(1):40-52

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The dark matter environment of the Abell 901/902 supercluster: a weak lensing analysis of the HST STAGES survey     

Catherine Heymans  Meghan E. Gray  Chien Y. Peng  Ludovic Van Waerbeke  Eric F. Bell  Christian Wolf  David Bacon  Michael Balogh  Fabio D. Barazza  Marco Barden  Asmus Böhm  John A. R. Caldwell  Boris Häußler  Knud Jahnke  Shardha Jogee  Eelco van Kampen  Kyle Lane  Daniel H. McIntosh  Klaus Meisenheimer  Yannick Mellier  Sebastian F. Sánchez  y N. Taylor  Lutz Wisotzki  Xianzhong Zheng 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2008,385(3):1431-1442

We present a high-resolution dark matter reconstruction of the   z = 0.165  Abell 901/902 supercluster from a weak lensing analysis of the Hubble Space Telescope STAGES survey. We detect the four main structures of the supercluster at high significance, resolving substructure within and between the clusters. We find that the distribution of dark matter is well traced by the cluster galaxies, with the brightest cluster galaxies marking out the strongest peaks in the dark matter distribution. We also find a significant extension of the dark matter distribution of Abell 901a in the direction of an infalling X-ray group Abell 901α. We present mass, mass-to-light and mass-to-stellar mass ratio measurements of the structures and substructures that we detect. We find no evidence for variation of the mass-to-light and mass-to-stellar mass ratio between the different clusters. We compare our space-based lensing analysis with an earlier ground-based lensing analysis of the supercluster to demonstrate the importance of space-based imaging for future weak lensing dark matter 'observations'.  相似文献   

AGB variables and the Mira period–luminosity relation     

Patricia A. Whitelock  Michael W. Feast  Floor van Leeuwen 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2008,386(1):313-323

Published data for large-amplitude asymptotic giant branch variables in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) are re-analysed to establish the constants for an infrared ( K ) period–luminosity relation of the form   M _K =ρ[log  P − 2.38]+δ  . A slope of  ρ=−3.51 ± 0.20  and a zero-point of  δ=−7.15 ± 0.06  are found for oxygen-rich Miras (if a distance modulus of 18.39 ± 0.05 is used for the LMC). Assuming this slope is applicable to Galactic Miras we discuss the zero-point for these stars using the revised Hipparcos parallaxes together with published very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) parallaxes for OH masers and Miras in globular clusters. These result in a mean zero-point of  δ=−7.25 ± 0.07  for O-rich Galactic Miras. The zero-point for Miras in the Galactic bulge is not significantly different from this value.
Carbon-rich stars are also discussed and provide results that are consistent with the above numbers, but with higher uncertainties. Within the uncertainties there is no evidence for a significant difference between the period–luminosity relation zero-points for systems with different metallicity.  相似文献   

Spitzer observations of M33 and the hot star, H ii region connection     

Robert H. Rubin  Janet P. Simpson  Sean W. J. Colgan  Reginald J. Dufour  Gregory Brunner  Ian A. McNabb  Adalbert W. A. Pauldrach  Edwin F. Erickson  Michael R. Haas  Robert I. Citron 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2008,387(1):45-62

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Comparison of Five Numerical Codes for Automated Tracing of Coronal Loops     

Markus J. Aschwanden  Jong Kwan Lee  G. Allen Gary  Michael Smith  Bernd Inhester 《Solar physics》2008,248(2):359-377

The three-dimensional (3D) modeling of coronal loops and filaments requires algorithms that automatically trace curvilinear features in solar EUV or soft X-ray images. We compare five existing algorithms that have been developed and customized to trace curvilinear features in solar images: i) the oriented-connectivity method (OCM), which is an extension of the Strous pixel-labeling algorithm (developed by Lee, Newman, and Gary); ii) the dynamic aperture-based loop-segmentation method (developed by Lee, Newman, and Gary); iii) unbiased detection of curvilinear structures (developed by Steger, Raghupathy, and Smith); iv) the oriented-direction method (developed by Aschwanden); and v) ridge detection by automated scaling (developed by Inhester). We test the five existing numerical codes with a TRACE image that shows a bipolar active region and contains over 100 discernable loops. We evaluate the performance of the five codes by comparing the cumulative distribution of loop lengths, the median and maximum loop length, the completeness or detection efficiency, the accuracy, and flux sensitivity. These algorithms are useful for the reconstruction of the 3D geometry of coronal loops from stereoscopic observations with the STEREO spacecraft, or for quantitative comparisons of observed EUV loop geometries with (nonlinear force-free) magnetic field extrapolation models.  相似文献   

Nonlinear Force-Free Modeling of Coronal Magnetic Fields. II. Modeling a Filament Arcade and Simulated Chromospheric and Photospheric Vector Fields     

Thomas R. Metcalf  Marc L. DeRosa  Carolus J. Schrijver  Graham Barnes  Adriaan A. van Ballegooijen  Thomas Wiegelmann  Michael S. Wheatland  Gherardo Valori  James M. McTtiernan 《Solar physics》2008,247(2):269-299

We compare a variety of nonlinear force-free field (NLFFF) extrapolation algorithms, including optimization, magneto-frictional, and Grad – Rubin-like codes, applied to a solar-like reference model. The model used to test the algorithms includes realistic photospheric Lorentz forces and a complex field including a weakly twisted, right helical flux bundle. The codes were applied to both forced “photospheric” and more force-free “chromospheric” vector magnetic field boundary data derived from the model. When applied to the chromospheric boundary data, the codes are able to recover the presence of the flux bundle and the field’s free energy, though some details of the field connectivity are lost. When the codes are applied to the forced photospheric boundary data, the reference model field is not well recovered, indicating that the combination of Lorentz forces and small spatial scale structure at the photosphere severely impact the extrapolation of the field. Preprocessing of the forced photospheric boundary does improve the extrapolations considerably for the layers above the chromosphere, but the extrapolations are sensitive to the details of the numerical codes and neither the field connectivity nor the free magnetic energy in the full volume are well recovered. The magnetic virial theorem gives a rapid measure of the total magnetic energy without extrapolation though, like the NLFFF codes, it is sensitive to the Lorentz forces in the coronal volume. Both the magnetic virial theorem and the Wiegelmann extrapolation, when applied to the preprocessed photospheric boundary, give a magnetic energy which is nearly equivalent to the value derived from the chromospheric boundary, but both underestimate the free energy above the photosphere by at least a factor of two. We discuss the interpretation of the preprocessed field in this context. When applying the NLFFF codes to solar data, the problems associated with Lorentz forces present in the low solar atmosphere must be recognized: the various codes will not necessarily converge to the correct, or even the same, solution. On 07/07/2007, the NLFFF team was saddened by the news that Tom Metcalf had died as the result of an accident. We remain grateful for having had the opportunity to benefit from his unwavering dedication to the problems encountered in attempting to understand the Sun’s magnetic field; Tom had completed this paper several months before his death, leading the team through the many steps described above.  相似文献   

Climate, weather, and north polar observations from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Color Imager     

Michael C. Malin  Bruce A. Cantor  Robert M. Haberle  Peter C. Thomas  James F. Bell III 《Icarus》2008,194(2):501-512

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter observes Mars from a nearly circular, polar orbit. From this vantage point, the Mars Color Imager extends the ∼5 Mars years record of Mars Global Surveyor global, visible-wavelength multi-color observations of meteorological events and adds measurements at three additional visible and two ultraviolet wavelengths. Observations of the global distribution of ozone (which anti-correlates with water vapor) and water ice and dust clouds allow tracking of atmospheric circulation. Regional and local observations emphasize smaller scale atmospheric dynamics, especially those related to dust lifting and subsequent motion. Polar observations detail variations related to the polar heat budget, including changes in polar frosts and ices, and storms generated at high thermal contrast boundaries.  相似文献   

G. Edward Danielson, Jr. (1939-2005)     

Michael A. Ravine 《Icarus》2008,194(2):399-400

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