Scattered light models of the dust shell around HD 179821     

T.M. Gledhill  M. Takami 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2001,328(1):266-276

The dust shell around the evolved star HD 179821 has been detected in scattered light in near-IR imaging polarimetry observations. Here, we subtract the contribution of the unpolarized stellar light to obtain an intrinsic linear polarization of between 30 and 40 per cent in the shell that seems to increase with radial offset from the star. The J - and K -band data are modelled using a scattering code to determine the shell parameters and dust properties. We find that the observations are well described by a spherically-symmetric distribution of dust with an r ⁻² density law, indicating that when mass-loss was occurring, the mass-loss rate was constant. The models predict that the detached nature of a spherically-symmetric, optically-thin dust shell, with a distinct inner boundary, will only be apparent in polarized flux. This is in accordance with the observations of this and other optically-thin circumstellar shells, such as IRAS 17436+5003. By fitting the shell brightness we derive an optical depth to the star that is consistent with V -band observations and that, assuming a distance of 6 kpc, gives an inner-shell radius of     , a dust number density of     at r _in and a dust mass of     . We have explored axisymmetric shell models but conclude that any deviations from spherical symmetry in the shell must be slight, with an equator-to-pole density contrast of less than 2:1. We have not been able to fit simultaneously the high linear polarizations and the small     colour excess of the shell and we attribute this to the unusual scattering properties of the dust. We suggest that the dust grains around HD 179821 either are highly elongated or consist of aggregates of smaller particles.  相似文献   

Covariant magnetoionic theory – II. Radiative transfer     

Avery Broderick  Roger Blandford 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2004,349(3):994-1008

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Polarization observations of giant radio pulses from the millisecond pulsar B1937+21 at a frequency of 600 MHz     

M. V. Popov  V. A. Soglasnov  V. I. Kondrat’ev  S. V. Kostyuk 《Astronomy Letters》2004,30(2):95-99

We performed polarization observations of giant radio pulses from the millisecond pulsar B1937+21. The observations were carried out in July 2002 with the 64-m Kalyazin radio telescope at a frequency of 600 MHz in two polarization channels with left-and right-hand circular polarizations (RCP and LCP). We used the S2 data acquisition system with a time resolution of 125 ns. The duration of an observing session was 20 min. We detected twelve giant radio pulses with peak flux densities higher than 1000 Jy; five and seven of these pulses appeared in the RCP and LCP channels, respectively. We found no event that exceeded the established detection threshold simultaneously in the two polarization channels. Thus, we may conclude that the detected giant pulses have a high degree of circular polarization, with the frequency of occurrence of RCP and LCP pulses being the same.  相似文献   

A Critical review of theoretical models of negatively polarized light scattered by atmosphereless solar system bodies     

Yu. G. Shkuratov  K. Muinonen  E. Bowell  K. Lumme  J. I. Peltoniemi  M. A. Kreslavsky  D. G. Stankevich  V. P. Tishkovetz  N. V. Opanasenko  L. Y. Melkumova 《Earth, Moon, and Planets》1994,65(3):201-246

About a dozen physical mechanisms and models aspire to explain the negative polarization of light scattered by atmosphereless celestial bodies. This is too large a number for the reliable interpretation of observational data. Through a comparative analysis of the models, our main goal is to answer the question: Does any one model have an advantage over the others? Our analysis is based on new laboratory polarimetric and photometric data as well as on theoretical results. We show that the widely used models due to Hopfield and Wolff cannot realistically explain the phase-angle dependence of the degree of polarization observed at small phase angles. The so-called interference or coherent backscattering mechanism is the most promising model. Models based on that mechanism use well-defined physical parameters to explain both negative polarization and the opposition effect. They are supported by laboratory experiments, particularly those showing enhancement of negative polarization with decreasing particle size down to the wavelength of light. According to the interference mechanism, pronounced negative branches of polarization, like those of C-class asteroids, may indicate a high degree of optical inhomogeneity of light-scattering surfaces at small scales. The mechanism also seems appropriate for treating the negative polarization and opposition effects of cometary dust comae, planetary rings, and the zodiacal light.  相似文献   

利用高光谱数据进行植被生化成分反演方法研究   总被引：3，自引：0，他引：3  

张凤丽  万余庆 《地球信息科学学报》2001,3(4):71-75

高光谱数据包含着丰富光谱信息,能够定量地分析物质成分^[1]。由高光谱数据,可以运用多元逐步线性回归方法反演植被生化组分含量,从而达到监测植被生长状况的目的^[2]。本文具体介绍了多元逐步线性回归方法,及其在氮、木质素和纤维素含量估算中的应用。  相似文献   

Statistics of the individual-pulse polarization based on propagation effects in the pulsar magnetosphere     

S. A. Petrova 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2006,368(4):1764-1772

Pulsar radio emission is modelled as a sum of two completely polarized non-orthogonal modes with the randomly varying Stokes parameters and intensity ratio. The modes are the result of polarization evolution of the original natural waves in the hot, magnetized, weakly inhomogeneous plasma of the pulsar magnetosphere. In the course of the wavemode coupling, the linearly polarized natural waves acquire purely orthogonal elliptical polarizations. Further on, as the waves pass through the cyclotron resonance, they become non-orthogonal. The pulse-to-pulse fluctuations of the final polarization characteristics and the intensity ratio of the modes are attributed to the temporal fluctuations in the plasma flow.
The model suggested allows one to reproduce the basic features of the one-dimensional distributions of the individual-pulse polarization characteristics. Besides that, the propagation origin of the pulsar polarization implies a certain correlation between the mode ellipticity and position angle. On a qualitative level, for different sets of parameters, the expected correlations appear compatible with the observed ones. Further theoretical studies are necessary to establish the quantitative correspondence of the model to the observational results and to develop a technique of diagnostics of the pulsar plasma on this basis.  相似文献   

Strong magnetic field in W75N OH maser flare     

V. I. Slysh  V. Migenes 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2006,369(3):1497-1501

A flare of OH maser emission was discovered in W75N in 2000. Its location was determined with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) to be within 110 au from one of the ultracompact H  ii regions, Very Large Array 2 (VLA2). The flare consisted of several maser spots. Four of the spots were found to form Zeeman pairs, all of them with a magnetic field strength of about 40 mG. This is the highest ever magnetic field strength found in OH masers, an order of magnitude higher than in typical OH masers. Three possible sources for the enhanced magnetic field are discussed: (i) the magnetic field of the exciting star dragged out by the stellar wind; (ii) the general interstellar field in the gas compressed by the magnetohydrodynamic shock; and (iii) the magnetic field of planets which orbit the exciting star and produce maser emission in gaseous envelopes.  相似文献   

On the influence of magnetic fields on level populations     

Z. Q. Qu  C. L. Xu  X. Y. Zhang  X. L. Yan  C. L. Jin 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2006,370(4):1790-1796

The influence of magnetic fields on the energy level populations of atoms is firstly studied by analysing the Stokes profiles of Fe  i 6302.5 forming in the solar magnetized atmosphere, with the aid of a departure factor defined to evaluate the deviation from the normal Boltzmann distribution without a magnetic field. This factor is directly related to the ratio of line-source function to the continuum one. The relationship between the departure and the magnetic field reveals an effect that the magnetic field induces an exponential increase in the level population of the lower level of Fe  i 6302.5 (Landé factor   g = 2.5  ) with the field strength. This indicates that the magnetic field can cause the redistribution of populations of those levels whose Landé factors are non-zero. Therefore, this effect should be included in the calculation of the statistical equilibrium. Secondly, an experiment utilizing the Hg5461 line in the laboratory on the Earth is carried out to reveal that the exponential relation is independent of variations in temperature, and the excitation is completely magneto-induced. Finally, the exponential relation is explained by taking account of the magnetic energy in the Boltzmann distribution.  相似文献   

The parsec-scale radio jet of BL Lac     

D. C. Gabuzda †  T. V. Cawthorne 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2003,338(2):312-322

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Spine–sheath polarization structures in four active galactic nuclei jets     

A. B. Pushkarev  D. C. Gabuzda  Yu. N. Vetukhnovskaya  V. E. Yakimov 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2005,356(3):859-871

We present the results of multifrequency (15 + 8 + 5 GHz) polarization Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations of the three BL Lacertae objects 0745+241, 1418+546 and 1652+398 together with 5-GHz VLBI Space Observatory Programme (VSOP) observations of 1418+546 and 1.6- and 5-GHz VSOP observations of the blazar 1055+018. The jets of all these sources have polarization structure transverse to the jet axis, with the polarization E vectors aligned with the jet along the jet spine and 'sheaths' of orthogonal E vectors at one or both edges of the jet. The presence of polarization aligned with the jet near the 'spine' may indicate that the jets are associated with helical B fields that propogate outward with the jet flow; the presence of orthogonal polarization near the edges of the jet may likewise be a consequence of a helical jet B field, or may be owing to an interaction with the ambient medium on parsec scales. We have tentatively detected interknot polarization in 1055+018 with E aligned with the local jet direction, consistent with the possibility that the jet of this source is associated with a helical B field.  相似文献