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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 109 records · Page 6
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DOE OSTI2014

Interstellar protons in the TeV γ-ray SNR HESS J1731-347: Possible evidence for the coexistence of hadronic and leptonic γ-rays

HESS J1731-347 (G353.6-0.7) is one of the TeV γ-ray supernova remnants (SNRs) that shows the shell-like morphology. We have made a new analysis of the interstellar protons toward the SNR by using both the {sup 12}CO(J = 1-0) and H I data sets. The results indicate that the TeV γ-ray shell shows significant spatial correlation with the interstellar protons at a velocity range from –90 km s{sup –1} to –75 km s{sup –1}. The total mass of the interstellar medium (ISM) protons is estimated to be 6.4 × 10{sup 4} M {sub ☉}, 25% of which is atomic gas, and the distance corresponding to the velocity range is ∼5.2 kpc, a factor of 2 larger than the previous figure, 3 kpc. We have identified the cold H I gas observed as self-absorption which shows significant correspondence with the northeastern γ-ray peak. While the good correspondence between the ISM protons and TeV γ-rays in the north of the SNR lends support to the hadronic scenario for the TeV γ-rays, the southern part of the shell shows a break in the correspondence; in particular, the southwestern rim of the SNR shell shows a significant decrease of the interstellar protons by a factor of two. We argue that this discrepancy can be explained due to leptonic γ-rays because this region coincides well with the bright shell that emits non-thermal radio continuum emission and non-thermal X-rays, suggesting that the γ-rays of HESS J1713-347 consist of both the hadronic and leptonic components. The leptonic contribution corresponds to ∼20% of the total γ-rays.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Formation of ketene (H{sub 2}CCO) in interstellar analogous methane (CH{sub 4})-carbon monoxide (CO) ices: A combined FTIR and reflectron time-of-flight mass spectroscopic study

The formation of ketene (H{sub 2}CCO) in methane-carbon monoxide (CH{sub 4}-CO) ices was investigated upon its exposure to ionizing radiation in the form of energetic electrons at 5.5 K. The radiation-induced nonthermal equilibrium processing of these ices was monitored online and in situ via infrared spectroscopy complimented with post-irradiation temperature programmed desorption studies exploiting highly sensitive reflectron time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ReTOF) coupled with single photon fragment-free photo ionization (PI) at 10.49 eV. The detection of ketene in irradiated (isotopically labeled) methane-carbon monoxide ices was confirmed via the ν{sub 2} infrared absorption band and substantiated during the warm-up phase based on sublimation profiles obtained from the ReTOF-PI spectra of the corresponding isotopic masses. The experiments conducted with the mixed isotopic ices of {sup 12}CD{sub 4}-{sup 13}CO provide clear evidence of the formation of at least two ketene isotopomers (D{sub 2} {sup 12}C{sup 13}CO and D{sub 2} {sup 13}C{sup 13}CO), allowing for the derivation of two competing formation pathways. We have also proposed underlying reaction mechanisms to the formation of ketene based on kinetic fitting of the temporal evolution of the ketene isotopomers.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Neutral interstellar helium parameters based on Ulysses/GAS and IBEX-LO observations: What are the reasons for the differences?

Recent analysis of the interstellar helium fluxes measured in 2009-2010 at Earth's orbit by the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) has suggested that the interstellar velocity (both direction and magnitude) is inconsistent with that derived previously from Ulysses/GAS observations made in the period from 1990 to 2002 at 1.5-5.5 AU from the Sun. Both results are model dependent, and models that were used in the analyses are different. In this paper, we perform an analysis of the Ulysses/GAS and IBEX-Lo data using our state-of-the-art three-dimensional time-dependent kinetic model of interstellar atoms in the heliosphere. For the first time, we analyze Ulysses/GAS data from year 2007, the closest available Ulysses/GAS observations in time to the IBEX observations. We show that the interstellar velocity derived from the Ulysses 2007 data is consistent with previous Ulysses results and does not agree with the velocity derived from IBEX. This conclusion is very robust since, as is shown in the paper, it does not depend on the ionization rates adopted in theoretical models. We conclude that Ulysses data are not consistent with the new local interstellar medium (LISM) velocity vector from IBEX. In contrast, IBEX data, in principle, could be explained with the LISM velocity vector derived from the Ulysses data. This is possible for the models where the interstellar temperature increased from 6300 K to 9000 K. There is a need to perform further studies of possible reasons for the broadening of the helium signal core measured by IBEX, which could be an instrumental effect or could be due to unconsidered physical processes.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Magnetically aligned H I fibers and the rolling hough transform

We present observations of a new group of structures in the diffuse Galactic interstellar medium (ISM): slender, linear H I features we dub 'fibers' that extend for many degrees at high Galactic latitude. To characterize and measure the extent and strength of these fibers, we present the Rolling Hough Transform, a new machine vision method for parameterizing the coherent linearity of structures in the image plane. With this powerful new tool we show that the fibers are oriented along the interstellar magnetic field as probed by starlight polarization. We find that these low column density (N{sub H} {sub I}≃5×10{sup 18} cm{sup –2}) fiber features are most likely a component of the local cavity wall, about 100 pc away. The H I data we use to demonstrate this alignment at high latitude are from the Galactic Arecibo L-Band Feed Array H I (GALFA-H I) Survey and the Parkes Galactic All Sky Survey. We find better alignment in the higher resolution GALFA-H I data, where the fibers are more visually evident. This trend continues in our investigation of magnetically aligned linear features in the Riegel-Crutcher H I cold cloud, detected in the Southern Galactic Plane Survey. We propose an application of the RHT for estimating the field strength in such a cloud, based on the Chandrasekhar-Fermi method. We conclude that data-driven, quantitative studies of ISM morphology can be very powerful predictors of underlying physical quantities.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Radio variability survey of very low luminosity protostars

Ten very low luminosity objects were observed multiple times in the 8.5 GHz continuum in search of protostellar magnetic activities. A radio outburst of IRAM 04191+1522 IRS was detected, and the variability timescale was about 20 days or shorter. The results of this survey and archival observations suggest that IRAM 04191+1522 IRS is in active states about half the time. Archival data show that L1014 IRS and L1148 IRS were detectable previously and suggest that at least 20%-30% of very low luminosity protostars are radio variables. Considering the variability timescale and flux level of IRAM 04191+1522 IRS and the previous detection of the circular polarization of L1014 IRS, the radio outbursts of these protostars are probably caused by magnetic flares. However, IRAM 04191+1522 IRS is too young and small to develop an internal convective dynamo. If the detected radio emission is indeed coming from magnetic flares, the discovery implies that the flares may be caused by the fossil magnetic fields of interstellar origin.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Nuclear enhancement of the photon yield in cosmic ray interactions

The concept of the nuclear enhancement factor has been used since the beginning of γ-ray astronomy. It provides a simple and convenient way to account for the contribution of nuclei (A > 1) in cosmic rays (CRs) and in the interstellar medium (ISM) to the diffuse γ-ray emission. An accurate treatment of the dominant emission process, such as hadronic interactions of CRs with the ISM, enables one to study CR acceleration processes and CR propagation in the ISM, and provides a reliable background model for searches of new phenomena. The Fermi Large Area Telescope launched in 2008 provides excellent quality data in a wide energy range 30 MeV-1 TeV where the diffuse emission accounts for the majority of photons. Exploiting its data to the fullest requires a new study of the processes of γ-ray production in hadronic interactions. In this paper we point out that several commonly used studies of the nuclear enhancement factor fail to account for the spectrally averaged energy loss fraction which ensures that the energy fraction transferred to photons is averaged properly with the spectra of CR species. We present a new calculation of the spectrally averaged energy loss fraction and the nuclear enhancement factor using the QGSJET-II-04 and EPOS-LHC interaction models.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

The census of complex organic molecules in the solar-type protostar IRAS16293-2422

Complex organic molecules (COMs) are considered to be crucial molecules, since they are connected with organic chemistry, at the basis of terrestrial life. More pragmatically, they are molecules which in principle are difficult to synthesize in harsh interstellar environments and, therefore, are a crucial test for astrochemical models. Current models assume that several COMs are synthesized on lukewarm grain surfaces (≳30-40 K) and released in the gas phase at dust temperatures of ≳100 K. However, recent detections of COMs in ≲20 K gas demonstrate that we still need important pieces to complete the puzzle of COMs formation. Here, we present a complete census of the oxygen- and nitrogen-bearing COMs, previously detected in different Interstellar Medium (ISM) regions, toward the solar-type protostar IRAS16293-2422. The census was obtained from the millimeter-submillimeter unbiased spectral survey TIMASSS. Of the 29 COMs searched for, 6 were detected: methyl cyanide, ketene, acetaldehyde, formamide, dimethyl ether, and methyl formate. Multifrequency analysis of the last five COMs provides clear evidence that they are present in the cold (≲30 K) envelope of IRAS16293-2422, with abundances of 0.03-2 × 10{sup –10}. Our data do not allow us to support the hypothesis that the COMs abundance increases with increasing dust temperature in the cold envelope, as expected if COMs were predominately formed on lukewarm grain surfaces. Finally, when also considering other ISM sources, we find a strong correlation over five orders of magnitude between methyl formate and dimethyl ether, and methyl formate and formamide abundances, which may point to a link between these two couples of species in cold and warm gas.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Instability of the heliopause driven by charge exchange interactions

The stability of the heliopause that separates the tenuous hot magnetized heliosheath plasma from the dense cool local interstellar magnetized plasma is examined using a fully general model that includes all the essential physical processes. Charge exchange coupling between plasma protons and primary interstellar neutral atoms provides an effective gravity that drives Rayleigh-Taylor (RT)-like instabilities. The velocity difference or shear between the heliosheath and interstellar flows, when coupled to energetic neutral atoms (ENAs), drives a Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH)-like instability on the heliopause. The shoulder region of the heliopause is unstable to a new instability that has characteristics of a mixed RT-KH-like mode. The instabilities are not stabilized by typical values of the magnetic fields in the inner and outer heliosheath (OHS). ENAs play an essential role in driving the KH-like instability, which is fully stabilized in their absence by magnetic fields. The nonlinear phase of these instabilities is briefly discussed. We also discuss the possibility that RT-like or mixed KH-RT-like instabilities drag outer heliosheath/very local interstellar medium (OHS/VLISM) magnetic field lines into the inner heliosheath (IHS) with the VLISM flow, and the possibility that IHS and VLISM magnetic field lines experience reconnection. Such reconnection may (1) greatly enhance the mixing of plasmas across the heliopause and (2) provide open magnetic field lines that allow easy ingress of galactic cosmic rays into the heliosphere and corresponding easy loss of anomalous cosmic rays from the heliosphere.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Abundant molecular gas and inefficient star formation in intracluster regions: ram pressure stripped tail of the Norma galaxy ESO137-001

For the first time, we reveal large amounts of cold molecular gas in a ram-pressure-stripped tail, out to a large 'intracluster' distance from the galaxy. With the Actama Pathfinder EXperiment (APEX) telescope, we have detected {sup 12}CO(2-1) emission corresponding to more than 10{sup 9} M {sub ☉} of H{sub 2} in three Hα bright regions along the tail of the Norma cluster galaxy ESO 137-001, out to a projected distance of 40 kpc from the disk. ESO 137-001 has an 80 kpc long and bright X-ray tail associated with a shorter (40 kpc) and broader tail of numerous star forming H II regions. The amount of ∼1.5 × 10{sup 8} M {sub ☉} of H{sub 2} found in the most distant region is similar to molecular masses of tidal dwarf galaxies, though the standard Galactic CO-to-H{sub 2} factor could overestimate the H{sub 2} content. Along the tail, we find the amount of molecular gas to drop, while masses of the X-ray-emitting and diffuse ionized components stay roughly constant. Moreover, the amounts of hot and cold gas are large and similar, and together nearly account for the missing gas from the disk. We find a very low SFE (τ{sub dep} > 10{sup 10} yr) in the stripped gas in ESO 137-001 and suggest that this is due to a low average gas density in the tail, or turbulent heating of the interstellar medium that is induced by a ram pressure shock. The unprecedented bulk of observed H{sub 2} in the ESO 137-001 tail suggests that some stripped gas may survive ram pressure stripping in the molecular phase.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Accurate spectroscopic characterization of protonated oxirane: a potential prebiotic species in Titan's atmosphere

An accurate spectroscopic characterization of protonated oxirane has been carried out by means of state-of-the-art computational methods and approaches. The calculated spectroscopic parameters from our recent computational investigation of oxirane together with the corresponding experimental data available were used to assess the accuracy of our predicted rotational and IR spectra of protonated oxirane. We found an accuracy of about 10 cm{sup –1} for vibrational transitions (fundamentals as well as overtones and combination bands) and, in relative terms, of 0.1% for rotational transitions. We are therefore confident that the spectroscopic data provided herein are a valuable support for the detection of protonated oxirane not only in Titan's atmosphere but also in the interstellar medium.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Dissociative recombination measurements of NH{sup +} using an ion storage ring

We have investigated dissociative recombination (DR) of NH{sup +} with electrons using a merged beams configuration at the TSR heavy-ion storage ring located at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg, Germany. We present our measured absolute merged-beams recombination rate coefficient for collision energies from 0 to 12 eV. From these data, we have extracted a cross section, which we have transformed to a plasma rate coefficient for the collisional plasma temperature range from T {sub pl} = 10 to 18,000 K. We show that the NH{sup +} DR rate coefficient data in current astrochemical models are underestimated by up to a factor of approximately nine. Our new data will result in predicted NH{sup +} abundances lower than those calculated by present models. This is in agreement with the sensitivity limits of all observations attempting to detect NH{sup +} in interstellar clouds.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Direct method gas-phase oxygen abundances of four Lyman break analogs

We measure the gas-phase oxygen abundances in four Lyman break analogs using auroral emission lines to derive direct abundances. The direct method oxygen abundances of these objects are generally consistent with the empirically derived strong-line method values, confirming that these objects are low oxygen abundance outliers from the mass-metallicity (MZ) relation defined by star forming Sloan Digital Sky Survey galaxies. We find slightly anomalous excitation conditions (Wolf-Rayet features) that could potentially bias the empirical estimates toward high values if caution is not exercised in the selection of the strong-line calibration. The high rate of star formation and low oxygen abundance of these objects is consistent with the predictions of the fundamental metallicity relation, in which the infall of relatively unenriched gas simultaneously triggers an episode of star formation and dilutes the interstellar medium of the host galaxy.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

A theoretical study on the interstellar synthesis of H{sub 2}NCS{sup +} and HNCSH{sup +} cations

HNCS and NCSH molecules, recently discovered in the interstellar medium, are likely formed via the dissociative recombination of H{sub 2}NCS{sup +} or HNCSH{sup +} isomeric ions. Interstellar synthesis of the latter is discussed on theoretical grounds. The analysis of relevant potential energy surfaces suggests a key role for chemical processes in which CSH{sup +} or HCS{sup +} cations (most likely formed in CS+H{sub 3}{sup +} collisions) react with NH{sub 2} or NH{sub 3}. The astrochemical kinetic database (kida.uva.2011), appended with 7 sulfur-bearing molecules and 48 corresponding reactions, has been applied to model the evolution of HNCS, NCSH, and their cationic precursors in a quiescent molecular cloud. Based on the model and on spectroscopic predictions, for an object like TMC-1, we expect the total intensity of H{sub 2}NCS{sup +} microwave lines to be comparable to that observed for HSCN. Theoretically derived molecular parameters, of interest for radio spectroscopy, are given for the most stable cations sharing the H{sub 2}NCS{sup +} stoichiometry.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

A submillimeter galaxy illuminating its circumgalactic medium: Lyα scattering in a cold, clumpy outflow

We report the detection at 850 μm of the central source in SSA22-LAB1, the archetypal 'Lyman-α Blob' (LAB), a 100 kpc scale radio-quiet emission-line nebula at z = 3.1. The flux density of the source, S {sub 850} = 4.6 ± 1.1 mJy, implies the presence of a galaxy or group of galaxies with a total luminosity of L {sub IR} ≈ 10{sup 12} L {sub ☉}. The position of an active source at the center of a ∼50 kpc radius ring of linearly polarized Lyα emission detected by Hayes et al. suggests that the central source is leaking Lyα photons preferentially in the plane of the sky, which undergo scattering in H I clouds at a large galactocentric radius. The Lyα morphology around the submillimeter detection is reminiscent of a biconical outflow, and the average Lyα line profiles of the two 'lobes' are dominated by a red peak, which is expected for a resonant line emerging from a medium with a bulk velocity gradient that is outflowing relative to the line center. Taken together, these observations provide compelling evidence that the central active galaxy (or galaxies) is responsible for a large fraction of the extended Lyα emission and morphology. Less clear is the history of the cold gas in the circumgalactic medium being traced by Lyα: is it mainly pristine material accreting into the halo that has not yet been processed through an interstellar medium (ISM), now being blown back as it encounters an outflow, or does it mainly comprise gas that has been swept-up within the ISM and expelled from the galaxy?.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Herschel HIFI observations of O{sub 2} toward Orion: special conditions for shock enhanced emission

We report observations of molecular oxygen (O{sub 2}) rotational transitions at 487 GHz, 774 GHz, and 1121 GHz toward Orion Peak A. The O{sub 2} lines at 487 GHz and 774 GHz are detected at velocities of 10-12 km s{sup –1} with line widths ∼3 km s{sup –1}; however, the transition at 1121 GHz is not detected. The observed line characteristics, combined with the results of earlier observations, suggest that the region responsible for the O{sub 2} emission is ≅9'' (6 × 10{sup 16} cm) in size, and is located close to the H {sub 2} Peak 1 position (where vibrationally excited H{sub 2} emission peaks), and not at Peak A, 23'' away. The peak O{sub 2} column density is ≅1.1 × 10{sup 18} cm{sup –2}. The line velocity is close to that of the 621 GHz water maser emission found in this portion of the Orion Molecular Cloud, and having a shock with velocity vector lying nearly in the plane of the sky is consistent with producing maximum maser gain along the line of sight. The enhanced O{sub 2} abundance compared to that generally found in dense interstellar clouds can be explained by passage of a low-velocity C shock through a clump with preshock density 2 × 10{sup 4} cm{sup –3}, if a reasonable flux of UV radiation is present. The postshock O{sub 2} can explain the emission from the source if its line-of-sight dimension is ≅10 times larger than its size on the plane of the sky. The special geometry and conditions required may explain why O{sub 2} emission has not been detected in the cores of other massive star-forming molecular clouds.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Discovery of GeV emission from the direction of the luminous infrared galaxy NGC 2146

Recent detections of high-energy gamma-ray emission from starburst galaxies M82 and NGC 253 suggest that starburst galaxies are huge reservoirs of cosmic rays and these cosmic rays convert a significant fraction of their energy into gamma-rays by colliding with the dense interstellar medium. In this paper, we report the search for high-energy gamma-ray emission from several nearby star-forming and starburst galaxies using the 68 month data obtained with the Fermi Large Area Telescope. We found a ∼5.5σ detection of gamma-ray emission above 200 MeV from a source spatially coincident with the location of the luminous infrared galaxy NGC 2146. Also taking into account the temporal and spectral properties of the gamma-ray emission, we suggest that the gamma-ray source is likely to be the counterpart of NGC 2146. The gamma-ray luminosity suggests that cosmic rays in NGC 2146 convert most of their energy into secondary pions, so NGC 2146 is a 'proton calorimeter'. It is also found that NGC 2146 obeys the quasi-linear scaling relation between gamma-ray luminosity and total infrared luminosity for star-forming galaxies, strengthening the connection between massive star formation and gamma-ray emission of star-forming galaxies. Possible TeV emission from NGC 2146 is predicted and the implications for high-energy neutrino emission from starburst galaxies are discussed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Diverse properties of interstellar medium embedding gamma-ray bursts at the epoch of reionization

Analysis is performed on ultra-high-resolution large-scale cosmological radiation-hydrodynamic simulations to quantify, for the first time, the physical environment of long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) at the epoch of reionization. We find that, on parsec scales, 13% of GRBs remain in high-density (≥10{sup 4} cm{sup –3}) low-temperature star-forming regions, whereas 87% of GRBs occur in low-density (∼10{sup –2.5} cm{sup –3}) high-temperature regions heated by supernovae. More importantly, the spectral properties of GRB afterglows, such as the neutral hydrogen column density, total hydrogen column density, dust column density, gas temperature, and metallicity of intervening absorbers, vary strongly from sight line to sight line. Although our model explains extant limited observationally inferred values with respect to circumburst density, metallicity, column density, and dust properties, a substantially larger sample of high-z GRB afterglows would be required to facilitate a statistically solid test of the model. Our findings indicate that any attempt to infer the physical properties (such as metallicity) of the interstellar medium (ISM) of the host galaxy based on a very small number (usually one) of sight lines would be precarious. Utilizing high-z GRBs to probe the ISM and intergalactic medium should be undertaken properly, taking into consideration the physical diversities of the ISM.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Spectral modeling of the charge-exchange X-ray emission from M82

It has been proposed that the charge-exchange (CX) process at the interface between hot and cool interstellar gases could contribute significantly to the observed soft X-ray emission in star-forming galaxies. We analyze the XMM-Newton/reflection grating spectrometer (RGS) spectrum of M82 using a newly developed CX model combined with a single-temperature thermal plasma to characterize the volume-filling hot gas. The CX process is largely responsible for not only the strongly enhanced forbidden lines of the Kα triplets of various He-like ions but also good fractions of the Lyα transitions of C VI (∼87%), O VIII, and N VII (≳50%) as well. In total about a quarter of the X-ray flux in the RGS 6-30 Å band originates in the CX. We infer an ion incident rate of 3 × 10{sup 51} s{sup –1} undergoing CX at the hot and cool gas interface and an effective area of the interface of ∼2 × 10{sup 45} cm{sup 2} that is one order of magnitude larger than the cross section of the global biconic outflow. With the CX contribution accounted for, the best-fit temperature of the hot gas is 0.6 keV, and the metal abundances are approximately solar. We further show that the same CX/thermal plasma model also gives an excellent description of the EPIC-pn spectrum of the outflow Cap, projected at 11.6 kpc away from the galactic disk of M82. This analysis demonstrates that the CX is potentially an important contributor to the X-ray emission from starburst galaxies and also an invaluable tool to probe the interface astrophysics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗