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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
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1993

Star and cluster formation in NGC 1275

Luminous, blue, and unresolved objects have been found by imaging the nuclear region of the central galaxy in the Perseus Cluster, NGC 1275. Stellar formation in a cooling flow in which gas clouds confined by weak magnetic fields are allowed to remain at low densities is favored. Cloud-cloud collisions and coagulation in the high cloud density environment at the center of the galaxy then causes some clouds to become gravitationally unstable and to form globular clusters.

Richer, Harvey B.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Map-based trigonometric parallaxes of open clusters: The Praesepe

Trigonometric parallaxes for stars in the Praesepe open star cluster are deduced from data collected with the Multichannel Astrometric Photometer (MAP) at the Thaw Refractor of the University of Pittsburgh's Allegheny Observatory. The weighted mean parallax of five cluster members is +5.21 +/- 0.79 mas (0.00079 arcsec), corresponding to a distance modulus of 6.42 +/- 0.33 mag. We briefly compare this result with that derived earlier for the Hyades and note agreement with the distance found by main-sequence fitting. We also discuss briefly an improvement in the weighting scheme of the centroiding algorithm used in this series.

Gatewood, George↗
NASA NTRS1989

Central cores of post-collapse clusters

By means of conventional static models, the modelling of post-collapse-core star clusters is shown. The rationale adopted is that core collapse will cause the formation of binary stars, which stabilize the cluster and make it static again, but with a very high central concentration. It is shown that the models require massive remnant stars at the cluster centers, and that the fitting of static models to post-collapse-core clusters determines how many such stars are needed.

King, Ivan R.↗
NASA NTRS1993

IRAS studies of galactic supershells

Using IRAS Skyflux images and a new catalog of OB stars in the Cygnus region, a complete infrared supershell surrounding the Cyg OB1 Association was identified. This supershell is seen as a conspicuous, well-defined 2 deg x 5 deg region deficient of IR emission, with a limb-brightened edge and dimensions of about 50 x 130 pc at 1.5 kpc. The shell's elongated morphology is consistent with OB-star subclustering over the approximately 10(exp 6) yr age of the bubble. With a parent star cluster still visible (10 O stars between 25 and 45 solar mass, 3 - 4 Wolf-Rayet stars, and the possibility of 3 - 5 more massive stars that died as supernovae) the Cyg OB1 supershell is an excellent object for studying the formation and evolution of Galactic supershells. A discrepancy between the less than or equal to 1 Myr bubble age estimated from its size and the 5 Myr cluster turnoff age (45 solar mass) may require non-coeval massive star formation to explain the number of post-main-sequence stars and limit the number of past supernovae.

Saken, Jon M.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Discovery of an Obscured Supernova in Arp 299

The galaxy merger Arp 299, at a distance of 40 Mpc, is one of the most extensively studied interacting starburst galaxies known. It has been the site of 4 known supernovae (SNe) since 1990. Arp 299 contains a number of strong radio and infrared condensations, with the strongest starburst occurring in 'Source A,' in the nuclear region of the eastern galaxy. Source A has an inferred supernova rate of 0.5-0.7/yr, and its star formation peaked 6-8 Myr ago. Our recent observations identify a new radio-loud SN in Source A, which occurred sometime between April 2002 and February 2003. We imaged Arp 299 at milliarcsecond resolution at two epochs, in April 2002 and February 2003, using the Very Long Baseline Array and (at the first epoch) the Green Bank Telescope. In 2002, four compact radio sources were found in Source A at 2.3 GHz, with flux densities ranging from 0.3 to 1.7 mJy. In 2003, 8.4 GEz images revealed a new 3 mJy source, as well as the four objects detected a year earlier. The new radio SN is more than 1000 times more powerful than the galactic supernova remnant Cassiopeia A and is located located only 12 milliarcseconds (2.5 pc projected) from the strongest source seen in 2002. Milliarcsecond radio imaging is the only technique that could have detected this supernova, since it is embedded within an 80 mJy VLA source and buried in gas and dust (Av 15-25 mag). We suggest that both the new supernova and its nearest neighbor are occurring within a super star cluster, perhaps a newly formed globular cluster akin to those seen in a number of nearby galaxies and particularly galaxy mergers. If so, we are observing this cluster just as its massive stars have begun to explode into a very dense surrounding medium. The likelihood that most supernovae in such a medium will be radio-loud implies that future VLBI imaging over a number of years could lead to a direct measurement of the supernova rate in the Source A starburst, placing powerful constraints on models of present-day star formation processes.

Neff, Susan↗
NASA NTRS1992

UIT ultraviolet imaging of 30 Doradus

During the Astro-1 mission, near- and far-UV images of the 30 Doradus region were obtained using the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UIT). These wide-field, 40 min in diameter, high spatial resolution, 2-3 sec, UIT UV images reveal a rich field of luminous UV-bright stars, clusters, and associations. There are 181 stars brighter than m(sub 2558A) = 16.5 and 197 stars brighter than m(sub 1615A) = 16.4 within 3 min diameter of the 30 Doradus central cluster. We have derived UV fluxes emitted from the 30 Doradus central cluster and from its UV bright core, R136. The region within 5 sec of R136 produces approximately 14% of the far-UV flux (lambda = 1892 A) and approximately 16% of the near-UV flux (lambda = 2558 A) emitted from the 3 min diameter central cluster. The derived UV luminosity of R136 at 1892 A is only 7.8 times that of the nearby O6-7 Iaf star, R139, and the m(sub 1892) - m(sub v) colors of R136 are similar to other O or Wolf-Rayet stars in the same region. These UIT data, combined with other published observations at longer wavelengths, indicate that there is no observational evidence for a supermassive star in R136.

Hintzen, P.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Star scanner

A star scanner on a spin stabilized spacecraft is described which includes a reticle with a pair of slits having different separations as a function of the spacecraft vertical plane, to form a V slit. The time between a star image crossing one of the slits relative to a reference telemetry time provides an indication of azimuth angle. The time between the image crossing the two slits provides an indication of elevation angle of the star. If a star cluster is detected such that two stars pass the slits in less time than normally required for a single star to cross the two slits, an indication of the cluster occurrence is derived. Means are provided to prevent effective detection of large celestial bodies, such as the sun or moon.

Gutshall, R. L.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Results from the central Hyades survey

Results of a soft X-ray survey of the central 5 deg of the Hyades star cluster made with the Einstein Observatory Imaging Proportional Counter are presented. Virtually all of the late F and early G stars in the cluster were detected at an X-ray luminosity of greater than 10 to the 28.5 erg/sec, although only about 50% of the stars in the cluster as a whole were detected. Plots of X-ray luminosity against B-V index indicate that the typical solar-type star in the Hyades is emitting soft X-rays at a level approximately 30 times that of the active sun. Histograms of the X-ray to bolometric luminosity ratio reveal a gradual distinction between late A-early F stars, which are expected to possess little or no convective envelope, and solar-type (F8-G5) stars, with convective outer atmospheres. Results confirm the dependence of stellar coronal activity on rotation, and establish the prevalence of stellar coronae throughout the main sequence and the giant regions of the H-R diagram.

Stern, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS2014

First Hard X-Ray Detection of the Non-Thermal Emission Around the Arches Cluster: Morphology and Spectral Studies With NuSTAR

The Arches cluster is a young, densely packed massive star cluster in our Galaxy that shows a high level of star formation activity. The nature of the extended non-thermal X-ray emission around the cluster remains unclear. The observed bright Fe K(alpha) line emission at 6.4 keV from material that is neutral or in a low ionization state can be produced either by X-ray photoionization or by cosmic-ray particle bombardment or both. In this paper, we report on the first detection of the extended emission around the Arches cluster above 10 keV with the NuSTAR mission, and present results on its morphology and spectrum. The spatial distribution of the hard X-ray emission is found to be consistent with the broad region around the cluster where the 6.4 keV line is observed. The interpretation of the hard X-ray emission within the context of the X-ray reflection model puts a strong constraint on the luminosity of the possible illuminating hard X-ray source. The properties of the observed emission are also in broad agreement with the low-energy cosmic-ray proton excitation scenario. Key words: cosmic rays - Galaxy: center - ISM: general - X-rays: individual (Arches cluster)

Arches cluster↗
NASA NTRS1997

Space Observations of Starburst Galaxies

Led by JHU postdoc Gerhardt Meurer, we completed our analysis of far-UV HST FOC images of nine nearby starbursts. We have been able to delineate the structure of the regions in which the unusually vigorous star-formation is occurring (Meurer et al 1995). At 0.1 arcsec (2 to 20 pc) resolution, the starbursts are resolved into multiple clumps and bright star clusters distributed over a region several hundred pc to a few kpc in size. This suggests that compact sites of star-formation may propagate from place to place within a larger central gas reservoir over the duration of the burst. The UV and optical properties of these clusters suggest that they may correspond to newly 'minted' globular clusters. These clusters typically produce about 10% to 50% of the far-UV light, and are preferentially located in the heart of the starburst, where the background UV surface brightness is highest. Thus, massive star cluster (globular cluster?) formation is a fundamental part of the starburst phenomenon. This confirms and generalizes the results of Whitmore et al (1993). Our starburst images are also being compared to our recent analysis of the HST FOC image of R136 in the LMC (De Marchi et al 1993). We have also extended our results on the UV photometric structure of starbursts to star-forming galaxies in the early universe (Meurer et al 1997). We show that the most actively- star-forming galaxies at all redshifts seem to have approximately the same bolometric surface-brightness, and that the high redshift galaxies may be larger and more luminous versions of local starbursts.

Heckman, Timothy M.↗
NASA NTRS1991

First results from the faint object camera - High-resolution observations of the central object R136 in the 30 Doradus nebula

R136 is the luminous central object of the giant H II region 30 Doradus in the LMC. The first high-resolution observations of R136 with the Faint Object Camera on board the Hubble Space Telescope are reported. The physical nature of the brightest component R136a has been a matter of some controversy over the last few years. The UV images obtained show that R136a is a very compact star cluster consisting of more than eight stars within 0.7 arcsec diameter. From these high-resolution images a mass upper limit can be derived for the most luminous stars observed in R136.

Weigelt, G.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Suppressed Cosmic-Ray Energy Densities in Molecular Clouds from Streaming Instability-regulated Transport

Abstract Cosmic rays (CRs) are the primary driver of ionization in star-forming molecular clouds (MCs). Despite their potential impacts on gas dynamics and chemistry, no simulations of star cluster formation following the creation of individual stars have included explicit cosmic-ray transport (CRT) to date. We conduct the first numerical simulations following the collapse of a 2000 M ⊙ MC and the subsequent star formation including CRT using the STAR FORmation in Gaseous Environments framework implemented in the GIZMO code. We show that when CRT is streaming-dominated, the CR energy in the cloud is strongly attenuated due to energy losses from the streaming instability. Consequently, in a Milky Way–like environment the median CR ionization rate in the cloud is low ( ζ ≲ 2 × 10 −19 s −1 ) during the main star-forming epoch of the calculation and the impact of CRs on the star formation in the cloud is limited. However, in high-CR environments, the CR distribution in the cloud is elevated ( ζ ≲ 6 × 10 −18 ), and the relatively higher CR pressure outside the cloud causes slightly earlier cloud collapse and increases the star formation efficiency by 50% to ∼13%. The initial mass function is similar in all cases except with possible variations in a high-CR environment. Further studies are needed to explain the range of ionization rates observed in MCs and explore star formation in extreme CR environments.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Mapping the Outcomes of Stellar Evolution in the Disks of Active Galactic Nuclei

The disks of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are expected to be populated by numerous stars, either formed in the outer regions of the disk via gravitational instability or captured from the nearby nuclear star cluster. Regardless of their formation mechanism, these stars experience altered evolutionary paths, mostly shaped by the accretion of dense disk material. In this study, through the comparison of different timescales, we chart the evolutionary outcomes of these AGN stars as a function of disk radius and across a range of supermassive black hole masses, spanning from 10 6 to 10 9 M ⊙ , for two popular AGN disk models. We find that in the outer regions of the disk, stars evolve similarly to those in the interstellar medium, but in the inner and denser regions, accretion quickly turns low-mass stars into massive stars, and their fate depends on just how quickly they accrete. If accretion occurs at a faster rate than nuclear burning, they can reach a quasi-steady "immortal" state. If stars accrete faster than they can thermally adjust, runaway accretion occurs, potentially preventing a quasi-steady state and altering the disk structure. During the AGN lifetime, in the regions of the disk that produce massive stars, supernovae (SNe) and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) may occur within the disk over a wide range of optical depths and ambient densities. Subsequently, in the final phase of the AGN, as the disk becomes depleted, formerly immortal stars will be unable to replenish their fuel, leading to additional SNe and GRBs.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1989

An infrared search for low-mass companions of stars near the sun

Using a CCD camera on the IRTF telescope on Mauna Kea, a search was conducted for low-mass companions to stars in the solar neighborhood. The K band (2.2 microns) survey includes 55 condidates closer than 12 pc, as well as eight stars in the Pleiades star cluster. Due to the saturation of the primary star image, the survey was insensitive to companions within about 2 arcsec of the primary star. The survey detected a single low-mass candidate object, a companion to the star Gliese 569, which lies near or below the hydrogen-burning mass limit and resembles extremely low-mass stars similar to VB 10 and LHS 2924.

Skrutskie, M. F.↗
NASA NTRS1988

LMC clusters - Age calibration and age distribution revisited

The empirical age relation for star clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud presented by Elson and Fall (1985) are reexamined using ages based only on main-sequence turnoffs. The present sample includes 57 clusters, 24 of which have color-magnitude diagrams published since 1985. The new calibration is very similar to that found previously, and the scatter in the relation corresponds to uncertainties of about a factor of 2 in age. The age distribution derived from the new calibration does not differ significantly from that derived in earlier work. It is compared with age distributions estimated by other authors for different samples of clusters, and the results are discussed.

Elson, Rebecca A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

The Evolution of Stellar Coronae: Initial Results from a ROSAT PSPC Observation of IC 2391

A 23 ks ROSAT PSPC image of the young star cluster, IC 2391, reveals 76 soft x-ray sources with L(sub x)(0.2-2.0 keV) greater than or equal to 2 x 10(exp 28) ergs/s in the direction of the cluster center. Nineteen of these sources are associated with known cluster members. We find that x-ray emission from the IC 2391 B stars deviates widely from the L(sub x)/L(sub bol) = 10(exp -7) relation based on Einstein observations of O and early B stars. Instead, we observe a wide range in L(sub x) with an order of magnitude spread at any given mass and no apparent dependence on spectral type. A comparison of the spread of L(sub x) as a function of B-V for low-mass stars between IC 2391 and the much older Hyades cluster shows that despite the factor of approx. 10 difference in their ages, these two clusters exhibit very similar dispersions in levels of stellar activity. We conclude that the low-mass stars in IC 2391 have arrived on the ZAMS with a wide range of coronal activity levels, from very strong to very weak, and that existing empirical activity-age scaling laws therefore cannot be valid.

Patten, Brian M.↗