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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
DOE OSTI2017

The quenched mass portion of star-forming galaxies and the origin of the star formation sequence slope

Observationally, a massive disk galaxy can harbor a bulge component that is comparably inactive as a quiescent galaxy. It has been speculated that the quenched component contained in star-forming galaxies (SFGs) is the reason why the star formation main sequence (MS) has a shallow slope at high masses. In this paper, we present a toy model to quantify the quenched mass portion of SFGs (f{sub Q}) at fixed stellar mass (M{sub *}) and to reconcile the MS slopes in both the low- and the high-mass regimes. In this model, each SFG is composed of a star-forming plus a quenched component. The mass of the star-forming component (M{sub SF}) correlates with the star formation rate (SFR) following a relation SFR ∝ M{sub SF}{sup α{sub S}{sub F}}, where α{sub SF} ∼ 1.0. The quenched component contributes to the stellar mass but not to the SFR. It is thus possible to quantify f{sub Q} based on the departure of the observed MS slope α from α{sub SF}. Adopting the redshift-dependent MS slope reported by Whitaker et al., we explore the evolution of the f{sub Q}--M{sub ∗} relations over z = [0.5, 2.5]. We find that Milky Way-like SFGs (with M{sub ∗}≈10{sup 10.7} M{sub ⊙}) typically have an f{sub Q} = 30%–40% at z ∼ 2.25, whereas this value rapidly rises up to 70%–80% at z ∼ 0.75. The origin of an α ∼ 1.0 MS slope seen in the low-mass regime is also discussed. We argue for a scenario in which the majority of low-mass SFGs stay in a “steady-stage” star formation phase. In this phase, the SFR is mainly regulated by stellar feedback and not significantly influenced by the quenching mechanisms, thus remaining roughly constant over cosmic time. This scenario successfully produces an α ∼ 1.0 MS slope, as well as the observed MS evolution from z = 2.5 to z = 0 at low masses.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

The Optical/UV Excess of X-Ray-dim Isolated Neutron Stars. I. Bremsstrahlung Emission from a Strangeon Star Atmosphere

X-ray-dim isolated neutron stars (XDINSs) are characterized by Planckian spectra in X-ray bands, but show optical/ultraviolet (UV) excesses: the factors by which the measured photometry exceeds those extrapolated from X-ray spectra. To solve this problem, a radiative model of bremsstrahlung emission from a plasma atmosphere is established in the regime of a strangeon star. A strangeon star atmosphere could simply be regarded as the upper layer of a normal neutron star. This plasma atmosphere, formed and maintained by the interstellar-medium-accreted matter due to the so-called strangeness barrier, is supposed to be of two temperatures. All seven XDINS spectra could be well fitted by the radiative model, from optical/UV to X-ray bands. The fitted radiation radii of XDINSs are from 7 to 13 km, while the modeled electron temperatures are between 50 and 250 eV, except RX J0806.4–4123, with a radiation radius of ∼3.5 km, indicating that this source could be a low-mass strangeon star candidate. This strangeon star model could further be tested by soft X-ray polarimetry, such as the Lightweight Asymmetry and Magnetism Probe, which is expected to be operational on China’s space station around 2020.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Simulations of Fractal Star Cluster Formation. I. New Insights for Measuring Mass Segregation of Star Clusters with Substructure

We compare the existent methods, including the minimum spanning tree based method and the local stellar density based method, in measuring mass segregation of star clusters. We find that the minimum spanning tree method reflects more the compactness, which represents the global spatial distribution of massive stars, while the local stellar density method reflects more the crowdedness, which provides the local gravitational potential information. It is suggested to measure the local and the global mass segregation simultaneously. We also develop a hybrid method that takes both aspects into account. This hybrid method balances the local and the global mass segregation in the sense that the predominant one is either caused by dynamical evolution or purely accidental, especially when such information is unknown a priori. In addition, we test our prescriptions with numerical models and show the impact of binaries in estimating the mass segregation value. As an application, we use these methods on the Orion Nebula Cluster (ONC) observations and the Taurus cluster. We find that the ONC is significantly mass segregated down to the 20th most massive stars. In contrast, the massive stars of the Taurus cluster are sparsely distributed in many different subclusters, showing a low degree of compactness. The massive stars of Taurus are also found to be distributed in the high-density region of the subclusters, showing significant mass segregation at subcluster scales. Meanwhile, we also apply these methods to discuss the possible mechanisms of the dynamical evolution of the simulated substructured star clusters.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Observations of Binary Stars with the Differential Speckle Survey Instrument. VIII. Measures of Metal-poor and Triple Stars from 2015 to 2018

We present 248 speckle observations of 43 binary and 19 trinary star systems chosen to make progress in two main areas of investigation: the fundamental properties of metal-poor stars and star formation mechanisms. The observations were taken at the Gemini North and South telescopes during the period 2015 July to 2018 April, mainly with the Differential Speckle Survey Instrument but also with a few early results from the new ’Alopeke speckle camera at Gemini North. We find that the astrometry and photometry of these observations as a whole are consistent with previous work at Gemini. We present five new visual orbits for systems important in understanding metal-poor stars, three of which have orbital periods of less than 4 yr, and we indicate the degree to which these and future observations can impact our knowledge of stellar properties and star formation. In particular, we find a decrease in mass at fixed spectral type for metal-poor stars versus their solar-metallicity analogs that is consistent with predictions that are made from current stellar models.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Milky Way Tomography with K and M Dwarf Stars: The Vertical Structure of the Galactic Disk

We use the number density distributions of K and M dwarf stars with vertical height from the Galactic disk, determined using observations from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, to probe the structure of the Milky Way disk across the survey’s footprint. Using photometric parallax as a distance estimator we analyze a sample of several million disk stars in matching footprints above and below the Galactic plane, and we determine the location and extent of vertical asymmetries in the number counts in a variety of thin- and thick-disk subsamples in regions of some 200 square degrees within 2 kpc in vertical distance from the Galactic disk. These disk asymmetries present wave-like features as previously observed on other scales and at other distances from the Sun. We additionally explore the scale height of the disk and the implied offset of the Sun from the Galactic plane at different locations, noting that the scale height of the disk can differ significantly when measured using stars only above or only below the plane. Moreover, we compare the shape of the number density distribution in the north for different latitude ranges with a fixed range in longitude and find the shape to be sensitive to the selected latitude window. We explain why this may be indicative of a change in stellar populations in the latitude regions compared, possibly allowing access to the systematic metallicity difference between thin- and thick-disk populations through photometry.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Exploring Halo Substructure with Giant Stars. XV. Discovery of a Connection between the Monoceros Ring and the Triangulum–Andromeda Overdensity?

Thanks to modern sky surveys, over twenty stellar streams and overdensity structures have been discovered in the halo of the Milky Way. Here, in this paper, we present an analysis of spectroscopic observations of individual stars from one such structure, "A13", first identified as an overdensity using the M giant catalog from the Two Micron All-Sky Survey. Our spectroscopic observations show that stars identified with A13 have a velocity dispersion of $\lesssim$ 40 $\mathrm{km~s^{-1}}$, implying that it is a genuine coherent structure rather than a chance super-position of random halo stars. From its position on the sky, distance ($\sim$15 kpc heliocentric), and kinematical properties, A13 is likely to be an extension of another low Galactic latitude substructure -- the Galactic Anticenter Stellar Structure (also known as the Monoceros Ring) -- towards smaller Galactic longitude and farther distance. Furthermore, the kinematics of A13 also connect it with another structure in the southern Galactic hemisphere -- the Triangulum-Andromeda overdensity. Finally, we discuss these three connected structures within the context of a previously proposed scenario that one or all of these features originate from the disk of the Milky Way.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Star Formation Histories from Spectral Energy Distributions and Color–magnitude Diagrams Agree: Evidence for Synchronized Star Formation in Local Volume Dwarf Galaxies over the Past 3 Gyr

Star formation histories (SFHs) reveal physical processes that influence how galaxies form their stellar mass. We compare the SFHs of a sample of 36 nearby (D ≲ 4 Mpc) dwarf galaxies from the ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury (ANGST), inferred from the color–magnitude diagrams (CMDs) of individually resolved stars in these galaxies, with those reconstructed by broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting using the dense basis SED-fitting code. When comparing individual SFHs, we introduce metrics for evaluating SFH reconstruction techniques. For both the SED and CMD methods, the median normalized SFH of galaxies in the sample shows a period of quiescence at lookback times of 3–6 Gyr followed by rejuvenated star formation over the past 3 Gyr that remains active until the present day. To determine if these represent special epochs of star formation in the D <4 Mpc portion of the Local Volume, we break this ANGST dwarf galaxy sample into subsets based on specific star formation rate and spatial location. Modulo offsets between the methods of about 1 Gyr, all subsets show significant decreases and increases in their median normalized SFHs at the same epochs, and the majority of the individual galaxy SFHs are consistent with these trends. These results motivate further study of potential synchronized star formation quiescence and rejuvenation in the Local Volume as well as development of a hybrid method of SFH reconstruction that combines CMDs and SEDs, which have complementary systematics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1979

X-ray emission from an Ap star /Phi Herculis/ and a late B star /Pi Ceti/

Using the HEAO 1 soft X-ray sky survey, a search was conducted for X-ray emission from 18 stars in the spectral range B5-A7. The detection of 0.25 keV X-ray sources consistent with the positions of Pi Ceti, a normal B7 V star, and Phi Herculis, a classic Ap star was reported. The detection of these stars argues for large mass motions in the upper layers of stars in this spectral range, and argues against radiative diffusion as the source of abundance anomalies in Ap stars.

Cash, W.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Orientations of AM Her stars from their polarization properties - The case of the missing AM Her stars

Observation of the polarization properties of the AM Her stars is used to determine their orientations. It is found that the AM Her stars are randomly distributed with respect to their inclination angle i but not with respect to their magnetic colatitude delta. The stars are concentrated along the semicircle cos-squared delta + cos-squared i = 1, where delta is the angle between the magnetic moment and the spin axis of the degenerate dwarf. This result implies that the discovery of AM Her stars is strongly affected by observational selection effects. It is suggested that these effects are a result of the way in which the AM Her stars have been identified observationally, and of the angular properties of high harmonic cyclotron emission. It is estimated that there are about three times as many AM Her stars as have been found so far.

Brainerd, J. J.↗
NASA NTRS1988

X-ray sources in regions of star formation. III - Naked T Tauri stars associated with the Taurus-Auriga complex

Ground-based and IRAS optical and IR spectroscopic and photometric observations are reported for 90 stars in or near 59 Einstein Observatory X-ray error circles in the Tau-Aur region. The data are presented in extensive tables and sample spectra and characterized in detail, with particular attention to 28 newly discovered 'naked' T Tau stars, which are shown to be normal stars with no significant IR or UV excess and ages of 1-40 Myr. These stars are found to outnumber normal T Tau stars by a factor of 10 in an area near the Tau-Aur dark clouds, and it is argued that their evolution toward the ZAMS is typical for low-mass stars. The implications of this finding for the time scales of circumstellar-disk dissipation and planet formation are discussed.

Walter, Frederick M.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Lost in space: Onboard star identification using CCD star tracker data without an a priori attitude

There are many algorithms in use today which determine spacecraft attitude by identifying stars in the field of view of a star tracker. Some methods, which date from the early 1960's, compare the angular separation between observed stars with a small catalog. In the last 10 years, several methods have been developed which speed up the process and reduce the amount of memory needed, a key element to onboard attitude determination. However, each of these methods require some a priori knowledge of the spacecraft attitude. Although the Sun and magnetic field generally provide the necessary coarse attitude information, there are occasions when a spacecraft could get lost when it is not prudent to wait for sunlight. Also, the possibility of efficient attitude determination using only the highly accurate CCD star tracker could lead to fully autonomous spacecraft attitude determination. The need for redundant coarse sensors could thus be eliminated at substantial cost reduction. Some groups have extended their algorithms to implement a computation intense full sky scan. Some require large data bases. Both storage and speed are concerns for autonomous onboard systems. Neural network technology is even being explored by some as a possible solution, but because of the limited number of patterns that can be stored and large overhead, nothing concrete has resulted from these efforts. This paper presents an algorithm which, by descretizing the sky and filtering by visual magnitude of the brightness observed star, speeds up the lost in space star identification process while reducing the amount of necessary onboard computer storage compared to existing techniques.

Ketchum, Eleanor A.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Massive Stars and the Energy Balance of the Interstellar Medium: The Impact of an Isolated 60 M. Star - 1

We present results of numerical simulations carried out with a two-dimensional radiation hydrodynamics code in order to study the impact of massive stars on their surrounding interstellar medium. This first paper deals with the evolution of the circumstellar gas around an isolated 60 M. star. The interaction of the photo- ionized H II region with the stellar wind bubble forms a variety of interesting structures like shells, clouds, fingers, and spokes. These results demonstrate that complex structures found in H II regions are not necessarily relics from the time before the gas became ionized but may result from dynamical processes during the course of the H II region evolution. We have also analyzed the transfer and deposit of the stellar wind and radiation energy into the circumstellar medium until the star explodes as a supernova. Although the total mechanical wind energy supplied by the star is negligible compared to the accumulated energy of the Lyman continuum photons, the kinetic energy imparted to the circumstellar gas over the star s lifetime is 4 times higher than for a comparable windless simulation. Furthermore, the thermal energy of warm photoionized gas is lower by some 55%). Our results document the necessity to consider both ionizing radiation and stellar winds for an appropriate description of the interaction of OB stars with their circumstellar environment.

Freyer, Tim↗
NASA NTRS2017

Techniques for High Contrast Imaging in Multi-Star Systems II: Multi-Star Wavefront Control

Direct imaging of exoplanets represents a challenge for astronomical instrumentation due to the high-contrast ratio and small angular separation between the host star and the faint planet. Multi-star systems pose additional challenges for coronagraphic instruments because of the diffraction and aberration leakage introduced by the additional stars, and as a result are not planned to be on direct imaging target lists. Multi-star wavefront control (MSWC) is a technique that uses a coronagraphic instrument's deformable mirror (DM) to create high-contrast regions in the focal plane in the presence of multiple stars. Our previous paper introduced the Super-Nyquist Wavefront Control (SNWC) technique that uses a diffraction grating to enable the DM to generate high-contrast regions beyond the nominal controllable region. These two techniques can be combined to generate high-contrast regions for multi-star systems at any angular separations. As a case study, a high-contrast wavefront control (WC) simulation that applies these techniques shows that the habitable region of the Alpha Centauri system can be imaged reaching 8 times 10(exp -9) mean contrast in 10 percent broadband light in one-sided dark holes from 1.6-5.5 lambda (wavelength) divided by D (distance).

Sirbu, D.↗
DOE OSTI2020

A Survey for New Stars and Brown Dwarfs in the Ophiuchus Star-forming Complex

We have performed a survey for new members of the Ophiuchus cloud complex using high-precision astrometry from the second data release of Gaia, proper motions measured with multi-epoch images from the Spitzer Space Telescope, and color–magnitude diagrams constructed with photometry from various sources. Through spectroscopy of candidates selected with those data, we have identified 155 new young stars. Based on available measurements of kinematics, we classify 102, 47, and 6 of those stars as members of Ophiuchus, Upper Sco, and other populations in Sco–Cen, respectively. We have also assessed the membership of all other stars in the vicinity of Ophiuchus that have spectroscopic evidence of youth from previous studies, arriving at a catalog of 373 adopted members of the cloud complex. For those adopted members, we have compiled mid-infrared photometry from Spitzer and the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer and have used mid-infrared colors to identify and classify circumstellar disks. We find that 210 of the members show evidence of disks, including 48 disks that are in advanced stages of evolution. Finally, we have estimated the relative median ages of the populations near the Ophiuchus clouds and the surrounding Upper Sco association using absolute K-band magnitudes (M {sub K}) based on Gaia parallaxes. If we adopt an age 10 Myr for Upper Sco, then the relative values of M {sub K} imply median ages of ∼2 Myr for L1689 and embedded stars in L1688, 3–4 Myr for low-extinction stars near L1688, and ∼6 Myr for the group containing ρ Oph.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Inferred Hα flux as a star formation rate indicator at z ∼ 4–5: implications for dust properties, burstiness, and the z = 4–8 star formation rate functions

We derive Hα fluxes for a large spectroscopic and photometric-redshift-selected sample of sources over GOODS-North and South in the redshift range z = 3.8–5.0 with deep Hubble Space Telescope (HST), Spitzer/IRAC, and ground-based observations. The Hα flux is inferred based on the offset between the IRAC 3.6 μm flux and that predicted from the best-fit spectral energy distribution (SED). We demonstrate that the Hα flux correlates well with dust-corrected UV star formation rate (SFR) and therefore can serve as an independent SFR indicator. However, we also find a systematic offset in the SFR{sub Hα}/SFR{sub UV+β} ratios for z ∼ 4–5 galaxies relative to local relations (assuming the same dust corrections for nebular regions and stellar light). We show that we can resolve the modest tension in the inferred SFRs by assuming bluer intrinsic UV slopes (increasing the dust correction), a rising star formation history, or assuming a low-metallicity stellar population with a hard ionizing spectrum (increasing the L{sub Hα}/SFR ratio). Using Hα as an SFR indicator, we find a normalization of the star formation main sequence in good agreement with recent SED-based determinations and also derive the SFR functions at z∼4--8. In addition, we assess for the first time the burstiness of star formation in z∼4 galaxies on <100 Myr timescales by comparing UV and Hα-based sSFRs; their one-to-one relationship argues against significantly bursty star formation histories.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Hierarchical Star Formation in Turbulent Media: Evidence from Young Star Clusters

We present an analysis of the positions and ages of young star clusters in eight local galaxies to investigate the connection between the age difference and separation of cluster pairs. We find that star clusters do not form uniformly but instead are distributed so that the age difference increases with the cluster pair separation to the 0.25–0.6 power, and that the maximum size over which star formation is physically correlated ranges from ∼200 pc to ∼1 kpc. The observed trends between age difference and separation suggest that cluster formation is hierarchical both in space and time: clusters that are close to each other are more similar in age than clusters born further apart. The temporal correlations between stellar aggregates have slopes that are consistent with predictions of turbulence acting as the primary driver of star formation. The velocity associated with the maximum size is proportional to the galaxy’s shear, suggesting that the galactic environment influences the maximum size of the star-forming structures.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Testing the Formation Scenarios of Binary Neutron Star Systems with Measurements of the Neutron Star Moment of Inertia

Two low-mass (M < 1.4 M ⊙ ) neutron stars, J0737-3039B and the companion to J1756-2251, show strong evidence of being formed in an ultra-stripped supernova explosion (US-SN) with a ONeMg or Fe progenitor. In this paper, using systematically generated sets of equations of state we map out the relationship between the moment of inertia of J0737-3039A, a candidate for a moment of inertia measurement within a decade, and the binding energy of the two low-mass neutron stars. This relationship, similar to the I-Love-Q relations, is more robust than a previously explored correlation between the binding energy and the slope of the nuclear symmetry energy L. We find that, if either J0737-3039B or the J1756-2251 companion were formed in a US-SN, no more than 0.06 M ⊙ could have been lost from the progenitor core. Furthermore, a measurement of the moment of inertia of J0737-3039A to within 10% accuracy can discriminate between formation scenarios and, given current constraints on the predicted core mass loss, potentially rule them out. Advanced LIGO can potentially measure the neutron star tidal polarizability to equivalent accuracy which, using the I-Love-Q relations, would obtain similar constraints on the formation scenarios. Such information would help constrain important aspects of binary evolution used for population synthesis predictions of the rate of binary neutron star mergers and resulting electromagnetic and gravitational wave signals. Finally, further progress needs to be made in modeling the core-collapse process that leads to low-mass neutron stars, particularly in making robust predictions for the mass loss from the progenitor core.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

The Mysterious Dimmings of the T Tauri Star V1334 Tau

We present the discovery of two extended ∼0.12 mag dimming events of the weak-lined T Tauri star V1334. The start of the first event was missed but came to an end in late 2003, and the second began in 2009 February, and continues as of 2016 November. Since the egress of the current event has not yet been observed, it suggests a period of >13 years if this event is periodic. Spectroscopic observations suggest the presence of a small inner disk, although the spectral energy distribution shows no infrared excess. We explore the possibility that the dimming events are caused by an orbiting body (e.g., a disk warp or dust trap), enhanced disk winds, hydrodynamical fluctuations of the inner disk, or a significant increase in the magnetic field flux at the surface of the star. We also find a ∼0.32 day periodic photometric signal that persists throughout the 2009 dimming which appears to not be due to ellipsoidal variations from a close stellar companion. High-precision photometric observations of V1334 Tau during K2 campaign 13, combined with simultaneous photometric and spectroscopic observations from the ground, will provide crucial information about the photometric variability and its origin.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗