Arizona-NASA Atlas of Infrared Solar Spectrum, report 2, number 124
Photometric tracings of infrared solar spectrum from NASA CV-990 jet during July-August 1968
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Photometric tracings of infrared solar spectrum from NASA CV-990 jet during July-August 1968
Infrared solar photometric tracings including telluric lines taken by CV-990 aircraft
The hypothesis that interstellar infrared emission originates from vibrationally excited polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) requires that emission can arise from all vibrational levels that are energetically accessible. Due to anharmonicity, the emission from the upper vibrational levels is shifted to longer wavelengths from that of the v = 1-0 transition. It is shown that structure in the 3-micron region is readily and quantitatively explained by emission from upper vibrational levels of excited PAHs that contain a maximum of 20-30 carbon atoms. The asymmetrical broadening of the 11.3-micron emission band may also be due to anharmonicity.
Photometric tracings of infrared solar spectrum from NASA CV-990 jet during July-August 1968
Extremely low-density planets (“super-puffs”) are a small but intriguing subset of the transiting planet population. With masses in the super-Earth range (1 − 10 M{sub ⊕}) and radii akin to those of giant planets (> 4 R{sub ⊕}), their large envelopes may have been accreted beyond the water snow line and many appear to be susceptible to catastrophic mass loss. Both the presence of water and the importance of mass loss can be explored using transmission spectroscopy. Here, we present new Hubble space telescope WFC3 spectroscopy and updated Kepler transit depth measurements for the super-puff Kepler-79d. We do not detect any molecular absorption features in the 1.1 − 1.7 μm WFC3 bandpass, and the combined Kepler and WFC3 data are consistent with a flat-line model, indicating the presence of aerosols in the atmosphere. We compare the shape of Kepler-79d’s transmission spectrum to predictions from a microphysical haze model that incorporates an outward particle flux due to ongoing mass loss. We find that photochemical hazes offer an attractive explanation for the observed properties of super-puffs like Kepler-79d, as they simultaneously render the near-infrared spectrum featureless and reduce the inferred envelope mass-loss rate by moving the measured radius (optical depth unity surface during transit) to lower pressures. We revisit the broader question of mass-loss rates for super-puffs and find that the age estimates and mass-loss rates for the majority of super-puffs can be reconciled if hazes move the photosphere from the typically assumed pressure of ∼10 mbar to ∼10 μbar.
Some implementations provide a composite material that includes a first material and a second material. In some implementations, the composite material is a metamaterial. The first material includes a chiral polymer (e.g., crystalline chiral helical polymer, poly-.gamma.-benzyl-L-glutamate (PBLG), poly-L-lactic acid (PLA), polypeptide, and/or polyacetylene). The second material is within the chiral polymer. The first material and the second material are configured to provide an effective index of refraction value for the composite material of 1 or less. In some implementations, the effective index of refraction value for the composite material is negative. In some implementations, the effective index of refraction value for the composite material of 1 or less is at least in a wavelength of one of at least a visible spectrum, an infrared spectrum, a microwave spectrum, and/or an ultraviolet spectrum.
We analyze the wavelength dependence of the far-infrared polarization fraction toward the OMC-1 star-formingregion using observations from HAWC+/SOFIA at 53, 89, 154, and 214μm. Wefind that the shape of the far-infrared polarization spectrum is variable across the cloud and that there is evidence of a correlation between theslope of the polarization spectrum and the average line-of-sight temperature. The slope of the polarization spectrumtends to be negative(falling toward longer wavelengths)in cooler regions and positive orflat in warmer regions.This is very similar to what was discovered inρOph A via SOFIA polarimetry at 89 and 154μm. Like the authorsof this earlier work, we argue that the most natural explanation for our falling spectra is line-of-sight superpositionof differing grain populations, with polarized emission from the warmer regions and less-polarized emission fromthe cooler ones. In contrast with the earlier work onρOph A, we do notfind a clear correlation of polarizationspectrum slope with column density. This suggests that falling spectra are attributable to variations in grainalignment efficiency in a heterogeneous cloud consistent with radiative torques theory. Alternative explanations inwhich variations in grain alignment efficiency are caused by varying gas density rather than by varying radiationintensity are disfavored.
Second and last set of the B-spectrometer records, concluding the series of the Arizona-NASA Infrared Solar Spectrum Atlas. The value of the presented series lies primarily in serving as reference to high-altitude planetary spectra taken with similar resolution, 6-10,000. The wavelength interval covered is 13350-34100 A.
In this paper, the effect of temperature fluctuations in very small dust particles caused by electronic collisions with an ambient hot gas, is calculated. The dust-temperature distribution differs strongly from that derived on the basis of equilibrium heating models, peaking at lower temperatures in the stochastically heated case. The resulting infrared spectrum is broadened at short wavelengths, giving much more emission than expected from equilibrium calculations, and at long wavelengths exhibits a lower color temperature. Dust-temperature fluctuations are thus expected to play an important role in determining the infrared spectrum of dusty, X-ray-emitting plasmas. A power-law distribution of grain radii extended to very small grain sizes will have a distinct infrared spectrum characterized by an infrared excess at the Wien side of the spectrum. This excess emission represents a high-temperature component in the spectrum, resulting from the stochastic heating of very small dust particles. Its magnitude depends on the grain-size distribution and the temperature and density of the ambient hot gas. This excess emission may be observed by IRAS in supernova remnants and rich clusters of galaxies.
The polarization spectrum, or wavelength dependence of the polarization fraction, of interstellar dust emission provides important insights into the grain alignment mechanism of interstellar dust grains. We investigate the far-infrared polarization spectrum of a realistic simulated high-mass star-forming cloud under various models of grain alignment and emission. We find that neither a homogeneous grain alignment model nor a grain alignment model that includes collisional dealignment is able to produce the falling spectrum seen in observations. On the other hand, we find that a grain alignment model with grain alignment efficiency dependent on local temperature is capable of producing a falling spectrum that is in qualitative agreement with observations of OMC-1. For the model most in agreement with OMC-1, we find no correlation between the temperature and the slope of the polarization spectrum. However, we do find a positive correlation between the column density and the slope of the polarization spectrum. We suggest this latter correlation to be the result of wavelength-dependent polarization by absorption.
We present a new optical transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter WASP-79b. We observed three transits with the STIS instrument mounted on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), spanning 0.3–1.0 μm. Combining these transits with previous observations, we construct a complete 0.3–5.0 μm transmission spectrum of WASP-79b. Both HST and ground-based observations show decreasing transit depths toward blue wavelengths, contrary to expectations from Rayleigh scattering or hazes. We infer atmospheric and stellar properties from the full near-UV to infrared transmission spectrum of WASP-79b using three independent retrieval codes, all of which yield consistent results. Our retrievals confirm previous detections of H{sub 2}O (at 4.0σ confidence) while providing moderate evidence of H{sup -} bound–free opacity (3.3σ) and strong evidence of stellar contamination from unocculted faculae (4.7σ). The retrieved H{sub 2}O abundance (~1%) suggests a superstellar atmospheric metallicity, though stellar or substellar abundances remain consistent with present observations (O/H = 0.3–34× stellar). All three retrieval codes obtain a precise H{sup -} abundance constraint: log(X{sub H{sup -}}) ≈ -8.0 ± 0.7. The potential presence of H{sup -} suggests that James Webb Space Telescope observations may be sensitive to ionic chemistry in the atmosphere of WASP-79b. The inferred faculae are ~500 K hotter than the stellar photosphere, covering ~15% of the stellar surface. Our analysis underscores the importance of observing UV–optical transmission spectra in order to disentangle the influence of unocculted stellar heterogeneities from planetary transmission spectra.
We present data on the polarization of the thermal emission from Galactic Clouds at 60 micrometers, 100 micrometers, and 350 micrometers. There are examples of rising polarization spectra in dense cloud cores [P(350 micrometers/P(100 micrometers) approximately equal to 2], and falling spectra in cloud envelopes [P(350)/P(100 micrometers) approximately equal to 0.6]. We also present data showing that the relationship, P(tau), between polarization and optical depth in cloud cores is different from that in cloud envelopes. We review the principles governing the far-infrared polarization spectrum and discuss applications to the data on P(lambda) and P(tau). We conclude that the cloud envelopes we have observed must contain two populations of grains that differ in their polarization efficiencies and in their emission spectra. We propose a model for cloud envelopes in which the contrasting populations reside in domains of different mean temperatures where the warmer domains contain the aligned grains.
We report on polarimetric maps made with HAWC+/SOFIA toward ρ Oph A, the densest portion of the ρ Ophiuchi molecular complex. We employed HAWC+ bands C (89 μm) and D (154 μm). The slope of the polarization spectrum was investigated by defining the quantity R(sub DC) = p(sub D)/p(sub C), where p(sub C) and p(sub D) represent polarization degrees in bands C and D, respectively. We find a clear correlation between R(sub DC) and the molecular hydrogen column density across the cloud. A positive slope (R(sub DC) > 1) dominates the lower-density and well- illuminated portions of the cloud, which are heated by the high-mass star Oph S1, whereas a transition to a negative slope (R(sub DC) < 1) is observed toward the denser and less evenly illuminated cloud core. We interpret the trends as due to a combination of (1) warm grains at the cloud outskirts, which are efficiently aligned by the abundant exposure to radiation from Oph S1, as proposed in the radiative torques theory; and (2) cold grains deep in the cloud core, which are poorly aligned owing to shielding from external radiation. To assess this interpretation, we developed a very simple toy model using a spherically symmetric cloud core based on Herschel data and verified that the predicted variation of R(sub DC) is consistent with the observations. This result introduces a new method that can be used to probe the grain alignment efficiency in molecular clouds, based on the analysis of trends in the far-infrared polarization spectrum.
A comparison of aircraft-based measurement data on Venus' near-infrared (1.2- to 4.1-micron) reflection spectrum with computer generated spectra of a number of cloud candidates shows a 75-% or more concentrated water solution of sulfuric acid to give the only acceptable match to the profile of Venus' strong 3-micron absorption feature. However, the measurement data obtained also show a modest decline in reflectivity from 2.3-micron to 1.2-micron wavelength, which is inconsistent with the flat spectrum of sulfuric acid in this spectral region. It is hypothesized that this decline is due to impurities in the sulfuric acid droplets.
We present a 0.3−5 μm transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter HAT-P-32Ab observed with the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph and Wide Field Camera 3 instruments mounted on the Hubble Space Telescope, combined with Spitzer Infrared Array Camera photometry. The spectrum is composed of 51 spectrophotometric bins with widths ranging between 150 and 400 Å, measured to a median precision of 215 ppm. Comparisons of the observed transmission spectrum to a grid of 1D radiative-convective equilibrium models indicate the presence of clouds/hazes, consistent with previous transit observations and secondary eclipse measurements. To provide more robust constraints on the planet’s atmospheric properties, we perform the first full optical to infrared retrieval analysis for this planet. The retrieved spectrum is consistent with a limb temperature of 1248{sub −92}{sup +92} K, a thick cloud deck, enhanced Rayleigh scattering, and ∼10× solar H{sub 2}O abundance. We find log(Z/Z {sub ⊙}) = 2.41{sub −0.07}{sup +0.06}, and compare this measurement with the mass–metallicity relation derived for the solar system.
In starburst galaxies, active galaxies, and the mysterious ultraluminous infrared galaxies, x rays are likely to interact with molecular gas and dust, thereby inducing infrared emission. X ray heated thermal dust will emit the IR continuum, and x ray photoelectrons will excite an IR emission-line spectrum. Here, researchers model the IR continuum emission characteristic of some selected x ray spectral fluxes, in particular the x ray bremsstrahlung characteristic of supernova and stellar wind bubble shocks in dense media and the power law spectra characteristic of active galactic nuclei. These models are part of a larger project to determine the complete IR spectra, lines plus continuum, of x ray sources embedded in molecular gas. They modeled the thermal emission from grains by calculating a grain temperature/size/composition distribution function, f(T,a,Comp.), which accounts for temperature fluctuations by averaging over all grain thermal histories. In determining the grain thermal distribution, researchers account for both direct grain heating (by x ray absorption and subsequent electron energy deposition) and indirect grain heating (by absorption of the UV emission stimulated by non-thermal photo- and Auger electrons in the gas phase). We let the grain size distribution be proportional to a(exp -3.5), and they consider two types of grain composition: graphites, which we assume to be pure carbon, and silicates, which contain all other depleted heavy elements. They derive the grain composition distribution function from solar abundances and interstellar depletion data.
Recent progress in high-resolution measurement of sub-millimeter and far-infrared emission in the stratosphere is reviewed. Attention is given to the results of recent balloon measurements of the minor stratospheric constituents in the spectral range 40-190 per cm. Emission spectra are presented for HCl; HF; and OH. Emission spectra were also obtained for atomic oxygen; hydrobromic acid; and hydroperoxyl radical. The possibility of detecting HO2 and H2O2 in the far-infrared is also briefly discussed.
Cluster and continuum solvation computational models are employed to model the effect of hydrogen bonding interactions on the vibrational modes of lumiflavin. Calculated spectra were compared to experimental Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectra in the diagnostic 1450–1800 cm –1 range, where intense V C=C , V C=N , V C 2 =O , and V C 4 =O stretching modes of flavin’s isoalloxazine ring are found. Local mode analysis is used to describe the strength of hydrogen-bonding in cluster models. The computations indicate that V C=C and V C=N mode frequencies are relatively insensitive to intermolecular interactions while the V C 2 =O and V C 4 =O modes are sensitive to direct (and also indirect for V C 2 =O ) hydrogen-bonding interactions. Although flavin is neutral, basis sets without the diffuse functions provide incorrect relative frequencies and intensities. The 6-31+G* basis set is found to be adequate for this system, and there is limited benefit to considering larger basis sets. Calculated vibrational mode frequencies agree with experimentally determined frequencies in solution when cluster models with multiple water molecules are used. Accurate simulation of relative FTIR band intensities, on the other hand, requires a continuum (or possibly quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical) model that accounts for long-range electrostatic effects. Lastly, an experimental peak at ca. 1624 cm –1 that is typically assigned to the V C 2 =O vibrational stretching mode has a complicated shape that suggests multiple underlying contributions. Our calculations show that this band has contributions from both the C 6 –C 7 and C 2 = O stretching vibrations.