Table of contents

We present Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of the field of the Type IIb supernova (SN) 2011dh in M51 performed at ≈1161 rest-frame days after explosion using the Wide Field Camera 3 and near-UV filters F225W and F336W. A star-like object is detected in both bands and the photometry indicates it has negative (F225W − F336W) color. The observed object is compatible with the companion of the now-vanished yellow supergiant progenitor predicted in interacting binary models. We consider it unlikely that the SN is undergoing strong interaction and thus estimate that it makes a small contribution to the observed flux. The possibilities of having detected an unresolved light echo or an unrelated object are briefly discussed and judged unlikely. Adopting a possible range of extinction by dust, we constrain parameters of the proposed binary system. In particular, the efficiency of mass accretion onto the binary companion must be below 50%, if no significant extinction is produced by newly formed dust. Further multiband observations are required in order to confirm the identification of the object as the companion star. If confirmed, the companion star would already be dominant in the UV–optical regime, so it would readily provide a unique opportunity to perform a detailed study of its properties.

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) images of solar flares provided by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) are often affected by saturation effects in their core, physically most interesting, region. We introduce an image reconstruction procedure that allows recovering information in the primary saturation domain using the secondary images produced by the diffraction fringes as input data. Such a procedure is based on standard image-processing tools like correlation, convolution, and back-projection. Its effectiveness is tested in the case of AIA/SDO observations of the 2013 July 8 flaring event.

Gliese 667C is an M1.5V star with a multi-planet system, including planet candidates in the habitable zone. The exact number of planets in the system is unclear, because the existing radial velocity (RV) measurements are known to contain contributions from stellar magnetic activity. Following our analysis of Gliese 581, we have analyzed the effect of stellar activity on the HARPS/HARPS-TERRA RVs of GJ 667C, finding a significant RV–activity correlation when using the width (FWHM) of the HARPS cross-correlation function to trace the magnetic activity. When we correct for this correlation, we confirm the detections of the previously observed planets b and c in the system, while simultaneously ascribing the RV signal near 90 days ("planet d") to an artifact of the stellar rotation. We are unable to confirm the existence of the additional RV periodicities described in Anglada-Escudé et al. in our activity-corrected data.

In the scenario of weak turbulence, energy is believed to be cascaded from smaller to larger wave numbers and frequencies due to weak wave–wave interactions. Based on its perturbative treatment one may regard plasma turbulence as a superposition of linear modes (or normal modes) and sideband waves (or nonlinear modes). In this study, we use magnetic field and plasma measurements of nine solar wind events obtained by the Cluster spacecraft and make extensive use of a high-resolution wave vector analysis method, the Multi-point Signal Resonator technique, to find frequencies and wave vectors of discrete modes on ion kinetic scales in the plasma rest frame. The primarily unstructured wave observations in the frequency–wave number diagram are classified into three distinct linear modes (proton Bernstein modes, helium-alpha Bernstein modes, and kinetic Alfvén waves) and the sideband waves by comparing with the dispersion relations derived theoretically from linear Vlasov theory using observational values of the plasma parameter beta and the propagation angle from the mean magnetic field. About 60% of the observed discrete modes can be explained by the linear modes, primarily as the proton Bernstein and the kinetic Alfvén waves, within the frequency uncertainties, while the rest of the population (about 40%) cannot be classified as linear modes due to the large deviation from dispersion relations. We conclude that both the linear modes and sideband wave components are needed to construct the wave picture of solar wind turbulence on ion-kinetic scales.

We present our discovery of dramatic variability in SDSS J1100+4421 by the high-cadence transient survey Kiso Supernova Survey. The source brightened in the optical by at least a factor of three within about half a day. Spectroscopic observations suggest that this object is likely a narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy (NLS1) at z = 0.840, however, with unusually strong narrow emission lines. The estimated black hole mass of ∼10⁷M_☉ implies bolometric nuclear luminosity close to the Eddington limit. SDSS J1100+4421 is also extremely radio-loud, with a radio loudness parameter of R ≃ 4 × 10²–3 × 10³, which implies the presence of relativistic jets. Rapid and large-amplitude optical variability of the target, reminiscent of that found in a few radio- and γ-ray-loud NLS1s, is therefore produced most likely in a blazar-like core. The 1.4 GHz radio image of the source shows an extended structure with a linear size of about 100 kpc. If SDSS J1100+4421 is a genuine NLS1, as suggested here, this radio structure would then be the largest ever discovered in this type of active galaxies.

The water abundance in a planetary atmosphere provides a key constraint on the planet's primordial origins because water ice is expected to play an important role in the core accretion model of planet formation. However, the water content of the solar system giant planets is not well known because water is sequestered in clouds deep in their atmospheres. By contrast, short-period exoplanets have such high temperatures that their atmospheres have water in the gas phase, making it possible to measure the water abundance for these objects. We present a precise determination of the water abundance in the atmosphere of the 2 M_Jup short-period exoplanet WASP-43b based on thermal emission and transmission spectroscopy measurements obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope. We find the water content is consistent with the value expected in a solar composition gas at planetary temperatures (0.4–3.5 × solar at 1σ confidence). The metallicity of WASP-43b's atmosphere suggested by this result extends the trend observed in the solar system of lower metal enrichment for higher planet masses.

Using the Hα observations from the New Vacuum Solar Telescope at the Fuxian Solar Observatory, we focus on the fine structures of three confined flares and the issue why all the three flares are confined instead of eruptive. All the three confined flares take place successively at the same location and have similar morphologies, so can be termed homologous confined flares. In the simultaneous images obtained by the Solar Dynamics Observatory, many large-scale coronal loops above the confined flares are clearly observed in multi-wavelengths. At the pre-flare stage, two dipoles emerge near the negative sunspot, and the dipolar patches are connected by small loops appearing as arch-shaped Hα fibrils. There exists a reconnection between the small loops, and thus the Hα fibrils change their configuration. The reconnection also occurs between a set of emerging Hα fibrils and a set of pre-existing large loops, which are rooted in the negative sunspot, a nearby positive patch, and some remote positive faculae, forming a typical three-legged structure. During the flare processes, the overlying loops, some of which are tracked by activated dark materials, do not break out. These direct observations may illustrate the physical mechanism of confined flares, i.e., magnetic reconnection between the emerging loops and the pre-existing loops triggers flares and the overlying loops prevent the flares from being eruptive.

Building upon a new dynamical model for the X-ray binary LMC X-3, we measure the spin of its black hole (BH) primary via the continuum-fitting method. We consider over one thousand thermal-state Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer X-ray spectra of LMC X-3. Using a large subset of these spectra, we constrain the spin parameter of the BH to be $a_*= 0.25^{+0.20}_{-0.29}$ (90% confidence). Our estimate of the uncertainty in a_* takes into account a wide range of systematic errors. We discuss evidence for a correlation between a BH's spin and the complexity of its X-ray spectrum.

To better understand the dynamics of turbulent systems, we have proposed a phenomenological model based on a generalized Cantor set with two rescaling and one weight parameters. In this Letter, using recent Voyager 1 magnetic field data, we extend our two-scale multifractal analysis further in the heliosheath beyond the heliospheric termination shock, and even now near the heliopause, when entering the interstellar medium for the first time in human history. We have identified the scaling inertial region for magnetized heliospheric plasma between the termination shock and the heliopause. We also show that the degree of multifractality decreases with the heliocentric distance and is still modulated by the phases of the solar cycle in the entire heliosphere including the heliosheath. Moreover, we observe the change of scaling toward a nonintermittent (nonmultifractal) behavior in the nearby interstellar medium, just beyond the heliopause. We argue that this loss of multifractal behavior could be a signature of the expected crossing of the heliopause by Voyager 2 in the near future. The results obtained demonstrate that our phenomenological multifractal model exhibits some properties of intermittent turbulence in the solar system plasmas, and we hope that it could shed light on universal characteristics of turbulence.

The Fundamental Plane (FP) of early-type galaxies, relating the effective radius, velocity dispersion, and surface brightness, has long been recognized as a unique tool for analyzing galaxy structure and evolution. With the discovery of distant quiescent galaxies and the introduction of high sensitivity near-infrared spectrographs, it is now possible to explore the FP out to z ∼ 2. In this Letter we study the evolution of the FP out to z ∼ 2 using kinematic measurements of massive quiescent galaxies (M_* > 10¹¹M_☉). We find preliminary evidence for the existence of an FP out to z ∼ 2. The scatter of the FP, however, increases from z ∼ 0 to z ∼ 2, even when taking into account the larger measurement uncertainties at higher redshifts. We find a strong evolution of the zero point from z ∼ 2 to z ∼ 0: Δlog₁₀M/L_g∝(− 0.49 ± 0.03)z. In order to assess whether our spectroscopic sample is representative of the early-type galaxy population at all redshifts, we compare their rest-frame g − z colors with those from a larger mass complete sample of quiescent galaxies. At z > 1 we find that the spectroscopic sample is bluer. We use the color offsets to estimate a mass-to-light ratio (M/L) correction. The implied FP zero point evolution after correction is significantly smaller: Δlog₁₀M/L_g∝(− 0.39  ±  0.02)z. This is consistent with an apparent formation redshift of $z_{\rm {form}}=6.62^{+3.19}_{-1.44}$ for the underlying population, ignoring the effects of progenitor bias. A more complete spectroscopic sample is required at z ∼ 2 to properly measure the M/L evolution from the FP evolution.

The Focusing Optics X-ray Solar Imager (FOXSI) sounding rocket payload flew for the first time on 2012 November 2, producing the first focused images of the Sun above 5 keV. To enable hard X-ray (HXR) imaging spectroscopy via direct focusing, FOXSI makes use of grazing-incidence replicated optics combined with fine-pitch solid-state detectors. On its first flight, FOXSI observed several targets that included active regions, the quiet Sun, and a GOES-class B2.7 microflare. This Letter provides an introduction to the FOXSI instrument and presents its first solar image. These data demonstrate the superiority in sensitivity and dynamic range that is achievable with a direct HXR imager with respect to previous, indirect imaging methods, and illustrate the technological readiness for a spaceborne mission to observe HXRs from solar flares via direct focusing optics.

We present a new analysis of Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer observations of the 2002 outburst of the transient X-ray nova 4U 1543-47. We focus on observations in the high/soft state, and attempt to measure the "spin" of the black hole by simultaneously fitting the thermal disk continuum and by modeling the broadened iron k-shell emission lines and additional blurred reflection features. Previous works have found that use of these methods individually returns contradictory values for the dimensionless spin parameter a_* = cJ/GM². We find that when used in conjunction with each other, a moderate spin is obtained ($a_{*}=0.43^{+0.22}_{-0.31}$) that is actually consistent with both other values within errors. We discuss limitations of our analysis, systematic uncertainties, and implications of this measurement, and compare our result to those previously claimed for 4U 1543-47.

The frequency of disks around young stars, a key parameter for understanding planet formation, is most readily determined in young stellar clusters where many relatively coeval stars are located in close proximity. Observational studies seem to show that the disk frequency decreases rapidly with cluster age with <10% of cluster stars retaining their disks for longer than 2–6 Myr. Given that at least half of all stars in the field seem to harbor one or more planets, this would imply extremely fast disk dispersal and rapid planet growth. Here we question the validity of this constraint by demonstrating that the short disk dissipation times inferred to date might have been heavily underestimated by selection effects. Critically, for ages >3 Myr only stars that originally populated the densest areas of very populous clusters, which are prone to disk erosion, are actually considered. This tiny sample may not be representative of the majority of stars. In fact, the higher disk fractions in co-moving groups indicate that it is likely that over 30% of all field stars retain their disks well beyond 10 Myr, leaving ample time for planet growth. Equally, our solar system, with a likely formation time >10 Myr, need no longer be an exception but in fact typical of planetary systems.

We investigate the eruption and interaction of two coronal mass ejections (CMEs) during the large 2013 May 22 solar energetic particle event using multiple spacecraft observations. Two CMEs, having similar propagation directions, were found to erupt from two nearby active regions (ARs), AR11748 and AR11745, at ∼08:48 UT and ∼13:25 UT, respectively. The second CME was faster than the first CME. Using the graduated cylindrical shell model, we reconstructed the propagation of these two CMEs and found that the leading edge of the second CME caught up with the trailing edge of the first CME at a height of ∼6 solar radii. After about two hours, the leading edges of the two CMEs merged at a height of ∼20 solar radii. Type II solar radio bursts showed strong enhancement during this two hour period. Using the velocity dispersion method, we obtained the solar particle release (SPR) time and the path length for energetic electrons. Further assuming that energetic protons propagated along the same interplanetary magnetic field, we also obtained the SPR time for energetic protons, which were close to that of electrons. These release times agreed with the time when the second CME caught up with the trailing edge of the first CME, indicating that the CME–CME interaction (and shock–CME interaction) plays an important role in the process of particle acceleration in this event.

The induced gravitational collapse (IGC) paradigm has been successfully applied to the explanation of the concomitance of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) with supernovae (SNe) Ic. The progenitor is a tight binary system composed of a carbon–oxygen (CO) core and a neutron star (NS) companion. The explosion of the SN leads to hypercritical accretion onto the NS companion, which reaches the critical mass, hence inducing its gravitational collapse to a black hole (BH) with consequent emission of the GRB. The first estimates of this process were based on a simplified model of the binary parameters and the Bondi–Hoyle–Lyttleton accretion rate. We present here the first full numerical simulations of the IGC phenomenon. We simulate the core-collapse and SN explosion of CO stars to obtain the density and ejection velocity of the SN ejecta. We follow the hydrodynamic evolution of the accreting material falling into the Bondi–Hoyle surface of the NS all the way up to its incorporation in the NS surface. The simulations go up to BH formation when the NS reaches the critical mass. For appropriate binary parameters, the IGC occurs in short timescales ∼10²–10³ s owing to the combined effective action of the photon trapping and the neutrino cooling near the NS surface. We also show that the IGC scenario leads to a natural explanation for why GRBs are associated only with SNe Ic with totally absent or very little helium.

Energetic neutral atoms (ENAs) provide the only way to observe the acceleration site of coronal-mass-ejection-driven (CME-driven) shock-accelerated solar energetic particles (SEPs). In gradual SEP events, energetic protons can charge exchange with the ambient solar wind or interstellar neutrals to become ENAs. Assuming a CME-driven shock with a constant speed of 1800 km s⁻¹ and compression ratio of 3.5, propagating from 1.5 to 40 R_S, we calculate the accelerated SEPs at 5–5000 keV and the resulting ENAs via various charge-exchange interactions. Taking into account the ENA losses in the interplanetary medium, we obtain the flux-time profiles of these solar ENAs reaching 1 AU. We find that the arriving ENAs at energies above ∼100 keV show a sharply peaked flux-time profile, mainly originating from the shock source below 5 R_S, whereas the ENAs below ∼20 keV have a flat-top time profile, mostly originating from the source beyond 10 R_S. Assuming the accelerated protons are effectively trapped downstream of the shock, we can reproduce the STEREO ENA fluence observations at ∼2–5 MeV/nucleon. We also estimate the flux of ENAs coming from the charge exchange of energetic storm protons, accelerated by the fast CME-driven shock near 1 AU, with interstellar hydrogen and helium. Our results suggest that appropriate instrumentation would be able to detect ENAs from SEPs and to even make ENA images of SEPs at energies above ∼10–20 keV.

Neutron stars are among the most compact objects in the universe and provide a unique laboratory for the study of cold ultra-dense matter. While asteroseismology can provide a powerful probe of the interiors of stars, for example, helioseismology has provided unprecedented insights about the interior of the Sun, comparable capabilities for neutron star seismology have not yet been achieved. Here, we report the discovery of a coherent X-ray modulation from the neutron star 4U 1636−536 during the 2001 February 22 thermonuclear superburst seen with NASA's Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) that is very likely produced by a global oscillation mode. The observed frequency is 835.6440 ± 0.0002 Hz (1.43546 times the stellar spin frequency of 582.14323 Hz) and the modulation is well described by a sinusoid (A + Bsin (ϕ − ϕ₀)) with a fractional half-amplitude of B/A = 0.19 ± 0.04% (4–15 keV). The observed frequency is consistent with the expected inertial frame frequency of a rotationally modified surface g-mode, an interfacial mode in the ocean-crust interface, or perhaps an r-mode. Observing an inertial frame frequency—as opposed to a co-rotating frame frequency—appears consistent with the superburst's thermal emission arising from the entire surface of the neutron star, and the mode may become visible by perturbing the local surface temperature. We briefly discuss the implications of the mode detection for the neutron star's projected velocity and mass. Our results provide further strong evidence that global oscillation modes can produce observable modulations in the X-ray flux from neutron stars.

In many type II solar radio bursts, the fundamental and/or the harmonic branches of the bursts can split into two almost parallel bands with similar spectral shapes and frequency drifts. However, the mechanisms accounting for this intriguing phenomenon remain elusive. In this study, we report a special band-splitting type II event in which spectral features appear systematically earlier on the upper band (with higher frequencies) than on the lower band (with lower frequencies) by several seconds. Furthermore, the emissions carried by the splitting band are moderately polarized with the left-hand polarized signals stronger than the right-hand ones. The polarization degree varies in a range of −0.3 to −0.6. These novel observational findings provide important constraints on the underlying physical mechanisms of band-splitting of type II radio bursts.

Baryon acoustic oscillations (BAOs) allow us to determine the expansion history of the universe, thereby shedding light on the nature of dark energy. Recent observations of BAOs in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) DR9 and DR11 have provided us with statistically independent measurements of H(z) at redshifts of 0.57 and 2.34, respectively. We show that these measurements can be used to test the cosmological constant hypothesis in a model-independent manner by means of an improved version of the Om diagnostic. Our results indicate that the SDSS DR11 measurement of H(z) = 222 ± 7 km s⁻¹ Mpc⁻¹ at z = 2.34, when taken in tandem with measurements of H(z) at lower redshifts, imply considerable tension with the standard ΛCDM model. Our estimation of the new diagnostic Omh² from SDSS DR9 and DR11 data, namely, Omh² ≈ 0.122 ± 0.01, which is equivalent to Ω_0mh² for the spatially flat ΛCDM model, is in tension with the value Ω_0mh² = 0.1426 ± 0.0025 determined for ΛCDM from Planck+WP. This tension is alleviated in models in which the cosmological constant was dynamically screened (compensated) in the past. Such evolving dark energy models display a pole in the effective equation of state of dark energy at high redshifts, which emerges as a smoking gun test for these theories.

On 2012 September 30–October 1 the Earth underwent a two-step geomagnetic storm. We examine the Sun-to-Earth characteristics of the coronal mass ejections (CMEs) responsible for the geomagnetic storm with combined heliospheric imaging and in situ observations. The first CME, which occurred on 2012 September 25, is a slow event and shows an acceleration followed by a nearly invariant speed in the whole Sun–Earth space. The second event, launched from the Sun on 2012 September 27, exhibits a quick acceleration, then a rapid deceleration, and finally a nearly constant speed, a typical Sun-to-Earth propagation profile for fast CMEs. These two CMEs interacted near 1 AU as predicted by the heliospheric imaging observations and formed a complex ejecta observed at Wind, with a shock inside that enhanced the pre-existing southward magnetic field. Reconstruction of the complex ejecta with the in situ data indicates an overall left-handed flux-rope-like configuration with an embedded concave-outward shock front, a maximum magnetic field strength deviating from the flux rope axis, and convex-outward field lines ahead of the shock. While the reconstruction results are consistent with the picture of CME–CME interactions, a magnetic cloud-like structure without clear signs of CME interactions is anticipated when the merging process is finished.

We demonstrate that the asymmetric distribution of M31 satellites cannot be produced by tides from the Milky Way as such effects are too weak. However, loosely bound associations and groups of satellites can fall into larger halos and give rise to asymmetries. We compute the survival times for such associations. We prove that the survival time is always shortest in Keplerian potentials, and can be ∼3 times longer in logarithmic potentials. We provide an analytical formula for the dispersal time in terms of the size and velocity dispersion of the infalling structure. We show that, if an association of ∼10 dwarfs fell into the M31 halo, its present aspect would be that of an asymmetric disk of satellites. We also discuss the case of cold substructure in the Andromeda II and Ursa Minor dwarfs.

Since white dwarfs (WDs) are small, the contrast between the thermal emission of an orbiting object and a WD is dramatically enhanced compared to a main-sequence host. Furthermore, rocky objects much smaller than the moon have no atmospheres and are tidally locked to the WD. We show that this leads to temperature contrasts between their day and night side of the order of unity that should lead to temporal variations in infrared flux over an orbital period of ∼0.2 to ∼2 days. Ground-based telescopes could detect objects with a mass as small as 1% of the lunar mass M_L around Sirius B with a few hours of exposure. The James Webb Space Telescope may be able to detect objects as small as 10⁻³ M_L around most nearby WDs. The tightest constraints will typically be placed on 12,000 K WDs, whose Roche zone coincides with the dust sublimation zone. Constraining the abundance of minor planets around WDs as a function of their surface temperatures (and therefore age) provides a novel probe for the physics of planetary formation.

We present a medium resolution spectrum of Jupiter's irregular satellite Himalia covering the critical 3 μm spectral region. The spectrum shows no evidence for aqueously altered phyllosilicates, as had been suggested from the tentative detection of a 0.7 μm absorption, but instead shows a spectrum strikingly similar to the C/CF type asteroid 52 Europa. 52 Europa is the prototype of a class of asteroids generally situated in the outer asteroid belt between less distant asteroids which show evidence for aqueous alteration and more distant asteroids which show evidence for water ice. The spectral match between Himalia and this group of asteroids is surprising and difficult to reconcile with models of the origin of the irregular satellites.

We present an alternate method of determining the progression of the solar cycle through an analysis of the solar X-ray background. Our results are based on the NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) X-ray data in the 1–8 Å band from 1986 to the present, covering solar cycles 22, 23, and 24. The X-ray background level tracks the progression of the solar cycle through its maximum and minimum. Using the X-ray data, we can therefore make estimates of the solar cycle progression and the date of solar maximum. Based upon our analysis, we conclude that the Sun reached its hemisphere-averaged maximum in solar cycle 24 in late 2013. This is within six months of the NOAA prediction of a maximum in spring 2013.