Invisible comets on evolutionary track of short-period comets

We systematically surveyed the orbits of short-period (SP) comets that show a large change of perihelion distance (q) between 1–2 AU (visible comets) and 4–5 AU (invisible comets) during 4400 years. The data are taken from Cosmo-DICE (Nakamura and Yoshikawa 1991a), which is a long-term orbital evolution project for SP comets. Recognizing that q is the most critical element for observability of comets, an invisibility factor (f), defined as the ratio of unobservable time span to observable span during 4400 years, is calculated for each of the large-q-change comets. A detection limit for each comet is obtained from the heliocentric distance at discovery and/or the absolute magnitude at recent apparitions. A mean f value for 35 SP comets with 2.9 J (J is the Tisserand's invariant) is found to be 19.8. This implies that for each visible SP comet of this J-range, at every epoch of time, there exist about 20 invisible comets near the capture orbits by Jupiter, under the assumptions of steady-state flux and ergodicity for the SP-comet population.     

Statistical survey of planetary nebulae: Distances,masses, and distribution in the galaxy

On the basis of empirical (D)-dependency at the frequency of 5 GHz constructed using 15 planetary nebulae with the independently measured distances (10^–171×10^–20 W m^–2 Hz^–1 ster^–1), we evaluated distances of 335 objects. Independent evidence of the correctness of the accepted scale are given. Then(D)-dependency is constructed and it is shown that atD<0.08 pc the mean electron density is higher than the one determined by the Seaton method. We showed that the filling factor diminishes with the increase of the PN diameter (1 atD0.08 pc and 0.2 atD0.4 pc). the ionized mass of 33 PNs is determined. With the diameter increase the ionized mass grows and atD0.4 pc reaches the valueM0.07M . We used the new distance scale when investigating the space distribution of PNs. The mean scale height =130±15 pc and the mean gradient of the change of surface densitym=0.37, which allowed us to estimate the total number of nebulae in the GalaxyN4×10⁴. We divided the PNs according to their velocities (withV _LSR>35 km s^–1 andV _LSR<35 km s^–1) and permitted us to confirm that the PN belong to different sub-systems of the Galaxy. The estimated local formation rate of PNs [=(4.6±2.2)×10^–12 pc^–3 yr^–1] is a little higher than the one of the white dwarfs. That can be explained by a large number of PNs having binary cores, which used in our sample. The statistical estimation of PN expansion velocity showed thatV _ex increases from 5–7 km s^–1 (atD0.03 pc) to 40–50 km s^–1 (atD0.8 pc).     

Averaging on Earth‐Crossing Orbits

The orbits of planetcrossing asteroids (and comets) can undergo close approaches and collisions with some major planet. This introduces a singularity in the Nbody Hamiltonian, and the averaging of the equations of motion, traditionally used to compute secular perturbations, is undefined. We show that it is possible to define in a rigorous way some generalised averaged equations of motion, in such a way that the generalised solutions are unique and piecewise smooth. This is obtained, both in the planar and in the threedimensional case, by means of the method of extraction of the singularities by Kantorovich. The modified distance used to approximate the singularity is the one used by Wetherill in his method to compute probability of collision. Some examples of averaged dynamics have been computed; a systematic exploration of the averaged phase space to locate the secular resonances should be the next step.'Alice sighed wearily. I think you might do something better with the time she said, than waste it asking riddles with no answers(Alice in Wonderland, L. Carroll)     

Radiative and collisional processes in CNA 2Π i

In the last four years we have carried out a number of studies on the radiative and collisional processes in theA ² _i state of CN. Many of these of interest to those studying planetary atmospheres, comets and solar spectra are summarized in this paper. Data for CNA ² _i fluorescence lifetimes and quenching rates, and collisional energy transfer between CNA ² _i andX ²₊ are reported. Detailed comparisons and a discussion of the results may be found in several already published papers.     

Near-parabolic cometary flux in the outer solar system

The flux of near-parabolic comets in the outer-planetary region is estimated on the presumption that the major planets and the galactic tide control the dynamics of comets. It is found that the flux of the Oort cloud comets (semi-major axis > 20000 AU) is similar to the case of a strong comet shower derived on the presumption that the galactic tidal force were not operative. On the other hand, the flux of comets with semi-major axes <- 20000 AU is found to be an increasing function of q (perihelion distance) until q reaches 20 AU, while for a 45000 AU it is a rapidly increasing function for q 12 AU. In other words, for comets of the inner extension of the Oort cloud the planetary perturbation acts as a strong barrier for them to penetrate into the inner planetary region.     

Quantum effects in cyclotron plasma absorption

It is shown that X-ray radiation of neutron stars with magnetic fieldsB=10¹¹–10¹³ G near cyclotron resonances=s _B (s=1,2,...) is deeply affected by such quantum effects as electron-positron vacuum polarization (significant at V=3×10²⁸ n _e ^–1 (B/B _C ⁴)1, whereB _C =4.4×10¹³G), the quantizing character of the magnetic field (significant atV=3 x 10²⁸ n _e ^–1 (B/B _c)⁴1 whereB _c =4.4 x 10¹³G), the non-harmonic character of the Landau levels, and the quantum recoil of electrons. The latter two factors shift the resonances by the frequency –s ² _B (B/2B _c )sin², being the angle between the direction of radiation propagation and the magnetic field. IfVV ₀ (for 1,V ₀^–1=(mc ²/2T)^1/2), the normal mode (NM) polarizations, as well as the absorption coefficientk ₁ of the extraordinary NM in the Doppler core of the first resonance (|–| _B cos ), is only slightly affected by varyingb and/orV, whereas for the ordinary NM (at 1)k ₂k ₁ ²[b + (3 + tan²–2V)²]k ₁. For sufficiently largeb and/orV the quantum effects amplify resonant absorption of the ordinary NM at _B , with spin-flip transitions playing a major role atb1+V ². IfVV ₀, the coefficientsk ₁ andk ₂ in the Doppler core of the resonance are of the same order and acquire some peculiar features (shifts, intersections, etc.), with the NM polarizations depending sharply on and being strongly non-orthogonal. AtVV ₀,k ₂=k ₁(cos² +B/2B _C ) and the polarizations are almost linear. Near high resonances (s2), as a rule,k _1,2(1 + b) ^{s–1 2s–3} i.e., absorption increases withb due to replacement of the thermal energy of the transverse motion of electron,T, by the magnetic energy _B . The above effects should be taken into account for an interpretation of observational data on X-ray pulsars (e.g., Her X-1) and other X-ray sources associated with neutron stars.     

The asymptotic behavior of the supersonic solutions of the two-fluid solar wind equations

Three different asymptotic branches of the two-fluid equations are found with _e ^m , _p ⁿ , where, is the inverse distance from the Sun, with (m, n) = (2/7, 2/7), (2/7, 6/7), (4/3, 4/3); other special solutions are also found but they correspond to special choices of density and temperature at the corona. In all the (4/3, 4/3) solutions, the electron and proton temperatures tend to equality at large distances.The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.     

Einstein-like field equations with conserved source and decreasing ∧ term; Their cosmological consequences

The consequences of a cosmological term varying asS ^–2 in a spatially isotropic universe with scale factorS and conserved matter tensor are investigated. One finds a perpetually expanding universe with positive and gravitational constantG that increases with time. The hard equation of state 3P>U (U mass-energy density,P scalar pressure) applied to the early universe leads to the expansion lawSt (t cosmic time) which solves the horizon problem with no need of inflation. Also the flatness problem is resolved without inflation. The model does not affect the well known predictions on the cosmic light elements abundance which come from standard big bang cosmology.In the present, matter dominated universe one findsdG/dt=2H/U (H is the Hubble parameter) which is consistent with observations provided <10^–57 cm^–2. Asymptotically (S) the term equalsGU/2, in agreement with other studies.     

Cometary brightness variation and nucleus structure

The Bobrovnikoff and Beyer photometric data for more than 100 comets have been analyzed for intrinsic brightness variations,before andafter perihelion, according to ther ^–n law, wherer is solar distance. The Oort and Schmidt classification of comet age has been extended and applied with Marsden's new determinations of inverse semi-major axis, 1/a, original. All classes of comets withP>25 yr show statistically the same value ofn after perihelion. New comets approach perihelion with smaller values ofn and older comets with increasingly larger values (Table II). For comets ofP<25 yr,n is larger and erratic.A physical interpretation involves the quick loss of a frosting of super-volatile materials from new comets; then, for all comets, the development of an insulating crust after perihelion. The crust also includes globs of meteoroidal and icy material. The crust tends to be purged near perihelion but generally to grow in a spotty fashion with cometary age. The orientation of the axes of rotating comets is shown to be an important unknown factor in cometary brightness variations. A speculation is made concerning the axis of rotation for C/Kohoutek, 1973 XII.Paper dedicated to Professor Hannes Alfvén on the occasion of his 70th birthday, 30 May 1978.This research has been supported by Grant No. NSG 7082 from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.     

Optical Identifications of IRAS Point Sources Based on Low-Dispersion FBS Spectra. Stars. V

A fifth list of point sources from the IRAS Point Source Catalog (PSC) that are optically identified with stars of late spectral types is given. The list contains data on 75 objects. The identifications were based on the Digital Sky Survey (DSS), the First Byurakan Survey, blue and red maps of the Palomar Observatory Sky Survey, and infrared fluxes at the wavelengths 12, 25, 60, and 100 m in the regions of +73° +80° and 03^h30^m 18^h30^m and of +80° +90° and 00^h00^m 20^h00^m. Of the 99 objects, which are given in the IRAS PSC as unidentified sources of infrared emission, 24 are associated with known stars in existing catalogs while 75 sources proved to be unknown in the optical range. The optical coordinates, their departures from the IR coordinates, the V stellar magnitudes, the color indices CI, and the preliminary spectral subtypes have been determined. The objects have optical magnitudes in the range of 6 ^m .5-17 ^m .2. Finder charts from the DSS are given for the 69 new objects.     

The first byurakan Spectral Sky Survey. Blue stellar objects. X. The zone+73°≤σ≤+80°

We present the tenth list of blue stellar objects of the second part of the First Byurakan Spectral Sky Survey (FBS). The list contains 100 objects in the region+73°+80° and3 ^h 30 ^m 18 ^h 30 ^m encompassing an area of 355 square degrees. The objects have stellar V magnitude within the limits 12.0–18.5 and B-V colors between–0.77 and+0.37. Of these 100 objects, 80 were discovered for the first time. We give the equatorial coordinates, stellar V magnitude, color index CI, and preliminary classification of the objects on the basis of low-disperion prismatic spectra. For 29 objects we give approximate types, among which 4 are candidates for quasars, 2 for Seyfert galaxies, 1 for superassociation galaxy IC 381, 18 for white dwarfs, and 4 for cataclysmic variables.Translated fromAstrofizika, Vol. 38, No. 2, 1995.     

VR c photometry of dwarf cepheids (I)

In this paper, we present VRc photometric observations of four dwarf cepheids: YZ Boo (P = 0 _. ^d 104, V = 0 _. ^m 5), AD CMi (P = 0 _. ^d 123, V = 0 _. ^m 5), XX Cyg (P = 0 _. ^d 135, V = 0 _. ^m 5), EH Lib (P = 0 _. ^d 088, V = 0 _. ^m 7). The light curves were obtained at West Mountain Observatory, Provo, Utah on 14 nights from 1983 through 1986 and contain 589 data points in each of theV andR bands in the Cousin photometric system. A detailed study of these stars, based on the present light curves, will be published separately.     

A prominence model based on spectral observations

Intensities and profiles of the H, H, H, K, and D₃ lines are measured in a solar prominence. From the profiles of these lines we estimate T = 6400 K and _t = 5.7 km s^–1. We construct a simple isothermal model which explains the H intensity and profile for an assumed total particle density n _T = 3 × 10¹¹ cm^–3, and a filling factor, = 1/6.From this model we find that the source function in the H line is nearly constant through the prominence. We estimate from the model that the radiative energy loss at the center of the prominence is of the order of 10⁷ erg s^–1 g^–1.     

Stability of the triangular libration points of the circular restricted problem in the presence of resonances

The stability of triangular libration points, when the bigger primary is a source of radiation and the smaller primary is an oblate spheroid. has been investigated in the resonance cases ₁ = 2₂ and ₁ = 3₂. The motion is unstable for all the values of parameters q and A when ₁ = 2₂ and the motion is unstable and stable depending upon the values of the parameters q and A when ₁ = 3₂. Here q is the radiation parameter and A is the oblateness parameter.     

Evidence for Lévy Random Walks in the Evolution of Comets from the Oort Cloud

With a simple map model, derived within the framework of the planar circular restricted three-body problem (SunuuJupiteruucomet), we study the dynamical evolution of near-parabolic comets under the perturbation of Jupiter. The commonly adopted random walk assumption about the energy evolution of the comets is examined. Numerical results show that for the comets on Jupiter-crossing orbits, due to the large energy changes with Jupiter per passage, the statistical evolution of the cometary energy follows a Lévy random walk, thus statistically the final energy parameter that a comet reaches is linked to the number of passages by a power law K _f n _f. The mechanism that generates the Lévy random walk is explained in this model.     

Passage of the solar current disk and major geomagnetic storms

It is shown that major geomagnetic storms (¦Dst¦ > 100) tend to develop at about the time of the passage of the solar current sheet or disk at the location of the Earth, provided this passage is associated with (1) a large impulsive increase of the IMF magnitude B, (2) a negative value of the IMF angle (Theta), and (3) an increasing solar wind speed. The passage occurs in association with the 27-day rotation of the warped current disk or a temporal up-down movement of the latter. The period in which ¦Dst¦/t< 0 during major storms coincides approximately with the period when the solar windmagnetosphere energy coupling function becomes 10¹⁹ erg s^–1. These conclusions do not depend on the phase of the sunspot cycle.These results may be interpreted as follows: A high speed solar wind flow, originating either from flare regions or coronal holes, tends to push the solar current disk to move upward or downward for either a brief period (1 3 days) or an extended period (2 weeks). A relatively thin region of a large IMF B > 10 is often present near the moving current disk. Waves are also generated on the moving current disk, and some of them cause large changes of . A high value of is found in the region of a large IMF B near the wavy solar current disk, where has a large negative value.     

Some requirements of a colliding comet source of gamma ray bursts

Colliding comets in the Solar System may be an important source of gamma ray bursts. The spherical gamma ray comet cloud required by the results of the Venera Satellites (Mazets and Golenetskii, 1987) and the BATSE detector on the Compton Satellite (Meeganet al., 1992a, b) is neither the Oort Cloud nor the Kuiper Belt. To satisfy observations ofN(>P _max) vsP _max for the maximum gamma ray fluxes,P _max > 10^–5 erg cm^–2 s^–1 (about 30 bursts yr^–1), the comet density,n, should increase asn a ¹ from about 40 to 100 AU wherea is the comet heliocentric distance. The turnover above 100 AU requiresn a ^–1/2 to 200 AU to fit the Venera results andn a ^1/4 to 400 AU to fit the BATSE data. Then the masses of comets in the 3 regions are from: 40–100 AU, about 9 earth masses,m _E; 100–200 AU about 25m _E; and 100–400 AU, about 900m _E. The flux of 10^–5 erg cm^–2 s^–1 corresponds to a luminosity at 100 AU of 3 × 10²⁶ erg s^–1. Two colliding spherical comets at a distance of 100 AU, each with nucleus of radiusR of 5 km, density of 0.5 g cm^–3 and Keplerian velocity 3 km s^–1 have a combined kinetic energy of 3 × 10²⁸ erg, a factor of about 100 greater than required by the burst maximum fluxes that last for one second. Betatron acceleration in the compressed magnetic fields between the colliding comets could accelerate electrons to energies sufficient to produce the observed high energy gamma rays. Many of the additional observed features of gamma ray bursts can be explained by the solar comet collision source.     

Photometric study of chromospheric and coronal spikes observed during the total solar eclipse of 30 June, 1973

A photometric and colorimetric analysis of a color picture of the very inner solar corona, near the South pole region, is performed. Dimensions and average electron densities of both chromospheric and very fine resolved coronal spikes are deduced. For the coronal spike a half width of 1.67 is measured, the estimate of electron density yields n _e = 10¹⁰ cm^–3. Some conclusions are attempted on the light of a simultaneously observed spectrum of the same region which appeared to be a disappearing coronal hole. The observations seem to support the concept of a striated corona.On leave from Institut d'Astrophysique, Paris as NRC Post-Doctoral Research Assistant.     

Spectral classification of Be stars

In the course of observations of the LMC with the Glazar space telescope it was found that the star HD 269665 is unusually bright at 1640 A:m ₁₆₄₀ = 5 _. ^m ± 0 _. ^m 1,m ₁₆₄₀ –V = –6 _. ^m 2.     

The interrelationship between cosmic dust and the microwave background

Attention is given to the radiation of microwaves by charged dust in space. Presently-used particle distributions do not restrict the presence in space of large numbers of small (r<10^–6 cm) silicate grains, but it is shown that such densities (10^–25–10^–26 g cm^–3) of small grains would produce a microwave background with an energy density of the same order of magnitude as the energy density of the (presumed) cosmological 3 K background. Limits set by the isotropy of the latter are: (HI clouds)10^–26, (Galactic plane)10^–30, (Halo)10^–32, (Local Group)10^–34 g cm^–3. These limits imply that either there is a cutoff in particle distributions atr10^–6 cm, or that the density of silicate grains in space has been generally overestimated, or that cosmic rays have broken up a lot of grains so that they now form a population of grains of very small size (10^–7 cm) which are difficult to detect by conventional methods. One way to look for the latter population is by studying expected distortions of the 3 K spectrum to the short wavelength side of the portion hitherto observed (grains may have a size distribution able to give an approximate black-body curve for radiation from larger grains of 10^–6 cm size), and by testing the effective energy density of the 3 K field in other galaxies.