Are PSR 0656+14, PSR 0950+08, and PSR 1822-09 gamma-ray pulsars?

The possible discovery of three new -ray pulsars PSR 0656+14, PSR 0950+08, and PSR 1822-09 (Ma, Lu, Yu, and Young, 1993) in data obtained with the COS-B experiment is reinvestigated using a refined technique for pulsar light curve analysis. The results of this study do not confirm the previously claimed -ray pulsar nature of any of these pulsars. Even when using the standard epoch folding technique in conjunction with energy-dependent acceptance cones, we do not detect pulsed -ray emission from these sources. We suspect that insufficient position accuracy is the cause for the discrepancy between our results and those of Maet al. (1993). We do not rule out that any one of the three candidates, or all of them, is in fact a -ray pulsar, but their spin properties must differ from those derived by Maet al. (1993). More work is needed to determine the correct high-energy properties of these three sources.     

毫秒脉冲星PSR J1022+1001轮廓稳定性的研究

脉冲星具有非常稳定的累积脉冲轮廓,特别是毫秒脉冲星.前人研究发现一些脉冲星的累积脉冲轮廓会呈现出不稳定性.研究了毫秒脉冲星PSR J1022+1001累积脉冲轮廓的稳定性问题,该脉冲轮廓有两个峰,发现其峰值比随时间有明显的变化.通过分析,认为该毫秒脉冲星累积脉冲轮廓的不稳定性主要是由于脉冲轮廓随观测频率变化,同时星际闪烁造成不同频率上流量密度变化.研究还发现,也有少部分累积脉冲轮廓的变化可能是脉冲星内禀或其他因素所引起的.     

Radio Pulsar Death Line Revisited: Is PSR J2144-3933 Anomalous?

We present Chandra X-ray observations of the Hydra A cluster of galaxies, and we report the discovery of structure in the central 80 kpc of the cluster's X-ray-emitting gas. The most remarkable structures are depressions in the X-ray surface brightness, approximately 25-35 kpc in diameter, that are coincident with Hydra A's radio lobes. The depressions are nearly devoid of X-ray-emitting gas, and there is no evidence for shock-heated gas surrounding the radio lobes. We suggest that the gas within the surface brightness depressions was displaced as the radio lobes expanded subsonically, leaving cavities in the hot atmosphere. The gas temperature declines from 4 keV at 70 kpc to 3 keV in the inner 20 kpc of the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG), and the cooling time of the gas is approximately 600 Myr in the inner 10 kpc. These properties are consistent with the presence of an approximately 34 M middle dot in circle yr-1 cooling flow within a 70 kpc radius. Bright X-ray emission is present in the BCG surrounding a recently accreted disk of nebular emission and young stars. The star formation rate is commensurate with the cooling rate of the hot gas within the volume of the disk, although the sink for the material that may be cooling at larger radii remains elusive. A bright, unresolved X-ray source is present in the BCG's nucleus, coincident with the radio core. Its X-ray spectrum is consistent with a power law absorbed by a foreground NH approximately 4x1022 cm-2 column of hydrogen. This column is roughly consistent with the hydrogen column seen in absorption toward the less, similar24 pc diameter VLBA radio source. Apart from the point source, no evidence for excess X-ray absorption above the Galactic column is found.     

探究双脉冲星候选体PSR J1906+0746的物理性质

PSR J1906+0746是2006年发现的一颗自旋周期为144 ms的射电脉冲星,由于探测到的是第2颗形成的非自转加速伴星,主星和伴星组成的系统极有可能成为另一对双脉冲星.从PSR J1906+0746的基本物理量出发,针对性地对比研究双中子星和脉冲双星(包括中子星-白矮星)的磁场-周期关系,大致得出他们的演化路径;其次通过双中子星的形成机制以及双星形成过程中的物质损失,假定非自转加速的伴星形成于电子俘获,得出伴星前身星的质量约为1.57 M⊙,在形成双中子星系统过程中损失了约0.23 M⊙.这可能是由于电子俘获能量较低,不能抗衡伴星的引力束缚能,最终抛出物质没有逃逸,形成了一个椭圆环,成功解释了在X射线波段观测到的围绕着PSR J1906+0746的环结构.     

Quasar SDSS J142507.32+323137.4: dual AGNs?

We analyze the optical spectrum of type 1 QSO SDSS J1425+3231.This object is interesting since its narrow emission lines,such as O IIIλλ4959,5007,are double-peaked,and the line structure can be modeled well by three Gaussian components:two components for the two peaks (we refer to the peaks at low/high redshift as the blue/red component) and another one for the line wing which has the same line center as that of the blue component,but is ～ 3 times broader.The separation between the blue and red components i...     

模式变换脉冲星PSR J0614+2229的多波段辐射区研究

年轻脉冲星PSR J0614+2229是少数模式变换时发生相位偏移的脉冲星之一。利用帕克斯(Parkes)射电天文台的10 cm,20 cm和50 cm 3个波段的偏振观测数据,对每个波段爆发模式和正常模式的线偏振位置角用旋转矢量模型进行拟合,确定了其最大斜率点的相位差。进而利用广泛使用的确定辐射高度的相对论性方法,首次得到了模式变换时辐射高度的变化,发现正常模式的辐射位置高于爆发模式,高度差随着频率增加而扩大。根据两个模式累积脉冲窗口中心的相位差,可以推断两个模式的辐射区并不都关于磁轴-自转轴所在子午面对称。     

大质量中子星PSR J0348+0432原生星的组成与结构

在相对论平均场理论中考虑重子八重态,选取每重子熵S=1或S=2,集中研究讨论了熵效应对大质量中子星PSR J0348+0432原生星性质的影响.利用GL85核子耦合参数组计算了PSR J0348+0432的质量,将该参数组推广来计算每重子熵S=1或S=2时原生中子星的性质.结果发现原生中子星较零温中子星会有更多超子出现,且原生中子星的温度越往内部温度越高,超子的出现会降低内部温度.熵会增大大质量原生中子星的质量,这种增加效应超过超子出现减小大质量中子星质量的效应.熵会增加原生中子星的半径,即原生中子星的冷却是一个星体收缩的过程.     

脉冲星PSR J1906+0746射电辐射束的观测特征及其启示

利用公开数据研究了PSR J1906+0746的主脉冲和中间脉冲的辐射特征。通过对各段时期的平均脉冲轮廓进行高斯拟合,得到了对应的10%峰值脉冲宽度和峰值流量密度,进而研究了与碰撞角之间的关系。结果表明,主脉冲辐射束的主要可见部分可由一束有确定磁经度角范围的磁流管产生,而中间脉冲则来自于环绕磁轴的磁力线上的辐射。现有的扇形束模型可以较好地解释主脉冲的特征,但难以解释中间脉冲的辐射特征。中间脉冲的特征要求改进扇形束模型,在假设磁轴四周的磁力线均有辐射的情况下,通过合理选择模型参数模拟观测到的条形辐射束。     

Members of the double pulsar system PSR J0737-3039: Neutron stars or strange stars?

One interesting method of constraining the dense matter Equations of State is to measure the advancement of the periastron of the orbit of a binary radio pulsar (when it belongs to a double neutron star system). There is a great deal of interest on applicability of this procedure to the double pulsar system PSR J0737-3039 (A/B). Although the above method can be applied to PSR A in future within some limitations, for PSR B this method cannot be applied. On the other hand, the study of genesis of PSR B might be useful in this connection and its low mass might be an indication that it could be a strange star.     

Possible modulated γ-ray emission from the transitional millisecond pulsar binary PSR J1023+0038

We report the results from our analysis of Fermi Large Area Telescope(LAT) data for the transitional millisecond pulsar binary PSR J1023+0038. The time period of the data is nearly 9 yr, and that after the source's transition, in June 2013 from the disk-free state to the active state of having an accretion disk, is approximately 4 yr. We identify a high-energy 5.5 GeV component in the source's spectrum in the active state, and find this component is only significantly detected in half of the orbital phase centered at the descending node(when the pulsar is moving towards the Earth). Considering the pulsar scenario proposed for multi-frequency emission from the source, in which the pulsar is still active and a cold-relativistic pulsar wind inverse-Compton scatters the photons from the accretion disk, we discuss the origin of the high-energy component. In order to explain the observed spectrum, a power-law distribution of particles, with an index of ～3, in the pulsar wind is required, while the orbital variations are possibly due to changes in power-law index as a function of orbital phase.     

More Emission Cones: Multi-frequency Simulation of the Pulse Profiles of PSR J0437-4715

Pulsar radio emission beams have been studied observationally for a long time, and the suggestion is that they consist of the so-called core and conal components. To reproduce these components is a challenge for any emission model, and that the pulse profile of pulsars changes with frequency presents even a greater challenge. Assuming a local surface magnetic structure (to produce the core or central beam) and a global dipole magnetic field (to produce the conal beams), Gil & Krawczyk (1997) applied curvature radiation to the pulse profile simulation of PSR J0437-4715 (hereafter the GK model). Here we present an alternative multi-frequency simulation of the same profiles within the framework of the Inverse Compton Scattering (ICS) model. It is obtained from our simulation (1) that besides the core, the inner cone and the outer cone, there is an outer-outer cone; (2) that the emission components of the core and cones evolve strongly with frequency. Some important differences between the ICS model and the     

Reclassification of the nearest quasar pair candidate: SDSS J15244+3032–RXS J15244+3032

We present optical spectroscopy of the nearest quasar pair listed in the 13th edition of the Véron-Cetty & Véron catalogue, i.e. the two quasars SDSS J15244+3032 and RXS J15244+3032 (redshift z≈0.27, angular separation Δθ≈7″, and line-of-sight velocity difference ΔV≈1900 km/s). This system would be an optimal candidate to investigate the mutual interaction of the host galaxies with ground based optical imaging and spectroscopy. However, new optical data demonstrate that RXS J15244+3032 is indeed a star of spectral type G. This paper includes data gathered with the Asiago 1.82 m telescope (Cima Ekar Observatory, Asiago, Italy).     

MONS OT J004240.69+405142.0: An orphan GRB optical afterglow candidate in Andromeda?

Here we report the serendipitous identification of a bright optical transient in the vicinity of the dwarf elliptical galaxy M 32 (NGC 221). This transient (MONS OT J004240.69+405142.0) was detected using filtered CCD imaging, about 20 arcsec southwest from the core of M 32, at equatorial coordinates α = 00:42:40.69 ± 0.05, δ = +40:51:42.0 ± 0.5, between 04:20:16 and 04:21:46 UT on June 22, 2007. A detailed analysis of the intensity profile of the feature suggests that it is of stellar nature with apparent visual magnitude 9.69 ± 0.15 which gives an absolute magnitude of ?14.7 ± 0.3 if the feature is located in M 31/M 32. Under the assumption of the event reported here being of cosmic origin and although no correlation with GRBs in time or space has been found, the behaviour of the optical transient appears to resemble that of the recently observed GRB 080319B: very fast ascent and decay of several magnitudes within a few minutes. If this interpretation is correct, the afterglow decay was extremely rapid, decreasing by more than 5 mag. in about 2 min, α = 2.4. Given its properties, the event is a possible orphan GRB optical afterglow candidate originated beyond the Local Group. Alternative explanations are also discussed.     

SDSS J121606.5+280648.5: a helium-core white dwarf in an eclipsing binary system?

A comparison of Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS) and Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) images showed SDSS J121606.5+280648.5 to have increased in brightness by nearly two magnitudes since 1955. SDSS J121606.5+280648.5 turned out to be a low-mass white dwarf having a less luminous cool companion, probably a late-type Main Sequence dwarf. A possible explanation of brightening is that the companion eclipsed the white dwarf at the time the POSS plate was obtained. If SDSS J121606.5+280648.5 is an eclipsing binary, further study should help establish circumstances in which rapid mass loss occurs on the Red Giant Branch (RGB).     

XTE J1901+014—the first low-mass Fast X-ray transient?

We continue to study the fast X-ray transient XTE J1901+014 discovered in 2002 by the RXTE observatory, whose nature has not yet been established. Based on the XMM-Newton observations of the source in 2006, we have obtained its energy spectrum, light curves, and power spectrum in the energy range 0.5–10 keV, which are in good agreement with our results obtained previously from the data of other observatories. In turn, this suggests that the source’s emission is stable in the quiescent state. The XMM-Newton observations also allowed the source’s localization accuracy to be improved to ≤2″, which subsequently enabled us to search for its optical companion with the RTT-150 and 6-m BTA (Special Astrophysical Observatory) telescopes. Combining optical, X-ray, and infrared observations, we have concluded that the optical companion in the system under study can be either a later-type star at a distance of several kpc or a very distant red giant or an A or F star. Thus, XTE J1901+014 may be the first low-mass fast X-ray transient.     

Spiral structure in IP Pegasi: how persistent is it?

We present spectroscopy of the dwarf nova IP Pegasi taken during two consecutive nights, 5 and 6 d after the start of an outburst. Even this late in the outburst, Doppler maps show marked spiral structure in the accretion disc, at least as strongly as seen earlier in other outbursts of IP Peg. The spiral shocks are present on both nights with no diminution in strength from one night to the next. The light curves of the lines show an offset to earlier phases, with the mid-eclipse of the emission lines displaced to phases between −0.015±0.001 and −0.045±0.009. This cannot be explained by the presence of the accretion shocks. As well as the fixed spiral pattern, the disc shows strong flaring in the Balmer and He  ii   λ 4686-Å lines. Irradiation-induced emission is seen from the companion star in the Balmer, He  i , He  ii , Mg  ii , C  ii , and other lines. The emission is located near the poles of the companion star, suggesting that the accretion disc shields the companion star substantially and thus has an effective H R of order 0.2 at extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) wavelengths. The Balmer emission is distinctly broader than the other lines, consistent with non-Doppler broadening.     

类星体SDSS J0916+2921的类银河系2175 ?尘埃消光特征

光谱观测显示类星体SDSS J091613.60+292106.1 (简称J0916+2921,系统红移zem=1.1418±0.0018)中有特殊的2175?尘埃消光特征,其强度显著大于银河系平均强度.光谱同时探测到与尘埃成协的丰富气体吸收线,确定吸收线系统红移为zabs=1.1413±0.0002,和类星体红移一致.气态金属离子柱密度相对太阳丰度的比例为[Al/Zn]=-1.68±0.10,[Cr/Zn]=-0.49±0.10,[Fe/Zn]=-0.81±0.18.尘埃耗散作用显著,说明该系统中尘埃十分丰富,与观测的强尘埃消光特征吻合.类银河系的2175?尘埃消光特征在类星体光谱中多见于中间插入吸收线系统,至今未明确认证内禀吸收线系统出现该特征,类星体SDSS J0916+2921是目前仅有的数个候选者之一.该类星体X射线辐射相较一般类星体更强,后续可用作研究2175?尘埃在强高能射线照射条件下的形成与离解平衡,以揭示2175?尘埃的化学成分、物理性质和起源.