Using the quasar VLBI network for the fundamental time—positioning service of the GLONASS space system

Regular high-precision determinations of the Earth’s orientation parameters (EOPs) on the Quasar VLBI Network were begun in August 2006. The observations are performed within the framework of two national programs: daily sessions at three observatories of the Network to determine all five EOPs (the RU-E program) and 8-h sessions on the Zelenchukskaya-Badary and Svetloe-Badary baselines to determine the Universal Time (the RU-U program). The observations from August 2006 through May 2007 are analyzed. The rms deviations of the EOP values obtained in the RU-E program from the IERS C04 series are 1.1 mas for X _p and Y _p, 37 μs for UT1-UTC, and 0.7 and 0.6 mas for X _c and Y _c, respectively. These results closely match the prospective requirements of GLONASS. The rms deviations of the Universal Times obtained in the RU-U program from the IERS C04 series are 146 μs. We consider the immediate prospects for improving the accuracy of EOP determinations in daily sessions and for implementing the e-VLBI mode for an online determination of the Universal Time. Original Russian Text ? A.M. Finkelstein, E.A. Skurikhina, I.F. Surkis, A.V. Ipatov, I.A. Rakhimov, S.G. Smolentsev, 2008, published in Pis’ma v Astronomicheskiĭ Zhurnal, 2008, Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 66–76.     

Spatial variations of the extinction law in the galactic disk from infrared observations

Infrared photometry in the J (1.2 µm), H (1.7 µm), Ks (2.2 µm) bands from the 2MASS catalogue and in the W1 (3.4 µm), W2 (4.6 µm), W3 (12 µm), W4 (22 µm) bands from the WISE catalogue is used to reveal the spatial variations of the interstellar extinction law in the infrared near the midplane of the Galaxy by the method of extrapolation of the extinction law applied to clump giants. The variations of the coefficients E(H ? W1)/E(H ? Ks), E(H ? W2)/E(H ? Ks), E(H ? W3)/E(H ? Ks), and E(H ? W4)/E(H ? Ks) along the line of sight in 2° × 2° squares of the sky centered at b = 0° and l = 20°, 30°, ..., 330°, 340° as well as in several 4° × 4° squares with |b| = 10° are considered. The results obtained here agree with those obtained by Zasowski et al. in 2009 using 2MASS and Spitzer-IRAC photometry for the same longitudes and similar photometric bands, confirming their main result: in the inner (relative to the Sun) Galactic disk, the fraction of fine dust increases with Galactocentric distance (or the mean dust grain size decreases). However, in the outer Galactic disk that was not considered by Zasowski et al., this trend is reversed: at the disk edge, the fraction of coarse dust is larger than that in the solar neighborhood. This general Galactic trend seems to be explained by the influence of the spiral pattern: its processes sort the dust by size and fragment it so that coarse and fine dust tend to accumulate, respectively, at the outer and inner (relative to the Galactic center) edges of the spiral arms. As a result, fine dust may exist only in the part of the Galactic disk far from both the Galactic center and the edge, while coarse dust dominates at the Galactic center, at the disk edge, and outside the disk.     

4.8 – 20 micron imaging of orion BN/KL: luminosity sources and the role of IRc2

Mid-infrared imaging photometry of the Orion BN/KL infrared cluster at eight wavelengths between 5 and 20µm using a 58 × 62 pixel imaging array camera has revealed new compact sources and the large-scale structure of the region in diffraction-limited (1 arcsec) detail. Several new objects have been detected within a few arcsec of IRc2, widely thought to be the principal luminosity source for the entire BN/KL complex. Detailed color temperature and emission opacity images are derived from the 7.8, 12.4 and 20.0µm observations, and the 9.8µm image is used to derive an image of “silicate” dust extinction for the region. The color temperature, opacity, and extinction images show that IRc2 may not be the single dominant luminosity source for the BN/KL region; substantial contributions to the luminosity could be made by IRc7, BN, KL, and five new compact 10µm sources detected within a few arcseconds of IRc2. We suggest that a luminous, early-type star near IRc2, which is associated with the compact radio source “I” and the Orion SiO maser, is the dominant luminosity source in the BN/KL region, hidden from view by cool dust material with at least Av ～ 60 mag of visible extinction.     

Polarization in IR bands and the structure of cosmic dust grains

The water ice and silicate dust bands centered at about 3 and 10 μm, respectively, are simultaneously observed in the spectra of several objects. So far the wavelength dependence of the polarization in both bands has been modeled using two-layer spheroids, with the shape of the silicate core being confocal to that of the ice mantle. We show that nonconfocality of the spheroidal core and mantle boundaries changes fundamentally the wavelength dependence of the polarization within the 10-μm silicate band and affects significantly the polarization within the 3-μm water ice band, while the extinction profiles of these bands remain essentially unchanged. Since the results have been obtained for a theoretical model, we discuss their applicability and significance for cosmic dust grains. Original Russian Text ? M.S. Prokopjeva, V.B. Il’in, 2007, published in Pis’ma v Astronomicheskiĭ Zhurnal, 2007, Vol. 33, No. 10, pp. 784–791.     

Polarization of the H2O maser emission from Orion KL at epoch 2011.7

Polarization observations of the H₂O maser emission at 1.35 cm from the active region Orion KL were carried out at epoch 2011.7 on the Svetloe-Zelenchukskaya radio interferometer. The observational data have been processed on the correlator of the QUASAR network. Fragments of the structure have been identified; the line velocities and profile widths and the emission polarization have been determined. The component at the radial velocity V = 7.0 km s^?1 has been taken as a reference one. Its effective size in the Gaussian approximation is 1.5 mas, the axial ratio is Major/Minor = 3.3, and the orientation is PA = 11°. The component V = 7.6 km s^?1 corresponds to a bipolar outflow with an effective size of 6.2 mas, the axial ratio is Major/Minor = 5.3, and the orientation ?32°. The bipolar outflow is 10 mas away from the reference feature in the direction of 173°. The longitudinal velocity components of the NW and SE parts of the bipolar outflow in the local standard of rest are +0.15 and ?0.15 km s^?1, respectively. The degrees of polarization of the emission from the reference feature (7.0 km s^?1) and the bipolar outflow are m = 39 and 52%, respectively. The difference in polarization orientations of both components ?? _?? does not exceed 3°.     

The orbit of the nearby low-mass binary Gliese 600

We have computed a combined spectroscopic-interferometric orbit for the nearby binary Gliese 600 discovered by us. The orbital period is 2.78 years, and the semimajor axis is 100 mas (0.1″). Its M0 V components are almost identical and have a mass of 0.5M _⊙. The mass ratio is uncertain because of the low radialvelocity semiamplitude (7 km s^?1) associated with the low orbital inclination (37°). The orbital parallax of the binary (52±11 mas) matches its dynamical and photometric parallaxes but differs significantly from the Hipparcos parallax (44.3±1.6) mas; the latter was probably distorted by the orbital motion that was not taken into account.     

Integrated investigation of the mixed origin of lunar sample 72161,11

Sample 72161,11 (dark mantle at LRV-3) has a graphic mean grain size (M _z) of 3.88 ø, inclusive graphic standard deviation (σ _I) of 1.29, and a total carbon content of 204µg C g^?1 sample, and is, therefore, quite mature. However, the agglutinate content is only 30% in the 90–177µm particles, indicating an apparent departure from steady state. Analyses of C, CH₄, and H₂ concentrations in size fractions larger than 149µm show that the volume correlated component of these species increases with increasing grain size. In a homogeneous agglutinate population the volume correlated component is expected to be independent of grain size. The observed increase can be interpreted in terms of the mixing of a dominant local population of coarser agglutinates, with high carbon and hydrogen, with an imported population of finer agglutinates relatively poor in carbon and hydrogen. When analyses of size-fractions from the bulk sample are considered, these effects are apparently obliterated by the admixture of coarse-grained material low in agglutinates. It seems likely that this low agglutinate content is a consequence of the breakdown of the fragile, large agglutinates in the imported material during their movement to the sample site.     

Infrared variability of the nucleus of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 1068 in 1998–2004

Our 8-year-long JHKLM photometry of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 1068 has confirmed its IR variability. The amplitudes of the brightness variations in the J (1.25 μm) and K (2.2 μm) bands are within 0 _. ^m 15 and 0 _. ^m 3, respectively, and exceed the observational errors by more than a factor of 5. The nucleus of NGC 1068 is a variable source and can be at different phases of activity. The brightness of the galaxy in all bands except J decreased from 1998 until 2004. In this period, there was a tendency for the J brightness to increase. The variable source in NGC 1068 is a complex structured object. At least two sources radiate in the wavelength range 1.25–5 μm: a hot source whose radiation shows up in the range 1.25–1.65 μm and a cold source radiating at long wavelengths (2.2–5 μm). The color temperature of the hot source increased from 2300 K (the beginning of our observations) to ∼2700 K (the end of our observations). In contrast, the temperature of the cold source decreased by several tens of degrees (in the temperature range 800–900 K). The IR brightness and color variations observed in 1998–2004 are attributable to the dispersal of the dust envelope that formed around the galactic nucleus some 30 years ago and reached its maximum density in 1994–1995. Our analysis of the spectral energy distributions for the galaxy has shown that the observed radiation in the range 1.25–5 μm can be represented as the sum of radiations from two blackbody sources. For the first period of our observations (JD 2451400), the temperatures of the hot and cold sources are ∼3100 and 760 K, respectively. For the second period (JD 2453230), they are ∼3200 and 720 K, respectively. The hot source is relatively compact; it is smaller in size than the cold source by several tens of times. The mean sizes of the hot and cold sources are ∼2.35 × 10¹⁶ and ∼7.8 × 10¹⁷ cm, respectively. The total mean luminosity of the two sources did not change between the beginning and the end of our observations. The optical depth of the dust envelope averaged over the spectrum of the hot source is τ ∼ 1.5. In 2004, the state of the dust envelope almost returned to its 1974 level, i.e., the dust envelope formation and dispersal cycle was ∼11 000 days (∼30 yr). Original Russian Text ? O.G. Taranova, V.I. Shenavrin, 2006, published in Pis’ma v Astronomicheskiĭ Zhurnal, 2006, Vol. 32, No. 7, pp. 489–496.     

Kinematic control of the inertiality of ICRS catalogs

We perform a kinematic analysis of the Hipparcos and TRC proper motions of stars by using a linear Ogorodnikov-Milne model. All of the distant (r>0.2 kpc) stars of the Hipparcos catalog have been found to rotate around the Galactic y axis with an angular velocity of M ₁₃ ^? =?0.36±0.09 mas yr^?1. One of the causes of this rotation may be an uncertainty in the lunisolar precession constant adopted when constructing the ICRS. In this case, the correction to the IAU (1976) lunisolar precession constant in longitude is shown to be Δp₁=?3.26±0.10 mas yr^?1. Based on the TRC catalog, we have determined the mean Oort constants: A=14.9±1.0 and B=?10.8±0.3 km s^?1 kpc^?1. The component of the model that describes the rotation of all TRC stars around the Galactic y axis is nonzero for all magnitudes, M ₁₃ ^? =?0.86±0.11 mas yr^?1.     

Pulsar VLBI experiment with the Kashima (Japan)–Kalyazin (Russia) baseline

The position of PSR0329+54 on the International Celestial Reference Frame was measured at epochs March 1995, May 1996, and May 1998. Our observations detected the proper motion of PSR0329+54. The position and proper motion agreed well with the position determined by Bartel et al. (1985). From combined analysis with our data and that of Bartel, the proper motion of PSR0329+54 was determined: μ_α=+17.4±0.3 mas yr⁻¹, μ_δ=−11.0±0.3 mas yr⁻¹. These results are consistent with the value by Harrison et al. (1993)measured with the MERLIN interferometer. We also determined the coordinates of PSR0329+54 very accurately within the ICRF: α=03^h32^m59^s.3761±0^s.0002, δ=54°34′43′′.5119±0′′.0015 at 1995.     

Irradiation et pré-irradiations de la brèche 14307

Sample 14307,30, a gas-rich breccia (Group 1 of Warner, 1972) has been studied by coupling track method and light noble gas isotopic analysis. The breccia is made of a glassy dark matrix with embedded millimeter to sub-millimeter sized angular ligth xenoliths. These ones are breccia fragments of higher grade metamorphic facies (Group ? 2). A lighter strata (～ 0.5 cm thick) intersects the dark matrix. Noble gas analysis have shown the dark matrix (³⁶Ar = 5.4 × 10^?4 cc STP/g) to be enriched in solar type gases with respect to the light fractions (³⁶Ar ? 2.2 × 10^?4 cc STP/g). Themean value of the bulk ‘exposure age’ for different samplings is 180 ± 20 × 10⁶ yr, as calculated from spallogenic³He,²¹Ne and¹²⁶Xe contents, using our data and those of Bogard and Nyquist (1972). After appropriate correction for radiogenic⁴⁰Ar, the ratio⁴⁰Ar_exc/³⁶Ar_tr is about 5. A total of 390 crystals coming from 11 locations either in the dark matrix, the lighter strata or a light xenolith (0.25 cm diam), have been studied by track analysis using optical and scanning electron microscopy. 181 crystals were thoroughly investigated by means of the latter technique. The following results were obtained:

1. 72 crystals (70-300µm diam) from one location (No. 12) in the matrix show aminimum track density distribution spreading over 3 orders of magnitude (from 2 × 10⁶ up to 2 × 10⁹ cm^?2). The spectrum has at its lower edge a well defined peak (～ 50% of total crystal number) around 3 × 10⁶ cm^?2). Grains with track density variations over a factor of 3 have a low abundance as compared to average lunar soils. Moreover the mineralogy of this location is peculiar due to its large abundance in orthopyroxenes. Considering the lower edge of the track density distribution amaximum surface residence time of 5 × 10⁶ yr can be set for rock 14307 in itspresent shape;
2. 11 feldspars (1-15µm diam) and 22 clinopyroxenes (70-130µm) have been studied in the light xenolith. All crystals have minimum track densities larger than 10⁸ cm^?2. No spatial variation of track-densities (2.5 ± 0.5 × 10⁹ cm^?2) were found in feldspars inside a millimeter-sized polished section. Clearly these tracks were not acquired by an irradiation of the xenolith as an individual entity, but survived its own formation as a breccia of Group 2. Therefore, solar energetic iron particle tracks have not been erased despite a complex mechanical and thermal history involved by two subsequent brecciation processes;
3. in the 10 other locations, crystals (70-200µm diam) either from the dark matrix or the lighter strata show a significant departure from the pattern observed in lunar soils; namely:

1. the minimum track density distribution is strongly peaked at high values (～ 1-4 × 10⁹ cm^?2) for ～ 95% of the crystals, the remaining ～ 5% having low-values (0.2-1 × 10⁷ cm^?2);
2. the abundance (2%) of crystals with track density variation over a factor of 3 is about one order of magnitude less than in average lunar soils;
3. the magnitude of track density gradients within single crystals is small. In fact, thelargest track density variation versus depth found can be described by the relation? α D^?0.5, in contrast with soil grains which generally exhibit a variation of the form? α D^?1.1±0.4.

The above observations imply that the peculiar irradiation characteristics of these fossilized soils are more likely to be attributed to some wide scale process rather than to some accidental or local phenomena. Attempts to account for these findings by present solar VH particle flux and energy distribution (as determined by Crozaz and Walker, 1971; Fleischeret al., 1971b; Priceet al., 1971), current estimates of lunar fine scale erosion, accumulation and turn-over rates, have proven essentially negative. The bulk ‘exposure age’ of the breccia, rather low by lunar soil standards, makes things even worse. For lack of any better explanation, the above observations could be more easily understood by postulating a higher flux (by factors from ～ 10 up to 200) and a harder energy spectrum (at least for particles with rigidity less than 0.3 GV) for the solar cosmic rays at the time the constituents of the breccia were part as loose grains of the lunar regolith.     

Unusual infrared fading of CH Cygni in 2006

Infrared observations of the unique symbiotic system CH Cyg in 2003–2006 are presented. Analysis of the observations has shown that a fairly dense dust structure (a cloud or a shell) appeared on the line of sight in August–November 2006. The dust grains in the new shell are similar in optical properties to graphite ones and their sizes are mostly within the range 0.14–0.16 μm. The dust shell is optically thick and its optical depth at 2.2 μm is τ(2.2) ≈ 0.97. The dust shell mass is M _d(06) ≈ 8 × 10⁻⁶ M _⊙ and the rate of matter flow into the shell has reached ∼2 × 10⁻⁵ M _⊙ yr⁻¹. Original Russian Text ? O.G. Taranova, V.I. Shenavrin, 2007, published in Pis’ma v Astronomicheskiĭ Zhurnal, 2007, Vol. 33, No. 8, pp. 598–603.     

Modeling the linear polarization of optical emission from red giants

We present the results of solving the radiative transfer equation for the Stokes vector in the case of light scattering by spherical forsterite dust particles in an axisymmetric circumstellar envelope of a red giant. We have assumed that the surfaces of constant scattering-particle density are prolate or oblate spheroids, the particle density decreases with radius as N _d ∝ r ⁻², and the dust particles at the inner boundary of the envelope are in thermal equilibrium with the stellar emission at solid-phase evaporation temperature T _ev = 800 K. In the wavelength range 0.27 μm ≤ λ ≤ 1 μm, particles with radii 0.03 μm ≲ a ≲ 0.2 μm make a major contribution to the linear polarization of the stellar emission. The increase in scattering efficiency factor with decreasing wavelength λ is mainly responsible for the growth of polarization toward the short wavelengths known from observations. However, at a mean number of scatterings 1.2 ≤ N _sca ≤ 1.6, the polarization ceases to grow due to depolarization effects and decreases rapidly as the wavelength decreases further. The wavelength of the polarization maximum is determined mainly by two quantities: the particle radius and the mass loss rate. The upper limits for the degree of linear polarization in the case of light scattering in circumstellar dust envelopes with the geometries of prolate and oblate spheroids are p ≈ 3 and 5%, respectively. The polarization for light scattering by enstatite particles is higher than that for light scattering by forsterite particles approximately by 0.3%. Original Russian Text ? Yu.A. Fadeyev, 2007, published in Pis’ma v Astronomicheskiĭ Zhurnal, 2007, Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 123–133.     

The trigonometric parallax of the neutron star Geminga

We obtained a series of four observations of the isolated neutron star Geminga over an 18 month period using the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) Wide Field Camera (WFC) on the Hubble Space Telescope in order to determine its trigonometric parallax. We find the parallax π=4.0±1.3 mas, corresponding to a distance to Geminga of 250 _?62 ⁺¹²⁰  pc, a result 60% larger than the previously published value. The proper motion is 178.2±1.8 mas/year. In this paper, we describe the analysis techniques in detail since the amplitude of the parallactic shift is smaller than the camera’s pixel size. We fit each star in the images with an appropriate effective PSF and applied a distortion correction to generate stellar positions accurate to 0.01 pixels (～0.5 mas). The 134 stars common to all images serve to establish a reference frame for alignment of the image series. Our observations were made around the times of maximum parallactic shift. We discuss the implications of this new distance measurement for the inferred radius of Geminga, and the neutron star equation of state.     

Kinematic control of the inertiality of the system of Tycho-2 and UCAC2 stellar proper motions

Based on the Ogorodnikov-Milne model, we analyze the proper motions of Tycho-2 and UCAC2 stars. We have established that the model component that describes the rotation of all stars under consideration around the Galactic y axis differs significantly from zero at various magnitudes. We interpret this rotation found using the most distant stars as a residual rotation of the ICRS/Tycho-2 system relative to the inertial reference frame. For the most distant (d≈900 pc) Tycho-2 and UCAC2 stars, the mean rotation around the Galactic y axis has been found to be M ₁₃ ^? =?0.37±0.04 mas yr^?1. The proper motions of UCAC2 stars with magnitudes in the range 12–15^m are shown to be distorted appreciably by the magnitude equation in μ_α cos δ, which has the strongest effect for northern-sky stars with a coefficient of ?0.60±0.05 mas yr^?1 mag^?1. We have detected no significant effect of the magnitude equation in the proper motions of UCAC2 stars brighter than ≈11^m.     

NGC 7027: analysis of 7.8–20 micron continuum,silicate and PAH grain distributions

Images of mid-infrared (5 - 20µm) circumstellar dust sources have been obtained with a new 58 × 62 pixel infrared array camera system. A seven-color imaging study of the bright planetary nebula NGC 7027 challenges the assertion that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) may extend further from the center of the nebula than the continuum emission from silicate dust grains. It appears that the overall distributions are nearly identical, ruling out differences in intensity between the PAH emission and the general “silicate” dust material. A rigorous comparison between the infrared image data and new visible CCD images of NGC 7027 is made.     

UIR Bands in Carbon Star Spectra

Unidentified infrared emission bands (UIR bands) have been attributed to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are believed to require ultraviolet radiation in order for the UIR bands to be excited. If, in addition to amorphous carbon and hydrogenated amorphous carbon (HAC) particles, PAHs are able to form in the outflows of cool carbon-rich stars (Cherchneff et al. 1991), then the weak UV radiation field from such stars would be unlikely to be able to excite the UIR bands and so the PAH species could remain undetected in the spectra of C-stars. However, cool carbon stars with hot companions might be exposed to strong enough UV radiation fields for UIR-band emission to be excited from PAHs. Buss et al. (1991) reported the detection of the 8 μm UIR-band (C-C stretch) in the IRAS LRS spectrum of HD 38218 (TU Tau), a carbon star with a hotter A2III companion. To investigate the phenomenon further, we have therefore obtained UKIRT CGS3 10 μm spectra of three carbon stars with hot companions, TU Tau, UV Aur and CS776. It was found that TU Tau showed the 11.25 μm and 8.6 μm UIR-bands (both attributed to C-H bend modes) at good contrast, while UV Aur clearly exhibited the 11.25 μm UIR band. No narrow UIR-band emission was detected in the spectrum of CS776. We have fitted these 10 μm region spectra using a χ²-minimization program equipped to fit stellar and dust emission continua together with the broad SiC feature and the narrow UIR-bands. The features seen in the spectra of TU Tau and UV Aur can be well fitted by a narrow 11.25 μm UIR-band sitting on top of a broad, self-absorbed 11.3 μm silicon carbide feature. Our results therefore provide strong support for the supposition that PAHs can form in carbon star outflows. This revised version was published online in September 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Fine Structure of the Core of the Blazar OJ 287-I

The fine structure of the active region, the bulge, of the blazar OJ 287 has been investigated with a resolution of 20 μas (0.1 pc) at a wavelength of 7 mm, the epochs of 2007–2017. The structure and kinematics correspond to a vortex nature. The surrounding matter, the plasma, is transferred to the center along two arms from opposite directions. The emerging excess angular momentum is carried away along the rotation axis by bipolar outflows, rotating coaxial tubes, in a direction X ≈ ?120? in the plane of the sky as it is accumulated. The central high-velocity bipolar outflow has a helical shape. The diameters of the low-velocity flows are ø1 ≈ 0.3 and ø2 ≈ 0.65 mas, or 1.4 and 3 pc, respectively. Ring currents whose tangential directions are observed as parallel chains of components are excited in the flow walls. The peak brightness temperature of the nozzle reaches Tb ≈ 1012?1013 K. A “disk” with a diameter ø ≈ 0.5 mas (≈2.2 pc) is observed by the absorption of synchrotron radiation. The disk is inclined to the plane of the sky at an angle of 60? in the jet direction. The fragments are seen from a distance of ～0.2 mas outside the absorption zone. The jet sizes exceed considerably the counterjet ones. An enhanced supply of plasma from the northern arm gives rise to an independent vortex 0.2 mas away from the central one in the NW direction. As in the first case, the helical central bipolar outflow is surrounded by a low-velocity component ø ≈ 0.28 mas in diameter with built-in ring currents. The jet is ejected in the direction X = ?50? in the plane of the sky. The jet orientation changes, X = ?130? at a distance of 1 mas. A high activity of the central and two side nozzles spaced 0.22 mas apart in the direction X = ?40? is occasionally observed simultaneously. The active region of the blazar is observed through an ionized medium, a screen, whose influence is significant even at a wavelength of 7 mm. The absorption and refraction of the transmitted emission in the screen affect the apparent brightness relative to the positions of the fragments.     

Infrared photometry of Sakurai’s object (V4334 Sgr) in 2000

The infrared photometric observations of V4334 Sgr in 2000 are presented. They show that a gradual, but nonmonotonic increase in the optical depth of its dust envelope, which was formed early in 1997, had continued until the mid-summer. In July 1999 and July 2000, τ(1.25 µm)≈7.7 and 11.3, respectively. From July through October 2000, the optical depth decreased appreciably. From October 1998 (the first deep minimum of visual brightness) until now, the amplitude of the bolometric-magnitude variations in V4334 Sgr is $ \sim 0^m .5$ . The relation between the bolometric and L magnitudes (m _bol, L) can be fitted by a linear function, m _bol = 1.25L + 4.04. In the dust-envelope model chosen, the percentage of large (a _gr=0.2–0.3 µm) dust grains by particle number increased by a factor of ～4. In the summer of 2000, their fraction by mass was ～78%, and they mainly contributed to the optical depth of the dust envelope. No appreciable correlation between optical depth and bolometric flux was observed.     

Calibration observations of Fomalhaut with the VLTI

An investigation of the stability of the transfer function of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope Interferometer has been carried out through observations of Fomalhaut, which was observed over a range in hour angle from 21:50–05:24 on 20 October 2002. No significant variation in the transfer function was found for the zenith angle range 5°–70°. The projected baseline varied between 139.7 m and 49.8 m during the observations and, as an integral part of the determination of the transfer function, a new accurate limb‐darkened angular diameter for Fomalhaut of 2.109 ± 0.013 mas has been established. This has led to improved values for the emergent flux = (3.43 ± 0.10)×10⁸ Wm⁻², effective temperature = 8819 ± 67 K and radius = (1.213 ± 0.011)×10⁹ m (R/R_⊙ = 1.744 ± 0.016). The luminosity has been found to be (6.34 ± 0.20)×10²⁷ W (L/L_⊙ = 16.5 ± 0.5). (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)