Optical spectral decomposition of NGC 4051

Considering the host galaxy contribution, a spectral decomposition method is used to reanalyzed the archive data of optical spectra for a narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxy, NGC 4051. The light curves of the continuum f _λ (5100 Å), and Hβ, He ii, Fe ii emission lines are given. We find strong flux correlations between line emissions of Hβ, He ii, Fe ii and the continuum f _λ (5100 Å). These low-ionization lines (Hβ, Fe ii, He ii) have “inverse” intrinsic Baldwin effects. Using the methods of the cross-correlation function and the Monte Carlo simulation, we find the time delays, with respect to the continuum, are $3.45^{+12.0}_{-0.5}~\mbox{days}$ with the probability of 34 % for the intermediate component of Hβ, $6.45^{+13.0}_{-1.0}~\mbox{days}$ with the probability of 65 % for the intermediate component of He ii. From these intermediate components of Hβ and He ii, the calculated central black hole masses are $0.86^{+4.35}_{-0.33}\times 10^{6}$ and $0.82^{+3.12}_{-0.45}\times 10^{6}~M_{\odot }$ . We also find that the time delays for Fe ii are $9.7^{+3.0}_{-5.0}~\mbox{days}$ with the probability of 36 %, $8.45^{+1.0}_{-2.0}~\mbox{days}$ with the probability of 18 % for the total epochs and “subset 1” data, respectively. It seems that the Fe ii emission region is outside of the Hβ emission region.     

Direct Measurement Results of the Time Lag of LOS-Velocity Oscillations Between Two Heights in Solar Faculae and Sunspots

We present an investigation of line-of-sight (LOS) velocity oscillations in solar faculae and sunspots. To study the phase relations between chromospheric and photospheric oscillations of the LOS velocity, we measured the time lag of the chromospheric signal relative to the photospheric one for several faculae and sunspots in a set of spectral line pairs. The measured time lags are different for different objects. The mean measured delay between the oscillations in the five-minute band in faculae is 50?s for the Si?i 10?827?Å?–?He?i 10?830?Å pair; for the pair Fe?i 6569?Å?–?Hα 6563?Å the mean delay is 20?s; for the pair Fe?i 4551?Å?–?Ba?ii 4554?Å the mean delay is 7?s; for the pair Si?i 8536?Å?–?Ca?ii 8542?Å the mean delay is 20?s. For the oscillations in the three-minute band in sunspot umbrae the mean delay is 55?s for the Si?i 10?827?Å?–?He?i 10?830?Å pair; for the Fe?i 6569?Å?–?Hα 6563?Å pair it was not possible to determine the delay; for the Fe?i 4551?Å?–?Ba?ii 4554?Å pair the mean delay is 6?s; for the Si?i 8536?Å?–?Ca?ii 8542?Å pair the mean delay is 21?s. Measured delays correspond to the wave propagation speed, which significantly exceeds the generally adopted speed of sound in the photosphere. This raises the question of the origin of these oscillations. The possibility that we deal with slow MHD waves is not ruled out.     

Spectral Line Selection for HMI: A Comparison of Fe I 6173 Å and Ni I 6768 Å

We present a study of two spectral lines, Fe I 6173 Å and Ni I 6768 Å, that were candidates to be used in the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) for observing Doppler velocity and the vector magnetic field. The line profiles were studied using the Mt. Wilson Observatory, the Advanced Stokes Polarimeter and the Kitt Peak-McMath Pierce telescope and one-meter Fourier transform spectrometer atlas. Both Fe I and Ni I profiles have clean continua and no blends that threaten instrument performance. The Fe I line is 2% deeper, 15% narrower, and has a 6% smaller equivalent width than the Ni I line. The potential of each spectral line to recover pre-assigned solar conditions is tested using a least-squares minimization technique to fit Milne-Eddington models to tens of thousands of line profiles that have been sampled at five spectral positions across the line. Overall, the Fe I line has a better performance than the Ni I line for vector-magnetic-field retrieval. Specifically, the Fe I line is able to determine field strength, longitudinal and transverse flux four times more accurately than the Ni I line in active regions. Inclination and azimuthal angles can be recovered to ≈2^° above 600 Mx cm^?2 for Fe I and above 1000 Mx cm^?2 for Ni I. Therefore, the Fe I line better determines the magnetic-field orientation in plage, whereas both lines provide good orientation determination in penumbrae and umbrae. We selected the Fe I spectral line for use in HMI due to its better performance for magnetic diagnostics while not sacrificing velocity information. The one exception to the better performance of the Fe I line arises when high field strengths combine with high velocities to move the spectral line beyond the effective sampling range. The higher g _eff of Fe I means that its useful range of velocity values in regions of strong magnetic field is smaller than Ni I.     

Spatial profiles of lines in active region loops

From the statistical treatment of magnetohydrodynamically turbulent plasma, a steady-state density, temperature and magnetic field structure is derived for a coronal loop emitting in UV and EUV range. Spatial variation of line flux is presented for the lines C ii, C iii, O iv, O vi, Ne vii, and Mgx. It is found that the hotter lines which are emitted near the surface of the loop have larger spatial extents compared to the lines originating in the cool core of the loop, in agreement with the observations.     

Spectroheliograms in the Mg II line at 2795.5 Å

A rocket-borne spectroheliograph designed to take monochromatic pictures of the sun in the Mgii line at 2795.5 Å was successfully launched from White Sands Missile Range on May 20, 1968. A double ?olc birefringent filter with a spectral bandpass of 2.1 Å was used to select the proper wavelength. Pinhole photographs in the soft X-ray region were also secured in the same flight. The Mgii and X-ray photographs are compared with simultaneous Caii and Hα spectroheliograms, radiomaps at 9.1 cm and 3.3 cm, a Fraunhofer map and a magnetogram and some preliminary results are discussed.     

Properties of the ionised gas of circumnuclear star-forming regions in early-type spirals

A study of circumnuclear star-forming regions (CNSFRs) in several early-type spirals has been carried out in order to investigate their main properties: stellar and gas kinematics, dynamical masses, ionising stellar masses, chemical abundances and other properties of the ionised gas. Both high resolution (R～20,000) and moderate resolution (R～5000) have been used. In some cases, these regions (about 100–150 pc in size) are composed of several individual star clusters with sizes between 1.5 and 4.9 pc, estimated from Hubble Space Telescope images. Stellar and gas velocity dispersions are found to differ by about 20 to 30 km?s^?1, with the Hβ emission lines being narrower than both the stellar lines and the [Oiii]λ5007 Å lines. The twice ionised oxygen, on the other hand, shows velocity dispersions comparable to those of stars. We have applied the virial theorem to estimate dynamical masses of the clusters, assuming that the systems are gravitationally bounded and spherically symmetric, and using previously measured sizes. The measured values of the stellar velocity dispersions yield dynamical masses of the order of 10⁷ to 10⁸ M_⊙ for the full CNSFRs. We obtain oxygen abundances which are comparable to those found in high-metallicity disc Hii regions from direct measurements of electron temperatures and consistent with solar values within the errors. The region with the highest oxygen abundance is R3+R4 in NGC3504, 12+log(O/H)=8.85, about 1.5 times solar. The derived N/O ratios are, on average, larger than those found in high-metallicity disc Hii regions, and they do not seem to follow the trend of N/O vs. O/H which marks the secondary behaviour of nitrogen. On the other hand, the S/O ratios span a very narrow range—between 0.6 and 0.8 times solar. Compared to high-metallicity disc Hii regions, CNSFRs show values of the O₂₃ and the N2 parameters whose distributions are shifted to lower and higher values, respectively. Hence, even though their derived oxygen and sulphur abundances are similar, higher values would in principle be obtained for the CNSFRs if pure empirical methods were used to estimate abundances. CNSFRs also exhibit lower ionisation parameters than their disc counterparts, as derived from [Sii]/[Siii]. Their ionisation structure also seems to be different, with CNSFRs showing radiation-field properties more similar to Hii galaxies than to disc high-metallicity Hii regions.     

Velocities and Linewidths in the Network and Cell Interiors of a Polar Coronal Hole Compared with the Quiet Sun

The relative Doppler velocities and linewidths in a polar coronal hole and the nearby quiet-Sun region have been obtained from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO)/Coronal Diagnostic Spectrometer (CDS) observations using emission lines originating at different heights in the solar atmosphere from the lower transition region (TR) to the low solar corona. The observed region is separated into the network and the cell interior, and the behavior of the above parameters were examined in the different regions. It has been found that the histograms of Doppler velocity and width are generally broader in the cell interior than in the network. The histograms of Doppler velocities of the network and cell interior do not show significant differences in most cases. However, in the case of the quiet Sun, the Doppler velocities of the cell interior are more blueshifted than those of the network for the lowermost line He?ii 304 Å, and an opposite behavior is seen for the uppermost line Mg?ix 368 Å. The linewidth histograms show that the network–cell difference is more prominent in the coronal hole. The network has a significantly larger linewidth than the cell interior for the lowermost TR line He?ii 304 Å for the quiet Sun. For the coronal hole, this is true for the three lower TR lines: He?ii 304 Å, O?iii 599 Å, and O?v 630 Å. We also obtained the correlations between the relative Doppler velocity and the width. A mild positive correlation is found for the lowermost transition-region line He?ii 304 Å, which decreases even more or become insignificant for the intermediate lines. For the low coronal line Mg?ix 368 Å, the correlation becomes strongly negative. This might be caused by standing waves or waves propagating from the lower to the upper solar atmosphere. The results may have implications for the generation of the fast solar wind and coronal heating.     

Lifetimes of some excited states in the rare earths: La ii,Ce ii,Pr ii,Nd ii,Sm ii,Yb i,Yb ii,and Lu ii

Radiative lifetimes for excited states in La ii, Ce ii, Pr ii, Nd ii, Sm ii, Yb i, Yb ii, and Lu ii have been determined by means of the beam-foil technique or the zero-field level-crossing method. The lifetimes for La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, and Yb are shorter than those computed by summing the transition probabilities of Corliss and Bozman by a factor of up to ~5. The large discrepancies between the abundance of La, Ce, Pr, Nd, and Sm in the solar photosphere and in meteorites are eliminated or greatly reduced if the abundance determinations of the solar photosphere are based upon the gf values of Corliss and Bozman, corrected for by the present lifetimes.     

Ca ii Transient Brightenings Associated with Canceling Magnetic Features

We analyzed transient Ca ii H brightening associated with small-scale canceling magnetic features (CMFs) in the quiet Sun near disk center using Ca ii H filter images and Na D₁ magnetograms of Hinode/SOT. We found that in most Ca ii brightening events related to CMFs the Ca ii H intensity peaks after the magnetic flux cancellation. Moreover, the brightening tends to appear as a pair of bright points of similar size and brightness overlying a magnetic bipole. Then a new opposite polarity fragment moves to them and cancels out. These results imply that magnetic reconnection takes place there and is responsible for CMFs.     

Integral-field high spatial resolution spectroscopy of the giant Hii region NGC5461

We present preliminary results obtained from integral-field (IFU) data of the giant extragalactic Hii region NGC5461, located in a spiral arm (RA=14^h03^m41.4^s, dec=+54°19′05″) of M101. The spatial and spectral information obtained with IFUs allows us to decompose the Hii region and analyze it at high resolution.     

On the Hβ, [OIII] lines and continuum variability character in the nucleus of Seyfert galaxy NGC 1275

The radiation fluxes of the NGC 1275 galaxy central region are being observed on the 1.25-m telescope, using a scanning spectrophotometer with the entrance aperture 10″ in three Δλ=80 Å spectral regions: Hβ, 4959+5007 Å [OIII] and continuum. There were 35 nights of observations during 1982–1987. With the time resolution of half an hour 379 measurements were obtained in each spectral region. The analysis of these results shows:

1. The standard deviations of measurements in each spectral region 2–3 times exceed the errors of observations.
2. The radiation flux distribution resembles to normal one only for Hβ line.
3. Two-humps forms of continuum flux distribution curve is like that of radio emission in 8 mm and 2.6 cm wavelengths.
4. Various forms of fluxes distribution curves of Hβ and [OIII] lines permit us to suppose that the location of these lines emission regions near the sources of excitation are different.

     

Rosat and EUVE observations of B stars

Recent observations of the X-ray and EUV emission of non-supergiant B stars are summarized. As compared with O stars, the X-rays of most of the near-main-sequence B stars are soft, and the stars show a departure from theL _x = 10^?7 L _bol relation. Using line driven wind models to provide an estimate of the density distribution, it is concluded that a major fraction of the wind emission measure is hot, whereas in shocked wind theory less than 10 percent of the wind emission measure should be hot. The X-ray observations suggest that all of the B stars are X-ray emitters with a basal X-ray luminosity of about 10^?8.5 L _bol . A hard component dominates the X-ray emission of τ Sco, and possible causes are discussed. For the Be stars, the X-ray emission is that which is expected from a normal B-star wind coming from the poles, as in the Wind Compressed Disk (WCD) model of Be stars. None of the stars, including theβ Cep stars, show noticeable variability in their X-rays.EUVE observations of∈ CMa B2 II, find it to be the brightest object in the EUV sky at 500 to 700 Å. It shows a Lyman continuum flux that is a factor of 30 higher than line blanketed model atmospheres. The continuum is seen on both sides of the He I 504 Å edge, and the discrepancy with model atmospheres is even greater shortward of 504 Å. TheEUVE spectra show emission lines both from high stages of ionization ( Feix to Fexvi) and from low stages (Heii and Oiii). The Heii Lymanα results from recombination following X-ray photoionization in the wind, and the Oiii resonance line is found to be present because of the Bowen fluorescence mechanism. Thus, there is and interesting coupling between the wind production by the EUV photospheric emission, the production of X-ray and line EUV emission by winds, and the production of fluorescence by recombination in the wind; all of these processes are now observable in B stars.     

3D Evolution of a Filament Disappearance Event Observed by STEREO

A filament disappearance event was observed on 22 May 2008 during our recent campaign JOP 178. The filament, situated in the Southern Hemisphere, showed sinistral chirality consistent with the hemispheric rule. The event was well observed by several observatories, in particular by THEMIS. One day, before the disappearance, Hα observations showed up- and down-flows in adjacent locations along the filament, which suggest plasma motions along twisted flux rope. THEMIS and GONG observations show shearing photospheric motions leading to magnetic flux canceling around barbs. STEREO A, B spacecraft with separation angle 52.4°, showed quite different views of this untwisting flux rope in He ii 304 Å images. Here, we reconstruct the three-dimensional geometry of the filament during its eruption phase using STEREO EUV He ii 304 Å images and find that the filament was highly inclined to the solar normal. The He ii 304 Å movies show individual threads, which oscillate and rise to an altitude of about 120 Mm with apparent velocities of about 100 km?s^?1 during the rapid evolution phase. Finally, as the flux rope expands into the corona, the filament disappears by becoming optically thin to undetectable levels. No CME was detected by STEREO, only a faint CME was recorded by LASCO at the beginning of the disappearance phase at 02:00 UT, which could be due to partial filament eruption. Further, STEREO Fe xii 195 Å images showed bright loops beneath the filament prior to the disappearance phase, suggesting magnetic reconnection below the flux rope.     

DLA abundances in the CUBES’s spectral window

Absorption systems observed along the line of sights to distant quasars are observed at all redshifts and the full range of the electromagnetic spectrum is needed to recover the variety of transitions of different elements. However, some important elements are found within the Lyman forest and their absorption line profiles need to be analyzed against the presence of possible Ly-α contamination. Considering the cosmological evolution of the number density of hydrogen clouds, the probability to detect uncontaminated metal lines is higher in the UV-Optical region exploited by CUBES. The list of these elements includes some important ones such as D, H₂, O?i, N?i, O?vi, Ar?i, P?ii, C?ii, S?ii and B?ii. The determination of some of them in the Damped Ly-α galaxies and their astronomical interest are briefly discussed.     

Conjugate excitation of atomic oxygen emissions in the far ultraviolet

Thirty four objects appearing in the SharplessCatalogue of H ii Regions with radio flux densities below 0.1 fu^* at 1400 MHz, are studied. It is shown that two of them are planetary nebulae, two are reflection nebulae and two weak emission-reflection nebulae. From statistical arguments it is concluded that six may be evolved planetaries while the remaining are faint nearby Hii regions excited by stars of relatively advanced spectral type.     

Automatic Detection and Classification of Coronal Holes and Filaments Based on EUV and Magnetogram Observations of the Solar Disk

A new method for the automated detection of coronal holes and filaments on the solar disk is presented. The starting point is coronal images taken by the Extreme Ultraviolet Telescope on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO/EIT) in the Fe ix/x 171 Å, Fe xii 195 Å, and He ii 304 Å extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lines and the corresponding full-disk magnetograms from the Michelson Doppler Imager (SOHO/MDI) from different phases of the solar cycle. The images are processed to enhance their contrast and to enable the automatic detection of the two candidate features, which are visually indistinguishable in these images. Comparisons are made with existing databases, such as the He i 10830 Å NSO/Kitt Peak coronal-hole maps and the Solar Feature Catalog (SFC) from the European Grid of Solar Observations (EGSO), to discriminate between the two features. By mapping the features onto the corresponding magnetograms, distinct magnetic signatures are then derived. Coronal holes are found to have a skewed distribution of magnetic-field intensities, with values often reaching 100?–?200 gauss, and a relative magnetic-flux imbalance. Filaments, in contrast, have a symmetric distribution of field intensity values around zero, have smaller magnetic-field intensity than coronal holes, and lie along a magnetic-field reversal line. The identification of candidate features from the processed images and the determination of their distinct magnetic signatures are then combined to achieve the automated detection of coronal holes and filaments from EUV images of the solar disk. Application of this technique to all three wavelengths does not yield identical results. Furthermore, the best agreement among all three wavelengths and NSO/Kitt Peak coronal-hole maps occurs during the declining phase of solar activity. The He ii data mostly fail to yield the location of filaments at solar minimum and provide only a subset at the declining phase or peak of the solar cycle. However, the Fe ix/x 171 Å and Fe xii 195 Å data yield a larger number of filaments than the Hα data of the SFC.     

The age decay of stellar magnetic activity in MS field solar-type stars

The age decay of two indicators of the stellar magnetic activity (λ 2800 Mgii emission flux and λ 10830 Hei equivalent width) have been studied for field solar-type stars. The Li abundance has been used, in most of the cases, as a stellar age indicator. A calibrated decay law for Mgii has been determined and compared with a similar one, recently published, for the Caii K emission. The greater scatter in the Hei results is atributed to the different rotation rates.     

A review of recent observations of dust in Hii regions

The upper limit for the absorption cross section σ _H ^ext , of dust in Hii regions in the wave-length range 912–504 Å derived by Mezgeret al. (1974), is compatible with that expected for large dust grains, and a gas-to-dust ratio equal to that in the general interstellar medium. The albedo of the small grains must be high for λ>504 Å. This restriction is lifted if the visual extinction cross section of the grains in Hii regions is less than that for grains in the general interstellar medium. New observations of the Orion Nebula indicate that the visual extinction cross section is within a factor 2 of the value in the general interstellar medium.     

Supernova remnants, planetary nebulae and the distance to NGC 4214

We present narrow band, continuum subtracted Hα, [S ii], Hβ, [O iii] and [O ii] data taken with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope in the nearby dwarf starburst galaxy NGC 4214. From these images, we identify seventeen new planetary nebula candidates, and seven supernova remnant candidates. We use the observed emission line luminosity function of the planetary nebulae to establish a new velocity-independent distance to NGC 4214. We conclude that the PNLF technique gives a reddening independent distance to NGC 4214 of 3.19±0.36 Mpc, and that our current best-estimate of the distance to this galaxy ids 2.98±0.13 Mpc.     

Physical conditions in a quiescent prominence derived from UV spectra obtained with the UVSP instrument on the SMM

A quiescent prominence observed above the north-west limb on November 20, 1980, is analyzed using data obtained with the Ultraviolet Spectrometer and Polarimeter (UVSP) on the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM). The spectral data include the lines 1215 Å of Hi, 1401 Å of Oiv, 1402 Å of Siiv, 1548 Å of Civ, 1640 Å of Hei, and 1655 Å of Ci. From an analysis of these lines and their emission patterns we deduce physical characteristics of the prominence plasma, and suggest in particular that the prominence consisted of flux tubes at various temperatures. In the hotter parts of the plasma the number density reached values of about 3 × 10¹¹ cm^#X2212;3.