Building the cosmic distance scale: from Hipparcos to Gaia

Hipparcos, the first ever experiment of global astrometry, was launched by ESA (European Space Agency) in 1989 and its results published in 1997 (Perryman et al. in Astron. Astrophys. 323:L49, 1997; Perryman & ESA (eds.) in The Hipparcos and Tycho catalogues, ESA SP-1200, 1997). A new reduction was later performed using an improved satellite attitude reconstruction leading to an improved accuracy for stars brighter than 9th magnitude (van Leeuwen & Fantino in Astron. Astrophys. 439:791, 2005; van Leeuwen in Astron. Astrophys. 474:653, 2007a). The Hipparcos Catalogue provided an extended dataset of very accurate astrometric data (positions, trigonometric parallaxes and proper motions), enlarging by two orders of magnitude the quantity and quality of distance determinations and luminosity calibrations. The availability of more than 20 000 stars (22 000 for the original catalogue, 30 000 for the re-reduction) with a trigonometric parallax known to better than 10% opened the way to a drastic revision of our 3-D knowledge of the solar neighbourhood and to a renewal of the calibration of many distance indicators and age estimations. The prospects opened by Gaia, the next ESA cornerstone, planned for launch in 2013 (Perryman et al., in Astron. Astrophys. 369:339, 2001), are still much more dramatic: a billion objects with systematic and quasi simultaneous astrometric, spectrophotometric and spectroscopic observations, about 150 million stars with expected distances to better than 10%, all over the Galaxy. All stellar distance indicators, in very large numbers, will be directly measured, providing a direct calibration of their luminosity and making possible detailed studies of the impacts of various effects linked to chemical element abundances, age or cluster membership. With the help of simulations of the data expected from Gaia, obtained from the mission simulator developed by DPAC (Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium), we will illustrate what Gaia can provide with some selected examples.     

Inclusion of sdBs in evolutionary population synthesis for binary stellar populations and the application: the determination of photo-z and galaxy morphology

Subdwarf B stars (sdBs) can significantly change the ultraviolet spectra of populations at age t～1 Gyr, and have been even included in the evolutionary population synthesis (EPS) models by Han et al. (Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 380:1098, 2007). In this study we present the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of binary stellar populations (BSPs) by combining the EPS models of Han et al. (Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 380:1098, 2007) and those of the Yunnan group (Zhang et al. in Astron. Astrophys. 415:117, 2004; Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 357:1088, 2005), which have included various binary interactions (except sdBs) in EPS models. This set of SEDs is available upon request from the authors. Using this set of SEDs of BSPs we build the spectra of Burst, E, S0–Sd and Irr types of galaxies by using the package of Bruzual and Charlot (Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 344:1000, 2003). Combined with the photometric data (filters and magnitudes), we obtain the photometric redshifts and morphologies of 1502 galaxies by using the Hyperz code of Bolzonella et al. (Astron. Astrophys. 363:476, 2000). This sample of galaxies is obtained by removing those objects, mismatched with the SDSS/DR7 and GALEX/DR4, from the catalogue of Fukugita et al. (Astron. J. 134:579, 2007). By comparison the results with the SDSS spectroscopic redshifts and the morphological index of Fukugita et al. (Astron. J. 134:579, 2007), we find that the photo-z fluctuate with the SDSS spectroscopic redshifts, while the Sa–Sc galaxies in the catalogue of Fukugita et al. (Astron. J. 134:579, 2007) are classified earlier as Burst-E galaxies.     

Oxygen abundance in local disk and bulge: chemical evolution with a strictly universal IMF

This paper has two parts: one about observational constraints related to the empirical differential oxygen abundance distribution (EDOD), and the other about inhomogeneous models of chemical evolution, in particular the theoretical differential oxygen abundance distribution (TDOD). In the first part, the EDOD is deduced from subsamples related to two different samples involving (i) N=532 solar neighbourhood (SN) stars within the range, −1.5<[Fe/H]<0.5, for which the oxygen abundance has been determined both in presence and in absence of the local thermodynamical equilibrium (LTE) approximation (Ramirez et al. in Astron. Astrophys. 465:271, 2007); and (ii) N=64 SN thick disk, SN thin disk, and bulge K-giant stars within the range, −1.7<[Fe/H]<0.5, for which the oxygen abundance has been determined (Melendez et al. in Astron. Astrophys. 484:L21, 2008). A comparison is made with previous results implying use of [O/H]–[Fe/H] empirical relations (Caimmi in Astron. Nachr. 322:241, 2001b; New Astron. 12:289, 2007) related to (iii) 372 SN halo subdwarfs (Ryan and Norris in Astron. J. 101:1865, 1991); and (iv) 268 K-giant bulge stars (Sadler et al. in Astron. J. 112:171, 1996). The EDOD of the SN thick + thin disk is determined by weighting the mass, for assumed SN thick to thin disk mass ratio within the range, 0.1–0.9. In the second part, inhomogeneous models of chemical evolution for the SN thick disk, the SN thin disk, the SN thick + thin disk, the SN halo, and the bulge, are computed assuming the instantaneous recycling approximation. The EDOD data are fitted, to an acceptable extent, by their TDOD counterparts with the exception of the thin or thick + thin disk, where two additional restrictions are needed: (i) still undetected, low-oxygen abundance thin disk stars exist, and (ii) a single oxygen overabundant star is removed from a thin disk subsample. In any case, the (assumed power-law) stellar initial mass function (IMF) is universal but gas can be inhibited from, or enhanced in, forming stars at different rates with respect to a selected reference case. Models involving a strictly universal IMF (i.e. gas neither inhibited from, nor enhanced in, forming stars with respect to a selected reference case) can also reproduce the data to an acceptable extent. Our main conclusions are (1) different models are necessary to fit the (incomplete) halo sample, which is consistent with the idea of two distinct halo components: an inner, flattened halo in slow prograde rotation, and an outer, spherical halo in net retrograde rotation (Carollo et al. in Nature 450:1020, 2007); (2) the oxygen enrichment within the inner SN halo, the SN thick disk, and the bulge, was similar and coeval within the same metallicity range, as inferred from observations (Prochaska et al. in Astron. J. 120:2513, 2000); (3) the fit to thin disk data implies an oxygen abundance range similar to its thick disk counterpart, with the extension of conclusion (2) to the thin disk, and the evolution of the thick + thin disk as a whole (Haywood in Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 388:1175, 2008) cannot be excluded; (4) leaving outside the outer halo, a fit to the data related to different environments is provided by models with a strictly universal IMF but different probabilities of a region being active, which implies different global efficiencies of the star formation rate; (5) a special case of stellar migration across the disk can be described by models with enhanced star formation, where a fraction of currently observed SN stars were born in situ and a comparable fraction is due to the net effect of stellar migration, according to recent results based on high-resolution N-body + smooth particle hydrodynamics simulations (Roškar et al. in Astrophys. J. Lett. 684:L79, 2008).     

Variable equation of state for Bianchi type-VI<Subscript>0</Subscript> dark energy models

We present dark energy models in an anisotropic Bianchi type-VI₀ (B-VI₀) space-time with a variable equation of state (EoS). The EoS for dark energy ω is found to be time dependent and its existing range for derived models is in good agreement with the recent observations of SNe Ia data (Knop et al. in Astrophys. J. 598:102 2003), SNe Ia data with CMBR anisotropy and galaxy clustering statistics (Tegmark et al. in Astrophys. J. 606:702, 2004b) and latest a combination of cosmological datasets coming from CMB anisotropies, luminosity distances of high redshift type Ia supernovae and galaxy clustering (Hinshaw et al. in Astrophys. J. Suppl. 180:225, 2009; Komatsu et al. in Astrophys. J. Suppl. 180:330, 2009). The cosmological constant Λ is found to be a positive decreasing function of time and it approaches a small positive value at late time (i.e. the present epoch) which is corroborated by results from recent supernovae Ia observations. The physical and geometric aspects of the models are also discussed in detail.     

Tidal torque constants as a critical test for an evolution of close eclipsing binaries

Individual tidal torque λ ₂,E ₂ and apsidal-motion k ₂ constants were calculated for 112 close eclipsing binaries (CEBs) with Detached components belonging to the Main Sequence (DMS-type) from the catalogue by Svechnikov and Perevozkina (Catalogue of orbital elements, masses and luminosities of variable stars of DMS-type and some results of its statistical treatment, Ural State University Press, Yekaterinburg, pp. 1–5, 1999) and for 95 detached binaries taken from the catalogue by Torres et al. (Astron. Astrophys. Rev. 18:67, 2010) on the base of theoretical evolutionary stellar models including tidal torque constants by Claret (Astron. Astrophys. 424:919, 2004). A method of the inversion of model track grid into isochrones was formulated as a complex interpolation procedure for DMS-binaries data. Sets of isochrones were computed in k ₂–M, k ₂–R, λ ₂–M, λ ₂–R, E ₂–M, and E ₂–R planes. Calculated tidal torque constants allow to test stellar structure theory by comparing observed and estimated values of apsidal motion period and analyzing the correlation between timescales of synchronization, circularization, magnetic braking, as well as nuclear burning of DMS-components.     

Spike-like Bursts as Fine Structure of Zebras

We studied the characteristics of the zebra-associated spike-like bursts that were recorded with high time resolution at 1420 MHz in four intervals (from 12:45 to 12:48 UT) during 5 August 2003. Our detailed analysis is based on the selection of more than 500 such spike-like bursts and it is, at least to our knowledge, the first study devoted to such short-lived bursts. Their characteristics are different from those pertinent to “normal” spike bursts, as presented in the paper by Güdel and Benz (Astron. Astrophys. 231, 202, 1990); in particular, their duration (about 7.4 ms at half power) is shorter, so they should be members of the SSS (super short structures) family (Magdalenić et al., Astrophys. J. 642, L77, 2006). The bursts were generally strongly R-polarized; however, during the decaying part of interval I a low R-polarized and L-polarized bursts were also present. This change of polarization shows a trend that resembles the peculiar form of the zebra lines in the spectral dominion (“V” like). A global statistical analysis on the bursts observed in the two polarimetric channels shows that the highest cross-correlation coefficient (about 0.5) was pertinent to interval I. The zebras and the bursts can be interpreted by the same double plasma resonance process as proposed by Bárta and Karlicky (Astron. Astrophys. 379, 1045, 2001) and Karlicky et al. (Astron. Astrophys. 375, 638, 2001); in particular, the spikes are generated by the interruption of this process by assumed turbulence (density or magnetic field variations). This process should be present in the region close to the reconnection site (e.g., in the plasma reconnection outflows) where the density and the magnetic field vary strongly.     

Third order effect of rotation on stellar oscillations of a <Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-Cephei star

Here the effect of rotation up to third order in the angular velocity of a star on the p, f and g modes is investigated. To do this, the third-order perturbation formalism presented by Soufi et al. (Astron. Astrophys. 334:911, 1998) and revised by Karami (Chin. J. Astron. Astrophys. 8:285, 2008), was used. I quantify by numerical calculations the effect of rotation on the oscillation frequencies of a uniformly rotating β-Cephei star with 12 M _⊙. For an equatorial velocity of 90 km s⁻¹, it is found that the second- and third-order corrections for (l,m)=(5,−4), for instance, are of order of 0.07% of the frequency for radial order n=−3 and reaches up to 0.6% for n=−20.     

The GALEX public archive at MAST

The Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) was successfully launched on April 28, 2003. Over the last 7 years, the GALEX mission has expanded our understanding of the process of star formation and galaxy evolution. GALEX data, consisting of far-UV (1344-1786A) and near-UV (1771-2831A) imaging over most of the sky, and grism spectroscopy, are available to the entire astronomical community and to the general public via the Multi-mission Archive at Space Telescope (MAST). The main characteristics and access tools to the large data archive (16TB) are presented. Groups within the GALEX Science Team, and the MAST archive teams, have undertaken complementary projects to conduct all-sky searches for time-variable and transient sources within GALEX data (e.g. Welsh et al. in Astron. J. 130:823, 2005; Wheatley et al. in Astron. J. 136:259, 2008). Results and tools for variability searches developed by MAST during this process, will be made available to the general community.     

Gemini observations of disks and jets in young stellar objects and in active galaxies

We present first results from the Near-infrared Integral Field Spectrograph (NIFS) located at Gemini North. For the active galaxies Cygnus A and Perseus A we observe rotationally-supported accretion disks and adduce the existence of massive central black holes and estimate their masses. In Cygnus A we also see remarkable high-excitation ionization cones dominated by photoionization from the central engine. In the T-Tauri stars HV Tau C and DG Tau we see highly-collimated bipolar outflows in the [Fe II] λ 1.644 micron line, surrounded by a slower molecular bipolar outflow seen in the H₂ lines, in accordance with the model advocated by Pyo, T.-S., et al., Astrophys. J. 570, 724 (2002).     

The Magnificent Seven in the dusty prairie

The Magnificent Seven have all been discovered by their exceptional soft X-ray spectra and high ratios of X-ray to optical flux. They all are considered to be nearby sources. Searching for similar objects with larger distances, one expects larger interstellar absorption resulting in harder X-ray counterparts. Current interstellar absorption treatment depends on chosen abundances and scattering cross-sections of the elements as well as on the 3D distribution of the interstellar medium. After a discussion of these factors we use the comprehensive 3D measurements of the Local Bubble by Lallement et al. (2003, Astron. Astrophys. 411, 447) to construct two simple models of the 3D distribution of the hydrogen column density. We test these models by using a set of soft X-ray sources with known distances. Finally, we discuss possible applications for distance estimations and population synthesis studies.      

Electron Densities in Quiescent Prominences Derived from Eclipse Observations

We develop a diagnostic tool for determination of the electron densities in solar prominences using eclipse data. The method is based on analysis of the hydrogen Balmer-line intensities (namely Hα and Hβ) and the white-light emission due to Thomson scattering on the prominence electrons. Our approach represents a generalization of the ratio method already used by Koutchmy, Lebecq, and Stellmacher (Astron. Astrophys. 119, 261, 1983). In this paper we use an extended grid of non-LTE prominence models of Gouttebroze, Heinzel, and Vial (Astron. Astrophys. Suppl. Ser. 99, 513, 1993) and derive various useful relations between prominence radiation properties and electron densities. Simultaneously, an effective geometrical thickness of the prominence can also be obtained. As an example we apply our general technique to original eclipse data of Koutchmy, Lebecq, and Stellmacher (Astron. Astrophys. 119, 261, 1983). Finally, we use our results to determine the color of prominences as it should be seen during total eclipses.     

Spectral behavior of AM Her and QQ Vul in high and intermediate states in the UV

We present low resolution UV spectra of two polar systems, AM Her and QQ Vul from the observations taken by the IUE (International Ultraviolet Explorer) of the period between 1978–1996 and 1983–1996 for both systems respectively, to accomplish a large scale study of what happens to the ultraviolet flux of C IV 1550 Å spectral line during different orbital phases. Two spectra for both systems showing the variations in line fluxes and line widths at different orbital phases in high and intermediate states are presented. We concentrated on calculating the line fluxes and line widths of C IV 1550 Å emission line originating in the accretion stream. Our results show that there is spectral variability for the aformentioned physical parameters at different times, similar to that known for the light curve (Heise and Verbunt, Astron. Astrophys. 189:112, 1988; Gansicke et al., Astron. Astrophys. 303:127, 1995; Kafka and Honeycutt, Astron. J. 125:2188K, 2003). We attribute it to the variations of both density and temperature as a result of changing the mass transfer rate (Hutchings et al., Astron. J. 123:2841H, 2002; King and Lasota, Astron. Astrophys. 140L:16K, 1984) which is responsible for this spectral variability. Also we found that the line fluxes of AM Her are greater than the line fluxes of QQ Vul, while the line widths of both systems are approximately the same.     

Fir continuum and line emissions from interstellar medium in galaxies

A self-consistent method has been evolved to infer physical parameters like density, radiation field and abundances using line and continuum radiations as diagnostics. For that purpose, we first calculate the temperatures of graphite and silicate grains using the model of Li and Draine (Astrophys. J. 554:778, 2001) by solving self-consistently the energy balance for G ₀ (1–10⁴) times the radiation field following Weingartner and Draine (Astrophys. J. Suppl. Ser. 134:263, 2001). Consequently, infrared emission fluxes are also obtained. To keep it simple, this is presented in the empirical form of parameters T _D and wavelength. The same model of the grain is adopted for photoelectric heating of gas using the formalism of Weingartner and Draine (Astrophys. J. Suppl. Ser. 134:263, 2001) (hereafter referred to as WD) and Bakes and Tielens (Astrophys. J. 427:822, 1994) (hereafter referred to as BT) for radiation field cited above in the range (6<hν≤13.6 eV). Temperature and abundances are determined using our own code for PDR very similar to cloudy code. All the possible sources of heating and cooling are considered for setting up the thermal balance. For the gas phase abundances that vary with depth in the cloud due to dust, self- and mutual shielding, chemical balance is solved. Most of the photoionization, photodissociation or chemical reaction rates are taken from UMIST database. We present an analysis of the cooling lines of singly ionized carbon [CII] at 158 μm and neutral oxygen [OI], at 63 μm and far infrared (FIR) continuum for a variety of star forming galaxies. Method of analysis of observational data is different from that of Malhotra et al. (Astrophys. J. 561:766, 2001). The radiation field G ₀, density N _h and abundance of carbon are obtained through best fit of observed and calculated intensities for lines and continuum radiations.     

Do Long-Lived Features Really Exist in the Solar Photosphere? II. Contrast of Time-Averaged Granulation Images

The decrease in the rms contrast of time-averaged images with the averaging time is compared between four data sets: (1) a series of solar granulation images recorded at La Palma in 1993, (2) a series of artificial granulation images obtained in numerical simulations by Rieutord et al. (Nuovo Cimento 25, 523, 2002), (3) a similar series computed by Steffen and his colleagues (see Wedemeyer et al. in Astron. Astrophys. 44, 1121, 2004), (4) a random field with some parameters typical of the granulation, constructed by Rast (Astron. Astrophys. 392, L13, 2002). In addition, (5) a sequence of images was obtained from real granulation images by using a temporal and spatial shuffling procedure, and the contrast of the average of n images from this sequence as a function of n is analysed. The series (1) of real granulation images exhibits a considerably slower contrast decrease than do both the series (3) of simulated granulation images and the series (4) of random fields. Starting from some relatively short averaging times t, the behaviour of the contrast in series (3) and (4) resembles the t ^−1/2 statistical law, whereas the shuffled series (5) obeys the n ^−1/2 law from n=2 on. Series (2) demonstrates a peculiarly slow decline of contrast, which could be attributed to particular properties of the boundary conditions used in the simulations. Comparisons between the analysed contrast-variation laws indicate quite definitely that the brightness field of solar granulation contains a long-lived component, which could be associated with locally persistent dark intergranular holes and/or with the presence of quasi-regular structures. The suggestion that the random field (4) successfully reproduces the contrast-variation law for the real granulation (Rast in Astron. Astrophys. 392, L13, 2002) can be dismissed.     

Investigation of the new Local Group galaxy VV 124

We present the results of our stellar photometry and spectroscopy for the new Local Group galaxy VV124 (UGC4879) obtainedwith the 6-m BTAtelescope. The presence of a fewbright supergiants in the galaxy indicates that the current star formation process is weak. The apparent distribution of stars with different ages in VV 124 does not differ from the analogous distributions of stars in irregular galaxies, but the ratio of the numbers of young and old stars indicates that VV 124 belongs to the rare Irr/Sph type of galaxies. The old stars (red giants) form the most extended structure, a thick disk with an exponential decrease in the star number density to the edge. Definitely, the young population unresolvable in images makes a great contribution to the background emission from the central galactic regions. The presence of young stars is also confirmed by the [OIII] emission line visible in the spectra that belongs to extensive diffuse galactic regions. The mean radial velocity of several components (two bright supergiants, the unresolvable stellar population, and the diffuse gas) is υ _h = −70 ± 15 km s⁻¹ and the velocity with which VV 124 falls into the Local Group is υ _LG = −12 ± 15 km s⁻¹. We confirm the distance to the galaxy (D = 1.1 ± 0.1 Mpc) and the metallicity of red giants ([Fe/H] = −1.37) found by Kopylov et al. (2008). VV 124 is located on the periphery of the Local Group approximately at the same distance from M31 and our Galaxy and is isolated from other galaxies. The galaxy LeoA nearest to it is 0.5 Mpc away.     

Closed form Vaidya-Tikekar type charged fluid spheres with pressure

Recently, Bijalwan (Astrophys. Space Sci. doi:, 2011) discussed all important solutions of charged fluid spheres with pressure and Gupta et al. (Astrophys. Space Sci. doi:, 2010) found first closed form solutions of charged Vaidya-Tikekar (V-T) type super-dense star. We extend here the approach evolved by Bijalwan (Astrophys. Space Sci. doi:, 2011) to find all possible closed form solutions of V-T type super-dense stars. The existing solutions of Vaidya-Tikekar type charged fluid spheres considering particular form of electric field intensity are being used to model massive stars. Infact at present maximum masses of the star models are found to be 8.223931M _Θ and 8.460857M _Θ subject to ultra-relativistic and non-relativistic conditions respectively. But these stars with such are large masses are not well behaved due to decreasing velocity of sound in the interior of star. We present new results concerning the existence of static, electrically charged perfect fluid spheres that have a regular interior. It is observed that electric intensity used in this article can be used to model superdense stars with ultrahigh surface density of the order 2×10¹⁴ gm/cm³ which may have maximum mass 7.26368240M _Θ for ultra-relativistic condition and velocity of sound found to be decreasing towards pressure free interface. We solve the Einstein-Maxwell equations considering a general barotropic equation of state with pressure. For brevity we don’t present a detailed analysis of the derived solutions in this paper.     

On the validity of series expansion being used for the position of a point on a Roche equipotential

The concept of Roche equipotentials has been frequently used in literature to study the problems of rotating stars and stars in binary systems. However in spite of using this simplifying concept, it is still not possible to express the position of a point in the potential field of such a system in a closed analytic form. In order to carry out further analytic studies, Kopal (Adv. Astron. Astrophys. 9:1–65, 1972), therefore, developed a series expansion for it. The series expansion of Kopal has often been used in the analysis of the problem of equilibrium structure and the periods of oscillations of rotating stars and stars in binary systems, but its validity and convergence has not been analytically established. It is important that this aspect of the problem is checked so that one is sure of the correctness of subsequent analysis and results based on this series expansion. In the present brief note, we have addressed ourselves to this problem and validated the correctness of the numerical results obtained through the use of this series expansion.     

Synchrotron radiation of a pulsar wind

We predict the synchrotron radiation from transient pulsars. The radiation is generated under the interaction of the magneto-dipole radiation with the relativistic electron-positron wind just after switching off of a radio pulsar. We calculate the spectrum and the flux of this radiation. The synchrotron radiation is estimated to observe from two nulling pulsars B1929+10 and B0656+14 on the level of several tens mJansky. The observed bright spiky emission of B0656+14 by Weltevrede et al. (Astron. Astrophys. 458:269, 2006) allows us to suggest that it has synchrotron nature. Observation of the synchrotron radiation gives possibility to determine the pulsar magnetic field and parameters and geometry of the pulsar wind.     

A new class of LRS Bianchi type-II dark energy models with variable EoS parameter

A new class of dark energy models in a Locally Rotationally Symmetric Bianchi type-II (LRS B-II) space-time with variable equation of state (EoS) parameter and constant deceleration parameter have been investigated in the present paper. The Einstein’s field equations have been solved by applying a variation law for generalized Hubble’s parameter given by Berman: Nuovo Cimento 74:182 (1983) which generates two types of solutions for the average scale factor, one is of power-law type and other is of the exponential-law form. Using these two forms, Einstein’s field equations are solved separately that correspond to expanding singular and non-singular models of the universe respectively. The dark energy EoS parameter ω is found to be time dependent and its existing range for both models is in good agreement with the three recent observations of (i) SNe Ia data (Knop et al.: Astrophys. J. 598:102 (2003)), (ii) SNe Ia data collaborated with CMBR anisotropy and galaxy clustering statistics (Tegmark et al.: Astrophys. J. 606:702 (2004)) and latest (iii) a combination of cosmological datasets coming from CMB anisotropies, luminosity distances of high redshift type Ia supernovae and galaxy clustering (Hinshaw et al.: Astrophys. J. Suppl. 180:225 (2009); Komatsu et al. Astrophys. J. Suppl. 180:330 (2009)). The cosmological constant Λ is found to be a positive decreasing function of time and it approaches a small positive value at late time (i.e. the present epoch) which is corroborated by results from recent supernovae Ia observations. The physical and geometric behaviour of the universe have also been discussed in detail.     

The Interpretation of a 2175A Absorption Feature in the Gravitational Lens Galaxy SBS0909 + 532 at <Emphasis Type="Italic">z</Emphasis> = 0.83

Comparison of recent spectra by V. Motta et al. (V. Motta et al.: Astrophys. J. 574, 719–725) of two images of a distant gravitationally lensed quasar (z = 1.38) leads to an extinction curve of the lens galaxy (z = 0.83) showing clear evidence of a 2175A absorption feature. We compare these data with measured extinction curves from the Galaxy, LMC and SMC and with predictions from models. As it has been found by other authors in the Local Group galaxies we found that the SBS 0909 + 532 curve is compatible with three component models of classical spherical grains and PAHs. We note that apart from this standard point of view, the fits also admit an interpretation in terms of products of a biological origin involving three grain components.