The rms–flux relations in different branches in Cyg X-2

In this paper, the rms-flux (root mean square-flux) relation along the Z-track of the bright Z-Source Cyg X-2 is analyzed using the observational data of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE). Three types of rms-flux relations, i.e. positive, negative, and ‘arch’-like correlations are found in different branches. The rms is positively correlated with flux in normal branch (NB), but anti-correlated in the vertical horizontal branch (VHB). The rms–flux relation shows an ‘arch’-like shape in the horizontal branch (HB). We also try to explain this phenomenon using existing models.     

Irradiance observations of the 1–8 Å solar soft X-ray flux from goes

The solar 0.5–8 soft X-ray flux was monitored by the NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) from 1974 to the present, providing a continuous record over two solar activity cycles. Attempts have been made to determine a soft X-ray (SXR) background flux by subtracting out solar flares (using the daily lowest flux level). The SXR background flux represents the quiescent SXR flux from heated plasma in active regions, and reflects similar (intermediate-term) variability and periodicities (e.g. 155-day period) as the SXR or hard X-ray (HXR) flare rate, although it is determined in non-flaring time intervals. The SXR background flux peaks late in Solar Cycle 21 (2–3 years after the sunspot maximum), similar to the flare rate measured in SXR, HXR, or gamma rays, possibly due the increasing complexity of coronal magnetic structures in the decay phase of the solar cycle. The SXR background flux appears to be dominated by postflare emission from the dominant active regions, while the contributions from the quiet Sun are appreciable in the Solar Minimum only (A1-level). Comparisons with full-disk integrated images from YOHKOH suggest that the presence of coronal holes can decrease the quietest SXR irradiance level by an additional order of magnitude, but only in the rare case of absence of active regions.Presented at IAU Colloquium No. 143, The Sun as a Variable Star: Solar and Stellar Irradiance Variations, Boulder, CO, June 20–25, 1993     

Observations of active galactic nuclei with GT-48 gamma-ray telescope in 2007–2009

Results of observations of active galactic nuclei with the gamma-telescope GT-48 during 2007?C2009 are presented. It is shown that the very-high-energy (E > 10¹² eV) gamma radiation from galaxies 3C 66A, Mrk 421, Mrk 501, and BL Lac is variable.     

Photographic Observations of the Minor Planet (1) Ceres in Tashkent in 1951–1994

A procedure is described for remeasuring photographic plates with images of the minor planet (1) Ceres obtained in 1951–1994 with the Tashkent normal astrograph. To determine the observed spherical coordinates, the PPM catalog, based on the FK5 system, was used as a reference catalog. The calculation of the orbit of the minor planet (1) Ceres and the determination of the PPM zero-points and periodic errors on the basis of these observations yielded a unit weight error of 0.270. The derived coordinates and velocity components of (1) Ceres for J.D. = 2441600.5 are presented together with PPM zero-point and periodic-error-coefficient corrections. One of the results of the work is the high precision of the remeasured images, which makes it possible to use these observations, along with no less accurate observations of other selected minor planets, for determining corrections to the stellar coordinate system.     

Soft gamma-ray bursts from the superluminal source GRS 1915+105?

The power required to eject relativistic plasma clouds in the hard X-ray transient GRS 1915+105 is at least 100 times the luminosity of the soft-ray bursts (SGRs) that were observed by BATSE from the same region of the sky in the year 1992. We show that there are spatial, time, and spectral coincidences between GRS 1915+105 and the SGRs observed by BATSE which suggest that they are one and the same source. However, the position of the SGRs is rather uncertain and until better positions are obtained, the question on the association of GRS 1915+105 with the SGRs must remain open.     

Some Features of Comet Hale–Bopp (According to the Observations of 1995–1998)

Solar System Research - “The Great Comet of 1997” was a significant event in cometary physics. Numerous interesting scientific studies are devoted to this comet. Unfortunately, in the...     

The structure of the 1–3 keV X-ray background

New infrared photometry of a sample of 39 stars in the open cluster NGC 752 is presented. These observations confirm the bimodality of the Main Sequence previously reported. We analyze the nature of this behaviour on the basis of the binary hypothesis.Paper presented at the 11th European Regional Astronomical Meetings of the IAU on New Windows to the Universe, held 3–8 July, 1989, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain     

Comparative analysis of photometric variability of TT ARI in the years 1994–1995 and 2001, 2004

We present the results of photometric observations of a bright cataclysmic variable TT Ari with an orbital period of 0.13755 days. CCD observations were carried out with the Russian-Turkish RTT 150 telescope in 2001 and 2004 (13 nights). Multi-color photoelectric observations of the system were obtained with the Zeiss 600 telescope of SAO RAS in 1994–1995 (6 nights). In 1994–1995, the photometric period of the system was smaller than the orbital one (0 _. ^d 132 and 0 _. ^d 134), whereas it exceeded the latter (0 _. ^d 150 and 0 _. ^d 148) in 2001, 2004. An additional period exceeding the orbital one (0 _. ^d 144) is detected in 1995 modulations. We interpret it as indicating the elliptic disc precession in the direction of the orbital motion. In 1994, the variability in colors shows periods close to the orbital one (0 _. ^d 136, b-v), as well as to the period indicating the elliptic disk precession (0 _. ^d 146, w-b). We confirm that during the epochs characterized by photometric periods shorter than the orbital one, the quasi-periodic variability of TT Ari at time scales about 20 min is stronger than during epochs with long photometric periods. In general, the variability of the system can be described as a “red” noise with increased amplitudes of modulations at characteristic time scales of 10–40 min.     

Observations of the Galilean moons of Jupiter in 2013–2015 at Pulkovo

Observational results are presented for Jupiter and its Galilean moons from the Normal Astrograph at Pulkovo Observatory in 2013–2015. The following data are obtained: 154 positions of the Galilean satellites and 47 calculated positions of Jupiter in the system of the UCAC4 (ICRS, J2000.0) catalogue; the differential coordinates of the satellites relative to one another are determined. The mean errors of the satellites’ normal places in right ascension and declination over the entire observational period are, respectively: ε_α = 0.0065″ and ε_δ = 0.0068″, and their standard deviations are σ_α = 0.0804″ and σ_δ = 0.0845″. The equatorial coordinates are compared with planetary and satellite motion theories. The average (O–C) residuals in the two coordinates relative to the motion theories are 0.05″ or less. The best agreement with the observations is achieved by a combination of the EPM2011m and V. Lainey-V.2.0|V1.1 motion theories; the average (O–C) residuals are 0.03″ or less. The (O–C) residuals for the features of the positions of Io and Ganymede are comparable with measurement errors. Jupiter’s positions calculated from the observations of the satellites and their theoretical jovicentric coordinates are in good agreement with the motion theories. The (О–С) residuals for Jupiter’s coordinates are, on average, 0.027″ and–0.025″ in the two coordinates.     

Modeling the high-energy emission from the gamma-ray binary 1FGL J1018.6–5856

1FGL J1018.6–5856 is a high mass gamma-ray binary containing a compact object orbiting around a massive star with a period of 16.544 d. If the compact object is a pulsar, non-thermal emissions are likely produced by electrons accelerated at the termination shock, and may also originate from the magnetosphere and the un-shocked wind of the pulsar. In this paper, we investigate the non-thermal emissions from the wind and the shock with different viewing geometries and study the multi-wavelength emissions from 1FGL J1018.6–5856. We present the analysis results of the Fermi/LAT using nearly 10 years of data. The phase-resolved spectra indicate that the Ge V emissions comprise a rather steady component that does not vary with orbital motion and a modulated component that shows flux maximum around inferior conjunction. The ke V/Te V light curves of 1FGL J1018.6–5856 also exhibit a sharp peak around inferior conjunction, which are attributed to the boosted emission from the shock, while the broad sinusoidal modulations could be originating from the deflected shock tail at a larger distance. The modulations of Ge V flux are likely caused by the boosted synchrotron emission from the shock and the IC emission from the unshocked pulsar wind, while the steady component comes from the outer gap of the pulsar magnetosphere.Finally, we discuss the similarities and differences of 1FGL J1018.6–5856 with other binaries, like LS 5039.     

Are the missing X-ray breaks in gamma-ray burst afterglow light curves merely hidden?

Gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglow observations in the Swift era have a perceived lack of achromatic jet breaks compared to the BeppoSAX or pre- Swift era. Specifically, relatively few breaks, consistent with jet breaks, are observed in the X-ray light curves of these bursts. If these breaks are truly missing, it has serious consequences on the interpretation of GRB jet collimation and energy requirements, and the use of GRBs as cosmological tools. Here, we address the issue of X-ray breaks that are possibly 'hidden' and hence the light curves are misinterpreted as being single power laws. We do so by synthesizing X-ray telescope (XRT) light curves and fitting both single and broken power laws, and comparing the relative goodness of each fit via Monte Carlo analysis. Even with the well-sampled light curves of the Swift era, these breaks may be left misidentified, hence caution is required when making definite statements on the absence of achromatic breaks.     

Realization of X-ray telescopes–from design to performance

For more than 45 years the building of X-ray telescopes for solar and astronomical observations has been practised with significant performance improvement. The various techniques applied are reviewed emphazising the impact of proper mirror material choice, grinding and polishing improvements and the role of metrology.     

Infrared Observations of Comet Hale–Bopp (C/1995 O1) from Gurushikhar Observatory

During the recent apparition of comet Hale—Bopp (1995 O1) near infrared photometric observations were carried out in the J, H, K filter bands and also in the 3.0—3.4 μm region at the 1.2 m telescope at Gurushikkar, India. The effective temperature of the comet was substantially higher than the equilibrium blackbody temperature. A mean superheat value of 1.83 was derived in the post-perihelion phase which implies that a large fraction of the grain population are made up of small and hot grains with radii <0.5 μm. High albedo values of ∼0.4 were also derived in the scattering angle range 135° to 160° which could explain the unusual brightness of comet Hale—Bopp. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Broadband Spectrum of the X-ray Binary M33 X-6 from NuSTAR and Swift–XRT Data: An Extragalactic Z-Source?

We present the results of our study of the X-ray spectrum for the source X-6 in the nearby galaxy M33 obtained for the first time at energies above 10 keV from the data of the NuSTAR orbital telescope. The archival Swift–XRT data for energy coverage below 3 keV have been used, which has allowed the spectrum of M33 X-6 to be constructed in the wide energy range 0.3–20 keV. The spectrum of the source is well described by the model of an optically and geometrically thick accretion disk with a maximum temperature of ~2 keV and an inner radius of ~5 cos^?1/2θ km (where >θ is the unknown disk inclination angle with respect to the observer). There is also evidence for the presence of an additional hard component in the spectrum. The X-ray luminosity ofM33 X-6 measured for the first time in the wide energy range 0.3–20 keV is ~2 × 10³⁸ erg s^?1, with the luminosity in the hard 10–20 keV X-ray band being ~10% of the source’s total luminosity. The results obtained suggest that X-6 may be a Z-source, i.e., an X-ray binary with subcritical accretion onto a weakly magnetized neutron star.     

Milestones in the Observations of Cosmic Magnetic Fields

Magnetic fields are observed everywhere in the universe. In this review, we concentrate on the observational aspects of the magnetic fields of Galactic and extragalactic objects. Readers can follow the milestones in the observations of cosmic magnetic fields obtained from the most important tracers of magnetic fields, namely, the star-light polarization, the Zeeman effect, the rotation measures (RMs, hereafter) of extragalactic radio sources, the pulsar RMs, radio polarization observations, as well as the newly implemented sub-mm and mm polarization capabilities. The magnetic field of the Galaxy was first discovered in 1949 by optical polarization observations. The local magnetic fields within one or two kpc have been well delineated by starlight polarization data. The polarization observations of diffuse Galactic radio background emission in 1962 confirmed unequivocally the existence of a Galactic magnetic field. The bulk of the present information about the magnetic fields in the Galaxy comes from anal     

Optical Monitoring of 3C 66A in 1994–2008

3C 66A is one of the most interesting blazar. Our monitoring was carried out with a 1.56-m telescope of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory (SHAO) from 13 December 1994 to 9 November 2008. Some peaks and gradual brightening of the source up to three times were observed.