自适应光学应用于月球激光测距中视场旋转对大气波前倾斜量提取的影响

自适应光学技术应用于月球激光测距试验中需要实时针对月面扩展源进行大气波前倾斜量的提取,望远镜在跟踪月亮的过程中存在月面本身相对望远镜的物方视场的旋转以及望远镜自身的运动所引起的像方视场的旋转,本文讨论了望远镜物方视场及像方视场旋转的规律以及其对大气波前倾斜量提取的影响。     

Photometry of occultation candidate stars: II. Uranus 1985–1990 and Saturn 1986–1991

V and I magnitudes are presented for 20 stars to be occulted by the Uranian rings during the period 1986–1990 and for 15 stars to be occulted by Saturn's rings during 1986–1991. K magnitudes for seven Uranus stars are presented. The occultation stars are up to one magnitude brighter in the K bandpass than one would predict on the basis of V-I colors alone. This effect can be explained by typical amounts of interstellar reddening.     

Duplicity amongst HIPPARCOS stars

Stars observed by the astrometry satellite Hipparcos may be unknown double stars. A subsample of those are dangerous for the extragalactic link of Hipparcos proper motions by long-term photographic proper motions, if the time base of Hipparcos is too short to detect the orbital motion. The probability of these cases and the typical size of the photocentric orbital motion are estimated by Monte Carlo simulations for the sample of 33 stars used in the Bonn extragalactic link. Both are found to be considerable: about 16% and 9 mas/yr respectively.     

Is there period-activity correlation in RS CVn-type binary systems?

The rotation period-activity luminosity and the rotation period-surface activity flux correlations for the components of RS CVn-type binaries are discussed. It is argued that such correlations, although they are required by dynamo generated magnetic fields, do not represent the dominant parameter in determining the level of activity. Evidences are given that these correlations may essentially be induced by the period-radius dependence for the components of RS CVn-type binaries, and in addition, this result may well be valid for all the late-type stars (single or binary components).     

Meteoritic and other constraints on the internal structure and impact history of small asteroids

Studies of the internal structure of asteroids, which are crucial for understanding their impact history and for hazard mitigation, appear to be in conflict for the S-type asteroids, Eros, Gaspra, and Ida. Spacecraft images and geophysical data show that they are fractured, coherent bodies, whereas models of catastrophic asteroidal impacts, family and satellite formation, and studies of asteroid spin rates, and other diverse properties of asteroids and planetary craters suggest that such asteroids are gravitationally bound aggregates of rubble. These conflicting views may be reconciled if 10-50 km S-type asteroids formed as rubble piles, but were later consolidated into coherent bodies. Many meteorites are breccias that testify to a long history of impact fragmentation and consolidation by alteration, metamorphism, igneous and impact processes. Ordinary chondrites, which are the best analogs for S asteroids, are commonly breccias. Some may have formed in cratering events, but many appear to have formed during disruption and reaccretion of their parent asteroids. Some breccias were lithified during metamorphism, and a few were lithified by injected impact melt, but most are regolith and fragmental breccias that were lithified by mild or moderate shock, like their lunar analogs. Shock experiments show that porous chondritic powders can be consolidated during mild shock by small amounts of silicate melt that glues grains together, and by friction and pressure welding of silicate and metallic Fe,Ni grains. We suggest that the same processes that converted impact debris into meteorite breccias also consolidated asteroidal rubble. Internal voids would be partly filled with regolith by impact-induced seismic shaking. Consolidation of this material beneath large craters would lithify asteroidal rubble to form a more coherent body. Fractures on Ida that were created by antipodal impacts and are concentrated in and near large craters, and small positive gravity anomalies associated with the Psyche and Himeros craters on Eros, are consistent with this concept. Spin data suggest that smaller asteroids 0.6-6 km in size are unconsolidated rubble piles. C-type asteroids, which are more porous than S-types, and their analogs, the volatile-rich carbonaceous chondrites, were probably not lithified by shock.     

The tilt effect for Saturn's rings

Multiple-scattering computations are carried out to explain the variation of the observed brightness of the A and B rings of Saturn with declination of the Earth and Sun. These computations are performed by a doubling scheme for a homogeneous plane-parallel scattering medium. We test a range of choices for the phase function, albedo for single scattering, and optical depth of both the rings. Isotropic scattering and several other simple phase functions are ruled out, and we find that the phase function must be moderately peaked in both the forward and backward directions. The tilt effect can be explained by multiple scattering in a homogeneous layer, but, for ring B, this requires a single-scattering albedo in excess of 0.8. The brightest part of ring B must have an optical depth greater than 0.9. We find that the tilt effect for ring A can be reproduced by particles having the same properties as those in ring B with the optical depth for the A ring in the range 0.4 to 0.6.     

Life and habitable zones in the Universe

Currently we are aware of only one biosphere in the entire Universe, our own. Various ongoing observational programmes are, however, attempting to locate more. These searches for extraterrestrial life are among the most challenging and interesting tasks of modern science. The Universe is immense, and even the distances to the nearest stars are beyond our present capabilities to traverse, so that search strategies must be thought through carefully in terms of how, where and what to search for. Life is undoubtedly more likely in some environments than others, and environmental criteria must be fulfilled for life to arise, survive, evolve and thrive. As search resources are limited we should concentrate our search on habitable zones that are suitable for the kind of life we can most easily recognise, in other words, searches should be guided by our own biosphere.     

Long-term evaluation of three-dimensional heliocentric solar sail trajectories with arbitrary fixed sail setting

The solar radiation effects upon the orbital behaviour of an arbitrarily shaped spacecraft (or a solar sail in particular) in a general fixed orientation with respect to the local coordinate frame are investigated. Through introduction of a quasi-angle in the osculating plane, the motion of the orbital plane becomes uncoupled from the in-plane perturbations. Exact solutions in the form of conic sections and logarithmic spirals can readily be formulated for certain specific initial conditions. An effective out-of-plane spiral transfer trajectory is obtained by reversing the force component normal to the orbital plane at specified positions in the orbit. By choosing the appropriate control angles for the sail orientation, any point in space can be reached eventually. In the case of general initial conditions, the long-term orbital behaviour is assessed asymptotically by means of the two-variable expansion procedure. An implicit expression for the eccentricity is derived and explicit results are established by an iteration scheme. The other orbital elements can be expressed in terms of the eccentricity and their asymptotic series for near-circular initial orbits are also obtained. While equations for the higher-order contributions as well as the periodic parts of their solutions can be formulated readily, their secular terms are determined only for a circular initial orbit.     

Studies of ultracompact H II regions – III. Near-infrared survey of selected regions

A survey towards a selection of 35 methanol maser and/or ultracompact (UC) H  ii regions, reported in Papers I and II and by Norris et al., has been conducted in the near-infrared (NIR). Out of 25 methanol maser sites surveyed, 12 are associated with a NIR counterpart. Out of 18 UC H  ii regions (8 of which overlap with maser emission), 12 are associated with a NIR counterpart. Counterparts can be confidently identified not only by the positional agreements, but also by their unusually red colours. Spectral types for the embedded stars can be unambiguously determined for six sources, all of which imply massive, ionizing stars. One of these infrared sources has methanol maser emission, but no UC H  ii region. It is possible that the maser emission associated with this source arises from a pre-UC H  ii phase of massive stellar evolution or it could be that nearly all the ultraviolet photons are absorbed by dust within the UC H  ii region. We have modelled the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for some sources and find that a single blackbody can be used to estimate the stellar luminosity, but cannot represent the whole infrared SED. A two-component blackbody model and a radiative transfer model were also used to derive essential parameters of the infrared sources. The radiative transfer model also indicates which infrared sources are relatively young and which are older. Both models show that silicate absorption at 9.7 μm must be a dominant feature of these SEDs.     

Third plasma harmonic radiation in type II bursts

We present observational evidence for simultaneous fundamental, second and third harmonic radio emission during an excessively strong type II burst on February 16, 1984. This burst was emitted from an active region behind the limb allowing for fair resolution of the wave bands. If interpreted as a triple harmonic system, three different, nearly equally probable mechanisms for higher harmonic emission are qualitatively discussed. These are a four-wave process which involves very strong Langmuir waves, a decay process first proposed by Cairns (1987) for higher harmonic emission near the Earth's bow shock, and time evolution of the emitted frequency during Langmuir wave collapse. In sufficiently strong coronal shock waves, both of the former mechanisms may be more efficient than under solar wind conditions. In the third mechanism, Langmuir wave collapse may be driven by strong electron beams as are expected to exist in quasiparallel shocks where electron reflection may be strongest. We discuss the differences between the signatures of these mechanisms.     

Cratering rates on the Galilean satellites

We exploit recent theoretical advances toward the origin and orbital evolution of comets and asteroids to obtain revised estimates for cratering rates in the jovian system. We find that most, probably more than 90%, of the craters on the Galilean satellites are caused by the impact of Jupiter-family comets (JFCs). These are comets with short periods, in generally low-inclination orbits, whose dynamics are dominated by Jupiter. Nearly isotropic comets (long period and Halley-type) contribute at the 1-10% level. Trojan asteroids might also be important at the 1-10% level; if they are important, they would be especially important for smaller craters. Main belt asteroids are currently unimportant, as each 20-km crater made on Ganymede implies the disruption of a 200-km diameter parental asteroid, a destruction rate far beyond the resources of today's asteroid belt. Twenty-kilometer diameter craters are made by kilometer-size impactors; such events occur on a Galilean satellite about once in a million years. The paucity of 20-km craters on Europa indicates that its surface is of order 10 Ma. Lightly cratered surfaces on Ganymede are nominally of order 0.5-1.0 Ga. The uncertainty in these estimates is about a factor of five. Callisto is old, probably more than 4 Ga. It is too heavily cratered to be accounted for by the current flux of JFCs. The lack of pronounced apex-antapex asymmetries on Ganymede may be compatible with crater equilibrium, but it is more easily understood as evidence for nonsynchronous rotation of an icy carapace.     

Upper estimates for the element number of non-redundant antenna configurations on square and hexagonal grids

Estimates for the maximum number of elements of non-redundant configurations on integer square and hexagonal grids of given sizes are derived (a “non-redundant” configuration implies that the vector differences between its elements are all distinct). When projecting a large 2-D interferometer or a telescope, such an estimate can be used as a guide for evaluating the maximum possible number of antennas in a non-redundant configuration that can be arranged within a given area. The suggested estimates are empirical and based on the available data. They are obtained by reducing the problem to the linear case and by generalizing the method applied therein. Examples of applying the method are presented.     

COBE and global topology: an example of the application of the identified circles principle

The significance to which the cosmic microwave background (CMB) observations by the satellite COBE can be used to refute a specific observationally based hypothesis for the global topology (3-manifold) of the Universe is investigated, by a new method of applying the principle of matched circle pairs.
Moreover, it is shown that this can be done without assuming Gaussian distributions for the density perturbation spectrum.
The Universe is assumed to correspond to a flat Friedmann–Lemaître model with a zero value of the cosmological constant. The 3-manifold is hypothesized to be a 2-torus in two directions, with a third axis larger than the horizon diameter. The positions and lengths of the axes are determined by the relative positions of the galaxy clusters Coma, RX J1347.5−1145 and CL 09104+4109, assumed to be multiple topological images of a single, physical cluster.
If the following two assumptions are valid: (i) that the error estimates in the COBE DMR data are accurate estimates of the total random plus systematic error; and (ii) that the temperature fluctuations are dominated by the naı¨ve Sachs–Wolfe effect; then the distribution of the temperature differences between multiply imaged pixels is significantly wider than the uncertainty in the differences, and the candidate is rejected at the 94 per cent level.
This result is valid for either the 'subtracted' or 'combined' Analysed Science Data Sets, for either 10° or 20° smoothing, and is slightly strengthened if suspected contaminated regions from the galactic centre and the Ophiuchus and Orion complexes are removed.     

100kHz地波计算方法比较

对于无线电授时、导航来说,地球表面大地电特性非常重要,可以用地波衰减法测定大地等效电特性.目前有若干种方法可用于计算100kHz地波场强衰减和二次相位因子随传播路径的距离、大地电特性和大气折射指数的变化.对几种方法计算的结果和采用的参数作了比较和讨论.结果表明:对于1000km距离的均光滑的地球表面的地波传播而言,中国电波研究所的结果与国际电联有关建议书符合得最好.     

Experimental Design for the Laboratory Simulation of Magnetized Astrophysical Jets

Concepts of several experimental configurations for the investigation of magnetized jets and their interaction with magnetized environments are presented. In the planned experiments, the plasma jets will be created by laser ablation of shaped targets, while magnetic and electric fields with the required configurations will be produced independently by a pulsed power generator. In particular, the recently coupled Terawatt laser Tomcat and Terawatt pulsed power generator Zebra will be used for experiments.     

Solar magnetic fields and convection

The traditional model of solar magnetic fields is based on convection which dominates generally weak, diffuse fields and so tends to create increasingly tangled fields. Surplus fields must be eliminated by merging of opposite polarities; for example a solar dynamo of period≈10 yr requires fields to be reduced to a scale of<100 km or diffusivity to be increased by a factor of≈10⁷ over molecular diffusivity. It is now shown that the true requirements of any diffuse-field theory are far more stringent, and that surplus fields must be eliminated within a single eddy period of 1 day (10 min) for the supergranules (granules). The reason is that during that period fresh fields are created with flux and energy comparable with those of the old fields. The numerical models of Weiss and Moss are used to confirm this result which is fatal to all diffuse-field theories. The basic error in these theories is found in the assumption that because heat and other passive properties of a fluid diffuse much faster in the presence of turbulence, passive magnetic fields should do likewise. The error is that the heat content of an eddy is not increased by the motion while the magnetic flux and energy are increased rapidly. It is shown that the observed concentrations of surface fields into strengths of?100 G cannot be accounted for by observed surface motions. Nor are they accounted for by the numerical models of turbulence of Weiss or Moss whatever values of the magnetic Reynolds number are assumed. A detailed comparison is made between both small-scale and large-scale surface magnetic features and the predictions of the diffuse-field theory. The differences appear irreconcilable and the features only explicable in terms of the twisted flux-rope model.     

The α effect with imposed and dynamo-generated magnetic fields

Estimates for the non-linear α effect in helical turbulence with an applied magnetic field are presented using two different approaches: the imposed-field method where the electromotive force owing to the applied field is used, and the test-field method where separate evolution equations are solved for a set of different test fields. Both approaches agree for stronger fields, but there are apparent discrepancies for weaker fields that can be explained by the influence of dynamo-generated magnetic fields on the scale of the domain that are referred to as meso-scale magnetic fields. Examples are discussed where these meso-scale fields can lead to both drastically overestimated and underestimated values of α compared with the kinematic case. It is demonstrated that the kinematic value can be recovered by resetting the fluctuating magnetic field to zero in regular time intervals. It is concluded that this is the preferred technique both for the imposed-field and the test-field methods.     

The analysis of indexed astronomical time series – VI. Covariances of amplitude ratios and phase differences estimated from multicolour photometry of a pulsating star

One of the tools used to identify the pulsation modes of stars is a comparison of the amplitudes and phases as observed photometrically at different wavelengths. Proper application of the method requires that the errors on the measured quantities, and the correlations between them, be known (or at least estimated). It is assumed that contemporaneous measurements of the light intensity of a pulsating star are obtained in several wavebands. It is also assumed that the measurements are regularly spaced in time, although there may be missing observations. The amplitude and phase of the pulsation are estimated separately for each of the wavebands, and amplitude ratios and phase differences are calculated. A general scheme for estimating the covariance matrix of the amplitude ratios and phase differences is described. The first step is to fit a time series to the residuals after pre-whitening the observations by the best-fitting sinusoid. The residuals are then cross-correlated to study the interdependence between the errors in the different wavebands. Once the multivariate time-series structure can be modelled, the covariance matrix can be found by bootstrapping. An illustrative application is described in detail.     

Neutral and ion-exospheres in the solar wind with applications to mercury

A model of planetary neutral and ion-exospheres in the solar wind is formulated for weak or lunar like solar-wind interaction with a planet. The neutral exosphere model allows for density and temperature variations and for rotation at the exobase. The ion-exosphere is produced by ionization of the neutral exosphere in the solar wind and its density distribution is obtained by solving the continuity equation in the drift approximation. Applying to Mercury a surface temperature distribution inferred from infra-red data and a vanishing bound neutral flux at the base, He and He⁺ density distributions are found. When the He atmosphere of Mercury is due entirely to the surface bombardment by solar wind He⁺⁺, the resulting He⁺ density is found to vary from 1.5 × 10⁻¹ to 10⁻³ cm⁻³ over the range 1.5–5 planetocentric radii on the dayside. These densities are found to be detectable by typical solar-wind plasma instruments. The possible effects of cyclotron-resonant scattering by interplanetary magnetic field fluctuations are examined and shown to be negligible. An electromagnetic plasma instability, triggered by the birth of ions in the exosphere, is shown to be important for the thermalization of the energy mode transverse to the interplanetary magnetic field, allowing more ions to be detected by solar-wind ion probes.     

河外IRAS暗源大尺度分布的二维分析

本文对ＩＲＡＳ暗源表中４个选区内的ＩＲＡＳ星系的两点角相关函数，关联分维进行了计算。结果表明，所有选区内的星系呈现小角尺度上的成团。在较大角尺度上，分布可以用多级分形很好地表示。在更大角尺度上，用非归一星系对计数可以探测到密度分布中可能存在的典型尺度。当取４个选区的平均值作为ＩＲＡＳ星系在宇宙中分布情况的代表时，所得结果与用全天ＩＲＡＳ点源表和其他巡天资料得到的结果一致。