Two-Micron All-Sky Survey J01542930+0053266: a new eclipsing M dwarf binary system

We report on Two-Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) J01542930+0053266, a faint eclipsing system composed of two M dwarfs. The variability of this system was originally discovered during a pilot study of the 2MASS Calibration Point Source Working Data base. Additional photometry from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey yields an eight-passband light curve from which we derive an orbital period of  2.639 0157 ± 0.000 0016  d. Spectroscopic followup confirms our photometric classification of the system, which is likely composed of M0 and M1 dwarfs. Radial velocity measurements allow us to derive the masses  (M₁= 0.66 ± 0.03 M_⊙; M₂= 0.62 ± 0.03 M_⊙)  and radii  (R₁= 0.64 ± 0.08 R_⊙; R₂= 0.61 ± 0.09 R_⊙)  of the components, which are consistent with empirical mass–radius relationships for low-mass stars in binary systems. We perform Monte Carlo simulations of the light curves which allow us to uncover complicated degeneracies between the system parameters. Both stars show evidence of Hα emission, something not common in early-type M dwarfs. This suggests that binarity may influence the magnetic activity properties of low-mass stars; activity in the binary may persist long after the dynamos in their isolated counterparts have decayed, yielding a new potential foreground of flaring activity for next generation variability surveys.     

新疆东天山图拉尔根大型铜镍矿床硫化物珠滴构造的特征及其对通道式成矿的指示

东天山图拉尔根岩浆铜镍硫化物矿床中产出一种不常见的硫化物珠滴状构造。这些硫化物珠滴粒度在5~20mm左右,是由磁黄铁矿、镍黄铁矿、黄铜矿等硫化物矿物组成的斑杂状硫化物集合体。野外观察发现硫化物珠滴具有各种几何形态,产出在稀疏浸染状硫化物和无矿化的辉石岩之间的部位。对图拉尔根杂岩体中发育的24个硫化物珠滴的统计结果显示,平缓厚层状矿化部位的硫化物珠滴呈水平方向拉长,陡倾薄层状矿化部位的硫化物珠滴呈陡倾拉长,珠滴的拉长方向和矿体的延伸方向一致。这表明在含矿母岩浆上升就位到中上地壳的过程中,硫化物珠滴受到熔浆流动的控制,因而其形态可以很好地指示通道式成矿硫化物熔体运动的方向。 硫化物珠滴的矿相学和电子探针数据表明其具有向地性特征,即磁黄铁矿和镍黄铁矿先结晶,沉淀在下部; 珠滴上部为后结晶的黄铜矿和其它富铜硫化物。这种元素分布可能对贯入块状硫化物矿石同样适用。碲化物和铋化物在硫化物珠滴中的含量明显高于其在早结晶的浸染状硫化物中的含量,表明富Te和Bi等元素及挥发份的熔体是在岩浆演化后期开始富集结晶的。     

RoboNet‐II: Follow‐up observations of microlensing events with a robotic network of telescopes

RoboNet‐II uses a global network of robotic telescopes to perform follow‐up observations of microlensing events in the Galactic Bulge. The current network consists of three 2 m telescopes located in Hawaii and Australia (owned by Las Cumbres Observatory) and the Canary Islands (owned by Liverpool John Moores University). In future years the network will be expanded by deploying clusters of 1 m telescopes in other suitable locations. A principal scientific aim of the RoboNet‐II project is the detection of cool extra‐solar planets by the method of gravitational microlensing. These detections will provide crucial constraints to models of planetary formation and orbital migration. RoboNet‐II acts in coordination with the PLANET microlensing follow‐up network and uses an optimization algorithm (“web‐PLOP”) to select the targets and a distributed scheduling paradigm (eSTAR) to execute the observations. Continuous automated assessment of the observations and anomaly detection is provided by the ARTEMiS system (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

New ultracool and halo white dwarf candidates in SDSS Stripe 82

A     region along the celestial equator (Stripe 82) has been imaged repeatedly from 1998 to 2005 by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). A new catalogue of ∼4 million light-motion curves, together with over 200 derived statistical quantities, for objects in Stripe 82 brighter than   r ∼21.5  has been constructed by combining these data by Bramich et al. This catalogue is at present the deepest catalogue of its kind. Extracting ∼130 000 objects with highest signal-to-noise ratio proper motions, we build a reduced proper motion diagram to illustrate the scientific promise of the catalogue. In this diagram, disc and halo subdwarfs are well-separated from the cool white dwarf sequence. Our sample of 1049 cool white dwarf candidates includes at least eight and possibly 21 new ultracool H-rich white dwarfs  ( T _eff < 4000 K)  and one new ultracool He-rich white dwarf candidate identified from their SDSS optical and UKIDSS infrared photometry. At least 10 new halo white dwarfs are also identified from their kinematics.     

Snapper (Chrysophrys auratus): a review of life history and key vulnerabilities in New Zealand

Snapper (Chrysophrys auratus) is an important coastal fish species in New Zealand for a variety of reasons, but the large amount of research conducted on snapper has not been reviewed. Here, we review life history information and potential threats for snapper in New Zealand. We present information on snapper life history, defining stages (eggs and larvae, juvenile and adult), and assess potential threats and knowledge gaps. Overall we identify six key points: 1. post-settlement snapper are highly associated with certain estuarine habitats that are under threat from land-based stressors. This may serve as a bottleneck for snapper populations; 2. the largest knowledge gaps relate to the eggs and larvae. Additional knowledge may help to anticipate the effects of climate change, which will likely have the greatest influence on these early life stages; 3. ocean acidification, from land-based sources and from climate change, may be an important threat to larval snapper; 4. a greater understanding of population connectivity would improve certainty around the sustainability of fishery exploitation; 5. the collateral effects of fishing are likely to be relevant to fishery productivity, ecosystem integrity and enduser value; 6. our understanding of the interrelationships between snapper and other ecosystem components is still deficient.