Hα Photometry of Two Contact Binaries

We carried out optical and Hα photometry of two contact binaries (V861 Herculis, EQ Tauri). The light curve modeling revealed stellar spots in both contact systems and strong Hα excess in the position of the observed stellar spots. A correlation was found between the V−R and R−H_α colour indices of V861 Her.     

On the binarity of Herbig Ae/Be stars

We present high-resolution spectro-astrometry of a sample of 28 Herbig Ae/Be and three F-type pre-main-sequence stars. The spectro-astrometry, which is essentially the study of unresolved features in long-slit spectra, is shown from both empirical and simulated data to be capable of detecting binary companions that are fainter by up to 6 mag at separations larger than ∼0.1 arcsec. The nine targets that were previously known to be binary are all detected. In addition, we report the discovery of six new binaries and present five further possible binaries. The resulting binary fraction is 68 ± 11 per cent. This overall binary fraction is the largest reported for any observed sample of Herbig Ae/Be stars, presumably because of the exquisite sensitivity of spectro-astrometry for detecting binary systems. The data hint that the binary frequency of the Herbig Be stars is larger than that of the Herbig Ae stars. The Appendix presents model simulations to assess the capabilities of spectro-astrometry and reinforces the empirical findings. Most spectro-astrometric signatures in this sample of Herbig Ae/Be stars can be explained by the presence of a binary system. Two objects, HD 87643 and Z CMa, display evidence for asymmetric outflows. Finally, the position angles of the binary systems have been compared with available orientations of the circumprimary disc and these appear to be coplanar. The alignment between the circumprimary discs and the binary systems strongly suggests that the formation of binaries with intermediate-mass primaries is due to fragmentation as the alternative, stellar capture, does not naturally predict aligned discs. The alignment extends to the most massive B-type stars in our sample. This leads us to conclude that formation mechanisms that do result in massive stars, but predict random angles between the binaries and the circumprimary discs, such as stellar collisions, are also ruled out for the same reason.     

A genetic algorithm for the non-parametric inversion of strong lensing systems

We present a non-parametric technique to infer the projected mass distribution of a gravitational lens system with multiple strong-lensed images. The technique involves a dynamic grid in the lens plane on which the mass distribution of the lens is approximated by a sum of basis functions, one per grid cell. We used the projected mass densities of Plummer spheres as basis functions. A genetic algorithm then determines the mass distribution of the lens by forcing images of a single source, projected back on to the source plane, to coincide as well as possible. Averaging several tens of solutions removes the random fluctuations that are introduced by the reproduction process of genomes in the genetic algorithm and highlights those features common to all solutions. Given the positions of the images and the redshifts of the sources and the lens, we show that the mass of a gravitational lens can be retrieved with an accuracy of a few percent and that, if the sources sufficiently cover the caustics, the mass distribution of the gravitational lens can also be reliably retrieved. A major advantage of the algorithm is that it makes full use of the information contained in the radial images, unlike methods that minimize the residuals of the lens equation, and is thus able to accurately reconstruct also the inner parts of the lens.     

基于历史TLE的空间目标轨道预报误差演化规律研究

北美防空司令部(North American Aerospace Defense Command, NORAD)发布的双行根数(Two Line Element, TLE)是广大航天工作者最常用的轨道根数,与其对应的轨道模型是SGP4/SDP4 (Simplified General Perturbation Version 4/Simplified Deep-space Perturbation Version 4)解析模型.由于TLE中并没有包含相应的轨道精度信息,编目轨道的应用范围受到很大的限制.基于Space-Track网站发布的历史TLE数据和配套的SGP4/SDP4动力学模型,采用定轨标预报的方法统计并生成了大量目标轨道的预报误差,通过对预报轨道的时间区间划分给出了每个目标的预报误差随预报时间变化的拟合系数,并进一步对不同类型轨道预报误差的演化规律和特征进行了分类讨论,给出了4种轨道类型目标的轨道预报误差随时间演化的平均解析模型,为拓展双行根数的应用提供有价值的参考.     

Methods of searching for planets around pulsars

We analyse different methods of searching for planets around neutron stars by timing observations of pulsars. To this end, we study a few interesting models describing TOA residual variations that are observed, or could be observed, and which can mimic planets. We carry out a detailed theoretical analysis of the behaviour of these methods in the situations mentioned. We show that it is very helpful to look at these phenomena as some kind of quasi-periodic variations of residuals of time of arrival of pulsar pulses. We demonstrate that such a model-independent approach leads to promising conclusions that can be useful when analysing timing observations of pulsars to find planets or to prove that observed phenomena are of planetary origin.     

The SuperCOSMOS Sky Survey – III. Astrometry

In this, the third in a series of three papers concerning the SuperCOSMOS Sky Survey, we describe the astrometric properties of the data base. We describe the algorithms employed in the derivation of the astrometric parameters of the data, and demonstrate their accuracies by comparison with external data sets using the first release of data, the South Galactic Cap survey. We show that the celestial coordinates, which are tied to the International Celestial Reference Frame via the Tycho–2 reference catalogue, are accurate to better than ±0.2 arcsec at J , R ∼19,18 , rising to ±0.3 arcsec at J , R ∼22,21 , with positional-dependent systematic effects from bright to faint magnitudes at the ∼0.1-arcsec level. The proper motion measurements are shown to be accurate to typically ±10 mas yr⁻¹ at J , R ∼19,18 , rising to ±50 mas yr⁻¹ at J , R ∼22,21 , and are tied to zero using the extragalactic reference frame. We show that the zero-point errors in the proper motions are ≤1 mas yr⁻¹ for R >17 , and are no larger than ∼10 mas yr⁻¹ for R <17 mas yr⁻¹ .     

Mesoscale dynamics and its application in torrential rainfall systems in China

Progress over the past decade in understanding moisture-driven dynamics and torrential rain storms in China is reviewed in this paper. First, advances in incorporating moisture effects more realistically into theory are described, including the development of a new parameter, generalized moist potential vorticity(GMPV) and an improved moist ageostrophic Q vector(Qum). Advances in vorticity dynamics are also described, including the adoption of a "parcel dynamic" approach to investigate the development of the vertical vorticity of an air parcel; a novel theory of slantwise vorticity development, proposed because vorticity develops easily near steep isentropic surfaces; and the development of the convective vorticity vector(CVV)as an effective new tool. The significant progress in both frontal dynamics and wave dynamics is also summarized, including the geostrophic adjustment of initial unbalanced flow and the dual role of boundary layer friction in frontogenesis, as well as the interaction between topography and fronts, which indicate that topographic perturbations alter both frontogenesis and frontal structure. For atmospheric vortices, mixed wave/vortex dynamics has been extended to explain the propagation of spiral rainbands and the development of dynamical instability in tropical cyclones. Finally, we review wave and basic flow interaction in torrential rainfall, for which it was necessary to extend existing theory from large-scale flows to mesoscale fields, enriching our knowledge of mesoscale atmospheric dynamics.     

关于地球圈层差异旋转理论研究的综述

地球内部各圈层差异旋转的各种假说中,“内快外慢”说已形成较完整的理论,并被科学测试所验证。在这一理论形成过程中,数学工作者也做出一有益的贡献。研究表明,“内快外慢”差异旋转是地球内部各种运动的源动力。     

基于GPU并行加速的叠前逆时偏移方法

为了提高复杂地下介质的成像精度和偏移算法的计算效率,提出可高效对地下复杂构造进行准确成像的GPU加速叠前逆时偏移方法.该方法采用双程声波方程进行波场延拓,突破倾角限制,借助于高阶有限差分方法实现叠前逆时偏移成像;利用GPU(Graphic Processing Unit)并行加速技术对波场延拓和成像进行计算,相比于传统算法,其计算效率有较大提高,可以解决叠前逆时偏移算法计算量过大问题;在获取波场信息过程中,也采用随机边界条件,实施以计算换存储策略,解决逆时偏移计算中的海量存储问题.模型测试结果表明,该方法能够高效和高精度地对地下复杂地质体成像.