Papers for Wednesday, Mar 09 2022

Frequencies of volcanic eruptions in the past 270 years are compared with variations of solar activity and summary curve of principal components of the solar background magnetic field (SBMF).Frequency analysis with Morlet wavelet reveals the most pronounced period of volcanic eruptions of 22 years. There is a strong correlation (-0.84) between volcanic frequencies and the summary curve of SBMF for 11 cycles after 1868. The maxima of volcanic eruptions are shown to occur during solar activity cycles with the southern magnetic polarity. The next anticipated maximum of volcanic eruptions is expected to occur during cycle 26, when SBMF have a southern magnetic polarity.

The gamma-ray emission from Starburst and Starforming Galaxies (SBGs and SFGs) strongly suggest a correlation between star-forming activity and gamma-ray luminosity. However, the very nature of cosmic-ray (CR) transport and the degree of their confinement within SBG cores are still open questions. We aim at probing the imprints left by CR transport on gamma-ray and neutrino observations of point-like SFGs and SBGs, looking into quantitative ways to discriminate among different transport models. Moreover, following the reported scenarios, we quantitatively assess the SBGs and SFGs contribution to the Extra-galactic Gamma-Ray Background (EGB data) and the IceCube diffuse observations (HESE data). We analyse the 10-year Fermi-LAT spectral energy distributions of 13 nearby galaxies with two different CR transport models, taking into account the corresponding IR and UV observations. We generate mock gamma-ray data to simulate the CTA performance in detecting these sources. In the way, we propose a test to discriminate between the two CR models, quantifying the statistical confidence at which one model can be preferred over the other. We point out that current data already give a slight preference to CR models which are dominated by advection in their nucleus. Moreover, we show that CTA will allow us to firmly disfavour models dominated by diffusion over self-induced turbulence, compared to advection-dominated models, with Bayes factors which can be as large as $10^7$ for some of the SBGs. Finally, we estimate the diffuse gamma-ray and neutrino fluxes of SFGs and SBGs, showing that they can explain $25\%$ of the diffuse HESE data, while remaining consistent with gamma-ray limits on non-blazar sources.

We measure the Hubble constant of the Universe using spatial cross-correlation between gravitational wave (GW) sources without electromagnetic counterparts from the third GW Transient Catalog (GWTC-3), and the photometric galaxy surveys 2MPZ and WISE-SuperCOSMOS. Using the eight well-localised GW events, we obtain Hubble constant $H_0= 68.2_{-6.2}^{+26.0}$ km/s/Mpc (median and 68.3$\%$ equal-tailed interval (ETI)) after marginalizing over the matter density and the GW bias parameters. Though the constraints are weak due to a limited number of GW sources and poor sky localization, they are not subject to assumptions regarding the GW mass distribution. By combining this measurement with the Hubble constant measurement from binary neutron star GW170817, we find a value of Hubble constant $H_0= 67.0_{-3.8}^{+6.3}$ km/s/Mpc (median and 68.3$\%$ ETI).

Chemical tagging of globular clusters (GCs) is often done using abundances of alpha-elements. The iron-peak elements Sc, V, and in particular Zn were proposed as an alternative to alpha-elements to tag accreted GCs in the metal-rich regime, where the dwarf galaxy Sagittarius and its GCs show peculiarly marked under-abundances of these heavier species with respect to Milky Way stars. A handful of stars in NGC 6388 was used to suggest an accreted origin for this GC, contradicting the results from dynamics. We tested the efficiency of the iron-peak method by using large samples of stars in NGC 6388, compared to thousands of field stars in the disc and the bulge of the Milky Way. Our abundance ratios of Sc (185 stars) and V (35 stars) for NGC 6388 are within about 1.5 sigma from the average for the field stars with a similar metallicity, and they are in perfect agreement for Zn (31 stars), claimed to be the most sensitive element concerning the accretion pattern. Moreover, the chemo-dynamical plots, coupled to the bifurcated age-metallicity relation of GCs in the Galaxy, clearly rule out any association of NGC 6388 to the groups of accreted GCs. Using a large set of GC abundances from the literature, we also show that the new method with Sc, V, and Zn seems to be efficient in picking up GCs related to the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy. Whether this is also generally true for accreted GCs seems to be less evident, and it should be verified with larger and homogeneous samples of stars both in the field and in GCs.

We present a detailed weak-lensing and X-ray study of the Frontier Fields galaxy cluster Abell 370, one of the most massive known lenses on the sky, using wide-field BRz Subaru/Sprime-Cam and Chandra X-ray observations. By combining 2D shear and azimuthally averaged magnification constraints derived from Subaru data, we perform a lensing mass reconstruction in a free-form manner, which allows us to determine both radial structure and 2D morphology of the cluster mass distribution. In a triaxial framework assuming an NFW density profile, we constrain the intrinsic structure and geometry of the cluster halo by forward modeling the reconstructed mass map. We obtain a halo mass $M_{200}=(1.54 \pm 0.29)\times 10^{15}h^{-1}M_\odot$, a halo concentration $c_{200}=5.27 \pm 1.28$, and a minor-major axis ratio $q_a=0.62 \pm 0.23$ with uninformative priors. Using a prior on the line-of-sight alignment of the halo major axis derived from binary merger simulations constrained by multi-probe observations, we find that the data favor a more prolate geometry with lower mass and lower concentration. From triaxial lens modeling with the line-of-sight prior, we find a spherically enclosed gas mass fraction of $f_\mathrm{gas}=(8.4 \pm 1.0)\%$ at $0.7h^{-1}$ Mpc. When compared to the hydrostatic mass estimate from Chandra observations, our triaxial weak-lensing analysis yields spherically enclosed mass ratios of $1-b=0.56 \pm 0.09$ and $0.51 \pm 0.09$ at $0.7h^{-1}$ Mpc with and without using the line-of-sight prior, respectively. Since the cluster is in a highly disturbed dynamical state, this represents the likely maximum level of hydrostatic bias in galaxy clusters. We also obtain a model-independent constraint of $M_\mathrm{2D}(<2.3h^{-1}\mathrm{Mpc})=(3.11 \pm 0.47)\times 10^{15}h^{-1}M_\odot$ for the projected mass of the whole system, including any currently unbound material around the cluster.

Dynamical models are crucial for uncovering the internal dynamics of galaxies, however, most of the results to date assume axisymmetry, which is not representative for a significant fraction of massive galaxies. Here, we build triaxial Schwarschild orbit-superposition models of galaxies taken from the SAMI Galaxy Survey, in order to reconstruct their inner orbital structure and mass distribution. The sample consists of 161 passive galaxies with total stellar masses in the range $10^{9.5}$ to $10^{12} M_{\odot}$. We find that the changes in internal structures within 1$R_{\rm e}$ are correlated with the total stellar mass of the individual galaxies. The majority of the galaxies in the sample ($73\% \pm 3\%$) are oblate, while $19\% \pm 3\%$ are mildly triaxial and $8\% \pm 2\%$ have triaxial/prolate shape. Galaxies with $\log M_{\star}/M_{\odot} > 10.50$ are more likely to be non-oblate. We find a mean dark matter fraction of $f_{\rm{DM}} = 0.28 \pm 0.20$, within 1$R_{\rm e}$. Galaxies with higher intrinsic ellipticity (flatter) are found to have more negative velocity anisotropy $\beta_r$ (tangential anisotropy). $\beta_r$ also shows an anti-correlation with the edge-on spin parameter \lam, so that $\beta_r$ decreases with increasing \lam. We see evidence of an increasing fraction of hot orbits with increasing stellar mass, while warm and cold orbits show a decreasing trend. We also find that galaxies with different ($V/\sigma$ - $h_3$) kinematic signatures have distinct combinations of orbits. These results are in agreement with a formation scenario in which slow- and fast-rotating galaxies form through two main channels.

Recent MeerKAT neutral hydrogen (HI) observations of Fornax A reveal tidal material intersecting in projection the western lobe of this radio galaxy. We found a spatial coincidence between the northern HI tail and a depolarized structure observed for the first time with the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) at 1.2 GHz. We analyzed the properties of the rotation measure (RM) image obtained with ASKAP data at the location of the HI tail and in its neighborhood. We modeled the observed RM structure function to investigate the magnetic field power spectrum at the location of the HI tail and in a nearby control region. We found that the observed RM, in the control region and in a region enclosing the HI tail, cannot be due to the intracluster Faraday screen caused by the Fornax cluster. An intragroup magnetized medium with a central magnetic field strength of 18.5 $\rm\mu$G can explain the control region RM, but it is clear that there is an excess in correspondence with the HI tail region. We evaluated several scenarios in which the HI tail is either in the lobe foreground or embedded in the lobe. We determined a magnetic field strength on the order of $\sim$9.5$-$11 $\mu$G in the HI tail, a value consistent with constraints derived from narrowband H$\alpha$ imaging of the ionized gas. The spatial coincidence between HI tail and depolarization analyzed in this paper could be the first observed evidence of a magnetic field that either has passed through a radio galaxy lobe or has survived the lobe expansion.

The catalog of gravitational-wave events is growing, and so are our hopes of constraining the underlying astrophysics of stellar-mass black-hole mergers by inferring the distributions of, e.g., masses and spins. While conventional analyses parametrize this population with simple phenomenological models, we propose an innovative physics-first approach that compares gravitational-wave data against astrophysical simulations. We combine state-of-the-art deep-learning techniques with hierarchical Bayesian inference and exploit our approach to constrain the properties of repeated black-hole mergers from the gravitational-wave events in the most recent LIGO/Virgo catalog. Deep neural networks allow us to (i) construct a flexible population model that accurately emulates simulations of hierarchical mergers, (ii) estimate selection effects, and (iii) recover the branching ratios of repeated-merger generations. Among our results we find that: the distribution of host-environment escape speeds favors values <100 km s$^{-1}$ but is relatively flat; first-generation black holes are born with a maximum mass that is compatible with current estimates from pair-instability supernovae; there is multimodal substructure in both the mass and spin distributions due to repeated mergers; and binaries with a higher-generation component make up at least 15% of the underlying population. The deep-learning pipeline we present is ready to be used in conjunction with realistic astrophysical population-synthesis predictions.

We characterize the 3-D spatial variations of [Fe/H], [Mg/H], and [Mg/Fe] in stars at the time of their formation, across 11 simulated Milky Way (MW)- and M31-mass galaxies in the FIRE-2 simulations, to inform initial conditions for chemical tagging. The overall scatter in [Fe/H] within a galaxy decreased with time until $\approx 7$ Gyr ago, after which it increased to today: this arises from a competition between a reduction of azimuthal scatter and a steepening of the radial gradient in abundance over time. The radial gradient is generally negative, and it steepened over time from an initially flat gradient $\gtrsim 12$ Gyr ago. The strength of the present-day abundance gradient does not correlate with when the disk `settled'; instead, it best correlates with the radial velocity dispersion within the galaxy. The strength of azimuthal variation is nearly independent of radius, and the 360 degree scatter decreased over time, from $\lesssim 0.17$ dex at $t_{\rm lb} = 11.6$ Gyr to $\sim 0.04$ dex at present day. Consequently, stars at $t_{\rm lb} \gtrsim 8$ Gyr formed in a disk with primarily azimuthal scatter in abundances. All stars formed in a vertically homogeneous disk, $\Delta$[Fe/H] $\leq 0.02$ dex within $1$ kpc of the galactic midplane, with the exception of the young stars in the inner $\approx 4$ kpc at $z \sim 0$. These results generally agree with our previous analysis of gas-phase elemental abundances, which reinforces the importance of cosmological disk evolution and azimuthal scatter in the context of stellar chemical tagging. We provide analytic fits to our results for use in chemical-tagging analyses.

We review the use of young low mass stars and protostars, or young stellar objects (YSOs), as tracers of star formation. Observations of molecular clouds at visible, infrared, radio and X-ray wavelengths can identify and characterize the YSOs populating these clouds, with the ability to detect deeply embedded objects and all evolutionary stages. Surveys with the Spitzer, Herschel, XMM-Newton and Chandra space telescopes have measured the spatial distribution of YSOs within a number of nearby (< 2.5 kpc) molecular clouds, showing surface densities varying by more than three orders of magnitude. These surveys have been used to measure the spatially varying star formation rates and efficiencies within clouds, and when combined with maps of the molecular gas, have led to the discovery of star-forming relations within clouds. YSO surveys can also characterize the structures, ages, and star formation histories of embedded clusters, and they illuminate the relationship of the clusters to the networks of filaments, hubs and ridges in the molecular clouds from which they form. Measurements of the proper motions and radial velocities of YSOs trace the evolving kinematics of clusters from the deeply embedded phases through gas dispersal, providing insights into the factors that shape the formation of bound clusters. On 100 pc scales that encompass entire star-forming complexes, Gaia is mapping the young associations of stars that have dispersed their natal gas and exist alongside molecular clouds. These surveys reveal the complex structures and motions in associations, and show evidence for supernova driven expansions. Remnants of these associations have now been identified by Gaia, showing that traces of star-forming structures can persist for a few hundred million years.

We report the archival discovery of Lyman-$\alpha$ emission from the bright ultraviolet galaxy Y002 at $z=7.677$, spectroscopically confirmed by its ionized carbon [CII] 158$\mu$m emission line. The Ly$\alpha$ line is spatially associated with the rest-frame UV stellar emission ($M_{\rm UV}$~-22, 2x brighter than $M^\star_{\rm UV}$) and it appears offset from the peak of the extended [CII] emission at the current ~1" spatial resolution. We derive an estimate of the unobscured SFR(UV)=$(22\pm1)\,M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$ and set an upper limit of SFR(IR)$<15\,M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$ from the far-infrared wavelength range, which globally place Y002 on the SFR(UV+IR)-L([CII]) correlation observed at lower redshifts. In terms of velocity, the peak of the Ly$\alpha$ emission is redshifted by $\Delta v$(Ly$\alpha$)~500 km s$^{-1}$ from the systemic redshift set by [CII] and a high-velocity tail extends to up to ~1000 km s$^{-1}$. The velocity offset is up to ~3.5x higher than the average estimate for similarly UV-bright emitters at z~6-7, which might suggest that we are witnessing the merging of two clumps. A combination of strong outflows and the possible presence of an extended ionized bubble surrounding Y002 would likely facilitate the escape of copious Ly$\alpha$ light, as indicated by the large equivalent width EW(Ly$\alpha$)=$24\pm1$ \r{A}. Assuming that [CII] traces the neutral hydrogen, we estimate a HI gas fraction of $M({\rm HI})/M_\star\gtrsim8$ for Y002 as a system and speculate that patches of high HI column densities could contribute to explain the observed spatial offsets between Ly$\alpha$ and [CII] emitting regions. The low dust content, implied by the non-detection of the far-infrared continuum emission at rest-frame ~160 $\mu$m, would be sufficient to absorb any potential Ly$\alpha$ photons produced within the [CII] clump as a result of large HI column densities.

The trajectory of the center of light of an unresolved binary is different from that of its center of mass. Binary-induced stellar centroid wobbling can therefore be detected as an excess in the goodness-of-fit of the single-star astrometric model. We use reduced $\chi^2$ of the astrometric fit in the {\it Gaia} Early Data Release 3 to detect the likely unresolved double white dwarfs (DWDs). Using parallax-based distances we convert the excess of reduced $\chi^2$ into the amplitude of the centroid wobble $\delta a$, which is proportional to the binary separation $a$. The measured $\delta a$ distribution drops towards larger wobble amplitudes and shows a break around $\delta a \approx 0.2$ where it steepens. The integral of the distribution yields DWD fraction of $6.5 \pm 3.7$ per cent in the range $0.01 < a (\text{au}) < 2$. Using synthetic models of the Galactic DWDs we demonstrate that the break in the $\delta a$ distribution corresponds to one side of a deep gap in the DWD separation distribution at around $a\approx 1$ au. Model DWDs with separations less than several au shrink dramatically due to (al least one) common envelope phase, reshaping the original separation distribution, clearing a gap and creating a pile-up of systems with $a\approx 0.01$ au and $\delta a < 0.01$. Our models reproduce the overall shape of the observed $\delta a$ distribution and its normalisation, however the predicted drop in the numbers of DWDs beyond the break is steeper than in the data.

We present new cosmological constraints in a set of motivated extensions of the $\Lambda$CDM model using the polarization and gravitational lensing measurements from the South Polar Telescope and the Planck CMB temperature observations at large angular scales. It was shown in Ref. \cite{Chudaykin:2020acu} that this CMB setup is free from the Planck anomalies which could affect the cosmological inference in extended models. Combining the SPT-3G, SPTPol and Planck large-scale temperature data with the latest full-shape BOSS and BAO measurements and information from the weak lensing surveys we find a $4\sigma$ evidence for nonzero neutrino mass, $\sum m_\nu=0.23\pm0.06$ eV. In $\rm \Lambda$CDM+$N_{\rm eff}$ scenario we demonstrate that the Planck anomalies do not propagate into cosmological constraints. Then we examine two promising scenarios with modified late-time cosmology: one introduces a phantom crossing in dark energy equation of state, another provides with a sharp transition in the dark energy evolution. We find that the scenario with a phantom crossing completely alleviate the cosmological tensions yielding $H_0=73.93\pm1.08{\rm \,\,km\,s^{-1}Mpc^{-1}}$ and $S_8=0.774\pm0.010$. For the transitional dark energy we find no strong evidence for a rapid change in its equation of state after including the BAO from the BOSS DR12. Our proof-of-concept analysis shows that the Planck anomalies severely obscure the cosmological inference in some extensions of the $\Lambda$CDM model. More precise CMB data is needed to validate our conclusions on neutrino masses and phantom crossing in the dark energy sector.

There are insufficient catastrophic events (collapse, explosion or merger of stars or compact objects) to explain the cosmologically local rate of apparently non-repeating FRB if each such catastrophic event produces a single FRB. Unless produced by some novel and unsuspected but comparatively frequent event, apparently non-repeating FRB must actually repeat many times in the lifetimes of their sources. Yet no such infrequent repetitions (in contrast to the frequent activity of FRB known to repeat) have been observed, constraining their repetition rates and active lifetimes. The absence of more frequent weaker but detectable repetitive outbursts in apparent non-repeaters resembles the distribution of SGR outbursts, with a large gap between giant outbursts and lesser outbursts. This suggests mini-SGR as sources, more energetic than SGR 1935$+$2154 associated with FRB 200428 but less energetic than SGR 1806$-$20 that had no associated FRB. Their largest radio outbursts would, at cosmological distances, be apparently non-repeating FRB and their X-ray and gamma-ray outbursts would be undetectable. The large gap between the strongest outburst of FRB 200428 and its lesser outbursts resembles the gamma-ray properties of individual well-observed SGR; at twenty times its actual distance, FRB 200428 would have been an apparent non-repeater.

NGC 4945 harbors one of the nearest active galactic nuclei (AGN), which allows reaching high spatial resolution with the current observational facilities. The Seyfert 2 nucleus is deeply obscured by an edge-on disk with $A_V\sim14$, requiring infrared observations to study circumnuclear structures and the interstellar medium. In this work, we present an imaging and longslit spectroscopic study of the nuclear region with a spatial resolution of 6.5 pc, based on Flamingos-2 (F2) and T-ReCS data taken at the Gemini South observatory. We report sub-arcsecond photometric measurements of the nucleus in $J$, $H$ and $K_{\rm s}$ filters, and at larger apertures. We do not detect nuclear variability. The nuclear spectra confirm that even in $K$-band the AGN emission-line features are completely obscured by dust. We detect a circumnuclear disk in $K$-band as well as in the mid-infrared (MIR) $N$- and $Q_{\rm a}$-bands, with a radial scale length of $\sim$120 pc. The disk shows knots mostly in a ring-like arrangement that has been previously detected with HST Pa $\alpha$ observations, indicating that these are deeply embedded, massive young star clusters. We present here the spectrum of one of the brightest and unresolved object (R$<5$pc), which we identify as a super star cluster candidate with M$_{K_{\rm s}} -16.6\pm0.4$. For the circumnuclear region, a detailed rotation curve allows to measure a nuclear mass of $M=(4.4 \pm 3)\times 10^{6} M_\odot$ within a radius of $\sim6.5$ pc. We also report the detection of hot dust ($\sim 1000$ K) out to a nuclear distance of 80 pc measured along the semi-major axis.

Forthcoming astronomical surveys are expected to detect new sources in such large numbers that measuring their spectroscopic redshift measurements will be not be practical. Thus, there is much interest in using machine learning to yield the redshift from the photometry of each object. We are particularly interested in radio sources (quasars) detected with the Square Kilometre Array and have found Deep Learning, trained upon a large optically-selected sample of quasi-stellar objects, to be effective in the prediction of the redshifts in three external samples of radio-selected sources. However, the requirement of nine different magnitudes, from the near-infrared, optical and ultra-violet bands, has the effect of significantly reducing the number of sources for which redshifts can be predicted. Here we explore the possibility of using machine learning to impute the missing features. We find that for the training sample, simple imputation is sufficient, particularly replacing the missing magnitude with the maximum for that band, thus presuming that the non-detection is at the sensitivity limit. For the test samples, however, this does not perform as well as multivariate imputation, which suggests that many of the missing magnitudes are not limits, but have indeed not been observed. From extensive testing of the models, we suggest that the imputation is best restricted to two missing values per source. Where the sources overlap on the sky, in the worst case, this increases the fraction of sources for which redshifts can be estimated from 46% to 80%, with >90% being reached for the other samples.

Below the acoustic cut-off frequency, oscillations are trapped within the solar interior and become resonant. However, signatures of oscillations persist above the acoustic cut-off frequency, and these travelling waves are known as pseudomodes. Acoustic oscillation frequencies are known to be correlated with the solar cycle, but the pseudomode frequencies are predicted to vary in anti-phase. We have studied the variation in pseudomode frequencies with time systematically through the solar cycle. We analyzed Sun-as-a-star data from Variability of Solar Irradiance and Gravity Oscillations (VIRGO), and Global Oscillations at Low Frequencies (GOLF), as well as the decomposed data from Global Oscillation Network (GONG) for harmonic degrees $0\le l \le 200$. The data cover over two solar cycles (1996--2021, depending on instrument). We split them into overlapping 100-day long segments and focused on two frequency ranges, namely $5600$--$6800\,\rm\mu Hz$ and $5600$--$7800\,\rm\mu Hz$. The frequency shifts between segments were then obtained by fitting the cross-correlation function between the segments' periodograms. For VIRGO and GOLF, we found no significant variation of pseudomode frequencies with solar activity. However, in agreement with previous studies, we found that the pseudomode frequency variations are in anti-phase with the solar cycle for GONG data. Furthermore, the pseudomode frequency shifts showed a double-peak feature at their maximum, which corresponds to solar activity minimum, and is not seen in solar activity proxies. An, as yet unexplained, pseudo-periodicity in the amplitude of the variation with harmonic degree $l$ is also observed in the GONG data.

The dust abundance of the interstellar medium plays an important role in galaxy physics, the chemical evolution of matter and the absorption and re-emission of stellar light. The last years have seen a surge in observational and theoretical studies constraining the dust-abundance of galaxies up to $z\sim5$. In this work we gather the latest observational measurements (with a focus on absorption studies covering metallicities in the range $6.8 < 12 + \log{(O/H)}<9$) and theoretical predictions (from six different galaxy formation models) for the dust-to-gas (DTG) and dust-to-metal (DTM) ratio of galaxies. The observed trend between DTG and DTM and gas-phase metallicity can be described by a linear relation and shows no evolution from $0<z<5$. Importantly, the fit to the DTG-metallicity relation provides a refined tool for robust dust-based gas mass estimates inferred from millimeter dust-continuum observations. The lack of evolution in the observed relations are indicative of a quickly reached balance (already when the Universe was 1.2 Gyr old) between the formation and destruction of dust and a constant timescale for star-formation at fixed metallicities over cosmic time. None of the models is able to reproduce the observed trends over the entire range in metallicity and redshift probed. The comparison between models and simulations furthermore rules out some of the current implementations for the growth and destruction of dust in galaxy formation models and places tight constraints on the predicted timescale for star-formation.

A key requirement for the correct interpretation of high-resolution X-ray spectra is that transition energies are known with high accuracy and precision. We investigate the K-shell features of Ne, CO$_2$, and SF$_6$ gases, by measuring their photo ion-yield spectra at the BESSY II synchrotron facility simultaneously with the 1s-np fluorescence emission of He-like ions produced in the Polar-X EBIT. Accurate ab initio calculations of transitions in these ions provide the basis of the calibration. While the CO$_2$ result agrees well with previous measurements, the SF$_6$ spectrum appears shifted by ~0.5 eV, about twice the uncertainty of the earlier results. Our result for Ne shows a large departure from earlier results, but may suffer from larger systematic effects than our other measurements. The molecular spectra agree well with our results of time-dependent density functional theory. We find that the statistical uncertainty allows calibrations in the desired range of 1-10 meV, however, systematic contributions still limit the uncertainty to ~40-100 meV, mainly due to the temporal stability of the monochromator energy scale. Combining our absolute calibration technique with a relative energy calibration technique such as photoelectron energy spectroscopy will be necessary to realize its full potential of achieving uncertainties as low as 1-10 meV.

Gaia has revealed clear evidence of bending waves in the vertical kinematics of stars in the Solar Neighbourhood. We study bending waves in two simulations, one warped, with the warp due to misaligned gas inflow, and the other unwarped. We find slow, retrograde bending waves in both models, with the ones in the warped model having larger amplitudes. We also find fast, prograde bending waves. Prograde bending waves in the unwarped model are very weak, in agreement with the expectation that these waves should decay on short, ~ crossing, timescales, due to strong winding. However, prograde bending waves are much stronger for the duration of the warped model, pointing to irregular gas inflow along the warp as a continuous source of excitation. We demonstrate that large amplitude bending waves that propagate through the Solar Neighbourhood give rise to a correlation between the mean vertical velocity and the angular momentum, with a slope consistent with that found by Gaia. The bending waves affect populations of all ages, but the sharpest features are found in the young populations, hinting that short wavelength waves are not supported by the older, kinematically hotter, populations. Our results demonstrate the importance of misaligned gas accretion as a recurrent source of vertical perturbations of disc galaxies, including in the Milky Way.

As white-dwarf (WD) stars cool, they go through one or more stages of $g$(gravity)-mode pulsational instability, becoming multiperiodic variable stars. Stars passing through these instability domains allow astronomers to study their interiors through asteroseismological techniques, as if they could "look" at their interiors by analyzing the spectra of pulsation periods. WD asteroseismology has experienced extraordinary advances in recent years thanks to photometric observations of unprecedented quality delivered by space missions such as Kepler and TESS. These advances in the monitoring of variable WDs have been accompanied by the development of new stellar models and techniques for modeling their pulsations. In this article, we review the most outstanding findings -- up to early 2022 -- about these fascinating pulsating stars made possible with the high-sensitivity and continuous observations of the ongoing TESS mission, bearing in mind that there will possibly be many more new results in the immediate future derived from this unique space telescope.

We present panchromatic observations and modeling of calcium-strong supernovae (SNe) 2021gno in the star-forming host galaxy NGC 4165 (D = 30.5 Mpc) and 2021inl in the outskirts of elliptical galaxy NGC 4923 (D = 80 Mpc), both monitored through the Young Supernova Experiment (YSE) transient survey. The multi-color light curves of both SNe show two peaks, the former peak being derived from shock cooling emission (SCE) and/or shock interaction with circumstellar material (CSM). The primary peak in SN 2021gno is coincident with luminous, rapidly decaying X-ray emission ($L_x = 5 \times 10^{41}$ erg s$^{-1}$) detected by Swift-XRT at $\delta t = 1$ day after explosion, this observation being the second ever detection of X-rays from a calcium-strong transient. We interpret the X-ray emission from SN 2021gno in the context of shock interaction with dense CSM that extends to $r < 3 \times 10^{14}$ cm. Based on modeling of the SN 2021gno X-ray spectrum, we calculate a CSM mass range of $M_{\rm CSM} = (0.3 - 1.6) \times 10^{-3}$ M$_{\odot}$ and particle densities of $n = (1-4) \times 10^{10}$ cm$^{-3}$. Radio non-detections of SN 2021gno indicate a low-density environment at larger radii ($r > 10^{16}$ cm) and a progenitor mass loss rate of $\dot{M} < 10^{-4}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$, for $v_w = 500$ km s$^{-1}$. For radiation derived from SCE, modeling of the primary light curve peak in both SNe indicates an extended progenitor envelope mass and radius of $M_e = 0.02 - 0.05$ M$_{\odot}$ and $R_e = 30 - 230$ R$_{\odot}$. The explosion properties of SNe 2021gno and 2021inl suggest progenitor systems containing either a low-mass massive star or a white dwarf (WD), the former being unlikely for either object given the lack of star formation at both explosion sites. Furthermore, the progenitor environments of both SNe are consistent with explosion models for low-mass hybrid He/C/O WD + C/O WD binaries.

We present ultraviolet spectroscopy covering the Ly$\alpha$ + N V complex of six candidate low-redshift ($0.9 < z < 1.5$) weak emission-line quasars (WLQs) based on observations with the Hubble Space Telescope. The original systematic searches for these puzzling Type 1 quasars with intrinsically weak broad emission lines revealed an $N \approx 100$ WLQ population from optical spectroscopy of high-redshift ($z > 3$) quasars, defined by a Ly$\alpha$ + N V rest-frame equivalent width (EW) threshold $< 15.4$ \r{A}. Identification of lower-redshift ($z < 3$) WLQ candidates, however, has relied primarily on optical spectroscopy of weak broad emission lines at longer rest-frame wavelengths. With these new observations expanding existing optical coverage into the ultraviolet, we explore unifying the low- and high-$z$ WLQ populations via EW[Ly$\alpha$+NV]. Two objects in the sample unify with high-$z$ WLQs, three others appear consistent with the intermediate portion of the population connecting WLQs and normal quasars, and the final object is consistent with typical quasars. The expanded wavelength coverage improves the number of available line diagnostics for our individual targets, allowing a better understanding of the shapes of their ionizing continua. The ratio of EW[Ly$\alpha$+NV] to EW[MgII] in our sample is generally small but varied, favoring a soft ionizing continuum scenario for WLQs, and we find a lack of correlation between EW[Ly$\alpha$+NV] and the X-ray properties of our targets, consistent with a "slim-disk" shielding gas model. We also find indications that weak absorption may be a more significant contaminant in low-$z$ WLQ populations than previously thought.

Squeezed vacuum states are now employed in gravitational-wave interferometric detectors, en- hancing their sensitivity and thus enabling richer astrophysical observations. In future observing runs, the detectors will incorporate a filter cavity to suppress quantum radiation pressure noise using frequency-dependent squeezing. Interferometers employing internal and external cavities de- cohere and degrade squeezing in complex new ways, which must be studied to achieve increasingly ambitious noise goals. This paper introduces an audio diagnostic field (ADF) to quickly and ac- curately characterize the frequency-dependent response and the transient perturbations of resonant optical systems to squeezed states. This analysis enables audio field injections to become a powerful tool to witness and optimize interactions such as inter-cavity mode matching within gravitational- wave instruments. To demonstrate, we present experimental results from using the audio field to characterize a 16 m prototype filter cavity.

We investigate how the existence of hydrogen molecules on grain surfaces may affect H$_2$ formation efficiency in diffuse and translucent clouds. Hydrogen molecules are able to reduce the desorption energy of H atoms on grain surfaces in models. The detailed microscopic Monte Carlo method is used to perform model simulations. We found that the impact of the existence of H$_2$ on H$_2$ formation efficiency strongly depends on the diffusion barriers of H$_2$ on grain surfaces. Diffuse cloud models that do not consider surface H$_2$ predict that H atom recombination efficiency is above 0.5 over a grain temperature (T) range 10 K and 14 K. The adopted H$_2$ diffusion barriers in diffuse cloud models that consider surface H$_2$ are 80$\%$ H$_2$ desorption energies so that H$_2$ can be trapped in stronger binding sites. Depending on model parameters, these diffuse cloud models predict that the recombination efficiency is between nearly 0 and 0.5 at 10 K $\leq$ T $\leq$ 14 K. Translucent cloud model results show that H$_2$ formation efficiency is not affected by the existence of surface H$_2$ if the adopted average H$_2$ diffusion barrier on grain surfaces is low (194 K) so that H$_2$ can diffuse rapidly on grain surfaces. However, the recombination efficiency can drop to below 0.002 at T $\geq$ 10 K if higher average H$_2$ diffusion barrier is used (255 K) in translucent cloud models.

The decay index of solar magnetic fields is known as an important parameter in regulating solar eruptions from the standpoint of the torus instability. In particular, a saddle-like profile of decay index, which hosts a local torus-stable regime at higher altitudes than where the decay index first exceeds the instability threshold, is found to be associated with some confined or two-step eruptions. To understand the occurrence of such a profile, we employed dipoles to emulate different kinds of photospheric flux distributions. Corroborated by observations of representative active regions (ARs), our major results are: 1) in bipolar configurations the critical height increases away from the AR center along the polarity inversion line (PIL) and its average is roughly half of the centroid distance between opposite polarities; 2) in quadrupolar configurations saddle-like profiles appear above the PIL when the two dipoles oriented in the same direction are significantly more separated in this direction than in the perpendicular direction, and when the two dipoles are oriented differently or have unequal fluxes; 3) saddle-like profiles in quadrupolar configurations are associated with magnetic skeletons such as a null point or a hyperbolic flux tube, and the role of such profiles in eruptions is anticipated to be double-edged if magnetic reconnection is involved.

We used the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) telescope to search for CI 1-0 (492.16GHz) emission towards 8 proplyds in NGC 1977, which is an FUV radiation environment two orders of magnitude weaker than that irradiating the Orion Nebular Cluster (ONC) proplyds. CI is expected to enable us to probe the wind launching region of externally photoevaporating discs. Of the 8 targets observed, no 3$\sigma$ detections of the CI line were made despite reaching sensitivities deeper than the anticipated requirement for detection from prior APEX CI observations of nearby discs and models of external photoevaporation of quite massive discs. By comparing both the proplyd mass loss rates and CI flux constraints with a large grid of external photoevaporation simulations, we determine that the non-detections are in fact fully consistent with the models if the proplyd discs are very low mass. Deeper observations in CI and probes of the disc mass with other tracers (e.g. in the continuum and CO) can test this. If such a test finds higher masses, this would imply carbon depletion in the outer disc, as has been proposed for other discs with surprisingly low CI fluxes, though more massive discs would also be incompatible with models that can explain the observed mass loss rates and CI non-detections. The expected remaining lifetimes of the proplyds are estimated to be similar to those of proplyds in the ONC at 0.1Myr. Rapid destruction of discs is therefore also a feature of common, intermediate UV environments.

Fully 3D cosmological simulations of scalar field dark matter with self-interactions, also known as Bose-Einstein condensate dark matter, are performed using a set of effective hydrodynamic equations. These are derived from the non-linear Schr\"odinger equation by performing a smoothing operation over scales larger than the de Broglie wavelength, but smaller than the self-interaction Jeans' length. The dynamics on the de Broglie scale become an effective thermal energy in the hydrodynamic approximation, which is assumed to be subdominant in the initial conditions, but become important as structures collapse and the fluid is shock-heated. The halos that form have Navarro-Frenk-White envelopes, while the centers become cored due to the fluid pressures (thermal + self-interaction). The core radii are mostly determined by the self-interaction Jeans' length, even though the effective thermal energy eventually dominates over the self-interaction energy everywhere, a result that is insensitive to the initial smallness of the thermal energy. Scaling relations for the simulated population of halos are compared with Milky Way dwarf spheroidals and nearby galaxies, assuming a Burkert halo profile, and are found to not match, also for core radii $R_c\approx 1\text{kpc}$, which has generally been the value expected to resolve the cusp-core issue. However, the simulations have a limited volume, and therefore a limited halo mass range, include no baryonic physics, and use fiducial cold dark matter initial conditions with a cut-off near the Jeans' length at $z=50$, all of which can affect the halo properties. [Abridged]

We analyze the formation mechanism of three homologous broad coronal mass ejections (CMEs) resulting from a series of solar blowout-eruption flares with successively increasing intensities (M2.0, M2.6, and X1.0). The flares originated from active region NOAA 12017 during 2014 March 28-29 within an interval of approximately 24 hr. Coronal magnetic field modeling based on nonlinear-force-free-field extrapolation helps to identify low-lying closed bipolar loops within the flaring region enclosing magnetic flux ropes. We obtain a double flux rope system under closed bipolar fields for the all the events. The sequential eruption of the flux ropes led to homologous flares, each followed by a CME. Each of the three CMEs formed from the eruptions gradually attain a large angular width, after expanding from the compact eruption-source site. We find these eruptions and CMEs to be consistent with the 'magnetic-arch-blowout' scenario: each compact-flare blowout eruption was seated in one foot of a far-reaching magnetic arch, exploded up the encasing leg of the arch, and blew out the arch to make a broad CME.

Modern cosmology rests on the working assumption that the Universe is isotropic and homogeneous at large scales. Here, we document a number of anomalous observations pointing to an anisotropic Universe in a direction consistent with the CMB dipole. If physical, this should be confirmed by any cosmological probe with sufficient data quality. To that end, we perform the first hemispherical decomposition of bright and dark standard siren $H_0$ determinations, finding that the maximum of the $H_0$ posterior is larger in the CMB dipole direction for dark sirens, but including the bright siren posterior reverses this conclusion. As may be expected, the limited number of GW observations is consistent with an isotropic Universe, but this can change going forward. It is imperative to repeat these tests as GW sources become more numerous and better localised.

The characterization of Low Surface Brightness (LSB) stellar structures around galaxies such as tidal debris of on-going or past collisions is essential to constrain models of galactic evolution. Our goal is to obtain quantitative measurements of LSB structures identified in deep images of samples consisting of hundreds of galaxies. We developed an online annotation tool that enables contributors to delineate the shapes of diffuse extended stellar structures, as well as artefacts or foreground structures. All parameters are automatically stored in a database which may be queried to retrieve quantitative measurements. We annotated LSB structures around 352 nearby massive galaxies with deep images obtained with the CFHT as part of two large programs: MATLAS and UNIONS/CFIS. Each LSB structure was delineated and labeled according to its likely nature: stellar shells, streams associated to a disrupted satellite, tails formed in major mergers, ghost reflections or cirrus. From our database containing 8441 annotations, the area, size, median surface brightness and distance to the host of 228 structures were computed. The results confirm the fact that tidal structures defined as streams are thinner than tails, as expected by numerical simulations. In addition, tidal tails appear to exhibit a higher surface brightness than streams (by about 1 mag), which may be related to different survival times for the two types of collisional debris. We did not detect any tidal feature fainter than 27.5 mag.arcsec$^{-2}$, while the nominal surface brightness limits of our surveys range between 28.3 and 29 mag.arcsec$^{-2}$, a difference that needs to be taken into account when estimating the sensitivity of future surveys to identify LSB structures. Our annotation database of observed LSB structures may be used for quantitative analysis and as a training set for machine learning algorithms (abbreviated).

We address the nature and origin of a spiral disk at the center of NGC 1275, the giant elliptical galaxy at the center of the Perseus cluster, that spans a radius of $\sim$$5\,\rm kpc$. By comparing stellar absorption lines measured in long-slit optical spectra with synthetic spectra for single stellar populations, we find that fitting of these lines requires two stellar populations: (i) a very young population that peaks in radial velocity at $\pm 250 {\rm \, km \, s^{-1}}$ of the systemic velocity within a radius of $\sim$$720\,\rm pc$ of the nucleus, a $1\,\sigma$ velocity dispersion significantly lower than $140 {\rm \, km \, s^{-1}}$, and an age of $0.15 \pm 0.05 \rm\,Gyr$; and (ii) a very old population having a constant radial velocity with a radius corresponding to the systemic velocity, a much broader velocity dispersion of $\sim$$250 {\rm \, km \, s^{-1}}$, and an age of around $10\,\rm Gyr$. We attribute the former to a post-starburst population associated with the spiral disk, and the latter to the main stellar body of NGC 1275 along the same sight line. If the spiral disk is the remnant of a cannibalized galaxy, then its progenitor would have had to retain an enormous amount of gas in the face of intensive ram-pressure stripping so as to form a total initial mass in stars of $\sim 3 \times 10^9 \,M_\odot$. More likely, the central spiral originally comprised a gaseous body accreted over the distant past from a residual cooling flow, before experiencing a starburst $\sim$$0.15\,\rm Gyr$ ago to form its stellar body.

Photometric and spectroscopic data for two Low Luminosity Type IIP Supernovae (LL SNe IIP) are presented. SN 2020cxd reaches a peak absolute magnitude $M_{r}$ = -13.90 $\pm$ 0.05 mag two days after explosion, subsequently settling on a plateau for $\sim$120 days. Through the luminosity of the late light curve tail, we infer a synthesized $^{56}$Ni mass of (1.8$\pm$0.5) $\times$ 10$^{-3}$ M$_{\odot}$. During the early evolutionary phases, optical spectra show a blue continuum ($T$ $>$ 8000 K) with broad Balmer lines displaying a P Cygni profile, while at later phases Ca II, Fe II, Sc II and Ba II lines dominate the spectra. Hydrodynamical modelling of the observables yields $R$ $\simeq$ 575 $R_{\odot}$ for the progenitor star, with $M_{ej}$ = 7.5 M$_{\odot}$ and $E$ $\simeq$ 0.097 foe emitted during the explosion. This low-energy event originating from a low-mass progenitor star is compatible with both the explosion of a red supergiant (RSG) star and with an Electron Capture Supernova arising from a super asymptotic giant branch star. SN 2021aai reaches a maximum luminosity of $M_{r}$ = -16.4 mag (correcting for $A_{V}$=1.9 mag), and displays a remarkably long plateau ($\sim$140 days). The estimated $^{56}$Ni mass is (1.4$\pm$0.5) $\times$ 10$^{-2}$ M$_{\odot}$. The expansion velocities are compatible with those of other LL SNe IIP (few 10$^{3}$ km s$^{-1}$). The physical parameters obtained through hydrodynamical modelling are $R$ $\simeq$ 575 R$_{\odot}$, $M_{ej}$ = 15.5 M$_{\odot}$ and $E$ = 0.4 foe. SN 2021aai is therefore interpreted as the explosion of a RSG, with properties that bridge the class of LL SNe IIP with standard SN IIP events.

The EDELWEISS collaboration reports on the search for Dark Matter (DM) particle interactions via Migdal effect with masses between $32$ MeV$\cdot$c$^{-2}$ to $2$ GeV$\cdot$c$^{-2}$ using a $200$ g cryogenic Ge detector sensitive to simultaneously heat and ionization signals and operated underground at the Laboratoire Souterrain de Modane in France. The phonon signal was read out using a Transition Edge Sensor made of a NbSi thin film. The detector was biased at $66$ V in order to benefit from the Neganov-Trofimov-Luke amplification and resulting in a resolution on the energy of electron recoils of $4.46$ eV$_{ee}$ (RMS) and an analysis threshold of $30$ eV$_{ee}$. The sensitivity is limited by a dominant background not associated to charge creation in the detector. The search constrains a new region of parameter space for cross-sections down to $10^{-29}$ cm$^2$ and masses between $32$ and $100$ MeV$\cdot$c$^{-2}$. The achieved low threshold with the NbSi sensor shows the relevance of its use for athermal-phonon sensitive devices for low-mass DM searches.

In the present work we apply virial analysis to the model of self-gravitating turbulent cloud ensembles introduced by Donkov & Stefanov (2018) and extended by Donkov & Stefanov (2019). Using the Eulerian virial theorem at an arbitrary scale, far from the cloud core, we derive an equation for the density profile and solve it in approximate way. The result confirms the solution $\varrho(\ell)=\ell^{-2}$ found in the previous papers. At scales far from the core, we obtain virial equilibrium between i) gravitational energy and accretion kinetic energy, or ii) between gravitational energy and accretion plus turbulent kinetic energy per unit mass -- depending on the adopted scaling relation for the turbulent velocity. Thus the obtained solution for density profile is dynamically stable and shall be observable. At scales near the core, one cannot neglect the second derivative of the moment of inertia of the gas, which prevents derivation of an analytic equation for the density profile. However, we obtain the qualitative result that gas near the core is not virialized and its state can be characterized as marginally bound since the total energy of the fluid element is close to zero.

Our Universe may feature large-scale inhomogeneities and anisotropies which cannot be explained by the standard model of cosmology, that is, the homogeneous and isotropic FLRW metric, on which the $\Lambda$CDM model is built, may not describe accurately observations. Currently, there is not a satisfactory understanding of the evolution of the large-scale structure on an inhomogeneous background. We start the cosmology beyond homogeneity and isotropy (BEHOMO) project and study the inhomogeneous $\Lambda$LTB model with the methods of numerical cosmology. Understanding the evolution of the large-scale structure is a necessary step to constrain inhomogeneous models with present and future observables and place the standard model on more solid grounds. We perform Newtonian $N$-body simulations, whose accuracy in describing the background evolution is checked against the general relativistic solution. The large-scale structure of the corresponding $\Lambda$CDM simulation is also validated. We obtain the first set of simulations of the $\Lambda$LTB model ever produced. The data products consist of 11 snapshots between redshift 0 and 3.7 for each of the 68 simulations that have been performed, together with halo catalogs and lens planes relative to 21 snapshots, between redshift 0 and 4.2, for a total of approximately 180 TB of data. We plan to study the growth of perturbations at the linear and nonlinear level, gravitational lensing, cluster abundances and proprieties. Data can be obtained upon request. Further information is available at valerio-marra.github.io/BEHOMO-project .

Measurements of the isotopic composition of single-charged cosmic rays provide important insights in the propagation processes. However, the isotopic identification is challenging due to the one hundred times greater abundance of protons when compared to deuterons, the only stable isotope of hydrogen. Taking advantage of the precise measurements of the velocity and momentum in the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02), a particle physics detector operating aboard the International Space Station since May 2011, we describe a parametric template fit method, which takes into account systematic uncertainties such as the fragmentation of particles inside AMS-02 and eventual differences between data and simulation through the use of nuisance parameters. With this method we are also able to assess the AMS-02 performance in terms of mass resolution, showing that it is able to separate the isotopes of hydrogen up to 10 GeV/n.

Context. Brown dwarfs are poorly understood transition objects between stars and planets, with several competing mechanisms having been proposed for their formation. Mass measurements are generally difficult for isolated objects but also for brown dwarfs orbiting low-mass stars, which are often too faint for spectroscopic follow-up. Aims. Microlensing provides an alternative tool for the discovery and investigation of such faint systems. Here we present the analysis of the microlensing event OGLE-2019-BLG-0033/MOA-2019-BLG-035, which is due to a binary system composed of a brown dwarf orbiting a red dwarf. Methods. Thanks to extensive ground observations and the availability of space observations from Spitzer, it has been possible to obtain accurate estimates of all microlensing parameters, including parallax, source radius and orbital motion of the binary lens. Results. After accurate modeling, we find that the lens is composed of a red dwarf with mass $M_1 = 0.149 \pm 0.010M_\odot$ and a brown dwarf with mass $M_2 = 0.0463 \pm 0.0031M_\odot$, at a projected separation of $a_\perp = 0.585$ au. The system has a peculiar velocity that is typical of old metal-poor populations in the thick disk. Percent precision in the mass measurement of brown dwarfs has been achieved only in a few microlensing events up to now, but will likely become common with the Roman space telescope.

The analysis of time variability, whether fast variations on time scales well below the second or slow changes over years, is becoming more and more important in high-energy astronomy. Many sophisticated tools are available for data analysis and complex practical aspects are described in technical papers. Here, we present the basic concepts upon which all these techniques are based. It is intended as a condensed primer of Fourier analysis, dealing with fundamental aspects that can be examined in detailed elsewhere. It is not intended to be a presentation of detailed Fourier tools for data analysis, but the reader will find the theoretical basis to understand available analysis techniques.

We present new imaging and spectroscopic observations of the exoplanet host star $\gamma$ Cep A, and of its low-mass stellar companion $\gamma$ Cep B. We used AstraLux/CAHA to follow the orbital motion of the companion around its primary, whose radial velocity was determined with spectra of the star, taken with the spectrograph FLECHAS at the University Observatory Jena. We measured the astrometry of $\gamma$ Cep B relative to its primary in all AstraLux images and determined its apparent SDSS i'-band photometry, for which we obtained i'=9.84$\pm$0.17 mag. Using stellar evolutionary models and the Gaia parallax of the exoplanet host star, we derived the mass of $\gamma$ Cep B to be 0.39$\pm$0.03 M${_\odot}$. This is in good agreement with the mass of the companion, derived from its NIR photometry, given in the literature. With the detection limit, reached in our AstraLux images, we explored the detection space of potential additional companions in the $\gamma$ Cep binary system. In the background limited region at angular separations larger then 5 '' (or 69 au of proj. separation) companions down to 0.11 M$_\odot$ are detectable around $\gamma$ Cep A. The radial FoV, fully covered in our AstraLux images, exhibits a radius of 11.2 ''. This allows the detection of companions with proj. separations up to 155 au. However, except for $\gamma$ Cep B no additional companions could be imaged around the exoplanet host star. We redetermined the orbital solution of the $\gamma$ Cep binary system with the new AstraLux astrometry of $\gamma$ Cep B and the additional radial velocities of $\gamma$ Cep A, obtained from our FLECHAS spectroscopy of the star, combined with astrometric and radial velocity data from the literature. The determined orbital elements were used to derive the system parameters and to calculate specific future ephemeris for this intriguing exoplanet host binary star system.

Astronomical observations in the molecule rich 3 mm window using large reflector antennas provide a unique view of the Universe. To efficiently carry out these observations gravitational and thermal deformations have to be corrected. Terrestrial laser scanners have been used to measure the deformations in large reflector antennas due to gravity, but have not yet been used for measuring thermal deformations. In this work we investigate the use of a terrestrial laser scanner to measure thermal deformations on the primary reflector of the Green Bank Telescope (GBT). Our method involves the use of differential measurements to reduce the systematic effects of the terrestrial laser scanner. We use the active surface of the primary reflector of the GBT to validate our method and explore its limitations. We find that when using differential measurements it is possible to accurately measure deformations corresponding to different Zernike polynomials down to an amplitude of 60 $\mu$m. The difference between the amplitudes of known deformations and those measured are $<140~\mu$m when the wind speed is $\lesssim2$ m s$^{-1}$. From these differences we estimate that it should be possible to bring the surface error of the GBT down to $240\pm6~\mu$m. This suggests that using a commercial off-the-shelf terrestrial laser scanner it is possible to measure deformations induced by thermal gradients on a large parabolic reflector.

We do not have a final answer to the question of why galaxies choose a particular internal mass distribution. Here we examine whether the distribution is set by thermodynamic equilibrium (TE). Traditionally, TE is discarded for a number of reasons including the inefficiency of two-body collisions to thermalize the mass distribution in a Hubble time, and the fact that the mass distribution maximizing the classical Boltzmann-Gibbs entropy is unphysical. These arguments are questionable. In particular, when the Tsallis entropy that describes self-gravitating systems is used to define TE, the mass distributions that result (i.e., the polytropes) are physically sensible. This work spells out this and other arguments for TE, and presents the polytropes and their properties. It puts forward empirical evidence for the mass distribution observed in galaxies to be consistent with polytropes. It compares polytropes with Sersic functions and it shows how the DM halos resulting from cosmological numerical simulations become polytropes when efficient collisions are allowed. It also discusses pathways to thermalization bypassing two-body collisions. It finally outlines future developments including deciphering whether or not DM particles collide efficiently.

A dark energy with a negative energy density in the past can simultaneously address various cosmological tensions, and if it is to be positive today to drive the observed acceleration of the universe, we show that, it should have a pole in its equation of state parameter. More precisely, in a spatially uniform universe, a perfect fluid (submitting to the usual continuity equation of local energy conservation) whose energy density $\rho(z)$ vanishes at an isolated zero $z=z_p$, necessarily has a pole in its equation of state parameter $w(z)$ at $z_p$, and, $w(z)$ diverges to positive infinity in the limit $z\to z_p^+$ and it diverges to negative infinity in the limit $z\to z_p^-$ -- we assume that $z_p$ is not an accumulation point for poles of $w(z)$. However, the converse statement that this kind of a pole of $w(z)$ corresponds to a vanishing energy density at that point, is not true as we show by a counterexample.

The James Webb Space Telescope's NIRSpec instrument will unveil the nature of exoplanet atmospheres across the wealth of planet types, from temperate terrestrial worlds to ultrahot Jupiters. In particular, the 0.6-5.3 micron PRISM mode is especially well-suited for efficient spectroscopic exoplanet observations spanning a number of important spectral features. We analyze a lab-measured NIRSpec PRISM mode Bright Object Time Series (BOTS) observation from the perspective of a JWST user to understand the instrument performance and detector properties. We create two realistic transiting exoplanet time series observations by performing injection-recovery tests on the lab-measured data to quantify the effects of real instrument jitter, drift, intrapixel sensitivity variations, and 1/$f$ noise on measured transmission spectra. By fitting the time series systematics simultaneously with the injected transit, we can obtain more realistic transit depth uncertainties that take into account noise sources that are currently not modeled by traditional exposure time calculators. We find that sources of systematic noise related to intrapixel sensitivity variations and PSF motions are apparent in the data at the level of a few hundred ppm, but can be effectively detrended using a low-order polynomial with detector position. We recover the injected spectral features of GJ 436 b and TRAPPIST-1 d, and place a 3-sigma upper limit on the detector noise floor of 14 ppm. We find that the noise floor is consistent with <10 ppm at the 1.7-sigma level, which bodes well for future observations of challenging targets with faint atmospheric signatures.

We present a method to perform the exact convolution of the model prediction for bispectrum multipoles in redshift space with the survey window function. We extend a widely applied method for the power spectrum convolution to the bispectrum, taking advantage of a 2D-FFTlog algorithm. As a preliminary test of its accuracy, we consider the toy model of a spherical window function in real space. This setup provides an analytical evaluation of the 3-point function of the window, and therefore it allows to isolate and quantify possible systematic errors of the method. We find that our implementation of the convolution in terms of a mixing matrix shows differences at the percent level in comparison to the measurements from a very large set of mock halo catalogs. It is also able to recover unbiased constraints on halo bias parameters in a likelihood analysis of a set of numerical simulations with a total volume of $100\, h^{-3} \, {\rm Gpc}^3$. For the level of accuracy required by these tests, the multiplication with the mixing matrix is performed in the time of one second or less.

We address the nature and origin of Super Star Clusters (SSCs) discovered by Holtzman et al. (1992) within a radius of $\sim$$5\,\rm kpc$ from the center of NGC 1275, the giant elliptical galaxy at the center of the Perseus Cluster. We show that, in contrast with the much more numerous population of SSCs subsequently discovered up to $\sim$$30\,\rm kpc$ from the center of this galaxy, the central SSC population have maximal masses an order of magnitude higher and a mass function with a shallower power-law slope. Furthermore, whereas the outer SSC population have ages spanning a few $\rm Myr$ to at least $\sim$$1\,\rm Gyr$, the central SSC population have ages strongly concentrated around $\sim$$500 \rm \, Myr$ with a $1\,\sigma$ dispersion of $\sim$$100\,\rm Myr$. These SSCs share a close spatial and temporal relationship with the "central spiral," which also has a radius $\sim$$5\,\rm kpc$ centered on NGC 1275 and a characteristic stellar age of $\sim$$150\,\rm Myr$ (Paper I). We argue that both the central SSC population and the central spiral formed from gas deposited by a residual cooling flow, with the SSCs forming first followed by the formation of the stellar body of the central spiral $\sim$$300$-$400\,\rm Myr$ later. The ages of the central SSC population imply that they are able to withstand very strong tidal fields near the center of NGC 1275, making them genuine progenitor globular clusters. Evidently, a spiral disk hosting progenitor globular clusters has recently formed at the center of a giant elliptical galaxy.

All life on Earth needs water. NASA's quest to follow the water links water to the search for life in the cosmos. Telescopes like JWST and mission concepts like HabEx, LUVOIR and Origins are designed to characterise rocky exoplanets spectroscopically. However, spectroscopy remains time-intensive and therefore, initial characterisation is critical to prioritisation of targets. Here, we study machine learning as a tool to assess water's existence through broadband-filter reflected photometric flux on Earth-like exoplanets in three forms: seawater, water-clouds and snow; based on 53,130 spectra of cold, Earth-like planets with 6 major surfaces. XGBoost, a well-known machine learning algorithm, achieves over 90\% balanced accuracy in detecting the existence of snow or clouds for S/N$\gtrsim 20$, and 70\% for liquid seawater for S/N $\gtrsim 30$. Finally, we perform mock Bayesian analysis with Markov-chain Monte Carlo with five filters identified to derive exact surface compositions to test for retrieval feasibility. The results show that the use of machine learning to identify water on the surface of exoplanets from broadband-filter photometry provides a promising initial characterisation tool of water in different forms. Planned small and large telescope missions could use this to aid their prioritisation of targets for time-intense follow-up observations.

As space becomes increasingly populated with new satellites and systems, modeling and simulating existing and future systems becomes more important. The two-line element set has been a standard format for sharing data about a satellite's orbit since the 1960s, and well-developed algorithms can predict the future location of satellites based on this data. In order to simulate potential future systems, especially when mixed with existing systems, data must be generated to represent the desired orbits. We present a means to create two-line element sets with parameters that closely resemble real satellite behavior, and rely on a novel approach to calculate the mean motion for even greater accuracy.

Extreme emission-line galaxies, such as blue compact dwarfs (BCDs), Green Peas (GPs) and blueberries in the local Universe are the potential candidates to understand the nature of galaxies that re-ionized the early Universe. Being low-mass, metal-poor starburst systems they are understood as local analogs of the high redshift Lyman Continuum (LyC) and Lyman-${\alpha}$ emitters (LAEs). Even with their proximity to us, we know little about their spatially resolved properties, most of the blueberries and GPs are indeed compact, remain unresolved. Here, we report the detection of a disk-like lower-surface brightness (LSB) stellar host with very old population around a blueberry LAE system using broad i-band imaging and integral field spectroscopic data from SDSS and SDSS-IV MaNGA surveys, respectively. The LSB stellar host is structurally similar to that observed around15 local starburst BCDs. Furthermore, the kinematics of the studied blueberry source bear sign of misalignment between the gas and stellar components. Our findings establish an intriguing thread connecting the blueberry and an LSB disk with old stellar population, and suggest that blueberries and their high redshift counterparts such as GPs do not represent peculiar cases of dwarf galaxy evolution. In fact, with respect to the structural properties of their host galaxies, they are compatible with a common evolutionary track of the main population of local BCDs.

Stellar microlensing observations tightly constrain compact object dark matter in the mass range $(10^{-11} - 10^{3}) M_{\odot}$. Primordial Black Holes (PBHs) form clusters, and it has been argued that these microlensing constraints are consequently weakened or evaded. For the most commonly studied PBH formation mechanism, the collapse of large gaussian curvature perturbations generated by inflation, the clusters are sufficiently extended that the PBHs within them act as individual lenses. We find that if the typical mass of the clusters is sufficiently large, $ \gtrsim 10^{6} M_{\odot}$, then the event duration distribution can deviate significantly from that produced by a smooth dark matter distribution, in particular at the shortest durations. As a consequence of this, the probability distribution of the number of observed events is non-Poissonian, peaking at a lower value, with an extended tail to large numbers of events. However, for PBHs formed from the collapse of large inflationary perturbations, the typical cluster is expected to contain $\sim 10^{3}$ PBHs. In this case the effect of clustering is negligibly small, apart from for the most massive PBHs probed by decade-long stellar microlensing surveys ($M_{\rm PBH} \sim 10^{3} M_{\odot}$).

Context. Albireo is a well-known bright visual double star. It is still unclear if the components A and B form a gravitationally bound system. The component Albireo A is itself a binary star. The orbital parameters of the Albireo Aa, Ac system have been determined only recently. Thus, Albireo is still of interest for current research. Aims. We aim to present evidence for the detection of a new member in the Albireo system. Furthermore, we aim to determine the orbital parameters and to find further conclusions for the Albireo system. Methods. We used spectroscopic observations of Albireo A obtained with the TIGRE telescope and determined the radial velocities during a period of over three years. We analyzed the radial velocity curve with RadVel to determine the orbital parameters. In addition, we determined the stellar parameters of Albireo Aa with iSpec. Results. We found clear evidence for yet another star in the Albireo system orbiting Albireo Aa with period of about $P = 371$ days. Several alternative explanations for the periodic radial velocity signal could be discarded. The new companion Albireo Ad is a low mass star of about $0.085~M_\odot$. Conclusions. We conclude that Albireo is a hierarchical multiple star system and remains an interesting object for future observations and studies.

We couple star cluster formation and feedback simulations of a Carina-like star forming region with 1D disc evolutionary models to study the impact of external photoevaporation on disc populations in massive star forming regions. To investigate the effect of shielding of young stellar objects by star forming material, we track the FUV field history at each star in the cluster with two methods: i) Monte Carlo radiative transfer accounting for the shielding of stars from the FUV by the star forming cloud ii) Geometric dilution of the radiation from other stars which ignores shielding effects. We found that significant shielding only occurs for a small fraction of discs and offers protection from external photoevaporation for < 0.5 Myr. However, this initial protection can prevent significant early gas/dust mass loss and disc radius reduction due to external photoevaporation. Particularly, shielding for 0.5 Myr is sufficient for much of the solid reservoir to evolve to larger sizes where it will not be entrained in an external wind. Shielding is therefore potentially significant for terrestrial planet formation in retaining the solid mass budget, but the continued stripping of gas when shielding ends could still impact migration and the gas reservoir for giant planet atmospheres. Our models highlight issues with treating all discs in a cluster with a single characteristic age, since shielded objects are typically only the youngest. Our model predicts that the majority of discs in a 2 Myr Carina-like environment are subject to strong external photoevaporation.

The current Cepheid-calibrated distance ladder measurement of $H_0$ is reported to be in tension with the values inferred from the cosmic microwave background (CMB), assuming standard model cosmology. However, the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB) reports an estimate of $H_0$ in better agreement with the CMB. Hence, it is critical to reduce systematic uncertainties in local measurements to understand the origin of the Hubble tension. In this paper, we propose a uniform distance ladder, combining SNe~Ia observed by the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) with a TRGB calibration of their absolute luminosity. A large, volume-limited, sample of both calibrator and Hubble flow SNe Ia from the \emph{same} survey minimizes two of the largest sources of systematics: host-galaxy bias and non-uniform photometric calibration. We present results from a pilot study using existing TRGB distance to the host galaxy of ZTF SN Ia SN 2021rhu (aka ZTF21abiuvdk). Combining the ZTF calibrator with a volume-limited sample from the first data release of ZTF Hubble flow SNe Ia, we infer $H_0 = 76.94 \pm 6.4\, {\rm km}\,{\rm s^{-1}}\,{\rm Mpc^{-1}}$, an $8.3 \%$ measurement. The error budget is dominated by the single object calibrating the SN Ia luminosity in this pilot study. However, the ZTF sample includes already five other SNe Ia within $\sim$ 20 Mpc for which TRGB distances can be obtained with HST. Finally, we present the prospects of building this distance ladder out to 80 Mpc with JWST observations of more than one hundred SNe Ia.

We report the localization of the X-ray emission from two strongly lensed AGN, CLASS B0712+472 ($z=1.34$) and CLASS B1608+656 ($z=1.394$). We obtain milliarcsecond X-ray astrometry by developing a novel method that combines parametric lens modelling with a Bayesian analysis. We spatially locate the X-ray sources in CLASS B0712+472 and CLASS B1608+656 within 11 mas and 9 mas from the radio source, respectively. For CLASS B0712+472, we find that the X-ray emission is co-spatial with the radio and optical emission. While, in CLASS B1608+656, the X-ray emission is co-spatial with radio, but displaced with respect to the optical emission at 1$\sigma$ level, which positions this source as an offset AGN candidate. This high astrometric precision improves on the limitations of existing X-ray instruments by two orders of magnitude. The demonstrated method opens a path to search for offset and binary AGN at $z>1$, and to directly test supermassive black hole formation models in a redshift range that has been mostly underconstrained to date.

Buoyant bubbles of relativistic plasma are essential for active galactic nucleus feedback in galaxy clusters, stirring and heating the intracluster medium (ICM). Observations suggest that these rising bubbles maintain their integrity and sharp edges much longer than predicted by hydrodynamic simulations. In this study, we assume that bubbles can be modeled as rigid bodies and demonstrate that intact bubbles and their long-term interactions with the ambient ICM play an important role in shaping gas kinematics, forming thin gaseous structures (e.g., H$\alpha$ filaments), and generating internal waves in cluster cores. We find that well-developed eddies are formed in the wake of a buoyantly rising bubble, and it is these eddies, rather than the Darwin drift, that are responsible for most of the gas mass uplift. The eddies gradually elongate along the bubble's direction of motion due to the strong density stratification of the atmosphere and eventually detach from the bubble, quickly evolving into a high-speed jet-like stream propagating towards the cluster center. This picture naturally explains the presence of long straight and horseshoe-shaped H$\alpha$ filaments in the Perseus cluster, inward and outward motions of the gas, and the X-ray-weighted gas velocity distributions near the northwestern bubble observed by Hitomi. Our model reproduces the observed H$\alpha$ velocity structure function of filaments, providing a simple interpretation for its steep scaling and normalization: laminar gas flows and large eddies within filaments driven by the intact bubbles, rather than spatially homogeneous small-scale turbulence, are sufficient to produce a structure function consistent with observations.

The third-generation (3G) GW detectors such as the Einstein telescope (ET) or Cosmic Explorer (CE) are expected to play an important role in cosmology. With the help of 3G detectors, we will be able to probe the large-scale structure (LSS) features such as baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO), galaxy bias, etc. We explore the possibility to do precision cosmology, with the 3G GW detectors by measuring the angular BAO scale using localization volumes of compact binary merger events. The BAO are the imprints of the early Universe on the distribution of matter and it provides a standard scale which can be treated as a cosmic ruler. Through simulations, we show that with a 3G detector network, by probing the angular BAO scale using purely GW observations, we can constrain the Hubble constant for the standard model of cosmology ($\Lambda$CDM) with $90\%$ credible regions as $H_0 = 64.01^{+ 15.25}_{-14.47}$. When combined with BAO measurements from galaxy surveys, we show that it can be used to constrain various models of cosmology such as parametrized models for dark energy equations of state.

We study radiative plateau-like inflation \& Z$_{BL}$-portal freeze-in fermionic dark matter (DM) in minimal (B-L) extended model. The U(1)$_{B-L}$ Higgs, responsible for heavy neutrino masses, also drives inflation in early universe, thanks to radiative corrections from the heavy neutrinos \& the Z$_{BL}$ boson. The benchmark parameters (U(1)$_{B-L}$ gauge coupling $g_{B-L}\sim10^{-4}$) makes it within the reach of current and future lifetime frontier searches (FASER and FASER 2 at the LHC, SHiP, Belle II, LHCb, etc.) in context to light Z$_{BL}$ candidates and freeze-in dark matter. For such benchmark points, the Hubble scale of inflation ($H_{inf}$) is required to be very low ($H_{inf} \sim \mathcal{O}(100)$ eV) \& the inflaton turns out to be of very light mass ($\mathcal{O}(1)$ eV), and consequently the decay width of inflaton is small. We investigate the \it{2-field-system} still find that sufficient reheating occurs along the the Standard Model Higgs direction component of the tangent along the trajectory in the field space, near the water-fall of the potential. For our parameter choices, along with the chosen DM mass $m_\chi\sim\mathcal{O}(10)$ GeV, we find the DM ($\chi$) is produced via freeze-in.

Many classes of extended scalar-tensor theories predict that dynamical instabilities can take place at high energies, leading to the formation of scalarized neutron stars. Depending on the theory parameters, stars in a scalarized state can form a solution-space branch that shares a lot of similarities with the so-called mass twins in general relativity appearing for equations of state containing first-order phase transitions. Members of this scalarized branch have a lower maximum mass and central energy density compared to Einstein ones. In such cases, a scalarized star could potentially over-accrete beyond the critical mass limit, thus triggering a gravitational phase transition where the star sheds its scalar hair and migrates over to its non-scalarized counterpart. Such an event resembles, though is distinct from, a nuclear or thermodynamic phase transition. We dynamically track a gravitational transition by first constructing hydrostatic, scalarized equilibria for realistic equations of state, and then allowing additional material to fall onto the stellar surface. The resulting bursts of monopolar radiation are dispersively-stretched to form a quasi-continuous signal that persists for decades, carrying strains of order $\gtrsim10^{-22} (\text{kpc}/L)^{3/2} \text{ Hz}^{-1/2}$ at frequencies of $\lesssim300 \text{ Hz}$, detectable with the existing interferometer network out to distances of $L\lesssim10 \text{ kpc}$, and out to a few hundred kpc with the inclusion of the Einstein Telescope. Electromagnetic signatures of such events, involving gamma-ray and neutrino bursts, are also considered.

We prove the universality of predictions for linear perturbations from the entire class of models of inflation driven by a pseudo-scalar field coupled to an SU($N$) gauge boson, where SU($2$) subgroups in the SU($N$) crossed with the background spatial SO($3$) spontaneously break into a single SO($3$). The effect of which SU($2$) subgroup in SU($N$) acquires a VEV through spontaneous symmetry breaking can be quantified by a single parameter $\lambda$, which always appears in combination with the gauge coupling constant $g$. In the linear perturbations, as well as the background system, the same dynamics and predictions as in the chromo-natural inflation hold for its SU($N$) extension by replacing $g \to g\lambda$. The latter models thereby draw the same prediction curve on the $n_s$-$r$ plane as the former at the tree level as long as $g \lambda$ stays constant during inflation. We briefly discuss possible transitions from one value of $\lambda$ to another during inflation and the observational prospects.

We generalize the Chern-Simons modified gravity to the metric-affine case and impose projective invariance by supplementing the Pontryagin density with homothetic curvature terms which do not spoil topologicity. The latter is then broken by promoting the coupling of the Chern-Simons term to a (pseudo)-scalar field. The solutions for torsion and nonmetricity are derived perturbatively, showing that they can be iteratively obtained from the background fields. This allows us to describe the dynamics for the metric and the scalar field perturbations in a self-consistent way, and we apply the formalism to the study of quasinormal modes in a Schwarzschild black hole background. Unlike in the metric formulation of this theory, we show that the scalar field is endowed with dynamics even in the absence of its kinetic term in the action. Finally, using numerical methods we compute the quasinormal frequencies and characterize the late-time power law tails for scalar and metric perturbations, comparing the results with the outcomes of the purely metric approach.

Sources of geophysical noise (such as wind, sea waves and earthquakes) or of anthropogenic noise impact ground-based gravitational-wave interferometric detectors, causing transient sensitivity worsening and gaps in data taking. During the one year-long third Observing Run (O3: from April 01, 2019 to March 27, 2020), the Virgo Collaboration collected a statistically significant dataset, used in this article to study the response of the detector to a variety of environmental conditions. We correlated environmental parameters to global detector performance, such as observation range, duty cycle and control losses. Where possible, we identified weaknesses in the detector that will be used to elaborate strategies in order to improve Virgo robustness against external disturbances for the next data taking period, O4, currently planned to start at the end of 2022. The lessons learned could also provide useful insights for the design of the next generation of ground-based interferometers.

In the context of general relativity, both energy and linear momentum constraints lead to the same equation for the evolution of the speed of free localized particles with fixed proper mass and structure in a homogeneous and isotropic Friedmann-Lema\^itre-Robertson-Walker universe. In this paper we extend this result by considering the dynamics of particles and fluids in the context of theories of gravity nonminimally coupled to matter. We show that the equation for the evolution of the linear momentum of the particles may be obtained irrespective of any prior assumptions regarding the form of the on-shell Lagrangian of the matter fields. We also find that consistency between the evolution of the energy and linear momentum of the particles requires that their volume-averaged on-shell Lagrangian and energy-momentum tensor trace coincide ($\mathcal L_{\rm on-shell}=T$). We further demonstrate that the same applies to an ideal gas composed of many such particles. This result implies that the two most common assumptions in the literature for the on-shell Lagrangian of a perfect fluid ($\mathcal L_{\rm on-shell}=\mathcal{P}$ and $\mathcal L_{\rm on-shell}=-\rho$, where $\rho$ and $\mathcal{P}$ are the proper density and pressure of the fluid, respectively) do not apply to an ideal gas, except in the case of dust (in which case $T=-\rho$).

In this paper, I will update the current status of the carbon-carbon fusion research taking into account that after the latest analysis [Beck {\it et al.} Eur. Phys. J. A {\bf 56}, 97 (2020), Letter to the Editor] new important experimental and theoretical results had been published and will discuss how to advance new THM measurements to extract the low-energy astrophysical $S$-factors.

Rate coefficients for the dissociative recombination, vibrational excitation and vibrational de-excitation of the BeT$^{+}$ ion for all vibrational levels of its ground electronic state ($ X\ensuremath{^{1}\Sigma^{+}},v_{i}^{+}=0,\dots,27$) are reported, including in the calculation the contribution of super-excited states of the BeT complex pertaining to three electronic symmetries - $^{2}\Pi$, $^{2}\Sigma^{+}$, and $^{2}\Delta$. These data are suitable for the kinetic modeling of beryllium and tritium containing plasma, as encountered in magnetic fusion devices with beryllium walls (JET, ITER). In the present study we restrict ourselves to incident electron energies from 10$^{-3}$ up to $2.7$ eV, and to electron temperatures between $100$ and $5000$ K, respectively. Together with our earlier and closely related studies on the BeH$^{+}$ and BeD$^{+}$ systems, this present work completes the isotopic coverage for the beryllium monohydride ions. The vibrational energy (rather than the vibrational quantum state) is identified as a proper isotopic similarity parameter, e.g., for reduced but still isotopically correct plasma chemistry models.

The homogeneous and isotropic cosmological model in the Weyl conformal geometry is considered. We showed that, despite the conformal invariance, the dust matter is allowed in such a universe. It is shown that the number of dust particles is not conserved, i. e., they are continuously produced. The general form of the law for their creation is found.