Papers for Tuesday, Nov 26 2024

Recently, a class of mechanical lattices with reconfigurable, zero-stiffness structures has been proposed, called Totimorphic structures. In this work, we introduce a computational framework that allows continuous reprogramming of a Totimorphic lattice's effective properties, such as mechanical and optical properties, via continuous geometric changes alone. Our approach is differentiable and guarantees valid Totimorphic lattice configurations throughout the optimisation process, thus providing not only specific configurations with desired properties but also trajectories through configuration space connecting them. It enables re-programmable structures where actuators are controlled via automatic differentiation on an objective-dependent cost function, altering the lattice structure at all times to achieve a given objective - which is interchangeable to achieve different functionalities. Our main interest lies in deep space applications where harsh, extreme, and resource-constrained environments demand solutions that offer flexibility, resource efficiency, and autonomy. We illustrate our framework through two proofs of concept: a re-programmable metamaterial as well as a space telescope mirror with adjustable focal length, both made from Totimorphic structures. The introduced framework is easily adjustable to a variety of Totimorphic designs and objectives, providing a light-weight model for endowing physical prototypes of Totimorphic structures with autonomous self-configuration and self-repair capabilities.

Detecting dual active galactic nuclei (DAGN) in observations and understanding theoretically which massive black holes (MBHs) compose them and in which galactic and large-scale environment they reside are becoming increasingly important questions as we enter the multi-messenger era of MBH astronomy. This paper presents the abundance and properties of DAGN produced in nine large-scale cosmological hydrodynamical simulations. We focus on DAGN powered by AGN with Lbol > 1e43 erg/s and belonging to distinct galaxies, i.e. pairs that can be characterised with current and near-future electromagnetic observations. We find that the number density of DAGN separated by a few to 30 proper kpc varies from 1e-8 (or none) to 1e-3 comoving Mpc^3 in the redshift range z=0-7. At a given redshift, the densities of the DAGN numbers vary by up to two orders of magnitude from one simulation to another. However, for all simulations, the DAGN peak is in the range z=1-3, right before the peak of cosmic star formation or cosmic AGN activity. The corresponding fractions of DAGN (with respect to the total number of AGN) range from 0 to 6 percent. We find that simulations could produce too few DAGN at z=0 (or merge pairs too quickly) compared to current observational constraints while being consistent with preliminary constraints at high redshift (z = 3). Next-generation observatories (e.g., AXIS) will be of paramount importance to detect DAGN across cosmic times. We predict the detectability of DAGN with future X-ray telescopes and discuss DAGN as progenitors for future LISA gravitational wave detections.

It has been proposed that if the gravitational constant $G$ abruptly decreased around 130 Myr ago, then Type Ia supernovae (SNe) in the Hubble flow would have a different luminosity to those in host galaxies with Cepheid distances. This would make Hubble flow SNe more distant, causing redshifts to rise slower with distance, potentially solving the Hubble tension. We find that since the luminosities of Sun-like stars scale as approximately $G^7$, the Solar luminosity would have dropped substantially 130 Myr ago in this scenario, pushing Earth into a planetary glaciation. However, there was no Snowball Earth episode in the last 500 Myr. The $G$ step model (GSM) also implies that the length of a year would have abruptly increased by about 10%, but the number of days per year has evolved broadly continuously according to geochronometry and cyclostratigraphy. The GSM would drastically alter stellar evolution, causing the Sun to have exhausted about 2/3 of its fuel supply rather than 1/2. This would lead to the helioseismic age of the Sun differing from that of the oldest meteorite samples, but these agree excellently in practice. There is also excellent agreement between the standard expansion history and that traced by cosmic chronometers, but these would disagree severely in the GSM. Moreover, distance indicators that use stellar luminosities would differ drastically beyond 40 Mpc from those that do not. These arguments cast very severe doubt on the viability of the GSM: the solution to the Hubble tension must be sought elsewhere.

We confirm at the $5.7\sigma$ level previous studies reporting Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) temperatures being significantly lower around nearby spiral galaxies than expected in the $\Lambda$CDM model. The significance reported in our earlier work was disputed by Addison 2024, who reported lower signficances when including pixels at distances far beyond the galactic halos while disregarding pixels close to the galaxies where the main signal is seen. Here we limit the study to pixels well within the galactic halos, focus on galaxies in dense cosmic filaments and improve on signal-to-noise compared to previous studies. The average CMB temperature in discs around these galaxies is always much lower in Planck data than in any of the 10.000 Planck-like CMB simulations. Even when correcting for the look-elsewhere-effect, the detection is still at the $3-4\sigma$ level. We further show that the largest scales ($\ell<16$) of the Planck CMB fluctuations are more correlated with the distribution of nearby galaxies than $99.99\%$ of simulated CMB maps. We argue that the existence of a new CMB foreground cannot be ignored and a physical interaction mechanism, possibly involving dark matter, as well as linked to intergalactic magnetic fields, should be sought.

The coevolution of supermassive black holes and their host galaxies represents a fundamental question in astrophysics. One approach to investigating this question involves comparing the star-formation rates (SFRs) of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with those of typical star-forming galaxies. At relatively low redshifts ($z\lesssim 1$), radio AGNs manifest diminished SFRs, indicating suppressed star formation, but their behavior at higher redshifts is unclear. To examine this, we leveraged galaxy and radio AGN data from the well-characterized W-CDF-S, ELAIS-S1, and XMM-LSS fields. We established two mass-complete reference star-forming galaxy samples and two radio AGN samples, consisting of 1,763 and 6,766 radio AGNs, the former being higher in purity and the latter more complete. We subsequently computed star-forming fractions ($f_{\text{SF}}$; the fraction of star-forming galaxies to all galaxies) for galaxies and radio-AGN-host galaxies and conducted a robust comparison between them up to $z\approx3$. We found that the tendency for radio AGNs to reside in massive galaxies primarily accounts for their low $f_{\text{SF}}$, which also shows a strong negative dependence upon $M_{\star}$ and a strong positive evolution with $z$. To investigate further the star-formation characteristics of those star-forming radio AGNs, we constructed the star-forming main sequence (MS) and investigated the behavior of the position of AGNs relative to the MS at $z\approx0-3$. Our results reveal that radio AGNs display lower SFRs than star-forming galaxies in the low-$z$ and high-$M_{\star}$ regime and, conversely, exhibit comparable or higher SFRs than MS star-forming galaxies at higher redshifts or lower $M_{\star}$.

The study of chemical evolution is of paramount importance for understanding the galaxies evolution. Models and observations propose an inside-out mechanism in the formation of spiral galaxy disks implying a negative radial gradient of elemental abundances when represented in logarithmic scale. However, observed chemical abundance gradients, in some instances, deviate from a single linear negative straight line, revealing inner drops or outer flattenings, particularly in more massive galaxies. This study analyzes oxygen abundance gradients in spiral galaxies based on observations from the Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area (CALIFA) survey. Our focus is specifically on examining oxygen abundance gradient profiles, as obtained with data from HII regions, with a special emphasis on the inner radial gradient. We employ an automated fitting procedure to establish correlations between the physical properties of galaxies and bulges and the presence of these inner drops, seeking for potential explanations for these gradient variations. We find that the different criteria used in the literature to distinguish HII regions from other ionization sources in the galaxy, such as Active Galactic Nuclei, significantly impact the results, potentially altering abundance gradient profiles and uncovering galaxies with distinct inner drops. Additionally, we analyze the abundance radial gradients to investigate the impact of diffuse ionized gas (DIG) decontamination on oxygen abundances over the featuring inner drops. We observe that DIG, concentrated mainly in the central regions of galaxies, can modify oxygen abundance gradient profiles if left unaddressed.

In this chapter, we describe how the IceCube Neutrino Observatory transformed a cubic kilometer of natural ice at the geographic South Pole into a neutrino telescope. The concept of using the neutrino as an astronomical messenger is as old as the neutrino itself, and the challenge to open this new window on the high-energy universe was technological in nature. We discuss how IceCube was constructed and how the detector operates, including some detail on the 5,484 optical sensors that comprise the array. We highlight some of the primary results of the experiment, including the discovery of a diffuse flux of high-energy neutrinos reaching us from the cosmos, the observation of the first high-energy neutrino sources in the sky, and the observation of our Galaxy in neutrinos.

We present a study of the effects of ultraviolet (UV) emission from active galactic nuclei (AGN) on the atmospheric composition of planets and potential impact on life. It is expected that all supermassive black holes, which reside at galactic centers, have gone through periods of high AGN activity in order to reach their current masses. We examine potential damaging effects on lifeforms on planets with different atmosphere types and receiving different levels of AGN flux, using data on the sensitivity of various species' cells to UV radiation to determine when radiation becomes ``dangerous''. We also consider potential chemical changes to planetary atmospheres as a result of UV radiation from AGN, using the PALEO photochemical model. We find the presence of sufficient initial oxygen (surface mixing ratio $\geq 10^{-3} \rm\, mol/mol$) in the planet's atmosphere allows a thicker ozone layer to form in response to AGN radiation, which reduces the level of dangerous UV radiation incident on the planetary surface from what it was in absence of an AGN. We estimate the fraction of solar systems in galaxies that would be affected by AGN UV radiation, and find that the impact is most pronounced in compact galaxies such as ``red nugget relics'', as compared to typical present-day ellipticals and spirals (using M87 and the Milky Way as examples). Our work generally supports the Gaia hypothesis, where the development of life on a planet (and resulting oxygenation of the atmosphere) causes the environment to become more stable against potential extinction events in the future.

We present tonalli, a spectroscopic analysis python code that efficiently predicts effective temperature, stellar surface gravity, metallicity, $\alpha$-element abundance, and rotational and radial velocities for stars with effective temperatures between 3200 and 6250 K, observed with the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment 2 (APOGEE-2). tonalli implements an asexual genetic algorithm to optimise the finding of the best comparison between a target spectrum and the continuum-normalised synthetic spectra library from the Model Atmospheres with a Radiative and Convective Scheme (MARCS), which is interpolated in each generation. Using simulated observed spectra and the APOGEE-2 solar spectrum of Vesta, we study the performance, limitations, accuracy and precision of our tool. Finally, a Monte Carlo realisation was implemented to estimate the uncertainties of each derived stellar parameter. The ad hoc continuum-normalised library is publicly available on Zenodo (DOI https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12736546).

Tidal disruption events (TDEs) of giant stars by supermassive black holes (SMBH) differ significantly from those of main sequence ones. Most (all for SMBH of more than a~ few times 10^5 m_\odot) giant-TDEs are partial: only a fraction of the envelope is torn apart. The dense stellar core and the rest of the envelope remain intact. In this work, we explore, using the stellar evolution code MESA, the fate of the remnants. We find that after a short period, comparable to the thermal time scale, the remnant returns to a giant structure with a radius comparable to the progenitor giant one, a slightly larger luminosity (as compared with a regular giant with the same mass), and a comparable lifetime until it collapses to a white dwarf. If such a giant with a mass less than approx 0.9 m_\odot is discovered, it can be identified as an outlier - a giant that is too light for the current age of the Universe. If the remnant orbit is not perturbed significantly during the encounter, the remnant will undergo successive partial tidal disruptions until its mass is $0.6-0.7 m_\odot$. We expect a few dozen to a few hundred such remnants in the Galactic nucleus.

We present a simple, yet powerful column density diagnostic for plasmas enabled by X-ray microcalorimeter observations. With the recent developments of the spectral simulation code Cloudy, inspired by the high spectral resolution of XRISM and Athena, we make predictions for the intensity ratio of the resolved fine-structure lines Ly$\alpha_1$ and Ly$\alpha_2$ of H-like ions. We show that this ratio can be observationally constrained and used as a plasma column density indicator. We demonstrate this with a XRISM observation of the high-mass X-ray binary Centaurus X-3. This diagnostic is useful for a wide range of X-ray emitting plasmas either collisionally or radiatively ionized.

Numerical solutions of Kepler's Equation are critical components of celestial mechanics software, and are often computation hot spots. This work uses symbolic regression and a genetic learning algorithm to find new initial guesses for iterative Kepler solvers for both elliptical and hyperbolic orbits. The new initial guesses are simple to implement, and result in modest speed improvements for elliptical orbits, and major speed improvements for hyperbolic orbits.

Recent observations have revealed a super-virial temperature gas phase at log(T/K) $\sim7$ in the Milky Way, challenging existing galaxy-formation models. This hot gas phase was discovered toward extragalactic absorption sightlines and blank-sky emission fields, both at high galactic latitudes. The location of this hot component is unknown; is it in the extended circumgalactic medium (CGM) or in the interstellar medium (ISM) instead? We analyzed X-ray spectra from Chandra's High-Energy Transmission Grating (HETG) observations of 27 Galactic X-ray binaries (XRBs) to investigate whether the hot gas component is present in the ISM. We searched for absorption lines of SXVI K$\alpha$, SiXIV K$\alpha$, and NeX K$\alpha$, which are the tell-tale signatures of the hot gas and which have been detected toward extragalactic sightlines. Of the 27 targets, these lines were detected in the spectra of only 7, with two sources displaying broad line features likely intrinsic to the XRB systems. Additionally, most of the detected lines are time-variable, reinforcing their likely association with the XRBs. Our results suggest that the super-virial temperature gas is not a widespread component of the ISM but may instead be located in extraplanar regions or the extended CGM, in line with some recent simulation results.

Ancient, long-lived stars remain present in all components of our home galaxy, the Milky Way. Born a few hundred million after the Big Bang and during a time that marked the very beginning of the chemical evolution, these stars display very low abundances of elements heavier and hydrogen and helium, making them "metal-poor". Studying the chemical composition of these stars reveals direct information about the conditions of the early universe because each of them has long preserved the local chemical signature of their individual birth gas clouds in their stellar atmosphere. There are many different types of metal-poor stars, each of them providing information on a different element production history that occurred prior to their own births. Large samples of metal-poor stars enable the reconstruction of nucleosynthesis and the chemical evolution of our Galaxy, early star formation processes, and various aspects of the assembly and evolution of the Milky Way.

Radiative cooling by molecules is a crucial process for hydrodynamic escape, as it can efficiently remove the thermal energy driving the outflow, acquired through X-ray and extreme UV absorption. Carbon oxides, such as CO and CO2, and their photochemical products are anticipated to serve as vital radiative cooling sources not only in atmospheres dominated by carbon oxides but also in H2-rich atmospheres. However, their specific effects on the hydrodynamic escape, especially in H2-rich atmospheres, have been inadequately investigated. In this study, we conduct 1-D hydrodynamic escape simulations for H2-rich atmospheres incorporating CO, CO2, and their chemical products on an Earth-mass planet. We consider detailed radiative cooling processes and chemical networks related to carbon oxides to elucidate their impacts on the hydrodynamic escape. In the escape outflow, CO2 undergoes rapid photolysis, producing CO and atomic oxygen, while CO exhibits photochemical stability compared to CO2. The H2 oxidation by atomic oxygen results in the production of OH and H2O. Consequently, the hydrodynamic escape is significantly suppressed by the radiative cooling effects of CO, H2O, OH, and H3+ even when the basal mixing fraction of CO and CO2 is lower than ~0.01. These mechanisms extend the lifetime of H2-rich atmospheres by about one order of magnitude compared to the case of pure hydrogen atmospheres on early Earth, which also results in negligible escape of heavier carbon- and nitrogen-bearing molecules and noble gases.

Absorption features Ca II NIR and Ca II H&K of type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are characterized by their strong high-velocity features (HVFs). We find that, for these two features of calcium there is a puzzling anti-correlation between the line strengths of HVF and photospheric (PHO) components, and an unexpected positive correlation between the velocity difference and line strength ratio of HVF and PHO components. In comparison, HVFs of Si II $\lambda$6355 and O I $\lambda$7773 show a positive correlation between the line strengths of HVF and PHO components, and no clear correlation between the velocity difference and line strength ratio of the two components. The differences may be associated with the fact that calcium was mostly synthesized in deeper layers than silicon and oxygen, and thus experienced much more serious blocking by substances in outer layers. These observations can shed light on the physics of HVFs.

Diffuse radio sources known as radio relics are direct tracers of shocks in the outskirts of merging galaxy clusters. PSZ2 G200.95-28.16, a low-mass merging cluster($\textrm{M}_{500} = (2.7 \pm 0.2) \times 10^{14}~\mathrm{M}_{\odot}$) features a prominent radio relic, first identified by Kale et al. 2017. We name this relic as the Seahorse. The MeerKAT Galaxy Cluster Legacy Survey has confirmed two additional radio relics, R2 and R3 in this cluster. We present new observations of this cluster with the Upgraded GMRT at 400 and 650 MHz paired with the Chandra X-ray data. The largest linear sizes for the three relics are~1.53 Mpc, 1.12~kpc, and 340~kpc. All three radio relics are polarized at 1283~MHz. Assuming the diffusive shock acceleration model, the spectral indices of the relics imply shock Mach Numbers of $3.1 \pm 0.8$ and $2.8 \pm 0.9$ for the Seahorse and R2, respectively. The Chandra X-ray surface brightness map shows two prominent subclusters, but the relics are not perpendicular to the likely merger axis as typically observed; no shocks are detected at the locations of the relics. We discuss the possible merger scenarios in light of the low mass of the cluster and the radio and X-ray properties of the relics. The relic R2 follows the correlation known in the radio relic power and cluster mass plane, but the Seahorse and R3 relics are outliers. We have also discovered a radio ring in our 650~MHz uGMRT image that could be an Odd radio circle candidate.

We present the luminosity functions (LFs) and angular correlation functions (ACFs) derived from 18,960 Ly$\alpha$ emitters (LAEs) at $z=2.2-7.3$ over a wide survey area of $\lesssim24 {\rm deg^2}$ that are identified in the narrowband data of the Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program (HSC-SSP) and the Cosmic HydrOgen Reionization Unveiled with Subaru (CHORUS) surveys. Confirming the large sample with the 241 spectroscopically identified LAEs, we determine Ly$\alpha$ LFs and ACFs in the brighter luminosity range down to $0.5L_{\star}$, and confirm that our measurements are consistent with previous studies but offer significantly reduced statistical uncertainties. The improved precision of our ACFs allows us to clearly detect one-halo terms at some redshifts, and provides large-scale bias measurements that indicate hosting halo masses of $\sim 10^{11} M_\odot$ over $z\simeq 2-7$. By comparing our Ly$\alpha$ LF (ACF) measurements with reionization models, we estimate the neutral hydrogen fractions in the intergalactic medium to be $x_{\rm \HI}<0.05$ (=${0.06}^{+0.12}_{-0.03}$), $0.15^{+0.10}_{-0.08}$ (${0.21}^{+0.19}_{-0.14}$), $0.18^{+0.14}_{-0.12}$, and $0.75^{+0.09}_{-0.13}$ at $z=5.7$, $6.6$, $7.0$, and $7.3$, respectively. Our findings suggest that the neutral hydrogen fraction remains relatively low, $x_{\rm \HI} \lesssim 0.2$, at $z=5-7$, but increases sharply at $z > 7$, reaching $x_{\rm \HI} \sim 0.9$ by $z \simeq 8-9$, as indicated by recent JWST studies. The combination of our results from LAE observations with recent JWST observations suggests that the major epoch of reionization occurred around $z \sim 7-8$, likely driven by the emergence of massive sources emitting significant ionizing photons.

We report the detection of H$_2$O maser emission in 4 out of 77 (5.2%) mid-IR red galaxies that meet the color criteria of $W1-W2 > 0.5$ and $W1-W4 > 7$ and are classified as Type-2 AGNs based on optical, near-IR, and mid-IR spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting. Here, $W1$, $W2$, and $W4$ represent the IR magnitudes at 3.4, 4.6, and 22 micron, respectively, as measured by the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer. Three of the four newly identified maser galaxies are classified as either Seyfert 2 or LINER systems, but none are disk maser systems. Our analysis indicates that AGN identifications based solely on SED fitting are unreliable, resulting in an unexpectedly low detection rate. By restricting our sample to optically classified Type 2 AGNs that satisfy the mid-IR color criteria, we achieve a maser detection rate of ~13-18%, aligning with previous predictions for mid-IR red sources. These selection criteria are the most effective to date for facilitating new maser detections, particularly in light of the recent identification of additional Type 2 AGNs identified from ongoing galaxy and AGN surveys.

We present the results of observations performed with the Sardinia Radio Telescope (SRT) at 1.3-1.8 GHz of the galaxy cluster CL 0217+70 and a $3^\circ \times 3^\circ$ region around it. We combine the SRT data with archival Very Large Array (VLA) data to obtain images having the VLA angular resolution, but sensitive up to largest scales. The SRT+VLA combination allows us to derive a cluster radio halo flux density higher by $\sim14\%$ compared to the VLA-only data, although consistent within $1\sigma$. We derive a spectral index map between 140 MHz and 1.4 GHz, finding an extended region with spectral index $\alpha\sim0.6$ on the external part of the south-eastern candidate relic, questioning the real nature of this relic. Moreover, we detect an extended emission outside the cluster in the south-eastern area, having an angular extension of $\sim50$ arcmin on the longer side, which would correspond to $\sim10$ Mpc at the cluster distance; the emissivity that this region would have if located at the cluster distance is in line with the one estimated in candidate filaments of the cosmic web; however, the peculiar orientation of this region, not pointed towards the cluster, and the low Galactic latitude of this cluster suggest that its origin can be due to a foreground emission originating in our Galaxy.

The structure function (SF) analysis is an effective tool for diagnosing the time dependence of Faraday rotation measures (RMs), revealing the astrophysical environments of fast radio bursts (FRBs). This work applies the SF analysis to seven repeating FRBs and one binary system PSR B1744-24A. The results support that both PSR B1744-24A and FRB 20201124A exhibit a geometric component, arising from the relative orientation of sight lines through an ordered magnetic field, and a flat statistical component, induced by stochastic fluctuations in free electron density and magnetic fields. Notably, the periodic behavior of the geometric component is driven by the binary orbital motion, and the statistical component aligns with the RM scatter derived from the pulse depolarization. These findings affirm that the periodic geometric component in RM SF can serve as a robust indicator for the existence of binary companions.

Detecting diffuse radio emission, such as from halos, in galaxy clusters is crucial for understanding large-scale structure formation in the universe. Traditional methods, which rely on X-ray and Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SZ) cluster pre-selection, introduce biases that limit our understanding of the full population of diffuse radio sources. In this work, we provide a possible resolution for this astrophysical tension by developing a machine learning (ML) framework capable of unbiased detection of diffuse emission, using a limited real dataset like those from the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA). We generate for the first time radio halo images using Wasserstein Generative Adversarial Networks (WGANs) and Denoising Diffusion Probabilistic Models (DDPMs), and apply them to train a neural network classifier independent of pre-selection methods. The halo images generated by DDPMs are of higher quality than those produced by WGANs. The diffusion-supported classifier with a multi-head attention block achieved the best average validation accuracy of 95.93% over 10 runs, using 36 clusters for training and 10 for testing, without further hyperparameter tuning. Using our classifier, we rediscovered 9/12 halos (75% detection rate) from the MeerKAT Galaxy Cluster Legacy Survey (MGCLS) Catalogue, and 5/8 halos (63% detection rate) from the Planck Sunyaev-Zeldovich Catalogue 2 (PSZ2) within the GaLactic and Extragalactic All-sky MWA (GLEAM) survey. In addition, we identify 11 potential new halos, minihalos, or candidates in the COSMOS field using XMM-chandra-detected clusters in GLEAM data. This work demonstrates the potential of ML for unbiased detection of diffuse emission and provides labeled datasets for further study.

The chemical abundance measurements of host stars and their substellar companions provide a powerful tool to trace the formation mechanism of the planetary systems. We present a detailed high-resolution spectroscopic analysis of a young M-type star, DH Tau A, which is located in the Taurus molecular cloud belonging to the Taurus-Auriga star-forming region. This star is host to a low-mass companion, DH Tau b, and both star and the companion are still in their accreting phase. We apply our technique (Hejazi et al. 2024) to measure the abundances of carbon and oxygen using carbon- and oxygen-bearing molecules, such as CO and OH, respectively. We determine a near-solar carbon-to-oxygen abundance ratio of C/O=0.555$\pm$0.063 for the host star DH Tau A. We compare this stellar abundance ratio with that of the companion from our previous study (C/O=0.54$^{+0.06}_{-0.05}$, Xuan et al. 2024), which also has a near-solar value. This confirms the chemical homogeneity in the DH Tau system, which suggests a formation scenario for the companion consistent with a direct and relatively fast gravitational collapse, rather than a slow core accretion process.

The 6-meter BTA telescope has been used to determine radial velocities for 40 galaxies, recently identified in the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys as nearby objects. Half of them have kinematic distances within 11 Mpc being new probable companions to the bright Local Volume galaxies: NGC628, Maffei2, NGC2787, M81, NGC4605 and NGC4631. Six relatively isolated objects with heliocentric velocities in the range of $[-150, +70]$km s$^{-1}$, together with the blue compact dwarf NGC 6789, form a diffuse association of dwarf galaxies located in the near part of the Local Void.

The increased bandwidth coupled with the large numbers of antennas of several new radio telescope arrays has resulted in an exponential increase in the amount of data that needs to be recorded and processed. In many cases, it is necessary to process this data in real time, as the raw data volumes are too high to be recorded and stored. Due to the ability of graphics processing units (GPUs) to process data in parallel, GPUs are increasingly used for data-intensive tasks. In most radio astronomy digital instrumentation (e.g. correlators for spectral imaging, beamforming, pulsar, fast radio burst and SETI searching), the processing power of modern GPUs is limited by the input/output data rate, not by the GPU's computation ability. Techniques for streaming ultra-high-rate data to GPUs, such as those described in this paper, reduce the number of GPUs and servers needed, and make significant reductions in the cost, power consumption, size, and complexity of GPU based radio astronomy backends. In this research, we developed and tested several different techniques to stream data from network interface cards (NICs) to GPUs. We also developed an open-source UDP/IPv4 400GbE wrapper for the AMD/Xilinx IP demonstrating high-speed data stream transfer from a field programmable gate array (FPGA) to GPU.

A recent discovery shows that V404 Cygni, a prototypical black hole low-mass X-ray binary (BH-LMXB) is a hierarchical triple: the BH and donor star are orbited by a $1.2$ M$_{\odot}$ tertiary at a distance of at least $3500$ au. Motivated by this system, we evolve a grid of $\sim50,000$ triple star systems, spanning a broad range of initial orbits. Our calculations employ {\tt MESA} stellar evolution models, using {\tt POSYDON}, and self-consistently track the effects of eccentric Kozai-Lidov (EKL) oscillations, mass loss, tides, and BH natal kicks. In our simulations, the progenitors of V404 Cygni-like systems have initial outer separations of $1000 - 10000$ au and inner separations of $\sim100$ au, such that they avoid Roche lobe overflow most of the time. Later on, EKL oscillations drive the inner binary to high eccentricities until tides shrink the orbit and mass transfer begins. Notably, such systems only form in simulations with very weak black hole natal kicks ($\lesssim 5\,{\rm km\,s^{-1}}$) because stronger kicks unbind the tertiaries. Our simulations also predict a population of BH-LMXB triples that form via the classical common-envelope channel, when the BH progenitor does overflow its Roche lobe. The formation rate for this channel is also higher in triples than in isolated binaries because early EKL oscillations cause inner binaries with a wider range of initial separations to enter and survive a common envelope. Our calculations demonstrate that at least some stellar BHs form with extremely weak kicks, and that triple evolution is a significant formation channel for BH-LMXBs.

Decayless kink oscillations, characterized by their lack of decay in amplitude, have been detected in coronal loops of varying scales in active regions, quiet Sun and coronal holes. Short-period (< 50 s) decayless oscillations have been detected in short loops (< 50 Mm) within active regions. Nevertheless, long-period decayless oscillations in these loops remain relatively unexplored and crucial for understanding the wave modes and excitation mechanisms of decayless oscillations. We present the statistical analysis of decayless oscillations from two active regions observed by the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) onboard Solar Orbiter. The average loop length and period of the detected oscillations are 19 Mm and 151 seconds, respectively. We find 82 long-period and 23 short-period oscillations in these loops. We do not obtain a significant correlation between loop length and period. We discuss the possibility of different wave modes in short loops, although standing waves can not be excluded from possible wave modes. Furthermore, a different branch exists for active region short loops in the loop length vs period relation, similar to decayless waves in short loops in quiet Sun and coronal holes. The magnetic fields derived from MHD seismology, based on standing kink modes, show lower values for multiple oscillations compared to previous estimates for long loops in active regions. Additionally, the comparison of period distributions in short loops across different coronal regions indicates that different excitation mechanisms may trigger short-period kink oscillations in active regions compared to the quiet Sun and coronal holes.

Context. The chemistry and Galactic velocity components of the star HD 65907 suggest that despite its young isochronal age of $\sim$5 Gyr, it is in fact a merger of two old Population II stars. Its low Li abundance is also consistent with a mass accretion episode. Aims. We determine Li and Be abundances for this star and evaluate its radial velocity time series, activity cycle, and spectral energy distribution in search of clues regarding the origin of this enigmatic star. Methods. Li and Be abundances were determined via spectral synthesis of their resonance lines using HARPS and UVES spectra, respectively. HARPS data were also used to study variations in the star's radial velocity and activity levels. Photometric data were adopted to evaluate the stellar spectral energy distribution. Results. HD 65908 is severely Li- and Be-depleted. Its radial velocity is nearly constant ($\sigma =$ 2 m/s), with a small modulation likely associated with stellar activity, and the star shows no further signs of an undetected close companion. The excess infrared emission is consistent with a 30 K blackbody, which is interpreted as a debris disk surrounding the star. The post-merger mass, rotation rate, and evolution of this star are discussed. Conclusions. The low Li and Be abundances, in addition to the lack of evidence for a companion, are strong pieces of evidence in favor of the stellar merger scenario. In this context, Be can be used to confirm other blue stragglers among field solar-type stars, as proposed in the literature.

We conduct a population synthesis study using the binary population synthesis code compas to explore the formation of circumbinary disks (CBDs) following the common envelope evolution (CEE) phase of a giant star and a neutron star (NS) or black hole (BH). We focus on massive binary systems that evolve into double compact object (DCO) binaries after the exposed core of the giant collapses to form a second NS or BH. A CBD around the binary system of the giant's core and the compact object lives for a short time at the termination of the CEE phase and alters the orbital evolution of the binary. We parameterize the conditions for CBD formation in post-CEE binaries and present characteristics of DCO progenitors that are likely or unlikely to form CBDs. We find that CBD formation is most common in BH-BH binaries and NS-NS binaries that are expected to merge within Hubble time. Furthermore, we find that the interaction of the CBD with the core - NS/BH system at the termination of the CEE reduces the expected rate of DCO mergers, regardless of whether these binaries tighten or expand due to this interaction. If the binary system loses angular momentum to the CBD, it may produce a luminous transient due to a merger between the NS/BH and the core of the giant rather than gravitational wave sources. Thus, accounting for post-CEE CBD formation and its interaction with the binary system in population synthesis studies is significant for obtaining reliable predictions of the gravitational wave event rates expected by current detectors.

The catalog of ringed galaxies was compiled through visual classification of synthetic images from the TNG50 simulation. Galaxies were selected based on specific criteria: a redshift range of $0.01 < z < 0.1$, stellar mass $M_\star >10^9 M_\odot$, stellar half-mass radius $r_{50} > 1$ kpc, and specific star formation rate (sSFR), $\rm{log(sSFR/yr}^{-1}) > -13$. Our classification allowed for differentiation between inner rings, outer rings, combinations of rings, and partial rings (pseudo-rings), including barred and non-barred ringed galaxies. We constructed a control sample of non-ringed galaxies with similar redshift, stellar mass, and environmental density distributions. We identified 807 ringed galaxies. Approximately 59% possess an inner ring, 22% a partial ring, 12% an outer ring, and 7% have i+o rings. Our statistical analysis reveals that 64% (507 galaxies) exhibit bars. Ringed galaxies exhibit lower efficiency for star formation, reduced gas fractions, redder colors, and higher metallicities compared to non-ringed disk objects. They also show greater variability in metallicity for a given stellar mass. From the analysis of radial profiles, galaxies with outer rings exhibit a $r_{50}$ similar to or slightly larger than their control group, while those with inner or partial rings tend to have smaller sizes. A deeper exploration of radial density profiles revealed a pronounced central mass deficit preceding the ring structures, with inner and outer rings located at $r_{50}$ and $1.5 , r_{50}$, respectively. Galaxies with both i+o rings have inner rings that are more compact and massive. Additionally, galaxies with partial rings exhibit deeper mass profiles than their controls, particularly in central areas. These findings improve our understanding of galactic evolution and the complex interplay between mass distribution and morphology.

Accurate gravity field calculations are necessary for landing on planets, moons, asteroids, minimoons, or other irregularly shaped bodies, but current methods become increasingly inaccurate and slow near the surface. We present high accuracy, fast methods for computing gravitational potential and gravitational force fields, which are needed for future space missions. Notably, gravitational force and potential computations are simplified, with high accuracy enhanced by bringing the derivative inside the gravitational potential integral. In addition, we present a new gravitational field calculus, which lets us combine simpler potentials and force fields to create more complex ones without accuracy loss. Several examples are provided, for instance, where we subtract different shapes from a spherical body making a variety of craters. The calculus will also work well with volumetric octree methods. Additionally, we use new bounds in the gravitational potential integral, to avoid trying to fit smooth basis functions to non-smooth curves, and harness new computational tools where tasks can be migrated to GPUs. We also have found that cylindrical coordinates can have special advantages in tailoring shape models. We have created a series of algorithms and preliminary MATLAB and Mathematica toolboxes utilizing these methods and the gravitational calculus. These methods are newly customizable for necessary high-accuracy gravity computations in future missions planned by JPL and other space agencies to navigate near irregularly shaped bodies in the solar system.

We undertake a reassessment of one of the large angular scale anomalies observed in cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature signal referred to as Hemispherical Power Asymmetry (HPA). For the present analysis we used \texttt{sevem} cleaned CMB maps from \emph{Planck}'s 2020 final data release (public release 4/PR4). To probe HPA, we employed the local variance estimator (LVE) method with different disc radii ranging from $1^\circ$ to $90^\circ$. It is reaffirmed that HPA is confined to low multipoles or large angular scales of the CMB sky. A dipole like anisotropy was found in the LVE maps with anomalous power for disc radii of $2^\circ$ and upward up to $36^\circ$ at $\gtrsim2\sigma$. In the range $4^\circ$ to $10^\circ$ none of the 600 \texttt{sevem} CMB simulations were found to have a dipole amplitude higher than the data when using LVE method as proposed. Our emphasis here was to revalidate the LVE method in various ways for its optimal usage and probe the hemispherical power asymmetry in the form of a dipole modulation field underlying CMB sky. By and large, our results are in agreement with earlier reported ones with more detailed presentation of explicit and not-so-explicit assumptions involved in the estimation process. The above reported values fall in the reliability range of LVE method after this extensive re-evaluation. We conclude that the hemispherical power asymmetry still remains as a challenge to the standard model.

Last years studies have shown that the spatial regularity in the distribution of young stellar population along the spiral arms and rings of galaxies, previously considered to be rare, is a fairly common phenomenon. Spatial regularity has been found in the spiral arms and rings of galaxies of various morphology, from lenticular to extremely late-type spiral. The characteristic regularity scale is equal to 350-500 pc or a multiple thereof in all studied galaxies. Theoretical models predict a scale of instability of the stellar-gas disk on the order of a few kpc, which is several times larger than observed, although the most recent magneto-hydrodynamic simulations predict the formation of regular chains of star formation regions in spiral arms on a scale of 500-700 pc for the Milky Way-like galaxies. Modern high-quality surveys, such as PHANGS-MUSE, provide the necessary observational data (surface densities and velocity dispersions of gas and stellar population) to directly calculate the regularity scales in galaxies with high spatial resolution and wide field of view, which is a promising direction for research in this field.

We study the differences in physical properties of quasar-host galaxies using an optically selected sample of radio loud (RL) and radio quiet (RQ) quasars (in the redshift range 0.15 < z < 1.9) which we have further cross-matched with the VLA-FIRST survey catalog. The sources in our sample have broad Hbeta and MgII emission lines (1000 km/s < FWHM < 15000 km/s) with a subsample of high broad line quasars (FWHM > 15000 km/s). We construct the broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) of our broad line quasars using multi-wavelength archival data and targeted observations with the AstroSat telescope. We use the state-of-the-art SED modeling code CIGALE v2022.0 to model the SEDs and determine the best-fit physical parameters of the quasar host galaxies namely their star-formation rate (SFR), main-sequence stellar mass, luminosity absorbed by dust, e-folding time and stellar population age. We find that the emission from the host galaxy of our sources is between 20%-35% of the total luminosity, as they are mostly dominated by the central quasars. Using the best-fit estimates, we reconstruct the optical spectra of our quasars which show remarkable agreement in reproducing the observed SDSS spectra of the same sources. We plot the main-sequence relation for our quasars and note that they are significantly away from the main sequence of star-forming galaxies. Further, the main sequence relation shows a bimodality for our RL quasars indicating populations segregated by Eddington ratios. We conclude that RL quasars in our sample with lower Eddington ratios tend to have substantially lower star-formation rates for similar stellar mass. Our analyses, thus, provide a completely independent route in studying the host galaxies of quasars and addressing the radio dichotomy problem from the host galaxy perspective.

The mean free path of ionizing photons for neutral hydrogen ($\lambda_\mathrm{mfp}^{912}$) is a crucial quantity in modelling the ionization state of the intergalactic medium (IGM) and the extragalactic ultraviolet background (EUVB), and is widely used in hydrodynamical simulations of galaxies and reionization. We construct the largest quasar spectrum dataset to date -- 12,595 $\mathrm{S/N}>3$ spectra -- using the Y1 observation of Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to make the most precise model-independent measurement of the mean free path at $3.2\leq z\leq 4.6$. By stacking the spectra in 17 redshift bins and modelling the Lyman continuum profile, we get a redshift evolution $\lambda_\mathrm{mfp}^{912}\propto(1+z)^{-4.27}$ at $2\leq z\leq 5$, which is much shallower than previous estimates. We then explore the sources of systematic bias, including the choice of intrinsic quasar continuum, the consideration of Lyman series opacity and Lyman limit opacity evolution and the definition of $\lambda_\mathrm{mfp}^{912}$. Combining our results with estimates of $\lambda_\mathrm{mfp}^{912}$ at higher redshifts, we conclude at high confidence that the evolution in $\lambda_\mathrm{mfp}^{912}$ steepens at $z \approx 5$. We interpret this inflection as the transition from the end of HI reionization to a fully ionized plasma which characterizes the intergalactic medium of the past $\sim10$ billion years.

The curvaton paradigm can realise a part of or all the observed curvature perturbation. Based on the stochastic formalism of inflation and closed-form exact distributions therein, the distribution of the curvature perturbation is presented in an analytical manner by identifying a test field with a curvaton. The parameter space consisting of the decay rate and the mass of the curvaton is studied to discuss the probability that the curvaton can contribute to the curvature perturbation in a non-negligible way.

The X-ray afterglows of some gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) exhibit plateaus, which can be explained by the internal dissipation of a newborn millisecond magnetar wind. In the early phase of these newborn magnetars, the magnetic inclination angle undergoes periodic changes due to precession, leading to periodic modulation of the injection luminosity due to magnetic dipole radiation. This may result in quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) on the plateaus. In this paper, we identify four GRBs with regular flux variations on their X-ray afterglow plateaus from Swift/XRT data before November 2023, three of which exhibit periodicity. Based on the likelihood of supporting a precessing magnetar as the central engine, we classify them into three categories: Gold (GRB 060202 and GRB 180620A), Silver (GRB 050730), and Bronze (GRB 210610A). We invoke a model of magnetic dipole radiation emitted by a triaxially freely precessing magnetar whose spin-down is dominated by electromagnetic radiation, to fit the light curves. Our model successfully reproduces the light curves of these four GRBs, including the regular flux variations on the plateaus and their periodicity (if present). Our work provides further evidence for early precession in newborn millisecond magnetars in GRBs.

We present a general parametrization for energy density of a quintessence field, a minimally coupled canonical scalar field which rolls down slowly during the late time. This parametrization can mimic all classes of quintessence dynamics, namely scaling-freezing, tracker and thawing dynamics for any redshift. For thawing dynamics the parametrization needs two free parameters while for scaling-freezing and tracker dynamics it needs at least four free parameters. More parameters make the model less interesting from the observational data analysis point of view but as we expect more precise data in future it may be possible to constrain the models with multiple free parameters which can tell about the dynamics more precisely. One of the main advantage of this parametrization is that it reduces the computational time to significant amount while mimicking the actual scalar field dynamics for all redshifts which may not be possible with other existing parametrizations. We compare the parametrization with two and four parameters with the standard $\Lambda$CDM model using cosmological observational data from Planck 2018 (distance priors), DESI $2024$ DR1, PantheonPlus, Hubble parameter measurements and the redshift space distortion. We find that the observational data prefers standard $\Lambda$CDM model over other models. If we allow phantom region then it is more preferred by the data compared to non-phantom thawing quintessence. Also, we can not strictly comment on the preference on the dynamical dark energy over a cosmological constant as claimed by the DESI 2024 DR1 results.

This work compares the performance of different antenna configurations in radio astronomy interferometry, including the golden spiral, a grid, a random arrangement, and the "Y" configuration similar to the Very Large Array. One hundred antennas are simulated in each configuration, and the resulting UV coverage and image quality are analyzed. The results show that the golden spiral provides more uniform UV coverage without significant gaps, which improves image quality by reducing sidelobes and artifacts. In comparison, the grid exhibits periodic structures in the UV coverage that can degrade image quality due to gaps and artifacts. The random arrangement offers more natural coverage but is less efficient in terms of resolution and sidelobe control. The "Y" configuration proves effective in achieving high resolution along its arms but lacks complete coverage in certain directions, which can negatively affect image quality at those angles. The self-similar nature of the golden spiral allows for efficient capture of both large and small structures in observed sources, maximizing the spatial information obtained. We conclude that, for applications where resolution and sensitivity are critical, the golden spiral represents the optimal configuration, followed by the "Y" configuration, with the grid being the least suitable.

Polarization observations provide a unique way to probe the nature of jet magnetic fields in gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Currently, some GRBs have been detected to be polarized in their early optical afterglows. However, the measured polarization degrees (PDs) of these GRBs are much lower than those predicted by theoretical models. In this work, we investigate the depolarization induced by jet precession in combination with the measured PDs of the GRB early optical afterglows in the reverse shock (RS) dominated phase ($\sim 10^2-10^3 \,{\rm s}$). We calculate the PDs of RS emission with and without jet precession in both magnetic field configurations, i.e., aligned and toroidal magnetic fields, and meanwhile explore the effect of different parameters on the PDs. We find that the PDs are slightly affected by the configurations of the ordered magnetic fields and are positively related to the precession period. Moreover, the PDs are sensitive to the observed angle and the measured low PDs favor a small one. Thus, as one of the plausible origins of the structured jets, jet precession could be considered as an alternative mechanism for the low PDs observed in GRB early optical afterglows.

We investigate how the spatiotemporal structure of induced magnetic fields outside of Callisto is affected by their propagation with the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) modes. At moons that are surrounded by dense magnetized plasmas like the Galilean moons, low-frequency induced magnetic fields cannot propagate with the ordinary electromagnetic mode as is implicitly used by standard analytical expressions. Instead, the induced magnetic fields propagate with the MHD modes, which exhibit anisotropic propagation properties and have finite velocities. Using an MHD framework, we model the spatiotemporal effects of the transport on the induced signals and analyze their contribution to Galileo's C03 and C09 flyby observations. We find that the induced magnetic field in Callisto's plasma environment is asymmetric with a pronounced upstream/downstream asymmetry. By neglecting the transport effects, the amplitude of the induced magnetic field is under- or overestimated by up to tens of percent, respectively. Additionally, we find that MHD wave and convection velocities are strongly reduced in Callisto's local plasma environment, resulting in an additional temporal delay between the emergence of the induced field at the surface of Callisto or the top of its ionosphere and the measurements at spacecraft location. The associated phase shift depends on the location of the observer and can reach values of several to tens of degrees of the phase of the primary inducing frequency. Transport effects impact the observed induction signals and are consistent with the C03 and C09 magnetic field measurements.

We demonstrate an approach that allows separating two-point correlations created by a Gaussian random field from correlations created by cosmic foregrounds such as polarized dust emission, gravitational lensing and other non-Gaussian signals. The result of traditional approaches should typically be a 'foreground-cleaned' two-dimensional CMB map of the anisotropy or polarization. Our method does not create a clean map, but extracts the part of the two-point correlations, or equivalently the part of the power spectrum, which is due only to the Gaussian component of the observed signal produced by inflation.

Magnetars are slowly rotating, highly magnetized young neutron stars that can show transient radio phenomena for radio pulses and fast radio bursts. We conducted radio observations of from two magnetars SGR J1935+2154 and 3XMM J185246.6+003317 and a high-magnetic field pulsar PSR J1846$-$0258 using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). We performed single pulse and periodicity searches and did not detect radio signals from them. From the piggyback data recorded by other FAST telescope beams when we observed the magnetar SGR 1935+2154, we serendipitously discovered a new radio pulsar, PSR J1935+2200. We carried out the follow-up observations and obtained the timing solution based on these new observations and the archive FAST data. PSR J1935+2200 is an isolated old pulsar, with a spin period of $0.91$s, a spin-period derivative of $9.19 \times 10^{-15}$~s~s$^{-1}$, and a characteristic age of $1.57$ Myr. It is a weak pulsar with a flux density of 9.8 $\mu$Jy at 1.25 GHz. Discovery of a new pulsar from the long FAST observations of 30 minutes implies that there may be more weak older pulsars in the Galactic disk to be discovered.

The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) is the most sensitive telescope at the L-band (1.0-1.5GHz) and has been used to carry out the FAST Galactic Plane Pulsar Snapshot (GPPS) survey in the last 5 years. Up to now, the survey has covered one-fourth of the planned areas within $10^{\circ}$ from the Galactic plane visible by the FAST, and discovered 751 pulsars. After the first publishing of the discovery of 201 pulsars and one rotating radio transient (RRAT) in 2021 and 76 RRATs in 2023, here we report the discovery of 473 new pulsars from the FAST GPPS survey, including 137 new millisecond field pulsars and 30 new RRATs. We find that 34 millisecond pulsars discovered by the GPPS survey which can be timed with a precision better than 3~$\mu$s by using FAST 15-minute observations and can be used for the pulsar timing arrays. The GPPS survey has discovered 8 pulsars with periods greater than 10~s including one with 29.77~s. The profiles of integrated profiles of pulsars and individual pulses of RRATs are presented. During the FAST GPPS survey, we also detected previously known pulsars and updated parameters for 45 pulsars. In addition, we discover 2 fast radio bursts plus one probable case with high dispersion measures indicating their extragalactic origin.

We use the ROGUE I and II catalogues of radio sources associated with optical galaxies to revisit the characterization of radio active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in terms of radio luminosities and properties derived from the analyses of the optical spectra of their associated galaxies. We propose a physically based classification of radio galaxies into `optically inactive' and `optically active' (OPARGs and OPIRGs). In our sample, there are 14082 OPIRGs and 2721 this http URL correcting for the Malmquist bias, we compared the global properties of our two classes of radio galaxies and put them in the context of the global population of galaxies. To compare the Eddington ratios of OPARGs with those of Seyferts, we devised a method to obtain the bolometric luminosities of these objects, taking into account the contribution of young stars to the observed line emission. We provide formulae to derive bolometric luminosities from the [Oiii] luminosity. We find that the distributions of radio luminosities of OPARGs and OPIRGs are undistinguishable. On average, the black hole masses and stellar masses in OPIRGs are larger than in OPARGs. OPARGs show signs of some recent star formation. Plotting the OPARGs in the BPT diagram and comparing their distribution with that of the remaining galaxies, we find that there is a sub-family of very high excitation OPARGs at the top of the AGN wing. This group is slightly displaced towards the left of the rest of the AGN galaxies, suggesting a stronger ionizing radiation field with respect to the gas pressure. Only very-high excitation radio galaxies (VHERGs) have Eddington ratios higher than 0.01, which are canonically considered as the lower limit for the occurrence of radiative efficient accretion. If our estimates of the bolometric luminosities are correct, this means than only a small proportion of mainstream HERGs are indeed radiatively efficient.

Context: Star-forming regions, stellar associations, and open clusters are fundamental stellar systems where predictions from star-formation theories can be robustly contrasted with observations. Aims: We aim to provide the astrophysical community with a free and open-source code to infer the phase-space (i.e. positions and velocities) parameters of stellar systems with $\lesssim$1000 stars based on \textit{Gaia} astrometry and possibly observed radial velocities. Methods: We upgrade an existing Bayesian hierarchical model and extend it to model 3D (positions) and 6D (positions and velocities) stellar coordinates and system parameters with a flexible variety of statistical models, including a linear velocity field. This velocity field allows for the inference of internal kinematics, including expansion, contraction, and rotation. Results: We extensively validated our statistical models using realistic simulations that mimic the properties of the \textit{Gaia} Data Release 3. We applied \textit{Kalkayotl} to $\beta$-Pictoris, the Hyades, and Praesepe, recovering parameter values compatible with those from the literature. In particular, we found an expansion age of $19.1\pm1.0$ Myr for $\beta$-Pictoris and rotational signal of $32\!\pm\!11\,\rm{m\,s^{-1}\,pc^{-1}}$ for the Hyades and that Praesepe's rotation reported in the literature comes from its periphery. Conclusions: The robust and flexible Bayesian hierarchical model that we make publicly available here represents a step forward in the statistical modelling of stellar systems. The products it delivers, such as expansion, contraction, rotation, and velocity dispersions, can be directly contrasted with predictions from star-formation theories.

The diffuse Galactic gamma-ray emission is a very important tool used to study the propagation and interaction of cosmic rays in the Milky Way. In this work, we report the measurements of the diffuse emission from the Galactic plane, covering Galactic longitudes from $15^{\circ}$ to $235^{\circ}$ and latitudes from $-5^{\circ}$ to $+5^{\circ}$, in an energy range of 1 TeV to 25 TeV, with the Water Cherenkov Detector Array (WCDA) of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). After masking the sky regions of known sources, the diffuse emission is detected with $24.6\sigma$ and $9.1\sigma$ significance in the inner Galactic plane($15^{\circ}<l<125^{\circ}$, $|b|<5^{\circ}$) and outer Galactic plane ($125^{\circ}<l<235^{\circ}$, $|b|<5^{\circ}$), respectively. The WCDA spectra in both regions can be well described by a power-law function, with spectral indices of $-2.67\pm0.05_{\rm stat}$ in the inner region and $-2.83\pm0.19_{\rm stat}$ in the outer region, respectively. Combined with the Square Kilometer Array (KM2A) measurements at higher energies, a clear softening of the spectrum is found in the inner region, with change of spectral indices by $\sim0.5$ at a break energy around $30$ this http URL fluxes of the diffuse emission are higher by a factor of $1.5-2.7$ than the model prediction assuming local CR spectra and the gas column density, which are consistent with those measured by the KM2A. Along Galactic longitude, the spatial distribution of the diffuse emission shows deviation from that of the gas column density. The spectral shape of the diffuse emission are possibly variation in different longitude region. The results indicate further that the conventional model prediction of diffuse emission from cosmic ray interactions is not enough to account for the observations.

The advanced radio telescopes such as the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) can provide high-sensitivity and high-time-resolution data of a large number of radio sources, offering an excellent opportunity for studying radio pulse profiles. However, studying pulse profiles necessitates addressing dispersion measurement (DM). The fitting method tends to make the profile conform to the model, so the fitting method is not suitable for pulse profile research. Indicators are needed to determine the profile that is closest to the real one, which is the profile discrimination method. This work is based on the definition of Shannon's information entropy, and believes that the pulse profile when the entropy is minimized is the closest to the true profile. This indicator is simple to calculate and can provide assistance for pulse profile research. This work uses real data from 48 pulsars. By calculating the information entropy of pulsar profiles under different DMs, the DM corresponding to the minimum entropy is found, thus verifying the validity of the minimum entropy indicator. In terms of the analysis results for the 48 pulsars, the differences with the references are less than 0.5<!PCT!> for all except 3 stars, and the results for these 3 stars are consistent with older references. The minimum entropy indicator can effectively obtain the DMs of radio pulse signals with low computational complexity, but it cannot be proven to be the optimal criterion. It is suggested to use multiple indicators separately when studying pulse profiles. It can be envisaged that the optimal indicator can provide insights into the radiation mechanism of radio sources.

To elucidate the robustness of the baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) data measured by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) in capturing the dynamical behavior of dark energy, we assess the model dependence of the evidence for dynamical dark energy inferred from the DESI BAO data. While the DESI BAO data slightly tightens the constraints on model parameters and increases the tension between the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder (CPL) model and the $\Lambda$CDM model, we find that the influence of DESI BAO data on the constraint of $w_0$ is small in the SSLCPL model. In comparison to the CPL model, the tension with the $\Lambda$CDM model is reduced for the SSLCPL model, suggesting that the evidence for dynamical dark energy from DESI BAO data is dependent on cosmological models. The inclusion of spatial curvature has little impact on the results in the SSLCPL model.

Extreme-mass-ratio inspirals (EMRIs) and intermediate-mass-ratio inspirals (IMRIs) are important gravitational-wave (GW) sources for the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). So far, their formation and evolution have been studied independently, but recent theories suggest that stellar-mass black holes (sBHs) and intermediate-mass black hole (IMBHs) can coexist in the accretion disk of an active galactic nucleus (AGN), which indicates that EMRIs and IMRIs may form in the same place. Considering the likely encounter of the sBH and IMBH during the migration in the AGN disk, Paper I (Peng & Chen 2023) shows that a gap-opening IMBH can drive a surrounding sBH to migrate synchronously. In this work, we extend the study in Paper I with more sophisticated model. We first use the 3D hydrodynamical simulation to study the co-evolution of the disk and the migration, and found that although the inner disk is partially accreted, the gaseous torque together with the tidal torque of IMBH can keep the synchronized migrate, until $\sim 10$ Schwarzschild radii from the central supermassive black hole (SMBH). We further use a relativistic three-body simulation to study the final fate of the sBH in the GW-dominated regime, and found that in most cases the sBH can be either captured or kicked out by the IMBH, which will result in two successive IMRIs or an EMRI followed by an IMRI. Such successive EMRIs and IMRIs will bring rich information about the formation and evolution of sBHs and IMBHs in AGNs.

We apply probabilistic generative modelling of colour-magnitude diagrams to six young Galactic open star clusters and determine their mass functions, binary mass-ratio distributions, and the frequencies of binary stars. We find that younger clusters tend to exhibit a higher incidence of binaries than their older counterparts. The mass-ratio distribution is fairly flat for the clusters with one exception that exhibits a sharp increase for $q\gtrsim0.9$. The ratio of the number of cluster binaries for which $q>0.75$ to the number of binaries for which $q>0.5$ (referred to as $FQ_{75}$) ranges from $\sim0.4 - 0.8$. This metric increases with the binary-star frequency of a cluster, but declines with cluster age. This may be due to non-ionizing 3-body dynamical processing of a primordial population of close binaries with initial mass ratios, $q \simeq 1$.

Current and future gravitational-wave observatories rely on large-scale, precision interferometers to detect the gravitational-wave signals. However, microscopic imperfections on the test masses, known as point absorbers, cause problematic heating of the optic via absorption of the high-power laser beam, which results in diminished sensitivity, lock loss, or even permanent damage. Consistent monitoring of the test masses is crucial for detecting, characterizing, and ultimately removing point absorbers. We present a machine-learning algorithm for detecting point absorbers based on the object-detection algorithm You Only Look Once (YOLO). The algorithm can perform this task in situ while the detector is in operation. We validate our algorithm by comparing it with past reports of point absorbers identified by humans at LIGO. The algorithm confidently identifies the same point absorbers as humans with minimal false positives. It also identifies some point absorbers previously not identified by humans, which we confirm with human follow-up. We highlight the potential of machine learning in commissioning efforts.

Compact binary mergers detectable in gravitational waves can be accompanied by a kilonova, an electromagnetic transient powered by radioactive decay of newly synthesised r-process elements. A few kilonova candidates have been observed during short gamma-ray burst follow-up, and one found associated with a gravitational wave detection, GW170817. However, robust kilonova candidates are yet to be found in un-triggered, wide-field optical surveys, that is, a search not requiring an initial gravitational wave or gamma-ray burst trigger. Here we present the first observing run for the Kilonova and Transients Program (KNTraP) using the Dark Energy Camera. The first KNTraP run ran for 11 nights, covering 31 fields at a nightly cadence in two filters. The program can detect transients beyond the LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA horizon, be agnostic to the merger orientation, avoid the Sun and/or Galactic plane, and produces high cadence multi-wavelength light curves. The data were processed nightly in real-time for rapid identification of transient candidates, allowing for follow-up of interesting candidates before they faded away. Three fast-rising candidates were identified in real-time, however none had the characteristics of the kilonova AT2017gfo associated with GW170817 or with the expected evolution for kilonovae from our fade-rate models. After the run, the data were reprocessed, then subjected to stringent filtering and model fitting to search for kilonovae offline. Multiple KNTraP runs (3+) are expected to detect kilonovae via this optical-only search method. No kilonovae were detected in this first KNTraP run using our selection criteria, constraining the KN rate to $R < 1.8\times10^{5}$ Gpc$^{-3}$ yr$^{-1}$.

Building on our previous research of multi-wavelength data from UV to IR, we employ spectroscopic observations of ionized gas, as well as neutral hydrogen gas obtained from the Five-hundred Meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), to explore the intrinsic processes of star formation and chemical enrichment within NGC 628. Our analysis focuses on several key properties, including gas-phase extinction, star formation rate (SFR) surface density, oxygen abundance, and H I mass surface density. The azimuthal distributions of these parameters in relation to the morphological and kinematic features of FAST H I reveal that NGC 628 is an isolated galaxy that has not undergone recent interactions. We observe a mild radial extinction gradient accompanied by a notable dispersion. The SFR surface density also shows a gentle radial gradient, characteristic of typical spiral galaxies. Additionally, we find a negative radial metallicity gradient of $-0.44$ dex $R_{25}^{-1}$, supporting the "inside-out" scenario of galaxy formation. We investigate the resolved Mass-Metallicity Relation (MZR) and the resolved Star Formation Main Sequence (SFMS) alongside their dependencies on the physical properties of both ionized and neutral hydrogen gas. Our findings indicate no secondary dependency of the resolved MZR on SFR surface density or H I mass surface density. Furthermore, we observe that gas-phase extinction and the equivalent width of H{\alpha} both increase with SFR surface density in the resolved SFMS.

If QCD axion dark matter formed post-inflation, axion miniclusters emerged from isocurvature fluctuations and later merged hierarchically into minihalos. These minihalos, potentially disrupted by stellar encounters in the Milky Way, affect axion detectability. We extend prior analyses by more accurately incorporating multiple stellar encounters and dynamical relaxation timescales, simulating minihalo orbits in the Galactic potential. Our results show stellar interactions are more destructive than previously estimated, reducing minihalo mass retention at the solar system to ~30%, compared to earlier estimates of ~60%. This enhanced loss arises from cumulative energy injections when relaxation periods between stellar encounters are accounted for. The altered minihalo mass function implies a larger fraction of axion dark matter occupies inter-minihalo space, potentially increasing the local axion density and improving haloscope detection prospects. This work highlights the significance of detailed modeling of stellar disruptions in shaping the axion dark matter distribution.

Recent observations have challenged the long-held opinion that the duration of gamma-ray burst (GRB) prompt emission is determined by the activity epochs of the central engine. Specifically, the observations of GRB 230307A have revealed a different scenario in which the duration of the prompt emission is predominantly governed by the energy dissipation process following a brief initial energy injection from the central engine. In this paper, we explore a mechanism where the energy injection from the central engine initially causes turbulence in a small region and radiates locally. This turbulence then propagates to more distant regions and radiates. Consequently, the emission regions form concentric rings that extend outward. Using an idealized toy model, we show that such a mechanism, initiated by a pulsed energy injection, can produce a prompt emission light curve resembling a single broad pulse exhibiting the typical softer-wider/softer-later feature. Under some parameters, the main characteristics of the GRB 230307A spectra and light curves can be reproduced by the toy model.

The bulk-metallicity determination of giant exoplanets is essential to constrain their formation and evolution pathways and to compare them to the solar system. Previous studies inferred an inverse relation between the mass and bulk metallicity. However, the data almost exclusively contained planets that orbit FGK stars. The recent discoveries of giant exoplanets around M-dwarf stars present an opportunity to probe whether they follow a mass-metallicity trend different from that of their FGK counterparts. Using evolution models we characterised the interiors of giant exoplanets with reliable mass-radius measurements that orbit FGK and M-dwarf stars. We then inferred the mass-metallicity trends for both populations. We found that the bulk metallicity of giant planets around M stars is overall lower compared to those around FGK stars. This yielded mass-metallicity relations for the two populations with similar slopes but significantly different offsets. The lack of metal-rich giant planets around M dwarfs could explain the difference in the inferred offset and be a result of different formation conditions. However, there were only 20 successful bulk-metallicity retrievals for the giant planets around M dwarfs, which resulted in rather large uncertainties. Therefore, it is of great importance to continue detecting these planets with both transit and radial velocities. Additionally, the characterisation of the atmospheres of giant planets around M-stars can further help to constrain their interiors and to investigate the atmosp

In this study we quantitatively examine the manner pulsar wind, supernova ejecta and defunct stellar wind materials distribute and melt together into plerions. We performed 2.5D MHD simulations of the entire evolution of their stellar surroundings and different scenarios are explored, whether the star dies as a red supergiant and Wolf Rayet supernova progenitors, and whether it moved with velocity 20 km/s or 40 km/s through the ISM. Within the post explosion, early 10 kyr, the H burning products rich red supergiant wind only mixes by <= 20 per cent, due to its dense circumstellar medium filling the progenitor bow shock trail, still unaffected by the supernova blastwave. Wolf Rayet materials, enhanced in C, N, O elements, distribute circularly for the 35 Mo star moving at 20 km/s and oblongly at higher velocities, mixing efficiently up to 80 per cent. Supernova ejecta, filled with Mg, Si, Ca, Ti and Fe, remain spherical for longer times at 20 km/s but form complex patterns at higher progenitor speeds due to earlier interaction with the bow shock, in which they mix more efficiently. The pulsar wind mixing is more efficient for Wolf Rayet (25 per cent) than red supergiant progenitors (20 per cent). This work reveals that the past evolution of massive stars and their circumstellar environments critically shapes the internal distribution of chemical elements on plerionic supernova remnants, and, therefore, governs the origin of the various emission mechanisms at work therein. This is essential for interpreting multi-frequency observations of atomic and molecular spectral lines, such as in optical, infrared, and soft X rays.

Context. The magneto-thermal instability (MTI) is one of many possible drivers of stratified turbulence in the intracluster medium (ICM) outskirts of galaxy clusters, where the background temperature gradient is aligned with the gravity. This instability occurs because of the fast anisotropic conduction of heat along magnetic field lines; but to what extent it impacts the ICM dynamics, energetics and overall equilibrium is still a matter of debate. Aims. This work aims at understanding MTI turbulence in an astrophysically stratified ICM atmosphere, its saturation mechanism, and its ability to carry energy and to provide non-thermal pressure support. Methods. We perform a series of 2D and 3D numerical simulations of the MTI in global spherical models of stratified ICM, thanks to the finite-volume code IDEFIX, using Braginskii-magnetohydrodynamics. We use volume-, shell-averaged and spectral diagnostics to study the saturation mechanism of the MTI, and its radial transport energy budget. Results. The MTI is found to saturate through a dominant balance between injection and dissipation of available potential energy, which amounts to marginalising the Braginskii heat flux but not the background temperature gradient itself. Accordingly, the strength and injection length of MTI-driven turbulence exhibit clear dependencies on the thermal diffusivity. The MTI drives cluster-size motions with Mach numbers up to $\mathcal{M} \sim 0.3$, even in presence of strong stable entropy stratification. We show that such mildly compressible flows can provide about $\sim 15\%$ of non-thermal pressure support in the outermost ICM regions, and that the convective transport itself is much less efficient than conduction at radially transporting energy. Finally, we show that the MTI saturation can be described by a diffusive mixing-length theory, shedding light on the diffusive buoyant nature of the instability.

In 2023 October-November, the blazar BL Lacertae underwent a very large-amplitude submm outburst. The usual single-zone leptonic model with the lower energy peak of the spectral energy distribution (SED) fit by the synchrotron emission from one distribution of relativistic electrons in the jet and inverse-Compton (IC) scattering of lower energy photons from the synchrotron radiation in the jet itself (synchrotron self-Compton or SSC) or those from the broad line region and torus by the same distribution of electrons cannot satisfactorily fit the broadband SED with simultaneous data at submm--optical--X-ray--GeV energies. Furthermore, simultaneous observations with IXPE indicate the X-ray polarization is undetected. We consider two different synchrotron components, one for the high flux in the submm wavelengths and another for the data at the optical band, which are supposedly due to two separate distributions of electrons. In that case, the optical emission is dominated by the synchrotron radiation from one electron distribution while the X-rays are mostly due to SSC process by another, which may result in low polarization fraction due to the IC scattering. We show that such a model can fit the broadband SED satisfactorily as well as explain the low polarization fraction at the X-rays.

Foundation models have demonstrated remarkable success across various scientific domains, motivating our exploration of their potential in solar physics. In this paper, we present Solaris, the first foundation model for forecasting the Sun's atmosphere. We leverage 13 years of full-disk, multi-wavelength solar imagery from the Solar Dynamics Observatory, spanning a complete solar cycle, to pre-train Solaris for 12-hour interval forecasting. Solaris is built on a large-scale 3D Swin Transformer architecture with 109 million parameters. We demonstrate Solaris' ability to generalize by fine-tuning on a low-data regime using a single wavelength (1700 Å), that was not included in pre-training, outperforming models trained from scratch on this specific wavelength. Our results indicate that Solaris can effectively capture the complex dynamics of the solar atmosphere and transform solar forecasting.

We present the results of the optical monitoring of 18 southern blazars in the V and R Johnson-Cousins bands. Our main objective is to study the variations in the optical flux and theis relationship with the colour and spectral variabilities. The optical observations were acquired with the 2.15 m "Jorge Sahade" telescope, CASLEO, this http URL whole campaign comprised from 2014 April to 2019 September. In addition, X-ray data were taken from the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Swift/XRT databases, and gamma-ray data were taken from the Fermi-Large Area Telescope 3FGL catalogue. From the total of 18 blazars, we found variability in each one of the time-scales considired for 6 blazars (PKS 0208-512, PKS 1116-46, PKS 1440-389, PKS 1510-089, PKS 2005-489, and PKS 2155-304). In particular, from the colour-magnitude and the multiwavelength analysis, we found that PKS 1510-089 (flat-spectrum radio quasar) is undergoing an activity phase. For the case of PKS 2005-489 (BL Lac), this blazar is in a quiescent state, in which it has been for more than a decade, and it is compatible with its bluer-when-brighter moderate tendency, possibly due to the presence of shocks within the jet.

Context. Spider pulsars are millisecond pulsars in tight binary systems, in which a low-mass companion star is heated and ablated by the pulsar wind. Their observations allow one to study stellar evolution with formation of millisecond pulsars and physics of superdense matter in neutron stars. However, spiders are rare due to difficulties of their discovery using typical radio search techniques. The Fermi $\gamma$-ray source 4FGL J1544.2$-$2554 was recently proposed as a pulsar candidate, and its likely X-ray and optical counterparts with the galactic coordinates $l\approx344.\!\!^\circ76$, $b\approx22.\!\!^\circ59$ and the magnitude $G\approx20.6$ were found using the eROSITA and Gaia surveys. Aims. Our goals are to study whether the source is a new spider pulsar and to estimate its fundamental parameters. Methods. We performed the first optical time-series multi-band photometry of the object. We used the Lomb-Scargle periodogram to search for its brightness periodicity and fitted its light curves with a model of direct heating of the binary companion by the pulsar wind. Results. The source shows a strong brightness variability with a period of $\approx$ 2.724 h and an amplitude of $\gtrsim$ 2.5 mag, and its light curves have a single broad peak per period. These features are typical for spider pulsars. The curves are well fitted by the direct heating model, resulting in an orbit inclination of the presumed spider system of $\approx 83^\circ$, a companion mass of $\approx 0.1$ M$_\odot$, its ''day-side'' and ''night-side'' temperatures of $\approx 7200$ K and $\approx 3000$ K, a Roche-lobe filling factor of $\approx 0.65$ and a distance of $\approx 2.1$ kpc. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that 4FGL J1544.2$-$2554 is a spider pulsar. This encourages searches for the pulsar millisecond pulsations in the radio and $\gamma$-rays to confirm its nature.

Comets offer valuable insights into the early Solar System's conditions and processes. Stellar occultations enables detailed study of cometary nuclei typically hidden by their coma. Observing the star's light passing through the coma helps infer dust's optical depth near the nucleus and determine dust opacity detection limits. 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1, a Centaur with a diameter of approximately 60 km, lies in a region transitioning from Centaurs to Jupiter-Family comets. Our study presents the first-ever observed occultation by 29P, allowing in the future a more refined orbit and thus better predictions for other occultations. The light curve reveals a solid-body detection lasting $3.65\pm0.05$ seconds, corresponding to a chord length of approximately 54 km. This provides a lower limit for the object's radius, measured at $27.0\pm0.7$ km. We identified features on both sides of the main-body occultation around 1,700 km from the nucleus in the sky plane for which upper limits on apparent opacity and equivalent width were determined. Gradual dimming within 23 km of the nucleus during ingress only is interpreted as a localised dust cloud/jet above the surface, with an optical depth of approximately $\tau \sim 0.18$.

We study in detail the fully inhomogeneous non-linear dynamics of axion inflation, identifying three regimes: weak-, mild-, and strong-backreaction, depending on the duration of inflation. We use lattice techniques that explicitly preserve gauge invariance and shift symmetry, and which we validate against other computational methods of the linear dynamics and of the homogeneous backreaction regime. Notably, we demonstrate that the latter fails to accurately describe the truly local dynamics of strong backreaction. We investigate the convergence of simulations of local backreaction, determining the requirements to achieve an accurate description of the dynamics, and providing useful parametrizations of the delay of the end of inflation. Additionally, we identify key features emerging from a proper local treatment of strong backreaction: the dominance of magnetic energy against the electric counterpart, the excitation of the longitudinal mode, and the generation of a scale-dependent chiral (im)balance. Our results underscore the necessity to accurately capture the local nature of the non-linear dynamics of the system, in order to correctly assess phenomenological predictions, such as e.g. the production of gravitational waves and primordial black holes.

The processes driving the formation and evolution of late-type galaxies (LTGs) continue to be a debated subject in extragalactic astronomy. Investigating stellar kinematics, especially when combined with age estimates, provides crucial insights into the formation and subsequent development of galactic discs. Post-processing of exceptionally high-quality Integral Field Spectroscopy (IFS) data of NGC 4030 acquired with the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE), clearly reveals a striking grand design spiral pattern in the velocity dispersion map not previously detected in other galaxies. This pattern spatially correlates with HII regions, suggesting that stars currently being born exhibit lower velocity dispersion as compared to surrounding areas where star formation (SF) is less active. We examine the age-velocity relation (AVR) and propose that its configuration might be shaped by a combination of heating mechanisms, seemingly consistent with findings from recent high-resolution cosmological zoom-in simulations. The complex structure of the uncovered AVR of NGC 4030 support the hypothesis that stellar populations initially inherit the velocity dispersion {\sigma} of the progenitor cold molecular gas, which depends on formation time and galactocentric distance, subsequently experiencing kinematic heating by cumulative gravitational interactions during their lifetime. While advancing our understanding of the AVR, these findings offer a new framework for investigating disk heating mechanisms, and their role in the evolution of galactic disks.

Supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei (AGNs) launch relativistic jets that shine through the entire electromagnetic spectrum. Blazars are a subclass of AGN where non-thermal radiation from the jet is strongly beamed, as the jet is directed nearly toward the observer. Multifrequency polarimetry is emerging as a powerful probe of blazar jets, especially with the advent of the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) space observatory. IXPE mostly targeted high synchrotron peaked (HSP) blazars, where both optical and X-ray emission can be attributed to synchrotron radiation from a population of non-thermal electrons. Observations of HSP blazars show that the polarization degree is strongly chromatic ($\Pi_{\rm X}/\Pi_{\rm O} \sim 2-7$), whereas the electric vector position angle (EVPA) is nearly independent of the observed frequency ($\Psi_{\rm X}\simeq\Psi_{\rm O}$). The strong chromaticity of the polarization degree was interpreted as an evidence that non-thermal electrons are accelerated by shocks. We present an alternative scenario that naturally explains IXPE observations. We study the polarization of synchrotron radiation from stationary axisymmetric jets viewed nearly on-axis. We show that the polarization degree increases significantly at high photon frequencies, as the distribution of the emitting electrons becomes softer, whereas the EVPA is nearly constant. The chromaticity of the polarization degree is much stronger in axisymmetric jets than in the case of a uniform magnetic field. Our results show that the topology of the electromagnetic fields is key to interpret multifrequency polarimetric observations of blazar jets. On the other hand, these observations may be less sensitive than previously thought to the specific particle acceleration process (e.g., shocks or magnetic reconnection).

The frozen-field hydrodynamic (ffHD) model is a simplification of the full magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) equations under the assumption of a rigid magnetic field, which significantly reduces computational complexity and enhances efficiency. In this work, we combine the ffHD prescription with hyperbolic thermal conduction (TC) and the Transition Region Adaptive Conduction (TRAC) method to achieve further optimization. A series of two-dimensional tests are done to evaluate the performance of the hyperbolic TC and the TRAC method. The results indicate that hyperbolic TC, while showing limiter-affected numerical dissipation, delivers outcomes comparable to classic parabolic TC. The TRAC method effectively compensates for the underestimation of enthalpy flux in low-resolution simulations, as evaluated on tests that demonstrate prominence formation. We present an application of the ffHD model that forms a three-dimensional prominence embedded in a magnetic flux rope, which develops into a stable slab-like filament. The simulation reveals a prominence with an elongated spine and a width consistent with observations, highlighting the potential of the ffHD model in capturing the dynamics of solar prominences. Forward modeling of the simulation data produces synthetic images at various wavelengths, providing insights into the appearance of prominences and filaments in different observational contexts. The ffHD model, with its computational efficiency and the demonstrated capability to simulate complex solar phenomena, offers a valuable tool for solar physicists, and is implemented in the open-source MPI-AMRVAC framework.

The origin(s) of Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs), mysterious radio bursts coming from extragalactic distances, remains unknown. Multi-wavelength observations are arguably the only way to answer this question unambiguously. We attempt to detect hard X-ray/soft gamma-ray counterparts to one of the most active FRB sources, FRB20121102, as well as improve understanding of burst properties in radio through a long-term monitoring campaign using the Nançay Radio Telescope (NRT). Multi-wavelength campaigns involving the International Gamma-ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL) satellite, the Nançay Radio Observatory, the optical telescopes at the Observatoire de Haute Provence as well as Arecibo were conducted between 2017 and 2019. In 2017, the telescopes were scheduled to observe simultaneously between Sept 24-29. We specifically used the Fast Response Enhanced CCDs for the optical observations to ensure a high time resolution. In 2019, we changed the strategy to instead conduct ToO observations on INTEGRAL and other available facilities upon positive detection triggers from the NRT. In the 2017 campaign, FRB20121102 was not in its burst activity window. We obtain a 5-sigma optical flux limit of 12 mJy ms using the GASP and a 3-sigma limit from OHP T120cm R-band image of R=22.2 mag of any potential persistent emission not associated to radio bursts. In the 2019 campaign, we have simultaneous INTEGRAL data with 11 radio bursts from the NRT and Arecibo. We obtain a 5-sigma upper limit of 2.7e-7 erg/cm2 in the 25-400 keV energy range for contemporary radio and high energy bursts, and a 5-sigma upper limit of 3.8e-11 erg/cm2 for permanent emission in the 25-100 keV energy range. In addition, we report on the regular observations from NRT between 2016-2020, which accounts for 119 additional radio bursts from FRB20121102. We present an updated fit of the periodic active window of 154+/-2 days.

This paper presents Taylor expansions for the imaging and timing characteristics of spherical optical systems with infinitesimal mirror facets, sometimes referred to as ''modified Davies-Cotton'' telescopes. Such a system comprises a discontinuous spherical mirror surface whose curvature radius is different from its focal length, and whose mirrors are aligned to suppress spherical aberration. Configurations that range between two ''optima'' are, one of which minimises tangential comatic aberration and the other that minimises timing dispersion.

Wide-field cosmological surveys provide hundreds of thousands of spectroscopically confirmed galaxy groups and clusters, valuable for tracing baryonic matter distribution. However, controlling systematics in identifying host dark matter halos and estimating their properties is crucial. We evaluate three group detection methods on a simulated dataset replicating the GAMA selection to understand systematics and selection effects. This is key for interpreting data from SDSS, GAMA, DESI, WAVES, and leveraging optical catalogues in the (X-ray) eROSITA era to quantify baryonic mass in galaxy groups. Using a lightcone from the Magneticum hydrodynamical simulation, we simulate a spectroscopic galaxy survey in the local Universe (down to $z<0.2$ and stellar mass completeness $M_{\star}\geq10^{9.8} M_{\odot}$). We assess completeness and contamination of reconstructed halo catalogues, evaluate membership accuracy, and analyse the halo mass recovery rate of group finders. All three group finders achieve high completeness ($>80\%$) at group and cluster scales, confirming optical selection's suitability for dense regions. Contamination at low masses ($M_{200}<10^{13} M_{\odot}$) arises from interlopers and fragmentation. Membership is at least 70\% accurate above the group mass scale, but inaccuracies bias halo mass estimates using galaxy velocity dispersion. Alternative proxies, like total stellar luminosity or mass, yield more accurate halo masses. The cumulative luminosity function of galaxy members matches predictions, showing the group finders' accuracy in identifying galaxy populations. These results confirm the reliability and completeness of spectroscopic catalogues produced by state-of-the-art group finders. This supports studies requiring large spectroscopic samples of galaxy groups and clusters, as well as investigations into galaxy evolution across diverse environments.

How Supernova Remnant (SNR) shocks impact nearby molecular clouds is still poorly observationally constrained. It is unclear if SNRs can positively or negatively affect clouds star formation potential. We have studied the dense gas morphology and kinematics toward the Infrared Dark Cloud (IRDC) G034.77-00.55, shock-interacting with the SNR W44, to identify evidence of early stage star formation induced by the shock. We have used high-angular resolution N2H+(1-0) images across G034.77-00.55, obtained with ALMA. N2H+ is a well known tracer of dense and cold material, optimal to identify gas with the highest potential to harbour star formation. The N2H+ emission is distributed into two elongated structures, one toward the dense ridge at the edge of the source and one toward the inner cloud. Both elongations are spatially associated with well-defined mass-surface density features. The velocities of the gas in the two structures i.e., 38-41 km s-1 and 41-43 km s-1 are consistent with the lowest velocities of the J- and C-type parts of the SNR-driven shock, respectively. A third velocity component is present at 43-45.5 km s-1. The dense gas shows a fragmented morphology with core-like fragments of scales consistent with the Jeans lengths, masses $\sim$1-20 M$_{\odot}$, densities (n(H$_2$)$\geq$10$^5$ cm$^{-3}$) sufficient to host star formation in free-fall time scales (few 10$^4$ yr) and with virial parameters that hint toward possible collapse. The W44 driven shock may have swept up the encountered material which is now seen as a dense ridge, almost detached from the main cloud, and an elongation within the inner cloud, well constrained in both N2H+ emission and mass surface density. This shock compressed material may have then fragmented into cores that are either in a starless or pre-stellar stage. Additional observations are needed to confirm this scenario and the nature of the cores.

In sunspot umbrae, the core of some chromospheric lines exhibits periodic brightness enhancements known as umbral flashes. The consensus is that they are produced by the upward propagation of shock waves. This view has recently been challenged by the detection of downflowing umbral flashes and the confirmation of the existence of a resonant cavity above sunspots. We aim to determine waves' propagating or standing nature in the low umbral chromosphere and confirm or refute the existence of downflowing umbral flashes. Spectroscopic temporal series of Ca II 8542 Å, Ca II H, and Halpha in a sunspot were acquired with the Swedish Solar Telescope. The Halpha velocity was inferred using bisectors. Simultaneous inversions of the Ca II 8542 Å line and the Ca II H core were performed using the NICOLE code. The nature of the oscillations and insights into the resonant oscillatory pattern were determined by analyzing the phase shift between the velocity signals and examining the temporal evolution. Propagating waves in the low chromosphere are more common in regions with frequent umbral flashes, where the transition region is shifted upward, making resonant cavity signatures less noticeable. In contrast, areas with fewer umbral flashes show velocity fluctuations that align with standing oscillations. Evidence suggests dynamic changes in the location of velocity resonant nodes due to variations in transition region height. Downflowing profiles appear at the onset of some umbral flashes, but upflowing motion dominates during most of the flash. These downflowing flashes are more common in standing umbral flashes. We confirm the existence of a chromospheric resonant cavity above sunspot umbrae produced by wave reflections at the transition region. The oscillatory pattern depends on the transition region height, which exhibits spatial and temporal variations due to the impact of the waves.

We present a simple web-based tool, STDWeb, for a quick-look photometry and transient detection in astronomical images. It tries to implement a self-consistent and mostly automatic data analysis workflow that would work on any image uploaded to it, allowing to perform basic interactive masking, do object detection, astrometrically calibrate the image, and build the photometric solution based on a selection of catalogues and supported filters, optionally including the color term and positionally varying zero point. It also allows you to do image subtraction using either user-provided or automatically downloaded template images, and do a forced photometry for a specified target in either original or difference images, as well as transient detection with basic rejection of artefacts. The tool may be easily deployed allowing its integration into the infrastructure of robotic telescopes or data archives for effortless analysis of their images.

In recent years, intensity interferometry has been successfully applied to the Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes H.E.S.S. , MAGIC, and VERITAS. All three telescope systems have proven the feasibility and capability of this method. After our first campaign in 2022, when two of the H.E.S.S. telescopes in Namibia were equipped with our external setup and the angular diameter of two stars was measured, our setup was upgraded for a second campaign in 2023, where the goal is to perform simultaneous two colour measurements. The second campaign not only involves a third equipped telescope, but also each mechanical setup now includes two interference filters at two different wavelengths (375 nm and 470 nm) with a broader bandwidth of 10 nm. This enables having simultaneous two colour measurements, which yields information about the star's physical size at different wavelengths. This is the first time that simultaneous dual-waveband intensity interferometry measurements are performed. The angular diameter results of the 4 stars, Mimosa (beta Cru), Eta Centauri (eta Cen), Nunki (sigma Sgr) and Dschubba (delta Sco), are reported, where the effects of limb darkening are also taken into account.

In this paper, the first in a series, we present a new theoretical model for the global structure and dissipation of relativistically magnetized collisionless shock waves. Quite remarkably, we find that in contrast to unmagnetized shocks, energy dissipation does not involve collective plasma interactions. Rather, it is a consequence of nonlinear particle dynamics. We demonstrate that the kinetic-scale shock transition can be modeled as a stationary system consisting of a large set of cold beams coupled through the magnetic field. The fundamental mechanism governing shock dissipation relies on the onset of chaos in orbital dynamics within quasiperiodic solitonic structures. We discuss the impact of upstream temperature and magnetization on the shock profile, recovering the magnetic field compression, downstream velocities, and heating expected from the Rankine-Hugoniot jump conditions. We deduce a rate of entropy generation from the spectrum of Lyapunov exponents and discuss the thermalization of the beam distribution. Our model provides a general framework to study magnetized collisionless shock structures.

The cosmic large scale structure encodes the formation and evolution of a weblike network of dark matter and galaxies within the Universe. The cosmological information is wrapped up in non-Gaussian statistics requiring characterisation beyond two-point correlations. Accurate modelling of these non-Gaussian statistics and the underlying non-linear dynamics of gravitational collapse are key to extracting maximal information from ongoing and upcoming cosmological surveys. This thesis centres on questions relating to clustering statistics, dynamics, and fundamental physics: A. How can we efficiently characterise the statistics of the late time matter field? B. How can we capture the non-linear phase-space dynamics of gravitational collapse? C. How do changes to fundamental physics impact those clustering statistics and dynamics? Specifically we present four aspects addressing these questions: 1. We demonstrate the probability distribution function (PDF) of the matter density can be accurately predicted in modified gravity and dynamical dark energy models, and that it provides good complementarity to standard two-point analyses for detecting these features. 2. We demonstrate the joint PDF of densities in two cells can be used to predict the covariance of the one-point PDF in simple clustering models, providing estimates of the density dependent clustering and super-sample covariance missed in cosmological simulations. 3. We use a wave-based forward model of dark matter to demonstrate its capability to encode the full phase-space dynamics beyond a perfect fluid and determine certain universal scaling features in such models. 4. Using the wave dark matter forward model we analyse one-point statistics to complement existing analytic and numerical approaches in studying fundamentally wavelike dark matter.

We investigate whether the Pre-Big Bang (PBB) scenario from string cosmology can explain the stochastic gravitational wave background signal reported in the NANOGrav 15-year dataset. Using Bayesian analysis techniques, we constrain the key parameters of the PBB model by comparing its theoretical predictions with the observed data. Our analysis yields $\beta = 3.2^{+0.2}_{-0.1}$ ($90\%$ credible interval) for the dilaton-dynamics parameter, which significantly exceeds the theoretically allowed range of $0 \leq \beta < 3$ at the $5\sigma$ level. Additionally, model comparison strongly favors a simple power-law spectrum over the PBB scenario, with a Bayes factor of approximately $106$. These results demonstrate that the PBB scenario, in its current formulation, cannot adequately explain the NANOGrav observations, highlighting the need for either significant modifications to the model or alternative explanations for the observed signal.

Solar energetic particles (SEPs) associated with shocks driven by fast coronal mass ejections (CMEs) or shocks developed by corotating interaction regions (CIRs) often extend to high energies, and are thus key elements of space weather. The PUNCH mission, set to be launched in 2025, is equipped with photometric that enables 3D tracking of solar wind structures in the interplanetary space through polarized light. Tracking techniques are used to estimate speeds and speed gradients of solar structures, including speed jumps at fast shocks. We report on a strong and a robust relation between the shock speed jump magnitude at CME and CIR shocks and the peak fluxes of associated energetic particles from the analysis of 59 CME-driven shocks and 74 CIRs observed by Wind/STEP between 1997-2023. We demonstrate that this relation, along with PUNCH anticipated observations of solar structures can be used to forecast shock-associated particle events close to the Sun; thus, advancing and providing a crucial input to forecasting of SEP fluxes in the heliosphere.

The solar wind, classified by its bulk speed and the Alfvénic nature of its fluctuations, generates the heliosphere. The elusive physical processes responsible for the generation of the different types of the wind are a topic of active debate. Recent observations revealed intermittent jets with kinetic energy in the picoflare range, emerging from dark areas of a polar coronal hole threaded by open magnetic field lines. These could substantially contribute to the solar wind. However, their ubiquity and direct links to the solar wind have not been established. Here we report a unique set of remote-sensing and in-situ observations from the Solar Orbiter spacecraft, that establish a unified picture of the fast and Alfvénic slow wind, connected to the similar widespread picoflare jet activity in two coronal holes. Radial expansion of coronal holes ultimately regulates the speed of the emerging wind.

Stars and gaseous planets are magnetised objects but the influence of magnetic fields on their tidal responses and dissipation rates has not been well explored. We present the first exploratory nonlinear magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of tidally-excited waves in incompressible convective envelopes harbouring an initial dipolar magnetic field. Simulations with weak magnetic fields exhibit tidally-generated differential rotation in the form of zonal flows (like in the purely hydrodynamic case) that can modify tidal dissipation rates from prior linear predictions. Moreover, tidal waves and zonal flows affect the amplitude and structure of the magnetic field, notably through creation of toroidal fields via the $\Omega$-effect. In contrast, simulations with strong magnetic fields feature severely inhibited zonal flows, due to large-scale magnetic stresses, excitation of torsional waves, or magnetic instabilities. We predict that the different regimes observed for weak and strong magnetic fields may be both relevant for low-mass stars when using turbulent values of the magnetic Prandtl number.

Hydrodynamical simulation predictions are often compared with observational data without fully accounting for systematics and biases specific to observational techniques. Using the magnetohydrodynamical simulation Magneticum, we generate mock eROSITA eRASS:4 data, combined with GAMA-like spectroscopic surveys and optically selected galaxy catalogs from the same light-cone, to analyze hot gas properties in galaxy groups via a stacking technique. This study aims to (i) incorporate observational systematics into predictions and (ii) evaluate the reliability of stacking techniques for determining average X-ray properties of galaxy groups. Our analysis provides X-ray emission predictions from Magneticum, including contributions from AGN, X-ray binaries (XRBs), and the Intra-Group Medium (IGM) as a function of halo mass, covering Milky Way (MW)-like groups to poor clusters. We find that AGN and XRBs dominate the X-ray surface brightness profiles of low-mass halos. The reliability of stacking techniques is tested by reproducing input X-ray surface brightness and electron density profiles, accounting for completeness and contamination of prior samples, miscentering of optical group centers, uncertainties in X-ray emissivity due to gas temperature and metallicity assumption, and systematics in halo mass proxies. The halo mass proxy emerges as the primary source of systematics, affecting X-ray surface brightness and scaling relations. We show that stacked X-ray luminosity-mass relations are flatter than input relations but consistent with observations. Additionally, the retrieved hot gas fraction-mass relation aligns well with observational data. These results highlight the need to account for systematic errors when comparing stacking techniques to other methods using different prior catalogs or predictions.

By using eROSITA data in the eFEDS area, we provide a measure of the hot gas fraction vs. halo mass relation over the largest halo mass range, from Milky Way-sized halos to massive clusters, and to the largest radii ever probed so far in local systems. To cope with the incompleteness and selection biases of the X-ray selection, we apply the stacking technique in eROSITA data of a highly complete and tested sample of optically selected groups. The method has been extensively tested on mock observations. In massive clusters, the hot gas alone provides a baryon budget within $R_{200}$ consistent with the cosmic value. At the same time, at the group mass scale, it accounts only for 20-40% of it. The hot gas fraction vs. halo mass relation is well-fitted by a power law, with a consistent shape and a normalization varying at maximum by a factor of 2 from $r_{500}$ to $r_{200}$. Such a relation is consistent with other works in the literature that consider X-ray survey data at the same depth as eFEDS. However, it provides a lower average gas fraction in the group regime than works based on X-ray bright group samples. The comparison of the observed relation with the predictions of several hydrodynamical simulations (BAHAMAS, FLAMINGO, SIMBA, Illustris, IllustrisTNG, MillenniumTNG, and Magneticum) shows that all simulations but Magneticum and SIMBA overpredict the gas fraction, with the largest discrepancy (up to a factor of 3) in the massive group-poor cluster halo mass range. We emphasize the need for mechanisms that can effectively expel gas to larger radii in galaxy groups without excessively quenching star formation in their member galaxies. Current hydrodynamical simulations face a significant challenge in balancing their subgrid physics: none can sufficiently evacuate gas from the halo virial region without negatively impacting the properties of the resident galaxy population.

The search for radio technosignatures is an anomaly detection problem: candidate signals represent needles of interest in the proverbial haystack of radio-frequency interference (RFI). Current search frameworks find an enormity of false-positive signals, especially in large surveys, requiring manual follow-up to a sometimes prohibitive degree. Unsupervised learning provides an algorithmic way to winnow the most anomalous signals from the chaff, as well as group together RFI signals that bear morphological similarities. We present GLOBULAR (Grouping Low-frequency Observations By Unsupervised Learning After Reduction) clustering, a signal processing method that uses HDBSCAN to reduce the false-positive rate and isolate outlier signals for further analysis. When combined with a standard narrowband signal detection and spatial filtering pipeline, such as turboSETI, GLOBULAR clustering offers significant improvements in the false-positive rate over the standard pipeline alone, suggesting dramatic potential for the amelioration of manual follow-up requirements for future large surveys. By removing RFI signals in regions of high spectral occupancy, GLOBULAR clustering may also enable the detection of signals missed by the standard pipeline. We benchmark our method against the Choza et al. (2024) turboSETI-only search of 97 nearby galaxies at L-band, demonstrating a false-positive hit reduction rate of 93.1% and a false-positive event reduction rate of 99.3%.

Water-Cherenkov-based observatories form the high-duty-cycle and wide field of view backbone for observations of the gamma-ray sky at very high energies. For gamma-ray observations, precise event reconstruction and highly effective background rejection are crucial and have been continuously improving in recent years. In this work, we propose a deep learning application based on graph neural networks (GNNs) for background rejection and energy reconstruction and compare it to state-of-the-art approaches. We find that GNNs outperform hand-designed classification algorithms and observables in background rejection and find an improved energy resolution compared to template-based methods.

Isolated planetary-mass objects share their mass range with planets but do not orbit a star. They lack the necessary mass to support fusion in their cores and thermally radiate their heat from formation as they cool, primarily at infrared wavelengths. Many isolated planetary-mass objects show variations in their infrared brightness consistent with non-uniform atmospheric features modulated by their rotation. SIMP J013656.5+093347.3 is a rapidly rotating isolated planetary-mass object, and previous infrared monitoring suggests complex atmospheric features rotating in and out of view. The physical nature of these features is not well understood, with clouds, temperature variations, thermochemical instabilities, and infrared-emitting aurora all proposed as contributing mechanisms. Here we report JWST time-resolved low-resolution spectroscopy from 0.8 - 11 micron of SIMP J013656.5+093347.3 which supports the presence of three specific features in the atmosphere: clouds, hot spots, and changing carbon chemistry. We show that no single mechanism can explain the variations in the time-resolved spectra. When combined with previous studies of this object indicating patchy clouds and aurorae, these measurements reveal the rich complexity of the atmosphere of SIMP J013656.5+093347.3. Gas giant planets in the solar system, specifically Jupiter and Saturn, also have multiple cloud layers and high-altitude hot spots, suggesting these phenomena are also present in worlds both within and beyond our solar-system.

We investigate the hydrodynamic solutions for expanding bubbles in cosmological first-order phase transitions going beyond local thermal equilibrium approximation. Under the assumption of a tangenosidal field profile, we supplement the matching conditions with the entropy produced due to the interaction of the bubble wall with ambient plasma. This allows us to analytically compute the corresponding fluid profiles and find bubble-wall velocity. We show that due to the entropy production, two stable solutions corresponding to a deflagration or hybrid and a detonation can coexist. Finally, we use numerical real-time simulations of bubble growth to show that in such cases it is typically the faster detonation solution which is realised. This effect can be explained in terms of the fluid profile not being fully formed into the predicted steady-state solution as the wall accelerates past this slower solution.

Recently, a class of long-period radio transients (LPTs) has been discovered, exhibiting emission on timescales thousands of times longer than radio pulsars. Several models had been proposed implicating either a strong magnetic field neutron star, isolated white dwarf pulsar, or a white dwarf binary system with a low-mass companion. While several models for LPTs also predict X-ray emission, no LPTs have been detected in X-rays despite extensive searches. Here we report the discovery of an extremely bright LPT (10-20 Jy in radio), ASKAP J1832-0911, which has coincident radio and X-ray emission, both with a 44.2-minute period. The X-ray and radio luminosities are correlated and vary by several orders of magnitude. These properties are unique amongst known Galactic objects and require a new explanation. We consider a $\gtrsim0.5$ Myr old magnetar with a $\gtrsim 10^{13}$ G crustal field, or an extremely magnetised white dwarf in a binary system with a dwarf companion, to be plausible explanations for ASKAP J1832-0911, although both explanations pose significant challenges to formation and emission theories. The X-ray detection also establishes a new class of hour-scale periodic X-ray transients of luminosity $10^{33}$ erg/s associated with exceptionally bright coherent radio emission.

The chemical enrichment in low-ionization nuclear emission-line regions (LINERs) is still an issue with spatial resolution spectroscopic data due to the lack of studies and the uncertainties in the nature of their ionizing source, despite being the most abundant type of active galaxies in the nearby Universe. Considering different scenarios for the ionizing source (hot old stellar populations, active galactic nuclei (AGN) or inefficient accretion disks), we analyze the implications of these assumptions to constrain the chemical content of the gas-phase interstellar medium (ISM). We used a sample of 105 galaxies from Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey, whose nuclear central spaxels show LINER-like emission. For each scenario considered, we built a grid of photoionization models (4928 models for each considered ionizing source) which are later used in the open-source code HII-CHI-Mistry, allowing us to estimate chemical abundance ratios such as 12+log(O/H) or log(N/O) and constrain the ionization parameter that characterize the ionized ISM in those galaxies. We obtain that oxygen abundances in the nuclear region of LINER-like galaxies spread over a wide range 8.08 < 12+log(O/H) < 8.89, with a median solar value (in agreement with previous studies) if AGN models are considered. Nevertheless, the derived nitrogen-to-oxygen ratio is much less affected by the assumptions on the ionizing source, and point towards suprasolar values (log(N/O) = -0.69). By comparing the different analyzed scenarios, we show that if hot old stellar populations were responsible of the ionization of the ISM a complex picture (such as outflows and/or inflows scaling with galaxy chemical abundance) would be needed to explain the chemical enrichment history, whereas the assumption of AGN activity is compatible with the standard scenario found in most galaxies.

Radio galaxies have long been considered as potential sources of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). Recent analyses of the UHECR spectrum, composition, and arrival directions indicate that the nearest radio galaxy, Centaurus A, could be linked to the reported dipole anisotropy, though the mechanism underlying the acceleration remains elusive. In this Letter, we explore UHECR acceleration in the kiloparsec-scale jets of radio galaxies, exemplified by Centaurus A. Using high-resolution relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic and test-particle simulations without sub-grid physics, we investigate the acceleration of the highest-energy particles in the turbulent sheath of a fast-moving jet. Our findings demonstrate that acceleration close to the maximum theoretical expectation is possible. When extrapolated to nearby radio galaxies, our results suggest that the kiloparsec-scale jets of Centaurus A could account for the dipole anisotropy in UHECRs, while more potent Fanaroff-Riley type II radio galaxies may account for the observed UHECR spectrum with a rigidity cutoff at a few Exavolts.

We investigate the extent to which modifying the ionization history at cosmological recombination can relieve the Hubble tension, taking into account all relevant datasets and considering the implications for the galaxy clustering parameter $S_8$ and the matter density fraction $\Omega_m$. We use the linear response approximation to systematically search for candidate ionization histories parameterized with a cubic-spline that provide good fits to the Planck CMB and DESI BAO data while relieving the $H_0$ tension, followed by MCMC fits of the most promising candidate models to the data. We also fit to the data a physically motivated phenomenological model of ionization history that has four parameters. Our main result is that models of modified recombination can reduce the Hubble tension to below 2$\sigma$ while improving the fit to the current CMB and BAO data and reducing the $S_8$ tension. The promising candidate ionization histories have simple shapes, with no need for an oscillatory dependence on redshift. Our study also demonstrates the importance of the high-resolution CMB temperature and polarization anisotropies for constraining modified recombination, with the candidate models in this study showing varying levels of agreement with the current ACT DR4 and SPT-3G data.

Context. The accretion of magnetized plasma onto black holes is a complex and dynamic process, where the magnetic field plays a crucial role. The amount of magnetic flux accumulated near the event horizon significantly impacts the accretion flow behavior. Resistivity, a measure of how easily magnetic fields can dissipate, is thought to be a key factor influencing this process. This work explores the influence of resistivity on accretion flow variability. We investigate simulations reaching the magnetically arrested disk (MAD) limit and those with an initial multi-loop magnetic field configuration. Methods. We employ 3D resistive general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations to model the accretion process under various regimes, where resistivity has a global uniform value. Results. Our findings reveal distinct flow behaviors depending on resistivity. High resistivity simulations never achieve the MAD state, indicating a disturbed magnetic flux accumulation process. Conversely, low resistivity simulations converge towards the ideal MHD limit. The key results are: i) For the standard MAD model, resistivity plays a minimal role in flow variability, suggesting that flux eruption events dominate the dynamics. ii) High resistivity simulations exhibit strong magnetic field diffusion into the disk, rearranging efficient magnetic flux accumulation from the accretion flow. iii) In multi-loop simulations, resistivity significantly reduces flow variability, which was not expected. However, magnetic flux accumulation becomes more variable due to frequent reconnection events at very low resistivity values. Conclusions. This study shows that resistivity affects how much the flow is distorted due to magnetic field dissipation. Our findings provide new insights into the interplay between magnetic field accumulation, resistivity, variability and the dynamics of black hole accretion.

Gravitational Wave (GW) detectors routinely encounter transient noise bursts, known as glitches, which are caused by either instrumental or environmental factors. Due to their high occurrence rate, glitches can overlap with GW signals, as in the notable case of GW170817, the first detection of a binary neutron star merger. Accurate reconstruction and subtraction of these glitches is a challenging problem that must be addressed to ensure that scientific conclusions drawn from the data are reliable. This problem will intensify with third-generation observatories like the Einstein Telescope (ET) due to their higher detection rates of GWs and the longer duration of signals within the sensitivity band of the detectors. Robust glitch mitigation algorithms are, therefore, crucial for maximizing the scientific output of next-generation GW observatories. For the first time, we demonstrate how the null stream inherent in ET's unique triangular configuration can be leveraged by state-of-the-art glitch characterization methodology to essentially undo the effect of glitches for the purpose of estimating the parameters of the source. The null stream based approach enables characterization and subtraction of glitches that occur arbitrarily close to the peak of the signal without any significant effect on the quality of parameter measurements, and achieves an order of magnitude computational speed-up compared to when the null stream is not available. By contrast, without the null stream, significant biases can occur in the glitch reconstruction, which deteriorate the quality of subsequent measurements of the source parameters. This demonstrates a clear edge which the null stream can offer for precision GW science in the ET era.

In this paper, we revisit computational methods to obtain an angular profile of optical scattering from a smooth surface, given a two-dimensional map of topographic height errors of the surface. Quick derivations of some traditional equations and relevant references are organized to shorten the search time. A practical data-processing flow of the methods is discussed. As a case study of this flow, the core mirrors of the KAGRA interferometer are examined, and we obtain a representative scattering profile that is easily applicable to ray-tracing simulations.

We investigate a pseudo-Nambu-Goldstone (pNG) dark matter (DM) model based on a gauged $SU(2)_x$ and a global $SU(2)_g$ symmetries. These symmetries are spontaneously broken to a global $U(1)_D$ symmetry by a vacuum expectation value of an $SU(2)_x \times SU(2)_g$ bi-fundamental scalar field. The global $SU(2)_g$ symmetry is also softly broken to a global $U(1)_D$ symmetry. Under the setup, a complex pNG boson arises. It is stabilized by $U(1)_D$ and is a DM candidate. Its scattering cross section off a nucleon is highly suppressed by small momentum transfer and thus evades the stringent constraints from DM direct detection experiments. Assuming all the couplings in the dark sector are real, a discrete symmetry arises. Consequently, in addition to the pNG DM, the lighter one of an $SU(2)_x$ gauge boson $V^0$ and a CP-odd scalar boson $a_0$ from the bi-fundamental scalar field can also serve as a DM candidate. Therefore, the model provides two-component DM scenarios. We find that the relic abundance of the DM candidates explains the measured value of the DM energy density. We also find that the pNG DM is the dominant DM component in large regions of the parameter space. In contrast to the pNG DM, both $V^0$ and $a_0$ scatter off a nucleon, and their scattering cross sections are not suppressed. However, their scattering event rates are suppressed by their number densities. Thus, the scattering cross section is effectively reduced. We show that the effective WIMP-nucleon scattering cross sections in the two-component scenarios are smaller than the current upper bounds and above the neutrino fog.

According to the Schrödinger-Poisson equations, fuzzy dark matter (FDM) can form a stable equilibrium configuration, the so-called FDM soliton. In principle, given the FDM particle mass, the profile of FDM soliton is fixed. In practice, however, there is a great diversity of structures in the Universe. In this paper, we enumerate some possible causes of such diversity, such as the effects of the gravitoelectric field, the gravitomagnetic field, an extra denser and compact FDM soliton and an ellipsoidal baryon background. And we find that the effects of the gravitomagnetic field are very weak but the effects of the others are considerable.

The molecular anion C$_2^-$ has been of interest in the last few years as a candidate for laser cooling due to its electronic structure and favourable branching ratios to the ground electronic and vibrational state. Molecular hydrogen has been used by the Wester group in Innsbruck as a buffer gas to cool the molecule's internal ro-vibrational motion. In the present work, we generate a new, five dimensional (5D) interaction potential for the system by considering the H$_2$ as a rigid rotor and the C$_2^-$ as a rotating-vibrating diatomic molecule. We thereafter calculate the cross sections and rate coefficients for ro-vibrational inelastic collisions of C$_2^-$ with both para- and ortho-H$_2$ on this new 5D \textit{ab initio} potential energy surface using quantum scattering theory for the dynamics. The rates for vibrational quenching are obtained over the range of temperatures which covers the single value measured by the experiments. A comparison is also made with the earlier results using a simpler 3D interaction potential. Furthermore, para-H$_2$ is found to be more efficient than ortho-H$_2$ (with or without undergoing rotational excitation) in cooling C$_2^-$. The rate coefficients for cooling the anions has been computed by appropriately weighting the ortho- and para-H$_2$ and compared with the available experimental result at 20 K. When the vibrational de-excitation rate coefficients are taken to be the ones not causing any concurrent rotational excitations in the final C$_2^-$ anions, the properly averaged results are found to get smaller and to become very close to the experimental measurements. The implications of these new results for laser cooling of C$_2^-$ are analyzed and discussed.

A large number of R-matrix calculations of electron impact excitation for heavy elements (Z > 70) have been performed in recent years for applications in fusion and astrophysics research. With the expanding interest in heavy ions due to kilonova (KN) events such as AT2017gfo and GRB230307A, this new data can be utilised for the diagnosis and study of observed KN spectra. In this work recently computed electron-impact excitation effective collision strengths are used, for the first three ionisation stages of tungsten (W, Z = 74), platinum (Pt, Z = 78) and gold (Au, Z = 79), to construct basic collisional radiative models tailored for the late stage nebular phases of KN. Line luminosities are calculated at a range of electron temperatures and densities and the strengths of these lines for a representative ion mass are compared. For the case of W III, these optically thin intensities are additionally used to constrain the mass of this ion in both AT2017gfo and GRB230307A. Comparing with theoretical predictions of nucleosynthesis yields from neutron star merger simulations, broad agreement with the inferred ion masses of W is found. Furthermore, we highlight the value of W measurements by showing that the abundance of other groups of elements and outflow properties are constrained by exploiting theoretically motivated correlations between the abundance of W and that of lanthanides or third r-process peak elements.

We derive a general procedure for calculating the gravitational wave background (GWB) from cosmic string loops whose typical shape evolves over time, as in gravitational backreaction. Using the results of a large-scale study of numerical gravitational backreaction on Nambu-Goto cosmic string loops, we construct GWBs of backreacted cosmic strings for a range of tensions and frequencies of cosmological interest, and compare them to current and upcoming gravitational wave detectors. The GWBs are lower than prior predictions by anywhere from a few percent to around 30\%, depending on the frequency and tension in question.