Papers for Monday, Apr 07 2025

Aims: The presence of a Yukawa-like correction to Newtonian gravity is investigated at the Galactic Center, leading to a new upper limit for the intensity of such a correction. Methods: We perform a Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis using the astrometric and spectroscopic data of star S$2$ collected at the Very Large Telescope by GRAVITY, NACO and SINFONI instruments, covering the period from $1992$ to $2022$. Results: The precision of the GRAVITY instrument allows us to derive the most stringent upper limit at the Galactic Center for the intensity of the Yukawa contribution ($\propto \, \alpha e^{- \lambda r}$) to be $|\alpha| < 0.003$ for a scale length $\lambda = 3 \cdot 10^{13}\, \rm m\, (\sim 200 \, \rm AU)$. This improves by roughly one order of magnitude all estimates obtained in previous works.

We present the catalog of RR Lyrae stars observed in the first year of operations of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) survey. This catalog contains 6,240 RR Lyrae stars out to $\sim100$\,kpc from the Galactic center and over 12,000 individual epochs with homogeneously-derived stellar atmospheric parameters. We introduce a novel methodology to model the cyclical variation of the spectroscopic properties of RR Lyrae from single-epoch measurements. We employ this method to infer the radial velocity and effective temperature variation of fundamental mode and first-overtone RR Lyrae stars and to determine their systemic velocities and mean temperatures. For fundamental mode pulsators, we obtain radial velocity curves with amplitudes of $\sim$30--50\,km\,s$^{-1}$ and effective temperature curves with 300--1,000\,K variations, whereas for first-overtone pulsators these amplitudes are $\sim20$\,km\,s$^{-1}$ and $\sim 600$\,K, respectively. We use our sample to study the metallicity distribution of the halo and its dependence on Galactocentric distance ($R_{\rm GC}$). Using a radius-dependent mixture model, we split the data into chemodynamically distinct components and find that our inner halo sample ($R_{\rm GC}\lesssim50$\,kpc) is predominantly composed of stars with [Fe/H] $\sim-1.5$\,dex and largely radial orbits (with an anisotropy parameter $\beta\sim0.94$), that we associate with the Gaia-Sausage-Enceladus merger event. Stars in the outer halo field exhibit a broader and more metal-poor [Fe/H] distribution with more circular orbits ($\beta\sim0.39$). The metallicity gradient of the metal-rich and the metal-poor components is found to be $0.005$ and $0.010$\,dex\,kpc$^{-1}$, respectively. Our catalog highlights DESI's tantalizing potential for studying the Milky Way and the pulsation properties of RR Lyrae stars in the era of large spectroscopic surveys.

Counter-rotating (CR) galaxies consist of two coplanar stellar disks rotating in opposite directions -- the main, pre-existing disk with an older stellar population and a younger CR disk likely formed from externally acquired gas. Such systems offer a unique opportunity to study disk assembly by analyzing the stellar populations of each component. Using integral field spectroscopic data from the SDSS-IV Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey, we identified a sample of 120 CR disk galaxies by inspecting their kinematic maps and analyzing the shape of the stellar line-of-sight velocity distribution (LOSVD), which was recovered non-parametrically. For one-third of our sample, we further derived the ages and metallicities of stars for both disks via a spectral decomposition technique. We show that the observed kinematic bimodality -- where the CR disk is either concentrated in the central region (inner~CR) or dominates the outer part of the galaxy (outer~CR) -- is driven by differences in the stellar mass and angular momentum of the CR disk. The wide range of stellar metallicities observed in CR disks suggests that no single source of external material is solely responsible for CR formation in all galaxies; instead, proposed mechanisms such as merger with gas-rich satellites, accretion from cosmic filaments, and exchange of gas between neighboring galaxies can dominate in individual cases.

Core collapse, a process associated with self-interacting dark matter (SIDM) models, can increase the central density of halos by orders of magnitude with observable consequences for dwarf galaxy properties and gravitational lensing. Resonances in the self-interaction cross section, features of hidden-sector models with light mediators and attractive potentials, can boost the strength of self-interactions near specific relative velocities, accelerating collapse in halos with central velocity dispersions near the resonance. To explore this phenomenon, we present a suite of idealized N-body simulations of isolated halos with masses $10^7$-$10^9 \ \rm{M_\odot}$ evolved under two resonant cross section (RCS) models with localized enhancement to the cross section on scales $v \sim 5$-$50 \ \rm{km} \ \rm{s^{-1}}$. We show that the change in halo internal structure depends on how the velocity distribution of bound particles moves across resonances in the cross section during core formation and collapse. The interplay between the velocity distribution of bound particles and localized features of the cross section causes deviations from self-similar evolution, a characteristic of velocity-independent cross sections, at the level of up to $20\%$. Depending on the alignment with resonant features, halos of different masses reach different evolutionary stages after a fixed physical time and develop diverse density profiles and rotation curves.

We show that perturbative techniques inspired by effective field theory (EFT) can be used to "paint on" the 21~cm field during reionization using only the underlying linear density field. This procedure is accurate to within O(10%) on large scales and thus can be used to enlarge or "supersize" hydrodynamical simulations. In particular, the EFT provides a mapping between the linear density field and a nonlinear tracer field, both in real and redshift space. We show that this mapping can be reliably extracted from relatively small simulation volumes using the THESAN suite of simulations, which have a comoving volume of (95.5 Mpc)^3. Specifically, we show that if we fit the EFT coefficients in a small ~5% sub-volume of the simulation, we can accurately predict the 21cm field in the rest of the simulation given only the linear density field. We show that our technique is robust to different models of dark matter and differences in the sub-grid reionization modeling.

Galaxy merger timescales are crucial for understanding and modeling galaxy formation in our hierarchically structured Universe. However, previous studies have reported widely varying dependencies of merger timescales on initial orbital parameters and mass ratio at the first crossing of $r_{\rm vir}$. Using IllustrisTNG simulations, we find that these dependencies vary with host halo mass, suggesting that discrepancies in prior studies may arise from differences in the systems analyzed. Specifically, in low-mass halos, merger timescales show a stronger dependence on initial orbital parameters, while in high-mass halos, this dependence weakens. To account for these variations, we present a fitting formula that incorporates host mass dependence, achieving a logarithmic scatter smaller than 0.15 dex. Comparing dark matter-only and baryonic simulations, we observe similar merger timescales for circular orbits but notable differences for radial orbits. In halos with $M_{\rm{host}} < 10^{12.5} h^{-1} M_{\odot}$, mergers in dark matter-only runs take longer than in baryonic runs, whereas the trend reverses in more massive halos. We attribute these differences to the competing effects of tidal disruption by central galaxy disks and the resistance of baryonic satellites to tidal stripping. Finally, we extend our model to predict merger timescales from any starting radius within the halo. By fitting the extended model to the entire infall sample, we find that using only the merger sample can underestimate merger timescales, particularly for low mass ratios. Our model provides a valuable tool for improving semi-analytical and empirical models of galaxy formation.

Parity-violating interactions are ubiquitous phenomena in particle physics. If they are significant during cosmic inflation, they can leave imprints on primordial perturbations and be observed in correlation functions of galaxy surveys. Importantly, parity-violating signals in the four-point correlation functions (4PCFs) cannot be generated by Einstein gravity in the late universe on large scales, making them unique and powerful probes of high-energy physics during inflation. However, the complex structure of the 4PCF poses challenges in diagnosing the underlying properties of parity-violating interactions from observational data. In this work, we introduce a general framework that provides a streamlined pipeline directly from a particle model in inflation to galaxy 4PCFs in position space. We demonstrate this framework with a series of toy models, effective-field-theory-like models, and full models featuring tree-level exchange-type processes with chemical-potential-induced parity violation. We further showed the detection sensitivity of these models from BOSS data and highlighted potential challenges in data interpretation and model prediction.

We present new time delays, the main ingredient of time delay cosmography, for 22 lensed quasars resulting from high-cadence r-band monitoring on the 2.6 m ESO VLT Survey Telescope and Max-Planck-Gesellschaft 2.2 m telescope. Each lensed quasar was typically monitored for one to four seasons, often shared between the two telescopes to mitigate the interruptions forced by the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample of targets consists of 19 quadruply and 3 doubly imaged quasars, which received a total of 1 918 hours of on-sky time split into 21 581 wide-field frames, each 320 seconds long. In a given field, the 5-{\sigma} depth of the combined exposures typically reaches the 27th magnitude, while that of single visits is 24.5 mag - similar to the expected depth of the upcoming Vera-Rubin LSST. The fluxes of the different lensed images of the targets were reliably de-blended, providing not only light curves with photometric precision down to the photon noise limit, but also high-resolution models of the targets whose features and astrometry were systematically confirmed in Hubble Space Telescope imaging. This was made possible thanks to a new photometric pipeline, lightcurver, and the forward modelling method STARRED. Finally, the time delays between pairs of curves and their uncertainties were estimated, taking into account the degeneracy due to microlensing, and for the first time the full covariance matrices of the delay pairs are provided. Of note, this survey, with 13 square degrees, has applications beyond that of time delays, such as the study of the structure function of the multiple high-redshift quasars present in the footprint at a new high in terms of both depth and frequency. The reduced images will be available through the European Southern Observatory Science Portal.

We present the emission-line flux distributions and their ratios, as well as the gas outflow features, of the innermost 2 kpc region of the type 1 Seyfert galaxy Mrk 766, using the Kyoto Okayama Optical Low-dispersion Spectrograph with an optical-fiber integral field unit on the Seimei Telescope. We find that the central region of Mrk 766 is kinematically disturbed, exhibiting asymmetric and radially distributed AGN-driven ionized gas outflows traced by \OIII\ with velocities exceeding 500 \kms. The mass of the ionized gas outflow is estimated to be $10^{4.65-5.95} M_{\odot}$, and the mass outflow rate is $0.14-2.73$ M${\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$. This corresponds to a kinetic power, $\dot{E}_{\rm K}$, of $4.31 \times 10^{40} \ {\rm erg} \ {\rm s^{-1}}< \dot{E}_{\rm K} < 8.62 \times 10^{41} \ {\rm erg} \ {\rm s^{-1}}$, which is equivalent to $0.08\%-1.53\%$ of the bolometric luminosity, $L_{\rm bol}$. This result is consistent with other observed properties of ionized gas outflows, although it is lower than the theoretical predictions in AGN feedback models ($\sim5\%$), implying that ionized gas outflows traced by \OIII\ represent only a minor fraction of the total outflows ejected from the host galaxy. Given the asymmetric and radially distributed outflow signatures observed across the host galaxy within the limited field of view, the maximum distance the outflowing gas has traveled remains an open question.

Triple stellar systems, consisting of three gravitationally bound stars, play a fundamental role in a wide array of astrophysical processes, from stellar evolution to the formation of exotic objects and gravitational wave sources. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the dynamics and evolution of triple stellar systems, highlighting their crucial role in shaping stellar populations and driving diverse astrophysical phenomena. We begin by discussing the observed properties of triples, including their frequency and orbital configurations, emphasizing the challenges in characterizing these systems. We then delve into the intricate dynamics of triples, exploring hierarchical, secular, quasi-secular, and chaotic regimes, with particular attention to the von Zeipel-Lidov-Kozai (vZLK) mechanism and its extensions. The interplay between stellar evolution and triple dynamics is examined, including mass loss, mass transfer, common-envelope evolution, and supernovae effects. We discuss the development and applications of triple population synthesis codes, demonstrating their power in modeling complex evolutionary scenarios and predicting observational outcomes. Finally, we emphasize the unique role of triple evolution in producing a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, from interacting binaries and stellar mergers to explosive transients and gravitational wave sources, underscoring the importance of triple systems in our understanding of stars and stellar populations.

The distribution of interval times between recurrent discrete events, such as Solar and stellar flares, reflects their underlying dynamics. Log-normal functions provide good fits to the interval time distributions of many recurrent astronomical events. The width of the fit is a dimensionless parameter that characterizes its underlying dynamics, in analogy to the critical exponents of renormalization group theory. If the distribution of event strengths is a power law, as it often is over a wide range, then the width of the log-normal is independent of the detector sensitivity in that range, making it a robust metric. Analyzing two catalogues of Solar flares over periods ranging from 46 days to 37 years, we find that the widths of log-normal fits to the intervals between flares are wider than those of shot noise, indicating memory in the underlying dynamics even over a time much shorter than the Solar cycle. In contrast, the statistics of flare stars are consistent with shot noise (no memory). We suggest that this is a consequence of the production of Solar flares in localized transient active regions with varying mean flare rate, but that the very energetic flares of flare stars result from global magnetic rearrangement that reinitializes their magnetohydrodynamic turbulence.

The Superconducting Cosmic Strings (SCS) are a special case of cosmic strings that have a core carrying a charged field. When SCS pass through magnetized regions, the charged particles in the string experience a Lorentz force, which can produce radiation on the entire electromagnetic spectrum. This radiation can inject energy into the surrounding plasma, resulting in a modification of the thermal and ionization evolution of the intergalactic medium (IGM) and, subsequently, the global 21-cm signal. The signatures of SCS in the post-recombination era have been primarily studied in the low-frequency (radio) regime, which does not impact the state of the IGM. In this work, we study the effect of decaying SCS on the Dark Ages global 21-cm signal $(\delta T_b)$, considering both the ionizing and radio radiations. The Dark Ages signal can provide pristine cosmological information free from astrophysical uncertainties, as the universe was primarily homogeneous during this era in the absence of baryonic structure formation. Considering a change in the $\delta T_b$ at redshift $z\sim 89$ from the $\Lambda \rm CDM$ framework to be $5\,\rm mK$ and $15\,\rm mK$, we derive an upper bound on the loop current of cosmic string, $I\gtrsim 11.5\,\rm GeV$, and string tension, $G\mu_s\gtrsim 2.5\times 10^{-15}$.

Astronomers generally assume planet-forming disks are aligned with the rotation of their host star. However, recent observations have shown evidence of warping in protoplanetary disks. One can measure the statistical alignment between the inclination angles of the disk and stellar spin using the projected rotational velocity, radius, and rotation period of the star and interferometric measurements of the protoplanetary disk. Such work is challenging due to the difficulty in measuring the properties of young stars and biases in methods to combine them for population studies. Here, we provide an overview of the required observables, realistic uncertainties, and complications when using them to constrain the orientation of the system. We show in several tests that we are able to constrain the uncertainties on the necessary stellar parameters to better than 5% in most cases. We show that by using a hierarchical Bayesian model, we can account for many of the systematic effects (e.g., biases in measured stellar and disk orientations) by fitting for the alignments of each system simultaneously. We demonstrate our hierarchical model on a realistic synthetic sample and verify that we can recover our input alignment distribution to $\leq$5$^{\circ}$ with a modest ($\simeq$30 star) sample. As the sample of systems with disk inclinations grows, future studies can improve upon our approach with a three-dimensional treatment of misalignment and better handling of non-Gaussian errors.

Recent advancements in near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy have opened new opportunities for studying multiple stellar populations in globular clusters (GCs), particularly for newly discovered clusters in the inner Milky Way. While optical spectroscopy has traditionally played a primary role in detailed chemical abundance studies of GCs, the increasing discovery of GCs in highly reddened environments underscores the need for robust NIR spectroscopic methods. To evaluate the utility of high-resolution NIR spectroscopy for studying multiple stellar populations, we observed six stars in M5, a well-studied halo GC, using the recently commissioned IGRINS-2 spectrograph on the Gemini-North telescope. Our chemical abundance measurements in the NIR wavelength range show good agreement with those derived from high-resolution optical spectroscopy, with minor systematic offsets in elements such as Na and Mg. In addition, the measured chemical abundance ratios clearly reproduce the distinctive patterns of multiple stellar populations, including the Na-O anti-correlation. The ability of NIR spectroscopy to measure C, N, and O abundances with high precision further enhances its utility for studying chemical properties of stars and GCs. Our findings demonstrate that IGRINS-2 and similar instruments have significant potential to advance our understanding of GC formation, stellar chemical evolution, and the evolutionary history of the Milky Way.

Magnetic chemically peculiar (mCP) stars are strongly magnetic upper main-sequence stars that exhibit light rotational variability due to an uneven surface distribution of certain peculiar elements, which may appear in phase at certain wavelengths and in antiphase to the flux at other wavelengths. We present a study of the properties of photometric variability of a sample of confirmed mCP stars (mostly Ap/CP2 stars), mCP star candidates, and several non-CP stars in the near ultraviolet and visible wavelength regions based on observational data from the GALEX and Kepler prime missions. Antiphase variations between the near ultraviolet and optical light curves are observed in the majority of mCP stars. We investigate the presence of a correlation of the variability amplitudes in both wavelength regions with effective temperature, surface gravity, and metallicity and calculate model atmospheres, spectral energy distributions and synthetic light curves to connect our findings to theoretical models. While the theoretical calculations show that, at fixed abundances, a clear correlation between the light curve amplitude ratios and effective temperature is expected, our sample does not show any correlation with the investigated properties. This may be due to the highly individualistic abundance patterns of our sample stars, which are the main contributors to the line blanketing in different wavelength bands.

At regime, SKAO is expected to provide the researchers with an annual amount of more than 700 hundred PB of data. The advanced analysis of all those data will take place within a network (SRCnet) of so-called SKA Regional Centres, which, under the "Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable" (FAIR) principles, will also take the responsibility for curating and archiving both the Observatory Data Products and user-generated Advanced Data Products, as well as for helping the researchers in the estimate of the needed computational effort at the proposal stage. This contribution describes the status and the perspectives of this international network, with particular emphasis on the INAF-led Italian node which is part of that.

Recent studies of ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs) have shown their globular cluster (GC) systems to be central in unveiling their remarkable properties and halo masses. Deep HST imaging revealed 54 GC candidates around the UDG NGC5846_UDG1 (UDG1), with a remarkable 13 per cent of the stellar light contained in the GC system. We present a kinematic analysis of UDG1's GC system from observations with the integral field spectrograph KCWI on the Keck II telescope. We measure recessional velocities for 19 GCs, confirming them as members of UDG1, giving a total of 20 confirmed GCs when combined with literature. Approximately 9 per cent of the stellar light are contained just in the confirmed GCs. We determine the GC system's velocity dispersion to be $\sigma_{\rm GC}$=29.8$^{+6.4}_{-4.9}$ km s$^{-1}$. We find that $\sigma_{\rm GC}$ increases with increasing magnitude, consistent with predictions for a GC system that evolved under the influence of dynamical friction. The GC system velocity dispersion is constant out to $\sim1R_{\rm eff}$. Using $\sigma_{\rm GC}$, we calculate $M_{\rm dyn}$=$2.09^{+1.00}_{-0.64}\times$10$^{9}$M$_{\odot}$ as the dynamical mass enclosed within $\sim$2.5 kpc. The dark matter halo mass suggested by the GC number-halo mass relationship agrees with our dynamical mass estimate, implying a halo more massive than suggested by common stellar mass-halo mass relationships. UDG1, being GC-rich with a massive halo, fits the picture of a failed galaxy.

We present various properties of two bright extended Ly$\alpha$ objects, Himiko and CR7, at $z=6.6$ thoroughly investigated with JWST/NIRCam photometry, NIRSpec-IFU spectroscopy, and ALMA data, uncovering their physical origins. Himiko (CR7) shows at least five (four) clumps with small separations of 2.4--7.3 kpc and velocity offsets of $\Delta v<220~\mathrm{km~s^{-1}}$ in the [OIII]$\lambda\lambda4959,5007$ line maps, three of which exhibit stellar components with comparable stellar masses ranging in $\log{(M_*/M_\odot)}=8.4$--$9.0$ ($8.3$--$8.8$), indicative of major merger systems that are consistent with our numerical simulations. The [CII]158$\mu$m and Ly$\alpha$ lines are found in the middle of two clumps (the brightest clump) in Himiko (CR7), suggesting that the distribution of neutral gas does not always coincide with that of ionized gas or stars in merging processes. We find that some of the clumps have broad [OIII] components (250--400$~\mathrm{km~s^{-1}}$) in Himiko and CR7, likely tracing outflow and tidal features, while the central clump in Himiko presents a broad H$\alpha$ ($\sim1000~\mathrm{km~s^{-1}}$) line explained by an AGN with a low mass black hole of $M_\mathrm{BH}=10^{6.6}~M_\odot$, which contribute to the extended and bright nature of Himiko and CR7. We find low metallicities of $12+\log(\mathrm{O/H})=$7.9--8.1 in Himiko and CR7 based on auroral [OIII]$\lambda4363$ and strong lines that are consistent with no 1-mm continuum detection corresponding to the dust mass limits of $M_\mathrm{dust}\lesssim 9\times 10^6 M_\odot$. Himiko and CR7 are metal- and dust-poor blue merger systems with stellar and dust masses $\gtrsim2$ orders of magnitude smaller than the massive dust-rich merger systems represented by submillimeter galaxies.

Stellar population synthesis (SPS) models are a key tool for deriving the age, metallicity, radial velocity and reddening of star clusters from their integrated spectra. Using a sample of 129 star clusters with high-quality spectra, we analyze the uncertainties associated with selecting an empirical versus a theoretical stellar spectral library in the SPS models. We find that the fits from the different models agree on the goodness of fit metrics and inferred reddening. However, the derived age and metallicity can be affected by the choice of the stellar library, with synthetic libraries tending to give lower age and metallicity, especially for spectra with low SNR. Ages and reddening values from SSP-equivalent fits are consistent with the multi-population fits, however, SSP-equivalent metallicities are affected by the coarse coverage of the SPS grid in [Fe/H]. When comparing the spectral fitting results with the literature, we find that (1) all models underestimate age for old and metal-poor systems; (2) on average, SPS models based on synthetic stellar libraries better match the isochrone ages and metallicities from high-resolution stellar spectroscopy.

Merger of two white dwarfs (WDs) has been proposed to form an isolated WD having high magnetization and rapid rotation. We study the influence of the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) wind on spin evolution of the newly-formed merger product. We consider the scenario that the merger product appears as a giant-star-like object with a radius of $> 10^{10}$ cm and a luminosity of the order of an Eddington value. We solve a structure of the merger product under the hydrostatic equilibrium and identify the position of the slow-point in the hot envelope. It is found that if such a giant-star-like object is spinning with an angular speed of the order of the Keplerian value, the MHD wind can be produced. The mass-loss rate is estimated to be of the order of $\sim 10^{20-21}~\mathrm{g~s^{-1}}$, and the timescale of the spin down is $\sim 10\text{-}10^{3}$ years, which depends on stellar magnetic field. We discuss that the final angular momentum when the MHD wind is terminated is related to the magnetic flux and initial radiation luminosity of the merger product. We apply our model to three specific magnetic WD sources ZTF J190132.9+145808.7, SDSS J221141.8+113604.4, and PG 1031+234 by assuming that those WDs were as a result of the merger product. We argue that the current periods of ZTF J190132.9+145808.7 and PG 1031+234 that are strongly magnetized WDs are related to the initial luminosity at the giant phase. For SDSS J221141.8+113604.4, which is mildly magnetized WD, its angular momentum was almost determined when the spin-down timescale due to MHD wind is comparable to the cooling timescale in the giant phase.

XRISM has delivered one of its first light observations on N132D, the X-ray brightest supernova remnant in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Utilizing 193 ks of high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy data, we conduct a comprehensive search for charge exchange emission. By incorporating a charge exchange model into our spectral analysis, we observe an improvement in the fits of two weak features at 2.41 keV and 2.63 keV. These features, with a combined significance of 99.6%, are consistent with transitions from highly ionized silicon ions in high Rydberg states, which are unique indicators of charge exchange. Our analysis constrains the charge exchange flux to no more than 4% of the total source flux within the 1.7-3.0 keV band, and places an upper limit on the charge exchange interaction velocity at 450 km/s. This result supports ongoing shock-cloud interactions within N132D and highlights the unique capabilities of XRISM to probe the complex physical processes at play.

Over the decades, astronomical X-ray telescopes have utilized the Wolter type-1 optical design, which provides stigmatic imaging in axial direction but suffers from coma and higher-order aberrations for off-axis sources. The Wolter-Schwarzschild design, with stigmatic imaging in the axial direction, while suffering from higher-order aberrations, is corrected for coma, thus performing better than the Wolter type-1. The Wolter type-1 and Wolter-Schwarzschild designs are optimized for on-axis but have reduced angular resolution when averaged over a wide field of view, with the averaging weighted by the area covered in the field of view. An optical design that maximizes angular resolution at the edge of the field of view rather than at the center is more suitable for wide-field X-ray telescopes required for deep-sky astronomical surveys or solar observations. A Hyperboloid-Hyperboloid optical design can compromise axial resolution to enhance field angle resolution, hence providing improved area-weighted average angular resolution over the Wolter-Schwarzschild design, but only for fields of view exceeding a specific size. Here, we introduce a new optical design that is free from coma aberration and capable of maximizing angular resolution at any desired field angle. This design consistently outperforms Wolter-1, Wolter-Schwarzschild, and Hyperboloid-Hyperboloid designs when averaged over any field of view size. The improvement in performance remains consistent across variations in other telescope parameters such as diameter, focal length, and mirror lengths. By utilizing this new optical design, we also present a design for a full-disk imaging solar X-ray telescope.

The expansion structure of supernova remnants (SNRs) is important for understanding not only how heavy elements are distributed into space, but also how supernovae explode. The ejecta expansion structure of the young core-collapse SNR Cas A is investigated, with Doppler parameter mapping of the Fe-K complex by the Resolve microcalorimeter onboard the X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission, XRISM. It is found that the Fe ejecta are blueshifted in the southeast (SE) and redshifted in the northwest (NW), indicating an incomplete shell structure, similar to the intermediate mass elements (IMEs), such as Si and S. The Fe has a velocity shift of $\sim1400$ km~s$^{-1}$ in the NW and $\sim2160$ km~s$^{-1}$ in the SE region, with the error range of a few 100s km~s$^{-1}$. These values are consistent with those for the IMEs in the NW region, whereas larger than those for the IMEs in the SE region, although the large error region prevented us from concluding which component has significantly higher velocity. The line broadening is larger in the center with values of $\sim$2000--3000~km~s$^{-1}$, and smaller near the edges of the remnant. The radial profiles of the Doppler shift and broadening of the IMEs and Fe indicate that the Fe ejecta may expand asymmetrically as IME ejacta, although the large error regions do not allow us to conclude it. Moreover, we see little bulk Doppler broadening of the Fe lines in the northeastern jet region whereas the IME lines exhibit significant broadening. No such narrow lines are detected in the NW region. These findings suggest an asymmetric expansion of the ejecta potentially driven by large-scale asymmetries originating from the supernova explosion. This interpretation aligns with the large-scale asymmetries predicted by models of neutrino-driven supernova explosions.

Electromagnetic waves undergo modifications as they propagate through plasma. We present EMPI (ElectroMagnetic-wave Plasma Interaction), a three-dimensional numerical framework designed to simulate the interaction between radio signals and cold plasma. With input plasma density profiles, intrinsic radio signals, and the time and frequency resolutions of the telescope, the code synthesizes observed signals using first-principles calculations. EMPI is capable of modeling a wide range of plasma distributions, spanning analytically described smooth functions (e.g., Gaussian or exponential profiles), statistical models (e.g., turbulent screens), and discrete macroscopic structures like isolated plasma clumps, which are difficult to model both analytically and statistically. Validation tests demonstrate excellent agreement with established plasma propagation effects, such as dispersion, lensing, scintillation, and scattering. This code provides an efficient method for handling both analytical and statistical scenarios, bridging the gap between these descriptions. Thanks to its comprehensive capabilities, EMPI is particularly useful for studying radio sources with cosmological origin, especially pulse-like signals such as Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs). As these signals travel through diverse and complex plasma environments across the universe, their properties are inevitably altered, resulting in observable changes. In this context, EMPI serves as a valuable tool for studying the propagation effects of these sources, helping to advance the understanding of their essence and the intervening plasma environments.

Converging flows are visible around bipolar magnetic regions (BMRs) on the solar surface, according to observations. Average flows are created by these inflows combined, and the strength of these flows depends on the amount of flux present during the solar cycle. In models of the solar cycle, this average flow can be depicted as perturbations to the meridional flow. In this article, we study the effects of introducing surface inflow to the surface flux transport models (SFT) as a possible nonlinear mechanism in the presence of latitude quenching for an inflow profile whose amplitude varies within a cycle depending on the magnetic activity. The results show that including surface inflows in the model in the presence of both LQ and tilt quenching (TQ) produced a polar field within a $\pm$1$\sigma$ of an average cycle polar field ($\sigma$ is the standard deviation) and a correlation coefficient of 0.85. We confirm that including inflows produces a lower net contribution to the dipole moment (10\,--\,25\%). Furthermore, the relative importance of LQ vs. inflows is inversely correlated with the dynamo effectivity range ($\lambda_{R}$). With no decay term, introducing inflows into the model resulted in a less significant net contribution to the dipole moment. Including inflows in the SFT model shows a possible nonlinear relationship between the surface inflows and the solar dipole moment, suggesting a potential nonlinear mechanism contributing to the saturation of the global dynamo. For lower $\lambda_R$ ($\lessapprox$ 10 $^\circ$), TQ always dominates LQ, and for higher $\lambda_R$ LQ dominate. However, including inflows will make the domination a little bit earlier in case of having a decay term in the model.

Aims. Quasar strong gravitational lenses are important tools for putting constraints on the dark matter distribution, dark energy contribution, and the Hubble-Lemaitre parameter. We aim to present a new supervised machine learning-based method to identify these lenses in large astrometric surveys. The Gaia Focused Product Release (FPR) GravLens catalogue is designed for the identification of multiply imaged quasars, as it provides astrometry and photometry of all sources in the field of 4.7 million quasars. Methods. Our new approach for automatically identifying four-image lens configurations in large catalogues is based on the eXtreme Gradient Boosting classification algorithm. To train this supervised algorithm, we performed realistic simulations of lenses with four images that account for the statistical distribution of the morphology of the deflecting halos as measured in the EAGLE simulation. We identified the parameters discriminant for the classification and performed two different trainings, namely, with and without distance information. Results. The performances of this method on the simulated data are quite good, with a true positive rate and a true negative rate of about 99.99% and 99.84%, respectively. Our validation of the method on a small set of known quasar lenses demonstrates its efficiency, with 75% of known lenses being correctly identified. We applied our algorithm (both trainings) to more than 0.9 million quadruplets selected from the Gaia FPR GravLens catalogue. We derived a list of 1127 candidates with at least one score larger than 0.75, where each candidate has two scores -- one from the model trained with distance information and one from the model trained without distance information -- and including 201 very good candidates with both high scores.

The galaxy correlation function serves as a fundamental tool for studying cosmology, galaxy formation, and the nature of dark matter. It is well established that more massive, redder and more compact galaxies tend to have stronger clustering in space. These results can be understood in terms of galaxy formation in Cold Dark Matter (CDM) halos of different mass and assembly history. Here, we report an unexpectedly strong large-scale clustering for isolated, diffuse and blue dwarf galaxies, comparable to that seen for massive galaxy groups but much stronger than that expected from their halo mass. Our analysis indicates that the strong clustering aligns with the halo assembly bias seen in simulations with the standard $\Lambda$CDM cosmology only if more diffuse dwarfs formed in low-mass halos of older ages. This pattern is not reproduced by existing models of galaxy evolution in a $\Lambda$CDM framework, and our finding provides new clues for the search of more viable models. Our results can be explained well by assuming self-interacting dark matter, suggesting that such a scenario should be considered seriously.

In resistive and viscous magnetohydrodynamical simulations, we obtain axial outflows launched from the innermost magnetosphere of a star-disk system. The launched outflows are found to be asymmetric. We find the part of the parameter space corresponding to quasi-stationary axial outflows and compute the mass load and angular momentum flux in such outflows. We display the obtained geometry of the solutions and measure the speed of propagation and rotation of the obtained axial outflows.

Analyzing longitude-velocity diagrams (LVDs) in the CS(J=2-1) and H13CN(J=1-0) molecular lines from the internal release data of the ALMA Central-Molecular-Zone Exploration Survey (ACES) and in the 13CO (J=1-0) line from the Nobeyama Galactic-Centre (GC) survey, we identify six GC Arms as prominent straight LV ridges. In addition to the currently known Arms I to IV, we identify a new inner arm, Arm V, and further highlight the circum-nuclear disc (CND) as Arm VI. Integrated intensity maps of the Arms on the sky suggest that most of the Arms compose ring-like structures inclined from the Galactic plane. We determine the radii (curvatures) of the Arms using the velocity-gradient ($dv/dl$) method, assuming that the arms are rotating on circular orbits at a constant velocity of $\sim 150$ km/s. We show that Arms I and II compose the main ring structure of the CMZ with radii $\sim 100$--120 pc; Arm III is a dense arm 42 pc from the GC; Arm IV is a clear and narrow arm 20 pc from the GC; and Arm V is a faint, long arm of 8.2 pc radius. We show that the circum-nuclear disc (CND) composes the sixth arm, Arm VI, of radius $\sim 2.3$ pc associated with bifurcated spiral fins. We also discuss the association of the 20- and 50-km/s clouds with these Arms. The radii of the arms fall on an empirical relation $R\sim 630 (2/5)^N$ for $N=1$ (Arm I) to 6 (VI), suggesting either discrete rings or a logarithmic spiral with pitch angle $\sim 22^\circ$. The vertical full extent of the arm increases with radius and is represented by $z\sim 0.7 (R/1 {\rm pc})^{0.7}$ pc. The tilt angle of the arms from the Galactic plane, or the warping, increases rapidly toward the GC.

The arrival of a series of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) at the Earth resulted in a great geomagnetic storm on 10 May 2024, the strongest storm in the last two decades. We investigate the kinematic and thermal evolution of the successive CMEs to understand their interaction en route to Earth. We attempt to find the dynamics, thermodynamics, and magnetic field signatures of CME-CME interactions. Our focus is to compare the thermal state of CMEs near the Sun and in their post-interaction phase at 1 AU. The 3D kinematics of six identified Earth-directed CMEs were determined using the GCS model. The flux rope internal state (FRIS) model is implemented to estimate the CMEs' polytropic index and temperature evolution from their measured kinematics. The thermal states of the interacting CMEs are examined using in-situ at 1 AU. Our study determined the interaction heights of selected CMEs and confirmed their interaction that led to the formation of complex ejecta identified at 1 AU. The plasma, magnetic field, and thermal characteristics of magnetic ejecta (ME) within the complex ejecta and other substructures, such as interaction regions (IRs) within two ME and double flux rope-like structures within a single ME, show the possible signatures of CME-CME interaction in in-situ observations. The FRIS-model-derived thermal states for individual CMEs reveal their diverse thermal evolution near the Sun, with most CMEs transitioning to an isothermal state at 6-9 Rsun, except for CME4, which exhibits an adiabatic state due to a slower expansion rate. The complex ejecta at 1 AU shows a predominant heat-release state in electrons, while the ions show a bimodal distribution of thermal states. On comparing the characteristics of CMEs near the Sun and at 1 AU, we suggest that such one-to-one comparison is difficult due to CME-CME interactions significantly influencing their post-interaction characteristics.

Red supergiants (RSGs), as the descendants of OB-type stars and the progenitors of supernovae, provide crucial insights into the evolution of massive stars, particularly in binary systems. Previous studies show that the binary fraction of RSGs ($\approx$ 15% - 40%) is significantly lower than that of their predecessors ($\approx$ 50% - 70%). In this work, we investigate the binary fraction of RSGs with the recently selected largest samples of 4695 and 2097 RSGs in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), respectively. The binary system with a hot companion (O-, B- and A-type star) is identified by detecting the ultraviolet (UV) excess in the observed spectral energy distribution (SED) ranging from ultraviolet to mid-infrared after subtracting the model SED of RSG since RSGs are very weak in the UV band. It is found that the lower limit of binarity is 30.2% $\pm$ 0.7% and 32.2% $\pm$ 1% in the LMC and SMC, respectively. If the sample is limited to luminous RSGs with log $L/L_{\odot} > 4.0$, the binary fraction becomes 26.6% $\pm$ 1.1% and 26.4% $\pm$ 1.7% in the LMC and SMC, respectively. The derived binary fraction is valid in the range of $\sim$ 2.3 < $\log P / [\text{d}]$ < $\sim$ 8. Our study suggests that roughly one-third of massive stars host a third companion within $\sim$ 30,000 AU. In addition, 15 RSGs are also identified as binary via HST/STIS spectra, and a handful of the binaries identified by the SED fitting are confirmed by their light curve and radial velocity dispersion. The stellar parameters of the companions, i.e. $T_{\mathrm{eff}}$, $R$, $L$ and log $g$, are calculated by model fitting.

Aims: Previous estimates of planet occurrence rates in the CARMENES survey indicated increased numbers of planets on short orbits for M dwarfs with masses below 0.34\,M$_\odot$. Here we focused on the lowest-mass stars in the survey, comprising 15 inactive targets with masses under 0.16\,M$_\odot$. Methods: To correct for detection biases, we determined detection sensitivity maps for individual targets and the entire sample. Using Monte Carlo simulations, we estimated planet occurrence rates for orbital periods of 1\,d to 100\,d and minimum masses from 0.5\,M$_\oplus$ to 10\,M$_\oplus$. Results: The radial velocity (RV) data from CARMENES reveal four new planets around three stars in our sample, namely G~268--110\,b, G~261--6\,b, and G~192--15\,b and c. All three b planets have minimum masses of 1.03--1.52\,M$_\oplus$ and orbital periods of 1.43--5.45\,d, while G~192--15\,c is a 14.3\,M$_\oplus$ planet on a wide, eccentric orbit with $P \approx 1218$\,d and $e \approx 0.68$. Our occurrence rates suggest considerable dependencies with respect to stellar masses. For planets below 3\,M$_\oplus$ we found rates consistent with one planet per star across all investigated periods, but the rates decrease almost by an order of magnitude for larger planet masses up to 10\,M$_\oplus$. Compared to previous studies, low-mass stars tend to harbor more planets with $P <10$\,d. We also demonstrate that synthetic planet populations based on the standard core accretion scenario predict slightly more massive planets on wider orbits than observed. Conclusions: Our findings confirm that planet occurrence rates vary with stellar masses even among M dwarfs, as we found more planets with lower masses and on shorter orbits in our subsample of very low-mass stars compared to more massive M dwarfs. Therefore, we emphasize the need for additional differentiation in future studies.

We propose a deep learning model that can detect Spitzer bubbles accurately using two-wavelength near-infrared data acquired by the Spitzer Space Telescope and JWST. The model is based on the Single Shot MultiBox Detector as an object detection model, trained and validated using Spitzer bubbles identified by the Milky Way Project (MWP-Bubble). We found that using only MWP-Bubbles with clear structures, along with normalization and data augmentation, significantly improved performance. To reduce the dataset bias, we also use the data without bubbles in the dataset selected by combining two techniques: negative sampling and clustering. The model was optimized by hyperparameter tuning using Bayesian optimization. Applying this model to a test region of the Galactic plane resulted in a 98 $\%$ detection rate for MWP-Bubbles with 8 $\mu$ m emission clearly encompassing 24 $\mu$ m emission. Additionally, we applied the model to a broader area of $1^\circ \leq |l| \leq 65^\circ$, $|b| \leq 1^\circ$, including both training and validation regions, and the model detected 3,006 bubbles, of which 1,413 were newly detected. We also attempted to detect bubbles in the high-mass star-forming region Cygnus $X$, as well as in the external galaxies Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and NGC 628. The model successfully detected Spitzer bubbles in these external galaxies, though it also detected Mira-type variable stars and other compact sources that can be difficult to distinguish from Spitzer bubbles. The detection process takes only a few hours, demonstrating the efficiency in detecting bubble structures. Furthermore, the method used for detecting Spitzer bubbles was applied to detect shell-like structures observable only in the 8 $\mu$ m emission band, leading to the detection of 469 shell-like structures in the LMC and 143 in NGC 628.

How T Tauri stars remain slowly rotating while still accreting material is a long-standing puzzle. Current models suggest that these stars may lose angular momentum through magnetospheric ejections of disk material (MEs) and accretion-powered stellar winds (APSWs). The individual contribution of each mechanism to the stellar spin evolution, however, is unclear. We explore how these two scenarios could be distinguished by applying stellar spin models to near-term observations. We produce synthetic stellar populations of accreting Class II stars with spreads in the parameters governing the spin-down processes and find that an APSW strongly affects the ratio of the disk truncation radius to the corotation radius, $\mathcal{R} = R_\mathrm{t}/R_\mathrm{co}$. The ME and APSW scenarios are distinguished to high confidence when at least $N_\mathrm{crit}\gtrsim 250$ stars have values measured for $\mathcal{R}$. Newly developed lightcurve analysis methods enable measuring $\mathcal{R}$ for enough stars to distinguish the spin-down scenarios in the course of upcoming observing campaigns.

The epoch of reionization represents a major phase transition in cosmic history, during which the first luminous sources ionized the intergalactic medium (IGM). However, the small-scale physics governing ionizing photon sinks - particularly the interplay between recombinations, photon propagation, and self-shielded regions - remains poorly understood. Accurately modeling these processes requires a framework that self-consistently links ionizing emissivity, the clumping factor, mean free path, and photoionization rate. In this work, we extend the photon-conserving semi-numerical framework, SCRIPT, by introducing a self-consistent sub-grid model that dynamically connects these quantities to the underlying density field, enabling a more realistic treatment of inhomogeneous recombinations and photon sinks. We validate our model against a comprehensive set of observational constraints, including the UV luminosity function from HST and JWST, CMB optical depth from Planck, and Lyman-$\alpha$ forest measurements of the IGM temperature, photoionization rate, and mean free path. Our fiducial model also successfully reproduces Lyman-$\alpha$ opacity fluctuations, reinforcing its ability to capture large-scale inhomogeneities in the reionization process. Notably, we demonstrate that traditionally independent parameters, such as the clumping factor and mean free path, are strongly correlated, with implications for the timing, morphology, and thermal evolution of reionization. Looking ahead, we will extend this framework to include machine learning-based parameter inference. With upcoming 21cm experiments poised to provide unprecedented insights, SCRIPT offers a powerful computational tool for interpreting high-redshift observations and refining our understanding of the last major phase transition in the universe.

Bipolar emerging flux regions (EFRs) form active regions (ARs) that generally evolve in a pre-existing magnetic environment in the solar atmosphere. Reconfiguration of the small- and large-scale magnetic connectivities is invoked to explain a plethora of energy release phenomena observed at the sites of EFRs. These include brightening events, surges, and jets, whose trigger and relationship are still unclear. In this context, we study the formation of a proto-spot in AR NOAA~11462 by analyzing spectropolarimetric and spectroscopic measurements taken by the Interferometric Bidimensional Spectrometer along the Fe~I 630.2~nm and Ca~II 854.2~nm lines on April 17, 2012. We complement these high-resolution data with simultaneous SDO satellite observations. The proto-spot forms from magnetic flux emerged into the photosphere that coalesces following plasma flows in its surrounding. The chromospheric and higher atmosphere observations show that flux emergence occurs in a pre-existing magnetic environment, with small- and large-scale coronal arcades that seemingly shape the proto-spot formation in the upper atmospheric layers. In addition, in the chromosphere we observe an arch filament system and repeated intense brightening events and surges, likely due to magnetic interactions of the new flux with the pre-existing overlying coronal field. These phenomena are observed since early stages of the new flux emergence.

We investigate the progenitors of long-period hot subdwarf B (sdB) binaries, which form when low-mass red giant branch (RGB) stars lose their envelopes through stable Roche lobe overflow (RLOV) near the tip of the RGB. We aim to expand our previous volume-limited sample of 211 stars within 200 pc to 500 pc and validate it. Additionally, our goal is to provide the distribution of stellar parameters for these stars. We refined the original sample using Gaia DR3 parallaxes and interstellar extinction measurements. High-resolution spectra for 230 stars were obtained between 2019 and 2023 using the CORALIE spectrograph. To confirm or discard binarity, we combined astrometric parameters from Gaia with the resulting radial velocity variations. We derived the distribution of stellar parameters using atmospheric and evolutionary models, confirming that 82% of stars in our sample are indeed RGB stars using the equivalent evolutionary phase. The remaining 18% are red clump (RC) contaminants, which was expected due to the overlapping of RGB and RC stars in the colour-magnitude diagram. Additionally, 75% of the confirmed RGB stars have a high probability of being part of a binary system. Comparison with the literature shows good overall agreement with a scatter $\lesssim 15\%$ in stellar parameters, while the masses show somewhat higher dispersion ($\sim 20\%$).

We investigate the errors in modeling the redshift-space distortion (RSD) effect at large linear scales, using data from the Millennium simulation. While standard theoretical templates, such as the Kaiser formula and the TNS method, could precisely model RSD for individual large-scale modes, we find that for tracers with number densities lower than $\sim10^{-3}({\rm Mpc}/h)^{-3}$, there is a few-percent level bias in the predicted power spectrum. This error arises due to the amplification of intrinsic Poisson noise during RSD modeling from real-space power spectrum. This amplified noise can be analytically expressed as $1 + \epsilon/[{\bar{n}P}({1+\epsilon})]$, with $\epsilon=2\beta/3+\beta^2/5$, where $P$ denotes the real-space tracer power spectrum and $\beta \equiv f/b$. Specifically, for halos with a number density of around $5\times10^{-4}({\rm Mpc}/h)^{-3}$, this phenomenon results in an additional systematic error of 2.5\%. Our result suggests that caution should be exercised when modeling the RSD directly using real-space power spectra of tracers measured from simulations or from the real surveys. This is relevant, e.g., in situations where the real-space tracer power spectrum is predicted by emulators trained using simulation data.

I derive in this paper theoretical expressions for biases on fringe contrast and fringe visibility phase for optical interferometers whose polarizing properties can be described by beam rotation, retardance, and diattenuation. The nature of these biases is discussed for natural light, circular and linear polarization, and partially polarized light. Expansions are obtained for small degrees of polarization, small differential retardance, and small diattenuation. The biases on fringe contrasts are already known. It is shown in this paper that retardance and diattenuation are also sources of bias on the visibility phases and derived quantities. In some cases, the bias is zero. If the retardance is achromatic, differential phases are not affected. Closure phases are not affected to the second order for an interferometer with weak diattenuation and weak differential retardance and for moderately polarized sources whatever the type of light. Otherwise, a calibration procedure is required. It is shown that astrometric measurements are biased in the general case. The bias depends on both the polarization properties of the interferometer and on the (u,v) sampling. In the extreme case where the samples are aligned on a line crossing the origin of the spatial frequency plane, the bias is undetermined and can be arbitrarily large. In all other cases, it can be calibrated if the polarizing characteristics of the interferometer are known. In the case of low differential retardance and low degree of polarization, the bias lies on a straight line, crossing the astrometric reference point. If the degree of linear polarization varies during the observations, then the astrometric bias has a remarkable signature, which describes a section of the line. For slightly polarizing interferometers, a fixed offset is added without changing the shape of the bias.

The measurement of the spatial fluctuations of the neutral hydrogen 21 cm signal arising during the Dark Ages and Cosmic Dawn periods of our Universe (z from 200 to 10) holds the potential to resolve these still-unexplored earliest phases of the evolution of matter structures. As these cosmological signals are very weak, large distributed telescopes are required at locations free from terrestrial radio interference and ionospheric disturbances. This paper presents a description of the scientific aims, the instrumental concept, and technological developments of an experiment - dubbed the Dark-ages EXplorer (DEX) - which would allow us to (a) measure the Global Signal and (b) measure the angular density fluctuations and conduct line-of-sight tomography in the Dark Ages and Cosmic Dawn epochs. Additional scientific goals are also briefly described. The experiment consists of a low-frequency radio interferometer, which should ideally be located on the far side of the Moon. The paper presents findings from an ESA Concurrent Design Facility (CDF) study, which was conducted to assess the feasibility of such a system using present-day technologies with a high TRL (Technology Readiness Level). Although the study finds that the number of antennas needed to achieve the primary scientific goals is not yet feasible at the moment, it points to a path of technological development that can lead to a realistic and valuable experiment in the medium-term future (i.e., the next decade(s)), as well as development of multi-purpose use technology that can be applied on Earth, and towards other lunar operations.

There is compelling evidence that AGNs are strongly influenced by their environment. Therefore, studying the AGN population of clusters is essential, as both large-scale structures and AGN play key roles in galaxy evolution, though the interactions between these elements are still not well understood. The primary objective of this study is to unravel the different factors that may significantly affect the triggering of AGN activity in cluster galaxies, including galaxy merging and interactions with other galaxies, and ram pressure from the hot intracluster medium. For our purposes, we used 82 X-ray detected AGN found within a $4r_{500}$ radius of 164 X-ray detected and spectroscopically confirmed galaxy clusters of the XXL survey, up to a redshift of $z\sim$1. This field is covered by deep optical observations of the Hyper Suprime-Cam, which allows for a reliable morphological classification of galaxies. Furthermore, using the X-ray hardness ratio, the optical spectra and the SEDs of the X-ray sources, we have studied the obscuration and other AGN properties and the SFR of the hosts as further indicators of interactions. We found a moderately significant higher fraction of X-ray AGN in galaxy clusters hosted by merging or disturbed galaxies, compared to non-active cluster galaxies or X-ray AGN in the field. This excess is primarily localised in the cluster outskirts. Also, we discovered a higher number of X-ray-hard AGN (hence, possibly obscured) in clusters than in the field particularly in the outskirts. These findings further support the idea that galaxy mergers and interactions may serve as mechanisms for the triggering and obscuration of AGN activity. The relatively high number of disturbed, merging, and possibly obscured AGN hosts in cluster outskirts suggests that galaxy merging and interactions are key drivers in triggering AGN activity in these outer regions of clusters.

We present the AI Cosmologist, an agentic system designed to automate cosmological/astronomical data analysis and machine learning research workflows. This implements a complete pipeline from idea generation to experimental evaluation and research dissemination, mimicking the scientific process typically performed by human researchers. The system employs specialized agents for planning, coding, execution, analysis, and synthesis that work together to develop novel approaches. Unlike traditional auto machine-learning systems, the AI Cosmologist generates diverse implementation strategies, writes complete code, handles execution errors, analyzes results, and synthesizes new approaches based on experimental outcomes. We demonstrate the AI Cosmologist capabilities across several machine learning tasks, showing how it can successfully explore solution spaces, iterate based on experimental results, and combine successful elements from different approaches. Our results indicate that agentic systems can automate portions of the research process, potentially accelerating scientific discovery. The code and experimental data used in this paper are available on GitHub at this https URL. Example papers included in the appendix demonstrate the system's capability to autonomously produce complete scientific publications, starting from only the dataset and task description

X-ray observations are essential for understanding the multimessenger emission mechanisms of active galactic nuclei (AGN). Blazars, a subset of AGN whose X-ray emission predominantly originates from relativistic jets, have been proposed as promising high-energy neutrino sources. In this work, we study the candidate neutrino-emitting blazar 5BZB J0630-24064, which has been observed over multiple epochs with the XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, Neil Gehrels Swift-XRT, and eROSITA observatories. Analysis of the X-ray spectra in the 2.0-10.0 keV band shows significant variability, with high flux states adhering to a power-law model indicative of jet emission. However, during low-flux states, the spectrum reveals an additional component at hard-X-rays, indicating a transition from jet-dominated to multi-component X-ray emission, possibly associated with hadronic processes. To investigate this spectral evolution, we tested various models and found it to be consistent with corona emission or photoionised absorption processes typically observed in obscured AGN. The identification of the X-ray spectral variability in 5BZB J0630-24064, combined with its potential for neutrino production, opens new perspectives in multimessenger astrophysics of blazars highlighting the synergies between the mechanisms of the jet and the nuclear environment.

Satellites play a crucial role in understanding the formation and evolution of trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs). The spin--orbit evolution of satellite systems depends on their thermal histories, allowing us to constrain the rock mass fraction within TNOs based on their current spin--orbit states. In this study, we perform coupled thermal--orbital evolution calculations for two satellite systems around undifferentiated TNOs: Orcus--Vanth and Salacia--Actaea. Our results demonstrate that the current spin--orbit states of these systems are consistent with a rock mass fraction of approximately 20--30%. Additionally, we estimate the organic mass fraction within the TNOs and find that it is comparable to the rock mass fraction. These findings suggest that the chemical composition of TNOs closely resembles that of comets.

The diffuse stellar component of galaxy clusters known as intracluster light (ICL) has been proposed as an observable tracer of the cluster's dark matter (DM) halo. Assessing its reliability as a DM tracer requires understanding how the intracluster stars are energetically linked to the underlying DM distribution, which we investigate at $z\approx0$ in 12 galaxy clusters with $M_{178} = 1.18 - 3.71 \times 10^{14}\,\textrm{M}_\odot$ from the Horizon-AGN simulation. We quantify the orbital energies of these components by their mean specific energies ${\langle \varepsilon \rangle}$, and find that this quantity is $\approx$ 25 per cent lower for the intracluster stars than the DM, whilst the energetics of the satellite galaxies (a standard DM tracer) are only marginally ($\approx$ 5 per cent) higher than the DM. Importantly, the lower ${\langle \varepsilon \rangle}$ of the intracluster stars compared to the DM is robust against the precise separation between the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) and the ICL. The specific energy distribution of ICL stars is concentrated towards lower energies and poorly samples the higher energies, where much of the DM resides. Consequently, the intracluster stars have velocity distributions with lower typical speeds and a more centrally-concentrated density profile than the DM. We also find that intracluster stars have more radially-biased orbits than the DM, indicating these components have distinct orbital distributions. This study demonstrates that although the morphology of the ICL may match the DM halo, the ICL is a biased tracer of DM, and these biases must be understood in order to infer properties of the DM from the ICL.

Next-generation photometric and spectroscopic surveys will detect faint galaxies in massive clusters, advancing our understanding of galaxy formation in dense environments. Comparing these observations with theoretical models requires high-resolution cluster simulations. Hydrodynamical simulations resolve galaxy properties in halos, but face challenges simulating low-mass galaxies due to computational limitations. In contrast, dark matter-only (DMO) simulations can provide higher resolution but need models to populate subhalos with galaxies. In this work, we introduce a fast and efficient emulator of hydrodynamical cluster simulations, based on the semi-analytic models (SAMs) SAGE and SAG. The SAMs are calibrated using cluster galaxies from hydrodynamical simulations at intermediate resolution, ensuring consistency in stellar masses and luminosities across redshifts. These SAMs are then applied to DMO simulations from The Three Hundred Project at three resolutions. We show that the SAG model, unlike SAGE, better emulates galaxy properties even at the highest resolution. This improvement is due to the treatment of orphan galaxies, which contribute significantly to the total population. SAG enables the study of dwarf galaxies down to stellar masses of 10^7 solar masses at the highest resolution, an order of magnitude smaller than those in the hydrodynamical simulations, corresponding to approximately four magnitudes fainter. This shows that SAMs can be effectively calibrated to provide fast and accurate predictions of hydrodynamical simulations, offering an efficient alternative to explore galaxy populations in dense environments.

Context. B hypergiants (BHGs) are important for understanding high-mass stellar evolution. While they are in a similar parameter space of B supergiants (BSGs), some BHGs are known to be luminous blue variables (LBVs). Their spectra with absorption and emission features resemble Of/WNh stars. Yet, their wind physics and their evolutionary connections are not clear. Aims. In this study, we aim to understand (i) the atmospheric and wind structure, (ii) the wind-launching and -driving mechanisms, and (iii) the spectrum formation of early-type BHGs. As an observational prototype, we use zet1 Sco (B1.5Ia+). Methods. Using the atmosphere code PoWRhd, we calculated the first hydrodynamically consistent models at the BHG domain. They give insights into the radiative driving of the calculated wind regimes and enable us to study the influence of clumping and X-rays on the resulting wind structure. Results. Our consistent model reproduces the main spectral features of zet1 Sco. The obtained mass-loss rate is higher than that of similar spectral type BSGs. However, the wind optical depth of BHGs is way below unity, making them less of a transition type. To reproduce zet1 Sco's spectrum, we needed low clumping with subsonic onset. The wind has a shallow-gradient velocity profile, deviating from the beta law, and is mainly driven by Fe III opacity. Conclusions. Our study suggests that despite more mass loss, early-type Galactic BHGs have winds relatively similar to BSGs. Their winds are not thick enough to characterize them as "transition-type" stars, unlike Of/WNh, implying that emission features arise more easily in cooler than in hotter stars. The spectral BHG appearance is likely connected to atmospheric inhomogeneities below the sonic point. To reach an appearance similar to LBVs, BHGs need to be either closer to the Eddington limit or have higher wind clumping than inferred for zeta1 Sco.

The Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has detected thousands of sources since its launch in 2008, with many remaining unidentified. Some of these point sources may arise from source confusion. Specifically, there could be extended sources erroneously described as groups of point sources. Using the DBSCAN clustering algorithm, we analyze unidentified Fermi-LAT sources alongside some classified objects from the 4FGL-DR4 catalog. We identified 44 distinct clusters containing 106 sources, each including at least one unidentified source. Detailed modeling of selected clusters reveals some cases where extended source models are statistically preferred over multiple point sources. The work is motivated by prior observations of extended TeV gamma-ray sources, such as HESS J1813-178, and their GeV counterparts. In the case of HESS J1813-178, two unidentified Fermi-LAT point sources were detected in the region. Subsequent multiwavelength analysis combining TeV and GeV data showed that a single extended source is a better description of the emission in this region than two point-like sources.

The depth and coverage of the first years of JWST observations have revealed low luminosity active galactic nuclei (AGN) across a wide redshift range, shedding light on black hole (BH) assembly and feedback. We present our spectroscopic sample of 34 Type 1 AGN obtained from JADES survey data and spanning $1.5 < z < 9$. Our sample of AGN probes a BH mass range of $10^{6-9}$~M$_{\odot}$ at bolometric luminosities down to $10^{43}$~erg~s$^{-1}$, implying generally sub-Eddington ratios of $<0.5L_{\rm Edd}$. Most of these AGN are hosted in low mass ($M_{\star}\sim10^8$~M$_{\odot}$) galaxies and are overmassive relative to the local $M_{BH}-M_{\star}$ relation, while remaining consistent with the local $M_{BH}$-$\sigma_*$ relation. The wide redshift range provided by our sample allows us to trace the emergence of local $M_{BH}$-$M_*$ scaling relation across the cosmic epoch. Additionally, we explore the capability of narrow-line diagnostics in identifying Type 2 AGN and find that a significant fraction of our AGN would be missed by them due to low metallicity or lack of high energy ionizing photons (potentially due to dust absorption, dense gas blanketing the broad and narrow line regions, or intrinsically soft ionizing spectra). We explore the UV luminosity function of AGN and their hosts and find that it is subject to significant cosmic variance and is also dependent on the AGN bolometric luminosity. Finally, we show that the electron and Balmer scattering scenarios recently proposed to explain the broad components of the Balmer lines are untenable on multiple grounds. There is no evidence that the black hole masses have been overestimated by orders of magnitude as proposed in those scenarios.

This study examines the impact of diffuse Galactic emission on sky-based direction-independent (DI) gain calibration using realistic forward simulations of Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) observations of the high-redshift 21 cm signal of neutral hydrogen during the Epoch of Reionization (EoR). We simulated LOFAR observations between 147 - 159 MHz using a sky model that includes a point source catalogue and diffuse Galactic emission. The simulated observations were DI-gain calibrated with the point source catalogue alone, utilising the LOFAR-EoR data analysis pipeline. A full power spectrum analysis was conducted to assess the systematic bias introduced by DI-gain calibration using complete and incomplete sky models, relative to thermal noise. Additionally, the cross-coherence between observation pairs was computed to determine whether DI-gain calibration errors are coherent or incoherent in specific regions of power spectrum space as a function of integration time. We find that DI-gain calibration with an incomplete sky model that omits diffuse Galactic emission introduces a systematic bias in the power spectrum for $k_{\parallel}$ bins < 0.2 $h\,\mathrm{Mpc}^{-1}$. The power spectrum errors in these bins are coherent; therefore, the resulting bias can be mitigated during the foreground removal step. In contrast, errors for $k_{\parallel}$ > 0.2 $h\,\mathrm{Mpc}^{-1}$ are largely incoherent and average down as noise. We conclude that missing diffuse Galactic emission in the sky model is not a significant contributor to the excess noise observed in the current LOFAR-EoR upper limit results on the 21 cm signal power spectrum.

Models of interacting dark energy and dark matter offer a possible solution to cosmological tensions. In this work, we examine a pure momentum-exchange model with a time-dependent coupling strength $\xi(z)$ that could help to alleviate the $S_8$ tension. We perform Fisher forecasting and MCMC analysis to constrain the coupling strength of this interaction for different redshift bins $0.0<z<2.1$, using the specifications of upcoming DESI-like surveys. For this analysis, we examine both a model with a constant equation of state $w=-0.9$, as well as a thawing dark energy model with an evolving $w(z)$. We show that, for a constant equation of state, $\xi(z)$ can be well constrained in all redshift bins. However, due to a weaker effect at early times, the constraints are significantly reduced at high redshifts in the case of a thawing $w(z)$ model.

Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are enigmatic millisecond-duration radio transients of extra-galactic origin, whose underlying mechanisms and progenitors remain poorly understood. FRBs are broadly classified into two categories: repeating FRBs, which emit multiple bursts over time, and one-off FRBs, which are detected as single events. A central question in FRB research is whether these two classes share a common origin. In this study, we present observations of FRB 20240114A, a repeating FRB that entered a hyperactive phase in January 2024. We conducted a 318-hour monitoring campaign using the Kunming 40-Meter Radio Telescope (KM40M) in the S-band (2.187-2.311 GHz), during which we detected eight radio bursts. We analyzed their properties, including dispersion measure (DM), bandwidth, pulse width, flux, fluence, and energy. Additionally, we searched for counterparts in overlapping data from the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) in the L-band (1.0-1.5 GHz). While no bursts were temporally aligned between the two telescopes, we identified one FAST burst that arrived approximately 6 ms after one of the KM40M bursts. The absence of FAST counterparts for the KM40M bursts suggests that individual bursts from FRB 20240114A are likely narrow-band, with fractional bandwidths less than 10%. By comparing the cumulative event rates from KM40M and FAST observations, we found that the two measurements are compatible, indicating a possible flattening of the event rate at higher energies. This feature aligns with observations of one-off FRBs, supporting the hypothesis that repeating and one-off FRBs may share a common origin.

We present the discovery, and initial lensing analysis, of a high-redshift galaxy-galaxy lensing system within the JWST-PEARLS/HST-TREASUREHUNT North Ecliptic Pole Time Domain Field (designated NEPJ172238.9+655143.1). The lensing geometry shears a $z=3.6\pm0.1$ star-forming galaxy into a near-Einstein ring with a radius of 0\farcs92, consisting of 4 primary images, around a foreground massive elliptical galaxy at $z=1.258\pm0.005$. The system is fortuitously located within the NIRISS F200W footprint of the PEARLS survey, enabling spectroscopic identification of the 8500A TiO band in the foreground galaxy and allowing tight constraints to be placed on the redshift of the background galaxy based on its continuum detection and lack of strong emission lines. We calculate magnification factors of $2.6<\mu<8.4$ for the four images and a total lensing mass of $(4.08 \pm 0.07)\times10^{11}M_\odot$. SED fitting of the foreground elliptical galaxy within the Einstein radius reveals a stellar mass of $\sim1.26\times10^{11}M_\odot$, providing a mass/light ratio of 3.24. Employing simple scaling relations and assumptions, an NFW dark matter halo is found to provide the correct remaining mass within $0.12^{+0.21}_{-0.09}$dex. However, if a bottom-heavy IMF for elliptical galaxies is employed, stellar mass estimations increase and can account for the majority of the lensing mass (up to $\sim$83\%), reducing the need for dark matter. This system further demonstrates the new discovery space that the combined wavelength coverage, sensitivity and resolution of JWST now enables.

The search of exoplanets around nearby M dwarfs is a crucial milestone to perform the census of planetary systems in the vicinity of our Solar System. Since 2018 our team is carrying a radial-velocity blind search program for planets around nearby M dwarfs with the near-IR spectro-polarimeter and velocimeter SPIRou at the CFHT and the optical velocimeter SOPHIE at the OHP in France. Here we present our results on Gl 410, a 0.55 Msun 480+-150 Myr old active M dwarf distant 12 pc. We use the line-by-line (LBL) technique to measure the RVs with SPIRou and the template matching method with SOPHIE. Three different methods, two based in principal component analysis (PCA), are used to clean the SPIRou RVs for systematics. Gaussian processes (GP) modeling is applied to correct the SOPHIE RVs for stellar activity. The l1 and apodize sine periodogram (ASP) analysis is used to search for planetary signals in the SPIRou data taking into account activity indicators. We analyse TESS data and search for planetary transits. We report the detection of a M sin(i)=8.4+-1.3 Mearth sub-Neptune planet at a period of 6.020+-0.004 days in circular orbit with SPIRou. The same signal, although with lower significance, is also retrieved in the SOPHIE RV data after correction for activity using a GP trained on SPIRou's longitudinal magnetic field (Bl) measurements. TESS data indicates that the planet is not transiting. We find within the SPIRou wPCA RVs tentative evidence for two additional planetary signals at 2.99 and 18.7 days. In conclusion, infrared RVs are a powerful method to detect extrasolar planets around active M dwarfs, care should be taken however to correct/filter systematics generated by residuals of the telluric correction or small structures in the detector plane. The LBL technique combined with PCA offers a promising way to reach this objective. Further monitoring of Gl 410 is necessary.

We examine the redshift evolution of the relationship between the neutral atomic hydrogen ({\HI}) content and star-formation properties of blue galaxies, along with their location in the cosmic web. Using the COSMOS {\HI} Large Extragalactic Survey (CHILES) and the IllustrisTNG (TNG100) cosmological simulation, and the {\disperse} algorithm, we identify the filamentary structure in both observations and simulations, measure the distance of galaxies to the nearest filament spine {\dfil}, and calculate the mean {\HI} gas fraction and the relative specific star formation rate (sSFR) of blue galaxies in three different cosmic web environments -- $0<{\dfil}/\mathrm{Mpc}<2$ (filament cores), $2<{\dfil}/\mathrm{Mpc}<4$ (filament outskirts), and $4<{\dfil}/\mathrm{Mpc}<20$ (voids). We find that, although there are some similarities between CHILES and TNG, there exist significant discrepancies in the dependence of {\HI} and star formation on the cosmic web and on redshift. TNG overpredicts the observed {\HI} fraction and relative sSFR at $z=0-0.5$, with the tension being strongest in the voids. CHILES observes a decline in the {\HI} fraction from filament cores to voids, exactly the opposite of the trend predicted by TNG. CHILES observes an increase in {\HI} fraction at $z=0.5\rightarrow0$ in the voids, while TNG predicts an increase in this time in all environments. Further dividing the sample into stellar mass bins, we find that the {\HI} in ${\logms}>10$ galaxies is better reproduced by TNG than {\HI} in ${\logms}=9-10$ galaxies.

The metallicity distribution function and internal chemical variations of a galaxy are fundamental to understand its formation and assembly history. In this work, we analyze photometric metallicities for 3883 stars over seven half-light radii ($\rm r_h$) in the Sculptor dwarf spheroidal (Scl dSph) galaxy, using new narrow-band imaging data from the Mapping the Ancient Galaxy in CaHK (MAGIC) survey conducted with the Dark Energy Camera (DECam) at the 4-m Blanco Telescope. This work demonstrates the scientific potential of MAGIC using the Scl dSph galaxy, one of the most well-studied satellites of the Milky Way. Our sample ranges from $\rm [Fe/H] \approx - 4.0$ to $\rm [Fe/H] \approx - 0.6$, includes six extremely metal-poor candidates ($\rm [Fe/H] \leq -3.0$) without previous spectroscopic observations, and is almost three times larger than the largest spectroscopic metallicity dataset in the Scl dSph. Our spatially unbiased sample of metallicities provides a more accurate representation of the metallicity distribution function, revealing a more metal-rich peak than observed in the most recent spectroscopic sample. It also reveals a break in the metallicity gradient, with a strong change in the slope: from $-3.35 \pm 0.18 \rm \ dex \, deg^{-1}$ for stars inside $\sim 1\ \rm r_h$ to $-0.56 \pm 0.26 \rm \ dex \, deg^{-1}$ for the outer part of the Scl dSph. Our study demonstrates that combining photometric metallicity analysis with the wide field of view of DECam offers an efficient and unbiased approach for studying the stellar populations of dwarf galaxies in the Local Group.

Networks of cosmic domain walls can form in the early Universe as a consequence of the spontaneous breaking of discrete symmetries. We study the production of a cosmological background of gravitational waves (GWs) from such networks, when they annihilate due to a small explicit symmetry breaking term. Averaging over several 3+1-dimensional high-resolution lattice field simulations, we obtain a GW spectrum with the following characteristics: (1) a broad asymmetric peak, roughly located at frequency $f\sim 2 H_{\rm gw}$, where $H_{\rm gw}$ is the Hubble rate at the end of GW production, shortly after annihilation, (2) a doubly broken power spectrum $\propto k^{-n}$, with initial slope $n \sim 0.5$ after the main peak and $n \sim 1.8$ at high $f$, while the low frequency region $f<f_p$ agrees with the causality behavior $\sim k^3$. Additionally, extending previous results, we find that GW production continues to be efficient until a value of the Hubble scale $H_{\text gw}$ that is roughly an order of magnitude smaller than the naive estimate $\sigma H = \Delta V$, where $\sigma$ is the wall tension and $\Delta V$ the size of the symmetry breaking term, thereby leading to a $O(100)$ larger GW signal. We find such results to be robust when changing the shape of the scalar field potential or including a time-dependent symmetry breaking term. Our findings have important implications for GW searches, especially in light of the reported evidence for a stochastic GW background in Pulsar Timing Array data.

We present a study of the $^{12}$CO(1-0) line emission anisotropy across the Milky Way's disk to examine the effect of stellar feedback and Galactic dynamics on the distribution of the dense interstellar medium. The Hessian matrix method is used to characterize the CO line emission distribution and identify the preferential orientation across line-of-sight velocity channels in the Dame et al. 2001 composite Galactic plane survey, which covers the Galactic latitude range $|b|<5^{\circ}$. The structures sampled with this tracer are predominantly parallel to the Galactic plane toward the inner Galaxy, in clear contrast with the predominantly perpendicular orientation of the structures traced by neutral atomic hydrogen (HI) emission toward the same regions. The analysis of the Galactic plane portions sampled at higher angular resolution with other surveys reveals that the alignment with the Galactic plane is also prevalent at smaller scales. We find no preferential orientation in the CO emission toward the outer Galaxy, in contrast with the preferential alignment with the Galactic plane displayed by HI in that portion of the Milky Way. We interpret these results as the combined effect of the decrease in mid-plane pressure with increasing Galactocentric radius and SN feedback lifting diffuse gas more efficiently than dense gas off the Galactic plane.

We conduct linear analyses of convection in domains larger than the temperature scale height. We employ both analytical and numerical methods in these analyses. In the case excluding all dissipation, the typical time scale of convection is determined by the free fall time over the temperature scale height. We quantitatively show the condition for the Boussinesq and Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) approximations to be applicable. We provide a reassessment of the critical Rayleigh number, a key indicator of convection, and show that WKB approximation tends to underestimate the critical Rayleigh number, particularly when the temperature scale height is comparable to or smaller than the domain height. We show clear explanation why both thermal conduction and viscosity are required for stabilizing negative entropy gradient medium.

We investigate the role of the Higgs field as a fundamental scalar in the Standard Model within the framework of modular inflation models, where a modulus field acts as the inflaton and its interactions are governed by an underlying modular symmetry. In general, the Higgs field can participate in the dynamics of modular inflation, leading to a two-field inflationary system-termed \emph{Higgs-Modular inflation}-which exhibits non-trivial dynamics and interesting phenomenological implications. We analyze Higgs-Modular inflation both analytically and numerically, highlighting its attractor behavior and the resulting observational constraints. In particular, we find that Higgs-Modular inflation is favored by the latest data release from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) in certain regions of parameter space. This is in contrast to both pure Higgs inflation and pure modular inflation with a Starobinsky-type potential, which tend to predict a relatively low spectral index. Additionally, we discuss the cutoff scale of this inflationary model and the reheating processes induced by the decays of the modulus and the Higgs field.

The scattering and absorption rates of light dark matter with electron spin-dependent interactions depend on the target's spin response. We show how this response is encoded by the target's dynamical magnetic susceptibility, which can be measured using neutron scattering. We directly use existing neutron scattering data to compute the dark matter scattering rate in a candidate target material, finding close agreement with the previous first-principles calculation at MeV dark matter masses. Complementary experiments and measurements can extend the reach of this technique to other dark matter models and masses, and identify promising target materials for future experiments.

We study minimal versions of Higgs inflation in the presence of a massless QCD axion. While the inflationary energy scale of the metric variant is too high to accommodate isocurvature bounds, it was argued that Palatini Higgs inflation could evade these constraints. We show, however, that an energy-dependent decay constant enhances isocurvature perturbations, implying that axions can at most constitute a tiny fraction $< 10^{-5}$ of dark matter. This conclusion can be avoided in Einstein-Cartan gravity by an additional coupling of the axion to torsion, albeit for a very specific choice of parameters. Analogous constraints as well as the possibility to alleviate them are relevant for all inflationary models with a non-minimal coupling to gravity.

The 3-inch Hamamatsu R14374-02 photomultiplier tube is an improved version of the R12199-02 model and its successor in the construction of the KM3NeT neutrino telescope. A total of 1000 photomultipliers were analysed to assess their dark count rate, transit time spread, and spurious pulses. A subset of 200 photomultipliers were further evaluated to determine their quantum efficiency which is an essential parameter for Monte Carlo simulations of the detector response. The measurements show that R14374-02 model has better quantum efficiency homogeneity over the photocatode and better time properties than the R12199-02.

This study tackles the impact dark energy in different systems by a simple unifying formalism. We introduce a parameter space to compare gravity tests across all cosmic scales, using the McVittie spacetime (MCV), that connect spherically symmetric solutions with cosmological solutions. By analyzing invariant scalars, the Ricci, Weyl, and Kretschmann scalars, we develop a phase-space description that predicts the dominance of the Cosmological Constant. We explore three cases: (1) the local Hubble flow around galaxy groups and clusters, (2) spherical density distributions and (3) binary motion. Our results show that galaxy groups and clusters exhibit Kretschmann scalar values consistent with the Cosmological Constant curvature, indicating where dark energy dominates.

Using particle-in-cell simulations to study fast radio burst (FRB) propagation in a tenuous plasma, we identified a novel mechanism that occurs during the growth of turbulent magnetic loops: electron penetration acceleration. The loops have an electromagnetic left-hand chirality distinct from that of well-known quasistatic magnetic islands. The fast electrons penetrate through the loops and thus are accelerated to unexpected relativistic energies due to the symmetry breaking induced by the coupling between the loop field and the non-relativistic electromagnetic wave. The identified features of penetration acceleration and magnetic loops might provide a new perspective for understanding particle injection into relativistic collisionless shock precursors invoked in FRB-swept cosmic backgrounds. Additionally, we show that this FRB-relevant phenomenon could be tested in scaled laboratory experiments using a multi-terawatt laser impinging on gase targets.

The global behavior of the nuclear equation of state (EoS) is usually investigated using finite nuclei (FN) data, along with constraints from heavy-ion collisions and astrophysical observations of neutron star (NS) properties. The FN constraints explicitly imposed through the binding energies and charge radii of selected nuclei are found to significantly affect the EoS across different densities. However, the high computational cost of these constraints makes it challenging to extend the analysis to a broader set of nuclei, particularly when the objective is not merely to obtain a single optimized model but to systematically explore uncertainties in global modeling. To overcome this challenge, we introduce NucleiML (NML), a machine learning framework trained on ground-state FN properties obtained from mean-field models. Integrated into a Bayesian inference approach, NML demonstrates high accuracy and strong consistency with the underlying mean-field model. The NML achieves around ten-fold computational speed-up, from $\sim 4.5$ hours to 30 minutes. Its predictive performance improves further as the number of nuclei in the training data increases, which we plan to employ in extensive future explorations.

Cosmic rays (CRs) traversing the dark matter (DM) spike surrounding active galactic nuclei (AGNs) can be cooled through interactions with DM particles. In this study, we investigated constraints on sub-GeV DM particles charged under various $U(1)$ gauge symmetries by exploiting the cooling effect of CRs in AGNs. We find that for low DM and mediator masses, the CR cooling rate is higher compared to the standard model cooling process. Furthermore, by utilizing constraints from the CR cooling effect in NGC 1068 and TXS 0506+056, we explore the bounds on the DM-electron and DM-proton elastic scattering cross-sections. Our results indicate that in the sub-GeV DM mass range, these constraints are more stringent than those from certain boosted DM mechanisms and current direct detection limits.

In the realm of thermodynamics of apparent horizon, we construct a dark energy (DE) model from 4-parameter generalized entropy of apparent horizon in a spatially non-flat universe. In particular, considering a non-zero spatial curvature of the universe, we determine the dark energy fractional density and the dark energy equation of state (EoS) parameter (corresponding to the 4-parameter generalized entropy) in closed analytic forms. It turns out that the scenario can describe the correct thermal history of the universe, with the sequence of matter and dark energy epochs. Comparing with the $\Lambda$CDM model, the proposed generalized entropic DE model provides a higher value of the present Hubble parameter for a certain range of entropic parameter(s) leading to a possible resolution of the Hubble tension issue. This in turn leads to a positive spatial curvature of the universe. We confront the scenario with CC \& BAO, Pantheon+ \& SH0ES and joint analysis of the CC \& BAO \& Pantheon+ \& SH0ES datasets, which clearly depicts the phenomenological viability of the present model for some best fitted values of entropic parameter(s) that are indeed consistent with the resolution of Hubble tension.

We show that baryogenesis can arise from the cosmological evolution of a scalar field that governs CP-violating parameters, such as the Yukawa couplings and the theta terms of the Standard Model. During the big bang, this scalar may reach a CP-violating minimum, where its mass can be comparable to the inflationary Hubble scale. Such dynamics can emerge in theories featuring either a spontaneously broken local U(1) symmetry or modular invariance. The latter arises naturally as the effective field theory capturing the geometric origin of CP violation in toroidal string compactifications. Modular baryogenesis is compatible with the modular approach to resolving the strong CP problem.

We have developed a simple analytic formula that well describes quadrupole $l$-changing collisions of the form $nl \rightarrow nl'$, as confirmed by comparison with numerical quantal Born calculations obtained with the program autostructure (Badnell 2011). Such formulae could easily be included in models of astrophysical plasma emission, such as the hydrogen and helium-like recombination spectra. When compared with the results of previous quantal calculations based upon an analytic solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation by Vrinceanu & Flannery (2001), we find relatively good agreement, with the exception of large $l > n/2$ transitions. We provide a tentative explanation for such discrepancies. However, we also show that the rates for quadrupole $l$-changing collisions are typically two orders of magnitude lower than the dipolar ones. Inclusion of the quadrupolar rates in a hydrogenic collisional-radiative model of nebular plasma shows minimal changes to the level populations, typically within 1% in nebular conditions. Simple and complete theories are now available for $l$-changing collisions suitable for astrophysical applications.