We present the first measurement of the planet frequency beyond the "snow line," for the planet-to-star mass-ratio interval −4.5 < log q < −2, corresponding to the range of ice giants to gas giants. We find d 2 N pl d log q d log s = (0.36 ± 0.15) dex −2 at the mean mass ratio q = 5 × 10 −4 with no discernible deviation from a flat (Öpik's law) distribution in logprojected separation s. The determination is based on a sample of six planets detected from intensive follow-up observations of high-magnification (A > 200) microlensing events during 2005-2008. The sampled host stars have a typical mass M host ∼ 0.5 M , and detection is sensitive to planets over a range of planet-star-projected separations (s −1 max R E , s max R E), where R E ∼ 3.5 AU (M host /M) 1/2 is the Einstein radius and s max ∼ (q/10 −4.3) 1/3. This corresponds to deprojected separations roughly three times the "snow line." We show that the observations of these events have the properties of a "controlled experiment," which is what permits measurement of absolute planet frequency. High-magnification events are rare, but the survey-plus-follow-up high-magnification channel is very efficient: half of all high-mag events were successfully monitored and half of these yielded planet detections. The extremely high sensitivity of high-mag events leads to a policy of monitoring them as intensively as possible, independent of whether they show evidence of planets. This is what allows us to construct an unbiased sample. The planet frequency derived from microlensing is a factor 8 larger than the one derived from Doppler studies at factor ∼25 smaller star-planet separations (i.e., periods 2-2000 days). However, this difference is basically consistent with the gradient derived from Doppler studies (when extrapolated well beyond the separations from which it is measured). This suggests a universal separation distribution across 2 dex in planet-star separation, 2 dex in mass ratio, and 0.3 dex in host mass. Finally, if all planetary systems were "analogs" of the solar system, our sample would have yielded 18.2 planets (11.4 "Jupiters," 6.4 "Saturns," 0.3 "Uranuses," 0.2 "Neptunes") including 6.1 systems with two or more planet detections. This compares to six planets including one twoplanet system in the actual sample, implying a first estimate of 1/6 for the frequency of solar-like systems.
In the quest for new energy sources, the research on controlled thermonuclear fusion 1 has been boosted by the start of the construction phase of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). ITER is based on the tokamak magnetic configuration 3, which is the best performing one in terms of energy confinement. Alternative concepts are however actively researched, which in the long term could be considered for a second generation of reactors. Here, we show results concerning one of these configurations, the reversed-field pinch 4,5 (RFP). By increasing the plasma current, a spontaneous transition to a helical equilibrium occurs, with a change of magnetic topology. Partially conserved magnetic flux surfaces emerge within residual magnetic chaos, resulting in the onset of a transport barrier. This is a structural change and sheds new light on the potential of the RFP as the basis for a low-magnetic-field ohmic fusion reactor.The main magnetic field configurations studied for the confinement of toroidal fusion-relevant plasmas are the tokamak 3 , the stellarator 6 and the reversed-field pinch 4,5 (RFP). In the tokamak, a strong magnetic field is produced in the toroidal direction by a set of coils approximating a toroidal solenoid, and the poloidal field generated by a toroidal current flowing into the plasma gives the field lines a weak helical twist. This is the configuration that has been most studied and has achieved the best levels of energy confinement time. Thus, it is the natural choice for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, which has the mission of demonstrating the scientific and technical feasibility of controlled fusion with magnetic confinement.The RFP, like the tokamak, is axisymmetric and exploits the pinch effect due to a current flowing in a plasma embedded in a toroidal magnetic field. The main difference is that, for a given plasma current, the toroidal magnetic field in a RFP is one order of magnitude smaller than in a tokamak, and is mainly generated by currents flowing in the plasma itself. This feature is underlying the main potential advantage of the RFP as a reactor concept, namely the capability of achieving fusion conditions with ohmic heating only in a much simpler and compact device. In the past, this positive feature was overcome by the poorer stability properties, which led to the growth and saturation of several magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instabilities, eventually downgrading the confinement performance. These instabilities, represented by Fourier modes in the poloidal and toroidal angles θ and φ as exp [i(mθ − nφ) were considered as an unavoidable ingredient of the dynamo self-organization process 4,8,9 , necessary for the sustainment of the configuration in time. The occurrence of several MHD modes resonating on different plasma layers gives rise to overlapping magnetic islands, which result in a chaotic region, extending over most of the plasma volume 10 , where the magnetic surfaces are destroyed and the confinement level is modest. This conditi...
We report the discovery of ASASSN-15lh (SN 2015L), which we interpret as the most luminous supernova yet found. At redshift z = 0.2326, ASASSN-15lh reached an absolute magnitude of Mu ,AB = -23.5 ± 0.1 and bolometric luminosity Lbol = (2.2 ± 0.2) × 10(45) ergs s(-1), which is more than twice as luminous as any previously known supernova. It has several major features characteristic of the hydrogen-poor super-luminous supernovae (SLSNe-I), whose energy sources and progenitors are currently poorly understood. In contrast to most previously known SLSNe-I that reside in star-forming dwarf galaxies, ASASSN-15lh appears to be hosted by a luminous galaxy (MK ≈ -25.5) with little star formation. In the 4 months since first detection, ASASSN-15lh radiated (1.1 ± 0.2) × 10(52) ergs, challenging the magnetar model for its engine.
Abstract. We present photometry and spectroscopy of the afterglow of GRB 030323. VLT spectra of the afterglow show damped Lyα (DLA) absorption and low-and high-ionization lines at a redshift z = 3.3718 ± 0.0005. The inferred neutral hydrogen column density, log N(H i) = 21.90 ± 0.07, is larger than any (GRB-or QSO-) DLA H column density inferred directly from Lyα in absorption. From the afterglow photometry, we derive a conservative upper limit to the host-galaxy extinction: A V < 0.5 mag. The iron abundance is [Fe/H] = −1.47 ± 0.11, while the metallicity of the gas as measured from sulphur is [S/H] = −1.26 ± 0.20. We derive an upper limit on the H 2 molecular fraction of 2N(H 2 )/(2N(H 2 ) + N(H i)) < ∼ 10 −6 . In the Lyα trough, a Lyα emission line is detected, which corresponds to a star-formation rate (not corrected for dust extinction) of roughly 1 M yr −1 . All these results are consistent with the host galaxy of GRB 030323 consisting of a low metallicity gas with a low dust content. We detect fine-structure lines of silicon, Si *, which have never been clearly detected in QSO-DLAs; this suggests that these lines are produced in the vicinity of the GRB explosion site. Under the assumption that these fine-structure levels are populated by particle collisions, we estimate the H volume density to be n H i = 10 2 −10 4 cm −3 . HST/ACS imaging 4 months after the burst shows an extended AB(F606W) = 28.0 ± 0.3 mag object at a distance of 0. 14 (1 kpc) from the early afterglow location, which presumably is the host galaxy of GRB 030323.
We report on a V ¼ 11:2 early K dwarf, , that hosts a R p ¼ 0:98AE 0:03 0:01 R J , M p ¼ 0:57 AE 0:06 M J transiting extrasolar planet, XO-2b, with an orbital period of 2:615857 AE 0:000005 days. XO-2 has high metallicity, ½Fe/H ¼ 0:45 AE 0:02, high proper motion, tot ¼ 157 mas yr À1 , and a common proper motion stellar companion with 31 00 separation. The two stars are nearly identical twins, with very similar spectra and apparent magnitudes. Due to the high metallicity, these early K dwarf stars have a mass and radius close to solar, M ? ¼ 0:98 AE 0:02 M and R ? ¼ 0:97AE 0:02 0:01 R . The high proper motion of XO-2 results from an eccentric orbit (Galactic pericenter, R per < 4 kpc) well confined to the Galactic disk (Z max $ 100 pc). In addition, the phase-space position of XO-2 is near the Hercules dynamical stream, which points to an origin of XO-2 in the metal-rich, inner thin disk and subsequent dynamical scattering into the solar neighborhood. We describe an efficient Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm for calculating the Bayesian posterior probability of the system parameters from a transit light curve.
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