We present the first X-ray spectrum obtained by the Low-Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer (LETGS) aboard the Chandra X-Ray Observatory. The spectrum is of Capella and covers a wavelength range of 5-175 Å (2.5-0.07 keV). The measured wavelength resolution, which is in good agreement with ground calibration, is Deltalambda approximately 0.06 Å (FWHM). Although in-flight calibration of the LETGS is in progress, the high spectral resolution and unique wavelength coverage of the LETGS are well demonstrated by the results from Capella, a coronal source rich in spectral emission lines. While the primary purpose of this Letter is to demonstrate the spectroscopic potential of the LETGS, we also briefly present some preliminary astrophysical results. We discuss plasma parameters derived from line ratios in narrow spectral bands, such as the electron density diagnostics of the He-like triplets of carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, as well as resonance scattering of the strong Fe xvii line at 15.014 Å.

The Chandra Multiwavelength Project (ChaMP) is a wide-area ($14 deg 2 ) survey of serendipitous Chandra X-ray sources, aiming to establish fair statistical samples covering a wide range of characteristics (such as absorbed active galactic nuclei [AGNs] and high-z clusters of galaxies) at flux levels ( f X $ 10 À15 to 10 À14 ergs s À1 cm À2 ) intermediate between the Chandra Deep Field surveys and previous missions. We present the first results of X-ray source properties obtained from the initial sample of 62 observations. The data have been uniformly reduced and analyzed with techniques specifically developed for the ChaMP and then validated by visual examination. Utilizing only near-on-axis X-ray-bright sources (to avoid problems caused by incompleteness and the Eddington bias), we derive the log N log S relation in soft (0.5-2 keV) and hard (2-8 keV) energy bands. The ChaMP data are consistent with previous results of ROSAT, ASCA, and Chandra Deep Field surveys. In particular, our data nicely fill in the flux gap in the hard band between the Chandra Deep Field data and the previous ASCA data. We check whether there is any systematic difference in the source density between cluster and noncluster fields and also search for field-to-field variation, both of which have been previously reported. We found no significant field-to-field cosmic variation in either test within the statistics ($ 1 ) across the flux levels included in our sample. In the X-ray color-color plot, most sources fall in the location characterized by photon index = 1.5-2 and N H ¼ a few  10 20 cm 2 , suggesting that they are typical broadline AGNs. There also exist a considerable number of sources with peculiar X-ray colors (e.g., highly absorbed, very hard, very soft). We confirm a trend that on average the X-ray color hardens as the count rate decreases. Since the hardening is confined to the softest energy band (0.3-0.9 keV), we conclude that it is most likely due to absorption. We cross-correlate the X-ray sources with other catalogs and describe their properties in terms of optical color, X-ray-to-optical luminosity ratio, and X-ray colors.

In a study of Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating spectra of Algol, we clearly detect Doppler shifts caused by the orbital motion of Algol B. These data provide the first definitive proof that the X-ray emission of Algol is dominated by the secondary, in concordance with expectations that the primary B8 component should be X-ray-dark. However, the measured Doppler shifts are slightly smaller than might be expected, implying an effective orbital semimajor axis of about 10 R instead of 11.5 R for the Algol B center of mass. This could be caused by a small contribution of Algol A, possibly through accretion, to the observed X-ray flux, in which case such a contribution does not exceed 10%-15%. We suggest that the more likely explanation is an asymmetric corona biased toward the system center of mass by the tidal distortion of the surface of Algol B. A detailed analysis of the profiles of the strongest lines indicates the presence of excess line broadening amounting to approximately 150 km s À1 above that expected from thermal motion and surface rotation. Possible explanations for this additional broadening include turbulence, flows or explosive events, or rotational broadening from a radially extended corona. We favor the latter scenario and infer that a significant component of the corona at temperatures less than 10 7 K has a scale height of order the stellar radius. This interpretation is supported by the shape of the X-ray light curve and tentative detection of a shallow dip at secondary eclipse. We also examine the O vii intercombination and forbidden lines in a Low Energy Transmission Grating Spectrograph observation and find no change in their relative line fluxes as the system goes from quadrature to primary eclipse. Since these lines appear to be strongly affected by UV irradiation from Algol A through radiative excitation of the 2 3 S ! 2 3 P transition, this supports the conjecture that the corona of Algol B at temperatures of several million kelvins must be significantly extended and /or located toward the poles to avoid being shadowed from Algol A during primary eclipse.

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We present results from two Chandra imaging observations of Ross 154, a nearby flaring M dwarf star. During a 61 ks ACIS-S exposure, a very large flare occurred (the equivalent of a solar X3400 event, with L X ¼ 1:8 ; 10 30 ergs s À1 ) in which the count rate increased by a factor of over 100. The early phase of the flare shows evidence for the Neupert effect, followed by a further rise and then a two-component exponential decay. A large flare was also observed at the end of a later 48 ks HRC-I observation. Emission from the nonflaring phases of both observations was analyzed for evidence of low-level flaring. From these temporal studies we find that microflaring probably accounts for most of the ''quiescent'' emission and that, unlike for the Sun and the handful of other stars that have been studied, the distribution of flare intensities does not appear to follow a power law with a single index. Analysis of the ACIS spectra, which was complicated by exclusion of the heavily piled-up source core, suggests that the quiescent Ne/O abundance ratio is enhanced by a factor of $2.5 compared to the commonly adopted solar abundance ratio and that the Ne/O ratio and overall coronal metallicity during the flare appear to be enhanced relative to quiescent abundances. Based on the temperatures and emission measures derived from the spectral fits, we estimate the length scales and plasma densities in the flaring volume and also track the evolution of the flare in color-intensity space. Lastly, we searched for a stellar wind charge exchange X-ray halo around the star but without success; because of the relationship between mass-loss rate and the halo surface brightness, not even an upper limit on the stellar mass-loss rate can be determined.