#### The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series

Journal Information
ISSN / EISSN : 0067-0049 / 1538-4365
Total articles ≅ 6,785
Current Coverage
SCOPUS
SCIE
INSPEC
Archived in
SHERPA/ROMEO
Filter:

#### Latest articles in this journal

Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac626d

Abstract:
Luminosity, which is the total amount of radiant energy emitted by an object, is one of the most critical quantities in astrophysics for characterizing stars. Equally important is the temporal evolution of a star’s luminosity because of its intimate connection with the stellar energy budget, large-scale convective motion, and heat storage in the stellar interior. The Sun’s luminosity and its variation have not been measured to date because current observations of the solar radiative output have been restricted to vantage points near the Earth. Here, we model the solar luminosity by extending a semiempirical total solar irradiance (TSI) model that uses solar-surface magnetism to reconstruct solar irradiance over the entire 4π solid angle around the Sun. This model was constrained by comparing its output to the irradiance in the Earth’s direction with the measured TSI. Comparing the solar luminosity to the TSI on timescales from days to solar cycles for cycles 23 and 24, we find poor agreement on short timescales (<solar rotation). This is not unexpected due to the Earth-centric viewing geometry and short-term irradiance dependence on surface features on the Earth-facing solar disk. On longer timescales, however, we find good agreement between the luminosity model and the TSI, which suggests that the extrapolation of luminosities to multicycle timescales based on TSI reconstructions may be possible. We show that the solar luminosity is not constant but varies in phase with the solar cycle. This variation has an amplitude of 0.14% from minimum to maximum for Solar Cycle 23. Considering the energetics in the solar convection zone, it is therefore obvious that a steady-state input from the radiative zone at the solar minimum level would lead to a gradual reduction in the energy content in the convection zone over multicentury timescales. We show that the luminosity at the base of the convection zone should be approximately 0.032% higher than that at the solar surface during solar minimum to maintain net energy equilibrium through the solar cycle. These different energy-input scenarios place constraints on the long-term evolution of the TSI and its impact on the solar forcing of climate variability. These results highlight the convection zone’s role as an energy reservoir on solar-cycle timescales and set constraints for dynamo models intending to understand the long-term evolution of the Sun and solar analogs.
K.-F. Lai, D. Manalili, , , M. Pettini, N. de Oliveira,
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac6350

Abstract:
A spectroscopic study of atomic oxygen (O i) is performed using the Fourier-transform vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) spectrometer at the Dichroïsme Et Spectroscopie par Interaction avec le Rayonnement Synchrotron beamline of the SOLEIL synchrotron. Transition frequencies of O i lines in the range between 76,000 and 151,000 cm−1, corresponding to wavelengths between 665 and 1306 Å, are presented. In the wavelength window a data set of 208 lines is obtained for which line centers were determined at an accuracy of ≤0.035 cm−1, verified through a comparison with previous VUV-laser spectroscopy at an accuracy of 0.008 cm−1. Transitions to upper states belonging to several ns and nd Rydberg series that converge to the 4S3/2, 2D, and 2P ionization limits are presented. Besides studies on the main 16O isotope, measurements of the 18O isotope are also performed, for which an enriched sample of 18O2 gas is used. A least-squares optimization analysis is performed after merging the present new data set with some relevant accurate literature data to extract a list of level energies at high accuracy. When comparing with the database of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, good agreement is found for levels with low principal quantum numbers n ≤ 7 or below excitation energies of 108,000 cm−1; however, significant deviations were found for levels with n > 7. The main result of the present study is the realization of an improved data set of transition frequencies and level energies for O i, with its usefulness demonstrated in a comparison with high-resolution astronomical spectra showing absorption in the line of sight to distant quasars.
, , , , Jin Zhong Liu, , , Xuefei Chen,
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac617a

Abstract:
Be stars are B-type main-sequence stars that display broad Balmer emission lines in their spectra. Identification of the Be population is essential to further examine the formation and evolutionary models. We report the detection of classical Be (CBe) stars from observations with the Large sky Area Multi-Object fiber Spectroscopic Telescope Medium Resolution Survey Data Release 7 (LAMOST MRS DR7). We used a deep convolutional neural network, ResNet, with an 18 layer module to examine the morphology of the Hα profile. We identified 1162 candidate Be stars from the collection of 2,260,387 spectra for 789,918 stars in the database. The ResNet network achieves a Be-star classification accuracy of 99.5%. Among the detections, 151 of these are prior known Be stars crossmatched from the literature. By applying a three-step test, we identified 183 new CBe stars. We find that 41 CBe stars are members of known open clusters. Based on an investigation of the kinematics of the identified CBe stars from the Gaia EDR3 astrometric solutions, we identified 16 new runaways. These new identifications will provide a reference for future follow-ups to further investigate their physical properties.
, Robert L. Kurucz
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac596b

Abstract:
The spectrum of neutral iron is critical to astrophysics, yet furnace laboratory experiments cannot reach high-lying Fe i levels. Instead, Peterson & Kurucz and Peterson et al. adopted ultraviolet (UV) and optical spectra of warm stars to identify and assign energies for 124 Fe i levels with 1900 detectable Fe i lines, and to derive astrophysical gf values for over 1000 of these. An energy value was assumed for each unknown Fe i level, and confirmed if the wavelengths predicted in updated Kurucz Fe i calculations matched the wavelengths of four or more unidentified lines in the observed spectra. Nearly all these identifications were for LS levels, those characterized by spin–orbit coupling, whose lines fall primarily at UV and optical wavelengths. This work contributes nearly 100 new Fe i level identifications. Thirty-nine LS levels are identified largely by incorporating published positions of unidentified laboratory Fe i lines with wavelengths <2000 Å. Adding infrared (IR) spectra provided 60 Fe i jK levels, where a single outer electron orbits a compact core. Their weak IR lines are searchable, because their mutual energies obey tight relationships. For each new Fe i level, this work again makes publicly available its identification, its energy, and a list of its potentially detectable lines with theoretical gf values, totalling >16,000 lines. For over 2000 of these, this work provides astrophysical gf values adjusted semiempirically to fit the stellar spectra. The potential impact of this work on modeling UV and IR stellar spectra is noted.
Jing Jin, , Chen Wang, Ju Guan, Cheng-Kui Li, , Yi Nang, Yuan Liu, , , et al.
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac6d5f

Abstract:
Accurately estimating of diffuse X-ray background (DXB) is essential for the investigation of sources in the Galactic plane observed with Insight-HXMT/LE, which is a collimated telescope in the soft X-ray energy band with a relatively large field of view. In the high-Galactic-latitude region, DXB is dominated by the cosmic X-ray background, which is almost uniform, but DXB in the Galactic plane region is more complex due to the Galactic H i absorption and the contribution of the Galactic ridge X-ray emission. This study, as a part of background estimation of LE, focuses on estimating the contribution of DXB in the Galactic plane to Insight-HXMT/LE observations. We calculate DXB confined in a region of 0° < l < 360° and ∣b∣ < 10°, where l and b denote Galactic longitude and latitude, respectively, with the first 3 yr of Galactic-plane-scanning survey data of Insight-HXMT/LE. The Galactic plane is divided into 360 × 20 small pixels (1° × 1° per pixel), and a DXB spectrum is obtained for each pixel. An indirect method is developed for the pixels of the bright source regions, which brings a systematic error of ∼10%. The systematic error brought by the satellite attitude is ∼7% on average for all the pixels in the Galactic plane. The LE DXB spectrum obtained in this study is consistent with that reported by RXTE’s Proportional Counter Array.
J. Q. Li, C. Y. Zhang, G. Del Zanna, P. Jönsson, M. Godefroid, , P. Rynkun, L. Radžiūtė, , R. Si, et al.
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac63ae

Abstract:
Large-scale multiconfiguration Dirac–Hartree–Fock calculations are provided for the n ≤ 5 states in C-like ions from O iii to Mg vii. Electron correlation effects are accounted for by using large configuration state function expansions, built from sets of orbitals with principal quantum numbers n ≤ 10. An accurate and complete data set of excitation energies, wavelengths, radiative transition parameters, and lifetimes is offered for the 156 (196, 215, 272, 318) lowest states of the 2s 22p 2, 2s2p 3, 2p 4, 2s 22p3s, 2s 22p3p, 2s 22p3d, 2s2p 23s, 2s2p 23p, 2s2p 23d, 2p 33s, 2p 33p, 2p 33d, 2s 22p4s, 2s 22p4p, 2s 22p4d, 2s 22p4f, 2s2p 24s, 2s2p 24p, 2s2p 24d, 2s2p 24f, 2s 22p5s, 2s 22p5p, 2s 22p5d, 2s 22p5f, and 2s 22p5g configurations in O iii (F iv, Ne v, Na vi, Mg vii). By comparing available experimental wavelengths with the MCDHF results, the previous line identifications for the n = 5, 4, 3 → n = 2 transitions of Na vi in the X-ray and EUV wavelength range are revised. For several previous identifications discrepancies are found, and tentative new (or revised) identifications are proposed. A consistent atomic data set including both energy and transition data with spectroscopic accuracy is provided for the lowest hundreds of states for C-like ions from O iii to Mg vii.
, , , Yajie Chen, , Yingjie Zhu, , Yuhang Gao, Yu Xu, , et al.
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac6607

Abstract:
Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are the largest-scale eruptive phenomena in the solar system. Associated with enormous plasma ejections and energy releases, CMEs have an important impact on the solar–terrestrial environment. Accurate predictions of the arrival times of CMEs at the Earth depend on precise measurements of their 3D velocities, which can be achieved by using simultaneous line-of-sight (LOS) and plane-of-sky (POS) observations. Besides the POS information from routine coronagraph and extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) imaging observations, spectroscopic observations could unveil the physical properties of CMEs, including their LOS velocities. We propose that spectral line asymmetries measured by Sun-as-a-star spectrographs can be used for routine detections of CMEs and estimations of their LOS velocities during their early propagation phases. Such observations can also provide important clues for the detection of CMEs on other solar-like stars. However, few studies have concentrated on whether we can detect CME signals and accurately diagnose CME properties through Sun-as-a-star spectral observations. In this work, we construct a geometric CME model and derive the analytical expressions for full disk-integrated EUV line profiles during CMEs. For different CME properties and instrumental configurations, the full disk-integrated line profiles are synthesized. We further evaluate the detectability and diagnostic potential of CMEs from the synthetic line profiles. Our investigations provide important constraints on the future design of Sun-as-a-star spectrographs for CME detections through EUV line asymmetries.
, , Elizabeth A. Den Hartog, , Rebecca Surman, , Rana Ezzeddine, , , , et al.
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac5cbc

Abstract:
We present a nearly complete rapid neutron-capture process (r-process) chemical inventory of the metal-poor ([Fe/H] = −1.46 ± 0.10) r-process-enhanced ([Eu/Fe] = +1.32 ± 0.08) halo star HD 222925. This abundance set is the most complete for any object beyond the solar system, with a total of 63 metals detected and seven with upper limits. It comprises 42 elements from 31 ≤ Z ≤ 90, including elements rarely detected in r-process-enhanced stars, such as Ga, Ge, As, Se, Cd, In, Sn, Sb, Te, W, Re, Os, Ir, Pt, and Au. We derive these abundances from an analysis of 404 absorption lines in ultraviolet spectra collected using the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope and previously analyzed optical spectra. A series of appendices discusses the atomic data and quality of fits for these lines. The r-process elements from Ba to Pb, including all elements at the third r-process peak, exhibit remarkable agreement with the solar r-process residuals, with a standard deviation of the differences of only 0.08 dex (17%). In contrast, deviations among the lighter elements from Ga to Te span nearly 1.4 dex, and they show distinct trends from Ga to Se, Nb through Cd, and In through Te. The r-process contribution to Ga, Ge, and As is small, and Se is the lightest element whose production is dominated by the r-process. The lanthanide fraction, log X La = −1.39 ± 0.09, is typical for r-process-enhanced stars and higher than that of the kilonova from the GW170817 neutron-star merger event. We advocate adopting this pattern as an alternative to the solar r-process-element residuals when confronting future theoretical models of heavy-element nucleosynthesis with observations.
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac5044

Abstract:
Several generalizations of the well-known fluid model of Braginskii (1965) are considered. We use the Landau collisional operator and the moment method of Grad. We focus on the 21-moment model that is analogous to the Braginskii model, and we also consider a 22-moment model. Both models are formulated for general multispecies plasmas with arbitrary masses and temperatures, where all of the fluid moments are described by their evolution equations. The 21-moment model contains two “heat flux vectors” (third- and fifth-order moments) and two “viscosity tensors” (second- and fourth-order moments). The Braginskii model is then obtained as a particular case of a one ion–electron plasma with similar temperatures, with decoupled heat fluxes and viscosity tensors expressed in a quasistatic approximation. We provide all of the numerical values of the Braginskii model in a fully analytic form (together with the fourth- and fifth-order moments). For multispecies plasmas, the model makes the calculation of the transport coefficients straightforward. Formulation in fluid moments (instead of Hermite moments) is also suitable for implementation into existing numerical codes. It is emphasized that it is the quasistatic approximation that makes some Braginskii coefficients divergent in a weakly collisional regime. Importantly, we show that the heat fluxes and viscosity tensors are coupled even in the linear approximation, and that the fully contracted (scalar) perturbations of the fourth-order moment, which are accounted for in the 22-moment model, modify the energy exchange rates. We also provide several appendices, which can be useful as a guide for deriving the Braginskii model with the moment method of Grad.
Yuxi Wang, , ,
Published: 1 June 2022
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Volume 260; https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/ac63c1

Abstract:
The dust extinction curves toward individual sight lines in M33 are derived for the first time with a sample of reddened O-type and B-type supergiants obtained from the Local Group Galaxies Survey (LGGS). The observed photometric data are obtained from the LGGS, PS1 Survey, UKIRT, PHATTER Survey, Galaxy Evolution Explorer, Swift/UVOT, and XMM-SUSS. We combine the intrinsic spectral energy distributions (SEDs) obtained from the ATLAS9 and Tlusty stellar model atmosphere extinguished by the model extinction curves from the silicate-graphite dust model to construct model SEDs. The extinction traces are distributed along the arms in M33, and the derived extinction curves cover a wide range of shapes (R V ≈ 2–6), indicating the complexity of the interstellar environment and the inhomogeneous distribution of interstellar dust in M33. The average extinction curve with R V ≈ 3.39 and dust size distribution $dn/da∼a−3.45exp(−a/0.25)$ is similar to that of the Milky Way but with a weaker 2175 Å bump and a slightly steeper rise in the far-UV band. The extinction in the V band of M33 is up to 2 mag, with a median value of A V ≈ 0.43 mag. The multiband extinction values from the UV to IR bands are also predicted for M33, which will provide extinction corrections for future works. The method adopted in this work is also applied to other star-resolved galaxies (NGC 6822 and WLM), but only a few extinction curves can be derived because of the limited observations.