We report the results of a multi-year spectroscopic and photometric survey of novae in M31 that resulted in a total of 53 spectra of 48 individual nova candidates. Two of these, M31N 1995-11e and M31N 2007-11g, were revealed to be long-period Mira variables, not novae. These data double the number of spectra extant for novae in M31 through the end of 2009 and bring to 91 the number of M31 novae with known spectroscopic classifications. We find that 75 novae (82%) are confirmed or likely members of the FeII spectroscopic class, with the remaining 16 novae (18%) belonging to the He/N (and related) classes. These numbers are consistent with those found for Galactic novae. We find no compelling evidence that spectroscopic class depends sensitively on spatial position or population within M31 (i.e., bulge versus disk), although the distribution for He/N systems appears slightly more extended than that for the FeII class. We confirm the existence of a correlation between speed class and ejection velocity (based on line width), as in the case of Galactic novae. Follow-up photometry allowed us to determine light-curve parameters for a total of 47 of the 91 novae with known spectroscopic class. We confirm that more luminous novae generally fade the fastest and that He/N novae are typically faster and brighter than their FeII counterparts. In addition, we find a weak dependence of nova speed class on position in M31, with the spatial distribution of the fastest novae being slightly more extended than that of slower novae.
The SVOM mission currently under development will carry various instruments, and in particular the coded-mask telescope ECLAIRs, with a large field of view of about 2sr, operating in the 4-150keV energy band. The main goal of ECLAIRs is to detect high-energy transients such as gamma-ray bursts. Its onboard trigger software will search for new hard X-ray sources appearing in the sky, as well as peculiar behaviour (e.g. strong outbursts) from known sources, in order to repoint the satellite to perform follow-up observations with its onboard narrow-field-of-view instruments. The presence of known X-ray sources must be disentangled from the appearance of new sources. This is done with the help of an onboard source catalogue, which we present in this paper. As an input we use catalogues of X-ray sources detected by Swift/BAT and MAXI/GSC and we study the influence of the sources on ECLAIRs' background level and on the quality of the sky-image reconstruction process. We show that the influence of the sources depends on the pointing direction on the sky, on the energy band, and on the exposure time. In the Galactic centre, the contribution from known sources largely dominates the cosmic X-ray background, which is, on the contrary, the main background in sky regions lacking strong sources. We also demonstrate the need to clean the contributions of these sources in order to maintain a low noise level in the sky images and to maintain a low threshold for the detection of new sources without introducing false triggers. We briefly describe one of our cleaning methods and its challenges. Finally, we present the overall structure of the onboard catalogue and the way it will be used to perform the source cleaning and disentangle detections of new sources from outbursts of known sources.
We present the first catalog and data release of the Swift-BAT AGN Spectroscopic Survey. We analyze optical spectra of the majority of the detected AGNs (77%, 642/836) based on their 14-195keV emission in the 70-month Swift-BAT all-sky catalog. This includes redshift determination, absorption and emission-line measurements, and black hole mass and accretion rate estimates for the majority of obscured and unobscured AGNs (74%, 473/642), with 340 measured for the first time. With ~90% of sources at z<0.2, the survey represents a significant advance in the census of hard X-ray-selected AGNs in the local universe. In this first catalog paper, we describe the spectroscopic observations and data sets, and our initial spectral analysis. The FWHMs of the emission lines show broad agreement with the X-ray obscuration (~94%), such that Sy 1-1.8 have N_H_<10^21.9^cm^-2^, and Seyfert 2 have N_H_>10^21.9^cm^-2^. Seyfert 1.9, however, show a range of column densities. Compared to narrow-line AGNs in the SDSS, the X-ray-selected AGNs have a larger fraction of dusty host galaxies (H{alpha}/H{beta}>5), suggesting that these types of AGN are missed in optical surveys. Using the [OIII]{lambda}5007/H{beta} and [NII]{lambda}6583/H{alpha} emission-line diagnostic, about half of the sources are classified as Seyferts; ~15% reside in dusty galaxies that lack an H{beta} detection, but for which the upper limits on line emission imply either a Seyfert or LINER, ~15% are in galaxies with weak or no emission lines despite high-quality spectra, and a few percent each are LINERS, composite galaxies, H II regions, or in known beamed AGNs.
Timing analysis can be a powerful tool for shading light on the still obscure emission physics and geometry of the prompt emission of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Fourier power density spectra (PDS) characterise time series as stochastic processes and can be used to search for coherent pulsations and, more in general, to investigate the dominant variability timescales in astrophysical sources. Because of the limited duration and of the statistical properties involved, modelling the PDS of individual GRBs is challenging, and only average PDS of large samples have been discussed in the literature thus far. We aim at characterising the individual PDS of GRBs to describe their variability in terms of a stochastic process, to explore their variety, and to carry out for the first time a systematic search for periodic signals and for a link between PDS properties and other GRB observables. We present a Bayesian procedure which uses a Markov chain Monte Carlo technique and apply it to study the individual power density spectra of 215 bright long GRBs detected with the Swift Burst Alert Telescope in the 15-150keV band from January 2005 to May 2015. The PDS are modelled with a power-law either with or without a break. Two classes of GRBs emerge: with or without a unique dominant time scale. A comparison with active galactic nuclei (AGNs) reveals similar distributions of PDS slopes. Unexpectedly, GRBs with subsecond dominant timescales and duration longer than a few ten seconds in the source frame appear to be either very rare or altogether absent. Three GRBs are found with possible evidence for periodic signal at 3.0-3.2{sigma} (Gaussian) significance, corresponding to a multi-trial chance probability of ~1%. Thus, we found no compelling evidence for periodic signal in GRBs. The analogy between the PDS of GRBs and of AGNs could tentatively hint at similar stochastic processes that rule BH accretion across different BH mass scales and objects. In addition, we find evidence that short dominant timescales and duration are not completely independent of each other, in contrast with commonly accepted paradigms.
Image-tube spectra and photometric observations for 389 bariums stars have been used to determine spectral classification, barium intensity, radial velocity, luminosity, and kinematical properties. The objective of this study is to obtain a homogeneous dataset for analyzing barium characteristics in uniform fashion.
We report the discovery of 76 new T dwarfs from the UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey (UKIDSS) Large Area Survey (LAS). Near-infrared broad- and narrow-band photometry and spectroscopy are presented for the new objects, along with Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) and warm-Spitzer photometry. Proper motions for 128 UKIDSS T dwarfs are presented from a new two epoch LAS proper motion catalogue. We use these motions to identify two new benchmark systems: LHS 6176AB, a T8p+M4 pair and HD 118865AB, a T5.5+F8 pair. Using age constraints from the primaries and evolutionary models to constrain the radii, we have estimated their physical properties from their bolometric luminosity. We compare the colours and properties of known benchmark T dwarfs to the latest model atmospheres and draw two principal conclusions. First, it appears that the H-[4.5] and J-W2 colours are more sensitive to metallicity than has previously been recognized, such that differences in metallicity may dominate over differences in Teff when considering relative properties of cool objects using these colours. Secondly, the previously noted apparent dominance of young objects in the late-T dwarf sample is no longer apparent when using the new model grids and the expanded sample of late-T dwarfs and benchmarks. This is supported by the apparently similar distribution of late-T dwarfs and earlier type T dwarfs on reduced proper motion diagrams that we present. Finally, we present updated space densities for the late-T dwarfs, and compare our values to simulation predictions and those from WISE.
We explore the application of artificial neural networks (ANNs) for the estimation of atmospheric parameters (T_eff_, log(g), and [Fe/H]) for Galactic F- and G-type stars. The ANNs are fed with medium-resolution ({Delta}{lambda}~1-2{AA}) nonflux-calibrated spectroscopic observations. From a sample of 279 stars with previous high-resolution determinations of metallicity and a set of (external) estimates of temperature and surface gravity, our ANNs are able to predict T_eff_ with an accuracy of {sigma}(T_eff_)=135-150K over the range 4250K<=T_eff_<=6500K, logg with an accuracy of {sigma}(logg)=0.25-0.30dex over the range 1.0<=logg<=5.0, and [Fe/H] with an accuracy {sigma}([Fe/H])=0.15-0.20dex over the range -4.0<=[Fe/H]<=0.3. Such accuracies are competitive with the results obtained by fine analysis of high-resolution spectra. It is noteworthy that the ANNs are able to obtain these results without consideration of photometric information for these stars. We have also explored the impact of the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) on the behavior of ANNs and conclude that, when analyzed with ANNs trained on spectra of commensurate S/N, it is possible to extract physical parameter estimates of similar accuracy with stellar spectra having S/N as low as 13. Taken together, these results indicate that the ANN approach should be of primary importance for use in present and future large-scale spectroscopic surveys. The stars that comprise our study are a subset of the calibration stars used in the Beers et al. (1999, Cat. <J/AJ/117/981>) medium-resolution surveys.
M dwarfs have enormous potential for our understanding of structure and formation on both Galactic and exoplanetary scales through their properties and compositions. However, current atmosphere models have limited ability to reproduce spectral features in stars at the coolest temperatures (Teff<4200K) and to fully exploit the information content of current and upcoming large-scale spectroscopic surveys. Here we present a catalog of spectroscopic temperatures, metallicities, and spectral types for 5875 M dwarfs in the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) and Gaia-DR2 surveys using The Cannon (Ness+ 2015, J/ApJ/808/16 ; Casey+ 2016, arXiv:1603.03040; Ho+ 2017, J/ApJ/836/5; Behmard+ 2019ApJ...876...68B): a flexible, data-driven spectral-modeling and parameter-inference framework demonstrated to estimate stellar-parameter labels (Teff, logg, [Fe/H], and detailed abundances) to high precision. Using a training sample of 87 M dwarfs with optically derived labels spanning 2860K<Teff<4130K calibrated with bolometric temperatures, and -0.5<[Fe/H]<0.5dex calibrated with FGK binary metallicities, we train a two-parameter model with predictive accuracy (in cross-validation) to 77K and 0.09dex respectively. We also train a one-dimensional spectral classification model using 51 M dwarfs with Sloan Digital Sky Survey optical spectral types ranging from M0 to M6, to predictive accuracy of 0.7 types. We find Cannon temperatures to be in agreement to within 60 K compared to a subsample of 1702 sources with color-derived temperatures, and Cannon metallicities to be in agreement to within 0.08 dex metallicity compared to a subsample of 15 FGK+M or M+M binaries. Finally, our comparison between Cannon and APOGEE pipeline (ASPCAP DR14) labels finds that ASPCAP is systematically biased toward reporting higher temperatures and lower metallicities for M dwarfs.
The dependence on the temperature of photospheric line-depth ratios (LDRs) in the spectral range 619.0-628.0nm is investigated by using a sample of 174 ELODIE Archive stellar spectra of luminosity class from V to III. The rotational broadening effect on LDRs is also studied. We provide useful calibrations of effective temperature versus LDRs for giant and main sequence stars with 3800<~T_eff_<~6000K and vsini in the range 0-30km/s. We found that, with the exception of very few line pairs, LDRs, measured at a spectral resolution as high as 42000, depend on vsini and that, by neglecting the rotational broadening effect, the T_eff_ determination can be wrong by ~100K in the worst cases.
The ability to perform detailed chemical analysis of Sun-like F-, G-, and K-type stars is a powerful tool with many applications, including studying the chemical evolution of the Galaxy and constraining planet formation theories. Unfortunately, complications in modeling cooler stellar atmospheres hinders similar analyses of M dwarf stars. Empirically calibrated methods to measure M dwarf metallicity from moderate-resolution spectra are currently limited to measuring overall metallicity and rely on astrophysical abundance correlations in stellar populations. We present a new, empirical calibration of synthetic M dwarf spectra that can be used to infer effective temperature, Fe abundance, and Ti abundance. We obtained high-resolution (R~25000), Y-band (~1{mu}m) spectra of 29 M dwarfs with NIRSPEC on Keck II. Using the PHOENIX stellar atmosphere modeling code (version 15.5), we generated a grid of synthetic spectra covering a range of temperatures, metallicities, and alpha-enhancements. From our observed and synthetic spectra, we measured the equivalent widths of multiple Fe I and Ti I lines and a temperature-sensitive index based on the FeH band head. We used abundances measured from widely separated solar-type companions to empirically calibrate transformations to the observed indices and equivalent widths that force agreement with the models. Our calibration achieves precisions in Teff, [Fe/H], and [Ti/Fe] of 60K, 0.1dex, and 0.05dex, respectively, and is calibrated for 3200K<Teff<4100K, -0.7<[Fe/H]<+0.3, and -0.05<[Ti/Fe]<+0.3. This work is a step toward detailed chemical analysis of M dwarfs at a precision similar to what has been achieved for FGK stars.
