We present deep UBVI_c_ photometric data of the young open cluster Westerlund 2. An abnormal reddening law of R_V,cl_=4.14+/-0.08 was found for the highly reddened early-type members (E(B-V)>=1.45), whereas a fairly normal reddening law of R_V,fg_=3.33+/-0.03 was confirmed for the foreground early-type stars (E(B-V)_fg_<1.05). The distance modulus was determined from zero-age main-sequence fitting to the reddening-corrected colour-magnitude diagram of the early-type members to be V_0_-M_V_=13.9+/-0.14 (random error) _-0.1_^+0.4^ (the upper limit of systematic error) mag (d=6.0+/-0.4_-0.3_^+1.2^kpc). To obtain te initial mass function, pre-main-sequence (PMS) stars were selected by identifying the optical counterparts of Chandra X-ray sources and mid-infrared emission stars from the Spitzer GLIMPSE (Galactic Legacy Infrared Mid-Plane Survey Extraordinaire) source catalogue. The initial mass function shows a shallow slope of {Gamma}=-1.1+/-0.1 down to log(m)=0.7. The total mass of Westerlund 2 is estimated to be at least 7400M_{sun}_. The age of Westerlund 2 from the main-sequence turn-on and PMS stars is estimated to be <~1.5Myr. We confirmed the existence of a clump of PMS stars located ~1-arcmin north of the core of Westerlund 2, but we could not find any clear evidence for an age difference between the core and the northern clump.
The 21-cm line emission from a 7x6deg^2^ region east of and adjoining the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) has been observed with the Australia Telescope Compact Array and the Parkes telescopes. This region represents the westernmost part of the Magellanic Bridge, a gas-rich tail extending ~14{deg} to the Large Magellanic Cloud. A rich and complex neutral hydrogen (HI) structure containing shells, bubbles and filaments is revealed. On the larger scale, the HI of the Bridge is organized into two velocity components. This bimodality, which appears to originate in the SMC, converges to a single velocity component within the observed region. A census of shell-like structures suggests a shell population with characteristics similar to that of the SMC.
Stellar variability in the near-infrared (NIR) remains largely unexplored. The exploitation of public science archives with data-mining methods offers a perspective for a time-domain exploration of the NIR sky. We perform a comprehensive search for stellar variability using the optical-NIR multiband photometric data in the public Calibration Database of the WFCAM Science Archive (WSA), with the aim of contributing to the general census of variable stars and of extending the current scarce inventory of accurate NIR light curves for a number of variable star classes.
The ionizing continuum from active galactic nuclei is fundamental for interpreting their broad emission lines and understanding their impact on the surrounding gas. Furthermore, it provides hints on how matter accretes on to supermassive black holes. Using Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Camera 3, we have constructed the first stacked ultraviolet (rest-frame wavelengths 600-2500{AA}) spectrum of 53 luminous quasars at z=~2.4, with a state-of-the-art correction for the intervening Lyman forest and Lyman continuum absorption. The continuum slope (f_{nu}_{prop.to}{nu}^{alpha}{nu}^) of the full sample shows a break at ~912{AA} with spectral index {alpha}_{nu}_=-0.61+/-0.01 at {lambda}>912{AA} and a softening at shorter wavelengths ({alpha}_{nu}_=-1.70+/-0.61 at {lambda}<=912{AA}). Our analysis proves that a proper intergalactic medium absorption correction is required to establish the intrinsic continuum emission of quasars. We interpret our average ultraviolet spectrum in the context of photoionization, accretion disc models, and quasar contribution to the ultraviolet background. We find that observed broad line ratios are consistent with those predicted assuming an ionizing slope of {alpha}_ion_=-2.0, similar to the observed ionizing spectrum in the same wavelength range. The continuum break and softening are consistent with accretion disc plus X-ray corona models when black hole spin is taken into account. Our spectral energy distribution yields a 30 per cent increase to previous estimates of the specific quasar emissivity, such that quasars may contribute significantly to the total specific Lyman limit emissivity estimated from the Ly{alpha} forest at z<3.2.
We present the results of an optical multi-band survey for low-mass pre-main sequence (PMS) stars and young brown dwarfs (BDs) in the Chamaeleon II (Cha II) dark cloud. This survey constitutes the complementary optical data to the c2d Spitzer Legacy survey in Cha II.
We have carried out Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) F160BW, F555W, and F656N imaging of four young populous clusters: NGC 330, in the Small Magellanic Cloud, and NGC 1818, 2004, and 2100, in the Large Magellanic Cloud. We report photometric results for these four clusters, including identification using photometric colors of the cluster Be star population. We present theoretical WFPC2 and broadband colors and bolometric corrections for LMC and SMC metallicities. The use of the far-UV F160BW filter enables accurate determination of the effective temperatures for stars in the vicinity of the main-sequence turnoff and on the unevolved main sequence.
We present deep VI photometry of stars in the globular cluster M5 (NGC 5904) based on images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. The resulting color-magnitude diagram reaches below V~7mag, revealing the upper 2-3mag of the white dwarf cooling sequence and main-sequence stars 8mag and more below the turnoff.
The Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper has been designed to produce a survey of H-Alpha emission from the interstellar medium (ISM) over the entire northern sky. The instrument combines a 0.6 meter telescope and a dual-etalon 15cm Fabry-Perot spectrometer. In the primary spectral mode, an exposure captures a 200km/s spectral region with 8-12km/s velocity resolution from a one-degree beam on the sky. With a large-aperture design and modern CCD technology, WHAM can detect Galactic emission as faint as 0.05 Rayleighs in a 30 second exposure. For gas at 10000K, this observed intensity corresponds to an emission measure of about 0.1cm^-6^pc, more than 10 million times fainter than the Orion Nebula.
