We derive T eff and [Fe/H] for a sample of 72 nearby M-dwarfs with Hipparcos parallaxes and δ < +30. Spectra, acquired at the Observatório do Pico dos Dias, Brazil, have R = 10,000 and S/N ≳ 100 for nearly all targets in the λλ8380-8880 range. Atmospheric parameters were derived from VJHK colors and a system of spectral line indices calibrated against sample stars with interferometric T eff and [Fe/H] from detailed analysis of FGK binary companions. A PCA method of calibration yields internal errors within 70 K and 0.1 dex for T eff and [Fe/H]. For 18 stars we present the first T eff or [Fe/H] derivation in the literature. We compute the star's luminosities, calculate the position of their habitable zones and estimate that, were all of they to harbour rocky planets inside their HZ, 15–20 of these would be detectable by the E-ELT Planetary Camera and Spectrograph.

X-ray and ultraviolet transits of exoplanets allow us to probe the atmospheres of these worlds. High energy transits have been shown to be deeper but also more variable than in the optical. By simulating exoplanet transits using high-energy observations of the Sun, we can test the limits of our ability to accurately measure the properties of these planets in the presence of stellar activity. We use both disk-resolved images of the Solar disk spanning soft X-rays, the ultraviolet, and the optical and also disk-integrated Sun-as-a-star observations of the Lyα irradiance to simulate transits over a wide wavelength range. We find that for stars with activity levels similar to the Sun, the planet-to-star radius ratio can be overestimated by up to 50% if the planet occults an active region at high energies. We also compare our simulations to high energy transits of WASP-12b, HD 189733, 55 Cnc b, and GJ 436b.

As one of the follow-up studies of Herschel Planetary Nebula Survey (HerPlaNS; Ueta et al. 2014), we focus on a bipolar planetary nebula (PN) NGC6781 to characterize the dusty nebula and the central star based on our own Herschel data and the rich archival spectroscopic/photometric image data in the wavelengths from UV to far-IR. With CLOUDY, we constructed a comprehensive photoionization model of NGC6781 ever made including data from UV to radio. We succeeded to reproduce the observed spectral energy distribution (SED) and the atomic gas, H2, CO, and OH molecular line fluxes. We found that about 40% of the total dust mass would be from warm-cold dust components.

The Dark Energy Survey is undertaking an observational programme imaging 1/4 of the southern hemisphere sky with unprecedented photometric accuracy. In the process of observing millions of faint stars and galaxies to constrain the parameters of the dark energy equation of state, the Dark Energy Survey will obtain pre-discovery images of the regions surrounding an estimated 100 gamma-ray bursts over 5 yr. Once gamma-ray bursts are detected by, e.g., the Swift satellite, the DES data will be extremely useful for follow-up observations by the transient astronomy community. We describe a recently-commissioned suite of software that listens continuously for automated notices of gamma-ray burst activity, collates information from archival DES data, and disseminates relevant data products back to the community in near-real-time. Of particular importance are the opportunities that non-public DES data provide for relative photometry of the optical counterparts of gamma-ray bursts, as well as for identifying key characteristics (e.g., photometric redshifts) of potential gamma-ray burst host galaxies. We provide the functional details of the DESAlert software, and its data products, and we show sample results from the application of DESAlert to numerous previously detected gamma-ray bursts, including the possible identification of several heretofore unknown gamma-ray burst hosts.

Models of neutrino-driven core-collapse supernova explosions have matured considerably in recent years. Explosions of low-mass progenitors can routinely be simulated in 1D, 2D, and 3D. Nucleosynthesis calculations indicate that these supernovae could be contributors of some lighter neutron-rich elements beyond iron. The explosion mechanism of more massive stars remains under investigation, although first 3D models of neutrino-driven explosions employing multi-group neutrino transport have become available. Together with earlier 2D models and more simplified 3D simulations, these have elucidated the interplay between neutrino heating and hydrodynamic instabilities in the post-shock region that is essential for shock revival. However, some physical ingredients may still need to be added/improved before simulations can robustly explain supernova explosions over a wide range of progenitors. Solutions recently suggested in the literature include uncertainties in the neutrino rates, rotation, and seed perturbations from convective shell burning. We review the implications of 3D simulations of shell burning in supernova progenitors for the ‘perturbations-aided neutrino-driven mechanism,’ whose efficacy is illustrated by the first successful multi-group neutrino hydrodynamics simulation of an 18 solar mass progenitor with 3D initial conditions. We conclude with speculations about the impact of 3D effects on the structure of massive stars through convective boundary mixing.

The high Antarctic plateau provides exceptional conditions for infrared observations on account of the cold, dry and stable atmosphere above the ice surface. This paper describes the scientific goals behind the first program to examine the time-varying universe in the infrared from Antarctica — the Kunlun Infrared Sky Survey (KISS). This will employ a 50cm telescope to monitor the southern skies in the 2.4μmK dark window from China's Kunlun station at Dome A, on the summit of the Antarctic plateau, through the uninterrupted 4-month period of winter darkness. An earlier paper discussed optimisation of the K dark filter for sensitivity (Li et al. 2016). This paper examines the scientific program for KISS. We calculate the sensitivity of the camera for the extrema of observing conditions that will be encountered. We present the parameters for sample surveys that could then be carried out for a range of cadences and sensitivities. We then discuss several science programs that could be conducted with these capabilities, involving star formation, brown dwarfs and hot Jupiters, exoplanets around M dwarfs, the terminal phases of stellar evolution, fast transients, embedded supernova searches, reverberation mapping of AGN, gamma ray bursts and the detection of the cosmic infrared background.

An early-type, massive, short-period ( $P_{\text{orb}}=2^d.310951$ ) eclipsing spectroscopic binary DN Cas has been re-visited with new spectral and photometric data. The masses and radii of the components have been obtained as $M_1=19.04\pm 0.07\,\text{M}_\odot$ , $M_2=13.73\pm 0.05\,\text{M}_\odot$ and $R_1=7.22\pm 0.06\,\text{R}_\odot$ , $R_2=5.79\pm 0.06\,\text{R}_\odot$ , respectively. Both components present synchronous rotation ( $V_{\text{rot}1}=160\,\text{km } \text{s}^{-1}$ , $V_{\text{rot}2}=130\ \text{km} \,\text{s}^{-1}$ ) with their orbit. Orbital period analysis yielded a physically bound additional component in the system with a minimum mass of $M_3=0.88\,\text{M}_\odot$ orbiting in an eccentric orbit (e = 0.37 ± 0.2) with an orbital period of P 12 = 42 ± 9 yr. High precision absolute parameters of the system allowed us to derive a distance to DN Cas as 1.7 ± 0.2 kpc which locates the system within the borders of the Cas OB6 association (d = 1.8 kpc). The space velocities and the age of DN Cas are in agreement with those of Cas OB6. The age of DN Cas (τ = 3–5 Myr) is found to be 1–2 Myr older than the embedded clusters (IC 1795, IC 1805, and IC 1848) in the Cas OB6 association, which implies a sequential star formation in the association.

We aim to discover the accuracy of photometric mass ratios (q ph) determined for eclipsing binary stars, in the case of the system having at least one ‘flat bottom’ as a minimum profile, as well as the accuracy of data used in that sense. Within this context, we present the results of two-dimensional grid search (q – i) for some W UMa-type eclipsing binaries showing total eclipses, based on the high precision photometric data provided by the KEPLER Mission. The radial velocity data obtained for KIC10618253 in this study, enables us to compare both q ph and the corresponding spectroscopic mass ratio (q sp) values. The results indicate that the high precision photometric data for overcontact eclipsing binaries showing total eclipses allow us to obtain the photometric mass ratios as accurate as the spectroscopic values.

We describe the performance of the Boolardy Engineering Test Array, the prototype for the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder telescope. Boolardy Engineering Test Array is the first aperture synthesis radio telescope to use phased array feed technology, giving it the ability to electronically form up to nine dual-polarisation beams. We report the methods developed for forming and measuring the beams, and the adaptations that have been made to the traditional calibration and imaging procedures in order to allow BETA to function as a multi-beam aperture synthesis telescope. We describe the commissioning of the instrument and present details of Boolardy Engineering Test Array’s performance: sensitivity, beam characteristics, polarimetric properties, and image quality. We summarise the astronomical science that it has produced and draw lessons from operating Boolardy Engineering Test Array that will be relevant to the commissioning and operation of the final Australian Square Kilometre Array Path telescope.

We investigate the Milky Way Galaxy’s radial and vertical metallicity gradients using a sample of 47 406 red clump stars from the RAdial Velocity Experiment Data Release 4. Distances are calculated by adopting Ks -band absolute magnitude as −1.54±0.04 mag for the sample. The metallicity gradients are calculated with their current orbital positions (R gc and Z) and with their orbital properties (R m and z max): d[Fe/H]/dR gc = −0.047±0.003 dex kpc−1 for |Z| ≤ 0.5 kpc and d[Fe/H]/dR m = −0.025±0.002 dex kpc−1 for z max ≤ 0.5 kpc. This reaffirms the radial metallicity gradient in the thin disc but highlights that gradients are sensitive to the selection effects caused by the difference between R gc and R m. The radial gradient is flat in the distance interval 0.5-1 kpc from the plane and then becomes positive greater than 1 kpc from the plane. The radial metallicity gradients are also eccentricity dependent. We showed that d[Fe/H]/dR m = −0.089±0.010, −0.073±0.007, −0.053±0.004 and −0.044±0.002 dex kpc−1 for e p ≤ 0.05, e p ≤ 0.07, e p ≤ 0.10 and e p ≤ 0.20 sub-samples, respectively, in the distance interval z max ≤ 0.5 kpc. Similar trend is found for vertical metallicity gradients. Both the radial and vertical metallicity gradients are found to become shallower as the eccentricity of the sample increases. These findings can be used to constrain different formation scenarios of the thick and thin discs.

In this paper, we introduce Nicil: Non-Ideal magnetohydrodynamics Coefficients and Ionisation Library. Nicil is a stand-alone Fortran90 module that calculates the ionisation values and the coefficients of the non-ideal magnetohydrodynamics terms of Ohmic resistivity, the Hall effect, and ambipolar diffusion. The module is fully parameterised such that the user can decide which processes to include and decide upon the values of the free parameters, making this a versatile and customisable code. The module includes both cosmic ray and thermal ionisation; the former includes two ion species and three species of dust grains (positively charged, negatively charged, and neutral), and the latter includes five elements which can be doubly ionised. We demonstrate tests of the module, and then describe how to implement it into an existing numerical code.

Here, we present a catalogue of known Fast Radio Burst sources in the form of an online catalogue, FRBCAT. The catalogue includes information about the instrumentation used for the observations for each detected burst, the measured quantities from each observation, and model-dependent quantities derived from observed quantities. To aid in consistent comparisons of burst properties such as width and signal-to-noise ratios, we have re-processed all the bursts for which we have access to the raw data, with software which we make available. The originally derived properties are also listed for comparison. The catalogue is hosted online as a Mysql database which can also be downloaded in tabular or plain text format for off-line use. This database will be maintained for use by the community for studies of the Fast Radio Burst population as it grows.

The population of ultraluminous X-ray sources encompasses accreting compact objects with significantly different masses, from black holes of intermediate mass, to black holes of stellar origin, to neutron stars. Investigating these sources will help us answering crucial questions on the distribution of black hole masses and on mass accretion above the Eddington limit in the local Universe, that have potential implications in other astrophysical areas. In order to perform a detailed investigation of ultraluminous X-ray sources, an accurate modeling of their evolution and multiwavelength emission properties is needed. We report some preliminary results of the activities that we are carrying out at present in this area.

We describe an application of a solution to unconstrained Einstein’s field equations (Ni, 2011) as a qualitative model for a relativistic radiation sphere, an object that may resemble a quasar with an extended galactic-scale ‘corona’ that resembles behaviors explained by dark matter.

Variations of the X-ray spectral slope have been found in many Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) at moderate luminosities and redshifts, typically showing a “softer when brighter” behaviour. However, similar studies are not usually performed for high-luminosity AGNs. We present an analysis of the spectral variability based on a large sample of quasars in wide intervals of luminosity and redshift, measured at several different epochs, extracted from the fifth release of the XMM Newton Serendipitous Source Catalogue. Our analysis confirms a “softer when brighter” trend also for our sample, extending to high luminosity and redshift the general behaviour previously found. These results can be understood in light of current spectral models, such as intrinsic variations of the X-ray primary radiation, or superposition with a constant reflection component.

Recent very high energy observations of the galactic centre region performed by H.E.S.S. revealed the presence of a powerful PeVatron. This is the first of such objects detected, and its most plausible counterpart seems to be associated to Sgr A*, the supermassive black hole in the centre of our galaxy. The implications of this discovery will be discussed, in particular in the context of the problem of the origin of galactic cosmic rays.

The year 2015 witnessed the first direct observations of a transient gravitational-wave (GW) signal from binary black hole mergers by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (aLIGO) Collaboration with the Virgo Collaboration. The MAGIC two 17m diameter Cherenkov telescopes system joined since 2014 the vast collaboration of electromagnetic facilities for follow-up of gravitational wave alerts. During the 2015 LIGO-Virgo science run we set up the procedure for GW alerts follow-up and took data following the last GW alert. MAGIC results on the data analysis and prospects for the forthcoming run are presented.

We study the prospect for Gaia to detect black hole binary systems without the mass transfer from their companion stars. Gaia will be able to discover Galactic black holes without mass accretion by detecting the proper motion of their companion stars. We evaluate the number of such black hole binaries which have the orbital period short enough to be detected by Gaia during its operation, taking into account the binary evolution model.