TY - JOUR A1 - Denker, Carsten A1 - Kuckein, Christoph A1 - Verma, Meetu A1 - Manrique Gonzalez, Sergio Javier Gonzalez A1 - Diercke, Andrea A1 - Enke, Harry A1 - Klar, Jochen A1 - Balthasar, Horst A1 - Louis, Rohan E. A1 - Dineva, Ekaterina T1 - High-cadence Imaging and Imaging Spectroscopy at the GREGOR Solar Telescope-A Collaborative Research Environment for High-resolution Solar Physics JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Supplement series N2 - In high-resolution solar physics, the volume and complexity of photometric, spectroscopic, and polarimetric ground-based data significantly increased in the last decade, reaching data acquisition rates of terabytes per hour. This is driven by the desire to capture fast processes on the Sun and the necessity for short exposure times "freezing" the atmospheric seeing, thus enabling ex post facto image restoration. Consequently, large-format and high-cadence detectors are nowadays used in solar observations to facilitate image restoration. Based on our experience during the "early science" phase with the 1.5 m GREGOR solar telescope (2014–2015) and the subsequent transition to routine observations in 2016, we describe data collection and data management tailored toward image restoration and imaging spectroscopy. We outline our approaches regarding data processing, analysis, and archiving for two of GREGOR's post-focus instruments (see http://gregor.aip.de), i.e., the GREGOR Fabry–Pérot Interferometer (GFPI) and the newly installed High-Resolution Fast Imager (HiFI). The heterogeneous and complex nature of multidimensional data arising from high-resolution solar observations provides an intriguing but also a challenging example for "big data" in astronomy. The big data challenge has two aspects: (1) establishing a workflow for publishing the data for the whole community and beyond and (2) creating a collaborative research environment (CRE), where computationally intense data and postprocessing tools are colocated and collaborative work is enabled for scientists of multiple institutes. This requires either collaboration with a data center or frameworks and databases capable of dealing with huge data sets based on virtual observatory (VO) and other community standards and procedures. KW - astronomical databases KW - methods: data analysis KW - Sun: chromosphere KW - Sun: photosphere KW - techniques: image processing KW - techniques: spectroscopic Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/aab773 SN - 0067-0049 SN - 1538-4365 VL - 236 IS - 1 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zhang, Heshou A1 - Yan, Huirong A1 - Richter, Philipp T1 - The influence of atomic alignment on absorption and emission spectroscopy JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - Spectroscopic observations play essential roles in astrophysics. They are crucial for determining physical parameters in our Universe, providing information about the chemistry of various astronomical environments. The proper execution of the spectroscopic analysis requires accounting for all the physical effects that are compatible to the signal-to-noise ratio. We find in this paper the influence on spectroscopy from the atomic/ground state alignment owing to anisotropic radiation and modulated by interstellar magnetic field, has significant impact on the study of interstellar gas. In different observational scenarios, we comprehensively demonstrate how atomic alignment influences the spectral analysis and provide the expressions for correcting the effect. The variations are even more pronounced for multiplets and line ratios. We show the variation of the deduced physical parameters caused by the atomic alignment effect, including alpha-to-iron ratio ([X/Fe]) and ionization fraction. Synthetic observations are performed to illustrate the visibility of such effect with current facilities. A study of Photodissociation regions in rho Ophiuchi cloud is presented to demonstrate how to account for atomic alignment in practice. Our work has shown that due to its potential impact, atomic alignment has to be included in an accurate spectroscopic analysis of the interstellar gas with current observational capability. KW - magnetic fields KW - submillimetre: ISM KW - ultraviolet: ISM KW - ISM: abundances KW - ISM: lines and bands KW - techniques: spectroscopic Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty1594 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 479 IS - 3 SP - 3923 EP - 3935 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ramiaramanantsoa, Tahina A1 - Moffat, Anthony F. J. A1 - Harmon, Robert A1 - Ignace, R. A1 - St-Louis, Nicole A1 - Vanbeveren, Dany A1 - Shenar, Tomer A1 - Pablo, Herbert A1 - Richardson, Noel D. A1 - Howarth, Ian D. A1 - Stevens, Ian R. A1 - Piaulet, Caroline A1 - St-Jean, Lucas A1 - Eversberg, Thomas A1 - Pigulski, Andrzej A1 - Popowicz, Adam A1 - Kuschnig, Rainer A1 - Zoclonska, Elzbieta A1 - Buysschaert, Bram A1 - Handler, Gerald A1 - Weiss, Werner W. A1 - Wade, Gregg A. A1 - Rucinski, Slavek M. A1 - Zwintz, Konstanze A1 - Luckas, Paul A1 - Heathcote, Bernard A1 - Cacella, Paulo A1 - Powles, Jonathan A1 - Locke, Malcolm A1 - Bohlsen, Terry A1 - Chené, André-Nicolas A1 - Miszalski, Brent A1 - Waldron, Wayne L. A1 - Kotze, Marissa M. A1 - Kotze, Enrico J. A1 - Böhm, Torsten T1 - BRITE-Constellation high-precision time-dependent photometry of the early O-type supergiant zeta Puppis unveils the photospheric drivers of its small- and large-scale wind structures JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - From 5.5 months of dual-band optical photometric monitoring at the 1 mmag level, BRITE-Constellation has revealed two simultaneous types of variability in the O4I(n)fp star ζ Puppis: one single periodic non-sinusoidal component superimposed on a stochastic component. The monoperiodic component is the 1.78-d signal previously detected by Coriolis/Solar Mass Ejection Imager, but this time along with a prominent first harmonic. The shape of this signal changes over time, a behaviour that is incompatible with stellar oscillations but consistent with rotational modulation arising from evolving bright surface inhomogeneities. By means of a constrained non-linear light-curve inversion algorithm, we mapped the locations of the bright surface spots and traced their evolution. Our simultaneous ground-based multisite spectroscopic monitoring of the star unveiled cyclical modulation of its He ii λ4686 wind emission line with the 1.78-d rotation period, showing signatures of corotating interaction regions that turn out to be driven by the bright photospheric spots observed by BRITE. Traces of wind clumps are also observed in the He ii λ4686 line and are correlated with the amplitudes of the stochastic component of the light variations probed by BRITE at the photosphere, suggesting that the BRITE observations additionally unveiled the photospheric drivers of wind clumps in ζ Pup and that the clumping phenomenon starts at the very base of the wind. The origins of both the bright surface inhomogeneities and the stochastic light variations remain unknown, but a subsurface convective zone might play an important role in the generation of these two types of photospheric variability. KW - techniques: photometric KW - techniques: spectroscopic KW - stars: massive KW - stars: rotation KW - starspots KW - supergiants KW - stars: winds, outflows Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stx2671 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 473 IS - 4 SP - 5532 EP - 5569 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bouma, Sietske Jeltje Deirdre A1 - Richter, Philipp A1 - Wendt, Martin T1 - The relation between Ly alpha absorbers and local galaxy filaments JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Context. The intergalactic medium (IGM) is believed to contain the majority of baryons in the universe and to trace the same dark matter structure as galaxies, forming filaments and sheets. Ly alpha absorbers, which sample the neutral component of the IGM, have been extensively studied at low and high redshift, but the exact relation between Ly alpha absorption, galaxies, and the large-scale structure is observationally not well constrained.Aims. In this study, we aim at characterising the relation between Ly alpha absorbers and nearby over-dense cosmological structures (galaxy filaments) at recession velocities Delta v <= 6700 km s(-1) by using archival observational data from various instruments.Methods. We analyse 587 intervening Ly alpha absorbers in the spectra of 302 extragalactic background sources obtained with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) installed on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). We combine the absorption line information with galaxy data of five local galaxy filaments from the V8k catalogue.Results. Along the 91 sightlines that pass close to a filament, we identify 215 (227) Ly alpha absorption systems (components). Among these, 74 Ly alpha systems are aligned in position and velocity with the galaxy filaments, indicating that these absorbers and the galaxies trace the same large-scale structure. The filament-aligned Ly alpha absorbers have a similar to 90% higher rate of incidence (d?/dz=189 for log N(HI) >= 13.2) and a slightly shallower column density distribution function slope (-beta=-1.47) relative to the general Ly alpha population at z=0, reflecting the filaments' matter over-density. The strongest Ly alpha absorbers are preferentially found near galaxies or close to the axis of a filament, although there is substantial scatter in this relation. Our sample of absorbers clusters more strongly around filament axes than a randomly distributed sample would do (as confirmed by a Kolmogorov-Smirnov test), but the clustering signal is less pronounced than for the galaxies in the filaments. KW - galaxies: halos KW - intergalactic medium KW - quasars: absorption lines KW - large-scale structure of Universe KW - techniques: spectroscopic KW - ultraviolet: general Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202039786 SN - 0004-6361 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 647 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Verma, Meetu A1 - Denker, Carsten A1 - Balthasar, H. A1 - Kuckein, Christoph A1 - Rezaei, R. A1 - Sobotka, Michal A1 - Deng, N. A1 - Wang, Haimin A1 - Tritschler, A. A1 - Collados, M. A1 - Diercke, Andrea A1 - González Manrique, Sergio Javier T1 - High-resolution imaging and near-infrared spectroscopy of penumbral decay JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Aims. Combining high-resolution spectropolarimetric and imaging data is key to understanding the decay process of sunspots as it allows us to scrutinize the velocity and magnetic fields of sunspots and their surroundings. Methods. Active region NOAA 12597 was observed on 2016 September 24 with the 1.5-meter GREGOR solar telescope using high-spatial-resolution imaging as well as imaging spectroscopy and near-infrared (NIR) spectropolarimetry. Horizontal proper motions were estimated with local correlation tracking, whereas line-of-sight (LOS) velocities were computed with spectral line fitting methods. The magnetic field properties were inferred with the "Stokes Inversions based on Response functions" (SIR) code for the Si I and Ca I NIR lines. Results. At the time of the GREGOR observations, the leading sunspot had two light bridges indicating the onset of its decay. One of the light bridges disappeared, and an elongated, dark umbral core at its edge appeared in a decaying penumbral sector facing the newly emerging flux. The flow and magnetic field properties of this penumbral sector exhibited weak Evershed flow, moat flow, and horizontal magnetic field. The penumbral gap adjacent to the elongated umbral core and the penumbra in that penumbral sector displayed LOS velocities similar to granulation. The separating polarities of a new flux system interacted with the leading and central part of the already established active region. As a consequence, the leading spot rotated 55 degrees clockwise over 12 h. Conclusions. In the high-resolution observations of a decaying sunspot, the penumbral filaments facing the flux emergence site contained a darkened area resembling an umbral core filled with umbral dots. This umbral core had velocity and magnetic field properties similar to the sunspot umbra. This implies that the horizontal magnetic fields in the decaying penumbra became vertical as observed in flare-induced rapid penumbral decay, but on a very different time-scale. KW - Sun: photosphere KW - sunspots KW - Sun: magnetic fields KW - Sun: infrared KW - techniques: imaging spectroscopy KW - techniques: spectroscopic Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201731801 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 614 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bouma, Sietske Jeltje Deirdre A1 - Richter, Philipp A1 - Fechner, Cora T1 - A population of high-velocity absorption-line systems residing in the Local Group JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Aims. We investigated the ionisation conditions and distances of Galactic high-velocity clouds (HVCs) in the Galactic halo and beyond in the direction of the Local Group (LG) barycentre and anti-barycentre, by studying spectral data of 29 extragalactic background sources obtained with the Cosmic Origins Spectropgraph (COS) installed on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Methods. We model column-densities of low, intermediate, and high ions such as Si ii, C ii, Si iii, Si vi, and C iv, and use these data to construct a set of Cloudy ionisation models. Results. In total, we found 69 high-velocity absorption components along the 29 lines of sight. The components in the direction of the LG barycentre span the entire range of studied velocities, 100 less than or similar to vertical bar nu(LSR)vertical bar less than or similar to 400 km s(-1), while those in the anti-barycentre sample have velocities up to about 300 km s(-1). For 49 components, we infer the gas densities. In the direction of the LG barycentre, the gas densities exhibit a wide range from log nH = -3.96 to -2.55, while in the anti-barycentre direction the densities are systematically higher, log nH > -3.25. The barycentre absorbers can be split into two groups based on their density: a high-density group with log nH > -3.54, which can be affected by the Milky Way radiation field, and a low-density group (log nH <= -3.54). The latter has very low thermal pressures of P/k < 7.3 Kcm(-3). Conclusions. Our study shows that part of the absorbers in the LG barycentre direction trace gas at very low gas densities and thermal pressures. These properties indicate that the absorbers are located beyond the virial radius of the Milky Way. Our study also confirms results from earlier, single-sightline studies, suggesting the presence of a metal-enriched intragroup medium filling the LG near its barycentre. KW - Galaxy: halo KW - Galaxy: structure KW - Galaxy: evolution KW - ISM: kinematics and dynamics KW - techniques: spectroscopic KW - ultraviolet: ISM Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201935078 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 627 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Selsing, Jonatan A1 - Malesani, D. A1 - Goldoni, P. A1 - Fynbo, Johan A1 - Krühler, T. A1 - Antonelli, L. A. A1 - Arabsalmani, M. A1 - Bolmer, J. A1 - Cano, Z. A1 - Christensen, L. A1 - Covino, S. A1 - De Cia, A. A1 - de Ugarte Postigo, A. A1 - Flores, H. A1 - Fliis, M. A1 - Gomboc, A. A1 - Greiner, J. A1 - Groot, P. A1 - Hammer, F. A1 - Hartoog, O. E. A1 - Heintz, K. E. A1 - Hjorth, J. A1 - Jakobsson, P. A1 - Japelj, J. A1 - Kann, D. A. A1 - Kaper, L. A1 - Ledoux, C. A1 - Leloudas, G. A1 - Levan, A. J. A1 - Maiorano, E. A1 - Melandri, A. A1 - Milvang-Jensen, B. A1 - Palazzi, E. A1 - Palmerio, J. T. A1 - Perley, D. A. A1 - Pian, E. A1 - Piranomonte, S. A1 - Pugliese, G. A1 - Sanchez-Ramirez, R. A1 - Savaglio, S. A1 - Schady, P. A1 - Schulze, S. A1 - Sollerman, J. A1 - Sparre, Martin A1 - Tagliaferri, G. A1 - Tanvir, N. R. A1 - Thone, C. C. A1 - Vergani, S. D. A1 - Vreeswijk, P. A1 - Watson, D. A1 - Wiersema, K. A1 - Wijers, R. A1 - Xu, D. A1 - Zafar, T. T1 - The X-shooter GRB afterglow legacy sample (XS-GRB) JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - In this work we present spectra of all gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglows that have been promptly observed with the X-shooter spectrograph until 31/03/2017. In total, we have obtained spectroscopic observations of 103 individual GRBs observed within 48 hours of the GRB trigger. Redshifts have been measured for 97 per cent of these, covering a redshift range from 0.059 to 7.84. Based on a set of observational selection criteria that minimise biases with regards to intrinsic properties of the GRBs, the follow-up effort has been focused on producing a homogeneously selected sample of 93 afterglow spectra for GRBs discovered by the Swift satellite. We here provide a public release of all the reduced spectra, including continuum estimates and telluric absorption corrections. For completeness, we also provide reductions for the 18 late-time observations of the underlying host galaxies. We provide an assessment of the degree of completeness with respect to the parent GRB population, in terms of the X-ray properties of the bursts in the sample and find that the sample presented here is representative of the full Swift sample. We have constrained the fraction of dark bursts to be <28 per cent and confirm previous results that higher optical darkness is correlated with increased X-ray absorption. For the 42 bursts for which it is possible, we have provided a measurement of the neutral hydrogen column density, increasing the total number of published HI column density measurements by similar to 33 per cent. This dataset provides a unique resource to study the ISM across cosmic time, from the local progenitor surroundings to the intervening Universe. KW - gamma-ray burst: general KW - galaxies: high-redshift KW - ISM: general KW - techniques: spectroscopic KW - catalogs KW - galaxies: star formation Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201832835 SN - 1432-0746 SN - 0004-6361 VL - 623 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Aldoretta, E. J. A1 - St-Louis, N. A1 - Richardson, N. D. A1 - Moffat, Anthony F. J. A1 - Eversberg, T. A1 - Hill, G. M. A1 - Shenar, Tomer A1 - Artigau, E. A1 - Gauza, B. A1 - Knapen, J. H. A1 - Kubat, Jiří A1 - Kubatova, Brankica A1 - Maltais-Tariant, R. A1 - Munoz, M. A1 - Pablo, H. A1 - Ramiaramanantsoa, T. A1 - Richard-Laferriere, A. A1 - Sablowski, D. P. A1 - Simon-Diaz, S. A1 - St-Jean, L. A1 - Bolduan, F. A1 - Dias, F. M. A1 - Dubreuil, P. A1 - Fuchs, D. A1 - Garrel, T. A1 - Grutzeck, G. A1 - Hunger, T. A1 - Kuesters, D. A1 - Langenbrink, M. A1 - Leadbeater, R. A1 - Li, D. A1 - Lopez, A. A1 - Mauclaire, B. A1 - Moldenhawer, T. A1 - Potter, M. A1 - dos Santos, E. M. A1 - Schanne, L. A1 - Schmidt, J. A1 - Sieske, H. A1 - Strachan, J. A1 - Stinner, E. A1 - Stinner, P. A1 - Stober, B. A1 - Strandbaek, K. A1 - Syder, T. A1 - Verilhac, D. A1 - Waldschlaeger, U. A1 - Weiss, D. A1 - Wendt, A. T1 - An extensive spectroscopic time series of three Wolf-Rayet stars - I. The lifetime of large-scale structures in the wind of WR 134 JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - During the summer of 2013, a 4-month spectroscopic campaign took place to observe the variabilities in three Wolf-Rayet stars. The spectroscopic data have been analysed for WR 134 (WN6b), to better understand its behaviour and long-term periodicity, which we interpret as arising from corotating interaction regions (CIRs) in the wind. By analysing the variability of the He ii lambda 5411 emission line, the previously identified period was refined to P = 2.255 +/- 0.008 (s.d.) d. The coherency time of the variability, which we associate with the lifetime of the CIRs in the wind, was deduced to be 40 +/- 6 d, or similar to 18 cycles, by cross-correlating the variability patterns as a function of time. When comparing the phased observational grey-scale difference images with theoretical grey-scales previously calculated from models including CIRs in an optically thin stellar wind, we find that two CIRs were likely present. A separation in longitude of Delta I center dot a parts per thousand integral 90A degrees was determined between the two CIRs and we suggest that the different maximum velocities that they reach indicate that they emerge from different latitudes. We have also been able to detect observational signatures of the CIRs in other spectral lines (C iv lambda lambda 5802,5812 and He i lambda 5876). Furthermore, a DAC was found to be present simultaneously with the CIR signatures detected in the He i lambda 5876 emission line which is consistent with the proposed geometry of the large-scale structures in the wind. Small-scale structures also show a presence in the wind, simultaneously with the larger scale structures, showing that they do in fact co-exist. KW - instabilities KW - methods: data analysis KW - techniques: spectroscopic KW - stars: individual: WR 134 KW - stars: massive KW - stars: Wolf-Rayet Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stw1188 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 460 SP - 3407 EP - 3417 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bonifacio, P. A1 - Rahmani, H. A1 - Whitmore, J. B. A1 - Wendt, Martin A1 - Centurion, Martin A1 - Molaro, P. A1 - Srianand, R. A1 - Murphy, M. T. A1 - Petitjean, P. A1 - Agafonova, I. I. A1 - Evans, T. M. A1 - Levshakov, S. A. A1 - Lopez, S. A1 - Martins, C. J. A. P. A1 - Reimers, D. A1 - Vladilo, G. T1 - Fundamental constants and high-resolution spectroscopy JF - Astronomische Nachrichten = Astronomical notes KW - atomic processes KW - cosmology: observations KW - elementary particles KW - line: formation KW - quasars: absorption lines KW - techniques: spectroscopic Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.201312005 SN - 0004-6337 SN - 1521-3994 VL - 335 IS - 1 SP - 83 EP - 91 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Balthasar, H. A1 - Gömöry, P. A1 - González Manrique, Sergio Javier A1 - Kuckein, Christoph A1 - Kavka, J. A1 - Kucera, A. A1 - Schwartz, P. A1 - Vaskova, R. A1 - Berkefeld, T. A1 - Collados Vera, M. A1 - Denker, Carsten A1 - Feller, A. A1 - Hofmann, A. A1 - Lagg, A. A1 - Nicklas, H. A1 - Suarez, D. A1 - Pastor Yabar, A. A1 - Rezaei, R. A1 - Schlichenmaier, R. A1 - Schmidt, D. A1 - Schmidt, W. A1 - Sigwarth, M. A1 - Sobotka, M. A1 - Solanki, S. K. A1 - Soltau, D. A1 - Staude, J. A1 - Strassmeier, Klaus G. A1 - Volkmer, R. A1 - von der Lühe, O. A1 - Waldmann, T. T1 - Spectropolarimetric observations of an arch filament system with the GREGOR solar telescope JF - Astronomische Nachrichten = Astronomical notes N2 - Arch filament systems occur in active sunspot groups, where a fibril structure connects areas of opposite magnetic polarity, in contrast to active region filaments that follow the polarity inversion line. We used the GREGOR Infrared Spectrograph (GRIS) to obtain the full Stokes vector in the spectral lines SiI lambda 1082.7 nm, He I lambda 1083.0 nm, and Ca I lambda 1083.9 nm. We focus on the near-infrared calcium line to investigate the photospheric magnetic field and velocities, and use the line core intensities and velocities of the helium line to study the chromospheric plasma. The individual fibrils of the arch filament system connect the sunspot with patches of magnetic polarity opposite to that of the spot. These patches do not necessarily coincide with pores, where the magnetic field is strongest. Instead, areas are preferred not far from the polarity inversion line. These areas exhibit photospheric downflows of moderate velocity, but significantly higher downflows of up to 30 km s(-1) in the chromospheric helium line. Our findings can be explained with new emerging flux where the matter flows downward along the field lines of rising flux tubes, in agreement with earlier results. (C) 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH& Co. KGaA, Weinheim KW - Sun: filaments KW - Sun: photosphere KW - techniques: polarimetric KW - techniques: spectroscopic Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.201612432 SN - 0004-6337 SN - 1521-3994 VL - 337 SP - 1050 EP - 1056 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER -