Search Publications

Seasonal exposure of carbon dioxide ice on the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
DOI: 10.1126/science.aag3161 Bibcode: 2016Sci...354.1563F

Langevin, Y.; Bellucci, G.; Jaumann, R. +75 more

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the most abundant species in cometary nuclei, but because of its high volatility, CO2 ice is generally only found beneath the surface. We report the infrared spectroscopic identification of a CO2 ice-rich surface area located in the Anhur region of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Spe…

2016 Science
Rosetta 85
Multiple Populations in the Old and Massive Small Magellanic Cloud Globular Cluster NGC 121
DOI: 10.3847/0004-637X/829/2/77 Bibcode: 2016ApJ...829...77D

Dalessandro, E.; Mucciarelli, A.; Origlia, L. +3 more

We used a combination of optical and near-UV Hubble Space Telescope photometry and FLAMES/ESO-VLT high-resolution spectroscopy to characterize the stellar content of the old and massive globular cluster (GC) NGC 121 in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). We report on the detection of multiple stellar populations, the first case in the SMC stellar cl…

2016 The Astrophysical Journal
eHST 85
Host Galaxy Identification for Supernova Surveys
DOI: 10.3847/0004-6256/152/6/154 Bibcode: 2016AJ....152..154G

Carretero, Jorge; Castander, Francisco J.; Miquel, Ramon +57 more

Host galaxy identification is a crucial step for modern supernova (SN) surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, which will discover SNe by the thousands. Spectroscopic resources are limited, and so in the absence of real-time SN spectra these surveys must rely on host galaxy spectra to obtain accurate redshif…

2016 The Astronomical Journal
eHST 84
AGN host galaxy mass function in COSMOS. Is AGN feedback responsible for the mass-quenching of galaxies?
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201527436 Bibcode: 2016A&A...588A..78B

Ilbert, O.; Silverman, J. D.; Salvato, M. +11 more

We investigate the role of supermassive black holes in the global context of galaxy evolution by measuring the host galaxy stellar mass function (HGMF) and the specific accretion rate, that is, λSAR, the distribution function (SARDF), up to z ~ 2.5 with ~1000 X-ray selected AGN from XMM-COSMOS. Using a maximum likelihood approach, we jo…

2016 Astronomy and Astrophysics
XMM-Newton 84
Discovery of Rotational Modulations in the Planetary-mass Companion 2M1207b: Intermediate Rotation Period and Heterogeneous Clouds in a Low Gravity Atmosphere
DOI: 10.3847/0004-637X/818/2/176 Bibcode: 2016ApJ...818..176Z

Showman, Adam P.; Apai, Dániel; Marley, Mark S. +2 more

Rotational modulations of brown dwarfs have recently provided powerful constraints on the properties of ultra-cool atmospheres, including longitudinal and vertical cloud structures and cloud evolution. Furthermore, periodic light curves directly probe the rotational periods of ultra-cool objects. We present here, for the first time, time-resolved …

2016 The Astrophysical Journal
eHST 84
Regional surface morphology of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from Rosetta/OSIRIS images: The southern hemisphere
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201628634 Bibcode: 2016A&A...593A.110E

Jorda, L.; Lamy, P. L.; Lara, L. M. +49 more


Aims: The OSIRIS camera on board the Rosetta spacecraft has been acquiring images of the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P)'s nucleus since August 2014. Starting in May 2015, the southern hemisphere gradually became illuminated and was imaged for the first time. Here we present the regional morphology of the southern hemisphere, which serv…

2016 Astronomy and Astrophysics
Rosetta 84
IC 751: A New Changing Look AGN Discovered by NuSTAR
DOI: 10.3847/0004-637X/820/1/5 Bibcode: 2016ApJ...820....5R

Harrison, F. A.; Boggs, S.; Stern, D. +12 more

We present results of five Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) observations of the type 2 active galactic nucleus (AGN) in IC 751, three of which were performed simultaneously with XMM-Newton or Swift/X-Ray Telescope. We find that the nuclear X-ray source underwent a clear transition from a Compton-thick ({N}{{H}}≃ 2× {10}

2016 The Astrophysical Journal
XMM-Newton 84
Evolution of CO2, CH4, and OCS abundances relative to H2O in the coma of comet 67P around perihelion from Rosetta/VIRTIS-H observations
DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stw2428 Bibcode: 2016MNRAS.462S.170B

Kührt, E.; Encrenaz, T.; Erard, S. +19 more

Infrared observations of the coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko were carried out from 2015 July to September, I.e. around perihelion (2015 August 13), with the high-resolution channel of the Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer instrument onboard Rosetta. We present the analysis of fluorescence emission lines of H2O, CO

2016 Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rosetta 83
Electrostatic solitary waves and electrostatic waves at the magnetopause
DOI: 10.1002/2015JA021527 Bibcode: 2016JGRA..121.3069G

André, M.; Vaivads, A.; Khotyaintsev, Yu. V. +1 more

Electrostatic solitary waves (ESWs) are characterized by localized bipolar electric fields parallel to the magnetic field and are frequently observed in space plasmas. In this paper a study of ESWs and field-aligned electrostatic waves, which do not exhibit localized bipolar fields, near the magnetopause is presented using the Cluster spacecraft. …

2016 Journal of Geophysical Research (Space Physics)
Cluster 83
Physical conditions in the central molecular zone inferred by H3+
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201526658 Bibcode: 2016A&A...585A.105L

Le Petit, Franck; Ruaud, Maxime; Bron, Emeric +4 more

Context. The H3+ molecule has been detected in many lines of sight within the central molecular zone (CMZ) with exceptionally large column densities and unusual excitation properties compared to diffuse local clouds. The detection of the (3, 3) metastable level has been suggested to be the signature of warm and diffuse gas in…

2016 Astronomy and Astrophysics
Herschel 83