Astronomical instrumentation

Abstract:

HIPSR (HI-Pulsar) is a digital signal processing system for the Parkes 21-cm Multibeam Receiver that provides larger instantaneous bandwidth, increased dynamic range, and more signal processing power than the previous systems in use at Parkes. The additional computational capacity enables finer spectral resolution in wideband HI observations and real-time detection of Fast Radio Bursts during pulsar surveys. HIPSR uses a heterogeneous architecture, consisting of FPGA-based signal processing boards connected via high-speed Ethernet to high performance compute nodes. Low-level signal processing is conducted on the FPGA-based boards, and more complex signal processing routines are conducted on the GPU-based compute nodes. The development of HIPSR was driven by two main science goals: to provide large bandwidth, high-resolution spectra suitable for 21-cm stacking and intensity mapping experiments; and to upgrade the Berkeley–Parkes–Swinburne Recorder (BPSR), the signal processing system used for the High Time Resolution Universe (HTRU) Survey and the Survey for Pulsars and Extragalactic Radio Bursts (SUPERB).

Abstract:

Aims. Qatar-1b is a close-orbiting hot Jupiter (R_p ≃ 1.18 R_J, M_p ≃ 1.33 M_J) around a metal-rich K-dwarf, with orbital separation and period of 0.023 AU and 1.42 days. We have observed the secondary eclipse of this exoplanet in the Ks band with the objective of deriving a brightness temperature for the planet and providing further constraints to the orbital configuration of the system.

Methods. We obtained near-infrared photometric data from the ground by using the OMEGA2000 instrument at the 3.5 m telescope at Calar Alto (Spain) in staring mode, with the telescope defocused. We have used principal component analysis (PCA) to identify correlated systematic trends in the data. A Markov chain Monte Carlo analysis was performed to model the correlated systematics and fit for the secondary eclipse of Qatar-1b using a previously developed occultation model. We adopted the prayer bead method to assess the effect of red noise on the derived parameters.

Results. We measured a secondary eclipse depth of 0.196%^{+ 0.071%}_−0.051%, which indicates a brightness temperature in the Ks band for the planet of 1885^{+ 212}_-168 K. We also measured a small deviation in the central phase of the secondary eclipse of −0.0079^{+ 0.0162}_-0.0043, which leads to a value for ecosω of −0.0123^{+ 0.0252}_-0.0067. However, this last result needs to be confirmed with more data.

Abstract:

Using the Oxford ShortWavelength Integral Field specTrograph, we trace radial variations of initial mass function (IMF)-sensitive absorption features of three galaxies in the Coma cluster. We obtain resolved spectroscopy of the central 5 kpc for the two central brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) NGC4889, NGC4874, and the BCG in the south-west group NGC4839, as well as unresolved data for NGC4873 as a low-σ* control.We present radial measurements of the IMF-sensitive features: sodium Na I SDSS , calcium triplet CaT, and iron-hydride FeH0.99, along with the magnesium Mg I0.88 and titanium oxide TiO0.89 features. We employ two separate methods for both telluric correction and sky subtraction around the faint FeH feature to verify our analysis. Within NGC4889 we find strong gradients of Na I SDSS and CaT but a flat FeH profile, which, from comparing to stellar population synthesis models, suggests an old, α-enhanced population with a Chabrier, or even bottom-light IMF. The age and abundance are in line with previous studies but the normal IMF is in contrast to recent results suggesting an increased IMF slope with increased velocity dispersion.We measure flat Na I SDSS and FeH profiles within NGC4874, and determine an old, possibly slightly α-enhanced and Chabrier IMF population. We find an α-enhanced, Chabrier IMF population in NGC4873. Within NGC4839 we measure both strong Na I SDSS and strong FeH, although with a large systematic uncertainty, suggesting a possible heavier IMF. The IMFswe infer for these galaxies are supported by published dynamical modelling. We stress that IMF constraints should be corroborated by further spectral coverage and independent methods on a galaxy-by-galaxy basis.