Ganymede’s magnetic footprint brightness and location in respond to main emission

Jupiter’s aurora features have been observed by the Hubble space telescope (HST) for over two decades. One of the auroral features, Ganymede’s magnetic footprint, appears close to the main emission and is sometimes embedded in the main emission. The latter case causes difficulty in identifying Ganymede’s magnetic footprint from in the main emission. The FUV aurora images were taken by Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) onboard the HST. The fluctuations of Ganymede’s footprint brightness over time will be analyzed. Moreover, the correlation between the brightness and locations of the main emission and Ganymede’s magnetic footprint will be analyzed to characterize the connection between ionospheric phenomena and the magnetospheric dynamics. Since the main emission is very bright in comparison with the footprint, therefore, the variation of the main emission can affect the Ganymede’s magnetic footprint. Furthermore, the expansion of the main emission is consistent with the location shift of Ganymede’s magnetic footprint in equatorward direction. The brightness and location of the main emission can be influenced by the plasma variation in Jupiter’s magnetosphere which is affected partly by the volcanic eruption on Io and solar wind dynamic pressure. The variation of Ganymede magnetic footprint’s brightness and location in respond to the main emission could be an important indicator of the magnetospheric variation under the influences of internal and external factors.

A differential RR lyrae line-of-sight distance between M31 and M33

We present a purely differential line-of-sight distance between M31 and M33 using ab-type RR Lyrae variables observed in each galaxy by the Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys in the F606W filter. Using 1481 RR Lyraes in 13 M31 fields and 181 RR Lyraes in 6 M33 fields, and placing all of these stars on a uniform photometric scale with internally consistent corrections for metal abundance and extinction, we find a relative absolute distance modulus of Δ(m-M)o = –0.298 ± 0.016 in the sense of (m-M)o, M31 – (m-M)o, M33. Adopting an absolute distance modulus of (m-M)o=24.46±0.10 for M31 places M33 115 kpc beyond M31 in line-of-sight distance.

Variable stars in Local Group Galaxies - V. The fast and early evolution of the low-mass Eridanus II dSph galaxy

We present a detailed study of the variable star population of Eridanus II (Eri II), an ultra-faint dwarf galaxy that lies close to the Milky Way virial radius. We analyze multi-epoch g, r, i ground-based data from Goodman and the Dark Energy Camera, plus F475W, F606W, F814W space data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys. We report the detection of 67 RR Lyrae (RRL) stars and 2 Anomalous Cepheids, most of them new discoveries. With the RRL stars, we measure the distance modulus of Eri II, μ0 = 22.84 ± 0.05 mag (D⊙ = 370 ± 9 kpc) and derive a metallicity spread of 0.3 dex (0.2 dex intrinsic). The colour distribution of the horizontal branch (HB) and the period distribution of the RRL stars can be nicely reproduced by a combination of two stellar models of [Fe/H]=(−2.62, −2.14). The overall low metallicity is consistent with the red giant branch bump location, 0.65 mag brighter than the HB. These results are in agreement with previous spectroscopic studies. The more metal-rich RRL and the RRab stars have greater central concentration than the more metal-poor RRL and the RRc stars that are mainly located outside ∼1 rh. This is similar to what is found in larger dwarf galaxies such as Sculptor, and in agreement with an outside-in galaxy formation scenario. This is remarkable in such a faint dwarf galaxy with an apparently single and extremely short (<1 Gyr) star formation burst. Finally, we have derived new and independent structural parameters for Eri II and its star cluster using our new data that are in very good agreement with previous estimates.

Saturn´s Stratospheric Hazes From HST Ultraviolet Imaging

<p>We present a study on Saturn's stratospheric hazes using archived images from the Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys. These observations were taken from 2005 to 2014, including the Great Storm during the years 2010 and 2011. For our research we used ultraviolet images from the Solar Blind Channel camera equipped with the F115LP and F125LP filters. At these wavelengths, the reflected spectrum is fundamentally Rayleigh-scattered, with substantial contributions from hydrocarbon absorptions and additional scattering by the aerosols in the hazes above the tropopause. The goal of this work is to analyze temporal and latitudinal changes in the characteristics of the stratospheric haze, gases and particles, analyzing the absolute reflectivity and its limb darkening. Such behavior can be reproduced using the empirical Minnaert's law. This provides nadir-viewing reflectivity and limb darkening coefficient as a function of latitude and time. This is a first approach that helps to qualitatively identify the changes occurring in the aerosol layer during this period of time, which include the massive Great White Spot of 2010. In order to quantify such aerosol changes, we use the radiative transfer code and retrieval suite NEMESIS (Non-Linear Optimal Estimator for Multivariat Spectral AnalySIS) to reproduce the observed reflectivity.  Here we will focus on the detected variations of the vertical distribution of the stratospheric particles, their integrated optical thickness and size distribution and will correlate them with the seasonal changes taken place in the atmosphere of the planet.</p>

Spatial segregation impact on star formation in nearby dwarf spheroidal galaxies

ABSTRACT Using our Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys (HST/ACS) observations of the recently found isolated dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies, we homogeneously measured their star formation histories (SFHs). We determined SF rate as a function of time, as well as age and metallicity of the stellar populations. All objects demonstrate complex SFH, with a significant portion of stars formed 10–13 Gyr ago. Nevertheless, stars of middle ages (1–8 Gyr) are presented. In order to understand how the SF parameters influence the evolution of dSphs, we also studied a sample of nearest dSphs in different environment: isolated (d < 2 Mpc); beyond the Local Group (LG) virial radius (but within the LG zero-velocity sphere); and the satellites of M 31 located within the virial zone (300 kpc). Using archival HST/ACS observations, we measured their SFHs. A comparative analysis of the parameters obtained allow us to distinguish a possible effect of the spatial segregation on the dSphs evolution scenario.

Distance and mass of the M 104 (Sombrero) group

Aims. Distances and radial velocities of galaxies in the vicinity of the luminous early-type galaxy M 104 (Sombrero) are used to derive its dark matter mass. Methods. Two dwarf galaxies: UGCA 307 and KKSG 30 situated near M 104 were observed with the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope. The distances 9.03−0.51+0.84 Mpc (UGCA 307) and 9.72−0.41+0.44 Mpc (KKSG 30) were determined using the tip of the red giant branch method. These distances are consistent with the dwarf galaxies being satellites of Sombrero. Results. Using radial velocities and projected separations of UGCA 307, KKSG 30, and a third galaxy with an accurate distance (KKSG 29), as well as 12 other assumed companions with less accurate distances, the total mass of M 104 is estimated to be (1.55 ± 0.49) × 1013 M⊙. At the K-band luminosity of the Sombrero galaxy of 2.4 × 1011 L⊙, its total mass-to-luminosity ratio is MT/LK = (65 ± 20) M⊙/L⊙, which is about three times higher than that of luminous bulgeless galaxies.

Validation of PSF models for HST and other space-based observations

ABSTRACT Forthcoming space-based observations will require high-quality point spread function (PSF) models for weak gravitational lensing measurements. One approach to generating these models is using a wavefront model based on the known telescope optics. We present an empirical framework for validating such models to confirm that they match the actual PSF to within requirements by comparing the models to the observed light distributions of isolated stars. We apply this framework to Tiny Tim, the standard tool for generating model PSFs for the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), testing its models against images taken by HST’s Advanced Camera for Surveys in the Wide Field Channel. We show that Tiny Tim’s models, in the default configuration, differ significantly from the observed PSFs, most notably in their sizes. We find that the quality of Tiny Tim PSFs can be improved through fitting the full set of Zernike polynomial coefficients that characterize the optics, to the point where the practical significance of the difference between model and observed PSFs is negligible for most use cases, resulting in additive and multiplicative biases both of order ∼4 × 10−4. We also show that most of this improvement can be retained through using an updated set of Zernike coefficients, which we provide.

KKH 22, the first dwarf spheroidal satellite of IC 342

Aims. We present observations with the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope of the nearby dwarf spheroidal galaxy KKH 22 = LEDA 2807114 in the vicinity of the massive spiral galaxy IC 342. Methods. We derived its distance of 3.12 ± 0.19 Mpc using the tip of red giant branch (TRGB) method. We also used the 6 m BTA spectroscopy to measure a heliocentric radial velocity of the globular cluster in KKH 22 to be +30 ± 10 km s−1. Results. The dSph galaxy KKH 22 has the V-band absolute magnitude of –12.m19 and the central surface brightness μv, 0 = 24.1m/□″. Both the velocity and the distance of KKH 22 are consistent with the dSph galaxy being gravitationally bound to IC 342. Another nearby dIr galaxy, KKH 34, with a low heliocentric velocity of +106 km s−1 has the TRGB distance of 7.28 ± 0.36 Mpc residing in the background with respect to the IC 342 group. KKH 34 has a surprisingly high negative peculiar velocity of –236 ± 26 km s−1.

Exploring the nature and synchronicity of early cluster formation in the Large Magellanic Cloud – V. Multiple populations in ancient globular clusters

ABSTRACT We examine four ancient Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) globular clusters (GCs) for evidence of multiple stellar populations using the Advanced Camera for Surveys and Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope Programme GO-14164. NGC 1466, NGC 1841, and NGC 2257 all show evidence for a redder, secondary population along the main sequence. Reticulum does not show evidence for the presence of a redder population, but this GC has the least number of stars and Monte Carlo simulations indicate that the sample of main-sequence stars is too small to robustly infer whether a redder population exists in this cluster. The second, redder, population of the other three clusters constitutes $\sim 30-40{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ of the total population along the main sequence. This brings the total number of ancient LMC GCs with known split or broadened main sequences to five. However, unlike for Hodge 11 and NGC 2210 (see Gilligan et al. (2019)), none of the clusters shows evidence for multiple populations in the horizontal branch. We also do not find evidence of a second population along the red giant branch.