We use observations of six ‘blazars’ with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), at eight frequencies (4.6, 5.1, 7.9, 8.9, 12.9, 15.4, 22.2 and 43.1 GHz), to investigate the frequency-dependent ...position of their VLBI cores (‘core-shift’) and their overall jet spectral distribution. By cross-correlating the optically thin jet emission, we are able to accurately align the multifrequency images of three of the jets (1418+546, 2007+777, 2200+420), whose core-shifts and spectra we find consistent with the equipartition regime of the Blandford & Königl conical jet model, where the position of the radio core from the base of the jet follows rcore(ν) ∝ν−1. For the jet of 0954+658, we align the higher frequency images using our lower frequency measurements assuming equipartition in the radio core from 4.6–43 GHz. The jet emission of the other two sources in our sample (1156+295, 1749+096) is too sparse for our alignment technique to work. Using our measured core-shifts, we calculate equipartition magnetic field strengths of the order of 10s to 100s of mG in the radio cores of these four AGN from 4.6–43 GHz. Extrapolating our results back to the accretion disc and black hole jet-launching distances, we find magnetic field strengths consistent with those expected from theoretical models of magnetically powered jets.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nano-sized vesicles containing nucleic acid and protein cargo that are released from a multitude of cell types and have gained significant interest as potential ...diagnostic biomarkers. Human serum is a rich source of readily accessible EVs; however, the separation of EVs from serum proteins and non-EV lipid particles represents a considerable challenge. In this study, we compared the most commonly used isolation techniques, either alone or in combination, for the isolation of EVs from 200 µl of human serum and their separation from non-EV protein and lipid particles present in serum. The size and yield of particles isolated by each method was determined by nanoparticle tracking analysis, with the variation in particle size distribution being used to determine the relative impact of lipoproteins and protein aggregates on the isolated EV population. Purification of EVs from soluble protein was determined by calculating the ratio of EV particle count to protein concentration. Finally, lipoprotein particles co-isolated with EVs was determined by Western blot analysis of lipoprotein markers APOB and APOE. Overall, this study reveals that the choice of EV isolation procedure significantly impacts EV yield from human serum, together with the presence of lipoprotein and protein contaminants.
We present a detailed study of the Faraday depth structure of four bright (>1 Jy), strongly polarized, unresolved radio-loud quasars. The Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) was used to observe ...these sources with 2 GHz of instantaneous bandwidth from 1.1 to 3.1 GHz. This allowed us to spectrally resolve the polarization structure of spatially unresolved radio sources, and by fitting various Faraday rotation models to the data, we conclusively demonstrate that two of the sources cannot be described by a simple rotation measure (RM) component modified by depolarization from a foreground Faraday screen. Our results have important implications for using background extragalactic radio sources as probes of the Galactic and intergalactic magneto-ionic media as we show how RM estimations from narrow-bandwidth observations can give erroneous results in the presence of multiple interfering Faraday components. We postulate that the additional RM components arise from polarized structure in the compact inner regions of the radio source itself and not from polarized emission from galactic or intergalactic foreground regions. We further suggest that this may contribute significantly to any RM time variability seen in RM studies on these angular scales. Follow-up, high-sensitivity very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) observations of these sources will directly test our predictions.
Summary
Healthcare workers involved in aerosol‐generating procedures, such as tracheal intubation, may be at elevated risk of acquiring COVID‐19. However, the magnitude of this risk is unknown. We ...conducted a prospective international multicentre cohort study recruiting healthcare workers participating in tracheal intubation of patients with suspected or confirmed COVID‐19. Information on tracheal intubation episodes, personal protective equipment use and subsequent provider health status was collected via self‐reporting. The primary endpoint was the incidence of laboratory‐confirmed COVID‐19 diagnosis or new symptoms requiring self‐isolation or hospitalisation after a tracheal intubation episode. Cox regression analysis examined associations between the primary endpoint and healthcare worker characteristics, procedure‐related factors and personal protective equipment use. Between 23 March and 2 June 2020, 1718 healthcare workers from 503 hospitals in 17 countries reported 5148 tracheal intubation episodes. The overall incidence of the primary endpoint was 10.7% over a median (IQR range) follow‐up of 32 (18–48 0–116) days. The cumulative incidence within 7, 14 and 21 days of the first tracheal intubation episode was 3.6%, 6.1% and 8.5%, respectively. The risk of the primary endpoint varied by country and was higher in women, but was not associated with other factors. Around 1 in 10 healthcare workers involved in tracheal intubation of patients with suspected or confirmed COVID‐19 subsequently reported a COVID‐19 outcome. This has human resource implications for institutional capacity to deliver essential healthcare services, and wider societal implications for COVID‐19 transmission.
Abstract
We present the results from a broad-band (1 to 3 GHz), spectro-polarimetry study of the integrated emission from 100 extragalactic radio sources with the Australia Telescope Compact Array, ...selected to be highly linearly polarized at 1.4 GHz. We use a general-purpose, polarization model-fitting procedure that describes the Faraday rotation measure (RM) and intrinsic polarization structure of up to three distinct polarized emission regions or ‘RM components' of a source. Overall, 37 per cent/52 per cent/11 per cent of sources are best fitted by one/two/three RM components. However, these fractions are dependent on the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) in polarization (more RM components more likely at higher S/N). In general, our analysis shows that sources with high integrated degrees of polarization at 1.4 GHz have low Faraday depolarization, are typically dominated by a single RM component, have a steep spectral index and have a high intrinsic degree of polarization. After classifying our sample into radiative-mode and jet-mode AGN, we find no significant difference between the Faraday rotation or Faraday depolarization properties of jet-mode and radiative-mode AGN. However, there is a statistically significant difference in the intrinsic degree of polarization between the two types, with the jet-mode sources having more intrinsically ordered magnetic field structures than the radiative-mode sources. We also find a preferred perpendicular orientation of the intrinsic magnetic field structure of jet-mode AGN with respect to the jet direction, while no clear preference is found for the radiative-mode sources.
Strong singly ionized magnesium (Mg II) absorption lines in quasar spectra typically serve as a proxy for intervening galaxies along the line of sight. Previous studies have found a correlation ...between the number of these Mg II absorbers and the Faraday rotation measure (RM) at approximately 5 GHz. We cross-match a sample of 35,752 optically identified non-intrinsic Mg II absorption systems with 25,649 polarized background radio sources for which we have measurements of both the spectral index and RM at 1.4 GHz. We use the spectral index to split the resulting sample of 599 sources into flat-spectrum and steep-spectrum subsamples. We find that our flat-spectrum sample shows significant (~3.5sigma) evidence for a correlation between Mg II absorption and RM at 1.4 GHz, while our steep-spectrum sample shows no such correlation. We argue that such an effect cannot be explained by either luminosity or other observational effects, by evolution in another confounding variable, by wavelength-dependent polarization structure in an active galactic nucleus, by the Galactic foreground, by cosmological expansion, or by partial coverage models. We conclude that our data are most consistent with intervenons directly contributing to the Faraday rotation along the line of sight, and that the intervening systems must therefore have coherent magnetic fields of substantial strength (B = 1.8 + or - 0.4 mu G). Nevertheless, the weak nature of the correlation will require future high-resolution and broadband radio observations in order to place it on a much firmer statistical footing.
Abstract
We present a low-frequency, broad-band polarization study of the FRII radio galaxy PKS J0636−2036 (z = 0.0551), using the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) from 70 to 230 MHz. The northern and ...southern hotspots (separated by ∼14.5 arcmin on the sky) are resolved by the MWA (3.3 arcmin resolution) and both are detected in linear polarization across the full frequency range. A combination of Faraday rotation measure (RM) synthesis and broad-band polarization model fitting is used to constrain the Faraday depolarization properties of the source. For the integrated southern hotspot emission, two-RM-component models are strongly favoured over a single RM component, and the best-fitting model requires Faraday dispersions of approximately 0.7 and 1.2 rad m−2 (with a mean RM of ∼50 rad m−2). High-resolution imaging at 5 arcsec with the Australia Telescope Compact Array shows significant sub-structure in the southern hotspot and highlights some of the limitations in the polarization modelling of the MWA data. Based on the observed depolarization, combined with extrapolations of gas density scaling relations for group environments, we estimate magnetic field strengths in the intergalactic medium between ∼0.04 and 0.5 μG. We also comment on future prospects of detecting more polarized sources at low frequencies.
The parsec-scale Faraday rotation measure (RM) distribution of six ‘blazars’ (0954+658, 1156+295, 1418+546, 1749+096, 2007+777 and 2200+420) are investigated using multifrequency (4.6, 5.1, 7.9, 8.9, ...12.9, 15.4, 22 and 43 GHz) polarization observations with the American Very Long Baseline Array taken on 2006 July 2. Analysis of the RM provides the direction of the line-of-sight (LoS) magnetic field component, as well as the intrinsic (unrotated) two-dimensional polarization distribution on the plane of the sky. Our results show that the magnitude of the core RM increases systematically with frequency, and is well described by a power law, where |RMcore| ∝νa. Our measured values of a vary from 0.9 to 3.8, providing information on the assumed power-law fall-off in the electron density (ne) with distance from the central engine (r) for each source. RM gradients were detected across the jets of 0954+658, 1156+295 and 1418+546, supporting the presence of helical magnetic fields in a sheath or boundary layer surrounding their jets. We find a bi-modal distribution of the intrinsic jet polarization orientation, with the polarization angles either aligned or orthogonal to the jet direction. The polarization of 2200+420 displays a continuous structure, with the polarization angles remaining aligned with the jet direction even as it bends. This indicates that the magnetic field structure in the synchrotron emitting plasma is dominated by an ordered transverse component. A helical magnetic field geometry can neatly explain both the bi-model distribution of the jet polarization orientation and the ordered polarization structure on these scales. For 0954+658, 1418+546 and 2200+420, we find that the core RM changes sign with distance from the central engine. We provide an explanation for this by considering a boundary layer of Faraday rotating material threaded by a helical magnetic field, where bends in the relativistic jet or accelerating/decelerating flows give rise to changes in the dominant LoS components of the magnetic field, which in turn gives rise to different signs of the RM.
Context.
During their lifetimes, galaxy clusters grow through the accretion of matter from the filaments of the large-scale structure and from mergers with other clusters. These mergers release a ...large amount of energy into the intracluster medium (ICM) through merger shocks and turbulence. These phenomena are associated with the formation of radio sources known as radio relics and radio halos, respectively. Radio relics and halos are unique proxies for studying the complex properties of these dynamically active regions of clusters and the microphysics of the ICM more generally.
Aims.
Abell 3667 is a spectacular example of a merging system that hosts a large pair of radio relics. Due to its proximity (
z
= 0.0553) and large mass, the system enables the study of these sources to a uniquely high level of detail. However, being located at Dec = −56.8°, the cluster could only be observed with a limited number of radio facilities.
Methods.
We observed Abell 3667 with MeerKAT as part of the MeerKAT Galaxy Cluster Legacy Survey. We used these data to study the large-scale emission of the cluster, including its polarisation and spectral properties. The results were then compared with simulations.
Results.
We present the most detailed view of the radio relic system in Abell 3667 to date, with a resolution reaching 3 kpc. The relics are filled with a network of filaments with different spectral and polarisation properties that are likely associated with multiple regions of particle acceleration and local enhancements of the magnetic field. Conversely, the magnetic field in the space between filaments has strengths close to what would be expected in unperturbed regions at the same cluster-centric distance. Comparisons with magnetohydrodynamic cosmological and Lagrangian simulations support the idea of filaments as multiple acceleration sites. Our observations also confirm the presence of an elongated radio halo, developed in the wake of the bullet-like sub-cluster that merged from the south-east. Finally, we associate the process of magnetic draping with a thin polarised radio source surrounding the remnant of the bullet’s cool core.
Conclusions.
Our observations have unveiled the complexity of the interplay between the thermal and non-thermal components in the most active regions of a merging cluster. Both the intricate internal structure of radio relics and the direct detection of magnetic draping around the merging bullet are powerful examples of the non-trivial magnetic properties of the ICM. Thanks to its sensitivity to polarised radiation, MeerKAT will be transformational in the study of these complex phenomena.
Abstract
The W50/SS433 system is an unusual Galactic outflow-driven object of debatable origin. We have used the Australia Telescope Compact Array to observe a new 198 pointing mosaic, covering ...3° × 2°, and present the highest-sensitivity full-Stokes data of W50 to date using wide-field, wide-band imaging over a 2 GHz bandwidth centred at 2.1 GHz. We also present a complementary Hα mosaic created using the Isaac Newton Telescope Photometric Hα Survey of the Northern Galactic Plane. The magnetic structure of W50 is consistent with the prevailing hypothesis that the nebula is a reanimated shell-like supernova remnant (SNR), which has been re-energized by the jets from SS433. We observe strong depolarization effects that correlate with diffuse Hα emission, likely due to spatially varying Faraday rotation measure (RM) fluctuations of ≥48–61 rad m−2 on scales ≤4.5–6 pc. We also report the discovery of numerous, faint, Hα filaments that are unambiguously associated with the central region of W50. These thin filaments are suggestive of an SNR's shock emission, and almost all have a radio counterpart. Furthermore, an RM-gradient is detected across the central region of W50, which we interpret as a loop magnetic field with a symmetry axis offset by ≈90° to the east–west jet-alignment axis, and implying that the evolutionary processes of both the jets and the SNR must be coupled. A separate RM-gradient is associated with the termination shock in the eastern ear, which we interpret as a ring-like field located where the shock of the jet interacts with the circumstellar medium. Future optical observations will be able to use the new Hα filaments to probe the kinematics of the shell of W50, potentially allowing for a definitive experiment on W50's formation history.
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