ABSTRACT
In large-scale maps of the Galactic disc, the Carina Arm stands out as a clear spiral feature, hosting prominent star clusters and associations rich in massive stars. We study the proper ...motions of 4199 O and early B most likely in the far Carina Arm, at distances mainly in excess of 4 kpc from the Sun, within the sky region, 282° < ℓ < 294° and −3° < b < +1° (Galactic coordinates). The sample is constructed by extending an existing blue-selected catalogue, and cross-matching with Gaia EDR3 astrometry. The observed pattern of proper motions is modulated into a saw-tooth pattern, with full amplitude approaching 1 mas yr−1, recurring roughly every 2–3 degrees of longitude (200–300 pc at the median OB-star distance of 5.8 kpc). Kinematic perturbation of underlying circular rotation is most likely present. The data also reveal a moving group containing >50 OB stars at ℓ ∼ 286°, b ∼ −1.4° behind the main run of the far arm. An analysis of relative proper motions is performed that yields an incidence of runaway O stars of at least 10 per cent (potentially >20 per cent when full space motions become available). To map where runaways have run away from, we set up simulations for the region that assume linear trajectories and test for trajectory impact parameter in order to identify likely ejection hot spots. We find the method currently gives good results for times of flight of up to ∼4 Myr. It shows convincingly that only NGC 3603 and Westerlund 2 have ejected OB stars in significant numbers. Indeed, both clusters have experienced intense spells of ejection between 0.6–0.9 and 0.5–0.8 Myr ago, respectively.
Context. The ESO public survey VISTA variables in the Vía Láctea (VVV) started in 2010. VVV targets 562 sq. deg in the Galactic bulge and an adjacent plane region and is expected to run for about ...five years. Aims. We describe the progress of the survey observations in the first observing season, the observing strategy, and quality of the data obtained. Methods. The observations are carried out on the 4-m VISTA telescope in the ZYJHKs filters. In addition to the multi-band imaging the variability monitoring campaign in the Ks filter has started. Data reduction is carried out using the pipeline at the Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit. The photometric and astrometric calibration is performed via the numerous 2MASS sources observed in each pointing. Results. The first data release contains the aperture photometry and astrometric catalogues for 348 individual pointings in the ZYJHKs filters taken in the 2010 observing season. The typical image quality is ~ \hbox{$0\farcs9{-}1\farcs0$} 0 . ″ 9 − 1 . ″ 0 . The stringent photometric and image quality requirements of the survey are satisfied in 100% of the JHKs images in the disk area and 90% of the JHKs images in the bulge area. The completeness in the Z and Y images is 84% in the disk, and 40% in the bulge. The first season catalogues contain 1.28 × 108 stellar sources in the bulge and 1.68 × 108 in the disk area detected in at least one of the photometric bands. The combined, multi-band catalogues contain more than 1.63 × 108 stellar sources. About 10% of these are double detections because of overlapping adjacent pointings. These overlapping multiple detections are used to characterise the quality of the data. The images in the JHKs bands extend typically ~4 mag deeper than 2MASS. The magnitude limit and photometric quality depend strongly on crowding in the inner Galactic regions. The astrometry for Ks = 15−18 mag has rms ~35−175 mas. Conclusions. The VVV Survey data products offer a unique dataset to map the stellar populations in the Galactic bulge and the adjacent plane and provide an exciting new tool for the study of the structure, content, and star-formation history of our Galaxy, as well as for investigations of the newly discovered star clusters, star-forming regions in the disk, high proper motion stars, asteroids, planetary nebulae, and other interesting objects.
Causes of worldwide freshwater mussel declines are poorly understood, and the potential role of the invasive Asian Clam, Corbicula fluminea, has received little attention.
We measured survival and ...growth of captively‐reared juveniles of four native mussel species during 84‐day in situ exposures at 17 sites in the Rockcastle River system, Kentucky, U.S.A., where mussel declines are attributed to coal mining. We measured water temperature, a comprehensive array of water chemistry variables, and Corbicula abundance at each site during mussel exposures.
Mussel survival was high (mean = 85.4%), did not differ among species, and was not related to any measured factor. In contrast, growth varied among sites by an order of magnitude, but growth responses were nearly identical for all four species. We found little evidence of water pollution from coal mining or other sources, and pollution did not explain variation in mussel growth. Growth was best explained by a model including only temperature (positive effect) and Corbicula abundance (negative effect) without interaction.
Our model predicts 46% lower mass gain over 84 days for every 10‐fold increase in Corbicula abundance regardless of temperature, but growth may be reduced to unsustainably low levels in cooler streams. Previous ideas about water pollution as a cause of low growth and mussel declines were not supported by our data. Instead, the predicted strong effects of Corbicula, combined with similar responses of four mussel species, suggest that Corbicula may be an important, but overlooked, factor in widespread mussel declines.
We estimate the accretion rates of 235 Classical T Tauri star (CTTS) candidates in the Lagoon Nebula using ugri H α photometry from the VST Photometric H α survey+. Our sample consists of stars ...displaying H α excess, the intensity of which is used to derive accretion rates. For a subset of 87 stars, the intensity of the u-band excess is also used to estimate accretion rates. We find the mean variation in accretion rates measured using H α and u-band intensities to be ∼0.17 dex, agreeing with previous estimates (0.04–0.4 dex) but for a much larger sample. The spatial distribution of CTTS align with the location of protostars and molecular gas suggesting that they retain an imprint of the natal gas fragmentation process. Strong accretors are concentrated spatially, while weak accretors are more distributed. Our results do not support the sequential star-forming processes suggested in the literature.
1. Fundamental ecological research is both intrinsically interesting and provides the basic knowledge required to answer applied questions of importance to the management of the natural world. The ...100th anniversary of the British Ecological Society in 2013 is an opportune moment to reflect on the current status of ecology as a science and look forward to high-light priorities for future work. 2. To do this, we identified 100 important questions of fundamental importance in pure ecology. We elicited questions from ecologists working across a wide range of systems and disciplines. The 754 questions submitted (listed in the online appendix) from 388 participants were narrowed down to the final 100 through a process of discussion, rewording and repeated rounds of voting. This was done during a two-day workshop and thereafter. 3. The questions reflect many of the important current conceptual and technical pre-occupations of ecology. For example, many questions concerned the dynamics of environmental change and complex ecosystem interactions, as well as the interaction between ecology and evolution. 4. The questions reveal a dynamic science with novel subfields emerging. For example, a group of questions was dedicated to disease and micro-organisms and another on human impacts and global change reflecting the emergence of new subdisciplines that would not have been foreseen a few decades ago. 5. The list also contained a number of questions that have perplexed ecologists for decades and are still seen as crucial to answer, such as the link between population dynamics and life-history evolution. 6. Synthesis. These 100 questions identified reflect the state of ecology today. Using them as an agenda for further research would lead to a substantial enhancement in understanding of the discipline, with practical relevance for the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem function.
ABSTRACT
The very bright and compact massive young cluster, NGC 3603, has been cited as an example of a starburst in the Milky Way and compared with the much-studied R136/30 Doradus region in the ...Large Magellanic Cloud. Here we build on the discovery by Mohr-Smith et al. of a large number of reddened O stars around this cluster. We construct a list of 288 candidate O stars with proper motions (PMs), in a region of sky spanning 1.5 × 1.5 deg2 centred on NGC 3603, by cross-matching the Mohr-Smith et al. catalogue with Gaia DR2. This provides the basis for a first comprehensive examination of the PMs of these massive stars in the halo of NGC 3603, relative to the much better studied central region. We identify up to 11 likely O star ejections – 8 of which would have been ejected between 0.60 and 0.95 Myr ago (supporting the age of ∼1 Myr that has been attributed to the bright cluster centre). Seven candidate ejections are arranged in a partial ring to the south of the cluster core spanning radii of 9–18 arcmin (18–36 pc if the cluster is 7 kpc away). We also show that the cluster has a halo of a further ∼100 O stars extending to a radius of at least 5 arcmin, adding to the picture of NGC 3603 as a scaled down version of the R136/30 Dor region.
We present the goals, strategy and first results of the OmegaWhite survey: a wide-field high-cadence g-band synoptic survey which aims to unveil the Galactic population of short-period variable stars ...(with periods <80 min), including ultracompact binary star systems and stellar pulsators. The ultimate goal of OmegaWhite is to cover 400 deg2 along the Galactic plane reaching a depth of g = 21.5 mag (10σ), using OmegaCam on the VLT Survey Telescope (VST). The fields are selected to overlap with surveys such as the Galactic Bulge Survey and the VST Photometric Hα Survey of the Southern Galactic Plane for multiband colour information. Each field is observed using 38 exposures of 39 s each, with a median cadence of ∼2.7 min for a total duration of two hours. Within an initial 26 deg2, we have extracted the light curves of 1.6 million stars, and have identified 613 variable candidates which satisfy our selection criteria. Furthermore, we present the light curves and statistical properties of 20 sources which have the highest likelihood of being variable stars. One of these candidates exhibits the colours and light-curve properties typically associated with ultracompact AM CVn binaries, although its spectrum exhibits weak Balmer absorption lines and is thus not likely to be such a binary system. We also present follow-up spectroscopy of five other variable candidates, which identifies them as likely low-amplitude δ Sct pulsating stars.
Reliably predicting sustainable exploitation levels for many tropical species subject to hunting remains a difficult task, largely because of the inherent uncertainty associated with estimating ...parameters related to both population dynamics and hunting pressure. Here, we investigate a modelling approach to support decisions in bushmeat management which explicitly considers parameter uncertainty. We apply the approach to duiker Cephalophus spp., assuming either a constant quota-based, or a constant proportional harvesting, strategy. Within each strategy, we evaluate different hunting levels in terms of both average yield and survival probability, over different time horizons. Under quota-based harvesting, considering uncertainty revealed a trade-off between yield and extinction probability that was not evident when ignoring uncertainty. The highest yield was returned by a quota that implied a 40% extinction risk, whereas limiting extinction risk to 10% reduced yield by 50%-70%. By contrast, under proportional harvesting, there was no trade-off between yield and extinction probability. The maximum proportion returned a yield comparable with the maximum possible under quota-based harvesting, but with extinction risk below 10%. However, proportional harvesting can be harder to implement in practice because it depends on an estimate of population size. In both harvesting approaches, predicted yields were highly right-skewed with median yields differing from mean yields, implying that decision outcomes depend on attitude to risk. The analysis shows how an explicit consideration of all available information, including uncertainty, can, as part of a wider process involving multiple stakeholders, help inform harvesting policies.
ABSTRACT We present the detection of 10 lines of singly ionized neodymium (Nd ii, Z = 60) in H-band spectra using observations from the SDSS-III Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment ...(APOGEE) survey. These lines were detected in a metal-poor (Fe/H ∼ −1.5), neutron-capture element-enhanced star recently discovered in the APOGEE sample. Using an optical high-resolution spectrum, we derive a Nd abundance for this star using Nd ii lines with precise, laboratory-derived gf values. This optical abundance is used to derive log(gf) values for the H-band lines. We use these lines to rederive Nd ii abundances for two more metal-rich, s-process enhanced stars observed by APOGEE and find that these lines yield consistent Nd ii abundances, confirming the Nd enhancement of these stars. We explore the region of parameter space in the APOGEE sample over which these lines can be used to measure Nd ii abundances. We find that Nd abundances can be reliably derived for ∼18% of the red giants observed by APOGEE. This will result in ∼50,000 Milky Way stars with Nd ii abundances following the conclusion of APOGEE-2, allowing for studies of neutron-capture element abundance distributions across the entire Milky Way.
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