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The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) shows a large variation in ultraviolet (UV) dust extinction curves, ranging from Milky Way-like (MW) to significantly steeper curves with no detectable 2175 A bump. This result is based on a sample of only nine sightlines. From HST/STIS and IUE spectra of OB stars, we have measured UV extinction curves along 32 SMC sightlines where eight of these curves were published previously. We find 16 sightlines with steep extinction with no detectable 2175 A bump, four sightlines with MW-like extinction with a detectable 2175 A bump, two sightlines with fairly flat UV extinction and weak/absent 2175 A bumps, and 10 sightlines with unreliable curves due to low SMC dust columns. Our expanded sample shows that the sightlines with and without the 2175 A bump are located throughout the SMC and not limited to specific regions. The average extinction curve of the 16 bumpless sightlines is very similar to the previous average based on four sightlines. We find no correlation between dust column and the strength of the 2175 A bump. We test the hypothesis that the 2175 A bump is due to the same dust grains that are responsible for the mid-infrared carbonaceous (PAH) emission features and find they are correlated, confirming recent work in the MW. Overall, the slope of the UV extinction increases as the amplitudes of the 2175 A bump and far-UV curvature decrease. Finally, the UV slope is correlated with $N(HI)/A(V)$ and the 2175 A bump and nonlinear far-UV rise amplitudes are anti-correlated with $N(HI)/A(V)$., Comment: 24 pages, 12 figures, ApJ, accepted

Dust extinction is one of the fundamental measurements of dust grain sizes, compositions, and shapes. Most of the wavelength dependent variations seen in Milky Way extinction are strongly correlated with the single parameter R(V)=A(V)/E(B-V). Existing R(V) dependent extinction relationships use a mixture of spectroscopic and photometry observations, hence do not fully capture all the important dust features nor continuum variations. Using four existing samples of spectroscopically measured dust extinction curves, we consistently measure the R(V) dependent extinction relationship spectroscopically from the far-ultraviolet to mid-infrared for the first time. Linear fits of A(lambda)/A(V) dependent on R(V) are done using a method that fully accounts for their significant and correlated uncertainties. These linear parameters are fit with analytic wavelength dependent functions to determine the smooth R(V) (2.3-5.6) and wavelength (912 A-32 micron) dependent extinction relationship. This relationship shows that the far-UV rise, 2175 A bump, and the three broad optical features are dependent on R(V), but the 10 and 20 micron features are not. Existing literature relationships show significant deviations compared to this relationship especially in the far-ultraviolet and infrared. Extinction curves that clearly deviate from this relationship illustrate that this relationship only describes the average behavior versus R(V). We find tentative evidence that the relationship may not be linear with 1/R(V) especially in the ultraviolet. For the first time, this relationship provides measurements of dust extinction that spectroscopically resolve the continuum and features in the ultraviolet, optical, and infrared as a function of R(V) enabling detailed studies of dust grains properties and full spectroscopic accounting for the effects of dust extinction on astrophysical objects., Comment: 16 pages, 9 figures, ApJ, in press

We analyze low resolution Spitzer infrared (IR) 5-14 micron spectra of the diffuse emission toward a carefully selected sample of stars. The sample is composed of sight lines toward stars that have well determined ultraviolet (UV) extinction curves and which are shown to lie beyond effectively all of the extinguishing and emitting dust along their lines of sight. Our sample includes sight lines whose UV curve extinction curves exhibit a wide range of curve morphology and which sample a variety of interstellar environments. As a result, this unique sample enabled us to study the connection between the extinction and emission properties of the same grains, and to examine their response to different physical environments. We quantify the emission features in terms of the PAH model given by Draine & Li (2007) and a set of additional features, not known to be related to PAH emission. We compare the intensities of the different features in the Spitzer mid-IR spectra with the Fitzpatrick & Massa (2007) parameters which describe the shapes of UV to near-IR extinction curves. Our primary result is that there is a strong correlation between the area of the 2175 A UV bump in the extinction curves of the program stars and the strengths of the major PAH emission features in the mid-IR spectra for the same lines of sight., Comment: 29 pages, 17 figures, accepted to the ApJ

In the past years, the interest in the laser-driven acceleration of heavy ions in the mass range of A ~ 200 has been increasing due to promising application ideas like the fission-fusion nuclear reaction mechanism, aiming at the production of neutron-rich isotopes relevant for the astrophysical r-process nucleosynthesis. In this paper, we report on the laser acceleration of gold ions to beyond 7 MeV/u, exceeding for the first time an important prerequisite for this nuclear reaction scheme. Moreover, the gold ion charge states have been detected with an unprecedented resolution, which enables the separation of individual charge states up to 4 MeV/u. The recorded charge-state distributions show a remarkable dependency on the target foil thickness and differ from simulations, lacking a straight-forward explanation by the established ionization models.

New HST/STIS optical spectra were obtained for a sample of early type stars with existing IUE UV spectra. These data were used to construct optical extinction curves whose general properties are discussed elsewhere. In this paper, we identify extinction features in the curves that are wider than diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) but narrower than the well known broad band variability. This intermediate scale structure, or ISS, contains distinct features whose peaks can contribute a few percent to 20% of the total extinction. Most of the ISS variation can be captured by three principal components. We model the ISS with three Drude profiles and show that their strengths and widths vary from one sight line to another, but their central positions are stable, near 4370, 4870 and 6300A. The Very Broad Structure, VBS, in optical curves appears to be a minimum between the 4870 and 6300A absorption peaks. We find relations among the fit parameters and provide a physical interpretation of them in terms of a simplistic grain model. Finally, we note that the strengths of the 4370 and 4870A features are correlated to the strength of the 2175A UV bump, but that the 6300A feature is not, and that none of the ISS features are related to R(V). However, we verify that the broad band curvature of the continuous optical extinction is strongly related to R(V)., Comment: 13 pages, 10 Figures, accepted by ApJ

We show that the UV spectrum (1280-3200 A) of the "superficially normal" A-star Vega, as observed by the IUE satellite at a resolution comparable to the star's rotational broadening width, can be fit remarkably well by a single-temperature synthetic spectrum based on LTE atmosphere models and a newly constructed UV line list. If Vega were a normal, equator-on, slow-rotating star, then its spectrum and our analysis would indicate a temperature of Teff ~ 9550 K, surface gravity of log g ~ 3.7, general surface metallicity of [m/H] ~ -0.5, and a microturbulence velocity of v(turb) ~ 2.0 km/s. Given its rapid rotation and nearly pole-on orientation, however, these parameters must be regarded as representing averages across the observed hemisphere. Modeling the complex UV line spectrum has allowed us to determine the specific surface abundances for 17 different chemical elements, including CNO, the light metals, and the iron group elements. The resultant abundance pattern agrees in general with previous results, although there is considerable scatter in the literature. Despite its peculiarities, Vega has turned out to provide a powerful test of the extent of our abilities to model the atmospheric properties of the early A-stars, particularly the detailed UV line spectrum. The value of the measurements from this pilot study will increase as this analysis is extended to more objects in the rich high-dispersion IUE data archive, including both normal and peculiar objects., Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journal

The cosmic distance scale largely depends on distance determinations to Local Group galaxies. In this sense, the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is a key rung to better constrain the cosmic distance ladder. A project was started in 1999 to firmly establish a direct and accurate distance to M31 using eclipsing binaries (EBs). After the determination of the first direct distance to M31 from EBs, the second direct distance to an EB system is presented: M31V_J00443610+4129194. Light and radial velocity curves were obtained and fitted to derive the masses and radii of the components. The acquired spectra were combined and disentangled to determine the temperature of the components. The analysis of the studied EB resulted in a distance determination to M31 of (m-M)o = 24.30 +/- 0.11 mag. This result, when combined with the previous distance determination to M31, results in a distance modulus of (m-M)o = 24.36 +/- 0.08 mag (744 +/- 33 kpc), fully compatible with other distance determinations to M31. With an error of only 4%, the obtained value firmly establishes the distance to this important galaxy and represents the fulfillment of the main goal of our project., Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in A&A (Nov 6, 2009)

We study the IR-through-UV interstellar extinction curves towards 328 Galactic B and late-O stars. We use a new technique which employs stellar atmosphere models in lieu of unreddened "standard" stars. This technique is capable of virtually eliminating spectral mismatch errors in the curves. It also allows a quantitative assessment of the errors and enables a rigorous testing of the significance of relationships between various curve parameters, regardless of whether their uncertainties are correlated. Analysis of the curves gives the following results: (1) In accord with our previous findings, the central position of the 2175 A extinction bump is mildly variable, its width is highly variable, and the two variations are unrelated. (2) Strong correlations are found among some extinction properties within the UV region, and within the IR region. (3) With the exception of a few curves with extreme (i.e., large) values of R(V), the UV and IR portions of Galactic extinction curves are not correlated with each other. (4) The large sightline-to-sightline variation seen in our sample implies that any average Galactic extinction curve will always reflect the biases of its parent sample. (5) The use of an average curve to deredden a spectral energy distribution (SED) will result in significant errors, and a realistic error budget for the dereddened SED must include the observed variance of Galactic curves. While the observed large sightline-to-sightline variations, and the lack of correlation among the various features of the curves, make it difficult to meaningfully characterize average extinction properties, they demonstrate that extinction curves respond sensitively to local conditions. Thus, each curve contains potentially unique information about the grains along its sightline., Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journal, Part 1, July 1, 2007. Figures and Tables which will appear only in the electronic version of the Journal can be obtained via anonymous ftp from ftp://ftp.astronomy.villanova.edu . After logging in, change directories to "fitz/FMV_EXTINCTION". A README file describes the various files present in the directory

We present a new calibration of optical (UBV, Stromgren, uvby-beta, and Geneva) and near IR (Johnson RIJHK and 2MASS) photometry for B and early A stars derived from Kurucz (1991) Atlas model atmospheres. Our sample of stars consists of 45 normal, nearby B and early A stars which have high quality, low resolution IUE spectra and accurate Hipparcos parallaxes. The calibration is unique because it relies only on the UV spectral energy distributions, the absolute flux calibration of the V filter and the Hipparcos distances to determine the appropriate model atmospheres for the program stars. These models are then used to calibrate the synthetic photometry. We compare our results with previous, well accepted results and provide a thorough discussion of the random errors and systematic effects affecting the calibration. In particular, we demonstrate the influence of vsini on surface gravities derived from fitting model atmospheres. Finally, we discuss some of our intended applications of this new calibration., Comment: 56 pages, 11 Figures, electronic tables not included. To appear in AJ, March 2005

We have determined the fundamental properties and distance of a fourth eclipsing binary system (EB) in the Large Magellanic Cloud, HV5936 (B0.5 V + B2 III). As in our previous studies, we combine "classical" EB light curve and radial velocity curve analyses with modeling of the UV-through-optical spectral energy distribution of HV5936 to produce a detailed characterization of the system. In this paper, we also include an analysis of the high-resolution optical absorption line spectra of the binary components. We find HV5936 to be an Algol-class system, in which the masses of the primary and secondary stars have evolved via mass transfer to their current values of 11.6 Mo and 4.7 Mo, respectively. The properties of the primary star are indistinguishable from those of a "normal" star of the same current mass. The secondary is found to be overluminous for its current mass and exhibits a factor-of-2 enhancement in its surface He abundance. These results are compatible with "Case A" mass exchange occurring during the core hydrogen burning phase of the current secondary. The distance derived to the system, 43.2 +/- 1.8 kpc, implies a distance of ~44.3 kpc to the optical center of the LMC. This is several kpc closer than found in our analyses of other systems and we suggest that HV5936 lies "above" the LMC disk. This is supported by the very low interstellar H I column density and low E(B-V) found for the system - both of which are consistent with expected Milky Way foreground material - and may be associated with HV5936's location near the LMC supergiant shell LMC4., Comment: 44 pages, including 8 pages of tables and 11 pages of figures. Accepted for publication in the April 20, 2003 issue of the Astrophysical Journal

We have determined the distance to a second eclipsing binary system (EB) in the Large Magellanic Cloud, HV982 (~B1 IV-V + ~B1 IV-V). The measurement of the distance -- among other properties of the system -- is based on optical photometry and spectroscopy and space-based UV/optical spectrophotometry. The analysis combines the ``classical'' EB study of light and radial velocity curves, which yields the stellar masses and radii, with a new analysis of the observed energy distribution, which yields the effective temperature, metallicity, and reddening of the system plus the distance ``attenuation factor'', essentially (radius/distance)^2. Combining the results gives the distance to HV982, which is 50.2 +/- 1.2 kpc. This distance determination consists of a detailed study of well-understood objects (B stars) in a well-understood evolutionary phase (core H burning), and is free of the biases and uncertainties that plague various other techniques. After correcting for the location of HV982, we find an implied distance to the optical center of the LMC's bar of d(LMC) = 50.7 +/- 1.2 kpc. This result differs by nearly 5 kpc from our earlier result for the EB HV2274, which implies a bar distance of 45.9 kpc. These results may reflect either marginally compatible measures of a unique LMC distance or, alternatively, suggest a significant depth to the stellar distribution in the LMC. Some evidence for this latter hypothesis is discussed., Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journal (January 2002) 10 pages of text, plus 5 tables and 9 figures (ApJ-emulation style). This version incorporates new observations which double the number of ground-based radial velocity measurements and extend the spectrophotometric coverage to 1150--7500 A. The extended wavelength coverage eliminates a systematic error in the determination of E(B-V), which originally resulted from the absense of data longward of 4800 A

The distance to the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is crucial for the calibration of the Cosmic Distance Scale. We derive a distance to the LMC based on an analysis of ground-based photometry and HST-based spectroscopy and spectrophotometry of the LMC eclipsing binary system HV2274. Analysis of the optical light curve and HST/GHRS radial velocity curve provides the masses and radii of the binary components. Analysis of the HST/FOS UV/optical spectrophotometry provides the temperatures of the component stars and the interstellar extinction of the system. When combined, these data yield a distance to the binary system. After correcting for the location of HV2274 with respect to the center of the LMC, we find d(LMC) = 45.7 +/- 1.6 kpc or DM(LMC) = 18.30 +/- 0.07 mag. This result, which is immune to the metallicity-induced zero point uncertainties that have plagued other techniques, lends strong support to the ``short'' LMC distance scale as derived from a number of independent methods., Comment: 6 pages, including 2 pages of figures. Newly available optical (B and V) photometry has revealed -- and allowed the elimination of -- a systematic error in the previously reported determination of E(B-V) for HV2274. The new result is E(B-V) = 0.12 mag (as compared to the value of 0.083 reported in the original submission) and produces a DECREASE in the distance modulus of HV2274 by 0.12 mag. ApJ Letters, in press

The star HD72089 is located behind the Vela supernova remnant and shows a complex array of high and low velocity interstellar absorption features arising from shocked clouds. A spectrum of this star was recorded over the wavelength range 1196.4 to 1397.2 Angstroms at a resolving power lambda/Delta lambda = 110,000 and signal-to-noise ratio of 32 by STIS on the Hubble Space Telescope. We have identified 7 narrow components of C I and have measured their relative populations in excited fine-structure levels. Broader features at heliocentric velocities ranging from -70 to +130 km/s are seen in C II, N I, O I, Si II, S II and Ni II. In the high-velocity components, the unusually low abundances of N I and O I, relative to S II and Si II, suggest that these elements may be preferentially ionized to higher stages by radiation from hot gas immediately behind the shock fronts., Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, Latex. Submitted for the special HST ERO issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters