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FU Ori– and EX Lup–type objects present natural experiments for understanding a critical stage in the star and planet formation process. These objects offer insight into the diversity of molecules available to forming planetary systems due to a sudden increase in accretion, and central luminosity causes the disk and surrounding material to increase in temperature. This allows for volatiles to sublimate off of grains and exist in the gas phase for tens to hundreds of years after initial outburst. While this dynamic stage may be common for solar-type protostars, observations of the chemical impact of these bursts are rare. In this article, we present observations from the NOrthern Extended Millimeter Array of five young stellar objects (YSOs) that have undergone outbursts within the past 100 yr and catalog the volatile chemistry found within ∼1000 au of the YSO. Only one source clearly shows a line-rich spectra with >11 molecules detected, including complex organics and water, as is expected for a spectra signature for a postoutburst source. This source is V1057 Cyg, and we present it as the northern analog to the well-studied and molecule-rich FU Ori source, V883 Ori. Our conclusions on the chemical inventory of the other four sources in our sample are sensitivity limited, as V1057 Cyg contains the highest disk/envelope gas mass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

GRB 190829A has been widely studied due to its nature and the high-energy emission presented. Due to the detection of a very high energy component by the High Energy Stereoscopic System and the event's atypically middling luminosity, it has been categorized in a select, limited group of bursts bordering classic gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and nearby sub-energetic events. Given the range of models utilized to adequately characterize the afterglow of this burst, it has proven challenging to identify the most probable explanation. Nevertheless, the detection of polarization data provided by the MASTER (Mobile Astronomical System of TElescope Robots) collaboration has added a new aspect to GRB 190829A that permits us to attempt to explore this degeneracy. In this paper, we present a polarization model coupled with a thin-shell synchrotron forward-shock model – a component in all models used to describe GRB 190829A's afterglow – in order to fit the polarization's temporal evolution with the existing upper limits (⁠|$\Pi < 6{{\ \rm per\, cent}}$|⁠). We find that the polarization generated from an on-axis emission is favoured for strongly anisotropic magnetic field ratios, while an off-axis scenario cannot be fully ruled out when a more isotropic framework is taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the spectral properties of the black hole X-ray transient binary 4U 1630–472 during its 2022 and 2023 outbursts with Insight-HXMT observations. We find that the outbursts are in peculiar soft states. The effect of the hardening factor on the disk temperature is taken into account by the kerrbb model, and the flux and temperature of the disk are found to follow F ∝ T eff 3.92 ± 0.13 and F ∝ T eff 4.91 ± 1.00 for the two outbursts, respectively. The flux–temperature relation is roughly consistent with a standard disk. By fitting with a p -free model, the p -value, the exponent of the radial dependence of the disk temperature, is found to have an anticorrelation with disk temperature. Combining a joint diagnostic analysis with a diagram of the relation between the nonthermal fraction and luminosity, we find a possible scenario that the disk evolves from 2022 to 2023 toward a slim one with a decreasing radiation efficiency, where such an evolution may depend on the fraction of the nonthermal emission in the high soft state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Super Tau-Charm Facility (STCF) is a proposed dual-ring electron–positron collider in China, designed to operate at a center-of-mass energy (CME) range of 2–7GeV with symmetric beam energies. The collider aims for a luminosity exceeding 5×1034cm−2s−1 at the beam energy of 2.0GeV. This work presents the preliminary lattice design for the STCF collider ring, specifically optimized for the 2.0GeV beam energy. To improve the nonlinear dynamics performance, the optimization of lattice is carried out by adjusting the strengths of sextupole and octupole magnets following the tuning of phase advances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population III stars are characterized by extremely low metallicities as they are thought to be formed from a pristine gas in the early Universe. Although the existence of Population III stars is widely accepted, the lack of direct observational evidence hampers the study of the nature of the putative stars. In this article, we explore the possibilities of constraining the nature of the oldest stars by using the luminosity function of their remnants – white dwarfs. We study the formation and evolution of white dwarf populations by following star formation in a Milky Way-like galaxy using the semi-analytic model a-sloth. We derive the white dwarf luminosity function by applying a linear initial-final mass relation and Mestel's cooling model. The obtained luminosity function is generally in agreement with available observations and theoretical predictions – with an exponential increase to a maximum of |$M_{\mathrm{abs}} = 16$| and a sudden drop for |$M_{\mathrm{abs}} \gt 16$|⁠. We explore the uncertainties of our model and compare them to the observational estimates. We adopt two different models of the initial mass function of Population III stars to show that the faint end of the luminosity function imprints the signature of Population III remnants. If the feature is detected in future observations, it would provide a clue to Population III stars and would also be an indirect evidence of low- to intermediate-mass Population III stars. We discuss the challenges and prospects for detecting the signatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen-deficient carbon (HdC) stars are rare, low-mass, chemically peculiar, supergiant variables believed to be formed by a double white dwarf (DWD) merger, specifically of a carbon/oxygen- (CO-) and a helium-white dwarf (He-WD). They consist of two subclasses – the dust-producing R Coronae Borealis (RCB) variables and their dustless counterparts the dustless HdCs (dLHdCs). Additionally, there is another, slightly cooler set of potentially related carbon stars, the DY Persei type variables which have some, but not conclusive, evidence of hydrogen-deficiency. Recent works have begun to explore the relationship between these three classes of stars, theorizing that they share an evolutionary pathway (a DWD merger) but come from different binary populations, specifically different total masses (⁠|$M_\text{tot}$|⁠) and mass ratios (q). In this work, we use the mesa modelling framework that has previously been used to model RCB stars and vary the merger parameters, |$M_\text{tot}$| and q , to explore how those parameters affect the abundances, temperatures, and luminosities of the resultant post-merger stars. We find that lower |$M_\text{tot}$| and larger q 's both decrease the luminosity and temperatures of post-merger models to the region of the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram populated by the dLHdCs. These lower |$M_\text{tot}$| and larger q models also have smaller oxygen isotopic ratios (⁠|$^{16}$| O/ |$^{18}$| O) which is consistent with recent observations of dLHdCs compared to RCBs. None of the models generated in this work can explain the existence of the DY Persei type variables, however this may arise from the assumed metallicity of the models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We characterize luminosity components of Ultra/Luminous Infrared Galaxies (U/LIRGs) in multi-wavelength from the X-ray to far-infrared. A set of 63 AGN U/LIRGs was selected where these galaxies are powered by a central active galactic nucleus (AGN). Utilizing the X-CIGALE code, SEDs for these galaxies are carried out where their SEDs are fitted with observations. Accordingly, the physical parameters such as the stellar mass, the dust-to-gas mass ratio, and the star formation rate are calculated. The total luminosity and its decomposed components (stellar, AGN, X-ray) are also calculated. We characterized these luminosities in relative to the intrinsic luminosity and in relative to each other. As a function of the stellar mass, these luminosities reveal an increase with different correlation coefficients, showing a strong correlation. In correlation with the intrinsic AGN power, the stellar, AGN, and X-ray luminosities are strongly correlates in their variation to the intrinsic AGN luminosity, showing stronger correlations of AGN, and X-ray luminosities than those of the stellar one. In relationships between various luminosity components, both the stellar and X-ray luminosities reveal strong correlations with the AGN luminosity. On the other hand, the X-ray luminosity varies strongly with the stellar luminosity and moderately with IR luminosity. Compared to obscured AGN galaxies, both the stellar and AGN luminosities similarly vary with increasing the intrinsic power of the active nucleus but for obscured AGN they are faster in their variation than that of U/LIRG. These correlations may offer valuable insights to understand the physical properties and their relationships through the evolution of U/LIRGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pupil size is a widely used metric of brain state. It is one of the few signals originating from the brain that can be readily monitored with low-cost devices in basic science, clinical, and home settings. It is, therefore, important to investigate and generate well-defined theories related to specific interpretations of this metric. What exactly does it tell us about the brain? Pupils constrict in response to light and dilate during darkness, but the brain also controls pupil size irrespective of luminosity. Pupil size fluctuations resulting from ongoing "brain states" are used as a metric of arousal, but what is pupil-linked arousal and how should it be interpreted in neural, cognitive, and computational terms? Here, we discuss some recent findings related to these issues. We identify open questions and propose how to answer them through a combination of well-defined tasks, neurocomputational models, and neurophysiological probing of the interconnected loops of causes and consequences of pupil size. Grujic et al. summarize the optical, neural, and behavioral consequences, as well as mechanisms, of pupil-linked arousal. They incorporate novel findings and identify gaps in the literature while providing guidelines for probing the under-researched avenues of this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Super Tau-Charm Facility (STCF) is a next-generation positron–electron collider experiment, designed to study various physics topics in the tau-charm energy region. The designed peak luminosity of STCF is 0.5×1035cm−2s−1, which is almost two orders of magnitude higher than the current tau-charm factory, BESIII. To implement the offline data processing tasks, as well as tackling the great challenge posed by the huge data volume, the offline software of STCF (OSCAR) is designed to implement the detector simulation, digitization, calibration, reconstruction as well as to provide a common platform for data analysis. This paper presents the status and progress of the OSCAR system, including the design, implementation as well as the preliminary performance of the core software, detector simulation, digitization and background mixing and reconstruction algorithms for all sub-detectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tidal disruption event (TDE) AT2022cmc represents the fourth known example of a relativistic jet produced by the tidal disruption of a stray star, providing a unique probe of the formation and evolution of relativistic jets in otherwise dormant supermassive black holes (SMBHs). Here we present deep, late-time Chandra observations of AT2022cmc extending to t obs ≈ 400 days after disruption. Our observations reveal a sudden decrease in the X-ray brightness by a factor of ≳14 over a factor of ≈2.3 in time, and a deviation from the earlier power-law decline with a steepening α ≳ 3.2 (F X ∝ t − α ), steeper than expected for a jet break, and pointing to the cessation of jet activity at t obs ≈ 215 days. Such a transition has been observed in two previous TDEs (Swift J1644+57 and Swift J2058+05). From the X-ray luminosity and the timescale of jet shut-off, we parameterize the mass of the SMBH in terms of unknown jet efficiency and accreted mass fraction parameters. Motivated by the disk–jet connection in active galactic nuclei, we favor black hole masses ≲105 M ⊙ (where the jet and disk luminosities are comparable), and disfavor larger black holes (in which extremely powerful jets are required to outshine their accretion disks). We additionally estimate a total accreted mass of ≈0.1 M ⊙. Applying the same formalism to Swift J1644+57 and Swift J2058+05, we favor comparable black hole masses for these TDEs of ≲ a few × 105 M ⊙, and suggest that jetted TDEs may preferentially form from lower-mass black holes when compared to nonrelativistic events, owing to generally lower jet and higher disk efficiencies at higher black hole masses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we re-estimate the astrometric and photometric parameters of the young open star cluster King 18 based on Gaia Data Release 3 (DR3), Two Micron All-sky Survey (2MASS) and VRI CCD observations using the f/4.9 Newtonian focus of 74-inch telescope at Kottamia Astronomical Observatory (KAO) in Egypt. King 18 is a poorly studied open star cluster, for which new results are found in the current study. In order to estimate the membership and determine all the astrophysical parameters of the cluster, we have used data from Gaia DR3 and KAO. The center, cluster radius, radial density distribution, color-magnitude diagrams, distance, age, and reddening of King 18 are calculated. Also, the luminosity and mass functions, the total mass and the relaxation time of the cluster are estimated. The slope value of the mass function (α ) of King 18 is found to be 2.27± 0.17, which is comparable with Salpeter value. Our estimates for the average cluster age and the relaxation time are 224 ± 6.3 and 28.92 Myrs, respectively. This indicates that King 18 is dynamically stable and a relaxed cluster. The cluster distance modulus from Gaia, 2Mass and VRI observations has been determined to be 12.380 ± 1.320, 12.320 ± 0.107 and 12.280 ± 0.290 mag respectively, which corresponds to distances of 2992.26, 2910.72 and 2857.59 pc, respectively. These results are in good agreement within the error. Moreover the color excesses E(V–I), E(J– K s ) and E( G BP – G RP ) are 0.850 ± 0.087, 0.380 ± 0.091 and 0.980 ± 0.130 respectively. Finally, the proper motions ( μ α cos δ , μ δ ), and parallaxes (ϖ ) are - 2.603 ± 0.018 , - 2.106 ± 0.013 and 0.324 ± 0.040, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diboson production in association with jets is studied in the fully leptonic final states, pp → (Z/γ*)(Z/γ*) + jets → 2ℓ2ℓ′ + jets, (ℓ, ℓ′ = e or μ) in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb−1 collected with the CMS detector at the LHC. Differential distributions and normalized differential cross sections are measured as a function of jet multiplicity, transverse momentum pT, pseudorapidity η, invariant mass and ∆η of the highest-pT and second-highest-pT jets, and as a function of invariant mass of the four-lepton system for events with various jet multiplicities. These differential cross sections are compared with theoretical predictions that mostly agree with the experimental data. However, in a few regions we observe discrepancies between the predicted and measured values. Further improvement of the predictions is required to describe the ZZ+jets production in the whole phase space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the expansion rate history is a primary goal in cosmology. There are various ways to measure the expansion rate at different redshifts and measuring it through the luminosity distance of SNIa is widely used in cosmology. In this work, we split the latest dataset of SNIa (the Pantheon+ sample) into several redshift bins and compute the expansion rate through a non-parametric technique. To do this, we use the Gaussian process to obtain the expansion rate considering data in different redshift bins. For the sake of comparison, we also consider the Λ CDM model and find the expansion history through an MCMC analysis. Our results indicate that the degeneracy between free parameters prevents a good constraint using the low redshifts data but this is not the case in the GP scenario. Moreover, we study how high redshift SNIa can affect the current expansion rate and observe that data at z > 0. 5 has almost no impact on the current expansion rate in both approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An MK-like spectral classification has been conducted for 1224 hot subdwarf stars with LAMOST DR9 low-resolution spectra. The whole sample was divided into four categories according to the spectral line characteristics: He-normal, He-weak, He-strong C, and He-strong. Each selected spectrum was assigned a spectral class, a luminosity class, and a helium class by comparing the line depth and width with standard spectra selected in LAMOST. Relationships between atmospheric parameters and spectral classification are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the giant molecular clouds (GMCs) in M 74 (NGC 628), using data obtained from the PHANGS (Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby GalaxieS) project. We applied GMC types according to the activity of star formation: Type I without star formation, Type II with H |$\alpha$| luminosity (⁠|$L_{\mathrm{H\alpha }}$|⁠) less than |$10^{37.5}\ \rm{erg\ s ^{-1}}$|⁠ , and Type III with |$L_{\mathrm{H\alpha }}$| greater than |$10^{37.5}\ \rm{erg\ s^{-1}}$|⁠. A total of 432 GMCs were identified, with 59, 201, and 172 GMCs, for Types I, II, and III, respectively. The size and mass of the GMCs range from 23 to 238 pc and |$10^{4.9}$| to |$10^{7.1}\, M_{\odot }$|⁠ , indicating that the mass and radius increase from Types I to III. Clusters younger than 4 Myr and H  ii regions are concentrated within 150 pc of a GMC, indicating a tight association between these young objects and GMCs. The virial ratio decreases from Type I to Type III, indicating that Type III GMCs are the most gravitationally relaxed among the three. We interpret that the GMCs evolve from Type I to Type III, as previously observed in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Based on a steady-state assumption, the estimated evolutionary timescales of Types I, II, and III are 1, 5, and 4 Myr, respectively. We assume that the timescale of Type III is equal to the age of the associated clusters, indicating a GMC lifetime of 10 Myr or longer. Although Chevance et al. (2020 , MNRAS, 493, 2872) investigated GMCs using the same PHANGS dataset of M 74, they did not define a GMC, reaching an evolutionary picture with a 20 Myr duration of the non-star-forming phase, which is five times longer than 4 Myr. We compare the present results with those of Chevance et al. (2020 , MNRAS, 493, 2872) and argue that defining individual GMCs is essential for understanding GMC evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assessed the impact of various green light photoperiods from LED lamps on water quality, microorganism community, antioxidant capacity, lipid peroxidation, and growth performance in Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei in a BFT system. The study was conducted indoors in 150-L tanks using shrimp with an initial weight of 0.48 g at a stocking density of 500 shrimp m−3 for 61 days. The experiment was designed with four treatments with four replicates each, with different green light photoperiods: 1) 16 h L/8 h D, 2) 12 h L/12 h D (control), 3) 8 h L/16 h D and 4) 4 h L/20 h D. No significant differences were found in water quality parameters following trial completion (p > 0.05). However, there were significant differences in the bacterial abundance of coccoids, free filamentous, attached filamentous, vibrios, and bacilli (p < 0.05) and in protozoa including flagellates, ciliates, rotifers, nematodes, and amebae (p < 0.05). There were also significant differences in lipid peroxidation, with lower lipid peroxidation in the 12 h L/12 h D, 8 h L/16 h D, and 4 h L/20 h D treatments and higher antioxidant capacity in the hepatopancreas and muscle in the 8 h L/16 h D treatment (p < 0.05). Shrimp from the 8 h L/16 h D treatment showed a higher final weight than those from the 12 h L/12 h D control treatment (p < 0.05). Thus, a photoperiod of 8 h of light and 16 h of darkness with green LED light is suggested for rearing L. vannamei in biofloc systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galls are plant neoformations induced by specialized parasites. Since gall inducers rely on reactive plant sites for gall development, variations in abiotic factors that affect plant phenology are expected to impact the life cycle of gall inducers. To test the hypothesis that different light conditions affect both host plant and gall inducer life cycles, we studied the system Eugenia uniflora (Myrtaceae) – Clinodiplosis profusa (Cecidomyiidae), comparing plants occurring in sunny and shaded environments. We mapped phenological differences among individuals of E. uniflora occurring in the two environments and related them to the influence of luminosity on the life cycle of the gall inducer. Shade plants showed lower intensity of leaf sprouting throughout the year compared to sun-exposed plants, especially during the rainy season. Young and mature galls are synchronized with the peak of leaf sprouting at the beginning of the rainy season, lasting longer in sun-exposed plants – approximately two months longer compared to shade plants. The greater light intensity positively impacts the formation and growth of leaves and galls, with an extended period available for their induction and growth. Thus, light is an important factor for the development of gallers, considering that variations in luminosity influenced not only the phenology of the host plant, but also determined the life cycle of gall inducers. Furthermore, changes in plant-environment interactions are expected to affect the life cycle and richness of other host plant—gall inducer systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regular black holes are crucially important as approaches to solving the singularity problem, and in this paper, the accretion disk of Bardeen and Hayward models has been studied. For this purpose, we calculated the physical properties of black holes, including radiant energy, luminosity derivative, temperature, and conversion efficiency of accretion mass into radiation. The obtained results show that the nonzero-free parameters of regular black holes cause the radius of the innermost stable circular orbit of the disk to shift to smaller values. As a result of this displacement, we saw an increase in the profiles of radiant energy, luminosity derivative, and temperature. We also find that Bardeen and Hayward’s black holes are more efficient in converting mass to radiation than Schwarzschild. Finally, we compared the free parameter of these two black holes with the spin of the rotating black hole and found that the Bardeen and Hayward black holes can mimic the slowly rotating Kerr black hole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relative center-of-mass energy spread σW∕W at e+e− colliders is 풪(10−3), which is much larger than the widths of narrow resonances J∕ψ, ψ(2S), ϒ(1S), ϒ(2S), ϒ(3S) mesons, tauonium and some others. Its reduction would significantly increase the resonance production rates and open up great opportunities in the search for new physics. In this paper, we propose a new monochromatization method for colliders with a large crossing angle (which can provide a high luminosity). The contribution of the beam energy spread to σW is canceled by introducing an appropriate energy–angle correlation at the interaction point; σW∕W∼(0.5−1)×10−5 appears possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use the latest data set of supernova (SN) host galaxies to investigate how the host properties – stellar mass, star formation rate (SFR), metallicity, absolute magnitude, and colour–differ across SN types, with redshift-driven selection effects controlled. SN Ib and Ic host galaxies, on average, are more massive, metal-rich, and redder than SN II hosts. For subtypes, SN Ibn and Ic-BL have bluer hosts than their normal SN Ib and Ic siblings; SN IIb has consistent host properties with SN Ib, while hosts of SN IIn are more metal-rich than those of SN II. Hydrogen-deficient superluminous SNe feature bluer and lower luminosity hosts than most subtypes of core-collapse supernova (CC SN). Assuming simple proportionality of CC SN rates and host SFRs does not recover the observed mean host properties; either a population of long-lived progenitors or a metallicity-dependent SN production efficiency better reproduces the observed host properties. Assuming the latter case, the rates of SN II are insensitive to host metallicity, but the rates of SN Ib and Ic are substantially enhanced in metal-rich hosts by a factor of |$\sim 10$|  per dex increase in metallicity. Hosts of SN Ia are diverse in their observed properties; subtypes including SN Ia-91T, Ia-02cx, and Ia-CSM prefer star-forming hosts, while subtypes like SN Ia-91bg and Ca-rich prefer quiescent hosts. The rates of SN Ia-91T, Ia-02cx, and Ia-CSM are closely dependent on, or even proportional to, their host SFRs, indicating relatively short-lived progenitors. Conversely, the rates of SN Ia-91bg and Ca-rich transients are proportional to the total stellar mass, favouring long-lived progenitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. At the dawn of the gamma–ray burst (GRB) afterglow era, a Cepheid-like correlation was discovered between the time variability V and the isotropic-equivalent peak luminosity Liso of the prompt emission of about a dozen long GRBs with measured redshift available at that time. Soon afterwards, the correlation was confirmed in a sample of about 30 GRBs, even though it was affected by significant scatter. Unlike the minimum variability timescale (MVT), V measures the relative power of short-to-intermediate timescales. Aims. We aim to test the correlation using about 200 long GRBs with spectroscopically measured redshift, detected by Swift, Fermi, and Konus/WIND, for which both observables can be accurately estimated. Methods. The variability for all selected GRBs was calculated according to the original definition using the 64 ms background-subtracted light curves of Swift/BAT (Fermi/GBM) in the 15–150 (8–900) keV energy passband. Peak luminosities were either taken from the literature or derived from modelling broad-band spectra acquired with either Konus/WIND or Fermi/GBM. Results.The statistical significance of the correlation has weakened to ≲2%, mostly due to the appearance of a number of smooth and luminous GRBs that are characterised by a relatively small V. At odds with most long GRBs, three out of four long-duration merger candidates have high V and low Liso. Conclusions. The luminosity is more tightly connected with shortest timescales measured by MVT than the short to intermediate timescales measured by V. We discuss the implications for internal dissipation models and the role of the e± photosphere. We identified a few smooth GRBs with a single broad pulse and low V that might have an external shock origin, in contrast with most GRBs. The combination of high variability (V ≳ 0.1), low luminosity Liso ≲ 1051 erg s−1, and short MVT (≲0.1 s) could be a good indicator for a compact binary merger origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By using high-resolution spectra acquired with FLAMES-GIRAFFE at the ESO/VLT, we measured the radial and rotational velocities of 115 stars in the Galactic globular cluster M 55. After field decontamination based on the radial velocity values, the final sample of member stars is composed of 32 blue straggler stars (BSSs) and 76 reference stars populating the red giant and horizontal branches of the cluster. In agreement with previous findings, the totality of red giant branch stars has negligible rotation (<10 km s−1) and horizontal branch stars have rotational velocities of 40 km s−1 at most. In contrast, the BSS rotational velocity distribution shows a long tail extending up to ~200 km s−1, with 15 BSSs (out of 32), spinning faster than 40 km s−1. By defining the threshold for fast rotating BSSs at 40 km s−1, this sets the percentage of these stars at 47 ±14%. Such a large value has never been found before in any globular clusters. It is roughly comparable to that measured in other loose systems (ω Centauri, M 4, and NGC 3201) and significantly larger than that observed in high-density clusters (as 47 Tucanae, NGC 6397, NGC 6752, and M 30). This evidence supports a scenario whereby recent BSS formation is occurring in low-density environments. We also find that the BSS rotational velocity tends to decrease for decreasing luminosity, as found for another loose cluster of the sample, namely, NGC 3201. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. The Be X-ray binary 4U 0115+63 underwent a giant outburst in 2023 with the X-ray luminosity of the source reaching 1038 erg s−1. During the outburst, two target of opportunity observations were made with NuSTAR. Aims. The main goal of this work is to model the multiple cyclotron scattering features (CRSFs) present in 4U 0115+63 and study their dependence on the luminosity of the source. Methods. The 3–79 keV broadband X-ray coverage of NuSTAR allowed us to properly model the continuum and investigate the nature of the multiple cyclotron resonance scattering features present in the source spectrum. We used the epoch-folding technique to find the pulsation from the source and also studied the changes in the cyclotron line energy with an order of magnitude variation in the source luminosity. Results. We detected five cyclotron lines during the 2023 outburst near 12, 16, 24, 34, and 47 keV. The ∼16 keV cyclotron line cannot be harmonically related to the other cyclotron lines at ∼12 keV and ∼24 keV. This indicates the presence of two fundamental lines in the spectrum of 4U 0115+63 at 12 keV and 16 keV. Conclusions. With the inclusion of the two latest NuSTAR observations, we have expanded the data set of the CRSF line center to encompass a broad range of luminosity. This enables us to comprehensively investigate the relationship between the centroid energy of the cyclotron lines and luminosity. The CRSF line center shows no anticorrelation with luminosity, unlike previously reported. Instead, a weak positive correlation is found in four out of the five detected cyclotron lines of 4U 0115+63. The luminosity variation of the two fundamental CRSFs could be well explained with the prediction from the collisionless shock model. A tentative negative correlation was observed in the fundamental CRSF at 16 keV and its harmonics beyond a "critical luminosity" of 1038 erg/s. This behavior was not present for the 12 keV fundamental CRSF and its harmonic at 24 keV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. Understanding how the properties of galaxies relate to the properties of the hot circum-galactic medium (CGM) around them can constrain galaxy evolution models. We aim to measure the scaling relations between the X-ray luminosity of the hot CGM and the fundamental properties (stellar mass and halo mass) of a galaxy. Methods. We measured the X-ray luminosity of the hot CGM based on the surface brightness profiles of central galaxy samples measured from Spectrum Roentgen Gamma (SRG)/eROSITA all-sky survey data. We related the X-ray luminosity to the galaxies' stellar and halo mass, and we compared the observed relations to the self-similar model and intrinsic (i.e., not forward-modeled) output of the IllustrisTNG, EAGLE, and SIMBA simulations. Results. The average hot CGM X-ray luminosity (LX, CGM) correlates with the galaxy's stellar mass (M*). It increases from (1.6 ± 2.1) × 1039 erg s−1 to (3.4 ± 0.3) × 1041 erg s−1, when log(M*) increases from 10.0 to 11.5. A power law describes the correlation as log(LX, CGM) = (2.4 ± 0.1)×log(M*)+(14.6 ± 1.5). The hot CGM X-ray luminosity as a function of halo mass is measured within log(M500c) = 11.3 − 13.7, extending our knowledge of the scaling relation by more than two orders of magnitude. LX, CGM increases with M500c from (3.0 ± 1.6) × 1039 erg s−1 at log(M500c) = 11.3 to (1.3 ± 0.1) × 1042 erg s−1 at log(M500c) = 13.7. The relation follows a power law of log(LX, CGM) = (1.32 ± 0.05)×log(M500c)+(24.1 ± 0.7). Our observations highlight the necessity of non-gravitational processes at the galaxy group scale while suggesting these processes are sub-dominant at the galaxy scale. We show that the outputs of current cosmological galaxy simulations generally align with the observational results uncovered here but with possibly important deviations in selected mass ranges. Conclusions. We explore, at the low mass end, the average scaling relations between the CGM X-ray luminosity and the galaxy's stellar mass or halo mass, which constitutes a new benchmark for galaxy evolution models and feedback processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the Fermi Large Area Telescope launch, a large sample of blazars has been detected in the γ -ray band. One of the important parameters, the variability index (VI), is adopted to quantify the γ -ray blazar variability. The variability of blazars can be affected by the geometric jet structure, accretions, source sizes, or evolutions of particles. In this paper, we compiled a sample of 2250 blazars (792 flat spectrum radio quasars, 1458 BL Lacertae objects) with some physical parameters to investigate the correlations between the VI and beaming effects. The VI shows positive correlations with the Doppler factors, γ -ray luminosities, core dominances, and superluminal motions for both FSRQs and BL Lacs but only holds a positive correlation on polarizations for BL Lacs. The close correlations between VI and the beaming indicators reinforced the previous results that the γ -ray variability is related to the jet, and the VI can be regarded as an effective indicator for the jet beaming effects of Fermi blazars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proposal has been made for the construction of a new generation of high-luminosity electron-positron colliders known as the Super Tau-Charm Facility (STCF) in China. The STCF aims to achieve a luminosity exceeding 0.5×1035cm−2s−1 and will operate within a center-of-mass energy range of 2 to 7GeV. Given the design challenges of the STCF collider ring, swap-out injection has been proposed as an alternative method for achieving the desired luminosity. Consequently, the STCF injector will explore both off-axis injection and swap-out injection methods concurrently. This paper will detail the ongoing research progress on these two injection techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study conceptualizes the multiple and dynamic landscape of the Korean girl industries as a sexuality-assemblage. This assemblage comprises seemingly anachronistic elements: a long-standing patriarchal and misogynistic social structure; a youth-driven popular culture; a rapid global expansion of the entertainment and media industries; highly advanced digital media technology; and girls’ aspirations, desires, and frustrations. Through this lens, the analysis proposed three territories of girl industries: luminosity, precarity, and risk. These territories are all processual constructions of the interrelated forces of territorialization (neoliberal capitalism, digital media and financial technologies, cultural and entertainment industries, and patriarchy and misogyny) and deterritorialization (girls’ desires, aspirations, capabilities, and vulnerabilities). Considering Korea’s significant situation of gender inequality, the luminosity territory’s dazzling illusion stands in stark contrast to the muted reality of the middle precarity territory, while the risk territory exposes a brutal truth hidden from view. It is also crucial to acknowledge the potential for girls’ agency and solidarity built up across the multiple territories of the girl industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Conditional Colour-Magnitude Distribution (CCMD) is a comprehensive formalism of the colour–magnitude–halo mass relation of galaxies. With joint modelling of a large sample of SDSS galaxies in fine bins of galaxy colour and luminosity, Xu et al. inferred parameters of a CCMD model that well reproduces colour- and luminosity-dependent abundance and clustering of present-day galaxies. In this work, we provide a test and investigation of the CCMD model by studying the colour and luminosity distribution of galaxies in galaxy groups. An apples-to-apples comparison of group galaxies is achieved by applying the same galaxy group finder to identify groups from the CCMD galaxy mocks and from the SDSS data, avoiding any systematic effect of group finding and mass assignment on the comparison. We find an overall nice agreement in the conditional luminosity function (CLF), the conditional colour function (CCF), and the CCMD of galaxies in galaxy groups inferred from CCMD mock and SDSS data. We also discuss the subtle differences revealed by the comparison. In addition, using two external catalogues constructed to only include central galaxies with halo mass measured through weak lensing, we find that their colour-magnitude distribution shows two distinct and orthogonal components, in line with the prediction of the CCMD model. Our results suggest that the CCMD model provides a good description of halo mass-dependent galaxy colour and luminosity distribution. The halo and CCMD mock catalogues are made publicly available to facilitate other investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Construction of the ERLC (twin LC) collider tangential to LHC will allow investigating ep collisions at essentially higher center-of-mass energies than ERL-50 and LHC based ep collider. Luminosity estimations show that values well exceeding 1034 cm-2s-1 can be achieved for ERLC and HL-LHC based ep colliders. Certainly, proposed ep colliders have great potential for clarifying QCD basics and new physics search in addition to providing precise PDFs for adequate interpretation of the LHC experimental data. Another alternative to the ERL-50 is to construct an e-ring with the same energy and length. In this case, luminosity of order 1034cm-2s-1 can be reached. The advantage of this option is that the μ-ring can be installed instead of the e-ring as a next stage, which will allow to reach a much higher center of mass energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a measurement of the production cross-section of a Z boson in association with b- or c-jets, in proton–proton collisions at s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 140 fb - 1 . Inclusive and differential cross-sections are measured for events containing a Z boson decaying into electrons or muons and produced in association with at least one b-jet, at least one c-jet, or at least two b-jets with transverse momentum p T > 20 GeV and rapidity | y | < 2.5 . Predictions from several Monte Carlo generators based on next-to-leading-order matrix elements interfaced with a parton-shower simulation, with different choices of flavour schemes for initial-state partons, are compared with the measured cross-sections. The results are also compared with novel predictions, based on infrared and collinear safe jet flavour dressing algorithms. Selected Z + ≥ 1 c -jet observables, optimized for sensitivity to intrinsic-charm, are compared with benchmark models with different intrinsic-charm fractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of di-Higgs events, both resonant and non-resonant, plays a crucial role in understanding the fundamental interactions of the Higgs boson. In this work we consider di-Higgs events decaying into four b-quarks and propose to improve the experimental sensitivity by utilizing a novel machine learning algorithm known as Symmetry Preserving Attention Network (Spa-Net) — a neural network structure whose architecture is designed to incorporate the inherent symmetries in particle reconstruction tasks. We demonstrate that the Spa-Net can enhance the experimental reach over baseline methods such as the cut-based and the Dense Neural Network-based analyses. At the Large Hadron Collider, with a 14-TeV center-of-mass energy and an integrated luminosity of 300 fb−1, the Spa-Net allows us to establish 95% C.L. upper limits in resonant production cross-sections that are 10% to 45% stronger than baseline methods. For non-resonant di-Higgs production, Spa-Net enables us to constrain the self-coupling that is 9% more stringent than the baseline method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the identification of an extremely rare and peculiar set of irregular radio sources, termed "STROMERSs" (STRange and Odd Morphology Extragalactic Radio Sources).ingThe irregular radio sources with very anomalous morphologies that make them exceptionally different from all the known classes and subclasses of irregular radio sources are detected as STROMERSs. A thorough search for this class of sources from the Very Large Array (VLA) Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters (FIRST) gave a total of nine such candidates. We checked the corresponding morphology of the identified sources in other frequency surveys. We found a detectable radio emission for all of the nine sources in the NRAO VLA Sky Survey (NVSS) at 1.4 GHz and in the TIFR GMRT Sky Survey (TGSS) at 150 MHz, while the same was found for only three sources in the Westerbork Northern Sky Survey (WENSS) at 625 MHz. However, the strange morphology was not found in all of those other survey images. We also characterized the sources with their corresponding physical parameters like optical counterpart, size, spectral index, and radio luminosity. ingThe estimated spectral values of the sources indicated that the STROMERSs were most likely radio galaxies. The presence of any nearby galaxy clusters for the STROMERSs was also checked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

X-ray flare (XRF) is a common phenomenon in the X-ray afterglow of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Although it is commonly believed that XRFs may share a common origin with prompt emission, i.e., the "internal" origin, the origin of XRFs is still unknown. In this work, we compile a GRB sample containing 31 GRBs with a single XRF, a well-measured spectrum, and a redshift, and investigate the intrinsic properties and correlations between prompt emission and the XRFs of these events. We find that the distributions of main physical parameters of prompt emission and XRFs are basically log-normal. The median value of the rise time is shorter than the decay time for all flares, with a ratio of about 1:2, which is similar to the fast rise and exponential decay structure of prompt emission pulses. We also find that the prompt emission energy ( E iso ) and peak luminosity ( L iso ) have tight correlations with XRF energy ( E X , iso ) and peak luminosity ( L X , p ), E iso ∝ E X , iso 0.74 ( L X , p 0.62 ) and L iso ∝ E X , iso 0.85 ( L X , p 0.68 ). However, the durations of prompt emissions are independent of the temporal properties of XRFs. Furthermore, we also analyze the three-parameter correlations between prompt emissions and XRFs, and find that there are tight correlations among the XRF peak time ( T p , z ), L X , p , and E iso / L iso , L X , p ∝ T p , z − 1.08 E iso 0.84 and L X , p ∝ T p , z − 1.09 L iso 0.71 . Interestingly, these results are very similar to the properties of an X-ray plateau in GRBs, which indicates that X-ray flares and plateaus may have the same physical origin, and strongly supports that the two emission components originate from the late-time activity of the central engine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three double-ring B factories—PEP-II, KEKB, and SuperKEKB—were built with asymmetric beam energies to produce high luminosity at the Υ(4S) resonance producing copious B mesons and associated particle physics data, delivered to their respective particle physics detectors, BaBar, Belle, and Belle II. In PEP-II and KEKB, the primary goal was achieved to make the first measurements of charge parity (CP) violation in decays in the B meson system. PEP-II and KEKB have finished beam operations, but particle data analysis continues. SuperKEKB is extending those measurements. The beam operation of SuperKEKB with Belle II has recently started. These three accelerators have pushed the state of the art of accelerators of two-ring colliders, including small beam emittances, small interaction point beam sizes, large stored beam currents, crab cavities, top-up injection with the detectors on, bunch-by-bunch feedbacks, crab waist operation, high beam–beam parameters, high peak luminosity, and high integrated luminosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the optimal sampling model, we synthesized the embedded clusters of ATLASGAL clumps with H ii regions (H ii -clumps). The 0.1 Myr isochrone was used to estimate the bolometric luminosity of each star in an embedded cluster, we also added the accretion luminosity of each star in the embedded cluster. The total bolometric luminosity of synthetic embedded clusters can well fit the observed bolometric luminosity of H ii -clumps. More realistically, we considered the age spread in the young star and protostar populations in embedded clusters of H ii -clumps by modeling both constant and time-varying star formation histories (SFHs). According to the age distribution of the stellar population, we distributed the appropriate isochrones to each star, and sorted out the fraction of stellar objects that are still protostars (Class 0 and Class I phases) to properly add their accretion luminosities. Compared to a constant SFH, burst-like and time-dependent SFHs can better fit the observational data. We found that as long as 20% of the stars within the embedded cluster are still accreting, the contribution of accretion luminosity will be significant to the total bolometric luminosity of low-mass H ii -clumps with mass log10(M cl/ M ⊙) < 2.8. Variations in the accretion rate, the SFE and the initial mass function and more physical processes like the external heating from H ii regions and the flaring from pre-main sequence stars and protostars need to be investigated to further explain the excess luminosity of low-mass H ii -clumps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use Dark Energy Survey Year 3 (DES Y3) clusters with archival XMM–Newton and Chandra X-ray data to assess the centring performance of the redMaPPer cluster finder and to measure key richness observable scaling relations. We find that 10–20 per cent of redMaPPer clusters are miscentred, both when comparing to the X-ray peak position and to the visually identified central cluster galaxy. We find no significant difference in miscentring in bins of low versus high richness or redshift. The dominant reasons for miscentring include masked or missing data and the presence of other bright galaxies in the cluster. For half of the miscentred clusters, the correct central was one of the possible centrals identified by redMaPPer, while for ∼40 per cent of miscentred clusters, the correct central is not a redMaPPer member mostly due to masking. Additionally, we fit scaling relations of X-ray temperature and luminosity with richness. We find a T X–λ scatter of |$0.21\pm 0.01$|⁠. While the scatter in T X–λ is consistent in redshift bins, we find modestly different slopes, with high-redshift clusters displaying a somewhat shallower relation. Splitting based on richness, we find a marginally larger scatter for our lowest richness bin, 20 < λ < 40. We note that the robustness of the scaling relations at lower richnesses is limited by the unknown selection function, but at λ > 75, we detect nearly all of the clusters falling within existing X-ray pointings. The X-ray properties of detected, serendipitous clusters are generally consistent with those of targeted clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chemical exfoliation of the skin is a frequently utilized treatment in dermatology to improve the appearance and health of photoaged skin. Photodamaged skin is especially prone to dryness and irritation. Over‐exfoliation with at‐home products are partially to blame for the "epidemic" of sensitive skin affecting over half the population. Combining AHA, BHA, and PHA together creates a complementary blend that has the potential to target numerous age‐related changes in the skin including the appearance of pores and smoothing skin texture, while firming skin and increasing its collagen and moisture content. Objectives: The following study tested the clinical efficacy of a triple acid blend designed specifically for sensitive skin and measured improvements in signs of photodamage and hydration levels in the skin over time. Methods: Thirty females aged 35–60 with mild to moderate facial lines, wrinkles, sun damage, uneven skin tone/texture, dark spots, or pores were enrolled. Subjects were instructed to use the test article, DWB‐EN, on a clean face at night 3 times weekly with 48 h between applications for 4 weeks. Results: Statistically significant improvements were noted in all parameters of photoaging clinical assessments (wrinkles, pores, overall appearance, luminosity, visible texture, skin tone evenness, hyperpigmentation) at the end of the 4‐week study period. There were no instances of skin irritation throughout the duration of this study despite half of the women having sensitive skin. Conclusions: Overall, this study demonstrated the clinical efficacy and tolerability of DWB‐EN for treating photoaging in subjects with all skin types. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Greenhouse cultivation is one of the current strategies to address the challenges of food production, sustainability, and food quality. Similarly, the use of technological tools to automate greenhouse environments through a set of sensors and actuators allows for the control and improvement of processes within this environment. This document presents data collected from the sensors and actuators of two identical greenhouse environments, one with the cultivation of stringless blue lake beans and the other without cultivation. The aim is that this dataset will provide a broader characterization of the behavior of climatic variables inside greenhouse environments and how they are impacted by control actions, subsequently contributing to the development of new research on implementations of or improvements to control, supervision, management, and automation actions in greenhouse environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epistemological disjunctivists hold that perceiving subjects have "reflective access" to factive perceptual support for belief. However, little has been done to elaborate the intended notion of reflection, or introspective awareness more generally. Moreover, critics have pointed out that the disjunctivist conception of "reflective access" can seem vulnerable to varieties of Williamson's anti-luminosity argument. In this paper I defend disjunctivism from this charge, arguing that it holds the resources for a potent defense of the claim that knowledge of perceptual states is luminous. Indeed, I argue that appreciating the relation between disjunctivism and luminosity sheds critical light on how the disjunctivist conceives of perceptual support for belief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A strong and fast-moving electrical storm occurred in the Southwest Florida region overnight, from 01:00 UTC on 17 April to 07:00 UTC on 17 April 2023. Video recordings were conducted in the region at Latitude N 26.34° and Longitude W 81.79° for 5 h and 15 min, from 01:45 UTC to 07:00 UTC. The camera captured the flashes transforming from pinkish, violet, blue, and then emerald green in the sky twice: the first colored flash lasted 2.0 s, and the second one lasted 0.5 s. The characteristics of the flashes were analyzed using video images integrated with lightning flash data from the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM). To gain deeper insights into the associated atmospheric conditions, the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) was also used to help understand the spectral anomalies. Both events had similarities: the same pattern of changing luminous colors in the optical images and the trajectory of the lightning discharges, showing clusters and horizontal distributions. Event 1 occurred mainly over the ocean and featured more intense storms, heavier rain, and denser, higher cloud-tops compared to Event 2, which occurred inland and involved dissipating storms. Moreover, the group energy detected in Event 1 was an order of magnitude higher than in Event 2. We attribute the wavelength of the recorded colored luminosity to varying atmospheric molecular concentrations, which ultimately contributed to the unique spectral line. In this study, we explore the correlation between colored flashes and specific atmospheric concentrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the limitations on the depth of field of high-resolution fluorescence microscope, it is difficult to obtain an image with all objects in focus. The existing image fusion methods suffer from blocking effects or out-of-focus fluorescence. The proposed multi-focus image fusion method based on local maximum luminosity, intensity variance and the information filling method can reconstruct the all-in-focus image. Moreover, the depth of tissue's surface can be estimated to reconstruct the 3D surface model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explore the redshift evolution of the radio luminosity function (RLF) of star-forming galaxies using galform , a semi-analytic model of galaxy formation and a dynamo model of the magnetic field evolving in a galaxy. Assuming energy equipartition between the magnetic field and cosmic rays, we derive the synchrotron luminosity of each sample galaxy. In a model where the turbulent speed is correlated with the star formation rate, the RLF is in fair agreement with observations in the redshift range 0 ≤ z ≤ 2. At larger redshifts, the structure of galaxies, their interstellar matter, and turbulence appear to be rather different from those at z ≲ 2, so that the turbulence and magnetic field models applicable at low redshifts become inadequate. The strong redshift evolution of the RLF at 0 ≤ z ≤ 2 can be attributed to an increased number, at high redshift, of galaxies with large disc volumes and strong magnetic fields. On the other hand, in models where the turbulent speed is a constant or an explicit function of z , the observed redshift evolution of the RLF is poorly captured. The evolution of the interstellar turbulence and outflow parameters appear to be major (but not the only) drivers of the RLF changes. We find that both the small- and large-scale magnetic fields contribute to the RLF but the small-scale field dominates at high redshifts. Polarization observations will therefore be important to distinguish these two components and understand better the evolution of galaxies and their non-thermal constituents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) project aims to improve the performance of the LHC by increasing the proton–proton collision luminosity. New physics discoveries will be possible starting in 2027. The HL-LHC aims to improve the integrated luminosity by a factor of 10 concerning the current running LHC's design value. The HL-LHC project foresees delivering proton–proton collisions at 14 TeV CM (Center of Mass) energy providing the integrated luminosity to a value of 3 ab−1 for the ATLAS and CMS experiments, 50 fb−1 for LHCb, and 5 fb−1 for ALICE. The increased integrated luminosity for the above LHC experiments will provide the potential to discover rare processes while improving these measurements' signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio statistics. The ATLAS muon spectrometer has been upgraded to face the challenges of the luminosity at the HL-LHC run. The new sub-detectors are as follows: The New Small Wheel (NSW) has replaced the Cathode Strip Chambers (CSC) discs at the internal part of the ATLAS end cups. The new integrated small Monitored Drift Chambers (sMDT) with the Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) are installed at the outer end of the ATLAS BI (Barrel Inner) layer, in the barrel–endcap transition region, at 1.0 < |η| < 1.3, where η is the pseudo-rapidity (pseudo-rapidity η is a commonly used spatial coordinate describing the angle of a particle relative to the beam axis, defined as η = − l n t a n θ 2 , where θ is the angle between the vector momentum p → and the positive direction of the beam axis). The NSW is an innovative technological achievement, including the MicroMegas (MM) gas detectors in large areas and small-strip Thin Gap Chambers (sTGC), enabling high pT (high pT is the high value of the particles' transverse momentum versus the beam collision axis) trigger and muon detection. The muon reconstruction, the background rate, other spectrometer parameters, and the NSW performance are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a method to enhance the contrast and luminosity of fundus images with boundary reflection. In this work, 100 retina images taken from online databases are utilized to test the performance of the proposed method. First, the red, green and blue channels are read and stored in separate arrays. Then, the area of the eye also called the region of interest (ROI) is located by thresholding. Next, the ratios of R to G and B to G at every pixel in the ROI are calculated and stored along with copies of the R, G and B channels. Then, the RGB channels are subjected to average filtering using a 3 × 3 mask to smoothen the RGB values of pixels, especially along the border of the ROI. In the background brightness estimation stage, the ROI of the three channels is filtered by binomial filters (BFs). This step creates a background brightness (BB) surface of the eye region by levelling the foreground objects like blood vessels, fundi, optic discs and blood spots, thus allowing the estimation of the background illumination. In the next stage, using the BB, the luminosity of the ROI is equalized so that all pixels will have the same background brightness. This is followed by a contrast adjustment of the ROI using CLAHE. Afterward, details of the adjusted green channel are enhanced using information from the adjusted red and blue channels. In the color correction stage, the intensities of pixels in the red and blue channels are adjusted according to their original ratios to the green channel before the three channels are reunited. The resulting color image resembles the original one in color distribution and tone but shows marked improvement in luminosity and contrast. The effectiveness of the approach is tested on the test images and enhancement is noticeable visually and quantitatively in greyscale and color. On average, this method manages to increase the contrast and luminosity of the images. The proposed method was implemented using MATLAB R2021b on an AMD 5900HS processor and the average execution time was less than 10 s. The performance of the filter is compared to those of two other filters and it shows better results. This technique can be a useful tool for ophthalmologists who perform diagnoses on the eyes of diabetic patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the final results of our search for new Milky Way (MW) satellites using the data from the Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) Subaru Strategic Program (SSP) survey over ∼1140 deg2. In addition to three candidates that we have already reported, we have identified two new MW satellite candidates in the constellations of Sextans, at a heliocentric distance of D ⊙ ≃ 126 kpc, and Virgo, at D ⊙ ≃ 151 kpc, named Sextans II and Virgo III, respectively. Their luminosities (Sext II: MV ≃ −3.9 mag; Vir III: MV ≃ −2.7 mag) and half-light radii (Sext II: r h ≃ 154 pc; Vir III: r h ≃ 44 pc) place them in the region of size–luminosity space of ultra-faint dwarf galaxies (UFDs). Including four previously known satellites, there are a total of nine satellites in the HSC-SSP footprint. This discovery rate of UFDs is much higher than that predicted from the recent models for the expected population of MW satellites in the framework of cold dark matter models, thereby suggesting that we encounter a too many satellites problem. Possible solutions to settle this tension are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We exploit the DustPedia sample of galaxies within approximately 40 Mpc, selecting 388 sources, to investigate the correlations between IR luminosity (LIR), the star formation rate (SFR), and the CO(1-0) luminosity (LCO) down to much lower luminosities than reached by previous analyses. We find a sub-linear dependence of the SFR on LIR. Below log (L IR / L ⊙) ≃ 10 or SFR ≃ 1 M ⊙ yr − 1 , the SFR/LIR ratio substantially exceeds the standard ratio for dust-enshrouded star formation, and the difference increases with decreasing LIR values. This implies that the effect of unobscured star formation overcomes that of dust heating by old stars, at variance with results based on the Planck ERCSC galaxy sample. We also find that the relations between the LCO and LIR or the SFR are consistent with those obtained at much higher luminosities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I study two intermediate luminosity optical transients (ILOTs), classified as luminous red novae (LRNe), and argue that their modeling with a common envelope evolution (CEE) without jets encounters challenges. LRNe are ILOTs powered by violent binary interaction. Although in the literature it is popular to assume a CEE is the cause of LRNe, I here repeat an old claim that many LRNe are powered by grazing envelope evolution (GEE) events; the GEE might end in a CEE or a detached binary system. I find that the LRN AT 2021biy might have continued to experience mass ejection episodes after its eruption and, therefore, might not have suffered a full CEE during the outburst. This adds to an earlier finding that a jetless model does not account for some of its properties. I find that a suggested jetless CEE model for the LRN AT 2019zhd does not reproduce its photosphere radius evolution. These results that challenge jetless models of two LRNe strengthen a previous claim that jets play major roles in powering ILOTs and shaping their ejecta and that, in many LRNe, the more compact companion launches the jets during a GEE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work refers to a study of 10–12-year-old students' ideas on the self- or hetero-luminosity of the Moon. To check the validity of students' reasoning on this question, we also examined their ideas on the lunar phases and how we see hetero-luminous objects. Students supported their ideas on the self- or hetero-luminosity of the Moon by using naïve explanatory reasoning, based on alternative ideas about various astronomical phenomena. On the other hand, an analysis of the students' answers showed that there are qualitative differences between the two groups. For students to understand that the Moon is illuminated by the Sun, comprehension of the relative movements, relative sizes and distances of the Sun-Earth-Moon system is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]