The current status of understanding of the X-ray emission from Seyfert galaxies involves Comptonization of soft photons by hot subrelativistic electrons. After briefly reviewing the early theoretical basis for the presence of hot optically thin plasma in or around accretion disks and the key observations that led to develop the presently popular model of an accretion disk with a hot corona, we summarize recent progress in accretion models that take into account energy dissipation and/or angular momentum transport in the corona. Finally, adopting the simple scheme of a homogeneous plane parallel corona, we discuss in detail the dependence of the X-ray spectrum on the coronal parameters. Despite the strong coupling between optical depth and temperature which determines a spectral shape insensitive to their precise values, moderate spectral changes are possible. The spectral variability patterns can be used as diagnostics for coronal physics and should allow to determine whether the optical depth of the corona is dominated by e+e− pairs.

In recent years, an increasing amount of attention is being paid to the gravitational few-body problem and its applications to astrophysical scenarios. Among the main reasons for this renewed interest there is large number of newly discovered exoplanets and the detection of gravitational waves. Here, we present two numerical codes to model three- and few-body systems, called tsunami and okinami. The tsunami code is a direct few-body code with algorithmic regularization, tidal forces and post-Newtonian corrections. okinami is a secular, double-averaged code for stable hierarchical triples. We describe the main methods implemented in our codes, and review our recent results and applications to gravitational-wave astronomy, planetary science and statistical escape theories.

The recently completed Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) is a low cost, innovative, 10 m class optical telescope, which began limited scientific operations in August 2005, just 5 years after ground-breaking. This paper describes the design and construction of SALT, including the first-light instruments, SALTICAM and the Robert Stobie Spectrograph (RSS). A rigorous systems engineering approach has ensured that SALT was built to specification, on budget, close to the original schedule and using a relatively small project team. The design trade-offs, which include an active spherical primary mirror array and a fixed altitude telescope with a prime focus tracker, although restrictive in comparison to conventional telescopes, have resulted in an affordable 10 m class telescope for South Africa and its ten partners. Coupled with an initial set of two seeing-limited instruments that concentrate on the UV-visible region (320 – 900 nm) and featuring some niche observational capabilities, SALT will have an ability to conduct some unique science. This includes high time resolution studies, for which some initial results have already been obtained. Many of the versatile modes available with the RSS - which is currently being commissioned - are unique and provide unparallelled opportunities for imaging polarimetry and spectropolarimetry. Likewise, Multi-Object Spectroscopy (with slit masks) and imaging spectroscopy with the RSS, the latter using Fabry-Perot étalons and interference filters, will extend the multiplex advantage over resolutions from 300 to 9000 and fields of view of 2 to 8 arcminutes. Future instrumentation plans include an extremely stable, fibre-fed, high resolution échelle spectrograph and a near-IR (to between 1.5 to 1.7 $\mu$m) extension to the RSS. Future development possibilities include phasing the primary mirror and AO. Finally, extrapolations of the SALT/HET designs to ELT proportions remain viable and are surely more affordable than conventional, fully steerable, designs.

At present there exist several well-grounded models of pulsar radiation which do not exactly coincide with each other [e.g. Ruderman and Sutherland (1975), Cheng and Ruderman (1980), Arons and Sharlemann (1979), Arons (1981)]. The creation of a dense, relativistic, electron-positron plasma in the polar regions of rotating neutron star magnetospheres is the point of similarity between these models. Surely the pulsar radiation should be generated in such a plasma. The plasma density near the stellar surface is np ≃ 1016 e to 1017cm–3, and the average Lorentz-factor of the particles is γp = 3 to 10. The plasma is penetrated by the beam of “primary” electrons, extracted from the stellar surface and accelerated by the electric field. The beam parameters are as follows: nb = 7 x 10–2B0P–1, where P is the pulsar period and B0 magnetic field at the stellar surface and γb = 3 x 106 to 107.

Telescopic observations of the polarization of light by asteroids are interpreted on the basis of a systematic polarimetric analysis of terrestrial, meteoritic and lunar samples. Laboratory measurements were made using samples with different surface textures, and scanning electron microscope pictures were used to investigate the influence of microtexture and crystalline structure.

It is demonstrated that asteioid surfaces do not accumulate thick regolithic layers of micro-fragments, as do the Moon and Mercury. This is because the majority of debris ejected by impacts are lost, due to the low gravitational escape velocity from these bodies. However, asteroids are not bare rocks, but are coated with a thin layer of adhesive debris. This coating apparently has the composition of the body itself. The fact that there is no indication of significant maturation by space weathering suggests that the dust which coats the surface of asteroids is frequently replaced by further impacts.

Asteroids may be classified polarimetrically in several groups: those in group C are made of very dark material and behave like carbonaceous chondrites, or very dark Fe-rich basalts; Those in group S correspond to silicates and stony meteorites. A third group represented by Asteroid 21 Lutetia and 16 Psyche may be metallic.

Several areas of stellar observations depend critically on nearly continuous observations of individual objects over very extended periods. Important examples are investigations of stellar oscillations to carry out asteroseismology, and the search for extra-solar planets. To meet this requirement we are establishing the SONG network, consisting of 8 sites with a 1-meter-class telescope with a suitable geographical distribution. These will be optimized for asteroseismology based on Doppler-velocity observations and the characterization of extra-solar planets with photometry, using gravitational microlensing. Funding has been obtained towards the construction of the prototype SONG telescope which will be set up on Tenerife, with first light expected in 2011. The full network will be established in parallel with the tests of the prototype and is planned to be operational in 2014.

The secular equations which were used to exhibit the chaotic behaviour of the solar system (Laskar, 1989) are established here in a Hamiltonian framework. The integration of the former secular equations over 400 Myr showed that the two resonant arguments and given in (Laskar, 1990) present both transitions from libration to circulation. During the circulation of the first argument, temporary libration of the argument is observed, revealing resonance overlap beetween these two resonances, which explains the existence of a large chaotic zone for the motion of the solar system.

Mare ridges often consist of two separate but related features: (1) a broad gentle arch overlain by (2) a sharper, more contorted ridge. Often these sharper, secondary ridges have flowed into craters in the adjacent terrain indicating they are extrusions. Major flows in Mare Imbrium appear to have issued from several prominent mare ridges. These flows show color differences which may be related to their abundance of titanium. The association of flows with mare ridges, the broad arching linked with many ridges and the coincidence of linear ridges with the directions of major fracture patterns in the highlands indicates that arched mare ridges are dike, sill or laccolithic-type intrusions along major fractures. In many cases these intrusions appear to have broken through the surface to form short flows and bulbous lava extrusions. Mare ridges unassociated with arching are probably lava extrusions only.

Mare ridges often take the form of rings indicating that they developed along ring fractures. Several linear mare ridges and mare ridge rings have bright hills situated along them and are considered to be post-mare volcanic hills of more siliceous composition than the maria. Evidence suggests that many of the ring structures are post-mare volcanic ring complexes formed over large igneous masses.

A time sequence of longitudinal magnetograms of two active regions, McMath Regions 9281 and 9760, have indicated magnetic field changes occurring in localized areas with time scales of the order of hours. We believe the observed field changes are evolutionary in nature, rather than related to the occurrence of small flares. Three examples of evolutionary magnetic changes are discussed.

Cometary nuclei are often considered to be the most primitive bodies of the solar system. Thus it is particularly important to find out what structural changes may have been brought about as a result of their thermal evolution. Is there reason to believe that the bulk composition of the nucleus of a present-day short-period comet may differ from that of the original planetesimal in the solar nebula? Apart from the development of a non-volatile surface layer (‘dust mantle’), what further depth-dependent differentiation can we expect in such a nucleus? These are the ultimate questions addressed in this paper, and attention is focused on the two most active stages of thermal evolution: the early planetesimal stage with internal heating basically due to radioactive decay, and the recent or present cometary phase with strong external heating due to insolation of the surface.

Recent observations of impulsive hard X-ray, microwave, EUV and optical emissions during solar flares are briefly reviewed in order to deduce the characteristics of the impulsive (flash) phase phenomenon in small solar flares particularly from the point of view of the acceleration of electrons and their role in producing the various impulsive phase emissions. Observed and deduced characteristics of the various electromagnetic emission sources are summarized (Table II). The deduced characteristics of the electron acceleration process (Table III) indicate a process with high acceleration efficiency. The observations are found to be consistent with a model in which electrons are accelerated in a series of short pulses each lasting for ≲ 1 s and the accelerated electrons provide the energy necessary for all the observed electromagnetic emissions produced during the flash phase of small solar flares. Models of the impulsive phase emissions in which energetic electrons play a prominant role are examined and crucial tests to check the accuracy of these models are indicated (Table IV).

Radial abundance gradients in the disks of spiral galaxies are made evident from observations of ionized nebulae (HII regions, planetary nebulae, and SNRs) and stars. They have been observed for several chemical elements, and their presence is an established fact, despite some inconsistencies in the results. Therefore, these gradients can be considered as an additional constraint to the chemical evolution models, as the age-metallicity relation or the metallicity distribution of the G-dwarfs.

Past X-ray observations by ASCA suggest that warm absorbers (O VII and O VIII edges) are apparently rare in high luminosity AGNs (quasars) while they are more common in low luminosity AGNs (Seyferts). However, this could be a selection effect if high luminosity AGNs have mostly narrow absorption lines (with no strong bound free edges), which escaped detection by the low resolution of ASCA. To check this hypothesis we are studying the high-resolution X-ray spectra of quasars from grating spectrometers on board Chandra and XMM-Newton in search for absorption lines. In this contribution we present spectra of three quasars. The spectra show narrow (several hundred km s−1) absorption and emission X-ray lines from H-like and He-like ions of O, Ne, Mg, and other abundant elements. We also detect absorption from iron L-shell lines and iron M-shell unresolved transition array. We present the analysis of MR2251-178 where we find that at least two, and probably three, distinct warm absorbers are needed to explain the high resolution spectrum of this object. We re-analyze the high-resolution X-ray spectrum of PG 1211+143 and suggest that an outflow velocity of ∼3000 km s−1 provides an adequate explanation to these data. We also present preliminary results form the Chandra/HETGS observation of the quasar 4C74.26.To search for other articles by the author(s) go to: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html

Two major sources are observed to contribute to the Zodiacal Cloud: main-belt asteroids and active comets. However, the discovery of 100 km size objects in trans-Neptunian orbits (Jewitt & Luu 1993) coupled with Pioneer 10 measurements showing an essentially constant flux of 10 μm dust from 4 to 18 AU with indications that dust may be in near-circular orbits (Humes 1980) suggests that collisions in the Kuiper Belt may contribute significantly to the Zodiacal Cloud and to the interplanetary dust collected from the Earth's stratosphere. Kuiper Belt dust collected at Earth could be identified by high densities of solar flare tracks, unusually thick amorphous rims, and high concentrations of spallogenic isotopes.

The Zeldovich approximation (ZA) predicts the formation of a web of singularities. While these singularities may only exist in the most formal interpretation of the ZA, they provide a powerful tool for the analysis of initial conditions. We present a novel method to find the skeleton of the resulting cosmic web based on singularities in the primordial deformation tensor and its higher order derivatives. We show that the A3 lines predict the formation of filaments in a two-dimensional model. We continue with applications of the adhesion model to visualise structures in the local (z < 0.03) universe.

In the past years a wealth of observations has allowed us to unravel the structural properties of the Dark and Luminous mass distribution in spirals. As result, it has been found that their rotation curves follow, out their virial radius, an Universal function (URC) made by two terms: one due to the gravitational potential of a Freeman stellar disk and the other due to that of a dark halo. The importance of the latter is found to decrease with galaxy mass. Individual objects reveal in detail that dark halos have a density core, whose size correlates with its central value. These properties will guide ΛCDM Cosmology to evolve to match the challenge that observations presently pose.

In recent years. we have spectroscopically observed thousands of counterparts of selected ROSAT bright sources in the sacy project (Search for Associations Containing Young stars). We demonstrated that hundreds of the young stars found this way belong to nearby young, loose associations, some detected only in sacy, with ages in the range from 5 to 100 Myr. For their ages, these associations show no trace of their primitive nurseries, which poses some difficulties as to their origins. Nevertheless, there are some associations clearly associated with young open clusters, such as the ϵ Cha association (6 Myr) with the η Cha cluster, and the Argus association with IC 2391 (40 Myr). There seem to exist also more subtle connections, such as the AB Dor association (75 Myr) with the Pleiades. Here, we present evidence of the connections of young associations to open clusters, to understand their origin and their possible insertion in the cluster infant-mortality and Gould Belt scenarios.

Since the 1980s, the entrances of a certain form of monumental Neolithic enclosure (Kreisgrabenanlage, KGA) have been discussed in relation to solstice or lunistice directions. In our current project we analyze astronomical orientations in more than 30 KGAs in Lower Austria, and combine virtual reconstructions based on previous magnetic surveys with horizon surveys and astronomical simulation software.

It is not straightforward to determine the distribution of supernova remnants (SNRs) in the Galaxy. The two main difficulties are that there are observational selection effects that mean that catalogues of SNRs are incomplete, and distances are not available for most remnants. Here I discuss the selection effects that apply to the latest catalogue of Galactic SNRs. I then compare the observed distribution of ‘bright’ SNRs in Galactic longitude with that expected from models in order to constrain the Galactic distribution of SNRs.

Very massive primordial stars (140 M⊙ < M < 260 M⊙) are supposed to end their lives as PISN. Such an event can be traced by a typical chemical signature in low metallicity stars, but at the present time, this signature is lacking in the extremely metal-poor stars we are able to observe. Does it mean that those very massive objects were not formed, contrarily to the primordial star formation scenarios ? Could it be possible that they avoided this tragic fate ?

We explore the effects of rotation, anisotropical mass loss and magnetic field on the core size of very massive Population III models. We find that magnetic fields provide the strong coupling that is lacking in standard evolution metal-free models and our 150 M⊙ Population III model avoids indeed the pair-instability explosion.