Observations of the transient X-ray pulsar KS 1947+300 by the INTEGRAL and RXTE observatories

We analyze the observations of the X-ray pulsar KS 1947+300 performed by the INTEGRAL and RXTE observatories over a wide (3–100 keV) X-ray energy range. The shape of the pulse profile was found to depend on the luminosity of the source. Based on the model of a magnetized neutron star, we study the characteristics of the pulsar using the change in its spin-up rate. We estimated the magnetic field strength of the pulsar and the distance to the binary.     

Long-term Mir-Kvant observations of the transient X-ray burster KS 1731-260

We present the observations of the X-ray burster KS 1731-260 from 1988 until 1999 with the Kvant/TTM telescope supplemented with published data from the ASM and PCA instruments of the RXTE observatory for 1996–2001. We constructed the light curve of the source and confirmed the dependence of spectral variations on its X-ray luminosity.     

Localization of the X-ray burster KS 1731-260 from Chandra data

We analyze Chandra observatory images of the field of the X-ray burster KS 1731-260. A factor of 10 to 15 improvement in the localization accuracy (up to ～0.6″) has allowed a possible candidate for counterparts of KS 1731-260 to be determined from infrared sky images (Barret et al. 1998). The possible counterpart (the sky position difference is ～1.46″, i.e., less than 2σ) is a 16th magnitude star in the J band. If this star is actually an infrared counterpart of KS 1731-260, then we can estimate its luminosity and the lower limit on the counterpart total luminosity, L>L _J,H ~10L _⊙. The sharp decline in the X-ray flux from KS 1731-260 in 2001 offers an additional test of whether the proposed candidate is actually a counterpart of KS 1731-260. If the optical and infrared luminosities of this counterpart are largely attributable to reradiation of the X-ray flux from the neutron star, as is the case in low-mass X-ray binaries, then the brightness of the counterpart star must decrease sharply in 2001, after the X-ray source is turned off.     

Long-term INTEGRAL and RXTE observations of the X-ray pulsar LMC X-4

We analyze the observations of the X-ray pulsar LMCX-4 performed by the INTEGRAL observatory and the All-Sky Monitor (ASM) of the RXTE observatory over a wide energy range. The observed hard X-ray flux from the source is shown to change by more than a factor of 50 (from ～70 mCrab in the high state to ～1.3 mCrab in the low state) on the time scale of the accretion-disk precession period, whose mean value for 1996–2004 was determined with a high accuracy, P_prec = 30.275 ± 0.004 days. In the low state, a flare about 10 h in duration was detected from the source; the flux from the source increased by more than a factor of 4 during this flare. The shape of the pulsar’s broadband spectrum is essentially invariable with its intensity; no statistically significant features associated with the possible resonance cyclotron absorption line were found in the spectrum of the source.     

Study of the fast X-ray transient XTE J1901+014 based on INTEGRAL,RXTE, and ROSAT data

The source XTE J1901+014 discovered by the RXTE observatory during an intense outburst of hard radiation and classified as a fast X-ray transient is studied. The source’s spectral characteristics in the quiescent state have been investigated for the first time both in the soft X-ray energy range (3–20 keV) based on ROSAT and RXTE data and in the hard energy range (>20 keV) based on INTEGRAL data. A timing analysis of the source’s properties has revealed weak nonperiodic bursts of activity on time scales of several tens of seconds and two intense (～0.5–1 Crab) outbursts more than several hundred seconds in duration. Certain assumptions about the nature of the object under study are made.     

Outburst of the X-ray transient SAX J1818.6-1703 detected by the INTEGRAL observatory in September 2003

During the observation of the Galactic-center field by the INTEGRAL observatory on September 9, 2003, the IBIS/ISGRI gamma-ray telescope detected a short (several-hours-long) intense (～380 mCrab at the peak) outburst of hard radiation from the X-ray transient SAX J1818.6-1703. Previously, this source was observed only once in 1998 during a similar short outburst. We present the results of our localization, spectral and timing analyses of the object and briefly discuss the possible causes of the outburst. The release time of the bulk of the energy in such an outburst is appreciably shorter than the accretion (viscous) time that characterizes the flow of matter through a standard accretion disk.     

The X-ray source SLX 1732-304 in the globular cluster Terzan 1: The spectral states and an X-ray burst

ART-P/Granat observations of the X-ray burster SLX 1732-304 in the globular cluster Terzan 1 are presented. The X-ray (3–20 keV) fluxes from the source differed by more than a factor of 4 during the observing sessions on September 8 (F _x ? 6.95 × 10^?10 erg cm^?2 s^?1) and October 6, 1990 (F _x ? 1.64 × 10^?10 erg cm^?2 s^?1). The intensity variations of SLX 1732-304 were apparently accompanied by variations in its hardness: whereas the source in its high state had the spectrum with a distinct exponential cutoff typical of bright low-mass X-ray binaries, its low-state spectrum could be satisfactorily described by a simple power law with a photon index α?1.7. During the ART-P observation on September 8, a type I X-ray burst was detected from SLX 1732-304.     

High-mass X-ray binaries and the spiral structure of the host galaxy

We investigate the manifestation of the spiral structure in the distribution of high-mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs) over the host galaxy. We construct the simplest kinematic model. It shows that the HMXBs should be displaced relative to the spiral structure observed in such traditional star formation rate indicators as the Hα and far-infrared emissions because of their finite lifetimes. Using Chandra observations of M51, we have studied the distribution of X-ray sources relative to the spiral arms of this galaxy observed in Hα. Based on K-band data and background source number counts, we have separated the contributions from high-mass and low-mass X-ray binaries and active galactic nuclei. In agreement with model predictions, the distribution of HMXBs is wider than that of bright H II regions concentrated in the region of ongoing star formation. However, the statistical significance of this result is low, as is the significance of the concentration of the total population of X-ray sources to the spiral arms. We also predict the distribution of HMXBs in our Galaxy in Galactic longitude. The distribution depends on the mean HMXB age and can differ significantly from the distributions of such young objects as ultracompact H II regions.     

Further photometric observations of the X-ray binary A0535+26/V725 Tau: A new activity cycle

We performed new photoelectric U BV observations of the X-ray binary A0535+26 at the Crimean Station of the Sternberg Astronomical Institute in 1998–2003. After the brightness stabilized at a minimum of about 500 days in duration, a new brightness rise steeper than that observed previously began: the brightness increased over two seasons of observations by a total amplitude of \(0\mathop .\limits^m 5\). The physical parameters (T _e , n _e ) of the additional emission that caused this brightening match, within the error limits, were obtained from the averaged over 15 years, data, that include both the ascending and descending branches of the light curve. We found a delay of the variations in the Hα line relative to the continuum, which is no more than one year.     

Observations of the X-ray pulsar GX 301-2 with the ART-P telescope of the GRANAT Observatory

The variability of the X-ray flux from the pulsar GX 301-2 is analyzed by using data from the ART-P telescope of the GRANAT Observatory. The intensity variations with time scales of several thousand seconds are studied at various orbital phases. The high-state flux from the source exceeds its low-state flux by as much as a factor of 10. The hardness and spectrum of the source are shown to change greatly with its intensity. These intensity variations are most likely caused by substantial inhomogeneities in the stellar wind from the companion star.     

Absolute magnitudes and kinematic parameters of the subsystem of RR Lyrae variables

The statistical parallax technique is applied to a sample of 262 RRab Lyrae variables with published photoelectric photometry, metallicities, and radial velocities and with measured absolute proper motions. Hipparcos, PPM, NPM, and the Four-Million Star Catalog (Volchkov et al. 1992) were used as the sources of proper motions; the proper motions from the last three catalogs were reduced to the Hipparcos system. We determine parameters of the velocity distribution for halo [(U ₀, V ₀, W ₀) = (?9±12, ?214 ±10, ? 10, ?16±7) km s ^?1 and (σ _U , σ _V , σ _W ) = (164±11, 105±7, 95±7) km s ^?1] and thick-disk [(U ₀, V ₀, W ₀) = (?16±8, ?41±7, ?18±5) km s ^?1], and [(σ _U , σ _V , σ _W ) = (53±9, 42±8, 26±5) km s ^?1] RR Lyrae, as well as the intensity-averaged absolute magnitude for RR Lyrae of these populations: 〈M _V 〉 = 0.77 ± 0.10 and 〈M _V 〉 = +1.11 ± 0.25 for the halo and thickdisk objects, respectively. The metallicity dependence of the absolute magnitude of RR Lyrae is analyzed (〈M _V 〉 = (0.76 ± 0.12) + (0.26 ± 0.26) · ([Fe/H]+1.6)=1.17+0.26 · [Fe/H]). Our results are in satisfactory agreement with the ?M _V ?(RR)?[Fe/H]relation from Carney et al. (1992) (〈M _V 〉(RR)=1.01+0.15·[Fe/H]) obtained by Baade-Wesselink's method. They provide evidence for a short distance scale: the LMC distance modulus and the distance to the Galactic center are 18.22±0.11 and 7.4±0.5 kpc, respectively. The zero point of the distance scale and the kinematic parameters of the RR Lyrae populations are shown to be virtually independent of the source of absolute proper motions used and of whether they are reduced to the Hipparcos system or not.     

Analysis of the HST ultraviolet spectra for T Tauri stars: RY Tau and HD 115043

The ultraviolet spectra of the stars RY Tau and HD 115043 from the Hubble Space Telescope are analyzed. RY Tau belongs to the classical T Tauri stars, while HD 115043 is a young (t~3×10⁸ years), chromospherically active star. The most intense emission lines were identified, and their fluxes were measured. Low-resolution spectra of RY Tau and HD 115043 in the wavelength range 1160–1760 Å exhibit almost the same set of emission lines. However, first, the luminosity of RY Tau in these lines is approximately a factor of 300 higher than that of HD 115043, and, second, the relative line intensities differ greatly. The intensity ratio of the C IV λ1550, Si IV λ1400, and NV λ1240 doublet components is close to 1: 2 in the spectra of both stars. Judging by the continuum energy distribution, the spectral type of RY Tau is later than that of HD 115043. Synchronous flux variability in the C IV λ1550 and He II λ1640 lines in a time of ~20 min was detected in RY Tau. The flux rise in these lines was accompanied by a redshift of the intensity peak in the profiles by~50 km s^?1. Intermediate-resolution spectra are used to study line profiles in the spectrum of RY Tau. In particular, the profiles of (optically thin) Si III]λ1892 and C III]λ1909 lines were found to be asymmetric and about 300 km s^?1 in width. The (optically thick) C IV λ1550 doublet lines have similar profiles. The Mg II λ2800 doublet lines are also asymmetric, but their shape is different: they consist of a broad (?750 km s^?1 at the base) emission component on which an interstellar absorption line shifted from the line symmetry center by about 20 km s^?1 is superimposed. The intensity ratio of the Mg II λ2800 doublet components is?1.4. Whether there are molecular hydrogen lines in the spectrum of RY Tau is still an open question. It is shown that the emission lines in the ultraviolet spectrum of RY Tau cannot originate in a hydrostatically equilibrium chromosphere. It is argued that quasi-steady accretion of circumstellar matter is responsible for the emission.     

Observations of soft gamma-ray or hard X-ray bursts in the GRIF experiment on the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mir</Emphasis> orbiting station

During the GRIF experiment onboard the Mir orbiting station, the sky was monitored with a PX-2 wide-field (～1 sr) scintillation X-ray spectrometer to detect bursts in the photon energy range 10–300 keV. Because of the comprehensive instrumentation, which, apart from the X-ray and gamma-ray instruments, also included charged-particle detectors, the imitations of astrophysical bursts by magnetospheric electron precipitations and strongly ionizing nuclei were effectively filtered out. It was also possible to separate solar and atmospheric events. Several tens of bursts interpreted as being astrophysical were detected in the experiment at sensitivity levels S～10^?7 erg cm^?2 (for bursts whose spectra were characterized by effective temperatures kT～100 keV) and S～3×10^?8 erg cm^?2 (for bursts with kT～25 keV). Some of the soft gamma-ray or hard X-ray bursts with kT～10–50 keV were identified with the bursting pulsar GRO J1744-28. Our estimate of the detection rate for cosmological soft gamma-ray or hard X-ray bursts from the entire sky suggests that the distributions of long-duration (>1 s) gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) in characteristic energy kT and duration are inconsistent with the steady-state cosmological model in which the evolution of burst sources is disregarded. Based on GRIF and BATSE/CGRO data, we conclude that most of the GRB sources originate at redshifts 1<z<5.     

Magnetic field and chemical composition of the peculiar star HD 10221

We analyzed the chemical composition of the chemically peculiar (CP) star HD 0221=43 Cas using spectra taken with the NES spectrograph of the 6-m telescope with a spectral resolution of 45 000. The Hβ line profile corresponds most closely to T_eff = 11 900 K and log g = 3.9. The rotational velocity is v_e sin i = 27 ± 2 km s^?1, and the microturbulence is ξ_t = 1 km s^?1. The results of our abundance determination by the method of synthetic spectra show that the star has chemical anomalies typical of SrCrEu stars, although its effective magnetic field is weak, B_e < 100 G. For silicon, we obtained an abundance distribution in atmospheric depth with a sharp jump of 1.5 dex at an optical depth of log τ₅₀₀₀ = ?0.3 and with silicon concentration in deep atmospheric layers. Similar distributions were found in the atmospheres of cooler stars with strong and weak magnetic fields. A comparison of the chemical peculiarities in HD 10221 with known CP stars with magnetic fields of various strengths leads us to conclude that a low rotational velocity rather than amagnetic field is the determining factor in the formation mechanism of chemical anomalies in the atmospheres of CP stars.     

An RXTE observation of the Seyfert 1 galaxy MCG–6-30-15: X-ray reflection and the iron abundance

We report on a 50-ks observation of the bright Seyfert 1 galaxy MCG–6-30-15 with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer . The data clearly show the broad fluorescent iron line (equivalent width ∼ 250 eV) and the Compton reflection continuum at higher energies. A comparison of the iron line and the reflection continuum has enabled us to constrain the reflective fraction and the elemental abundances in the accretion disc. Temporal studies provide evidence that spectral variability is a result of changes in both the amount of reflection seen and the properties of the primary X-ray source itself.     

INTEGRAL and XMM–Newton observations of the X-ray pulsar IGR J16320−4751/AX J1631.9−4752

We report on observations of the X-ray pulsar IGR J16320−4751 (also known as AX J1631.9−4752) performed simultaneously with International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory ( INTEGRAL ) and XMM–Newton . We refine the source position and identify the most likely infrared counterpart. Our simultaneous coverage allows us to confirm the presence of X-ray pulsations at ∼1300 s, that we detect above 20 keV with INTEGRAL for the first time. The pulse fraction is consistent with being constant with energy, which is compatible with a model of polar accretion by a pulsar. We study the spectral properties of IGR J16320−4751 during two major periods occurring during the simultaneous coverage with both satellites, namely a flare and a non-flare period. We detect the presence of a narrow 6.4 keV iron line in both periods. The presence of such a feature is typical of supergiant wind accretors such as Vela X-1 or GX 301−2. We inspect the spectral variations with respect to the pulse phase during the non-flare period, and show that the pulse is solely due to variations of the X-ray flux emitted by the source and not due to variations of the spectral parameters. Our results are therefore compatible with the source being a pulsar in a High Mass X-ray Binary. We detect a soft excess appearing in the spectra as a blackbody with a temperature of ∼0.07 keV. We discuss the origin of the X-ray emission in IGR J16320−4751: while the hard X-rays are likely the result of Compton emission produced in the close vicinity of the pulsar, based on energy argument we suggest that the soft excess is likely the emission by a collisionally energized cloud in which the compact object is embedded.     

Integral spectroscopy of the nebula GM 1-29 and the star PV Cep

Integral spectroscopy data for the nebula GM 1-29 and the source star PV Cep obtained on the 2.6-m telescope at the Byurakan Observatory are presented. The structure and kinematics of a collimated emission outflow directed along the axis of the nebula are studied. Changes in the radial velocity and intensity of the absorption component of the nebular Hα line are observed and studied; these are interpreted as a result of an anisotropy in the stellar wind at distances on the order of several stellar radii, where this absorption is formed. __________ Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 51, No. 3, pp. 461–468 (August 2008).     

The heating of the X-ray gas by the radiogas in the cluster PKS 0745-191

Calculations of the energy evolution of relativistic particles in a cluster of galaxies are presented. The heating of the X-ray gas by the radio gas in the cluster PKS 0745-191 is derived using Chandra X-ray data and VLA radio data. It is found that the heating is not sufficient for the radiation loss of the X-ray gas if the lower limit of energy in the power-law spectrum of relativistic electrons is set at 0.001 erg.