Kristen Menou

OPTICAL AND RADIO PROPERTIES OF EXTRAGALACTIC SOURCES OBSERVED BY THE FIRST SURVEY AND THE SLOAN DIGITAL SKY SURVEY

We discuss the optical and radio properties of ~30,000 FIRST (radio, 20 cm, sensitive to 1 mJy) sources positionally associated within 15 with a Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) (optical, sensitive to r* ~ 22.2) source in 1230 deg2 of sky. The matched sample represents ~30% of the 108,000 FIRST sources and 0.1% of the 2.5 ? 107 SDSS sources in the studied region. SDSS spectra are available for 4300 galaxies and 1154 quasars from the matched sample and for a control sample of 140,000 galaxies and 20,000 quasars in 1030 deg2 of sky. Here we analyze only core sources, which dominate the sample; the fraction of SDSS-FIRST sources with complex radio morphology is determined to be less than 10%. This large and unbiased catalog of optical identifications provides much firmer statistical footing for existing results and allows several new findings. The majority (83%) of the FIRST sources identified with an SDSS source brighter than r* = 21 are optically resolved; the fraction of resolved objects among the matched sources is a function of the radio flux, increasing from ~50% at the bright end to ~90% at the FIRST faint limit. Nearly all optically unresolved radio sources have nonstellar colors indicative of quasars. We estimate an upper limit of ~5% for the fraction of quasars with broadband optical colors indistinguishable from those of stars. The distribution of quasars in the radio flux?optical flux plane suggests the existence of the quasar radio dichotomy; 8% ? 1% of all quasars with i* 2.22) galaxies, especially those with r* > 17.5. Magnitude- and redshift-limited samples show that radio galaxies have a different optical luminosity distribution than nonradio galaxies selected by the same criteria; when galaxies are further separated by their colors, this result remains valid for both blue and red galaxies. For a given optical luminosity and redshift, the observed optical colors of radio galaxies are indistinguishable from those of all SDSS galaxies selected by identical criteria. The distributions of radio-to-optical flux ratio are similar for blue and red galaxies in redshift-limited samples; this similarity implies that the difference in their luminosity functions and resulting selection effects are the dominant cause for the preponderance of red radio galaxies in flux-limited samples. The fraction of radio galaxies whose emission-line ratios indicate an AGN (30%), rather than starburst, origin is 6 times larger than the corresponding fraction for all SDSS galaxies (r* < 17.5). We confirm that the AGN-to-starburst galaxy number ratio increases with radio flux and find that radio emission from AGNs is more concentrated than radio emission from starburst galaxies.

Black Hole and Neutron Star Transients in Quiescence

We consider the X-ray luminosity difference between neutron star and black hole soft X-ray transients (NS and BH SXTs) in quiescence. The current observational data suggest that BH SXTs are significantly fainter than NS SXTs. The luminosities of quiescent BH SXTs are consistent with the predictions of binary-evolution models for the mass transfer rate if (1) accretion occurs via an advection-dominated accretion flow (ADAF) in these systems and (2) the accreting compact objects have event horizons. The luminosities of quiescent NS SXTs are not consistent with the predictions of ADAF models when combined with binary-evolution models, unless most of the mass accreted in the ADAF is prevented from reaching the neutron star surface. We consider the possibility that mass accretion is reduced in quiescent NS SXTs because of an efficient propeller and develop a model of the propeller effect that accounts for the observed luminosities. We argue that modest winds from ADAFs are consistent with the observations, while strong winds are probably not.

The Merger History of Supermassive Black Holes in Galaxies

The ubiquity of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at the centers of nearby luminous galaxies can arise from the multiple mergers experienced by dark matter halos in hierarchical structure formation models, even if only a small fraction of these galaxies harbor SMBHs at high redshifts. We illustrate this possibility using cosmological Monte Carlo simulations of the merger history of dark matter halos and their associated SMBHs. In our most extreme models, in order to populate nearly every bright galaxy with an SMBH at z = 0, only a few percent of the halos with virial temperatures above 104 K are required to harbor an SMBH at high redshift. This possibility must be included in studies of the luminosity function and the clustering properties of quasars. We predict the number of SMBH merger events that are detectable by the gravitational wave experiment Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), as a function of redshift, out to z = 5. Although the event rates can be significantly reduced in scenarios with rare SMBHs, a minimum of ~10 detectable merger events per year is predicted if SMBH binaries coalesce efficiently. The observed distribution of events with redshift could yield valuable information on the SMBH formation process. If SMBH binaries do not coalesce, we find that at least several SMBH slingshot ejections probably occurred from z = 5 to the present in each galaxy more massive than ~1011 M? at z = 0. Although our results are sensitive to the minimum cooling mass assumed for the formation of SMBHs, we expect the qualitative predictions of our models to be robust.

Dynamical Habitability of Known Extrasolar Planetary Systems

Habitability is usually defined as the requirement for a terrestrial planets atmosphere to sustain liquid water. This definition can be complemented by the dynamical requirement that other planets in the system do not gravitationally perturb terrestrial planets outside of their habitable zone, the orbital region allowing the existence of liquid water. We quantify the dynamical habitability of 85 known extrasolar planetary systems via simulations of their orbital dynamics in the presence of potentially habitable terrestrial planets. When requiring that habitable planets remain strictly within their habitable zone at all times, the perturbing influence of giant planets extends beyond the traditional Hill sphere for close encounters: terrestrial planet excursions outside of the habitable zone are also caused by secular eccentricity variations and, in some cases, strong mean-motion resonances. Our results indicate that more than half the known extrasolar planetary systems (mostly those with distant, eccentric giant planets) are unlikely to harbor habitable terrestrial planets. About one-fourth of the systems (mostly those with close-in giant planets), including one-third of the potential targets for the Terrestrial Planet Finder, appear as dynamically habitable as our own solar system. The influence of yet undetected giant planets in these systems could compromise their dynamical habitability. Some habitable terrestrial planets in our simulations have substantial eccentricities (e > 0.1), which may lead to large seasonal climate variations and thus affect their habitability.

On the Origin of Episodic Accretion in Dwarf Novae

We show that dwarf nova disks in quiescence have rather low magnetic Reynolds numbers, of order 103. Numerical simulations of magnetized accretion disks suggest that under these conditions magnetohydrodynamic turbulence and the associated angular momentum transport is sharply reduced. This could be the physical origin of episodic accretion in dwarf nova disks. If so, the standard disk instability model needs to be revised.

The Changing Face of the Extrasolar Giant Planet HD 209458b

High-resolution atmospheric flow simulations of the tidally locked extrasolar giant planet HD 209458b show large-scale spatio-temporal variability. This is in contrast to the simple, permanent day/night (i.e., hot/cold) picture. The planets global circulation is characterized by a polar vortex in motion around each pole and a banded structure corresponding to approximately three broad zonal (east-west) jets. For very strong jets, the circulation-induced temperature difference between moving hot and cold regions can reach up to ~1000 K, suggesting that atmospheric variability could be observed in the planets spectral and photometric signatures.

Stability and Evolution of Supernova Fallback Disks

We show that thin accretion disks made of Carbon or Oxygen are subject to the same thermal ionization instability as Hydrogen and Helium disks. We argue that the instability applies to disks of any metal content. The relevance of the instability to supernova fallback disks probably means that their power-law evolution breaks down when they first become neutral. We construct simple analytical models for the viscous evolution of fallback disks to show that it is possible for these disks to become neutral when they are still young (ages of a few 10^3 to 10^4 years), compact in size (a few 10^9 cm to 10^11 cm) and generally accreting at sub-Eddington rates (Mdot ~ a few 10^14 - 10^18 g/s). Based on recent results on the nature of viscosity in the disks of close binaries, we argue that this time may also correspond to the end of the disk activity period. Indeed, in the absence of a significant source of viscosity in the neutral phase, the entire disk will likely turn to dust and become passive. We discuss various applications of the evolutionary model, including anomalous X-ray pulsars and young radio pulsars. Our analysis indicates that metal-rich fallback disks around newly-born neutron stars and black holes become neutral generally inside the tidal truncation radius (Roche limit) for planets, at ~10^11 cm. Consequently, the efficiency of the planetary formation process in this context will mostly depend on the ability of the resulting disk of rocks to spread via collisions beyond the Roche limit. It appears easier for the merger product of a doubly degenerate binary, whether it is a massive white dwarf or a neutron star, to harbor planets because it can spread beyond the Roche limit before becoming neutral.[Abridged]

The Giant x-ray flare of NGC 5905: Tidal disruption of a star, a brown dwarf, or a planet?

We model the 1990 giant X-ray flare of the quiescent galaxy NGC 5905 as the tidal disruption of a star by a supermassive black hole. From the observed rapid decline of the luminosity, over a timescale of a few years, we argue that the flare was powered by the fallback of debris rather than subsequent accretion via a thin disk. The fallback model allows constraints to be set on the black hole mass and the mass of debris. The latter must be very much less than a solar mass to explain the very low luminosity of the flare. The observations can be explained either as the partial stripping of the outer layers of a low-mass main-sequence star or as the disruption of a brown dwarf or a giant planet. We find that the X-ray emission in the flare must have originated within a small patch rather than over the entire torus of circularized material surrounding the black hole. We suggest that the patch corresponds to the bright spot where the stream of returning debris impacts the torus. Interestingly, although the peak luminosity of the flare was highly sub-Eddington, the peak flux from the bright spot was close to the Eddington limit. We speculate on the implications of this result for observations of other flare events.

On the Cosmological Evolution of the Luminosity Function and the Accretion Rate of Quasars

We consider a class of models for the redshift evolution (between 0(less-or-similar sign)z(less-or-similar sign)4) of the observed optical and X-ray quasar luminosity functions (LFs), with the following assumptions: (1) the mass function of dark matter halos follows the Press-Schechter theory, (2) the black hole (BH) mass scales linearly with the halo mass, (3) quasars have a constant universal lifetime, and (4) a thin accretion disk provides the optical luminosity of quasars, while the X-ray/optical flux ratio is calibrated from a sample of observed quasars. The mass accretion rate, M, onto quasar BHs is a free parameter of the models, which we constrain using the observed LFs. The accretion rate M inferred from either the optical or X-ray data under these assumptions generally decreases as a function of cosmic time from z{approx_equal}4 to z{approx_equal}0. We find that a comparable accretion rate is inferred from the X-ray and optical LF only if the X-ray/optical flux ratio decreases with BH mass. Near z{approx_equal}0, M drops to substantially sub-Eddington values at which advection-dominated accretion flows (ADAFs) exist. Such a decline of M, possibly followed by a transition to radiatively inefficient ADAFs, could explain both the absence of bright quasars in the local universe andmorexa0» the faintness of accreting BHs at the centers of nearby galaxies. We argue that a decline of the accretion rate of the quasar population is indeed expected in cosmological structure formation models. (c) 2000 The American Astronomical Society.«xa0less

Broad Absorption Line Quasars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey with VLA FIRST Radio Detections

We present 13 broad absorption line (BAL) quasars, including 12 new objects, identi—ed in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and matched within 2A to sources in the FIRST radio survey catalog. The surface density of this sample of radio-detected BAL quasars is 4.5 ^ 1.2 per 100 deg2, i.e., approximately 4 times as high as previously found by the shallower FIRST Bright Quasar Survey (FBQS). A majority of these radio-detected BAL quasars are moderately radio-loud objects. The fraction of BAL quasars in the entire radio quasar sample, 4.8% ^ 1.3%, is comparable to the fraction of BAL quasars among the SDSS optical quasar sample (ignoring selection eUects). We estimate that the true fraction of BAL quasars (mostly ii HiBALs ˇˇ) in the radio sample is 9.2% ^ 2.6%, once selection eUects are accounted for. We caution that the absorption troughs of four of the 13 radio-detected quasars considered do not strictly satisfy the standard BALnicity criteria. One or possibly two of the new radio-detected BAL quasars are of the rare ii FeLoBAL ˇˇ type. BAL quasars are generally redder than the median SDSS quasar at the same redshift. ”