• 천문학회지
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• 제48권5호
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• pp.313-323
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• 2015

Active galactic nuclei (AGN) are known for irregular variability on all time scales, down to intra-day variability with relative variations of a few percent within minutes to hours. On such short timescales, unexplored territory, such as the possible existence of a shortest characteristic time scale of activity and the shape of the high frequency end of AGN power spectra, still exists. We present the results of AGN single-dish fast photometry performed with the Korean VLBI Network (KVN). Observations were done in a “anti-correlated” mode using two antennas, with always at least one antenna pointing at the target. This results in an effective time resolution of less than three minutes. We used all four KVN frequencies, 22, 43, 86, and 129 GHz, in order to trace spectral variability, if any. We were able to derive high-quality light curves for 3C 111, 3C 454.3, and BL Lacertae at 22 and 43 GHz, and for 3C 279 at 86 GHz, between May 2012 and April 2013. We performed a detailed statistical analysis in order to assess the levels of variability and the corresponding upper limits. We found upper limits on flux variability ranging from ~1.6% to ~7.6%. The upper limits on the derived brightness temperatures exceed the inverse Compton limit by three to six orders of magnitude. From our results, plus comparison with data obtained by the University of Michigan Radio Astronomy Observatory, we conclude that we have not detected source-intrinsic variability which would have to occur at sub-per cent levels.

• 천문학회보
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• 제44권2호
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• pp.75.4-75.4
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• 2019

We present a quantitative analysis of the relationship between the gas dynamics and star formation history of DDO 210 which is an irregular dwarf galaxy in the local Universe. We perform profile analysis of an high-resolution neutral hydrogen (HI) data cube of the galaxy taken with the large Very Large Array (VLA) survey, LITTLE THINGS using newly developed algorithm based on a Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) technique. The complex HI structure and kinematics of the galaxy are decomposed into multiple kinematic components in a quantitative way like 1) bulk motions which are most likely to follow the underlying circular rotation of the disk, 2) non-circular motions deviating from the bulk motions, and 3) kinematically cold and warm components with narrower and wider velocity dispersion. The decomposed kinematic components are then spatially correlated with the distribution of stellar populations obtained from the color-magnitude diagram (CMD) fitting method. The cold and warm gas components show negative and positive correlations between their velocity dispersions and the surface star formation rates of the populations with ages of < 40 Myr and 100~400 Myr, respectively. The cold gas is most likely to be associated with the young stellar populations. Then the stellar feedback of the young populations could influence the warm gas. The age difference between the populations which show the correlations indicates the time delay of the stellar feedback.

• 천문학회보
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• 제46권2호
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• pp.50.2-50.2
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• 2021

There is increasing evidence that the convective mixing length (α) in stellar evolution models depends on metallicity of stars. In order to confirm a more precise metallicity-dependent mixing length trend, we investigate the effective temperature and metallicity of 14 red supergiant stars (RSGs) in the irregular dwarf galaxy IC 1613 using the near-infrared spectra observed with the MMIRS on the MMT telescope. From the synthetic spectral fitting to the observed spectra, we find that the mean metallicity is about [Fe/H]=0.69 with a weak bimodal distribution. We also find that the effective temperature of RSGs in IC 1613 is higher by about 250 K than that of the SMC on average. We compare the RSG position with stellar evolutionary tracks on the HR diagram, finding that models with α = 2.2-2.4 H_p can best reproduce the effective temperatures of the RSGs in IC 1613. It is evident that the mixing length values for IC 1613 is lower than that of the Milky Way. This result supports our previous study on a metallicity-dependent mixing length: mixing length decreases with decreasing metallicity of host galaxies. However, this dependency becomes relatively weak for RSGs having a metallicity equal to or less than the SMC metallicity.

• 천문학회보
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• 제46권2호
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• pp.70.2-71
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• 2021

We examine gas kinematics and star formation activities of NGC 6822, a gas-rich dwarf irregular galaxy in the Local Group at a distance of ~490 kpc. We perform profile decomposition of all the line-of-sight (LOS) HI velocity profiles of the high-resolution (42.4" × 12" spatial; 1.6 km/s spectral) HI data cube of the galaxy, taken with the Australian Telescope Compact Array (ATCA). To this end, we use a novel tool based on Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) techniques, the so-called BAYGAUD, which allows us to decompose a velocity profile into an optimal number of Gaussian components in a quantitative manner. We group all the decomposed components into bulk-narrow, bulk-broad, and non-bulk gas components classified with respect to their velocity dispersions and the amounts of velocity offset from the global kinematics, respectively. Using the surface densities and velocity dispersions of the kinematically decomposed HI gas maps together with the rotation curve of NGC 6822, we derive Toomre-Q parameters for individual regions of the galaxy which quantify the level of local gravitational instability of the gaseous disk. We also measure the local star formation rate (SFR) of the corresponding regions in the galaxy by combining GALEX Far-ultraviolet (FUV) and WISE 22㎛ images. We then relate the gas and SFR surface densities in order to investigate the local Kennicutt-Schmidt (K-S) law of gravitationally unstable regions which are selected from the Toomre Q analysis. Of the three groups, the bulk-narrow, bulk-broad and non-bulk gas components, we find that the lower Toomre-Q values the bulk-narrow gas components have, the more consistent with the linear extension of the K-S law derived from molecular hydrogen (H2) observations.