Multi-messenger observations of a binary neutron star merger

On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of ~1.7 s with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg2 at a luminosity distance of 40+8-8 Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 Mo. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at ~40 Mpc) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One- Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ~10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient’s position ~9 and ~16 days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta

Primary Production Estimates from Recordings of Solar Stimulated Fluorescence in the Equatorial Pacific at 150-Degrees-W

Biological, optical, and hydrographical data were collected on the WEC88 cruise along 150-degrees-W and during a 6-day time series station on the equator during February/March 1988. This area was characterized by a subsurface chlorophyll maximum (SCM), located at 50-70 m depth at the equator and descending down to 120-125 m at the north and south end of the transect. Highest primary production rates were near-surface and confined to the equatorial region and stations between 7-degrees and 11-degrees-N. To determine the relationship between solar-stimulated fluorescence (centered at 683 nm wavelength) and primary production, a production-fluorescence model based on phytoplankton physiology and marine optics is described. Results of model calculations predict that there is a linear relation between production and fluorescence. A comparison between morning and midday measurements of the production-fluorescence relation showed that there was some difference between the two, whereas evening measurements, on the other hand, were distinctly different from the morning/midday ones. This seems to suggest that diurnal variations contribute significantly to variability in the quantum yield of photochemical processes. The ratio of the quantum yield of photosynthesis to the quantum yield of fluorescence (PHI(c)/PHI(f)), the parameter which will determine how well production can be estimated from optical recordings, ranged between 0.24 and 0.44 molC Ein-1 (an Einstein equals a mole of photons) for all stations. The highest value for this ratio occurred at the equatorial stations, indicating that interstation (i.e., latitudinal) variability could have an effect on the production-fluorescence relation. Measured (with C-14 incubations) and predicted production compared quite well, although high measured production rates for near-surface samples were underestimated in most cases. Since both production and fluorescence were nonlinear at high irradiance intensities, we recommend in the future that a nonlinear component be incorporated into our model to take this effect into account and thus allow us to refine our estimates of nonlinear data

Spatial Variability In Near-Surface Chlorophyll-A Fluorescence Measured By The Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL)

The primary purpose of the aircraft remote sensing component of the North Atlantic Bloom Experiment (NABE) was to: (1) quantify spatial patterns of surface Chl a variability and co-variability with temperature (T) within the NABE study regions along the 20°W meridian near 48 and 60°N; and (2) determine if the major NABE ship and mooring locations were representative of surrounding ocean waters with respect to large-scale distributions of surface Chl a and T. The sampling platform was a NASA P-3 aircraft equipped with the Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL) system, which measures laser-induced Chl a fluorescence (LICF), upwelling spectral radiance and surface temperature (T). Results collected during nine AOL missions conducted between 26 April and 3 June show considerable mesoscale variability in LICF and T. Spatial statistics (structure functions) showed that the dominant scales of LICF and T were significantly correlated in the range 10-290 km. Spectral analysis of the results of long flight lines showed spectral slopes averaging -2 for both LICF and T for spatial scales in the range 1.2-50 km. As for previous investigations of this type, we interpret the correlation between LICF and T as evidence that physical processes such as upwelling and mixing are dominant processes affecting spatial variations in Chl a distributions in the North Atlantic during the period of our sampling. The minimum dominant T and LICF spatial scales (ca 10 km) we determined from structure functions are similar to minimum scales predicted from models (Woods, 1988, In: Toward a theory on biological-physical interactions in the world ocean, Kluwer Academic, Boston, pp. 7-30) of upwelling induced by vortex contraction on the anticyclonic side of mesoscale jets. The NABE experiment was planned with the explicit assumption that major biological and chemical gradients are in the north-south direction in the northeast Atlantic. Our results support this assumption, and we observed no large-scale (\u3e200 km), east-to-west trends in surface Chl a in the two principal study areas. Our analyses show that satellite ocean color scanners with pixel resolution of 4 × 4 km will generally detect the major spatial patterns of Chl a distributions (at scales \u3e 0.3 km), in near surface waters during the spring bloom in the North Atlantic. © 1992

Using Intermicrophone Correlation to Detect Speech in Spatially Separated Noise

This paper describes a system for determining intervals of "high" and "low" signal-to-noise ratios when the desired signal and interfering noise arise from distinct spatial regions. The correlation coefficient between two microphone signals serves as the decision variable in a hypothesis test. The system has three parameters: center frequency and bandwidth of the bandpass filter that prefilters the microphone signals, and threshold for the decision variable. Conditional probability density functions of the intermicrophone correlation coefficient are derived for a simple signal scenario. This theoretical analysis provides insight into optimal selection of system parameters. Results of simulations using white Gaussian noise sources are in close agreement with the theoretical results. Results of more realistic simulations using speech sources follow the same general trends and illustrate the performance achievable in practical situations. The system is suitable for use with two microphones in mild-to-moderate reverberation as a component of noise-reduction algorithms that require detecting intervals when a desired signal is weak or absent.National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (U.S.)National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (U.S.) (Grant 1-R01-DC00117