Related papers: Thermal Geo-axions
Measuring the time evolution of the effective surface temperature of neutron stars can provide invaluable information on the properties of their dense cores. Here, we report on a new Chandra observation of the transient neutron star…
We derive new constraints on axion-like particles (ALPs) using precision $X$-ray polarization studies of magnetars. Specifically, we use the first detection of polarized $X$-rays from the magnetars 4U 0142+61 and 1RXS J170849.0-400910 by…
Solar flare electron acceleration is an efficient process, but its properties (mechanism, location) are not well constrained. Via hard X-ray (HXR) emission, we routinely observe energetic electrons at the Sun, and sometimes we detect…
The strong magnetic fields (B ~ 10^{12} - 10^{13} G) characteristic of neutron stars make all the properties of an atom strongly dependent on the transverse component K_\perp of its generalized momentum. In particular, the photoionization…
White dwarfs are the end-product of the lifes of intermediate- and low-mass stars and their evolution is described as a simple cooling process. Recently, it has been possible to determine with an unprecedented precision their luminosity…
Close-in super-Earths having radii 1--4 $R_\oplus$ may possess hydrogen atmospheres comprising a few percent by mass of their rocky cores. We determine the conditions under which such atmospheres can be accreted by cores from their parent…
We show that a stable vortex soliton, carrying a constant magnetic flux, exists in the homogeneous medium of axions with a constant time-derivative. Axions can be bound in the vortex, having energy less than the axion mass. If the observed…
UV absorption cross sections are an essential ingredient of photochemical atmosphere models. Exoplanet searches have unveiled a large population of short-period objects with hot atmospheres, very different from what we find in our solar…
Estimating Alfven speeds is of interest in modelling the solar corona, studying the coronal heating problem and understanding the initiation and propagation of coronal mass ejections (CMEs). We assume here that the corona is in a…
The current cosmological constraints on a dark matter axion are reviewed. We describe the basic mechanisms by which axions are created in the early universe, both in the standard thermal scenario in which axion strings form and in…
A study of the structural and scaling properties of the temperature distribution of the hot, X-ray emitting intra-cluster medium of galaxy clusters, and its dependence on dynamical state, can give insights into the physical processes…
Polarization measurements of thermal radiation from magnetic white dwarf (MWD) stars have been proposed as a probe of axion-photon mixing. The radiation leaving the surface of the MWD is unpolarized, but if low-mass axions exist then…
The properties of axions that constitute 100% of cold dark matter (CDM) depend on the tensor-to-scalar ratio $r$ at the end of inflation. If $r=0.20^{+0.07}_{-0.05}$ as reported by the BICEP2 collaboration, then "half" of the CDM axion…
A priori, cosmic-ray measurements offer a unique capability to determine the vertical profile of atmospheric temperatures directly from ground. However, despite the increased understanding of the impact of the atmosphere on cosmic-ray…
Atmospheric temperatures are to be estimated from thermal emission spectra of Earth-like exoplanets orbiting M-stars as observed by current and future planned missions. To this end, a line-by-line radiative transfer code is used to generate…
Superflares on the solar type stars observed by \textit{Kepler} demonstrate the contrast in the optical continuum of the order 0.1--1 per cent. The mechanism of formation of this radiation is not firmly established. We consider a model…
The metastable hypermassive neutron star produced in the coalescence of two neutron stars can copiously produce axions that radiatively decay into $\mathcal{O}(100)$~MeV photons. These photons can form a fireball with characteristic…
Axions, if discovered, could serve as a powerful new messenger for studying astrophysical objects. In this study we show how the Sun's spatial and spectral "axion image" can be inverted to infer the radial dependence of solar properties in…
We present spatially resolved X-ray spectra taken with the EPIC cameras of XMM-Newton of a sample of 17 cooling clusters and three non-cooling clusters for comparison. The deprojected spectra are analyzed with a multi-temperature model,…
Conventional definitions of habitability require abundant liquid surface water to exist continuously over geologic timescales. Water in each of its thermodynamic phases interacts with solar and thermal radiation and is the cause for strong…