An Infrared Photometric Study of Galaxies with Extragalactic H_2O Maser Sources

All galaxies with extragalactic H2O maser sources observed so far are collected. With the 2MASS and the IRAS photometric data an infrared study is performed on those galaxies. By a comparison between the H2O maser detected sources and non-detected sources in the infrared it is indicated that infrared properties in the IRAS 12-25 #m and 60-100#m are important for producing H20 masers in galaxies. It is also found that the H20 maser galaxies with different nuclear activity types have rather different infrared properties mainly in the IRAS 12-60 μm region.

Two Novel Approaches for Photometric Redshift Estimation based on SDSS and 2MASS

We investigate two training-set methods; support vector machines （SVMs） and Kernel Regression （KR） for photometric redshift estimation with the data from the databases of Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 5 and Two Micron All Sky Survey. We probe the performances of SVMs and KR for different input patterns. Our experiments show that with more parameters considered, the accuracy does not always increase, and only when appropriate parameters are chosen, the accuracy can improve. For different approaches, the best input pattern is different. With different parameters as input, the optimal bandwidth is dissimilar for KR. The rms errors of photometric redshifts based on SVM and KR methods are less than 0.03 and 0.02, respectively. Strengths and weaknesses of the two approaches are summarized. Compared to other methods of estimating photometric redshifts, they show their superiorities, especially KR, in terms of accuracy.

The photometric system of the One-meter Telescope at Weihai Observatory of Shandong University

The one-meter telescope at Weihai Observatory （WHO） of Shandong University is an f/8 Cassegrain telescope. Three sets of filters are installed in a dual layer filterwheel that use Johnson-Cousins UBVRI, Sloan Digital Sky Survey u′g′r′i′z′ and Stomgren uvby. The photometric system and the CCD camera are introduced, followed by detailed analysis of their performances, and determination of the relevant parameters, including gain, readout noise, dark current and linearity of the CCD cam- era. In addition, the parameters describing the site＇s astro-climate, including typical seeing, statistics on the number of clear nights and average sky brightness, based on data gathered from Sep. 2007 to Aug. 2013, are systematically studied and reported in this work. Photometric calibrations were done using Landolt standard star obser- vations spanning eight nights, which yielded transformation coefficients, photometric precision and system throughput. The limiting magnitudes are simulated using the derived calibration parameters and classic observation conditions at WHO.

Study of photometric phase curve:assuming a cellinoid ellipsoid shape for asteroid(106)Dione

We carried out new photometric observations of asteroid （106） Dione at three apparitions （2004, 2012 and 2015） to understand its basic physical properties. Based on a new brightness model, new photometric observational data and published data of （106） Dione were analyzed to characterize the morphology of Dione＇s photometric phase curve. In this brightness model, a cellinoid ellipsoid shape and three-parameter （H, G1, G2） magnitude phase function system were involved. Such a model can not only solve the phase function system parameters of （106） Dione by considering an asymmetric shape of an asteroid, but also can be applied to more asteroids, especially those without enough photometric data to solve the convex shape. Using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo （MCMC） method, Dione＇s absolute magnitude of H = 7.66＋0.03-0.03 mag, and phase function parameters G1 = 0.682＋0.077-0.077 and G2 = 0.081＋0.042-0.042 were obtained. Simultaneously, Dione＇s simplistic shape, orientation of pole and rotation period were also determined preliminarily.

Photometric Calibration of the Lunar-based Ultraviolet Telescope for Its First Six Months of Operation on the Lunar Surface

We describe the photometric calibration of the Lunar-based Ultraviolet Telescope（LUT）, the first robotic astronomical telescope working on the lunar surface, for its first six months of operation on the lunar surface. Two spectral datasets（set A and B） from near-ultraviolet（NUV） to the optical band were constructed with 44 International Ultraviolet Explorer（IUE） standards, because of the LUT＇s relatively wide wavelength coverage. Set A was obtained by extrapolating the IUE NUV spectra（λ 〈 3200 ） to the optical band based upon the theoretical spectra of stellar atmosphere models. Set B was composed of theoretical spectra from 2000 to 8000 extracted from the same model grid. In total, seven standards have been observed in15 observational runs until May 2014. The calibration results show that the photometric performance of LUT is highly stable in its first six months of operation. The magnitude zero points obtained from the two spectral datasets are also consistent with each other, i.e., zp = 17.54 ± 0.09 mag（set A） and zp = 17.52 ± 0.07 mag（set B）.

Photometric redshift estimation for quasars by integration of KNN and SVM

The massive photometric data collected from multiple large-scale sky surveys offer significant opportunities for measuring distances of celestial objects by photometric redshifts. However, catastrophic failure is an unsolved problem with a long history and it still exists in the current photometric redshift estimation approaches （such as the k-nearest neighbor （KNN） algorithm）. In this paper, we propose a novel two-stage approach by integration of KNN and support vector machine （SVM） methods together. In the first stage, we apply the KNN algorithm to photometric data and estimate their corresponding Zphot. Our analysis has found two dense regions with catastrophic failure, one in the range of Zphot E [0.3, 1.2] and the other in the range of Zphot E [1.2, 2.1]. In the second stage, we map the photometric input pattern of points falling into the two ranges from their original attribute space into a high dimensional feature space by using a Gaussian kernel function from an SVM. In the high dimensional feature space, many outliers resulting from catastrophic failure by simple Euclidean distance computation in KNN can be identified by a classification hyperplane of SVM and can be further corrected. Experimental results based on the Sloan Digital Sky Survey （SDSS） quasar data show that the two-stage fusion approach can significantly mitigate catastrophic failure and improve the estimation accuracy of photometric redshifts of quasars. The percents in different /△z/ ranges and root mean square （rms） error by the integrated method are 83.47%, 89.83%, 90.90% and 0.192, respectively, compared to the results by KNN （71.96%, 83.78%, 89.73% and 0.204）.

Photometric solution and period analysis of the contact binary system AH Cnc

Photometric observations of AH Cnc, a W UMa-type system in the open cluster M67, were car- fled out by using the 50BIN telescope. About 100h of time-series/3- and V-band data were taken, based on which eight new times of light minima were determined. By applying the Wilson-Devinney method, the light curves were modeled and a revised photometric solution of the binary system was derived. We con- firmed that AH Cnc is a deep contact （f = 51%）, low mass-ratio （q - 0.156） system. Adopting the distance modulus derived from study of the host cluster, we have re-calculated the physical parameters of the binary system, namely the masses and radii. The masses and radii of the two components were estimated to be respectively 1.188（4-0.061） Me, 1.332（4-0.063） RQ for the primary component and 0.185（4-0.032） Me, 0.592（4-0.051） Re for the secondary. By adding the newly derived minimum timings to all the available data, the period variations of AH Cnc were studied. This shows that the orbital period of the binary is con- tinuously increasing at a rate of dp/dt = 4.29 x 10-10 d yr-1. In addition to the long-term period increase, a cyclic variation with a period of 35.26 yr was determined, which could be attributed to an unresolved tertiary component of the system.

Long-term photometric study of a faint W UMa binary in the direction of M31

We carry out a re-analysis of the photometric data in Rclc bands which were taken during the Nainital Microlensing Survey from 1998 to 2002 with the aim to detect gravitational microlensing events in the direction of M31. Here, we do photometric analysis of a faint W UMa binary CSS_JO04259.3＋410629 identified in the target field. The orbital period of this star is found to be 0.266402±0.000018 d. The photometric mass ratio, q, is found to be 0.28±0.01. The photometric light curves are investigated using the Wilson-Devinney （WD） code and absolute parameters are determined using empirical relations which provide masses and radii of the binary as M1 = 1.19±0.09M⊙, M2 = 0.33±0.02M⊙ and R1 = 1.02±0.04R⊙, R2 = 0.58±0.08Re respectively based on Rc band data. Quite similar values are found by analyzing/c band data. From the photometric light curve examination, the star is understood to be a low mass-ratio overcontact binary of A-subtype with a high fill-out factor of about 47%. The binary system is found to be located approximately at a distance of 2.64±0.03 kpc having a separation of 2.01 ±0.05 Re between the two components.

Photometric studies of two W UMa type variables in the field of distant open cluster NGC 6866

We present photometric analysis of the two W UMa type binaries identified in the field of distant open star cluster NGC 6866. Although these systems, namely ID487 and ID494, were reported by Joshi et al., a detailed study of these stars has not been carried out before. The orbital periods of these stars are found to be 0.415110±0.000001 day and 0.366709±0.000004 day, respectively. Based on the photometric and infrared colors, we find their respective spectral types to be K0 and K3. The photometric light vari- ations of both stars show the O＇Connell effect which can be explained by employing a dark spot on the secondary components. The V and I band light curves are analyzed using the Wilson-Devinney （WD） code and relations given by Gazeas which yield radii and masses for the binary components of star ID487 of R1 = 1.24 ± 0.01R,R2 = 1.11 4- 0.02Re, and M1 = 1.24 ± 0.02Me, M2 = 0.96 ±0.05Me and for star ID494 of R1 = 1.22 ± 0.02Re, R2 = 0.81 4- 0.01 Re, and M1 = 1.20 4- 0.06 Me, M2 = 0.47 4- 0.01 Me.

Surface photometry and radial color gradients of nearby luminous early-type galaxies in SDSS Stripe 82

We make use of the images from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Stripe 82（Stripe 82） to present an analysis of r band surface brightness profiles and radial color gradients（g-r,u-r） in our sample of 111 nearby early-type galaxies（ETGs） .Thanks to the Stripe 82 images,each of which is co-added from about 50 single frames,we are able to pay special attention to the low-surface-brightness areas（LSB areas） of the galaxies.The LSB areas affect the Sérsic fittings and concentration indices by making both of the indices less than the typical values for ETGs.In the Sérsic fits to all the surface brightness profiles,we found some Sérsic indices that range from 1.5 to 2.5,much smaller than those of typical de Vaucouleur profiles and relatively close to those of exponential disks,and some others much larger than four but still with accurate fitting.Two galaxies cannot be fitted with a single Sérsic profile,but once we try double Sérsic profiles,the fittings are improved：one with a profile relatively close to the de Vaucouleur law in the inner area and a profile relatively close to an exponential law in the LSB area,the other with a nice fitting in the inner area but still having a failed fitting in the outer area.About 60%of the sample has negative color gradients（red-core） within 1.5Re,much more than the approximately 10%positive ones（blue-core） within the same radius.However,taking into account the LSB areas,we find that the color gradients are not necessarily monotonic：about one third of the red-core（or blue-core） galaxies have positive（or negative） color gradients in the outer areas. So LSB areas not only make ETGs’Sérsic profiles deviate from de Vaucouleur ones and shift to the disk end,but also reveal that quite a number of ETGs have opposite color gradients in inner and outer areas.These outcomes remind us of the necessity of double-Sérsic fitting.These LSB phenomena may be interpreted by mergers and thus have different metallicity in the outer areas.Isophotal parameters are also discussed briefly in this paper with the following conclusion：there are more disky nearby ETGs that are identified than boxy ones.

Estimating Photometric Redshifts with Artificial Neural Networks and Multi-Parameters

We calculate photometric redshifts from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 2 （SDSS DR2） Galaxy Sample using artificial neural networks （ANNs）. Different input sets based on various parameters （e.g. magnitude, color index, flux information） are explored. Mainly, parameters from broadband photometry are utilized and their performances in redshift prediction are compared. While any parameter may be easily incorporated in the input, our results indicate that using the dereddened magnitudes often produces more accurate photometric redshifts than using the Petrosian magnitudes or model magnitudes as input, but the model magnitudes are superior to the Petrosian magnitudes. Also, better performance resuits when more effective parameters are used in the training set. The method is tested on a sample of 79 346 galaxies from the SDSS DR2. When using 19 parameters based on the dereddened magnitudes, the rms error in redshift estimation is σz = 0.020184. The ANN is highly competitive tool compared to the traditional template-fitting methods when a large and representative training set is available.

Study of photometric phase curve with new brightness model:refining phase function system parameters of asteroid(107)Camilla

We characterize the morphology of the photometric phase curve model of an asteroid with a three- parameter magnitude phase function H - G1 - G2 system by considering the effect of brightness variation arising from a triaxial ellipsoid representing the asteroid＇s shape. Applying this new model and a Markov Chain Monte Carlo method, we refine the photometric phase curve of asteroid （107） Camilla and obtain its absolute magnitude H = 7.026-0.054^＋0.052 mag, and phase function parameters G1=0.489-0.044^＋0.043 and G2 = 0.259-0.023^＋0.023.Meanwhile, we also determine （107） Camilla＇s orientation of pole （74.1°-4.5°^＋4.3°,50.2°-5.0°^＋5.4°）. with rotational period of 4.843928-0.000001^＋0.000001 h, and axial ratios a/b ： 1.409-0.020^＋0.020 And b/c =1.249-0.060^＋0.063. Furthermore, according to the values of phase function parameters G1 and G2, we infer that asteroid （107） Camilla is an X-type asteroid.

Local Environmental Dependence of Galaxy Properties in a Volume-Limited Sample of Main Galaxies

Using a volume-limited sample of Main Galaxies from SDSS Data Release 5, we investigate the dependence of galaxy properties on local environment. For each galaxy, a local three-dimensional density is calculated. We find that the galaxy morphological type depends strongly on the local environment; galaxies in dense environments have predominantly early type morphologies. Galaxy colors have only a weak dependence on the environment. This puts an important constraint on the process of galaxy formation.

Photometric and Spectroscopic Analysis of LBV Candidate J004341.84+411112.0 in M31

We study Luminous Blue Variable(LBV)candidate J004341.84+411112.0 in the Andromeda galaxy.We present optical spectra of the object obtained with the 6 m telescope of BTA SAO RAS.The candidate shows typical LBV features in its spectra:broad and strong hydrogen lines and the He I lines with P Cygni profiles.Its remarkable spectral resemblance to the well known LBV P Cygni suggests a common nature of the objects and supports LBV classification of J004341.84+411112.0.We estimate the temperature,reddening,radius and luminosity of the star using its spectral energy distribution.Obtained bolometric luminosity of the candidate(M_(bol)=-10.41±0.12 mag)is quite similar to those of known LBV stars in the Andromeda galaxy.We analyzed a ten year light curve of the object in R filter.The candidate demonstrates photometric variations of the order of 0.4 mag,with an overall brightness increasing trendΔR>0.1 mag.Therewith,the corresponding color variations of the object are fully consistent with LBV behavior when a star become cooler and brighter in the optical spectral range with a nearly constant bolometric luminosity.LBV-type variability of the object,similarity of its spectrum and estimated luminosity to those of known LBVs allow us to classify J004341.84+411112.0 as an LBV.

Recovering 3D structural properties of galaxies from SDSS-like photometry

Because of the 3D nature of galaxies, an algorithm for constructing spatial density distribution models of galaxies on the basis of galaxy images has many advan- tages over approximations of the surface density distribution. We present a method for deriving the spatial structure and overall parameters of galaxies from images and estimate its accuracy and derived parameter degeneracies on a sample of idealised model galaxies. The test galaxies consist component with varying proportions and of a disc-like component and a spheroidal properties. Both components are assumed to be axially symmetric and coplanar. We simulate these test galaxies as if they had been observed in the SDSS project through ugriz filters, thus gaining a set of realis- tically imperfect images of galaxies with known intrinsic properties. These artificial SDSS galaxies were thereafter remodelled by approximating the surface brightness distribution with a 2D projection of a bulge＋disc spatial distribution model and the restored parameters were compared to the initial ones. Down to the r-band limiting magnitude of 18, errors in the restored integral luminosities and colour indices re- main within 0.05 mag and errors in the luminosities of individual components within 0.2 mag. Accuracy of the restored bulge-to-disc luminosity ratio （B/D） is within 40% in most cases, and becomes worse for galaxies with low B/D, but the general balance between bulges and discs is not shifted systematically. Assuming that the intrinsic disc axial ratio is ≤ 0.3, then the inclination angles can be estimated with errors 〈 5° for most of the galaxies with B/D 〈 2 and with errors 〈 15° up to B/D = 6. Errors in the recovered sizes of the galactic components are below 10% in most cases. The axial ratios and the shape parameter N of Einasto＇s distribution （similar to the Sersic index） are relatively inaccurate, but can provide statistical estimates for large samples. In general, models of disc components are more accurate than models of spheroidal components for geometrical reasons.

Galaxy Morphology Classification Using a Semi-supervised Learning Algorithm Based on Dynamic Threshold

Machine learning has become a crucial technique for classifying the morphology of galaxies as a result of the meteoric development of galactic data.Unfortunately,traditional supervised learning has significant learning costs since it needs a lot of labeled data to be effective.FixMatch,a semi-supervised learning algorithm that serves as a good method,is now a key tool for using large amounts of unlabeled data.Nevertheless,the performance degrades significantly when dealing with large,imbalanced data sets since FixMatch relies on a fixed threshold to filter pseudo-labels.Therefore,this study proposes a dynamic threshold alignment algorithm based on the FixMatch model.First,the class with the highest amount has its reliable pseudo-label ratio determined,and the remaining classes'reliable pseudo-label ratios are approximated in accordance.Second,based on the predicted reliable pseudo-label ratio for each category,it dynamically calculates the threshold for choosing pseudo-labels.By employing this dynamic threshold,the accuracy bias of each category is decreased and the learning of classes with less samples is improved.Experimental results show that in galaxy morphology classification tasks,compared with supervised learning,the proposed algorithm significantly improves performance.When the amount of labeled data is 100,the accuracy and F1-score are improved by 12.8%and 12.6%,respectively.Compared with popular semisupervised algorithms such as FixMatch and MixMatch,the proposed algorithm has better classification performance,greatly reducing the accuracy bias of each category.When the amount of labeled data is 1000,the accuracy of cigar-shaped smooth galaxies with the smallest sample is improved by 37.94%compared to FixMatch.

A Reinvestigation of the Physical Properties of Pismis 3 based on 2MASS Photometry

As a continuation of a series of work, we aim to refine and re-determine the physical parameters of previously rarely or un-studied open star clusters with good quality CMDs using Near-IR JHK photometry. Here we present a morphological analysis of the 2MASS database （the digital ＂Two Micron All Sky Survey＂） for the open cluster Pismis 3. Some of the physical parameters are estimated for the first time, and some others, re-determined.

Comparisons of Jet Properties between GeV Radio Galaxies and Blazars

We compile a sample of spectral energy distributions （SEDs） of 12 GeV radio galaxies （RGs）, including eight FR I RGs and four FR II RGs. These SEDs can be represented with the one-zone leptonic model. No significant unification, as expected in the unification model, is found for the derived jet parameters between FR I RGs and BL Lacertae objects （BL Lacs） and between FR II RGs and flat spectrum radio quasars （FSRQs）. However, on average FR I RGs have a larger ＇Tb （break Lorentz factor of electrons） and lower B （magnetic field strength） than FR II RGs, analogous to the differences be- tween BL Lacs and FSRQs. The derived Doppler factors （~） of RGs are on average smaller than those of blazars, which is consistent with the unification model such that RGs are the misaligned parent pop- ulations of blazars with smaller tS. On the basis of jet parameters from SED fits, we calculate their jet powers and the powers carded by each component, and compare their jet compositions and radiation efficiencies with blazars. Most of the RG jets may be dominated by particles, like BL Lacs, not FSRQs. However, the jets of RGs with higher radiation efficiencies tend to have higher jet magnetization. A strong anticorrelation between synchrotron peak frequency and jet power is observed for GeV RGs and blazars in both the observer and co-moving frames, indicating that the ＂sequence＂ behavior among blazars, together with the GeV RGs, may be intrinsically dominated by jet power.

New planetary nebulae in the outskirts of the Andromeda Galaxy discovered with the Guoshoujing Telescope (LAMOST)

Planetary nebulae （PNe） are good tracers of the stellar populations, chemical composition and dynamics of their host galaxies. This paper reports the discovery of new PNe in the outskirts of the Andromeda Galaxy （M31） with the Guoshoujing Telescope （GSJT, formerly named the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope-LAMOST） during its early commissioning phase. In total, 36 candidates selected from SDSS photometry are confirmed in terms of their PN nature, including 17 new discoveries and another 19 previously known emission line objects. Their positions, spectra, radial velocities and m5007 magnitudes are presented. We discuss the potential for detecting more PNe in M 31 with GSJT＇s multi-object spectroscopy and the related applications in studies of the dynamics and chemistry of M 31 and its assemblage history.

Luminosity Function of the Cluster of Galaxies Abell 566

We investigate the Luminosity Function （LF） of the cluster of galaxies Abell 566. The photometric data of 15 intermediate-bands are obtained from the Beijing-Arizona- Taiwan-Connecticut （BATC） photometric sky survey. For each of the 15 wavebands, the LF of cluster galaxies is well modelled by the Schechter function, with characteristic luminosities from -18.0 to -21.9 magnitude, from the α- to the p-band. Morphological dependence of the LF is investigated by separating the cluster members into ＇red＇ and ＇blue＇ subsamples. It is clear that late type galaxies have a steeper shape of LF than the early type galaxies. We also divided the sample galaxies by their local environment. It was found that galaxies in the sparser region have steeper shape of LF than galaxies in the denser region. Combining the results of morphological and environmental dependence of LFs, we show that Abell 566 is a well relaxed cluster with positive evidence of galaxy interaction and merger, and excess number of bright early type galaxies located in its denser region.