Are Type Ia Supernovae Reliable Distance Indicators?

Recent applications of type Ia supernovae （SNe Ia） in cosmology have successfully revealed the accelerating expansion of the universe. However, as distance indicators used in measuring the expansion history of the universe and probing the nature of dark energy, these objects must pass more strict tests. We propose a K-S test to investigate if there exists any systematic bias when deriving the luminosity distances under the standard candle assumption. Two samples, one comprising 71 high-redshift SNe Ia and the other, 44 nearby ones, are used in our investigation. We find that it is likely there exists a bias in the adopted samples, which is probably caused by a systematic error, e.g. in the color parameter used in the luminosity calibration and a bias may be caused by the SN evolution or by varying properties of the dust surrounding the SNe Ia.

Color excesses of type Ia supernovae from the single-degenerate channel model

The single degenerate model is the most widely accepted progenitor model of type Ia supernovae （SNe Ia）, in which a carbon-oxygen white dwarf （CO WD） accretes hydrogen-rich material from a main sequence or a slightly evolved star （WD＋MS） to increase its mass, and explodes when its mass approaches the Chandrasekhar mass limit. During the mass transfer phase between the two components, an optically thick wind may occur and the material lost as wind may exist as circumstellar material （CSM）. Searching for the CSM around a progenitor star is helpful for discriminating different progenitor models of SNe Ia. In addition, the CSM is a source of color excess. The purpose of this paper is to study the color excess produced from the single-degenerate progenitor model with an optically thick wind, and reproduce the distribution of color excesses of SNe Ia. Meng et al. systemically carded out binary evolution calculations of the WD ＋MS systems for various metallicities and showed the parameters of the systems before Roche lobe overflow and at the moment of supernova explosion in Meng ＆ Yang. With the results of Meng et al., we calculate the color excesses of SNe Ia at maximum light via a simple analytic method. We reproduce the distribution of color excesses of SNe Ia by our binary population synthesis approach if the velocity of the optically thick wind is taken to be an order of magnitude of 10km s^-1. However, if the wind velocity is larger than 100km s^-1, the reproduction is bad.

A Statistical Study of XBLs,RBLs and FSRQs at 1.5 GHz

BL Lac objects are similar to the fiat spectrum radio quasars in many aspects except regarding the emission lines. In order to study their relationship, we selected 56 BL Lacertae objects （33 X-ray-selected, 23 radio-selected） and 45 flat spectrum radio quasars, analyzed their radio luminosities and core-dominance parameters. We found that the radio luminosities of the radio selected BL Lac objects located in between the X-ray selected BL Lac objects and the flat spectrum radio quasars. However, this intermediate position does not hold for the core-dominance parameter; the RBLs have the largest core-dominance parameters. This suggests that the core-dominance parameter can not be taken as a sequencing criterion. We also investigated the correlation between the luminosity and the core-dominance parameter for the three subclasses. We concluded that, here, the sequence XBL-RBL FSRQ still exists.

Statistics of Galactic Supernova Remnants

We collected the basic parameters of 231 supernova remnants (SNRs) in ourGalaxy, namely, distances (d) from the Sun, linear diameters (D), Galactic heights (Z), estimatedages (t), luminosities (L), surface brightness (Σ) and flux densities (S_1) at 1-GHz frequency andspectral indices (α). We tried to find possible correlations between these parameters. As expected,the linear diameters were found to increase with ages for the shell-type remnants, and also to havea tendency to increase with the Galactic heights. Both the surface brightness and luminosity ofSNRs at 1-GHz tend to decrease with the linear diameter and with age. No other relations between theparameters were found.

The cooling time of white dwarfs produced from type Iasupernovae

Type Ia supernovae （SNe Ia） play a key role in measuring cosmological parameters, in which the Phillips relation is adopted. However, the origin of the relation is still unclear. Several parameters are suggested, e.g. the relative content of carbon to oxygen （C/O） and the central density of the white dwarf （WD） at ignition. These parameters are mainly determined by the WD＇s initial mass and its cooling time, respectively. Using the progenitor model developed by Meng ＆ Yang, we present the distributions of the initial WD mass and the cooling time. We do not find any correlation between these parameters. However, we notice that as the range of the WD＇s mass decreases, its average value increases with the cooling time. These results could provide a constraint when simulating the SN Ia explosion, i.e. the WDs with a high C/O ratio usually have a lower central density at ignition, while those having the highest central density at ignition generally have a lower C/O ratio. The cooling time is mainly determined by the evolutionary age of secondaries, and the scatter of the cooling time decreases with the evolutionary age. Our results may indicate that WDs with a long cooling time have more uniform properties than those with a short cooling time, which may be helpful to explain why SNe Ia in elliptical galaxies have a more uniform maximum luminosity than those in spiral galaxies.

Statistical analysis of geomagnetic field variations during the partial solar eclipse on 2011 January 4 in Turkey

Some geophysical parameters, such as those related to gravitation and the geomagnetic field, could change during solar eclipses. In order to observe geomagnetic fluctuations, geomagnetic measurements were carded out in a limited time frame during the partial solar eclipse that occurred on 2011 January 4 and was observed in Canakkale and Ankara, Turkey. Additionally, records of the geomagnetic field spanning 24 hours, obtained from another observatory （in Iznik, Turkey）, were also analyzed to check for any peculiar variations. In the data processing stage, a polynomial fit, following the application of a running average routine, was applied to the geomagnetic field data sets. Geomagnetic field data sets indicated there was a characteristic decrease at the beginning of the solar eclipse and this decrease can be well-correlated with previous geomagnetic field measurements that were taken during the total solar eclipse that was observed in Turkey on 2006 March 29. The behavior of the geomagnetic field is also consistent with previous observations in the literature. As a result of these analyses, it can be suggested that eclipses can cause a shielding effect on the geomagnetic field of the Earth.

Constraining Dark Energy and Cosmological Transition Redshift with Type Ia Supernovae

The property of dark energy and the physical reason for the acceleration of the present universe are two of the most difficult problems in modern cosmology. The dark energy contributes about two-thirds of the critical density of the present universe from the observations of type-Ia supernovae （SNe Ia） and anisotropy of cosmic microwave background （CMB）. The SN Ia observations also suggest that the universe expanded from a deceleration to an acceleration phase at some redshift, implying the existence of a nearly uniform component of dark energy with negative pressure. We use the ＂Gold＂ sample containing 157 SNe Ia and two recent well-measured additions, SNe Ia 1994ae and 1998aq to explore the properties of dark energy and the transition redshift. For a fiat universe with the cosmological constant, we measure ΩM=0.28-0.05^＋0.04 which is consistent with Riess et al. The transition redshift is zT=0.60-0.08^＋0.04. We also discuss several dark energy models that define w（z） of the parameterized equation of state of dark energy including one parameter and two parameters （w（z） being the ratio of the pressure to energy density）. Our calculations show that the accurately calculated transition redshift varies from zT =0.29-0.06^＋0.07 to zT =0.60-0.08^＋0.06 across these models. We also calculate the minimum redshift zc at which the current observations need the universe to accelerate.

Statistical analyses for NANOGrav 5-year timing residuals

In pulsar timing, timing residuals are the differences between the observed times of arrival and predictions from the timing model. A comprehensive timing model will produce featureless resid- uals, which are presumably composed of dominating noise and weak physical effects excluded from the timing model （e.g. gravitational waves）. In order to apply optimal statistical methods for detecting weak gravitational wave signals, we need to know the statistical properties of noise components in the residuals. In this paper we utilize a variety of non-parametric statistical tests to analyze the whiteness and Gaussianity of the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves （NANOGrav） 5- year timing data, which are obtained from Arecibo Observatory and Green Bank Telescope from 2005 to 2010. We find that most of the data are consistent with white noise; many data deviate from Gaussianity at different levels, nevertheless, removing outliers in some pulsars will mitigate the deviations.

ERRATUM:"Statistics of the Galactic Supernova Remnants"(ChJAA, 5(2), 165 [2005])

We thank Dr. Dave Green (MRAO, UK) for one comment and one identified problem in our paper. The comment is that we did not discuss selection effects of the current sample of supernova remnants, which can be found in Case & Bhattacharya (1998) and Green (2004).

Gamma-ray bursts and their links with supernovae and cosmology

Gamma-ray bursts are the most luminous explosions in the Universe, whose origin and mechanism are the focus of intense interest. They appear connected to su- pernova remnants from massive stars or the merger of their remnants, and their bright- ness makes them temporarily detectable out to the largest distances yet explored in the universe. After pioneering breakthroughs from space and ground experiments, their study is entering a new phase with observations from the recently launched Fermi satellite, as well as the prospect of detections or limits from large neutrino and gravitational wave detectors. The interplay between such observations and theoretical models of gamma-ray bursts is reviewed, and cosmology. as well as their connections to supernovae

The two promising scenarios to explode core collapse supernovae

I compare to each other what I consider to be the two most promising scenarios to explode core-collapse supernovae （CCSNe）. Both are based on the negative jet feedback mechanism （JFM）. In the jittering jets scenario a collapsing core of a single slowly-rotating star can launch jets. The accretion disk or belt （a sub-Keplerian accretion flow concentrated toward the equatorial plane） that launches the jets is intermittent with varying directions of the axis. Instabilities, such as the standing accretion shock instability （SASI）, lead to stochastic angular momentum variations that allow the formation of the inter- mittent accretion disks/belts. According to this scenario no failed CCSNe exist. According to the fixed axis scenario, the core of the progenitor star must be spun up during its late evolutionary phases, and hence all CCSNe are descendants of strongly interacting binary systems, most likely through a common envelope evolution （whether the companion survives or not）. Due to the strong binary interaction, the axis of the accretion disk that is formed around the newly born neutron star has a more or less fixed direction. According to the fixed axis scenario, accretion disks/belts are not formed around the newly born neutron star of single stars; they rather end in failed CCSNe. I also raise the possibility that the jittering jets scenario operates for progenitors with initial mass of 8 Me⊙ MZAMS≤18 M⊙, while the fixed axis scenario operates for MZAMS≤ 18 M⊙. For the first time these two scenarios are compared to each other, as well as to some aspects of the neutrino-driven explosion mechanism. These new comparisons further suggest that the JFM plays a major role in exploding massive stars.

Dependence of low redshift Type Ia Supernovae luminosities on host galaxies

We study the relation between Type Ia Supernovae （SNe Ia） and properties of their host galaxies using a large sample with low redshift. By examining the Hubble residuals of the entire sample from the best-fit cosmology, we show that SNe Ia in passive hosts are brighter than those in star-forming hosts after light curve correction at the 2. 1σ confidence level. We find that SNe Ia in high luminosity hosts are brighter after light-curve correction at the 〉 3σ confidence level. We also find that SNe Ia in large galaxies are brighter after light-curve correction at the ≥2σ confidence level. We demonstrate that the residuals depend linearly on host luminosity at a confidence of 4or or host size at a confidence of 3.3σ.

WD+RG systems as the progenitors of type Ia supernovae

Type Ia supernovae （SNe Ia） play an important role in the study of cosmic evolution, especially in cosmology. There are several progenitor models for SNe Ia proposed in the past years. By considering the effect of accretion disk instability on the evolution of white dwarf （WD） binaries, we performed detailed binary evolution calculations for the WD ＋ red-giant （RG） channel of SNe Ia, in which a carbon--oxygen WD accretes material from a RG star to increase its mass to the Chandrasekhar mass limit. According to these calculations, we mapped out the initial and final parameters for SNe Ia in the orbital period-secondary mass （log Pi_ M2^i） plane for various WD masses for this channel. We discussed the influence of the variation of the duty cycle value on the regions for producing SNe Ia. Similar to previous studies, this work also indicates that the long-period dwarf novae offer possible ways for producing SNe Ia. Meanwhile, we find that the surviving companion stars from this channel have a low mass after the SN explosion, which may provide a means for the formation of the population of single low-mass WDs （〈0.45 M⊙）.

Double-detonation model of type Ia supernovae with a variable helium layer ignition mass

Although Type Ia supernovae （SNe Ia） play an important role in the study of cosmology, their progenitors are still poorly understood. Thermonuclear explosions from the helium double-detonation sub-Chandrasekhar mass model have been considered as an alternative method for producing SNe Ia. By adopting the assumption that a double detonation occurs when a He layer with a critical ignition mass accumulates on the surface of a carbon-oxygen white dwarf （CO WD）, we perform detailed binary evolution calculations for the He double-detonation model, in which a He layer from a He star accumulates on a CO WD. According to these calculations, we obtain the initial parameter spaces for SNe Ia in the orbital period and secondary mass plane for various initial WD masses. We implement these results into a detailed binary population synthesis approach to calculate SN Ia birthrates and delay times. From this model, the SN Ia birthrate in our Galaxy is ～0.4 - 1.6 × 10^-3 yr^-1. This indicates that the double-detonation model only produces part of the SNe la. The delay times from this model are ～ 70 - 710 Myr, which contribute to the young population of SNe Ia in the observations. We found that the CO WD ＋ sdB star system CD-30 11223 could produce an SN Ia via the double-detonation model in its future evolution.

Statistical properties of bipolar magnetic regions

Using observations from the Michelson Doppler Imager（MDI） onboard Solar and Heliospheric Observatory（SOHO）, we develop a computational algorithm to automatically identify bipolar magnetic regions（BMRs） in active regions（ARs）, and then study their statistical properties.The individual magnetic（positive or negative） pole of a BMR is determined from the region with an absolute strength above 55 G and with an area larger than 250 pixel^2（~495 Mm^2）, while a BMR is identified as a pair of positive and negative poles with the shortest area-weight distance between them.Based on this method, 2234 BMRs are identified from MDI synoptic magnetograms between Carrington Rotations 1909（1996 May 06） and 2104（2010 December 10）. 1005 of them are located in the northern hemisphere, while the other 1229 are in the southern hemisphere. We find that the BMR parameters（e.g., latitude, separation, fragment number and strength） are similar to those of ARs. Moreover, based on the maximum likelihood estimation（MLE） method, the frequency distributions representing the occurrence of these BMRs as functions of area and magnetic flux exhibit a power-law behavior, i.e.,dN/dx ∝ x^（-αx）, with indices of α_A = 1.98 ± 0.06 and α_F = 1.93 ± 0.05 respectively. We also find that their orientation angles（θ） follow ＂Hale＇s Polarity Law＂ and deviate slightly toward the direction of the solar equator. Consistent with previous findings, we obtain the dependence of orientation angles on latitudes for normal BMRs during the 23 rd solar cycle. The north-south asymmetry of these BMRs is also detected here.

New supernova candidates from the SDSS-DR7 spectral survey

This letter presents 25 supernova candidates discovered from SDSS-DR7 by using our dedicated method, called Sample Decrease. Ten of them have been confirmed by other research groups, while the remaining 15, including 14 Type la and one Type Ⅱ, are first discovered based on Supernova Identification analysis. The results demonstrate that our method is reliable. The description of the method and some detailed spectral analysis procedures are also presented.

The effects of ion screening on neutrino-nucleus interactions in core-collapse supernova explosions

The effects of ion screening in stellar core collapses are investigated based on a new progenitor star model. Simulation results show that ion screening slightly affects the leptons and decreases explosion energy, which is a negative factor for energy transfer supernova explosions. We also investigate the effect on type Ⅱ-supernova explosions of neutrino-nucleus elastic scattering based on the new progenitor star model. It is shown that, compared with the previously calculated results, neutrinos-nucleus elastic scattering in stellar core collapses is more severe, leading to an obvious reduction of the neutrino leakage energy loss and an increase of supernova explosion energy.

The Guest Star of AD185 must have been a Supernova

The ＂guest star＂ of AD185, recorded in the ancient Chinese history the Houhanshu, has been widely regarded as a supernova. However, some authors have suggested that the guest star might have been a comet. It has also been proposed that the record is the concatenation of a nova with a comet made by an early compiler. We have checked the record of the guest star, comparing it with records of comets in the same history. We find that most descriptions of comets clearly indicate motion, whereas the record of the guest star does not. We further argue that the term ＂yan＂ used to describe the star＇s ＂size＂ might be short for yanchuang （seat bed）, and ＂half a yan＂ would be simply as an imaginary figuration of the ancient observer. Moreover, we show that the term ＂hou -year＂ （hou-nian） most probably means the year after next. We argue that the asterism Southern Gate consisted of the stars α andβ Cen. We conclude that the record describing the guest star of AD 185 is completely different from any comet record in the same history, and that it almost certainly was a supernova.

Supernova neutrinos in a strangeon star model

The neutrino burst detected during supernova SN 1987A is explained in a strangeon star model, in which it is proposed that a pulsar-like compact object is composed of strangeons （strangeon： an abbreviation for ＂strange nucleon＂）. A nascent strangeon star＇s initial internal energy is calculated, with the inclusion of pion excitation （energy around 1053 erg, comparable to the gravitational binding energy of a collapsed core）. A liquid-solid phase transition at temperature - 1 - 2 MeV may occur only a few tens of seconds after core collapse, and the thermal evolution of a strangeon star is then modeled. It is found that the neutrino burst observed from SN 1987A can be reproduced in such a cooling model.

A critique of supernova data analysis in cosmology

Observational astronomy has shown significant growth over the last decade and has made important contributions to cosmology. A major paradigm shift in cosmology was brought about by observations of Type Ia supernovae. The notion that the universe is accelerating has led to several theoretical challenges. Unfortunately, although high-quality supernovae data-sets are being produced, their statistical anal- ysis leaves much to be desired. Instead of using the data to directly test the model, several studies seem to concentrate on assuming the model to be correct and limiting themselves to estimating model parameters and internal errors. As shown here, the important purpose of testing a cosmological theory is thereby vitiated.