ROSAT observations of X-ray sources in globular clusters

We review the first observations of globular clusters obtained with the X-ray telescope on board of the ROSAT satellite. In the All-Sky Survey, all known bright sources and two new transient sources were detected. In addition a super-soft source was found in NGC5272. Concerning the dim sources, the survey suggests that those outside the core of ω Cen are not related to the cluster. The survey further improved by one or two magnitudes on many upper limits previously obtained by the HEAO-1 satellite. Pointed observations have improved the positional accuracy of a number of sources, and added to the number of known dim sources. In 47 Tuc, the known central source is resolved into 4 separate sources, which we argue are all soft X-ray transients. A comparison with observations of the old open cluster M67 leads us to suggest that some of the dim sources may be conglomerates of a large number of RS Can Ven type binaries.     

Compact X-ray binaries in and out of core collapsed globulars

We review new Chandra and HST observations of the core collapsed cluster NGC 6397 as a guide to understanding the compact binary (CB) populations in core collapse globulars. New cataclysmic variables (CVs) and main sequence chromospherically active binaries (ABs) have been identified, enabling a larger sample for comparison of the L_x, F_x/F_V and X-ray vs. optical color distributions. Comparison of the numbers of CBs with L_x  10³¹ erg s⁻¹ in 4 core collapse vs. 12 King model clusters reveals that the specific frequency S_X (number of CBs per unit cluster mass) is enhanced in core collapse clusters, even when normalized for their stellar encounter rate. Although core collapse is halted by the dynamical heating due to stellar (and binary) interaction with CBs in the core, we conclude that production of the hardest CBs – especially CVs – is enhanced during core collapse. NGC 6397 has its most luminous CVs nearest the cluster center, with two newly discovered very low luminosity (old, quiescent) CVs far from the core. The active binaries as well as neutron star systems (MSP and qLMXB) surround the central core. The overall CB population appears to be asymmetric about the cluster center, as in several other core collapse clusters observed with Chandra, suggesting still poorly understood scattering processes.     

XMM-Newton observations of faint X-ray sources in globular clusters

Using the new generation of X-ray observatories, we are now beginning to identify populations of close binaries in globular clusters, previously elusive in the optical domain because of the high stellar density. These binaries are thought to be, at least in part, responsible for delaying the inevitable core collapse of globular clusters and their identification is therefore essential in understanding the evolution of globular clusters, as well as being valuable in the study of the binaries themselves. Here, we present observations made with XMM-Newton of six globular clusters, in which we have identified neutron star low mass X-ray binaries and their descendants (millisecond pulsars), cataclysmic variables and other types of binaries. We discuss not only the characteristics of these binaries, but also their formation and evolution in globular clusters and their use in tracing the dynamical history of these clusters.     

Binary and millisecond radio pulsars

Recent pulsar surveys, especially those using the multibeam receiver on the Parkes radio telescope, have more than doubled the number of known pulsars, bringing the current total to about 1720. Of these, 171 have millisecond periods, 126 are members of binary systems and 99 are associated with globular clusters. Binary pulsars may be divided into several distinct groups depending on their observed properties such as pulsar period and age, binary period, eccentricity and companion mass. These groups all have different evolutionary histories. Correlations between the various properties are discussed using the increased samples now available. The Parkes Pulsar Timing Array is a project which has the goal of using timing observations of millisecond pulsars to make a direct detection of gravitational waves. The parameters and present status of the project are briefly discussed.     

ROSAT observations of galaxy clusters and cosmological implications

Clusters of galaxies are filled with a hot teneous plasma which is emitting soft X-rays over very extended regions. The ROSAT observatory with its high resolution and high sensitivity X-ray telescope allows to image nearby clusters in great detail and is therefore ideally suited to study the structure and morphology of galaxy clusters. In particular the distribution of the intracluster gas can be mapped, some information on the temperature structure of the gas can be obtained, the gravitational mass can be infered, and the dynamical state of the clusters can be investigated. Results of such studies for some nearby clusters as Virgo, Perseus and Coma are presented. Gas mass fractions of the total gravitational mass of the cluster in excess of 10 to 15% are infered from X-ray observations where the cluster emission can be traced out to an Abell radius (3 Mpc). If these values are taken to be representative for the matter composition in the Universe it has interesting consequences for cosmology as for example for the nucleosythesis models and the mean density of the Universe.     

ROSAT observations of nearby galaxies

First results of pointed and All Sky Survey observations of galaxies with the X-ray observatory satellite ROSAT are reported. During observations of the Magellanic Clouds and the Andromeda galaxy new super-soft X-ray sources have been detected. This new class of luminous X-ray sources may help to solve the millisecond pulsar progenitor problem. Due to the improved sensitivity and longer observation times of ROSAT new X-ray point sources have been resolved in several nearby galaxies. The diffuse emission of the LMC that was already reported by EINSTEIN has been mapped in detail. It shows a lot of fine structure and temperatures around 5 × 10⁶ K. The improved low energy response of ROSAT led to the discovery of 10⁶ K gas from the spiral galaxy M101 and the halo of the starburst galaxy NGC 253. No diffuse emission was detected from the halo of the edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 5907.     

The ROSAT view of the cataclysmic variable sky

The ROSAT All-Sky Survey has for the first time permitted a synoptic view of the soft X-ray sky with high sensitivity. In this paper, we discuss the X-ray properties of known cataclysmic variables (CVs) as observed in the Survey and present a status report on programs to identify CVs among the newly discovered ROSAT X-ray sources. Of 170 CVs with known orbital period, 92 were detected in the Survey and 22 of these fall in the bright-source category with more than 0.5 PSPC cts/s. Among the new bright sources, so far 19 have been identified as CVs and 3 as CV candidates, about doubling the census. We present spectra and light curves of known and new systems and discuss the origin of the X-ray emission in the different subclasses of CVs.     

Pulsars and their nebulae as EGRET sources

At the end of the EGRET mission, only 6–8 Galactic sources had been identified as young pulsars. Since then, several energetic pulsars have been detected in EGRET error boxes along the Galactic plane, as well as several pulsar wind nebulae from which pulsations have not yet been discovered. Some of these nebulae are associated with moderately variable EGRET sources, suggesting that the γ-ray emission might be coming from the nebula rather than from the pulsar magnetosphere. There is also a population of unidentified EGRET sources at mid-Galactic latitudes which have been proposed to be either nearby middle-aged pulsars or millisecond pulsars. I review the current status of observational studies of pulsars associated with EGRET sources and what they suggest the upcoming AGILE and GLAST γ-ray missions might observe.     

Globular cluster origin of X-ray bursters

X-ray bursters and galactic bulge x-ray sources, or the most luminous x-ray sources in the galaxy, are reasonably well constrained in their basic nature but not in their origin. We have suggested they may all have been produced by tidal capture in high density cores of globular clusters, which have now largely been disrupted by tidal stripping and shocking in the galactic plane. General arguments are presented for cluster disruption by the possible ring of giant molecular clouds in the Galaxy. Tests of the cluster disruption hypothesis are in progress and preliminary results are summarized here. The G-K star “companions” previously noted for at least 4 bursters have spectra (in the two cases observed) consistent with metal rich cluster giants. Several possibilities are discussed, including the formation of hierarchical triples in the dissolving cluster or in the galactic plane.     

X-ray diagnostics of globular clusters

The presence of compact X-ray sources in globular clusters allows diagnostic studies of both the X-ray sources themselves and the globular clusters to be carried out. A review of much of this work, primarily based on Einstein X-ray observations and supporting studies of globular clusters at radio through UV wavelengths, is presented. The compact X-ray sources in globular clusters are found to be compact binaries containing neutron stars and - in a separate lower luminosity component of an apparently bimodal luminosity function - possibly white dwarfs. Implications for the formation and evolution of compact binary X-ray sources in globular clusters and in the galactic bulge are discussed. In particular, new evidence is presented that the galactic bulge sources may be compact binaries in the remnants of disrupted globular clusters.     

The ROSAT all-sky survey

The ROSAT (Röntgensatellit) X-ray astronomy satellite has completed the first all-sky X-ray and XUV survey with imaging telescopes. About 60,000 new X-ray and 400 new XUV /1/ sources were detected. This contribution will deal with preliminary results from the ROSAT ALL-SKY X-RAY SURVEY. The ROSAT diffuse and point-source X-ray skymaps, the positional accuracy obtained for the X-ray sources, and a few results from correlations performed with available catalogues in various energy bands like the Radio, Infrared, Visible, UV, and hard X-rays as well as identifications from optical follow-up observations are presented.     

毫秒脉冲星计时的多星观测

在评价脉冲星时研究发展趋势的基础上 ,讨论了基于毫秒脉冲星自转的脉冲星时间的短期特征和长期稳定度。并对影响其稳定度的因素作了初步分析。 5 0m射电望远镜计时观测的目的之一就是综合脉冲星时研究。对于 5 0m望远镜计时观测的选星和由多星观测进行综合脉冲星时研究中的数据分析问题进行了讨论。     

1E 1740.7-2942 revisited: Confirmation of its identification with the core of a double sided radio jet structure

After more than two years of successful in-orbit operations, the γ-ray coded aperture SIGMA telescope has accumulated 800 hours of live-time observations of the Galactic Center region, including the remarkable hard source identified with the X-ray source 1E 1740.7–2942. The long-term behavior of the soft γ-ray emission of 1E 1740.7–2942, as determined from the SIGMA survey, supplemented with previously available soft γ-ray data, leads to its identification with a singular radio source, which consists of a double sided radio jet emanating from a compact variable core whose variability is correlated with that of the soft γ-ray source. The compact radio core, which lies well inside the improved soft γ-ray (40–150 keV) error circle (27″ radius) derived from the high-resolution SIGMA survey, is also inside the ROSAT and TTM error circle derived respectively in the soft and hard X-ray bands.     

SIGMA/GRANAT observations of hard X-ray emission from type I X-ray bursters

Unlike black hole candidate systems, accreting neutron stars seem to encounter appreciable difficulties in emitting strong hard X-ray fluxes. However, in the catalogue of the hard X-ray sources detected by SIGMA, three sources are associated with type I X-ray bursters. In this paper, we review the present status of the SIGMA observations of these three X-ray burst sources, namely X 1724-308 in the globular cluster Terzan II, KS 1731-260, and GX 354+0.     

Interplanetary spacecraft navigation using pulsars

We demonstrate how observations of pulsars can be used to help navigate a spacecraft travelling in the solar system. We make use of archival observations of millisecond pulsars from the Parkes radio telescope in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method and highlight issues, such as pulsar spin irregularities, which need to be accounted for. We show that observations of four millisecond pulsars every seven days using a realistic X-ray telescope on the spacecraft throughout a journey from Earth to Mars can lead to position determinations better than ∼20 km and velocity measurements with a precision of ∼0.1 ms⁻¹.     

XMM-Newton observations of low luminosity Be/X-ray candidates

A small number of early Be stars exhibit X-ray luminosities intermediate between those typical of early type stars and those radiated by Be/X-ray binaries in the quiescent state. We report on XMM-Newton observations of two such Be stars, HD 161103 and SAO 49725 which were originally discovered in a systematic cross-correlation between the ROSAT all-sky survey and SIMBAD. The new observations confirm the X-ray luminosity detected by ROSAT (L_X  10³² erg s⁻¹) and the hardness of their X-ray spectra (thin thermal with kT  8–10 keV or power law with photon index of 1.7) which are both unusual for normal early type stars. We discuss the possible origin of this excess X-ray emission in the light of the models proposed for γ-Cas, magnetic disc-star interaction or accretion onto a compact companion object, neutron star or white dwarf, and compare the properties of these two sources with those of the new massive systems discovered in the XMM- Newton/SSC survey of the Galactic plane.     

X-ray filaments in cluster cooling flows

ROSAT HRI images were obtained for two clusters of galaxies which contain strong cooling flows, A2029 and 2A0335+096. These observations confirm that gas is cooling at rates of in A2029 and in 2A0335+096. In both clusters, the X-ray emission from the inner cooling flow regions (r 100 kpc) is very inhomogeneous, with the X-ray surface brightness being dominated by a number of X-ray emitting filaments. Using the crude spectral resolution of the HRI, we show that these filaments are the result of excess emission, rather than foreground X-ray absorption. Although there are uncertainties in the pointing, many of the X-ray features in the cooling flow region of 2A0335+096 correspond to features in H optical line emission. This indicates that the 10⁴ K gas originates through the cooling of hot X-ray emitting gas. The gas is the filaments is too dense to be in hydrostatic equilibrium, and it is likely that other forces such as rotation, turbulence, and magnetic fields influence the dynamical state of the gas. The filaments may be supported in part by magnetic fields and may be connected with the filaments of very strong Faraday rotation seen in several nearly cooling flows.     

Analysis of the ROSAT pointed observation of the hot DA white dwarf HS1234+4811

The ROSAT data of the hot DA white dwarf HS1234+4811 were analyzed in the framework of three different assumptions for the structure of the white dwarf's atmosphere. It could be excluded that the star has a homogeneously mixed photosphere consisting of helium and hydrogen only, but from ROSAT observations alone it is not possible to decide if the object has a stratified atmosphere with an ultrathin hydrogen layer (M_H ≈ 7 · 10⁻¹⁴M) on top of the He envelope or if heavier elements are responsible for the absorption in the soft X-ray region.     

X-ray emission from supernova remnants observed with ROSAT

Spectrally resolved X-ray images of galactic supernova remnants have been obtained both from the ROSAT all-sky survey and a number of pointed observations. There is substantial evidence for significant spatial variation in temperature, density and pressure across the older, thermal remnants like the Vela SNR, the Cygnus Loop and the North Polar Spur. Both the brightness distribution and the pressure variations observed point towards recently shocked interstellar clouds and filaments, which dominate the X-ray emission pattern. Across the Puppis-A SNR an arc-shaped absorption structure has been detected, which is demonstrated to be produced by cold gas located close to the shock front of the Vela SNR. Across IC443 a similar absorption pattern has been observed, which is created by a cold shell associated with a previously unknown, ROSAT discovered SNR, which lies in front of IC443. Finally, a statistically overview of the SNRs detected in the ROSAT all-sky survey is presented. About half of the catalogued radio remnants have been observed in the survey and another 90 sources have been found which are considered to be candidates of new SNRs.     

RHESSI observations of the coronal component ofsolar flare hard X-ray sources

In flares that occur behind the limb, the intense chromospheric (foot-point) part of the hard X-ray source is occulted, thus permitting good observations of the coronal component. Between 15 and 18 April 2002, RHESSI observed a series of small (GOES Class C) flares produced by the active region NOAA 9905 as it rotated behind the west limb. A preliminary analysis of the observed hard X-ray sources in the 17–18 April 2002 flares has confirmed that flare-associated sources of gradual 12–25 keV X-ray emission can exist in the corona at heights up to 27000 km.