At previous meetings of the A.S.A., brief reports have been made of a new theory for the formation of the solar system which is being developed at Monash University (Prentice 1972, 1977, 1978a, b; Hourigan 1977). This work is nearing completion and on this occasion an outline of the whole theory is presented.

The effect of impulsively turning off the dissipation in an existing model for energy propagation through Alfvénic fronts into the coronal site of energy release in a solar flare is examined. In the optimum case of impedance matching, the flux tube re-stresses on a much longer timescale than it relaxes, suggesting an explanation for the timescales observed in homologous flares.

A study has been made of the upper main-sequence stars in several young clusters, in an attempt to determine a well-defined effective temperature scale for the B stars, and to compare the observed atmospheric parameters with the recent theoretical evolutionary tracks in the H-R diagram (Iben, 1965, Hofmeister et al, 1964, Kippenhahn et al., 1965). Each of the clusters studied contains at least one peculiar A star of the Si λ-4200 type, and this afforded an excellent opportunity for a study of the evolution of these stars.

We present H-band observations of the elliptical galaxy NGC 4696, the brightest member of the Centaurus cluster of galaxies. We have measured its light profile, using a two-dimensional fitting algorithm, out to a radius of 180 arcsec (37 h70−1 kpc). The profile is well described by a de Vaucouleurs law, with an effective radius of 35.3 ± 1.0 h70−1 kpc. There is no need for the extra free parameter allowed by a Sérsic law. Allowing for a variation of 0.3% in the sky level, the profile obtained is compatible with data from the Two-Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS). The profile shows no sign of either a truncation or an extended halo.

A novel algorithm is proposed for the sky subtraction of the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) based on two-dimensional sky background modeling. Different from the standard fiber spectrum data processing techniques, a two-dimensional sky background model can be obtained with the new algorithm and sky subtraction can now be performed as an earlier step, before the spectrum extraction. In this study, experiments are performed on simulated data based on the LAMOST project to analyze the accuracy and the effectiveness. The results show that the proposed algorithm can give a more effective sky subtraction than the method that is currently used for LAMOST.

It is now generally accepted that the remnants of supernovae (SNRs) are of two types, recognizable by their radio structure and spectral index. To date most of the radio sources identified as SNRs are of the easily identified shell type. These have spectral indices a of -0.5 ±0.2 and exhibit some degree of annular brightness distribution — the projection of the radio shell. The second type, e.g. the Crab Nebula, have filled structures and relatively flat (a = -0.1 ±0.1) spectral indices. The relatively strong radio polarization exhibited by some members of this class has led to their identification but generally they tend to be hidden amongst the HII regions in our galaxy.

We consider the effect of a velocity gradient on the source function for a spectral line formed in an atmosphere in non local thermodynamic equilibrium, a problem examined previously by Kulander and Hummer and Rybicki. A numerical method is used which extends the Feautrier technique.

Sources of the Type I storms are thought to lie on closed magnetic loop systems above bipolar sunspots. Usually one sunspot is stronger than the other in the bipolar magnetic structure, and accordingly only one radio source associated with the stronger sunspot is usually observed. Occasionally however a double radio source is observed in conjunction with the bipolar sunspots. In such a case the double radio source should be intrinsically bipolar, viz. the two components should emit opposite senses of circular polarization (in this paper we use the word polarity for simplicity).

The TAURUS Tunable Filter (TTF) affords a new approach to observational cosmology, allowing a wide field (10 arcmin) to be imaged monochromatically in contiguous wavelength intervals (6–60 Å bandpass) over the R and I bands. In a 200 s exposure with the AAT, the TTF can detect Hα emission powered by star formation rates as low as 0·1 M⊙ yr−1 at z = 0·08 and 1 M⊙ yr−1 at z = 0·24 in 2 arcsec seeing (cf. 0·26 M⊙ yr−1 for the LMC). In this paper we describe an emission-line survey currently under way using the TTF on the AAT to detect redshifted Hα over the ranges z = 0·06–0·1 and z = 0·22–0·26. Such detections will be of timely interest to the Southern HI Sky Survey which is motivated along similar lines.

We use Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph integral Field Unit observations of the inner 285 × 400 pc2 region of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 5643 to map the [S iii]λ9069 emission line flux distribution and kinematics, as well as the stellar kinematics, derived by fitting the Ca iiλλλ8498,8542,8662 triplet, at a spatial resolution of 45 pc. The stellar velocity field shows regular rotation, with a projected velocity of 100 km s−1 and kinematic major axis along a position angle of –36°. A ring of low stellar velocity dispersion values (∼70 km s−1), attributed to young/intermediate age stellar populations, is seen surrounding the nucleus with a radius of 50 pc. We found that the [S iii] flux distribution shows an elongated structure along the east–west direction and its kinematics is dominated by outflows within a bi-cone at an ionised gas outflow rate of 0.3 M⊙ yr−1. In addition, velocity slices across the [S iii]λ9069 emission line reveal a kinematic component attributed to rotation of gas in the plane of the galaxy.

Recent history in South Africa has created unique problems in many areas. As a result of an unequal educational structure, particularly in science, there is a general lack of science literacy and awareness. Some years ago the South African Astronomical Observatory started a Science Education Initiative as a contribution to addressing this problem by using astronomy as a vehicle to stimulate an interest in science amongst teachers and students. This programme was given a boost by the South African government in 1998 and the construction of the Southern African Large Telescope will provide further stimulus to the Science Education Initiative.

The radio signal transmitted by the Mars Express (MEX) spacecraft was observed regularly between the years 2013–2020 at X-band (8.42 GHz) using the European Very Long Baseline Interferometry (EVN) network and University of Tasmania’s telescopes. We present a method to describe the solar wind parameters by quantifying the effects of plasma on our radio signal. In doing so, we identify all the uncompensated effects on the radio signal and see which coronal processes drive them. From a technical standpoint, quantifying the effect of the plasma on the radio signal helps phase referencing for precision spacecraft tracking. The phase fluctuation of the signal was determined for Mars’ orbit for solar elongation angles from 0 to 180 deg. The calculated phase residuals allow determination of the phase power spectrum. The total electron content of the solar plasma along the line of sight is calculated by removing effects from mechanical and ionospheric noises. The spectral index was determined as $-2.43 \pm 0.11$ which is in agreement with Kolmogorov’s turbulence. The theoretical models are consistent with observations at lower solar elongations however at higher solar elongation ($>$160 deg) we see the observed values to be higher. This can be caused when the uplink and downlink signals are positively correlated as a result of passing through identical plasma sheets.

We present simulated AXAF spectra of accreting white dwarfs, using parameters appropriate for magnetic cataclysmic variables. The very high spectral resolution that can be obtained with the High-Energy Transmission Grating of AXAF can resolve the keV X-ray emission lines that characterise the temperature, density and velocity profiles of the shock-heated emission regions of these systems. These simulations demonstrate that actual spectra will allow us to place constraints on the white-dwarf mass and the accretion rate of the systems. The high-resolution spectra also allow the measurement of the velocity of the accretion flow in regions close to the white-dwarf surface.

Timing measurements of periodic X-ray pulses from two ultrashort-period double degenerate binaries, RX J1914+24 and RX J0806+15, show that the rates of change of their orbital periods are consistent with gravitational radiation losses. This contradicts the predictions of models which invoke mass transfer between the two white dwarfs. The X-ray emission is, therefore, unlikely to be powered by accretion processes. The unipolar inductor model explains the source of X-ray emission as electrical dissipation at the base of a flux tube, which connects the magnetic white dwarf to its companion. This model is most consistent with the observed X-ray pulse properties. A similar current system exists in the Jupiter–Io system, where a mildly relativistic electron current produces an auroral footprint at the base of the Io flux tube and highly polarized beamed radio emission by means of the electron cyclotron maser mechanism. Detection of radio emission from RX J1914+24 and RX J0806+15 would thus provide further support for the unipolar inductor model. We present theoretical predictions, based on a loss-cone-driven electron cyclotron maser model, of radio fluxes from systems with parameters similar to RX J1914+24 and RX J0806+15.

The mean abundances of Mg, Si, Ca, Ti, Cr, and Fe based on both strong and weak lines of α Cen A are determined by matching the observed line profiles with those synthesised from stellar atmospheric models and comparing these results with a similar analysis for the Sun. There is good agreement between the abundances from strong and weak lines.

Strong lines should generally be an excellent indicator of abundance and far easier to measure than the weak lines normally used. Until the development of the Anstee, Barklem, and O'Mara (ABO) theory for collisional line broadening, the uncertainty in the value of the damping constant prevented strong lines being used for abundance determinations other than in close differential analyses.

We found that α Cen A has a mean overabundance of 0.12 ± 0.06 dex compared to solar mean abundances. This result agrees remarkably well with previous studies that did not use strong lines or the ABO theory for collisional line broadening. Our result supports the conclusion that reliable abundances can be derived from strong lines provided this new theory for line broadening is used to calculate the van der Waals damping.

We present an analysis of the scientific (refereed) paper productivity of the current largest (diameter > 8m) ground-based optical (and infrared) telescopes during the ten-year period from 2000 to 2009. The telescopes for which we have gathered and analysed the scientific publication data are the two 10-m Keck telescopes, the four 8.2-m Very Large Telescopes (VLT), the two 8.1-m Gemini telescopes, the 8.2-m Subaru telescope, and the 9.2-m Hobby–Eberly Telescope (HET). We have analysed the numbers of papers published in various astronomical journals produced by using these telescopes. While the total numbers of papers from these observatories are largest for the VLT, followed by Keck, Gemini, Subaru, and HET, the number of papers produced by each component of the telescopes is largest for Keck, followed by VLT, Subaru, Gemini, and HET. In 2009, each telescope of the Keck, VLT, Gemini, Subaru, and HET observatories produced 135, 109, 93, 107, and 5 refereed papers, respectively. We have shown that each telescope of the Keck, VLT, Gemini, and Subaru observatories is producing 2.1 ± 0.9 Nature and Science papers annually and these papers make up 1.7 ± 0.8% of all refereed papers produced by using each of those telescopes. Extending this relation, we propose that this ratio of the number of Nature and Science papers to the total number of refereed papers that will be produced by future extremely large telescopes (ELTs) will remain similar. From a comparison of the publication trends of the above telescopes, we suggest that (i) having more than one telescope of the same kind at the same location and (ii) increasing the number of instruments available at the telescope are good ways to maximize the paper productivity.

We presented the first photometric and orbital period investigations for four W Ursae Majoris-type binaries: V473 And, V805 And, LQ Com, and EG CVn. The photometric solutions suggested that V805 And and LQ Com are two total-eclipse contact binaries, while V473 And and EG CVn are partial-eclipse ones. V473 And and LQ Com belong to the A-subtype contact binaries, while V805 And and EG CVn belong to the W subtype. The O’Connell effects found in the light curves of V805 And, LQ Com, and EG CVn can be interpreted as a result of a cool spot on the surface of their less massive and hotter primary components. Based on two different methods, the absolute physical parameters were properly determined. Combining the eclipse timings derived from our observations and survey’s data with those collected from literature, we investigated their orbital period variations. The results show that the orbital periods of V473 And, V805 And, and EG CVn are undergoing a secular decrease/increase superposed a periodic variation, while LQ Com exhibits a possible cyclic period variation with a small amplitude. The secular period changes are caused mainly by the mass transfer between two components, while the cyclic period oscillations may be interpreted as the results of either the light-time effect due to the third body or the cyclic magnetic activity. Finally, we made a statistical investigation for nearly 200 contact binaries with reliable physical parameters. The statistical results suggested that the W-subtype systems are more evolved than the A-subtype ones. Furthermore, the evolutionary direction of A-subtype into W-subtype systems is also discussed. The opposite evolutionary direction seems to be unlikely because it requires an increase of the total mass, the orbital angular momentum, and the temperature differences between two components of a binary system.

Compton scattering in the bulk accretion flow of the accretion column in magnetic cataclysmic variables can significantly shift photon energies in the X-ray emission lines resulting from accretion shocks. In particular, Compton recoil can potentially broaden the 6.7 and 6.97 keV Fe Kα emission lines produced in the post-shock region, and contaminate the fluorescent 6.4 keV neutral Fe Kα line reflected off the white dwarf surface. We present nonlinear Monte Carlo simulations demonstrating these effects, and we discuss the interpretation of observed Fe Kα linewidths in magnetic cataclysmic variables in light of these new results. The implications for other accreting compact objects are also discussed.

We have secured spectra at high signal/noise ratio in a grid of points across the entire Homunculus Nebula surrounding the peculiar, massive star η Carinae. The data cover the wavelength range 420–1000 nm. Included are parts of the outer nebulosity dating from a prehistoric ejection episode. At a spatial resolution of about 1 arcsec we find dramatic differences in emission Ime ratios and profiles, sometimes in adjacent resolution elements.

The results of a new imaging survey of 68 bright (mv < 18) high redshift (z > 0.7) quasars are presented. The distribution of celestial distances between the quasars and the nearest galaxy neighbours shows an excess at small separations (< 15 arcseconds) significant at the 99.96% level. The redshifts of these galaxies are not known, so two interpretations are possible. If the galaxies are in groups physically associated with the quasars then they must be significantly brighter (> 3 magnitudes) than normal M* galaxies at the present epoch. Alternatively, this may be the result of a bias caused by gravitational amplification of background quasars by compact lenses in the halos of the nearest neighbour (foreground) galaxies. Of the present sample, 25% of the quasars have extra galaxies. If this is caused by a gravitational lensing bias, then, allowing for incompleteness, the results imply that as many as 60% of bright quasars may be gravitationally lensed.