Calendar

Feb
12
mer
Visita-prova ESPIN2020
Feb 12@9:30–13:00
Seminario: Darius Modirrousta Galian (UNIPA), 12 Febbraio 2020 ore 15:00 Aula OAPA
Feb 12@15:00–16:30

Speaker: Darius Modirrousta Galian (UNIPA)

Titolo: Exploring Super-Earth Surfaces: Albedo of Near-Airless Magma Ocean Planets and Topography

Abstract:

In this paper we propose an analytic function for the bond albedo of an airless or near-airless magma ocean planet (AMOP). We generated multiple 100 m wide 1D fractal surfaces unto which we individually bombarded 10,000 light rays. Using an approximate form of the Fresnel equations we measured how much of the incident light was reflected. Having repeated this algorithm on varying surface roughnesses we find the albedo as a function of the Hurst exponent, the geochemical composition of the magma, and the wavelength. As a proof of concept, we used our model on Kepler-10 b to demonstrate the applicability of our equations. We present the albedos of different lava compositions and multiple tests that can be applied to observational data in order to determine the characteristics of the lava. When applied to Kepler-10 b we show that the high albedo could be caused by a moderately wavy ocean composed of oxidised metallic species such as FeO, Fe2O3, Fe3O4, and some silicates. This would imply that Kepler-10 b is a coreless or near-coreless body. However, since the uncertainty in albedo measurements is large there is a strong degeneracy in the surface composition.
Feb
19
mer
Seminario: S. Sciortino (INAF), ore 14:30 Aula Osservatorio
Feb 19@14:30–16:00

Speaker: Salvatore Sciortino (INAF)

Titolo: A prototype Palermo- Wavelet Detection Code for the
ATHENA WFI: investigating the effect on detection of telescope (or lack of) baffle
and other new challenges posed by very deep exposures of a large area telescope

Abstract:

I will discuss the motivations for and the initial results of a prototype
version of the so-called Pwedetect code for the Athena WFI.  I will discuss the
use of this prototype for assessing the effect of stray-light in the detection
of weak sources with Athena and results from an on-going extensive set of
simulations that have already pinpoint some of the new challenges that the WFI
poses with respect to the past and current generation of X-ray imaging detectors.

Feb
20
gio
Visite al Museo – Esperienza Insegna
Feb 20@8:30–13:30
SEMINARIO: Ileana Chinnici (INAF – OAPa) – Aula Osservatorio ore 15
Feb 20@15:00–16:30

Titolo:

Dalla Società degli Spettroscopisti Italiani alla Società Astronomica Italiana: storia della SAIt

Abstract:

Cent’anni fa, nel 1920, nel corso di una riunione tenutasi all’Accademia dei Lincei, nasceva la Società Astronomica Italiana, come risultato della trasformazione della Società degli Spettroscopisti Italiani. In questo talk saranno ripercorsi i passaggi salienti che hanno portato alla nascita della SAIt, con un breve excursus sui suoi primi cinquant’anni di vita.

Feb
21
ven
Visite al Museo – Esperienza Insegna
Feb 21@8:30–13:30
Mar
4
mer
Tirocinio UNIPA – Restauro beni culturali @ Museo della Specola
Mar 4@14:00–19:00
Mar
20
ven
Esame PhD Antonio Garrido Rubio
Mar 20@9:00–13:00
Mag
14
gio
Seminario in videoconferenza: Giada Genua, 14 Maggio ore 15.00
Mag 14@15:00–16:30

ID Google Meet: >>> https://meet.google.com/sxz-cctp-tsc <<<

 

Speaker: Giada Genua

Titolo: Tutela, conservazione e restauro dei beni librari del fondo Piazzi, presso la Specola Universitaria di Palermo: primi risultati di un progetto di ricerca

 

Abstract:

Nel seminario verranno presentati i primi risultati del lavoro di conservazione e restauro attualmente in corso sui libri del fondo Piazzi, cioè la collezione libraria di proprietà del fondatore dell’Osservatorio Astronomico, lasciati in eredità all’istituto alla sua morte; la collezione costituisce dunque il nucleo originario della biblioteca dell’Osservatorio.
Verranno descritte le altre attività di ricerca svolte in parallelo: lo sviluppo di un database relazionale dettagliato sui libri del Fondo, utile per la condivisione e l’implementazione di futuri studi sull’argomento e lo studio sulle carte decorate presenti sulle legature di molti dei libri della collezione. Si discuteranno inoltre le tracce presenti in biblioteca delle interessanti relazioni di Piazzi con la Stamperia Reale, un’altra istituzione creata sul finire del ‘700 come parte del rinnovamento culturale e scientifico di Palermo.
Questa attività fa parte di un più ampio progetto mirato allo studio della fondazione e delle prime fasi di vita dell’Osservatorio Astronomico.

Mag
18
lun
Seminario in videoconferenza: Emanuele Greco (UNIPA) 18 Maggio 2020 ore 15.00
Mag 18@15:00–16:30

>>> ID Google meet: meet.google.com/sxz-cctp-tsc  <<<

 

Speaker: Emanuele Greco (UNIPA)

Titolo: Unveiling pure-metal ejecta X-ray emission in supernova remnants through their radiative recombination

Abstract:

Spectral analysis of X-ray emission from ejecta in supernova remnants (SNRs) is hampered by the low spectral resolution of CCD detectors, which typically creates a degeneracy between the best-fit values of chemical abundances and the plasma emission measure. The combined contribution of shocked ambient medium and ejecta to the emerging X-ray emission further complicates the determination of the ejecta mass and chemical composition. This degeneracy leads to big uncertainties in mass estimates and can introduce a bias in the comparison between the ejecta chemical composition derived from the observations and the yields predicted by explosive nucleosynthesis models. We explore the capabilities of present and future spectral instruments with the aim of identifying a spectral feature which may allow us to discriminate between metal-rich and pure-metal plasmas in X-ray spectra of SNRs. We studied the behaviour of the most common X-ray emission processes of an optically thin plasma in the high-abundance regime. We investigated spectral features of bremsstrahlung, radiative recombination continua (RRC) and line emission, by exploring a wide range of chemical abundances, plasma temperatures and ionization parameters. We then synthesized X-ray spectra from a state-of-the-art 3D hydrodynamic (HD) simulation of Cas A, by using the response matrix from the Chandra ACIS-S CCD detector and that of the XRISM/Resolve X-ray calorimeter spectrometer. We found that a bright RRC shows up when the plasma is made of pure-metal ejecta, and a high spectral resolution is needed to actually identify this ejecta signature. We tested and verified the applicability of our novel diagnostic tool and we propose a promising target for the future detection of such spectral feature: the southeastern Fe-rich clump of Cas A. We found that, while there is no way to unambiguously reveal pure-metal ejecta emission with CCD detectors, X-ray calorimeters will be able to pinpoint the presence of pure-metal RRC and to recover correctly absolute mass and the chemical composition of the ejecta, opening a new window on the link progenitor-supernova-remnant.