Luminous water maser emission in the 616–523 line at 22GHz has been detected from two dozen galaxies. In all cases the emission is confined to the nucleus and has been found only in AGN, in particular, in Type 2 Seyferts and LINERs. I argue that most of the observed megamaser sources are powered by X-ray irradiation of dense gas by the central engine. After briefly reviewing the physics of these X-Ray Dissociation Regions, I discuss in detail the observations of the maser disk in NGC 4258, its implications, and compare alternative models for the maser emission. I then discuss the observations of the other sources that have been imaged with VLBI to date, and how they do or do not fit into the framework of a thin, rotating disk, as in NGC 4258. Finally, I briefly discuss future prospects, especially the possibility of detecting other water maser transitions.

Preliminary site testing results at Dome C (Antarctica) are presented, using both Automatic Weather Station (AWS) meteorological data (1986–1993) and Precipitable Water Vapour (PWV) measurements made by the authors. A comparison with the South Pole and other sites is made. The South Pole is a well established astrophysical observing site, where extremely good conditions are reported for a large fraction of time during the year. Dome C, where Italy and France are building a new scientific station, is a potential observing site in the millimetre and submillimetre range. AWS are operating at both sites and they have been continuously monitoring temperature, pressure and wind speed and direction for more than ten years. Site testing instruments are already operating at the South Pole (AASTO, Automated Astrophysical Site-Testing Observatory), while light experiments have been running at Dome C (APACHE, Antarctic Plateau Anisotropy CHasing Experiment) during summertime. A direct comparison between the two sites is planned in the near future, using the AASTO. The present analysis shows that the average wind speed is lower at Dome C (∼1 ms−1) than at the South Pole (∼2 ms−1), while temperature and PWV are comparable.

We review existing smoothed particle hydrodynamics setup methods and outline their advantages, limitations, and drawbacks. We present a new method for constructing initial conditions for smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations, which may also be of interest for N-body simulations, and demonstrate this method on a number of applications. This new method is inspired by adaptive binning techniques using weighted Voronoi tessellations. Particles are placed and iteratively moved based on their proximity to neighbouring particles and the desired spatial resolution. This new method can satisfy arbitrarily complex spatial resolution requirements.

A large scale 12CO J = 1 → 0 molecular line map of the Carina molecular cloud complex was obtained with the Mopra radio telescope in order to investigate its spatial and kinematic structure. The data show a complex velocity structure in two distinct cloud regions — the Northern and Southern Carina clouds. Two different clump identification methods (GAUSSCLUMPS and CLUMPFIND) were applied to the data. Though both algorithms find a similar clump mass spectral index (1.95 and 1.8, respectively), the properties of the clumps (mass, size, virial equilibrium) differ significantly. We discuss possible explanations for this discrepancy and question the validity of the Larson relations which could be an artifact of the limited spatial resolution and dynamic range of the observations.

In this paper, we introduce Nicil: Non-Ideal magnetohydrodynamics Coefficients and Ionisation Library. Nicil is a stand-alone Fortran90 module that calculates the ionisation values and the coefficients of the non-ideal magnetohydrodynamics terms of Ohmic resistivity, the Hall effect, and ambipolar diffusion. The module is fully parameterised such that the user can decide which processes to include and decide upon the values of the free parameters, making this a versatile and customisable code. The module includes both cosmic ray and thermal ionisation; the former includes two ion species and three species of dust grains (positively charged, negatively charged, and neutral), and the latter includes five elements which can be doubly ionised. We demonstrate tests of the module, and then describe how to implement it into an existing numerical code.

In this review article, we discuss selected developments regarding the role of the equation of state in simulations of core-collapse supernovae. There are no first-principle calculations of the state of matter under supernova conditions since a wide range of conditions is covered, in terms of density, temperature, and isospin asymmetry. Instead, model equation of state are commonly employed in supernova studies. These can be divided into regimes with intrinsically different degrees of freedom: heavy nuclei at low temperatures, inhomogeneous nuclear matter where light and heavy nuclei coexist together with unbound nucleons, and the transition to homogeneous matter at high densities and temperatures. In this article, we discuss each of these phases with particular view on their role in supernova simulations.

Before and after every 12 hour synthesis observation, the Molonglo Observatory Synthesis Telescope (MOST) measures the flux densities of ∼5 compact extragalactic radio sources, chosen from a list of 55 calibrators. From 1984 to 1996, the MOST made some 58,000 such measurements. We have developed an algorithm to process this dataset to produce a light curve for each source spanning this thirteen-year period. We find that 18 of the 55 calibrators are variable, on time scales between one and ten years. There is the tendency for sources closer to the Galactic Plane to be more likely to vary, which suggests that the variability is a result of refractive scintillation in the Galactic interstellar medium. The sources with the flattest radio spectra show the highest levels of variability, an effect possibly resulting from differing orientations of the radio axes to the line of sight.

We have performed large-scale nucleosynthesis calculations within the high-entropy-wind (HEW) scenario of Type II supernovae. The primary aim was to constrain the conditions for the production of the classical ‘p-only’ isotopes of the light trans-Fe elements. We find, however, that for electron fractions in the range 0.458 ≤ Ye ≤ 0.478, sizeable abundances of p-, s- and r-process nuclei between 64Zn and 98Ru are coproduced in the HEW at low entropies (S ≤ 100) by a primary charged-particle process after an α-rich freezeout. With the above Ye–S correlation, most of the predicted isotopic abundance ratios within a given element, e.g. 64Zn(p)/70Zn(r) or 92Mo(p)/94Mo(p), as well as of neighboring elements, e.g. 70Ge(s + p)/74Se(p) or 74Se(p)/78Kr(p) agree with the observed Solar-System ratios. Taking the Mo isotopic chain as a particularly challenging example, we show that our HEW model can account for the production of all 7 stable isotopes, from ‘p-only’ 92Mo, via ‘s-only’ 96Mo up to ‘r-only’ 100Mo. Furthermore, our model is able to reproduce the isotopic composition of Mo in presolar SiC X-grains.

IR spectroscopy in the range 12–230 μm with the SPace IR telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics (SPICA) will reveal the physical processes governing the formation and evolution of galaxies and black holes through cosmic time, bridging the gap between the James Webb Space Telescope and the upcoming Extremely Large Telescopes at shorter wavelengths and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array at longer wavelengths. The SPICA, with its 2.5-m telescope actively cooled to below 8 K, will obtain the first spectroscopic determination, in the mid-IR rest-frame, of both the star-formation rate and black hole accretion rate histories of galaxies, reaching lookback times of 12 Gyr, for large statistically significant samples. Densities, temperatures, radiation fields, and gas-phase metallicities will be measured in dust-obscured galaxies and active galactic nuclei, sampling a large range in mass and luminosity, from faint local dwarf galaxies to luminous quasars in the distant Universe. Active galactic nuclei and starburst feedback and feeding mechanisms in distant galaxies will be uncovered through detailed measurements of molecular and atomic line profiles. The SPICA’s large-area deep spectrophotometric surveys will provide mid-IR spectra and continuum fluxes for unbiased samples of tens of thousands of galaxies, out to redshifts of z ~ 6.

The emission nebula around the subdwarf B (sdB) star PHL 932 is currently classified as a planetary nebula (PN) in the literature. Based on a large body of multi-wavelength data, both new and previously published, we show here that this low-excitation nebula is in fact a small Strömgren sphere (Hii region) in the interstellar medium around this star. We summarise the properties of the nebula and its ionizing star, and discuss its evolutionary status. We find no compelling evidence for close binarity, arguing that PHL 932 is an ordinary sdB star. We also find that the emission nebulae around the hot DO stars PG 0108 + 101 and PG 0109 + 111 are also Strömgren spheres in the ISM, and along with PHL 932, are probably associated with the same extensive region of high-latitude molecular gas in Pisces–Pegasus.

Pulsar Timing Array experiments exploit the clock-like behaviour of an array of millisecond pulsars, with the goal of detecting low-frequency gravitational waves. Pulsar Timing Array experiments have been in operation over the last decade, led by groups in Europe, Australia, and North America. These experiments use the most sensitive radio telescopes in the world, extremely precise pulsar timing models and sophisticated detection algorithms to increase the sensitivity of Pulsar Timing Arrays. No detection of gravitational waves has been made to date with this technique, but Pulsar Timing Array upper limits already contributed to rule out some models of galaxy formation. Moreover, a new generation of radio telescopes, such as the Five hundred metre Aperture Spherical Telescope and, in particular, the Square Kilometre Array, will offer a significant improvement to the Pulsar Timing Array sensitivity. In this article, we review the basic concepts of Pulsar Timing Array experiments, and discuss the latest results from the established Pulsar Timing Array collaborations.

The Carina Nebula is an extremely bright southern HII region embedded in a giant molecular cloud and contains some of the most massive stars known in our Galaxy. We are undertaking a multi-wavelength study of the Carina Nebula in order to examine the detailed kinematics and distribution of the molecular and ionised gas, and to look for further evidence of ongoing star formation. Here we present the results of the initial molecular cloud observations which were made by observing the 12CO(1−0) emission with the Mopra antenna. The observations reveal the clumpy morphology of the molecular gas, and allow us to identify many interesting regions for follow-up observations.

This project uses the 2MASS all-sky image database to study the structure of galaxies over a range of luminosities, sizes and morphological types. This first paper in this series will outline the techniques, reliability and data products to our surface photometry program. Our program will analyze all acceptable galaxies (meeting our criteria for isolation from companions and bright stars) from the Revised Shapley–Ames and Uppsala galaxy catalogs. Resulting photometry and surface brightness profiles are released using a transparent scheme of data storage which includes not only all the processed data but knowledge of the processing steps and calibrating parameters.

We briefly describe technical aspects and specifications of the new UKST Hα interference filter, which is probably the largest of its kind available in astronomy. Preliminary exposures show that the filter gives excellent imaging with high overall transmission and uniformity at Hα wavelengths. This is achieved over a circular area of about 305 mm diameter or about 5·7 degrees (the so called ‘clear aperture’). The prospects for the new UKST Hα survey of the southern Milky Way with this new filter are excellent.

Although originally classified as galaxies, Ultra-Compact Dwarfs (UCDs) have many properties in common with globular star clusters. The debate on the origin and nature of UCDs, and the recently discovered ultra-faint dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies which contain very few stars, has motivated us to as the question ‘What is a galaxy?’ Our aim here is to promote further discussion of how to define a galaxy and, in particular, what separates it from a star cluster. Like most previous definitions, we adopt the requirement of gravitationally bound stellar system as a minimum. In order to distinguish a dwarf galaxy from a globular cluster, we discuss other possible requirements, such as a minimum size, a long two-body relaxation time a satellite system, the presence of complex stellar populations and non-baryonic dark matter. We briefly mention the implications of the adoption of each of these definitions. Some special cases of objects with a ambiguous nature are also discussed. Finally, we give our favoured criteria, and in the spirit of ‘collective wisdom’, invite readers to vote on their prefered definition of a galaxy via a dedicated website.

The long term goal of large-scale chemical tagging is to use stellar elemental abundances as a tracer of dispersed substructures of the Galactic disk. The identification of such lost stellar aggregates and the exploration of their chemical properties will be key in understanding the formation and evolution of the disk. Present day stellar structures such as open clusters and moving groups are the ideal testing grounds for the viability of chemical tagging, as they are believed to be the remnants of the original larger star-forming aggregates. Until recently, high accuracy elemental abundance studies of open clusters and moving groups having been lacking in the literature. In this paper we examine recent high resolution abundance studies of open clusters to explore the various abundance trends and reasses the prospects of large-scale chemical tagging.

An exciting new theoretical result shows that observing suppression of dipole oscillation modes in red giant stars can be used to detect strong magnetic fields in the stellar cores. A fundamental facet of the theory is that nearly all the mode energy leaking into the core is trapped by the magnetic greenhouse effect. This results in clear predictions for how the mode visibility changes as a star evolves up the red giant branch, and how that depends on stellar mass, spherical degree, and mode lifetime. Here, we investigate the validity of these predictions with a focus on the visibility of different spherical degrees. We find that mode suppression weakens for higher degree modes with a reduction in the quadrupole mode visibility of up to 49%, and no detectable suppression of octupole modes, in agreement with theory. We find evidence for the influence of increasing mode lifetimes on the visibilities along the red giant branch, in agreement with previous independent observations. These results support the theory that strong internal magnetic fields cause suppression of non-radial modes in red giants. We also find preliminary evidence that stars with suppressed dipole modes on average have slightly lower metallicity than normal stars.

We present here the best of a series of models of the Magellanic stream. The dominant force in these models is gas drag. Gaseous cloudlets are torn from the bridge between the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds as the Magellanic system passes through a hot gaseous halo about our galaxy. The cloudlets are then stretched apart from each other by tidal and drag forces to form the Magellanic stream. Our best model closely reproduces the position of the stream on the sky and the run of radial velocities along the Magellanic stream. The agreement is almost as good as the best purely tidal model. In our best model the Magellanic system is only loosely bound to our galaxy and is on the first encounter with it. This overcomes some of the problems with purely tidal models. Our series of models indicate that there is a wide range of parameters that will produce a reasonable stream under the forces of gas drag and gravity.

We present new software to cross-match low-frequency radio catalogues: the Positional Update and Matching Algorithm. The Positional Update and Matching Algorithm combines a positional Bayesian probabilistic approach with spectral matching criteria, allowing for confusing sources in the matching process. We go on to create a radio sky model using Positional Update and Matching Algorithm based on the Murchison Widefield Array Commissioning Survey, and are able to automatically cross-match ~ 98.5% of sources. Using the characteristics of this sky model, we create simple simulated mock catalogues on which to test the Positional Update and Matching Algorithm, and find that Positional Update and Matching Algorithm can reliably find the correct spectral indices of sources, along with being able to recover ionospheric offsets. Finally, we use this sky model to calibrate and remove foreground sources from simulated interferometric data, generated using OSKAR (the Oxford University visibility generator). We demonstrate that there is a substantial improvement in foreground source removal when using higher frequency and higher resolution source positions, even when correcting positions by an average of 0.3 arcmin given a synthesised beam-width of ~ 2.3 arcmin.

Centaurus A (NGC 5128) is ideal for investigating the characteristics and role of gas in an earlytype galaxy in the presence of a radio-loud active nucleus. The different phases of the gas—hot (X-ray), warm (ionized), and cold (H i and molecular)—are all detected in this object and can be studied at very high spatial resolution, due to its proximity. This richness makes Centaurus A truly unique. Spatially, these gas structures span from the pc to the tens of kpc scale. Thus, they allow us to trace very different phenomena, from the formation and evolution of the host galaxy, to the interplay between nuclear activity and interstellar medium and the feeding mechanism of the central black hole. A lot of work has been done to study and understand the characteristics of the gas in this complex object, and the present paper summarizes what has been achieved so far.