NAIC AAS Exhibit Panels 2008 June AAS Meeting See overview for placement

Pre-Biotic Molecules in ULIRGs Methanimine molecule (credit: David Woon, HST Optical Image of Arp 220 (credit: ESA/NASA, C. Wilson) Weak C-band maser emission at 5.2 GHz from the methanimine (CH 2 NH) 1 10 –1 11 multiplet (the six transitions shown by vertical lines). Four hydrogen cyanide (HCN) transitions probed with four different AO receivers. The absorption found in three of them implies T ex ~ K. The L-band non-detection is likely due to free-free absorption in the foreground ISM. Arecibo’s sensitivity and frequency coverage enable detection of exotic molecules in distant galaxies. Salter et al. (2008) have found methanimine (CH 2 NH) and HCN in Arp 220, an ultra-luminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG) located ~ 80 Mpc away. C-high 6.7 GHz C-band 4.5 GHzL-wide 1.3 GHz X-band 9.4 GHz

Diffuse Atomic Gas Diffuse H I gas is revealed in all its glory by the Galactic ALFA (GALFA) H I sky survey, which has the resolution and sensitivity to map every IRAS dust filament in velocity space. The colors at left encode H I gas velocities. The blue arc at 23 h contains the MBM molecular cloud complex and shows its relation to the larger environment (Gibson et al. in prep).

Magneto-Ionic Medium Polarized 1400 MHz continuum emission traces magnetic field and electron density structure in the ambient ionized medium via Faraday rotation of the Galactic synchrotron background. This rich window on ISM physics is being explored in the GALFA Continuum Transit Survey (GALFACTS; Taylor et al.).

High-Velocity Clouds Arecibo is exploring the Galactic halo in great detail. ABOVE: GALFA detects fragmentation of the Magellanic Stream (Stanimirovic et al. 2008; larger HIPASS map from Putman et al. 2003). LEFT: GALFA can also use individual high-velocity clouds with surprisingly sharp H I edges to probe the properties of the Galactic halo environment (Peek et al. 2006).

High-Sensitivity VLBI Arecibo adds precious sensitivity to VLBI observations. With Arecibo, the VLBA is 4.5 times more sensitive! (Day & Momjian 2005) For this reason, Arecibo is a key member of the High-Sensitivity Array (HSA) using the VLBA, phased VLA, GBT 100m, and Effelsberg 100m. + Example: Arecibo + VLA + VLBA observations of 1.4 GHz continuum and H I absorption toward the LIRG NGC 7674 with z = Angular resolution is 5 x 10 milliarcseconds. The lack of absorption on the west side suggests that emission lobe extends in front of the absorbing screen, as illustrated at bottom (Momjian et al. 2003).

Planetary Radar Finds Double & Triple Asteroids and Comets Five time-integrated Arecibo planetary radar images of 2001 SN263, the first triple asteroid ever seen in near- Earth orbit. The large object in each image is the primary. The secondary and tertiary bodies have relative spacings similar to stable triple star systems (courtesy M. Nolan). ~ 4 km~2 d (orb)~0.4 kmTertiary > 15 km~7 d (orb)~1 kmSecondary 3.4 h (rot)~2 kmPrimary Mean sep PeriodDiameterComponent Time sequence V Doppler Distance from Earth Time sequence V Doppler Distance Four radar snapshots of Comet 8P/Tuttle at 20 minute intervals, showing either a peanut- shaped nucleus or a contact-binary structure. Component diameters are 3 and 4 km, and the orbital period is 7.7 hours (J. Harmon). 0 min20 min40 min60 min Feb 13Feb 14Feb 18Feb 21Feb

Search for Exotic Pulsars LEFT: Arecibo’s high frequency resolution allows discovery of distant millisecond pulsars (MSPs) through the fog of pulse-dispersing ionized gas. BELOW LEFT: First eccentric binary MSP in the Galaxy! The non-circular orbit raises interesting questions for stellar evolution in binary systems (Champion et al. 2008, in Science Express). BELOW RIGHT: Massive MSPs in globular clusters like M5 and NGC 6440 imply black holes may be less common and constrain the equation of state for superdense matter (Freire et al. 2008). Typical pulsar mass range

H I in the Nearby Universe Arecibo allows a thorough H I census of the Virgo cluster (orange shows X-ray emission). Arecibo Fast Legacy ALFA (ALFALFA) detections are marked in blue; those without optical counterparts have red stars (Kent et al. 2007; Giovanelli 2008). Deep Arecibo observations of the Coma- Abell 1367 supercluster, which has a “finger of God” optical redshift distribution (red circles), finds no similar clumping of H I emission (black dots; Cortese et al. 2008, Arecibo Galaxy Environment Survey).

NAIC Predoctoral Research Use previous exhibit panel.

NSF-REU Summer Research Assistantships Use previous exhibit panel with revised title above. Tony has updated photos.

Outreach Use previous exhibit panel on the Angel Ramos Foundation Visitor Center. If this includes attendance numbers, make sure these are consistent with panel on Inspiration to Science Any updated photos?

Inspiration to Science NAIC/Cornell collaboration with Puerto Rico Department of Education Brings 43,000 extra students per year to the Angel Ramos Visitor Center –Previously got 25,000 students + 75,000 tourists per year –New program more than doubles student outreach component Structured educational activities –Talks by scientists & engineers –Hands-on workshops on physics, engineering, and communication –Focused offerings for four different age groups: K-3, 4-6, 7-9, & All materials, admission, & transportation paid by program, giving all students on the island an equal opportunity to participate