New Astronomy Reviews最新文献

{"title":"Sublimation-driven dust activity of main-belt asteroids: Detection by spectral methods and analysis with numerical modeling of the reflectance spectra","authors":"Vladimir V. Busarev ,&nbsp;Elena V. Petrova","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101735","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101735","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We review the results of the spectrophotometric and multi-band photometric observations of main-belt asteroids aimed at searching for signs of sublimation-driven dust activity (SDA) and the analysis of these signs with numerical simulations of light scattering. The reflectance spectra of 17 main-belt asteroids out of 112 objects, which were observed near perihelion after 2012, exhibited the signs of activity as a temporary dust exosphere. Among these 17 asteroids, there are 12 primitive asteroids of C, F, B, P, and D spectral types with low-temperature mineralogy and a low geometric albedo (&lt;0.10) and 5 asteroids predominantly of X-type with mixed mineralogy and a relatively high geometric albedo (&gt;0.10). In our view, the most important result of these observations is that SDA was almost simultaneously detected in several asteroids for each of the observation periods, which apparently suggests that this phenomenon is frequent and widespread in the Solar System. We also discuss why in ground-based observations the spectral method is more sensitive than the direct imaging method in detecting the signs of a thin dust exosphere on main-belt asteroids. The registered reflectance spectra of asteroids were analyzed in comparison with numerically modeled spectra of an active asteroid enveloped by a dust exosphere containing particles of various composition and morphology. This comparison made it possible to obtain an insight into the properties of a formed temporary dust exosphere. Particularly, it has been found that the dust exosphere of an active asteroid may contain aggregate particles of different composition and structure rather than just homogenous submicron ice and dust particles. A relatively stable though temporary SDA in a primitive-type asteroid is apparently indicative of water-ice deposits located near the surface of the body. As our investigations suggest, on main-belt primitive asteroids, the mechanism of SDA often operates in conjunction with meteoroid impacts and the electrostatic field formed near the sunlit surface of the bodies. At the same time, flares and eruptive events on the Sun may considerably influence the shape and extension of the dust exosphere.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"102 ","pages":"Article 101735"},"PeriodicalIF":26.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145683902","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A review on fundamental bounds and estimators for photometry and astrometry of celestial point sources using array detectors, from first principles","authors":"Sebastián Espinosa ,&nbsp;Rene A. Mendez ,&nbsp;Jorge F. Silva ,&nbsp;Marcos Orchard","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101745","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101745","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Precise astrometric and photometric measurements of celestial point sources are fundamental to modern astronomy. These measurements, used to determine object positions, motions, and fluxes, are based on observational models that have evolved from empirical centroiding rules to rigorous probabilistic formulations at the pixel level. This review summarizes key contributions that formalized this transition and analyzes seminal works addressing both the theoretical limits and the empirical performance of estimators. Central to these developments is the derivation of fundamental bounds, such as the Cramér-Rao Lower Bound (CRLB), and the assessment of widely used estimators, including Maximum Likelihood (ML), Least Squares (LS), and Weighted Least Squares (WLS). These studies show that, while the CRLB sets a theoretical benchmark, practical estimators achieve it only under specific signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) regimes, with notable discrepancies in high-SNR conditions. Moreover, recent results demonstrate that jointly estimating source flux and background significantly improves photometric precision compared to sequential approaches. Looking ahead, the increasing complexity of astronomical surveys, driven by massive data volumes, dynamic observational conditions, and the integration of machine learning, poses new challenges to reliable inference. In this context, tools from statistical theory, including performance bounds and theoretically grounded estimators, remain critical to guide algorithm design and ensure robust astrometric and photometric pipelines.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"102 ","pages":"Article 101745"},"PeriodicalIF":26.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145652024","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Current opinions and trends in the search for extrasolar photosynthesis","authors":"Svetoslav Alexandrov ,&nbsp;Juliana Ivanova ,&nbsp;Kolyo Dankov","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101736","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101736","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The search for extrasolar photosynthetic life is one of the most important goals for modern astrobiology. Recent discoveries of cold brown dwarfs, as well as planets orbiting M-, G-, K-, and F-type main-sequence stars, have expanded opportunities to search for photosynthetic biosignatures within their habitable zones. This comprehensive review synthesizes current knowledge and emerging trends in the field. The paper addresses stellar variability and how spectral energy distribution influences potential pigment evolution and photoprotective adaptations, whether photosynthetic life could exist on peculiar exoworlds with specific illumination and surface conditions, as well as observational strategies with current and future telescopes. The goal of this work is to help researchers navigate the vast sea of knowledge by providing a strategic roadmap for prioritizing targets and interpreting potential biosignatures.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"102 ","pages":"Article 101736"},"PeriodicalIF":26.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145651958","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Spins of black holes in X-ray binaries and the tension with the gravitational wave measurements","authors":"Andrzej A. Zdziarski ,&nbsp;Grégoire Marcel ,&nbsp;Alexandra Veledina ,&nbsp;Aleksandra Olejak ,&nbsp;Debora Lančová","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101746","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101746","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We review current challenges in understanding the values and origins of the spins of black holes in binaries. Thanks to recent advances in astrophysical instrumentation, the spins can now be measured using both gravitational waves emitted by merging black holes and electromagnetic radiation from accreting X-ray binaries containing black holes. A key finding of the gravitational-wave observatories is that premerger black holes in binaries have low spin values, with an average dimensionless spin parameter of <em>a</em>_* ∼ 0.1–0.2, with 90% having <em>a</em>_* ≲ 0.6. This implies that the natal spins of black holes are generally low, and the angular momentum transport in massive stars is efficient. On the other hand, most of the published spins in X-ray binaries are very high, <em>a</em>_* ≳ 0.7. In particular, this is the case for binaries with high-mass donors (potential progenitors of mergers), where their published spins range from 0.8 to 1.0. At the same time, their short lifetimes prevent significant spin-up by accretion. Those with low-mass donors could be spun-up to <em>a</em>_* ≳ 0.5 by conservative accretion. Spins <em>a</em>_* ≳ 0.7 can be achieved only if the donor initial masses were more than several solar masses, which remains unproven. However, the existing methods of spin measurements suffer from significant systematic errors. The method relying on relativistic X-ray line broadening is based on the separation of the observed spectra into incident and reflected ones, which is intrinsically highly uncertain. The method relying on spectral fitting of accretion disk continua uses models that predict the disk to be highly unstable, while stability is observed. Improved stable models yield disk temperatures higher than the standard models, and consequently predict lower spins. The published spin measurements in X-ray binaries are uncertain. The spins of the binaries with high-mass donors may be low, while those with low-mass donors have a broader spin distribution, ranging from low to high, including high spins as required to power relativistic jets.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"102 ","pages":"Article 101746"},"PeriodicalIF":26.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146187971","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"What drives the growth of black holes: A decade of progress","authors":"D.M. Alexander ,&nbsp;R.C. Hickox ,&nbsp;J. Aird ,&nbsp;F. Combes ,&nbsp;T. Costa ,&nbsp;M. Habouzit ,&nbsp;C.M. Harrison ,&nbsp;R.I. Leng ,&nbsp;L.K. Morabito ,&nbsp;S.L. Uckelman ,&nbsp;P. Vickers","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101733","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101733","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The last decade has witnessed significant progress in our understanding of the growth of super-massive black holes (SMBHs). It is now clear that an Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN: the observed manifestation of a growing SMBH) is an “event” within the broader lifecycle of a galaxy, which can significantly influence the shape and evolution of the galaxy itself. Our view of the obscuring medium that affects the observed properties of an AGN has also undergone a revolution, and we now have a more physical understanding of the connection between the fuelling of (and feedback from) the SMBH and the broader host-galaxy and larger-scale environment. We have a greater understanding of the physics of SMBH accretion, can identify AGNs out to <span><math><mrow><mi>z</mi><mo>=</mo></mrow></math></span> 8–10 witnessing the very earliest phases of SMBH growth, and have a more complete census of AGN activity than ever before. This great progress has been enabled by new innovative facilities, an ever-increasing quantity of multi-wavelength data, the exploitation and development of new techniques, and greater community-wide engagement. In this article we review our understanding of AGNs and the growth of SMBHs, providing an update of the earlier Alexander and Hickox (2012) review. Using citation-network analyses we also show where this review fits within the broader black-hole research literature and, adopting the previous article as a snapshot of the field over a decade ago, identify the drivers that have enabled the greatest scientific progress.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"101 ","pages":"Article 101733"},"PeriodicalIF":26.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144907857","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Natal kicks of compact objects","authors":"Sergei Popov ,&nbsp;Bernhard Müller ,&nbsp;Ilya Mandel","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101734","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101734","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>When compact objects – neutron stars and black holes – are formed in a supernova explosion, they may receive a high velocity at formation, which may reach or even exceed <span><math><mrow><mn>1000</mn></mrow></math></span> km s⁻¹ for neutron stars and hundreds of km s⁻¹ for black holes. The origin of the velocity kick is intimately related to supernova physics. A better understanding of kick properties from astronomical observations will shed light on the unsolved problems of these explosions, such as the exact conditions leading to exotic electron capture and ultra-stripped supernovae.</div><div>Kick velocities are profoundly important in several areas of astrophysics. Being a result of supernova explosions, the kick velocity distribution must be explained in the framework of the supernova mechanism. The kick magnitudes and directions influence many topics related to binary systems, including the rate of compact object coalescences observable through gravitational waves. Moreover, knowledge of the kick velocity distribution is significant in predicting future observational results and their interpretation. For example, it is expected that the Roman space telescope will discover many microlensing events related to neutron stars and black holes; accurate estimates of the number of observable microlensing events require precise kinematic properties of these compact objects.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"101 ","pages":"Article 101734"},"PeriodicalIF":26.8,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145416160","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"High-redshift cosmology by Gamma-Ray Bursts: An overview","authors":"Giada Bargiacchi ,&nbsp;Maria Giovanna Dainotti ,&nbsp;Salvatore Capozziello","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2024.101712","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2024.101712","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Several correlations among Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) quantities, both in the prompt and afterglow emissions, have been established during the last decades, thus enabling the standardization of GRBs as cosmological probes. Since GRBs are observed up to redshift <span><math><mrow><mi>z</mi><mo>∼</mo><mn>9</mn></mrow></math></span>, they represent a valuable tool to fill in the gap of information on the Universe evolution between the farthest type Ia supernovae and the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation and to shed new light on the current challenging cosmological tensions. Without claiming for completeness, here we describe the state of the art of GRB correlations, their theoretical interpretations, and their cosmological applications both as standalone probes and in combination with other probes. In this framework, we pinpoint the importance of correcting the correlations for selection biases and redshift evolution to derive intrinsic relations, the assets of combining probes at different scales, and the need for the employment of the appropriate cosmological likelihood to precisely constrain cosmological parameters. Furthermore, we emphasize the benefits of the cosmographic approach to avoid any cosmological assumptions and the valuable applications of machine learning techniques to reconstruct GRB light curves and predict unknown GRB redshifts. Finally, we stress the relevance of all these factors, along with future observations, to definitely boost the power of GRBs in cosmology.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"100 ","pages":"Article 101712"},"PeriodicalIF":11.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142723769","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Stellar streams in the Gaia era","authors":"Ana Bonaca ,&nbsp;Adrian M. Price-Whelan","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2024.101713","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2024.101713","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The hierarchical model of galaxy formation predicts that the Milky Way halo is populated by tidal debris of dwarf galaxies and globular clusters. Due to long dynamical times, debris from the lowest mass objects remains coherent as thin and dynamically cold stellar streams for billions of years. The <em>Gaia</em> mission, providing astrometry and spectrophotometry for billions of stars, has brought three fundamental changes to our view of cold stellar streams in the Milky Way. First, more than a hundred stellar streams have been discovered and characterized using <em>Gaia</em> data. This is an order of magnitude increase in the number of well-measured streams, thanks to <em>Gaia</em>’s capacity for identifying comoving groups of stars among the field Milky Way population. Second, <em>Gaia</em> data have revealed that density variations both along and across stellar streams are common. Dark-matter subhalos, as well as baryonic structures were theoretically predicted to form such features, but observational evidence for density variations was uncertain before <em>Gaia</em>. Third, stream kinematics are now widely available and have constrained the streams’ orbits and origins. <em>Gaia</em> has not only provided proper motions directly, but also enabled efficient spectroscopic follow-up of the proper-motion selected targets. These discoveries have established stellar streams as a dense web of sensitive gravitational tracers in the Milky Way halo. We expect the coming decade to bring a full mapping of the Galactic population of stellar streams, as well as develop numerical models that accurately explain their evolution within the Milky Way for a variety of cosmological models. Perhaps most excitingly, the comparison between the two will be able to reveal the presence of dark-matter subhalos below the threshold for galaxy formation (<span><math><mrow><mo>≲</mo><mn>1</mn><msup><mrow><mn>0</mn></mrow><mrow><mn>6</mn></mrow></msup><mspace></mspace><msub><mrow><mi>M</mi></mrow><mrow><mo>⊙</mo></mrow></msub></mrow></math></span>), and provide the most stringent test of the cold dark matter paradigm on small scales.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"100 ","pages":"Article 101713"},"PeriodicalIF":11.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143146395","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"BBN-simple: How to bake a universe-sized cake","authors":"Aidan Meador-Woodruff ,&nbsp;Dragan Huterer","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101722","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101722","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN), the process of creation of lightest elements in the early universe, is a highly robust, precise, and ultimately successful theory that forms one of the three pillars of the standard hot-Big-Bang cosmological model. Existing theoretical treatments of BBN and the associated computer codes are accurate and flexible, but are typically highly technical and opaque, and not suitable for pedagogical understanding of the BBN. Here we present <span>BBN-simple</span> – a from-scratch numerical calculation of the lightest element abundances pitched at an advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate level. We review the physics of the early universe relevant for BBN, provide information about the reaction rates, and discuss computational-mathematics background that is essential in setting up a BBN calculation. We calculate the abundances of the principal nuclear species in a standard cosmological model, and find a reasonably good agreement with public precision-level BBN codes. A condensed version of this paper and associated snippets of computer code are given at <span><span>http://www-personal.umich.edu/~aidanmw/</span><svg><path></path></svg></span>.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"100 ","pages":"Article 101722"},"PeriodicalIF":11.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143147535","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Isolating Martian dust devils, dust storms, and water ice clouds through multi-satellite observations","authors":"Jagabandhu Panda ,&nbsp;Bijay Kumar Guha ,&nbsp;Anirban Mandal ,&nbsp;Claus Gebhardt ,&nbsp;Zhaopeng Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101723","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.newar.2025.101723","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Airborne dust and water ice clouds are the two major atmospheric constituents on Mars that have the most dynamic impact on its atmosphere. Airborne dust strongly alters atmospheric temperatures, therefore significantly impacting Martian weather and climate. Martian water ice clouds also have radiative impacts (both direct and via dust cycle feedbacks) and provide insight into the Martian water cycle and important questions about habitability and life. Satellite observations spanning more than two decades play a pivotal role in understanding the meteorological processes associated with airborne dust and water ice clouds on Mars. Therefore, this study reviews dust devils, dust storms, and water ice clouds with the help of imaging observations made by the sensors onboard different Mars orbiters. We discuss their characteristics, correlations, and inter-annual variation in general, in order to help support modeling and forecasting. The vertical distribution of dust and water ice and their dynamical, microphysical, and radiative interactions need more attention as well. The aim is to predict the thermal behavior of the atmosphere accurately, considering the complex interplay of dust and water ice forcing with temperature.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19718,"journal":{"name":"New Astronomy Reviews","volume":"100 ","pages":"Article 101723"},"PeriodicalIF":11.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143865223","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}