Astronomische Nachrichten最新文献

{"title":"Sand Hill Optical Telescope (SHOT) for Space Surveillance and Tracking Observations","authors":"Bohuslav Matouš,&nbsp;Zdeněk Moravec","doi":"10.1002/asna.70077","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70077","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Sand hill optical telescope (SHOT) is an optical sensor dedicated mainly for space surveillance and tracking (SST) activities. The SHOT sensor is operated by the Teplice Observatory that is located 80 km north of Prague, Czech Republic. The SHOT sensor is designed in a manner allowing observations of all SST targets ranging from fast satellites in LEO, through geostationary satellites to near-Earth objects. The commanding SW allows autonomous operation of the SHOT sensor. It is capable to get an observation request, observing the object, processing the acquired images, and uploading the results during the night automatically. The precise astrometry results allowed it to participate in several ESA projects and became a part of the EU SST network. The paper describes the hardware and software setup of the sensor in detail as well as the observation process and the key difficulties.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148753463","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Feasibility Study for Application of Digitized Henize Mt. Wilson Michigan Southern Sky H\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 α\u0000 \u0000 $$ boldsymbol{alpha} $$\u0000 Survey Low-Dispersive Spectral Plates for Searches for Anomalous and Highly Redshifted Objects","authors":"Tauseef Ahmad Zafar,&nbsp;René Hudec,&nbsp;Marta Mara Merono Vidagany,&nbsp;Fehmi Mejri","doi":"10.1002/asna.70094","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70094","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The goal of this study is to confirm the feasibility of the use of digitized low dispersive MtWilson Michigan Southern Sky H<span></span><math>\u0000 <semantics>\u0000 <mrow>\u0000 <mi>α</mi>\u0000 </mrow>\u0000 <annotation>$$ alpha $$</annotation>\u0000 </semantics></math> survey astronomical photographic plates for modern astrophysical research. The detection of highly redshifted objects, such as early galaxies and quasars, is fundamental to understanding the universe's evolution and its large-scale structure. Archival low-dispersion spectroscopy (LDS) plates, though lacking modern metadata, represent a rich but underutilized resource for identifying such objects. This report presents a computational method for analyzing LDS plates to detect peculiar compact, non-dispersed features, hypothesized to correspond to objects with peculiar spectra, for example, high-redshift sources. By focusing on localized objects with peculiar spectra limited to very narrow spectral coverage rather than typical elongated spectra, the methodology circumvents the challenges posed by incomplete plate information. The proposed approach employs image processing algorithms to identify candidates, marking them directly on the original plates for further study. Preliminary results suggest the potential of this method in uncovering scientifically valuable insights from historical observational data. This work highlights the role of computational techniques in repurposing archival materials for modern astrophysical research.</p>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/asna.70094","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148753055","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Editorial: The 19th INTEGRAL/BART Workshop","authors":"Martin Jelínek","doi":"10.1002/asna.70118","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70118","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;IBWS (INTEGRAL/BART Workshop) is a series of successful international workshops dedicated to all aspects of high-energy astrophysics and supporting ground-based experiments, in particular robotic telescopes. Within this framework, the detailed programme reflects the scientific interests of the participants: the programme is built from contributions submitted by the conference participants themselves, complemented in recent years by a small number of invited lectures.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Originally, the IBWS workshops focused on the work of the High Energy Astrophysics group (at that time dominated by young research fellows and students) at the Astronomical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and relevant national and international collaborators in the field, with intensive student participation. During the early years, these activities were focused on the ESA INTEGRAL satellite and on the related ground-based robotic telescopes, for example, the small robotic telescope BART at the Ondřejov Observatory, from which the series takes its name. Nowadays, the IBWS workshops promote regional collaboration in galactic and extragalactic high-energy astrophysics, both experimental and theoretical, with an emphasis on the interface between satellite projects and ground-based experiments. We continue our emphasis on wide participation and presentations of students and young research fellows.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The 19th workshop of the INTEGRAL/BART series was held from 26 to 30 May 2025 in the historic Capuchin Monastery in Žatec, Czech Republic. As in previous years, the conference was a meeting place for scientists, researchers, professors and students from several countries, institutions and research areas; this year's edition brought together about 40 participants from the Czech Republic, Germany and Hungary. The workshop was organised by the High Energy Astrophysics Group of the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences together with the Czech Technical University in Prague, with the active participation of collaborating institutions in Germany and Hungary.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Nevertheless, the conference was held in the spirit of finding common bridges between these areas rather than separating them.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The programme comprised more than 30 contributions covering both theoretical and observational aspects of high-energy and very-high-energy astrophysics, galactic and extragalactic, gamma-ray bursts and time-domain astronomy, as well as small satellites (CubeSats), scientific payloads, and the related ground-based instrumentation and data analysis. The contributed talks were complemented by invited lectures by Vladimír Dániel on maximising the ground sampling distance on CubeSat platforms, Klaus Schilling on the future of small cooperative satellites, István Rácz on the analysis of Swift XRT X-ray spectra, and Thomas Siegert on INTEGRAL's heritage and COSI's future in MeV astrophysics. The conference again featured the active participation of numerous ","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/asna.70118","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148752784","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Observing the Long-Term Activity of Cosmic Sources by a Combination of X-Ray Monitors","authors":"Vojtěch Šimon","doi":"10.1002/asna.70068","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70068","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>I demonstrate that combining observations (in 1-day bins) from various X-ray monitors with different energy bands onboard different satellites is beneficial for investigating the features of the long-term activity of X-ray binaries. Combining the data from MAXI/<i>ISS</i> and BAT/<i>Swift</i> and comparing the profiles of the light curves enable the investigation of long-term activity at energies between 2 and 50 keV. One-day binning is sufficient for resolving the typical features of the activity. Combinations of the data from these monitors reveal significant structural changes in the emitting regions that occur during these features. This combination of X-ray monitors has the scientific potential to investigate the role of various physical mechanisms on long timescales. I show the results of this approach on the activity of the soft X-ray transient 4U 1608–52 and a persistent source 4U 1705–440 with accreting neutron stars. The series of X-ray monitors is necessary to obtain long-term light curves (e.g., outbursts, state transitions) in a broad energy range. Large satellites are required to obtain detailed observations (spectra, rapid variations) across a broad energy range and in specific and essential phases of activity detected by the monitors.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148754291","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Space-Based Detection and Data Analysis in Practice: Analysis and Correction of Swift GRB Data","authors":"Kende Veres,&nbsp;Istvan I. Racz","doi":"10.1002/asna.70113","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70113","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Our work focuses on the analysis and correction of gamma-ray burst (GRB) data, with particular emphasis on the NASA GCN (Gamma-ray Coordinates Network) database and the Swift space telescope observations. The research has involved a comprehensive analysis of GCN reports, the systematization of the Swift GRB table data and the correction of redshift values. I contacted the NASA GCN team to gain access to the limited data and made suggestions for the restoration of unavailable sub-sites. I then compared the GCN data with the Johannes Greiner BIG Table database. During the comparison I found that the BIG Table contained inaccurate data in some cases, which highlighted the importance of data revision. The results of this study highlight the shortcomings of the GRB redshift data, which is of concern as these data are crucial for determining the cosmological distance of GRBs.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148753212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Feasibility Study for Application of Sonneberg Observatory Digitized Astrograph Plates for Searches for Lost Stars","authors":"René Hudec,&nbsp;Matej Šuhajda,&nbsp;Gustav Haller,&nbsp;Mario Ennes,&nbsp;Tauseef Ahmad Zafar","doi":"10.1002/asna.70074","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70074","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>We report the results of the feasibility study of the application of digitised Sonneberg Observatory astrograph plates in modern astrophysics. The project aims to conclude a possible solution suggestion for finding the abnormal phenomenon <i>'lost stars</i> in images of the sky. It entails the strategic method of finding lost stars using modern technology and software. The procedure is summarized by comparing historical images against more recent ones and looking for differences in the brightness of stars. By doing so, it can be determined if a star has been lost. From implementing this on real images of the sky and the complexity and richness of the variability phenomena, it is evident that lost stars are indeed difficult to verify. Due to the noisy characteristics of images of the sky and the above-mentioned richness of the variability among star images, it is not so trivial determining if a star is lost or not. This project advances the understanding of lost stars by creating a more efficient way of determining if a star is lost. The main goal of this study was, however, more general, namely to confirm the feasibility of use of digitised Sonneberg Observatory astrograph plates for modern astrophysical research.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148754219","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"The THESEUS Space Mission and the Infrared Telescope Calibration Unit","authors":"András Péter Joó,&nbsp;Rebeka Gyöngyi Kiss,&nbsp;Lorenzo Amati,&nbsp;Bendegúz Koncz,&nbsp;Örs Detre,&nbsp;Gyula Zilizi,&nbsp;Zsolt Bagoly,&nbsp;István I. Rácz,&nbsp;Sándor Pintér,&nbsp;L. Viktor Tóth","doi":"10.1002/asna.70082","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70082","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The Transient High-Energy Sky and Early Universe Surveyor (THESEUS) is an ESA M7 mission concept currently in Phase A, designed to exploit gamma-ray bursts to probe the early Universe while advancing multi-messenger and time-domain astrophysics. To achieve its ambitious goals, THESEUS will combine wide-band x-ray and gamma-ray monitors with an onboard InfraRed Telescope (IRT), providing autonomous arcsecond-scale localisation and high-precision redshift determination of near-infrared counterparts to high-energy transients. Achieving this precision requires a well-characterised detector response enabled by an internal Calibration Unit. The unit will ensure accurate calibration of the detector throughout the mission's 4-year nominal lifetime—and potentially beyond—using near-infrared LEDs as internal illumination sources. We highlight THESEUS science cases relevant for the Calibration Unit performance, discuss key challenges in the LED selection process and present the current status of the optical and mechanical design concept enabling a spatially uniform and temporally stable detector illumination within a structure that ensures long-term durability.</p>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/asna.70082","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148754256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Cover Picture: Astron. Nachr. 06/2026","authors":"","doi":"10.1002/asna.70122","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70122","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Satellite Jason 3 (2016-002A) passing near globular cluster Messier 5, recorded by the Sand Hill Optical Telescope (SHOT) for Space Surveillance and Tracking Observations operated by the Teplice Observatory located 80 km north of Prague, Czech Republic. SHOT participated in several ESA projects and is part of the EU SST network. Details are presented in the article of Bohuslav Matouš &amp; Zdeněk Moravec in this issue (e70077).\u0000\u0000 <figure>\u0000 <div><picture>\u0000 <source></source></picture><p></p>\u0000 </div>\u0000 </figure></p>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/asna.70122","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148753921","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Analyzing the Swift XRT X-Ray Spectra for Estimating the Intrinsic Hydrogen Content","authors":"Istvan I. Racz","doi":"10.1002/asna.70080","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70080","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the highest-energy explosions in the universe, emitting short bursts of intense gamma-ray and X-ray radiation. The Swift satellite's rapid response capability allows it to locate bursts instantly with the BAT detector and then start observing the X-ray afterglow within minutes with the XRT instrument. By analyzing the XRT spectra, we can measure not only the afterglow emission itself, but also the absorption effects in the intrinsic environment (progenitor environment, interstellar material). The extra absorption in the X-ray spectra can be used to estimate the intrinsic hydrogen column density (<span></span><math>\u0000 <semantics>\u0000 <mrow>\u0000 <msub>\u0000 <mi>N</mi>\u0000 <mrow>\u0000 <mi>H</mi>\u0000 <mo>,</mo>\u0000 <mi>int</mi>\u0000 </mrow>\u0000 </msub>\u0000 </mrow>\u0000 <annotation>$$ {N}_{mathrm{H},operatorname{int}} $$</annotation>\u0000 </semantics></math>), which provides information on the amount and ionization state of the matter surrounding the GRB. <span></span><math>\u0000 <semantics>\u0000 <mrow>\u0000 <msub>\u0000 <mi>N</mi>\u0000 <mrow>\u0000 <mi>H</mi>\u0000 <mo>,</mo>\u0000 <mi>int</mi>\u0000 </mrow>\u0000 </msub>\u0000 </mrow>\u0000 <annotation>$$ {N}_{mathrm{H},operatorname{int}} $$</annotation>\u0000 </semantics></math> typically appears as an additional absorption component above the Galactic absorption in the spectral fit. Measurements based on Swift/XRT data provide important support for understanding the formation environment of GRBs and the physics of the early afterglow. The analysis of these parameters will also contribute to the identification of progenitors of GRBs (e.g., high-mass stars) and to the study of the interstellar material of high-redshift galaxies.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148754087","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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":"Obscured Star Formation in the Dwarf Galaxy DDO 43: A Comparative UV–IR Analysis","authors":"Áron Juhász,&nbsp;Enikő Pichler","doi":"10.1002/asna.70070","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.70070","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>We present a study of recent star formation in the dwarf irregular galaxy DDO 43 using GALEX FUV and WISE NIR imaging. We identify regions of elevated FUV flux, indicating unobscured star-forming activity across much of the galaxy. To further characterize the stellar content, we compare the FUV fluxes to archival WISE W1 and W2 infrared data across 56 regions of interest. A general correlation is found between the FUV and infrared fluxes, suggesting spatially coherent star formation throughout the galaxy. A few regions, however, show elevated infrared fluxes but little or no UV emission, potentially indicating localized, dust-obscured star formation.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":55442,"journal":{"name":"Astronomische Nachrichten","volume":"347 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148754290","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"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}