A precision measurement by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer on the International Space Station of the positron fraction in primary cosmic rays in the energy range from 0.5 to 350 GeV based on 6.8×106 positron and electron events is presented. The very accurate data show that the positron fraction is steadily increasing from 10 to ∼250  GeV, but, from 20 to 250 GeV, the slope decreases by an order of magnitude. The positron fraction spectrum shows no fine structure, and the positron to electron ratio shows no observable anisotropy. Together, these features show the existence of new physical phenomena

The blazar Mrk 501 was observed at energies above 0.10 TeV with the MAGIC Telescope from 2005 May through July. The high sensitivity of the instrument enabled the determination of the flux and spectrum of the source on a night-by-night basis. Throughout our observational campaign, the flux from Mrk 501 was found to vary by an order of magnitude. Intranight flux variability with flux-doubling times down to 2 minutes was observed during the two most active nights, namely, June 30 and July 9. These are the fastest flux variations ever observed in Mrk 501. The similar to 20 minute long flare of July 9 showed an indication of a 4 +/- 1 minute time delay between the peaks of F(< 0.25 TeV) and F(> 1.2 TeV), which may indicate a progressive acceleration of electrons in the emitting plasma blob. The flux variability was quantified for several energy ranges and found to increase with the energy of the gamma-ray photons. The spectra hardened significantly with increasing flux, and during the two most active nights, a spectral peak was clearly detected at 0.43 +/- 0.06 and 0.25 +/- 0.07 TeV, respectively, for June 30 and July 9. There is no evidence of such a spectral feature for the other nights at energies down to 0.10 TeV, thus suggesting that the spectral peak is correlated with the source luminosity. These observed characteristics could be accommodated in a synchrotron self-Compton framework in which the increase in gamma-ray flux is produced by a freshly injected ( high energy) electron population

We report the results of a 3 year-long dedicated monitoring campaign of a restless Luminous Blue Variable (LBV) in NGC 7259. The object, named SN 2009ip, was observed photometrically and spectroscopically in the optical and near-infrared domains. We monitored a number of erupting episodes in the past few years, and increased the density of our observations during eruptive episodes. In this paper we present the full historical data set from 2009-2012 with multi-wavelength dense coverage of the two high luminosity events between August -September 2012. We construct bolometric light curves and measure the total luminosities of these eruptive or explosive events. We label them the 2012a event (lasting ∼ 50 days) with a peak of 3 × 10 41 ergs −1 , and the 2012b event (14 day rise time, still ongoing) with a peak of 8 × 10 42 ergs −1 . The latter event reached an absolute Rband magnitude of about -18, comparable to that of a core-collapse supernova (SN). Our historical monitoring has detected high-velocity spectral features (∼13000 km s −1 ) in September 2011, one year before the current SN-like event. This implies that the detection of such high velocity outflows cannot, conclusively, point to a core-collapse SN origin. We suggest that the initial peak in the 2012a event was unlikely to be due to a faint core-collapse SN. We propose that the high intrinsic luminosity of the latest peak, the variability history of SN 2009ip, and the detection of broad spectral lines indicative of high-velocity ejecta are consistent with a pulsational pair-instability event, and that the star may have survived the last outburst. The question of the survival of the LBV progenitor star and its future fate remain open issues, only to be answered with future monitoring of this historically unique explosion.

Context. A key science goal of the Gaia-ESO survey (GES) at the VLT is to use the kinematics of low-mass stars in young clusters and star forming regions to probe their dynamical histories and how they populate the field as they become unbound. The clustering of low-mass stars around the massive Wolf-Rayet binary system γ 2 Velorum was one of the first GES targets. Aims. We empirically determine the radial velocity precision of GES data, construct a kinematically unbiased sample of cluster members and characterise their dynamical state. Methods. Targets were selected from colour-magnitude diagrams and intermediate resolution spectroscopy was used to derive radial velocities and assess membership from the strength of the Li i 6708 Å line. The radial velocity distribution was analysed using a maximum likelihood technique that accounts for unresolved binaries. Results. The GES radial velocity precision is about 0.25 km s −1 and sufficient to resolve velocity structure in the low-mass population around γ 2 Vel. The structure is well fitted by two kinematic components with roughly equal numbers of stars; the first has an intrinsic dispersion of 0.34 ± 0.16 km s −1 , consistent with virial equilibrium. The second has a broader dispersion of 1.60 ± 0.37 km s −1 and is offset from the first by 2 km s −1 . The first population is older by 1-2 Myr based on a greater level of Li depletion seen among its M-type stars and is probably more centrally concentrated around γ 2 Vel. Conclusions. We consider several formation scenarios, concluding that the two kinematic components are a bound remnant of the original, denser cluster that formed γ 2 Vel, and a dispersed population from the wider Vela OB2 association, of which γ 2 Vel is the most massive member. The apparent youth of γ 2 Vel compared to the older (≥10 Myr) low-mass population surrounding it suggests a scenario in which the massive binary formed in a clustered environment after the formation of the bulk of the low-mass stars.

We report about very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray observations of the Crab Nebula with the MAGIC telescope. The gamma-ray flux from the nebula was measured between 60 GeV and 9 TeV. The energy spectrum is parameterized with a power low. The peak in the spectral energy distribution is estimated at (77 +/- 35) GeV. Within the observation time and the experimental resolution of the telescope, the gamma-ray emission is steady and pointlike. The emission's center of gravity coincides with the position of the pulsar. Pulsed gamma-ray emission from the pulsar could not be detected. We constrain the cutoff energy of the pulsed spectrum to be less than 27 GeV, assuming that the differential energy spectrum has an exponential cutoff. For a superexponential shape, the cutoff energy can be as high as 60 GeV