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Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are transient radio bursts of extragalactic origin characterized by millisecond durations and high luminosities. We report on observations of FRB 20240114A conducted with the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT) at frequencies ranging from 720 to 920 MHz. A total of 429 bursts were detected, with a single observation recording 359 bursts over 1.38 hours, corresponding to a burst rate of 260 bursts per hour. The average rotation measures (RMs) were $349.2 \pm 1.0$ rad m$^{-2}$ on February 23, 2024, and $360.4 \pm 0.4$ rad m$^{-2}$ on March 1, 2024. Of the 297 bursts with detected RMs, 72% have a linear polarization fraction greater than 90%, and 14% exhibit circular polarization with a signal-to-noise ratio $> 5$. Our sample also displayed polarization angle swings. We compare the linear polarization of FRB 20240114A with that of FRB 20201124A, FRB 20220912A, and non-repeating FRBs. The mean linear polarization fraction for non-repeating FRBs is 58%. In contrast, the mean linear polarization fraction for the three repeating FRBs is 94%, which is significantly higher than that of the non-repeating FRBs. Under the T-test, the three repeating FRBs have similar linear polarization distributions, but these distributions differ from those of the non-repeating FRBs. This suggests that non-repeating FRBs may have different emission mechanisms or are subject to depolarization.

We report the detection of an extended very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray source coincident with the locations of middle-aged (62.4~\rm kyr) pulsar PSR J0248+6021, by using the LHAASO-WCDA data of live 796 days and LHAASO-KM2A data of live 1216 days. A significant excess of \gray induced showers is observed both by WCDA in energy bands of 1-25~\rm TeV and KM2A in energy bands of $>$ 25~\rm TeV with 7.3 $\sigma$ and 13.5 $\sigma$, respectively. The best-fit position derived through WCDA data is R.A. = 42.06$^\circ \pm$ 0.12$^\circ$ and Dec. = 60.24$^\circ \pm $ 0.13$^\circ$ with an extension of 0.69$^\circ\pm$0.15$^\circ$ and that of the KM2A data is R.A.= 42.29$^\circ \pm $ 0.13$^\circ$ and Dec. = 60.38$^\circ \pm$ 0.07$^\circ$ with an extension of 0.37$^\circ\pm$0.07$^\circ$. No clear extended multiwavelength counterpart of this LHAASO source has been found from the radio band to the GeV band. The most plausible explanation of the VHE \gray emission is the inverse Compton process of highly relativistic electrons and positrons injected by the pulsar. These electrons/positrons are hypothesized to be either confined within the pulsar wind nebula or to have already escaped into the interstellar medium, forming a pulsar halo.

The PandaX-4T liquid xenon detector at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory is used to measure the solar $^8$B neutrino flux by detecting neutrinos through coherent scattering with xenon nuclei. Data samples requiring the coincidence of scintillation and ionization signals (paired), as well as unpaired ionization-only signals (US2), are selected with energy threshold of approximately 1.1 keV (0.33 keV) nuclear recoil energy. Combining the commissioning run and the first science run of PandaX-4T, a total exposure of 1.20 and 1.04 tonne$\cdot$year are collected for the paired and US2, respectively. After unblinding, 3 and 332 events are observed with an expectation of 2.8$\pm$0.5 and 251$\pm$32 background events, for the paired and US2 data, respectively. A combined analysis yields a best-fit $^8$B neutrino signal of 3.5 (75) events from the paired (US2) data sample, with $\sim$37\% uncertainty, and the background-only hypothesis is disfavored at 2.64$\sigma$ significance. This gives a solar $^8$B neutrino flux of ($8.4\pm3.1$)$\times$10$^6$ cm$^{-2}$s$^{-1}$, consistent with the standard solar model prediction. It is also the first indication of solar $^8$B neutrino ``fog'' in a dark matter direct detection experiment.

In this work we try to search for signals generated by ultra-heavy dark matter at the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) data. We look for possible gamma-ray by dark matter annihilation or decay from 16 dwarf spheroidal galaxies in the field of view of LHAASO. Dwarf spheroidal galaxies are among the most promising targets for indirect detection of dark matter which have low fluxes of astrophysical $\gamma$-ray background while large amount of dark matter. By analyzing more than 700 days observational data at LHAASO, no significant dark matter signal from 1 TeV to 1 EeV is detected. Accordingly we derive the most stringent constraints on the ultra-heavy dark matter annihilation cross-section up to EeV. The constraints on the lifetime of dark matter in decay mode are also derived.

The KM2A is the largest sub-array of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). It consists of 5216 electromagnetic particle detectors (EDs) and 1188 muon detectors (MDs). The data recorded by the EDs and MDs are used to reconstruct primary information of cosmic ray and gamma-ray showers. This information is used for physical analysis in gamma-ray astronomy and cosmic ray physics. To ensure the reliability of the LHAASO-KM2A data, a three-level quality control system has been established. It is used to monitor the status of detector units, stability of reconstructed parameters and the performance of the array based on observations of the Crab Nebula and Moon shadow. This paper will introduce the control system and its application on the LHAASO-KM2A data collected from August 2021 to July 2023. During this period, the pointing and angular resolution of the array were stable. From the observations of the Moon shadow and Crab Nebula, the results achieved using the two methods are consistent with each other. According to the observation of the Crab Nebula at energies from 25 TeV to 100 TeV, the time averaged pointing errors are estimated to be $-0.003^{\circ} \pm 0.005^{\circ}$ and $0.001^{\circ} \pm 0.006^{\circ}$ in the R.A. and Dec directions, respectively.

The first source catalog of Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory reported the detection of a very-high-energy gamma ray source, 1LHAASO J1219+2915. In this paper a further detailed study of the spectral and temporal behavior of this point-like source have been carried. The best-fit position of the TeV source ($\rm{RA}=185.05^{\circ}\pm0.04^{\circ}$, $\rm{Dec}=29.25^{\circ}\pm0.03^{\circ}$) is compatible with NGC 4278 within $\sim0.03$ degree. Variation analysis shows an indication of the variability at a few months level in the TeV band, which is consistent with low frequency observations. Based on these observations, we report the detection of TeV $\gamma$-ray emissions from this low-luminosity AGN NGC 4278. The observations by LHAASO-WCDA during active period has a significance level of 8.8\,$\sigma$ with best-fit photon spectral index $\varGamma=2.56\pm0.14$ and a flux $f_{1-10\,\rm{TeV}}=(7.0\pm1.1_{\rm{sta}}\pm0.35_{\rm{syst}})\times10^{-13}\,\rm{photons\,cm^{-2}\,s^{-1}}$, or approximately $5\%$ of the Crab Nebula. The discovery of VHE from NGC 4278 indicates that the compact, weak radio jet can efficiently accelerate particles and emit TeV photons.

KM2A is one of the main sub-arrays of LHAASO, working on gamma ray astronomy and cosmic ray physics at energies above 10 TeV. Detector simulation is the important foundation for estimating detector performance and data analysis. It is a big challenge to simulate the KM2A detector in the framework of Geant4 due to the need to track numerous photons from a large number of detector units (>6000) with large altitude difference (30 m) and huge coverage (1.3 km^2). In this paper, the design of the KM2A simulation code G4KM2A based on Geant4 is introduced. The process of G4KM2A is optimized mainly in memory consumption to avoid memory overffow. Some simpliffcations are used to signiffcantly speed up the execution of G4KM2A. The running time is reduced by at least 30 times compared to full detector simulation. The particle distributions and the core/angle resolution comparison between simulation and experimental data of the full KM2A array are also presented, which show good agreement.

We present the measurements of all-particle energy spectrum and mean logarithmic mass of cosmic rays in the energy range of 0.3-30 PeV using data collected from LHAASO-KM2A between September 2021 and December 2022, which is based on a nearly composition-independent energy reconstruction method, achieving unprecedented accuracy. Our analysis reveals the position of the knee at $3.67 \pm 0.05 \pm 0.15$ PeV. Below the knee, the spectral index is found to be -$2.7413 \pm 0.0004 \pm 0.0050$, while above the knee, it is -$3.128 \pm 0.005 \pm 0.027$, with the sharpness of the transition measured with a statistical error of 2%. The mean logarithmic mass of cosmic rays is almost heavier than helium in the whole measured energy range. It decreases from 1.7 at 0.3 PeV to 1.3 at 3 PeV, representing a 24% decline following a power law with an index of -$0.1200 \pm 0.0003 \pm 0.0341$. This is equivalent to an increase in abundance of light components. Above the knee, the mean logarithmic mass exhibits a power law trend towards heavier components, which is reversal to the behavior observed in the all-particle energy spectrum. Additionally, the knee position and the change in power-law index are approximately the same. These findings suggest that the knee observed in the all-particle spectrum corresponds to the knee of the light component, rather than the medium-heavy components.

The Jiao Tong University Spectroscopic Telescope (JUST) is a 4.4-meter f/6.0 segmentedmirror telescope dedicated to spectroscopic observations. The JUST primary mirror is composed of 18 hexagonal segments, each with a diameter of 1.1 m. JUST provides two Nasmyth platforms for placing science instruments. One Nasmyth focus fits a field of view of 10 arcmin and the other has an extended field of view of 1.2 deg with correction optics. A tertiary mirror is used to switch between the two Nasmyth foci. JUST will be installed at a site at Lenghu in Qinghai Province, China, and will conduct spectroscopic observations with three types of instruments to explore the dark universe, trace the dynamic universe, and search for exoplanets: (1) a multi-fiber (2000 fibers) medium-resolution spectrometer (R=4000-5000) to spectroscopically map galaxies and large-scale structure; (2) an integral field unit (IFU) array of 500 optical fibers and/or a long-slit spectrograph dedicated to fast follow-ups of transient sources for multimessenger astronomy; (3) a high-resolution spectrometer (R~100000) designed to identify Jupiter analogs and Earth-like planets, with the capability to characterize the atmospheres of hot exoplanets.

We propose a major upgrade to the existing PandaX-4T experiment in the China Jinping Underground Laboratory. The new experiment, PandaX-xT, will be a multi-ten-tonne liquid xenon, ultra-low background, and general-purpose observatory. The full-scaled PandaX-xT contains a 43-tonne liquid xenon active target. Such an experiment will significantly advance our fundamental understanding of particle physics and astrophysics. The sensitivity of dark matter direct detection will be improved by nearly two orders of magnitude compared to the current best limits, approaching the so-called "neutrino floor" for a dark matter mass above 10 GeV/$c^2$, providing a decisive test to the Weakly Interacting Massive Particle paradigm. By searching for the neutrinoless double beta decay of $^{136}$Xe isotope in the detector, the effective Majorana neutrino mass can be measured to a [10 -- 41] meV/$c^2$ sensitivity, providing a key test to the Dirac/Majorana nature of neutrino s. Astrophysical neutrinos and other ultra-rare interactions can also be measured and searched for with an unprecedented background level, opening up new windows of discovery. Depending on the findings, PandaX-xT will seek the next stage upgrade utilizing isotopic separation on natural xenon.

Space-based and ground-based telescopes have extensively documented the impact of satellites on astronomical observations. With the proliferation of satellite mega-constellation programs, their influence on astronomical observations has become undeniable. It is crucial to quantify the impact of satellites on telescopes. To address this need, we have enhanced the circular orbit model for satellites and introduced a methodology based on two-line element (TLE) orbit data. This involves constructing a satellite probability distribution model to evaluate the impact of satellites on telescopes. Using our method, we assessed the satellite impact on global observatories. The results indicate that the regions most severely affected by satellite interference currently are those near the equator, with latitudes around 50 and 80 degrees experiencing the most significant impact from low Earth orbit satellites. Furthermore, we validated the reliability of our method using imaging data obtained from the focal surface acquisition camera of the LAMOST telescope.

For decades, supernova remnants (SNRs) have been considered the prime sources of Galactic Cosmic rays (CRs). But whether SNRs can accelerate CR protons to PeV energies and thus dominate CR flux up to the knee is currently under intensive theoretical and phenomenological debate. The direct test of the ability of SNRs to operate as CR PeVatrons can be provided by ultrahigh-energy (UHE; $E_\gamma \geq 100$~TeV) $\gamma$-rays. In this context, the historical SNR Cassiopeia A (Cas A) is considered one of the most promising target for UHE observations. This paper presents the observation of Cas A and its vicinity by the LHAASO KM2A detector. The exceptional sensitivity of LHAASO KM2A in the UHE band, combined with the young age of Cas A, enabled us to derive stringent model-independent limits on the energy budget of UHE protons and nuclei accelerated by Cas A at any epoch after the explosion. The results challenge the prevailing paradigm that Cas A-type SNRs are major suppliers of PeV CRs in the Milky Way.

This article presents research work on a spectroscopic survey telescope. Our idea is as follows: for such a telescope, a pure reflecting optical system is designed, which should have an aperture and a field of view (FOV) both as large as possible and excellent image quality, and then a strip lensm (lens-prism) atmospheric dispersion corrector (S-ADC) is added, only for correcting the atmospheric dispersion. Given the fund limitation and the simplicity of scaling up, some 12-m telescopes are designed as examples. Su, Korsch, and Meinel put forward the four-mirror Nasmyth systems I and II, which are used in this paper. FOVs of 1.5\deg, 2\deg, and 2.5\deg are selected. For all systems, the image qualities are excellent. Because the S-ADC relaxes the optical glass size restriction, this 12-m telescope with a FOV of 2.5\deg can be magnified in proportion to a 16-m telescope. Its etendue (from French étendue) and focal surface will now be the largest in the world. In such a telescope, a pure reflecting optical system can also be obtained. A subsequent coudé system is designed with excellent image quality.

The highest energy gamma-rays from gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) have important implications for their radiation mechanism. Here we report for the first time the detection of gamma-rays up to 13 TeV from the brightest GRB 221009A by the Large High Altitude Air-shower Observatory (LHAASO). The LHAASO-KM2A detector registered more than 140 gamma-rays with energies above 3 TeV during 230$-$900s after the trigger. The intrinsic energy spectrum of gamma-rays can be described by a power-law after correcting for extragalactic background light (EBL) absorption. Such a hard spectrum challenges the synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) scenario of relativistic electrons for the afterglow emission above several TeV. Observations of gamma-rays up to 13 TeV from a source with a measured redshift of z=0.151 hints more transparency in intergalactic space than previously expected. Alternatively, one may invoke new physics such as Lorentz Invariance Violation (LIV) or an axion origin of very high energy (VHE) signals.

A novel 3-D calorimeter, composed of about 7500 LYSO cubes, is the key and crucial detector of the High Energy cosmic-Radiation Detection (HERD) facility to be installed onboard the China Space Station. Energy deposition from cosmic ray in each LYSO cube is translated by multiple wavelength shifting (WLS) fibers for multi-range data acquisition and real-time triggering. In this study, various methods of surface finish and encapsulation of the LYSO cube were investigated to optimize the amplitude from the WLS fiber end with the aim of improving the signal-to-noise ratio of Intensified scientific CMOS (IsCMOS) collection. The LYSO cube with five rough surfaces and a specular reflector achieves the maximum amplitude at the low-range fiber end, which is increased by roughly 44% compared to the polished cube with PTFE wrapping. The non-uniformity of amplitude at different positions on the LYSO cube surface was measured by X-ray and the positional correlation factor was derived for the entire cube. A simulation based on HERD CALO was conducted, which revealed that both the LYSO cube with five rough surfaces and the cube with rough bottom face exhibit superior energy resolution for electrons compared to the other two configurations.

The radiation mechanism of fast radio bursts (FRBs) has been extensively studied but still remains elusive. Coherent radiation is identified as a crucial component in the FRB mechanism, with charged bunches also playing a significant role under specific circumstances. In the present research, we propose a phenomenological model that draws upon the coherent curvature radiation framework and the magnetized neutron star, taking into account the kinetic energy losses of outflow particles due to inverse Compton scattering (ICS) induced by soft photons within the magnetosphere. By integrating the ICS deceleration mechanism for particles, we hypothesize a potential compression effect on the particle number density within a magnetic tube/family, which could facilitate achieving the necessary size for coherent radiation in the radial direction. This mechanism might potentially enable the dynamic formation of bunches capable of emitting coherent curvature radiation along the curved magnetic field. Moreover, we examine the formation of bunches from an energy perspective. Our discussion suggests that within the given parameter space the formation of bunches is feasible. Finally, we apply this model to FRB 20190520B, one of the most active repeating FRBs discovered and monitored by FAST. Several observed phenomena are explained, including basic characteristics, frequency downward drifting, and bright spots within certain dynamic spectral ranges.

Artificial intelligence technology has been widely used in astronomy, and new artificial intelligence technologies and application scenarios are constantly emerging. There have been a large number of papers reviewing the application of artificial intelligence technology in astronomy. However, relevant articles seldom mention telescope intelligence separately, and it is difficult to understand the current development status and research hotspots of telescope intelligence from these papers. This paper combines the development history of artificial intelligence technology and the difficulties of critical technologies of telescopes, comprehensively introduces the development and research hotspots of telescope intelligence, then conducts statistical analysis on various research directions of telescope intelligence and defines the research directions' merits. All kinds of research directions are evaluated, and the research trend of each telescope's intelligence is pointed out. Finally, according to the advantages of artificial intelligence technology and the development trend of telescopes, future research hotspots of telescope intelligence are given.

We present the first catalog of very-high energy and ultra-high energy gamma-ray sources detected by the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). The catalog was compiled using 508 days of data collected by the Water Cherenkov Detector Array (WCDA) from March 2021 to September 2022 and 933 days of data recorded by the Kilometer Squared Array (KM2A) from January 2020 to September 2022. This catalog represents the main result from the most sensitive large coverage gamma-ray survey of the sky above 1 TeV, covering declination from $-$20$^{\circ}$ to 80$^{\circ}$. In total, the catalog contains 90 sources with an extended size smaller than $2^\circ$ and a significance of detection at $> 5\sigma$. Based on our source association criteria, 32 new TeV sources are proposed in this study. Among the 90 sources, 43 sources are detected with ultra-high energy ($E > 100$ TeV) emission at $> 4\sigma$ significance level. We provide the position, extension, and spectral characteristics of all the sources in this catalog.

The diffuse Galactic $\gamma$-ray emission, mainly produced via interactions between cosmic rays and the interstellar medium and/or radiation field, is a very important probe of the distribution, propagation, and interaction of cosmic rays in the Milky Way. In this work we report the measurements of diffuse $\gamma$-rays from the Galactic plane between 10 TeV and 1 PeV energies, with the square kilometer array of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). Diffuse emissions from the inner ($15^{\circ}<l<125^{\circ}$, $|b|<5^{\circ}$) and outer ($125^{\circ}<l<235^{\circ}$, $|b|<5^{\circ}$) Galactic plane are detected with $29.1\sigma$ and $12.7\sigma$ significance, respectively. The outer Galactic plane diffuse emission is detected for the first time in the very- to ultra-high-energy domain ($E>10$~TeV). The energy spectrum in the inner Galaxy regions can be described by a power-law function with an index of $-2.99\pm0.04$, which is different from the curved spectrum as expected from hadronic interactions between locally measured cosmic rays and the line-of-sight integrated gas content. Furthermore, the measured flux is higher by a factor of $\sim3$ than the prediction. A similar spectrum with an index of $-2.99\pm0.07$ is found in the outer Galaxy region, and the absolute flux for $10\lesssim E\lesssim60$ TeV is again higher than the prediction for hadronic cosmic ray interactions. The latitude distributions of the diffuse emission are consistent with the gas distribution, while the longitude distributions show clear deviation from the gas distribution. The LHAASO measurements imply that either additional emission sources exist or cosmic ray intensities have spatial variations.

AST3-2 is the second of the three Antarctic Survey Telescopes, aimed at wide-field time-domain optical astronomy. It is located at Dome A, Antarctica, which is by many measures the best optical astronomy site on the Earth's surface. Here we present the data from the AST3-2 automatic survey in 2016 and the photometry results. The median 5$\sigma$ limiting magnitude in $i$-band is 17.8 mag and the light curve precision is 4 mmag for bright stars. The data release includes photometry for over 7~million stars, from which over 3,500 variable stars were detected, with 70 of them newly discovered. We classify these new variables into different types by combining their light curve features with stellar properties from surveys such as StarHorse.

Recently, CHIME/FRB project published its first fast radio burst (FRB) catalog (hereafter, Catalog 1), which totally contains 536 unique bursts. With the help of the latest set of FRBs in this large-size catalog, we aim to investigate the dispersion measure (DM) or redshift ($z$) distribution of the FRB population, and solution of this problem could be used to clarify the question of FRB origin. In this study, we adopted the M\&E 2018 model, to fit the observed $z$ distribution of FRBs in Catalog 1. In the M\&E 2018 model, we are mostly interested in the $\Phi(z)$ function, i.e., number of bursts per proper time per comoving volume, which is represented by the star formation rate (SFR) with a power-law index $n$. Our estimated value of $n$ is $0.0_{-0.0}^{+0.6}$ ($0.0_{-0.0}^{+2.1}$) at the 68 (95) per cent confidence level, implying that the FRB population evolves with redshift consistent with, or faster than, the SFR. Specially, the consistency of the $n$ values estimated by this study and the SFR provides a potential support for the hypothesis of FRBs originating from young magnetars.

The evolutions of a neutron star's rotation and magnetic field (B-field) have remained unsolved puzzles for over half a century. We ascribe the rotational braking torques of pulsar to both components, the standard magnetic dipole radiation (MDR) and particle wind flow ( MDR + Wind, hereafter named MDRW), which we apply to the Crab pulsar (B0531 + 21), the only source with a known age and long-term continuous monitoring by radio telescope. Based on the above presumed simple spin-down torques, we obtain the exact analytic solution on the rotation evolution of the Crab pulsar, together with the related outcomes as described below: (1) unlike the constant characteristic B-field suggested by the MDR model, this value for the Crab pulsar increases by a hundred times in 50~kyr while its real B-field has no change; (2) the rotational braking index evolves from $\sim$3 to 1 in the long-term, however, it drops from 2.51 to 2.50 in $\sim$45 years at the present stage, while the particle flow contributes approximately 25% of the total rotational energy loss rate; (3) strikingly, the characteristic age has the maximum limit of $\sim$10 kyr, meaning that it is not always a good indicator of real age. Furthermore, we discussed the evolutionary path of the Crab pulsar from the MDR to the wind domination by comparing it with the possible wind braking candidate pulsar PSR J1734-3333.

The youngest Galactic supernova remnant G1.9+0.3 shows a discrete feature between its radio and X-ray morphologies. The observed radio morphology features a single maximum in the north, while the X-ray observation shows two opposite 'ears' on the east and west sides. Using 3D magneto hydrodynamical simulations, we investigate the formation of the discrete feature of the remnant. We have tested different parameters for better simulation and reproduced similar discrete features under an environment with density gradient and an environment with clump, which provides a possible explanation of the observation.

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are extremely strong radio flares lasting several micro- to milliseconds and come from unidentified objects at cosmological distances, most of which are only seen once. Based on recently published data in the CHIME/FRB Catalog 1 in the frequency bands 400-800 MHz, we analyze 125 apparently singular FRBs with low dispersion measure (DM) and find that the distribution of their luminosity follows a lognormal form according to statistical tests. In our luminosity measurement, the FRB distance is estimated by using the Macquart relation which was obtained for 8 localized FRBs, and we find it still applicable for 18 sources after adding the latest 10 new localized FRBs. In addition, we test the validity of the luminosity distribution up to the Macquart relation and find that the lognormal form feature decreases as the uncertainty increases. Moreover, we compare the luminosity of these apparent non-repeaters with that of the previously observed 10 repeating FRBs also at low DM, noting that they belong to different lognormal distributions with the mean luminosity of non-repeaters being two times greater than that of repeaters. Therefore, from the two different lognormal distributions, different mechanisms for FRBs can be implied.

The Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) has three sub-arrays, KM2A, WCDA and WFCTA. The flux variations of cosmic ray air showers were studied by analyzing the KM2A data during the thunderstorm on 10 June 2021. The number of shower events that meet the trigger conditions increases significantly in atmospheric electric fields, with maximum fractional increase of 20%. The variations of trigger rates (increases or decreases) are found to be strongly dependent on the primary zenith angle. The flux of secondary particles increases significantly, following a similar trend with that of the shower events. To better understand the observed behavior, Monte Carlo simulations are performed with CORSIKA and G4KM2A (a code based on GEANT4). We find that the experimental data (in saturated negative fields) are in good agreement with simulations, assuming the presence of a uniform upward electric field of 700 V/cm with a thickness of 1500 m in the atmosphere above the observation level. Due to the acceleration/deceleration and deflection by the atmospheric electric field, the number of secondary particles with energy above the detector threshold is modified, resulting in the changes in shower detection rate.

We report a search on a sub-MeV fermionic dark matter absorbed by electrons with an outgoing active neutrino using the 0.63 tonne-year exposure collected by PandaX-4T liquid xenon experiment. No significant signals are observed over the expected background. The data are interpreted into limits to the effective couplings between such dark matter and electrons. For axial-vector or vector interactions, our sensitivity is competitive in comparison to existing astrophysical bounds on the decay of such dark matter into photon final states. In particular, we present the first direct detection limits for an axial-vector (vector) interaction which are the strongest in the mass range from 25 to 45 (35 to 50) keV/c$^2$.

The Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST), also known as the Guoshoujing Telescope, is a major national scientific facility for astronomical research located in Xinglong, China. Beginning with a pilot survey in 2011, LAMOST has been surveying the night sky for more than 10 years. The LAMOST survey covers various objects in the Universe, from normal stars to peculiar ones, from the Milky Way to other galaxies, and from stellar black holes and their companions to quasars that ignite ancient galaxies. Until the latest data release 8, the LAMOST survey has released spectra for more than 10 million stars, ~220,000 galaxies, and ~71,000 quasars. With this largest celestial spectra database ever constructed, LAMOST has helped astronomers to deepen their understanding of the Universe, especially for our Milky Way galaxy and the millions of stars within it. In this article, we briefly review the characteristics, observations, and scientific achievements of LAMOST. In particular, we show how astrophysical knowledge about the Milky Way has been improved by LAMOST data.

A precise transit ephemeris serves as the premise for follow-up exoplanet observations. We compare TESS Objects of Interest (TOI) transit timings of 262 hot Jupiters with the archival ephemeris and find 31 of them having TOI timing offsets, among which WASP-161b shows the most significant offset of -203.7$\pm$4.1 minutes. The median value of these offsets is 17.8 minutes, equivalent to 3.6 $\sigma$. We generate TESS timings in each sector for these 31 hot Jupiters, using a self-generated pipeline. The pipeline performs photometric measurements to TESS images and produces transit timings by fitting the light curves. We refine and update the previous ephemeris, based on these TESS timings (uncertainty $\sim$ 1 minute) and a long timing baseline ($\sim 10$ years). Our refined ephemeris gives the transit timing at a median precision of 0.82 minutes until 2025 and 1.21 minutes until 2030. We regard the timing offsets mainly originating from the underestimated ephemeris uncertainty. All the targets with timing offset larger than 10$\sigma$ present earlier timings than the prediction, which cannot be due to underestimated ephemeris uncertainty, apsidal precision, or R$\o$mer effect as those effects should be unsigned. For some particular targets, timing offsets are likely due to tidal dissipation. Our sample leads to the detection of period decaying candidates of WASP-161b and XO-3b reported previously.

The Crab pulsar and the surrounding nebula powered by the pulsar's rotational energy through the formation and termination of a relativistic electron-positron wind is a bright source of gamma-rays carrying crucial information about this complex conglomerate. We report the detection of $\gamma$-rays with a spectrum showing gradual steepening over three energy decades, from $5\times 10^{-4}$ to $1.1$ petaelectronvolt (PeV). The ultra-high-energy photons exhibit the presence of a PeV electron accelerator (a pevatron) with an acceleration rate exceeding 15% of the absolute theoretical limit. Assuming that unpulsed $\gamma$-rays are produced at the termination of the pulsar's wind, we constrain the pevatron's size, between $0.025$ and $0.1$ pc, and the magnetic field $\approx 110 \mu$G. The production rate of PeV electrons, $2.5 \times 10^{36}$ erg $\rm s^{-1}$, constitutes 0.5% of the pulsar's spin-down luminosity, although we do not exclude a non-negligible contribution of PeV protons to the production of the highest energy $\gamma$-rays.

The properties of the young pulsars and their relations to the supernova remnants (SNRs) have been the interesting topics. At present, 383 SNRs in the Milky Way galaxy have been published, which are associated with 64 radio pulsars and 46 pulsars with high energy emissions. However, we noticed that 630 young radio pulsars with spin periods of less than half a second have been not yet observed the SNRs surrounding or nearby them, which arises a question of that could the two types of young radio pulsars with/without SNRs hold distinctive characteristics? Here, we employ the statistical tests on the two groups of young radio pulsars with (52) and without (630) SNRs to reveal if they share different origins. Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) and Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon (M-W-W) tests indicate that the two samples have the different distributions with parameters of spin period ($P$), derivative of spin period ($\dot P$), surface magnetic field strength ($B$), and energy loss rate ($\dot E$). Meanwhile, the cumulative number ratio between the pulsars with and without SNRs at the different spindown ages decreases significantly after $\rm10-20\,Kyr$. So we propose that the existence of the two types of supernovae (SNe), corresponding to their SNR lifetimes, which can be roughly ascribed to the low-energy and high-energy SNe. Furthermore, the low-energy SNe may be formed from the $\rm8-12\,M_{\odot}$ progenitor, e.g., possibly experiencing the electron capture, while the main sequence stars of $\rm12-25\,M_{\odot}$ may produce the high-energy SNe probably by the iron core collapse.

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are extremely strong radio flares lasting several milliseconds, most of which come from unidentified objects at a cosmological distance. They can be apparently repeating or not. In this paper, we analyzed 18 repeaters and 12 non-repeating FRBs observed in the frequency bands of 400-800 MHz from CHIME. We investigated the distributions of FRB isotropic-equivalent radio luminosity, considering the K correction. Statistically, the luminosity distribution can be better fitted by Gaussian form than by power-law. Based on the above results, together with the observed FRB event rate, pulse duration, and radio luminosity, FRB origin models are evaluated and constrained such that the gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) may be excluded for the non-repeaters while magnetars or neutron stars (NSs) emitting the supergiant pulses are preferred for the repeaters. We also found the necessity of a small FRB emission beaming solid angle (about 0.1 sr) from magnetars that should be considered, and/or the FRB association with soft gamma-ray repeaters (SGRs) may lie at a low probability of about 10%. Finally, we discussed the uncertainty of FRB luminosity caused by the estimation of the distance that is inferred by the simple relation between the redshift and dispersion measure (DM).

The Wide Field-of-View Cherenkov Telescope Array (WFCTA) and the Water Cherenkov Detector Arrays (WCDA) of LHAASO are designed to work in combination for measuring the energy spectra of various cosmic ray species over a very wide energy range from a few TeV to 10 PeV. The energy calibration of WCDA can be achieved with a proven technique of measuring the westward shift of the Moon shadow of galactic cosmic rays due to the geomagnetic field. This deflection angle $\Delta$ is inversely proportional to the energy of the cosmic rays. The precise measurements of the shifts by WCDA allows us to calibrate its energy scale for energies as high as 35 TeV. The energy scale measured by WCDA can be used to cross calibrate the energy reconstructed by WFCTA, which spans the whole energy range up to 10 PeV. In this work, we will demonstrate the feasibility of the method using the data collected from April 2019 to January 2020 by the WFCTA array and WCDA-1 detector, the first of the three water Cherenkov ponds, already commissioned at LHAASO site.

The focal plane camera is the core component of the Wide Field-of-view Cherenkov/fluorescence Telescope Array (WFCTA) of the Large High-Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). Because of the capability of working under moonlight without aging, silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) have been proven to be not only an alternative but also an improvement to conventional photomultiplier tubes (PMT) in this application. Eighteen SiPM-based cameras with square light funnels have been built for WFCTA. The telescopes have collected more than 100 million cosmic ray events and preliminary results indicate that these cameras are capable of working under moonlight. The characteristics of the light funnels and SiPMs pose challenges (e.g. dynamic range, dark count rate, assembly techniques). In this paper, we present the design features, manufacturing techniques and performances of these cameras. Finally, the test facilities, the test methods and results of SiPMs in the cameras are reported here.

Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are the short, strong radio pulses lasting several milliseconds. They are subsequently identified, for the most part, as emanating from unknown objects at cosmological distances. At present, over one hundred FRBs have been verified, classified into two groups: repeating bursts (20 samples) and apparently non-repeating bursts (91 samples). Their origins, however, are still hotly debated. Here,we investigate the statistical classifications for the two groups of samples to see if the non-repeating and repeating FRBs have different origins by employing Anderson-Darling (A-D) test and Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon (M-W-W) test. Firstly, by taking the pulse width as a statistical variant, we found that the repeating samples do not follow the Gaussian statistics (may belong to a chi-square distribution), although the overall data and non-repeating group do follow the Gaussian. Meanwhile, to investigate the statistical differences between the two groups, we turn to M-W-W test and notice that the two distributions have different origins. Secondly, we consider the FRB radio luminosity as a statistical variant, and find that both groups of samples can be regarded as the Gaussian distributions under the A-D test, although they have different origins according to M-W-W tests. Therefore, statistically, we can conclude that our classifications of both repeaters and non-repeaters are plausible, that the two FRB classes have different origins, or each has experienced distinctive phases or been subject to its own physical processes.

As a sub-array of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO), KM2A is mainly designed to cover a large fraction of the northern sky to hunt for gamma-ray sources at energies above 10 TeV. Even though the detector construction is still underway, a half of the KM2A array has been operating stably since the end of 2019. In this paper, we present the pipeline of KM2A data analysis and the first observation on the Crab Nebula, a standard candle in very high energy gamma-ray astronomy. We detect gamma-ray signals from the Crab Nebula in both energy ranges of 10$-$100 TeV and $>$100 TeV with high significance, by analyzing the KM2A data of 136 live days between December 2019 and May 2020. With the observations, we test the detector performance including angular resolution, pointing accuracy and cosmic ray background rejection power. The energy spectrum of the Crab Nebula in the energy range 10-250 TeV fits well with a single power-law function dN/dE =(1.13$\pm$0.05$_{stat}$$\pm$0.08$_{sys}$)$\times$10$^{-14}$$\cdot$(E/20TeV)$^{-3.09\pm0.06_{stat}\pm0.02_{sys}}$ cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ TeV$^{-1}$. It is consistent with previous measurements by other experiments. This opens a new window of gamma-ray astronomy above 0.1 PeV through which ultrahigh-energy gamma-ray new phenomena, such as cosmic PeVatrons, might be discovered.

If the annihilation products of dark matter (DM) are non-relativistic and if there is some long-range force between them, there can be Sommerfeld effect for the final state particles. We study this effect on DM relic abundance in the thermal freeze-out scenario. As a proof of concept, we consider the case of a DM pair annihilation into a final state pair, assuming that the mutual interactions between the two final state particles give rise to a Coulomb-like potential, and that the masses of the initial and final state particles are similar, so that both the initial and final state particles are non-relativistic. The size of the final state Sommerfeld (FSS) effect depends on the strength of the potential, as well as on the mass ratio of the final and initial state particles. We find that the impact of the FSS effect on DM relic abundance can be significant, and an electroweak sized long-range interaction is large enough to make a correction well beyond the observational accuracy. Another feature of the FSS effect is that it could be suppressed when its time scale is longer than the lifetime of the final state particles. As a corollary, we also study in the DM coannihilation scenario where the initial state Sommerfeld effect between two coannihilators could be reduced due to their instability, which may need to be taken into account for an accurate calculation of the DM relic abundance.

We report the dark matter search results obtained using the full 132 ton$\cdot$day exposure of the PandaX-II experiment, including all data from March 2016 to August 2018. No significant excess of events is identified above the expected background. Upper limits are set on the spin-independent dark matter-nucleon interactions. The lowest 90% confidence level exclusion on the spin-independent cross section is $2.2\times 10^{-46}$ cm$^2$ at a WIMP mass of 30 GeV/$c^2$.

With telescope apertures becoming larger and larger, the deployment of large-field telescopes is becoming increasingly popular. However, optical path calibration is necessary to ensure the image quality of large-field and large-diameter telescopes. In particular, focal plane attitude calibration is an essential optical path calibration technique that has a direct impact on image quality. In this paper, a focal plane attitude detection method using eight acquisition cameras is proposed based on the calibration requirements of the wide-field telescope, LAMOST. Comparison of simulation and experimental results shows that the detection accuracy of the proposed method can reach 30 arcsec. With additional testing and verification, this method could be used to facilitate regular focal plane attitude calibration for LAMOST as well as other large-field telescopes.

Shocks, turbulence and winds all influence the electron velocity distribution in hot plasmas, exciting lower-energy electrons and generating a high-energy (typically power-law) tail. This effect, typically described as a kappa distribution can affect both the line and continuum X-ray spectrum emitted by the plasma. Hahn & Savin (2015) proposed a "Maxwellian decomposition" to generate the rate coefficients of kappa distributions. Using their method and the AtomDB atomic database, we have developed a general model to calculate the emission from a plasma with a kappa distribution. We compare our kappa results for the charge state distribution and spectra of oxygen to those from KAPPA package with the ion data available within the CHIANTI atomic database. Sufficiently energetic electrons, created either in a kappa distribution or merely a very hot Maxwellian plasma, can also emit via electron-electron (e-e) bremsstrahlung, a process not previously included in AtomDB. We have added this process to AtomDB and apply it to calculate the temperature gradients, as well as the total spectra from the post-shock regions of an accreting magnetic cataclysmic variable (CV). We find the contribution of e-e bremsstrahlung to the total spectra exceeds 10% at KT∼100 keV, with the total emissivity in the post-shock accretion stream differing by more than 10% at energies above 60 keV.

All stellar mass black holes have hitherto been identified by X-rays emitted by gas that is accreting onto the black hole from a companion star. These systems are all binaries with black holes below 30 M$_{\odot}$$^{1-4}$. Theory predicts, however, that X-ray emitting systems form a minority of the total population of star-black hole binaries$^{5,6}$. When the black hole is not accreting gas, it can be found through radial velocity measurements of the motion of the companion star. Here we report radial velocity measurements of a Galactic star, LB-1, which is a B-type star, taken over two years. We find that the motion of the B-star and an accompanying H$\alpha$ emission line require the presence of a dark companion with a mass of $68^{+11}_{-13}$ M$_{\odot}$, which can only be a black hole. The long orbital period of 78.9 days shows that this is a wide binary system. The gravitational wave experiments have detected similarly massive black holes$^{7,8}$, but forming such massive ones in a high-metallicity environment would be extremely challenging to current stellar evolution theories$^{9-11}$.

FAST, the largest single-dish radio telescope in the world, has a 500-meter diameter main reflector and a 300-meter diameter illumination area. It has a shape variable main reflector, which changes the shape of the illuminated area in the main reflector into a paraboloid continuously. In this article, we propose a quasi Cassegrain system to FAST. The detailed design results are given in this paper. Such a quasi Cassegrain system only needs to add a 14.6-meter diameter secondary reflector, which is close to the size of the feed cabin, the distance from the secondary reflector to the focus is only 5.08-meter, and it has excellent image quality. In this quasi Cassegrain system the shape of the illuminated area in the main reflector continuously changes into an optimized hyperboloid. Using this quasi Cassegrain system from frequency 0.5 G to 8 G, the multi-beam system can include 7 to 217 feeds. If this system is used in combination with PAF technology, more multi-beam feeds can be used.

We examine the new Galactic supernova remnant (SNR) candidate, G23.11+0.18, as seen by the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) radio telescope. We describe the morphology of the candidate and find a spectral index of -0.63+/-0.05 in the 70-170MHz domain. A coincident TeV gamma-ray detection in High-Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS) data supports the SNR nature of G23.11+0.18 and suggests that G23.11+0.18 is accelerating particles beyond TeV energies, thus making this object a promising new cosmic ray hadron source candidate. The remnant cannot be seen in current optical, infrared and X-ray data-sets. We do find, however, a dip in CO-traced molecular gas at a line-of-sight velocity of ~85 km/s, suggesting the existence of a G23.11+0.18 progenitor wind-blown bubble. Furthermore, the discovery of molecular gas clumps at a neighbouring velocity towards HESS J1832-085 adheres to the notion that a hadronic gamma-ray production mechanism is plausible towards the north of the remnant. Based on these morphological arguments, we propose an interstellar medium association for G23.11+0.18 at a kinematic distance of 4.6+/-0.8 kpc.

Radial velocity is one of key measurements in understanding the fundamental properties of stars, stellar clusters and the Galaxy. A plate of stars in the Kepler field were observed in May of 2018 with the medium-resolution spectrographs of LAMOST, aiming to test the performance of this new system which is the upgraded equipment of LAMOST after the first five-year regular survey.We present our analysis on the radial velocity measurements (RVs) derived from these data. The results show that slight and significant systematic errors exist among the RVs obtained from the spectra collected by different spectrographs and exposures, respectively. After correcting the systematic errors with different techniques, the precision of RVs reaches ~1.3, ~1.0, ~0.5 and ~0.3 km/s at S/Nr = 10, 20, 50, and 100, respectively. Comparing with the RVs of the standard stars of the APOGEE survey, our RVs are calibrated with a zero-point shift of ~7 km/s. The results indicate that the LAMOST medium-resolution spectroscopic system may provide RVs in a reasonable accuracy and precision for the selected targets.

Located at Dome A, the highest point of the Antarctic plateau, the Chinese Kunlun station is considered to be one of the best ground-based photometric sites because of its extremely cold, dry, and stable atmosphere(Saunders et al. 2009). A target can be monitored from there for over 40 days without diurnal interruption during a polar winter. This makes Kunlun station a perfect site to search for short-period transiting exoplanets. Since 2008, an observatory has been built at Kunlun station and three telescopes are working there. Using these telescopes, the AST3 project has been carried out over the last six years with a search for transiting exoplanets as one of its key programs (CHESPA). In the austral winters of 2016 and 2017, a set of target fields in the Southern CVZ of TESS (Ricker et al. 2009) were monitored by the AST3-II telescope. In this paper, we introduce the CHESPA and present the first data release containing photometry of 26,578 bright stars (m_i < 15). The best photometric precision at the optimum magnitude for the survey is around 2 mmag. To demonstrate the data quality, we also present a catalog of 221 variables with a brightness variation greater than 5 mmag from the 2016 data. Among these variables, 179 are newly identified periodic variables not listed in the AAVSO databasea), and 67 are listed in the Candidate Target List(Stassun et al. 2017). These variables will require careful attention to avoid false-positive signals when searching for transiting exoplanets. Dozens of new transiting exoplanet candidates will be also released in a subsequent paper(Zhang et al. 2018b).

We report first results from the CHinese Exoplanet Searching Program from Antarctica (CHESPA)---a wide-field high-resolution photometric survey for transiting exoplanets carried out using telescopes of the AST3 (Antarctic Survey Telescopes times 3) project. There are now three telescopes (AST3-I, AST3-II, and CSTAR-II) operating at Dome A---the highest point on the Antarctic Plateau---in a fully automatic and remote mode to exploit the superb observing conditions of the site, and its long and uninterrupted polar nights. The search for transiting exoplanets is one of the key projects for AST3. During the Austral winters of 2016 and 2017 we used the AST3-II telescope to survey a set of target fields near the southern ecliptic pole, falling within the continuous viewing zone of the TESS mission \citepRicker10. The first data release of the 2016 data, including images, catalogs and lightcurves of 26578 bright stars ($7.5\le i \le15$) was presented in \citetZhang18. The best precision, as measured by the RMS of the lightcurves at the optimum magnitude of the survey ($i=10$), is around 2\u2009mmag. We detect 222 objects with plausible transit signals from these data, 116 of which are plausible transiting exoplanet candidates according to their stellar properties as given by the TESS Input Catalog \citepStassun17, Gaia DR2 \citepGaia18 and TESS-HERMES spectroscopy \citepSharma18. With the first data release from TESS expected in late 2018, this candidate list will be a timely for improving the rejection of potential false positives.

The three Antarctic Survey Telescopes (AST3) aim to carry out time domain imaging survey at Dome A, Antarctica. The first of the three telescopes (AST3-1) was successfully deployed on January 2012. AST3-1 is a 500\u2009mm aperture modified Schmidt telescope with a 680\u2009mm diameter primary mirror. AST3-1 is equipped with a SDSS $i$ filter and a 10k $\times$ 10k frame transfer CCD camera, reduced to 5k $\times$ 10k by electronic shuttering, resulting in a 4.3 deg$^2$ field-of-view. To verify the capability of AST3-1 for a variety of science goals, extensive commissioning was carried out between March and May 2012. The commissioning included a survey covering 2000 deg$^2$ as well as the entire Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. Frequent repeated images were made of the center of the Large Magellanic Cloud, a selected exoplanet transit field, and fields including some Wolf-Rayet stars. Here we present the data reduction and photometric measurements of the point sources observed by AST3-1. We have achieved a survey depth of 19.3\u2009mag in 60 s exposures with 5\u2009mmag precision in the light curves of bright stars. The facility achieves sub-mmag photometric precision under stable survey conditions, approaching its photon noise limit. These results demonstrate that AST3-1 at Dome A is extraordinarily competitive in time-domain astronomy, including both quick searches for faint transients and the detection of tiny transit signals.

Assuming that the early optical emission is dominated by the external reverse shock (RS) in the standard model of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), we intend to constrain RS models with the initial Lorentz factor $\Gamma_0$ of the outflows based on the ROTSE-III observations. We consider two cases of the RS behavior: the relativistic shock and the non-relativistic shock. For homogeneous interstellar medium (ISM) and wind circum-burst environment, the constraints can be achieved by the fact that the peak flux $F_{\rm \nu}$ at the RS crossing time should be lower than the observed upper limit $F_{\rm \nu,limit}$. We consider the different spectral regimes that the observed optical frequency $\nu_{\rm opt}$ may locate in, which are divided by the orders for the minimum synchrotron frequency $\nu_{\rm m}$ and the cooling frequency $\nu_{\rm c}$. \bf Considering the homogeneous and wind environment around GRBs, we find that the relativistic RS case can be constrained by the (upper and lower) limits of $\Gamma_0$ in a large range from about hundreds to thousands for 36 GRBs reported by ROTSE-III. The constraints on the non-relativistic RS case are achieved with limits of $\Gamma_0$ for 26 bursts ranging from $\sim 30$ to $\sim 350$. The lower limits of $\Gamma_0$ achieved for the relativistic RS model is disfavored based on the previously discovered correlation between the initial Lorentz factor $\Gamma_0$ and the isotropic gamma-ray energy $E_{\rm \gamma, iso}$ released in prompt phase.

The LIGO detection of gravitational waves (GW) from merging black holes in 2015 marked the beginning of a new era in observational astronomy. The detection of an electromagnetic signal from a GW source is the critical next step to explore in detail the physics involved. The Antarctic Survey Telescopes (AST3), located at Dome A, Antarctica, is uniquely situated for rapid response time-domain astronomy with its continuous night-time coverage during the austral winter. We report optical observations of the GW source (GW~170817) in the nearby galaxy NGC 4993 using AST3. The data show a rapidly fading transient at around 1 day after the GW trigger, with the $i$-band magnitude declining from $17.23\pm0.13$ magnitude to $17.72\pm0.09$ magnitude in $\sim 1.8$ hour. The brightness and time evolution of the optical transient associated with GW~170817 are broadly consistent with the predictions of models involving merging binary neutron stars. We infer from our data that the merging process ejected about $\sim 10^{-2}$ solar mass of radioactive material at a speed of up to $30\%$ the speed of light.

We simulate the evolution of supernova remnant (SNR) W51C. The simulation shows the existence of a new northeast edge. We present magnetic field structure of the W51 complex (SNR W51C and two HII regions W51A/B) by employing the 11 cm survey data of Effelsberg. This new edge is identified and overlaps with W51A along the line of sight, which gives a new angular diameter of about 37' for the quasi-circular remnant. In addition, we assemble the OH spectral lines (1612/1665/1720 MHz) towards the complex by employing the newly released THOR (The HI OH Recombination line survey of Milky Way) data. We find that the known 1720 MHz OH maser in the W51B/C overlap area is located away from the detected 1612/1665MHz absorption region. The latter is sitting at the peak of the HII region G49.2-0.35 within W51B.

List of contributions from the Cherenkov Telescope Array Consortium presented at the 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference, July 12-20 2017, Busan, Korea.

We report a new search of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) using the combined low background data sets in 2016 and 2017 from the PandaX-II experiment in China. The latest data set contains a new exposure of 77.1 live day, with the background reduced to a level of 0.8$\times10^{-3}$ evt/kg/day, improved by a factor of 2.5 in comparison to the previous run in 2016. No excess events were found above the expected background. With a total exposure of 5.4$\times10^4$ kg day, the most stringent upper limit on spin-independent WIMP-nucleon cross section was set for a WIMP with mass larger than 100 GeV/c$^2$, with the lowest exclusion at 8.6$\times10^{-47}$ cm$^2$ at 40 GeV/c$^2$.

We report here the results of searching for inelastic scattering of dark matter (initial and final state dark matter particles differ by a small mass splitting) with nucleon with the first 79.6-day of PandaX-II data (Run 9). We set the upper limits for the spin independent WIMP-nucleon scattering cross section up to a mass splitting of 300 keV/c$^2$ at two benchmark dark matter masses of 1 and 10 TeV/c$^2$.

We report new searches for the solar axions and galactic axion-like dark matter particles, using the first low-background data from PandaX-II experiment at China Jinping Underground Laboratory, corresponding to a total exposure of about $2.7\times 10^4$ kg$\cdot$day. No solar axion or galactic axion-like dark matter particle candidate has been identified. The upper limit on the axion-electron coupling ($g_{Ae}$) from the solar flux is found to be about $4.35 \times 10^{-12}$ in mass range from $10^{-5}$ to 1 keV/$c^2$ with 90\% confidence level, similar to the recent LUX result. We also report a new best limit from the $^{57}$Fe de-excitation. On the other hand, the upper limit from the galactic axions is on the order of $10^{-13}$ in the mass range from 1 keV/$c^2$ to 10 keV/$c^2$ with 90\% confidence level, slightly improved compared with the LUX.

We discuss an in-situ evaluation of the $^{85}$Kr, $^{222}$Rn, and $^{220}$Rn background in PandaX-I, a 120-kg liquid xenon dark matter direct detection experiment. Combining with a simulation, their contributions to the low energy electron-recoil background in the dark matter search region are obtained.

We present the second release of value-added catalogues of the LAMOST Spectroscopic Survey of the Galactic Anticentre (LSS-GAC DR2). The catalogues present values of radial velocity $V_{\rm r}$, atmospheric parameters --- effective temperature $T_{\rm eff}$, surface gravity log$g$, metallicity [Fe/H], $\alpha$-element to iron (metal) abundance ratio [$\alpha$/Fe] ([$\alpha$/M]), elemental abundances [C/H] and [N/H], and absolute magnitudes ${\rm M}_V$ and ${\rm M}_{K_{\rm s}}$ deduced from 1.8 million spectra of 1.4 million unique stars targeted by the LSS-GAC since September 2011 until June 2014. The catalogues also give values of interstellar reddening, distance and orbital parameters determined with a variety of techniques, as well as proper motions and multi-band photometry from the far-UV to the mid-IR collected from the literature and various surveys. Accuracies of radial velocities reach 5kms$^{-1}$ for late-type stars, and those of distance estimates range between 10 -- 30 per cent, depending on the spectral signal-to-noise ratios. Precisions of [Fe/H], [C/H] and [N/H] estimates reach 0.1dex, and those of [$\alpha$/Fe] and [$\alpha$/M] reach 0.05dex. The large number of stars, the contiguous sky coverage, the simple yet non-trivial target selection function and the robust estimates of stellar radial velocities and atmospheric parameters, distances and elemental abundances, make the catalogues a valuable data set to study the structure and evolution of the Galaxy, especially the solar-neighbourhood and the outer disk.

AST3-1 is the second-generation wide-field optical photometric telescope dedicated to time domain astronomy at Dome A, Antarctica. Here we present the results of $i$ band images survey from AST3-1 towards one Galactic disk field. Based on time-series photometry of 92,583 stars, 560 variable stars were detected with $i$ magnitude $\leq$ 16.5 mag during eight days of observations; 339 of these are previously unknown variables. We tentatively classify the 560 variables as 285 eclipsing binaries (EW, EB, EA), 27 pulsating variable stars ($\delta$~Scuti, $\gamma$~Doradus, $\delta$~Cephei variable and RR Lyrae stars) and 248 other types of variables (unclassified periodic, multi-periodic and aperiodic variable stars). Among the eclipsing binaries, 34 show O'Connell effects. One of the aperiodic variables shows a plateau light curve and another one shows a secondary maximum after peak brightness. We also detected a complex binary system with RS CVn-like light curve morphology; this object is being followed-up spectroscopically using the Gemini South telescope.

New constraints are presented on the spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon interaction from the PandaX-II experiment, using a data set corresponding to a total exposure of 3.3$\times10^4$ kg-days. Assuming a standard axial-vector spin-dependent WIMP interaction with $^{129}$Xe and $^{131}$Xe nuclei, the most stringent upper limits on WIMP-neutron cross sections for WIMPs with masses above 10 GeV/c$^{2}$ are set in all dark matter direct detection experiments. The minimum upper limit of $4.1\times 10^{-41}$ cm$^2$ at 90\% confidence level is obtained for a WIMP mass of 40 GeV/c$^{2}$. This represents more than a factor of two improvement on the best available limits at this and higher masses. These improved cross-section limits provide more stringent constraints on the effective WIMP-proton and WIMP-neutron couplings.

The summit of the Antarctic plateau, Dome A, is proving to be an excellent site for optical, NIR, and THz astronomical observations. GATTINI was a wide-field camera installed on the PLATO instrument module as part of the Chinese-led traverse to Dome A in January, 2009. We present here the measurements of sky brightness with the Gattini ultra-large field of view (90 deg x 90 deg) in the photometric B-, V-, and R-bands, cloud cover statistics measured during the 2009 winter season, and an estimate of the sky transparency. A cumulative probability distribution indicates that the darkest 10% of the nights at Dome A have sky brightness of S_B = 22.98, S_V = 21.86, and S_R = 21.68 mag arcsec^-2. These values were obtained around the year 2009 with minimum aurora, and they are comparable to the faintest sky brightness at Mauna Kea and the best sites of northern Chile. Since every filter includes strong auroral lines that effectively contaminate the sky brightness measurements, for instruments working around the auroral lines, either with custom filters or with high spectral resolution instruments, these values could be easily obtained on a more routine basis. In addition, we present example light curves for bright targets to emphasize the unprecedented observational window function available from this ground-based site. These light curves will be published in a future paper.

Supernova Remnant RX J1713.7-3946 emits synchrotron X-rays and very high energy $\gamma$-rays. Recently, thermal X-ray line emission is detected from ejecta plasma. CO and HI observations indicate that a highly inhomogeneous medium surrounding the SNR. It is interacting with dense molecular clouds in the northwest and the southwest of the remnant. The origin of the $\gamma$-ray emission from RX J1713.7-3946 is still uncertain. Detection of rapid variability in X-ray emission from RX J1713.7-3946 indicates the magnetic field $B$ $\sim$ mG. In this work, we investigate the time variation in X-ray flux, luminosity and photon index of RX J1713.7-3946. For this investigation, we study the northwest part of the remnant using Suzaku data in 2006 and 2010. We present preliminary results based on our analysis and interpretations about these X-ray time variability.

The Chinese Small Telescope ARray (CSTAR) carried out high-cadence time-series observations of 20.1 square degrees centered on the South Celestial Pole during the 2008, 2009 & 2010 winter seasons from Dome A in Antarctica. The nearly-continuous 6 months of dark conditions during each observing season allowed for >10^6 images to be collected through gri and clear filters, resulting in the detection of >10^4 sources over the course of 3 years of operation. The nearly space-like conditions in the Antarctic plateau are an ideal testbed for the suitability of very small-aperture (<20 cm) telescopes to detect transient events, variable stars and stellar flares. We present the results of a robust search for such objects using difference image analysis of the data obtained during the 2009 & 2010 winter seasons. While no transients were found, we detected 29 flaring events and find a normalized flaring rate of 5+\-4x10^-7 flare/hour for late-K dwarfs, 1+\-1x10^-6 flare/hour for M dwarfs and 7+\-1x10^-7 flare/hour for all other stars in our sample. We suggest future small-aperture telescopes planned for deployment at Dome A would benefit from a tracking mechanism, to help alleviate effects from ghosting, and a finer pixel scale, to increase the telescope's sensitivity to faint objects. We find that the light curves of non-transient sources have excellent photometric qualities once corrected for systematics, and are limited only by photon noise and atmospheric scintillation.

Supernovae of type Ia (SNe Ia) are believed to be thermonuclear explosions of carbon-oxygen white dwarfs (CO WDs). However, the mass accretion process onto CO WDs is still not completely understood. In this paper, we study the accretion of He-rich matter onto CO WDs and explore a scenario in which a strong wind forms on the surface of the WD if the total luminosity exceeds the Eddington limit. Using a stellar evolution code called modules for experiments in stellar astrophysics (MESA), we simulated the He accretion process onto CO WDs for WDs with masses of 0.6-1.35Msun and various accretion rates of 10^-8-10^-5Msun/yr. If the contribution of the total luminosity is included when determining the Eddington accretion rate, then a super-Eddington wind could be triggered at relatively lower accretion rates than those of previous studies based on steady-state models. The super-Eddington wind can prevent the WDs with high accretion rates from evolving into red-giant-like He stars. We found that the contributions from thermal energy of the WD are non-negligible, judging by our simulations, even though the nuclear burning energy is the dominating source of luminosity. We also provide the limits of the steady He-burning regime in which the WDs do not lose any accreted matter and increase their mass steadily, and calculated the mass retention efficiency during He layer flashes for various WD masses and accretion rates. These obtained results can be used in future binary population synthesis computations.

The Large sky Area Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) General Survey is a spectroscopic survey that will eventually cover approximately half of the celestial sphere and collect 10 million spectra of stars, galaxies and QSOs. Objects both in the pilot survey and the first year general survey are included in the LAMOST First Data Release (DR1). The pilot survey started in October 2011 and ended in June 2012, and the data have been released to the public as the LAMOST Pilot Data Release in August 2012. The general survey started in September 2012, and completed its first year of operation in June 2013. The LAMOST DR1 includes a total of 1202 plates containing 2,955,336 spectra, of which 1,790,879 spectra have observed signal-to-noise S/N >10. All data with S/N>2 are formally released as LAMOST DR1 under the LAMOST data policy. This data release contains a total of 2,204,696 spectra, of which 1,944,329 are stellar spectra, 12,082 are galaxy spectra and 5,017 are quasars. The DR1 includes not only spectra, but also three stellar catalogues with measured parameters: AFGK-type stars with high quality spectra (1,061,918 entries), A-type stars (100,073 entries), and M stars (121,522 entries). This paper introduces the survey design, the observational and instrumental limitations, data reduction and analysis, and some caveats. Description of the FITS structure of spectral files and parameter catalogues is also provided.

We report the results of a weakly-interacting massive particle (WIMP) dark matter search using the full 80.1\;live-day exposure of the first stage of the PandaX experiment (PandaX-I) located in the China Jin-Ping Underground Laboratory. The PandaX-I detector has been optimized for detecting low-mass WIMPs, achieving a photon detection efficiency of 9.6\%. With a fiducial liquid xenon target mass of 54.0\u2009kg, no significant excess event were found above the expected background. A profile likelihood analysis confirms our earlier finding that the PandaX-I data disfavor all positive low-mass WIMP signals reported in the literature under standard assumptions. A stringent bound on the low mass WIMP is set at WIMP mass below 10\u2009GeV/c$^2$, demonstrating that liquid xenon detectors can be competitive for low-mass WIMP searches.

The Active Particle-induced X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) is one of the payloads on board the Yutu rover of Chang'E-3 mission. In order to assess the instrumental performance of APXS, a ground verification test was done for two unknown samples (basaltic rock, mixed powder sample). In this paper, the details of the experiment configurations and data analysis method are presented. The results show that the elemental abundance of major elements can be well determined by the APXS with relative deviations < 15 wt. % (detection distance = 30 mm, acquisition time = 30 min). The derived detection limit of each major element is inversely proportional to acquisition time and directly proportional to detection distance, suggesting that the appropriate distance should be < 50mm.

X-ray spectrometer is one of the satellite payloads on Chang'E-2 satellite. The soft X-ray detector is one of the device on X-ray spectrometer which is designed to detect the major rock-forming elements within 0.5-10keV range on lunar surface. In this paper, energy linearity and energy resolution calibration is done using a weak Fe55 source, while temperature and time effect is considered not take big error. The total uncertainty is estimated to be within 5% after correction.

Two main physical mechanisms are used to explain supernova explosions: thermonuclear explosion of a white dwarf(Type Ia) and core collapse of a massive star (Type II and Type Ib/Ic). Type Ia supernovae serve as distance indicators that led to the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the Universe. The exact nature of their progenitor systems however remain unclear. Radio emission from the interaction between the explosion shock front and its surrounding CSM or ISM provides an important probe into the progenitor star's last evolutionary stage. No radio emission has yet been detected from Type Ia supernovae by current telescopes. The SKA will hopefully detect radio emission from Type Ia supernovae due to its much better sensitivity and resolution. There is a 'supernovae rate problem' for the core collapse supernovae because the optically dim ones are missed due to being intrinsically faint and/or due to dust obscuration. A number of dust-enshrouded optically hidden supernovae should be discovered via SKA1-MID/survey, especially for those located in the innermost regions of their host galaxies. Meanwhile, the detection of intrinsically dim SNe will also benefit from SKA1. The detection rate will provide unique information about the current star formation rate and the initial mass function. A supernova explosion triggers a shock wave which expels and heats the surrounding CSM and ISM, and forms a supernova remnant (SNR). It is expected that more SNRs will be discovered by the SKA. This may decrease the discrepancy between the expected and observed numbers of SNRs. Several SNRs have been confirmed to accelerate protons, the main component of cosmic rays, to very high energy by their shocks. This brings us hope of solving the Galactic cosmic ray origin's puzzle by combining the low frequency (SKA) and very high frequency (Cherenkov Telescope Array: CTA) bands' observations of SNRs.

The Chinese Small Telescope ARray (CSTAR) carried out high-cadence time-series observations of 27 square degrees centered on the South Celestial Pole during the Antarctic winter seasons of 2008, 2009 and 2010. Aperture photometry of the 2008 and 2010 i-band images resulted in the discovery of over 200 variable stars. Yearly servicing left the array defocused for the 2009 winter season, during which the system also suffered from intermittent frosting and power failures. Despite these technical issues, nearly 800,000 useful images were obtained using g, r & clear filters. We developed a combination of difference imaging and aperture photometry to compensate for the highly crowded, blended and defocused frames. We present details of this approach, which may be useful for the analysis of time-series data from other small-aperture telescopes regardless of their image quality. Using this approach, we were able to recover 68 previously-known variables and detected variability in 37 additional objects. We also have determined the observing statistics for Dome A during the 2009 winter season; we find the extinction due to clouds to be less than 0.1 and 0.4 mag for 40% and 63% of the dark time, respectively.

We present the optical luminosity function (LF) of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) estimated from a uniform sample of 58 GRBs from observations with the Robotic Optical Transient Search Experiment III (ROTSE-III). Our GRB sample is divided into two sub-samples: detected afterglows (18 GRBs), and those with upper limits (40 GRBs). The $R$ band fluxes 100s after the onset of the burst for these two sub-samples are derived. The optical LFs at 100s are fitted by assuming that the co-moving GRB rate traces the star-formation rate. The detection function of ROTSE-III is taken into account during the fitting of the optical LFs by using Monte Carlo simulations. We find that the cumulative distribution of optical emission at 100s is well-described with an exponential rise and power-law decay (ERPLD), broken power-law (BPL), and Schechter LFs. A single power-law (SPL) LF, on the other hand, is ruled out with high confidence.

We report on the first dark-matter (DM) search results from PandaX-I, a low threshold dual-phase xenon experiment operating at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory. In the 37-kg liquid xenon target with 17.4 live-days of exposure, no DM particle candidate event was found. This result sets a stringent limit for low-mass DM particles and disfavors the interpretation of previously-reported positive experimental results. The minimum upper limit, $3.7\times10^{-44}$\u2009cm$^2$, for the spin-independent isoscalar DM-particle-nucleon scattering cross section is obtained at a DM-particle mass of 49\u2009GeV/c$^2$ at 90\% confidence level.