1,264 research outputs found
On the usefulness of finding charts Or the runaway carbon stars of the Blanco & McCarthy field 37
We have been recently faced with the problem of cross--identifying stars
recorded in historical catalogues with those extracted from recent fully
digitized surveys (such as DENIS and 2MASS). Positions mentioned in the old
catalogues are frequently of poor precision, but are generally accompanied by
finding charts where the interesting objects are flagged. Those finding charts
are sometimes our only link with the accumulated knowledge of past literature.
While checking the identification of some of these objects in several
catalogues, we had the surprise to discover a number of discrepancies in recent
works.The main reason for these discrepancies was generally the blind
application of the smallest difference in position as the criterion to identify
sources from one historical catalogue to those in more recent surveys. In this
paper we give examples of such misidentifications, and show how we were able to
find and correct them.We present modern procedures to discover and solve
cross--identification problems, such as loading digitized images of the sky
through the Aladin service at CDS, and overlaying entries from historical
catalogues and modern surveys. We conclude that the use of good finding charts
still remains the ultimate (though time--consuming) tool to ascertain
cross--identifications in difficult cases.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, accepted by A&
The AGB population of NGC 6822: distribution and the C/M ratio from JHK photometry
NGC 6822 is an irregular dwarf galaxy and part of the Local Group. Its close
proximity and apparent isolation provide a unique opportunity to study galactic
evolution without any obvious strong external influences. This paper aims to
study the spatial distribution of the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) population
and metallicity in NGC 6822. Using deep, high quality JHK photometry, taken
with WFCAM on UKIRT, carbon- and oxygen-rich AGB stars have been isolated. The
ratio between their number, the C/M ratio, has then been used to derive the
[Fe/H] abundance across the galaxy. The tip of the red giant branch is located
at K0 = 17.41 \pm 0.11 mag and the colour separation between carbon- and
oxygen-rich AGB stars is at (J - K)0 = 1.20 \pm 0.03 mag (i.e. (J - K)2MAS S
{\guillemotright} 1.28 mag). A C/M ratio of 0.62 \pm 0.03 has been derived in
the inner 4 kpc of the galaxy, which translates into an iron abundance of
[Fe/H] = -1.29\pm0.07 dex. Variations of these parameters were investigated as
a function of distance from the galaxy centre and azimuthal angle. The AGB
population of NGC 6822 has been detected out to a radius of 4 kpc giving a
diameter of 56 arcmin. It is metal-poor, but there is no obvious gradient in
metallicity with either radial distance from the centre or azimuthal angle. The
detected spread in the TRGB magnitude is consistent with that of a galaxy
surrounded by a halo of old stars. The C/M ratio has the potential to be a very
useful tool for the determination of metallicity in resolved galaxies but a
better calibration of the C/M vs. [Fe/H] relation and a better understanding of
the sensitivities of the C/M ratio to stellar selection criteria is first
required
The VISTA near-infrared YJKs public survey of the Magellanic Clouds System (VMC)
The VISTA public survey project VMC targets the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Small Magellanic Cloud, the Bridge and two fields in the Stream. The VMC survey is a uniform and homogeneous survey in the Y, J and Ks near-infrared filters. The main goals are the determination of the star formation history and the three-dimensional structure of the Magellanic system. The survey is therefore designed to reach stars as faint as the oldest main sequence turn-off point and to constrain the mean magnitude of pulsating variable stars such as RR Lyrae and Cepheids. We provide a brief overview of the survey strategy and first science results. Further details are given in Cioni et al. (2011)
A Determination of the Hubble Constant from Cepheid Distances and a Model of the Local Peculiar Velocity Field
We present a measurement of the Hubble Constant based on Cepheid distances to
27 galaxies within 20 Mpc. We take the Cepheid data from published measurements
by the Hubble Telescope Key Project on the Distance Scale (H0KP). We calibrate
the Cepheid Period-Luminosity (PL) relation with data from over 700 Cepheids in
the LMC obtained by the OGLE collaboration; we assume an LMC distance modulus
of 18.50 mag (d=50.1 kpc). Using this PL calibration we obtain new distances to
the H0KP galaxies. We correct the redshifts of these galaxies for peculiar
velocities using two distinct velocity field models: the phenomenological model
of Tonry et al. and a model based on the IRAS density field and linear
gravitational instability theory. We combine the Cepheid distances with the
corrected redshifts for the 27 galaxies to derive H_0, the Hubble constant. The
results are H_0 = 85 +/- 5 km/s/Mpc (random error) at 95% confidence when the
IRAS model is used, and 92 +/- 5 km/s/Mpc when the phenomenological model is
used. The IRAS model is a better fit to the data and the Hubble constant it
returns is more reliable. Systematic error stems mainly from LMC distance
uncertainty which is not directly addressed by this paper. Our value of H_0 is
significantly larger than that quoted by the H0KP, H_0 = 71 +/- 6 km/s/Mpc.
Cepheid recalibration explains ~30% of this difference, velocity field analysis
accounts for ~70%. We discuss in detail possible reasons for this discrepancy
and future study needed to resolve it.Comment: 33 pages, 8 embedded figures. New table, 5 new references, text
revision
Photometric Properties of Long-period Variables in the Large Magellanic Cloud
Approximately four thousand light curves of red variable stars in the LMC
were selected from the 2.3-years duration MOA database by a period analysis
using the Phase Dispersion Minimization method. Their optical features
(amplitudes, periodicities, position in CMD) were investigated. Stars with
large amplitues and high periodicities were distributed on the only one strip
amongst multiple structure on the LMC period-luminosity relation. In the CMD,
the five strips were located in the order of the period. The stars with
characterized light curves were also discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, Proceeding of WS on Mass-Losing Pulsating Stars
and Their Circumstellar Matter, Sendai, Japa
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