4,600 research outputs found
Spectroscopy of Giant Stars in the Pyxis Globular Cluster
The Pyxis globular cluster is a recently discovered globular cluster that
lies in the outer halo (R_{gc} ~ 40 kpc) of the Milky Way. Pyxis lies along one
of the proposed orbital planes of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), and it has
been proposed to be a detached LMC globular cluster captured by the Milky Way.
We present the first measurement of the radial velocity of the Pyxis globular
cluster based on spectra of six Pyxis giant stars. The mean heliocentric radial
velocity is ~ 36 km/sec, and the corresponding velocity of Pyxis with respect
to a stationary observer at the position of the Sun is ~ -191 km/sec. This
radial velocity is a large enough fraction of the cluster's expected total
space velocity, assuming that it is bound to the Milky Way, that it allows
strict limits to be placed on the range of permissible transverse velocities
that Pyxis could have in the case that it still shares or nearly shares an
orbital pole with the LMC. We can rule out that Pyxis is on a near circular
orbit if it is Magellanic debris, but we cannot rule out an eccentric orbit
associated with the LMC. We have calculated the range of allowed proper motions
for the Pyxis globular cluster that result in the cluster having an orbital
pole within 15 degrees of the present orbital pole of the LMC and that are
consistent with our measured radial velocity, but verification of the tidal
capture hypothesis must await proper motion measurement from the Space
Interferometry Mission or HST. A spectroscopic metallicity estimate of [Fe/H] =
-1.4 +/- 0.1 is determined for Pyxis from several spectra of its brightest
giant; this is consistent with photometric determinations of the cluster
metallicity from isochrone fitting.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures, aaspp4 style, accepted for publication in
October, 2000 issue of the PAS
Continuous, Semi-discrete, and Fully Discretized Navier-Stokes Equations
The Navier--Stokes equations are commonly used to model and to simulate flow
phenomena. We introduce the basic equations and discuss the standard methods
for the spatial and temporal discretization. We analyse the semi-discrete
equations -- a semi-explicit nonlinear DAE -- in terms of the strangeness index
and quantify the numerical difficulties in the fully discrete schemes, that are
induced by the strangeness of the system. By analyzing the Kronecker index of
the difference-algebraic equations, that represent commonly and successfully
used time stepping schemes for the Navier--Stokes equations, we show that those
time-integration schemes factually remove the strangeness. The theoretical
considerations are backed and illustrated by numerical examples.Comment: 28 pages, 2 figure, code available under DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.998909,
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.99890
The Extended Shapes of Galactic Satellites
We are exploring the extended stellar distributions of Galactic satellite
galaxies and globular clusters. For seven objects studied thus far, the
observed profile departs from a King function at large r, revealing a ``break
population'' of stars. In our sample, the relative density of the ``break''
correlates to the inferred M/L of these objects. We discuss opposing hypotheses
for this trend: (1) Higher M/L objects harbor more extended dark matter halos
that support secondary, bound, stellar ``halos''. (2) The extended populations
around dwarf spheroidals (and some clusters) consist of unbound, extratidal
debris from their parent objects, which are undergoing various degrees of tidal
disruption. In this scenario, higher M/L ratios reflect higher degrees of
virial non-equilibrium in the parent objects, thus invalidating a precept
underlying the use of core radial velocities to obtain masses.Comment: 8 pages, including 2 figures Yale Cosmology Workshop: The Shapes of
Galaxies and Their Halo
Magellanic Cloud Periphery Carbon Stars IV: The SMC
The kinematics of 150 carbon stars observed at moderate dispersion on the
periphery of the Small Magellanic Cloud are compared with the motions of
neutral hydrogen and early type stars in the Inter-Cloud region. The
distribution of radial velocities implies a configuration of these stars as a
sheet inclined at 73+/-4 degrees to the plane of the sky. The near side, to the
South, is dominated by a stellar component; to the North, the far side contains
fewer carbon stars, and is dominated by the neutral gas. The upper velocity
envelope of the stars is closely the same as that of the gas. This
configuration is shown to be consistent with the known extension of the SMC
along the line of sight, and is attributed to a tidally induced disruption of
the SMC that originated in a close encounter with the LMC some 0.3 to 0.4 Gyr
ago. The dearth of gas on the near side of the sheet is attributed to ablation
processes akin to those inferred by Weiner & Williams (1996) to collisional
excitation of the leading edges of Magellanic Stream clouds. Comparison with
pre LMC/SMC encounter kinematic data of Hardy, Suntzeff, & Azzopardi (1989) of
carbon stars, with data of stars formed after the encounter, of Maurice et al.
(1989), and Mathewson et al. (a986, 1988) leaves little doubt that forces other
than gravity play a role in the dynamics of the H I.Comment: 30 pages; 7 figures, latex compiled, 1 table; to appear in AJ (June
2000
Exploring Halo Substructure with Giant Stars III: First Results from the Grid Giant Star Survey and Discovery of a Possible Nearby Sagittarius Tidal Structure in Virgo
We describe first results of a spectroscopic probe of selected fields from
the Grid Giant Star Survey. Multifiber spectroscopy of several hundred stars in
a strip of eleven fields along delta approximately -17^{circ}, in the range 12
<~ alpha <~ 17 hours, reveals a group of 8 giants that have kinematical
characteristics differing from the main field population, but that as a group
maintain coherent, smoothly varying distances and radial velocities with
position across the fields. Moreover, these stars have roughly the same
abundance, according to their MgH+Mgb absorption line strengths. Photometric
parallaxes place these stars in a semi-loop structure, arcing in a contiguous
distribution between 5.7 and 7.9 kpc from the Galactic center. The spatial,
kinematical, and abundance coherence of these stars suggests that they are part
of a diffuse stream of tidal debris, and one roughly consistent with a wrapped,
leading tidal arm of the Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal galaxy.Comment: 8 pages including 4 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ
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