4,557 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
Adult Education and Training Programs for Older Adults in the U.S.Country Comparisons Using PIAAC Data1
The age structure of the U.S. labor force has changed dramatically in recent decades, largely due to the aging of the baby boomer cohort. This shift has increased the importance of gaining a better understanding of how adult education and training influences labor market outcomes for middle-aged and older workers
Constraining the History of the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy Using Observations of its Tidal Debris
We present a comparison of semi-analytic models of the phase-space structure
of tidal debris with observations of stars associated with the Sagittarius
dwarf galaxy (Sgr). We find that many features in the data can be explained by
these models. The properties of stars 10-15 degrees away from the center of Sgr
--- in particular, the orientation of material perpendicular to Sgr's orbit
(c.f. Alard 1996) and the kink in the velocity gradient (Ibata et al 1997) ---
are consistent with those expected for unbound material stripped during the
most recent pericentric passage ~50 Myrs ago. The break in the slope of the
surface density seen by Mateo, Olszewski & Morrison (1998) at ~ b=-35 can be
understood as marking the end of this material. However, the detections beyond
this point are unlikely to represent debris in a trailing streamer, torn from
Sgr during the immediately preceding passage ~0.7 Gyrs ago, but are more
plausibly explained by a leading streamer of material that was lost more that 1
Gyr ago and has wrapped all the way around the Galaxy. The observations
reported in Majewski et al (1999) also support this hypothesis. We determine
debris models with these properties on orbits that are consistent with the
currently known positions and velocities of Sgr in Galactic potentials with
halo components that have circular velocities v_circ=140-200 km/s. The best
match to the data is obtained in models where Sgr currently has a mass of ~10^9
M_sun and has orbited the Galaxy for at least the last 1 Gyr, during which time
it has reduced its mass by a factor of 2-3, or luminosity by an amount
equivalent to ~10% of the total luminosity of the Galactic halo. These numbers
suggest that Sgr is rapidly disrupting and unlikely to survive beyond a few
more pericentric passages.Comment: 19 pages, 5 figures, accepted to Astronomical Journa
Absolute Proper Motions to B~22.5: V. Detection of Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Debris in the Direction of the Galactic Anticenter
We have detected a population of predominantly blue (B-V <= 1.1) stars in the
direction l = 167 deg., b = -35 deg. (Kapteyn Selected Area 71) that cannot be
accounted for by standard starcount models. Down to V ~ 20, the colors and
magnitudes of these stars are similar to those of the southern overdensity
detected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, and identified as stripped material
from the Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal galaxy. We present absolute proper
motions for the stars in SA 71, and we find that the excess blue stars
represent a distinct, kinematically cooler component than the Galactic field,
and in reasonable agreement with predictions of Sgr disruption models. The
density of the excess SA 71 stars at V ~ 18.8 and B-V <=1.1 is within a factor
of two of the density of the SDSS-south Sgr stripped material, and of that
predicted by the Helmi and White disruption model. Three additional anticenter
fields (SA 29, 45 and 118) show very good agreement with standard starcount
models.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, submitted to ApJL, accepted for Ap
Adult Education and Training Programs for Older Adults in the U.S.: National Results and Cross-National Comparisons Using PIAAC Data
Skill upgrades over the lifecourse are increasingly important in a knowledged-based global economy. This study examined the relationship between participation in adult education programs and labor market outcomes for adults aged 45-65
Leveraging Resources Between the Senior Community Service Employment Program and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program
This report describes a project that sought to determine the role the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) might play in supporting the Long-Term Care Ombudsman in their expanded role in the HOME Choice Transitions program. Potential responsibilities of the SCSEP program participant are described along with suggested training to carry out these duties
GLobal Integrated Design Environment (GLIDE): A Concurrent Engineering Application
The GLobal Integrated Design Environment (GLIDE) is a client-server software application purpose-built to mitigate issues associated with real time data sharing in concurrent engineering environments and to facilitate discipline-to-discipline interaction between multiple engineers and researchers. GLIDE is implemented in multiple programming languages utilizing standardized web protocols to enable secure parameter data sharing between engineers and researchers across the Internet in closed and/or widely distributed working environments. A well defined, HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) based Application Programming Interface (API) to the GLIDE client/server environment enables users to interact with GLIDE, and each other, within common and familiar tools. One such common tool, Microsoft Excel (Microsoft Corporation), paired with its add-in API for GLIDE, is discussed in this paper. The top-level examples given demonstrate how this interface improves the efficiency of the design process of a concurrent engineering study while reducing potential errors associated with manually sharing information between study participants
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
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