A new spectral classification system for the earliest O stars: definition of type O2

High-quality, blue-violet spectroscopic data are collected for 24 stars that have been classified as type O3 and that display the hallmark N IV and N V lines. A new member of the class is presented; it is the second known in the Cyg OB2 association, and only the second in the northern hemisphere. New digital data are also presented for several of the other stars. Although the data are inhomogeneous, the uniform plots by subcategory reveal some interesting new relationships. Several issues concerning the classification of the hottest O-type spectra are discussed, and new digital data are presented for the five original O3 dwarfs in the Carina Nebula, in which the N IV, N V features are very weak or absent. New spectral types O2 and O3.5 are introduced here as steps toward resolving these issues. The relationship between the derived absolute visual magnitudes and the spectroscopic luminosity classes of the O2–O3 stars shows more scatter than at later O types, at least partly because some overluminous dwarfs are unresolved multiple systems, and some close binary systems of relatively low luminosity and mass emulate O3 supergiant spectra. However, it also appears that the behavior of He II λ4686, the primary luminosity criterion at later O types, responds to other phenomena in addition to luminosity at spectral types O2–O3. There is evidence that these spectral types may correspond to an immediate pre-WN phase, with a correspondingly large range of luminosities and masses. A complete census of spectra classified into the original O3 subcategories considered here (not including intermediate O3/WN types or O3 dwarfs without N IV, N V features) totals 45 stars; 34 of them belong to the Large Magellanic Cloud and 20 of the latter to 30 Doradus

Identification of red supergiants in nearby galaxies with mid-IR photometry

Context. The role of episodic mass loss in massive-star evolution is one of the most important open questions of current stellar evolution theory. Episodic mass loss produces dust and therefore causes evolved massive stars to be very luminous in the mid-infrared and dim at optical wavelengths. Aims. We aim to increase the number of investigated luminous mid-IR sources to shed light on the late stages of these objects. To achieve this we employed mid-IR selection criteria to identity dusty evolved massive stars in two nearby galaxies. Methods. The method is based on mid-IR colors, using 3.6 μm and 4.5 μm photometry from archival Spitzer Space Telescope images of nearby galaxies and J-band photometry from 2MASS. We applied our criteria to two nearby star-forming dwarf irregular galaxies, Sextans A and IC 1613, selecting eight targets, which we followed-up with spectroscopy. Results. Our spectral classification and analysis yielded the discovery of two M-type supergiants in IC 1613, three K-type supergiants and one candidate F-type giant in Sextans A, and two foreground M giants. We show that the proposed criteria provide an independent way for identifying dusty evolved massive stars that can be extended to all nearby galaxies with available Spitzer/IRAC images at 3.6 μm and 4.5 μm. © 2014 ESO

The double-lined spectroscopic binary orbit of the massive supergiant HD 152147: A new target for interferometry

We present a new spectroscopic orbit of the O-type binary system HD 152147. We identify absorption lines in both components and use their radial velocities to determine the orbit, which results in a period of P = 50.2199 ± 0.0007 d, an eccentricity e = 0.738 ± 0.007, and a mean separation between the components of asin i = 151 ± 1 R☉. Considering that the distance to the system is 1600 pc, this implies an angular separation of ∼0.44 mas, making it suitable for modern interferometric observations. In addition, we determine the fundamental stellar parameters of each component by means of a quantitative spectral analysis. We obtain Ma = 31.9−34.6 M☉ and Ra = 17−24 R☉ for the primary, and Mb = 14−15 M☉ and Rb = 5−10 R☉ for the secondary. We apply models with rotation to try to characterize the evolutionary status of the HD 152147 system. We find that the two components are compatible with a common age of 4.5 Myr. We also detect variations in the profile of Hα that are not modulated by the orbital cycle. Moreover, TESS photometry also presents intrinsic variability and was analysed for periodicities. We find a most relevant frequency of 20 times the orbital one, in a TESS data set that includes the periastron passage, and we interpret it as a tidally induced pulsation that seems to dissipate on a time-scale shorter than the orbital cycle because it is not present in another TESS data set that nearly covers the apoastron.Fil: Putkuri, Cristina Ester. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Gamen, Roberto Claudio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; ArgentinaFil: Benvenuto, Omar Gustavo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Morrell, N.I.. No especifíca;Fil: Barbá, R. H.. Universidad de La Serena; ChileFil: Higa, Rebeca Elízabeth. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Arias, J. I.. Universidad de La Serena; Chil

Domestication of the Triticeae in the Fertile Crescent

WOS: 000268721700003About 12,000 years ago, humans began the transition from hunter-gathering to a sedentary, agriculture-based society. From its origins ill the Fertile Crescent, farming expanded throughout Europe, Asia and Africa, together with various domesticated plants and animals. Where, how and why agriculture originated is still debated. Progress has been made in Understanding plant domestication in the last few years. New insights were obtained mainly due to (I) the use of comprehensive germplasm collections covering the whole distribution area for each species; (II) the comparison of many wild and domesticated accessions for each species; (III) the identification of the wild progenitor in the wild gene pool and its comparison with domesticate descendants (IV) the use of molecular fingerprinting techniques at many loci and the access to new generation high-throughput sequencing technologies; (V) the identification and cloning of genes involved in domestication, and (VI) excavation campaigns. This chapter reviews the recent knowledge on wheat, barley and rye domestication in the Fertile Crescent and covers several issues concerning the molecular knowledge of the effects induced by domestication and breeding of these crops