11,031 research outputs found
K Giants in Baade's Window. II. The Abundance Distribution
This is the second in a series of papers in which we analyze spectra of over
400 K and M giants in Baade's Window, including most of the stars with proper
motions measured by Spaenhauer et al. [AJ, 103, 297 (1992)]. In our first
paper, we measured line--strength indices of Fe, Mg, CN and H and
calibrated them on the system of Faber et al. [ApJS, 57, 711 (1985)]. Here, we
use the index to derive an abundance distribution in
[Fe/H] for 322 stars with effective temperatures between 3900 K and 5160 K.
Our derived values of [Fe/H] agree well with those measured from
high--resolution echelle spectra (e.g., McWilliam \& Rich [ApJS, 91, 749
(1994)]) for the small number of stars in common. We find a mean abundance
for our sample of Baade's Window
K giants. More than half the sample lie in the range \feh\ .
We estimate line--of--sight distances for individual stars in our sample and
confirm that, in Baade's Window, most K giants with are foreground
disk stars, but the great majority (more than 80\%) with belong to the
bulge.
We also compare the metallicities derived from the CN and Mg indices to
those from iron. Most of the metal--rich stars in our sample appear to be
CN--weak, in contrast to the situation in metal--rich globular clusters and
elliptical galaxies. The metal--poor half of our sample ([Fe/H] ) shows
evidence for a mild Mg overenhancement ([Mg/Fe] ); but this is not
seen in the more metal--rich stars ([Fe/H] 0). The K giants in Baade's
Window therefore share some, but not all, of the characteristics of stars in
elliptical galaxies as inferred from their integrated light.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astronomical Journal, tentatively
scheduled for July, 1996. LaTex source which generates 40 pages of text (no
figures or tables). Complete (text + 15 figs + 5 tables) preprint in gzip/tar
format is also available at
ftp://bessel.mps.ohio-state.edu/pub/terndrup/kg2.tar.gz (227 kbyte
WFPC2 Observations of Star Clusters in the Magellanic Clouds: I. The LMC Globular Cluster Hodge 11
We present our analysis of Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera
2 observations in F555W (broadband V) and F450W (broadband B) of the globular
cluster Hodge 11 in the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy. The resulting V vs.
(B-V) color-magnitude diagram reaches 2.4 mag below the main-sequence turnoff
(which is at V_TO = 22.65 +- 0.10 mag or M_V^TO = 4.00 +- 0.16 mag). Comparing
the fiducial sequence of Hodge 11 with that of the Galactic globular cluster
M92, we conclude that, within the accuracy of our photometry, the age of Hodge
11 is identical to that of M92 with a relative age-difference uncertainty
ranging from 10% to 21%. Provided that Hodge 11 has always been a part of the
Large Magellanic Cloud and was not stripped from the halo of the Milky Way or
absorbed from a cannibalized dwarf spheroidal galaxy, then the oldest stars in
the Large Magellanic Clouds and the Milky Way appear to have the same age.Comment: 14 pages (LaTeX+aaspp4.sty), 3 tables and 4 figures (Postscript,
gzipped tar file). Postscript version of paper, tables, and full-resolution
figures available at http://www.astro.columbia.edu/~mighell/hodge11.html To
appear in the Astronomical Journa
High-resolution CRIRES spectra of Terzan1: a metal-poor globular cluster toward the inner bulge
Containing the oldest stars in the Galaxy, globular clusters toward the bulge
can be used to trace its dynamical and chemical evolution. In the bulge
direction, there are ~50 clusters, but only about 20% have been subject of
high-resolution spectroscopic investigations. So far, the sample observed at
high resolution spans a moderate-to-high metallicity regime. In this sample,
however, very few are located in the innermost region (1.5\,Kpc and
). To constrain the chemical evolution enrichment of the
innermost region of Galaxy, accurate abundances and abundance patterns of key
elements based on high-resolution spectroscopy are necessary. Here we present
the results we obtained for Terzan 1, a metal-poor cluster located in the
innermost bulge region. Using the near-infrared spectrograph CRIRES at ESO/VLT,
we obtained high-resolution (R50,000) H-band spectra of 16 bright
giant stars in the innermost region () of Terzan1. Full spectral
synthesis techniques and equivalent width measurements of selected lines,
isolated and free of significant blending and/or contamination by telluric
lines, allowed accurate chemical abundances and radial velocities to be
derived. Fifteen out of 16 observed stars are likely cluster members, with an
average heliocentric radial velocity of +571.8\,km/s and mean iron
abundance of [Fe/H]=--1.260.03\,dex. For these stars we measured some
[/Fe] abundance ratios, finding average values of
[O/Fe]=+0.390.02\,dex, [Mg/Fe]=+0.420.02\,dex,
[Si/Fe]=+0.310.04\,dex, and [Ti/Fe]=+0.150.04\,dex The
enhancement (\,dex) found in the observed giant stars of Terzan1
is consistent with previous measurements on other, more metal-rich bulge
clusters, which suggests a rapid chemical enrichment.Comment: 7, pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication on A&
New High Proper Motion Stars from the Digitized Sky Survey. II. Northern Stars with 0.5<mu<2.0 arcsec/yr at High Galactic Latitudes
In a continuation of our systematic search for high proper motion stars in
the Digitized Sky Survey, we have completed the analysis of northern sky fields
at galactic latitudes above 25 degrees. With the help of our SUPERBLINK
software, a powerful automated blink comparator developed by us, we have
identified 1146 stars in the magnitude range 8<r<20 with proper motions
0.500<mu<2.000 arcsec/yr. These include 1080 stars previously listed in
Luyten's proper motion catalogs (LHS, NLTT), 9 stars not previously listed in
the Luyten catalogs but reported elsewhere in the literature (including 1
previously reported by our team), and 57 new objects reported here for the
first time. This paper includes a list of positions, proper motions,
magnitudes, and finder charts for all the new high proper motion stars.
Combined with our previous study of low galactic latitude fields (see Paper I),
our survey now covers over 98% of the northern sky. We conclude that the Luyten
catalogs were 90% complete in the northern sky for stars with 0.5<mu<2.0
arcsec/yr down to magnitude r=19. We discuss the incompleteness of the old
Luyten proper motion survey, and estimate completeness limits for our new
survey.Comment: To appear in The Astronomical Journa
A 20 Thousand Solar Mass Black Hole in the Stellar Cluster G1
We present the detection of a 2.0(+1.4,-0.8)x10^4 solar mass black hole (BH)
in the stellar cluster G1 (Mayall II), based on data taken with the Space
Telescope Imaging Spectrograph onboard the Hubble Space Telescope. G1 is one of
the most massive stellar clusters in M31. The central velocity dispersion (25
kms) and the measured BH mass of G1 places it on a linear extrapolation of the
correlation between BH mass and bulge velocity dispersion established for
nearby galaxies. The detection of a BH in this low-mass stellar system suggests
that (1) the most likely candidates for seed massive BHs come from stellar
clusters, (2) there is a direct link between massive stellar clusters and
normal galaxies, and (3) the formation process of both bulges and massive
clusters is similar due to their concordance in the M_BH/sigma relation.
Globular clusters in our Galaxy should be searched for central BHs.Comment: 4 pages, accepted in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, October 200
A Slowly Precessing Disk in the Nucleus of M31 as the Feeding Mechanism for a Central Starburst
We present a kinematic study of the nuclear stellar disk in M31 at infrared
wavelengths using high spatial resolution integral field spectroscopy. The
spatial resolution achieved, FWHM = 0."12 (0.45 pc at the distance of M31), has
only previously been equaled in spectroscopic studies by space-based long-slit
observations. Using adaptive optics-corrected integral field spectroscopy from
the OSIRIS instrument at the W. M. Keck Observatory, we map the line-of-sight
kinematics over the entire old stellar eccentric disk orbiting the supermassive
black hole (SMBH) at a distance of r<4 pc. The peak velocity dispersion is
381+/-55 km/s , offset by 0.13 +/- 0.03 from the SMBH, consistent with previous
high-resolution long-slit observations. There is a lack of near-infrared (NIR)
emission at the position of the SMBH and young nuclear cluster, suggesting a
spatial separation between the young and old stellar populations within the
nucleus. We compare the observed kinematics with dynamical models from Peiris &
Tremaine (2003). The best-fit disk orientation to the NIR flux is [,
, ] = [-33 +/- 4, 44 +/- 2, -15 +/-
15], which is tilted with respect to both the larger-scale galactic
disk and the best-fit orientation derived from optical observations. The
precession rate of the old disk is = 0.0 +/- 3.9 km/s/pc, lower than
the majority of previous observations. This slow precession rate suggests that
stellar winds from the disk will collide and shock, driving rapid gas inflows
and fueling an episodic central starburst as suggested in Chang et al. (2007).Comment: accepted by Ap
Detailed abundances for M giants in two inner bulge fields from Infrared Spectroscopy
We report abundance analysis for 30 M giant stars in two inner Galactic bulge
fields at (l,b)=(0,-1.75) deg and at (l,b)=(1,-2.65) deg, based on R=25,000
infrared spectroscopy from 1.5-1.8um using NIRSPEC at the Keck II telescope. We
find iron abundances of =-0.16 +/- 0.03 dex with a 1-sigma dispersion
of 0.12 +/- 0.02 and =-0.21 +/- 0.02 dex, with a 1-sigma dispersion of
0.09+/- 0.016 for the (l,b)=(0,-1.75) and (l,b)=(1,-2.65) deg fields,
respectively. In agreement with all prior studies, we find enhanced [alpha/Fe]
of +0.3 dex. We confirm the lack of any major vertical abundance or composition
gradient in the innermost ~600 pc between Baade's window and 150 pc from the
Galactic plane. We also confirm that the known enhancement of alpha elements
observed between 500 and 1000 pc from the nucleus is also present over the
volume of the inner bulge and may therefore be presumed to be a general
characteristic of bulge/bar stars within 1 kpc of the Galactic Center.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. 27 pages
manuscript format, 6 figure
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