The power of low-resolution spectroscopy: On the spectral classification of planet candidates in the ground-based CoRoT follow-up

Planetary transits detected by the CoRoT mission can be mimicked by a low-mass star in orbit around a giant star. Spectral classification helps to identify the giant stars and also early-type stars which are often excluded from further follow-up. We study the potential and the limitations of low-resolution spectroscopy to improve the photometric spectral types of CoRoT candidates. In particular, we want to study the influence of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the target spectrum in a quantitative way. We built an own template library and investigate whether a template library from the literature is able to reproduce the classifications. Including previous photometric estimates, we show how the additional spectroscopic information improves the constraints on spectral type. Low-resolution spectroscopy ($R\approx$1000) of 42 CoRoT targets covering a wide range in SNR (1-437) and of 149 templates was obtained in 2012-2013 with the Nasmyth spectrograph at the Tautenburg 2m telescope. Spectral types have been derived automatically by comparing with the observed template spectra. The classification has been repeated with the external CFLIB library. The spectral class obtained with the external library agrees within a few sub-classes when the target spectrum has a SNR of about 100 at least. While the photometric spectral type can deviate by an entire spectral class, the photometric luminosity classification is as close as a spectroscopic classification with the external library. A low SNR of the target spectrum limits the attainable accuracy of classification more strongly than the use of external templates or photometry. Furthermore we found that low-resolution reconnaissance spectroscopy ensures that good planet candidates are kept that would otherwise be discarded based on photometric spectral type alone.Comment: accepted for publication in Astronomische Nachrichten; 12 pages, 4 figures, 7 table

Mid-infrared observations of the SGR 1900+14 error box

We report on mid-infrared observations of the compact stellar cluster located in the proximity of SGR 1900+14, and the radio/X-ray position of this soft-gamma repeater. Observations were performed in May and June of 2001 when the bursting source was in an active state. At the known radio and X-ray position of the SGR we did not detect transient mid-IR activity, although the observations were performed only hours before and after an outburst in the high-energy band.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to appear in "Gamma-Ray Burst and Afterglow Astronomy 2001", Woods Hole; 5-9 Nov, 200

Pre-main sequence spectroscopic binaries suitable for VLTI observations

A severe problem of the research in star-formation is that the masses of young stars are almost always estimated only from evolutionary tracks. Since the tracks published by different groups differ, it is often only possible to give a rough estimate of the masses of young stars. It is thus crucial to test and calibrate the tracks. Up to now, only a few tests of the tracks could be carried out. However, with the VLTI it is now possible to set constrains on the tracks by determining the masses of many young binary stars precisely. In order to use the VLTI efficiently, a first step is to find suitable targets, which is the purpose of this work. Given the distance of nearby star-forming regions, suitable VLTI targets are binaries with orbital periods between at least 50 days, and few years. Although a number of surveys for detecting spectroscopic binaries have been carried out, most of the binaries found so far have periods which are too short. We thus surveyed the Chamaeleon, Corona Australis, Lupus, Sco-Cen, rho Ophiuci star-forming regions in order to search for spectroscopic binaries with periods longer than 50 days, which are suitable for the VLTI observations. As a result of the 8 years campaign we discovered 8 binaries with orbital periods longer than 50 days. Amongst the newly discovered long period binaries is CS Cha, which is one of the few classical T Tauri stars with a circumbinary disk. The survey is limited to objects with masses higher than 0.1 to 0.2 Modot for periods between 1 and 8 years. We find that the frequency of binaries with orbital periods < 3000 days is of 20+/-5 percent. The frequency of long and short period pre-main sequence spectroscopic binaries is about the same as for stars in the solar neighbourhood. In total 14 young binaries are now known which are suitable for mass determination with the VLTI

NGC 2264 IRS1: The central engine and its cavity

We present a high-resolution study of NGC 2264 IRS1 in CS(2-1) and in the 3-mm continuum using the IRAM Plateau de Bure Interferometer. We complement these radio data with images taken at 2.2, 4.6, and 11.9 micron. The combined information allow a new interpretation of the closest environment of NGC 2264 IRS1. No disk around the B-type star IRS1 was found. IRS1 and its low-mass companions are located in a low-density cavity which is surrounded by the remaining dense cloud core which has a clumpy shell-like structure. Strong evidence for induced on-going star formation was found in the surroundings of IRS1. A deeply embedded very young stellar object 20 arcsec to the north of IRS1 is powering a highly collimated bipolar outflow. The object 8 in the closer environment of IRS1 is a binary surrounded by dusty circumbinary material and powering two bipolar outflows.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures, The paper is accepted and will appear in the Astrophysical Journal, Vol 599, No 1 (issue December 10). A high-resolution postscript version of this paper is available here ( http://www.astro.uni-jena.de/Users/martin/publi.html). Furthermore, you can find a high resolution PDF file here ( http://www.tls-tautenburg.de/research/tls-research/pub2003.html

New Candidate Eruptive Young Stars in Lynds 1340

We report on the discovery of three candidate eruptive young stars, found during our comprehensive multi-wavelength study of the young stellar population of the dark cloud L1340. These stars are as follows. (1) IRAS 02224+7227 (2MASS 02270555+7241167, HH 487S) exhibited FUor-like spectrum in our low-resolution optical spectra. The available photometric data restrict its luminosity to 23 L_☉ < L_(bol) < 59 L_☉. (2) 2MASS 02263797+7304575, identified as a classical T Tauri star during our Hα survey, exhibited an EXor-type brightening in 2005 November at the time of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey observations of the region. (3) 2MASS 02325605+7246055, a low-mass embedded young star, associated with a fan-shaped infrared nebula, underwent an outburst between the DSS 1 and DSS 2 surveys, leading to the appearance of a faint optical nebula. Our [S II] and Hα images, as well as the Spitzer Infrared Array Camera 4.5 μm images, revealed Herbig-Haro objects associated with this star. Our results suggest that amplitudes and timescales of outbursts do not necessarily correlate with the evolutionary stage of the stars

The Near-Infared Survey of the N49 Region around the Soft Gamma Repeater SGR 0526-66

We report the results of a deep near-infrared survey with the Very Large Telescope/Infrared Spectrometer and Array Camera of the environment of the supernova remnant N49 in the Large Magellanic Cloud, which contains the soft gamma repeater SGR 0526-66. Two of the four confirmed SGRs are potentially associated with compact stellar clusters. We thus searched for a similar association of SGR 0526-66 and imaged a young stellar cluster at a projected distance of ∼30 pc from the SGR. This constitutes the third cluster–SGR link and lends support to scenarios in which SGR progenitors originate in young dusty clusters. If confirmed, the cluster-SGR association constrains the age and thus the initial mass of SGR progenitor

The Very Faint K-band Afterglow of GRB 020819 and the Dust Extinction Hypothesis of the Dark Bursts

We report rapid follow-up K\u27-band observations of the error box of the bright High Energy Transient Explorer burst GRB 020819. We find that any afterglow was fainter than K\u27 ¼ 19 only 9 hr after the burst. Because no optical afterglow was found, GRB 020819 represents a typical ‘‘dark burst.’’ At first, we discuss if extinction by cosmic dust in the GRB host galaxy could explain the faintness of the afterglow of GRB 020819. We then turn to the entire ensemble of K-band dark afterglows. We find that extinction by cosmic dust in the GRB host galaxies is still a possible explanation for the faintness of many afterglows. In all investigated cases a combination of only a modest extinction with a modest redshift can explain the observations. However, the required extinction is very high if these bursts occurred at redshifts smaller than unity, perhaps arguing for alternative models to explain the nature of the dark bursts

The structured environments of embedded star-forming cores. PACS and SPIRE mapping of the enigmatic outflow source UYSO 1

The intermediate-mass star-forming core UYSO 1 has previously been found to exhibit intriguing features. While deeply embedded and previously only identified by means of its (sub-)millimeter emission, it drives two powerful, dynamically young, molecular outflows. Although the process of star formation has obviously started, the chemical composition is still pristine. We present Herschel PACS and SPIRE continuum data of this presumably very young region. The now complete coverage of the spectral energy peak allows us to precisely constrain the elevated temperature of 26 - 28 K for the main bulge of gas associated with UYSO1, which is located at the interface between the hot HII region Sh 2-297 and the cold dark nebula LDN 1657A. Furthermore, the data identify cooler compact far-infrared sources of just a few solar masses, hidden in this neighbouring dark cloud.Comment: accepted contribution for the forthcoming Herschel Special Issue of A&A, 5 pages (will appear as 4-page letter in the journal), 6 figure file