200 research outputs found
Crossing the Gould Belt in the Orion vicinity
We present a study of the large-scale spatial distribution of 6482 RASS X-ray
sources in approximately 5000 deg^2 in the direction of Orion. We examine the
astrophysical properties of a sub-sample of ~100 optical counterparts, using
optical spectroscopy. This sub-sample is used to investigate the space density
of the RASS young star candidates by comparing X-ray number counts with
Galactic model predictions. We characterize the observed sub-sample in terms of
spectral type, lithium content, radial and rotational velocities, as well as
iron abundance. A population synthesis model is then applied to analyze the
stellar content of the RASS in the studied area. We find that stars associated
with the Orion star-forming region do show a high lithium content. A population
of late-type stars with lithium equivalent widths larger than Pleiades stars of
the same spectral type (hence younger than ~70-100 Myr) is found widely spread
over the studied area. Two new young stellar aggregates, namely "X-ray Clump
0534+22" (age~2-10 Myr) and "X-ray Clump 0430-08" (age~2-20 Myr), are also
identified. The spectroscopic follow-up and comparison with Galactic model
predictions reveal that the X-ray selected stellar population in the direction
of Orion is characterized by three distinct components, namely the clustered,
the young dispersed, and the widespread field populations. The clustered
population is mainly associated with regions of recent or ongoing star
formation and correlates spatially with molecular clouds. The dispersed young
population follows a broad lane apparently coinciding spatially with the Gould
Belt, while the widespread population consists primarily of active field stars
older than 100 Myr. We expect the "bi-dimensional" picture emerging from this
study to grow in depth as soon as the distance and the kinematics of the
studied sources will become available from the future Gaia mission.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in Astronomy
and Astrophysics. Abstract shortene
Contemporaneous broad-band photometry and H observations of T Tauri stars
The study of contemporaneous variations of the continuum flux and emission
lines is of great importance to understand the different astrophysical
processes at work in T Tauri stars. In this paper we present the results of a
simultaneous and H photometric monitoring, contemporaneous to
medium-resolution spectroscopy of six T Tauri stars in the Taurus-Auriga star
forming region. We have characterized the H photometric system using
synthetic templates and the contemporaneous spectra of the targets. We show
that we can achieve a precision corresponding to 23 \AA\ in the H
equivalent width, in typical observing conditions. The spectral analysis has
allowed us to determine the basic stellar parameters and the values of
quantities related to the accretion. In particular, we have measured a
significant veiling only for the three targets with the strongest H
emission (T Tau, FM Tau, and DG Tau). The broad-band photometric variations are
found to be in the range 0.050.70 mag and are often paired to variations in
the H intensity, which becomes stronger when the stellar continuum is
weaker. In addition, we have mostly observed a redder and a bluer
color as the stars become fainter. For most of the targets, the timescales of
these variations seem to be longer than the rotation period. One exception is T
Tau, for which the broad-band photometry varies with the rotation period. The
most plausible interpretation of these photometric and H variations is
that they are due to non-stationary mass accretion onto the stars, but
rotational modulation can play a major role in some cases.Comment: 21 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in Acta Astronomic
Gas physical conditions and kinematics of the giant outflow Ou4
Ou4 is a recently discovered bipolar outflow with a projected size of more
than one degree in the plane of the sky. It is apparently centred on the young
stellar cluster -whose most massive representative is the triple system HR8119-
inside the HII region Sh 2-129. The driving source, the nature, and the
distance of Ou4 are not known. Deep narrow-band imagery of the whole nebula at
arcsec resolution was obtained to study its morphology. Long-slit spectroscopy
of the tips of the bipolar lobes was secured to determine the gas ionization
mechanism, physical conditions, and line-of-sight velocities. An estimate of
the proper motions at the tip of the south lobe using archival images is
attempted. The existing multi-wavelength data for Sh 2-129 and HR 8119 are also
comprehensively reviewed. The morphology of Ou4, its emission-line spatial
distribution, line flux ratios, and the kinematic modelling adopting a
bow-shock parabolic geometry, illustrate the expansion of a shock-excited fast
collimated outflow. The radial velocities and reddening are consistent with
those of Sh 2-129 and HR 8119. The improved determination of the distance to
HR8119 (composed of two B0 V and one B0.5 V stars) and Sh 2-129 is 712 pc. We
identify in WISE images a 5 arcmin-radius (1 pc at the distance above) bubble
of emission at 22 micron emitted by hot (107 K) dust, located inside the
central part of Ou4 and corresponding to several [O III] features of Ou4. The
apparent position and the properties studied in this work are consistent with
the hypothesis that Ou4 is located inside the Sh 2-129 HII region, suggesting
that it was launched some 90 000 yrs ago by HR8119. The outflow total kinetic
energy is estimated to be ~4e47~ergs. However, the alternate possibility that
Ou4 is a bipolar planetary nebula, or the result of an eruptive event on a
massive AGB or post-AGB star not yet identified, cannot be ruled out.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics. Also
available at http://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-0102228
Discovery of "isolated" comoving T Tauri stars in Cepheus
During the course of a large spectroscopic survey of X-ray active late-type
stars in the solar neighbourhood, we discovered four lithium-rich stars packed
within just a few degrees on the sky. These very young stars are projected
several degrees away from the Cepheus-Cassiopea clouds, in front of an area
void of interstellar matter. As such, they are very good "isolated" T Tauri
star candidates. We acquired high-resolution optical spectra as well as
photometric data allowing us to investigate in detail their nature and physical
parameters with the aim of testing the "runaway" and "in-situ" formation
scenarios. We derive accurate radial and rotational velocities and perform an
automatic spectral classification. The spectral subtraction technique is used
to infer chromospheric activity level in the H-alpha line core and clean the
spectra of photospheric lines before measuring the equivalent width of the
lithium absorption line. Both physical (lithium content, magnetic activity) and
kinematical indicators show that all stars are very young (ages in the range
10-30 Myr). In particular, the spectral energy distribution of TYC4496-780-1
displays a strong near- and far-infrared excess, typical of T Tauri stars still
surrounded by an accretion disc. They also share the same Galactic motion,
proving that they form a homogeneous moving group of stars with the same
origin. The most plausible explanation of how these "isolated" T Tauri stars
formed is the "in-situ" model, although accurate distances are needed to
clarify their connection with the Cepheus-Cassiopeia complex
The source content of low galactic latitude XMM-Newton surveys
We present results from a project conducted by the Survey Science Center of
the XMM-Newton satellite and aiming at the identification and characterisation
of serendipitous EPIC sources at low galactic latitudes. Deep multi-colour
optical imaging and spectroscopic observations have been obtained in the
framework of several observing campaigns carried out at ING, CFHT and ESO.
These observations have lead to a number of optical identifications, mostly
with active stars. We describe the identified source content at low galactic
latitudes and compare stellar populations properties at low and high galactic
latitudes with those expected from stellar X-ray count models.Comment: Proceedings of the "X-ray surveys, in the light of the new
observatories" workshop, Astronomische Nachrichten, in the press (4 pages, 3
figures, uses an.cls
On the derivation of radial velocities of SB2 components: a "CCF vs TODCOR" comparison
The radial velocity (RV) of a single star is easily obtained from
cross-correlation of the spectrum with a template, but the treatment of
double-lined spectroscopic binaries (SB2s) is more difficult. Two different
approaches were applied to a set of SB2s: the fit of the cross-correlation
function with two normal distributions, and the cross-correlation with two
templates, derived with the TODCOR code. It appears that the minimum masses
obtained through the two methods are sometimes rather different, although their
estimated uncertainties are roughly equal. Moreover, both methods induce a
shift in the zero point of the secondary RVs, but it is less pronounced for
TODCOR. All-in-all the comparison between the two methods is in favour of
TODCOR.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, SF2A Conference 201
Search for young stars among ROSAT All-Sky Survey X-ray sources in and around the R CrA dark cloud
We present the ROSAT All-Sky Survey data in a 126 deg^2 area in and around
the CrA star forming region. With low-resolution spectroscopy of unidentified
ROSAT sources we could find 19 new pre-main sequence stars, two of which are
classical T Tauri stars, the others being weak-lined. The spectral types of
these new T Tauri stars range from F7 to M6. The two new classical T Tauri
stars are located towards two small cloud-lets outside of the main CrA cloud.
They appear to be ~10 Myrs old, by comparing their location in the H-R diagram
with isochrones for an assumed distance of 130 pc, the distance of the main CrA
dark cloud. The new off-cloud weak-line T Tauri stars may have formed in
similar cloud-lets, which have dispersed recently. High-resolution spectra of
our new T Tauri stars show that they have significantly more lithium absorption
than zero-age main-sequence stars of the same spectral type, so that they are
indeed young. From those spectra we also obtained rotational and radial
velocities. For some stars we found the proper motion in published catalogs.
The direction and velocity of the 3D space motion - south relative to the
galatic plane - of the CrA T Tauri stars is consistent with the dark cloud
being formed originally by a high-velocity cloud impact onto the galactic
plane, which triggered the star formation in CrA. We also present VRIJHK
photometry for most of the new T Tauri stars to derive their luminosities,
ages, and masses.Comment: A&A Suppl. in pres
Serge AUDIER, La Société écologique et ses ennemis. Pour une histoire alternative de l’émancipation
La généalogie des sources alternatives de l’écologie politique, proposée par Serge Audier dans La Société écologique et ses ennemis, va à l’encontre d’une vue répandue. Celle qui réserve au xxe siècle tardif l’émergence d’une prise de conscience environnementale, et qui s’arrête au constat que les forces progressistes dites de gauche, « durant l’essentiel de leur histoire jusqu’à nos jours, n’ont pas su ou voulu intégrer pleinement l’impératif écologique dans leurs projets de société » (p. 12..
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