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Chemical Inhomogeneities in the Milky Way Stellar Halo
We have compiled a sample of 699 stars from the recent literature withdetailed chemical abundance information (spanning –4.2lsim [Fe/H]lsim+0.3), and we compute their space velocities and Galactic orbitalparameters. We identify members of the inner and outer stellar halopopulations in our sample based only on their kinematic properties andthen compare the abundance ratios of these populations as a function of[Fe/H]. In the metallicity range where the two populations overlap(–2.5lsim [Fe/H] lsim–1.5), the mean [Mg/Fe] of the outerhalo is lower than the inner halo by –0.1 dex. For [Ni/Fe] and[Ba/Fe], the star-to-star abundance scatter of the inner halo isconsistently smaller than in the outer halo. The [Na/Fe], [Y/Fe],[Ca/Fe], and [Ti/Fe] ratios of both populations show similar means andlevels of scatter. Our inner halo population is chemically homogeneous,suggesting that a significant fraction of the Milky Way stellar halooriginated from a well-mixed interstellar medium. In contrast, our outerhalo population is chemically diverse, suggesting that anothersignificant fraction of the Milky Way stellar halo formed in remoteregions where chemical enrichment was dominated by local supernovaevents. We find no abundance trends with maximum radial distance fromthe Galactic center or maximum vertical distance from the Galactic disk.We also find no common kinematic signature for groups of metal-poorstars with peculiar abundance patters, such as the α-poor stars orstars showing unique neutron-capture enrichment patterns. Several starsand dwarf spheroidal systems with unique abundance patterns spend themajority of their time in the distant regions of the Milky Way stellarhalo, suggesting that the true outer halo of the Galaxy may have littleresemblance to the local stellar halo.
| Rotation and Macroturbulence in Metal-Poor Field Red Giant and Red Horizontal Branch Stars
We report the results for rotational velocities, Vrot sin i,and macroturbulence dispersions, ζRT, for 12 metal-poorfield red giant branch (RGB) stars and 7 metal-poor field red horizontalbranch (RHB) stars. The results are based on Fourier transform analysesof absorption line profiles from high-resolution (R ≈ 120,000),high-S/N (≈215 per pixel; ≈345 per resolution element) spectraobtained with the Gecko spectrograph at the Canada-France-HawaiiTelescope (CFHT). The stars were selected from the authors' previousstudies of 20 RHB and 116 RGB stars, based primarily onlarger-than-average line-broadening values. We find thatζRT values for the metal-poor RGB stars are very similarto those for metal-rich disk giants studied earlier by Gray and hiscollaborators. Six of the RGB stars have small rotational values, lessthan 2.0 km s-1, while five show significantrotation/enhanced line broadening, over 3 km s-1. We confirmthe rapid rotation rate for RHB star HD 195636, found earlier byPreston. This star's rotation is comparable to that of the fastest knownrotating blue horizontal branch (BHB) stars, when allowance is made fordifferences in radii and moments of inertia. The other six RHB starshave somewhat lower rotation but show a trend to higher values at highertemperatures (lower radii). Comparing our results with those for BHBstars from Kinman et al., we find that the fraction of rapidly rotatingRHB stars is somewhat lower than is found among BHB stars. The number ofrapidly rotating RHB stars is also smaller than we would have expectedfrom the observed rotation of the RGB stars. We devise two empiricalmethods to translate our earlier line-broadening results intoVrot sin i for all the RGB and RHB stars they studied.Binning the RGB stars by luminosity, we find that most metal-poor fieldRGB stars show no detectable sign, on average, of rotation, which is notsurprising given the stars' large radii. However, the most luminousstars, with MV <= -1.5, do show net rotation, with meanvalues of 2-4 km s-1, depending on the algorithm employed,and also show signs of radial velocity jitter and mass loss. This"rotation" may in fact prove to be due to other line-broadening effects,such as shock waves or pulsation.Based on observations obtained at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope(CFHT) which is operated by the National Research Council of Canada, theInstitut National des Sciences de l'Univers of the Centre National de laRecherche Scientifique de France, and the University of Hawaii.
| Line Broadening in Field Metal-Poor Red Giant and Red Horizontal Branch Stars
We report 349 radial velocities for 45 metal-poor field red giant branch(RGB) and red horizontal branch (RHB) stars, with time coverage rangingfrom 1 to 21 years. We have identified one new spectroscopic binary, HD4306, and one possible such system, HD 184711. We also provide 57 radialvelocities for 11 of the 91 stars reported in our previous work. All butone of the 11 stars had been found to have variable radial velocities.New velocities for the long-period spectroscopic binaries BD-1 2582 andHD 108317 have extended the time coverage to 21.7 and 12.5 years,respectively, but in neither case have we yet completed a full orbitalperiod. As was found in the previous study, radial velocity "jitter" ispresent in many of the most luminous stars. Excluding stars showingspectroscopic binary orbital motion, all 7 of the red giants withestimated MV values more luminous than -2.0 display jitter,as well as 3 of the 14 stars with -2.0 < MV <= -1.4. Wehave also measured the line broadening in all the new spectra, usingsynthetic spectra as templates. Comparison with results fromhigh-resolution and higher signal-to-noise (S/N) spectra employed byother workers shows good agreement down to line-broadening levels of 3km s-1, well below our instrumental resolution of 8.5 kms-1. As the previous work demonstrated, the majority of themost luminous red giants show significant line broadening, as do many ofthe red horizontal branch stars, and we briefly discuss possible causes.The line broadening appears related to velocity jitter, in that bothappear primarily among the highest luminosity red giants.
| Halo Star Streams in the Solar Neighborhood
We have assembled a sample of halo stars in the solar neighborhood tolook for halo substructure in velocity and angular momentum space. Oursample (231 stars) includes red giants, RR Lyrae variable stars, and redhorizontal branch stars within 2.5 kpc of the Sun with [Fe/H] less than-1.0. It was chosen to include stars with accurate distances, spacevelocities, and metallicities, as well as well-quantified errors. Withour data set, we confirm the existence of the streams found by Helmi andcoworkers, which we refer to as the H99 streams. These streams have adouble-peaked velocity distribution in the z-direction (out of theGalactic plane). We use the results of modeling of the H99 streams byHelmi and collaborators to test how one might use vz velocityinformation and radial velocity information to detect kinematicsubstructure in the halo. We find that detecting the H99 streams withradial velocities alone would require a large sample (e.g.,approximately 150 stars within 2 kpc of the Sun and within 20° ofthe Galactic poles). In addition, we use the velocity distribution ofthe H99 streams to estimate their age. From our model of the progenitorof the H99 streams, we determine that it was accreted between 6 and 9Gyr ago. The H99 streams have [α/Fe] abundances similar to otherhalo stars in the solar neighborhood, suggesting that the gas thatformed these stars were enriched mostly by Type II supernovae. We havealso discovered in angular momentum space two other possiblesubstructures, which we refer to as the retrograde and progradeoutliers. The retrograde outliers are likely to be halo substructure,but the prograde outliers are most likely part of the smooth halo. Theretrograde outliers have significant structure in the vφdirection and show a range of [α/Fe], with two having low[α/Fe] for their [Fe/H]. The fraction of substructure stars in oursample is between 5% and 7%. The methods presented in this paper can beused to exploit the kinematic information present in future largedatabases like RAVE, SDSS-II/SEGUE, and Gaia.
| Pulkovo compilation of radial velocities for 35495 stars in a common system.
Not Available
| The Discovery and Analysis of Very Metal-Poor Stars in the Galaxy
We discuss the importance of very metal-poor stars to develop anunderstanding of the nature of the first stars that formed in theUniverse and the nucleosynthesis events associated with them, as well asto refine models of galaxy formation, in particular for large spiralgalaxies such as the Milky Way. After briefly reviewing the history ofthe search for very metal-deficient stars in the Galaxy, we summarizeongoing efforts, concentrating on the two large objective-prism surveysthat have led to the discovery of the majority of stars with [Fe/H] < 2.0 known at present: the HK survey of Beers and collaborators and theHamburg/ESO survey of Christlieb and collaborators. We then consider thewealth of information that can be gleaned from high-resolutionspectroscopic study of very metal-poor stars. We close with a list ofopen questions and a discussion of new survey techniques that willexpand the sample of recognized very metal-deficient stars in the Galaxyby several orders of magnitude.
| The Hamburg/ESO R-process enhanced star survey (HERES). II. Spectroscopic analysis of the survey sample
We present the results of analysis of "snapshot" spectra of 253metal-poor halo stars -3.8≤ [Fe/H] ≤ -1.5 obtained in the HERESsurvey. The snapshot spectra have been obtained with VLT/UVES and havetypically S/N˜ 54 per pixel (ranging from 17 to 308), R˜20000, λ = 3760-4980 Å. This sample represents the major partof the complete HERES sample of 373 stars; however, the CH strongcontent of the sample is not dealt with here. The spectra are analysedusing an automated line profile analysis method based on theSpectroscopy Made Easy (SME) codes of Valenti & Piskunov. Elementalabundances of moderate precision (absolute rms errors of order 0.25 dex,relative rms errors of order 0.15 dex) have been obtained for 22elements, C, Mg, Al, Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Zn, Sr, Y, Zr,Ba, La, Ce, Nd, Sm, and Eu, where detectable. Of these elements, 14 areusually detectable at the 3σ confidence level for our typicalspectra. The remainder can be detected in the least metal-poor stars ofthe sample, spectra with higher than average S/N, or when the abundanceis enhanced. Among the sample of 253 stars, disregarding four previouslyknown comparison stars, we find 8 r-II stars and 35 r-I stars. The r-IIstars, including the two previously known examples CS 22892-052 and CS31082-001, are centred on a metallicity of [Fe/H] = -2.81, with a verysmall scatter, on the order of 0.16 dex. The r-I stars are found acrosspractically the entire metallicity range of our sample. We also findthree stars with strong enhancements of Eu which are s-process rich. Asignificant number of new very metal-poor stars are confirmed: 49 starswith [Fe/H]<-3 and 181 stars with -3<[Fe/H]<-2. We find onestar with [Fe/H]<-3.5. We find the scatter in the abundance ratios ofMg, Ca, Sc, Ti, Cr, Fe, Co, and Ni, with respect to Fe and Mg, to besimilar to the estimated relative errors and thus the cosmic scatter tobe small, perhaps even non-existent. The elements C, Sr, Y, Ba and Eu,and perhaps Zr, show scatter at [Fe/H] ⪉ -2.5 significantly largerthan can be explained from the errors in the analysis, implying scatterwhich is cosmic in origin. Significant scatter is observed in abundanceratios between light and heavy neutron-capture elements at lowmetallicity and low levels of r-process enrichment.
| The Hamburg/ESO R-process Enhanced Star survey (HERES). I. Project description, and discovery of two stars with strong enhancements of neutron-capture elements
We report on a dedicated effort to identify and study metal-poor starsstrongly enhanced in r-process elements ([r/Fe]>1 dex; hereafter r-IIstars), the Hamburg/ESO R-process Enhanced Star survey (HERES).Moderate-resolution (˜2 Å) follow-up spectroscopy has beenobtained for metal-poor giant candidates selected from the Hamburg/ESOobjective-prism survey (HES) as well as the HK survey to identifysharp-lined stars with [Fe/H]<-2.5 dex. For several hundred confirmedmetal-poor giants brighter than B˜ 16.5 mag (most of them from theHES), ``snapshot'' spectra (R˜ 20 000; S/N ˜ 30 per pixel)are being obtained with VLT/UVES, with the main aim of finding the 2-3%r-II stars expected to be among them. These are studied in detail bymeans of higher resolution and higher S/N spectra. In this paper wedescribe a pilot study based on a set of 35 stars, including 23 from theHK survey, eight from the HES, and four comparison stars. We discoveredtwo new r-II stars, CS 29497-004 ([Eu/Fe]=1.64± 0.22) and CS29491-069 ([Eu/Fe]=1.08± 0.23). A first abundance analysis of CS29497-004 yields that its abundances of Ba to Dy are on average enhancedby 1.5 dex with respect to iron and the Sun and match a scaled solarr-process pattern well, while Th is underabundant relative to thatpattern by 0.3 dex, which we attribute to radioactive decay. That is, CS29497-004 seems not to belong to the class of r-process enhanced starsdisplaying an ``actinide boost'', like CS 31082-001 (Hill et al. 2002),or CS 30306-132 (Honda et al. 2004b). The abundance pattern agrees wellwith predictions of the phenomenological model of Qian & Wasserburg.Based in large part on observations collected at the European SouthernObservatory, Paranal, Chile (proposal number 68.B-0320).}
| Stellar Chemical Signatures and Hierarchical Galaxy Formation
To compare the chemistries of stars in the Milky Way dwarf spheroidal(dSph) satellite galaxies with stars in the Galaxy, we have compiled alarge sample of Galactic stellar abundances from the literature. Whenkinematic information is available, we have assigned the stars tostandard Galactic components through Bayesian classification based onGaussian velocity ellipsoids. As found in previous studies, the[α/Fe] ratios of most stars in the dSph galaxies are generallylower than similar metallicity Galactic stars in this extended sample.Our kinematically selected stars confirm this for the Galactic halo,thin-disk, and thick-disk components. There is marginal overlap in thelow [α/Fe] ratios between dSph stars and Galactic halo stars onextreme retrograde orbits (V<-420 km s-1), but this is notsupported by other element ratios. Other element ratios compared in thispaper include r- and s-process abundances, where we find a significantoffset in the [Y/Fe] ratios, which results in a large overabundance in[Ba/Y] in most dSph stars compared with Galactic stars. Thus, thechemical signatures of most of the dSph stars are distinct from thestars in each of the kinematic components of the Galaxy. This resultrules out continuous merging of low-mass galaxies similar to these dSphsatellites during the formation of the Galaxy. However, we do not ruleout very early merging of low-mass dwarf galaxies, since up to one-halfof the most metal-poor stars ([Fe/H]<=-1.8) have chemistries that arein fair agreement with Galactic halo stars. We also do not rule outmerging with higher mass galaxies, although we note that the LMC and theremnants of the Sgr dwarf galaxy are also chemically distinct from themajority of the Galactic halo stars. Formation of the Galaxy's thickdisk by heating of an old thin disk during a merger is also not ruledout; however, the Galaxy's thick disk itself cannot be comprised of theremnants from a low-mass (dSph) dwarf galaxy, nor of a high-mass dwarfgalaxy like the LMC or Sgr, because of differences in chemistry.The new and independent environments offered by the dSph galaxies alsoallow us to examine fundamental assumptions related to thenucleosynthesis of the elements. The metal-poor stars ([Fe/H]<=-1.8)in the dSph galaxies appear to have lower [Ca/Fe] and [Ti/Fe] than[Mg/Fe] ratios, unlike similar metallicity stars in the Galaxy.Predictions from the α-process (α-rich freeze-out) would beconsistent with this result if there have been a lack of hypernovae indSph galaxies. The α-process could also be responsible for thevery low Y abundances in the metal-poor stars in dSph's; since [La/Eu](and possibly [Ba/Eu]) are consistent with pure r-process results, thelow [Y/Eu] suggests a separate r-process site for this light(first-peak) r-process element. We also discuss SNe II rates and yieldsas other alternatives, however. In stars with higher metallicities([Fe/H]>=-1.8), contributions from the s-process are expected; [(Y,La, and Ba)/Eu] all rise as expected, and yet [Ba/Y] is still muchhigher in the dSph stars than similar metallicity Galactic stars. Thisresult is consistent with s-process contributions from lower metallicityAGB stars in dSph galaxies, and is in good agreement with the slowerchemical evolution expected in the low-mass dSph galaxies relative tothe Galaxy, such that the build-up of metals occurs over much longertimescales. Future investigations of nucleosynthetic constraints (aswell as galaxy formation and evolution) will require an examination ofmany stars within individual dwarf galaxies.Finally, the Na-Ni trend reported in 1997 by Nissen & Schuster isconfirmed in Galactic halo stars, but we discuss this in terms of thegeneral nucleosynthesis of neutron-rich elements. We do not confirm thatthe Na-Ni trend is related to the accretion of dSph galaxies in theGalactic halo.
| Neutron-Capture Elements in Halo, Thick-Disk, and Thin-Disk Stars: Neodymium
We have derived the LTE neodymium abundances in 60 cool stars withmetallicities [Fe/H] from 0.25 to -1.71 by applying a synthetic-spectrumanalysis to spectroscopic observations of NdII lines with a resolutionof λ/Δλ⋍60 000 and signal-to-noise ratios of100 200. We have improved the atomic parameters of NdII and blendinglines by analyzing the corresponding line pro files in the solarspectrum. Neodymium is overabundant with respect to iron in halo stars,[Nd/Fe]=0.33±0.09, with the [Nd/Fe] ratio decreasingsystematically with metallicity when [Fe/H]>-1. This reflects anonset of efficient iron production in type I supernovae during theformation of the thick disk. The [Nd/Ba] and [Nd/Eu] abundance ratiosbehave differently in halo, thick-disk, and thin-disk stars. Theobserved abundance ratios in halo stars, [Nd/Ba]=0.34±0.08 and[Nd/Eu]=-0.27±0.05, agree within the errors with the ratios ofthe elemental yields for the r-process. These results support theconclusion of other authors based on analyses of other elements that ther-process played the dominant role in the synthesis of heavy elementsduring the formation of the halo. The [Nd/Ba] and [Nd/Eu] ratios forthick-disk stars are almost independent of metallicity([Nd/Ba]=0.28(±0.03)-0.01(±0.04) [Fe/H] and[Nd/Eu]=-0.13(±0.03)+0.05(±0.04) [Fe/H]) but are smallerin absolute value than the corresponding ratios for halo stars,suggesting that the synthesis of s-process nuclei started during theformation of the thick disk. The s-process is estimated to havecontributed ⋍30% of the neodymium produced during this stage ofthe evolution of the Galaxy. The [Nd/Ba] ratio decreases abruptly by0.17 dex in the transition from the thick to the thin disk. Thesystematic decrease of [Nd/Ba] and increase of [Nd/Eu] with increasingmetallicity of thin-disk stars point toward a dominant role of thes-process in the synthesis of heavy elements during this epoch.
| Empirically Constrained Color-Temperature Relations. II. uvby
A new grid of theoretical color indices for the Strömgren uvbyphotometric system has been derived from MARCS model atmospheres and SSGsynthetic spectra for cool dwarf and giant stars having-3.0<=[Fe/H]<=+0.5 and 3000<=Teff<=8000 K. Atwarmer temperatures (i.e., 8000-2.0. To overcome thisproblem, the theoretical indices at intermediate and high metallicitieshave been corrected using a set of color calibrations based on fieldstars having well-determined distances from Hipparcos, accurateTeff estimates from the infrared flux method, andspectroscopic [Fe/H] values. In contrast with Paper I, star clustersplayed only a minor role in this analysis in that they provided asupplementary constraint on the color corrections for cool dwarf starswith Teff<=5500 K. They were mainly used to test thecolor-Teff relations and, encouragingly, isochrones thatemploy the transformations derived in this study are able to reproducethe observed CMDs (involving u-v, v-b, and b-y colors) for a number ofopen and globular clusters (including M67, the Hyades, and 47 Tuc)rather well. Moreover, our interpretations of such data are verysimilar, if not identical, with those given in Paper I from aconsideration of BV(RI)C observations for the sameclusters-which provides a compelling argument in support of thecolor-Teff relations that are reported in both studies. Inthe present investigation, we have also analyzed the observedStrömgren photometry for the classic Population II subdwarfs,compared our ``final'' (b-y)-Teff relationship with thosederived empirically in a number of recent studies and examined in somedetail the dependence of the m1 index on [Fe/H].Based, in part, on observations made with the Nordic Optical Telescope,operated jointly on the island of La Palma by Denmark, Finland, Iceland,Norway, and Sweden, in the Spanish Observatorio del Roque de losMuchachos of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias.Based, in part, on observations obtained with the Danish 1.54 mtelescope at the European Southern Observatory, La Silla, Chile.
| Oxygen Abundances in Metal-poor Stars
We present oxygen abundances derived from both the permitted andforbidden oxygen lines for 55 subgiants and giants with [Fe/H] valuesbetween -2.7 and solar with the goal of understanding the discrepancy inthe derived abundances. A first attempt, using Teff valuesfrom photometric calibrations and surface gravities from luminositiesobtained agreement between the indicators for turn-off stars, but thedisagreement was large for evolved stars. We find that the difference inthe oxygen abundances derived from the permitted and forbidden lines ismost strongly affected by Teff, and we derive a newTeff scale based on forcing the two sets of lines to give thesame oxygen abundances. These new parameters, however, do not agree withother observables, such as theoretical isochrones or Balmer-line profilebased Teff determinations. Our analysis finds thatone-dimensional, LTE analyses (with published non-LTE corrections forthe permitted lines) cannot fully resolve the disagreement in the twoindicators without adopting a temperature scale that is incompatiblewith other temperature indicators. We also find no evidence ofcircumstellar emission in the forbidden lines, removing such emission asa possible cause for the discrepancy.
| Spectroscopic Binaries, Velocity Jitter, and Rotation in Field Metal-poor Red Giant and Red Horizontal-Branch Stars
We summarize 2007 radial velocity measurements of 91 metal-poor fieldred giants. Excluding binary systems with orbital solutions, ourcoverage averages 13.7 yr per star, with a maximum of 18.0 yr. We reportfour significant findings. (1) Sixteen stars are found to bespectroscopic binaries, and we present orbital solutions for 14 of them.The spectroscopic binary frequency of the metal-poor red giants, with[Fe/H]<=-1.4, for periods less than 6000 days, is 16%+/-4%, which isnot significantly different from that of comparable-metallicity fielddwarfs, 17%+/-2%. The two CH stars in our program, BD -1°2582 and HD135148, are both spectroscopic binaries. (2) Velocity jitter is presentamong about 40% of the giants with MV<=-1.4. The twobest-observed cases, HD 3008 and BD +22°2411, showpseudoperiodicities of 172 and 186 days, longer than any knownlong-period variable in metal-poor globular clusters. Photometricvariability seen in HD 3008 and three other stars showing velocityjitter hints that starspots are the cause. However, the phasing of thevelocity data with the photometry data from Hipparcos is not consistentwith a simple starspot model for HD 3008. We argue against orbitalmotion effects and radial pulsation, so rotational modulation remainsthe best explanation. The implied rotational velocities for HD 3008 andBD +22°2411, both with MV<=-1.4 and R~50Rsolar, exceed 12 km s-1. (3) Including HD 3008and BD +22°2411, we have found signs of significant excess linebroadening in eight of the 17 red giants with MV<=-1.4,which we interpret as rotation. In three cases, BD +30°2034, CD-37°14010, and HD 218732, the rotation is probably induced by tidallocking between axial rotation and the observed orbital motion with astellar companion. But this cannot explain the other five stars in oursample that display signs of significant rotation. This high frequencyof elevated rotational velocities does not appear to be caused bystellar mass transfer or mergers: there are too few main-sequencebinaries with short enough periods. We also note that the lack of anynoticeable increase in mean rotation at the magnitude level of the redgiant branch luminosity function ``bump'' argues against the rapidrotation's being caused by the transport of internal angular momentum tothe surface. Capture of a planetary-mass companion as a red giantexpands in radius could explain the high rotational velocities. (4) Wealso find significant rotation in at least six of the roughly 15 (40%)red horizontal-branch stars in our survey. It is likely that theenhanced rotation seen among a significant fraction of both blue and redhorizontal-branch stars arose when these stars were luminous red giants.Rapid rotation alone therefore appears insufficient cause to populatethe blue side of the horizontal branch. While the largest projectedrotational velocities seen among field blue and red horizontal-branchstars are consistent with their different sizes, neither are consistentwith the large values we find for the largest red giants. This suggeststhat some form of angular momentum loss (and possibly mass loss) hasbeen at work. Also puzzling is the apparent absence of rotation seen infield RR Lyrae variables. Angular momentum transfer and conservation inevolved metal-poor field stars thus pose many interesting questions forthe evolution of low-mass stars.
| Probing the Neutron-Capture Nucleosynthesis History of Galactic Matter
The heavy elements formed by neutron-capture processes have aninteresting history from which we can extract useful clues to andconstraints upon both the characteristics of the processes themselvesand the star formation and nucleosynthesis history of Galactic matter.Of particular interest in this regard are the heavy-element compositionsof extremely metal deficient stars. At metallicities [Fe/H]<=-2.5,the elements in the mass region past barium (A>~130-140) have beenfound (in non-carbon-rich stars) to be pure r-process products. Theidentification of an environment provided by massive stars andassociated Type II supernovae as an r-process site seems compelling.Increasing levels of heavy s-process (e.g., barium) enrichment withincreasing metallicity, evident in the abundances of more metal richhalo stars and disk stars, reflect the delayed contributions from thelow- and intermediate-mass (M~1-3 Msolar) stars that providethe site for the main s-process nucleosynthesis component during theasymptotic giant branch phase of their evolution. New abundance data inthe mass region 60<~A<~130 are providing insight into the identityof possible alternative r-process sites. We review recent observationalstudies of heavy-element abundances in both low-metallicity halo starsand disk stars, discuss the observed trends in light of nucleosynthesistheory, and explore some implications of these results for Galacticchemical evolution, nucleosynthesis, and nucleocosmochronology.
| Neutron-Capture Elements in the Early Galaxy: Insights from a Large Sample of Metal-poor Giants
New abundances for neutron-capture (n-capture) elements in a largesample of metal-poor giants from the Bond survey are presented. Thespectra were acquired with the KPNO 4 m echelle and coudé feedspectrographs, and have been analyzed using LTE fine-analysis techniqueswith both line analysis and spectral synthesis. Abundances of eightn-capture elements (Sr, Y, Zr, Ba, La, Nd, Eu, and Dy) in 43 stars havebeen derived from blue (λλ4070-4710, R~20,000, S/Nratio~100-200) echelle spectra and red (λλ6100-6180,R~22,000, S/N ratio~100-200) coudé spectra, and the abundance ofBa only has been derived from the red spectra for an additional 27stars. Overall, the abundances show clear evidence for a largestar-to-star dispersion in the heavy element-to-iron ratios. Thiscondition must have arisen from individual nucleosynthetic events inrapidly evolving halo progenitors that injected newly manufacturedn-capture elements into an inhomogeneous early Galactic halointerstellar medium. The new data also confirm that at metallicities[Fe/H]<~-2.4, the abundance pattern of the heavy (Z>=56) n-captureelements in most giants is well-matched to a scaled solar systemr-process nucleosynthesis pattern. The onset of the main r-process canbe seen at [Fe/H]~-2.9 this onset is consistent with the suggestion thatlow mass Type II supernovae are responsible for the r-process.Contributions from the s-process can first be seen in some stars withmetallicities as low as [Fe/H]~-2.75 and are present in most stars withmetallicities [Fe/H]>-2.3. The appearance of s-process contributionsas metallicity increases presumably reflects the longer stellarevolutionary timescale of the (low-mass) s-process nucleosynthesissites. The lighter n-capture elements (Sr-Y-Zr) are enhanced relative tothe heavier r-process element abundances. Their production cannot beattributed solely to any combination of the solar system r- and mains-processes, but requires a mixture of material from the r-process andfrom an additional n-capture process that can operate at early Galactictime. This additional process could be the weak s-process in massive(~25 Msolar) stars, or perhaps a second r-process site, i.e.,different from the site that produces the heavier (Z>=56) n-captureelements.
| Kinematics of Metal-poor Stars in the Galaxy. II. Proper Motions for a Large Nonkinematically Selected Sample
We present a revised catalog of 2106 Galactic stars, selected withoutkinematic bias and with available radial velocities, distance estimates,and metal abundances in the range -4.0<=[Fe/H]<=0.0. This updateof the 1995 Beers & Sommer-Larsen catalog includes newly derivedhomogeneous photometric distance estimates, revised radial velocitiesfor a number of stars with recently obtained high-resolution spectra,and refined metallicities for stars originally identified in the HKobjective-prism survey (which account for nearly half of the catalog)based on a recent recalibration. A subset of 1258 stars in this cataloghave available proper motions based on measurements obtained with theHipparcos astrometry satellite or taken from the updated AstrographicCatalogue (second epoch positions from either the Hubble Space TelescopeGuide Star Catalog or the Tycho Catalogue), the Yale/San Juan SouthernProper Motion Catalog 2.0, and the Lick Northern Proper Motion Catalog.Our present catalog includes 388 RR Lyrae variables (182 of which arenewly added), 38 variables of other types, and 1680 nonvariables, withdistances in the range 0.1 to 40 kpc.
| Mixing along the red giant branch in metal-poor field stars
We have determined Li, C, N, O, Na, and Fe abundances, and12C/13C isotopic ratios for a sample of 62 fieldmetal-poor stars in the metallicity range -2<=[Fe/H]<= -1. Starswere selected in order to have accurate luminosity estimates from theliterature, so that evolutionary phases could be clearly determined foreach star. We further enlarged this dataset by adding 43 more starshaving accurate abundances for some of these elements and similarly welldefined luminosities from the literature. This large sample was used toshow that (small mass) lower-RGB stars (i.e. stars brighter than thefirst dredge-up luminosity and fainter than that of the RGB bump) haveabundances of light elements in agreement with predictions fromclassical evolutionary models: only marginal changes occur for CNOelements, while dilution within the convective envelope causes thesurface Li abundance to decrease by a factor of ~ 20. A second, distinctmixing episode occurs in most (perhaps all) small mass metal-poor starsjust after the RGB bump, when the molecular weight barrier left by themaximum inward penetration of the convective shell is canceled by theoutward expansion of the H-burning shell, in agreement with recenttheoretical predictions. In field stars, this second mixing episode onlyreaches regions of incomplete CNO burning: it causes a depletion of thesurface 12C abundance by about a factor of 2.5, and acorresponding increase in the N abundance by about a factor of 4. The12C/13C is lowered to about 6 to 10 (close to butdistinctly higher than the equilibrium value of 3.5), while practicallyall remaining Li is burnt. However an O-Na anti-correlation such astypically observed amongst globular cluster stars, is not present infield stars. None of the 29 field stars more evolved than the RGB bump(including 8 RHB stars) shows any sign of an O depletion or Naenhancement. This means that the second mixing episode is not deepenough to reach regions were ON-burning occurs in field stars. Based inpart on observations made at the ESO La Silla ObservatoryTables 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 are available in electronic form only at the CDSvia anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr(130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html
| The effective temperature scale of giant stars (F0-K5). I. The effective temperature determination by means of the IRFM
We have applied the InfraRed Flux Method (IRFM) to a sample ofapproximately 500 giant stars in order to derive their effectivetemperatures with an internal mean accuracy of about 1.5% and a maximumuncertainty in the zero point of the order of 0.9%. For the applicationof the IRFM, we have used a homogeneous grid of theoretical modelatmosphere flux distributions developed by \cite[Kurucz (1993)]{K93}.The atmospheric parameters of the stars roughly cover the ranges: 3500 K<= T_eff <= 8000 K; -3.0 <= [Fe/H] <= +0.5; 0.5 <= log(g) <= 3.5. The monochromatic infrared fluxes at the continuum arebased on recent photometry with errors that satisfy the accuracyrequirements of the work. We have derived the bolometric correction ofgiant stars by using a new calibration which takes the effect ofmetallicity into account. Direct spectroscopic determinations ofmetallicity have been adopted where available, although estimates basedon photometric calibrations have been considered for some stars lackingspectroscopic ones. The adopted infrared absolute flux calibration,based on direct optical measurements of stellar angular diameters, putsthe effective temperatures determined in this work in the same scale asthose obtained by direct methods. We have derived up to fourtemperatures, TJ, TH, TK and T_{L'},for each star using the monochromatic fluxes at different infraredwavelengths in the photometric bands J, H, K and L'. They show goodconsistency over 4000 K, and there is no appreciable trend withwavelength, metallicity and/or temperature. We provide a detaileddescription of the steps followed for the application of the IRFM, aswell as the sources of error and their effect on final temperatures. Wealso provide a comparison of the results with previous work.
| Estimation of Stellar Metal Abundance. II. A Recalibration of the Ca II K Technique, and the Autocorrelation Function Method
We have recalibrated a method for the estimation of stellar metalabundance, parameterized as [Fe/H], based on medium-resolution (1-2Å) optical spectra (the majority of which cover the wavelengthrange 3700-4500 Å). The equivalent width of the Ca II K line (3933Å) as a function of [Fe/H] and broadband B-V color, as predictedfrom spectrum synthesis and model atmosphere calculations, is comparedwith observations of 551 stars with high-resolution abundances availablefrom the literature (a sevenfold increase in the number of calibrationstars that were previously available). A second method, based on theFourier autocorrelation function technique first described by Ratnatunga& Freeman, is used to provide an independent estimate of [Fe/H], ascalibrated by comparison with 405 standard-star abundances.Metallicities based on a combination of the two techniques for dwarfsand giants in the color range 0.30<=(B-V)_0<=1.2 exhibit anexternal 1 sigma scatter of approximately 0.10-0.20 dex over theabundance range -4.0<=[Fe/H]<=0.5. Particular attention has beengiven to the determination of abundance estimates at the metal-rich endof the calibration, where our previous attempt suffered from aconsiderable zero-point offset. Radial velocities, accurate toapproximately 10 km s^-1, are reported for all 551 calibration stars.
| Ca II H and K Photometry on the UVBY System. III. The Metallicity Calibration for the Red Giants
New photometry on the uvby Ca system is presented for over 300 stars.When combined with previous data, the sample is used to calibrate themetallicity dependence of the hk index for cooler, evolved stars. Themetallicity scale is based upon the standardized merger of spectroscopicabundances from 38 studies since 1983, providing an overlap of 122evolved stars with the photometric catalog. The hk index producesreliable abundances for stars in the [Fe/H] range from -0.8 to -3.4,losing sensitivity among cooler stars due to saturation effects athigher [Fe/H], as expected.
| On the Use of [Na/Fe] and [alpha/Fe] Ratios and Hipparcos-based (U, V, W) Velocities as Age Indicators among Low-Metallicity Halo Field Giants
We have examined the [Na/Fe] and [Mg/Fe] ratios in a sample of 68 fieldhalo giants with -3 <~ [Fe/H] <~ -1. We recalculated the Galactic(U, V, W) velocity components for these stars, using Hipparcos propermotions and a new Hipparcos-based distance scale. We used these data tosee how the abundance ratios may relate to kinematical substructure inthe Galactic halo. To isolate a set of true halo stars, we eliminatedmetal-weak thick-disk stars, about 10% of our sample. The field halogiants show the expected correlation of Na and Mg abundances, so we canuse Na as a surrogate for Mg and the alpha-elements. The most metal-poorstars show a wider dispersion of [Na/Fe] ratios than do the lessmetal-poor stars; the difference is most striking for stars onretrograde galactic orbits. Some 20% of our retrograde giants and 13% ofall our halo giants have [Na/Fe] <= -0.35 and may be significantlyyounger than the oldest halo objects. Halo giants considered ``young''by this Na abundance criterion show a preference for retrograde orbits.Giants in some globular clusters (e.g., M13) do not exhibit the Mgversus Na correlation found among halo field giants. Instead, they havevery large [Na/Fe] ratios and widely scattered [Mg/Fe] ratios, probablyinduced by deep mixing, which field halo giants apparently do notexperience.
| Broad-band JHK(L') photometry of a sample of giants with 0.5 > [Fe/H] > -3
We present the results of a three-year campaign of broad-band photometryin the near-infrared J, H, K and L' bands for a sample of approximately250 giant stars carried out at the Observatorio del Teide (Tenerife,Spain). Transformations of the Telescopio Carlos Sanchez systeminto/from several currently used infrared systems are extended to theredward part of the colour axis. The linearity of our photometric systemin the range -3 mag [Fe/H] >-3. Data of comparable quality previouslypublished have been added to the sample in order to increase thereliability of the relations to be obtained. We also provide mean IRcolours for giant stars according to spectral type.ables 1, 2 and 3 are only available in electronic form via the CDS(anonymous ftp 130.79.128.5 or http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html
| Early evolution of the Galactic halo revealed from Hipparcos observations of metal-poor stars
The kinematics of 122 red giant and 124 RR Lyrae stars in the solarneighborhood are studied using accurate measurements of their propermotions obtained by the Hipparcos astrometry satellite, combined withtheir published photometric distances, metal abundances, and radialvelocities. A majority of these sample stars have metal abundances of(Fe/H) = -1 or less and thus represent the old stellar populations inthe Galaxy. The halo component, with (Fe/H) = -1.6 or less, ischaracterized by a lack of systemic rotation and a radially elongatedvelocity ellipsoid. About 16 percent of such metal-poor stars have loworbital eccentricities, and we see no evidence of a correlation between(Fe/H) and e. Based on the model for the e-distribution of orbits, weshow that this fraction of low-e stars for (Fe/H) = -1.6 or less isexplained by the halo component alone, without introducing the extradisk component claimed by recent workers. This is also supported by theabsence of a significant change in the e-distribution with height fromthe Galactic plane. In the intermediate-metallicity range, we find thatstars with disklike kinematics have only modest effects on thedistributions of rotational velocities and e for the sample at absolutevalue of z less than 1 kpc. This disk component appears to constituteonly 10 percent for (Fe/H) between -1.6 and -1 and 20 percent for (Fe/H)between -1.4 and -1.
| Red Horizontal Branch and Early Asymptotic Branch Stars Near the Sun.
Abstract image available at:http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?1997AJ....114.1666E&db_key=AST
| Distribution and Studies of the Infrared Stellar Population in the Galaxy. VI. The Halo
We present infrared J, H and K observations of 69 local galactic halostars. We produce the two colour (JHK) and the colour magnitude (Kversus (J-K)) diagrams for this stellar sample and compare them with thesame diagrams for the stellar populations in the globular clusters M3,M13, M92 and 47 Tucanae and in the old open cluster M67; we also comparethese diagrams with those for the stellar population in the galacticbulge.
| Sodium Abundances in Field Metal-Poor Stars
Abstract image available at:http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?1996AJ....111.1689P&db_key=AST
| Ca II H and K Filter Photometry on the UVBY System. II. The Catalog of Observations
Abstract image available at:http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?1995AJ....109.2828T&db_key=AST
| Reddening estimation for halo red giants using UVBY photometry
Updated uvby observations for a larger sample of metal-deficient redgiants are presented and combined with a select sample of data from theliterature transformed to a common system. Using the reddening maps ofBurstein & Heiles (1982), new absolute magnitudes, distances,metallicities, and reddenings are derived for each star. Themetallicities are determined with a revised calibration of them1, (b-y) diagram based upon comparison to a complilation ofrecent spectrsoscopic abundances transformed to a common system. Thephotometric abundances agree very well with the spectroscopic; thedispersion among the residuals for 58 giants is +/- 0.16 dex. Thedereddened indices are used to show that for red giants with (Fe/H) lessthan -1.5, there is a well-defined relation in the c0,(b-y)0 diagram which exhibits only a weak dependence uponmetallicity. Use of the standard relations allows one to obtainreddening estimates for normal halo field giants and globular clustersin the appropriate metallicity range.
| Armchair cartography - A map of the Galactic halo based on observations of local, metal-poor stars
The velocity distribution of metal-poor halo stars in the solarneighborhood is studied to extract data on the global spatial andkinematic properties of the Galactic stellar halo. A global model of thesolar neighborhood stars is constructed from observed positions andthree-dimensional velocity of local, metal-poor halo stars in terms of adiscrete sum of orbits. The characteristics of the reconstructed haloare examined and used to study the evolution of the halo subsystems.
| The kinematics of halo red giants
The present 337 radial velocities were obtained with typical accuraciesof 0.7 cm km/sec for 85 metal-poor field red giants, selected from thekinematically unbiased samples of Bond (1980) and Bidelman and MacConnel(1973). The multiply-observed stars suggest the field halo binaryfraction exceeds 10 percent. Using these velocities and those publishedby others, a sample of 174 red giants with Fe/H of not more than -1.5 isobtained. Their mean motion with respect to the local standard of restis -206 + or - 23 km/sec, and the velocity dispersions are sigma (R) of154 + or - 18 km/sec, sigma(theta) of 102 + or - 27 km/sec, andsigma(phi) of 107 + or - 15 km/sec. Using photometrically derivedabsolute magnitudes and published proper motions, orbital eccentricitiesare computed for 72 stars not already considered in a similar study ofsouthern stars by Norris et al. (1985). A few stars with e of less than0.4 are found.
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Observation and Astrometry data
| Constellation: | Sculptor |
| Right ascension: | 00h05m15.32s |
| Declination: | -27°16'18.2" |
| Apparent magnitude: | 9.069 |
| Proper motion RA: | 129.2 |
| Proper motion Dec: | -40.8 |
| B-T magnitude: | 9.779 |
| V-T magnitude: | 9.128 |
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