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Non-LTE abundances of Mg and K in extremely metal-poor stars and the evolution of [O/Mg], [Na/Mg], [Al/Mg], and [K/Mg] in the Milky Way
Aims: LTE abundances of light elements in extremely metal-poor(EMP) stars have been previously derived from high quality spectra. Newderivations, free from the NLTE effects, will better constrain themodels of the Galactic chemical evolution and the yields of the veryfirst supernovae. Methods: The NLTE profiles of the magnesium andpotassium lines have been computed in a sample of 53 extremelymetal-poor stars with a modified version of the program MULTI andadjusted to the observed lines in order to derive the abundances ofthese elements. Results: The NLTE corrections for magnesium andpotassium are in good agreement with the works found in the literature.The abundances are slightly changed, reaching a better precision: thescatter around the mean of the abundance ratios has decreased. Magnesiummay be used with confidence as reference element. Together withpreviously determined NLTE abundances of sodium and aluminum, the newratios are displayed, for comparison, along the theoretical trendsproposed by some models of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy, usingdifferent models of supernovae.Based on observations obtained with the ESO Very Large Telescope atParanal Observatory (Large Programme “First Stars”, ID165.N-0276; P.I.: R. Cayrel.
| Fast Winds and Mass Loss from Metal-Poor Field Giants
Echelle spectra of the infrared He I λ10830 line were obtainedwith NIRSPEC on the Keck 2 telescope for 41 metal-deficient field giantstars including those on the red giant branch (RGB), asymptotic giantbranch (AGB), and red horizontal branch (RHB). The presence of this He Iline is ubiquitous in stars with T effgsim 4500 K andMV fainter than -1.5, and reveals the dynamics of theatmosphere. The line strength increases with effective temperature for Teffgsim 5300 K in RHB stars. In AGB and RGB stars, the linestrength increases with luminosity. Fast outflows (gsim 60 kms-1) are detected from the majority of the stars andabout 40% of the outflows have sufficient speed as to allow escape ofmaterial from the star as well as from a globular cluster. Outflowspeeds and line strengths do not depend on metallicity for our sample([Fe/H]= -0.7 to -3.0), suggesting the driving mechanism forthese winds derives from magnetic and/or hydrodynamic processes. Gasoutflows are present in every luminous giant, but are not detected inall stars of lower luminosity indicating possible variability. Mass lossrates ranging from ~3 × 10-10 to ~6 ×10-8 M sun yr-1 estimatedfrom the Sobolev approximation for line formation represent values withevolutionary significance for red giants and RHB stars. We estimate that0.2 M sun will be lost on the RGB, and the torque of thiswind can account for observations of slowly rotating RHB stars in thefield. About 0.1-0.2 M sun will be lost on the RHB itself.This first empirical determination of mass loss on the RHB maycontribute to the appearance of extended horizontal branches in globularclusters. The spectra appear to resolve the problem of missingintracluster material in globular clusters. Opportunities exist for"wind smothering" of dwarf stars by winds from the evolved population,possibly leading to surface pollution in regions of high stellardensity.Data presented herein were obtained at the W. M. Keck Observatory, whichis operated as a scientific partnership among the California Instituteof Technology, the University of California, and the NationalAeronautics and Space Administration. The Observatory was made possibleby the generous financial support of the W. M. Keck Foundation.
| An Overview of the Rotational Behavior of Metal-poor Stars
This paper describes the behavior of the rotational velocity inmetal-poor stars ([Fe/H] <= -0.5 dex) in different evolutionarystages, based on vsin i values from the literature. Our sample iscomprised of stars in the field and some Galactic globular clusters,including stars on the main sequence, the red giant branch (RGB), andthe horizontal branch (HB). The metal-poor stars are, mainly, slowrotators, and their vsin i distribution along the HR diagram is quitehomogeneous. Nevertheless, a few moderate to high values of vsin i arefound in stars located on the main sequence and the HB. We show that theoverall distribution of vsin i values is basically independent ofmetallicity for the stars in our sample. In particular, thefast-rotating main sequence stars in our sample present rotation ratessimilar to their metal-rich counterparts, suggesting that some of themmay actually be fairly young, in spite of their low metallicity, or elsethat at least some of them would be better classified as blue stragglerstars. We do not find significant evidence of evolution in vsin i valuesas a function of position on the RGB; in particular, we do not confirmprevious suggestions that stars close to the RGB tip rotate faster thantheir less-evolved counterparts. While the presence of fast rotatorsamong moderately cool blue HB stars has been suggested to be due toangular momentum transport from a stellar core that has retainedsignificant angular momentum during its prior evolution, we find thatany such transport mechanisms most likely operate very fast as the stararrives on the zero-age HB (ZAHB), since we do not find a link betweenevolution off the ZAHB and vsin i values. We present an extensivetabulation of all quantities discussed in this paper, including rotationvelocities, temperatures, gravities, and metallicities [Fe/H], as wellas broadband magnitudes and colors.
| 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
| Atmospheres, Chemical Compositions, and Evolutionary Histories of Very Metal-Poor Red Horizontal-Branch Stars in the Galactic Field and in NGC 7078 (M15)
We have conducted spectrum analyses of 24 field metal-poor([Fe/H]<-2) red horizontal-branch (RHB) stars identified in the HKobjective-prism survey and 6 such stars in the globular cluster M15,based on high-quality spectra (R~40,000, S/N~100) obtained with theMagellan Inamori Kyocera Echelle spectrograph at the Clay 6.5 mtelescope at Las Campanas Observatory. The atmospheric parameters of theRHB stars provide interesting bridges between turnoff stars of similartemperature and red giant branch (RGB) stars of similar gravity, andthey permit investigations of abundance trends [X/Fe] versus [Fe/H] in arelatively unexplored region of the temperature-gravity plane. We findthat the Teff, logg, vt, and [Fe/H] valuesdetermined from our spectra are consistent with expectations fromliterature spectroscopic studies of other evolved metal-poor stellarclasses. We show that the RHB stars have abundance distributions thatare consistent with typical halo stars of similar metallicities. Thephotometric and spectroscopic gravities of the M15 stars differ byamounts that grow with declining temperature. We use a regressionderived from these differences to calculate photometric gravities forthe field RHB stars. Then we use the locations of the field RHB starsamong the evolutionary tracks of Cassisi et al. in the logg versuslogTeff plane to estimate their masses and lifetimes as RHBstars. We use these lifetimes to estimate the size of the metal-poor HBpopulation from which they arise. Then, using counts of HB and RGB starsin metal-poor globular clusters, we conclude that the number ofmetal-poor RGB stars at high latitudes (|b|>30deg)brighter than V=15 exceeds those identified in extant objective-prismsurveys by more than an order of magnitude. Finally, we deduce theeffective temperature of the fundamental red edge of the metal-poor RRLyrae instability strip, logTeff(FRE)=3.80+/-0.01, from theinterface between the temperature distributions of metal-poor field RHBstars and the RR Lyrae stars of similar [Fe/H] in five metal-poorglobular clusters.This publication makes use of data products from the Two Micron All SkySurvey, which is a joint project of the University of Massachusetts andthe Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, California Institute ofTechnology, funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administrationand the National Science Foundation. This paper includes data gatheredwith the 6.5 m Magellan telescopes located at Las Campanas Observatory,Chile.
| Chemical abundances of very metal-poor stars
High-resolution and high signal-to-noise ratio spectra of 32 verymetal-poor stars were obtained with the Coudé echellespectrograph mounted on the 2.16-m telescope at the NationalAstronomical Observatories (Xinglong, China). Equivalent widths of FeI,FeII, OI, NaI, MgI, AlI, SiI, SiII, KI, CaI, ScII, TiI, VI, CrI, MnI,NiI, CuI and BaII lines were measured. Stellar effective temperatureswere determined by colour indices. Stellar surface gravities werecalculated from Hipparcos parallaxes and stellar evolutionary tracks.Photospheric abundances of 16 elements were derived by localthermodynamical equilibrium analysis. Stellar space motions (U, V, W)and Galactic orbital parameters were calculated. Based on kinematics,sample stars were separated into dissipative collapse and accretioncomponents of halo population. The global kinematics of the twocomponents were analysed. Element abundances were discussed as functionsof metallicities. The results of oxygen and α-elements abundanceconfirmed the previous works. The [K/Fe] shows a gradual systematicincrease toward a lower metallicity, such as in the case ofα-elements. The [Ba/Fe] trend suggests that the s-processdominated Ba production at least for the metal-poor stars with[Fe/H]> -2.0.
| On the Distribution of the Modulation Frequencies of RR Lyrae Stars
For the first time connection between the pulsation and modulationproperties of RRLyr stars has been detected. Based on the available datait is found that the possible range of the modulation frequencies, ie.,the possible maximum value of the modulation frequency depends on thepulsation frequency. Short period variables (P<0.4 d) can havemodulation period as short as some days, while longer period variables(P>0.6 d) always exhibit modulation with P_mod>20 d. We interpretthis tendency with the equality of the modulation period with thesurface rotation period, because similar distribution of the rotationalperiods is expected if an upper limit of the total angular momentum ofstars leaving the RGB exists. The distribution of the projectedrotational velocities of red and blue horizontal branch stars atdifferent temperatures shows a similar behavior as v_rot derived for RRLyr stars from their modulation periods. This common behavior givesreason to identify the modulation period with the rotational period ofthe modulated RR Lyr stars.
| 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.
| A CCD imaging search for wide metal-poor binaries
We explored the regions within a radius of 25 arcsec around 473 nearby,low-metallicity G- to M-type stars using (VR)I optical filters andsmall-aperture telescopes. About 10% of the sample was searched up toangular separations of 90 arcsec. We applied photometric and astrometrictechniques to detect true physical companions to the targets. The greatmajority of the sample stars was drawn from the Carney-Latham surveys;their metallicities range from roughly solar to [Fe/H] = -3.5 dex. OurI-band photometric survey detected objects that are between 0 and 5 magfainter (completeness) than the target stars; the maximum dynamicalrange of our exploration is 9 mag. We also investigated the literature,and inspected images from the Digitized Sky Surveys to complete oursearch. By combining photometric and proper motion measurements, weretrieved 29 previously known companions, and identified 13 new propermotion companions. Near-infrared 2MASS photometry is provided for thegreat majority of them. Low-resolution optical spectroscopy (386-1000nm) was obtained for eight of the new companion stars. Thesespectroscopic data confirm them as cool, late-type, metal-depleteddwarfs, with spectral classes from esdK7 to sdM3. After comparison withlow-metallicity evolutionary models, we estimate the masses of theproper motion companion stars to be in the range 0.5-0.1Mȯ. They are moving around their primary stars atprojected separations between 32 and 57 000 AU. These orbitalsizes are very similar to those of solar-metallicity stars of the samespectral types. Our results indicate that about 15% of the metal-poorstars have stellar companions in wide orbits, which is in agreement withthe binary fraction observed among main sequence G- to M-type stars andT Tauri stars.Based on observations made with the IAC80 telescope operated on theisland of Tenerife by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias inthe Spanish Observatorio del Teide; also based on observations made withthe 2.2 m telescope of the German-Spanish Calar Alto Observatory(Almería, Spain), the William Herschel Telescope (WHT) operatedon the island of La Palma by the Isaac Newton Group in the SpanishObservatorio del Roque de los Muchachos (ORM) of the Instituto deAstrofísica de Canarias; and the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo(TNG) at the ORM.The complete Table 1 is only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/419/167
| 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.
| Rotation Velocities of Red and Blue Field Horizontal-Branch Stars
We present measurements of the projected stellar rotation velocities(vsini) of a sample of 45 candidate field horizontal-branch (HB) starsspanning a wide range of effective temperatures, from red HB stars withTeff~=5000K to blue HB stars with Teff of 17,000K.Among the cooler blue HB stars (Teff=7500-11500 K), weconfirm prior studies showing that, although a majority of stars rotateat vsini<15kms-1, there exists a subset of ``fastrotators'' with vsini as high as 30-35 km s-1. All but one ofthe red HB stars in our sample have vsini<10kms-1, and noanalogous rotation bimodality is evident. We also identify anarrow-lined hot star (Teff~=16,000K) with enhancedphotospheric metal abundances and helium depletion, similar to theabundance patterns found among hot BHB stars in globular clusters, andfour other stars that may also belong in this category. We discussdetails of the spectral line fitting procedure that we use to deducevsini and explore how measurements of field HB star rotation may shedlight on the issue of HB star rotation in globular clusters.
| Mapping the Galactic Halo. VI. Spectroscopic Measures of Luminosity and Metallicity
We present our calibration of spectroscopic measures of luminosity andmetallicity for halo giant candidates and give metallicities anddistances for our first sample of spectroscopically confirmed giants.These giants have distances ranging from 15 to 83 kpc. As surveys reachfarther into the Galaxy's halo with K giant samples, identification ofgiants becomes more difficult. This is because the numbers of foregroundhalo K dwarfs rise for V magnitudes of 19-20, typical for halo giants at~100 kpc. Our photometric survey uses the strength of the Mg b/H featurenear 5170 Å to weed K dwarfs out of the disk and thick disk, butwe need spectroscopic measures of the strength of the Ca II K, Ca Iλ4227, and Mg b/H features to distinguish between the verymetal-poor dwarfs and halo giants. Using a full error analysis of ourspectroscopic measures, we show why a signal-to-noise ratio of ~15pixel-1 at Ca I λ4227 and ~10 at Ca II K is needed forreliable luminosity discrimination. We use the Ca II K and Mg b featuresto measure metallicity in our halo giants, with typical errors (randomplus systematic) of 0.3 dex for [Fe/H] values from -0.8 to -3.0.
| 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.
| Three-dimensional Spectral Classification of Low-Metallicity Stars Using Artificial Neural Networks
We explore the application of artificial neural networks (ANNs) for theestimation of atmospheric parameters (Teff, logg, and [Fe/H])for Galactic F- and G-type stars. The ANNs are fed withmedium-resolution (Δλ~1-2 Å) non-flux-calibratedspectroscopic observations. From a sample of 279 stars with previoushigh-resolution determinations of metallicity and a set of (external)estimates of temperature and surface gravity, our ANNs are able topredict Teff with an accuracy ofσ(Teff)=135-150 K over the range4250<=Teff<=6500 K, logg with an accuracy ofσ(logg)=0.25-0.30 dex over the range 1.0<=logg<=5.0 dex, and[Fe/H] with an accuracy σ([Fe/H])=0.15-0.20 dex over the range-4.0<=[Fe/H]<=0.3. Such accuracies are competitive with theresults obtained by fine analysis of high-resolution spectra. It isnoteworthy that the ANNs are able to obtain these results withoutconsideration of photometric information for these stars. We have alsoexplored the impact of the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) on the behaviorof ANNs and conclude that, when analyzed with ANNs trained on spectra ofcommensurate S/N, it is possible to extract physical parameter estimatesof similar accuracy with stellar spectra having S/N as low as 13. Takentogether, these results indicate that the ANN approach should be ofprimary importance for use in present and future large-scalespectroscopic surveys.
| 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.
| 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.
| CH, CN, and NH Band Strengths of Metal-poor Cluster and Field Red Giants
The strengths of the CN, NH, and CH bands in the spectra of PopulationII red giants are discussed based on observations of a sample of bothglobular cluster and field giants. We confirm an anticorrelation betweenthe oxygen abundance and the CN indices and a correlation between the3883 Å CN band and the 3360 Å NH band strengths among giantsin the globular clusters M15 and M13. We find one M15 star (IV-38) witha strong 3883 Å CN band and detectable 4215 Å CN and 3360Å NH bands. Abundance analysis of M15 IV-38 reveals a comparablecarbon abundance to a comparison star that has much weaker CN bands. Onepossible reason for this may be that IV-38 is an insipid CH star thathas also undergone some deep mixing. Alternatively, the atmosphere ofIV-38 may have been extensively processed through the O-->N cycle ofhydrogen burning such that carbon has been affected by O-->Cconversion. By combining our data set with material from the literatureand high-quality B-V photometry, we find that the CN band strengthdifferences among the M5 red giants do not appear to broaden the giantbranch of that cluster within the photometric errors. Using the CN, CH,and NH bands, we are able to confirm that the metal-poor field giant HD135148 is a CH-strong star and has not undergone deep mixing.
| 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.
| 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
| A catalogue of [Fe/H] determinations: 1996 edition
A fifth Edition of the Catalogue of [Fe/H] determinations is presentedherewith. It contains 5946 determinations for 3247 stars, including 751stars in 84 associations, clusters or galaxies. The literature iscomplete up to December 1995. The 700 bibliographical referencescorrespond to [Fe/H] determinations obtained from high resolutionspectroscopic observations and detailed analyses, most of them carriedout with the help of model-atmospheres. The Catalogue is made up ofthree formatted files: File 1: field stars, File 2: stars in galacticassociations and clusters, and stars in SMC, LMC, M33, File 3: numberedlist of bibliographical references The three files are only available inelectronic form at the Centre de Donnees Stellaires in Strasbourg, viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5), or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html
| HD 195636: A Metal-Poor Rotator Near the HB/AGB Transition
The color temperature and Balmer jump inferred from UBV andStrömgren photometric indices, the low gravity and lowmetallicity derived from spectrum analysis, and weakness of all CHmolecular lines combine to suggest that HD 195636 is in anevolutionary state near the transition between the horizontal branchand asymptotic giant branch. The projected equatorial rotationalvelocity of HD 195636 is Ve sin i=25 km/s, a value at least2.5 times greater than that expected if known blue horizontal branchaxial rotators in globular clusters conserve envelope angular momentumduring horizontal branch evolution. Constancy of the radial velocityon time scales of 3, 10, and 90 days indicates that the axial rotationis not due to co-rotation in a short-period binary. Therefore, itseems most plausible that transfer of angular momentum from core toenvelope occurred during HB evolution. The Balmer line profiles arepeculiar. H? is abnormally shallow, as if the core were filledby emission, and higher members of the Balmer series are significantlybroader than those of HD 200564, a slightly cooler giant star ofsimilar metallicity. The space velocity of HD 195636 calculated for anassumed RHB/AGB luminosity, Mv=-0.5, is 470 km/sretrograde, a high but not extraordinary value.
| Discovery of four white dwarfs with strong magnetic fields by the Hamburg/ESO Survey.
Four magnetic white dwarfs have been found in the course of theHamburg/ESO Survey for bright QSOs. The objects have been selected asQSO candidate on the basis of its blue continuum and the apparentabsence of strong hydrogen or helium lines. One star, HE1211-1707, showsa rather fast spectral variability: both the strength and the positionof the shallow absorption features change on a time scale of 20minutes.We interpret this variability as being due to a magnetic field on thesurface of a rotating white dwarf, having a relatively uniform magneticfield on one hemisphere and a much larger spread of field strengthsvisible during other phases of the rotational period. All attempts todetermine the magnetic field structure in detail with the help ofsynthetic spectra have failed so far because the star must have a rathercomplicated field geometry. However, both the optical and the UV spectraindicate that a significant part of the surface is dominated by amagnetic field strength of about 80MG. The spectrum of HE0127-3110 isalso rotationally modulated. This star (approximate range of magneticfields: 85-345MG) as well as HE2201-2250 (a spectroscopic twin ofHE0127-3110) and HE0000-3430 (43-118MG) could be reasonably wellreproduced with the help of theoretical spectra calculated assumingmagnetic dipoles which are offset by 0.1 and 0.2 stellar radii along themagnetic axis. This result is in agreement with the assumption that Apstars, also showing significant deviations from a centered dipole, arethe progenitors of magnetic white dwarfs.
| Classification of Population II Stars in the Vilnius Photometric System. I. Methods
The methods used for classification of Population II stars in theVilnius photometric system are described. An extensive set of standardswith known astrophysical parameters compiled from the literature sourcesis given. These standard stars are classified in the Vilnius photometricsystem using the methods described. The accuracy of classification isevaluated by a comparison of the astrophysical parameters derived fromthe Vilnius photometric system with those estimated from spectroscopicstudies as well as from photometric data in other systems. For dwarfsand subdwarfs, we find a satisfactory agreement between our reddeningsand those estimated in the uvbyscriptstyle beta system. The standarddeviation of [Fe/H] deter mined in the Vilnius system is about 0.2 dex.The absolute magnitude for dwarfs and subdwarfs is estimated with anaccuracy of scriptstyle <=0.5 mag.
| 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
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Observation and Astrometry data
| Constellation: | Steinbock |
| Right ascension: | 20h32m48.94s |
| Declination: | -09°21'51.7" |
| Apparent magnitude: | 9.627 |
| Proper motion RA: | -66.2 |
| Proper motion Dec: | -92.3 |
| B-T magnitude: | 10.237 |
| V-T magnitude: | 9.678 |
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