- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/AJ/158/223
- Title:
- RR Lyrae members of the Pal 5 stellar stream
- Short Name:
- J/AJ/158/223
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- Thin stellar streams, formed from the tidal disruption of globular clusters, are important gravitational tools, sensitive to both global and small-scale properties of dark matter. The Palomar 5 stellar stream (Pal 5) is an exemplar stream within the Milky Way: its ~20{deg} tidal tails connect back to the progenitor cluster, and the stream has been used to study the shape, total mass, and substructure fraction of the dark matter distribution of the Galaxy. However, most details of the phase-space distribution of the stream are not fully explained, and dynamical models that use the stream for other inferences are therefore incomplete. Here we aim to measure distance and kinematic properties along the Pal 5 stream in order to motivate improved models of the system. We use a large catalog of RR Lyrae-type stars (RRLs) with astrometric data from the Gaia mission to probabilistically identify RRLs in the Pal 5 stream. RRLs are useful because they are intrinsically luminous standard candles and their distances can be inferred with small relative precision (~3%). By building a probabilistic model of the Pal 5 cluster and stream in proper motion and distance, we find 27 RRLs consistent with being members of the cluster (10) and stream (17). Using these RRLs, we detect gradients in distance and proper motion along the stream, and provide an updated measurement of the distance to the Pal 5 cluster using the RRLs, d=20.6+/-0.2 kpc. We provide a catalog of Pal 5 RRLs with inferred membership probabilities for future modeling work.
Number of results to display per page
Search Results
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/AJ/155/171
- Title:
- RR Lyrae stars in and around NGC 6441
- Short Name:
- J/AJ/155/171
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- Detailed elemental abundance patterns of metal-poor ([Fe/H]~-1 dex) stars in the Galactic bulge indicate that a number of them are consistent with globular cluster (GC) stars and may be former members of dissolved GCs. This would indicate that a few per cent of the Galactic bulge was built up from destruction and/or evaporation of GCs. Here, an attempt is made to identify such presumptive stripped stars originating from the massive, inner Galaxy GC NGC 6441 using its rich RR Lyrae variable star (RRL) population. We present radial velocities of 40 RRLs centered on the GC NGC 6441. All 13 of the RRLs observed within the cluster tidal radius have velocities consistent with cluster membership, with an average radial velocity of 24+/-5 km/s and a star-to-star scatter of 11 km/s. This includes two new RRLs that were previously not associated with the cluster. Eight RRLs with radial velocities consistent with cluster membership but up to three time the distance from the tidal radius are also reported. These potential extra-tidal RRLs also have exceptionally long periods, which is a curious characteristic of the NGC 6441 RRL population that hosts RRLs with periods longer than seen anywhere else in the Milky Way. As expected of stripped cluster stars, most are inline with the cluster's orbit. Therefore, either the tidal radius of NGC 6441 is underestimated and/or we are seeing dissolving cluster stars stemming from NGC 6441 that are building up the old spheroidal bulge.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/765/154
- Title:
- RR Lyrae stars in the Catalina Sky Survey
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/765/154
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present the analysis of 1207 RR Lyrae found in photometry taken by the Catalina Survey's Mount Lemmon telescope. By combining accurate distances for these stars with measurements for ~14000 type-ab RR Lyrae from the Catalina Schmidt telescope, we reveal an extended association that reaches Galactocentric distances beyond 100kpc and overlaps the Sagittarius stream system. This result confirms earlier evidence for the existence of an outer halo tidal stream resulting from a disrupted stellar system. By comparing the RR Lyrae source density with that expected based on halo models, we find the detection has ~8{sigma} significance. We investigate the distances, radial velocities, metallicities, and period-amplitude distribution of the RR Lyrae. We find that both radial velocities and distances are inconsistent with current models of the Sagittarius stream. We also find tentative evidence for a division in source metallicities for the most distant sources. Following prior analyses, we compare the locations and distances of the RR Lyrae with photometrically selected candidate horizontal branch stars and find supporting evidence that this structure spans at least 60{deg} of the sky. We investigate the prospects of an association between the stream and the unusual globular cluster NGC 2419.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/678/851
- Title:
- RR Lyrae survey in the Galactic Halo
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/678/851
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present a search for RR Lyrae variable stars from archival observations of the Southern Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt Object survey. The survey covers 1675deg^2^ along the ecliptic to a mean depth of V=19.5, i.e., a heliocentric distance of ~50kpc for RR Lyrae stars. The survey reveals 2016 RR Lyrae candidates. Follow-up photometric monitoring of a subset of these candidates shows ~24% contamination by non-RR Lyrae variables. We derive a map of overdensity of RR Lyrae stars in the halo that reveals a series of structures coincident with the leading and trailing arms of debris from the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy. One of the regions of overdensity is found on the trailing arm, 200{deg} from the main body of the Sagittarius dwarf at a distance of ~45kpc. This distant detection of the stellar population of the outer trailing arm of Sagittarius offers a tight constraint on the motion of the dwarf galaxy. A distinctly separate region of overdensity is seen toward the Virgo overdensity.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/813/26
- Title:
- Runaway M dwarf candidates from SDSS-DR7
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/813/26
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present a sample of 20 runaway M dwarf candidates (RdMs) within 1kpc of the Sun whose Galactocentric (GC) velocities exceed 400km/s. The candidates were selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) DR7 M Dwarf Catalog of West et al. (2011, J/AJ/141/97). Our RdMs have SDSS+USNO-B proper motions that are consistent with those recorded in the PPMXL, LSPM, and combined Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer+SDSS+Two-micron All-sky Survey catalogs. Sixteen RdMs are classified as dwarfs, while the remaining four RdMs are subdwarfs. We model the Galactic potential using a bulge-disk-halo profile. Our fastest RdM, with a GC velocity of 658.5+/-236.9km/s, is a possible hypervelocity candidate, as it is unbound in 77% of our simulations. About half of our RdMs have kinematics that are consistent with ejection from the Galactic center. Seven of our RdMs have kinematics consistent with an ejection scenario from M31 or M32 to within 2{sigma}, although our distance-limited survey makes such a realization unlikely. No more than four of our RdMs may have originated from the Leo stream. We propose that to within measurement errors, most of our bound RdMs are likely disk runaways or halo objects, and may have been accelerated through a series of multi-body interactions within the Galactic disk or possibly supernovae explosions.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJS/247/11
- Title:
- RV photon limits of well-characterized F-M stars
- Short Name:
- J/ApJS/247/11
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- The determination of extrasolar planet masses with the radial velocity (RV) technique requires spectroscopic Doppler information from the planet's host star, which varies with stellar brightness and temperature. We analyze the Doppler information in spectra from dwarfs of spectral types F-M utilizing empirical information from HARPS and CARMENES data and model spectra. We revisit the question of whether optical or near-infrared instruments are more efficient for RV observations in low-mass stars, and we come to the conclusion that an optical setup (BVR bands) is more efficient than a near-infrared one (YJHK) in dwarf stars hotter than 3200K. We publish a catalog of 46480 well-studied F-M dwarfs in the solar neighborhood, and we compare its distribution to more than 1 million stars from Gaia DR2. For all stars, we estimate the RV photon noise achievable in typical observations under the assumption of no activity jitter and slow rotation. We find that with an ESPRESSO-like instrument at an 8m telescope, a photon noise limit of 10cm/s or lower can be reached in more than 280 stars in a 5 minute observation. At 4m telescopes, a photon noise limit of 1m/s can be reached in a 10 minute exposure in approximately 10000 predominantly Sun-like stars with a HARPS-like (optical) instrument. The same applies to ~3000 stars for a red optical setup that covers the R and I bands and ~700 stars for a near-infrared instrument. For the latter two, many of the targets are nearby M dwarfs. Finally, we identify targets in which Earth-mass planets within the liquid water habitable zone can cause RV amplitudes comparable to the RV photon noise. Assuming the same exposure times as above, we find that an ESPRESSO-like instrument can reach this limit for 1M_{Earth}_ planets in more than 1000 stars. The optical, red optical, and near-infrared configurations reach the limit for 2M_{Earth}_ planets in approximately 500, 700, and 200 stars, respectively. An online tool is provided to estimate the RV photon noise as a function of stellar temperature and brightness and wavelength coverage.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/MNRAS/433/2240
- Title:
- SALT2 parameters and distances for SNe
- Short Name:
- J/MNRAS/433/2240
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present a cosmological analysis of the Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS) Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) photometry sample introduced by Ganeshalingam et al. (2010ApJS..190..418G, Cat. J/ApJS/190/418). These supernovae (SNe) provide an effective anchor point to estimate cosmological parameters when combined with data sets at higher redshift. The data presented by Ganeshalingam et al. have been rereduced in the natural system of the Katzman Automatic Imaging Telescope (KAIT) and Nickel telescopes to minimize systematic uncertainties. We have run the light-curve-fitting software SALT2 on our natural-system light curves to measure light-curve parameters for LOSS light curves and available SN Ia data sets in the literature. We present a Hubble diagram of 586 SNe in the redshift range z=0.01-1.4 with a residual scatter of 0.176mag. Of the 226 low-z SNe Ia in our sample, 91 objects are from LOSS, including 45 without previously published distances. Assuming a flat Universe, we find that the best fit for the dark energy equation-of-state parameter w=-0.86^+0.13^_-0.16_(stat)+/-0.11(sys) from SNe alone, consistent with a cosmological constant. Our data prefer a Universe with an accelerating rate of expansion with 99.999% confidence. When looking at Hubble residuals as a function of host-galaxy morphology, we do not see evidence for a significant trend, although we find a somewhat reduced scatter in Hubble residuals from SNe residing within a projected distance <10kpc of the host-galaxy nucleus ({sigma}=0.156mag). Similar to the results of Blondin, Mandel and Kirshner and Silverman et al. (2012AJ....143..126B, Cat. J/AJ/143/126), we find that Hubble residuals do not correlate with the expansion velocity of SiII{lambda}6355 measured in optical spectra near maximum light. Our data are consistent with no presence of a local "Hubble bubble". Improvements in cosmological analyses within low-z samples can be achieved by better constraining calibration uncertainties in the zero-points of photometric systems.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/751/130
- Title:
- SDSS-DR7 red HB stars spectroscopic data
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/751/130
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We have selected 556 red horizontal branch stars along the streams of the Sagittarius (Sgr) dwarf galaxy from Sloan Digital Sky Survey DR7 spectroscopic data using a theoretical model. The metallicity and {alpha}-element distributions are investigated for stars in the Sgr streams and for Galactic stars at the same locations. We find that the Sgr stars have two peaks in the metallicity distribution while the Galactic stars have a more prominent metal-poor peak. Meanwhile, [{alpha}/Fe] ratios of the Sgr stars are lower than those of the Galactic stars. Among the Sgr stars, we find a difference in the metallicity distribution between the leading and trailing arms of the Sgr tidal tails. The metallicity and [{alpha}/Fe] distribution of the leading arm is similar to that of the Galaxy. The trailing arm is composed mainly of a metal-rich component and [{alpha}/Fe] is obviously lower than that of the Galactic stars. The metallicity gradient is -(1.8+/-0.3)x10^-3^dex/deg in the first wrap of the trailing arm and -(1.5+/-0.4)x10^-3^dex/deg in the first wrap of the leading arm. No significant gradient exists along the second wraps of the leading or trailing arms. It seems that the Sgr dwarf galaxy initially lost the metal-poor component in the second wrap (older) arms due to the tidal force of our Galaxy and then the metal-rich component is disrupted in the first wrap (younger) arms. Finally, we found that the velocity dispersion of the trailing arm from 88{deg}<{Lambda}_{sun}_<112{deg} is {sigma}=9.808+/-1.0km/s, which is consistent with previous work in the literature.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/794/60
- Title:
- SDSS RGB stars distances
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/794/60
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present distance determinations for a large and clean sample of red giant branch stars selected from the ninth data release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (Adelman-McCarthy et al. 2012ApJS..203...21A, Cat. V/139). The distances are calculated based on both observational cluster fiducials and theoretical isochrones. Distributions of distances from the two methods are very similar with peaks at about 10 kpc and tails extending to more than 70 kpc. We find that distances from the two methods agree well for the majority of the sample stars; though, on average, distances based on isochrones are 10% higher than those based on fiducials. We test the accuracy of our distance determinations using 332 stars from 10 Galactic globular and open clusters. The average relative deviation from the literature cluster distances is 4% for the fiducial-based distances and 8% for the isochrone-based distances, both of which are within the uncertainties. We find that the effective temperature and surface gravity derived from low-resolution spectra are not accurate enough to essentially improve the performance of distance determinations. However, for stars with significant extinction, effective temperature may help to better constrain their distances to some extent. We make our sample stars and their distances available from an online catalog. The catalog comprises 17941 stars with reasonable distance estimations reaching to more than 70 kpc, which is suitable for the investigation of the formation and evolution of the Galaxy, especially the Galactic halo.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/815/63
- Title:
- SDSS wide double white dwarfs spectroscopy
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/815/63
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present observational constraints on the initial-final mass relation (IFMR) using wide double white dwarfs (DWDs). We identify 65 new candidate wide DWDs within the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, bringing the number of candidate wide DWDs to 142. We then engage in a spectroscopic follow-up campaign and collect existing spectra for these objects; using these spectra, we derive masses and cooling ages for 54 hydrogen (DA) WDs in DWDs. We also identify one new DA/DB pair, four candidate DA/DC pairs, four candidate DA/DAH pairs, and one new candidate triple degenerate system. Because wide DWDs are co-eval and evolve independently, the difference in the pre-WD lifetimes should equal the difference in the WD cooling ages. We use this to develop a Bayesian hierarchical framework and construct a likelihood function to determine the probability that any particular IFMR fits a sample of wide DWDs. We then define a parametric model for the IFMR and find the best parameters indicated by our sample of DWDs. We place robust constraints on the IFMR for initial masses of 2-4M_{sun}_. The WD masses produced by our model for stars within this mass range differ from those predicted by semi-empirical fits to open cluster WDs. Within this mass range, where there are few constraining open cluster WDs and disagreements in the cluster ages, wide DWDs may provide more reliable constraints on the IFMR. Expanding this method to the many wide DWDs expected to be discovered by Gaia may transform our understanding of the IFMR.
