We present a detailed analysis of a large spectroscopic and photometric sample of DZ white dwarfs based on our latest model atmosphere calculations. We revise the atmospheric parameters of the trigonometric parallax sample of Bergeron, Leggett, & Ruiz (2001, Cat. <J/ApJS/133/413>, 12 stars) and analyze 147 new DZ white dwarfs discovered in the SDSS. The inclusion of metals and hydrogen in our model atmosphere calculations leads to different atmospheric parameters than those derived from pure helium models.
Based on our intensive spectroscopic campaign with the GoldCam spectrograph on the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) 2.1-m telescope, we have constructed the first catalogue of E+A galaxies with spectroscopic companion galaxies, and investigated a probability that an E+A galaxy has close companion galaxies. We selected 660 E+A galaxies with 4.0{AA}<H{delta} EW at a redshift of <0.167 from the Data Release 5 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We selected their companion candidates from the SDSS imaging data, and classified them into true companions, fore/background galaxies and companion candidates using the SDSS and our KPNO spectra. We observed 26 companion candidates of E+A galaxies at the KPNO to measure their redshifts. Their spectra showed that 17 targets are true companion galaxies.
A sample of 70 E+A galaxies is selected from 37206 galaxies in the second data release of the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST). This sample is selected according to the criteria for E+A galaxies defined by Goto, and each of these objects is further visually identified. In this sample, most objects are low redshift E+A galaxies with z<0.25, and are located in an area of the sky with high Galactic latitude and magnitude from 14 to 18mag in the g, r and i bands. A stellar population analysis of the whole sample indicates that the E+A galaxies are characterized by both young and old stellar populations (SPs), and the metal-rich SPs have relatively higher contributions than the metal-poor ones. Additionally, a morphological classification of these objects is performed based on images taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey.
This paper presents results from a continuum radio survey of a complete sample of 248 southern E and S0 galaxies. All the galaxies were observed at 2.7GHz (11cm) with the Parkes radio telescope, and those detected were reobserved at 5.0 GHz (6 cm). Thirty-seven galaxies were detected above a level of 25-30mJy, and a consideration of the background source density at 2.7GHz indicates that no more than two or three of these detections are due to background sources.
Young (<600Myr) low-mass stars (M<~1M_{sun}_) of equal mass exhibit a distribution of rotation periods. At the very early phases of stellar evolution, this distribution is set by the star-disc locking mechanism, which forces stars to rotate at the same rate as the inner edge of the disc. The primordial disc lifetime and consequently the duration of the disc-locking mechanism, can be significantly shortened by the presence of a close companion, making the rotation period distribution of close binaries different from that of either single stars or wide binaries. We use new data to investigate and better constrain the range of ages, the components separation, and the mass ratio dependence at which the rotation period distribution has been significantly affected by the disc dispersal that is enhanced by close companions. We select a sample of close binaries in the Upper Scorpius association (age~8Myr) whose components have measured the separation and the rotation periods and compare their period distribution with that of coeval stars that are single stars. We find that components of close binaries have, on average, rotation periods that are shorter than those of single stars. More precisely, binaries with approximately equal-mass components (0.9<=M2/M1<=1.0) have rotation periods that are shorter than those of single stars by ~0.4d on average; the primary and secondary components of binaries with smaller mass ratios (0.8<M2/M1<0.9) have rotation periods that are shorter than those of single stars by ~1.9d and ~1.0d on average, respectively. A comparison with the older 25-Myr {beta} Pictoris association shows that whereas in the latter, all close binaries with projected separation {rho}<=80AU rotate faster than single stars, in the Upper Scorpius this is only the case for about 70% of stars. We interpret the enhanced rotation in close binaries with respect to single stars as the consequence of an early disc dispersal induced by the presence of close companions. The enhanced rotation suggests that disc dispersal timescales are longest for single stars and shorter for close binaries.
We present multicolor optical observations of long-duration {gamma}-ray bursts (GRBs) made over a three-year period with the robotic Palomar 60 inch telescope (P60). Our sample consists of all 29 events discovered by Swift for which P60 began observations less than 1hr after the burst trigger. We were able to recover 80% of the optical afterglows from this prompt sample, and we attribute this high efficiency to our red coverage. Like Melandri et al. (2008, Cat. J/ApJ/686/1209), we find that a significant fraction (~50%) of Swift events show a suppression of the optical flux with regard to the X-ray emission (the so-called "dark" bursts). Our multicolor photometry demonstrates this is likely due in large part to extinction in the host galaxy. We argue that previous studies, by selecting only the brightest and best-sampled optical afterglows, have significantly underestimated the amount of dust present in typical GRB environments.
Identified as extinction features against the bright Galactic mid-infrared background, infrared dark clouds (IRDCs) are thought to harbor the very earliest stages of star and cluster formation. In order to better characterize the properties of their embedded cores, we have obtained new 24um, 60-100um, and submillimeter continuum data toward a sample of 38 IRDCs. The 24um Spitzer images reveal that while the IRDCs remain dark, many of the cores are associated with bright 24um emission sources, which suggests that they contain one or more embedded protostars. Combining the 24um, 60-100um, and submillimeter continuum data, we have constructed broadband spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for 157 of the cores within these IRDCs and, using simple graybody fits to the SEDs, have estimated their dust temperatures, emissivities, opacities, bolometric luminosities, masses, and densities. Based on their Spitzer/Infrared Array Camera 3-8um colors and the presence of 24um point-source emission, we have separated cores that harbor active, high-mass star formation from cores that are quiescent. The active "protostellar" cores typically have warmer dust temperatures and higher bolometric luminosities than the more quiescent, perhaps "pre-protostellar," cores. Because the mass distributions of the populations are similar, however, we speculate that the active and quiescent cores may represent different evolutionary stages of the same underlying population of cores. Although we cannot rule out low-mass star formation in the quiescent cores, the most massive of them are excellent candidates for the "high-mass starless core" phase, the very earliest in the formation of a high-mass star.
We use the Hernandez-Perez and Bruzual stellar population synthesis models to study the role of interacting binary pairs as progenitors of extreme horizontal branch (EHB) stars. We assemble a sample of 3417 early-type galaxies observed both in the optical (SDSS-DR8) and the UV (GALEX-GR6). The galaxies in our sample can be classified according to their position in the colour-colour diagram as UV-weak or red-sequence galaxies (~48%), UV-strong or UVX galaxies (~9%), and recent star-forming galaxies (~43%). Analysing this sample using the models for various choices of basic model parameters, we conclude that (a) the UVr colours of UV-weak and UV-strong galaxies are reproduced by the models as long as the fraction of binary stars is at least 15%. (b) Higher metallicity models (Z=0.02 and 0.03) reproduce the colours of UV-weak and UV-strong galaxies better than lower Z models. The Z=0.03 model is slightly bluer than the Z=0.02 model in the UV-strong region, indicating a weak relationship between UVX and Z. (c) The strength of UVX increases with age in the model population. This is at variance with the results of other models that include binary stars as progenitors of EHB stars.
Stellar kinematics provides the key to understanding the formation process and dynamical evolution of stellar systems. Here, we present a kinematic study of the massive star-forming region (SFR) W4 in the Cassiopeia OB6 association using the Gaia Data Release 2 and high-resolution optical spectra. This SFR is composed of a core cluster (IC1805) and a stellar population distributed over 20pc, which is a typical structural feature found in many OB associations. According to a classical model, this structural feature can be understood in the context of the dynamical evolution of a star cluster. The core-extended structure exhibits internally different kinematic properties. Stars in the core have an almost isotropic motion, and they appear to reach virial equilibrium given their velocity dispersion (0.9{+/-}0.3km/s) comparable to that in a virial state (~0.8km/s). On the other hand, the distributed population shows a clear pattern of radial expansion. From the N-body simulation for the dynamical evolution of a model cluster in subvirial state, we reproduce the observed structure and kinematics of stars. This model cluster experiences collapse for the first 2Myr. Some members begin to radially escape from the cluster after the initial collapse, eventually forming a distributed population. The internal structure and kinematics of the model cluster appear similar to those of W4. Our results support the idea that the stellar population distributed over 20pc in W4 originate from the dynamical evolution of IC1805.
We identify a total of 120 early-type brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) at 0.1<z<0.4 in two recent large cluster catalogues selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). They are selected with strong emission lines in their optical spectra, with both H{alpha} and [OII]{lambda}3727 line emission, which indicates significant ongoing star formation. They constitute about ~0.5 per cent of the largest, optically selected, low-redshift BCG sample, and the fraction is a strong function of cluster richness. Their star formation history can be well described by a recent minor and short starburst superimposed on an old stellar component, with the recent episode of star formation contributing on average only less than 1 per cent of the total stellar mass. We show that the more massive star-forming BCGs in richer clusters tend to have higher star formation rate (SFR) and specific SFR (SFR per unit galaxy stellar mass). We also compare their statistical properties with a control sample selected from X-ray luminous clusters, and show that the fraction of star-forming BCGs in X-ray luminous clusters is almost one order of magnitude larger than that in optically selected clusters. BCGs with star formation in cooling flow clusters usually have very flat optical spectra and show the most active star formation, which may be connected with cooling flows.