scholarly journals 1.12. Structure of the inner galactic disk and the bulge - first results

1998 ◽  
Vol 184 ◽  
pp. 39-40
Author(s):  
S. Feltzing

Is there an age and/or a metallicity gradient in the Bulge? This is a notoriously difficult question because of the well known age-metallicity-distance degeneracy in colour magnitude diagrams (CMD) as well as the severe crowding and large reddening towards the Galactic Bulge. The current observational data on the bulge in our galaxy and bulges in other spiral galaxies point in disparate directions, that is evidence for both early (e.g. existence of very old halo and bulge globular clusters) and late formation (e.g. Sgr dSph and bar instabilities) can be found as well as the existence and non-existence of metallicity gradients (for a review of the observational status see Wyse, Gilmore & Franx 1997). We here present the CMDs for two fields, Baade's window and SGR-I, Fig.1c and d. Both these regions have low extinction. To determine the age and metallicity for these stars we compare the CMDs with CMDs of globular clusters, also observed with WFPC2, of known metallicity and age, Fig.1a and b. This method enables us to work entirely in the in-flight magnitude system of WFPC2 and there is no need for transformations to standard colours and magnitudes, something which is not straight forward for WFPC2 passbands.

2021 ◽  
pp. 137-142
Author(s):  
Ikram Uralbaevich Tadjibaev

In the article, on the basis of observational data the problems of the specific frequency of globular clusters are studied. Possible relationships between them and the absolute stellar magnitude of their host galaxy are considered, where the observational data published in the literature were presented. It should be noted that before us the relationship between the specific frequency and the absolute magnitude is shown as exponential functions. An empirical relationship between the specific frequency and the absolute value of the host galaxy were obtained and showed that the dependence of the specific frequency on the absolute magnitude is not linear, but has a quadratic function. It is also shown that the specific frequency determines the number of globular clusters in a given galaxy relative to our Galaxy. Also in the article, based on the results of studies of the specific frequency, some discussions are presented related to the origin and evolution of globular clusters. The results obtained show that the ratios of the specific frequency to the luminosity of the host galaxy are different. Variations in the specific frequency of elliptical galaxies are associated with variations in the mass-to-luminous flux ratio. This may be due to the fact that the number of globular clusters in spiral galaxies per unit of luminosity of the halo and not of the entire galaxy. Analysis of the observational data shows that the values of the specific frequency of spiral galaxies are 5–6 times less than that of giant elliptical ones. As a result of the results of studies of the specific frequency of the globular clusters, unsolved problems are listed and possible solutions are shown. It is noted that the problem posed will be solved even more accurately if it is considered by the types of galaxies


1998 ◽  
Vol 184 ◽  
pp. 33-34
Author(s):  
B. Barbuy ◽  
E. Bica ◽  
S. Ortolani

The knowledge of age and spatial distribution of stars in the Galactic bulge require observational constraints to establish whether its stellar population is very old (Larson 1990) or is a younger, disk-like component (Raha et al. 1992), and if its shape is spherical or extended, or perhaps a bar (Blitz & Spergel 1991). Yet other possibilities are a flattened bulge or a disk-like system (Zinn 1985; Armandroff 1989; Ortolani et al. 1993; Minniti 1995).


Author(s):  
L. V. Gramajo ◽  
T. Palma ◽  
D. Minniti ◽  
R. K. Saito ◽  
J. J. Clariá ◽  
...  

Abstract We present the first results obtained from an extensive study of eclipsing binary (EB) system candidates recently detected in the VISTA Variables in the Vía Láctea (VVV) near-infrared (NIR) Survey. We analyse the VVV tile d040 in the southern part of the Galactic disc wherein the interstellar reddening is comparatively low, which makes it possible to detect hundreds of new EB candidates. We present here the light curves and the determination of the geometric and physical parameters of the best candidates found in this ‘NIR window’, including 37 contact, 50 detached, and 13 semi-detached EB systems. We infer that the studied systems have an average of the $K_s$ amplitudes of $0.8$ mag and a median period of 1.22 days where, in general, contact binaries have shorter periods. Using the ‘Physics Of Eclipsing Binaries’ (PHOEBE) interactive interface, which is based on the Wilson and Devinney code, we find that the studied systems have low eccentricities. The studied EBs present mean values of about 5 700 and 4 900 K for the $T_1$ and $T_2$ components, respectively. The mean mass ratio (q) for the contact EB stars is $\sim$ 0.44. This new galactic disk sample is a first look at the massive study of NIR EB systems.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (07) ◽  
pp. E01
Author(s):  
Harrison Ploeg ◽  
Chris Gordon ◽  
Roland Crocker ◽  
Oscar Macias

1998 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 430-432
Author(s):  
Ted Von Hippel

The study of cluster white dwarfs (WDs) has been invigorated recently bythe Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Recent WD studies have been motivated by the new and independent cluster distance (Renzini et al. 1996), age (von Hippel et al. 1995; Richer et al. 1997), and stellar evolution (Koester & Reimers 1996) information that cluster WDs can provide. An important byproduct of these studies has been an estimate of the WD mass contribution in open and globular clusters. The cluster WD mass fraction is of importance for understanding the dynamical state and history of star clusters. It also bears an important connection to the WD mass fractions of the Galactic disk and halo. Current evidence indicates that the open clusters (e.g. von Hippel et al. 1996; Reid this volume) have essentially the same luminosity function (LF) as the solar neighborhood population. The case for the halo is less clear, despite the number of very good globular cluster LFs down to nearly 0.1 solar masses (e.g. Cool et al. 1996; Piotto, this volume), as the field halo LF is poorly known. For most clusters dynamical evolution should cause evaporation of the lowest mass members, biasing clusters to have flatter present-day mass functions (PDMFs) than the disk and halo field populations. Dynamical evolution should also allow cluster WDs to escape, though not in the same numbers as the much lower mass main sequence stars. The detailed connection between cluster PDMFs and the field IMF awaits elucidation from observations and the new combined N-body and stellar evolution models (Tout, this volume). Nevertheless, the WD mass fraction of clusters already provides an estimate for the WD mass fraction of the disk and halo field populations. A literature search to collect cluster WDs and a simple interpretive model follow. This is a work in progress and the full details of the literature search and the model will be published elsewhere.


1996 ◽  
Vol 173 ◽  
pp. 97-98
Author(s):  
Matthias Bartelmann ◽  
Abraham Loeb

A wealth of observational data supports the commonly held view that damped Lyman-α (Lyα) absorption in QSO spectra is associated with neutral-hydrogen (HI) disks in spiral galaxies. Most of the HI probed by QSO absorption lines is traced by damped Lyα lines because of their high column densities, N > 1020 cm–2. The spiral galaxies hosting the HI disks can act as gravitational lenses on the QSOs. If the HI column density increases towards the center of the disks, as suggested by observations of local galaxies, the magnification bias preferentially selects for high column-density systems. The estimates of HI in damped Lyα systems can then systematically be distorted by gravitational lensing.


2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (S246) ◽  
pp. 291-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott M. Ransom

AbstractGlobular clusters produce orders of magnitude more millisecond pulsars per unit mass than the Galactic disk. Since the first cluster pulsar was uncovered 20 years ago, at least 138 have been identified – most of which are binary millisecond pulsars. Because their origins involve stellar encounters, many of the systems are exotic objects that would never be observed in the Galactic disk. Examples include pulsar-main sequence binaries, extremely rapid rotators (including the current record holder), and millisecond pulsars in highly eccentric orbits. These systems are allowing new probes of the interstellar medium, the equation of state of material at supra-nuclear density, the masses of neutron stars, and globular cluster dynamics.


2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (S265) ◽  
pp. 344-345
Author(s):  
B. Barbuy ◽  
S. Ortolani ◽  
M. Zoccali ◽  
V. Hill ◽  
D. Minniti ◽  
...  

AbstractVery few abundance analyses of individual stars in metal-poor globular clusters in the galactic bulge are available. The main purpose of this study is to derive abundances in individual stars of such clusters, in order to establish their abundance pattern, trying to characterize the oldest bulge stellar populations.


2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (S321) ◽  
pp. 290-290
Author(s):  
A. Cortesi ◽  
C. Mendes de Oliveira

AbstractThe stellar kinematics of the discs of S0 galaxies (as obtained using planetary nebulae, PNe, and integrated stellar light data) is comparable to that of spiral galaxies, with similar flat rotation curves and falling velocity dispersion profiles, but they present a larger amount of random motions. The only other tracer available to probe the kinematics of individual early-type galaxies are globular clusters (GCs). GCs’ formation is intimately connected to a galaxy major star forming event(s) and GCs are, therefore, good proofs of galaxy formation histories. We directly compare a sample of PNe, GCs, and stellar velocities out to 4 effective radii, in the S0 galaxies NGC 2768 and NGC 1023. In particular, we test a new method for studying GC properties and we find that these two lenticular galaxies are consistent with being formed through different formation mechanisms.


1993 ◽  
Vol 155 ◽  
pp. 581-581 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.A. Walton ◽  
M.J. Barlow ◽  
R.E.S. Clegg

We present abundance determinations, in particular of carbon, and C/O ratios, for 11 Galactic bulge planetary nebulae (PN) based on our low resolution UV data from IUE observations and optical spectrophotometry from the Anglo-Australian Telescope. We compare the observed abundances with those predicted by dredge-up theory for the high metallicity Galactic bulge. The sample abundances are also contrasted with the abundances found for PN in the Galactic disk. The mean C/O ratio for the bulge PN is significantly lower than that found for Galactic disk PN. Further, we present an abundance analysis of the very metal-poor bulge PN M2-29. From an analysis of the differential extinction found from the observed ratios of the He ii 1640,4686Å lines, we find that the ultraviolet reddening law towards the bulge is steeper than in the solar neighbourhood.


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