scholarly journals The tale of the Milky Way globular cluster NGC 6362 – I. The orbit and its possible extended star debris features as revealed by Gaia DR2

2019 ◽  
Vol 489 (4) ◽  
pp. 4565-4573
Author(s):  
Richa Kundu ◽  
José G Fernández-Trincado ◽  
Dante Minniti ◽  
Harinder P Singh ◽  
Edmundo Moreno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Milky Way ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Vertical Component ◽  
Galactic Disc ◽  
Corotation Radius ◽  
Magnitude Diagram ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Event Based ◽  
Gaia Dr2

ABSTRACTWe report the identification of possible extended star debris candidates beyond the cluster tidal radius of NGC 6362 based on the second Gaia data release (Gaia DR2). We found 259 objects possibly associated with the cluster lying in the vicinity of the giant branch and 1–2 magnitudes fainter/brighter than the main-sequence turn-off in the cluster colour–magnitude diagram and which cover an area on the sky of ∼4.1 deg2 centred on the cluster. We traced back the orbit of NGC 6362 in a realistic Milky Way potential, using the gravpot16 package, for 3 Gyr. The orbit shows that the cluster shares similar orbital properties as the inner disc, having peri-/apogalactic distances, and maximum vertical excursion from the Galactic plane inside the corotation radius (CR), moving inwards from CR radius to visit the inner regions of the Milky Way. The dynamical history of the cluster reveals that it has crossed the Galactic disc several times in its lifetime and has recently undergone a gravitational shock, ∼15.9 Myr ago, suggesting that less than 0.1 per cent of its mass has been lost during the current disc-shocking event. Based on the cluster’s orbit and position in the Galaxy, we conclude that the possible extended star debris candidates are a combined effect of the shocks from the Galactic disc and evaporation from the cluster. Lastly, the evolution of the vertical component of the angular momentum shows that the cluster is strongly affected dynamically by the Galactic bar potential.

scholarly journals A Gaia DR2 view of the open cluster population in the Milky Way

2018 ◽  
Vol 618 ◽  
pp. A93 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Cantat-Gaudin ◽  
C. Jordi ◽  
A. Vallenari ◽  
A. Bragaglia ◽  
L. Balaguer-Núñez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stellar Evolution ◽  
Milky Way ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Galactic Disk ◽  
Open Cluster ◽  
Open Clusters ◽  
Number Of Clusters ◽  
History Of ◽  
Gaia Dr2

Context. Open clusters are convenient probes of the structure and history of the Galactic disk. They are also fundamental to stellar evolution studies. The second Gaia data release contains precise astrometry at the submilliarcsecond level and homogeneous photometry at the mmag level, that can be used to characterise a large number of clusters over the entire sky. Aims. In this study we aim to establish a list of members and derive mean parameters, in particular distances, for as many clusters as possible, making use of Gaia data alone. Methods. We compiled a list of thousands of known or putative clusters from the literature. We then applied an unsupervised membership assignment code, UPMASK, to the Gaia DR2 data contained within the fields of those clusters. Results. We obtained a list of members and cluster parameters for 1229 clusters. As expected, the youngest clusters are seen to be tightly distributed near the Galactic plane and to trace the spiral arms of the Milky Way, while older objects are more uniformly distributed, deviate further from the plane, and tend to be located at larger Galactocentric distances. Thanks to the quality of Gaia DR2 astrometry, the fully homogeneous parameters derived in this study are the most precise to date. Furthermore, we report on the serendipitous discovery of 60 new open clusters in the fields analysed during this study.

scholarly journals Chemodynamical properties of the Anticentre Stream: a surviving disc fossil from a past satellite interaction

2019 ◽  
Vol 492 (1) ◽  
pp. L61-L65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chervin F P Laporte ◽  
Vasily Belokurov ◽  
Sergey E Koposov ◽  
Martin C Smith ◽  
Vanessa Hill
Keyword(s):  
Milky Way ◽  
Stellar Populations ◽  
Galactic Disc ◽  
Chemical Enrichment ◽  
Tidal Tail ◽  
Data Release ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
History Of

ABSTRACT Using Gaia second data release (DR2), we trace the Anticentre Stream (ACS) in various stellar populations across the sky and find that it is kinematically and spatially decoupled from the Monoceros Ring. Using stars from lamost and segue, we show that the ACS is systematically more metal-poor than Monoceros by 0.1 dex with indications of a narrower metallicity spread. Furthermore, the ACS is predominantly populated of old stars ($\sim 10\, \rm {Gyr}$), whereas Monoceros has a pronounced tail of younger stars ($6-10\, \rm {Gyr}$) as revealed by their cumulative age distributions. Put together, all of this evidence support predictions from simulations of the interaction of the Sagittarius dwarf with the Milky Way, which argue that the ACS is the remains of a tidal tail of the Galaxy excited during Sgr’s first pericentric passage after it crossed the virial radius, whereas Monoceros consists of the composite stellar populations excited during the more extended phases of the interaction. Importantly, the ACS can be viewed as a stand-alone fossil of the chemical enrichment history of the Galactic disc.

scholarly journals The chemodynamics of prograde and retrograde Milky Way stars

2020 ◽  
Vol 643 ◽  
pp. A69
Author(s):  
Georges Kordopatis ◽  
Alejandra Recio-Blanco ◽  
Mathias Schultheis ◽  
Vanessa Hill
Keyword(s):  
Milky Way ◽  
Galactic Center ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Azimuthal Velocity ◽  
Mixed Population ◽  
Photometric Data ◽  
Rotating Stars ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Different Populations

Context. The accretion history of the Milky Way is still unknown, despite the recent discovery of stellar systems that stand out in terms of their energy-angular momentum space, such as Gaia-Enceladus-Sausage. In particular, it is still unclear how these groups are linked and to what extent they are well-mixed. Aims. We investigate the similarities and differences in the properties between the prograde and retrograde (counter-rotating) stars and set those results in context by using the properties of Gaia-Enceladus-Sausage, Thamnos/Sequoia, and other suggested accreted populations. Methods. We used the stellar metallicities of the major large spectroscopic surveys (APOGEE, Gaia-ESO, GALAH, LAMOST, RAVE, SEGUE) in combination with astrometric and photometric data from Gaia’s second data-release. We investigated the presence of radial and vertical metallicity gradients as well as the possible correlations between the azimuthal velocity, vϕ, and metallicity, [M/H], as qualitative indicators of the presence of mixed populations. Results. We find that a handful of super metal-rich stars exist on retrograde orbits at various distances from the Galactic center and the Galactic plane. We also find that the counter-rotating stars appear to be a well-mixed population, exhibiting radial and vertical metallicity gradients on the order of ∼ − 0.04 dex kpc−1 and −0.06 dex kpc−1, respectively, with little (if any) variation when different regions of the Galaxy are probed. The prograde stars show a vϕ − [M/H] relation that flattens – and, perhaps, even reverses as a function of distance from the plane. Retrograde samples selected to roughly probe Thamnos and Gaia-Enceladus-Sausage appear to be different populations yet they also appear to be quite linked, as they follow the same trend in terms of the eccentricity versus metallicity space.

scholarly journals The Distribution of Open Clusters in the Galaxy

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hektor Monteiro ◽  
Douglas A. Barros ◽  
Wilton S. Dias ◽  
Jacques R. D. Lépine
Keyword(s):  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Rotation Velocity ◽  
Open Clusters ◽  
Space Distribution ◽  
Proper Motions ◽  
Corotation Radius ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Galactic Abundance ◽  
Galactic Orbit ◽  
Gaia Dr2

In this work we explore the new catalog of galactic open clusters that became available recently, containing 1,750 clusters that have been re-analyzed using the Gaia DR2 catalog to determine the stellar memberships. We used the young open clusters as tracers of spiral arms and determined the spiral pattern rotation speed of the Galaxy and the corotation radius, the strongest Galactic resonance. The sample of open clusters used here is increased by dozens of objects with respect to our previous works. In addition, the distances and ages values are better determined, using improvements to isochrone fitting and including an updated extinction polynomial for the Gaia DR2 photometric band-passes, and the Galactic abundance gradient as a prior for metallicity. In addition to the better age determinations, the catalog contains better positions in the Galactic plane and better proper motions. This allow us to discuss not only the present space distribution of the clusters, but also the space distribution of the clusters's birthplaces, obtained by integration of the orbits for a time equal to their age. The value of the rotation velocity of the arms (28.5 ± 1.0 km s−1 kpc−1) implies that the corotation radius (Rc) is close to the solar Galactic orbit (Rc/R0 = 1.01±0.08), which is supported by other observational evidence discussed in this text. A simulation is presented, illustrating the motion of the clusters in the reference frame of corotation. We also present general statistics of the catalog of clusters, like spatial distribution, distribution relative to height from the Galactic plane, and distribution of ages and metallicity. An important feature of the space distribution, the corotation gap in the gas distribution and its consequences for the young clusters, is discussed.

scholarly journals Mapping low-latitude stellar substructure with SEGUE photometry

2008 ◽  
Vol 4 (S254) ◽  
pp. 121-126
Author(s):  
Jelte T. A. de Jong ◽  
Brian Yanny ◽  
Hans-Walter Rix ◽  
Eric F. Bell ◽  
Andrew E. Dolphin
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Study ◽  
Milky Way ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Stellar Structure ◽  
Low Latitude ◽  
Low Latitudes ◽  
Magnitude Diagram ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Shed Light

AbstractEncircling the Milky Way at low latitudes, the Low Latitude Stream is a large stellar structure, the origin of which is as yet unknown. As part of the SEGUE survey, several photometric scans have been obtained that cross the Galactic plane, spread over a longitude range of 50° to 203°. These data allow a systematic study of the structure of the Galaxy at low latitudes, where the Low Latitude Stream resides. We apply colour-magnitude diagram fitting techniques to map the stellar (sub)structure in these regions, enabling the detection of overdensities with respect to smooth models. These detections can be used to distinguish between different models of the Low Latitude Stream, and help to shed light on the nature of the system.

scholarly journals Kinematical & Chemical Characteristics of the Thin and Thick Disks

2008 ◽  
Vol 4 (S254) ◽  
pp. 179-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosemary F. G. Wyse
Keyword(s):  
Dark Matter ◽  
Cold Dark Matter ◽  
Milky Way ◽  
Observational Evidence ◽  
Chemical Characteristics ◽  
Chemical Abundance ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Thin And Thick Disks ◽  
Thick Disks

AbstractI discuss how the chemical abundance distributions, kinematics and age distributions of stars in the thin and thick disks of the Galaxy can be used to decipher the merger history of the Milky Way, a typical large galaxy. The observational evidence points to a rather quiescent past merging history, unusual in the context of the ‘consensus’ cold-dark-matter cosmology favoured from observations of structure on scales larger than individual galaxies.

scholarly journals The escape speed curve of the Galaxy obtained from Gaia DR2 implies a heavy Milky Way

2018 ◽  
Vol 616 ◽  
pp. L9 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Monari ◽  
B. Famaey ◽  
I. Carrillo ◽  
T. Piffl ◽  
M. Steinmetz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Concentration ◽  
Milky Way ◽  
Galactic Centre ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Circular Velocity ◽  
Halo Stars ◽  
Dark Matter Mass ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Escape Speed ◽  
Gaia Dr2

We measure the escape speed curve of the Milky Way based on the analysis of the velocity distribution of ~2850 counter-rotating halo stars from the Gaia Data Release 2. The distances were estimated through the StarHorse code, and only stars with distance errors smaller than 10% were used in the study. The escape speed curve is measured at Galactocentric radii ranging from ~5 kpc to ~10.5 kpc. The local Galactic escape at the Sun’s position is estimated to be ve(r⊙) = 580 ± 63 km s−1, and it rises towards the Galactic centre. Defined as the minimum speed required to reach three virial radii, our estimate of the escape speed as a function of radius implies for a Navarro–Frenk–White profile and local circular velocity of 240 km s−1 a dark matter mass M200 = 1.28−0.50+0.68 × 1012 M⊙ and a high concentration c200 = 11.09−1.79+2.94. Assuming the mass-concentration relation of ΛCDM, we obtain M200 = 1.55−0.51+0.64 × 1012 M⊙ and c200 = 7.93−0.27+0.33 for a local circular velocity of 228 km s−1.

scholarly journals On role of Triple Systems in the Dynamics of the Galaxy: Stars with High Velocities

1995 ◽  
Vol 164 ◽  
pp. 369-369
Author(s):  
J. Anosova ◽  
J. Colin ◽  
L. Kiseleva
Keyword(s):  
Galactic Halo ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Stellar Systems ◽  
Galactic Disc ◽  
Triple Systems ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Escape Process ◽  
Very High

There are a number of stars with very high pecular velocities in the Galactic halo within the region of about 1.5 kpc from the Galactic plane. At least some of these stars could be the result of an escape process in multiple stellar systems located in the Galactic disc.

scholarly journals An Overview of the Globular Cluster System of the Galaxy

1988 ◽  
Vol 126 ◽  
pp. 37-48
Author(s):  
Robert Zinn
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Milky Way ◽  
Galactic Center ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Open Clusters ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Harlow Shapley

Harlow Shapley (1918) used the positions of globular clusters in space to determine the dimensions of our Galaxy. His conclusion that the Sun does not lie near the center of the Galaxy is widely recognized as one of the most important astronomical discoveries of this century. Nearly as important, but much less publicized, was his realization that, unlike stars, open clusters, HII regions and planetary nebulae, globular clusters are not concentrated near the plane of the Milky Way. His data showed that the globular clusters are distributed over very large distances from the galactic plane and the galactic center. Ever since this discovery that the Galaxy has a vast halo containing globular clusters, it has been clear that these clusters are key objects for probing the evolution of the Galaxy. Later work, which showed that globular clusters are very old and, on average, very metal poor, underscored their importance. In the spirit of this research, which started with Shapley's, this review discusses the characteristics of the globular cluster system that have the most bearing on the evolution of the Galaxy.

scholarly journals Studies of the Milky Way 1850–1930: some highlights

1985 ◽  
Vol 106 ◽  
pp. 43-58
Author(s):  
Robert W. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Milky Way ◽  
History Of Astronomy ◽  
Galactic System ◽  
Widespread Acceptance ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Entire History ◽  
Short Time ◽  
Time Form ◽  
Size And Structure

“The Copernicus of the sidereal system is not to be expected for many generations”. So wrote R.A. Proctor1 in his Essays in Astronomy in 1872. Indeed things did look bleak at this time for those who hoped for a good understanding of the size and structure of the Galaxy. Why was this so, and why was there to be such an astonishing transformation of this situation between 1918 and 1930? Certainly these twelve years saw the widespread acceptance of no less than six fundamentally new ways of viewing the Galactic System. These profound shifts, occurring in such a short time, form, I would suggest, one of the most exciting chapters in the entire history of astronomy. And in this paper I shall attempt to describe and analyze what these changes were, what led up to them, as well as to examine the events surrounding them.

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