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arXiv 0709.1471astro-ph
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超高速恒星III。银河系中心主序星的空间密度和抛射历史

Hypervelocity Stars III. The Space Density and Ejection History of Main Sequence Stars from the Galactic Center

Warren R. Brown, Margaret J. Geller, Scott J. Kenyon, Michael J. Kurtz, Benjamin C. Bromley

摘要:

我们报道了3颗新的未束缚超高速恒星(HVS)的发现,这些恒星以如此极端的速度运行,以至于从大质量黑洞(MBH)的动力学喷射是它们唯一的起源。我们还检测到一个人口可能结合的HVS。我们观察到速度分布的显著不对称性--我们发现26颗v_rf > 275 km/s的恒星和1颗v_rf < -275 km/s的恒星--表明HVS必须是短寿命的,可能是3 - 4颗Msun主序星。与观测相反,任何超高速主序星后的星群都应该包含落回银河系的恒星。HVS的空间分布也支持主要的层序解释:寿命较长的3 Msun HVS填充了我们的调查体积;寿命较短的4 Msun HVS在微弱的星等下缺失。我们推断,在R < 100 kpc范围内,有96 +-10个质量为3 - 4 Msun的HVS,可能足够的HVS来约束喷射机制和潜在的模型。根据HVS的质量函数,我们预测SEGUE可能会发现多达5 - 15个新的HVS。我们的HVS的旅行时间有利于连续的喷射过程,尽管也允许约1.2亿年前的HVS爆发。

英文摘要:

We report the discovery of 3 new unbound hypervelocity stars (HVSs), stars traveling with such extreme velocities that dynamical ejection from a massive black hole (MBH) is their only suggested origin. We also detect a population of possibly bound HVSs. The significant asymmetry we observe in the velocity distribution -- we find 26 stars with v_rf > 275 km/s and 1 star with v_rf < -275 km/s -- shows that the HVSs must be short-lived, probably 3 - 4 Msun main sequence stars. Any population of hypervelocity post-main sequence stars should contain stars falling back onto the Galaxy, contrary to the observations. The spatial distribution of HVSs also supports the main sequence interpretation: longer-lived 3 Msun HVSs fill our survey volume; shorter-lived 4 Msun HVSs are missing at faint magnitudes. We infer that there are 96 +- 10 HVSs of mass 3 - 4 Msun within R < 100 kpc, possibly enough HVSs to constrain ejection mechanisms and potential models. Depending on the mass function of HVSs, we predict that SEGUE may find up to 5 - 15 new HVSs. The travel times of our HVSs favor a continuous ejection process, although a ~120 Myr-old burst of HVSs is also allowed.

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