We present Lithium abundance determination for a sample of K giant stars in the galactic bulge. The stars presented here are the only 13 stars with detectable Lithium line (6767.18 A) among ~400 stars for which we have spectra in this wavelength range, half of them in Baade's Window (b=-4) and half in a field at b=-6. The stars were observed with the GIRAFFE spectrograph of FLAMES@VLT, with a spectral resolution of R~20,000. Abundances were derived via spectral synthesis and the results are compared with those for stars with similar parameters, but no detectable Li line. We find 13 stars with a detectable Li line, among which 2 have abundances A(Li)>2.7. No clear correlations were found between the Li abundance and those of other elements. With the exception of the two most Li rich stars, the others follow a fairly tight A(Li)-T_eff correlation. It would seems that there must be a Li production phase during the red giant branch (RGB), acting either on a very short timescale, or selectively only in some stars. The proposed Li production phase associated with the RGB bump cannot be excluded, although our targets are significantly brighter than the predicted RGB bump magnitude for a population at 8 kpc
Context: A small number of K-type giants on the red giant branch (RGB) is known to be very rich in lithium (Li). This fact is not accounted for by standard stellar evolution theory. The exact phase and mechanism of Li enrichment is still a matter of debate. Aims: Our goal is to probe the abundance of Li along the RGB, from its base to the tip, to confine Li-rich phases that are supposed to occur on the RGB. Methods: For this end, we obtained medium-resolution spectra with the FLAMES spectrograph at the VLT in GIRAFFE mode for a large sample of 401 low-mass RGB stars located in the Galactic bul…
We measure the red giant branch bump (RGBB) of the Galactic bulge, the most metal-rich RGBB ever detected. The RGBB luminosity functions peaks at the expected brightness, but its number density is very low relative to Galactic globular cluster calibrations, implying the Galactic bulge has a higher helium enrichment parameter ΔY/ΔZ $\ge$ 4.0 for Y~0.35 rather than the standard 2.0 with Y=0.27. The RGBB is (0.71 +/- 0.02) mag fainter than the red clump (RC) in I toward the densest stellar regions imaged by the OGLE-III Galactic bulge photometric survey, (|l| $\le$ 4, 2 <~ |b| $\le$ 4). The numbe…
We report chemical abundances of Na, Al, Zr, La, Nd, and Eu for 39 red giant branch (RGB) stars and 23 potential inner disk red clump stars located in Plaut-s low extinction window. We also measure lithium for a super Li-rich RGB star. The abundances were determined by spectrum synthesis of high resolution (R~25,000), high signal-to-noise (S/N~50-100 pixel-1) spectra obtained with the Blanco 4m telescope and Hydra multifiber spectrograph. For the bulge RGB stars, we find a general increase in the [Na/Fe] and [Na/Al] ratios with increasing metallicity, and a similar decrease in [La/Fe] and [Nd/…
We present wide field JHKs photometry of 16 Galactic globular clusters located towards the Galactic bulge, calibrated on the 2MASS photometric system. Differential reddening corrections and statistical field star decontamination are employed for all of these clusters before fitting fiducial sequences to the cluster red giant branches (RGBs). Observed values and uncertainties are reported for several photometric features, including the magnitude of the RGB bump, tip, the horizontal branch (HB) and the slope of the upper RGB. The latest spectroscopically determined chemical abundances are used t…
A sample of AGB/RGB stars with an excess of Li abundances is considered in order to estimate their mass loss rates. Our method is based on a correlation between the Li abundances and the stellar luminosity, using a modified version of Reimers formula. We have adopted a calibration on the basis of an empirical correlation between the mass loss rate and some stellar parameters. We conclude that most Li-rich stars have lower mass loss rates compared with the majority of AGB/RGB stars, which show no evidences of Li enhancements, so that the Li enrichment process is apparently not associated with a…
Most metal-rich AGB/RGB stars present strong Li underabundances, since this element is easily destroyed in the high temperatures of the stellar interiors. In spite of this fact, several of these stars are Li-rich, having Li abundances given by log (Li/H) + 12 > 1.5. In the present work, we extend our previous investigation on AGB/RGB stars to the expected mass loss rates of these stars. Specifically, we look for correlations between the Li abundances and the mass loss rates or related parameters in Li-rich AGB/RGB stars. We have estimated the mass loss rates using a modified form of the Reimer…
We present the broadest and most precise empirical investigation of red giant branch bump (RGBB) brightness and number counts ever conducted. We implement a new method and use data from two \textit{Hubble Space Telescope (HST)} globular cluster (GC) surveys to measure the brightness and star counts of the RGBB in 72 GCs. The brightness is measured to a precision better than 0.01 mag while the precision in number counts reaches 10%. The position of the main-sequence turnoff (MSTO) and the number of horizontal branch (HB) stars are used as comparisons where appropriate. Several independent scien…
Given the implications for the origin of Li enhancement in red giants we have reviewed Li-rich classification of KIC~9821622, the only bonafide RGB giant with He inert-core till date, reported as a Li-rich giant by reanalyzing the high-resolution spectra. We have obtained $A(Li)_{LTE} = 1.42 \pm 0.05$ dex. After correcting for non-LTE it is $A(Li)_{NLTE} = 1.57 \pm 0.05 $ dex which is significantly less than the reported A(Li) = $1.80 \pm 0.2$~dex. We found the sub-ordinate line at 6103 Å is too weak or absent to measure Li abundance. The derived abundance is normal for red giants undergoing d…
Only one carbon-rich (C-rich, hereinafter) Mira variable has so far been suggested as a member of the Galactic bulge and this is in a symbiotic system. Here we describe a method for selecting C-rich candidates from an infrared colour-colour diagram, (J-Ks) vs ([9]-[18]). Follow-up low-resolution spectroscopy resulted in the detection of 8 C-rich Mira variables from a sample of36 candidates towards the Galactic bulge. Our near-infrared photometry indicates that two of these, including the known symbiotic, are closer than the main body of the bulge while a third is a known foreground object. Of …
In this article, we speculate on the possible mechanisms for Li enhancement origin in RGB stars based on a large data set of around 340,299 stars collected from the GALAH survey combined with the Gaia astrometry. Data has 51,982 low mass (M$\leq$ 2M$_{\odot}$) RGB stars with reliable atmospheric parameters. The data set shows a well populated RGB with well-defined luminosity bump and red clump with significant number of stars at each of these two key phases. We found 335 new Li-rich RGB stars with Li abundance, A(Li) $\geq$ 1.80 $\pm$ 0.14 dex, of which 20 are super Li-rich with A(Li) $\geq$ 3…
Galactic globular clusters (GC) are known to have multiple stellar populations and be characterised by similar chemical features, e.g. O-Na anti-correlation. While second-population stars, identified by their Na overabundance, have been found from the main sequence turn-off up to the tip of the red giant branch in various Galactic GCs, asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars have rarely been targeted. The recent finding that NGC 6752 lacks an Na-rich AGB star has thus triggered new studies on AGB stars in GCs, since this result questions our basic understanding of GC formation and stellar evolutio…
Lithium has confused scientists for decades at almost each scale of the universe. Lithium-rich giants are peculiar stars with lithium abundances over model prediction. A large fraction of lithium-rich low-mass evolved stars are traditionally supposed to be red giant branch (RGB) stars. Recent studies, however, report that red clump (RC) stars are more frequent than RGB. Here, we present a uniquely large systematic study combining the direct asteroseismic analysis with the spectroscopy on the lithium-rich stars. The majority of lithium-rich stars are confirmed to be RCs, whereas RGBs are minor.…
The separation of oxygen- and carbon-rich AGB sources is crucial for their accurate use as local and cosmological distance and age/metallicity indicators. We investigate the use of unsupervised learning algorithms for classifying the chemistry of long-period variables from Gaia DR3's BP/RP spectra. Even in the presence of significant interstellar dust, the spectra separate into two groups attributable to O-rich and C-rich sources. Given these classifications, we utilise a supervised approach to separate O-rich and C-rich sources without BP/RP spectra but instead given broadband optical and inf…
We study the star-formation history of the Galactic bulge, as derived from the age distribution of the central stars of planetary nebulae that belong to this stellar population. The high resolution imaging and spectroscopic observations of 31 compact planetary nebulae are used to derive their central star masses. The Bloecker tracks with the cluster IFMR result in ages, which are unexpectedly young. We find that the Bloecker post-AGB tracks need to be accelerated by a factor of three to fit the local white dwarf masses. This acceleration extends the age distribution. We adjust the IFMR as a fr…
In this paper we report two new super Li-rich K giants: KIC 2305930 and KIC 12645107 with Li abundances exceeding that of ISM (A(Li) $\geq$ 3.2 dex). Importantly, both the giants have been classified as core He-burning red clump stars based on asteroseismic data from Kepler mission. Also, both the stars are found to be low mass (M $\approx$ 1.0 M$_{\odot}$) which, together with an evidence of their evolutionary status of being red clump imply that the stars have gone through both the luminosity bump and He-flash during their RGB evolution. Stars' large Li abundance and evolutionary phase sugge…
The AKARI/IRC color combining the S9W and L18W bands is useful for distinguishing between oxygen-rich and carbon-rich circumstellar dust. Ishihara and collaborators found in 2011 that this color, used together with the near-IR color J-Ks, can be used to classify two groups of dust-enshrouded stars with different chemistry. They investigated the distributions of such dusty AGB stars in the Galaxy and found that those with oxygen-rich dust are more centrally concentrated. While this is consistent with previous studies, the map in Ishihara et al. shows that carbon-rich stars are also present in t…
We present an analysis of the period-$V$-amplitude plane for RR0 Lyrae stars (fundamental mode pulsators) with "normal" light curves in the bulge using the MACHO bulge fields. Although bulge globular clusters have RR Lyraes that divide into two reasonable distinct groups according to the average period of the RR0 Lyraes (Oosterhoff 1939), there is no evidence of a gap between Oosterhoff I and II stars in the bulge field star sample. The majority of the bulge RR0 Lyrae field star population have a difference in period compared to the Oosterhoff I cluster M3 (Delta log P) that is shifted by abou…
We use the data-driven method, The Cannon, to bring 21,000 stars from the ARGOS bulge survey, including 10,000 red clump stars, onto the parameter and abundance scales of the cross-Galactic survey, APOGEE, obtaining rms precisions of 0.10 dex, 0.07 dex, 74 K, and 0.18 dex for [Fe/H], [Mg/Fe], Teff, and log(g), respectively. The re-calibrated ARGOS survey - which we refer to as the A2A survey - is combined with the APOGEE survey to investigate the abundance structure of the Galactic bulge. We find X-shaped [Fe/H] and [Mg/Fe] distributions in the bulge that are more pinched than the bulge densit…
We performed a detailed study of the evolution of the luminosity of He-ignition stage and of the red giant branch bump luminosity during the red giant branch phase transition for various metallicities. To this purpose we calculated a grid of stellar models that sample the mass range of the transition with a fine mass step equal to ${\rm 0.01M_\odot}$. We find that for a stellar population with a given initial chemical composition, there is a critical age (of 1.1-1.2~Gyr) around which a decrease in age of just 20-30 million years causes a drastic drop in the red giant branch tip brightness. We …
The fifteenth part of the OGLE-III Catalog of Variable Stars (OIII-CVS) contains 232,406 long-period variables (LPVs) detected in the OGLE-II and OGLE-III fields toward the Galactic bulge. The sample consists of 6528 Mira stars, 33,235 semiregular variables and 192,643 OGLE small amplitude red giants. The catalog data and data resources that are being published include observational parameters of stars, finding charts, and time-series I- and V-band photometry obtained between 1997 and 2009. We discuss statistical features of the sample and compare it with collections of LPVs in the Magellanic …
An analysis of high-resolution near-infrared spectra of a sample of 45 asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars towards the Galactic bulge is presented. The sample consists of two subsamples, a larger one in the inner and intermediate bulge, and a smaller one in the outer bulge. The data are analysed with the help of hydrostatic model atmospheres and spectral synthesis. We derive the radial velocity of all stars, and the atmospheric chemical mix ([Fe/H], C/O, $^{12}$C/$^{13}$C, Al, Si, Ti, and Y) where possible. Our ability to model the spectra is mainly limited by the (in)completeness of atomic an…
Although red giants deplete lithium on their surfaces, some giants are Li-rich. Intermediate-mass asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars can generate Li through the Cameron-Fowler conveyor, but the existence of Li-rich, low-mass red giant branch (RGB) stars is puzzling. Globular clusters are the best sites to examine this phenomenon because it is straightforward to determine membership in the cluster and to identify the evolutionary state of each star. In 72 hours of Keck/DEIMOS exposures in 25 clusters, we found four Li-rich RGB and two Li-rich AGB stars. There were 1696 RGB and 125 AGB stars wi…
Context. Extremely reddened AGB stars lose mass at high rates of >10^-5 Msun/yr. This is the very last stage of AGB evolution, in which stars in the mass range 2.0--4.0 Msun (for solar metallicity) should have been converted to C stars already. The extremely reddened AGB stars in the Galactic bulge are however predominantly O-rich, implying that they might be either low-mass stars or stars at the upper end of the AGB mass range. Aims. To determine the mass range of the most reddened AGB stars in the Galactic bulge. Methods. Using Virtual Observatory tools, we constructed spectral energy distri…
Detections of SiO masers from the Bulge Asymmetries and Dynamical Evolution (BAaDE) survey more tightly define the region where Oxygen-rich (O) Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars reside in multiple infrared (IR) color-color diagrams. Using MSX and 2MASS data along with radio spectra from the BAaDE survey we find that three main populations were observed in the BAaDE survey: O-rich AGB stars of which about $73\%$ host SiO masers, Carbon-rich (C) AGB stars which do not host these masers, and a small contaminating set of possible Young Stellar Objects (YSOs). The distinction between YSOs and AGB…
We report the detection of a large sample of high-$α$-metal-rich stars on the low giant branch with $2.6<logg<3.3$ dex in the LAMOST-MRS survey. This special group corresponds to an intermediate-age population of $5-9$ Gyr based on the $[Fe/H]$-$[C/N]$ diagram and age-$[C/N]$ calibration. A comparison group is selected to have solar $α$ ratio at super metallicity, which is young and has a narrow age range around 3 Gyr. Both groups have thin-disk like kinematics but the former shows slightly large velocity dispersions. The special group shows a larger extension in vertical distance toward 1.2 k…
We present Hubble Space Telescope data of the low-reddening Sagittarius window in the Galactic bulge. The Sagittarius Window Eclipsing Extrasolar Planet Search field (3'x3'), together with three more Advanced Camera for Surveys and eight Wide Field Camera 3 fields, were observed in the F606W and F814W filters, approximately every two weeks for two years, with the principal aim of detecting a hidden population of isolated black holes and neutron stars through astrometric microlensing. Proper motions were measured with an accuracy of ~0.1 mas/yr (~4 km/s) at F606W~25.5 mag, and better than ~0.5 …
In this paper, we report the discovery of two new super Li-rich K giants: HD~24960 and TYC~1751-1713-1. Based on high resolution ($R\approx 60,000$) spectroscopy, we have derived Li abundance of A(Li)$\approx$4.0~dex for both stars. Other elemental abundances are normal of typical K giants. Low ratios of [C/N] $\leq$ $-$ 0.25 and $^{12}C/^{13}C \leq10$ suggest that the stars are in upper RGB phase. Further, based on Gaia astrometry and secondary calibrations using Kepler asteroseismic and LAMOST spectroscopic data, we argue that both stars belong to red clump (RC) phase with core He-burning. R…
We present photometric metallicity measurements for a sample of 2.6 million bulge red clump stars extracted from the Blanco DECam Bulge Survey (BDBS). Similar to previous studies, we find that the bulge exhibits a strong vertical metallicity gradient, and that at least two peaks in the metallicity distribution functions appear at b < -5. We can discern a metal-poor ([Fe/H] ~ -0.3) and metal-rich ([Fe/H] ~ +0.2) abundance distribution that each show clear systematic trends with latitude, and may be best understood by changes in the bulge's star formation/enrichment processes. Both groups exhibi…
We have monitored over a ten-year interval the light variations of five evolved stars with very large mid-infrared excesses. All five objects appear to have oxygen-rich or mixed oxygen-rich and carbon-rich chemistries. They all vary in light: four over a small range of $\sim$0.2 mag and the fifth over a larger range of $\sim$0.7 mag. Spectral types range from G2 to B0. Periodic pulsations are found for the first time in the three cooler ones, IRAS 18075$-$0924 (123 days), 19207$+$2023 (96 days), and 20136$+$1309 (142 days). No significant periodicity is found in the hotter ones, but they appea…
An Updated SynthPop Model for Microlensing Simulations I: Model Description & Evaluation
University of California Berkeley（加州大学伯克利分校）；The Ohio State University（俄亥俄州立大学）；Louisiana State University（路易斯安那州立大学）；NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory（美国宇航局喷气推进实验室）；Space Science Institute（空间科学研究所）；Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory（劳伦斯利弗莫尔国家实验室）；Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge（剑桥大学天文学研究所）
Ancient relic moderately metal-rich bulge cluster Tonantzintla 2
Università di Padova（帕多瓦大学）；Centro di Ateneo di Studi e Attività Spaziali “Giuseppe Colombo”（朱塞佩·科隆博大学中心太空研究与活动研究中心）；INAF-Osservatorio di Padova（意大利国家天体物理研究所帕多瓦天文台）；Max Planck Institute for Astronomy（马克斯·普朗克天文学研究所）；Universidade de São Paulo, IAG（圣保罗大学天文学、地球科学与 geodesy 学院）；Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul（南里奥格兰德联邦大学）；Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics（莱布尼茨天体物理研究所）；Universidad Católica del Norte, Núcleo UCN en Arqueología Galáctica - Inst. de Astronomía（北天主教大学银河考古核心-天文学研究所）
Chemical evolution of Na, Mg, and Al in the Galactic bulge from UVES data
Universidade de São Paulo（圣保罗大学）；Astrophysikalisches Institut Potsdam（波茨坦天体物理研究所）；Université de Sophia-Antipolis, Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur（索菲亚-安提贝斯大学，蔚蓝海岸天文台）；Universidad Catolica de Chile（智利天主教大学）；INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova（意大利国家天体物理研究所帕多瓦天文台）；Instituto de Astronomía, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México（墨西哥国立自治大学天文学研究所）；Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, Polish Academy of Sciences（波兰科学院尼古拉·哥白尼天文学中心）；Max Planck Institute for Astronomy（马克斯·普朗克天文学研究所）；Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg（海德堡大学州立天文台，天文学中心）；Fakultät für Physik und Astronomie, Universität Heidelberg（海德堡大学物理与天文学院）
The Bulge Globular Clusters (GCs) are key tracers of this central ancient component of our Galaxy. It is essential to understand their formation and evolution to study that of the bulge, as well as their relationship with the other Galactic GC systems (halo and disk GCs). Our main goals are to obtain detailed abundances for a sample of seven red giant members of NGC 6528 in order to characterize its chemical composition and study the relationship of this GC with the bulge, and with other bulge, halo and disk GCs. Moreover, we analyze this cluster$'$s behavior associated with the Multiple Popul…
We present the deepest near-infrared (ZJKs) photometry yet obtained of the Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal (Sgr dSph), using VISTA to survey 11 square degrees centred on its core. We list locations and ZJKs-band magnitudes for over 2.9 million sources in the field. We discuss the isolation of the Sgr dSph from the foreground and Galactic Bulge populations, identify the Sgr dSph's horizontal branch in the near-infrared for the first time, and map the density of the galaxy's stars. We present isochrones for the Sgr dSph and Bulge populations. These are consistent with the previously-reported proper…
We present Fe, Si, and Ca abundances for 61 giants in Plaut's Window (l=-1,b=-8.5) and Fe abundances for an additional 31 giants in a second, nearby field (l=0,b=-8) derived from high resolution (R~25,000) spectra obtained with the Blanco 4m telescope and Hydra multifiber spectrograph. The median metallicity of red giant branch (RGB) stars in the Plaut field is ~0.4 dex lower than those in Baade's Window, and confirms the presence of an iron abundance gradient along the bulge minor axis. The full metallicity range of our (biased) RGB sample spans -1.5<[Fe/H]<+0.3, which is similar to that foun…
We report periods and JHKL observations for 648 oxygen-rich Mira variables found in two outer bulge fields at b=-7 degrees and l=+/-8 degrees and combine these with data on 8057 inner bulge Miras from the OGLE, Macho and 2MASS surveys, which are concentrated closer to the Galactic centre. Distance moduli are estimated for all these stars. Evidence is given showing that the bulge structure is a function of age. The longer period Miras (log P > 2.6, age about 5 Gyr and younger) show clear evidence of a bar structure inclined to the line of sight in both the inner and outer regions. The distribut…
Aims. The aim of this work is the study of abundances of the heavy elements Ba, La, Ce, Nd, and Eu in 56 bulge giants (red giant branch and red clump) with metallicities ranging from -1.3 dex to 0.5 dex. Methods. We obtained high-resolution spectra of our giant stars using the FLAMES-UVES spectrograph on the Very Large Telescope. We inspected four bulge fields along the minor axis. Results. We measure the chemical evolution of heavy elements, as a function of metallicity, in the Galactic bulge. Conclusions. The [Ba, La, Ce, Nd/Fe] vs. [Fe/H] ratios decrease with increasing metallicity, in whic…
The puzzle of Li-rich giant is still unsolved, contradicting the prediction of the standard stellar models. Although the exact evolutionary stages play a key role in the knowledge of Li-rich giants, a limited number of Li-rich giants have been taken with high-quality asteroseismic parameters to clearly distinguish the stellar evolutionary stages. Based on the LAMOST Data Release 7 (DR7), we applied a data-driven neural network method to derive the parameters for giant stars, which contain the largest number of Li-rich giants. The red giant stars are classified into three stages of Red Giant Br…
NGC 6441 is a bulge globular cluster with an unusual horizontal branch morphology and a rich population of RR Lyrae (RRL) and Type II Cepheid (T2C) variables that is unexpected for its relatively high metallicity. We present near-infrared (NIR, $JHK_s$) time-series observations of 42 RRL, 8 T2Cs, and 10 eclipsing binary candidate variables in NGC 6441. The multi-epoch observations were obtained using the FLAMINGOS-2 instrument on the 8-m Gemini South telescope. Multi-band data are used to investigate pulsation properties of RRL and T2C variables including their light curves, instability strip,…
Recent observations have revealed a population of $α$-element abundances enhanced giant stars with unexpected high masses ($\gtrsim$1 $M_\odot$) from asteroseismic analysis and spectroscopy. Assuming single-star evolution, their masses imply young ages ($τ<6$Gyr) incompatible with the canonical Galactic chemical evolution scenario. Here we study the chemistry and kinematics of a large sample of such $α$-rich, high-mass red giant branch (RGB) stars drawn from the LAMOST spectroscopic surveys. Using LAMOST and Gaia, we found these stars share the same kinematics as the canonical high-$α$ old ste…
The inner Galactic Bulge has, until recently, been avoided in chemical evolution studies due to extreme extinction and stellar crowding. Large, near-IR spectroscopic surveys, such as APOGEE, allow for the first time the measurement of metallicities in the inner region of our Galaxy. We study metallicities of 33 K/M giants situated in the Galactic Center region from observations obtained with the APOGEE survey. We selected K/M giants with reliable stellar parameters from the APOGEE/ASPCAP pipeline. Distances, interstellar extinction values, and radial velocities were checked to confirm that the…
Multiple populations revealed in globular clusters (GCs) are important windows to the formation and evolution of these stellar systems. The metal-rich GCs in the Galactic bulge are an indispensable part of this picture, but the high optical extinction in this region has prevented extensive research. In this work, we use the high resolution near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopic data from APOGEE to study the chemical abundances of NGC 6553, which is one of the most metal-rich bulge GCs. We identify ten red giants as cluster members using their positions, radial velocities, iron abundances, and NIR p…
We investigate the dual-dust chemistry (DDC) phenomenon in PNe and discuss reasons for its occurrence, by analyzing Spitzer/IRS spectra of a sample of 40 Galactic PNe among which 26 belong to the Galactic Bulge (GB). The mixed chemistry is derived from the simultaneous detection of PAH features in the 6-14 micron range and crystalline silicates (CS) beyond 20 microns in the Spitzer/IRS spectra. Out of the 26 PNe observed in the GB, 21 show signatures of DDC. Our observations reveal that the simultaneous presence of O- and C-rich dust features in the IR spectra of [WC]-type PNe is not restricte…
The presence of two stellar populations in the Milky Way bulge has been reported recently. We aim at studying the abundances and kinematics of stars in the outer bulge, thereby providing additional constraints on models of its formation. Spectra of 401 red giant stars in a field at (l,b)=(0°,-10°) were obtained with FLAMES at the VLT. Stars of luminosities down to below the two bulge red clumps (RCs) are included. From these spectra we measure general metallicities, abundances of Fe and the alpha-elements, and radial velocities (RV) of the stars. These measurements as well as photometric data …
The latest edition of the APOGEE-2/DR14 survey catalogue and the first \texttt{Payne} data release of APOGEE abundance determinations by Ting et al. are examined. We identify 31 previously unremarked metal-poor giant stars with anomalously high levels of nitrogen in the chemical space defined by [Fe/H] and [N/Fe]. The APOGEE chemical abundance patterns of such objects revealed that these are chemically distinct from the Milky Way (MW) in most chemical elements. We have found all these objects have a [N/Fe]$>+0.5$, and are thus identified here as nitrogen-rich stars. An orbital analysis of thes…
We study the line widths in the [\ion{O}{3}]$λ$5007 and H$α$ lines for two groups of planetary nebulae in the Milky Way bulge based upon spectroscopy obtained at the Observatorio Astronómico Nacional in the Sierra San Pedro Mártir (OAN-SPM) using the Manchester Echelle Spectrograph. The first sample includes objects early in their evolution, having high H$β$ luminosities, but [\ion{O}{3}]$λ5007/\mathrm Hβ< 3$. The second sample comprises objects late in their evolution, with \ion{He}{2} $λ4686/\mathrm Hβ> 0.5$. These planetary nebulae represent evolutionary phases preceeding and following thos…
Context. The formation and evolution of the Milky Way bulge is still largely an unanswered question. One of the most essential observables needed in its modelling are the metallicity distribution and the trends of the alpha elements as measured in stars. While Bulge regions beyond R > 50 pc of the centre has been targeted in several surveys, the central part has escaped detailed study due to the extreme extinction and crowding. The abundance gradients from the center are, however, of large diagnostic value. Aims. We aim at investigating the Galactic Centre environment by probing M giants in th…
We present new and accurate optical photometry of the Bulge globular cluster NGC 6528. The images were collected with ACS at HST and together with WFC3 (UVIS, IR) allowed us to measure the proper motion to separate cluster and field stars. We adopted two empirical calibrators and we found that NGC 6528 is coeval with and more metal-rich than 47 Tuc. Moreover, it appears older and more metal-poor than the super-metal-rich old open cluster NGC 6791. We also performed a preliminary analysis of field stellar populations located around NGC 6528 and NGC 6522 by using ground-based near-infrared photo…
We report the first estimate of the He abundance of the population of RR Lyrae stars in the Galactic bulge. This is done by comparing the recent observational data with the latest models. We use the large samples of ab type RR Lyrae stars found by OGLE IV in the inner bulge and by the VVV survey in the outer bulge. We present the result from the new models computed by Marconi et al. (2017), showing that the minimum Period for fundamental RR Lyrae pulsators depends on the He content. By comparing these models with the observations in a Period versus effective temperature plane, we find that the…
We present 947 radial velocities of RR Lyrae variable stars in four fields located toward the Galactic bulge, observed within the data from the ongoing Bulge RR Lyrae Radial Velocity Assay (BRAVA-RR). We show that these RR Lyrae stars exhibit hot kinematics and null or negligible rotation and are therefore members of a separate population from the bar/pseudobulge that currently dominates the mass and luminosity of the inner Galaxy. Our RR Lyrae stars predate these structures, and have metallicities, kinematics, and spatial distribution that are consistent with a "classical" bulge, although we …
Aims. Stars with strong enhancements of r-process elements are rare and tend to be metal-poor, with generally [Fe/H] <-2 dex and found in the halo. In this work we aim to investigate a candidate r-process enriched bulge star with a relatively high metallicity of -0.65 dex, and compare it with a previously published r-rich candidate star in the bulge. Methods. We reconsider the abundance analysis of a high-resolution optical spectrum of the red-giant star 2MASS J18082459-2548444 and determine its europium (Eu) and molybdenum (Mo) abundance, using stellar parameters from five different previous …
The Galactic bulge is dominated by an old, metal rich stellar population. The possible presence and the amount of a young (a few Gyr old) minor component is one of the major issues debated in the literature. Recently, the bulge stellar system Terzan 5 was found to harbor three sub-populations with iron content varying by more than one order of magnitude (from 0.2 up to 2 times the solar value), with chemical abundance patterns strikingly similar to those observed in bulge field stars. Here we report on the detection of two distinct main sequence turn-off points in Terzan 5, providing the age o…
Phosphorous in the moderately metal-poor bulge globular clusters NGC 6539 and NGC 6569
Universidade de São Paulo（圣保罗大学）；Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, Polish Academy of Sciences（波兰科学院尼古拉·哥白尼天文学中心）；Astrophysikalisches Institut Potsdam（波茨坦天文物理研究所）；Max Planck Institute for Astronomy（马克斯·普朗克天文学研究所）；Università di Padova（帕多瓦大学）；Centro di Ateneo di Studi e Attività Spaziali “Giuseppe Colombo” – CISAS（“朱塞佩·科洛姆博”大学空间研究与活动中心）；INAF-Osservatorio di Padova（意大利国家天体物理研究所帕多瓦天文台）
Elemental abundance patterns can provide vital clues to the formation and enrichment history of a stellar population. Here we present an investigation of the Galactic bulge, where we apply principal component abundance analysis (PCAA)---a principal component decomposition of relative abundances [X/Fe]---to a sample of 35 microlensed bulge dwarf and subgiant stars, characterizing their distribution in the 12-dimensional space defined by their measured elemental abundances. The first principal component PC1, which suffices to describe the abundance patterns of most stars in the sample, shows a s…
We present the abundances of N in a sample of 62 stars on the red giant branch (RGB) in the peculiar globular cluster NGC 1851. The values of [N/Fe] ratio were obtained by comparing the flux measured in the observed spectra with that from synthetic spectra for up to about 15 features of CN. This is the first time that N abundances are obtained for such a large sample of RGB stars from medium-resolution spectroscopy in this cluster. With these abundances we provide a chemical tagging of the split red giant branch found from several studies in NGC 1851. The secondary, reddest sequence on the RGB…
