On the Delta V_HB_bump parameter in Globular Clusters
A. Di Cecco, G. Bono, P. B. Stetson, A. Pietrinferni, R. Becucci, S. Cassisi, S. Degl'Innocenti, G. Iannicola, P. G. Prada Moroni, R. Buonanno, A. Calamida, F. … 展开作者
A. Di Cecco, G. Bono, P. B. Stetson, A. Pietrinferni, R. Becucci, S. Cassisi, S. Degl'Innocenti, G. Iannicola, P. G. Prada Moroni, R. Buonanno, A. Calamida, F. Caputo, M. Castellani, C. E. Corsi, I. Ferraro, M. Dall'Ora, M. Monelli, M. Nonino, A. M. Piersimoni, L. Pulone, M. Romaniello, M. Salaris, A. R. Walker, M. Zoccali
We present new empirical estimates of the Delta V_HB_bump parameter for 15 Galactic globular clusters (GGCs) using accurate and homogeneous ground-based optical data. Together with similar evaluations available in the literature, we ended up with a sample of 62 GGCs covering a very broad range in metal content (-2.16<=[M/H]<=-0.58 dex). Adopting the homogeneous metallicity scale provided either by Kraft & Ivans (2004) or by Carretta et al. (2009), we found that the observed Delta V_HB_bump parameters are larger than predicted. In the metal-poor regime ([M/H]<=-1.7, -1.6 dex) 40% of GCs show discrepancies of 2sigma (~0.40 mag) or more. Evolutionary models that account either for alpha- and CNO-enhancement or for helium enhancement do not alleviate the discrepancy between theory and observations. The outcome is the same if we use the new Solar heavy-element mixture. The comparison between alpha- and CNO-enhanced evolutionary models and observations in the Carretta et al. metallicity scale also indicates that observed Delta V_HB_bump parameters, in the metal-rich regime ([M/H]=>0), might be systematically smaller than predicted.
Red Giant Branch Bump Brightness and Number Counts in 72 Galactic Globular Clusters Observed with the Hubble Space Telescope
我们提出了最广泛和最精确的红巨星分支凸块(RGBB)的亮度和数量计数进行了实证调查。我们实现了一种新的方法,并使用来自两个\textit{Hubble Space Telescope (HST)}球状星团(GC)调查的数据来测量72个GC中RGBB的亮度和恒星计数。亮度测量精度优于0.01 mag,计数精度达到10%。在适当的情况下,主序星关闭(MSTO)的位置和水平分支(HB)星的数量被用作比较。几个独立的科学结论是新的可能与我们的参数化的RGBB。亮度和计数被证明有第二个参数,除了他们的强烈依赖于金属丰度。在GC NGC 2808、5286、6388和6441中发现RGBB异常,可能是由于存在多个种群。最后,我们使用我们的经验校准来预测的性质的星系核球RGBB,如果类似的恒星物理的核球和银河系GC系统的假设成立。的RGBB性质的凸起被证明是不同的银河系GC系统,与前者具有较低的数量计数,较低的亮度色散和更明亮的峰值亮度比预期从后者。这种差异很好地解释了银河系隆起有一个更高的氦丰度比预期的GC,$Δ$ Y $\sim +$ 0.06的金属丰度中位数。
The Hubble Space Telescope UV Legacy Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters is providing a major breakthrough in our knowledge of Globular Clusters (GCs) and their stellar populations. Among the main results, we discovered that all the studied GCs host two main discrete groups consisting of first generation (1G) and second generation (2G) stars. We exploit the multiwavelength photometry from this project to investigate, for the first time, the Red Giant Branch Bump (RGBB) of the two generations in a large sample of GCs. We identified, with high statistical significance, the RGBB of 1G and 2G sta…
Lithium abundances in red giants of M4: evidence for asymptotic giant branch star pollution in globular clusters?
在球状星团(GC)巨人的Li和质子捕获元素丰度的测定,使我们能够限制在GC中的多个人口情景的几个关键问题,从形成和早期演化,污染和稀释机制。在这封信中,我们提出了我们的结果,对大样本的巨人在中间金属丰度GC NGC 6121(M4),其中钠和O已经确定了马里诺等人。分析的恒星都低于和高于红巨星分支凸点光度。我们发现第一代和第二代恒星具有相同的Li含量,这表明Li生产一定发生过。这是一个强有力的观测证据,支持渐近巨星分支星是GC污染者的假设。
Light element abundances in the Galactic globular cluster 47 Tuc
大多数(也许是所有)银河系球状星团(GGC)很可能经历了两次甚至更多的恒星形成事件。这是特别表明,由特殊的化学组成的星团的恒星,显示大的变化,轻元素,如Li,C,N,O,Na,Mg,和Al的丰度。我们研究了Na,Mg,和Al的丰度在103红巨星支星位于下方(49颗恒星)和上方(54颗恒星)的RGB凸点在GGC 47 Tuc的大气。我们的结果表明,[Na/Fe]丰度比的扩展约为[Mg/Fe]的三倍。我们的数据也证实了弱Na-Al相关性的存在,类似于在其他GGC中观察到的。与此同时,我们没有发现Carretta et al.(2013)最近报道的三种具有不同铝丰度特征的恒星群存在的证据。
The Hubble Space Telescope UV Legacy Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters. IV. Helium content and relative age of multiple stellar populations within NGC 6352
Discovery of long-period variable stars in the very-metal-poor globular cluster M15
我们在银河系中最贫金属的球状星团M15的巨支星中寻找长周期变星。我们使用多色光学测光从0.6米基尔桑顿和2米利物浦望远镜。在K757和K825中检测到的Δ V ~ 0.15等的变化超过了近一年的异常长的时间尺度,使它们成为银河系球状星团中发现的最贫金属的LPV。K825位于长的第二周期序列上,被认为是富含金属的LPV,尽管没有检测到主周期。我们讨论这种变化的背景下,尘埃生产和恒星演化在低金属丰度,使用额外的光谱从6.5米麦哲伦(拉斯坎帕纳斯)望远镜。尽管存在气体质量损失,但缺乏尘埃生产,这引起了关于尘埃生产和星团内介质的问题。
A WFC3/HST view of the three stellar populations in the Globular Cluster NGC6752
哈勃太空望远镜的多波段测光显示,球状星团NGC 6752的主序星、次巨星和红巨星分支分裂成三个主要部分,与其水平分支恒星的三个不同部分非常相似。这些三重序列与三个恒星群一致:化学成分类似于场晕星的恒星星族(种群a),具有增强的钠和氮、贫化的碳和氧以及增强的氦丰度的种群(c(Δ Y ~0.03),以及具有中间(在群体a和c之间)化学组成和略微氦增强(Δ Y ~0.01)的群体(b)。这些组成部分包含约25%(星族a),约45%(星族b)和约30%(星族c)的恒星。在大约2.5个半质量半径的范围内,没有发现三个种群相对数量的径向梯度。
The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) UV Legacy Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters (GCs) has investigated multiple stellar populations by means of the "chromosome map" (ChM) diagnostic tool that maximises the separation between stars with different chemical composition. One of the most challenging features revealed by ChMs analysis is the apparent inhomogeneity among stars belonging to the first population, a phenomenon largely attributed to He variations. However, this explanation is not supported by the uniformity in p-capture elements of these stars. The HST survey has revealed that the GC NGC…
Intermediate-age star clusters in the Magellanic Clouds harbour signatures of the multiple stellar populations long thought to be restricted to old globular clusters. We compare synthetic horizontal branch models with Hubble Space Telescope photometry of clusters in the Magellanic Clouds, with age between ~2 and ~10 Gyr, namely NGC 121, Lindsay 1, NGC 339, NGC 416, Lindsay 38, Lindsay 113, Hodge 6 and NGC 1978. We find a clear signature of initial helium abundance spreads (delta(Y)) in four out of these eight clusters (NGC 121, Lindsay 1, NGC 339, NGC 416) and we quantify the value of delta(Y)…
The Gradients in the 47 Tuc Red Giant Branch Bump and Horizontal Branch are Consistent With a Centrally-Concentrated, Helium-Enriched Second Stellar Generation
We present Ca-CN-CH-NH photometry for the well-known globular cluster (GC) M3 (NGC 5272). We show new evidence for two M3 populations with distinctly different carbon and nitrogen abundances, seen in a sharp division between CN-weak and CN-strong red-giant branches (RGBs) in M3. The CN-strong population shows a C-N anticorrelation that is a natural consequence of the CN cycle, while the CN-weak population shows no or a weak C-N anticorrelation. Additionally, the CN-weak population exhibits an elongated spatial distribution that is likely linked to its fast rotation. Our derived metallicity rev…
Lithium rich stars in globular clusters are rare. In fact, only 14 have been found so far, in different evolutionary phases from dwarfs to giants. Different mechanisms have been proposed to explain this enhancement, but it is still an open problem. Using spectra collected within the Gaia-ESO Survey, obtained with the GIRAFFE spectrograph at the ESO Very Large Telescope, we present the discovery of the first Li-rich star in the cluster NGC 1261, the second star known in the red giant branch bump phase. The star shows an extreme Li overabundance of A(Li)_LTE=3.92\pm0.14, corresponding to A(Li)_N…
We present new large field-of-view ($\sim$1°$\times$1°) Ca-CN photometry of the prototypical metal-rich globular cluster 47 Tucanae (NGC 104). Our results are the following. (1) The populational number ratios of the red giant branch (RGB) and red horizontal branch (RHB) are in excellent agreement: n(CN-w):n(CN-s) = 30:70 ($\pm$1--2), where the CN-w and CN-s stand for the CN-weak and CN-strong populations, respectively. Both the CN-s RGB and RHB populations are more centrally concentrated than those of CN-w populations are. (2) Our photometric metallicities of individual RGB stars in each popul…
Recent work revealed that both the helium variation within globular clusters (GCs) and the relative numbers of first and second-generation stars (1G, 2G) depend on the mass of the host cluster. Precise determination of the internal helium variations and of the fraction of 1G stars are crucial constraints to the formation scenarios of multiple populations (MPs). We exploit multi-band Hubble Space Telescope photometry to investigate MPs in NGC 2419, which is one of the most-massive and distant GCs of the Galaxy, almost isolated from its tidal influence. We find that the 1G hosts the ~37% of the …
We present a multiple stellar population (MSP) study of the globular cluster (GC) NGC~6752. We show that our new photometric CN index accurately traces the CN and the nitrogen abundances in cool giants, finding the discrete double red giant branch (RGB) and asymptotic giant branch (AGB) sequences with number ratios between the CN-weak and the CN-strong populations of \nrgb\ = 25:75 ($\pm$3; RGB) and 79:21 ($\pm$13; AGB). The discrepancy in these number ratios suggests that a significant fraction of the low-mass \cns\ stars failed to evolve into the AGB phase. However, unlike previous studies, …
We introduce new color indices $cn^\prime_{\rm JWL}$ (= $Ca_{\rm CTIO} - Ca_{\rm JWL}$) and $ch_{\rm JWL}$ [=$(JWL43 - b) - (b-y)$], accurate photometric measures of the CN band at $λ$3883 and the CH G band, respectively, in the study of the multiple populations (MPs) in globular clusters (GCs). Our photometric CN--CH relation for a large number of red-giant branch (RGB) in M5 shows that the evolutions of the CN and CH between the CN-w and CN-s populations are not continuous. Armed with our new color indices, we investigate the MPs of NGC 6723, finding the RGB populational number ratio of $n$(…
Recent studies show that the inner Galactic regions host genuine bulge globular clusters, but also halo intruders, complex remnants of primordial building blocks, and objects likely accreted during major merging events. In this study we focus on the properties of M 28, a very old and massive cluster currently located in the Galactic bulge. We analysed wide-field infrared photometry collected by the VVV survey, VVV proper motions, and intermediate-resolution spectra in the calcium triplet range for 113 targets in the cluster area. Our results in general confirm previous estimates of the cluster…
We present a new identity card for the cluster NGC 6440 in the Galactic Bulge. We have used a combination of high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope images, wide-field ground-based observations performed with the ESO-FORS2, and the public survey catalog Pan-STARRS, to determine the gravitational center, projected density profile and structural parameters of this globular from resolved star counts. The new determination of the cluster center differs by ~ 2" (corresponding to 0.08 pc) from the previous estimate, which was based on the surface brightness peak. The star density profile, extending o…
Stellar models for -2.5 <= [Fe/H] <= -0.5 that have been computed for variations in the C:N:O abundance ratio (for two different values of [CNO/Fe]) are compared with HST Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) observations of the globular clusters (GCs) 47 Tuc, NGC 6362, M5, M5, M55, and M92. The bolometric corrections used to transpose the models to the observed planes are based on new MARCS synthetic spectra that incorporate improved treatments of molecules that involve atoms of C, N, and O. On the assumption of well-supported distance moduli and reddenings, isochrones for [O/Fe] = 0.6 and [m/Fe] = 0.4 …
Delta Scuti ($δ$ Sct) stars have been extensively studied in our Galaxy, but far less in extragalactic systems. Here we study the population of $δ$ Sct variables in NGC 419, an intermediate-age globular cluster of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), using $g,r,i$ Gemini-S/GMOS time series observations. Our goal is to study the role of such variables in the cluster extended main-sequence turnoff (MSTO). We report the discovery of 54 $δ$ Sct stars and three eclipsing binaries in the NGC 419 field. We find only a handful of the $δ$ Sct stars at the MSTO of NGC 419 while the majority is fainter, ind…