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arXiv 2202.00849astro-ph.GAastro-ph.SR
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在SMC中等年龄星团Kron 3中球状星团丰度异常的证据

Evidence of globular cluster abundance anomalies in the SMC intermediate-age cluster Kron 3

C. Salgado, G. S. Da Costa, D. Yong, R. Salinas, J. E. Norris, A. D. Mackey, A. F. Marino, A. P. Milone

摘要:

利用VLT/FORS 2和Gemini-S/GMOS仪器获得的光谱,我们研究了小麦哲伦星系团Kron 3中红巨星样品的碳、氮和钠丰度。这个星团的金属丰度和光度与银河系的球状星团相当,尽管它的年龄明显较年轻,只有$\sim$ 6.5 Gyr。具体而言,我们研究了CH($λ$ 4300 A)和CN($λ$ 3800,$λ$ 4215)分子谱带的强度,发现CN谱带强度的双峰和CH/CN反相关。应用光谱合成技术揭示了一个大的扩展($\sim$ 1.2 dex)的氮丰度和扩展[C/Fe]的$\sim$ 0.3 dex后,应用演化混合校正。我们还估计钠丰度的强度的Na-D线发现一个范围的$\sim$ 0.8 dex [Na/Fe],正相关的N丰度。这是第一次逐星光谱演示相关的钠,N丰度变化的中间年龄星团,增加了现有的光度和光谱指示存在多个人口在这样的集群质量超过$\sim 10^5$太阳质量。我们的研究结果证实了在球状星团中观察到的多种群机制不可能是只适用于老星团的早期宇宙学效应,并为理解丰度异常的起源提供了一个关键的额外因素。

英文摘要:

Using spectra obtained with the VLT/FORS2 and Gemini-S/GMOS instruments we have investigated carbon, nitrogen and sodium abundances in a sample of red giants in the Small Magellanic Cloud cluster Kron 3. The metallicity and luminosity of this cluster are comparable to those of Galactic globular clusters although with a notably younger age of $\sim$ 6.5 Gyr. Specifically we have investigated the strengths of the CH ($λ$ 4300 A) and CN ($λ$ 3800, $λ$ 4215) molecular bands finding a bimodality of CN band-strengths and a CH/CN anti-correlation. Application of spectrum synthesis techniques reveals a large spread ($\sim$1.2 dex) in nitrogen abundance and a spread in [C/Fe] of $\sim$0.3 dex after applying corrections for evolutionary mixing. We have also estimated sodium abundances from the strengths of the Na D lines finding a range of $\sim$0.8 dex in [Na/Fe] that correlates positively with the N abundances. This is the first star-by-star spectroscopic demonstration of correlated Na, N abundance variations in an intermediate-age star cluster, adding to existing photometric and spectroscopic indications of the presence of multiple populations in such clusters with masses in excess of $\sim 10^5$ solar masses. Our results confirm that the mechanism(s) responsible for the multiple populations observed in globular clusters cannot be an early cosmological effect applying only in old clusters, and provide a key additional factor in the quest to understand the origin of the abundance anomalies.

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