Study of faint young open clusters as tracers of spiral features in our galaxy

Continuing the study of faint young open clusters as tracers of spiral features in our Galaxy, photoelectric and photographic photometry of 39 stars was done in the field of the faint open cluster NGC 2236 ≡ OCl 501 in the direction of Monoceros constellation. Out of these stars, a total of 22 down tom _v ≃ 15.4 mag have been found to be probable members. There is apparently a variable extinction across the field of the cluster with E(B - V) ranging between 0.84 mag and 0.68 mag. The median age of this cluster is estimated to be 7.6 × 10⁷ years and the cluster is thereby considered as belonging to the marginally old category. Thus, it cannot be specifically used as a spiral arm tracer in the study of our Galaxy. This cluster is located at a distance of 3.72 ± 0.13 kpc, which places it at the inner edge of the outer Perseus spiral feature of the Milky Way.     

Photometric membership and metallicities of red giant candidates in selected open clusters

As part of a long‐term project to determine abundances and astrophysical properties of evolved red stars in open clusters, we present high‐precision DDO photoelectric observations for a sample of 33 red giant candidates projected in the fields of nine Galactic open clusters. These data are supplemented with UBV photoelectric photometry of 24 of these stars as well as with CORAVEL radial‐velocity observations for 13 red giant candidates in four of the clusters. We also present Washington photoelectric photometry of a small sample of red giant candidates of the open cluster Ruprecht 97. The likelihood of cluster membership for each star photometrically observed and for 23 additional red giant candidates with UBV and DDO data available in the literature, is evaluated by using two independent photometric criteria. Nearly 82% of the analysed stars are found to have a high probability of being cluster giants. Photometric membership probabilities show very good agreement with those obtained from CORAVEL radial velocities. While E (B –V) colour excesses were determined from combined B – V and DDO colours, calibrations of the DDO system were used to derive MK spectral types, effective temperatures and metallicities. The derived DDO metallicities range between values typical of moderately metal‐poor clusters ([Fe/H] = –0.19) to moderately metal‐rich ([Fe/H] = 0.25) ones. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

X-ray source populations in the region of the open clusters NGC 6633 and IC 4756

Using deep exposures (∼10⁵ s) with the ROSAT High Resolution Imager, we have performed flux-limited surveys for X-ray sources in the vicinity of the Hyades-age open stellar clusters NGC 6633 and IC 4756, detecting 31 and 13 sources, respectively. Our primary aim is to search for so-far unrecognized cluster members. We propose identifications or classifications (cluster member, field star, extragalactic field object) for the X-ray sources, based on published membership lists, and on X-ray:optical flux ratios and optical colour–magnitude diagrams. Results of simulating the expected X-ray-emitting source populations are compared with the ROSAT measurements and with the expected capabilities of the XMM mission. The simulations provide a novel method of comparing the activity levels of NGC 6633 and IC 4756 with that of the Hyades. The measurements and simulations confirm that cluster members are the major class of X-ray emitter in these fields at flux levels     (0.1–2.4 keV), contributing ∼40 per cent of the total X-ray sources. We find six possible new members in NGC 6633 and four candidates in IC 4756; all require further observation to establish membership probability.     

The chromospheric emission of solar-type stars in the young open clusters IC 2391 and IC 2602

In this paper we present chromospheric emission levels of the solar-type stars in the young open clusters IC 2391 and IC 2602. High-resolution spectroscopic data were obtained for over 50 F, G and K stars from these clusters over several observing campaigns using the University College London Echelle Spectrograph on the 3.9-m Anglo-Australian Telescope. Unlike older clusters, the majority (28/52) of the solar-type stars in the two clusters are rapid rotators  ( v  sin  i > 20 km s⁻¹)  with five of the stars being classified as ultra-rapid rotators  ( v  sin  i > 100 km s⁻¹)  . The emission levels in the calcium infrared triplet lines were then used as a measure of the chromospheric activity of the stars. When plotted against the Rossby number ( N _R), the star's chromospheric emission levels show a plateau in the emission for  log( N _R) ≲−1.1  indicating chromospheric saturation similar to the coronal saturation seen in previously observed X-ray emission from the same stars. However, unlike the coronal emission, the chromospheric emission of the stars shows little evidence of a reduction in emission (i.e. supersaturation) for the ultra-rapid rotators in the clusters. Thus we believe that coronal supersaturation is not the result of an overall decrease in magnetic dynamo efficiency for ultra-rapid rotators.     

Chromospheric activity in the late A- and early F-type stars of open clusters – II. Pleiades and Alpha Persei

We report observations of the He  i λ 5876 (D3) line in the late A- and early F-type stars in the Pleiades and Alpha Persei star clusters used to determine chromospheric activity levels. This represents the first sample of young stars in this temperature range with chromospheric activity measurements. We find the same average activity level in the young early F stars as in Hyades-age stars and field stars. In addition, the young star sample shows the same large star-to-star variation in activity as seen in the older stars. Thus, as a whole, chromospheric activity in this photospheric temperature range remains the same over nearly a factor of 100 in stellar age (50 Myr to 3 Gyr), in striking contrast to the behaviour of later-type stars. In the five late A stars we find three certain detections of D3 and one likely detection. This includes the bluest star yet observed with a chromospheric D3 line, Pleiades star HII 1362 at ( B − V )₀=0.22, making it one of the earliest stars with an observed chromosphere. The late A stars have D3 equivalent widths comparable to the weakest early F stars. However, when comparing D3 measurements in the young late A stars with older late A stars, we find evidence for a slight decrease in activity with age based on the large number of non-detections in the older stars. We find an apparently linear relationship between the activity upper limit and B − V over our entire range of B − V . Extrapolated blueward, this relationship predicts that the chromospheric D3 line would disappear for all stars at B − V ≈0.13.     

Brown dwarf populations in open clusters

We present the results of multiple simulations of open clusters, modelling the dynamics of a population of brown dwarf members. We consider the effects of a large range of primordial binary populations, including the possibilities of having brown dwarf members contained within a binary system. We also examine the effects of various cluster diameters and masses. Our examination of a population of wide binary systems containing brown dwarfs, reveals evidence for exchange reactions whereby the brown dwarf is ejected from the system and replaced by a heavier main-sequence star. We find that there exists the possibility of hiding a large fraction of the brown dwarfs contained within the primordial binary population. We conclude that it is probable that the majority of brown dwarfs are contained within primordial binary systems which then hides a large proportion of them from detection.     

The lithium depletion boundary in NGC 2547 as a test of pre-main-sequence evolutionary models

Intermediate resolution spectroscopy from the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope is analysed for 63 photometrically selected low-mass  (0.08–0.30 M_⊙)  candidates of the open cluster NGC 2547. We have confirmed membership for most of these stars using radial velocities, and found that lithium remains undepleted for cluster stars with   I > 17.54 ± 0.14  and   K_s > 14.86 ± 0.12  . From these results, several pre–main-sequence evolutionary models give almost model independent ages of 34–36 Myr, with a precision of 10 per cent. These ages are only slightly larger than the ages of 25–35(±5) Myr obtained using the same models to fit isochrones to higher mass stars descending towards the zero-age main-sequence, both in empirically calibrated and theoretical colour–magnitude diagrams. This agreement between age determinations in different mass ranges is an excellent test of the current generation of low-mass pre–main-sequence stellar models and lends confidence to ages determined with either method between 30 and 120 Myr.     

Mass segregation in globular clusters

Photoelectric aperture-photometry ofω Cen inU, B, V, R andI bands has established that the cluster is bluer between 2 arcmin and 4 arcmin from the centre, than it is elsewhere. The difference inB - I colour between the centre and this blue zone is ≃ 0.45 mag. The core radius is found to be dependant on the wavelength band chosen for observation, the smallest core radius being for theI band. Equidensitometry ofω Cen inB, V and infrared bands shows a wavelength dependence with the cluster being nearly spherical in the infrared band. It shows a maximum ellipticity around 3 arcmin from the cluster centre. The blue contribution in this zone comes from both a diffuse background of unresolved stars and an increase in the relative abundance of horizontal branch (HB) stars. The similarity between the diffuse background and the HB stars has been demonstrated. A photographic subtraction technique is used to study the distribution of HB stars in the cluster. Results of equidensitometry of the cluster 47 Tuc, obtained in the present study, are compared with the earlier results of photoelectric photometry. Here too an increase in ellipticity is associated with an increase in the blueness of the cluster. All globular clusters studied so far for ellipticity show a similarity in the dependence of the ellipticity on the distance from the centre. The ellipticity has small values near the centre and in the outer regions, with the maximum value in between. We suggest that the red stars in globular clusters have a nearly spherical distribution. The blue stars form a bulge around the core with a more elliptical distribution and a different orientation. A similarity between the ellipticity aspects of both the globular clusters and rotation in the nucleus of M 31 is pointed out; the M 31 nucleus may thus show a bluer colour and smaller UV excess around the region where the rotation curve shows a peak. An erratum to this article is available at .     

Captured older stars as the reason for apparently prolonged star formation in young star clusters

The existence of older stars within a young star cluster can be interpreted to imply that star formation occurs on time-scales longer than a free-fall time of a pre-cluster cloud core. Here, the idea is explored that these older stars are not related to the star formation process forming the young star cluster but rather that the orbits of older field stars are focused by the collapsing pre-cluster cloud core. Two effects appear: the focusing of stellar orbits leads to an enhancement of the density of field stars in the vicinity of the centre of the young star cluster; and due to the time-dependent potential of the forming cluster some of these stars can get bound gravitationally to the cluster. These stars exhibit similar kinematical properties to the newly formed stars and cannot be distinguished from them on the basis of radial velocity or proper motion surveys. Such contaminations may lead to a wrong apparent star formation history of a young cluster. In the case of the ONC, the theoretical number of gravitationally bound older low-mass field stars agrees with the number of observed older low-mass stars.     

Identification of new low-mass members of the Alpha Persei open cluster by ROSAT. II

The present investigation examines possible optical counterparts to 130 X-ray sources in the region of the α Persei open cluster (d ∽ 170pc, age ∽ 50 Myr) resulting from the analysis of three 22–25 ksec ROSAT PSPC pointings. In the same manner as for 73 X-ray sources from a raster survey in α Per (Prosser & Randich 1998), CCD photometry is employed to obtain magnitudes and colors for stars/objects close to the X-ray positions, with additional echelle and low-dispersion Hα spectra provided for some stars. For almost 60 X-ray sources, an optical counterpart with photometry acceptable for cluster membership is identified, some of which can be excluded from membership on the basis of discrepant radial velocity or X-ray characteristics. On the order of 30 new members or likely members associated with X-ray sources have been identified based on available data. A photometric rotation period has been obtained for one rapid rotator identified in X-rays.     

Rotation and lithium in the late-type stars of NGC 2516

We present CCD photometry and high-resolution spectroscopy of low-mass stars in the open cluster NGC 2516, which has an age of about 150 Myr and may have a much lower metallicity than the Pleiades. 24 probable F to early K type, single cluster members have been identified from their photometry and radial velocities, along with three possible spectroscopic binaries. The projected equatorial velocities are measured and compared with younger and older clusters. Several fast rotating late G /early K stars are seen, but all hotter stars have v _e sin  i  < 20 km s⁻¹. The data are consistent with angular momentum loss models with spin-down time-scales that increase from tens of Myr for G stars to hundreds of Myr for K stars. The observed X-ray activity is consistent with the currently accepted rotation–activity paradigm. Lithium abundances are derived from the Li  i 6708-Å line. The pattern of Li depletion is indistinguishable from that in the Pleiades, including a spread in the K0 stars, where the most rapid rotators suffer the least Li depletion. The observations argue in favour of either a metallicity in the range −0.1 < [Fe/H]< 0.0 for NGC 2516, or a lower metallicity and extra Li depletion through non-standard mixing modes which occurs on time-scales of only ∼ 50 Myr. Neither our low signal-to-noise ratio spectroscopy nor our photometry can constrain [Fe/H] sufficiently to decide between these possibilities. A detailed spectroscopic chemical abundance analysis is urgently required.