We present the results of a 3 year monitoring program of a sample of very low mass (VLM) field binaries using both astrometric and spectroscopic data obtained in conjunction with the laser guide star adaptive optics system on the W.M. Keck II 10 m telescope. Among the 24 systems studied, fifteen have undergone sufficient orbital motion, allowing us to derive their relative orbital parameters and hence their total system mass. These measurements triple the number of mass measurements for VLM objects, and include the most precise mass measurement to date (<2%). Among the 11 systems with both astrometric and spectroscopic measurements, six have sufficient radial velocity variations to allow us to obtain individual component masses. This is the first derivation of the component masses for five of these systems. Altogether, the orbital solutions of these low mass systems show a correlation between eccentricity and orbital period, consistent with their higher mass counterparts. In our primary analysis, we find that there are systematic discrepancies between our dynamical mass measurements and the predictions of theoretical evolutionary models (TUCSON and LYON) with both models either underpredicting or overpredicting the most precisely determined dynamical masses. These discrepancies are a function of spectral type, with late M through mid L systems tending to have their masses underpredicted, while one T type system has its mass overpredicted. These discrepancies imply that either the temperatures predicted by evolutionary and atmosphere models are inconsistent for an
We present results from spectroscopic observations with the Michigan/Magellan Fiber System (M2FS) of 147 stellar targets along the line of sight to the newly discovered "ultrafaint" stellar systems Tucana 2 (Tuc 2) and Grus 1 (Gru 1). Based on simultaneous estimates of line of sight velocity and stellar-atmospheric parameters, we identify 8 and 7 stars as probable members of Tuc 2 and and Gru 1, respectively. Our sample for Tuc 2 is sufficient to resolve an internal velocity dispersion of 8.6 2. . These results place Tuc 2 on chemodynamical scaling relations followed by dwarf galaxies, suggesting a dominant dark matter component with dynamical mass 2.7 10
We present results of our large scale, optical, multi-epoch photometric survey of ∼ 180 square degrees across the Orion OB1 association, complemented with extensive follow up spectroscopy. Our focus is mapping and characterizing in an uniform way the off-cloud, low-mass, pre-main sequence populations. We report 2064, mostly K and M-type, confirmed T Tauri members. Most (59%) are located in the OB1a subassociation, 27% are projected onto the OB1b subassociation, and the remaining 14% are located within the confines of the A and B molecular clouds. There is significant structure in the spatial distribution of the young stars. We characterize two new clusterings of T Tauri stars, the HD 35762 and HR 1833 groups, both located in the OB1a subassociation, not far form the 25 Ori cluster. We also confirm two stellar overdensities in OB1b, I and II, containing a total of 231 T Tauri stars. A ∼ 2 deg wide halo of young stars surrounds the Orion Nebula Cluster; the north and south parts corresponding to the low-mass populations of NGC 1977 and NGC 1980, respectively. There is indication of two populations of young stars in the OB1b region, located at two different distances, which may be due to the OB1a subassociation overlapping on front of OB1b. The various groups and regions can be ordered in an age sequence that agrees with the long standing picture of star formation starting in Orion OB1a some 10-15 Myr ago.We use the strength of the Hα line in emission, combined with characteristics of IR excesses and optical variability, to define a new type of T Tauri star, the C/W class, stars we propose may be nearing the end of their accretion phase, in an evolutionary state between that of Classical T Tauri and Weak-lined T Tauri stars. The evolution of the ensemble-wide equivalent width of the Li Iλ6707 line shows the depletion of Li with a timescale of 8.5 Myr. The decline of the accretion fraction, from ∼ 2 − 10 Myr, implies an accretion e-folding timescale of 2.1 Myr, consistent with previous studies. Finally, we use the median amplitude of the V -band variability in each type of star, to show the decline of stellar activity, from the accreting Classical T Tauri stars to the population of least active field dwarfs.
A combined effort utilizing spectroscopy and photometry has revealed the existence of a new globular cluster class. These "anomalous" clusters, which we refer to as "iron-complex" clusters, are differentiated from normal clusters by exhibiting large (0.10 dex) intrinsic metallicity dispersions, complex sub-giant branches, and correlated [Fe/H] and s-process enhancements. In order to further investigate this phenomenon, we have measured radial velocities and chemical abundances for red giant branch stars in the massive, but scarcely studied, globular cluster NGC 6273. The velocities and abundances were determined using high resolution (R ∼ 27,000) spectra obtained with the Michigan/ Magellan Fiber System (M2FS) and MSpec spectrograph on the Magellan-Clay 6.5 m telescope at Las Campanas Observatory. We find that NGC 6273 has an average heliocentric radial velocity of +144.49 km s −1 (σ = 9.64 km s
The ultra-faint dwarf galaxy Reticulum 2 (Ret 2) was recently discovered in images obtained by the Dark Energy Survey. We have observed the four brightest red giants in Ret 2 at high spectral resolution using the Michigan/Magellan Fiber System. We present detailed abundances for as many as 20 elements per star, including 12 elements heavier than the Fe group. We confirm previous detection of high levels of r-process material in Ret 2 (mean [Eu/Fe] = +1.69 ± 0.05) found in three of these stars (mean [Fe/H] = −2.88 ± 0.10). The abundances closely match the r-process pattern found in the well-studied metal-poor halo star CS 22892-052. Such r-process-enhanced stars have not been found in any other ultra-faint dwarf galaxy, though their existence has been predicted by at least one model. The fourth star in Ret 2 ([Fe/H] = −3.42 ± 0.20) contains only trace amounts of Sr ([Sr/Fe] = −1.73 ± 0.43) and no detectable heavier elements. One r-process enhanced star is also enhanced in C (natal [C/Fe] ≈ +1.1). This is only the third such star known, which suggests that the nucleosynthesis sites leading to C and r-process enhancements are decoupled. The r-process-deficient star is enhanced in Mg ([Mg/Fe] = +0.81 ± 0.14), and the other three stars show normal levels of α-enhancement (mean [Mg/Fe] = +0.34 ± 0.03). The abundances of other α and Fe-group elements closely resemble those in ultra-faint dwarf galaxies and metal-poor halo stars, suggesting that the nucleosynthesis that led to the large r-process enhancements either produced no light elements or produced light-element abundance signatures indistinguishable from normal supernovae.
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