We describe the Sloan

This paper documents the 16th data release (DR16) from the Sloan Digital Sky Surveys (SDSS), the fourth and penultimate from the fourth phase (SDSS-IV). This is the first release of data from the Southern Hemisphere survey of the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment 2 (APOGEE-2); new data from APOGEE-2 North are also included. DR16 is also notable as the final data release for the main cosmological program of the Extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (eBOSS), and all raw and reduced spectra from that project are released here. DR16 also includes all the data from the Time Domain Spectroscopic Survey and new data from the SPectroscopic IDentification of ERosita Survey programs, both of which were co-observed on eBOSS plates. DR16 has no new data from the Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey (or the MaNGA Stellar Library “MaStar”). We also preview future SDSS-V operations (due to start in 2020), and summarize plans for the final SDSS-IV data release (DR17).

Context. Carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) stars are known to have properties that reflect the nucleosynthesis of the first lowand intermediate-mass stars, because most have been polluted by a now-extinct AGB star. Aims. By considering abundances in the various CEMP subclasses separately, we try to derive parameters (such as metallicity, mass, temperature, and neutron source) characterising AGB nucleosynthesis from the specific signatures imprinted on the abundances, and separate them from the impact of thermohaline mixing, first dredge-up, and dilution associated with the mass transfer from the companion. Methods. To place CEMP stars in a broader context, we collect abundances for about 180 stars of various metallicities (from solar to [Fe/H] = −4), luminosity classes (dwarfs and giants), and abundance patterns (e.g. C-rich and poor, Ba-rich and poor), from both our own sample and the literature. Results. We first show that there are CEMP stars that share the properties of CEMP-s stars and CEMP-no stars (which we refer to as CEMP-low-s stars). We also show that there is a strong correlation between Ba and C abundances in the s-only CEMP stars. This represents a strong detection of the operation of the 13 C neutron source in low-mass AGB stars. For the CEMP-rs stars (seemingly enriched with elements from both the s-and r-processes), the correlation of the N abundances with abundances of heavy elements from the 2nd and 3rd s-process peaks bears instead the signature of the 22 Ne neutron source. Since CEMP-rs stars also exhibit O and Mg enhancements, we conclude that extremely hot conditions prevailed during the thermal pulses of the contaminating AGB stars. We also note that abundances are not affected by the evolution of the CEMP-rs star itself (especially by the first dredge-up). This implies that mixing must have occurred while the star was on the main sequence, and that a large amount of matter must have been accreted so as to trigger thermohaline mixing. Finally, we argue that most CEMP-no stars (with neutron-capture element abundances comparable to non-CEMP stars) are likely the extremely metal-poor counterparts of CEMP neutron-capture-rich stars. We also show that the C enhancement in CEMP-no stars declines with metallicity at extremely low metallicity ([Fe/H] < −3.2). This trend is not predicted by any of the current AGB models.

The fourth generation of the Sloan

The spectral analysis and data products in Data Release 16 (DR16; December 2019) from the high-resolution near-infrared APOGEE-2/SDSS-IV survey are described. Compared to the previous APOGEE data release (DR14; July 2017), APOGEE DR16 includes about 200 000 new stellar spectra, of which 100 000 are from a new southern APOGEE instrument mounted on the 2.5 m du Pont telescope at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. DR16 includes all data taken up to August 2018, including

We present a chemical abundance distribution study in 14 α, odd-Z, even-Z, light, and Fepeak elements of approximately 3200 intermediate metallicity giant stars from the APOGEE survey. The main aim of our analysis is to explore the Galactic disk-halo transition region between -1.20 <[Fe/H] < -0.55 as a means to study chemical difference (and similarities) between these components. In this paper, we show that there is an α-poor and α-rich sequence within both the metal-poor and intermediate metallicity regions. Using the Galactic rest-frame radial velocity and spatial positions, we further separate our sample into the canonical Galactic components. We then studied the abundances ratios, of Mg, Ti, Si, Ca, O, S, Al, C+N, Na, Ni, Mn, V, and K for each of the components and found the following: (1) the α-poor halo subgroup is chemically distinct in the α-elements (particularly O, Mg, and S), Al, C+N, and Ni from the α-rich halo, consistent with the literature confirming the existence of an α-poor accreted halo population; (2) the canonical thick disk and halo are not chemically distinct in all elements indicating a smooth transition between the thick disk and halo; (3) a subsample of the α-poor stars at metallicities as low as [Fe/H] ∼ -0.85 dex are chemically and dynamically consistent with the thin disk indicating that the thin disk may extend to lower metallicities than previously thought, and (4) that the location of the most metal-poor thin disk stars are consistent with a negative radial metallicity gradient. Finally, we used our analysis to suggest a new set of chemical abundance planes ([α/Fe], [C+N/Fe], [Al/Fe], and [Mg/Mn]) that may be able to chemically label the Galactic components in a clean and efficient way independent of kinematics.

The advent of high-resolution spectrographs and detailed stellar atmosphere modelling has strengthened the need for accurate molecular data. Carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) stars spectra are interesting objects with which to study transitions from the CH molecule. We combine programs for spectral analysis of molecules and stellar-radiative transfer codes to build an extensive CH linelist, including predissociation broadening as well as newly identified levels. We show examples of strong predissociation CH lines in CEMP stars, and we stress the important role played by the CH features in the Bond-Neff feature depressing the spectra of barium stars by as much as 0.2 mag in the λ = 3000−5500 Å range. Because of the extreme thermodynamic conditions prevailing in stellar atmospheres (compared to the laboratory), molecular transitions with high energy levels can be observed. Stellar spectra can thus be used to constrain and improve molecular data.

We describe a method for the determination of stellar [C/Fe] abundance ratios using low-resolution (R = 2000) stellar spectra from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and its Galactic sub-survey, the Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration (SEGUE). By means of a star-by-star comparison with a set of SDSS/SEGUE spectra with available estimates of [C/Fe] based on published high-resolution analyses, we demonstrate that we can measure [C/Fe] from SDSS/SEGUE spectra with S/N ≥ 15 Å −1 to a precision better than 0.35 dex for stars with atmospheric parameters in the range T eff = [4400, 6700] K, log g = [1.0, 5.0], [Fe/H] = [−4.0, +0.5], and [C/Fe] = [−0.25, +3.5]. Using the measured carbon-to-iron abundance ratios obtained by this technique, we derive the frequency of carbon-enhanced stars ([C/Fe] ≥ +0.7) as a function of [Fe/H], for both the SDSS/SEGUE stars and other samples from the literature. We find that the differential frequency slowly rises from almost zero to about 14% at [Fe/H] ∼ -2.4, followed by a sudden increase, by about a factor of three, to 39% from [Fe/H] ∼ -2.4 to [Fe/H] ∼ -3.7. Although the number of stars known with [Fe/H] < −4.0 remains small, the frequency of carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) stars below this value is around 75%. We also examine how the cumulative frequency of CEMP stars varies across different luminosity classes. The giant sample exhibits a cumulative CEMP frequency of 32% for [Fe/H] ≤ −2.5, 31% for [Fe/H] ≤ −3.0, and 33% for [Fe/H] ≤ −3.5; a roughly constant value. For the main-sequence turnoff stars, we obtain a lower cumulative CEMP frequency, around 10% for [Fe/H] ≤ −2.5, presumably due to the difficulty of identifying CEMP stars among warmer turnoff stars with weak CH G-bands. The dwarf population displays a large change in the cumulative frequency for CEMP stars below [Fe/H] = -2.5, jumping from 15% for [Fe/H] ≤ −2.5 to about 75% for [Fe/H] ≤ −3.0. When we impose a restriction with respect to distance from the Galactic midplane (|Z| < 5 kpc), the frequency of the CEMP giants does not increase at low metallicity ([Fe/H] < −2.5), but rather, decreases, due to the dilution of C-rich material in stars that have undergone mixing with CNOprocessed material from their interiors. The frequency of CEMP stars near the main-sequence turnoff, which are not expected to have experienced mixing, increases for [Fe/H] ≤ −3.0. The general rise in the global CEMP frequency at low metallicity is likely due to the transition from the inner-halo to the outer-halo stellar populations with declining metallicity and increasing distance from the plane.