Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “stellar”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,117 records · Page 62
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2013

RUPRECHT 147: THE OLDEST NEARBY OPEN CLUSTER AS A NEW BENCHMARK FOR STELLAR ASTROPHYSICS

Ruprecht 147 is a hitherto unappreciated open cluster that holds great promise as a standard in fundamental stellar astrophysics. We have conducted a radial velocity survey of astrometric candidates with Lick, Palomar, and MMT observatories and have identified over 100 members, including 5 blue stragglers, 11 red giants, and 5 double-lined spectroscopic binaries (SB2s). We estimate the cluster metallicity from spectroscopic analysis, using Spectroscopy Made Easy (SME), and find it to be [M/H] = +0.07 {+-} 0.03. We have obtained deep CFHT/MegaCam g'r'i'z' photometry and fit Padova isochrones to the (g' - i') and Two Micron All Sky Survey (J - K{sub S} ) color-magnitude diagrams, using the {tau}{sup 2} maximum-likelihood procedure of Naylor, and an alternative method using two-dimensional cross-correlations developed in this work. We find best fits for Padova isochrones at age t = 2.5 {+-} 0.25 Gyr, m - M = 7.35 {+-} 0.1, and A{sub V} = 0.25 {+-} 0.05, with additional uncertainty from the unresolved binary population and possibility of differential extinction across this large cluster. The inferred age is heavily dependent on our choice of stellar evolution model: fitting Dartmouth and PARSEC models yield age parameters of 3 Gyr and 3.25 Gyr, respectively. At {approx}300 pc and {approx}3 Gyr, Ruprecht 147 is by far the oldest nearby star cluster.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

A CAUTIONARY TALE: MARVELS BROWN DWARF CANDIDATE REVEALS ITSELF TO BE A VERY LONG PERIOD, HIGHLY ECCENTRIC SPECTROSCOPIC STELLAR BINARY

We report the discovery of a highly eccentric, double-lined spectroscopic binary star system (TYC 3010-1494-1), comprising two solar-type stars that we had initially identified as a single star with a brown dwarf companion. At the moderate resolving power of the MARVELS spectrograph and the spectrographs used for subsequent radial-velocity (RV) measurements (R {approx}< 30, 000), this particular stellar binary mimics a single-lined binary with an RV signal that would be induced by a brown dwarf companion (Msin i {approx} 50 M{sub Jup}) to a solar-type primary. At least three properties of this system allow it to masquerade as a single star with a very-low-mass companion: its large eccentricity (e {approx} 0.8), its relatively long period (P {approx} 238 days), and the approximately perpendicular orientation of the semi-major axis with respect to the line of sight ({omega} {approx} 189 Degree-Sign ). As a result of these properties, for {approx}95% of the orbit the two sets of stellar spectral lines are completely blended, and the RV measurements based on centroiding on the apparently single-lined spectrum is very well fit by an orbit solution indicative of a brown dwarf companion on a more circular orbit (e {approx} 0.3). Only during the {approx}5% of the orbit near periastron passage does the true, double-lined nature and large RV amplitude of {approx}15 km s{sup -1} reveal itself. The discovery of this binary system is an important lesson for RV surveys searching for substellar companions; at a given resolution and observing cadence, a survey will be susceptible to these kinds of astrophysical false positives for a range of orbital parameters. Finally, for surveys like MARVELS that lack the resolution for a useful line bisector analysis, it is imperative to monitor the peak of the cross-correlation function for suspicious changes in width or shape, so that such false positives can be flagged during the candidate vetting process.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Absolute properties of the eclipsing binary system AQ Serpentis: A stringent test of convective core overshooting in stellar evolution models

We report differential photometric observations and radial-velocity measurements of the detached, 1.69 day period, double-lined eclipsing binary AQ Ser. Accurate masses and radii for the components are determined to better than 1.8% and 1.1%, respectively, and are M {sub 1} = 1.417 ± 0.021 M {sub ☉}, M {sub 2} = 1.346 ± 0.024 M {sub ☉}, R {sub 1} = 2.451 ± 0.027 R {sub ☉}, and R {sub 2} = 2.281 ± 0.014 R {sub ☉}. The temperatures are 6340 ± 100 K (spectral type F6) and 6430 ± 100 K (F5), respectively. Both stars are considerably evolved, such that predictions from stellar evolution theory are particularly sensitive to the degree of extra mixing above the convective core (overshoot). The component masses are different enough to exclude a location in the H-R diagram past the point of central hydrogen exhaustion, which implies the need for extra mixing. Moreover, we find that current main-sequence models are unable to match the observed properties at a single age even when allowing the unknown metallicity, mixing length parameter, and convective overshooting parameter to vary freely and independently for the two components. The age of the more massive star appears systematically younger. AQ Ser and other similarly evolved eclipsing binaries showing the same discrepancy highlight an outstanding and largely overlooked problem with the description of overshooting in current stellar theory.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Tidal stripping stellar substructures around four metal-poor globular clusters in the galactic bulge

We investigate the spatial density configuration of stars around four metal-poor globular clusters (NGC 6266, NGC 6626, NGC 6642, and NGC 6723) in the Galactic bulge region using wide-field deep J, H, and K imaging data obtained with the Wide Field Camera near-infrared array on the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope. A statistical weighted filtering algorithm for the stars on the color–magnitude diagram is applied in order to sort cluster member candidates from the field star contamination. In two-dimensional isodensity contour maps of the clusters, we find that all four of the globular clusters exhibit strong evidence of tidally stripped stellar features beyond the tidal radius in the form of tidal tails or small density lobes/chunks. The orientations of the extended stellar substructures are likely to be associated with the effect of dynamic interaction with the Galaxy and the cluster's space motion. The observed radial density profiles of the four globular clusters also describe the extended substructures; they depart from theoretical King and Wilson models and have an overdensity feature with a break in the slope of the profile at the outer region of clusters. The observed results could imply that four globular clusters in the Galactic bulge region have experienced strong environmental effects such as tidal forces or bulge/disk shocks of the Galaxy during the dynamical evolution of globular clusters. These observational results provide further details which add to our understanding of the evolution of clusters in the Galactic bulge region as well as the formation of the Galaxy.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Effect of stellar encounters on comet cloud formation

We have investigated the effect of stellar encounters on the formation and disruption of the Oort cloud using the classical impulse approximation. We calculate the evolution of a planetesimal disk into a spherical Oort cloud due to the perturbation from passing stars for 10 Gyr. We obtain the empirical fits of the e-folding time for the number of Oort cloud comets using the standard exponential and Kohlrausch formulae as functions of the stellar parameters and the initial semimajor axes of planetesimals. The e-folding time and the evolution timescales of the orbital elements are also analytically derived. In some calculations, the effect of the Galactic tide is additionally considered. We also show the radial variations of the e-folding times to the Oort cloud. From these timescales, we show that if the initial planetesimal disk has the semimajor axes distribution dn/da∝a{sup −2}, which is produced by planetary scattering, the e-folding time for planetesimals in the Oort cloud is ∼10 Gyr at any heliocentric distance r. This uniform e-folding time over the Oort cloud means that the supply of comets from the inner Oort cloud to the outer Oort cloud is sufficiently effective to keep the comet distribution as dn/dr∝r{sup −2}. We also show that the final distribution of the semimajor axes in the Oort cloud is approximately proportional to a{sup −2} for any initial distribution.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

STELLAR RADIAL VELOCITIES IN THE OLD OPEN CLUSTER M67 (NGC 2682). I. MEMBERSHIPS, BINARIES, AND KINEMATICS

We present results from 13776 radial-velocity (RV) measurements of 1278 candidate members of the old (4 Gyr) open cluster M67 (NGC 2682). The measurements are the results of a long-term survey that includes data from seven telescopes with observations for some stars spanning over 40 years. For narrow-lined stars, RVs are measured with precisions ranging from about 0.1 to 0.8 km s{sup −1}. The combined stellar sample reaches from the brightest giants in the cluster down to about 4 mag below the main-sequence turnoff (V=16.5), covering a mass range of about 1.34 M{sub ⊙} to 0.76 M{sub ⊙}. Spatially, the sample extends to a radus of 30 arcmin (7.4 pc in projection at a distance of 850 pc or 6–7 core radii). We find M67 to have a mean RV of +33.64 km s{sup −1} (with an internal precision of ±0.03 km s{sup −1}) well separated from the mean velocity of the field. For stars with ⩾3 measurements, we derive RV membership probabilities and identify RV variables, finding 562 cluster members, 142 of which show significant RV variability. We use these cluster members to construct a color–magnitude diagram and identify a rich sample of stars that lie far from the standard single star isochrone, including the well-known blue stragglers, sub-subgiants and yellow giants. These exotic stars have a binary frequency of (at least) 80%, more than three times that detected for stars in the remainder of the sample. We confirm that the cluster is mass segregated, finding the binaries to be more centrally concentrated than the single stars in our sample at the 99.8% confidence level (and at the 98.7% confidence level when only considering main-sequence stars). The blue stragglers are centrally concentrated as compared to the solar-type main-sequence single stars in the cluster at the 99.7% confidence level. Accounting for measurement precision, we derive an RV dispersion in M67 of 0.80 ± 0.04 km s{sup −1} for our sample of single main-sequence stars, subgiants and giants with V⩽15.5. When corrected for undetected binaries, this sample yields a true RV dispersion of 0.59{sub −0.06}{sup +0.07} km s{sup −1}. The radial distribution of the velocity dispersion is consistent with an isothermal distribution within our stellar sample. Using the cluster RV dispersion, we estimate a virial mass for the cluster of 2100{sub −550}{sup +610} M{sub ⊙}.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

YSOVAR: MID-INFRARED VARIABILITY OF YOUNG STELLAR OBJECTS AND THEIR DISKS IN THE CLUSTER IRAS 20050+2720

We present a time-variability study of young stellar objects (YSOs) in the cluster IRAS 20050+2720, performed at 3.6 and 4.5 μm with the Spitzer Space Telescope; this study is part of the Young Stellar Object VARiability (YSOVAR) project. We have collected light curves for 181 cluster members over 60 days. We find a high variability fraction among embedded cluster members of ca. 70%, whereas young stars without a detectable disk display variability less often (in ca. 50% of the cases) and with lower amplitudes. We detect periodic variability for 33 sources with periods primarily in the range of 2–6 days. Practically all embedded periodic sources display additional variability on top of their periodicity. Furthermore, we analyze the slopes of the tracks that our sources span in the color–magnitude diagram (CMD). We find that sources with long variability time scales tend to display CMD slopes that are at least partially influenced by accretion processes, while sources with short variability timescales tend to display extinction-dominated slopes. We find a tentative trend of X-ray detected cluster members to vary on longer timescales than the X-ray undetected members.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Abundances, stellar parameters, and spectra from the SDSS-III/APOGEE survey

The SDSS-III/Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) survey operated from 2011–2014 using the APOGEE spectrograph, which collects high-resolution (R ∼ 22,500), near-IR (1.51–1.70 μm) spectra with a multiplexing (300 fiber-fed objects) capability. We describe the survey data products that are publicly available, which include catalogs with radial velocity, stellar parameters, and 15 elemental abundances for over 150,000 stars, as well as the more than 500,000 spectra from which these quantities are derived. Calibration relations for the stellar parameters (T{sub eff}, log g, [M/H], [α/M]) and abundances (C, N, O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, S, K, Ca, Ti, V, Mn, Fe, Ni) are presented and discussed. The internal scatter of the abundances within clusters indicates that abundance precision is generally between 0.05 and 0.09 dex across a broad temperature range; it is smaller for some elemental abundances within more limited ranges and at high signal-to-noise ratio. We assess the accuracy of the abundances using comparison of mean cluster metallicities with literature values, APOGEE observations of the solar spectrum and of Arcturus, comparison of individual star abundances with other measurements, and consideration of the locus of derived parameters and abundances of the entire sample, and find that it is challenging to determine the absolute abundance scale; external accuracy may be good to 0.1–0.2 dex. Uncertainties may be larger at cooler temperatures (T{sub eff} < 4000 K). Access to the public data release and data products is described, and some guidance for using the data products is provided.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

A multiple burst accretion model to describe the metallicity distributions and stellar mass–Metallicity relation for local dwarf galaxies

A one parameter model to describe the individual metallicity distributions and stellar mass–metallicity relation for dwarf galaxies is presented. This multiple-burst model is based on an accretion scenario, accomodates the observational constraint between z-bar and σ{sub z}{sup 2} recently established by Leaman, and predicts a slope consistent with the stellar mass–metallicity relation of Kirby et al. who showed that the local group dwarf spheroidal and dwarf irregular galaxies lie on the same relation. One interpretation of the model is that it describes star formation occuring either in gas rich mergers or at the intersection of colliding gas streams.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

PANCHROMATIC HUBBLE ANDROMEDA TREASURY. XII. MAPPING STELLAR METALLICITY DISTRIBUTIONS IN M31

We present a study of spatial variations in the metallicity of old red giant branch stars in the Andromeda galaxy. Photometric metallicity estimates are derived by interpolating isochrones for over seven million stars in the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) survey. This is the first systematic study of stellar metallicities over the inner 20 kpc of Andromeda’s galactic disk. We see a clear metallicity gradient of −0.020 ± 0.004 dex kpc{sup −1} from ∼4–20 kpc assuming a constant red giant branch age. This metallicity gradient is derived after correcting for the effects of photometric bias and completeness and dust extinction, and is quite insensitive to these effects. The unknown age gradient in M31's disk creates the dominant systematic uncertainty in our derived metallicity gradient. However, spectroscopic analyses of galaxies similar to M31 show that they typically have small age gradients that make this systematic error comparable to the 1σ error on our metallicity gradient measurement. In addition to the metallicity gradient, we observe an asymmetric local enhancement in metallicity at radii of 3–6 kpc that appears to be associated with Andromeda’s elongated bar. This same region also appears to have an enhanced stellar density and velocity dispersion.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

THE YOUNG STELLAR POPULATION OF THE CYGNUS-X DR15 REGION

We present a multi-wavelength study of the young stellar population in the Cygnus-X DR15 region. We studied young stars that were forming or recently formed at and around the tip of a prominent molecular pillar and an infrared dark cloud. Using a combination of ground-based near-infrared, space-based infrared, and X-ray data, we constructed a point source catalog from which we identified 226 young stellar sources, which we classified into evolutionary classes. We studied their spatial distributions across the molecular gas structures and identified several groups that possibly belong to distinct young star clusters. We obtained samples of these groups and constructed K-band luminosity functions that we compared with those of artificial clusters, allowing us to make first order estimates of the mean ages and age spreads of the groups. We used a {sup 13}CO(1-0) map to investigate the gas kinematics at the prominent gaseous envelope of the central cluster in DR15, and we inferred that the removal of this envelope is relatively slow compared to other cluster regions, in which the gas dispersal timescale could be similar or shorter than the circumstellar disk dissipation timescale. The presence of other groups with slightly older ages, associated with much less prominent gaseous structures, may imply that the evolution of young clusters in this part of the complex proceeds in periods that last 3–5 Myr, perhaps after a slow dissipation of their dense molecular cloud birthplaces.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

THE RESOLVED STELLAR POPULATION IN 50 REGIONS OF M83 FROM HST/WFC3 EARLY RELEASE SCIENCE OBSERVATIONS

We present a multi-wavelength photometric study of {approx}15,000 resolved stars in the nearby spiral galaxy M83 (NGC 5236, D = 4.61 Mpc) based on Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 observations using four filters: F336W, F438W, F555W, and F814W. We select 50 regions (an average size of 260 pc by 280 pc) in the spiral arm and inter-arm areas of M83 and determine the age distribution of the luminous stellar populations in each region. This is accomplished by correcting for extinction toward each individual star by comparing its colors with predictions from stellar isochrones. We compare the resulting luminosity-weighted mean ages of the luminous stars in the 50 regions with those determined from several independent methods, including the number ratio of red-to-blue supergiants, morphological appearance of the regions, surface brightness fluctuations, and the ages of clusters in the regions. We find reasonably good agreement between these methods. We also find that young stars are much more likely to be found in concentrated aggregates along spiral arms, while older stars are more dispersed. These results are consistent with the scenario that star formation is associated with the spiral arms, and stars form primarily in star clusters and then disperse on short timescales to form the field population. The locations of Wolf-Rayet stars are found to correlate with the positions of many of the youngest regions, providing additional support for our ability to accurately estimate ages. We address the effects of spatial resolution on the measured colors, magnitudes, and age estimates. While individual stars can occasionally show measurable differences in the colors and magnitudes, the age estimates for entire regions are only slightly affected.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

THE HD 192263 SYSTEM: PLANETARY ORBITAL PERIOD AND STELLAR VARIABILITY DISENTANGLED

As part of the Transit Ephemeris Refinement and Monitoring Survey, we present new radial velocities and photometry of the HD 192263 system. Our analysis of the already available Keck-HIRES and CORALIE radial velocity measurements together with the five new Keck measurements we report in this paper results in improved orbital parameters for the system. We derive constraints on the size and phase location of the transit window for HD 192263b, a Jupiter-mass planet with a period of 24.3587 {+-} 0.0022 days. We use 10 years of Automated Photoelectric Telescope photometry to analyze the stellar variability and search for planetary transits. We find continuing evidence of spot activity with periods near 23.4 days. The shape of the corresponding photometric variations changes over time, giving rise to not one but several Fourier peaks near this value. However, none of these frequencies coincides with the planet's orbital period and thus we find no evidence of star-planet interactions in the system. We attribute the {approx}23 day variability to stellar rotation. There are also indications of spot variations on longer (8 years) timescales. Finally, we use the photometric data to exclude transits for a planet with the predicted radius of 1.09 R{sub J} , and as small as 0.79 R{sub J} .

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

ANALYTICAL CALCULATION OF STOKES PROFILES OF ROTATING STELLAR MAGNETIC DIPOLE

The observation of the polarization emerging from a rotating star at different phases opens up the possibility to map the magnetic field in the stellar surface thanks to the well-known Zeeman-Doppler imaging. When the magnetic field is sufficiently weak, the circular and linear polarization profiles locally in each point of the star are proportional to the first and second derivatives of the unperturbed intensity profile, respectively. We show that the weak-field approximation (for weak lines in the case of linear polarization) can be generalized to the case of a rotating star including the Doppler effect and taking into account the integration on the stellar surface. The Stokes profiles are written as a linear combination of wavelength-dependent terms expressed as series expansions in terms of Hermite polynomials. These terms contain the surface-integrated magnetic field and velocity components. The direct numerical evaluation of these quantities is limited to rotation velocities not larger than eight times the Doppler width of the local absorption profiles. Additionally, we demonstrate that in a rotating star, the circular polarization flux depends on the derivative of the intensity flux with respect to the wavelength and also on the profile itself. Likewise, the linear polarization depends on the profile and on its first and second derivatives with respect to the wavelength. We particularize the general expressions to a rotating dipole.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

A STAR DISRUPTED BY A STELLAR BLACK HOLE AS THE ORIGIN OF THE CLOUD FALLING TOWARD THE GALACTIC CENTER

We propose that the cloud moving on a highly eccentric orbit near the central black hole in our Galaxy, reported by Gillessen et al., is formed by a photoevaporation wind originating in a disk around a star that is tidally perturbed and shocked at every peribothron passage. The disk is proposed to have formed when a stellar black hole flew by the star, tidally disrupted its envelope, and placed the star on its present orbit with some of the tidal debris forming a disk. A disrupting encounter at the location of the observed cloud is most likely to be caused by a stellar black hole because of the expected dynamical mass segregation; the rate of these disk-forming encounters may be as high as {approx}10{sup -6} per year. The star should also be spun up by the encounter, so the disk may subsequently expand by absorbing angular momentum from the star. Once the disk expands up to the tidal truncation radius, the tidal perturbation of the outer disk edge at every peribothron may place gas streams on larger orbits, which can give rise to a photoevaporation wind that forms the cloud at every orbit. This model predicts that, after the cloud is disrupted at the next peribothron passage in 2013, a smaller unresolved cloud will gradually grow around the star on the same present orbit. An increased infrared luminosity from the disk may also be detectable when the peribothron is reached. We also note that this model revives the encounter theory for planet formation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

FROM THE COLOR-MAGNITUDE DIAGRAM OF {omega} CENTAURI AND (SUPER-)ASYMPTOTIC GIANT BRANCH STELLAR MODELS TO A GALACTIC PLANE PASSAGE GAS PURGING CHEMICAL EVOLUTION SCENARIO

We have investigated the color-magnitude diagram of {omega} Centauri and find that the blue main sequence (bMS) can be reproduced only by models that have a helium abundance in the range Y = 0.35-0.40. To explain the faint subgiant branch of the reddest stars ('MS-a/RG-a' sequence), isochrones for the observed metallicity ([Fe/H] Almost-Equal-To -0.7) appear to require both a high age ({approx}13 Gyr) and enhanced CNO abundances ([CNO/Fe] Almost-Equal-To 0.9). Y Almost-Equal-To 0.35 must also be assumed in order to counteract the effects of high CNO on turnoff colors and thereby to obtain a good fit to the relatively blue turnoff of this stellar population. This suggests a short chemical evolution period of time (<1 Gyr) for {omega} Cen. Our intermediate-mass (super-)asymptotic giant branch (AGB) models are able to reproduce the high helium abundances, along with [N/Fe] {approx}2 and substantial O depletions if uncertainties in the treatment of convection are fully taken into account. These abundance features distinguish the bMS stars from the dominant [Fe/H] Almost-Equal-To -1.7 population. The most massive super-AGB stellar models (M{sub ZAMS} {>=} 6.8 M{sub Sun }, M{sub He,core} {>=} 1.245 M{sub Sun }) predict too large N enhancements, which limit their role in contributing to the extreme populations. In order to address the observed central concentration of stars with He-rich abundance, we show here quantitatively that highly He- and N-enriched AGB ejecta have particularly efficient cooling properties. Based on these results and on the reconstruction of the orbit of {omega} Cen with respect to the Milky Way, we propose the Galactic plane passage gas purging scenario for the chemical evolution of this cluster. The bMS population formed shortly after the purging of most of the cluster gas as a result of the passage of {omega} Cen through the Galactic disk (which occurs today every {approx}40 Myr for {omega} Cen) when the initial mass function of the dominant population had 'burned' through most of the Type II supernova mass range. AGB stars would eject most of their masses into the gas-depleted cluster through low-velocity winds that sink to the cluster core due to their favorable cooling properties and form the bMS population. In our discussion we follow our model through four passage events, which could explain some key properties not only of the bMS but also of the MS-a/RGB-a and the s-enriched stars.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

HANLE EFFECT FOR STELLAR DIPOLES AND QUADRUPOLES

We derive exact expressions for the degree of lineal polarization over a resolved or integrated stellar disc due to resonance scattering and the Hanle effect from a dipolar or quadrupolar distribution of magnetic fields. We apply the theory of scattering polarization within the formalism of the spherical tensors representation for the density matrix and radiation field. The distribution of linear polarization over the stellar disk for different configurations of the magnetic field is studied and its topology discussed. For an unresolved dipole, the resulting polarization can be expressed in terms of just three functions (of the inclination angle and effective dipole strength) that are calculated numerically and their behavior discussed. Dipolar and (aligned) quadrupoles are considered in some detail, but the techniques here-in particular, the extensive use of the spherical tensor formalism for polarization-can easily be applied to more general field configurations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

THE YOUNG OPEN CLUSTERS KING 12, NGC 7788, AND NGC 7790: PRE-MAIN-SEQUENCE STARS AND EXTENDED STELLAR HALOS

The stellar contents of the open clusters King 12, NGC 7788, and NGC 7790 are investigated using MegaCam images. Comparisons with isochrones yield an age <20 Myr for King 12, 20-40 Myr for NGC 7788, and 60-80 Myr for NGC 7790 based on the properties of stars near the main-sequence turnoff (MSTO) in each cluster. The reddening of NGC 7788 is much larger than previously estimated. The luminosity functions (LFs) of King 12 and NGC 7788 show breaks that are attributed to the onset of pre-main-sequence (PMS) objects, and comparisons with models of PMS evolution yield ages that are consistent with those measured from stars near the MSTO. In contrast, the r' LF of main-sequence stars in NGC 7790 is matched to r' = 20 by a model that is based on the solar neighborhood mass function. The structural properties of all three clusters are investigated by examining the two-point angular correlation function of blue main-sequence stars. King 12 and NGC 7788 are each surrounded by a stellar halo that extends out to a radius of 5 arcmin ({approx}3.4 pc). It is suggested that these halos form in response to large-scale mass ejection early in the evolution of the clusters, as predicted by models. In contrast, blue main-sequence stars in NGC 7790 are traced out to a radius of {approx}7.5 arcmin ({approx}5.5 pc), with no evidence of a halo. It is suggested that all three clusters may have originated in the same star-forming complex, but not in the same giant molecular cloud.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗