Browsing by Author "Korn, A. J."

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    A new algorithm for optimizing the wavelength coverage for spectroscopic studies: Spectral Wavelength Optimization Code (SWOC)
    (OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2016) Ruchti, G. R.; Feltzing, S.; Lind, K.; Caffau, E.; Korn, A. J.; Schnurr, O.; Hansen, C. J.; Koch, A.; Sbordone, L.; de Jong, R. S.
    The past decade and a half has seen the design and execution of several ground-based spectroscopic surveys, both Galactic and Extragalactic. Additionally, new surveys are being designed that extend the boundaries of current surveys. In this context, many important considerations must be done when designing a spectrograph for the future. Among these is the determination of the optimum wavelength coverage. In this work, we present a new code for determining the wavelength ranges that provide the optimal amount of information to achieve the required science goals for a given survey. In its first mode, it utilizes a user-defined list of spectral features to compute a figure-of-merit for different spectral configurations. The second mode utilizes a set of flux-calibrated spectra, determining the spectral regions that show the largest differences among the spectra. Our algorithm is easily adaptable for any set of science requirements and any spectrograph design. We apply the algorithm to several examples, including 4MOST, showing the method yields important design constraints to the wavelength regions.
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    The Gaia-ESO Survey Mg-Al anti-correlation in iDR4 globular clusters
    (EDP SCIENCES S A, 2017) Pancino, E.; Romano, D.; Tang, B.; Tautvaisiene, G.; Casey, A. R.; Gruyters, P.; Geisler, D.; San Roman, I.; Randich, S.; Alfaro, E. J.; Bragaglia, A.; Flaccomio, E.; Korn, A. J.; Recio Blanco, A.; Smiljanic, R.; Carraro, G.; Bayo, A.; Costado, M. T.; Damiani, F.; Jofre, P.; Lardo, C.; de laverny, P.; Monaco, L.; Morbidelli, L.; Sbordone, L.; Sousa, S. G.; Villanova, S.
    We use Gaia-ESO (GES) Survey iDR4 data to explore the Mg-Alanti-correlation in globular clusters that were observed as calibrators, as a demonstration of the quality of Gaia-ESO Survey data and analysis. The results compare well with the available literature, within 0.1 dex or less, after a small (compared to the internal spreads) off set between the UVES and GIRAFFE data of 0.10-0.15 dex was taken into account. In particular, for the first time we present data for NGC 5927, which is one of the most metal-rich globular clusters studied in the literature so far with [Fe/H] = -0.39 +/- 0.04 dex; this cluster was included to connect with the open cluster regime in the Gaia-ESO Survey internal calibration. The extent and shape of the Mg-Al anti-correlation provide strong constraints on the multiple population phenomenon in globular clusters. In particular, we studied the dependency of the Mg-Al anti-correlation extension with metallicity, present-day mass, and age of the clusters, using GES data in combination with a large set of homogenized literature measurements. We find a dependency with both metallicity and mass, which is evident when fitting for the two parameters simultaneously, but we do not find significant dependency with age. We confirm that the Mg-Al anti-correlation is not seen in all clusters, but disappears for the less massive or most metal-rich clusters. We also use our data set to see whether a normal anti-correlation would explain the low [Mg/ff] observed in some extragalactic globular clusters, but find that none of the clusters in our sample can reproduce it; a more extreme chemical composition, such as that of NGC 2419, would be required. We conclude that GES iDR4 data already meet the requirements set by the main survey goals and can be used to study globular clusters in detail, even if the analysis procedures were not specifically designed for them.
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    The Gaia-ESO Survey: a quiescent Milky Way with no significant dark/stellar accreted disc(a similar to...)
    (OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2015) Ruchti, G. R.; Read, J. I.; Feltzing, S.; Serenelli, A. M.; McMillan, P.; Lind, K.; Bensby, T.; Bergemann, M.; Asplund, M.; Vallenari, A.; Flaccomio, E.; Pancino, E.; Korn, A. J.; Recio Blanco, A.; Bayo, A.; Carraro, G.; Costado, M. T.; Damiani, F.; Heiter, U.; Hourihane, A.; Jofre, P.; Kordopatis, G.; Lardo, C.; de Laverny, P.; Monaco, L.; Morbidelli, L.; Sbordone, L.; Worley, C. C.; Zaggia, S.
    According to our current cosmological model, galaxies like the Milky Way are expected to experience many mergers over their lifetimes. The most massive of the merging galaxies will be dragged towards the disc plane, depositing stars and dark matter into an accreted disc structure. In this work, we utilize the chemodynamical template developed in Ruchti et al. to hunt for accreted stars. We apply the template to a sample of 4675 stars in the third internal data release from the Gaia-ESO Spectroscopic Survey. We find a significant component of accreted halo stars, but find no evidence of an accreted disc component. This suggests that the Milky Way has had a rather quiescent merger history since its disc formed some 8-10 billion years ago and therefore possesses no significant dark matter disc.
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    The Gaia-ESO Survey: Detailed abundances in the metal-poor globular cluster NGC 4372
    (EDP SCIENCES S A, 2015) San Roman, I.; Munoz, C.; Geisler, D.; Villanova, S.; Kacharov, N.; Koch, A.; Carraro, G.; Tautvaisiene, G.; Vallenari, A.; Alfaro, E. J.; Bensby, T.; Flaccomio, E.; Francois, P.; Korn, A. J.; Pancino, E.; Recio Blanco, A.; Smiljanic, R.; Bergemann, M.; Costado, M. T.; Damiani, F.; Heiter, U.; Hourihane, A.; Jofre, P.; Lardo, C.; de Laverny, P.; Masseron, T.; Morbidelli, L.; Sbordone, L.; Sousa, S. G.; Worley, C. C.; Zaggia, S.
    We present the abundance analysis for a sample of 7 red giant branch stars in the metal-poor globular cluster NGC 4372 based on UVES spectra acquired as part of the Gaia-ESO Survey. This is the first extensive study of this cluster from high-resolution spectroscopy. We derive abundances of O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Sc, Ti, Fe, Cr, Ni, Y, Ba, and La. We find a metallicity of [Fe/H] = -2.19 +/- 0.03 and find no evidence of any metallicity spread. This metallicity makes NGC 4372 one of the most metal-poor Galactic globular clusters. We also find an a-enhancement typical of halo globular clusters at this metallicity. Significant spreads are observed in the abundances of light elements. In particular, we find a Na-O anticorrelation. Abundances of O are relatively high compared with other globular clusters. This could indicate that NGC 4372 was formed in an environment with high O for its metallicity. A Mg-Al spread is also present that spans a range of more than 0.5 dex in Al abundances. Na is correlated with Al and Mg abundances at a lower significance level. This pattern suggests that the Mg-Al burning cycle is active. This behavior can also be seen in giant stars of other massive, metal-poor clusters. A relation between light and heavy s-process elements has been identified.
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    The Gaia-ESO Survey: Empirical determination of the precision of stellar radial velocities and projected rotation velocities
    (EDP SCIENCES S A, 2015) Jackson, R. J.; Jeffries, R. D.; Lewis, J.; Koposov, S. E.; Sacco, G. G.; Randich, S.; Gilmore, G.; Asplund, M.; Binney, J.; Bonifacio, P.; Drew, J. E.; Feltzing, S.; Ferguson, A. M. N.; Micela, G.; Neguerela, I.; Prusti, T.; Rix, H. W.; Vallenari, A.; Alfaro, E. J.; Prieto, C. Allende; Babusiaux, C.; Bensby, T.; Blomme, R.; Bragaglia, A.; Flaccomio, E.; Francois, P.; Hambly, N.; Irwin, M.; Korn, A. J.; Lanzafame, A. C.; Pancino, E.; Recio Blanco, A.; Smiljanic, R.; Van Eck, S.; Walton, N.; Bayo, A.; Bergemann, M.; Carraro, G.; Costado, M. T.; Damiani, F.; Edvardsson, B.; Franciosini, E.; Frasca, A.; Heiter, U.; Hill, V.; Hourihane, A.; Jofre, P.; Lardo, C.; de Laverny, P.; Lind, K.; Magrini, L.; Marconi, G.; Martayan, C.; Masseron, T.; Monaco, L.; Morbidelli, L.; Prisinzano, L.; Sbordone, L.; Sousa, S. G.; Worley, C. C.; Zaggia, S.
    Context. The Gaia-ESO Survey (GES) is a large public spectroscopic survey at the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope.
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    The Gaia-ESO Survey: revisiting the Li-rich giant problem
    (OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2016) Casey, A. R.; Ruchti, G.; Masseron, T.; Randich, S.; Gilmore, G.; Lind, K.; Kennedy, G. M.; Koposov, S. E.; Hourihane, A.; Franciosini, E.; Lewis, J. R.; Magrini, L.; Morbidelli, L.; Sacco, G. G.; Worley, C. C.; Feltzing, S.; Jeffries, R. D.; Vallenari, A.; Bensby, T.; Bragaglia, A.; Flaccomio, E.; Francois, P.; Korn, A. J.; Lanzafame, A.; Pancino, E.; Recio Blanco, A.; Smiljanic, R.; Carraro, G.; Costado, M. T.; Damiani, F.; Donati, P.; Frasca, A.; Jofre, P.; Lardo, C.; de Laverny, P.; Monaco, L.; Prisinzano, L.; Sbordone, L.; Sousa, S. G.; Tautvaisiene, G.; Zaggia, S.; Zwitter, T.; Delgado Mena, E.; Chorniy, Y.; Martell, S. L.; Aguirre, V. Silva; Miglio, A.; Chiappini, C.; Montalban, J.; Morel, T.; Valentini, M.
    The discovery of lithium-rich giants contradicts expectations from canonical stellar evolution. Here we report on the serendipitous discovery of 20 Li-rich giants observed during the Gaia-ESO Survey, which includes the first nine Li-rich giant stars known towards the CoRoT fields. Most of our Li-rich giants have near-solar metallicities and stellar parameters consistent with being before the luminosity bump. This is difficult to reconcile with deep mixing models proposed to explain lithium enrichment, because these models can only operate at later evolutionary stages: at or past the luminosity bump. In an effort to shed light on the Li-rich phenomenon, we highlight recent evidence of the tidal destruction of close-in hot Jupiters at the sub-giant phase. We note that when coupled with models of planet accretion, the observed destruction of hot Jupiters actually predicts the existence of Li-rich giant stars, and suggests that Li-rich stars should be found early on the giant branch and occur more frequently with increasing metallicity. A comprehensive review of all known Li-rich giant stars reveals that this scenario is consistent with the data. However, more evolved or metal-poor stars are less likely to host close-in giant planets, implying that their Li-rich origin requires an alternative explanation, likely related to mixing scenarios rather than external phenomena.
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    The Gaia-ESO Survey: the selection function of the Milky Way field stars
    (OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2016) Stonkute, E.; Koposov, S. E.; Howes, L. M.; Feltzing, S.; Worley, C. C.; Gilmore, G.; Ruchti, G. R.; Kordopatis, G.; Randich, S.; Zwitter, T.; Bensby, T.; Bragaglia, A.; Smiljanic, R.; Costado, M. T.; Tautvaisiene, G.; Casey, A. R.; Korn, A. J.; Lanzafame, A. C.; Pancino, E.; Franciosini, E.; Hourihane, A.; Jofre, P.; Lardo, C.; Lewis, J.; Magrini, L.; Monaco, L.; Morbidelli, L.; Sacco, G. G.; Sbordone, L.
    The Gaia-ESO Survey was designed to target all major Galactic components (i.e. bulge, thin and thick discs, halo and clusters), with the goal of constraining the chemical and dynamical evolution of the Milky Way. This paper presents the methodology and considerations that drive the selection of the targeted, allocated and successfully observed Milky Way field stars. The detailed understanding of the survey construction, specifically the influence of target selection criteria on observed Milky Way field stars is required in order to analyse and interpret the survey data correctly. We present the target selection process for the Milky Way field stars observed with Very Large Telescope/Fibre Large Array Multi Element Spectrograph and provide the weights that characterize the survey target selection. The weights can be used to account for the selection effects in the Gaia-ESO Survey data for scientific studies. We provide a couple of simple examples to highlight the necessity of including such information in studies of the stellar populations in the Milky Way.