The HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale XIV
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A Basic Requirement for Studying the Heavens Is Determining Where In
Abasic requirement for studying the heavens is determining where in the sky things are. To specify sky positions, astronomers have developed several coordinate systems. Each uses a coordinate grid projected on to the celestial sphere, in analogy to the geographic coordinate system used on the surface of the Earth. The coordinate systems differ only in their choice of the fundamental plane, which divides the sky into two equal hemispheres along a great circle (the fundamental plane of the geographic system is the Earth's equator) . Each coordinate system is named for its choice of fundamental plane. The equatorial coordinate system is probably the most widely used celestial coordinate system. It is also the one most closely related to the geographic coordinate system, because they use the same fun damental plane and the same poles. The projection of the Earth's equator onto the celestial sphere is called the celestial equator. Similarly, projecting the geographic poles on to the celest ial sphere defines the north and south celestial poles. However, there is an important difference between the equatorial and geographic coordinate systems: the geographic system is fixed to the Earth; it rotates as the Earth does . The equatorial system is fixed to the stars, so it appears to rotate across the sky with the stars, but of course it's really the Earth rotating under the fixed sky. The latitudinal (latitude-like) angle of the equatorial system is called declination (Dec for short) . It measures the angle of an object above or below the celestial equator. The longitud inal angle is called the right ascension (RA for short). -
2014 Observers Challenge List
2014 TMSP Observer's Challenge Atlas page #s # Object Object Type Common Name RA, DEC Const Mag Mag.2 Size Sep. U2000 PSA 18h31m25s 1 IC 1287 Bright Nebula Scutum 20'.0 295 67 -10°47'45" 18h31m25s SAO 161569 Double Star 5.77 9.31 12.3” -10°47'45" Near center of IC 1287 18h33m28s NGC 6649 Open Cluster 8.9m Integrated 5' -10°24'10" Can be seen in 3/4d FOV with above. Brightest star is 13.2m. Approx 50 stars visible in Binos 18h28m 2 NGC 6633 Open Cluster Ophiuchus 4.6m integrated 27' 205 65 Visible in Binos and is about the size of a full Moon, brightest star is 7.6m +06°34' 17h46m18s 2x diameter of a full Moon. Try to view this cluster with your naked eye, binos, and a small scope. 3 IC 4665 Open Cluster Ophiuchus 4.2m Integrated 60' 203 65 +05º 43' Also check out “Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum to the east (IC 4756 and NGC 6633) A loose open cluster with a faint concentration of stars in a rich field, contains about 15-20 stars. 19h53m27s Brightest star is 9.8m, 5 stars 9-11m, remainder about 12-13m. This is a challenge obJect to 4 Harvard 20 Open Cluster Sagitta 7.7m integrated 6' 162 64 +18°19'12" improve your observation skills. Can you locate the miniature coathanger close by at 19h 37m 27s +19d? Constellation star Corona 5 Corona Borealis 55 Trace the 7 stars making up this constellation, observe and list the colors of each star asterism Borealis 15H 32' 55” Theta Corona Borealis Double Star 4.2m 6.6m .97” 55 Theta requires about 200x +31° 21' 32” The direction our Sun travels in our galaxy. -
(Ap) Mag Size Distance Rise Transit Set Gal NGC 6217 Arp 185 Umi
Herschel 400 Observing List, evening of 2015 Oct 15 at Cleveland, Ohio Sunset 17:49, Twilight ends 19:18, Twilight begins 05:07, Sunrise 06:36, Moon rise 09:51, Moon set 19:35 Completely dark from 19:35 to 05:07. Waxing Crescent Moon. All times local (EST). Listing All Classes visible above the perfect horizon and in twilight or moonlight before 23:59. Cls Primary ID Alternate ID Con RA (Ap) Dec (Ap) Mag Size Distance Rise Transit Set Gal NGC 6217 Arp 185 UMi 16h31m48.9s +78°10'18" 11.9 2.6'x 2.1' - 15:22 - Gal NGC 2655 Arp 225 Cam 08h57m35.6s +78°09'22" 11 4.5'x 2.8' - 7:46 - Gal NGC 3147 MCG 12-10-25 Dra 10h18m08.0s +73°19'01" 11.3 4.1'x 3.5' - 9:06 - PNe NGC 40 PN G120.0+09.8 Cep 00h13m59.3s +72°36'43" 10.7 1.0' 3700 ly - 23:03 - Gal NGC 2985 MCG 12-10-6 UMa 09h51m42.0s +72°12'01" 11.2 3.8'x 3.1' - 8:39 - Gal Cigar Galaxy M 82 UMa 09h57m06.5s +69°35'59" 9 9.3'x 4.4' 12.0 Mly - 8:45 - Gal NGC 1961 Arp 184 Cam 05h43m51.6s +69°22'44" 11.8 4.1'x 2.9' 180.0 Mly - 4:32 - Gal NGC 2787 MCG 12-9-39 UMa 09h20m40.5s +69°07'51" 11.6 3.2'x 1.8' - 8:09 - Gal NGC 3077 MCG 12-10-17 UMa 10h04m31.3s +68°39'09" 10.6 5.1'x 4.2' 12.0 Mly - 8:52 - Gal NGC 2976 MCG 11-12-25 UMa 09h48m29.2s +67°50'21" 10.8 6.0'x 3.1' 15.0 Mly - 8:36 - PNe Cat's Eye Nebula NGC 6543 Dra 17h58m31.7s +66°38'25" 8.3 22" 4400 ly - 16:49 - Open NGC 7142 Collinder 442 Cep 21h45m34.2s +65°51'16" 10 12.0' 5500 ly - 20:35 - Gal NGC 2403 MCG 11-10-7 Cam 07h38m20.9s +65°33'36" 8.8 20.0'x 10.0' 11.0 Mly - 6:26 - Open NGC 637 Collinder 17 Cas 01h44m15.4s +64°07'07" 7.3 3.0' 7000 ly - 0:33 -
Astronomical Coordinate Systems
Appendix 1 Astronomical Coordinate Systems A basic requirement for studying the heavens is being able to determine where in the sky things are located. To specify sky positions, astronomers have developed several coordinate systems. Each sys- tem uses a coordinate grid projected on the celestial sphere, which is similar to the geographic coor- dinate system used on the surface of the Earth. The coordinate systems differ only in their choice of the fundamental plane, which divides the sky into two equal hemispheres along a great circle (the fundamental plane of the geographic system is the Earth’s equator). Each coordinate system is named for its choice of fundamental plane. The Equatorial Coordinate System The equatorial coordinate system is probably the most widely used celestial coordinate system. It is also the most closely related to the geographic coordinate system because they use the same funda- mental plane and poles. The projection of the Earth’s equator onto the celestial sphere is called the celestial equator. Similarly, projecting the geographic poles onto the celestial sphere defines the north and south celestial poles. However, there is an important difference between the equatorial and geographic coordinate sys- tems: the geographic system is fixed to the Earth and rotates as the Earth does. The Equatorial system is fixed to the stars, so it appears to rotate across the sky with the stars, but it’s really the Earth rotating under the fixed sky. The latitudinal (latitude-like) angle of the equatorial system is called declination (Dec. for short). It measures the angle of an object above or below the celestial equator. -
Open Clusters in APOGEE and GALAH Combining Gaia and Ground-Based Spectroscopic Surveys?
A&A 623, A80 (2019) Astronomy https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201834546 & c ESO 2019 Astrophysics Open clusters in APOGEE and GALAH Combining Gaia and ground-based spectroscopic surveys? R. Carrera1, A. Bragaglia2, T. Cantat-Gaudin3, A. Vallenari1, L. Balaguer-Núñez3, D. Bossini1, L. Casamiquela4, C. Jordi3, R. Sordo1, and C. Soubiran4 1 INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, vicolo dell’Osservatorio 5, 35122 Padova, Italy e-mail: [email protected] 2 INAF-Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio, via P. Gobetti 93/3, 40129 Bologna, Italy 3 Institut de Ciències del Cosmos, Universitat de Barcelona (IEEC-UB), Martí i Franquès 1, 08028 Barcelona, Spain 4 Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, B18N, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 33615 Pessac, France Received 31 October 2018 / Accepted 26 January 2019 ABSTRACT Context. Open clusters are ideal laboratories to investigate a variety of astrophysical topics, from the properties of the Galactic disc to stellar-evolution models. Knowing their metallicity and possibly detailed chemical abundances is therefore important. However, the number of systems with chemical abundances determined from high-resolution spectroscopy remains small. Aims. Our aim is to increase the number of open clusters with radial velocities and chemical abundances determined from high- resolution spectroscopy using publicly available catalogues of surveys in combination with Gaia data. Methods. Open cluster stars have been identified in the APOGEE and GALAH spectroscopic surveys by cross-matching their latest data releases with stars for which high-probability astrometric membership has been derived in many clusters on the basis of the Gaia second data release. -
Making a Sky Atlas
Appendix A Making a Sky Atlas Although a number of very advanced sky atlases are now available in print, none is likely to be ideal for any given task. Published atlases will probably have too few or too many guide stars, too few or too many deep-sky objects plotted in them, wrong- size charts, etc. I found that with MegaStar I could design and make, specifically for my survey, a “just right” personalized atlas. My atlas consists of 108 charts, each about twenty square degrees in size, with guide stars down to magnitude 8.9. I used only the northernmost 78 charts, since I observed the sky only down to –35°. On the charts I plotted only the objects I wanted to observe. In addition I made enlargements of small, overcrowded areas (“quad charts”) as well as separate large-scale charts for the Virgo Galaxy Cluster, the latter with guide stars down to magnitude 11.4. I put the charts in plastic sheet protectors in a three-ring binder, taking them out and plac- ing them on my telescope mount’s clipboard as needed. To find an object I would use the 35 mm finder (except in the Virgo Cluster, where I used the 60 mm as the finder) to point the ensemble of telescopes at the indicated spot among the guide stars. If the object was not seen in the 35 mm, as it usually was not, I would then look in the larger telescopes. If the object was not immediately visible even in the primary telescope – a not uncommon occur- rence due to inexact initial pointing – I would then scan around for it. -
Astronomy Astrophysics
A&A 415, 123–143 (2004) Astronomy DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361:20031448 & c ESO 2004 Astrophysics VLT spectroscopy of globular cluster systems? I. The photometric and spectroscopic data set??;??? T. H. Puzia1, M. Kissler-Patig2, D. Thomas3, C. Maraston3,R.P.Saglia1, R. Bender1,3, T. Richtler4, P. Goudfrooij5,andM.Hempel2 1 Sternwarte der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universit¨at, Scheinerstr. 1, 81679 M¨unchen, Germany e-mail: [email protected] 2 European Southern Observatory, 85749 Garching bei M¨unchen, Germany e-mail: [email protected] 3 Max-Planck-Institut f¨ur extraterrestrische Physik, Giessenbachstrasse, 85748 Garching bei M¨unchen, Germany e-mail: bender, maraston, [email protected] 4 Grupo de Astronom´ıa, Departamento de F´ısica, Casilla 160-C, Universidad de Concepci´on, Concepci´on, Chile e-mail: [email protected] 5 Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA e-mail: [email protected] Received 14 May 2003 / Accepted 11 September 2003 Abstract. We present Lick line-index measurements of extragalactic globular clusters in seven early-type galaxies (NGC 1380, 2434, 3115, 3379, 3585, 5846, and 7192) with different morphological types (E–S0) located in field and group/cluster environ- ments. High-quality spectra were taken with the FORS2 instrument at ESO’s Very Large Telescope. 50% of our data allows an age resolution ∆t/t 0.3 and a metallicity resolution 0.25 0.4 dex, depending on the absolute metallicity.∼ Globular cluster candidates are selected≈ from deep B, V, R, I, K FORS2/ISAAC∼ − photometry with 80 100% success rate inside one effective ra- − dius. -
Open Clusters in APOGEE and GALAH
Astronomy & Astrophysics manuscript no. apogee_galah_astroph c ESO 2019 January 29, 2019 Open clusters in APOGEE and GALAH Combining Gaia and ground-based spectroscopic surveys R. Carrera1, A. Bragaglia2, T. Cantat-Gaudin3, A. Vallenari1, L. Balaguer-Núñez3, D. Bossini1, L. Casamiquela4, C. Jordi3, R. Sordo1, and C. Soubiran4 1 INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, vicolo dell’Osservatorio 5, 35122 Padova, Italy e-mail: [email protected] 2 INAF-Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio, via P. Gobetti 93/3, 40129 Bologna, Italy 3 Institut de Ciències del Cosmos, Universitat de Barcelona (IEEC-UB), Martí i Franquès 1, E-08028 Barcelona, Spain 4 Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Bordeaux, Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, B18N, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, F-33615 Pessac, France Received ; accepted ABSTRACT Context. Open clusters are ideal laboratories to investigate a variety of astrophysical topics, from the properties of the Galactic disk to stellar evolutionary models. Knowing their metallicity and possibly detailed chemical abundances is therefore important. However, the number of systems with chemical abundances determined from high resolution spectroscopy is still small. Aims. To increase the number of open clusters with radial velocities and chemical abundances determined from high resolution spectroscopy we used publicly available catalogues of surveys in combination with Gaia data. Methods. Open cluster stars have been identified in the APOGEE and GALAH spectroscopic surveys by cross-matching their latest data releases with stars for which high-probability astrometric membership has been derived in many clusters on the basis of the Gaia second data release. Results. Radial velocities have been determined for 131 and 14 clusters from APOGEE and GALAH data, respectively. -
My Finest NGC Album
My Finest NGC Album A detailed record of my journey through The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Finest NGC list Name: ______________________________ Centre or Home Location: ______________________________ The New General Catalogue or NGC contains 7,840 entries and forms the core of most people's "life list" of observing targets. The NGC was originally published in 1888 by J.L.E. Dreyer and therefore predated photographic astronomy. The Finest NGC list, compiled by Alan Dyer complements the Messier List, as there is no overlap. The list features many fine deep-sky treasures as well as a few somewhat more challenging objects. Once you have observed all of the objects on this list, application forms can be found on the RASC website at www.rasc.ca. The FNGC certificate has been awarded since 1995. Here is an overview of the Finest NGC Observing List Finest NGC Objects Number Notes Open Clusters 12 Including the famous Double Cluster in Perseus, NGC 7789 in Cassiopeia, and NGC 6633 in Ophiuchus. Globular Clusters 2 NGC 5466 in Bootes and NGC 6712 in Scutum. Diffuse Nebulae 14 Includes the great Veil Nebula as well as the North America and Rosette nebulae. Planetary Nebulae 24 Includes many fine PN's like the Ghost of Jupiter, the Cat's Eye, the Blinking Planetary, the Helix, the Blue Snowball, and the Clown Face nebulae. Galaxies 58 Includes the amazing NGC 4565 in Coma Berenices, NGC 253 in Sculptor, and NGC 5907 in Draco. Total 110 The Finest NGC list can be started during any season. Why Record Your Observations? Recording observations is important for two reasons. -
Open Clusters in 2MASS Photometry II. Mass Function and Mass
ACTA ASTRONOMICA Vol. 0 (0) pp. 0–0 Open clusters in 2MASS photometry II. Mass Function and Mass Segregation Ł. Bukowiecki1 , G. Maciejewski1 , P. Konorski2 and A. Niedzielski1 1 Torun´ Centre for Astronomy, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Gagarina 11, PL-87-100 Torun,´ Poland 2 Warsaw University Observatory, Al. Ujazdowskie 4, 00-478, Warsaw, Poland e-mail: [email protected] Received Month Day, Year ABSTRACT This is a continuation of our study of open clusters based on the 2–Micron All Sky Survey photometry. Here we present the results of the mass function analysis for 599 known open clusters in the Milky Way. The main goal of this project is a study of the dynamical state of open clusters, the mass segregation effect and an estimate of the total mass and the number of cluster members. We noticed that the cluster size (core and overall radii) decreases along dynamical evolution of clusters. The cluster cores evolve faster than the halo regions and contain proportionally less low-mass stars from the beginning of the cluster dynamical evolution. We also noticed, that the star density decreases for the larger clusters. Finally, we found an empirical relation describing the exponential decrease of the mass function slope with the dynamical evolution of clusters. Key words: open clusters and associations: general – infrared: galaxies – astronomical databases: 2MASS – stars: mass function 1. Introduction The distribution of the stellar masses that stars were formed with, can be de- scribed as an empirical function – the Initial Mass Function (IMF, Salpeter 1955, Miller & Scalo 1979). According to the basic considerations, the IMF is expected arXiv:1209.2832v1 [astro-ph.SR] 13 Sep 2012 to depend on the star forming conditions (Larson 1998). -
The SPIRIT Telescopes
teachers guide Evolution of the Universe 2: The SPIRIT telescopes Components NAME DESCRIPTION AUDIENCE The SPIRIT telescopes This guide explains how to use the SPIRIT telescopes. It teachers includes question and discussion points to support students’ teachers guide investigations, and a target list of deep sky objects for students to select and image. Deep sky objects This background sheet provides information on deep sky teachers objects, including open clusters, globular clusters, nebulae background sheet and galaxies. It also includes tips on how to obtain the best images of deep sky objects with the SPIRIT telescopes. Introduction to SPIRIT This guide helps students take their first images with the students SPIRIT telescopes. quick guide SPIRIT observation log This worksheet guides students to select four deep sky students objects to image using the SPIRIT telescopes. They describe, worksheet classify and publish a report on their selected objects. Purpose Outcomes To Explore the characteristics of astronomical objects Students: by using the SPIRIT telescopes to image deep sky • use the SPIRIT telescopes to image deep sky objects. objects, including open and globular star clusters, galaxies and nebulae; and • research objects they have imaged and publish a report describing them. Activity summary ACTIVITY POSSIBLE STRATEGY In class whole class, teacher- directed questions Teacher poses questions, such as: whiteboard summary of • What different kinds of objects can we see with the naked eye in the night sky? answers • What other kinds of objects might we be able to see if we had access to a powerful telescope? Teacher provides information about the SPIRIT telescope initiative through teacher-led, whole class presentation of the SPIRIT web site: http://spice.wa.edu.au/spirit/ small groups Teacher details the process for using SPIRIT telescopes (see Telecope access on the SPIRIT web site). -
Deep Sky Objects NCG 602 in the Small Megallanic Cloud Credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (Stsci/AURA) — ESA/Hubble Collaboration and S
background sheet Deep sky objects NCG 602 in the Small Megallanic Cloud credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) — ESA/Hubble Collaboration and S. Stolovy (Caltech) When we turn our eyes to the night sky, we see far more than stars and planets. Viewed through a telescope, it becomes clear that many celestial objects have considerably more structure than simple stars. SPIRIT I and II are research grade telescopes that are optimised for viewing deep sky objects (objects beyond our Solar System). Using SPIRIT, objects can be imaged that are hundreds of millions of light years away, beyond the range of normal backyard telescopes. These deep sky objects include open star clusters, globular star clusters, nebulae and galaxies. The following information provides an introduction to some of these objects. Open star cluster An open star cluster is a group of up to a few thousand stars that were formed from the same giant interstellar cloud of gas at roughly the same time. Stars in an open cluster are loosely bound to each other by gravitational attraction. They can be disrupted by close encounters with other star clusters or gas clouds as they orbit the galactic centre. This may result in loss or gain of cluster members. Open clusters generally survive for a few hundred million years. right: NGC 2477 open star cluster, SPIRIT image Globular star cluster A globular star cluster is a spherical collection of stars that orbits the centre of a galaxy. Globular clusters are held together by gravity, which gives them their spherical shape and relatively high stellar density.