Bibcode
Schlesinger, K. J.; Johnson, Jennifer A.; Rockosi, Constance M.; Lee, Young Sun; Beers, Timothy C.; Harding, Paul; Allende Prieto, C.; Bird, Jonathan C.; Schönrich, Ralph; Yanny, Brian; Schneider, Donald P.; Weaver, Benjamin A.; Brinkmann, Jon
Bibliographical reference
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 791, Issue 2, article id. 112, 23 pp. (2014).
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2014
Journal
Citations
31
Refereed citations
28
Description
Using G dwarfs from the Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and
Exploration (SEGUE) survey, we have determined the vertical metallicity
gradient in the Milky Way's disk and examined how this gradient varies
for different [α/Fe] subsamples. Our sample contains over 40,000
stars with low-resolution spectroscopy over 144 lines of sight. It also
covers a significant disk volume, between ~0.3 and 1.6 kpc from the
Galactic plane, and allows us to examine the disk in situ, whereas
previous analyses were more limited in scope. Furthermore, this work
does not presuppose a disk structure, whether composed of a single
complex population or distinct thin and thick disk components. We employ
the SEGUE Stellar Parameter Pipeline to obtain estimates of stellar
parameters, [Fe/H], and [α/Fe] and extract multiple
volume-complete subsamples of approximately 1000 stars each. Based on
SEGUE's target-selection algorithm, we adjust each subsample to
determine an unbiased picture of disk chemistry; consequently, each
individual star represents the properties of many. The metallicity
gradient is –0.243^{+0.039}_{-0.053} dex kpc–1
for the entire sample, which we compare to various literature results.
This gradient stems from the different [α/Fe] populations
inhabiting different ranges of height above the Galactic plane. Each
[α/Fe] subsample shows little change in median [Fe/H] with height.
If we associate [α/Fe] with age, the negligible gradients of our
[α/Fe] subsamples suggest that stars formed in different epochs
exhibit comparable vertical structure, implying similar star formation
processes and evolution.
Related projects
Chemical Abundances in Stars
Stellar spectroscopy allows us to determine the properties and chemical compositions of stars. From this information for stars of different ages in the Milky Way, it is possible to reconstruct the chemical evolution of the Galaxy, as well as the origin of the elements heavier than boron, created mainly in stellar interiors. It is also possible to
Carlos
Allende Prieto