A Search for Tidal Star Streams from the Magellanic Clouds

Details A Search for Tidal Star Streams from the Magellanic Clouds A Search for Tidal Star Streams from the Magellanic Clouds

Jan 1998

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1998baas...30..770o&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society Meeting, 191, #131.03

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

We have conducted a photometric survey for giant stars in a strip of ten 1 deg(2) fields situated at Galactic latitude b=-60 {^\circ} and longitudes l=270, 275, 280, 285, ... 315h{^\circ} -- i.e., directly across the H I Magellanic Stream at a point 17{^\circ} downstream from the center of the Magellanic Clouds. Simple sky densities of giant candidates (selected through use of the DDO51 filter) to M=19 in these ten fields show no appreciable excess that might be attributable to a well defined (i.e., high contrast) stellar stream superimposed on a background of Galactic halo stars (Ostheimer, Majewski & Kunkel 1997, BAAS, in press). Spectroscopy of a sample of these photometrically selected candidates to M ~ 18.2 proves them to be bona fide giants of apparently low metallicity and, as suggested from the photometry alone, with a more or less even sky density across the ten fields of ~ 4 (deg) (-2) . However, the spectroscopic sample of giant stars shows correlations between apparent distance and longitude such that giants found at a given longitude appear to be concentrated to relatively distinct distance ranges. For example, a group of giants, found mainly in the l= 300{^\circ} to 315{^\circ} fields, have a distance of ~ 25 kpc, while most of the giants between l= 275{^\circ} and 290 {^\circ} are grouped at a distance some 2.5 times greater. To some degree, these data match predictions of tidal stream locations in the Galactic halo from semi-analytical models of the tidal disruption of the LMC over the last 10 Gyr. Multiple wrappings of these streamers about the Milky Way are expected. In these models, the Toomre bridge streamer concentrates stars to the range 20-40 kpc, while the Toomre tail stars tend to concentrate at larger distances, 50-80 kpc. Moreover, precessional shifts of inner and outer concentrations are roughly consistent with the apparent longitudinal concentrations found in our giant sample. This general correspondence of the model predictions with the early results of our survey suggests the possibility that we may be identifying widely dispersed tidal star streams of the Magellanic Clouds.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

A Search for Tidal Star Streams from the Magellanic Clouds does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with A Search for Tidal Star Streams from the Magellanic Clouds, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and A Search for Tidal Star Streams from the Magellanic Clouds will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1654450