Bibcode
Schlaufman, Kevin C.; Rockosi, Constance M.; Lee, Young Sun; Beers, Timothy C.; Allende-Prieto, C.; Rashkov, Valery; Madau, Piero; Bizyaev, Dmitry
Bibliographical reference
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 749, Issue 1, article id. 77 (2012).
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4
2012
Journal
Citations
34
Refereed citations
28
Description
We find that the relative contribution of satellite galaxies accreted at
high redshift to the stellar population of the Milky Way's smooth halo
increases with distance, becoming observable relative to the classical
smooth halo about 15 kpc from the Galactic center. In particular, we
determine line-of-sight-averaged [Fe/H] and [α/Fe] in the
metal-poor main-sequence turnoff (MPMSTO) population along every Sloan
Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration (SEGUE)
spectroscopic line of sight. Restricting our sample to those lines of
sight along which we do not detect elements of cold halo substructure
(ECHOS), we compile the largest spectroscopic sample of stars in the
smooth component of the halo ever observed in situ beyond 10 kpc. We
find significant spatial autocorrelation in [Fe/H] in the MPMSTO
population in the distant half of our sample beyond about 15 kpc from
the Galactic center. Inside of 15 kpc however, we find no significant
spatial autocorrelation in [Fe/H]. At the same time, we perform
SEGUE-like observations of N-body simulations of Milky Way analog
formation. While we find that halos formed entirely by accreted
satellite galaxies provide a poor match to our observations of the halo
within 15 kpc of the Galactic center, we do observe spatial
autocorrelation in [Fe/H] in the simulations at larger distances. This
observation is an example of statistical chemical tagging and indicates
that spatial autocorrelation in metallicity is a generic feature of
stellar halos formed from accreted satellite galaxies.
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