Measuring Metallicity of M Giants in the Galactic Halo Using Molecular Bands
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Date
2011-06
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The Ohio State University
Abstract
M type stars have the lowest surface temperatures of all stars. Consequently, most of their visible light is observed in the red. M giants are the brightest of the cool stars, making it possible to observe them over long distances, such as in the Milky Way's halo. Very high metallicity stars become M giants, so these are the extreme members of the Galactic halo. Observing M giants in the Galactic halo, and obtaining their composition (measured as “metallicity”) will provide a better understanding for the formation and chemical evolution of the Galaxy. We have used star clusters with known metallicity to analyze how the spectra are affected by temperature and metallicity.
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Keywords
M giants, Galactic Halo, metallicity, equivalent width