Search arXiv⌕ Search

arXiv subjects

Daria Zaremba

Publications and source records attributed to Daria Zaremba.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

The Pristine survey XXXI. A stream offset from the Stream: very metal-poor stellar debris trailing 100$^{\circ}$ from the LMC-SMC system

Context: The stellar counterpart to the $200^\circ$-long HI Stream from the Clouds probes their tidally stripped stellar populations and constrains their interaction history and structure before infall into the Milky Way. Aims: We investigate the chemodynamics and possible origin of very metal-poor (VMP; [Fe/H] $<-2$) stars in the stellar Stream, targeting distant red giants selected from the Pristine--Gaia synthetic metallicity catalogue. Methods: We obtained high-resolution Gemini/GHOST spectroscopy of 33 candidate members, deriving radial velocities and metallicities. We combine these data with literature red giant members and assess their association with the Clouds using orbital integrations in a time-dependent Milky Way--LMC potential. We also compare their distribution with collisionless test particles initially placed in a diffuse LMC stellar halo. Results: We identify 12 high-confidence members based on energy and angular momentum: one intermediate metal-poor star ([Fe/H] $\sim-1.6$), ten VMP stars, and one extremely metal-poor (EMP) star ([Fe/H] $<-3$). The new VMP stars trace over $100^\circ$ of the trailing Stream, follow the Clouds' kinematics, and lie $\sim20^\circ$ from both the HI Stream and previously known, more metal-rich debris, suggesting a metallicity-dependent spatial distribution. Combined with the literature, they approximately double the known red giant sample and extend its metallicity range from [Fe/H] $\sim-0.5$ to $-4.3$. Orbital integrations support an association with the Clouds, while test particles reproduce the debris' broad spatial distribution. Conclusions: VMP and EMP stars contribute to the Clouds' tidal debris. They may originate in the extended stellar halos of the LMC or SMC, or in disrupted satellites. Their spatial and kinematic properties can constrain future simulations of the Milky Way--LMC--SMC interaction.

astro-ph.GA↗

The primordial nature of the C-19 stellar stream

Stellar streams, remnants of compact star systems stretched out by the tidal forces of the Milky Way, offer a unique way to study stellar populations that formed billions of years ago. A particularly unique stream is C-19, the most metal-poor stellar stream known at less than a thousandth of the Sun's metallicity. The nature of C-19 is not yet clear, with properties that resemble both star clusters and ultra faint dwarf galaxies, yet in either case its extremely low metallicity indicates very early star formation, <1 Gyr after the Big Bang. Here, we present the first detailed study on the nature of C-19 based on the chemical abundances of 14 member stars from high-resolution spectroscopy. These reveal that C-19 formed stars in an early, rapid, and prolific star formation event, with mild inhomogeneous mixing of elements produced in massive stars. There is otherwise no evidence for subsequent star formation, multiple stellar populations, nor chemical evolution. Although C-19 is currently disrupted in the Milky Way halo, it offers a rare and complementary window into the details of star formation and chemical evolution in the early universe, ideal for comparisons with current studies of primordial star formation in the high-redshift universe.

astro-ph.GA↗

GHOST commissioning science results -- IV: Chemodynamical analyses of Milky Way satellites Sagittarius II and Aquarius II

We present Gemini/GHOST high-resolution spectra of five stars observed in two low surface brightness Milky Way satellites, Sagittarius II (Sgr2) and Aquarius II (Aqu2). For Aqu2, the velocities and metallicities of the two stars are consistent with membership in a dark matter-dominated ultra faint dwarf galaxy (UFD). The chemical abundance ratios suggest inefficient star formation from only one or a few supernovae (e.g., low Na, Sr, Ba), and enriched potassium (K) from super-AGB stars. For Sgr2, the velocity and metallicity dispersions of its members are not clearly resolved and our detailed chemical abundances show typical ratios for metal-poor stars, with low dispersions. There is only one exception - we report the discovery of an r-process enhanced star (Sgr2584, [Eu/Fe]= $+0.7 \pm 0.2 $; thus, an r-I star). As r-I stars are found in both UFDs (Tuc III, Tuc IV, Grus II) and globular clusters (M15 and M92), then this does not help to further classify the nature of Sgr2. Our exploration of Sgr2 demonstrates the difficulty in classifying some of the faintest (ambiguous) satellites. We advocate for additional diagnostics in analysing the ambiguous systems, such as exploring radial segregation (by mass and/or chemistry), N-body simulations, and the need for dark matter to survive Galactic tidal effects. The spectra analysed in this paper were taken as part of the GHOST commissioning observations, testing faint observation limits (G < 18.8) and the single and double IFU observing modes.

astro-ph.GA↗

The extended "stellar halo" of the Ursa Minor dwarf galaxy

Stellar candidates in the Ursa Minor (UMi) dwarf galaxy have been found using a new Bayesian algorithm applied to \textit{Gaia} EDR3 data. Five of these targets are located in the extreme outskirts of UMi, from $\sim5$ to 12 elliptical half-light radii (r$_h$), where r$_h$(UMi) $= 17.32 \pm 0.11$ arcmin, and have been observed with the GRACES high resolution spectrograph at the Gemini-Northern telescope. Precise radial velocities ($σ_{\rm{RV}} < 2$ km s$^{-1}$) and metallicities ($σ_{\rm{[Fe/H]}} < 0.2$ dex) confirm their memberships of UMi. Detailed analysis of the brightest and outermost star (Target~1, at $\sim12$ r$_h$), yields precision chemical abundances for the $α$- (Mg, Ca, Ti), odd-Z (Na, K, Sc), Fe-peak (Fe, Ni, Cr), and neutron-capture (Ba) elements. With data from the literature and APOGEE DR17, we find the chemical patterns in UMi are consistent with an outside-in star formation history that includes yields from core collapse supernovae, asymptotic giant branch stars, and supernovae Ia. Evidence for a knee in the [$α$/Fe] ratios near [Fe/H] $\sim-2.1$ indicates a low star formation efficiency similar to that in other dwarf galaxies. Detailed analysis of the surface number density profile shows evidence that UMi's outskirts have been populated by tidal effects, likely as a result of completing multiple orbits around the Galaxy.

astro-ph.GA↗