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Register a new userAstrometry of brown dwarfs with Gaia
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J.H.J. de Bruijne
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Europes Gaia spacecraft will soon embark on its five-year mission to measure the absolute parallaxes of the complete sample of 1,000 million objects down to 20 mag. It is expected that thousands of nearby brown dwarfs will have their astrometry determined with sub-milli-arcsecond standard errors. Although this level of accuracy is comparable to the standard errors of the relative parallaxes that are now routinely obtained from the ground for selected, individual objects, the absolute nature of Gaias astrometry, combined with the sample increase from one hundred to several thousand sub-stellar objects with known distances, ensures the uniqueness of Gaias legacy in brown-dwarf science for the coming decade(s). We shortly explore the gain in brown-dwarf science that could be achieved by lowering Gaias faint-end limit from 20 to 21 mag and conclude that two spectral-type sub-classes could be gained in combination with a fourfold increase in the solar-neighbourhood-volume sampled by Gaia and hence in the number of brown dwarfs in the Gaia Catalogue.
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We present 27 new L subdwarfs and classify five of them as esdL and 22 as sdL. Our L subdwarf candidates were selected with the UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey and Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Spectroscopic follow-up was carried out primarily with the OSIRIS spectrograph on the Gran Telescopio Canarias. Some of these new objects were followed up with the X-shooter instrument on the Very Large Telescope. We studied the photometric properties of the population of known L subdwarfs using colour-spectral type diagrams and colour-colour diagrams, by comparison with L dwarfs and main-sequence stars, and identified new colour spaces for L subdwarf selection/study in current and future surveys. We further discussed the brown dwarf transition-zone and the observational stellar/substellar boundary. We found that about one-third of 66 known L subdwarfs are substellar objects, with two-thirds being very low-mass stars. We also present the Hertzsprung-Russell diagrams, spectral type-absolute magnitude corrections, and tangential velocities of 20 known L subdwarfs observed by the Gaia astrometry satellite. One of our L subdwarf candidates, ULAS J233227.03+123452.0, is a mildly metal-poor spectroscopic binary brown dwarf: a ~L6p dwarf and a ~T4p dwarf. This binary is likely a thick disc member according to its kinematics.
In its all-sky survey, Gaia will monitor astrometrically and photometrically millions of main-sequence stars with sufficient sensitivity to brown dwarf companions within a few AUs from their host stars and to transiting brown dwarfs on very short periods, respectively. Furthermore, thousands of detected ultra-cool dwarfs in the backyard of the Sun will have direct (absolute) distance estimates from Gaia, and for these Gaia astrometry will be of sufficient precision to reveal any orbiting companions with masses as low as that of Jupiter. Gaia observations thus bear the potential for critical contributions to many important questions in brown dwarfs astrophysics (how do they form in isolation and as companions to stars? Can planets form around them? What are their fundamental parameters such as ages, masses, and radii? What is their atmospheric physics?), and their connection to stars and planets. The full legacy potential of Gaia in the realm of brown dwarf science will be realized when combined with other detection and characterization programs, both from the ground and in space.
Trigonometric parallax determinations are presented for 28 late type dwarfs and brown dwarfs, including eight M dwarfs with spectral types between M7 and M9.5, 17 L dwarfs with spectral types between L0 and L8, and three T dwarfs. Broadband photometry at CCD wavelengths (VRIz) and/or near-IR wavelengths (JHK) are presented for these objects and for 24 additional late-type dwarfs. Supplemented with astrometry and photometry from the literature, including ten L and two T dwarfs with parallaxes established by association with bright, usually HIPPARCOS primaries, this material forms the basis for studying various color-color and color-absolute magnitude relations. The I-J color is a good predictor of absolute magnitude for late-M and L dwarfs. M_J becomes monotonically fainter with I-J color and with spectral type through late-L dwarfs, then brightens for early-T dwarfs. The combination of zJK colors alone can be used to classify late-M, early-L, and T dwarfs accurately, and to predict their absolute magnitudes, but is less effective at untangling the scatter among mid- and late-L dwarfs. The mean tangential velocity of these objects is found to be slightly less than that for dM stars in the solar neighborhood, consistent with a sample with a mean age of several Gyr. Using colors to estimate bolometric corrections, and models to estimate stellar radii, effective temperatures are derived. The latest L dwarfs are found to have T_eff ~ 1360 K.
Context: The current sample of known brown dwarfs (BDs) around FGK-stars is only of the order of a hundred. The ongoing ESA mission Gaia has already collected its nominal 5 yr of mission data and might operate up to 10 yr. Aims: Using detailed simulations, we estimate the number of BDs that could be discovered by Gaia astrometry, radial velocity, and photometric transits around main sequence (V) and subgiants (IV) FGK host stars for a 5 and 10-yr mission. Methods: Using a robust $Delta chi^2$ statistic we analyse the BD companion detectability from the Besanc{c}on Galaxy population synthesis model complemented by Gaia DR2 data for the bright end, using the latest Gaia performance and scanning law, and literature-based BD-parameter distributions. Results: We report here reliable detection numbers ($Delta chi^2$>50) for a 5-yr [10-yr] mission. Astrometry alone yields 28,000-42,000 [45,000-55,000] detections out to several hundred pc [>kiloparsec], with the majority around G magnitude 14-15 [14-16] and P>200 d. Gaia radial velocity time series allow detection of 830-1100 [1500-1900] mainly massive BDs (55-80 M_J), most having P <10 d. Systems with at least 3 photometric transits (S/N>3) are expected for 720-1100 [1400-2300] BDs, averaging at 4-5 [5-6] transits per source. Overlap of astrometric and radial velocity detection yield 370-410 [870-950] candidates, transit and radial velocity 17-27 [35-56], and transit and astrometric detection 1-3 [4-6]. Conclusions: Though above numbers have +/- 50% uncertainty due to the uncertain occurrence rate and period distribution of BDs around FGK host stars, Gaia detections will number in the tens-of-thousands, enlarging the current sample by at least two orders of magnitude, allowing to investigate the BD fraction and orbital architectures as a function of host stellar parameters in greater detail than every before.
This chapter reviews our current knowledge of metal-poor ultracool dwarfs with spectral types later than M7. The current census of M, L, and T subdwarfs is explored. The main colour trends of subdwarfs from the optical to the mid-infrared are described and their spectral features presented, which led to a preliminary and tentative spectral classification subject to important changes in the future when more of these metal-poor objects are discovered. Their multiplicity and the determination of their physical parameters (effective temperature, gravity, metallicity, and mass) are discussed. Finally, some suggestions and future guidelines are proposed to foster our knowledge on the oldest and coolest members of our Galaxy.
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