No Arabic abstract
Recent observations have shown that a growing number of the most massive Galactic globular clusters contain multiple populations of stars with different [Fe/H] and neutron-capture element abundances. NGC 6273 has only recently been recognized as a member of this iron-complex cluster class, and we provide here a chemical and kinematic analysis of > 300 red giant branch (RGB) and asymptotic giant branch (AGB) member stars using high resolution spectra obtained with the Magellan-M2FS and VLT-FLAMES instruments. Multiple lines of evidence indicate that NGC 6273 possesses an intrinsic metallicity spread that ranges from about [Fe/H] = -2 to -1 dex, and may include at least three populations with different [Fe/H] values. The three populations identified here contain separate first (Na/Al-poor) and second (Na/Al-rich) generation stars, but a Mg-Al anti-correlation may only be present in stars with [Fe/H] > -1.65. The strong correlation between [La/Eu] and [Fe/H] suggests that the s-process must have dominated the heavy element enrichment at higher metallicities. A small group of stars with low [alpha/Fe] is identified and may have been accreted from a former surrounding field star population. The clusters large abundance variations are coupled with a complex, extended, and multimodal blue horizontal branch (HB). The HB morphology and chemical abundances suggest that NGC 6273 may have an origin that is similar to omega Cen and M 54.
We present chemical abundances for 17 elements in a sample of 11 red giant branch stars in NGC 6362 from UVES spectra. NGC 6362 is one of the least massive globulars where multiple populations have been detected, yet its detailed chemical composition has not been investigated so far. NGC 6362 turns out to be a metal-intermediate ([Fe/H]=-1.07pm0.01 dex) cluster, with its alpha- and Fe-peak elements content compatible with that observed in clusters with similar metallicity. It also displays an enhancement in its s-process element abundances. Among the light elements involved in the multiple populations phenomenon, only [Na/Fe] shows star-to-star variations, while [Al/Fe] and [Mg/Fe] do not show any evidence for abundance spreads. A differential comparison with M4, a globular cluster with similar mass and metallicity, reveals that the two clusters share the same chemical composition. This finding suggests that NGC 6362 is indeed a regular cluster, formed from gas that has experienced the same chemical enrichment of other clusters with similar metallicity.
NGC5824 is a massive Galactic globular cluster suspected to have an intrinsic spread in its iron content, according to the strength of the calcium triplet lines. We present chemical abundances of 117 cluster giant stars using high-resolution spectra acquired with the multi-object spectrograph FLAMES. The metallicity distribution of 87 red giant branch stars is peaked at [Fe/H]=-2.11+-0.01 dex, while that derived from 30 asymptotic giant branch stars is peaked at [Fe/H]=-2.20+-0.01 dex. Both the distributions are compatible with a null spread, pointing out that this cluster did not retain the ejecta of supernovae. The small iron abundance offset between the two groups of stars is similar to those already observed among red and asymptotic giant branch stars in other clusters. The lack of intrinsic iron spread rules out the possibility that NGC5824 is the remnant of a disrupted dwarf galaxy, as previously suggested. We also find evidence of the chemical anomalies usually observed in globular clusters, namely the Na-O and the Mg-Al anticorrelations. In particular, NGC5824 exhibits a huge range of [Mg/Fe] abundance, observed only in a few metal-poor and/or massive clusters. We conclude that NGC5824 is a normal globular cluster, without spread in [Fe/H] but with an unusually large spread in [Mg/Fe], possibly due to an efficient self-enrichment driven by massive asymptotic giant branch stars.
Globular Clusters (GCs) are natural laboratories where stellar and chemical evolution can be studied in detail. In addition, their chemical patterns and kinematics can tell us wich Galactic structure (Disk, Bulge, Halo or extragalactic) the cluster belongs to. NGC 5927 is one of most metal-rich GCs in the Galaxy and its kinematics links it to the Thick Disk. We present abundance analysis based on high resolution spectra of 7 giant stars. The data were obtained using FLAMES/UVES spectrograph mounted on UT2 telescope of the European Southern Observatory. The principal motivation of this work is to perform a wide and detailed chemical abundance analysis of the cluster and look for possible Multiple Populations (MPs). We determined stellar parameters and measured 22 elements corresponding to light (Na, Al), alpha (O, Mg, Si, Ca, Ti), iron-peak (Sc, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn) and heavy elements (Y, Zr, Ba, Ce, Nd, Eu). We found a mean iron content of [Fe/H]=-0.47 $pm$0.02 (error on the mean). We confirm the existence of MPs in this GC with an O-Na anti-correlation, and moderate spread in Al abundances. We estimate a mean [$alpha$/Fe]=0.25 $pm$0.08. Iron-peak elements shows no significant spread. The [Ba/Eu] ratios indicate a predominant contribution from SNeII for the formation of the cluster.
We present our detailed spectroscopic analysis of the chemical composition of four red giant stars in the halo globular cluster NGC 6426. We obtained high-resolution spectra using the Magellan2/MIKE spectrograph, from which we derived equivalent widths and subsequently computed abundances of 24 species of 22 chemical elements. For the purpose of measuring equivalent widths, we developed a new semi-automated tool, called EWCODE. We report a mean Fe content of [Fe/H] = -2.34$pm$0.05 dex (stat.) in accordance with previous studies. At a mean $alpha$-abundance of [(Mg,Si,Ca)/3 Fe] = 0.39$pm$0.03 dex, NGC 6426 falls on the trend drawn by the Milky Way halo and other globular clusters at comparably low metallicities. The distribution of the lighter $alpha$-elements as well as the enhanced ratio [Zn/Fe] = 0.39 dex could originate from hypernova enrichment of the pre-cluster medium. We find tentative evidence for a spread in the elements Mg, Si, and Zn, indicating an enrichment scenario, where ejecta of evolved massive stars of a slightly older population polluted a newly born younger one. The heavy element abundances in this cluster fit well into the picture of metal-poor globular clusters, which in that respect appear to be remarkably homogeneous. The pattern of the neutron-capture elements heavier than Zn point towards an enrichment history governed by the r-process with only little -if any- sign of s-process contributions. This finding is supported by the striking similarity of our program stars to the metal-poor field star HD 108317.