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Based on high-quality Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) DR17 and Gaia DR3 data for 1742 red giants stars within 5 kpc of the Sun and not rotating with the Galactic disk ( V ϕ  < 100 km s −1 ), we used the nonlinear technique of unsupervised analysis t-Distributed Stochastic Neighbor Embedding (t-SNE) to detect coherent structures in the space of ten chemical-abundance ratios: [Fe/H], [O/Fe], [Mg/Fe], [Si/Fe], [Ca/Fe], [C/Fe], [N/Fe], [Al/Fe], [Mn/Fe], and [Ni/Fe]. Additionally, we obtained orbital parameters for each star using the nonaxisymmetric gravitational potential GravPot16 . Seven structures are detected, including Splash, Gaia-Sausage-Enceladus (GSE), the high- α heated-disk population, N-C-O peculiar stars, and inner disk-like stars, plus two other groups that did not match anything previously reported in the literature, here named Galileo 5 and Galileo 6 (G5 and G6). These two groups overlap with Splash in [Fe/H], with G5 having a lower metallicity than G6, and they are both between GSE and Splash in the [Mg/Mn] versus [Al/Fe] plane, with G5 being in the α -rich in situ locus and G6 on the border of the α -poor in situ one. Nonetheless, their low [Ni/Fe] hints at a possible ex situ origin. Their orbital energy distributions are between Splash and GSE, with G5 being slightly more energetic than G6. We verified the robustness of all the obtained groups by exploring a large range of t-SNE parameters, applying it to various subsets of data, and also measuring the effect of abundance errors through Monte Carlo tests. 

This study presents the results concerning six red giant stars members of the globular cluster NGC 6558. Our analysis utilized high-resolution near-infrared spectra obtained through the CAPOS initiative (the APOgee Survey of Clusters in the Galactic Bulge), which focuses on surveying clusters within the Galactic Bulge, as a component of the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment II survey (APOGEE-2). We employ the Brussels Automatic Code for Characterizing High accUracy Spectra (BACCHUS) code to provide line-by-line elemental-abundances for Fe-peak (Fe, Ni), α-(O, Mg, Si, Ca, Ti), light-(C, N), odd-Z (Al), and the s-process element (Ce) for the four stars with high-signal-to-noise ratios. This is the first reliable measure of the CNO abundances for NGC 6558. Our analysis yields a mean metallicity for NGC 6558 of 〈[Fe/H]〉 = −1.15 ± 0.08, with no evidence for a metallicity spread. We find a Solar Ni abundance, 〈[Ni/Fe]〉 ∼ +0.01, and a moderate enhancement of α-elements, ranging between +0.16 and <+0.42, and a slight enhancement of the s-process element 〈[Ce/Fe]〉 ∼ +0.19. We also found low levels of 〈[Al/Fe]〉 ∼ +0.09, but with a strong enrichment of nitrogen, [N/Fe] > +0.99, along with a low level of carbon, [C/Fe] < −0.12. This behaviour of Nitrogen-Carbon is a typical chemical signature for the presence of multiple stellar populations in virtually all GCs; this is the first time that it is reported in NGC 6558. We also observed a remarkable consistency in the behaviour of all the chemical species compared to the other CAPOS bulge GCs of the same metallicity.

 

This is the third paper in a series that attempts to observe a clear signature of the Galactic bar/bulge using kinematic observations of the bulge stellar populations in low foreground extinction windows. We report on the detection of ∼100 000 new proper motions in four fields covering the far side of the Galactic bar/bulge, at negative longitudes. Our proper motions have been obtained using observations from the Advance Camera for Surveys (ACS), on board of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), with a time-baseline of 8–9 years, which has produced accuracies better than 0.5 mas yr−1 for a significant fraction of the stellar populations with F814W < 23 mag. Interestingly, as shown in previous works, the Hess diagrams show a strikingly similar proper motion distribution to fields closer to the Galactic center and consistent with an old stellar population. The observed kinematics point to a significant bulge rotation, which seems to predominate even in fields as far as l ≃ −8°, and is also reflected in the changes of the velocity ellipsoid in the l, b plane as a function of distance.

 

We introduce the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)/ Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) value-added catalogue of Galactic globular cluster (GC) stars. The catalogue is the result of a critical search of the APOGEE Data Release 17 (DR17) catalogue for candidate members of all known Galactic GCs. Candidate members are assigned to various GCs on the basis of position in the sky, proper motion, and radial velocity. The catalogue contains a total of 7737 entries for 6422 unique stars associated with 72 Galactic GCs. Full APOGEE DR17 information is provided, including radial velocities and abundances for up to 20 elements. Membership probabilities estimated on the basis of precision radial velocities are made available. Comparisons with chemical compositions derived from the GALactic Archaeology with HERMES (GALAH) survey, as well as optical values from the literature, show good agreement. This catalogue represents a significant increase in the public data base of GC star chemical compositions and kinematics, providing a massive homogeneous data set that will enable a variety of studies. The catalogue in fits format is available for public download from the SDSS-IV DR17 value-added catalogue website.

 

Abstract We present a spectroscopic analysis of a sample of 48 M-dwarf stars (0.2 M ⊙ < M < 0.6 M ⊙ ) from the Hyades open cluster using high-resolution H -band spectra from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey/Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) survey. Our methodology adopts spectrum synthesis with LTE MARCS model atmospheres, along with the APOGEE Data Release 17 line list, to determine effective temperatures, surface gravities, metallicities, and projected rotational velocities. The median metallicity obtained for the Hyades M dwarfs is [M/H] = 0.09 ± 0.03 dex, indicating a small internal uncertainty and good agreement with optical results for Hyades red giants. Overall, the median radii are larger than predicted by stellar models by 1.6% ± 2.3% and 2.4% ± 2.3%, relative to a MIST and DARTMOUTH isochrone, respectively. We emphasize, however, that these isochrones are different, and the fractional radius inflation for the fully and partially convective regimes have distinct behaviors depending on the isochrone. Using a MIST isochrone there is no evidence of radius inflation for the fully convective stars, while for the partially convective M dwarfs the radii are inflated by 2.7% ± 2.1%, which is in agreement with predictions from models that include magnetic fields. For the partially convective stars, rapid rotators present on average higher inflation levels than slow rotators. The comparison with SPOTS isochrone models indicates that the derived M-dwarf radii can be explained by accounting for stellar spots in the photosphere of the stars, with 76% of the studied M dwarfs having up to 20% spot coverage, and the most inflated stars with ∼20%–40% spot coverage. 

Context. The recent and exquisite astrometric, photometric, and radial velocity measurements of the Gaia mission resulted in a substantial advancement of the determination of the orbits for old star clusters, including the oldest Milky Way globular clusters (MW GCs). Aims. The main goal of the present paper is to use the new Gaia data release 3 (DR3) and the VISTA Variables in the Via Láctea Extended Survey (VVVX) measurements to obtain the orbits for nearly a dozen new MW GC candidates that have been poorly studied or previously unexplored. Methods. We use the Gaia DR3 and VVVX databases to identify bona fide MW GC candidates, namely VVV-CL160, Patchick 122, Patchick 125, Patchick 126, Kronberger 99, Kronberger 119, Kronberger 143, ESO 92-18, ESO 93-08, Gaia 2, and Ferrero 54. The relevant mean cluster physical parameters are derived (distances, Galactic coordinates, proper motions, radial velocities). We also measure accurate mean radial velocities for the GCs VVV-CL160 and Patchick 126 using observations acquired at the Gemini-South telescope with the Immersion GRating INfrared Spectrometer (IGRINS) high-resolution spectrograph. Orbits for each cluster are then computed using the GravPot16 model, assuming typical Galactic bar pattern speeds. Results. We reconstruct the orbits for these 11 star clusters for the first time. These include star clusters with retrograde and prograde orbital motions, both in the Galactic bulge and disk. We obtain orbital properties for this sample, such as the mean time-variations of perigalactic and apogalactic distances, eccentricities, vertical excursions from the Galactic plane, and Z -components of the angular momentum. Conclusions. Our main conclusion is that, based on the orbital parameters, Patchick 125 and Patchick 126 are genuine MW bulge or halo GCs; and Ferrero 54, Gaia 2, and Patchick 122 are MW disk GCs. In contrast, the orbits of Kronberger 99, Kronberger 119, Kronberger 143, ESO 92-18, and ESO 93-08 are more consistent with old MW disk open clusters, in agreement with previous results. VVV-CL160 falls very close to the Galactic centre, but reaches larger distances beyond the Solar orbit, and therefore its origin is still unclear. 

We present new maps of the Milky Way disk showing the distribution of metallicity ([Fe/H]),α-element abundances ([Mg/Fe]), and stellar age, using a sample of 66,496 red giant stars from the final data release (DR17) of the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment survey. We measure radial and vertical gradients, quantify the distribution functions for age and metallicity, and explore chemical clock relations across the Milky Way for the low-αdisk, high-αdisk, and total population independently. The low-αdisk exhibits a negative radial metallicity gradient of −0.06 ± 0.001 dex kpc⁻¹, which flattens with distance from the midplane. The high-αdisk shows a flat radial gradient in metallicity and age across nearly all locations of the disk. The age and metallicity distribution functions shift from negatively skewed in the inner Galaxy to positively skewed at large radius. Significant bimodality in the [Mg/Fe]–[Fe/H] plane and in the [Mg/Fe]–age relation persist across the entire disk. The age estimates have typical uncertainties of ∼0.15 in log(age) and may be subject to additional systematic errors, which impose limitations on conclusions drawn from this sample. Nevertheless, these results act as critical constraints on galactic evolution models, constraining which physical processes played a dominant role in the formation of the Milky Way disk. We discuss how radial migration predicts many of the observed trends near the solar neighborhood and in the outer disk, but an additional more dramatic evolution history, such as the multi-infall model or a merger event, is needed to explain the chemical and age bimodality elsewhere in the Galaxy.

 

Stellar radial migration plays an important role in reshaping a galaxy’s structure and the radial distribution of stellar population properties. In this work, we revisit reported observational evidence for radial migration and quantify its strength using the age–[Fe/H] distribution of stars across the Milky Way with APOGEE data. We find a broken age–[Fe/H] relation in the Galactic disc at r > 6 kpc, with a more pronounced break at larger radii. To quantify the strength of radial migration, we assume stars born at each radius have a unique age and metallicity, and then decompose the metallicity distribution function (MDF) of mono-age young populations into different Gaussian components that originated from various birth radii at rbirth < 13 kpc. We find that, at ages of 2 and 3 Gyr, roughly half the stars were formed within 1 kpc of their present radius, and very few stars (<5 per cent) were formed more than 4 kpc away from their present radius. These results suggest limited short-distance radial migration and inefficient long-distance migration in the Milky Way during the last 3 Gyr. In the very outer disc beyond 15 kpc, the observed age–[Fe/H] distribution is consistent with the prediction of pure radial migration from smaller radii, suggesting a migration origin of the very outer disc. We also estimate intrinsic metallicity gradients at ages of 2 and 3 Gyr of −0.061 and −0.063 dex kpc−1, respectively.

 

We present, for the first time, the relationship between local stellar mass surface density, Σ_*, and N/O derived from SDSS-IV MaNGA data, using a sample of 792,765 high signal-to-noise ratio star-forming spaxels. Using a combination of phenomenological modeling and partial correlation analysis, we find that Σ_*alone is insufficient to predict the N/O in MaNGA spaxels and that there is an additional dependence on the local star formation rate surface density, Σ_SFR. This effect is a factor of 3 stronger than the dependence of 12+log(O/H) on Σ_SFR. Surprisingly, we find that the local N/O scaling relations also depend on the total galaxy stellar mass at fixed Σ_*and the galaxy size at fixed stellar mass. We find that more compact galaxies are more nitrogen rich, even when Σ_*and Σ_SFRare controlled for. We show that ∼50% of the variance of N/O is explained by the total stellar mass and size. Thus, the evolution of nitrogen in galaxies is set by more than just local effects and does not simply track the buildup of oxygen in galaxies. The precise form of the N/O–O/H relation is therefore sensitive to the sample of galaxies from which it is derived. This result casts doubt on the universal applicability of nitrogen-based strong-line metallicity indicators derived in the local universe.

 

The spatial distribution of mono-abundance populations (MAPs, selected in [Fe/H] and [Mg/Fe]) reflect the chemical and structural evolution in a galaxy and impose strong constraints on galaxy formation models. In this paper, we use APOGEE data to derive the intrinsic density distribution of MAPs in the Milky Way, after carefully considering the survey selection function. We find that a single exponential profile is not a sufficient description of the Milky Way’s disc. Both the individual MAPs and the integrated disc exhibit a broken radial density distribution; densities are relatively constant with radius in the inner Galaxy and rapidly decrease beyond the break radius. We fit the intrinsic density distribution as a function of radius and vertical height with a 2D density model that considers both a broken radial profile and radial variation of scale height (i.e. flaring). There is a large variety of structural parameters between different MAPs, indicative of strong structure evolution of the Milky Way. One surprising result is that high-α MAPs show the strongest flaring. The young, solar-abundance MAPs present the shortest scale height and least flaring, suggesting recent and ongoing star formation confined to the disc plane. Finally we derive the intrinsic density distribution and corresponding structural parameters of the chemically defined thin and thick discs. The chemical thick and thin discs have local surface mass densities of 5.62 ± 0.08 and 15.69 ± 0.32 M⊙pc−2, respectively, suggesting a massive thick disc with a local surface mass density ratio between thick to thin disc of 36 per cent.