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 Kinematic structure of the corona of the Ursa Major flow found using proper motions and radial velocities of single starsAims.We study the kinematic structure of peripheral areas of the UrsaMajoris stream (Sirius supercluster). Methods.We use diagrams ofindividual stellar apexes developed by us and the classical technique ofproper motion diagrams generalized to a star sample distributed over thesky. Results.Out of 128 cluster members we have identified threecorona (sub)structures comprised of 13, 13 and 8 stars. Thesubstructures have a spatial extension comparable to the size of thecorona. Kinematically, these groups are distinguished by their propermotions, radial velocities and by the directions of their spatialmotion. Coordinates of their apexes significantly differ from those ofthe apexes of the stream and its nucleus. Our analysis shows that thesesubstructures do not belong to known kinematic groups, such as Hyades orCastor. We find kinematic inhomogeneity of the corona of the UMa stream. Wavefront outer scale deduced from interferometric dispersed fringesIn addition to site characterization, measurements of criticalatmospheric parameters are required to design and to optimize futureadaptive optic systems and long-baseline interferometers. It is possibleto estimate seeing conditions by processing data obtained with existingHigh Angular Resolution instruments. We report the results of jointobservations with the GI2T interferometer and the GSM site-testingmonitor performed over a period of several nights.We compared estimates of the wavefront outer scale done at variousbaselines as well as the seeing (Fried's parameter). We processedinterferometric data by calculating power spectra of dispersed fringeimages. Deduced measurements of the optical path difference lead to theestimates of the outer scale. We found that the outer scale valuesobtained from the GI2T data are mostly in the 5-30m range, in goodagreement with GSM measurements. Decay of Planetary Debris DisksWe report new Spitzer 24 μm photometry of 76 main-sequence A-typestars. We combine these results with previously reported Spitzer 24μm data and 24 and 25 μm photometry from the Infrared SpaceObservatory and the Infrared Astronomy Satellite. The result is a sampleof 266 stars with mass close to 2.5 Msolar, all detected toat least the ~7 σ level relative to their photospheric emission.We culled ages for the entire sample from the literature and/orestimated them using the H-R diagram and isochrones; they range from 5to 850 Myr. We identified excess thermal emission using an internallyderived K-24 (or 25) μm photospheric color and then compared allstars in the sample to that color. Because we have excluded stars withstrong emission lines or extended emission (associated with nearbyinterstellar gas), these excesses are likely to be generated by debrisdisks. Younger stars in the sample exhibit excess thermal emission morefrequently and with higher fractional excess than do the older stars.However, as many as 50% of the younger stars do not show excessemission. The decline in the magnitude of excess emission, for thosestars that show it, has a roughly t0/time dependence, witht0~150 Myr. If anything, stars in binary systems (includingAlgol-type stars) and λ Boo stars show less excess emission thanthe other members of the sample. Our results indicate that (1) there issubstantial variety among debris disks, including that a significantnumber of stars emerge from the protoplanetary stage of evolution withlittle remaining disk in the 10-60 AU region and (2) in addition, it islikely that much of the dust we detect is generated episodically bycollisions of large planetesimals during the planet accretion end game,and that individual events often dominate the radiometric properties ofa debris system. This latter behavior agrees generally with what we knowabout the evolution of the solar system, and also with theoreticalmodels of planetary system formation. L and T brown dwarfs in the Ursa Major moving groupWe have applied the moving cluster'' method to an archive of L and Tbrown dwarf stars to identify those stars which are members of the UrsaMajor moving group. We show that five stars have proper motiondirections which agree with the direction of motion expected for acluster member, and which have proper motion distances in agreement withdistances determined by trigonometrical parallax observations. We thenuse 2MASS data to produce an M_K versus J-K_S colour magnitude diagram.The group members define an empirical 400 Myr isochrone, which iscompared to theoretical models. This is the first cluster/group to havea known T dwarf member. A new look at the position of the 1604 Supernova (V843 Ophiuchi)The position of the supernova of 1604 (V843 Oph) is re-assessed, withrelevant discussion pertaining to the present-day remnant, 3C 358. CHARM2: An updated Catalog of High Angular Resolution MeasurementsWe present an update of the Catalog of High Angular ResolutionMeasurements (CHARM, Richichi & Percheron \cite{CHARM}, A&A,386, 492), which includes results available until July 2004. CHARM2 is acompilation of direct measurements by high angular resolution methods,as well as indirect estimates of stellar diameters. Its main goal is toprovide a reference list of sources which can be used for calibrationand verification observations with long-baseline optical and near-IRinterferometers. Single and binary stars are included, as are complexobjects from circumstellar shells to extragalactic sources. The presentupdate provides an increase of almost a factor of two over the previousedition. Additionally, it includes several corrections and improvements,as well as a cross-check with the valuable public release observationsof the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). A total of 8231entries for 3238 unique sources are now present in CHARM2. Thisrepresents an increase of a factor of 3.4 and 2.0, respectively, overthe contents of the previous version of CHARM.The catalog is only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/431/773 A catalog of stellar magnetic rotational phase curvesMagnetized stars usually exhibit periodic variations of the effective(longitudinal) magnetic field Be caused by their rotation. Wepresent a catalog of magnetic rotational phase curves, Be vs.the rotational phase φ, and tables of their parameters for 136stars on the main sequence and above it. Phase curves were obtained bythe least squares fitting of sine wave or double wave functions to theavailable Be measurements, which were compiled from theexisting literature. Most of the catalogued objects are chemicallypeculiar A and B type stars (127 stars). For some stars we also improvedor determined periods of their rotation. We discuss the distribution ofparameters describing magnetic rotational phase curves in our sample.All tables and Appendix A are only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org A fossil origin for the magnetic field in A stars and white dwarfsSome main-sequence stars of spectral type A are observed to have astrong (0.03-3tesla), static, large-scale magnetic field, of a chieflydipolar shape: they are known as Ap stars', such as Alioth, the fifthstar in the Big Dipper. Following the discovery of these fields, it wasproposed that they are remnants of the star's formation, a fossil'field. An alternative suggestion is that they could be generated by adynamo process in the star's convective core. The dynamo hypothesis,however, has difficulty explaining high field strengths and the observedlack of a correlation with rotation. The weakness of the fossil-fieldtheory has been the absence of field configurations stable enough tosurvive in a star over its lifetime. Here we report numericalsimulations that show that stable magnetic field configurations, withproperties agreeing with those observed, can develop through evolutionfrom arbitrary, unstable initial fields. The results are applicableequally to Ap stars, magnetic white dwarfs and some highly magnetizedneutron stars known as magnetars. This establishes fossil fields as thenatural, unifying explanation for the magnetism of all these stars. A Tight Upper Limit on Oscillations in the Ap Star ɛ Ursae Majoris from WIRE PhotometryObservations of ɛ UMa obtained with the star tracker on the WideField Infrared Explorer satellite during a month in mid-2000 areanalyzed. This is some of the most precise photometry of an Ap star. Theamplitude spectrum is used to set an upper limit of 75 parts per millionfor the amplitude of stellar pulsations in this star unless bycoincidence it oscillates with a single mode at the satellite orbit, itsharmonics, or their 1 day-1 aliases. This is the tightestlimit put on the amplitude of oscillations in an Ap star. As therotation period of ɛ UMa is relatively short (5.1 days), it cannotbe argued that the observations were made at a wrong rotational phase.Our results thus support the idea that some Ap stars do not pulsate atall. Nearby stars of the Galactic disk and halo. III.High-resolution spectroscopic observations of about 150 nearby stars orstar systems are presented and discussed. The study of these and another100 objects of the previous papers of this series implies that theGalaxy became reality 13 or 14 Gyr ago with the implementation of amassive, rotationally-supported population of thick-disk stars. The veryhigh star formation rate in that phase gave rise to a rapid metalenrichment and an expulsion of gas in supernovae-driven Galactic winds,but was followed by a star formation gap for no less than three billionyears at the Sun's galactocentric distance. In a second phase, then, thethin disk - our familiar Milky Way'' - came on stage. Nowadays ittraces the bright side of the Galaxy, but it is also embedded in a hugecoffin of dead thick-disk stars that account for a large amount ofbaryonic dark matter. As opposed to this, cold-dark-matter-dominatedcosmologies that suggest a more gradual hierarchical buildup throughmergers of minor structures, though popular, are a poor description forthe Milky Way Galaxy - and by inference many other spirals as well - if,as the sample implies, the fossil records of its long-lived stars do notstick to this paradigm. Apart from this general picture that emergeswith reference to the entire sample stars, a good deal of the presentwork is however also concerned with detailed discussions of manyindividual objects. Among the most interesting we mention the bluestraggler or merger candidates HD 165401 and HD 137763/HD 137778, thelikely accretion of a giant planet or brown dwarf on 59 Vir in itsrecent history, and HD 63433 that proves to be a young solar analog at\tau200 Myr. Likewise, the secondary to HR 4867, formerly suspectednon-single from the Hipparcos astrometry, is directly detectable in thehigh-resolution spectroscopic tracings, whereas the visual binary \chiCet is instead at least triple, and presumably even quadruple. Withrespect to the nearby young stars a complete account of the Ursa MajorAssociation is presented, and we provide as well plain evidence foranother, the Hercules-Lyra Association'', the likely existence ofwhich was only realized in recent years. On account of its rotation,chemistry, and age we do confirm that the Sun is very typical among itsG-type neighbors; as to its kinematics, it appears however not unlikelythat the Sun's known low peculiar space velocity could indeed be thecause for the weak paleontological record of mass extinctions and majorimpact events on our parent planet during the most recent Galactic planepassage of the solar system. Although the significance of thiscorrelation certainly remains a matter of debate for years to come, wepoint in this context to the principal importance of the thick disk fora complete census with respect to the local surface and volumedensities. Other important effects that can be ascribed to this darkstellar population comprise (i) the observed plateau in the shape of theluminosity function of the local FGK stars, (ii) a small thoughsystematic effect on the basic solar motion, (iii) a reassessment of theterm asymmetrical drift velocity'' for the remainder (i.e. the thindisk) of the stellar objects, (iv) its ability to account for the bulkof the recently discovered high-velocity blue white dwarfs, (v) itsmajor contribution to the Sun's 220 km s-1 rotationalvelocity around the Galactic center, and (vi) the significant flatteningthat it imposes on the Milky Way's rotation curve. Finally we note ahigh multiplicity fraction in the small but volume-complete local sampleof stars of this ancient population. This in turn is highly suggestivefor a star formation scenario wherein the few existing single stellarobjects might only arise from either late mergers or the dynamicalejection of former triple or higher level star systems. The distribution of oxygen on the surface of the Ap star θ Aur. An abundance Doppler image to compare with ɛ UMaWe present a Doppler Image of the oxygen abundance distribution over thesurface of the star θ Aur. The symmetry of the oxygendistribution appears to be consistent with the magnetic fieldobservations such that the oxygen is highly depleted at the magneticpoles. In contrast to the star ɛ UMa, where the oxygen displayedundepleted solar abundance in a band around the magnetic equator, forθ Aur the instances of more normal solar levels of abundanceoccur in bands midway between the magnetic poles and the magneticequator. The oxygen abundance at the magnetic equator is only mildlydepleted for θ Aur. It is suggested that the oxygen abundancedistribution is consistent with a global field that has a strongquadrupolar component. A detailed comparison is made between the oxygenabundance distribution and that of the distribution of chromium asmapped by Hatzes (\cite{h1}). A striking asymmetry is apparent in thecontrasting behaviour of the oxygen and chromium abundance pattern atthe two magnetic poles. Stellar activity and magnetism studied by optical interferometryBy means of numerical simulations, we investigate the ability of opticalinterferometry, via the fringe phase observable, to address stellaractivity and magnetism. To derive abundance maps and stellar rotationaxes, we use color differential interferometry which couples highangular resolution to high spectral resolution. To constrain magneticfield topologies, we add to this spectro-interferometer a polarimetricmode. Two cases of well-known Chemically Peculiar (CP) stars (βCrBand α2CVn) are simulated to derive instrumentalrequirements to obtain 2D-maps of abundance inhomogeneities and magneticfields. We conclude that the near-infrared instrument AMBER of the VLTIwill allow us to locate abundance inhomogeneities of CP stars largerthan a fraction of milliarcsecond whereas the polarimetric mode of theFrench GI2T/REGAIN interferometer would permit one to disentanglevarious magnetic field topologies on CP stars. We emphasize the crucialneed for developing and validating inversion algorithms so that futureinstruments on optical aperture synthesis arrays can be optimally used. Some Comments on the Magnetic Braking of CP StarsThe low rotation velocities of magnetic CP stars are discussed.Arguments against the involvement of the magnetic field in the loss ofangular momentum are given: (1) the fields are not strong enough inyoung stars in the stage of evolution prior to the main sequence; (2)there is no significant statistical correlation between the magneticfield strength and the rotation period of CP stars; (3) stars with shortperiods have the highest fields; (4) a substantial number of stars withvery low magnetic fields (B e P>25 days, which form 12% of the total,probably lie at the edge of the velocity distribution for low massstars. All of these properties conflict with the hypothesis of magneticbraking of CP stars. Contributions to the Nearby Stars (NStars) Project: Spectroscopy of Stars Earlier than M0 within 40 Parsecs: The Northern Sample. I.We have embarked on a project, under the aegis of the Nearby Stars(NStars)/Space Interferometry Mission Preparatory Science Program, toobtain spectra, spectral types, and, where feasible, basic physicalparameters for the 3600 dwarf and giant stars earlier than M0 within 40pc of the Sun. In this paper, we report on the results of this projectfor the first 664 stars in the northern hemisphere. These resultsinclude precise, homogeneous spectral types, basic physical parameters(including the effective temperature, surface gravity, and overallmetallicity [M/H]), and measures of the chromospheric activity of ourprogram stars. Observed and derived data presented in this paper arealso available on the project's Web site. Stellar Kinematic Groups. II. A Reexamination of the Membership, Activity, and Age of the Ursa Major GroupUtilizing Hipparcos parallaxes, original radial velocities and recentliterature values, new Ca II H and K emission measurements,literature-based abundance estimates, and updated photometry (includingrecent resolved measurements of close doubles), we revisit the UrsaMajor moving group membership status of some 220 stars to produce afinal clean list of nearly 60 assured members, based on kinematic andphotometric criteria. Scatter in the velocity dispersions and H-Rdiagram is correlated with trial activity-based membership assignments,indicating the usefulness of criteria based on photometric andchromospheric emission to examine membership. Closer inspection,however, shows that activity is considerably more robust at excludingmembership, failing to do so only for <=15% of objects, perhapsconsiderably less. Our UMa members demonstrate nonzero vertex deviationin the Bottlinger diagram, behavior seen in older and recent studies ofnearby young disk stars and perhaps related to Galactic spiralstructure. Comparison of isochrones and our final UMa group membersindicates an age of 500+/-100 Myr, some 200 Myr older than thecanonically quoted UMa age. Our UMa kinematic/photometric members' meanchromospheric emission levels, rotational velocities, and scattertherein are indistinguishable from values in the Hyades and smaller thanthose evinced by members of the younger Pleiades and M34 clusters,suggesting these characteristics decline rapidly with age over 200-500Myr. None of our UMa members demonstrate inordinately low absolutevalues of chromospheric emission, but several may show residual fluxes afactor of >=2 below a Hyades-defined lower envelope. If one defines aMaunder-like minimum in a relative sense, then the UMa results maysuggest that solar-type stars spend 10% of their entire main-sequencelives in periods of precipitously low activity, which is consistent withestimates from older field stars. As related asides, we note six evolvedstars (among our UMa nonmembers) with distinctive kinematics that liealong a 2 Gyr isochrone and appear to be late-type counterparts to diskF stars defining intermediate-age star streams in previous studies,identify a small number of potentially very young but isolated fieldstars, note that active stars (whether UMa members or not) in our samplelie very close to the solar composition zero-age main sequence, unlikeHipparcos-based positions in the H-R diagram of Pleiades dwarfs, andargue that some extant transformations of activity indices are notadequate for cool dwarfs, for which Ca II infrared triplet emissionseems to be a better proxy than Hα-based values for Ca II H and Kindices. Catalogue of averaged stellar effective magnetic fields. I. Chemically peculiar A and B type starsThis paper presents the catalogue and the method of determination ofaveraged quadratic effective magnetic fields < B_e > for 596 mainsequence and giant stars. The catalogue is based on measurements of thestellar effective (or mean longitudinal) magnetic field strengths B_e,which were compiled from the existing literature.We analysed the properties of 352 chemically peculiar A and B stars inthe catalogue, including Am, ApSi, He-weak, He-rich, HgMn, ApSrCrEu, andall ApSr type stars. We have found that the number distribution of allchemically peculiar (CP) stars vs. averaged magnetic field strength isdescribed by a decreasing exponential function. Relations of this typehold also for stars of all the analysed subclasses of chemicalpeculiarity. The exponential form of the above distribution function canbreak down below about 100 G, the latter value representingapproximately the resolution of our analysis for A type stars.Table A.1 and its references are only available in electronic form atthe CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/407/631 and Tables 3 to 9are only available in electronic form at http://www.edpsciences.org Doppler Imaging of the Ap star epsilon Ursae Majoris: Ca, Cr, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ti, SrThe surface abundance structure of seven elements of the brightestchemically peculiar A-type star, epsilon Ursae Majoris (epsilon UMa,HD 112185, HR 4905) has been determined. Cr, Fe and, Mn are enhanced atthe magnetic polar region of epsilon UMa while they avoid the magneticequator. Sr seems to behave like Cr, Fe, and Mn, but is concentratedonly at one of the two magnetic poles. Ti, in contrast, is accumulatedat the magnetic equator and is depleted where Cr and Fe are accumulated,in accordance with theoretical predictions. Mg and Ca do not correlatewith the distribution of Cr, Fe, Mn, and Sr or with Ti. The surfacedistribution of Mn, Sr, Ti, and Mg was determined for the first time forthis star. A Doppler Imaging code was used that allows to analyseelements present in complex spectral line blends and thus to increasesignificantly the potential to map more elements. We compare our Cr andFe distributions to already published maps. The high consistency of ourresults, based on different observations and Doppler Imaging codes,proves the reliability of the different methods. Mg II Absorption Lines in z=2.974 Damped Lyα System toward Gravitationally Lensed QSO APM 08279+5255: Detection of Small-Scale Structure in Mg II Absorbing Clouds1.02-1.16 μm spectra (λ/Δλ~7000) of thegravitationally lensed quasi-stellar object (QSO) APM 08279+5255 atzem=3.911 were obtained during the commissioning run of IRCS,the 1-5 μm near-infrared camera and spectrograph for the Subaru 8.2 mTelescope. Strong Mg II doublet λλ2976, 2800 and Fe IIλ2600, Fe II λ2587 absorption lines atzabs=2.974 were clearly detected in the rest-frame UVspectra, confirming the presence of a damped Lyα system at theredshift as suggested by Petitjean et al. In addition, the Mg Iλ2853 absorption line is probably detected. An analysis of theabsorption lines including velocity decomposition was performed. This isa first detailed study of the Mg II absorption system at high redshift(z>2.5), where the Mg II doublet shifts into the near-infrared in theobserver's frame. The spectra of the lensed QSO pair A and B with 0.38"separation were resolved in some exposure frames under excellent seeingcondition. We extracted the Mg II doublet spectra of A and B separately.Although three velocity components (v~-28, +5, and +45 kms-1) are known to exist in this Mg II system (Petitjean etal.), the v~+45 km s-1 absorption line was not detectedtoward source B, showing that the +45 km s-1 Mg II cloud liesonly in the line of sight to the image A. Our results suggest that thesize of the Mg II absorbing clouds is as small as 200 pc, whichcorresponds to the separation of A and B at the redshift of theabsorber. This is the first direct detection of the small-scalestructure of Mg II clouds at high redshift, confirming the estimatedcloud sizes from the photoionization model by Churchill and Charlton.Based on data collected at Subaru Telescope, which is operated by theNational Astronomical Observatory of Japan. Doppler imaging of stellar surfaces - techniques and issuesThe development of Doppler imaging has allowed us to observe stellaractivity on the surface of stars other than the Sun for over a decade.We are now in a position to compare activity on rapidly rotating TTauri, RS CVn and young main-sequence stars and to compare the activityon those, in turn, with that of the Sun. The images produced show somestartling differences between stellar and solar activity. The strengthsand weakness of the Doppler imaging technique must be reviewed regularlyto remind us of what observed features are reliable and of when weshould have doubts. This review is a general survey of the techniqueemphasizing the issue of testing and of potential artifacts withoutattempting excessive detail on variations in application or results. Thedifficulties faced as the technique is extended from images of surfacetemperature or abundance to images that include magnetic information arebriefly surveyed. Magnetic survey of bright northern main sequence starsThe first results of a systematic search for magnetic fields in thebrightest upper main sequence (MS) stars are presented. The main goal isto survey the stars with about the same detection limit and to improveexisting statistics of their magnetism. The target list contains 57upper MS stars and represents well B0.5-F9 stars. High-resolution Zeemanspectra were obtained for 30 stars of the list. The accuracy of themagnetic field measurements ranges from 20 to 300 G depending mainly onspectral class. In the majority of studied stars we did not detectmagnetic fields. In some stars we suspect the presence of a weakmagnetic field. These are the best candidates for more extensivestudies. A particular case is the star chi Dra where we probablydetected the global magnetic field. The longitudinal field strength isB_l= -54+/-12 G. Further observations of this star are needed to confirmthe detection and to ascertain if the magnetic field is variable withthe period of rotation. Based on observations collected at the 1 mtelescope of the Special Astrophysical Observatory (Nizhnij Arkhyz,Russia). Multiplicity among chemically peculiar stars. II. Cool magnetic Ap starsWe present new orbits for sixteen Ap spectroscopic binaries, four ofwhich might in fact be Am stars, and give their orbital elements. Fourof them are SB2 systems: HD 5550, HD 22128, HD 56495 and HD 98088. Thetwelve other stars are: HD 9996, HD 12288, HD 40711, HD 54908, HD 65339,HD 73709, HD 105680, HD 138426, HD 184471, HD 188854, HD 200405 and HD216533. Rough estimates of the individual masses of the components of HD65339 (53 Cam) are given, combining our radial velocities with theresults of speckle interferometry and with Hipparcos parallaxes.Considering the mass functions of 74 spectroscopic binaries from thiswork and from the literature, we conclude that the distribution of themass ratio is the same for cool Ap stars and for normal G dwarfs.Therefore, the only differences between binaries with normal stars andthose hosting an Ap star lie in the period distribution: except for thecase of HD 200405, all orbital periods are longer than (or equal to) 3days. A consequence of this peculiar distribution is a deficit of nulleccentricities. There is no indication that the secondary has a specialnature, like e.g. a white dwarf. Based on observations collected at theObservatoire de Haute-Provence (CNRS), France.Tables 1 to 3 are only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/394/151Appendix B is only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org Rotational velocities of A-type stars in the northern hemisphere. II. Measurement of v sin iThis work is the second part of the set of measurements of v sin i forA-type stars, begun by Royer et al. (\cite{Ror_02a}). Spectra of 249 B8to F2-type stars brighter than V=7 have been collected at Observatoirede Haute-Provence (OHP). Fourier transforms of several line profiles inthe range 4200-4600 Å are used to derive v sin i from thefrequency of the first zero. Statistical analysis of the sampleindicates that measurement error mainly depends on v sin i and thisrelative error of the rotational velocity is found to be about 5% onaverage. The systematic shift with respect to standard values fromSlettebak et al. (\cite{Slk_75}), previously found in the first paper,is here confirmed. Comparisons with data from the literature agree withour findings: v sin i values from Slettebak et al. are underestimatedand the relation between both scales follows a linear law ensuremath vsin inew = 1.03 v sin iold+7.7. Finally, thesedata are combined with those from the previous paper (Royer et al.\cite{Ror_02a}), together with the catalogue of Abt & Morrell(\cite{AbtMol95}). The resulting sample includes some 2150 stars withhomogenized rotational velocities. Based on observations made atObservatoire de Haute Provence (CNRS), France. Tables \ref{results} and\ref{merging} are only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.125.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/393/897 CHARM: A Catalog of High Angular Resolution MeasurementsThe Catalog of High Angular Resolution Measurements (CHARM) includesmost of the measurements obtained by the techniques of lunaroccultations and long-baseline interferometry at visual and infraredwavelengths, which have appeared in the literature or have otherwisebeen made public until mid-2001. A total of 2432 measurements of 1625sources are included, along with extensive auxiliary information. Inparticular, visual and infrared photometry is included for almost allthe sources. This has been partly extracted from currently availablecatalogs, and partly obtained specifically for CHARM. The main aim is toprovide a compilation of sources which could be used as calibrators orfor science verification purposes by the new generation of largeground-based facilities such as the ESO Very Large Interferometer andthe Keck Interferometer. The Catalog is available in electronic form atthe CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/386/492, and from theauthors on CD-Rom. Astrometric radial velocities. III. Hipparcos measurements of nearby star clusters and associationsRadial motions of stars in nearby moving clusters are determined fromaccurate proper motions and trigonometric parallaxes, without any use ofspectroscopy. Assuming that cluster members share the same velocityvector (apart from a random dispersion), we apply a maximum-likelihoodmethod on astrometric data from Hipparcos to compute radial and spacevelocities (and their dispersions) in the Ursa Major, Hyades, ComaBerenices, Pleiades, and Praesepe clusters, and for theScorpius-Centaurus, alpha Persei, and HIP 98321'' associations. Theradial motion of the Hyades cluster is determined to within 0.4 kms-1 (standard error), and that of its individual stars towithin 0.6 km s-1. For other clusters, Hipparcos data yieldastrometric radial velocities with typical accuracies of a few kms-1. A comparison of these astrometric values withspectroscopic radial velocities in the literature shows a good generalagreement and, in the case of the best-determined Hyades cluster, alsopermits searches for subtle astrophysical differences, such as evidencefor enhanced convective blueshifts of F-dwarf spectra, and decreasedgravitational redshifts in giants. Similar comparisons for the ScorpiusOB2 complex indicate some expansion of its associations, albeit slowerthan expected from their ages. As a by-product from the radial-velocitysolutions, kinematically improved parallaxes for individual stars areobtained, enabling Hertzsprung-Russell diagrams with unprecedentedaccuracy in luminosity. For the Hyades (parallax accuracy 0.3 mas), itsmain sequence resembles a thin line, possibly with wiggles in it.Although this main sequence has underpopulated regions at certaincolours (previously suggested to be Böhm-Vitense gaps''), suchare not visible for other clusters, and are probably spurious. Futurespace astrometry missions carry a great potential for absoluteradial-velocity determinations, insensitive to the complexities ofstellar spectra. Based on observations by the ESA Hipparcos satellite.Extended versions of Tables \ref{tab1} and \ref{tab2} are available inelectronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr(130.79.125.8) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/381/446 Ages of A-Type Vega-like Stars from uvbyβ PhotometryWe have estimated the ages of a sample of A-type Vega-like stars byusing Strömgren uvbyβ photometric data and theoreticalevolutionary tracks. We find that 13% of these A stars have beenreported as Vega-like stars in the literature and that the ages of thissubset run the gamut from very young (50 Myr) to old (1 Gyr), with noobvious age difference compared to those of field A stars. We clearlyshow that the fractional IR luminosity decreases with the ages ofVega-like stars. Vertical Chromium Distribution in the Atmosphere of a Chemically Peculiar Star. I. DiagnosticsOn the basis of CCD spectrograms obtained with high resolution at theCoudé focus of the 2.6-m telescope of the Crimean AstrophysicalObservatory, Cr II lines lying in the wings of the H hydrogen line areinvestigated. Vertical chromium stratification in the atmospheres of twonormal and eight chemically peculiar stars is diagnosed using the methodof spectral synthesis. An increase in Cr abundance with depth is foundfor the cool Ap stars CrB, HR 7575, Equ, and 10 Aql. Some increase in Crabundance in the upper layers of the atmosphere is presumed for all Amstars and for both HgMn components of 46 Dra. The verticalchromium distribution in the atmospheres of the hot, spotted Ap stars 17Com and 2 CVn is evidently uniform. Are Stellar Rotational Axes Distributed Randomly?Stellar line widths yield values of Vsini, but the equatorial rotationalvelocities, V, cannot be determined for individual stars withoutknowledge of their inclinations, i, relative to the lines of sight. Forlarge numbers of stars we usually assume random orientations ofrotational axes to derive mean values of V, but we wonder whether thatassumption is valid. Individual inclinations can be derived only inspecial cases, such as for eclipsing binaries where they are close to90° or for chromospherically active late-type dwarfs or spotted(e.g., Ap) stars where we have independent information about therotational periods. We consider recent data on 102 Ap stars for whichCatalano & Renson compiled rotational periods from the literatureand Abt & Morrell (primarily) obtained measures of Vsini. We findthat the rotational axes are oriented randomly within the measuringerrors. We searched for possible dependence of the inclinations onGalactic latitude or longitude, and found no dependence. The geometry of stellar motions in the nucleus region of the Ursa Major kinematic groupThe structure of the central part of the UMa stellar kinematic group wasconsidered according to the data from Hipparcos, Tycho and ACTcatalogues. We have shown that in the space occupied by the nucleusthere are several populations of stars. The first includes ten starswhich are very compactly located in the proper motion diagram and have anormal proper motion distribution. The second group includes six starswith large kinematic difference and there are six field stars placedhere too. The question about their coexistence in a common region ofspace remains open. The well-known stars Mizar and Alcor appear tobelong to the different subsystems and do not belong to a unique stellarsystem. The published radial velocities, as a rule, are determined withinsufficient accuracy compared to the errors of the currently availableproper motions. A high precision in the radial velocities measurementsis necessary for a thorough study of the kinematics of stars inside UMastar system. Catalogue of Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (CADARS) - Third edition - Comments and statisticsThe Catalogue, available at the Centre de Données Stellaires deStrasbourg, consists of 13 573 records concerning the results obtainedfrom different methods for 7778 stars, reported in the literature. Thefollowing data are listed for each star: identifications, apparentmagnitude, spectral type, apparent diameter in arcsec, absolute radiusin solar units, method of determination, reference, remarks. Commentsand statistics obtained from CADARS are given. The Catalogue isavailable in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp tocdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcar?J/A+A/367/521 Incidence and survival of remnant disks around main-sequence starsWe present photometric ISO 60 and 170 μm measurements, complementedby some IRAS data at 60 μm, of a sample of 84 nearby main-sequencestars of spectral class A, F, G and K in order to determine theincidence of dust disks around such main-sequence stars. Fifty starswere detected at 60 μm. 36 of these emit a flux expected from theirphotosphere while 14 emit significantly more. The excess emission weattribute to a circumstellar disk like the ones around Vega and betaPictoris. Thirty four stars were not detected at all; the expectedphotospheric flux, however, is so close to the detection limit that thestars cannot have an excess stronger than the photospheric flux densityat 60 μm. Of the stars younger than 400 Myr one in two has a disk;for the older stars this is true for only one in ten. We conclude thatmost stars arrive on the main sequence surrounded by a disk; this diskthen decays in about 400 Myr. Because (i) the dust particles disappearand must be replenished on a much shorter time scale and (ii) thecollision of planetesimals is a good source of new dust, we suggest thatthe rapid decay of the disks is caused by the destruction and escape ofplanetesimals. We suggest that the dissipation of the disk is related tothe heavy bombardment phase in our Solar System. Whether all starsarrive on the main sequence surrounded by a disk cannot be established:some very young stars do not have a disk. And not all stars destroytheir disk in a similar way: some stars as old as the Sun still havesignificant disks. Based on observations with ISO, an ESA project withinstruments funded by ESA Member States (especially the PI countries:France, Germany, The Netherlands and the UK) and with the participationof ISAS and NASA. Tables 2, 3 and 4 are also available in electronicform at the CDS via anonymous ftp cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5)} orvia http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/365/545
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