arXiv subjects

H. -G. Ludwig

Publications and source records attributed to H. -G. Ludwig.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Abundances of Na, Mg, and K in the atmospheres of red giant branch stars of Galactic globular cluster 47 Tucanae

We study the abundances of Na, Mg, and K in the atmospheres of 32 RGB stars in the Galactic globular cluster (GGC) 47 Tuc, with the goal to investigate the possible existence of Na-K and Mg-K correlations/anti-correlations, similar to those that were recently discovered in two other GGCs, NGC 2419 and 2808. The abundances of K, Na, and Mg were determined using high-resolution 2df spectra obtained with the AAT. The 1D NLTE abundance estimates were obtained using 1D hydrostatic ATLAS9 model atmospheres and spectral line profiles synthesized with the MULTI package. We also used 3D hydrodynamical CO5BOLD and 1D hydrostatic LHD model atmospheres to compute 3D-1D LTE abundance corrections, $Δ_{\rm 3D-1D~LTE}$, for the spectral lines of Na, Mg, and K used in our study. These abundance corrections were used to understand the role of convection in the formation of spectral lines, as well as to estimate the differences in the abundances obtained with the 3D hydrodynamical and 1D hydrostatic model atmospheres. The average element-to-iron abundance ratios and their RMS variations due to star-to-star abundance spreads determined in our sample of RGB stars were $\langle{\rm [Na/Fe]}\rangle^{\rm 1D~NLTE}=0.42\pm0.13$, $\langle{\rm [Mg/Fe]}\rangle^{\rm 1D~NLTE}=0.41\pm0.11$, and $\langle{\rm [K/Fe]}\rangle^{\rm 1D~NLTE}=0.05\pm0.14$. We found no statistically significant relations between the abundances of the three elements studied here. Also, there were no abundance trends with the distance from the cluster center, nor any statistically significant relations between the abundance/abundance ratios and absolute radial velocities of individual stars. All these facts suggest the similarity of K abundance in stars that belong to different generations in 47 Tuc which, in turn, may hint that evolution of K in this particular cluster was unrelated to the nucleosynthesis of Na and/or Mg.

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arXiv2017

The Gaia-ESO Survey: Galactic evolution of sulphur and zinc

Due to their volatile nature, when sulfur and zinc are observed in external galaxies, their determined abundances represent the gas-phase abundances in the interstellar medium. This implies that they can be used as tracers of the chemical enrichment of matter in the Universe at high redshift. Comparable observations in stars are more difficult and, until recently, plagued by small number statistics. We wish to exploit the Gaia ESO Survey (GES) data to study the behaviour of sulfur and zinc abundances of a large number of Galactic stars, in a homogeneous way. By using the UVES spectra of the GES sample, we are able to assemble a sample of 1301 Galactic stars, including stars in open and globular clusters in which both sulfur and zinc were measured. We confirm the results from the literature that sulfur behaves as an alpha-element. We find a large scatter in [Zn/Fe] ratios among giant stars around solar metallicity. The lower ratios are observed in giant stars at Galactocentric distances less than 7.5 kpc. No such effect is observed among dwarf stars, since they do not extend to that radius. Given the sample selection, giants and dwarfs are observed at different Galactic locations, and it is plausible, and compatible with simple calculations, that Zn-poor giants trace a younger population more polluted by SN Ia yields. It is necessary to extend observations in order to observe both giants and dwarfs at the same Galactic location. Further theoretical work on the evolution of zinc is also necessary.

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arXiv2017

An in-depth spectroscopic examination of molecular bands from 3D hydrodynamical model atmospheres. II. Carbon-enhanced metal-poor 3D model atmospheres

Context. Tighter constraints on metal-poor stars we observe are needed to better understand the chemical processes of the early Universe. Computing a stellar spectrum in 3D allows one to model complex stellar behaviours, which cannot be replicated in 1D. Aims. We examine the effect that the intrinsic CNO abundances have on a 3D model structure and the resulting 3D spectrum synthesis. Methods. Model atmospheres were computed in 3D for three distinct CNO chemical compositions using the CO 5 BOLD model atmosphere code, and their internal structures were examined. Synthetic spectra were computed from these models using Linfor3D and they were compared. New 3D abundance corrections for the G-band and a selection of UV OH lines were also computed. Results. The varying CNO abundances change the metal content of the 3D models. This had an effect on the model structure and the resulting synthesis. However, it was found that the C/O ratio had a larger effect than the overall metal content of a model. Conclusions. Our results suggest that varying the C/O ratio has a substantial impact on the internal structure of the 3D model, even in the hot turn-off star models explored here. This suggests that bespoke 3D models, for specific CNO abundances should be sought. Such effects are not seen in 1D at these temperature regimes.

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arXiv2017

On the computation of eigenfrequencies for equilibrium models including turbulent pressure

The space-borne missions have provided a wealth of highly accurate data. However, our inability to properly model the upper-most region of solar-like stars prevents us from making the best of these observations. This problem is called "surface effect" and a key ingredient to solve it is turbulent pressure for the computation of both the equilibrium models and the oscillations. While 3D hydrodynamic simulations help to include properly the turbulent pressure in the equilibrium models, the way this surface effect is included in the computation of stellar oscillations is still subject to uncertainties. We aim at determining how to properly include the effect of turbulent pressure and its Lagrangian perturbation in the adiabatic computation of the oscillations. We also discuss the validity of the gas-gamma model (GGM) and reduced gamma model (RGM) approximations, which have been used to compute adiabatic oscillations of equilibrium models including turbulent pressure. We use a patched model of the Sun with an inner part constructed by a 1D stellar evolution code (CESTAM) and an outer part by the 3D hydrodynamical code (CO$^5$BOLD). Then, the adiabatic oscillations are computed using the ADIPLS code for the GGM and RGM and with the MAD code imposing the adiabatic condition on an existing time-dependent convection (TDC) formalism. We show that the computation of the oscillations using the TDC formalism in the adiabatic limit improves significantly the agreement with the observed frequencies compared to the GGM and RGM. Of the components of the turbulent pressure perturbation, the perturbation of the density and advection term is found to contribute most to the frequency shift. We propose a formalism to evaluate the frequency shift due to the inclusion of the term with the turbulent pressure perturbation in the variational principle in order to extrapolate our result to other stars.

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arXiv2016

Three-dimensional hydrodynamical CO5BOLD model atmospheres of red giant stars. V. Oxygen abundance in the metal-poor giant HD 122563 from OH UV lines

Although oxygen is an important tracer of the early Galactic evolution, its abundance trends with metallicity are still relatively poorly known at [Fe/H] < -2.5. This is in part due to a lack of reliable oxygen abundance indicators in the metal-poor stars, in part due to shortcomings in 1D LTE abundance analyses. In this study we determined the oxygen abundance in the metal-poor halo giant HD 122563 using a 3D hydrodynamical CO5BOLD model atmosphere. Our main goal was to understand whether a 3D LTE analysis may help to improve the reliability of oxygen abundances determined from OH UV lines in comparison to those obtained using standard 1D LTE methodology. The oxygen abundance in HD 122563 was determined using 71 OH UV lines located in the wavelength range between 308-330 nm. The analysis was done using a high-resolution VLT UVES spectrum with a 1D LTE spectral line synthesis performed using the SYNTHE package and classical ATLAS9 model atmosphere. Subsequently, a 3D hydrodynamical CO5BOLD, and 1D hydrostatic LHD model atmospheres were used in order to compute 3D-1D abundance corrections. For this, the microturbulence velocity used with the 1D LHD model atmosphere was derived from the hydrodynamical CO5BOLD model atmosphere. As in previous studies, we found trends of the 1D LTE oxygen abundances determined from OH UV lines with line parameters, such as the line excitation potential and the line strength. These trends become significantly less pronounced in 3D LTE. Using OH UV lines we determined a 3D LTE oxygen abundance in HD 122563 of A(O) = 6.23 +/- 0.13. This is in fair agreement with the oxygen abundance obtained from OH IR lines, A(O) = 6.39 +/- 0.11, but it is noticeably lower than that determined using the forbidden [OI] line, A(O) = 6.53 +/- 0.15. While the exact cause for this discrepancy remains unclear, it is very likely that non-LTE effects may play a decisive role here.

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arXiv2016

Enhanced methods for computing spectra from CO5BOLD models using Linfor3D. Molecular bands in metal-poor stars

Molecular features such as the G-band, CN-band and NH-band are important diagnostics for measuring a star's carbon and nitrogen abundances, especially in metal-poor stars where atomic lines are no longer visible in stellar spectra. Unlike atomic transitions, molecular features tend to form in bands, which cover large wavelength regions in a spectrum. While it is a trivial matter to compute carbon and nitrogen molecular bands under the assumption of 1D, it is extremely time consuming in 3D. In this contribution to the 2016 CO5BOLD workshop we review the improvements made to the 3D spectral synthesis code Linfor3D, and discuss the new challenges found when computing molecular features in 3D.

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arXiv2016

TOPoS: III. An ultra iron-poor multiple CEMP system

One of the primary objectives of the TOPoS survey is to search for the most metal-poor stars. Our search has led to the discovery of one of the most iron-poor objects known, SDSS\,J092912.32+023817.0. This object is a multiple system, in which two components are clearly detected in the spectrum. We have analysed 16 high-resolution spectra obtained using the UVES spectrograph at the ESO 8.2m VLT telescope to measure radial velocities and determine the chemical composition of the system. Cross correlation of the spectra with a synthetic template yields a double-peaked cross-correlation function (CCF) for eight spectra, and in one case there is evidence for the presence of a third peak. Chemical analysis of the spectrum obtained by averaging all the spectra for which the CCF showed a single peak found that the iron abundance is [Fe/H]=-4.97. The system is also carbon enhanced with [C/Fe]=+3.91 (A(C)=7.44). From the permitted oxygen triplet we determined an upper limit for oxygen of [O/Fe]<+3.52 such that C/O>1.3. We are also able to provide more stringent upper limits on the Sr and Ba abundances ([Sr/Fe]<+0.70, and [Ba/Fe]<+1.46, respectively).

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arXiv2016

An in-depth spectroscopic examination of molecular bands from 3D hydrodynamical model atmospheres I. Formation of the G-band in metal-poor dwarf stars

Recent developments in the three-dimensional (3D) spectral synthesis code Linfor3D have meant that, for the first time, large spectral wavelength regions, such as molecular bands, can be synthesised with it in a short amount of time. A detailed spectral analysis of the synthetic G-band for several dwarf turn-off-type 3D atmospheres (5850 <= T_eff [K] <= 6550, 4.0 <= log g <= 4.5, -3.0 <= [Fe/H] <= -1.0) was conducted, under the assumption of local thermodynamic equilibrium. We also examine carbon and oxygen molecule formation at various metallicity regimes and discuss the impact it has on the G-band. Using a qualitative approach, we describe the different behaviours between the 3D atmospheres and the traditional one-dimensional (1D) atmospheres and how the different physics involved inevitably leads to abundance corrections, which differ over varying metallicities. Spectra computed in 1D were fit to every 3D spectrum to determine the 3D abundance correction. Early analysis revealed that the CH molecules that make up the G-band exhibited an oxygen abundance dependency; a higher oxygen abundance leads to weaker CH features. Nitrogen abundances showed zero impact to CH formation. The 3D corrections are also stronger at lower metallicity. Analysis of the 3D corrections to the G-band allows us to assign estimations of the 3D abundance correction to most dwarf stars presented in the literature. The 3D corrections suggest that A(C) in CEMP stars with high A(C) would remain unchanged, but would decrease in CEMP stars with lower A(C). It was found that the C/O ratio is an important parameter to the G-band in 3D. Additional testing confirmed that the C/O ratio is an equally important parameter for OH transitions under 3D. This presents a clear interrelation between the carbon and oxygen abundances in 3D atmospheres through their molecular species, which is not seen in 1D.

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arXiv2016

The chemical composition of red giants in 47 Tucanae. II. Magnesium isotopes and pollution scenarios

The phenomenon of multiple populations in globular clusters is still far from understood, with several proposed mechanisms to explain the observed behaviour. The study of elemental and isotopic abundance patterns are crucial for investigating the differences among candidate pollution mechanisms. We derive magnesium isotopic ratios for 13 stars in the globular cluster 47 Tucanae (NGC 104) to provide new, detailed information about the nucleosynthesis that has occurred within the cluster. For the first time, the impact of 3D model stellar atmospheres on the derived Mg isotopic ratios is investigated. Using both tailored 1D atmospheric models and 3D hydrodynamical models, we derive magnesium isotopic ratios from four features of MgH near 5135Å in 13 giants near the tip of the RGB, using high signal-to-noise, high-resolution spectra. We derive the magnesium isotopic ratios for all stars and find no significant offset of the isotopic distribution between the pristine and the polluted populations. Furthermore, we do not detect any statistically significant differences in the spread in the Mg isotopes in either population. No trends were found between the Mg isotopes and [Al/Fe]. The inclusion of 3D atmospheres has a significant impact on the derived 25Mg/24Mg ratio, increasing it by a factor of up to 2.5, compared to 1D. The 26Mg/24Mg ratio, on the other hand, essentially remains unchanged. We confirm the results seen from other globular clusters, where no strong variation in the isotopic ratios is observed between stellar populations, for observed ranges in [Al/Fe]. We see no evidence for any significant activation of the Mg-Al burning chain. The use of 3D atmospheres causes an increase of a factor of up to 2.5 in the fraction of 25Mg, resolving part of the discrepancy between the observed isotopic fraction and the predictions from pollution models.

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arXiv2016

Solar science with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array - A new view of our Sun

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is a new powerful tool for observing the Sun at high spatial, temporal, and spectral resolution. These capabilities can address a broad range of fundamental scientific questions in solar physics. The radiation observed by ALMA originates mostly from the chromosphere - a complex and dynamic region between the photosphere and corona, which plays a crucial role in the transport of energy and matter and, ultimately, the heating of the outer layers of the solar atmosphere. Based on first solar test observations, strategies for regular solar campaigns are currently being developed. State-of-the-art numerical simulations of the solar atmosphere and modeling of instrumental effects can help constrain and optimize future observing modes for ALMA. Here we present a short technical description of ALMA and an overview of past efforts and future possibilities for solar observations at submillimeter and millimeter wavelengths. In addition, selected numerical simulations and observations at other wavelengths demonstrate ALMA's scientific potential for studying the Sun for a large range of science cases.

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arXiv2015

Lithium spectral line formation in stellar atmospheres. The impact of convection and NLTE effects

Different simplified approaches are used to account for the non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (NLTE) effects with 3D hydrodynamical model atmospheres. In certain cases, chemical abundances are derived in 1D NLTE and corrected for the 3D effects by adding 3D-1D LTE abundance corrections (3D+NLTE approach). Alternatively, average <3D> model atmospheres are sometimes used to substitute for the full 3D hydrodynamical models. We tested whether the results obtained using these simplified schemes (i.e., 3D+NLTE, <3D> NLTE) may reproduce those derived using the full 3D NLTE computations. The tests were made using 3D hydrodynamical CO5BOLD model atmospheres of the main sequence (MS), main sequence turn-off (TO), subgiant (SGB), and red giant branch (RGB) stars, all at [M/H]=0.0 and -2.0. Our goal was to investigate the role of 3D and NLTE effects on the formation of the 670.8 nm lithium line by assessing strengths of synthetic 670.8 nm line profiles, computed using 3D/1D NLTE/LTE approaches. Our results show that Li 670.8 nm line strengths obtained using different methodologies differ only slightly in most of the models at solar metallicity. However, the line strengths predicted with the 3D NLTE and 3D+NLTE approaches become significantly different at subsolar metallicities. At [M/H]=-2.0, this may lead to (3D NLTE)-(3D+NLTE) differences in the predicted lithium abundance of ~0.46 and ~0.31 dex in the TO and RGB stars, respectively. On the other hand, NLTE line strengths computed with the average <3D> and 1D model atmospheres are similar to those obtained with the full 3D NLTE approach for MS, TO, SGB, and RGB stars, at all metallicities; 3D-<3D> and 3D-1D differences in the predicted abundances are always less than ~0.04 dex and ~0.08 dex, respectively. However, neither of the simplified approaches can reliably substitute 3D NLTE spectral synthesis when precision is required.

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arXiv2015

GIANO Y-band spectroscopy of dwarf stars: Phosphorus, Sulphur, and Strontium abundances

In recent years a number of poorly studied chemical elements, such as phosphorus, sulphur, and strontium, have received special attention as important tracers of the Galactic chemical evolution. By exploiting the capabilities of the infrared echelle spectrograph GIANO mounted at the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo, we acquired high resolution spectra of four Galactic dwarf stars spanning the metallicity range between about one-third and twice the solar value. We performed a detailed feasibility study about the effectiveness of the P, S, and Sr line diagnostics in the Y band between 1.03 and 1.10 microm. Accurate chemical abundances have been derived using one-dimensional model atmospheres computed in local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE). We computed the line formation assuming LTE for P, while we performed non-LTE analysis to derive S and Sr abundances. We were able to derive phosphorus abundance for three stars and an upper limit for one star, while we obtained the abundance of sulphur and strontium for all of the stars. We find [P/Fe] and [S/Fe] abundance ratios consistent with solar-scaled or slightly depleted values, while the [Sr/Fe] abundance ratios are more scattered (by +/-0.2 dex) around the solar-scaled value. This is fully consistent with previous studies using both optical and infrared spectroscopy. We verified that high-resolution, Y-band spectroscopy as provided by GIANO is a powerful tool to study the chemical evolution of P, S, and Sr in dwarf stars.

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arXiv2015

Surface-effect corrections for solar-like oscillations using 3D hydrodynamical simulations

The space-borne missions have provided us with a wealth of high-quality observational data that allows for seismic inferences of stellar interiors. This requires the computation of precise and accurate theoretical frequencies, but imperfect modeling of the uppermost stellar layers introduces systematic errors. To overcome this problem, an empirical correction has been introduced by Kjeldsen et al. (2008, ApJ, 683, L175) and is now commonly used for seismic inferences. Nevertheless, we still lack a physical justification allowing for the quantification of the surface-effect corrections. We used a grid of these simulations computed with the CO$^5$BOLD code to model the outer layers of solar-like stars. Upper layers of the corresponding 1D standard models were then replaced by the layers obtained from the horizontally averaged 3D models. The frequency differences between these patched models and the 1D standard models were then calculated using the adiabatic approximation and allowed us to constrain the Kjeldsen et al. power law, as well as a Lorentzian formulation. We find that the surface effects on modal frequencies depend significantly on both the effective temperature and the surface gravity. We further provide the variation in the parameters related to the surface-effect corrections using their power law as well as a Lorentzian formulation. Scaling relations between these parameters and the elevation (related to the Mach number) is also provided. The Lorentzian formulation is shown to be more robust for the whole frequency spectrum, while the power law is not suitable for the frequency shifts in the frequency range above $ν_{\rm max}$.

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arXiv2015

On The Evolution of Magnetic White Dwarfs

We present the first radiation magnetohydrodynamics simulations of the atmosphere of white dwarf stars. We demonstrate that convective energy transfer is seriously impeded by magnetic fields when the plasma-beta parameter, the thermal to magnetic pressure ratio, becomes smaller than unity. The critical field strength that inhibits convection in the photosphere of white dwarfs is in the range B = 1-50 kG, which is much smaller than the typical 1-1000 MG field strengths observed in magnetic white dwarfs, implying that these objects have radiative atmospheres. We have then employed evolutionary models to study the cooling process of high-field magnetic white dwarfs, where convection is entirely suppressed during the full evolution (B > 10 MG). We find that the inhibition of convection has no effect on cooling rates until the effective temperature (Teff) reaches a value of around 5500 K. In this regime, the standard convective sequences start to deviate from the ones without convection owing to the convective coupling between the outer layers and the degenerate reservoir of thermal energy. Since no magnetic white dwarfs are currently known at the low temperatures where this coupling significantly changes the evolution, effects of magnetism on cooling rates are not expected to be observed. This result contrasts with a recent suggestion that magnetic white dwarfs with Teff < 10,000 K cool significantly slower than non-magnetic degenerates.

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arXiv2015

The photospheric solar oxygen project: IV. 3D-NLTE investigation of the 777 nm triplet lines

The solar photospheric oxygen abundance is still widely debated. Adopting the solar chemical composition based on the "low" oxygen abundance, as determined with the use of three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamical model atmospheres, results in a well-known mismatch between theoretical solar models and helioseismic measurements that is so far unresolved. We carry out an independent redetermination of the solar oxygen abundance by investigating the center-to-limb variation of the OI IR triplet lines at 777 nm in different sets of spectra with the help of detailed synthetic line profiles based on 3D hydrodynamical CO5BOLD model atmospheres and 3D non-LTE line formation calculations with NLTETD. The idea is to simultaneously derive the oxygen abundance,A(O), and the scaling factor SH that describes the cross-sections for inelastic collisions with neutral hydrogen relative the classical Drawin formula. The best fit of the center-to-limb variation of the triplet lines achieved with the CO5BOLD 3D solar model is clearly of superior quality compared to the line profile fits obtained with standard 1D model atmospheres. Our best estimate of the 3D non-LTE solar oxygen abundance is A(O) = 8.76 +/- 0.02, with the scaling factor SH in the range between 1.2 and 1.8. All 1D non-LTE models give much lower oxygen abundances, by up to -0.15 dex. This is mainly a consequence of the assumption of a $μ$-independent microturbulence.

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arXiv2015

Stellar science from a blue wavelength range - A possible design for the blue arm of 4MOST

From stellar spectra, a variety of physical properties of stars can be derived. In particular, the chemical composition of stellar atmospheres can be inferred from absorption line analyses. These provide key information on large scales, such as the formation of our Galaxy, down to the small-scale nucleosynthesis processes that take place in stars and supernovae. By extending the observed wavelength range toward bluer wavelengths, we optimize such studies to also include critical absorption lines in metal-poor stars, and allow for studies of heavy elements (Z>38) whose formation processes remain poorly constrained. In this context, spectrographs optimized for observing blue wavelength ranges are essential, since many absorption lines at redder wavelengths are too weak to be detected in metal-poor stars. This means that some elements cannot be studied in the visual-redder regions, and important scientific tracers and science cases are lost. The present era of large public surveys will target millions of stars. Here we describe the requirements driving the design of the forthcoming survey instrument 4MOST, a multi-object spectrograph commissioned for the ESO VISTA 4m-telescope. We focus here on high-density, wide-area survey of stars and the science that can be achieved with high-resolution stellar spectroscopy. Scientific and technical requirements that governed the design are described along with a thorough line blending analysis. For the high-resolution spectrograph, we find that a sampling of >2.5 (pixels per resolving element), spectral resolution of 18000 or higher, and a wavelength range covering 393-436 nm, is the most well-balanced solution for the instrument. A spectrograph with these characteristics will enable accurate abundance analysis (+/-0.1 dex) in the blue and allow us to confront the outlined scientific questions. (abridged)

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arXiv2015

3D Model Atmospheres for Extremely Low-Mass White Dwarfs

We present an extended grid of mean three-dimensional (3D) spectra for low-mass, pure-hydrogen atmosphere DA white dwarfs (WDs). We use CO5BOLD radiation-hydrodynamics 3D simulations covering Teff = 6000-11,500 K and logg = 5-6.5 (cgs units) to derive analytical functions to convert spectroscopically determined 1D temperatures and surface gravities to 3D atmospheric parameters. Along with the previously published 3D models, the 1D to 3D corrections are now available for essentially all known convective DA WDs (i.e., logg = 5-9). For low-mass WDs, the correction in temperature is relatively small (a few per cent at the most), but the surface gravities measured from the 3D models are lower by as much as 0.35 dex. We revisit the spectroscopic analysis of the extremely low-mass (ELM) WDs, and demonstrate that the 3D models largely resolve the discrepancies seen in the radius and mass measurements for relatively cool ELM WDs in eclipsing double WD and WD + milli-second pulsar binary systems. We also use the 3D corrections to revise the boundaries of the ZZ Ceti instability strip, including the recently found ELM pulsators.

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arXiv2015

The photospheric solar oxygen project: III. Investigation of the centre-to-limb variation of the 630nm [OI]-NiI blend

The solar photospheric abundance of oxygen is still a matter of debate. For about ten years some determinations have favoured a low oxygen abundance which is at variance with the value inferred by helioseismology. Among the oxygen abundance indicators, the forbidden line at 630nm has often been considered the most reliable even though it is blended with a NiI line. In Papers I and Paper II of this series we reported a discrepancy in the oxygen abundance derived from the 630nm and the subordinate [OI] line at 636nm in dwarf stars, including the Sun. Here we analyse several, in part new, solar observations of the the centre-to-limb variation of the spectral region including the blend at 630nm in order to separate the individual contributions of oxygen and nickel. We analyse intensity spectra observed at different limb angles in comparison with line formation computations performed on a CO5BOLD 3D hydrodynamical simulation of the solar atmosphere. The oxygen abundances obtained from the forbidden line at different limb angles are inconsistent if the commonly adopted nickel abundance of 6.25 is assumed in our local thermodynamic equilibrium computations. With a slightly lower nickel abundance, A(Ni)~6.1, we obtain consistent fits indicating an oxygen abundance of A(O)=8.73+/-0.05. At this value the discrepancy with the subordinate oxygen line remains. The derived value of the oxygen abundance supports the notion of a rather low oxygen abundance in the solar hotosphere. However, it is disconcerting that the forbidden oxygen lines at 630 and 636nm give noticeably different results, and that the nickel abundance derived here from the 630nm blend is lower than expected from other nickel lines.

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