arXiv subjects

Lola Balaguer-Núñez

Publications and source records attributed to Lola Balaguer-Núñez.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

The high-altitude, inner-disc, and chemically peculiar open cluster UBC 1052

Out of all the discovered open clusters (OCs) that are located in the inner part of the Galaxy, only a small fraction has been observed with high-resolution spectroscopy. An intriguing population of inner-disc OCs at relatively high altitudes ($Z$) from the Galactic plane remains poorly studied. There are few reliable detections of such OCs, and their occurrence rate, dynamical origin and survival mechanism remain uncertain. We perform a detailed spectroscopic analysis of UBC 1052, located at a cylindrical galactocentric radius $R_{GC} = 6.1$ kpc and $Z = 340$ pc, which stands out as the oldest and highest-|$Z$| inner-disc OC studied at high resolution to date. We used FLAMES/VLT to acquire high signal-to-noise ratio UVES spectra of four red clump (RC) members ($G\sim14$ mag). From them we derived high-precision radial velocities ($v_{r}$) and local thermodynamic equilibrium chemical abundances for 23 elements through a strict line-by-line differential analysis, achieving a median precision in [X/H] of $\simeq0.06$ dex for each star. The four RC stars have fully compatible chemical abundances, with [X/H] dispersions among them <$0.03$ dex for 20 elements. We also acquired GIRAFFE spectra of other candidate members and derived their $v_{r}$. We find that UBC 1052 has an age of $2.25\pm0.25$ Gyr, a distance of $3.11\pm0.07$ kpc, an extinction $A_{V} =1.23$ mag, a mean radial velocity of $34.0\pm0.6$ $km$ ${s}^{-1}$, and a slightly super-solar [Fe/H] = $0.05\pm0.01$ dex. Such relatively low [Fe/H] at its $R_{GC}$ suggests that UBC 1052 is a rare candidate for an inward-migrated OC in the inner disc. Its detailed abundance pattern (e.g. [Ba/Zr] and [Nd/Y]) shows some interesting features that appear to be unique in the current census of OCs studied at high resolution, making it an interesting object for potential strong chemical-tagging searches for already dispersed member stars. [Abridged]

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Stellar masses and mass ratios for Gaia open cluster members

Context: Unresolved binaries in star clusters can bias stellar and cluster mass estimates, making their proper treatment essential for studying cluster dynamics and evolution. Aims: We aim to develop a fast and robust framework for jointly deriving stellar masses and multiplicity statistics of member stars, together with optimal cluster parameters. Methods: We use Gaia DR3 parallaxes together with multi-band photometry of open cluster (OC) members to infer stellar masses and binary mass-ratios through simulation-based inference (SBI), while iteratively fitting the cluster parameters. The validation of our SBI framework on simulated clusters demonstrates that the inclusion of infrared photometry significantly improves the detection of low mass-ratio binaries. The minimum mass-ratio threshold for reliably identifying unresolved binaries depends on cluster properties and the available photometry, but typically lies below $q=0.5$. Results: Applying our method to 42 well-populated OCs, we derive a catalogue of stellar masses and mass-ratios for 27201 stars, achieving typical uncertainties of 0.08 in $q$ and $0.01\,\mathrm{M}_\odot$ in the primary stellar mass. We analyse the archetype OCs M67 and NGC 2360 in detail, including mass segregation and mass-ratio distribution among other characteristics, while deriving multiplicity fractions for the rest of the sample. We find evidence that the high mass-ratio ($q\geq 0.6$) binary fraction shows a strong correlation with the age and a weak anti-correlation with the cluster metallicity. Furthermore, the variation of the binary fraction with stellar mass in OCs shows strong accordance with the observed dependence for field stars heavier than $\gtrsim0.6\,\mathrm{M}_\odot$. Conclusions: Our work paves a path for future population-level investigations of multiplicity statistics and precision stellar masses in extended samples of OCs.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

A catalog of new blue stragglers in open clusters with Gaia DR3

The high-precision {\it Gaia} data release 3 (DR3) enables the discovery of numerous open clusters in the Milky Way, providing an excellent opportunity to search for blue straggler stars in open clusters and investigate their formation and evolution in these environments. Using the member stars from literature open cluster catalogs, we visually inspected the color-magnitude diagram (CMD) of each cluster and selected cluster candidates that potentially host blue stragglers. We then reassessed cluster memberships using the {\tt pyUPMASK} algorithm with {\it Gaia} DR3 and performed isochrone fitting to derive physical parameters for each cluster, including age, distance modulus, mean reddening, and metallicity. Finally, we empirically identified straggler stars based on their positions relative to the best-fitting isochrone, zero-age main sequence (ZAMS), and equal-mass binary sequence on the CMD. In total, we identified 272 new straggler stars in 99 open clusters, comprising 153 blue stragglers, 98 probable blue stragglers, and 21 yellow stragglers. Compared to the reported blue straggler catalogs based on earlier {\it Gaia} data, our results increase the number of open clusters with stragglers in the Milky Way by 22.2\%, and the total number of blue stragglers by 11.2\%.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2024

Unveiling the Binary Nature of NGC 2323

As a well-known open cluster, NGC 2323 (also called M50) has been widely investigated for over a hundred years and has always been considered a classical single cluster. In this work, with the help of Gaia DR3, we study the binary structure nature of this cluster. Although indistinguishable in the spatial space, the small but undeniable difference in the proper motion indicates that they may be two individual clusters. After investigating the properties of the two clusters, it is found that they have very close positions (three-dimensional $Δ$pos = 12.3 pc, $σ_{Δ\mathrm{pos}} = 3.4$ pc) and similar tangential velocities (two-dimensional $Δ$V = 2.2 km s$^{-1}$, $σ_{Δ\mathrm{V}} = 0.02$ km s$^{-1}$), indicating the existence of their physical association. Moreover, the best isochrone fitting ages of the two clusters are the same (158 Myr), further proving their possibly common origin. To comprehensively understand the formation and evolution of this binary cluster, we employ the PETAR $N$-body code to trace back their birthplace and deduce their dynamical evolutionary fate. With observational mean cluster properties, the simulations suggest that they may form together, and then orbit each other as a binary cluster for over 200 Myr. After that, because of their gradual mass loss, the two clusters will eventually separate and evolve into two independent clusters. Meanwhile, the numerical $N$-body simulation suggests that the less massive cluster is unlikely to be the cluster tidal tails created by the differential rotation of the Milky Way.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2023

The wide-field, multiplexed, spectroscopic facility WEAVE: Survey design, overview, and simulated implementation

WEAVE, the new wide-field, massively multiplexed spectroscopic survey facility for the William Herschel Telescope, will see first light in late 2022. WEAVE comprises a new 2-degree field-of-view prime-focus corrector system, a nearly 1000-multiplex fibre positioner, 20 individually deployable 'mini' integral field units (IFUs), and a single large IFU. These fibre systems feed a dual-beam spectrograph covering the wavelength range 366$-$959\,nm at $R\sim5000$, or two shorter ranges at $R\sim20\,000$. After summarising the design and implementation of WEAVE and its data systems, we present the organisation, science drivers and design of a five- to seven-year programme of eight individual surveys to: (i) study our Galaxy's origins by completing Gaia's phase-space information, providing metallicities to its limiting magnitude for $\sim$3 million stars and detailed abundances for $\sim1.5$ million brighter field and open-cluster stars; (ii) survey $\sim0.4$ million Galactic-plane OBA stars, young stellar objects and nearby gas to understand the evolution of young stars and their environments; (iii) perform an extensive spectral survey of white dwarfs; (iv) survey $\sim400$ neutral-hydrogen-selected galaxies with the IFUs; (v) study properties and kinematics of stellar populations and ionised gas in $z<0.5$ cluster galaxies; (vi) survey stellar populations and kinematics in $\sim25\,000$ field galaxies at $0.3\lesssim z \lesssim 0.7$; (vii) study the cosmic evolution of accretion and star formation using $>1$ million spectra of LOFAR-selected radio sources; (viii) trace structures using intergalactic/circumgalactic gas at $z>2$. Finally, we describe the WEAVE Operational Rehearsals using the WEAVE Simulator.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2022

NGC 1605 is not a binary cluster

The open star cluster NGC 1605 has recently been reported to in fact consist of two clusters (one intermediate-aged and one old) that merged via a flyby capture. Here we show that Gaia data do not support this scenario. We also report the serendipitous discovery of a new open cluster, Can Batlló 1, with a similar age and distance.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

The star cluster age function in the Galactic disc with Gaia DR2: Fewer old clusters and a low cluster formation efficiency

We perform a systematic reanalysis of the age distribution of Galactic open star clusters. Using a catalogue of homogeneously determined ages for 834 open clusters contained in a 2 kpc cylinder around the Sun and characterised with astrometric and photometric data from the Gaia satellite, we find that it is necessary to revise earlier works that relied on data from the Milky Way Star Cluster survey. After establishing age-dependent completeness limits for our sample, we find that the cluster age function in the range $6.5 < \log t<10$ is compatible with a Schechter-type or broken power-law function, whose parameters we determine by MCMC fitting. Our best-fit values indicate an earlier drop of the age function (by a factor of $2-3$) with respect to the results obtained in the last five years, and are instead more compatible with results obtained in the early 2000s and radio observations of inner-disc clusters. Furthermore, we find a typical destruction time-scale of $\sim1.5$ Gyr for a $10^4\, {\rm M}_{\odot}$ cluster and a present-day cluster-formation rate of $0.55_{-0.15}^{+0.19}$ Myr$^{-1}$kpc$^{-2}$, suggesting that only $16_{-8}^{+11}$ \% of all stars born in the solar neighbourhood form in bound clusters. Accurate cluster-mass measurements are now needed to place more precise constraints on open-cluster formation and evolution models.

astro-ph.GA↗