NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2009A-0259
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2009A-0259 |
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PI: Kelle Cruz, Caltech Astronomy, kellecruz@gmail.com
Address: MS 105-24, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA
CoI: Dagny Looper, University of Hawaii (IfA)
CoI: Lisa Prato, Lowell Observatory
CoI: J. Davy Kirkpatrick, Caltech IPAC
Title: Confirming Cluster Membership for Nearby Young Brown Dwarfs
Abstract:
Among the hundreds of brown dwarfs known, we have identified 40 late-M and L
dwarfs that exhibit conspicuous spectral features that we attribute to low
gravity, indicating both youth and low mass. Most of the sources are
suspected of being associated with the nearby, intermediate-age (8-100 Myr)
moving groups (e.g., Beta Pictoris, Tucana/Horologium) located in the
southern hemisphere. With ages less than 100 Myr but older than the
well-studied members of 1 Myr-old clusters, these juvenile brown dwarfs fill
a gap in our knowledge of brown dwarf evolution and will become important
benchmarks in the study of substellar formation, evolution, and atmospheres.
We propose to use 28.2 hrs with Phoenix on Gemini-South to obtain radial
velocity measurements of 5 faint, southern candidates in order to derive
their full space motions and to ultimately determine their origin and age.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2009A-0259 |
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