NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010A-0473
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010A-0473 |
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PI: Sebastien Lepine, American Museum of Natural History, lepine@amnh.org
Address: Astrophysics, CPW at 79th street, New York, NY 10024, USA
CoI: Kelle Cruz, Hunter College
CoI: Ian Neill Reid, Space Telescope Science Instiotute
Title: Completing the inventory of the nearest 20pc: spectral classication of 1,301 candidate nearby stars.
Abstract: An updated census of stars believed to be within 20 parsecs of the Sun, augmented by recent discoveries of proper motion stars in the northern and southern skies, uncovers 1,301 nearby star candidates (distances <20pc) which still lack spectroscopic data of any kind. We propose to obtain medium-resolution optical spectra of all these stellar neighbors to assign formal spectral types, refine distances, estimate metallicities, evaluate chromospheric activity, and look for signs of youth. This survey will provide the missing pieces to an all-sky spectroscopic catalog of nearby stars, now in preparation. The proper spectroscopic characterization of the ubiquitous K and M dwarfs in the immediate vicinity of the Sun will be critical in generating target lists for parallax programs and for surveys of exoplanets around low- mass stars.
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 > 2010A-0473 |
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