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Baade-Wesselink distances to Galactic and Magellanic Cloud Cepheids and the effect of metallicity
Context. The metallicity dependence of the Cepheid period-luminosity(PL) relation is of importance in establishing the extragalacticdistance scale. Aims: The aim of this paper is to investigate themetallicity dependence of the PL relation in V and K, based on a sampleof 128 Galactic, 36 Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), and 6 Small MagellanicCloud (SMC) Cepheids with individual Baade-Wesselink (BW) distances(some of the stars also have an Hubble Space Telescope (HST) based andHipparcos parallax or are in clusters) and individually determinedmetallicities from high-resolution spectroscopy. Methods:Literature values of the V-band, K-band, and radial velocity data werecollected for the sample of Cepheids. Based on a (V - K)surface-brightness relation and a projection factor, distances werederived from a BW analysis. Results: The p-relation finallyadopted is 1.50-0.24log P. The slope of this relation is based on thecondition that the distance to the LMC does not depend on period or (V -K) colour and that the slope of the PL relation based on the BWdistances agrees with that based on apparent magnitude. The zero pointof the relation is tight to the Cepheids with HST and revised Hipparcosparallaxes as well as to Cepheids in clusters. The slope of the Galacticand LMC K-band relation formally agrees within the errors, and combiningall Cepheids (including the SMC) results in a negligible metallicitydependence and a relation of MK = (-2.50 ± 0.08) +(-3.06 ± 0.06)log P. A similar conclusion is found for thereddening-free Wesenheit relation (W(VK) = K - 0.13(V - K)), withMWVK = (-2.68 ± 0.08) + (-3.12 ± 0.06)log P. Inthe V-band the situation is more complex. The slope of the LMC and theGalactic PL relation differ at the 3σ level. Combining the samplenevertheless results in a metallicity term significant at the 2σlevel: MV = (-1.55 ± 0.09) + (-2.33 ± 0.07)logP + (+0.23 ± 0.11)[Fe/H]. Taking only the Galactic Cepheids, themetallicity term is no longer significant, namely ( + 0.17 ±0.25). Compared to the recent works by Storm et al. (2011a, A&A,534, A94; 2011b, A&A, 534, A95), there is both agreement anddisagreement. A similar dependence of the p-factor on period is found,but the zero point found here implies a shorter distance scale. Thedistance modulus (DM) to the LMC and SMC found here are 18.29 ±0.02 and 18.73 ± 0.06 (statistical error on the mean),respectively. Systematic differences in reddening could have an effectof order +0.05 in DM. The details of the comparison of BW-baseddistances and Cepheids with HST and revised Hipparcos parallaxes alsoplay a role. The method used by Storm et al. would lead to larger DM of18.37 and 18.81 for the LMC and SMC, respectively. The LMC DM is shorterthan the currently accepted value, which is in the range 18.42 to 18.55,and it is speculated that the p-factor may depend on metallicity. Thisis not predicted by theoretical investigations, but these sameinvestigations do not predict a steep dependence on period either,indicating that additional theoretical work is warranted.Tables 1-6, 10, and Appendix A are available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org
| Galactic restrictions on iron production by various types of supernovae
We propose a statistical method for decomposition of contributions toiron production from various sources: Type II supernovae and thesubpopulations of Type Ia supernovae, prompt (their progenitors areshort-lived stars with ages lower than ˜100 Myr) and tardy (theirprogenitors are long-lived stars with ages >100 Myr). To do that, wedevelop a theory of oxygen and iron synthesis that takes into accountthe influence of the spiral arms on the amount of the above elementssynthesized by both Type II supernovae and prompt Type Ia supernovae. Inthe framework of the theory, we processed statistically the new, moreprecise, observational data on Cepheid abundances, which, as is wellknown, demonstrate non-trivial radial distributions of oxygen and ironin the Galactic disc with bends in the gradients. In our opinion, suchfine structure in the distribution of elements along the Galactic discenables one to decompose the amount of iron unambiguously into threecomponents produced by the above three sources. In addition, by means ofour statistical methods we solve this task without any preliminarysuppositions about the ratios between the proportions of ironsynthesized by the above sources.The total mass supplied to the Galactic disc during its life by alltypes of supernovae is ˜(4.0 ± 0.4) × 107M&sun;, while the mass of iron occurring in the presentinterstellar medium (ISM) is ˜(1.20 ± 0.05) ×107 M&sun;, i.e. about two thirds of iron iscontained in stars and stellar remnants.The relative proportion of iron synthesized by tardy type Ia supernovaefor the lifetime of the Galaxy is ˜35 per cent (in the present ISMthis portion is ˜50 per cent). Correspondingly, the totalproportion of iron supplied to the disc by Type II supernovae and promptType Ia supernovae is ˜65 per cent (in the present ISM thisproportion is ˜50 per cent). The above result depends slightly onthe adopted mass of oxygen and iron synthesized during one supernovaexplosion and the shape (bimodal or smooth) of the so-called delay-timedistribution function.The proportions of iron mass distributed between short-lived supernovaeare usually as follows: depending on the ejected masses of oxygen oriron during one Type II supernova event, the relative proportion of ironsupplied to the Galactic disc for its age varies in the range 12-32 percent (in the present ISM 9-25 per cent); the proportion supplied byprompt Type Ia supernovae to the Galactic disc is 33-53 per cent (in theISM 26-42 per cent).Our method also confirms that the bend in the observed slope of theoxygen radial distribution and the minimum in [O/Fe] at ˜7 kpcform in the vicinity of the location of the corotation resonance.
| The Distribution of the Elements in the Galactic Disk. II. Azimuthal and Radial Variation in Abundances from Cepheids
This paper reports on the spectroscopic investigation of 101 Cepheids inthe Carina region. These Cepheids extend previous samples by about 35%in number and increase the amount of the Galactic disk coverageespecially in the direction of l ? 270°. The new Cepheids do notadd much information to the radial gradient, but provide a substantialincrease in azimuthal coverage. We find no azimuthal dependence inabundance over an 80° angle from the Galactic center in an annulusof 1 kpc depth centered on the Sun. A simple linear fit to the Cepheiddata yields a gradient d[Fe/H]/dRG = -0.055 ± 0.003dex kpc-1 which is somewhat shallower than found from ourprevious, smaller Cepheid sample.
| Random forest automated supervised classification of Hipparcos periodic variable stars
We present an evaluation of the performance of an automatedclassification of the Hipparcos periodic variable stars into 26 types.The sub-sample with the most reliable variability types available in theliterature is used to train supervised algorithms to characterize thetype dependencies on a number of attributes. The most useful attributesevaluated with the random forest methodology include, in decreasingorder of importance, the period, the amplitude, the V-I colour index,the absolute magnitude, the residual around the folded light-curvemodel, the magnitude distribution skewness and the amplitude of thesecond harmonic of the Fourier series model relative to that of thefundamental frequency. Random forests and a multi-stage scheme involvingBayesian network and Gaussian mixture methods lead to statisticallyequivalent results. In standard 10-fold cross-validation (CV)experiments, the rate of correct classification is between 90 and 100per cent, depending on the variability type. The main mis-classificationcases, up to a rate of about 10 per cent, arise due to confusion betweenSPB and ACV blue variables and between eclipsing binaries, ellipsoidalvariables and other variability types. Our training set and thepredicted types for the other Hipparcos periodic stars are availableonline.
| Near-infrared (JHK) Photometry of 131 Northern Galactic Classical Cepheids
Near-infrared photometric measurements for 131 Northern GalacticCepheids are presented. The Cepheid light curves are sampled with anaverage of 22 measurements per star fully covering the phase of eachCepheid. The J, H, and K light curves for each Cepheid were uniformlyinterpolated to find the intensity mean magnitudes within each band. Theresults are consistent within ±1% for 26 stars in common withprevious studies. This paper is the first in a projected series of twopapers which will provide additional fundamental data for Cepheids inthe Galaxy, namely, NIR photometry and line-of-sight extinction. In thecourse of this project, 93 additional variables were fortuitouslyobserved within the Cepheid program fields, 82 of which have previouslynot been identified.
| A catalogue of young runaway Hipparcos stars within 3 kpc from the Sun
Traditionally, runaway stars are O- and B-type stars with large peculiarvelocities. We would like to extend this definition to young stars (upto ?50 Myr) of any spectral type and to identify those present in theHipparcos catalogue by applying different selection criteria, such aspeculiar space velocities or peculiar one-dimensional velocities.Runaway stars are important for studying the evolution of multiple starsystems or star clusters, as well as for identifying the origins ofneutron stars. We compile the distances, proper motions, spectral types,luminosity classes, V magnitudes and B-V colours, and we utilizeevolutionary models from different authors to obtain star ages. We studya sample of 7663 young Hipparcos stars within 3 kpc from the Sun. Theradial velocities are obtained from the literature. We investigate thedistributions of the peculiar spatial velocity and the peculiar radialvelocity as well as the peculiar tangential velocity and itsone-dimensional components and we obtain runaway star probabilities foreach star in the sample. In addition, we look for stars that aresituated outside any OB association or OB cluster and the Galactic planeas well as stars for which the velocity vector points away from themedian velocity vector of neighbouring stars or the surrounding local OBassociation/cluster (although the absolute velocity might be small). Wefind a total of 2547 runaway star candidates (with a contamination ofnormal Population I stars of 20 per cent at most). Thus, aftersubtracting these 20 per cent, the runaway frequency among young starsis about 27 per cent. We compile a catalogue of runaway stars, which isavailable via VizieR.
| Observational studies of Cepheid amplitudes. I. Period-amplitude relationships for Galactic Cepheids and interrelation of amplitudes
Context: The dependence of amplitude on the pulsation period differsfrom other Cepheid-related relationships. Aims: We attempt torevise the period-amplitude (P-A) relationship of Galactic Cepheidsbased on multi-colour photometric and radial velocity data. Reliable P-Agraphs for Galactic Cepheids constructed for the U, B, V, R_C, andIC photometric bands and pulsational radial velocityvariations facilitate investigations of previously poorly studiedinterrelations between observable amplitudes. The effects of bothbinarity and metallicity on the observed amplitude, and the dichotomybetween short- and long-period Cepheids can both be studied. Methods: A homogeneous data set was created that contains basicphysical and phenomenological properties of 369 Galactic Cepheids.Pulsation periods were revised and amplitudes were determined by theFourier method. P-A graphs were constructed and an upper envelope to thedata points was determined in each graph. Correlations between variousamplitudes and amplitude-related parameters were searched for, usingCepheids without known companions. Results: Large amplitudeCepheids with companions exhibit smaller photometric amplitudes onaverage than solitary ones, as expected, while s-Cepheids pulsate withan arbitrary (although small) amplitude. The ratio of the observedradial velocity to blue photometric amplitudes, AV_RAD/A_B,is not as good an indicator of the pulsation mode as predictedtheoretically. This may be caused by an incorrect mode assignment to anumber of small amplitude Cepheids, which are not necessarily firstovertone pulsators. The dependence of the pulsation amplitudes onwavelength is used to identify duplicity of Cepheids. More than twentystars previously classified as solitary Cepheids are now suspected tohave a companion. The ratio of photometric amplitudes observed invarious bands confirms the existence of a dichotomy among normalamplitude Cepheids. The limiting period separating short- andlong-period Cepheids is 10.47 days. Conclusions:Interdependences of pulsational amplitudes, the period dependence of theamplitude parameters, and the dichotomy have to be taken into account asconstraints in modelling the structure and pulsation of Cepheids.Studies of the P-L relationship must comply with the break at 10.47°instead of the currently used “convenient” value of 10 days.Table 1 is only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymousftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/504/959
| Galactic abundance gradients from Cepheids. On the iron abundance gradient around 10-12 kpc
Context: Classical Cepheids are excellent tracers of intermediate-massstars, since their distances can be estimated with very high accuracy.In particular, they can be adopted to trace the chemical evolution ofthe Galactic disk. Aims: Homogeneous iron abundance measurements for 33Galactic Cepheids located in the outer disk together with accuratedistance determinations based on near-infrared photometry are adopted toconstrain the Galactic iron gradient beyond 10 kpc. Methods: Ironabundances were determined using high resolution Cepheid spectracollected with three different observational instruments: ESPaDOnS@CFHT,Narval@TBL and FEROS@2.2m ESO/MPG telescope. Cepheid distances wereestimated using near-infrared (J,H,K-band) period-luminosity relationsand data from SAAO and the 2MASS catalog. Results: The least squaressolution over the entire data set indicates that the iron gradient inthe Galactic disk presents a slope of -0.052±0.003 textrm {dexkpc}-1 in the 5-17 kpc range. However, the change of the ironabundance across the disk seems to be better described by a linearregime inside the solar circle and a flattening of the gradient towardthe outer disk (beyond 10 kpc). In the latter region the iron gradientpresents a shallower slope, i.e. -0.012±0.014 textrm {dexkpc}-1. In the outer disk (10-12 kpc) we also found thatCepheids present an increase in the spread in iron abundance. Currentevidence indicates that the spread in metallicity depends on theGalactocentric longitude. Finally, current data do not support thehypothesis of a discontinuity in the iron gradient at Galactocentricdistances of 10-12 kpc. Conclusions: The occurrence of a spread in ironabundance as a function of the Galactocentric longitude indicates thatlinear radial gradients should be cautiously treated to constrain thechemical evolution across the disk.
| Reddenings of FGK supergiants and classical Cepheids from spectroscopic data
Accurate and homogeneous atmospheric parameters(Teff,logg,Vt, [Fe/H]) are derived for 74 FGKnon-variable supergiants from high-resolution, high signal-to-noiseratio, echelle spectra. Extremely high precision for the inferredeffective temperatures (10-40K) is achieved by using the line-depthratio method. The new data are combined with atmospheric values for 164classical Cepheids, observed at 675 different pulsation phases, takenfrom our previously published studies. The derived values are correlatedwith unreddened B - V colours compiled from the literature for theinvestigated stars in order to obtain an empirical relationship of theform (B - V)0 = 57.984 -10.3587(logTeff)2 +1.67572(logTeff)3 - 3.356logg +0.0321Vt + 0.2615[Fe/H] + 0.8833(logg)(logTeff).The expression is used to estimate colour excesses E(B - V) forindividual supergiants and classical Cepheids, with a precision of+/-0.05 mag for supergiants and Cepheids with n = 1-2 spectra, reaching+/-0.025mag for Cepheids with n > 2 spectra, matching uncertaintiesfor the most sophisticated photometric techniques. The reddening scaleis also a close match to the system of space reddenings for Cepheids.The application range is for spectral types F0-K0 and luminosity classesI and II.
| Photoelectric observations of Cepheids in UBV(RI)c (Berdnikov, 2008)
This catalog gathers the observation of 894 Cepheids made between 1986to 2004.Observations are listed in alphabetical order of the constellations. Thestandard deviation for every magnitude and color is 0.01mag.This version supersedes the 1997 edition (Cat. )(3 data files).
| A new calibration of Galactic Cepheid period-luminosity relations from B to K bands, and a comparison to LMC relations
Context: The universality of the Cepheid period-luminosity (PL)relations has been under discussion since metallicity effects wereassumed to play a role in the value of the intercept and, more recently,of the slope of these relations. Aims: The goal of the present study isto calibrate the Galactic PL relations in various photometric bands(from B to K) and to compare the results to the well-established PLrelations in the LMC. Methods: We use a set of 59 calibrating stars,the distances of which are measured using five different distanceindicators: Hubble Space Telescope and revised Hipparcos parallaxes,infrared surface brightness and interferometric Baade-Wesselinkparallaxes, and classical Zero-Age-Main-Sequence-fitting parallaxes forCepheids belonging to open clusters or OB stars associations. A detaileddiscussion of absorption corrections and projection factor to be used isgiven. Results: We find no significant difference in the slopes of thePL relations between LMC and our Galaxy. Conclusions: We conclude thatthe Cepheid PL relations have universal slopes in all photometric bands,not depending on the galaxy under study (at least for LMC and MilkyWay). The possible zero-point variation with metal content is notdiscussed in the present work, but an upper limit of 18.50 for the LMCdistance modulus can be deduced from our data.Tables 2, 6 and 7 are only available in electronic form athttp://www.aanda.org
| Cepheid parallaxes and the Hubble constant
Revised Hipparcos parallaxes for classical Cepheids are analysedtogether with 10 Hubble Space Telescope (HST)-based parallaxes. In areddening-free V, I relation we find that the coefficient of logP is thesame within the uncertainties in our Galaxy as in the Large MagellanicCloud (LMC), contrary to some previous suggestions. Cepheids in theinner region of NGC4258 with near solar metallicities confirm thisresult. We obtain a zero-point for the reddening-free relation and applyit to the Cepheids in galaxies used by Sandage et al. to calibrate theabsolute magnitudes of Type Ia supernova (SNIa) and to derive the Hubbleconstant. We revise their result for H0 from 62 to 70 +/-5kms-1Mpc-1. The Freedman et al. value is revisedfrom 72 to 76 +/- 8kms-1Mpc-1. These results areinsensitive to Cepheid metallicity corrections. The Cepheids in theinner region of NGC4258 yield a modulus of 29.22 +/- 0.03 (int.)compared with a maser-based modulus of 29.29 +/- 0.15. Distance modulifor the LMC, uncorrected for any metallicity effects, are 18.52 +/- 0.03from a reddening-free relation in V, I; 18.47 +/- 0.03 from aperiod-luminosity relation at K; 18.45 +/- 0.04 from aperiod-luminosity-colour relation in J, K. Adopting a metallicitycorrection in V, I from Macri et al. leads to a true LMC modulus of18.39 +/- 0.05.
| The reliability of Cepheid reddenings based on BVIC photometry
Externally determined values of E(B - V) (Espacered) for 40Galactic Cepheids are compared to reddenings determined using B - V andV - IC colour indices and the method of Dean, Warren &Cousins (EBVIC), updated to allow for metallicitycorrections. With three stars omitted on the grounds of uncertainty intheir space reddenings, we find thatThe two scales agree well in scale and zero-point, and there is nosignificant trend with period. Given the non-zero errors in the Cepheidspace reddenings, the estimated error in BVIC Cepheidreddenings is no more than 0.02.The above results are not significantly changed whether one corrects thereddenings for metallicity using older Bell models, or using more recentmodels by Sandage, Bell & Tripicco. Using the SBT models to correctthe reddenings of Cloud Cepheids for metallicity gives slightly smallerreddenings at a given metal deficiency, yielding `new' median reddeningsof 0.056 (Small Magellanic Cloud) and 0.076 (Large Magellanic Cloud) ifwe assume the same metal deficiencies as Caldwell and Coulson. Withmetal deficiencies of [M/H] = -0.7 and -0.25, the median reddenings are0.040 and 0.058.
| Pulkovo compilation of radial velocities for 35495 stars in a common system.
Not Available
| The Distribution of the Elements in the Galactic Disk
This paper reports on the spectroscopic investigation of 54 Cepheids,deriving parameters and abundances. These Cepheids extend previoussamples by about 35% in number and increase the amount of the Galacticdisk coverage, especially in the direction of l~120deg. Wefind that there exists in the Galactic disk at that longitude and at asolar distance of about 3-4 kpc a region that has enhanced abundances,~+0.2, with respect to the local region. A simple linearfit to all Cepheid data now extant yields a gradientd[Fe/H]/dRG=-0.068+/-0.003 dex kpc-1. Afterconsideration of the spatial abundance inhomogeneities in the sample, weconclude that the best current estimate of the overall gradient isd[Fe/H]/dRG=-0.06 dex kpc-1.
| Period-colour and amplitude-colour relations in classical Cepheid variables - IV. The multiphase relations
The superb phase resolution and quality of the Optical GravitationalLensing Experiment (OGLE) data on the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) andSmall Magellanic Cloud (SMC) Cepheids, together with existing data onGalactic Cepheids, are combined to study the period-colour (PC) andamplitude-colour (AC) relations as a function of pulsation phase. Ourresults confirm earlier work that the LMC PC relation (at mean light) ismore consistent with two lines of differing slopes, separated at aperiod of 10 d. However, our multiphase PC relations reveal much newstructure which can potentially increase our understanding of Cepheidvariables. These multiphase PC relations provide insight into why theGalactic PC relation is linear but the LMC PC relation is non-linear.This is because the LMC PC relation is shallower for short (logP < 1)and steeper for long (logP > 1) period Cepheids than thecorresponding Galactic PC relation. Both of the short- and long-periodCepheids in all three galaxies exhibit the steepest and shallowestslopes at phases around 0.75-0.85, respectively. A consequence is thatthe PC relation at phase ~ 0.8 is highly non-linear. Further, theGalactic and LMC Cepheids with logP > 1 display a flat slope in thePC plane at phases close to the maximum light. When the LMCperiod-luminosity (PL) relation is studied as a function of phase, weconfirm that it changes with the PC relation. The LMC PL relation in Vand I band near the phase of 0.8 provides compelling evidence that thisrelation is also consistent with two lines of differing slopes joined ata period close to 10 d.
| New Period-Luminosity and Period-Color relations of classical Cepheids: I. Cepheids in the Galaxy
321 Galactic fundamental-mode Cepheids with good B, V, and (in mostcases) I photometry by Berdnikov et al. (\cite{Berdnikov:etal:00}) andwith homogenized color excesses E(B-V) based on Fernie et al.(\cite{Fernie:etal:95}) are used to determine their period-color (P-C)relation in the range 0.4~ 1.4). The latter effect is enhanced by asuggestive break of the P-L relation of LMC and SMC at log P = 1.0towards still shallower values as shown in a forthcoming paper.Table 1 is only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymousftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/404/423
| A Revised Calibration of the MV-W(O I 7774) Relationship using Hipparcos Data: Its Application to Cepheids and Evolved Stars
A new calibration of the MV-W(O I 7774) relationship hasbeen calculated using better reddening and distance estimates for asample of 27 calibrator stars of spectral types A to G, based onaccurate parallaxes and proper motions from the Hipparcos and Tychocatalogues. The present calibration predicts absolute magnitude withaccuracies of +/-0.38mag for a sample covering a large range ofMV, from -9.5 to +0.35 mag. The color term included in aprevious paper has been dropped since its inclusion does not lead to anysignificant improvement in the calibration. The variation of the O I7774 feature in the classical cepheid SS Sct has been studied. Wecalculated a phase-dependent correction to random phase OI featurestrengths in Cepheids, such that it predicts mean absolute magnitudesusing the above calibration. After applying such a correction, we couldincrease the list of calibrators to 58 by adding MV and O Itriplet strength data for 31 classical Cepheids. The standard error ofthe calibration using the composite sample was comparable to thatobtained from the primary 27 calibrators, showing that it is possible tocalculate mean Cepheid luminosities from random phase observations ofthe O I 7774 feature. We use our derived calibrations to estimateMV for a set of evolved objects to be able to locate theirpositions in the HR diagram.
| Two Period-Radius Relations for Classical Cepheids: Determining the Pulsation Mode and the Distance Scale
Not Available
| Catalogue of Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (CADARS) - Third edition - Comments and statistics
The 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
| Stars with the Largest Hipparcos Photometric Amplitudes
A list of the 2027 stars that have the largest photometric amplitudes inHipparcos Photometry shows that most variable stars are all Miras. Thepercentage of variable types change as a function of amplitude. Thiscompilation should also be of value to photometrists looking forrelatively unstudied, but large amplitude stars.
| The intermediate-band approach to the surface-brightness method for Cepheid radii and distance determination
The surface-brightness parameter Fν is calibrated in termsof the Strömgren intermediate-band colour b-y. The relationFν-(b-y)o valid for Cepheids is calibratedusing accurate near-infrared radii and distances for selected Cepheids.We have obtained uvby photometry for non-Cepheid giant and supergiantstars with known angular diameters and compared the slope and zero-pointof their Fν-(b-y)o relation with the Cepheidcalibration. We found that the two calibrations are significantlydifferent. The theoretical models lie in between the two calibrations.It is remarked that Fν-colour relations derived fromnon-Cepheids and involving blue colours (e.g. B-V or b-y) are notapplicable to Cepheids, while those involving redder colours (e.g. V-R,V-K or V-J) also produce good radii for Cepheids. Selected Cepheids ascalibrators lead to the accurate relationFν=3.898(+/-0.003)-0.378(+/-0.006)(b-y)o, whichallowed the calculation of radii and distances for a sample of 59Galactic Cepheids. The uncertainties in the zero-point and slope of theabove relation are similar to those obtained from near-infrared colours,and determine the accuracies in radii and distance calculations. Whileinfrared light and colour curves for Cepheids may be superior inprecision, the intermediate-band b-y colour allows the recovery of meanradii with an accuracy comparable to those obtained from the infraredsolutions. The derived distances are consistent within the uncertaintieswith those predicted by a widely accepted period-luminosityrelationship. Likewise, the resulting period-radius relation from theintermediate-band approach is in better agreement with infrared versionsthan with optical versions of this law. It is highlighted that theintermediate-band calibration of the surface-brightness method in thiswork is of comparable accuracy to the near-infrared calibrations. Thepresent results stress the virtues of uvby in determining the physicalparameters of supergiant stars of intermediate temperature.
| Galactic Cepheids. Catalogue of light-curve parameters and distances
We report a new version of the catalogue of distances and light-curveparameters for Galactic classical Cepheids. The catalogue listsamplitudes, magnitudes at maximum light, and intensity means for 455stars in BVRI filters of the Johnson system and (RI)_C filters of theCron-Cousins system. The distances are based on our new multicolour setof PL relations and on our Cepheid-based solution for interstellarextinction law parameters and are referred to an LMC distance modulus of18.25. The catalogue is only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html
| Multi-colour PL-relations of Cepheids in the bt HIPPARCOS catalogue and the distance to the LMC
We analyse a sample of 236 Cepheids from the hipparcos catalog, usingthe method of ``reduced parallaxes'' in V, I, K and the reddening-free``Wesenheit-index''. We compare our sample to those considered by Feast& Catchpole (1997) and Lanoix et al. (1999), and argue that oursample is the most carefully selected one with respect to completeness,the flagging of overtone pulsators, and the removal of Cepheids that mayinfluence the analyses for various reasons (double-mode Cepheids,unreliable hipparcos solutions, possible contaminated photometry due tobinary companions). From numerical simulations, and confirmed by theobserved parallax distribution, we derive a (vertical) scale height ofCepheids of 70 pc, as expected for a population of 3-10 Msunstars. This has consequences for Malmquist- and Lutz-Kelker (Lutz &Kelker 1973, Oudmaijer et al. 1998) type corrections which are smallerfor a disk population than for a spherical population. The V and I datasuggest that the slope of the Galactic PL-relations may be shallowerthan that observed for LMC Cepheids, either for the whole period range,or that there is a break at short periods (near log P_0 ~ 0.7-0.8). Westress the importance of two systematic effects which influence thedistance to the LMC: the slopes of the Galactic PL-relations andmetallicity corrections. In order to assess the influence of thesevarious effects, we present 27 distance moduli (DM) to the LMC. Theseare based on three different colours (V,I,K), three different slopes(the slope observed for Cepheids in the LMC, a shallower slope predictedfrom one set of theoretical models, and a steeper slope as derived forGalactic Cepheids from the surface-brightness technique), and threedifferent metallicity corrections (no correction as predicted by one setof theoretical models, one implying larger DM as predicted by anotherset of theoretical models, and one implying shorter DM based onempirical evidence). We derive DM between 18.45 +/- 0.18 and 18.86 +/-0.12. The DM based on K are shorter than those based on V and I andrange from 18.45 +/- 0.18 to 18.62 +/- 0.19, but the DM in K could besystematically too low by about 0.1 magnitude because of a bias due tothe fact that NIR photometry is available only for a limited number ofstars. From the Wesenheit-index we derive a DM of 18.60 +/- 0.11,assuming the observed slope of LMC Cepheids and no metallicitycorrection, for want of more information. The DM to the LMC based on theparallax data can be summarised as follows. Based on the PL-relation inV and I, and the Wesenheit-index, the DM is 18.60 ± 0.11(± 0.08 slope)(^{+0.08}_{-0.15} ;metallicity), which is ourcurrent best estimate. Based on the PL-relation in K the DM is ;;;;18.52 +/- 0.18 (± 0.03 ;slope) (± 0.06 ;metallicity)(^{+0.10}_{-0} ;sampling ;bias). The random error is mostly due to thegiven accuracy of the hipparcos parallaxes and the number of Cepheids inthe respective samples. The terms between parentheses indicate thepossible systematic uncertainties due to the slope of the GalacticPL-relations, the metallicity corrections, and in the K-band, due to thelimited number of stars. Recent work by Sandage et al. (1999) indicatesthat the effect of metallicity towards shorter distances may be smallerin V and I than indicated here. From this, we point out the importanceof obtaining NIR photometry for more (closeby) Cepheids, as for themoment NIR photometry is only available for 27% of the total sample.This would eliminate the possible bias due to the limited number ofstars, and would reduce the random error estimate from 0.18 to about0.10 mag. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the DM to reddening,metallicity correction and slope are smallest in the K-band. Based ondata from the ESA HP astrometry satellite.
| Direct calibration of the Cepheid period-luminosity relation
After the first release of Hipparcos data, Feast & Catchpole gave anew value for the zero-point of the visual Cepheid period-luminosityrelation, based on trigonometric parallaxes. Because of the largeuncertainties on these parallaxes, the way in which individualmeasurements are weighted is of crucial importance. We thereforeconclude that the choice of the best weighting system can be aided by aMonte Carlo simulation. On the basis of such a simulation, it is shownthat (i) a cut-off in π or in σ_ππ introduces a strongbias; (ii) the zero-point is more stable when only the brightestCepheids are used; and (iii) the Feast & Catchpole weighting givesthe best zero-point and the lowest dispersion. After correction, theadopted visual period-luminosity relation is=-2.77logP-1.44+/-0.05. Moreover, we extend this study to thephotometric I band (Cousins) and obtain=-3.05logP-1.81+/-0.09.
| I- and JHK-band photometry of classical Cepheids in the HIPPARCOS catalog
By correlating the \cite[Fernie et al. (1995)]{F95} electronic databaseon Cepheids with the ``resolved variable catalog'' of the hipparcosmission and the simbad catalog one finds that there are 280 Cepheids inthe hipparcos catalog. By removing W Vir stars (Type ii Cepheids),double-mode Cepheids, Cepheids with an unreliable solution in thehipparcos catalog, and stars without photometry, it turns out that thereare 248 classical Cepheids left, of which 32 are classified asfirst-overtone pulsators. For these stars the literature was searchedfor I-band and near-infrared data. Intensity-mean I-band photometry onthe Cousins system is derived for 189 stars, and intensity-mean JHK dataon the Carter system is presented for 69 stars.
| Monitoring Cepheid Period Changes From Saint Mary's University
CCD observations in blue light with the 0.4m telescope at Saint Mary'sUniversity are presented for the Cepheids SU Cyg, V402 Cyg, V1154 Cyg,V386 Cyg, V924 Cyg, MW Cyg, BB Her, GH Cyg, VY Cyg, TX Cyg, SZ Cyg, XCyg, CD Cyg, and CV Vul. The data are used to establish new times oflight maximum for the sample, and analyses of the new andpreviously-published O-C residuals are used to derive improved valuesfor the rates of period change for each program object. The new valuesagree closely with predictions from stellar evolutionary theory for therates at which intermediate-mass stars evolve through the Cepheidinstability strip, and provide an excellent means of establishing theinstability strip crossing mode for each variable.
| A catalog of Cepheid radial velocities measured in 1995-1998 with the correlation spectrometer
We present a catalog of 2444 original radial-velocity measurements for108 Cepheids based on the 1995-1998 observations with the correlationspectrometer. Detailed radial-velocity curves are given for 12 Cepheidsfor the first time.
| UVBY beta Photometric Data and Fourier Coefficients for Galactic Population I and Population II Cepheids
Photometric data in the uvby beta system are presented for a sample of98 Population I Cepheids and seven W Virginis or Population II Cepheids.The importance of the Fourier decomposition technique in the study ofthe structure of pulsating stars is stressed. Mean values and Fourierdecomposition coefficients for the V, b - y, m1, and c1 variations arecalculated. Also, mean values of H beta are provided. New times ofmaximum V light are reported for the majority of the stars in thesample. Significant shifts of the light and color curves were found insome Cepheids; these are explained by their period variations. Thesestars are highlighted in the text.
| The radii of 62 classical Cepheids
Based on dense series of photoelectric observations and on ourradial-velocity measurements, we calculated the radii of 62 northernCepheids by Balona's method. We derived the following period-radiusrelation: log R = 1.23(+/-0.03) + 0.62(+/-0.03) log P. Our detailedanalysis shows that the distance scale for Cepheids cannot be refinedusing their radii by an independent method which is unrelated to thedistances to young open clusters because of the random and systematicerrors of the Baade-Wesselink technique.
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Observation and Astrometry data
| Constellation: | Κύκνος |
| Right ascension: | 21h14m40.43s |
| Declination: | +41°42'58.9" |
| Apparent magnitude: | 9.741 |
| Proper motion RA: | -1.9 |
| Proper motion Dec: | -1.8 |
| B-T magnitude: | 11.629 |
| V-T magnitude: | 9.897 |
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