Bibcode
DOI
de Jong, J. T. A.; Butler, D. J.; Rix, H. W.; Dolphin, A. E.; Martínez-Delgado, D.
Bibliographical reference
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 662, Issue 1, pp. 259-271.
Advertised on:
6
2007
Journal
Citations
28
Refereed citations
21
Description
We analyze the stellar populations of the Canis Major stellar
overdensity using quantitative color-magnitude diagram (CMD) fitting
techniques. The analysis is based on photometry obtained with the Wide
Field Imager at the 2.2 m telescope at La Silla for several fields near
the probable center of the overdensity. A modified version of the MATCH
software package was applied to fit the observed CMDs, enabling us to
constrain the properties of the old and young stellar populations that
appear to be present. For the old population we find [Fe/H]~-1.0, a
distance of ~7.5 kpc, a line-of-sight depth σlos of
1.5+/-0.2 kpc, and a characteristic age range of 3-6 Gyr. However, the
spread in ages and the possible presence of a ~10 Gyr old population
cannot be constrained. The young main sequence is found to have an age
spread; ages must range from a few hundred Myr to 2 Gyr. Because of the
degeneracy between distance and metallicity in CMDs, the estimates of
these parameters are strongly correlated, and two scenarios are
consistent with the data: if the young stars have a metallicity similar
to the old stars, they are equidistant and therefore cospatial with the
old stars; if the young stars have close to solar metallicity they are
more distant (~9 kpc). The relatively low metallicity of the old main
sequence favors the interpretation that CMa is the remnant of an
accreted dwarf galaxy. Spectroscopic metallicity measurements are needed
to determine whether the young main sequence is cospatial.