• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.38 no.2
• /
• pp.32-32
• /
• 2013

The Korean VLBI Network (KVN) as a world-first multi-frequency VLBI system is operated at four bands of 22, 43, 86, and 129 GHz simultaneously. The performances of both single dish and VLBI network were already confirmed through single dish researches and VLBI evaluation test observations. The VLBI common use of the KVN at 22/43 GHz bands has been started from this autumn. The combined network of KVN and Japanese VERA (KaVA) will start the common use from the first half of next year. Here we present several observational results in the fields of star forming regions, late-type stars, and active galactic nuclei using the KVN and KaVA. The fringes of 44 GHz $CH_3OH$ (Class I) masers were detected from 26 sources for the first time using the KVN and imaging observations are under performing. Simultaneous observations of SiO and $H_2O$ masers toward about 1000 evolved stars showed the different maser properties between SiO and $H_2O$ masers according to the evolutionary stages of AGB and post-AGB stars. The catalog of correlated flux densities were established from a 43 GHz (Q-band) survey of 637 extragalactic sources. At 22 GHz (K-band), flux density measurement and fringe survey for new sources were performed toward a large number of sources. In addition, the large program of KVN and/or KaVA under planning is introduced.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.41 no.2
• /
• pp.44.2-45
• /
• 2016

We present near-infrared photometric properties of red supergiant stars (RSGs) in three galaxies NGC 4449, NGC 5055 and NGC 5457. The near-infrared imaging data of WFCAM UKIRT were used and combined with optical archive data to identify the RSGs in the galaxies. We found that the RSGs can be identified from the foreground Galactic stars in (i-K, ri) colour-colour diagram. The effective temperatures and luminosities of the identified RSGs are estimated from JHK photometry using MARCS model. In the H-R diagram, the majority of RSGs in the galaxies are distributed between $logL/L{\odot}=4.8$ and 5.7, and their effective temperature and luminosities agree with the current evolutionary tracks with masses in the range $9-30M{\odot}$. We also compared the spatial distribution of RSGs with the HII regions. A tight spatial correlation between RSGs and HII region was found in NGC 4449 and NGC 5457. We do not find a clear metallicity dependance on the RSG effective temperature in the three galaxies, but the maximum luminosity of the three galaxies is constant at $logL/L{\odot}{\sim}5.6$. Additional spectroscopy data, including photometry are essential to examine whether the physical properties of RSGs change with metallicity.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.41 no.2
• /
• pp.62.1-62.1
• /
• 2016

We study the near-infrared photometric properties of red-supergiant stars (RSGs) in three nearby galaxies located within 15 Mpc: NGC 4214, NGC 4736 and NGC 5194 / NGC 5195. The near-infrared (JHK) imaging data were obtained using the WFCAM detector mounted on UKIRT telescope in Hawaii. We used the DAOPHOT/ALLSTAR pacakge to carry out the photometry. We applied MARCS synthetic fluxes to estimate the effective temperatures and luminosities of the RSGs in all the three galaxies. The results were plotted in the Hertzsprung-Russell(H-R) diagram along with the theoretical evolutionary tracks with different masses. We explore the spatial correlation between the RSGs and H II regions by examing the H-R diagram of the RSGs in the dominant H II regions for each of these three galaxies.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.38 no.2
• /
• pp.219-222
• /
• 2005

We present the high-resolution (2"-4") images of the molecular envelopes surrounding the evolved stars, V Hya, VY CMa, and ${\pi}^1$ Gru observed with the Submillimeter Array. The CO J=2-1 and 3-2 images of the carbon star V Hya show that the circumstellar structure of this star consists of three kinematic components; there is a flattened disk-like envelope that is expanding with a velocity of ${\~}16 km\;s^{-1}$, the second component is the medium-velocity wind having a deprojected velocity of 40-120 km $s^{-l}$ moving along the disk plane, and the third one is the bipolar molecular jet having an extreme velocity of 70-185 km $s^{-l}$. The axis of this high velocity jet is perpendicular to the plane of the disk-like envelope. We found that the circumstellar structure of the S-star ${\pi}^1$ Gru traced by the CO J =2-1 resembles that of V Hya quite closely; the star is surrounded by the expanding disk-like envelope and is driving the medium-velocity wind along the disk plane. We also obtained the excellent images of VY CMa with the CO and $^{13}CO$ J=2-1 and $SO\;6_5-5_4$ lines. The maps of three molecular lines show that the envelope has a significant velocity gradient in the east-west direction, suggesting that the envelope surrounding VY CMa is also flattened and expanding along its radial direction. The high-resolution images obtained with the SMA show that some AGB stars are associated with the asymmetric mass loss including the equatorial wind and bipolar jet.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.41 no.5
• /
• pp.121-137
• /
• 2008

We present optical and near-infrared imaging and long-slit spectroscopy for the blue compact dwarf galaxy (BCD) Mrk 49 in the Virgo Cluster. The surface brightness distribution analysis shows that Mrk 49 consists of an off-centered blue bright compact core of r = 10" and a red faint outer exponential envelope. The $H_{\alpha}$ image and color difference suggest that these two components have different stellar populations: a high surface brightness population of massive young stars and an underlying low surface brightness population of older stars. The redder near-infrared colors of the inner most region suggest that the near-infrared flux of Mrk 49 originates from evolved massive stars associated with the current star-forming activity. The total apparent magnitude is $B_T\;=\;14.32$ mag and the mean effective surface brightness is ${\mu}_{eff}(B)\;=\;21.56$ mag $arcsec^{-2}$. Long-slit spectroscopy shows that Mrk 49 rotates apparently as a solid body within r = 10" in a plane at position angle 55 degrees with an amplitude of about $20\;km\;sec^{-1}$. The measured radial velocity of Mrk 49 was derived as $1,535\;km\;sec^{-1}$; and the total mass of stars and gases is in the range of 3 to $6\;{\times}\;10^9\;M_{\odot}$. The mass-to-light ratios for the central region of Mrk 49 in I and B band are estimated 1.0 and 0.5, respectively. The upper limit of the dark matter to visible matter ratio seems to be < 5. The oxygen abundance is $12\;+\;\log(O/H)\;=\;8.21\;{\pm}\; 0.1$ which is about one quarter of the solar value while the relative helium abundance appears to be similar to that of the sun.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.37 no.2
• /
• pp.68.1-68.1
• /
• 2012

We present a comprehensive study of the stellar populations in two faint M31 dwarf satellites, And XI and And XIII. Using deep archival images from the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) onboard the Hubble Space Telepscope (HST), we characterize the horizontal branch (HB) morphologies and the RR Lyrae (RRL) populations of these two faint dwarf satellites. Our new template light curve fitting routine (RRFIT) detected RRL populations from both galaxies. The mean periods of $RR_{ab}$ (RR0) stars in And XI and And XIII are < $P_{ab}$ > = $0.621{\pm}0.040$, and < $P_{ab}$ > = $0.648{\pm}0.038$ respectively. Even though the RRL populations show a lack of $RR_{ab}$ stars with high amplitudes (Amp(V) > 1.0 mag) and relatively short periods ($P_{ab}$ ~ 0.5 days), their period - V band amplitude (P-Amp(V)) relations track the lower part of the general P-Amp(V) trend in the M31 outer halo RRL populations. The metallicities of $RR_{ab}$ stars were calculated via the [Fe/H]-log $P_{ab}$-Amp(V) relationship of Alcock et al. The metallicities thus obtained ($[Fe/H]_{And}$ $_{XI}=-1.75%$; $[Fe/H]_{And}$ $_{XIII}=-1.74$) are consistent with the values calculated from the RGB slope indicating that our measurements are not significantly affected by the evolutionary effects of RRL stars. We discuss the origins of And XI and And XIII based on a comparative analysis of the luminosity-metallicity (L-M) relation of Local Group dwarf galaxies.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.38 no.2
• /
• pp.45.2-45.2
• /
• 2013

We studied recent evolution of M31 and M33 with star-forming regions and hot massive stars. We use GALEX far-UV and near-UV imaging to detect the star-forming regions and trace the recent star formation across the entire disk of galaxies. The GALEX imaging, combining deep sensitivity and entire coverage of these galaxies, provides a complete picture of the recent star formation in M31 and M33, and its variation with environment throughout these galaxies. We also show results from recent extensive surveys in M31 and M33 with Hubble Space Telescope multi-wavelength data including UV filters, which imaged several regions at a linear resolution of less than half a pc in these galaxies. Both datasets allow us to study the hierarchical structure of star formation: the youngest stellar groups are the most compact, and are often arranged withing broader, sparser structures. The derived recent star-formation rates are rather similar for the two galaxies, when scaled for the respective areas.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.45 no.1
• /
• pp.39.2-39.2
• /
• 2020

Based upon the previous heritage in the complete development of the infrared imaging spectrometer, NISS (Near-infrared Imaging Spectrometer for Star formation history) onboard NEXTSat-1, we are participating in the NASA MIDEX mission (PI Institute: Caltech), the all-sky infrared spectro-photometric surveyor SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer). The SPHEREx will provide us the first all-sky infrared spectro-photometric data set to probe the origin of our Universe, to explore the origin and evolution of galaxies, and to explore whether planets around other stars could harbor life. After the SPEHREx have passed the PDR (Preliminary Design Review) on this September, the fabrication of flight hardware will be started soon. As an international partner, KASI takes part in the hardware development, the operation and the science for the SPHEREx. Here, we report the status of the SPHEREx project and the progress in the Korean participation.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.37 no.4
• /
• pp.285-288
• /
• 2004

Near-infrared imaging photometry supplemented by optical spectroscopy and narrow-band imaging of the H II region Sh 2-128 and its environment are presented. This region contains a developed H II region and the neighboring compact H II region S 128N associated with a pair of water maser sources. Midway between these, the core of a CO cloud is located. The principal ionizing source of Sh 2-128 is an 07 star close to its center. A new spectroscopic distance of 9.4 kpc is derived, very similar to the kinematic distance to the nebula. This implies a galactocentric distance of 13.5 kpc and z = 550 pc. The region is optically thin with abundances close to those predicted by galactocentric gradients. The $JHK_s$ images show that S 128N contains several infrared point sources and nebular emission knots with large near-infrared excesses. One of the three red Ks knots coincides with the compact H II region. A few of the infrared-excess objects are close to known mid- and far-infrared emission peaks. Star counts in J and $K_s$ show the presence of a small cluster of B-type stars, mainly associated with S 128N. The $JHK_s$ photometric properties together with the characteristics of the other objects in the vicinity suggest that Sh 2-128 and S 128N constitute a single complex formed from the same molecular cloud, with ages ${\~}10^6$ and < $3 {\times} 10^5$ years respectively. No molecular hydrogen emission was detected at 2.12 ${\mu}m$. The origin of this remote star forming region is an open problem.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.44 no.5
• /
• pp.195-200
• /
• 2011

We have revisited the ACS Virgo Cluster Survey (ACSVCS), a Hubble Space Telescope program to obtain ACS/WFC g and z bands imaging for a sample of 100 early-type galaxies in the Virgo Cluster. In this study, we examine 51 nucleated early-type galaxies in the ACSVCS in order to look into the relationship between the photometric and structural properties of stellar nuclei and their host galaxies. We morphologically dissect galaxies into five classes. We note that (1) the stellar nuclei of dwarf early-type galaxies (dS0, dE, and dE,N) are generally fainter and bluer with g > 18.95 and (g-z) < 1.40 compared to some brighter and redder counterparts of the ellipticals (E) and lenticular galaxies (S0), (2) the g-band half-light radii of stellar nuclei of all dwarf early-type galaxies (dS0, dE, and dE,N) are smaller than 20 pc and their average is about 4 pc, and (3) the colors of red stellar nuclei with (g - z) > 1.40 in bright ellipticals and lenticular galaxies are bluer than their host galaxies colors. We also show that most of the unusually "red" stellar nuclei with (g-z) > 1.54 in the ACSVCS are the central parts of bright ellipticals and lenticular galaxies. Furthermore, we present multi photometric band color - color plots that can be used to break the age-metallicity degeneracy particularly by inclusion of the thermally pulsing-asymptotic giant branch (TP-AGB) phases of stellar evolution in the stellar population models.