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We combine Galaxy Evolution Explorer and Gaia DR2 catalogs to track star formation in the outskirts of our Galaxy. Using photometry, proper motions, and parallaxes we identify a structure of ∼300 OB-type candidates located between 12 and 15 kpc from the Galactic center that are kinematically cold. The structure is located between l =120° and 200°, above the plane up to ∼700 pc and below the plane to ∼1 kpc. The bulk motion is disklike; however, we measure a mean upward vertical motion of 5.7 +0.4 km s-1, and a mean outward radial motion of between 8 and 16 km s-1. The velocity dispersion along the least dispersed of its proper-motion axes (perpendicular to the Galactic disk) is 6.0 +0.3 km s-1, confirming the young age of this structure. While spatially encompassing the outer spiral arm of the Galaxy, this structure is not a spiral arm. Its explanation as the Milky Way warp is equally unsatisfactory. The structure's vertical extent, mean kinematics, and asymmetry with respect to the plane indicate that its origin is more akin to a wobble generated by a massive satellite perturbing the Galaxy's disk. The mean stellar ages in this outer structure indicate the event took place some 200 Myr ago. © 2019. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..

We have measured the absolute proper motion of the Draco dwarf spheroidal galaxy using Subaru Suprime-Cam images taken at three epochs, with time baselines of 4.4 and 7 yr. The magnitude limit of the proper-motion study is i = 25, thus allowing for thousands of background galaxies and Draco stars to be used to perform extensive astrometric tests and to derive the correction to an inertial reference frame. The derived proper motion is (μα, μδ) = (-0.284 ± 0.047, -0.289 ± 0.041) mas yr-1. This motion implies an orbit that takes Draco to a pericentre of ~20 kpc; a somewhat disruptive orbit suggesting that tides might account for the rising velocity-dispersion profile of Draco seen in line-of-sight velocity studies. The orbit is only marginally consistent with Draco's membership to the vast polar structure of Galactic satellites, in contrast to a recent Hubble Space Telescope proper-motion measurement that finds alignment very likely. Our study is a test case to demonstrate that deep imaging with mosaic cameras of appropriate resolution can be used for high-accuracy, ground-based proper-motion measurement. As a useful by-product of the study, we also identify two faint brown-dwarf candidates in the foreground field. © 2016 The Authors Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Gaia DR1 positions are used to astrometrically calibrate three epochs’ worth of Subaru SuprimeCam images in the fields of globular cluster NGC 2419 and the Sextans dwarf spheroidal galaxy. Distortion-correction “maps” are constructed from a combination of offset dithers and reference to Gaia DR1. These are used to derive absolute proper motions in the field of NGC 2419. Notably, we identify the photometrically-detected Monoceros structure in the foreground of NGC 2419 as a kinematically-cold population of stars, distinct from Galactic-field stars. This project demonstrates the feasibility of combining Gaia with deep, ground-based surveys, thus extending high-quality astrometry to magnitudes beyond the limits of Gaia.

We have measured the absolute proper motion of the Sextans dwarf spheroidal galaxy using Subaru Suprime-Cam images taken at three epochs, with a time baseline of ~10 yr. We astrometrically calibrate each epoch by constructing distortion-correction 'maps' from the best available Subaru Suprime-Cam dithered data sets and from Gaia Data Release 1 positions. The magnitude limit of the proper motion study is V ~ 24. The area covered is 26.7 × 23.3 arcmin2, which is still within the core radius of Sextans. The derived proper motion is (μα, μδ) = (-0.409 ± 0.050, -0.047 ± 0.058) mas yr-1. The direction of motion is perpendicular to the major axis of the galaxy. Our measurement, combined with radial velocity and distance from the literature, implies a low eccentricity orbit, with a moderate inclination to the Galactic plane, and a period of 3 Gyr. Sextans is now some 0.4 Gyr away from its pericentre (rperi ~ 75 kpc), moving towards its apocentre (rapo ~ 132 kpc). Its orbit is inconsistent with membership to the vast polar structure of Galactic satellites. © 2018 The Author(s).

We discuss the results of cross-correlating catalogues of bright X-ray binaries with the Yale Southern Proper Motion Catalog (version 4.0). Several objects already known to have large proper motions from Hipparcos are recovered. Two additional objects are found which show substantial proper motions, both of which are unusual in their X-ray properties. One is IGR J17544-2619, one of the supergiant fast X-ray transients. Assuming the quoted distances in the literature for this source of about 3 kpc are correct, this system has a peculiar velocity of about 275 km s-1-greater than the velocity of a Keplerian orbit at its location of the Galaxy and in line with the expectations formed from suggestions that the supergiant fast X-ray transients should be highly eccentric. We discuss the possibility that these objects may help explain the existence of short gamma-ray bursts outside the central regions of galaxies. The other is the source 2A 1822-371, which is a member of the small class of objects which are low-mass X-ray binaries and long (i.e. >100 ms) X-ray pulsars. This system also shows both an anomalously high X-ray luminosity and a large orbital period derivative for a system with its orbital period, and some possible indications of an eccentric orbit. A coherent picture can be developed by adding in the proper motion information in which this system formed in the Perseus spiral arm of the Galaxy about 3 Myr ago and retains a slightly eccentric orbit which leads to enhanced mass transfer. © 2014 The Authors Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.

We combine the Siding Spring Survey of RR Lyrae stars with the Southern Proper Motion Catalog 4, in order to detect and kinematically characterize overdensities in the inner halo of the Milky Way. We identify one such overdensity above the Galactic plane, in quadrant 4 of the Galaxy. The overdensity extends at least 20° in longitude, has an average heliocentric distance of 8 kpc with a depth of 4 kpc, and is confined within 4 kpc of the Galactic plane. Its metallicity distribution is distinct from that of the field population having a peak at -1.3 and a pronounced tail to -2.0. Proper motions indicate a net vertical motion away from the plane, and a low orbital angular momentum. Qualitatively, these orbit properties suggest a possible association with ω Centauri's parent satellite. However, comparison to a specific ω Cen N-body disruption model does not give a good match with observations. Line of sight velocities, and more extensive N-body modeling will help clarify the nature of this overdensity. © 2015. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

Strongly interacting galaxies undergo a short-lived but dramatic phase of evolution characterized by enhanced star formation, tidal tails, bridges, and other morphological peculiarities. The nearest example of a pair of interacting galaxies is the Magellanic Clouds, whose dynamical interaction produced the gaseous features known as the Magellanic Stream trailing the pair's orbit about the Galaxy, the bridge between the Clouds, and the leading arm (LA), a wide and irregular feature leading the orbit. Young, newly formed stars in the bridge are known to exist, giving witness to the recent interaction between the Clouds. However, the interaction of the Clouds with the Milky Way (MW) is less well understood. In particular, the LA must have a tidal origin; however, no purely gravitational model is able to reproduce its morphology and kinematics. A hydrodynamical interaction with the gaseous hot halo and disk of the Galaxy is plausible as suggested by some models and supporting neutral hydrogen (H I) observations. Here we show for the first time that young, recently formed stars exist in the LA, indicating that the interaction between the Clouds and our Galaxy is strong enough to trigger star formation in certain regions of the LA—regions in the outskirts of the MW disk (R ∼ 18 kpc), far away from the Clouds and the bridge.

We explore the Gaia data release 2 (DR2) proper motions of six young, main-sequence stars, members of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) reported by Moni Bidin et al. These stars are located in the outskirts of the disk, between 7degree and 13degree from the LMC's center where there is very low H I content. Gaia DR2 proper motions confirm that four stars formed locally, in situ, while two are consistent with being expelled via dynamical interactions from inner, more gas-rich regions of the LMC. This finding establishes that recent star formation occurred in the periphery of the LMC, where thus far only old populations were known.

Chemical abundances of eight O- and B-type stars are determined from high-resolution spectra obtained with the MIKE instrument on the Magellan 6.5 m Clay telescope. The sample is selected from 42 candidates for membership in the Leading Arm (LA) of the Magellanic System. Stellar parameters are measured by two independent grids of model atmospheres and analysis procedures, confirming the consistency of the stellar parameter results. Abundances of seven elements (He, C, N, O, Mg, Si, and S) are determined for the stars, as are their radial velocities and estimates of distances and ages. Among the seven B-type stars analyzed, the five that have radial velocities compatible with membership of the LA have an average [Mg/H] of -0.42 ±0.16, significantly lower than the average of the remaining two, [Mg/H] = -0.07 ±0.06, which are kinematical members of the Galactic disk. Among the five LA members, four have individual [Mg/H] abundance compatible with that in the LMC. Within errors, we cannot exclude the possibility that one of these stars has an [Mg/H] consistent with the more metal-poor, SMC-like material. The remaining fifth star has an [Mg/H] close to Milky Way values. Distances to the LA members indicate that they are at the edge of the Galactic disk, while ages are of the order of ∼50-70 Myr, lower than the dynamical age of the LA, suggesting a single star-forming episode in the LA. V LSR of the LA members decreases with decreasing Magellanic longitude, confirming the results of previous LA gas studies. © 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..

We explore the origins of the young B-type stars found by Casetti-Dinescu et al. (2014) at the outskirts of the Milky-Way disk in the sky region of Leading Arm of the Magellanic Stream. High-resolution spectroscopic observations made with the MIKE instrument on the Magellan Clay 6.5m telescope for nine stars are added to the previous sample analyzed by Zhang et al. (2017). We compile a sample of fifteen young stars with well-determined stellar types, ages, abundances and kinematics. With proper motions from Gaia DR2 we also derive orbits in a realistic Milky-Way potential. We find that our previous radial-velocity selected LA candidates have substantial orbital angular momentum. The substantial amount of rotational component for these stars is in contrast with the near-polar Magellanic orbit, thus rendering these stars unlikely members of the LA. There are four large orbital-energy stars in our sample. The highest orbital-energy one has an age shorter than the time to disk crossing, with a birthplace z = 2.5 kpc and R GC ~ 28 kpc. Therefore, the origin of this star is uncertain. The remaining three stars have disk runaway origin with birthplaces between 12 and 25 kpc from the Galactic center. Also, the most energetic stars are more metal poor ([Mg/H] =-0.50 +/- 0.07) and with larger He scatter (sigma [He/H] = 0.72) than the inner disk ones ([Mg/H] = 0.12 +/- 0.36, sigma [He/H] = 0.15). While the former group's abundance is compatible with that of the Large Magellanic Cloud, it could also reflect the metallicity gradient of the MW disk and their runaway status via different runaway mechanisms.