MODELLING THE GALACTIC BAR USING RED CLUMP GIANTS

K. Z. Stanek(1,2,3), A. Udalski(4), M. Szymanski(4), J. Kaluzny(4), M. Kubiak(4), M. Mateo(5), W. Krzeminski(6)

(1) Princeton University Observatory, Princeton, NJ 08544-1001
(2) \tt e-mail: stanek@astro.princeton.edu
(3) On leave from N. Copernicus Astronomical Center, Bartycka 18, Warszawa 00-716, Poland
(4) Warsaw University Observatory Al. Ujazdowskie 4, 00-478 Warszawa, Poland
(5) Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 821 Dennison Bldg., Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1090
(6) Carnegie Observatories, Las Campanas Observatory, Casilla 601, La Serena, Chile

Paper: submitted to New Astronomy

Weblink: ftp://www.astro.princeton.edu/stanek/Barmodel/

EPrint Server: astro-ph/9605162


Abstract:

The color-magnitude diagrams of ~ 7 * 10^5 stars obtained for 12 fields across the Galactic bulge with the OGLE project reveal a well-defined population of bulge red clump giants. We find that the distributions of the apparent magnitudes of the red clump stars are systematically fainter when moving towards lower galactic l fields. The most plausible explanation of this distinct trend is that the Galactic bulge is a bar, whose nearest end lies at positive galactic longitude. We model this Galactic bar by fitting for all fields the observed luminosity functions in the red clump region of the color-magnitude diagram. We find that almost regardless of the analytical function used to describe the 3-D stars distribution of the Galactic bar, the resulting models have the major axis inclined to the line of sight by 20-30 deg, with axis ratios corresponding to x_0:y_0:z_0=3.5:1.5:1. This puts a strong constraint on the possible range of the Galactic bar models. Gravitational microlensing can provide us with additional constrains on the structure of the Galactic bar.


Preprints available from the authors at stanek@astro.Princeton.EDU , or the raw TeX (no figures) if you click here.

Back to the gcnews home-page.