DUST in Nearby Galaxies with Spitzer (DUSTINGS): An Infrared Census of Extreme AGB Stars in Nearby Dwarf Galaxies

Boyer, Martha L.; McQuinn, K. B. W.; Barmby, P.; Bonanos, A. Z.; Gehrz, R. D.; Gordon, K. D.; Groenewegen, M. A. T.; Lagadec, E.; Lennon, D.; Marengo, M.; Meixner, M.; Skillman, E.; Sloan, G. C.; Sonneborn, G.; van Loon, J. Th; Zijlstra, A. A.

Abstract

Nearby resolved dwarf galaxies provide excellent opportunities for studying the dust-producing late stages of stellar evolution. DUSTiNGS (DUST in Nearby Galaxies with Spitzer) is a 3.6- and 4.5-μm imaging survey of 50 dwarf galaxies within 1.5 Mpc. We obtained observations in two epochs, separated by approximately 6 months, to assist in identifying long-period thermally-pulsing (TP-)AGB stars. We find more than 500 dusty variable TP-AGB stars (sometimes called extreme AGB stars). The majority of these stars are new discoveries, including 12 with [Fe/H]<–2 dex. These stars are likely in the superwind phase and thus dominate the current AGB dust input to the interstellar medium of their respective galaxies.

Citation

Boyer, M. L., McQuinn, K. . B. . W., Barmby, P., Bonanos, A. . Z., Gehrz, R. . D., Gordon, K. . D., …Zijlstra, A. . A. (2015). DUST in Nearby Galaxies with Spitzer (DUSTINGS): An Infrared Census of Extreme AGB Stars in Nearby Dwarf Galaxies. In 497, Why Galaxies Care about AGB Stars III: A Closer Look in Space and Time

• Conference Name: Why Galaxies Care about AGB Stars III: A Closer Look in Space and Time
• Conference Location: University Campus, Vienna, Austria
• Start Date: Jul 28, 2014
• End Date: Aug 1, 2014
• Publication Date: 2015
• Deposit Date: Jun 15, 2023
• Publisher: Astronomical Society of the Pacific
• Volume: 497
• Book Title: 497, Why Galaxies Care about AGB Stars III: A Closer Look in Space and Time
• ISBN: 978-1-58381-878-7
• Publisher URL: https://www.aspbooks.org/a/volumes/article_details/?paper_id=37253
• Related Public URLs: https://aspbooks.org/custom/publications/paper/497-0453.html