Support for the Radial Velocity Experiment
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Oxford Physics
Abstract
Since April 2003 an ambitious survey of the Milky Way has been gathering pace at Siding Spring. Initially the survey used only bright time on the UK Schmidt, but now it has exclusive use of the Schmidt and the 6dF instrument, so its rate of taking spectra has increased to ~140,000 per year. The plan is to obtain spectra for ~million stars, including nearly all accessible stars the ACT-reference catalogue, which has accurate proper motions and space-based photometry for about a million stars. The spectra yield radial velocities accurate to better than 2km/s, estimates of [Fe/H] and [alpha/H], and also good photometric distances. Hence programme stars can be assigned to populations and given all six phase-space coordinates. These data will enable us to carry out a large part of the core science programme of the GAIA mission up to a decade before the GAIA catalogue comes out. Although several UK astronomers are founder members of this survey, PPARC has yet to contribute to its cost. This proposal is for a contribution of order 20% to the costs over 2006 - 2008.
Publications
Wojno Jennifer
(2016)
The selection function of the RAVE survey
in ArXiv e-prints
Kordopatis G
(2016)
Chemodynamics of the Milky Way and disc formation history: Insight from the RAVE and Gaia-ESO surveys
in Astronomische Nachrichten
Piffl T
(2014)
The RAVE survey: the Galactic escape speed and the mass of the Milky Way
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Binney J
(2015)
The distribution function of the Galaxy's dark halo
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Kordopatis G
(2015)
The rich are different: evidence from the RAVE survey for stellar radial migration
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Williams M
(2013)
The wobbly Galaxy: kinematics north and south with RAVE red-clump giants
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Wilson M
(2011)
Testing formation mechanisms of the Milky Way's thick disc with RAVE Testing thick disc formation mechanisms
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Wojno J
(2016)
Chemical separation of disc components using RAVE
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Eyre A
(2009)
Locating the orbits delineated by tidal streams
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Binney J
(2014)
Galactic kinematics and dynamics from Radial Velocity Experiment stars
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Description | Galactic fountains and gas accretion |
Organisation | University of Bologna |
Department | Department of Physics and Astronomy |
Country | Italy |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Expertise in dynamical modelling and in the theory of the intergalactic medium |
Collaborator Contribution | Fellowships to suport work in Oxford by colleagues from Bologna and through this participation in several publications (only 1 of these appeared after the grant start date and a further one has been submitted & is under review) |
Impact | Several well-cited papers |
Description | The RAVE consortium |
Organisation | The RAVE consortium |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Expertise in modelling the Galaxy |
Collaborator Contribution | The consortium is an international collaboration involving ~40 institutes worldwide. As a result of this grant several consortium members from outside the UK have spent time in Oxford |
Impact | Many research papers |
Start Year | 2006 |