Kinematics of Disk Stars in the Solar Neighbourhood

Extract

Using Hipparcos parallaxes and proper motions together with radial velocity data and individual ages estimated from isochones, the velocity ellipsoid has been determined as a function of age. On the basis of the available kinematic data two different samples were considered: a first one (7789 stars) for which only tangential velocities were calculated and a second one containing 3104 stars with available U, V and W velocity components and total velocities ≤ 65 km.s^-1.

The main conclusions are: -Mixing is not complete at about 0.8-1 Gyr. -The shape of the velocity ellipsoid changes with time getting rounder from σu/σv/σ-w = 1/0.63/0.42 ± 0.04 at about 1 Gyr to1/0.7/0.62 ±0.04 at 4-5 Gyr. -The age-velocity-dispersion relation (from the sample with kinematical selection) rises to a maximum, thereafter remaining roughly constant; there is no dynamically significant evolution of the disk after about 4-5 Gyr. -Among the stars with solar metallicities and log(age) > 9.8 two groups are identified: one has typical thin disk characteristics, the other is older than 10 Gyr and lags the LSR at about 40 km.s^-1 . -The variation of the tangential velocity with age(without selection on the tangential velocity) shows a discontinuity at about 10 Gyr, which may be attributed to stars typically of the thick disk populations for ages > 10 Gyr.