Fourth Galactic Quadrant Research Articles

The SEDIGISM survey: First Data Release and overview of the Galactic structure

ABSTRACT The SEDIGISM (Structure, Excitation and Dynamics of the Inner Galactic Interstellar Medium) survey used the APEX telescope to map 84 deg2 of the Galactic plane between ℓ = −60° and +31° in several molecular transitions, including 13CO (2 – 1) and C18O (2 – 1), thus probing the moderately dense (∼103 cm−3) component of the interstellar medium. With an angular resolution of 30 arcsec and a typical 1σ sensitivity of 0.8–1.0 K at 0.25 km s−1 velocity resolution, it gives access to a wide range of structures, from individual star-forming clumps to giant molecular clouds and complexes. The coverage includes a good fraction of the first and fourth Galactic quadrants, allowing us to constrain the large-scale distribution of cold molecular gas in the inner Galaxy. In this paper, we provide an updated overview of the full survey and the data reduction procedures used. We also assess the quality of these data and describe the data products that are being made publicly available as part of this First Data Release (DR1). We present integrated maps and position–velocity maps of the molecular gas and use these to investigate the correlation between the molecular gas and the large-scale structural features of the Milky Way such as the spiral arms, Galactic bar and Galactic Centre. We find that approximately 60 per cent of the molecular gas is associated with the spiral arms and these appear as strong intensity peaks in the derived Galactocentric distribution. We also find strong peaks in intensity at specific longitudes that correspond to the Galactic Centre and well-known star-forming complexes, revealing that the 13CO emission is concentrated in a small number of complexes rather than evenly distributed along spiral arms.

The distances to molecular clouds in the fourth Galactic quadrant

ABSTRACT Distance measurements to molecular clouds are essential and important. We present directly measured distances to 169 molecular clouds in the fourth quadrant of the Milky Way. Based on the near-infrared photometry from the Two Micron All Sky Survey and the Vista Variables in the Via Lactea Survey, we select red clump stars in the overlapping directions of the individual molecular clouds and infer the bin averaged extinction values and distances to these stars. We track the extinction versus distance profiles of the sightlines towards the clouds and fit them with Gaussian dust distribution models to find the distances to the clouds. We have obtained distances to 169 molecular clouds selected from Rice et al. The clouds range in distances between 2 and 11 kpc from the Sun. The typical internal uncertainties in the distances are less than 5 per cent and the systematic uncertainty is about 7 per cent. The catalogue presented in this work is one of the largest homogeneous catalogues of distant molecular clouds with the direct measurement of distances. Based on the catalogue, we have tested different spiral arm models from the literature.

Sixteen overlooked open clusters in the fourth Galactic quadrant

Aims. This paper has two main objectives: (1) To determine the intrinsic properties of 16 faint and mostly unstudied open clusters in the poorly known sector of the Galaxy at 270° −300° to probe the Milky Way structure in future investigations. (2) To address previously reported systematics in Gaia DR2 parallaxes by comparing the cluster distances derived from photometry with those derived from parallaxes. Methods. Deep UBVI photometry of 16 open clusters was carried out. Observations were reduced and analyzed in an automatic way using the ASteCA package to obtain individual distances, reddening, masses, ages, and metallicities. Photometric distances were compared to those obtained from a Bayesian analysis of Gaia DR2 parallaxes. Results. Ten out of the sixteen clusters are true or highly probable open clusters. Two of them are quite young and follow the trace of the Carina Arm and the already detected warp. The remaining clusters are placed in the interarm zone between the Perseus and Carina Arms, as expected for older objects. We found that the cluster van den Berg-Hagen 85 is 7.5 × 109 yr old, which means that it is one of the oldest open clusters detected in our Galaxy so far. The relationship of these ten clusters with the Galaxy structure in the solar neighborhood is discussed. The comparison of distances from photometry and parallaxes data in turn reveals a variable level of disagreement. Conclusions. Various zero-point corrections for Gaia DR2 parallax data recently reported were considered for a comparison between photometry- and parallax-based distances. The results tend to improve with some of these corrections. Photometric distance analysis suggests an average correction of ∼+0.026 mas (to be added to the parallaxes). The correction may have a more intricate dependence on distance, but addressing this level of detail will require a larger cluster sample.

Trigonometric Parallaxes of High-mass Star-forming Regions: Our View of the Milky Way

Abstract We compile and analyze approximately 200 trigonometric parallaxes and proper motions of molecular masers associated with very young high-mass stars. Most of the measurements come from the BeSSeL Survey using the VLBA and the Japanese VERA project. These measurements strongly suggest that the Milky Way is a four-arm spiral, with some extra arm segments and spurs. Fitting log-periodic spirals to the locations of the masers, allowing for “kinks” in the spirals and using well-established arm tangencies in the fourth Galactic quadrant, allows us to significantly expand our view of the structure of the Milky Way. We present an updated model for its spiral structure and incorporate it into our previously published parallax-based distance-estimation program for sources associated with spiral arms. Modeling the three-dimensional space motions yields estimates of the distance to the Galactic center, , the circular rotation speed at the Sun's position, km s−1, and the nature of the rotation curve. Our data strongly constrain the full circular velocity of the Sun, km s−1, and its angular velocity, km s−1 kpc–1. Transforming the measured space motions to a Galactocentric frame which rotates with the Galaxy, we find non-circular velocity components typically ≲10 km s−1. However, near the Galactic bar and in a portion of the Perseus arm we find significantly larger non-circular motions. Young high-mass stars within 7 kpc of the Galactic center have a scale height of only 19 pc, and thus are well suited to define the Galactic plane. We find that the orientation of the plane is consistent with the IAU-defined plane to within ±0.°1, and that the Sun is offset toward the north Galactic pole by pc. Accounting for this offset places the central supermassive black hole, Sgr A*, in the midplane of the Galaxy. The measured motions perpendicular to the plane of the Galaxy limit precession of the plane to ≲4 km s−1 at the radius of the Sun. Using our improved Galactic parameters, we predict the Hulse–Taylor binary pulsar to be at a distance of 6.54 ± 0.24 kpc, assuming its orbital decay from gravitational radiation follows general relativity.

The distance measurements of supernova remnants in the fourth Galactic quadrant

We take advantage of red clump stars to build the relation of the optical extinction (AV) and distance in each direction of supernova remnants (SNRs) with known extinction in the fourth Galactic quadrant. The distances of nine SNRs are determined well by this method. Their uncertainties range from 10% to 30%, which are significantly improved for eight SNRs, G279.0+1.1, G284.3–1.8, G296.1–0.5, G299.2–2.9, G308.4–1.4, G309.2–0.6, G309.8–2.6 and G332.4–0.4. In addition, SNR G284.3–1.8 with the new distance of 5.5 kpc is not likely associated with the PSR J1016–5857 at 3 kpc.

A comparison of the local spiral structure from Gaia DR2 and VLBI maser parallaxes

Context. The Gaia mission has released the second data set (Gaia DR2), which contains parallaxes and proper motions for a large number of massive, young stars. Aims. We investigate the spiral structure in the solar neighborhood revealed by Gaia DR2 and compare it with that depicted by VLBI maser parallaxes. Methods. We examined three samples with different constraints on parallax uncertainty and distance errors and stellar spectral types: (1) all OB stars with parallax errors of less than 10%; (2) only O-type stars with 0.1 mas errors imposed and with parallax distance errors of less than 0.2 kpc; and (3) only O-type stars with 0.05 mas errors imposed and with parallax distance errors of less than 0.3 kpc. Results. In spite of the significant distance uncertainties for stars in DR2 beyond 1.4 kpc, the spiral structure in the solar neighborhood demonstrated by Gaia agrees well with that illustrated by VLBI maser results. The O-type stars available from DR2 extend the spiral arm models determined from VLBI maser parallaxes into the fourth Galactic quadrant, and suggest the existence of a new spur between the Local and Sagittarius arms.

A WISE Survey of New Star Clusters in the Central Plane Region of the Milky Way

Abstract We present the discovery of new star clusters in the central plane region ( and ) of the Milky Way. In order to overcome the extinction problem and the spatial limit of previous surveys, we use the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) data to find clusters. We also use other infrared survey data in the archive for additional analysis. We find 923 new clusters, of which 202 clusters are embedded clusters. These clusters are concentrated toward the Galactic plane and show a symmetric distribution with respect to the Galactic latitude. The embedded clusters show a stronger concentration to the Galactic plane than the nonembedded clusters. The new clusters are found more in the first Galactic quadrant, while previously known clusters are found more in the fourth Galactic quadrant. The spatial distribution of the combined sample of known clusters and new clusters is approximately symmetric with respect to the Galactic longitude. We estimate reddenings, distances, and relative ages of the 15 class A clusters using theoretical isochrones. Ten of them are relatively old (age >800 Myr) and five are young (age ≈4 Myr).

The Hi-GAL compact source catalogue – I. The physical properties of the clumps in the inner Galaxy (−71$_{.}^{\circ}$0 < ℓ < 67$_{.}^{\circ}$0)

Hi-GAL is a large-scale survey of the Galactic plane, performed with Herschel in five infrared continuum bands between 70 and 500 $\mu$m. We present a band-merged catalogue of spatially matched sources and their properties derived from fits to the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) and heliocentric distances, based on the photometric catalogs presented in Molinari et al. (2016a), covering the portion of Galactic plane $-71.0^{\circ}< \ell < 67.0^{\circ}$. The band-merged catalogue contains 100922 sources with a regular SED, 24584 of which show a 70 $\mu$m counterpart and are thus considered proto-stellar, while the remainder are considered starless. Thanks to this huge number of sources, we are able to carry out a preliminary analysis of early stages of star formation, identifying the conditions that characterise different evolutionary phases on a statistically significant basis. We calculate surface densities to investigate the gravitational stability of clumps and their potential to form massive stars. We also explore evolutionary status metrics such as the dust temperature, luminosity and bolometric temperature, finding that these are higher in proto-stellar sources compared to pre-stellar ones. The surface density of sources follows an increasing trend as they evolve from pre-stellar to proto-stellar, but then it is found to decrease again in the majority of the most evolved clumps. Finally, we study the physical parameters of sources with respect to Galactic longitude and the association with spiral arms, finding only minor or no differences between the average evolutionary status of sources in the fourth and first Galactic quadrants, or between "on-arm" and "inter-arm" positions.

Integrated spectral study of small angular diameter galactic open clusters

This paper presents flux-calibrated integrated spectra obtained at Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO, Argentina) for a sample of 9 Galactic open clusters of small angular diameter. The spectra cover the optical range (3800–6800 Å), with a resolution of ∼14 Å. With one exception (Ruprecht 158), the selected clusters are projected into the fourth Galactic quadrant (282o < l < 345o) near the Galactic plane (∣b∣ ≤ 9o). We performed simultaneous estimates of foreground interstellar reddening and age by comparing the continuum distribution and line strenghts of the cluster spectra with those of template cluster spectra with known parameters. We thus provide spectroscopic information independent from that derived through color-magnitude diagram studies. We found three clusters (Collinder 249, NGC 4463 and Ruprecht 122) younger than ∼40 Myr, four moderately young ones (BH 92, Harvard 5, Hogg 14 and Pismis 23) with ages within 200–400 Myr, and two intermediate-age ones (Ruprecht 158 and ESO 065-SC07) with ages within 1.0–2.2 Gyr. The derived foreground E(B−V) color excesses vary from around 0.0 in Ruprecht 158 to ∼1.1 in Pismis 23. In general terms, the results obtained show good agreement with previous photometric results. In Ruprecht 158 and BH 92, however, some differences are found between the parameters here obtained and previous values in the literature. Individual spectra of some comparatively bright stars located in the fields of 5 out of the 9 clusters here studied, allowed us to evaluate their membership status. The current cluster sample complements that of 46 open clusters previously studied by our group in an effort to gather a spectral library with several clusters per age bin. The cluster spectral library that we have been building is an important tool to tie studies of resolved and unresolved stellar content.

MILKY WAY KINEMATICS. II. A UNIFORM INNER GALAXY H i TERMINAL VELOCITY CURVE

ABSTRACT Using atomic hydrogen (H i) data from the VLA Galactic Plane Survey, we measure the H i terminal velocity as a function of longitude for the first quadrant of the Milky Way. We use these data, together with our previous work on the fourth Galactic quadrant, to produce a densely sampled, uniformly measured, rotation curve of the northern and southern Milky Way between . We determine a new joint rotation curve fit for the first and fourth quadrants, which is consistent with the fit we published in McClure-Griffiths &amp; Dickey and can be used for estimating kinematic distances interior to the solar circle. Structure in the rotation curves is now exquisitely well defined, showing significant velocity structure on lengths of ∼200 pc, which is much greater than the spatial resolution of the rotation curve. Furthermore, the shape of the rotation curves for the first and fourth quadrants, even after subtraction of a circular rotation fit shows a surprising degree of correlation with a roughly sinusoidal pattern between kpc.

Giant molecular filaments in the Milky Way

Filamentary structures are common morphological features of the cold, molecular interstellar medium (ISM). Recent studies have discovered massive, hundred-parsec-scale filaments that may be connected to the large-scale, Galactic spiral arm structure. Addressing the nature of these Giant Molecular Filaments (GMFs) requires a census of their occurrence and properties. We perform a systematic search of GMFs in the fourth Galactic quadrant and determine their basic physical properties. We identify GMFs based on their dust extinction signatures in near- and mid-infrared and velocity structure probed by ^{13}CO line emission. We use the ^{13}CO line emission and ATLASGAL dust emission data to estimate the total and dense gas masses of the GMFs. We combine our sample with an earlier sample from literature and study the Galactic environment of the GMFs. We identify nine GMFs in the fourth Galactic quadrant; six are located in the Centaurus spiral arm and three in inter-arm regions. Combining this sample with an earlier study using the same identification criteria in the first Galactic quadrant results in 16 GMFs, nine of which are located within spiral arms. The GMFs have sizes of 80-160 pc and ^{13}CO-derived masses between 5-90 x 10^{4} Msun. Their dense gas mass fractions are between 1.5-37%, being higher in the GMFs connected to spiral arms. We also compare the different GMF-identification methods and find that emission and extinction based techniques overlap only partially, highlighting the need to use both to achieve a complete census.

GeMs/GSAOI observations of La Serena 94: an old and far open cluster inside the solar circle

Physical properties were derived for the candidate open cluster La Serena 94, recently unveiled by the VVV collaboration. Thanks to the exquisite angular resolution provided by GeMS/GSAOI, we could characterize this system in detail, for the first time, with deep photometry in JHK$_{s}$ - bands. Decontaminated JHK$_{s}$ diagrams reach about 5 mag below the cluster turnoff in H. The locus of red clump giants in the colour - colour diagram, together with an extinction law, was used to obtain an average extinction of $A_V =14.18 \pm 0.71$. The same stars were considered as standard - candles to derive the cluster distance, $8.5 \pm 1.0$ kpc. Isochrones were matched to the cluster colour - magnitude diagrams to determine its age, $\log{t(yr)}=9.12\pm 0.06$, and metallicity, $Z=0.02\pm0.01$. A core radius of $r_{c}=0.51\pm 0.04$ pc was found by fitting King models to the radial density profile. By adding up the visible stellar mass to an extrapolated mass function, the cluster mass was estimated as $M=(2.65\pm0.57) \times 10^3$ M$_{\odot}$, consistent with an integrated magnitude of $M_{K}=-5.82\pm0.16$ and a tidal radius of $r_{t}=17.2\pm2.1$ pc. The overall characteristics of La Serena 94 confirm that it is an old open cluster located in the Crux spiral arm towards the fourth Galactic quadrant and distant $7.30\pm 0.49$ kpc from the Galactic centre. The cluster distorted structure, mass segregation and age indicate that it is a dynamically evolved stellar system.

CCD Washington photometry of four poorly studied open clusters in the two inner quadrants of the galactic plane

Complementing our Washington photometric studies on Galactic open clusters (OCs), we now focus on four poorly studied OCs located in the first and fourth Galactic quadrants, namely BH84, NGC5381, BH211 and Czernik37. We have obtained CCD photometry in the Washington system C and T1 passbands down to T1∼8.5mag for these four clusters. Their positions and sizes were determined using the stellar density radial profiles. We derived reddening, distance, age and metallicity of the clusters from extracted (C-T1,T1) color-magnitude diagrams (CMDs), using theoretical isochrones computed for the Washington system. There are no previous photometric data in the optical band for BH84, NGC5381 and BH211. The CMDs of the observed clusters show relatively well defined main sequences, except for Czernik37, wherein significant differential reddening seems to be present. The red giant clump is clearly seen only in BH211. For this cluster, we estimated the age in (1000-200+260)Myr, assuming a metallicity of Z=0.019. BH84 was found to be much older than it was previously believed, while NGC5381 happened to be much younger than previously reported. The heliocentric distances to these clusters are found to range between 1.4 and 3.4kpc. BH84 appears to be located at the solar galactocentric distance, while NGC5381, BH211 and Czernik37 are situated inside the solar ring.

GIANT MOLECULAR CLOUDS AND MASSIVE STAR FORMATION IN THE SOUTHERN MILKY WAY

The Columbia - U. de Chile CO Survey of the Southern Milky Way is used for separating the CO(1-0) emission of the fourth Galactic quadrant within the solar circle into its dominant components, giant molecular clouds (GMCs). After the subtraction of an axisymmetric model of the CO background emission in the inner Southern Galaxy, 92 GMCs are identified, and for 87 of them the two-fold distance ambiguity is solved. Their total molecular mass is M(H2) = 1.14 +/- 0.05 x 10^8 Msolar accounting for around 40% of the molecular mass estimated from an axisymmetric analysis of the H2 volume density in the Galactic disk (Bronfman et al. 1988b) M(H2) disk = 3.03 x 10^8 Msolar. The large scale spiral structure in the Southern Galaxy, within the solar circle, is traced by the GMCs in our catalog; 3 spiral arm segments: the Centaurus, Norma, and 3-kpc expanding arm are analyzed. After fitting a logarithmic spiral arm model to the arms, tangent directions at 310{\deg}, 330{\deg}, and 338{\deg}, respectively, are found, consistent with previous values from the literature. A complete CS(2-1) survey toward IRAS point-like sources with FIR colors characteristic of UC HII regions is used to estimate the massive star formation rate per unit H2 mass (MSFR), and the massive star formation efficiency for GMCs. The average MSFR for GMCs is 0.41 +/- 0.06 Lsolar/Msolar, and for the most massive clouds in the Norma arm it is 0.58 +/- 0.09 Lsolar/Msolar. Massive star formation efficiencies of GMCs are on average 3% of their available molecular mass.

EXPLORING HALO SUBSTRUCTURE WITH GIANT STARS: SUBSTRUCTURE IN THE LOCAL HALO AS SEEN IN THE GRID GIANT STAR SURVEY INCLUDING EXTENDED TIDAL DEBRIS FROM ωCENTAURI

We present the latitude-normalized radial velocity (vb) distribution of 3318 subsolar metallicity, V<13.5 stars from the Grid Giant Star Survey (GGSS) in Southern Hemisphere fields. The sample includes giants mostly within ~5 kpc from the Galactic disks and halo. The nearby halo is found to (1) exhibit significant kinematical substructure, and (2) be prominently represented by several velocity coherent structures, including a very retrograde "cloud" of stars at l~285 deg and extended, retrograde "streams" visible as relatively tight l-vb sequences. One sequence in the fourth Galactic quadrant lies within the l-vb space expected to contain tidal debris from the "star cluster" wCentauri. Not only does wCen lie precisely in this l-vb sequence, but the positions and vb of member stars match those of N-body simulations of tidally disrupting dwarf galaxies on orbits ending with wCen's current position and space motion. But the ultimate proof that we have very likely found extended parts of the wCen tidal stream comes from echelle spectroscopy of a subsample of the stars that reveals a very particular chemical abundance signature known to occur only in wCen. The newly discovered wCen debris accounts for almost all fourth Galactic quadrant retrograde stars in the southern GGSS, which suggests wCen is a dominant contributor of retrograde giant stars in the inner Galaxy.

The Ara OB1a association

Context: The Ara OB1a association is a nearby complex in the fourth Galactic quadrant where a number of young/embedded star clusters are projected close to more evolved, intermediate age clusters. It is also rich in interstellar matter, and contains evidence of the interplay between massive stars and their surrounding medium, such as the rim HII region NGC 6188. Aims: We provide robust estimates of the fundamental parameters (age and distance) of the two most prominent stellar clusters, NGC 6167 and NGC 6193, that may be used as a basis for studing the star formation history of the region. Methods: The study is based on a photometric optical survey (UBVIHa) of NGC 6167 and NGC 6193 and their nearby field, complemented with public data from 2MASS-VVV, UCAC3, and IRAC-Spitzer in this region. Results: We produce a uniform photometric catalogue and estimate more robustly the fundamental parameters of NGC 6167 and NGC 6193, in addition to the IRAS 16375-4854 source. As a consequence, all of them are located at approximately the same distance from the Sun in the Sagittarius-Carina Galactic arm. However, the ages we estimate differ widely: NGC 6167 is found to be an intermediate-age cluster (20-30 Myr), NGC 6193 a very young one (1-5 Myr) with PMS, H? emitters and class II objects, and the IRAS 16375-4854 source is the youngest of the three containing several YSOs. Conclusions: These results support a picture in which Ara OB1a is a region where star formation has proceeded for several tens of Myr until the present. The difference in the ages of the different stellar groups can be interpreted as a consequence of a triggered star formation process. In the specific case of NGC 6193, we find evidence of possible non-coeval star formation.

PHOTOMETRIC CHARACTERIZATION OF THE GALACTIC STAR CLUSTER TRUMPLER 20

We present deep UBVI photometry for Trumpler 20, a rich, intermediate-age open cluster located at l = 30147, b = +222 (α = 12h39m34s, δ = −60°37'00'', J2000.0) in the fourth Galactic quadrant. In spite of its interesting properties, this cluster has received little attention, probably because the line of sight to it crosses the Carina spiral arm twice (and possibly also the Scutum-Crux arm), which causes significant contamination of its color–magnitude diagram (CMD) by field stars, therefore seriously complicating its interpretation. In this paper, we provide more robust estimates of the fundamental parameters of Trumpler 20 and investigate the most prominent features of its CMD: a rich He-burning star clump, and a vertical sequence of stars above the turnoff, which can be either blue stragglers or field stars. Our precise photometry, in combination with previous investigations, has allowed us to derive updated values of the age and heliocentric distance of Trumpler 20, which we estimate to be 1.4 ± 0.2 Gyr and 3.0 ± 0.3 kpc, respectively. As predicted by models, at this age the clump has a tail toward fainter magnitudes and bluer colors, thus providing further confirmation of the evolutionary status of stars in this particular phase. The derived heliocentric distance places the cluster in the inter-arm region between the Carina and Scutum arms, which naturally explains the presence of the vertical sequence of stars (which was originally interpreted as the cluster itself) observed in the upper part of the CMD. Most of these stars would therefore belong to the general galactic field, while only a few of them would be bona fide cluster blue stragglers. Our data suggest that the cluster metallicity is solar and its reddening is E(B − V) = 0.35 ± 0.04. Finally, we believe we have solved a previously reported inconsistency between the spectroscopic temperatures and colors of giant stars in the cluster.

The large-scale magnetic field in the fourth Galactic quadrant

Aims. We have re-examined the published rotation measures (RMs) of extragalactic point sources and pulsars with |b| < 3 ◦ to study the magnetic field in the fourth Galactic quadrant. Methods. We reduced the influence of structure in electron density as much as possible by excluding objects for which Hα-data indicate large fluctuations in ne somewhere along the line of sight. We also excluded objects for which the RM may have been significantly “corrupted” by an intervening supernova remnant. We modeled RM(l), the longitude dependence of RMof the unaffected extragalactic sources and pulsars. Weassumed several geometries for thelarge-scalefield.All but one of those arebased on logarithmic spiral arms (with various pitch angles and widths), while one has circular symmetry. We also made different assumptions about the large-scale ne-distribution. Results. The data suggest the following generic behaviour of the large-scale field in the 4th Galactic quadrant. The field is most likely organized along logarithmic spiral arms and shows two significant reversals: from the Norma arm (CCW field) to the Norma-Crux interarm region (CW field), and from the Norma-Crux interarm region to the Crux arm (CCW field). The present data do not constrain the field in and beyond the Crux-Carina interarm region. Although the models give a good description of the global character of RM(l), individual RM-estimates deviate by typically 15 times their measurement errors. We argue that these large deviations are most likely due to the “small-scale” field that dominates on scales of up to several hundred pc. Conclusions. The picture that emerges is thus of a field that has significant structure on smaller scales, but for which the average values in arms and interarm regions are nevertheless well-defined. In addition, this smaller-amplitude large-scale field appears to reverse at each arm-interarm boundary that we can study with the present data. We briefly discuss the link between these results and theoretical predictions.

Breaking the curtain: the old open cluster VdB-Hagen 67 in the background of the Vela Molecular Ridge

We present optical and infrared photometry for VdB-Hagen 67, an overlooked old open cluster located at l = 273°.76, b = -0°.375 (RA 09 h 26 m 45 s , Dec. - 51°16'00, J2000.0) in the fourth Galactic quadrant, in the direction of the Vela Molecular Ridge. VdB-Hagen 67 is immersed in a dense stellar field which is characterized by highly patchy extinction, and A in the line of sight to the cluster is larger than 3 mag. The cluster looks symmetric and it clearly stands out from the general Galactic field. By means of a star count analysis, both in the optical and IR, we have estimated that its radius is of about 2 arcmin. Before this study, only very general information was available for this cluster, but here we have determined its fundamental parameters. The age of VdB-Hagen 67 has been estimated, both empirically and with theoretical isochrones, and turns out to be about 1.3 Gyr. The difficulty to separate cluster members from interlopers prevented us from estimating its metallicity. No traces of subgiant or red-giant branch stars are visible in its field-star-decontaminated colour-magnitude diagrams; VdB-Hagen 67 is an old, poorly populated, star cluster on the verge of dissolving into the general Galactic field. We derive a heliocentric distance of ~7.5 kpc and a galactocentric distance of ~11.5 kpc. With the exception of FSR 1415 at 8.6 kpc, and with an age of ~2.5 Gyr , no other old clusters are known so far from the Sun in this Galactic sector. We argue that in this region of the Galactic plane several other distant clusters of this age have to exist, but have not been unravelled mainly because of the significant extinction produced by the dense Vela Molecular Ridge.

RE-ANALYSIS OF THE RADIO LUMINOSITY FUNCTION OF GALACTIC H II REGIONS

We have re-analyzed continuum and recombination lines radio data available in the literature in order to derive the luminosity function (LF) of Galactic H II regions. The study is performed by considering the first and fourth Galactic quadrants independently. We estimate the completeness level of the sample in the fourth quadrant at 5 Jy, and the one in the first quadrant at 2 Jy. We show that the two samples (fourth or first quadrant) include, as well as giant and supergiant H II regions, a significant number of subgiant sources. The LF is obtained, in each Galactic quadrant, with a generalized Schmidt's estimator using an effective volume derived from the observed spatial distribution of the considered H II regions. The re-analysis also takes advantage of recently published ancillary absorption data allowing to solve the distance ambiguity for several objects. A single power-law fit to the LFs retrieves a slope equal to –2.23 ± 0.07 (fourth quadrant) and to –1.85 ± 0.11 (first quadrant). We also find marginal evidence of a luminosity break at L_(knee) = 10^(23.45) erg s^(–1) Hz^(–1) for the LF in the fourth quadrant. We convert radio luminosities into equivalent Hα and Lyman continuum luminosities to facilitate comparisons with extragalactic studies. We obtain an average total H II regions Lyman continuum luminosity of 0.89 ± 0.23 × 10^(53) s^(–1), corresponding to 30% of the total ionizing luminosity of the Galaxy.