Poster abstract details
Unleashing the inner Galaxy: the proper motion revolution
Abstract
The Galactic bulge is usually avoided by wide-field surveys due to the stellar crowding and the dust and gas in the line of sight that covers the heart of the Milky Way. The dust and gas also prevent us in the past to observe in more detail this feature of the Galaxy. Within this framework, and taking advantage of the near-IR multi-epoch observations of the VVV survey towards the Galactic bulge, we aim to characterize in full detail the innermost part of the Galaxy (|b| < 3 deg, |l| < 10 deg, in Galactic coordinates) in terms of its stellar populations, globular clusters, variable stars, and most importantly the individual proper motion of the stars. Because of the optical nature of Gaia, most of the sources on the Galactic plane are missing, being VVV the perfect complement to study the Galaxy as a whole.
Here we show the first glimpse of the results of this study, in which we are able to recover the entire sample of known globular clusters within the analyzed area and also find new ones due to the derived proper motion information. We also explore the variable stars present in the area, specifically, RR Lyrae stars which are perfect distance indicators, to give clues about its cluster membership.
Here we show the first glimpse of the results of this study, in which we are able to recover the entire sample of known globular clusters within the analyzed area and also find new ones due to the derived proper motion information. We also explore the variable stars present in the area, specifically, RR Lyrae stars which are perfect distance indicators, to give clues about its cluster membership.