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Photometric Survey of
Southern Open Clusters Using SMARTS 1-m

SPOCS is a effort to observe Southern open clusters with previous, unreliable photometry and measure standardized colors and magnitudes for cluster members. The survey uses the SMARTS 1-m telescope at CTIO with the Y4Kcam camera. This instrument's wide field (20’ by 20’ FOV) and high resolution (0.289”/Pixel) makes it perfectly suited for open cluster surveys. A rigorous standardization procedure, using >60 Landolt standard stars per night, ensures high fidelity photometry. Our photometry provides precise optical properties for stellar cluster members and lend the framework for further studies.

Recent Work Using SPOCS Data

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New X-ray Analysis of Blanco1

Oct. 15, 2009

Used SPOCS photometry and proper motions to perform a new X-ray analysis of the cluster. We measured the X-ray emission distribution and compared it to other well studied open clusters to identify how magnetic activity changes with mass and age. This work is published in AJ.

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Lithium Analysis of IC4665

October 15, 2009

Presented new spectroscopic study on the young open cluster IC4665 and analyzed the lithium distribution for F– to M–dwarfs. Identified disagreement between the LDB age for IC4665 and the relative similarity of its Li distribution and that of the Pleiades. This work is published in MNRAS.

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X-ray & Rotation in Blanco1

October 15, 2009

Combined X–ray and Vsini measurements to analysis how these parameters change as a function of mass in Blanco 1. We then compare these distributions to other well studied open clusters including the Pleiades. This work was presented at the Cambridge Workshop on Cool Stars, Stellar Systems and the Sun XV.

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CORAVEL Spectroscopic study of Blanco1

October 15, 2009

Spectroscopic Survey using the CORAVEL spectrograph in the field of Blanco 1 for a sample of 148 F–G–K candidate stars in the magnitude range 10<V<14. 68 stars were identified as kinematic members. This work was published in the A&A.