Spectrum of stars in NGC 6822 and the Small Magellanic Cloud

This chart displays a FORS1 spectrum of a blue supergiant in NGC 6822 (in the middle), as compared with those of supergiant stars (upper and lower) of similar atmospheric temperature in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), another irregular dwarf galaxy in the Local Group. The observations were carried out by the FORS Commissioning Team on October 1, 1998, using the Multiple Object Spectroscopy (MOS) mode of FORS1. A total of 11 stars in NGC 6822 were observed simultaneously with an exposure time of 30 min. The visual magnitude of supergiant star centered on slit no. 5 is V = 18.11 and the spectral type is in the interval O9.5Ia - B0Ia. It is apparent from the figures that many spectral lines in the supergiant star in NGC 6822 are of similar strength as those in the SMC. This confirms the earlier finding that NGC 6822 has a different chemical composition — a lower content of heavy elements (or "metallicity") — than what is observed in our Galaxy.

Credit:

ESO

About the Image

Id:eso9920d
Type:Chart
Release date:27 February 1999
Related releases:eso9920, eso9913
Size:3000 x 2169 px

About the Object

Name:NGC 6822, Small Magellanic Cloud, SMC, Spectrum, Stars
Type:Local Universe : Star : Evolutionary Stage : Blue Supergiant
Category:Stars

Image Formats

Large JPEG
693.0 KB
Screensize JPEG
154.7 KB

Colours & filters

BandTelescope
Optical
V
Very Large Telescope
FORS1