RT journal article
T1 Gaia Data Release 3: Chemical cartography of the Milky Way
A1 Recio Blanco, A.
A1 Kordopatis, G.
A1 De Laverny, P.
A1 Palicio, P. A.
A1 Spagna, A.
A1 Berihuete Macías, Ángel
A2 Estadística e Investigación Operativa
K1 Galaxy: abundances
K1 stars: abundances
K1 Galaxy: evolution
K1 Galaxy: kinematics and dynamics
K1 Galaxy: disk
K1 Galaxy: halo
AB Context. The motion of stars has been used to reveal details of the complex history of the Milky Way, in constant interaction with its environment.Nevertheless, to reconstruct the Galactic history puzzle in its entirety, the chemo-physical characterisation of stars is essential. Previous Gaia datareleases were supported by a smaller, heterogeneous, and spatially biased mixture of chemical data from ground-based observations.Aims. Gaia Data Release 3 opens a new era of all-sky spectral analysis of stellar populations thanks to the nearly 5.6 million stars observed bythe Radial Velocity Spectrometer (RVS) and parametrised by the GSP-Spec module. In this work, we aim to demonstrate the scientific quality ofGaia’s Milky Way chemical cartography through a chemo-dynamical analysis of disc and halo populations.Methods. Stellar atmospheric parameters and chemical abundances provided by Gaia DR3 spectroscopy are combined with DR3 radial velocitiesand EDR3 astrometry to analyse the relationships between chemistry and Milky Way structure, stellar kinematics, and orbital parameters.Results. The all-sky Gaia chemical cartography allows a powerful and precise chemo-dynamical view of the Milky Way with unprecedentedspatial coverage and statistical robustness. First, it reveals the strong vertical symmetry of the Galaxy and the flared structure of the disc. Second,the observed kinematic disturbances of the disc – seen as phase space correlations – and kinematic or orbital substructures are associated withchemical patterns that favour stars with enhanced metallicities and lower [α/Fe] abundance ratios compared to the median values in the radialdistributions. This is detected both for young objects that trace the spiral arms and older populations. Several α, iron-peak elements and at leastone heavy element trace the thin and thick disc properties in the solar cylinder. Third, young disc stars show a recent chemical impoverishment inseveral elements. Fourth, the largest chemo-dynamical sample of open clusters analysed so far shows a steepening of the radial metallicity gradientwith age, which is also observed in the young field population. Finally, the Gaia chemical data have the required coverage and precision to unveilgalaxy accretion debris and heated disc stars on halo orbits through their [α/Fe] ratio, and to allow the study of the chemo-dynamical properties ofglobular clusters.Conclusions. Gaia DR3 chemo-dynamical diagnostics open new horizons before the era of ground-based wide-field spectroscopic surveys. Theyunveil a complex Milky Way that is the outcome of an eventful evolution, shaping it to the present day.
PB EDP Sciences
SN 1432-0746
YR 2023
FD 2023
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/31689
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/31689
LA eng
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz
RD 11-nov-2026