A study of Kapteyn's star | Astronomy & Astrophysics (A&A)

A&A 438, 957-962 (2005)

¹ Tuorla Observatory, Väisäläntie 20, 21500 Piikkiö, Finland e-mail: eira.kotoneva@tyks.fi
² Department of Physics and Astronomy, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
³ Department of Physics, Trent University, Peterborough, ON, K9J 7B8, Canada
⁴ Guest user, Canadian Astronomy Data Centre, operated by the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, National Research Council of Canada
⁵ Research School of Astronomy & Astrophysics, Mount Stromlo Observatory, Cotter Road, Weston ACT 2611, Australia

Received: 1 November 2004
Accepted: 15 February 2005

Abstract

We present a review of the current knowledge of Kapteyn's Star (KS) – a nearby, low-metallicity M-dwarf, with an eccentric and retrograde Galactic orbit. A brief survey of its spectroscopic properties is provided, together with an analysis of its Galactic orbit in a Galaxy model that incorporates resonances. We propose that KS may have once belonged to a dwarf spheroidal galaxy that merged with the Galaxy, and whose present remnant, if it still exists, is a globular cluster similar to ω Cen.

Key words: stars: late-type / stars: general