Kinematics of Hot Subdwarfs from the Gaia DR2 Catalogue

TL;DR

This study analyzes the kinematic properties of 12,515 hot subdwarfs from Gaia DR2, revealing their different motions based on position and providing insights into their Galactic disk membership and vertical distribution.

Contribution

It offers the first comprehensive kinematic analysis of a large hot subdwarf sample, including velocity ellipsoid evolution and new estimates of local stellar density.

Findings

Low-latitude HSDs rotate around the Galactic center at 221 km/s, indicating thin disk membership.

High-latitude HSDs rotate slower at 168 km/s, with a larger lag behind the local standard of rest.

Vertical disk scale heights are estimated at 180 and 290 pc for low- and high-latitude HSDs.

Abstract

We have studied the kinematic properties of the candidates for hot subdwarfs (HSDs) selected by Geier et al. from the Gaia DR2 catalogue. We have used a total of 12 515 stars with relative trigonometric parallax errors less than 30\%. The HSDs are shown to have different kinematics, depending on their positions on the celestial sphere. For example, the sample of low-latitude $(|b|<20^\circ)$ HSDs rotates around the Galactic center with a linear velocity $V_0=221\pm5$ km s$^{-1}$. This suggests that they belong to the Galactic thin disk. At the same time, they lag behind the local standard of rest by $\Delta V_\odot\sim16$ km s$^{-1}$ due to the asymmetric drift. The high-latitude ($|b|\geq20^\circ$) HSDs rotate with a considerably lower velocity, $V_0=168\pm6$ km s$^{-1}$. Their lagging behind the local standard of rest is already $\Delta V_\odot\sim40$ km s$^{-1}$. Based on the entire sample of 12 515 HSDs, we have found a positive rotation around the $x$ axis significantly differing from zero with an angular velocity $\omega_1=1.36\pm0.24$ km s$^{-1}$ kpc$^{-1}$. We have studied the samples of HSDs that are complete within $r<1.5$ kpc. Based on them, we have traced the evolution of the parameters of the residual velocity ellipsoid as a function of both latitude $|b|$ and coordinate $|z|.$ The following vertical disk scale heights have been found: $h=180\pm6$ and $290\pm10$ pc from the low- and high-latitude HSDs, respectively. A new estimate of the local stellar density $\Sigma_{out}=53\pm4~M_{\odot}$/kpc$^2$ kpc$^{-2}$ has been obtained for $z_{out}=0.56$ kpc from the high-latitude HSDs.