Chemical elements as clocks for the stellar age determination

Project is funded by the Research Council of Lithuania.
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Project number: S-MIP-23-24
Principal investigator: habil. dr. Gražina Tautvaišienė

For the deeper understanding of the Galactic chemical evolution, three main parameters of stars have to be known – the detailed chemical composition, age,and the birth place. So far the stellar age determinations have largest uncertainties. The proposed project has a unique opportunity to use the TESS Space Mission data for the asteroseismic age determinations, the Gaia Space Mission data for more precise stellar birth-place determinations, and a large sample of stars of the Galactic field and open clusters which we can observe with the recently installed a high-resolution spectrograph at the Vilnius University Molėtai Astronomical Observatory and other observatories to which we have access due to the extensive collaboration.

The project aims to address the emerging chemical-clock method applicability in different Galactic disc radial and vertical locations and stellar populations by investigating a sample of two thousands Galactic field stars and an unprecedented sample of 100 open stellar clusters. The project results will foster the Galactic chemical evolution modelling.