Astron. Astrophys. 332, 681-685 (1998)

The carbon abundance in main-sequence B-type stars towards the Galactic anti-centre

R.E. Hibbins ¹, P.L. Dufton ¹, S.J. Smartt ² and W.R.J. Rolleston <sup>1

1</sup> Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, Northern Ireland
² Isaac Newton Group of telescopes, Apartado de Correos 368, E-38780 Santa Cruz de La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain

Received 4 November 1997 / Accepted 17 December 1997

Abstract

Differential carbon abundances (based on the C II doublet at 6580Å) are presented for eight early type stars, towards the Galactic anti-centre. All the stars have similar atmospheric parameters with effective temperatures in the range  K and surface gravities between  dex. The derived photospheric abundances vary by up to 0.6 dex, and with the exception of one star, RLWT-41, the differential abundances are found to be closely correlated with those of nitrogen. This implies that both elements may have been formed by similar mechanisms and that the lack of correlation between the nitrogen and oxygen abundances previously found in this sample is not directly due to CNO-processed core material being mixed to the stellar surface.

Key words: stars: abundances stars: atmospheres stars: early-type Galaxy: abundances

Send offprint requests to: R.E. Hibbins

© European Southern Observatory (ESO) 1998

Online publication: March 23, 1998
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