Martina Tapia-Reina
Ages of LMC Star Clusters with GMOS Integrated Spectroscopy: Systematic Comparison of Available Tools
We present the first systematic analysis comparing the ages, reddening and radial velocities of star clusters using two widely used tools: STARLIGHT and Analyzer of Spectra for Age Determination (A.S.A.D). Both tools utilize the full integrated spectrum fitting technique. We find that there is a good agreement between the parameters derived by the two tools despite the fact that they use different approaches in calculating these parameters. We also confirm that both tools provide consistent results with the literature parameters obtained from resolved photometry. We note that for optimal age and reddening estimates, observed integrated spectra should have S/N $ > $ 10 when using A.S.A.D and should be fitted by less than 5 single stellar populations (SSPs) when using STARLIGHT. We also show that the deviation of the radial velocity estimates between the two tools depends on the S/N of the observed integrated spectrum and demonstrate that when varying the metallicity, the age estimates of STARLIGHT are not affected significantly while the results of A.S.A.D are generally underestimated. As more observational data become available through modern instruments, the strengths and limitations of each available automated tool need to be taken in consideration when interpreting their results.
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Ages of LMC Star Clusters with GMOS Integrated Spectroscopy: Systematic Comparison of Available Tools
