Issue A&A Volume 473, Number 1, October I 2007 Page(s) 129 - 141 Section Galactic structure, stellar clusters, and populations DOI 10.1051/0004-6361:20065213

A&A 473, 129-141 (2007)
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361:20065213

The chemical abundance of the very metal-rich old open clusters NGC 6253 and NGC 6791

E. Carretta¹, A. Bragaglia¹, and R. G. Gratton<sup>2

1</sup>  INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Bologna, via Ranzani 1, 40127 Bologna, Italy
    e-mail: [eugenio.carretta;angela.bragaglia]@oabo.inaf.it
²  INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, vicolo Osservatorio 5, 35122 Padova, Italy
    e-mail: raffaele.gratton@oapd.inaf.it

(Received 15 March 2006 / Accepted 7 June 2007)

Abstract
Aims.In the framework of a project aiming at homogeneously deriving the properties (age, distance, reddening, and detailed chemical abundances) of a large sample of old open clusters, we present here the metal abundance and the abundance ratios of light (C, N, O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Ti) and heavier (Cr, Mn, Ni, Ba, Eu) elements in the galactic open clusters NGC 6253 and NGC 6791.
Methods.We performed spectrum synthesis of selected lines on the high resolution spectra of four red clump stars in NGC 6253, taken with the UVES and FEROS spectrographs. We also determined abundances of the same elements for four red clump stars in NGC 6791, observed with SARG, for which we had derived the atmospheric parameters and the iron, carbon and oxygen abundances in a previous paper (Gratton et al. 2006, ApJ, 462, 469).
Results.The average metallicity of NGC 6253 is [Fe/H] =+0.46 (rms = 0.03 dex, systematic error = 0.08 dex), obtained by extensive spectral synthesis of Fe lines. This intermediate age cluster closely resembles the old open cluster NGC 6791, as far as the chemical composition is concerned. C, N, and O do not show any significant abundance scatter, and they are underabundant with respect to the solar values both in NGC 6253 and NGC 6791. We also find no evident star-to-star scatter in any of the elements measured in both clusters, with the possible exception of Na in NGC 6791. The two clusters show very similar abundances, except for Mg, overabundant in NGC 6791 and not in NGC 6253. Both have solar-scaled -elements abundances. We compared our abundance ratios with the literature values for disk giants and dwarfs and bulge giants, finding generally good agreement with the run of elemental ratios with [Fe/H] of disk objects.

Key words: stars: evolution -- stars: abundances -- Galaxy: disk -- Galaxy: open clusters and associations: individual: NGC 6253 -- Galaxy: open clusters and associations: individual: NGC 6791

© ESO 2007

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