1998/02/23 by D. Raboud, Raboud, D., J. -C. Mermilliod +2 · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics (astro-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.astro-ph/9802284
14 pages, 14 figures. Minor revisions. Accepted for publication in A&A
openalex publication_date 1998/02/23 · arxiv created 1998/03/06 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
On the basis of the best available member list and duplicity information, we have studied the radial structure of Praesepe and of the very young open cluster NGC 6231. We have found mass segregation among the cluster members and between binaries and single stars, which is explained by the greater average mass of the multiple systems. However, the degree of mass segregation for stars between 1.5 and 2.3 Msun is less pronounced in Praesepe than in the Pleiades. Furthermore, mass segregation is already present in the very young open cluster NGC 6231 although this cluster is likely still not dynamically relaxed. We discuss the implications of these results and propose a qualitative scenario for the evolution of mass segregation in open clusters. In Praesepe the mass function of single stars and primaries appears to be significantly different, like in the Pleiades. We observe an absence of ellipticity of the outer part of Praesepe.