Context. The Ca II near-ultraviolet resonance doublet (H&K) and the near-infrared triplet (CaT) are among the strongest features in stellar spectra of FGK-type stars. These spectral lines remain prominent down to extremely low metallicities and are thus useful for providing stellar parameters via ionisation balance, for Galactic chemical evolution, and as radial velocity diagnostics. However, the majority of studies that model these lines in late-type stars still rely on simplified one-dimensional (1D) hydrostatic model atmospheres and the assumption of local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE). Aims. We present 3D non-LTE radiative transfer calculations of the CaT and H&K lines in an extended grid of 3D model atmospheres of a metal-poor FGK type. We investigated the impact of 3D non-LTE effects on abundances, line bisectors, and radial velocities. Methods. We used a subset of 3D model atmospheres from the recently published STAGGER-grid to synthesise spectra in 3D (non-)LTE with Balder for nine different calcium-to-iron ratios. For comparison, similar calculations were performed in 1D (non-)LTE using models from the MARCS grid. Results. Abundance corrections for the CaT lines relative to 1D LTE range from (Formula presented), with more severe corrections for strong lines in giants. With fixed line strength, the abundance corrections become more negative with increasing effective temperature and decreasing surface gravity. Radial velocity corrections relative to 1D LTE based on cross-correlation of the whole line profile range from -0.2 kms-1 to +1.5 kms-1, with more severe corrections where the CaT lines are strongest. The corrections are even more severe if the line core alone is used to infer the radial velocity. Conclusions. The line strengths and shapes, and consequently the abundance and radial velocity corrections, are strongly affected by the chosen radiative transfer assumption, 1/3D (non)-LTE. We release grids of theoretical spectra that can be used to improve the accuracy of stellar spectroscopic analyses based on the Ca II triplet lines.

Modern spectroscopic surveys output large data volumes. Theoretical models provide a means to transform the information encoded in these data to measurements of physical stellar properties. However, in detail, the models are incomplete and simplified, and prohibit interpretation of the fine details in spectra. Instead, the available data provide an opportunity to use data-driven, differential analysis techniques, as a means towards understanding spectral signatures. We deploy such an analysis to examine core helium-fusing red clump (RC) and shell hydrogen-fusing red giant branch (RGB) stars, to uncover signatures of evolutionary state imprinted in optical stellar spectra. We exploit 786 pairs of RC and RGB stars from the GALAH survey, chosen to minimize spectral differences, with evolutionary state classifications from TESS and K2 asteroseismology. We report sub- per cent residual, systematic spectral differences between the two classes of stars, and show that these residuals are significant compared to a reference sample of RC–RC and RGB–RGB pairs selected using the same criteria. First, we report systematic differences in the Swan (⁠⁠C₂) band and CN bands caused by stellar evolution and a difference in mass, where RGB stars at similar stellar parameters have higher masses than RC stars. Secondly, we observe systematic differences in the line-width of the H  and H  lines caused by a difference in microturbulence, as measured by GALAH, where we measure higher microturbulence in RC stars than RGB stars. This work demonstrates the ability of large surveys to uncover the subtle spectroscopic signatures of stellar evolution using model-free, data-driven methods.

The Galactic evolution of copper remains poorly understood, partly due to the strong departures from local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) affecting Cu I lines. A key source of uncertainty in non-LTE modelling is the treatment of inelastic Cu + H collisions. We present new rate coefficients based on a combined asymptotic LCAO (linear combination of atomic orbitals) and free electron model approach, which show significant differences from previous calculations. Applying these updated rates to non-LTE stellar modelling, we find reduced line-to-line scatter and improved consistency between metal-poor dwarfs and giants. Our non-LTE analysis reveals a strong upturn in the [Cu/Fe] trend towards lower [Fe/H] < −1.7. We show that this may reflect the interplay between external enrichment of Cu-rich material of the Milky Way halo at low metallicities, and metallicity-dependent Cu yields from rapidly rotating massive stars. This highlights the unique diagnostic potential of accurate Cu abundances for understanding both stellar and Galactic evolution.

The stars of the Milky Way carry the chemical history of our Galaxy in their atmospheres as they journey through its vast expanse. Like barcodes, we can extract the chemical fingerprints of stars from high-resolution spectroscopy. The fourth data release (DR4) of the Galactic Archaeology with HERMES (GALAH) Survey, based on a decade of observations, provides the chemical abundances of up to 32 elements for 917 588 stars that also have exquisite astrometric data from the Gaia satellite. For the first time, these elements include life-essential nitrogen to complement carbon, and oxygen as well as more measurements of rare-earth elements critical to modern-life electronics, offering unparalleled insights into the chemical composition of the Milky Way. For this release, we use neural networks to simultaneously fit stellar parameters and abundances across the whole wavelength range, leveraging synthetic grids computed with Spectroscopy Made Easy. These grids account for atomic line formation in non-local thermodynamic equilibrium for 14 elements. In a two-iteration process, we first fit stellar labels to all 1 085 520 spectra, then co-add repeated observations and refine these labels using astrometric data from Gaia and 2MASS photometry, improving the accuracy and precision of stellar parameters and abundances. Our validation thoroughly assesses the reliability of spectroscopic measurements and highlights key caveats. GALAH DR4 represents yet another milestone in Galactic archaeology, combining detailed chemical compositions from multiple nucleosynthetic channels with kinematic information and age estimates. The resulting dataset, covering nearly a million stars, opens new avenues for understanding not only the chemical and dynamical history of the Milky Way but also the broader questions of the origin of elements and the evolution of planets, stars, and galaxies.

Lithium’s susceptibility to burning in stellar interiors makes it an invaluable tracer for delineating the evolutionary pathways of stars, offering insights into the processes governing their development. Observationally, the complex Li production and depletion mechanisms in stars manifest themselves as Li plateaus, and as Li-enhanced and Li-depleted regions of the HR diagram. The Li-dip represents a narrow range in effective temperature close to the main-sequence turn-off, where stars have slightly super-solar masses and strongly depleted Li. To study the modification of Li through stellar evolution, we measure 3D non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (NLTE) Li abundance for 581 149 stars released in GALAH DR3. We describe a novel method that fits the observed spectra using a combination of 3D NLTE Li line profiles with blending metal-line strength that are optimized on a star-by-star basis. Furthermore, realistic errors are determined by a Monte Carlo nested sampling algorithm which samples the posterior distribution of the fitted spectral parameters. The method is validated by recovering parameters from a synthetic spectrum and comparing to 26 stars in the Hypatia catalogue. We find 228 613 Li detections, and 352 536 Li upper limits. Our abundance measurements are generally lower than GALAH DR3, with a mean difference of 0.23 dex. For the first time, we trace the evolution of Li-dip stars beyond the main sequence turn-off and up the subgiant branch. This is the first 3D NLTE analysis of Li applied to a large spectroscopic survey, and opens up a new era of precision analysis of abundances for large surveys.

Context. Transmission spectroscopy is one of the most powerful techniques used to characterize transiting exoplanets, since it allows for the abundance of the atomic and molecular species in the planetary atmosphere to be measured. However, stellar lines may bias the determination of such abundances if their center-to-limb variations (CLVs) are not properly accounted for.

Aims. This paper aims to show that three-dimensional (3D) radiation hydrodynamic models and the assumption of non-local ther-modynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) line formation are required for an accurate modeling of the stellar CLV of the Na I D₁ and K I resonance lines on transmission spectra.

Methods. We modeled the CLV of the Na I D₁ and K I resonance lines in the Sun with 3D non-LTE radiative transfer. The synthetic spectra were compared to solar observations with high spatial and spectral resolution, including new data collected with the CRISP instrument at the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope between µ = 0.1 and µ = 1.0.

Results. Our 3D non-LTE modeling of the Na I D1 resonance line at 5896 Å and the K I 7699 Å resonance line in the Sun is in good agreement with the observed CLV in the solar spectrum. Moreover, the simulated CLV curve for a Jupiter-Sun system inferred with a 3D non-LTE analysis shows significant differences from the one obtained from a 1D atmosphere. The latter does indeed tend to overestimate the amplitude of the transmission curve by a factor that is on the same order of magnitude as a planetary absorption depth (i.e., up to 0.2%).

Conclusions. This work highlights the fact that to correctly characterize exoplanetary atmospheres, 3D non-LTE synthetic spectra ought to be used to estimate the stellar CLV effect in transmission spectra of solar-like planet hosts. Moreover, since different spectral lines show different CLV curves for the same geometry of the planet-star system, it is fundamental to model the CLV individually for each line of interest. The work will be extended to other lines and FGK-type stars, allowing for synthetic high-resolution spectra to mitigate the stellar contamination of low-resolution planetary spectra, for example, those drawn from JWST.

Context. Traditional one-dimensional hydrostatic model atmospheres introduce systematic modelling errors into spectroscopic analyses of FGK-type stars.

Aims. We present an updated version of the STAGGER-grid of three-dimensional model atmospheres, and explore the accuracy of postprocessing methods in preparation for spectral synthesis.

Methods. New and old models were (re)computed following an updated workflow, including an updated opacity binning technique. Spectroscopic tests were performed in three-dimensional local thermodynamic equilibrium for a grid of 216 fictitious Fe I lines, spanning a wide range of oscillator strengths, excitation potentials, and central wavelengths, and eight model atmospheres that cover the stellar atmospheric parameter range (T_eff, log g, and [Fe/H]) of FGK-type stars. Using this grid, the impact of vertical and horizontal resolutions, and temporal sampling of model atmospheres on spectroscopic diagnostics, was tested.

Results. We find that downsampling the horizontal mesh from its original size of 240 × 240 grid cells to 80 × 80 cells, in other words, sampling every third grid cell, introduces minimal errors on the equivalent width and normalised line flux across the line and stellar parameter space. Regarding temporal sampling, we find that sampling ten statistically independent snapshots is sufficient to accurately model the shape of spectral line profiles. For equivalent widths, a subsample consisting of only two snapshots is sufficient, introducing an abundance error of less than 0.015 dex.

Conclusions. We have computed 32 new model atmospheres and recomputed 116 old ones present in the original grid. The public release of the STAGGER-grid contains 243 models and the processed snapshots can be used to improve the accuracy of spectroscopic analyses.

Context. Neutral sodium was the first atom that was detected in an exoplanetary atmosphere using the transmission spectroscopy technique. To date, it remains the most successfully detected species due to its strong doublet in the optical at 5890 A° and 5896 A°. However, the center-to-limb variation (CLV) of these lines in the host star can bias the Na I detection. When combined with the Rossiter-McLaughlin (RM) effect, the CLV can mimic or obscure a planetary absorption feature if it is not properly accounted for. Aims. This work aims to investigate the impact of three-dimensional (3D) radiation hydrodynamic stellar atmospheres and non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (NLTE) radiative transfer on the modeling of the CLV+RM effect in single-line transmission spectroscopy to improve the detection and characterization of exoplanet atmospheres. Methods. We produced a grid of 3D NLTE synthetic spectra for Na I for FGK-type dwarfs within the following parameter space: Teff = 4500-6500 K, log g = 4.0-5.0, and [Fe/H] = [-0.5, 0, 0.5]. This grid was then interpolated to match the stellar parameters of four stars hosting well-known giant exoplanets, generating stellar spectra to correct for the CLV+RM effect in their transmission spectra. We used archival observations taken with the high-resolution ESPRESSO spectrograph. Results. Our work confirms the Na I detections in three systems, namely WASP-52b, WASP-76b, and WASP-127b, also improving the accuracy of the measured absorption depth. Furthermore, we find that 3D NLTE stellar models can explain the spectral features in the transmission spectra of HD 209458b without the need for any planetary absorption. In the grid of stellar synthetic spectra, we observe that the CLV effect is stronger for stars with low Teff and high log g. However, the combined effect of CLV and RM is highly dependent on the orbital geometry of the planet-star system. Conclusions. With the continuous improvement of instrumentation, it is crucial to use the most accurate stellar models available to correct for the CLV+RM effect in high-resolution transmission spectra to achieve the best possible characterization of exoplanet atmospheres. This will be fundamental in preparation for instruments such as ANDES at the Extremely Large Telescope to fully exploit its capabilities in the near future. We make our grid of 3D NLTE synthetic spectra for Na I publicly available.

The Gaia-ESO Survey is an European Southern Observatory (ESO) public spectroscopic survey that targeted 10⁵ stars in the Milky Way covering the major populations of the disk, bulge and halo. The observations were made using FLAMES on the VLT obtaining both UVES high (R ~ 47 000) and GIRAFFE medium (R ~ 20 000) resolution spectra. The analysis of the Gaia-ESO spectra was the work of multiple analysis teams (nodes) within five working groups (WG). The homogenisation of the stellar parameters within WG11 (high resolution observations of FGK stars) and the homogenisation of the stellar parameters within WG10 (medium resolution observations of FGK stars) is described here. In both cases, the homogenisation was carried out using a Bayesian Inference method developed specifically for the Gaia-ESO Survey by WG11. The method was also used for the chemical abundance homogenisation within WG11, however, the WG10 chemical abundance data set was too sparsely populated so basic corrections for each node analysis were employed for the homogenisation instead. The WG10 homogenisation primarily used the cross-match of stars with WG11 as the reference set in both the stellar parameter and chemical abundance homogenisation. In this way the WG10 homogenised results have been placed directly onto the WG11 stellar parameter and chemical abundance scales. The reference set for the metal-poor end was sparse which limited the effectiveness of the homogenisation in that regime. For WG11, the total number of stars for which stellar parameters were derived was 6 231 with typical uncertainties for T_eff, log g and [Fe/H] of 32 K, 0.05 and 0.05 respectively. One or more chemical abundances out of a possible 39 elements were derived for 6 188 of the stars. For WG10, the total number of stars for which stellar parameters were derived was 76 675 with typical uncertainties for T_eff, log g and [Fe/H] of 64 K, 0.15 and 0.07 respectively. One or more chemical abundances out of a possible 30 elements were derived for 64177 of the stars.

Stellar mergers and accretion events have been crucial in shaping the evolution of the Milky Way (MW). These events have been dynamically identified and chemically characterized using red giants and main-sequence stars. RR Lyrae (RRL) variables can play a crucial role in tracing the early formation of the MW since they are ubiquitous, old (t ≥ 10 Gyr) low-mass stars and accurate distance indicators. We exploited Data Release 3 of the GALAH survey to identify 78 field RRLs suitable for chemical analysis. Using synthetic spectra calculations, we determined atmospheric parameters and abundances of Fe, Mg, Ca, Y, and Ba. Most of our stars exhibit halo-like chemical compositions, with an iron peak around [Fe/H] ≈ −1.40, and enhanced Ca and Mg content. Notably, we discovered a metal-rich tail, with [Fe/H] values ranging from −1 to approximately solar metallicity. This sub-group includes almost 1/4 of the sample, it is characterized by thin disc kinematics and displays sub-solar α-element abundances, marginally consistent with the majority of the MW stars. Surprisingly, they differ distinctly from typical MW disc stars in terms of the s-process elements Y and Ba. We took advantage of similar data available in the literature and built a total sample of 535 field RRLs for which we estimated kinematical and dynamical properties. We found that metal-rich RRLs (1/3 of the sample) likely represent an old component of the MW thin disc. We also detected RRLs with retrograde orbits and provided preliminary associations with the Gaia–Sausage–Enceladus, Helmi, Sequoia, Sagittarius, and Thamnos stellar streams.