The APM Survey for cool carbon stars in the Galactic halo – II. The search for dwarf carbon stars

We present proper-motion measurements for carbon stars found during the APM Survey for Cool Carbon Stars in the Galactic halo as reported in an earlier paper by Totten & Irwin. Measurements are obtained using a combination of POSSI, POSSII and UKST survey plates supplemented where necessary by CCD frames taken at the Isaac Newton Telescope. We find no significant proper motion for any of the new APM colour-selected carbon stars and so conclude that there are no dwarf carbon stars present within this sample. We also present proper-motion measurements for three previously known dwarf carbon stars and demonstrate that these measurements agree favourably with those previously quoted in the literature, verifying our method of determining proper motions. Results from a complimentary program of JHK photometry obtained at the South African Astronomical Observatory are also presented. Dwarf carbon stars are believed to have anomalous near-infrared colours, and this feature is used for further investigation of the nature of the APM carbon stars. Our results support the use of JHK photometry as a dwarf/giant discriminator and also reinforce the conclusion that none of the new APM-selected carbon stars is a dwarf. Finally, proper-motion measurements combined with extant JHK photometry are presented for a sample of previously known halo carbon stars, suggesting that one of these stars, CLS29, is likely to be a previously unrecognized dwarf carbon star.