INVESTIGATION OF THE KINEMATICS AND STRUCTURE OF THE GALAXY IN THE VICINITY OF THE NORTH GALACTIC POLE

In the framework of the programme of studying the meridional section o f the Galaxy (MEGA) the absolute proper motions of more than 11000 sta rs with respect to 3000 galaxies and their stellar magnitudes in the B , V Johnson system are determined in two sky regions near the North Ga lactic Pole (NGP) by means of Tautenburg Schmidt plates. The limiting and completing apparent stellar magnitudes are B = 20.4 and 18.3 mag, the overall and the investigated sky areas are 16.4 and 14.6 square de grees, respectively. Distances have been determined using the stellar magnitudes, colours, proper motions and reduced proper motions. Stella r kinematics, eccentricities of Galactic orbits, spatial distribution and changes of these characteristics with Z-distance from the Galactic plane are obtained up to 15 kpc. Four subsystems distinguished in the NGP direction, respectively with semithicknesses of 0.25, 0.38, 0.67, 1.48 kpc and density ellipsoid axial ratios of 0.09, 0.20, 0.28, 0.49 show mean velocities in the Galactic rotation direction relative to t he LSR of 5.6 +/- 0.6,-11.0 +/- 0.6, -62.5 +/- 1.2, -181.6 +/- 4.4 km/ s, and ages of 0.1, 0.4, 0.9, 1 of the Galaxy age.