Related papers: Young Massive Clusters as probes of stellar evolut…
Recent observations have revealed a variety of young star clusters, including embedded systems, young massive clusters, and associations. We study the formation and dynamical evolution of these clusters using a combination of simulations…
To shed light on the time evolution of local star formation episodes in M33, we study the association between 566 Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs), identified through the CO (J=2-1) IRAM-all-disk survey, and 630 Young Stellar Cluster…
The early evolution of dense stellar systems is governed by massive single star and binary evolution. Core collapse of dense massive star clusters can lead to the formation of very massive objects through stellar collisions ($M\geq$ 1000…
A detailed description is given of the data analysis leading to the discovery of young massive star clusters (YMCs) in a sample of 21 nearby galaxies. A new useful tool, ishape, for the derivation of intrinsic shape parameters of compact…
Young massive clusters (YMCs) are usually accompanied by lower-mass clusters and unbound stars with a total mass equal to several tens times the mass of the YMC. If this was also true when globular clusters (GCs) formed, then their cosmic…
Massive stars are essential to understand a variety of branches of astronomy including galaxy and star cluster evolution, nucleosynthesis and supernovae, pulsars and black holes. It has become evident that massive star evolution is very…
In this contribution I will discuss fundamental stellar parameters as determined from young star clusters; specifically those with ages less than or approximately equal to that of the Pleiades. I will focus primarily on the use of stellar…
Star clusters are the building blocks of galaxies. They are composed of stars of nearly equal age and chemical composition, allowing us to use them as chronometers and as testbeds for gauging stellar evolution. It has become clear recently…
The rich star clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) are ideal for studying the process of star formation. Here we focus on the determination of age spreads amongst the massive stars in two young clusters, NGC1818 and NGC1805. We…
We present a new analysis of the properties of the young massive star clusters, which demonstrates that these objects are plausible progenitors of old globular clusters (GCs). The method is based on the tight relationship for old GCs…
Central cluster galaxies are the largest and most massive galaxies in the Universe. Although they host very old stellar populations, several studies found the existence of blue cores in some BCGs indicating ongoing star formation. We…
High-mass stars are major players in the chemical and dynamical evolution of galaxies. Open clusters and associations represent the natural laboratories to study their evolution. In this review, I will present a personal selection of…
Dense star clusters are spectacular self-gravitating stellar systems in our Galaxy and across the Universe - in many respects. They populate disks and spheroids of galaxies as well as almost every galactic center. In massive elliptical…
More than 50 years have elapsed since the first studies of star clusters in the Magellanic Clouds. The wealth of data accumulated since then has not only revealed a large cluster system, but also a diversified one, filling loci in the age,…
Massive stars are powerful sources of radiation, stellar winds, and supernova explosions. The radiative and mechanical energies injected by massive stars into the interstellar medium (ISM) profoundly alter the structure and evolution of the…
The yellow supergiant content of nearby galaxies provides a critical test of massive star evolutionary theory. While these stars are the brightest in a galaxy, they are difficult to identify because a large number of foreground Milky Way…
Some of the most massive globular clusters of our Milky Way, such as for example omega-Centauri, show a mixture of stellar populations spanning a few Gyr in age and 1.5 dex in metallicities. In contrast, standard formation scenarios predict…
(abridged) The old Star Cluster (SC) systems surrounding any sofar investigated galaxy represent a powerful tool for the understanding of the cosmological evolution of their host galaxies. Phases of enhanced cluster formation can be…
One of the challenges for stellar astrophysics is to reach the point at which we can undertake reliable spectral synthesis of unresolved populations in young, star-forming galaxies at high redshift. Here I summarise recent studies of…
Giant molecular clouds (GMCs) are the sites of star formation and stellar feedback in galaxies. Their properties set the initial conditions for star formation and their lifecycles determine how feedback regulates galaxy evolution. In recent…