Related papers: Spectral libraries and their uncertainties
It takes years of effort employing the best telescopes and instruments to obtain high-quality stellar photometry, astrometry, and spectroscopy. Stellar evolution models contain the experience of lifetimes of theoretical calculations and…
We show observations obtained with the integral field spectrometer OASIS for the central regions of a sample of barred galaxies. The high spatial resolution of the instrument allows to distinguish various structures within these regions as…
Planetary nebulae represent a potential late stage of stellar evolution, however the central stars (CSPNe) are relatively faint and therefore pertinent information is merely available for <20% of the Galactic sample. Consequently, the…
Stellar evolution tracks and isochrones are key inputs for a wide range of astrophysical studies; in particular, they are essential to the interpretation of photometric and spectroscopic observations of resolved and unresolved stellar…
Our uncertainties about binary star systems (and triples and so on) limit our capabilities in literally every single one of the Thematic Areas identified for Astro2020. We need to understand the population statistics of stellar multiplicity…
We review current progress in the study of the stellar populations of early-type galaxies, both locally and at intermediate redshifts. In particular, we focus on the ages of these galaxies and their evolution in hopes of determining the…
A (subjective) overview of Internet resources relevant to professional astronomers is given. Special emphasis is put on databases of astronomical objects and servers providing general information, e.g. on astronomical catalogues, finding…
Sensitive measurements of the linearly polarized spectra of stars can be used to deduce geometric properties of their otherwise unresolved circumstellar environments. This paper describes some of the evidence for optical pumping and…
We present a new library of integrated spectra of 40 Galactic globular clusters, obtained with the Blanco 4-m telescope and the R-C spectrograph at the Cerro Tololo Interamerican Observatory. The spectra cover the range ~ 3350 -- 6430 A…
Despite centuries of close association, statistics and astronomy are surprisingly distant today. Most observational astronomical research relies on an inadequate toolbox of methodological tools. Yet the needs are substantial: astronomy…
Binary stars evolve differently from single stars, thus binary evolution is very useful for astrophysical studies. This paper discusses the application of binary evolution in the studies of stars, star clusters, galaxies, and cosmology. In…
I present a brief review of the stellar population properties of massive galaxies, focusing on early-type galaxies in particular, with emphasis on recent results from the ATLAS3D Survey. I discuss the occurrence of young stellar ages, cold…
This paper summarizes the current status of the electromagnetic data libraries, reviews recent experimental validation results, highlights open issues and introduces new perspectives for the future of these data libraries taking shape in…
MEGARA (Multi Espectr{\'o}grafo en GTC de Alta Resoluci{\'o}n para Astronom{\'\i}a) is an optical (3650~--~9750\AA), fibre-fed, medium-high spectral resolution (R = 6000, 12000, 20000) instrument for the GTC 10.4m telescope, commissioned in…
We introduce the ongoing MaStar project, which is going to construct a large, well-calibrated, high quality empirical stellar library with more than 8000 stars covering the wavelength range from 3622 to 10,354A at a resolution of R~2000,…
The age and chemical composition of the stars in present-day galaxies carry important clues about their star formation processes. The latest generation of population synthesis models have allowed to derive age and stellar metallicity…
Spectropolarimetry is a photon-hungry technique that will reach fruition in the 8-m telescope age. Here I summarize some of the stellar spectropolarimetric research that my collaborators and I have undertaken, with particular emphasis on…
Star clusters are ideal tracers of star formation activity in systems outside the volume that can be studied using individual, resolved stars. These unresolved clusters span orders of magnitude in brightness and mass, and their formation is…
The cluster luminosity function (CLF) is one of the most important diagnostics in the study of old globular and young compact star cluster populations. We are currently using ASTROVIRTEL to obtain CLFs in several optical and/or…
Stellar model atmospheres form the basis for any element abundance determination and hence are crucial ingredients for studies of stellar, galactic and cosmic evolution. With recent observational progress with the advent of 8m-class…