Related papers: Complexity in small-scale dwarf spheroidal galaxie…
We use detailed nucleosynthesis calculations and a realistic prescription for the environment of the first stars to explore the first episodes of chemical enrichment that occurred during the dark ages. Based on these calculations, we…
The advent of m class telescopes has allowed the detailed spectroscopic study of sizeable numbers of extremely metal-poor Galactic stars which are the witnesses of the formation of the early Galaxy. Their chemical composition displays some…
For the first time accurate pulsation properties of the ancient variable stars of the Fornax dwarf spheroidal galaxy (dSph) are discussed in the broad context of galaxy formation and evolution. Homogeneous multi-band $BVI$ optical…
The chemical composition of galaxies offers vital insights into their formation and evolution. In particular, the relationship between helium abundance (He/H) and metallicity serves as a key diagnostic for estimating the primordial helium…
The dwarf galaxy companions to the Milky Way are unique cosmological laboratories. With luminosities as low as 10^-7 L_MW, they inhabit the lowest mass dark matter halos known to host stars and are presently the most direct tracers of the…
The abundance patterns of metal-poor stars provide us a wealth of chemical information about various stages of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy. In particular, these stars allow us to study the formation and evolution of the elements…
The star formation histories of Local Group (LG) dwarf galaxies and more distant potential LG members are reviewed. Problems in defining the spatial extent of the LG and membership are briefly discussed. The morphological types found in the…
This paper introduces new phase-space models of dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSphs). The stellar component has an isotropic, lowered isothermal (or King) distribution function. A physical basis for the isotropization of stellar velocities is…
We present Keck/DEIMOS spectroscopy of stars in 8 of the newly discovered ultra-faint dwarf galaxies around the Milky Way. We measure the velocity dispersions of Canes Venatici I and II, Ursa Major I and II, Coma Berenices, Hercules, Leo IV…
We introduce a stochastic halo formation model to compute the early chemical enrichment of the interstellar medium (ISM) of the halo. Contrary to 1-zone chemical evolution models, we are able to resolve local inhomogeneities in the ISM…
We analyse high signal-to-noise ESPaDOnS/CFHT spectra of 20 very metal-poor stars (VMP; [Fe/H]~$<-2.0$) in the solar neighbourhood (within $\sim2$ kpc), selected to be on planar orbits with maximum heights $\lesssim4$ kpc. The sample…
Different structural parameter correlations show how classical bulge components and elliptical galaxies are different from spiral and S0 galaxy disks, irregular (Im) galaxies, and spheroidal (Sph) galaxies. In contrast, the latter,…
We present tentative evidence for the existence of a dissolved star cluster at [Fe/H]=-2.7 in the Sextans dwarf spheroidal galaxy. We use the technique of chemical tagging to identify stars that are highly clustered in a multi-dimensional…
We present a detailed chemical abundance and kinematic analysis of six extremely metal-poor ($-4.2 \leq$ [Fe/H] $\leq-$2.9) halo stars with very low neutron-capture abundances ([Sr/H] and [Ba/H]) based on high-resolution Magellan/MIKE…
We combine spectroscopic metallicity values with integrated narrowband continuum colors to explore the internal metallicity distribution in early-type galaxies. The different techniques for determining metallicity (indices versus colors)…
We have gathered high resolution echelle spectra for more than two dozen high-velocity metal-poor field stars, including BD+80 245, a star previously known to have extremely low [alpha/Fe] abundances, as well as G4-36, a new low-alpha star…
We have compiled a sample of 699 stars from the recent literature with detailed chemical abundance information (spanning -4.2 < [Fe/H] < +0.3), and we compute their space velocities and Galactic orbital parameters. We identify members of…
The Milky Way's satellite galaxies ("surviving dwarfs") have been studied for decades as unique probes of chemical evolution in the low-mass regime. Here we extend such studies to the "disrupted dwarfs", whose debris constitutes the stellar…
Dwarf spheroidal galaxies that form in halo substructures provide stringent constraints on dark matter annihilation. Many ultrafaint dwarfs discovered with modern surveys contribute significantly to these constraints. At present, because of…
Ancient, long-lived stars remain present in all components of our home galaxy, the Milky Way. Born a few hundred million after the Big Bang and during a time that marked the very beginning of the chemical evolution, these stars display very…