Related papers: On the missing second generation AGB stars in NGC6…
Globular cluster stars show chemical abundance patterns typical of hot-CNO processing. Lithium is easily destroyed by proton capture in stellar environments, so its abundance may be crucial to discriminate among different models proposed to…
We present the first measure of Fe and Na abundances in NGC 6362, a low-mass globular cluster where first and second generation stars are fully spatially mixed. A total of 160 member stars (along the red giant branch and the red horizontal…
The recently-discovered lack of close binaries, among extreme horizontal branch (EHB) stars in Galactic globular clusters, has thus far constituted a major puzzle, in view of the fact that blue subdwarf stars - the field counterparts of…
We surveyed 20 AGB stars of different chemical types using the APEX telescope, and combined this with an IRAM 30 m and APEX survey of CS and SiS emission towards over 30 S-type stars. For those stars with detections, we performed radiative…
Asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars are important to chemical evolution at metallicity $Z \sim 0.0001$ ($\text{[Fe/H]} \approx -2.2$) as they contribute significantly to the production of nitrogen, lead, and dust in the early Universe. The…
It is well known that metal-poor red giant branch (RGB) stars show variations in some elemental abundances, including carbon, due to the internal mixing accompanied by their own in situ CN cycle in the hydrogen burning shell. With our new…
We present a new grid of stellar models and nucleosynthetic yields for super-AGB stars with metallicities Z=0.001 and 0.0001, applicable for use within galactic chemical evolution models. Contrary to more metal rich stars where hot bottom…
We studied the color distribution of the main sequence of the Globular Cluster NGC 2808, based on new deep HST-WFPC2 photometry of a field in the uncrowded outskirts of the cluster. The color distribution of main sequence stars is wider…
Globular clusters are of paramount importance for testing theories of stellar evolution and early galaxy formation. Strong evidence for multiple populations of stars in globular clusters derives from observed abundance anomalies. A puzzling…
Context. The asymptotic giant branch (AGB) phase marks the end of the evolution for low- and intermediate-mass stars, which are fundamental contributors to the mass return to the interstellar medium and to the chemical evolution of…
Recent work revealed that both the helium variation within globular clusters (GCs) and the relative numbers of first and second-generation stars (1G, 2G) depend on the mass of the host cluster. Precise determination of the internal helium…
We report the peculiar chemical abundance patterns of eleven atypical Milky Way (MW) field red giant stars observed by the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE). These atypical giants exhibit strong Al and N…
The mass-loss rates and dust-to-gas ratios of obscured Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars are investigated for samples with different initial metallicities: in the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds (SMC & LMC) and in the Milky Way. The…
We used a combination of optical and near-UV Hubble Space Telescope photometry and FLAMES/ESO-VLT high-resolution spectroscopy to characterize the stellar content of the old and massive globular cluster (GC) NGC121 in the Small Magellanic…
(abbreviated) Measuring the surface abundances of AGB stars is an important tool for studying the effects of nucleosynthesis and mixing in the interior of low- to intermediate mass stars during their final evolutionary phases. The…
A method of determining ages and masses of asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars between 0.8 and $\sim$6 M$_\odot$ is demonstrated, based on comparing the star's position in the period--absolute-magnitude diagram to theoretical evolutionary…
Abundance trends in heavier elements with evolutionary phase have been shown to exist in the globular cluster NGC 6752 [Fe/H]=-1.6. These trends are a result of atomic diffusion and additional (non-convective) mixing. Studying such trends…
Large abundance anomalies have been previously detected in Horizontal Branch B-type stars. We present the first high resolution study of isotopic anomalies and chemical abundances in six Horizontal Branch B-type stars in globular clusters…
We examine the photometric data for Fornax clusters, focussing our attention on their horizontal branch color distribution and, when available, on the RR Lyr variables fraction and period distribution. Based on our understanding of the HB…
We use high-precision photometry of red-giant-branch (RGB) stars in 57 Galactic globular clusters (GCs), mostly from the `Hubble Space Telescope (HST) UV Legacy Survey of Galactic globular clusters', to identify and characterize their…