Related papers: Galactic nuclear activity induced by globular clus…
Growing evidence for the existence of two classes of ellipticals calls for a comparison of the properties of their globular cluster systems. I compiled information on the properties of over 50 globular cluster systems of faint and bright…
Internal dynamical evolution can drive stellar systems into states of high central density. For many star clusters and galactic nuclei, the time scale on which this occurs is significantly less than the age of the universe. As a result,…
Their ubiquity and extreme densities make star clusters probes of prime importance of galaxy evolution. Old globular clusters keep imprints of the physical conditions of their assembly in the early Universe, and younger stellar objects,…
Open and globular star clusters have served as benchmarks for the study of stellar evolution due to their supposed nature as simple stellar populations of the same age and metallicity. After a brief review of some of the pioneering work…
The evolution of globular cluster systems in some galaxies can be cause of merging of globulars in the very central regions. This high stellar density favours the growth of a central nucleus via swallowing of surrounding stars. The infall…
Observations of rich LMC and SMC clusters reveal an increasing spread in core radius with age. This trend likely represents real physical evolution in these systems. Old Magellanic Cloud clusters appear either extended or compact. Similar…
We briefly summarize the impact of the chemical peculiarities associated to the multiple population phenomenon in Galactic Globular Clusters, on the evolutionary properties and spectral energy distribution of second generation stars, in…
In the first part of this article, we review observations of the mass and luminosity functions of young and old star cluster systems. We also review some of the physical processes that may determine the characteristic mass of globular…
I present various projects to study the halo dynamics of elliptical galaxies. This allows one to study the outer mass and orbital distributions of ellipticals in different environments, and the inner distributions of groups and clusters…
Many galactic globular clusters (GCs) contain at least two stellar populations. Recent observational studies found that the radial distributions of the first (P1) and second population (P2) differ in dynamically-young GCs. Since P2 is…
(Abridged) The building blocks of galaxies are star clusters. These form with low-star formation efficiencies and, consequently, loose a large part of their stars that expand outwards once the residual gas is expelled by the action of the…
Globular clusters which exhibit chemical and dynamical complexity have been suggested to be the stripped nuclei of dwarf galaxies (e.g., M54, $\omega$ Cen). We use $N$-body simulations of nuclear star clusters forming via the mergers of…
A satisfactory understanding of the origin of the dependence of galaxy properties on their environment has remained, so far, out of reach. In the light of numerous observational results and substantial theoretical progress obtained for…
Theoretical considerations and observational data support the idea that mergers were more frequent in the past. At high redshifts, violent interactions and mergers may be implicated in the origin of Lyman-break galaxies, sub-mm starbursts,…
I review recent and less recent work on globular cluster systems in early-type galaxies. Explaining their properties and possible assembly scenarios, touches on a variety of astrophysical topics from cluster formation itself to galaxy…
Globular clusters (GCs), the oldest stellar systems observed in the Milky Way, have for long been considered single stellar populations. As such, they provided an ideal laboratory to understand stellar dynamics and primordial star formation…
This is a "biased" review because I will show recent evidence on the contribution of globular clusters (GCs) to the halo of our Galaxy seen through the lens of the new paradigm of multiple populations in GCs. I will show a few examples…
The globular cluster population in M87 has decreased measurably through dynamical evolution caused by relaxation, binary heating and time-dependent tidal perturbation. For fundamental plane ellipticals in general, cluster populations evolve…
Mergers of gas-rich galaxies lead to gravitationally driven increases in gas pressure that can trigger intense bursts of star and cluster formation. Although star formation itself is clustered, most newborn stellar aggregates are unbound…
Globular clusters are among the oldest objects in galaxies, and understanding the details of their formation and evolution can bring valuable insight into the early history of galaxies. This review summarises the current knowledge about the…