Related papers: The tricky galactic cluster NGC2420
Abridged: Four new nuclear star cluster masses, M_nc, plus seven upper limits, are provided for galaxies with previously determined black hole masses, M_bh. Together with a sample of 64 galaxies with direct M_bh measurements, 13 of which…
Cosmic shear, galaxy clustering, and the abundance of massive halos each probe the large-scale structure of the Universe in complementary ways. We present cosmological constraints from the joint analysis of the three probes, building on the…
We present a UV CMD spanning the hot horizontal branch (HB), blue straggler, and white dwarf populations of the globular cluster NGC 2808. These data were obtained with the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS). Although previous…
Strong gravitational lensing observations can test structure formation models by constraining the masses and concentrations of subhaloes in massive galaxy clusters. Recent work has concluded that cluster subhaloes are more abundant and/or…
We propose a method to remove the mass sheet degeneracy that arises when the mass of galaxy clusters is inferred from gravitational shear. The method utilizes high-redshift standard candles that undergo weak lensing. Natural candidates for…
Microlensing surveys search for the transient brightening of a background star that is the signature of gravitational lensing by a foreground compact object. This technique is an elegant way to search for astrophysical candidates that might…
Galactic open clusters do not survive long in the high density regions of the inner Galactic disc. Inside the solar ring only 11 open clusters are known with ages older than one Gyr. We show here, basing on deep, high-quality photometry,…
Globular clusters show abundance variations for light elements that are not yet well understood. The preferred explanation involves a self-enrichment scenario, with two subsequent generations of stars. Observations of main sequence stars…
We aim to explore the relationship between globular cluster total number, $N_{\rm GC}$, and central black hole mass, $M_\bullet$, in spiral galaxies, and compare it with that recently reported for ellipticals. We present results for the Sbc…
We present the I-band luminosity function of the differentially reddened globular cluster M10. We combine photometric analysis derived from wide-field (23' x 23') images that include the outer regions of the cluster and high-resolution…
We examine gravitational lensing constraints on the structure of galaxy clusters and compare them with the results of cosmological N-body simulations of cluster formation in cold dark matter (CDM) dominated universes. We find that cluster…
The Galactic globular cluster system is incomplete, especially in the low latitude regions of the Galactic bulge and disk. We report the physical characterization of twelve star clusters in the Milky Way, most of which are explored here for…
We present an optical study of the strong lensing galaxy cluster MS 0440.5$+$0204 at $z=0.19593$, based on CFHT/MegaCam g', r'-photometry and GMOS/Gemini and CFHT/MOS/SIS spectroscopy in a broader area compared to previous works. We have…
We present observations of the center of the Galactic globular cluster NGC 6273, obtained with the HST/WFPC2 camera as part of the snapshot program GO-7470. A B, V color-magnitude diagram (CMD) for ~28,000 stars is presented and discussed.…
Strong gravitational lensing offers a powerful probe of the detailed distribution of matter in lenses, while magnifying and bringing faint background sources into view. Observed strong lensing by massive galaxy clusters, which are often in…
We examine a caustic-straddling arc at $z=0.9397$ in the field of the galaxy cluster MACS J0416.1-2403 ($z=0.397$) using archival multiband HST images and show that its surface brightness exhibits anomalies that can be explained by a single…
We have simulated the growth of structure in two 100 Mpc boxes for LCDM and SCDM universes. These N-body/SPH simulations include a gaseous component which is able to cool radiatively. A fraction of the gas cools into cold dense objects…
We report on evidence of the inhomogeneity (multiplicity) of the stellar population in the Galactic globular cluster (GC) NGC 3201, which is irregularly reddened across its face. We carried out a more detailed and careful analysis of our…
In this manuscript I review the mathematics and physics that underpins recent work using the clustering of galaxies to derive cosmological model constraints. I start by describing the basic concepts, and gradually move on to some of the…
The cosmological standard model at present is widely accepted as containing mainly things we do not understand. In particular the appearance of a Cosmological Constant, or dark energy, is puzzling. This was first inferred from the Hubble…