Related papers: Is the emerging massive cluster NGC 2244 a twin cl…
We present the results of the first sensitive L band (3.4 micron) imaging study of the nearby young embedded cluster NGC 2024. Two separate surveys of the cluster were acquired in order to obtain a census of the circumstellar disk fraction…
We present near-IR spectroscopy of the massive intermediate age star cluster W3 in the merger remnant galaxy NGC 7252, obtained with the NTT telescope. This cluster has an age when the integrated near-IR properties of a stellar population…
The current census of, and stellar population in, massive Galactic star clusters is reviewed. In particular, we concentrate on a recent survey of obscured Galactic Giant H II (GHII) regions and the associated stellar clusters embedded in…
The classical globular clusters found in all galaxy types have half-light radii of $r_{\rm h} \sim$ 2-4 pc, which have been tied to formation in the dense cores of giant molecular clouds. Some old star clusters have larger sizes, and it is…
We present a uniform mid-infrared imaging and photometric survey of 36 young, nearby, star-forming clusters and groups using {\it Spitzer} IRAC and MIPS. We have confidently identified and classified 2548 young stellar objects using…
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,…
We conducted wide-field JHKs imaging polarimetry toward NGC 2024. We found a prominent and extended polarized nebula over NGC 2024, and constrained the location of illuminating source of the nebula through the analysis of polarization…
We examine the properties of embedded clusters within 1 kiloparsec using new data from the Spitzer Space Telescope, as well as recent results from 2MASS and other ground-based near-infrared surveys. We use surveys of entire molecular clouds…
We report the discovery of an extraordinarily massive young cluster of stars in the Galaxy, having an inferred total initial cluster mass comparable to the most massive young clusters in the Galaxy. Using {\it IRMOS}, {\it 2MASS}, and {\it…
NGC6357 is an active star forming region with very young massive open clusters (OC). These clusters contain some of the most massive stars in the Galaxy and strongly interact with nearby giant molecular clouds (GMC). We study the young…
We report the detection of eighteen infrared reflection nebulae (IRNe) in the $J$, $H$, & $Ks$ linear polarimetric observations of the NGC 6334 massive star-formation complex, of which 16 IRNe are new discoveries. Our images cover $\sim$180…
We investigate the young stellar populations associated with DR 18 and ECX 6-21, which are two isolated globules irradiated by the O-type stars of the Cygnus OB2 association. Both are HII regions containing obvious tracers of recent and…
We present results for an up-to-date uncatalogued star cluster projected towards the Eastern side of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) outer disc. The new object was discovered from a search of loose star cluster in the Magellanic Clouds'…
Recent wide-field photometric surveys (Lee et al.; Pancino et al.) have shown the existence of a previously unknown metal-rich ([Fe/H] -0.6) stellar population in the galactic globular cluster omega Centauri. The discovery of this new…
We have obtained 1-2 A resolution optical Echellette spectra of the nuclear star cluster in the nearby starburst galaxy NGC 4449. The light is clearly dominated by a very young (6-10 Myr) population of stars. For our age dating, we have…
If thick disks are ubiquitous and a natural product of disk galaxy formation and/or evolution processes, all undisturbed galaxies which have evolved during a significant fraction of a Hubble time should have a thick disk. The late-type…
The past decade has seen an increase of star formation studies made at the molecular cloud scale, motivated mostly by the deployment of a wealth of sensitive infrared telescopes and instruments. Embedded clusters, long recognised as the…
To progress in galactic studies based on open clusters, e.g. cluster formation rate or kinematical properties, one needs to improve the number of open clusters observed. However, only half of the 1700 known galactic open clusters have been…
In order to investigate the Galactic-scale environmental effects on the evolution of protoplanetary disks, we explored the near-infrared (NIR) disk fraction of the Quartet cluster, which is a young cluster in the innermost Galactic disk at…
Open clusters belonging to star-forming complexes are the leftovers from the initial stellar generations. The study of these young systems provides constraints to models of star formation and evolution as well as to the properties of the…