Related papers: Intracluster Globular Clusters
Dynamical friction due to field stars and tidal disruption caused by a central nucleus are crucial in determining the evolution of the globular cluster system in an elliptical galaxy. In this paper I examine the possibility that some of…
Globular clusters are valuable fossil records of the formation and evolution of their host galaxies. The color distribution of elliptical galaxy globular cluster systems indicates an episodic formation history, consistent with a merger…
One of the external fields that influences the population of globular clusters is that due to galactic bulges. In extreme situations, perigalactic distances $r_p \le 100$ pc, globular clusters could suffer total disruption in a single…
The presence of two globular cluster subpopulations in early-type galaxies is now the norm rather than the exception. Here we present two more examples for which the host galaxy appears to have undergone a recent merger. Using multi-colour…
Globular clusters formed in galactic mergers (e.g., The Antennae) can now be studied at different stages of their evolution. In young merger remnants (e.g., NGC 7252) these "second-generation" globulars appear by the hundreds as young halo…
We revisit the hypothesis that dense galactic nuclei are formed from inspiraling globular clusters. Recent advances in understanding of the continuous formation of globular clusters over cosmic time and the concurrent evolution of the…
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…
Despite the rapid observational progress in the study of young massive star clusters, the formation of globular clusters still remains poorly understood. Yet, it is emerging that globular cluster formation is intimately linked to the…
We propose and investigate a new formation mechanism for globular clusters in which they form within molecular clouds that are formed in the shocked regions created by galactic winds driven by successive supernova explosions shortly after…
Typical globular clusters (GCs - young and old) host stellar populations with little or no star-to-star variations in heavy elements (e.g., Ca, Fe) nor in age. Nuclear star clusters (NSCs), on the other hand, host complex stellar…
We study the globular cluster (GC) populations of 21 giant elliptical galaxies in 19 Abell clusters. This method, applied here primarily in the R band, is based on the surface brightness fluctuations technique of extragalactic distance…
Recent developments relevant to the formation of globular cluster systems in galaxies are discussed, including (1) The age distribution of the oldest Milky Way clusters, (2) Subgroups and possible accretion and merger remnants in the…
The galactic population of globular clusters are old, dense star systems, with a typical cluster containing $10^4 - 10^6$ stars. As an old population of stars, globular clusters contain many collapsed and degenerate objects. As a dense…
Globular Cluster (GC) formation seems to be a widespread mode of star formation in extreme starbursts triggered by strong interactions and mergers of massive gas-rich galaxies. We use our detailed chemically consistent evolutionary…
An increasing number of both photometric and spectroscopic observations over the last years have shown the existence of distinct sub-populations in many Galactic globular clusters and shattered the paradigm of globulars hosting single,…
Galactic globular clusters are old, dense star systems typically containing 10\super{4}--10\super{7} stars. As an old population of stars, globular clusters contain many collapsed and degenerate objects. As a dense population of stars,…
We study the rich globular cluster (GC) system in the center of the massive cluster of galaxies Abell 1689 (z=0.18), one of the most powerful gravitational lenses known. With 28 HST/ACS orbits in the F814W bandpass, we reach magnitude…
Globular clusters were thought to be simple stellar populations, but recent photometric and spectroscopic evidence suggests that the clusters' early formation history was more complicated. In particular, clusters show star-to-star abundance…
In about 40% of the Local Group galaxies star clusters have been detected so far, but the census is still incomplete. The properties of these clusters are briefly reviewed, and the impact of galaxy environment on the evolution and survival…
The properties of globular cluster systems (GCSs) in the core of the nearby galaxy clusters Fornax and Hydra I are presented. In the Fornax cluster we have gathered the largest radial velocity sample of a GCS system so far, which enables us…