Related papers: Some Constraints on Galaxy Evolution Imposed by th…
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…
The galaxy population in rich local galaxy clusters shows a ratio of one quarter elliptical galaxies, two quarters S0 galaxies, and one quarter spiral galaxies. Observations of clusters at redshift 0.5 show a perspicuously different ratio,…
Current observational constraints on the dynamical evolution of star clusters are reviewed. Theory and observations now agree nicely on the mass dependency and time scales for disruption of young star clusters in galactic disks, but many…
The distinction between globular clusters and dwarf galaxies has been progressively blurred by the recent discoveries of several extended star clusters, with size (20-30 pc) and luminosity (-6 < Mv < -2) comparable to the one of faint dwarf…
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…
Nearby dwarf irregular galaxies were searched for compact star clusters using data from the HST archives. Three of the galaxies were found to host both populous clusters (M_V<-9.5 at a fiducial age of 10 Myr) and super-star clusters…
Rich galaxy clusters in the local Universe show a large population of S0 galaxies (~ 40%) of all luminous galaxies). With increasing redshift the fraction of this S0 galaxy population is observed to strongly decrease (e.g. by a factor ~2-3…
Massive star clusters observed in galaxy mergers are often suggested to be progenitors of globular clusters. To study this hypothesis, we performed the highest resolution simulation of a gas-rich galaxy merger so far. The formation of…
Early-type galaxies (ETGs) show a bimodal distribution in key structural properties like stellar specific angular momentum, kinematic morphology, and nuclear surface brightness profiles. Slow rotator ETGs, mostly found in the densest…
I review the evolutionary status of the field populations of starbursting dwarf galaxies and low surface brightness spirals. Particular attention is paid to the long standing problem of the progenitors for star burst galaxies, which may be…
The formation mechanism of high-concentration dwarf galaxies is still a mystery. We perform a comparative study of the intrinsic shape of nearby low-mass galaxies with different stellar concentration. The intrinsic shape is parameterized by…
At which masses does the regime of globular clusters end and the one of dwarf galaxies begin? And what separates these two classes of hot stellar systems? We examine to what extend very massive (>10^7 Mo) young star clusters are similar to…
Although globular clusters are generally chemically homogeneous, substantial abundance variations are sometimes seen even among unevolved main sequence stars, especially for the CNO group of elements. Multi-object intermediate-dispersion…
This review concentrates almost entirely on globular star clusters. It emphasises the increasing realisation that few of the traditional problems of star cluster astronomy can be studied in isolation: the influence of the Galaxy affects…
Dwarf galaxies (DGs) are more numerous than large galaxies. Most dwarfs in clusters are dEs, but in the field they belong mostly to late types. The importance of late-type DGs in the context of the intergalactic medium (IGM) lies in the…
We argue that all transient searches for planets in globular clusters have a very low detection probability. Planets of low metallicity stars typically do not reside at small orbital separations. The dependance of planetary system…
Star cluster formation is a major mode of star formation in the extreme conditions of interacting galaxies and violent starbursts. Young clusters are observed to form in a variety of such galaxies, a substantial number resembling the…
The globular cluster (GC) specific frequency ($S_N$), defined as the number of GCs per unit galactic luminosity, represents the efficiency of GC formation (and survival) compared to field stars. Despite the naive expectation that star…
Galaxies can be classified in two broad sequences which are likely to reflect their formation mechanism. The `main sequence', consisting of spirals, irregulars and all dwarf galaxies, is probably produced by gas settling within dark matter…
Star clusters have hierarchical patterns in space and time, suggesting formation processes in the densest regions of a turbulent interstellar medium. Clusters also have hierarchical substructure when they are young, which makes them all…