Related papers: Understanding the Elusive Dwarf Carbon Star
An unresolved question in galaxy evolution is whether the star formation histories of low mass systems are preferentially dominated by starbursts or modes that are more quiescent and continuous. Here, we quantify the prevalence of global…
We present new Hubble Space Telescope WFC3/IR medium-band photometry of the compact elliptical galaxy M32, chemically resolving its thermally pulsating asymptotic giant branch stars. We find 2829 M-type stars and 57 C stars. The carbon…
The current status of carbon stars in the Local Group and beyond, is discussed. Although many carbon stars and late M-stars have been identified in Local Group galaxies, a coherent understanding in terms of the chemical evolution- and star…
The chemical enrichment of the Universe; the mass spectrum of planetary nebulae, white dwarfs and gravitational wave progenitors; the frequency distribution of Type I and II supernovae; the fate of exoplanets ... a multitude of phenomena…
Understanding stellar evolution and its effect on planetary systems is crucial for correctly interpreting the chemical constraints of exo-planetary material that can be given to us by white dwarfs. This article will describe how asteroids,…
Galaxies cover a wide range of masses and star formation histories. In this review, I summarize some of the evolutionary key features of common galaxy types. At the high-mass end, very rapid, efficient early star formation is observed,…
This review aims to give an overview of the contribution of the Hubble Space Telescope to our understanding of the detailed properties of Local Group dwarf galaxies and their older stellar populations. The exquisite stable high spatial…
We present spectra of 1142 colour-selected stars in the direction of the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal (Sgr dSph) galaxy, of which 1058 were taken with VLT/FLAMES multi-object spectrograph and 84 were taken with the SAAO Radcliffe 1.9-m…
The M33 galaxy is a nearby, relatively metal-poor, late-type spiral. Its proximity and almost face-on inclination means that it projects over a large area on the sky, making it an ideal candidate for wide-field CCD mosaic imaging.…
Although carbon is, together with oxygen and nitrogen, one of the most important elements in the study of galactic chemical evolution its production sites are still poorly known and have been much debated (see e.g. Gustafsson et al. 1999;…
Stars that contain only trace amounts of elements heavier than helium, referred to as having low "metallicity", preserve the chemical fingerprints of the first generation of stars and supernovae. In the Milky Way, the lowest metallicity…
The smallest dwarf galaxies are the most straight forward objects in which to study star formation processes on a galactic scale. They are typically single cell star forming entities, and as small potentials in orbit around a much larger…
Initial conditions are set by Big bang nucleosynthesis from which we know that 90 per cent of baryons are dark and have essentially unknown chemical composition. In our own Galaxy, there are many clues from individual stars in different…
The excess of far-ultraviolet (far-UV) radiation in elliptical galaxies has remained one of their most enduring puzzles. In contrast, the origin of old blue stars in the Milky Way, hot subdwarfs, is now reasonably well understood: they are…
Hydrogen-deficient Carbon (HdC) stars are a class of supergiants with anomalous chemical compositions, suggesting that they are remnants of CO-He white dwarf (WD) mergers. This class comprises two spectroscopically similar subclasses -…
The chemical compositions of 26 metal-poor stars that exhibit strong CH and/or C2 molecular bands are determined based on high-resolution spectroscopy. We define carbon-enhanced stars taking account of the carbon abundance ratio ([C/Fe])…
This paper focuses on carbon that is one of the most abundant elements in the Universe and is of high importance in the field of nucleosynthesis and galactic and stellar evolution. Even nowadays, the origin of carbon and the relative…
The spectra of stars with the B[e] phenomenon are dominated by features that are related to physical conditions of circumstellar material around these objects and are not intrinsic to the stars. Because of this, they form a very…
(Abridged) Objects with radii of 10 to 100 pc and masses in the range from 10^6 to 10^8 M_sun have been discovered during the past decade. These so-called ultra compact dwarf galaxies (UCDs) constitute a transition between classical star…
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…