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Ages and Metallicities of Extragalactic Globular Clusters from Spectral and Photometric Fits of Stellar Population Synthesis Models
Spectra of galaxies contain an enormous amount of information about therelative mixture of ages and metallicities of constituent stars. Wepresent a comprehensive study designed to extract the maximuminformation from spectra of data quality typical in large galaxysurveys. These techniques are not intended for detailed stellarpopulation studies that use high-quality spectra. We test techniques ona sample of globular clusters, which should consist of single stellarpopulations and provide good test cases, using the Bruzual-Charlothigh-resolution stellar population synthesis models to simultaneouslyestimate the ages and metallicities of 101 globular clusters in M31 andthe Magellanic Clouds. The clusters cover a wide range of ages andmetallicities, 4 Myr
| Red Giant Stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud Clusters
We present deep J, H, and Ks photometry and accurate colormagnitude diagrams down to K~18.5 for a sample of 13 globular clustersin the Large Magellanic Cloud. This data set combined with the previoussample of six clusters published by our group gives the opportunity tostudy the properties of giant stars in clusters with different ages(ranging from ~80 Myr up to 3.5 Gyr). Quantitative estimates of starpopulation ratios (by number and luminosity) in the asymptotic giantbranch (AGB), the red giant branch (RGB), and the He clump have beenobtained and compared with theoretical models in the framework ofprobing the so-called phase transitions. The AGB contribution to thetotal luminosity starts to be significant at ~200 Myr and reaches itsmaximum at 500-600 Myr, when the RGB phase transition is starting. At~900 Myr the full development of an extended and well-populated RGB hasbeen completed. The occurrences of both the AGB and RGB phasetransitions are sharp events, lasting a few hundred megayears only.These empirical results agree very well with the theoretical predictionsof simple stellar population models based on canonical tracks and thefuel-consumption approach.Based on observations collected at the European Southern Observatory, LaSilla, Chile, using SOFI at the 3.5 m NTT, within the observing programs64.N-0038 and 68.D-0287.
| A Database of 2MASS Near-Infrared Colors of Magellanic Cloud Star Clusters
The (rest-frame) near-IR domain contains important stellar populationdiagnostics and is often used to estimate masses of galaxies at low, aswell as high, redshifts. However, many stellar population models arestill relatively poorly calibrated in this part of the spectrum. Toallow an improvement of this calibration we present a new database ofintegrated near-IR JHKs magnitudes for 75 star clusters inthe Magellanic Clouds, using the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS). Themajority of the clusters in our sample have robust age and metallicityestimates from color-magnitude diagrams available in the literature, andpopulate a range of ages from 10 Myr to 15 Gyr and a range in [Fe/H]from -2.17 to +0.01 dex. A comparison with matched star clusters in the2MASS Extended Source Catalog (XSC) reveals that the XSC only provides agood fit to the unresolved component of the cluster stellar population.We also compare our results with the often-cited single-channel JHKphotometry of Persson and coworkers and find significant differences,especially for their 30" diameter apertures, up to ~2.5 mag in the Kband, more than 1 mag in J-K, and up to 0.5 mag in H-K. Usingsimulations to center apertures based on maximum light throughput (asperformed by Persson et al.), we show that these differences can beattributed to near-IR-bright cluster stars (e.g., carbon stars) locatedaway from the true center of the star clusters. The wide age andmetallicity coverage of our integrated JHKs photometry sampleconstitute a fundamental data set for testing population synthesis modelpredictions and for direct comparison with near-IR observations ofdistant stellar populations.
| Integrated-light VRI imaging photometry of globular clusters in the Magellanic Clouds
We present accurate integrated-light photometry in Johnson/Cousins V, Rand I for a sample of 28 globular clusters in the Magellanic Clouds. Themajority of the clusters in our sample have reliable age and metallicityestimates available in the literature. The sample encompasses agesbetween 50 Myr and 7 Gyr, and metallicities ([Fe/H]) between -1.5 and0.0 dex. The sample is dominated by clusters of ages between roughly 0.5and 2 Gyr, an age range during which the bolometric luminosity of simplestellar populations is dominated by evolved red giant branch stars andthermally pulsing asymptotic giant branch (TP-AGB) stars whosetheoretical colours are rather uncertain. The VRI colours presented inthis paper have been used to calibrate stellar population synthesismodel predictions.
| The Star Clusters of the Small Magellanic Cloud: Structural Parameters
We present structural parameters for 204 stellar clusters in the SmallMagellanic Cloud derived from fitting King and Elson, Fall, and Freeman(EFF) model profiles to the V-band surface brightness profiles asmeasured from the Magellanic Clouds Photometric Survey images. Both Kingand EFF profiles are satisfactory fits to the majority of the profiles,although King profiles are generally slightly superior to the softenedpower-law profiles of EFF and provide statistically acceptable fits to~90% of the sample. We find no correlation between the preferred modeland cluster age. The only systematic deviation in the surface brightnessprofiles that we identify is a lack of a central concentration in asubsample of clusters, which we designate as ``ring'' clusters. Inagreement with previous studies, we find that the clusters in the SMCare significantly more elliptical than those in the Milky Way. However,given the mean age difference and the rapid destruction of thesesystems, the comparison between the SMC and the Milky Way should notdirectly be interpreted as a difference in either the initial clusterproperties or their subsequent evolution. We find that clusterellipticity correlates with cluster mass more strongly than with clusterage. We identify several other correlations (central surface brightnessvs. local background density, core radius vs. tidal force, and size vs.distance) that can be used to constrain models of cluster evolution inthe SMC.
| Resolved Massive Star Clusters in the Milky Way and Its Satellites: Brightness Profiles and a Catalog of Fundamental Parameters
We present a database of structural and dynamical properties for 153spatially resolved star clusters in the Milky Way, the Large and SmallMagellanic Clouds, and the Fornax dwarf spheroidal. This databasecomplements and extends others in the literature, such as those ofHarris and Mackey & Gilmore. Our cluster sample comprises 50 ``youngmassive clusters'' in the LMC and SMC, and 103 old globular clustersbetween the four galaxies. The parameters we list include central andhalf-light-averaged surface brightnesses and mass densities; core andeffective radii; central potentials, concentration parameters, and tidalradii; predicted central velocity dispersions and escape velocities;total luminosities, masses, and binding energies; central phase-spacedensities; half-mass relaxation times; and ``κ-space'' parameters.We use publicly available population-synthesis models to computestellar-population properties (intrinsic B-V colors, reddenings, andV-band mass-to-light ratios) for the same 153 clusters plus another 63globulars in the Milky Way. We also take velocity-dispersionmeasurements from the literature for a subset of 57 (mostly old)clusters to derive dynamical mass-to-light ratios for them, showing thatthese compare very well to the population-synthesis predictions. Thecombined data set is intended to serve as the basis for futureinvestigations of structural correlations and the fundamental plane ofmassive star clusters, including especially comparisons between thesystemic properties of young and old clusters.The structural and dynamical parameters are derived from fitting threedifferent models-the modified isothermal sphere of King; an alternatemodified isothermal sphere based on the ad hoc stellar distributionfunction of Wilson; and asymptotic power-law models withconstant-density cores-to the surface-brightness profile of eachcluster. Surface-brightness data for the LMC, SMC, and Fornax clustersare based in large part on the work of Mackey & Gilmore, but includesignificant supplementary data culled from the literature and importantcorrections to Mackey & Gilmore's V-band magnitude scale. Theprofiles of Galactic globular clusters are taken from Trager et al. Weaddress the question of which model fits each cluster best, finding inthe majority of cases that the Wilson models-which are spatially moreextended than King models but still include a finite, ``tidal'' cutoffin density-fit clusters of any age, in any galaxy, as well as or betterthan King models. Untruncated, asymptotic power laws often fit about aswell as Wilson models but can be significantly worse. We argue that theextended halos known to characterize many Magellanic Cloud clusters maybe examples of the generic envelope structure of self-gravitating starclusters, not just transient features associated strictly with youngage.
| Ages and metallicities of star clusters: New calibrations and diagnostic diagrams from visible integrated spectra
We present homogeneous scales of ages and metallicities for starclusters from very young objects, through intermediate-age ones up tothe oldest known clusters. All the selected clusters have integratedspectra in the visible range, as well as reliable determinations oftheir ages and metallicities. From these spectra equivalent widths (EWs)of K Ca II, G band (CH) and Mg I metallic, and Hδ, Hγ andHβ Balmer lines have been measured homogeneously. The analysis ofthese EWs shows that the EW sums of the metallic and Balmer H lines,separately, are good indicators of cluster age for objects younger than10 Gyr, and that the former is also sensitive to cluster metallicity forages greater than 10 Gyr. We propose an iterative procedure forestimating cluster ages by employing two new diagnostic diagrams and agecalibrations based on the above EW sums. For clusters older than 10 Gyr,we also provide a calibration to derive their overall metal contents.
| Infrared Surface Brightness Fluctuations of Magellanic Star Clusters
We present surface brightness fluctuations (SBFs) in the near-IR for 191Magellanic star clusters available in the Second Incremental and All SkyData releases of the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) and compare themwith SBFs of Fornax Cluster galaxies and with predictions from stellarpopulation models as well. We also construct color-magnitude diagrams(CMDs) for these clusters using the 2MASS Point Source Catalog (PSC).Our goals are twofold. The first is to provide an empirical calibrationof near-IR SBFs, given that existing stellar population synthesis modelsare particularly discrepant in the near-IR. Second, whereas mostprevious SBF studies have focused on old, metal-rich populations, thisis the first application to a system with such a wide range of ages(~106 to more than 1010 yr, i.e., 4 orders ofmagnitude), at the same time that the clusters have a very narrow rangeof metallicities (Z~0.0006-0.01, i.e., 1 order of magnitude only). Sincestellar population synthesis models predict a more complex sensitivityof SBFs to metallicity and age in the near-IR than in the optical, thisanalysis offers a unique way of disentangling the effects of age andmetallicity. We find a satisfactory agreement between models and data.We also confirm that near-IR fluctuations and fluctuation colors aremostly driven by age in the Magellanic cluster populations and that inthis respect they constitute a sequence in which the Fornax Clustergalaxies fit adequately. Fluctuations are powered by red supergiantswith high-mass precursors in young populations and by intermediate-massstars populating the asymptotic giant branch in intermediate-agepopulations. For old populations, the trend with age of both fluctuationmagnitudes and colors can be explained straightforwardly by evolution inthe structure and morphology of the red giant branch. Moreover,fluctuation colors display a tendency to redden with age that can befitted by a straight line. For the star clusters only,(H-Ks)=(0.21+/-0.03)log(age)-(1.29+/-0.22) once galaxies areincluded, (H-Ks)=(0.20+/-0.02)log(age)-(1.25+/-0.16).Finally, we use for the first time a Poissonian approach to establishthe error bars of fluctuation measurements, instead of the customaryMonte Carlo simulations.This research has made use of the NASA/ IPAC Infrared Science Archive,which is operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Instituteof Technology, under contract with the National Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration.
| Analyzing Starbursts Using Magellanic Cloud Star Clusters as Simple Stellar Populations
Integrated spectra have been obtained of 31 star clusters in theMagellanic Clouds (MC) and of four Galactic globular clusters. Thespectra cover the wavelength range 3500-4700 Å at a resolution of3.2 Å FWHM. The MC clusters primarily cover the age range fromless than 108 to about 3 Gyr and hence are well-suited to anempirical study of aging poststarburst stellar populations. Anage-dating method is presented that relies on two spectral absorptionfeature indices, Hδ/Fe I λ4045 and Ca II, as well as anindex measuring the strength of the Balmer discontinuity. We compare thebehavior of the spectral indices in the observed integrated spectra ofthe MC clusters with that of indices generated from theoreticalevolutionary synthesis models of varying age and metal abundance. Thesynthesis models are based on those of Worthey, when coupled with thecombination of an empirical library of stellar spectra by Jones for thecooler stars and synthetic spectra, generated from Kurucz modelatmospheres, for the hotter stars. Overall, we find good agreementbetween the ages of the MC clusters derived from our integrated spectra(and the evolutionary synthesis modelling of the spectral indices) andages derived from analyses of the cluster color-magnitude diagrams, asfound in the literature. Hence, the principal conclusion of this studyis that ages of young stellar populations can be reliably measured frommodelling of their integrated spectra.
| Near-infrared color evolution of LMC clusters
We present here the digital aperture photometry for 28 LMC clusterswhose ages are between 5 Myr and 12 Gyr. This photometry is based on ourimaging observations in JHK and contains integrated magnitudes andcolors as a function of aperture radius. In contrast to optical colors,our near-infrared colors do not show any strong dependence on clusterages.Tables 2 and 3 and Fig. 2 are only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org
| Surface brightness profiles and structural parameters for 53 rich stellar clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud
We have compiled a pseudo-snapshot data set of two-colour observationsfrom the Hubble Space Telescope archive for a sample of 53 rich LMCclusters with ages of 106-1010 yr. We presentsurface brightness profiles for the entire sample, and derive structuralparameters for each cluster, including core radii, and luminosity andmass estimates. Because we expect the results presented here to form thebasis for several further projects, we describe in detail the datareduction and surface brightness profile construction processes, andcompare our results with those of previous ground-based studies. Thesurface brightness profiles show a large amount of detail, includingirregularities in the profiles of young clusters (such as bumps, dipsand sharp shoulders), and evidence for both double clusters andpost-core-collapse (PCC) clusters. In particular, we find power-lawprofiles in the inner regions of several candidate PCC clusters, withslopes of approximately -0.7, but showing considerable variation. Weestimate that 20 +/- 7 per cent of the old cluster population of theLarge Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has entered PCC evolution, a similarfraction to that for the Galactic globular cluster system. In addition,we examine the profile of R136 in detail and show that it is probablynot a PCC cluster. We also observe a trend in core radius with age thathas been discovered and discussed in several previous publications bydifferent authors. Our diagram has better resolution, however, andappears to show a bifurcation at several hundred Myr. We argue that thisobserved relationship reflects true physical evolution in LMC clusters,with some experiencing small-scale core expansion owing to mass loss,and others large-scale expansion owing to some unidentifiedcharacteristic or physical process.
| The Nature of Peculiar Stellar Complexes
The nature of stellar complexes with peculiar populations andmorphologies is investigated. The existence in the LMC of complexes madeup of isolated stars, on the one hand, and consisting exclusively ofclusters, on the other hand, could be due to different turbulencepatterns in the initial gaseous medium. Arc-shaped stellar complexes areunlikely to be the result of star formation in a gaseous shell swept upby a central source of pressure, and instead probably reflect the shapeof a bow shock that develops when a sufficiently dense cloud is subjectto dynamical pressure. A peculiar arc-shaped complex in NGC 6946, whichcontains a young, massive cluster, may be the result of an obliqueinfall of a high-velocity cloud onto a region of the gaseous disk of theGalaxy with a strong, regular magnetic field; the properties of thiscomplex can be explained as the result of a collision of the resultingshocks. The arc-shaped complexes in the LMC were also probably producedby high-velocity clouds moving obliquely through the more tenuous gas ofthe LMC disk. A similar complex in NGC 300 may owe its origin to theeffect produced on a dense cloud by the shock from an extremely powerfulexternal explosion, whose stellar remnant may have survived as an X-raysource now located along the line of symmetry of the arc of the complex.The rareness of such structures can be explained by the narrow range ofconditions under which they can develop.
| Distribution of stellar mass in young star clusters of our Galaxy and nearby galaxies
Stellar mass distribution in young star clusters of our Galaxy, theMagellanic Clouds and the nearby local groups of galaxies has been usedto investigate the universality of initial mass function and presence ofmass segregation in these systems. There is no obvious dependence of theMF slope on either galactocentric distance or age of the galactic openstar clusters. A comparison of initial mass function slopes that havebeen measured in star clusters and associations of our and nearbygalaxies indicates that the slope is independent of the spatialconcentration of the star formed, galactic characteristics includingmetallicity, and at least down to 0.85 M?, the stellar mass range.Effects of mass segregation have been observed in good number of youngstellar groups of our Galaxy and Magellanic Clouds. As their ages aremuch smaller than their dynamical evolution times, star formationprocesses seems to be responsible for the observed mass segregation inthem.
| Star Clusters in Local Group Galaxies
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| A comparative study of the spatial distributions of Cepheids and star clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud
A new simple method for the comparison of two-dimensional distributionsis elaborated and applied to the observed spatial distributions ofCepheids and open clusters in the LMC. This method is particularlysuited to pick out the clusterings within non-uniform fields. Thecomparative study of the spatial distributions for objects with knownages provides useful hints on the dominant mode of large scale starformation. We found that only one clump, out of four evident groups ofopen clusters coeval with the observed Cepheids (i.e. logt ~ 7.5/8.5)coincides with a local density enhancement of Cepheids. A relationbetween the age range inside a clump and its size is found; this isconsistent with the theory of star formation in a turbulent medium.
| A Revised and Extended Catalog of Magellanic System Clusters, Associations, and Emission Nebulae. II. The Large Magellanic Cloud
A survey of extended objects in the Large Magellanic Cloud was carriedout on the ESO/SERC R and J Sky Survey Atlases, checking entries inprevious catalogs and searching for new objects. The census provided6659 objects including star clusters, emission-free associations, andobjects related to emission nebulae. Each of these classes containsthree subclasses with intermediate properties, which are used to infertotal populations. The survey includes cross identifications amongcatalogs, and we present 3246 new objects. We provide accuratepositions, classification, and homogeneous measurements of sizes andposition angles, as well as information on cluster pairs andhierarchical relation for superimposed objects. This unification andenlargement of catalogs is important for future searches of fainter andsmaller new objects. We discuss the angular and size distributions ofthe objects of the different classes. The angular distributions show twooff-centered systems with different inclinations, suggesting that theLMC disk is warped. The present catalog together with its previouscounterpart for the SMC and the inter-Cloud region provide a totalpopulation of 7847 extended objects in the Magellanic System. Theangular distribution of the ensemble reveals important clues on theinteraction between the LMC and SMC.
| Young star clusters of our galaxy and the Large Magellanic Cloud as test for stellar evolutionary models.
Not Available
| The evolution of theV-Kcolours of single stellar populations
Models of evolutionary population synthesis of galaxies rely on theproperties of the so-called single stellar populations (SSP). In thispaper, we discuss how the integrated near-infrared colours, andespecially V-K, of SSPs evolve with age and metallicity. Some of theuncertainties associated with the properties of the underlying stellarmodels are thoroughly discussed. Our models include all the relevantstellar evolutionary phases, with particular attention being dedicatedto the asymptotic giant branch (AGB), which plays a fundamental role inthe evolution of the near-infrared part of the spectrum. First, wepresent the effects that different formulations for the mass-loss ratesproduce on the final remnant mass (i.e., on the initial-final massrelation), and hence on the AGB-termination luminosity and the relativecontribution of these stars to the integrated light. The results for theevolution of the V-K colour are very different depending on the choiceof the mass-loss prescription; the same is true also for the B-V colourin the case of low-metallicity SSPs. Secondly, we describe the changesoccurring in the integrated colours at the onset of the AGB and redgiant (RGB) branches. According to the classical formalism for the AGBevolution, the onset of this evolutionary phase is marked by a colourjump to the red, the amplitude of which is shown here to be highlydependent on the metallicity and mass-loss rates adopted in the models.We then consider the effect of the overluminosity with respect to thestandard core mass-luminosity relation that occurs in the most massiveAGB stars. Different simplified formulations for this effect are testedin the models; they cause a smoothing of the colour evolution in the agerange at which the AGB starts to develop, rather than a splitting of thecolour jump into two separate events. On the other hand, we find that atemporary red phase takes place ~1.5x10^8 yr after the RGB develops.Thanks to the transient nature of this feature, the onset of the RGB isprobably not able to cause marked features in the spectral evolution ofgalaxies. We then discuss the possible reasons for the transition of V-Kcolours (from ~1.5 to 3) that takes place in LMC clusters of SWB typeIV. A revision of the ages attributed to the single clusters revealsthat the transition may not be as fast as originally suggested. Thecomparison of the data with the models indicates that the transitionresults mainly from the development of the AGB. A gradual (or delayed)transition of the colours, as predicted by models which include theoverluminosity of the most massive AGB stars, seems to describe the databetter than the sudden colour jump predicted by classical models.
| Ages and Metallicities of Star Clusters and Surrounding Fields in the Outer Disk of the Large Magellanic Cloud
We present Washington system CT_1 color-magnitude diagrams of 13 starclusters and their surrounding fields that lie in the outer parts of theLMC disk (r > 4 deg), as well as a comparison inner cluster. Thetotal area covered is large (2/3 deg^2), allowing us to study theclusters and their fields individually and in the context of the entireGalaxy. Ages are determined by means of the magnitude differencedeltaT_1 between the giant branch clump and the turnoff, whilemetallicities are derived from the location of the giant and subgiantbranches as compared with fiducial star clusters. This yields a uniquedata set in which ages and metallicities for both a significant sampleof clusters and their fields are determined homogeneously. We find thatin most cases the stellar population of each star cluster is quitesimilar to that of the field where it is embedded, sharing its mean ageand metallicity. The old population (t >= 10 Gyr) is detected in mostfields as a small concentration of stars on the horizontal branchblueward and faintward of the prominent clump. Three particular fieldspresent remarkable properties: (1) The thus-far unique cluster ESO121-SC03 at ~9 Gyr has a surrounding field that shares the sameproperties (which, in turn, is also unique, in that such a dominantold-field component is not present elsewhere-at least not significantlyin the fields as yet studied). (2) The field surrounding the far easternintermediate-age cluster OHSC 37 is noteworthy in that we do not detectany evidence of LMC stars: it is essentially a Galactic foregroundfield. We can thus detect the LMC field out to greater than 11 deg (thedeprojected distance of ESO 121-SC03), or ~11 kpc, but not to 13 deg(~13 kpc), despite the presence of clusters at this distance. (3) In thenorthern part of the LMC disk, the fields of SL 388 and SL 509 presentcolor-magnitude diagrams with a secondary clump ~0.45 mag fainter thanthe dominant intermediate-age clump, suggesting a stellar populationcomponent located behind the LMC disk at a distance comparable to thatof the SMC. Possibly we are witnessing a depth effect in the LMC, andthe size of the corresponding structure is comparable to the size of adwarf galaxy. The unusual spatial location of the cluster OHSC 37 andthe anomalous properties of the SL 388 and SL 509 fields might beexplained as debris from previous LMC interactions with the Galaxyand/or the SMC. The mean metallicity derived for the intermediate-ageouter disk clusters is <[Fe/H]> = -0.66, and for their surroundingfields <[Fe/H]> = -0.56. These values are significantly lower thanthose found by Olszewski et al. for a sample of clusters of similar agebut are in good agreement with several recent studies. A few clustersstand out in the age-metallicity relation, in that they areintermediate-age clusters at relatively low metallicity ([Fe/H] ~ -1).
| Cepheids in MC Clusters: New Observations
Not Available
| The initial conditions of young globular clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud
N-body simulations are used to model the early evolution of globularclusters. These simulations include residual gas which was not turnedinto stars, which is expelled from the globular cluster by the actionsof massive (>8Msolar) stars. The results of these simulations arecompared with observations of eight LMC globular clusters less than 100Myr old. These observations are used to constrain the initial conditionsthat may have produced these clusters. It is found that the observationscan be accounted for in a model where the globular clusters form fromproto-cluster clouds similar to Plummer models with length-scales in therange 1
| Internal dynamics of globular clusters
Galactic globular clusters, which are ancient building blocks of ourGalaxy, represent a very interesting family of stellar systems in whichsome fundamental dynamical processes have taken place on time scalesshorter than the age of the universe. In contrast with galaxies, theseclusters represent unique laboratories for learning about two-bodyrelaxation, mass segregation from equipartition of energy, stellarcollisions, stellar mergers, and core collapse. In the present review,we summarize the tremendous developments, as much theoretical asobservational, that have taken place during the last two decades, andwhich have led to a quantum jump in our understanding of these beautifuldynamical systems.
| The fundamental plane of early-type galaxies: stellar populations and mass-to-light ratio.
We analyse the residuals to the fundamental plane (FP) of ellipticalgalaxies as a function of stellar-population indicators; these are basedon the line-strength parameter Mg_2_ and on UBVRI broad-band colors, andare partly derived from new observations. The effect of the stellarpopulations accounts for approximately half the observed variation ofthe mass-to-light ratio responsible for the FP tilt. The residual tiltcan be explained by the contribution of two additional effects: thedependence of the rotational support, and possibly that of the spatialstructure, on the luminosity. We conclude to a constancy of thedynamical-to-stellar mass ratio. This probably extends to globularclusters as well, but the dominant factor would be here the luminositydependence of the structure rather than that of the stellar population.This result also implies a constancy of the fraction of dark matter overall the scalelength covered by stellar systems. Our compilation ofinternal stellar kinematics of galaxies is appended.
| Ultraviolet ages of young clusters in the Magellanic Clouds.
Following a previous investigation on the integrated UV colours ofstellar clusters (Barbero et al. 1990), we study the calibration of theultraviolet colour index C(15-31) in terms of cluster age, usingobservations by the International Ultraviolet Explorer of 29 young andpopulous clusters of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), and of the SmallMagellanic Cloud (SMC). The study is limited to the range of ages5x10^6^ to 8x10^8^yr, which is free from contamination by HorizontalBranch stars. It is shown that in this range of ages the theoreticalsequence C(15-31) vs. age agrees well with the one derived by combiningthe observed colour index C(15-31) with the ages determined viaisochrone fitting to the colour-magnitude diagrams while systematicdifferences, which are discussed on here, exist with respect to the agecalibration by Meurer, Cacciari and Freeman (1990). The present agecalibration C(15-31) vs. log(t), provided in an analytical form, isfinally used to determine the ages of the 29 clusters in our sample,including 13 objects for which no determination was available via theisochrone fitting method.
| Integrated UBV Photometry of 624 Star Clusters and Associations in the Large Magellanic Cloud
We present a catalog of integrated UBV photometry of 504 star clustersand 120 stellar associations in the LMC, part of them still embedded inemitting gas. We study age groups in terms of equivalent SWB typesderived from the (U-B) X (B-V) diagram. The size of the spatialdistributions increases steadily with age (SWB types), whereas adifference of axial ratio exists between the groups younger than 30 Myrand those older, which implies a nearly face-on orientation for theformer and a tilt of ~45^deg^ for the latter groups. Asymmetries arepresent in the spatial distributions, which, together with thenoncoincidence of the centroids for different age groups, suggest thatthe LMC disk was severely perturbed in the past.
| Blue-violet spectral evolution of young Magellanic Cloud clusters
We study the integrated spectral evolution in the blue-violet range of97 blue star clusters in the Magellanic Clouds, from those associatedwith gas emission to those as old as a few hundred Myr. Some clustersare dominated by the flux of those massive stars that pass throughevolutionary stages such as Wolf-Rayet, Luminous Blue Variable, Be, andsupergiant stars of different temperatures. The relationships amongspectral features such as absorption and emission lines, Balmerdiscontinuity and Balmer continuum are used to study the spectralevolution of the clusters. Finally, we sort into groups spectra ofsimilar evolutionary stages, creating a template spectral library withpossible applications in stellar populations syntheses of star-forminggalaxies and in the spectral simulation of bursts of star formation withdifferent mean ages and durations.
| On Coagulation and the Stellar Mass Spectrum
Abstract image available at:http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?1995ApJ...452..652A&db_key=AST
| Ultraviolet spectral evolution of star clusters in the IUE library.
The ultraviolet integrated spectra of star clusters and H II regions inthe IUE library have been classified into groups based on their spectralappearance, as well as on age and metallicity information from otherstudies. We have coadded the spectra in these groups according to theirS/N ratio, creating a library of template spectra for futureapplications in population syntheses in galaxies. We define spectralwindows for equivalent width measurements and for continuum tracings.These measurements in the spectra of the templates are studied as afunction of age and metallicity. We indicate the windows with a strongmetallicity dependence, at different age stages.
| Age distribution of LMC clusters from their integrated UBV colors: history of star formation.
In this paper we revise the relationship between ages and metallicitiesof LMC star clusters and their integrated UBV colors. The study standson the catalog of UBV colors of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)clusters by Bica et al. (1994; BCDSP) and the photometric models ofsingle stellar populations (SSP) calculated by Bertelli et al. (1994).These photometric models nicely describe the color distribution of LMCclusters in the (U-B) vs. (B-V) plane together with the observeddispersion of the colors and the existence of a gap in a certain regionof this diagram. In the case of blue clusters, most of the dispersion inthe colors can be accounted for by the presence of stochastic effects onthe mass distribution of stars, whereas for the red ones additionaldispersion's of ~0.2dex in metallicity and of ~0.05mag in color excessare needed. From comparing the observed distribution of integratedcolors in the (U-B) vs. (B-V) diagram with the theoretical models, itturns out that: 1) The data are consistent with the presence of a gap(period of quiescence) in the history of cluster formation. If theage-metallicity relation (AMR) for the LMC obeys the simple model ofchemical evolution, the gap is well evident and corresponds to the ageinterval ~3Gyr to (12-15)Gyr. On the contrary, if the chemicalenrichment has been much slower than in the simple model, so thatintermediate age clusters are less metal rich, the gap is expected tooccur over a much narrower color range and to be hidden by effects ofcolor dispersion. 2) The bimodal distribution of B-V colors can bereproduced by a sequence of clusters almost evenly distributed in thelogarithm of the age, whose metallicity is governed by a normal AMR. Noneed is found of the so-called phase transitions in the integratedcolors of a cluster taking place at suitable ages (Renzini & Buzzoni1986). 3) The gap noticed by BCDSP in the (U-B) vs. (B-V) plane can beexplained by the particular direction along which cluster colors aredispersed in that part of the (U-B) vs. (B-V) diagram. Also in thiscase, no sudden changes in the integrated properties of clusters must beinvoked. The results of this analysis are used to revise the empiricalmethod proposed by Elson & Fall (1985, EF85) to attribute ages toLMC clusters according to their integrated UBV colors. We show that theEF85 method does not provide the correct relation between ages andcolors for clusters of low metallicity and hence its inability to datethe old clusters. We propose two modifications to the definition of theparameter S of EF85 such that the age sequence of red clusters issuitably described, and the intrinsic errors on ages caused by the heavypresence of various effects dispersing the colors are reduced to aminimum. The age sequence is calibrated on 24 template clusters forwhich ages were independently derived from recent color-magnitudediagrams (CMD). Finally, we attribute ages to all clusters present inBCDSP catalog, and derive the global age distribution function (ADF) forLMC clusters. The ADF presents new features that were not clear inprevious analyses of UBV data, but were already suggested by a number ofindependent observational studies. The features in question are periodsof enhanced cluster formation at ~100Myr and 1-2Gyr, and a gap in thecluster formation history between ~3 and (12-15)Gyr. The peaks observedin the distribution of B-V colors are found to be sensitive to thepresence of these periods of enhanced cluster formation and the lack ofextremely red clusters caused by the age gap between intermediate-ageand old clusters.
| Young LMC star clusters as a test for stellar evolutionary models.
We compare the observed colour-magnitude diagrams (CMD) and the mainsequence luminosity functions (LFs) of four Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)star clusters namely, NGC 1711, NGC 2004, NGC 2164 and NGC 2214 with thesynthetic ones derived from the stellar evolutionary models. Fourdifferent types of stellar evolutionary models have been used forcomparison. The comparison of the features of the observed CMDs with thesynthetic ones favour the overshoot models from Bressan et al. (1993).The synthetic integrated luminosity functions from the models can bematched with the observed ones by varying the value of mass functionslopes. In order to constrain the models from the comparison of thesynthetic ILFs with the observed ones, reliable estimates of massfunction slope and binary fraction are desired.
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