Not-So-Simple Stellar Populations in Star Clusters

Not-So-Simple Stellar Populations in Star Clusters
Author: Chengyuan Li
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 137
Release: 2017-09-19
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9811056811

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This book focuses on understanding the stellar populations of massive star clusters and aims to investigate the origin, evolution and properties of binary systems, their collision products, as well as the general characteristics (e.g. ages, metal content) of stellar population(s) in star clusters. It introduces the basic background knowledge of various stellar populations in star clusters as well as their formation, interaction and evolution and offers high impact observational results on our understanding of the formation and evolution mode of star clusters. Based on these discoveries, this book proposes a series of future projects that can shed light on these topics. The research introduced in this book reveals key features of star clusters formation and by extension how all stars formed in our universe.

The Dynamical Evolution of Young Star Clusters

The Dynamical Evolution of Young Star Clusters
Author: Richard James Allison
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2010
Genre:
ISBN:

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Stars form in large clouds of cold, dense molecular gas. In these clouds the majority of stars do not form in isolation, but instead form in clusters. The formation of stars and their hos~ clusters are intrinsically linked, and thus to fully understand how stars form we must also understand the formation and early evolution of stellar clusters. The formation of stars is thought to be governed by the turbulent conditions inside these molecular clouds, and due to this the initial conditions of star formation are likely to be spatially complex and dynamically cool. In this Thesis we use fractal spatial distributions (D = 1.6,2.0,2.6 and 3.0) to mimic the complex initial conditions of star formation to investigate how the dynamical evolution of star clusters is affected by variations in the amount of primordial structure. We also use varying initial virial ratios (Q = 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5) to investigate what affect the initial kinematics have on a clusters dynamical evolution. I present a new method, based on the minimum spanning tree, which is able to determine and quantify the presence of mass segregation. The method is applied to observations of the ONe, ,vhich we find to be complexly mass segregated, with different levels of mass segregation depending on stellar mass. We find, contrary to common belief, that mass segregation can occur through purely dynamical processes on a short timescale (rv the initial cluster crossing time). We also find that the amount of dynamical mass segregation that occurs is dependant on both the initial structure and virial ratio, where cooler and more structured initial conditions tend to lead to more dramatic dynamical evolution. Additionally, we find that the clumpy and cool initial conditions also lead to the dynamical formation of high-mass multiple systems, which in turn can lead to the ejection of high-mass stars and the destruction of the host cluster itself.

Formation and Early Evolution of Stellar Clusters

Formation and Early Evolution of Stellar Clusters
Author: Joshua E. Wall
Publisher:
Total Pages: 126
Release: 2019
Genre: Astronomy
ISBN:

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We describe a novel numerical method for the studying the formation and evolution of stellar clusters, Torch. This method combines the magnetohydrodynamics code Flash with the Astrophysical Multipurpose Software Environment, AMUSE. Once embedded into AMUSE, we combine Flash with the stellar evolution code SeBa, the N-body dynamics code ph4 and the multiple star system evolution module multiples to create a unique method for tracing the detailed evolution of stellar clusters through time. We then add units for radiation, stellar winds and supernovae, as well as a new star by star formation prescription to Flash that allows for star formation and stellar feedback to create and destroy star clusters and the interstellar gas they form from. The result is the most detailed star cluster formation code to date. We then demonstrate the use of these methods for studying binary star formation and the effects of stellar feedback. We find that massive dynamical binaries created in our simulations are consistent with observations. Further, we observe that wide dynamical binaries tighten due to gas dynamical friction, losing cluster energy to the natal gas, after which they are disrupted by stellar encounters. This supports theoretical predictions that embedded clusters may contract due to the interactions of gas and stars. We also find that while stellar feedback is effective at expelling gas from natal clusters, the clusters themselves remain bound even as they expand due to the loss of the binding potential of the gas. Finally, stellar clusters formed in our simulations mass segregate before the expulsion of their natal gas clouds, as expected from observations of young clusters in the Milky Way.

Evolution of Stars and Stellar Populations

Evolution of Stars and Stellar Populations
Author: Maurizio Salaris
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 386
Release: 2005-12-13
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780470092224

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Evolution of Stars and Stellar Populations is a comprehensive presentation of the theory of stellar evolution and its application to the study of stellar populations in galaxies. Taking a unique approach to the subject, this self-contained text introduces first the theory of stellar evolution in a clear and accessible manner, with particular emphasis placed on explaining the evolution with time of observable stellar properties, such as luminosities and surface chemical abundances. This is followed by a detailed presentation and discussion of a broad range of related techniques, that are widely applied by researchers in the field to investigate the formation and evolution of galaxies. This book will be invaluable for undergraduates and graduate students in astronomy and astrophysics, and will also be of interest to researchers working in the field of Galactic, extragalactic astronomy and cosmology. comprehensive presentation of stellar evolution theory introduces the concept of stellar population and describes "stellar population synthesis" methods to study ages and star formation histories of star clusters and galaxies presents stellar evolution as a tool for investigating the evolution of galaxies and of the universe in general

The Spatial Structure of Young Stellar Clusters

The Spatial Structure of Young Stellar Clusters
Author: Michael Kuhn
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2014
Genre:
ISBN:

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Star formation is an extremely active area of astronomical research, and young stellar clusters in our Galaxy offer a useful laboratory where star-formation processes can be studied. Young stars form from the the gravitational collapse of molecular clouds that have a hierarchical spatial structure. This leads to stars forming in clustered environments, often with thousands of other young stars in environments that are strongly affected by feedback from massive O-type stars. The environments in these massive star-forming regions (MSFR) can affect how stars form and whether the young stellar clusters remain bound after star formation ends, both of which are questions that have received considerable attention from researchers. Studies of stellar populations in Galactic MSFRs are made difficult due to large numbers of fields stars in the Galactic Plane, large areas of the sky that must be surveyed, high optical extinction from dust, and nebulosity in the the optical and infrared. The Massive Young Star-Forming Complex Study in Infrared and X-ray (MYStIX) uses multiwavelength observations to overcome some of these difficulties, providing some of the most complete, clean membership lists for 20 MSFRs within 3.6 kpc of the Sun. I described X-ray catalogs and mid-infrared catalogs that were used in this survey. The spatial distribution of young stars in 17 MYStIX regions are used to probe the origin and dynamics of the young stellar clusters. Intrinsic stellar surface-density maps are made for each region, which reveal complex structures with dense subclusters. I examine in detail one of the nearest MYStIX young stellar clusters, W~40 (d=500 pc), which has properties similar to many of the subclusters in more massive and more distant star-forming regions. The cluster in W~40 has a simple structure with mass segregation, indicating that it has undergone dynamical evolution, even though its young age (~0.8 Myr) is insufficient for relaxation from two-body interactions. This apparent contradiction may be evidence of more rapid dynamical evolution accelerated by the merger of subclusters. Overall, 142 subclusters of young stars are found in the 17 MSFRs using the statistical "finite-mixture model" cluster analysis method, and the intrinsic stellar populations for these clusters are inferred using "initial mass functions" and "X-ray luminosity functions." Four structural classes are seen in MSFR: linear chains of subclusters, clumpy structures, core-halo structures, and simple isolated clusters. The subclusters do follow the structure of the molecular clouds, but do not appear to be coeval with each other. There is strong evidence in the subcluster properties for gas expulsion and subcluster expansion (e.g., the density~radius and age~radius relations), and evidence that is consistent with subcluster mergers (e.g., the ellipticity distribution and the number~density}$ relation). The cluster analysis provides evidence to support hierarchical models of stellar cluster formation, which have been theorized to explain mass segregation and dynamical relaxation in very young clusters. The ~1 Myr age spreads in the subclusters of a MSFR appear to require slower star-formation in giant molecular clouds with continually driven turbulence, rather than clouds with rapidly decaying turbulence. And, the diverse range of stellar surface density environment in MSFRs will have implications for models of cluster survival after gas removal.

From Darkness to Light

From Darkness to Light
Author: Thierry Montmerle
Publisher:
Total Pages: 904
Release: 2001
Genre: Science
ISBN:

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Annotation Approximately 90 papers from the April 2000 conference in Corsica, France discuss interstellar medium structure and magnetic fields, clouds and collapse, collapse and protostars, the origin of the initial mass function, cluster properties and evolution, pre-main sequence evolution, late evolution, and feedback mechanisms. Contributors include physicists, astronomers, and other scientists from Europe, Asia, and North and Soputh America. Sixteen pages of photographs from the conference are included. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Advances in Stellar Evolution

Advances in Stellar Evolution
Author: Robert T. Rood
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 368
Release: 1997-06-26
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780521591843

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An understanding of how stars evolve is central to astrophysics. The basic theory is well established. However, the subject has undergone a renaissance in recent years as powerful computers have become widely available and allowed complex evolutionary models to be developed and compared in great detail with observations from the latest instruments. This timely volume presents the review articles from an international meeting in Elba, Italy, where experts gathered to review how our understanding of stellar evolution has advanced. Topics covered include fundamentals of stellar evolution, star clusters, variable stars, asymptotic giant branch stars, degenerate stars, the evolution of binary stars, and chemical and galactic evolution. Throughout, theory and observation are closely compared. The book also emphasises the critical role stars have on our understanding of how galaxies evolve. In this book we are provided with both the fundamentals and the latest research. In this way, it will provide an invaluable supplement for graduate students, and a timely review for researchers.