Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Dec 2006
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006aas...20924403p&link_type=abstract
2007 AAS/AAPT Joint Meeting, American Astronomical Society Meeting 209, #244.03; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society,
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
Scientific paper
The physical processes leading to the dissolution of star clusters is a topic barely studied and still not understood. We started a pilot project to develop a new approach to directly detect and study the properties of stellar clusters while they are being destroyed. Our technique currently under development makes use of the exceptional spatial resolution and sensitivity of the ACS camera onboard HST to resolve individual stars in nearby galaxies. PSF stellar photometry and color-magnitude diagrams allows us to separate the most massive stars (more likely to be in clusters) from the star field background. While applying the method to the normal spiral galaxy NGC1313, we found that the method of studying star clusters through resolved stars in nearby galaxies is even more powerful than we first expected. The stellar maps obtained for NGC1313 show that a large fraction of early B-type stars contained in the galaxy are already part of the star field background rather that being in star clusters. Such stars live for 5 to 25 Myr. Since most stars form in clusters, the presence of such massive stars in the field means that they must have left their birthplace very rapidly. It also means that the processes involved in the dissolution of the clusters are extremely efficient. The only plausible explanation for so many young stars to be in the field background is the infant mortality of star clusters. We will present the latest results on the two galaxies NGC 1313 and IC 2475 and discuss the potential of the new approach for studying extragalactic stellar clusters.
Calzetti Daniela
Jason H.
Meyer Martin J.
Pellerin Anne
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