Wolf-Rayet stars in nearby galaxies - Tracers of the most massive stars

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Galactic Structure, O Stars, Stellar Evolution, Supermassive Stars, Wolf-Rayet Stars, Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram, Main Sequence Stars, Star Distribution, Star Formation Rate, Stellar Color, Stellar Luminosity

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The properties and evolution of massive stars (⪆20 M_sun;) are reviewed, along with methods of determining the massive star content of nearby galaxies. Owing to their short lifetimes, the frequency of various types of O stars provide a direct measure of the instantaneous initial mass function (IMF); the relative total number reflects the present-day star formation rate (SFR). As most Wolf-Rayet (W-R) stars are descended from only the most massive O-type stars, and are relatively easy to find by emission-line surveys, they can be used as probes of the massive star content in other galaxies. Recent studies of the W-R content of several Local Group galaxies are reviewed; these data indicate that factors of ≡3 differences exist in the present-day massive star content of galaxies of similar metallicity. There is some evidence that these differences are due in large part to differences in the IMF rather than in the SFR.

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