Centauri: The Population Puzzle Goes Deeper
Top Cited Papers
- 23 March 2004
- journal article
- Published by American Astronomical Society in The Astrophysical Journal
- Vol. 605 (2) , L125-L128
- https://doi.org/10.1086/420847
Abstract
We present Hubble Space Telescope observations that show a bifurcation of colors in the middle main sequence of the globular cluster ω Centauri. We see this in three different fields, observed with different cameras and filters. We also present high-precision photometry of a central Advanced Camera for Surveys field, which shows a number of main-sequence turnoffs and subgiant branches. The double main sequence, the multiple turnoffs and subgiant branches, and other population sequences discovered in the past along the red giant branch of this cluster add up to a fascinating but frustrating puzzle. We suggest various explanations, none of them very conclusive.\ud \ud Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS5-26555Keywords
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