A Scenario for Multiple Populations Within Globular Clusters Motivated by Observations of YMCs

Authors
  • S.P. Goodwin
  • M. Gieles
Publication date 2014
Host editors
  • Y.D. Mayya
  • D. Rosa González
  • E. Terlevich
Book title Massive Young Star Clusters Near and Far: From the Milky Way to Reionization
ISBN
  • 9786078379019
Event 2013 Guillermo Haro Conference
Pages (from-to) 141-146
Publisher INAOE & AMC
Organisations
  • Faculty of Science (FNWI) - Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy (API)
Abstract
lobular Clusters (GCs), once thought to be well approximated as simple stellar populations (i.e. all stars having the same age and chemical abundance), are now known to host a variety of anomalies, such as multiple discrete (or spreads in) populations in colourmagnitude diagrams and abundance variations in light elements (e.g., Na, O, Al). Multiple models have been put forward to explain the observed anomalies, although all have serious shortcomings (e.g., requiring a non-standard initial mass function of stars, and GCs to have been initially 10-100 times more massive than observed today). These models also do not agree with observations of massive stellar clusters forming today, which do not display significant age spreads nor have gas/dust within the cluster. Here we present a model for the formation of GCs, where low mass Pre-Main Sequence (PMS) stars accrete enriched material released from interacting massive binary and rapidly rotating stars onto their circumstellar discs, and ultimately onto the young stars. As was shown in previous studies, the accreted material matches the unusual abundances and patterns observed in GCs. The proposed model does not require multiple generations of star-formation, conforms to known properties of massive clusters forming today, and solves the "mass budget problem" without requiring GCs to have been significantly more massive at birth. Potential caveats to the model as well as model predictions are discussed.
Document type Conference contribution
Language English
Published at http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014mysc.conf..141B
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