Ages and Distances of Globular Clusters from Observations of Detached Eclipsing Binary Stars

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AST-0507325INSTITUTION: Carnegie Institution of WashingtonPI: Ian ThompsonTITLE: Ages and Distances of Globular Clusters from Observations of Detached Eclipsing Binary Stars ABSTRACTDr. Ian Thompson, of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, will undertake a program to measure ages and distances of Galactic globular clusters using spectroscopic and photometric observations of detached, eclipsing, double-lined binary stars. The program will utilize Echelle spectroscopic observations of these binaries to determine the masses of the components, and with turn-off mass-age relations it will then be possible to derive ages for the clusters in which the stars reside, independently of their distances. The cluster distances will be derived using surface brightness-color relations. The program, with observational facilities located in Chile, also has a strong international collaboration with astronomers from the Copernicus Astronomical Center in Warsaw, Poland.