Abundance Studies of Open Clusters: Implications for Stellar and Galactic Astrophysics

Deliyannis，Constantine AST 98-12735 Deliyannis博士将通过追踪恒星锂丰度的行为，对开放星星集群进行观测，以解决恒星和化学演化中的一些问题。 将用威斯康星-印第安纳-耶鲁-NOAO望远镜进行观测，使用其多物体摄谱仪，可以提供每个星团内的大量恒星样本。 一个多达10个星团的样本，选择跨越年龄和金属丰度的相关参数空间，将允许调查：a）在主序星中锂耗尽的机制，B）测试锂丰度随温度变化的行为的理论解释，以及c）锂的星系演化及其与“原始”锂丰度的关系。该研究计划的重点是使用未演化恒星中锂丰度的行为作为恒星结构和演化的探针，但结果将对球状星团年龄，大爆炸核合成和宇宙学的确定产生影响。

Deliyannis, Constantine AST 98-12735 Dr. Deliyannis will carry out a program of observations of open star clusters that will address a number of issues in stellar and chemical evolution, by tracing the behavior of the stellar lithium abundance. Observations will be made with the Wisconsin-Indiana-Yale-NOAO telescope using its multi-object spectrograph which can provide large samples of stars within each cluster. A sample of up to 10 clusters, selected to span the relevant parameter space in age and metallicity, will allow the investigation of : a) mechanisms for Li depletion in main-sequence stars, b) tests of theoretical explanations for the behavior of Lithium abundance with temperature, and c) the galactic evolution of Lithium and its relation to 'primordial' Li abundance. The research plan focuses on using the behavior of Lithium abundance in unevolved stars as probes of stellar structure and evolution, but the results would have implications for the determination of globular cluster ages, big bang nucleosynthesis, and cosmology.