The majority of stars in the Galactic field and halo are part of binary or multiple systems. A significant fraction of these systems have orbital separations in excess of thousands of astronomical units, and systems wider than a parsec have been identified in the Galactic halo. These binary systems cannot have formed through the ‘normal’ star-formation process, nor by capture processes in the Galactic field. We propose that these wide systems were formed during the dissolution phase of young star clusters. We test this hypothesis using N-body simulations of evolving star clusters and find wide binary fractions of 1–30%, depending on initial conditions. Moreover, given that most stars form as part of a binary system, our theory predicts that a large fraction of the known wide ‘binaries’ are, in fact, multiple systems.

We analyze the main populations of 6 local Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxies by comparing the observed stellar metallicity distributions with the predictions of chemical evolution models. The predicted metallicity distributions of stars generally exhibit a low range of metallicities, a peak below the one of the MW disc in the solar neighborhood (but similar to the Halo), and a sharp decrease at higher metallicities in agreement with observations. The position of the peak is related to the low star formation rates adopted whereas the sharp decrease is a consequence of the occurrence of strong galactic winds. In the low metallicity tail of the distributions we predict a low number of stars in agreement with observations.

The lunar regolith (soil) has recorded a history of the early Moon, the Earth, and the entire solar system. A major goal of the developing lunar exploration program should be to find and play back existing fragments of that tape. By playing back the lunar tape, we can uncover a record of planetary bombardment, as well as solar and stellar variability. The Moon can tell us much about our place in the solar system and in the Universe. The lunar regolith has likely recorded the original meteoritic bombardment of Earth and Moon, a violent cataclysm that may have peaked around 4 GY, and the less intense bombardment occurring since that time. Decrease in bombardment allowed life to develop on Earth. This impact history is preserved as megaregolith layers, ejecta layers, impact melt rocks, and ancient impact breccias. The impact history for the Earth and Moon possibly had profound effects on the origin and development of life. Life may have arrived via meteorite transport from a more quiet body, such as Mars. The solar system may have experienced bursts of severe radiation from the Sun, other stars or from unknown sources. The lunar regolith has also recorded a radiation history in the form of implanted and trapped solar wind and solar flare materials and radiation damage. The Moon can be considered as a giant tape recorder containing the history of the solar system. Lunar soil generated by small impacts will be found sandwiched between layers of basalt or pyroclastic deposits. This filling constitutes a buried time capsule that is likely to contain well-preserved ancient regolith. Study of such samples will show us how the solar system has evolved and changed over time. The lunar recording can provide detailed snapshots of specific portions of solar and stellar variability.

We compare six evolutionary population synthesis (EPS) models, which have been popularly used in stellar populations analyses for galaxies. The resulted stellar populations of star-forming galaxies and E+A galaxies from these EPS models show that the dominated contribution (fraction) from young, intermediate and old populations to their lights are consistent, although the individual numbers may change significantly, 3-30%, which could relate to the different ingredients in EPS models, such as the stellar library, the stellar evolution tracks etc.

We report the spectroscopic analysis of six kinematical members of the Zeta Reticuli Moving Group, one of them for the first time. We confirm the existence of the Group by establishing a common abundance pattern for four kinematical members. High resolution spectra yielded abundances of Si, Ca, Fe, Ni and Ba, and others. Effective temperatures were derived from the excitation & ionization equilibria of Fe lines of four stars. For these, and the remaining two members, temperatures were derived from colors and the fitting of theoretical spectra to the Hα line, and ages and masses were estimated from theoretical HR diagrams. We suggest that the Group is physical being metal-poor and ~6 Gyr old.

I present mass functions of actively accreting black holes detected in different quasar surveys which in concert cover a wide range of cosmic history. I briefly address what we learn from these mass functions. I summarize the motivation for such a study and the methods by which we determine black hole masses.

The artworks The Cosmic Garden and To Dwell Upon the Universe created for the exhibition Astronomical Inspirations, at the Salle Miró, UNESCO Headquarters, for the launch of the International Year of Astronomy reflect upon the unfolding human perception and relationship with the cosmos and speculate on the nature of space expressed in printmaking via a study of astronomical phenomena, symbolism in visual and scientific artefacts and theories. The work overlaps between the printed image, the constructed print, the artist book and installation.

Millisecond and binary pulsars are the most stable natural standards of astronomical time giving us a unique opportunity to search for gravitational waves (GW) and to test General Relativity. GWs from violent events in early Universe and from the ensemble of galactic and extragalactic objects perturb propagation of radio pulses from a pulsar to observer bringing about stochastic fluctuations in the times of arrival of the pulses (TOA). If one observes the pulsar over a sufficiently long time span, the fluctuations will be registered as a low-frequency, correlated noise affecting the timing residuals in the frequency range 10−12 ÷ 10−7 Hz. This work demonstrates how the standard procedure of processing of the pulsar timing data can bias the estimate of the upper limit on the density of the GW background (GWB).

Type Ic supernova (SN Ic) is the gravitational collapse of a massive star without H and He layers. It propels several solar masses of material to the typical velocity of 10,000 km/s, a very small fraction of the ejecta nearly to the speed of light. We investigate SNe Ic as production sites for the light elements Li, Be, and B, via the neutrino-process and spallations. As massive stars collapse, neutrinos are emitted in large numbers from the central remnants. Some of the neutrinos interact with nuclei in the exploding materials and mainly 7Li and 11B are produced. Subsequently, the ejected materials with very high energy impinge on the interstellar/circumstellar matter and spall into light elements. We find that the ν-process in the current SN Ic model produces a significant amount of 11B, consistent with observations if combined with B isotopes from the following spallation production.

Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) and X-ray emission is of great importance in several phenomena related to the formation of planetary systems and the atmospheres of planets. The atmospheric composition, and the mass of an exoplanet, are partly dependent on the X-ray and EUV radiation received during the first stages of formation and even during main sequence of the star. Biological life developing on exoplanets would depend severely on the high energy radiation arriving from its parent star.

Here we present a database of the X-ray and EUV emission of all the stars currently known to host exoplanets. The archive is public and accessible through the Spanish Virtual Observatory (SVO). The database gives the user the option to download observed X-rays and EUV spectra. Synthetic spectra covering the spectral range 1–912 Å are also available (present day telescopes do not give access to the EUV range at λ > 180 Å). These spectra are created using coronal models after fitting observed spectra.

In the study of open clusters, the distinction between cluster and field members and the assignment of membership probabilities for each individual star in the relevant region are central issues. Here, we present an analysis based on the use of a fully automated method that relies on a hybrid heuristics, based on genetic algorithms and hill-climbing optimisation, as well as different probability distribution functions for the observables. We analysed the use of some variations for the parameterisation of those distribution functions. Finally, a catalogue comprising kinematic parameters and associated membership probability lists for all the open clusters in the Bordeaux PM2000 region was derived.

Radial gradients of metallicity are supported by observations of different young objects in the Galactic thin disk. The shape of the abundance distributions, however, is not completely constrained. Some works describe the abundance distributions as a function of the Galactocentric distance RG by linear fits with a single slope. On the other hand some analyses of open clusters, cepheids and OB stars suggest a discontinuity in the abundance distributions around RG=10 kpc. In this work we analyse a sample of 13 B stars members of four open clusters located within RG=9-11 kpc in order to better constrain the chemical distribution in this region of the disk.

We derive photometric metallicities for 56 intermediate-age and old star clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud from the slopes of their red-giant branches in near-infrared color–magnitude diagrams (CMDs). The cluster sample covers the LMC bar and disk to a distance of ~2 kpc from the LMC center. The derived cluster metallicity distribution spans a range of [Fe/H] = +0.0 . . . 1.4 and is similar to the metallicity distribution of field stars. We find that the average cluster metallicities in certain fields of the LMC bar and disk may be different, but there seems to be no compelling evidence for a global cluster metallicity gradient in the LMC.

Astronomical observations used by the ancient people of Africa were developed out of the people's desire to have concrete manifestations of their gods and religious beliefs as well as for time-keeping – day, night and calendar for agricultural and festive seasons. The sky entities (the solar and stellar systems) observed become part of the lives and events here on Earth and so are also part of the context of African literature. This paper examines the ways in which different African peoples have reflected on the role of the sky entities in their literature.

Highly collimated supersonic jets and outflows are very frequent in several astrophysical environments. They are seen in young stellar objects (YSOs), proto-planetary nebulae, compact objects (like galactic black holes or microquasars, and X-ray binary stars), active galactic nuclei, and are also possibly associated to gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and to ultra-high energy cosmic rays sources (UHECRs). Despite their different physical scales, all these outflow classes have strong morphological similarities, but questions such as - what physics do they share? - or - can we find a universal mechanism of acceleration and collimation that operates in all classes? - remain matters of debate. The most accepted mechanism for their origin relies on a rotating accretion disk threaded by perpendicular large-scale magnetic fields and, though most of the systems producing jets contain an accretion disk around the central source, the real role that rotation and magnetic fields play in these processes is still not fully understood, nor are the highly non-linear physical processes connected to these jet-disk systems in the large parameter space involved.

Brazilian Solar Spectroscope (BSS) carry out high time (0.01–0.1 s) resolution solar spectral investigations within the frequency range 1–2.5 GHz on a daily basis. At the moment, a new site is imposed to this facility. This site change became necessary due to both factors: the growing level of radio frequency interference (RFI) signals at actual site and requirements of rising up a new building at the BSS antenna location. We present results of RFI signals search at INPE-Cachoeira Paulista area as purpose to define a new BSS site.

We revisit a basic model of quasar activation by major mergers of dark matter halos (with “galactic” masses of ≲1013M⊙h−1). This model usually consists of two main ingredients: the halo merger rate describing triggering, and a quasar light curve, which describes the evolution of individual quasars. We show how the matching between model predictions and a variety of new, independent data sets allows one to efficiently constrain several aspects of black hole growth and evolution that must be taken into account in future studies by more advanced models of galaxy formation. Our results can be summarized as follows: (1) A descending phase modelled such that quasars in more massive halos shut down faster than those in less massive ones allows a good description of the bright end of the AGN luminosity function at all epochs and is compatible with downsizing, with more massive galaxies shutting down star formation earlier. (2) We measure the average bias of type 2 AGNs in SDSS to be b = 1.233 ± 0.195, independent of luminosity in the range 42.5≤ log L(erg s−1) ≤ 45.5. Such a value of the bias implies that faint AGNs at z<0.3 are mainly hosted by halos more massive than ~1011.5–12M⊙h−1. The black hole mass function predicted by this model is flatter than previously found. (3) The high clustering signal measured at z>3 in SDSS forces successful models to be characterized by rather short delay times of tdelay≲108 yr between the triggering and the shining epochs, implying massive “seed” BHs ≳ 105M⊙h−1 and initial super-Eddington growth. (4) The low number counts of X-ray AGNs measured in recent deep surveys are better reproduced by models with a minimal post-peak phase and a higher minimum hosting halo mass at high redshifts. (5) Cross-correlating the feedback-constrained MBH–M relation, with the redshift-dependent Mstar–M relation obtained from the cumulative number-matching of the stellar and halo mass functions, we find a factor of ~2 larger BH-to-stellar mass ratio at high redshifts. We discuss the meaning of such trends in connection with the mild, positive evolution in the MBH-σstar relation, and the strong observed evolution in the sizes and velocity dispersions of their hosts.

My aim is to show how the abundance ratios of the light elements (6 to 11) are related to the properties of the strong nuclear interaction and, in particular, to the major influence of closed shells of neutrons and protons, (the magic numbers : 2, 8, etc) on the binding energies of the nuclei.

We present the results of an investigation of a large sample of brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs), their kinematic and stellar population properties and the relationships between these and the properties of the host clusters. We have obtained high signal-to-noise, long-slit spectra of 49 BCGs in the nearby Universe with the Gemini and WHT telescopes. From this, we have measured the radial velocity and velocity dispersion profiles, and used the Lick system of absorption indices to derive Single Stellar Population (SSP)-equivalent ages, metallicities and α-abundance ratios. The results were systematically compared with those of large samples of ordinary elliptical galaxies in the same mass range. In addition, the derived properties were tested for possible correlations with the internal properties of the galaxies (mass, rotation and luminosity) and the properties of the host clusters (density, mass, distance to X-ray peak and cooling flows). We address the following questions: how the kinematic and stellar population properties differ from those of ordinary giant elliptical galaxies; and whether these properties are more influenced by the internal parameters of the BCGs or the properties of the clusters.

The Observatório Nacional at Rio de Janeiro has developed a new heliometer to perform accurate measurements of the solar diameter. The equipment makes use of split parabolic mirrors, rather than split achromatic lenses as objective. In its first campaign this reflector heliometer generated a few thousands of images of the Sun through which we evaluate the precision of the solar diameter measurements as been 5 mas. The mechanical and thermal stability of the instrument is guaranteed by the use of a telescope tube manufactured in carbon fiber. The tube firmly holds the heliometric mirrors and the CCD camera that collects the images. The perfect lodging between the two half-mirrors over its supporting plate defines the angular instrumental separation between the two images of the sun. The heliometric mirrors and supporting plate have been made in ceramic material in order to ensure the stability of the optical configuration and to maintain the two images of the solar disk displaced by a fixed angle in relation to each other. To verify the stability of the instrument we designed the procedures of collimation and comparison. The collimation consists of using the heliometer for measuring the diameter of an artificial solar image specifically created for this purpose. The comparison is performed by measuring the residual unfold of a punctual image after been unfold by two opposed heliometers. The heliometric approach allows the measurement of the solar diameter at any heliolatitude and can be undertaken as often as desired. Computer programs have been developed for automated image acquisition and analysis. The optical and mechanical design has been performed by using 3D computer aided design software.