Globular Cluster Systems

Download or read book Globular Cluster Systems written by Keith M. Ashman and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2008-12-11 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Globular clusters are roughly spherical, densely packed groups of stars found around galaxies. Most globular clusters probably formed at the same time as their host galaxies. Therefore they provide a unique fossil record of the conditions during the formation and early evolution of galaxies. This volume presents a comprehensive review of globular cluster systems. It summarizes their observed properties and shows how these constrain models of the structure of stars, the formation and evolution of galaxies and globular clusters, and the age of the Universe. For graduate students and researchers, this timely volume provides the definitive reference on globular cluster systems.