8/27/15: SO/NOAO Joint Colloquium Series: Evan Kirby, Caltech
Title: Light-ish Elements in Dwarf Galaxies: The Enigmas of Lithium, Carbon, Magnesium, and More
Dwarf galaxies in the Local Group are good testing grounds for chemical evolution models. First, they are simple, usually short-lived systems. Second, they are near enough for resolved stellar spectroscopy. Multi-object spectrographs, like Keck/DEIMOS, have allowed the chemical characterization of thousands of stars in dwarf galaxies. The lighter elements, like lithium and carbon, are windows into stellar evolution. The heavier alpha elements, like magnesium and calcium, trace galactic evolution. I will show DEIMOS measurements of several elements in eight dwarf galaxies. The results will illuminate some mysteries about unexplained mixing processes on the red giant branch as well as the broader chemical evolution of the galaxies over hundreds of millions of years.
For Public
Public events include our Monday Night Lecture Series, world-reknowned Astronomy Camp and Mt Lemmon Sky Center.
For Students
A good place to start if you want to become an undergrad major or grad student, or need to find our schedule of classes.
For Scientists
Find telescopes and instruments, telescope time applications, staff and mountain contacts, and faculty and staff scientific interests.
