The Chemical Evolution of Helium in Globular Clusters: Implications for the Self‐Pollution Scenario

2006/08/17 by Amanda Karakas, A. I. Karakas, Y. Fenner +6 · 11 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Asymptotic giant branch #Giant star #Globular cluster #Helium #Hertzsprung–Russell diagram #Horizontal branch #Scientific Research and Discoveries #Stars #Stellar collision #Stellar evolution #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph

paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/508504

published as Astrophys.J.652:1240-1245,2006 · accepted for publication in ApJ

arxiv created 2006/08/17 · openalex publication_date 2006/11/27 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

We investigate the suggestion that there are stellar populations in some globular clusters with enhanced helium ( Y ~ 0.28-0.40) compared to the primordial value. We assume that a previous generation of massive asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars have polluted the cluster. Two independent sets of AGB yields are used to follow the evolution of helium and CNO using a Salpeter initial mass function (IMF) and two top-heavy IMFs. In no case are we able to produce the postulated large Y ~ 0.35 without violating the observational constraint that the CNO content is nearly constant.

Citations

• The Abundance Evolution of Oxygen, Sodium, and Magnesium in Extremely Metal Poor Intermediate-Mass Stars: Implications for the Self-Pollution Scenario in Globular Clusters
• A Catalog of Parameters for Globular Clusters in the Milky Way
• The Origin of the Double Main Sequence in ω Centauri: Helium Enrichment due to Gas Fueling from Its Ancient Host Galaxy?
• Metallicities on the Double Main Sequence of ω Centauri Imply Large Helium Enhancement
• The Early Evolution of Globular Clusters: The Case of NGC 2808
• Abundance Variations within Globular Clusters

Cited by

• Scaled solar tracks and isochrones in a large region of the Z–Y plane
• Heavy Element Abundances in Giant Stars of the Globular Clusters M4 and M5
• Supergiants and their shells in young globular clusters
• THE OXYGEN VERSUS SODIUM (ANTI)CORRELATION(S) IN ω Cen
• Multiple Stellar Populations and Their Evolution in Globular Clusters: A Nucleosynthesis Perspective
• Concurrent formation of supermassive stars and globular clusters: implications for early self-enrichment
• On the origin of the helium-rich population in ω Centauri
• Formation of globular clusters with multiple stellar populations from massive gas clumps in high-z gas-rich dwarf galaxies
• Revisiting nucleosynthesis in globular clusters
• Space Velocities of Southern Globular Clusters. V. A Low Galactic Latitude Sample
• Role of Supergiants in the Formation of Globular Clusters