SCYON Abstract

Received on December 7 2009

A revolution in star cluster research: setting the scene

Authors	Richard de Grijs
Affiliation	Kavli Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Peking University, China; University of Sheffield, UK
To appear in	Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A., vol. 368 (18 January 2010)
Contact	grijs@kiaa.pku.edu.cn
URL	http://arxiv.org/abs/0911.0778
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Abstract

Star clusters and their stellar populations play a significant role in the context of galaxy evolution, across space (from local to high redshift) and time (from currently forming to fossil remnants). We are now within reach of answering a number of fundamental questions that will have a significant impact on our understanding of key open issues in contemporary astrophysics, ranging from the formation, assembly and evolution of galaxies to the details of the star-formation process. Our improved understanding of the physics driving star cluster formation and evolution has led to the emergence of crucial new open questions that will most likely be tackled in a systematic way in the next decade.