Globular Clusters as a Test for Stellar Evolution

Summary

Current theoretical predictions concerning the evolution of old, metal-poor stars in galactic globulars are revisited in the light of recent improvements in the input physics. After a short introduction, the role of fundamental physics in constraining stellar structure all along the various evolutionary phases is shortly recalled, together with the additional role played by the evaluation of some macroscopic mechanisms, like convection and diffusion (Sect. 2). Theoretical predictions concerning the CM-diagram location of the best-known evolutionary phases are discussed in some detail, with particular regard to the existing uncertainties in modeling stellar structure as well as in handling observational data (Sect. 3). This discussion is thus extended to the faint stars recently revealed by HST, either at the faint end of the MS or along the WD cooling sequence (Sect. 4). Additional theoretical constraints given by the pulsational properties of RR Lyrae pulsators are recalled (Sect. 5) and the case of extragalactic globulars in the Local Group are briefly discussed (Sect. 6). Some general and methodological considerations close the paper.

The CM diagram: an introduction

The birth of modern physics dates back to the time when Galileo Galilei stated that any attempt to understand the world around us must—first of all—save the phenomena (“salvare i fenomeni”). In modern words, we say that physics is studying relations between observable quantities, so that the identification of suitable “observables” is a first-priority step in any physical investigation.