Published in

American Astronomical Society, Astrophysical Journal, 2(605), p. L125-L128, 2004

DOI: 10.1086/420847

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Centauri: The Population Puzzle Goes Deeper

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

We present Hubble Space Telescope observations that show a bifurcation of colors in the middle main sequence of the globular cluster ω Centauri. We see this in three different fields, observed with different cameras and filters. We also present high-precision photometry of a central Advanced Camera for Surveys field, which shows a number of main-sequence turnoffs and subgiant branches. The double main sequence, the multiple turnoffs and subgiant branches, and other population sequences discovered in the past along the red giant branch of this cluster add up to a fascinating but frustrating puzzle. We suggest various explanations, none of them very conclusive.