In this paper we describe a new UV-initiative Hubble Space Telescope project (GO-13297) that will complement the existing F606W and F814W database of the Advanced Camera for Surveys Globular Cluster (GC) Treasury by imaging most of its clusters through UV/blue WFC3/UVIS filters F275W, F336W, and F438W. This “magic trio” of filters has shown an

Quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) whose spectral energy distributions (SEDs) are reddened by dust either in their host galaxies or in intervening absorber galaxies are to a large degree missed by optical color selection criteria like the ones used by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). To overcome this bias against red QSOs, we employ a combined

Aims: XO-2 is the first confirmed wide stellar binary system where the almost twin components XO-2N and XO-2S have planets, and it is a peculiar laboratory in which to investigate the diversity of planetary systems. This stimulated a detailed characterization study of the stellar and planetary components based on new observations. Methods: We

A small fraction of the halo field is made up of stars that share the light element (Z ≤ 13) anomalies characteristic of second generation globular cluster (GC) stars. The ejected stars shed light on the formation of the Galactic halo by tracing the dynamical history of the clusters, which are believed to have once been more massive. Some of these

According to the current co-evolution picture, most present-day galaxies experienced at least one phase of vigorous black hole (BH) activity in the past, during which a tight link between galaxy and BH gets established. While during the last two decades we have witnessed tremendous progress in the field, additional robust observational constraints

The planetary nebula stage is the ultimate fate of stars with masses one to eight times that of the Sun (). The origin of their complex morphologies is poorly understood, although several mechanisms involving binary interaction have been proposed. In close binary systems, the orbital separation is short enough for the primary star to overfill its