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

Hybrid stars of the γ Doradus and δ Scuti pulsation types have great potential for asteroseismic analysis to explore their interior structure. To achieve this, mode identifications of pulsational frequencies observed in the stars must be made, a task which is far from simple. In this work we begin the analysis by scrutinizing the frequencies found

Supernova remnants (SNRs) are among the most important targets for γ-ray observatories. Being prominent non-thermal sources, they are very likely responsible for the acceleration of the bulk of Galactic cosmic rays (CRs). To firmly establish the SNR paradigm for the origin of cosmic rays, it should be confirmed that protons are indeed accelerated

High-resolution spectroscopy with the Subaru High Dispersion Spectrograph, and Swift ultraviolet photometry are presented for the pulsating extreme helium star V652 Her. Swift provides the best relative ultraviolet photometry obtained to date, but shows no direct evidence for a shock at ultraviolet or X-ray wavelengths. Subaru has provided high

The radial profiles of the Hβ, Mg, and Fe line-strength indices are presented for a sample of eight spiral galaxies with a low surface-brightness stellar disc and a bulge. The correlations between the central values of the line-strength indices and velocity dispersion are consistent to those known for early-type galaxies and bulges of high surface

This first part of Special Session 5 explored the current status of infrared-based observations of obscured and distant stellar clusters in the Milky Way galaxy. Recent infrared surveys, either serendipitously or using targeted searches, have uncovered a rich population of young and massive clusters. However, cluster characterization is more