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Understanding the formation of multiple populations in globular clusters (GCs) represents a challenge for stellar population studies. Nevertheless, the outermost cluster regions, likely to hold clues about the initial configuration of GC stars, remain underexplored. We use synthetic spectra reflecting the chemical compositions of first- and second-population (1P, 2P) stars in 47 Tucanae to identify spectral regions sensitive to these populations. This led us to define new photometric bands that effectively distinguish 1P and 2P giant stars using Gaia XP spectra. Testing these filters, we constructed the pseudo two-colour diagrams dubbed chromosome maps (ChMs) and, for the first time, identified 1P and 2P stars in the cluster's outermost regions and beyond its tidal radius. We constructed similar diagrams for NGC 3201, NGC 6121, NGC 6752, and NGC 6397, thus exploring GCs with different metallicities. The ChMs effectively distinguished multiple populations in the outer regions of all clusters, except for the metal-poor NGC 6397. Our findings, together with literature results from more-internal regions, show that the 2P stars of 47 Tucanae are more-centrally concentrated than the 1P. A similar pattern is seen for 2P stars with extreme chemical composition of NGC 3201. The multiple populations of NGC 6121, and NGC 6752 share the same radial distributions. These radial behaviours are consistent with the GC formation scenarios where 2P stars originate in the central regions. Noticeably, results on NGC 3201 are in tension with the conclusion from recent work that its 1P is more centrally concentrated than the 2P and might form with more central concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globular cluster (GC) stars composed of pristine material, also known as first-generation (1G) stars, are not chemically homogeneous as they exhibit extended sequences in the chromosome map (ChM). Recent studies characterized 1G stars within the center of 55 Galactic GCs, revealing metallicity variations. Despite this progress, several unanswered questions persist, particularly concerning the link between the 1G metallicity spread and factors such as the radial distance from the cluster center or the host GC parameters. Additionally, it remains unclear whether the extended 1G sequence phenomenon is exclusive to old Galactic GCs with multiple populations. This work addresses these open issues, examining 1G stars in different environments. First, we combine Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and James Webb Space Telescope photometry of the GC 47 Tucanae to study 1G stars at increasing distances from the cluster center. We find that metal-rich 1G stars are more centrally concentrated than metal-poor ones, suggesting a metallicity radial gradient. Additionally, the two groups of 1G stars share similar kinematics. Since our analysis focuses on giant stars in the cluster center and M dwarfs in external fields, we discuss the possibility that the metallicity distribution depends on stellar mass. Subsequently, we analyze HST multi-band photometry of two simple-population clusters, NGC 6791 and NGC 1783, revealing elongated sequences in the ChM associated with metallicity variations. Finally, we investigate the 1G color distribution in 51 GCs, finding no connections with the host cluster parameters. These results shed light on the complex nature of 1G stars, providing insights into the GC formation environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

About one-fifth of the Galactic globular clusters (GCs), dubbed Type II GCs, host distinct stellar populations with different heavy elements abundances. NGC 1851 is one of the most studied Type II GCs, surrounded by several controversies regarding the spatial distribution of its populations and the presence of star-to-star [Fe/H], C+N+O, and age differences. This paper provides a detailed characterization of its stellar populations through Hubble Space Telescope (HST), ground-based, and Gaia photometry. We identified two distinct populations with different abundances of s -process elements along the red-giant branch (RGB) and the subgiant branch (SGB) and detected two subpopulations among both s -poor (canonical) and s -rich (anomalous) stars. To constrain the chemical composition of these stellar populations, we compared observed and simulated colours of stars with different abundances of He, C, N, and O. It results that the anomalous population has a higher CNO overall abundance compared to the canonical population and that both host stars with different light-element abundances. No significant differences in radial segregation between canonical and anomalous stars are detected, while we find that among their subpopulations, the two most chemical extremes are more centrally concentrated. Anomalous and canonical stars show different 2D spatial distributions outside ∼3 arcmin, with the latter developing an elliptical shape and a stellar overdensity in the north-east direction. We confirm the presence of a stellar halo up to ∼80 arcmin with Gaia photometry, tagging 14 and 5 of its stars as canonical and anomalous, respectively, finding a lack of the latter in the south/south-east field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use images collected with the near-infrared camera (NIRCam) onboard the JWST and with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) to investigate multiple populations at the bottom of the main sequence (MS) of 47 Tucanae. The m F 115 W versus  m F 115 W − m F 322 W 2 colour–magnitude diagram (CMD) from NIRCam shows that, below the knee, the MS stars span a wide colour range, where the majority of M-dwarfs exhibit blue colours, and a tail of stars are distributed towards the red. A similar pattern is observed from the m F 160 W versus  m F 110 W − m F 160 W CMD from HST , and multiple populations of M-dwarfs are also visible in the optical m F 606 W versus  m F 606 W − m F 814 W CMD. The NIRCam CMD shows a narrow sequence of faint MS stars with masses smaller than |$0.1\, \mathcal {M}_{\odot }$|⁠. We introduce a chromosome map of M-dwarfs that reveals an extended first population and three main groups of second-population stars. By combining isochrones and synthetic spectra with appropriate chemical composition, we simulate colours and magnitudes of different stellar populations in the NIRCam filters (at metallicities [Fe/H] = −1.5 and [Fe/H] = −0.75) and identify the photometric bands that provide the most efficient diagrams to investigate the multiple populations in globular clusters. Models are compared with the observed CMDs of 47 Tucanae to constrain M-dwarfs' chemical composition. Our analysis suggests that the oxygen range needed to reproduce the colours of first- and second-population M-dwarfs is similar to that inferred from spectroscopy of red giants, constraining the proposal that the chemical variations are due to mass transfer phenomena in proto-clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of differential reddening in the direction of Galactic globular clusters (GCs) has proven to be a serious limitation in the traditional colour–magnitude diagram (CMD) analysis. Here, we estimate local reddening variations in the direction of 56 Galactic GCs. To do that, we use the public catalogues derived as part of the Hubble Space Telescope UV Legacy Survey of Galactic GCs, which include photometry in the F 275 W ,  F 336 W ,  F 438 W ,  F 606 W , and F 814 W filters. We corrected photometry for differential reddening and found that for 21 out of 56 GCs the adopted correction procedure significantly improved the CMDs. Moreover, we measure the reddening law in the direction of these clusters, finding that R V exhibits a high level of variability within the Galaxy, ranging from ∼2.0 to ∼4.0. The updated values of R V have been used to improve the determination of local reddening variations and derive high-resolution reddening maps in the direction of the 21 highly-reddened targets within our sample. To compare the results of the different clusters, we compute the 68th percentile of the differential-reddening distribution, |$\sigma _{\Delta A_{\rm F814W}}$|⁠. This quantity ranges from 0.003 to 0.030 mag and exhibits a significant anticorrelation with the absolute module of the Galactic latitude and a strong correlation with the average reddening in the direction of each cluster. Therefore, highly-reddened GCs located in the proximity of the Galactic plane typically show higher differential-reddening variations across their field of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudo two-colour diagrams or Chromosome maps (ChM) indicate that NGC 2808 host five different stellar populations. The existing ChMs have been derived by the Hubble Space Telescope photometry, and comprise of stars in a small field of view around the cluster centre. To overcome these limitations, we built a ChM with U ,  B ,  I photometry from ground-based facilities that disentangle the multiple stellar populations of NGC 2808 over a wider field of view. We used spectra collected by GIRAFFE@VLT in a sample of 70 red giant branch and seven asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars to infer the abundances of C, N, O, Al, Fe, and Ni, which combined with literature data for other elements (Li, Na, Mg, Si, Ca, Sc, Ti, Cr, and Mn), and together with both the classical and the new ground-based ChMs, provide the most complete chemical characterization of the stellar populations in NGC 2808 available to date. As typical of the multiple population phenomenon in globular clusters, the light elements vary from one stellar population to another; whereas the iron peak elements show negligible variation between the different populations (at a level of ≲0.10 dex). Our AGB stars are also characterized by the chemical variations associated with the presence of multiple populations, confirming that this phase of stellar evolution is affected by the phenomenon as well. Intriguingly, we detected one extreme O-poor AGB star (consistent with a high He abundance), challenging stellar evolution models that suggest that highly He-enriched stars should avoid the AGB phase and evolve as AGB-manqué star. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hubble Space Telescope (HST) photometry is providing an extensive analysis of globular clusters (GCs). In particular, the pseudo-two-colour diagram dubbed 'chromosome map (ChM)' allowed to detect and characterize their multiple populations with unprecedented detail. The main limitation of these studies is the small field of view of HST , which makes it challenging to investigate some important aspects of the multiple populations, such as their spatial distributions and the internal kinematics in the outermost cluster regions. To overcome this limitation, we analyse state-of-art wide-field photometry of 43 GCs obtained from ground-based facilities. We derived high-resolution reddening maps and corrected the photometry for differential reddening when needed. We use photometry in the U, B , and I bands to introduce the Δ c U, B, I versus ΔB, I ChM of red-giant branch (RGB) and asymptotic-giant branch stars. We demonstrate that this ChM, which is built with wide-band ground-based photometry, is an efficient tool to identify first- and second-generation stars (1G and 2G) over a wide field of view. To illustrate its potential, we derive the radial distribution of multiple populations in NGC 288 and infer their chemical composition. We present the ChMs of RGB stars in 29 GCs and detect a significant degree of variety. The fraction of 1G and 2G stars, the number of subpopulations, and the extension of the ChMs significantly change from one cluster to another. Moreover, the metal-poor and metal-rich stars of Type II GCs define distinct sequences in the ChM. We confirm the presence of extended 1G sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disentangling distinct stellar populations along the red-giant branches (RGBs) of globular clusters (GCs) is possible by using the pseudo-two-colour diagram dubbed chromosome map (ChM). One of the most intriguing findings is that the so-called first-generation (1G) stars, characterized by the same chemical composition of their natal cloud, exhibit extended sequences in the ChM. Unresolved binaries and internal variations in helium or metallicity have been suggested to explain this phenomenon. Here, we derive high-precision Hubble Space Telescope photometry of the GCs NGC 6362 and NGC 6838 and build their ChMs. We find that both 1G RGB and main-sequence (MS) stars exhibit wider ChM sequences than those of second-generation (2G). The evidence of this feature even among unevolved 1G MS stars indicates that chemical inhomogeneities are imprinted in the original gas. We introduce a pseudo-two-magnitude diagram to distinguish between helium and metallicity, and demonstrate that star-to-star metallicity variations are responsible for the extended 1G sequence. Conversely, binaries provide a minor contribution to the phenomenon. We estimate that the metallicity variations within 1G stars of 55 GCs range from less than [Fe/H]∼0.05 to ∼0.30 and mildly correlate with cluster mass. We exploit these findings to constrain the formation scenarios of multiple populations showing that they are qualitatively consistent with the occurrence of multiple generations. In contrast, the fact that 2G stars have more homogeneous iron content than the 1G challenges the scenarios based on accretion of material processed in massive 1G stars on to existing protostars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The amount of mass lost by stars during the red-giant branch (RGB) phase is one of the main parameters to understand and correctly model the late stages of stellar evolution. Nevertheless, a fully comprehensive knowledge of the RGB mass-loss is still missing. Galactic Globular Clusters (GCs) are ideal targets to derive empirical formulations of mass-loss, but the presence of multiple populations with different chemical compositions has been a major challenge to constrain stellar masses and RGB mass-losses. Recent work has disentangled the distinct stellar populations along the RGB and the horizontal branch (HB) of 46 GCs, thus providing the possibility to estimate the RGB mass-loss of each stellar population. The mass-losses inferred for the stellar populations with pristine chemical composition (called first-generation or 1G stars) tightly correlate with cluster metallicity. This finding allows us to derive an empirical RGB mass-loss law for 1G stars. In this paper, we investigate seven GCs with no evidence of multiple populations and derive the RGB mass-loss by means of high-precision Hubble-Space Telescope photometry and accurate synthetic photometry. We find a cluster-to-cluster variation in the mass-loss ranging from ∼0.1 to ∼0.3 M⊙. The RGB mass-loss of simple-population GCs correlates with the metallicity of the host cluster. The discovery that simple-population GCs and 1G stars of multiple population GCs follow similar mass-loss versus metallicity relations suggests that the resulting mass-loss law is a standard outcome of stellar evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple stellar populations (MPs) are a distinct characteristic of globular clusters (GCs). Their general properties have been widely studied among main-sequence, red giant branch (RGB), and horizontal branch (HB) stars, but a common framework is still missing at later evolutionary stages. We studied the MP phenomenon along the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) sequences in 58 GCs, observed with the Hubble Space Telescope in UV and optical filters. Using UV–optical color–magnitude diagrams, we selected the AGB members of each cluster and identified the AGB candidates of the metal-enhanced population in type II GCs. We studied the photometric properties of the AGB stars and compared them to theoretical models derived from synthetic spectral analysis. We observed the following features: (i) the spread of AGB stars in photometric indices sensitive to variations of light elements and helium is typically larger than that expected from photometric errors; (ii) the fraction of metal-enhanced stars in the AGB is lower than that in the RGB in most of the type II GCs; (iii) the fraction of 1G stars derived from the chromosome map of AGB stars in 15 GCs is larger than that of RGB stars; and (v) the AGB/HB frequency correlates with the average mass of the most helium-enriched population. These findings represent clear evidence of the presence of MPs along the AGB of Galactic GCs and indicate that a significant fraction of helium-enriched stars, which have lower mass in the HB, do not evolve to the AGB phase, leaving the HB sequence toward higher effective temperatures, as predicted by the AGB manqué scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We exploit multiband Hubble Space Telescope photometry to investigate multiple populations (MPs) along the red horizontal branches (HBs) and red clumps of 14 metal-rich globular clusters (GCs), including 12 Milky Way GCs and the Magellanic Cloud GCs NGC 1978 and NGC 416. Based on appropriate two-color diagrams, we find that the fraction of first-generation (1G) stars in Galactic GCs correlates with cluster mass, confirming previous results based on red-giant branch (RGB) stars. Magellanic Cloud GCs show higher fractions of 1G stars than Galactic GCs with similar masses, thus suggesting that the environment affects the MP phenomenon. We compared and combined our population fractions based on the HB with previous estimates from the MS and RGB, and we used ground-based UBVI photometry (available for NGC 104, NGC 5927, NGC 6366, and NGC 6838) to extend the investigation over a wide field of view. All studied GCs are consistent with flat distributions of 1G and second-generation (2G) stars within ∼1′ from the cluster center except NGC 416, where the 2G is more centrally concentrated. 2G stars of NGC 104 and NGC 5927 are more centrally concentrated than the 1G stars, whereas the distribution is flat for NGC 6366 and NGC 6838. We discover that most of the analyzed GCs exhibit extended sequences of 1G stars along the red HB, not consistent with a simple population. The comparison between appropriate synthetic and observed CMDs reveals that these extended distributions are consistent with either star-to-star variation in helium or with an internal metallicity spread, recalling the inhomogeneity of 1G stars along the chromosome maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The location of Galactic globular clusters' (GC) stars on the horizontal branch (HB) should mainly depend on GC metallicity, the 'first parameter', but it is actually the result of complex interactions between the red giant branch (RGB) mass-loss, the coexistence of multiple stellar populations with different helium content, and the presence of a 'second parameter' that produces dramatic differences in HB morphology of GCs of similar metallicity and ages (like the pair M3–M13). In this work, we combine the entire data set from the Hubble Space Telescope Treasury survey and stellar evolutionary models, to analyse the HBs of 46 GCs. For the first time in a large sample of GCs, we generate population synthesis models, where the helium abundances for the first and the 'extreme' second generations are constrained using independent measurements based on RGB stars. The main results are as follows: (1) The mass-loss of first-generation stars is tightly correlated to cluster metallicity. (2) The location of helium enriched stars on the HB is reproduced only by adopting a higher RGB mass-loss than for the first generation. The difference in mass-loss correlates with helium enhancement and cluster mass. (3) A model of 'pre-main sequence disc early loss', previously developed by the authors, explains such a mass-loss increase and is consistent with the findings of multiple-population formation models predicting that populations more enhanced in helium tend to form with higher stellar densities and concentrations. (4) Helium-enhancement and mass-loss both contribute to the second parameter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origin of multiple stellar populations in globular clusters (GCs) is one of the greatest mysteries of modern stellar astrophysics. N-body simulations suggest that the present-day dynamics of GC stars can constrain the events that occurred at high redshift and led to the formation of multiple populations. Here, we combine multiband photometry from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and ground-based facilities with HST and Gaia Data Release 2 proper motions to investigate the spatial distributions and the motions in the plane of the sky of multiple populations in the Type II GCs NGC 5139 (ω Centauri) and NGC 6656 (M22). We first analyzed stellar populations with different metallicities. Fe-poor and Fe-rich stars in M22 share similar spatial distributions and rotation patterns and exhibit similar isotropic motions. Similarly, the two main populations with different iron abundance in ω Centauri share similar ellipticities and rotation patterns. When different radial regions are analyzed, we find that the rotation amplitude decreases from the center toward the external regions. Fe-poor and Fe-rich stars of ω Centauri are radially anisotropic in the central region and show similar degrees of anisotropy. We also investigate the stellar populations with different light-element abundances and find that their N-rich stars exhibit higher ellipticity than N-poor stars. In ω Centauri both stellar groups are radially anisotropic. Interestingly, N-rich, Fe-rich stars exhibit different rotation patterns than N-poor stars with similar metallicities. The stellar populations with different nitrogen of M22 exhibit similar rotation patterns and isotropic motions. We discuss these findings in the context of the formation of multiple populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'chromosome map' diagram (ChM) proved a successful tool to identify and characterize multiple populations (MPs) in 59 Galactic globular clusters (GCs). Here, we construct ChMs for 11 GCs of both Magellanic Clouds (MCs) and with different ages to compare MPs in Galactic and extragalactic environments, and explore whether this phenomenon is universal through 'place' and 'time'. MPs are detected in five clusters. The fractions of 1G stars, ranging from ∼50 per cent to >80 per cent, are significantly higher than those observed in Galactic GCs with similar present-day masses. By considering both Galactic and MC clusters, the fraction of 1G stars exhibits: (i) a strong anticorrelation with the present-day mass, and (ii) with the present-day mass of 2G stars; (iii) a mild anticorrelation with 1G present-day mass. All Galactic clusters without MPs have initial masses smaller than ∼1.5 · 105 M⊙ but a mass threshold governing the occurrence of MPs seems challenged by massive simple-population MC GCs; (iv) Milky Way clusters with large perigalactic distances typically host larger fractions of 1G stars, but the difference disappears when we use initial cluster masses. These facts are consistent with a scenario where the stars lost by GCs mostly belong to the 1G. By exploiting recent work based on Gaia , half of the known Type II GCs appear clustered in a distinct region of the integral of motions space, thus suggesting a common progenitor galaxy. Except for these Type II GCs, we do not find any significant difference in the MPs between clusters associated with different progenitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]