Exploring the Bottom End of the White Dwarf Cooling Sequence in the Open Cluster NGC6819
Abstract
The recent discovery by our group of an unexpectedly bright end of the white-dwarf {WD} luminosity function {LF} of the metal-rich, old open cluster NGC 6791 casts serious doubts on our understanding of the physical process which rules the formation and the cooling of WDs. It is clear at this point that the theory badly needs more observations. Here we propose WFC3/UVIS and ACS/WFC HST observations reaching the bottom end of the WD LF, for the first time in a solar-metallicity, 2.5-Gyr-old, populous open cluster: NGC 6819.
- Publication:
-
HST Proposal
- Pub Date:
- July 2009
- Bibcode:
- 2009hst..prop11688B