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C. A. Pilachowski (National Optical Astronomy Observatory)
The 1990's began a new era of globular cluster studies with the commissioning of two new capabilities - high resolution spectrographs on 8-10 meter class telescopes and moderate resolution, multi-fiber spectrographs on 4-m class telescopes. The combination of detailed studies of cluster stars as faint as 18th magnitude with surveys of hundreds of cluster members significantly improved our understanding of the many causes of abundance variations among cluster giants.
Several recent studies of large samples of globular cluster giants will be highlighted, including studies of sodium, aluminum, and magnesium variations in several nearby clusters, and studies of barium and other rare earth elements in cluster giants. An ongoing survey of a thousand cluster giants, including observations of barium, europium, aluminum, and lithium, will also be described, with preliminary results presented.
(The National Optical Astronomy Observatories is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation.) ~ ~