Mass loss from evolved stars and "Other Science" with SPHERE

Séminaire IPAG de Eric Lagadec (Lagrange), jeudi 19 mai 2016 à 11h00, IRAM seminar room

SPHERE is an extreme adaptive optics instruments mounted on the Very Large Telescope in Chile, designed for the direct detection of planet and the study of discs around young stars.
I will show you that SPHERE can be used to tackle a large variety of questions, from the solar system to extragalactic studies. My main focus will be on the mass loss from evolved stars, as SPHERE is currently revolutionizing the way we understand this crucial phase for stellar and galactic evolution. For the first time, we can directly image the surface of the largest nearby stars and study the interplay between the star and its circumstellar environment. This brings us spectacular images and also teaches us a lot about the physics at play during these phases of stellar evolution.