The Initial Mass Function 50 Years Later

1. Front Matter

   Pages I-XX

   PDF

2. The IMF Concept Through

   1. Front Matter

      Pages I-XX

      PDF

   2. Introduction to IMF@50

      • Edwin E. Salpeter

      Pages 3-10

   3. ED, ME, and The Interstellar Medium

      • Steven V.W. Beckwith

      Pages 11-18

   4. The IMF Challenge - 25 Questions

      • Hans Zinnecker

      Pages 19-22

   5. Fifty Years of IMF Variation: The Intermediate-Mass Stars

      • John Scalo

      Pages 23-40

   6. The Initial Mass Function: From Salpeter 1955 to 2005

      • Gilles Chabrier

      Pages 41-50

3. The IMF in Our Galaxy: Clusters and Field Stars

   1. Front Matter

      Pages I-XX

      PDF

   2. The Field IMF Across The H-Burning Limit

      • I. Neill Reid

      Pages 53-60

   3. The 0.03–10 M⊙Mass Function of Young Open Clusters

      • J. Bouvier, E. Moraux, J.R. Stauffer

      Pages 61-66

   4. The Time Spread of Star Formation in the Pleiades

      • John R. Stauffer

      Pages 67-72

   5. Age Spreads in Clusters and Associations: The Lithium Test

      • Francesco Palla, Sofia Randich

      Pages 73-74

   6. The Initial Mass Function of Three Galactic Open Clusters

      • L. Prisinzano, G. Micela, S. Sciortino, F. Favata, F. Damiani

      Pages 75-76

   7. The Stellar IMF of Galactic Clusters and Its Evolution

      • Guido De Marchi, Francesco Paresce, Simon Portegies Zwart

      Pages 77-82

   8. Two Stages of Star Formation in Globular Clusters and the IMF

      • Francesca D’Antona

      Pages 83-88

   9. The Stellar Initial Mass Function in The Galactic Center

      • Donald F. Figer

      Pages 89-94

   10. The Initial Mass Function in the Galactic Bulge

       • Manuela Zoccali

       Pages 95-100

   11. Halo Mass Function

       • Wolfgang Brandner

       Pages 101-106

4. The IMF in Our Galaxy: Star Forming Regions

   1. Front Matter

      Pages I-XX

      PDF

   2. Embedded Clusters and the IMF

      • Charles J. Lada

      Pages 109-114

Theideatocelebrate50yearsoftheSalpeterIMFoccurredduringtherecent IAU General Assembly in Sydney, Australia. Indeed, it was from Australia that in July 1954 Ed Salpeter submitted his famous paper "The Luminosity Function and Stellar Evolution" with the rst derivation of the empirical stellar IMF. This contribution was to become one of the most famous astrophysics papers of the last 50 years. Here, Ed Salpeter introduced the terms "original mass function" and "original luminosity function", and estimated the pro- bility for the creation of stars of given mass at a particular time, now known as the "Salpeter Initial Mass Function", or IMF. The paper was written at the Australian National University in Canberra on leave of absence from Cornell University (USA) and was published in 1955 as 7 page note in the Astroph- ical Journal Vol. 121, page 161. To celabrate the 50th anniversary of the IMF, along with Ed Salpeter’s 80th birthday, we have organized a special meeting that brought together scientists involved in the empirical determination of this fundamental quantity in a va- ety of astrophysical contexts and other scientists fascinated by the deep imp- cations of the IMF on star formation theories, on the physical conditions of the gas before and after star formation, and on galactic evolution and cosmology. The meeting took place in one of the most beautiful spots of the Tuscan countryside, far from the noise and haste of everyday life.

• Physics
• Planet
• astronomy
• astrophysics
• cosmology
• galaxy
• stars

• INAF Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Firenze, Italy

  Edvige Corbelli, Francesco Palla

• Astrophysikalisches Potsdam, Germany

  Hans Zinnecker

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