Searching for Variable Stars in the VVV Globular Clusters
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Date
2015
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Abstract
The “VISTA Variables in the Vía Láctea” (VVV) ESO Public Survey data is currently surveying the central regions of the Milky Way at near-infrared wavelengths, including 36 known Galactic globular clusters. We already have data in several filters to generate their color-magnitude diagrams. We also have enough epochs to begin producing the light curves of the cluster stars and look for any possible member variable stars. We are especially interested in RR Lyrae stars, since they are abundant in Galactic globular clusters and the period-luminosity relation they show at near-infrared wavelengths can help enormously in providing accurate distances and reddenings for the most extincted and poorly studied inner Galactic globular clusters. We center our attention here in the preliminary analysis of three of these clusters: NGC 6441, Terzan 10 and 2MASS-GC02....