We present color-magnitude diagrams (CMD) reaching the oldest main sequence turn offs for three fields in the Fornax dwarf spheroidal galaxy, obtained with FORS1 at the VLT. One of them is situated at the center of the galaxy while the other two are located at a distance of 10' form the center. We determine the full star formation history (SFH) of

We present a study of two dE/dSph members of the nearby M 81 group of galaxies, KDG 61 and KDG 64. Direct HST/ACS images and integrated-light spectra of 6 m telescope of Special Astrophysical Observatory (Russia) have been used for quantitative star formation history analysis. The spectroscopic and colour-magnitude diagrams analysis gives

We present the first results of a pilot study aimed at understanding the influence of bars on the evolution of galaxy discs through the study of their stellar content. We examine here the kinematics, star formation history, mass-weighted, luminosity-weighted and single stellar population (SSP) equivalent ages and metallicities for four galaxies

To determine the star formation histories of dwarf galaxies we use fossil methods. Compared to the color-magnitude diagrams analyzes, which are well tested and widely accepted, the studies of integrated spectra are still young. In order to assess their capabilities and limitations, we compare the results of three publicly available star formation

Samples of line-of-sight velocities and metallicities for hundreds individual red giant branch stars in Milky Way satellite galaxies have been obtained in the recent past thanks to wide-area multi-object spectrographs on 8 m-10 m class telescopes. These samples have greatly improved our knowledge of the large scale metallicity properties and the

Aims: We present constraints on the thermodynamical structure of the chromosphere from ground-based observations of the Ca ii H line profile near and off the solar limb. Methods: We obtained a slit-spectrograph data set of the Ca ii H line with a high signal-to-noise ratio in a field of view extending 20'' across the limb. We analyzed the spectra