Flattened bulges with disk-like properties are considered to be the end product of secular evolution processes at work in the inner regions of galaxies. On the contrary, classical bulges are characterized by rounder shapes and thought to be similar to low-luminosity elliptical galaxies. We aim at testing the variety of observational diagnostics

Context: The topology of penumbral magnetic fields is poorly known. The satellite Hinode has recently revealed penumbral structures of a magnetic polarity that is opposite to the main sunspot polarity. They may be direct confirmation that magnetic field lines and mass flows return to the solar interior throughout the penumbra, a configuration

The existence of compact H ii regions around massive stellar clusters with ages exceeding several Myr challenges our understanding of the physical processes occurring inside such clusters, and their impact on the interstellar medium of the host galaxy. Here, we summarize our recent results dealing with the hydrodynamics of matter ejected by massive

Aims.With strong evidence of fast and slow magnetoacoustic modes arising in the solar atmosphere there is scope for improved determinations of coronal parameters through coronal seismology. Of particular interest is the ratio P1/2P2 between the period P1 of the fundamental mode and the period P2 of its first harmonic; in an homogeneous medium this

Context: The peculiar three-peak structure of the linear polarization profile shown in the second solar spectrum by the Ba ii line at 4554 Å has been interpreted as the result of the different contributions coming from the barium isotopes with and without hyperfine structure. In the same spectrum, a triple peak polarization signal is also observed

We present a review on the determination of the primordial helium abundance, Y_p, based on the study of hydrogen and helium recombination lines in extragalactic H II regions. We also discuss the observational determinations of the increase of helium to the increase of oxygen by mass Δ Y/Δ O , and compare them with predictions based on models of