Abstract

Completing the massive star population: Striking into the field

Sally Oey (University of Michigan)

As a population, field massive stars are relatively enigmatic. With this contribution, I attempt to illuminate this sector of the high-mass stellar population, which comprises 20 - 25% of the massive stars in star-forming galaxies. "Field" massive stars appear to originate both in situ and as runaways from clusters, and include not only OB stars, but also WR, Oe, and Be stars. I will review what is known about the properties of massive field stars from studies in the Magellanic Clouds and the Galaxy, addressing origins and properties like IMF, binarity, and rotation velocities. Comparison between the field and cluster populations can then be used to probe star formation theory, cluster evolution, and stellar evolution, while field star HII regions provide important constraints on stellar atmosphere models.