Valentina Grieco

Title: 
Chemical evolution of the Galactic bulge
Abstract:
The recent discovery of two main stellar populations in the Galactic bulge, one metal poor, with a spheroid kinematics and the other metal rich, with a bar-like kinematics, suggests to revise the classical model for bulge formation.
We aim at computing in detail the chemical evolution of the Galactic bulge in order to explain the existence of the two main stellar populations. We also plan to explore the possible existence of chemical abundance gradients inside the bulge. We conclude that the chemical evolution of the Galactic bulge, as suggested by its stellar populations, has been quite complex. A spheroid stellar population forming by means of a classical gravitational gas collapse is mixed with a younger stellar population created by the bar evolution. The differences among their average abundances can be interpreted as a gradient. 
(with Matteucci)