MASSCLEAN - MASSive CLuster Evolution and ANalysis Package - Description, Tests, and Results

TL;DR

MASSCLEAN is a comprehensive simulation package for stellar clusters that generates images and photometry, enabling improved age and property estimation through Monte Carlo methods and mass-dependent color analysis.

Contribution

It introduces a new simulation tool capable of producing detailed cluster images and colors, including mass-dependent integrated colors derived from extensive Monte Carlo simulations.

Findings

Validated MASSCLEAN's color outputs against existing SSP models.

Generated over 100,000 Monte Carlo simulations for mass-dependent colors.

Provided new data to enhance cluster age determination methods.

Abstract

MASSCLEAN is a new, sophisticated and robust stellar cluster image and photometry simulation package. This package is able to create color-magnitude diagrams and standard FITS images in any of the traditional optical and near-infrared bands based on cluster characteristics input by the user, including but not limited to distance, age, mass, radius and extinction. At the limit of very distant, unresolved clusters, we have checked the integrated colors created in MASSCLEAN against those from other simple stellar population (SSP) models with consistent results. Because the algorithm populates the cluster with a discrete number of tenable stars, it can be used as part of a Monte Carlo Method to derive the probabilistic range of characteristics (integrated colors, for example) consistent with a given cluster mass and age. We present the first ever mass dependent integrated colors as a function of age, derived from over 100,000 Monte Carlo runs, which can be used to improve the current age determination methods for stellar clusters.