Abstract
A previously unknown population of very luminous, red, asymptotic-giant-branch stars has been identified as a result of near-infrared (JHK) imaging in the dwarf elliptical galaxy M32. Situated above the tip of the normal first red giant branch, these stars are intrinsically brighter than the most luminous normal giants in old Galactic globular clusters by approximately 2 bolometric magnitudes. Moreover, they are a full bolometric magnitude brighter than the brightest giants observed in our own Galactic bulge. Several possible explanations for this population are examined, including old long-period variables, binary mergers, supermetallicity, and intermediate-age stars
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