BAR STAR-CLUSTERS IN THE LMC - FORMATION HISTORY FROM UBV INTEGRATED PHOTOMETRY

The sample of star clusters in the LMC Bar region with integrated UBV photometry was enlarged by approximately a factor 4, totalling 129 objects. The (B-V) histogram gap between blue and red clusters disappears with this deeper sample. Age groups in terms of equivalent SWB types were derived and their spatial distribution studied. Clusters younger than t almost-equal-to 200 Myr are not homogeneously distributed through the bar. In particular a strong star forming event at t almost-equal-to 100 Myr was detected in the eastern part of the Bar, consisting of a compact grouping of seven coeval clusters around NGC 2058 and NGC 2065. We also analyze 11 close pairs and two trios, and the colors indicate that only four pairs are clearly not coeval.