Fundamental unsolved problems of stellar astrophysics include the effects of angular momentum on stellar structure and evolution, the nature and efficiency of the processes by which angular momentum is redistributed within and lost from stars, and the role that stellar rotation plays in enhancing or driving stellar mass loss. There appears to be a qualitative change in the nature and efficiency of these mechanisms near spectral type FO: hotter (more massive) stars typically retain more angular momentum at least until they reach the main sequence, while cooler stars typically spin down quickly. For the hotter stars, recent work suggests a strong link between the type of pulsation behavior, the mass loss rates, and the rotation velocity. If the same mechanisms are able to drive mass loss from the main sequence A stars, as has recently been proposed, then the current interpretations of a number of observations will be drastically affected: e. g. the ages of clusters may be incorrect by up to a factor of two, and the surface abundances of isotopes of He, Li and Be may no longer give constraints on cosmological nucleosynthesis. There are also effects on the evolution of the abundances of elements in the interstellar medium and on the general evolution of populations of stars. Thus the questions of the mechanisms of angular momentum and mass loss of stars more massive than the sun is important not only for stellar studies but for the foundations of much of modern astrophysics.

The IAU Colloquium No. 59, "The effects of mass loss on Stellar Evolution" was held on September 15-19, 1980 at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Miramare, Trieste (Italy), under the auspices of the IAU Executive Co~ mittee and the Italian National Council of Research. The planning of this conference began two years ago du ring the IAU Symposium No. 83 "Mass loss and evolution of 0 type stars" (Qualicum Beach, Victoria, Canada) when we felt that mass loss and its effects on the evolution of stars was too broad a subject for being confined to 0 type stars only. Therefore we thought that a conference dealing with the general problem of mass loss across the whole HR diagram would have been of interest to all people working in the field. The main idea was that bringing together Astronomers and Astrophysicists of the widest range of interests and e~ pertize - all in some way related to the problem of mass loss from stars - would have spurred thorough discussions on the many aspects and implications of this topic. We hope this goal has been achieved. Furthermore, the most recent observational and theoreti cal developments on the problem of mass loss from early ty pe stars avoided this meeting to be a simple updating of the Qualicum Beach Symposium as far as this issue is concerned.

Stellar mass loss is an essential part of the cycling of material from the interstellar medium into stars and back, and must be understood if we are to model processes on galactic to cosmological scales. The study of stellar winds and the effects of stellar mass loss has reached a particularly exciting stage where observational capabilities are increasingly able to provide interesting constraints on models and theories. Recent resu1ts from theoretical and observational work for both hot and cool stars with substantial winds have led to the suggestion that a combination of pulsation with other mechanisms makes for particularly efficient mass loss from stars. This provided the original motivation for the organization of this workshop. The conference was organized along relatively conventional lines according to the types of objects being scrutinized. However the true unity of the proceedings comes from the interplay of the mechanisms involved. For example, for the cool, luminous Mira variables, pulsation leads to shock waves that extend the atmosphere, enhancing dust formation; radiation pressure on dust drives the wind, cooling the atmosphere and in some cases suppressing the shocks. Similarly for the Be stars, both pulsation (in this case, non-radial) and radiation pressure (due to UV resonance lines) are expected to be important, and this expectation is at least qualitatively borne out by the observations.

Stellar mass loss is an essential part of the cycling of material from the interstellar medium into stars and back, and must be understood if we are to model processes on galactic to cosmological scales. The study of stellar winds and the effects of stellar mass loss has reached a particularly exciting stage where observational capabilities are increasingly able to provide interesting constraints on models and theories. Recent resu1ts from theoretical and observational work for both hot and cool stars with substantial winds have led to the suggestion that a combination of pulsation with other mechanisms makes for particularly efficient mass loss from stars. This provided the original motivation for the organization of this workshop. The conference was organized along relatively conventional lines according to the types of objects being scrutinized. However the true unity of the proceedings comes from the interplay of the mechanisms involved. For example, for the cool, luminous Mira variables, pulsation leads to shock waves that extend the atmosphere, enhancing dust formation; radiation pressure on dust drives the wind, cooling the atmosphere and in some cases suppressing the shocks. Similarly for the Be stars, both pulsation (in this case, non-radial) and radiation pressure (due to UV resonance lines) are expected to be important, and this expectation is at least qualitatively borne out by the observations.

Fundamental unsolved problems of stellar astrophysics include the effects of angular momentum on stellar structure and evolution, the nature and efficiency of the processes by which angular momentum is redistributed within and lost from stars, and the role that stellar rotation plays in enhancing or driving stellar mass loss. There appears to be a qualitative change in the nature and efficiency of these mechanisms near spectral type FO: hotter (more massive) stars typically retain more angular momentum at least until they reach the main sequence, while cooler stars typically spin down quickly. For the hotter stars, recent work suggests a strong link between the type of pulsation behavior, the mass loss rates, and the rotation velocity. If the same mechanisms are able to drive mass loss from the main sequence A stars, as has recently been proposed, then the current interpretations of a number of observations will be drastically affected: e. g. the ages of clusters may be incorrect by up to a factor of two, and the surface abundances of isotopes of He, Li and Be may no longer give constraints on cosmological nucleosynthesis. There are also effects on the evolution of the abundances of elements in the interstellar medium and on the general evolution of populations of stars. Thus the questions of the mechanisms of angular momentum and mass loss of stars more massive than the sun is important not only for stellar studies but for the foundations of much of modern astrophysics.

The IAU Colloquium No. 59, "The effects of mass loss on Stellar Evolution" was held on September 15-19, 1980 at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Miramare, Trieste (Italy), under the auspices of the IAU Executive Co~ mittee and the Italian National Council of Research. The planning of this conference began two years ago du ring the IAU Symposium No. 83 "Mass loss and evolution of 0 type stars" (Qualicum Beach, Victoria, Canada) when we felt that mass loss and its effects on the evolution of stars was too broad a subject for being confined to 0 type stars only. Therefore we thought that a conference dealing with the general problem of mass loss across the whole HR diagram would have been of interest to all people working in the field. The main idea was that bringing together Astronomers and Astrophysicists of the widest range of interests and e~ pertize - all in some way related to the problem of mass loss from stars - would have spurred thorough discussions on the many aspects and implications of this topic. We hope this goal has been achieved. Furthermore, the most recent observational and theoreti cal developments on the problem of mass loss from early ty pe stars avoided this meeting to be a simple updating of the Qualicum Beach Symposium as far as this issue is concerned.