Heavy Elements and Cool Stars

We report on progress in the analysis of high‐resolution near‐IR spectra of α Orionis (M2 Iab) and other cool, luminous stars. Using synthetic spectrum techniques, we search for atomic absorption lines in the stellar spectra and evaluate the available line parameter data for use in our abundance analyses. Our study concentrates on the post iron‐group elements copper through zirconium as a means of investigating the slow neutron‐capture process of nucleosynthesis in massive stars and the mechanisms that transport recently processed material up into the photospheric region. We discuss problems with the atomic data and model atmospheres that need to be addressed before theoretically derived elemental abundances from pre‐supernova nucleosynthesis calculations can be tested by comparison with abundances determined from observations of cool, massive stars.