arXivDaily arXiv每日学术速递 周一至周五更新
arXiv周末暂无论文更新,休息一下吧,周末愉快~~
arXiv 1102.0403astro-ph.CO
收藏

M31晕球状星团的性质研究

Exploring the Properties of the M31 Halo Globular Cluster System

A. P. Huxor, A. M. N. Ferguson, N. R. Tanvir, M. J. Irwin, A. D. Mackey, R. A. Ibata, T. Bridges, S. C. Chapman, G. F. Lewis

摘要:

继我们发现了大量的M31外晕球状星团(GC),并更新了M31 GC的修订博洛尼亚星表之后,我们对M31的GC系统进行了前所未有的半径(~ 120 kpc)的研究。我们得到各种系综性质,包括大小,颜色和金属丰度分布,以及GC数密度分布。我们最重要的发现之一是外晕中径向GC数密度剖面变平的证据。有趣的是,这发生在银河中心半径约2度(约30千秒差距),这是半径,在该半径下的恒星晕表面密度也被证明是平坦的。位于这个半径之外的GC在蓝色(V-I)o方面非常均匀,这与它们属于一个几乎没有金属丰度梯度的古老种群相一致。结构参数也来自一个样本的13个新发现的扩展集群(EC),我们发现最低光度EC的大小和大小类似的帕洛玛型GC在银河系晕。我们认为,我们的研究结果提供了强有力的支持的情况下,一个显着的部分外晕GC人口的M31已被吸积。

英文摘要:

Following on from our discovery of a significant population of M31 outer halo globular clusters (GCs), and updates to the Revised Bologna Catalogue of M31 GCs, we investigate the GC system of M31 out to an unprecedented radius (~120kpc). We derive various ensemble properties, including the magnitude, colour and metallicity distributions, as well as the GC number density profile. One of our most significant findings is evidence for a flattening in the radial GC number density profile in the outer halo. Intriguingly, this occurs at a galactocentric radius of ~2 degrees (~30 kpc) which is the radius at which the underlying stellar halo surface density has also been shown to flatten. The GCs which lie beyond this radius are remarkably uniform in terms of their blue (V-I)o colours, consistent with them belonging to an ancient population with little to no metallicity gradient. Structural parameters are also derived for a sample of 13 newly-discovered extended clusters (ECs) and we find the lowest luminosity ECs have magnitudes and sizes similar to Palomar-type GCs in the Milky Way halo. We argue that our findings provide strong support for a scenario in which a significant fraction of the outer halo GC population of M31 has been accreted.

机构、总结、中文摘要均由AI分析而来,可能存在错误,请以论文正文为准。

↑