We survey globular clusters (GCs) in M85 using $ugi$-band images of a $1^{\circ} \times 1^{\circ}$ field obtained with the MegaCam at the 3.6 m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. We identify 1318 GC candidates with 20.0 mag $< g_0 <$ 23.5 mag in the entire survey region. Their radial number density profile is well fit by a S{é}rsic profile with $n$ = 2.58$^{+0.43}_{-0.33}$ and effective radius $R_{\rm e,GCS}$ = 4$\rlap{.}{'}$14 (= 22 kpc), showing that the candidates at $R < 20'$ are mostly genuine GCs in M85. We estimate the total number of GCs, $N$(total) = $1216^{+82}_{-50}$, and the specific frequency, $S_N = 1.41^{+0.10}_{-0.06}$. The overall color distribution of the GCs in M85 is bimodal, but the GCs in the central region at $R < 2'$ do not show a bimodal distribution clearly. The radial number density profile and surface number density map of the blue GCs (BGCs) show more extended structures than those of the red GCs (RGCs). The spatial distributions of both BGCs and RGCs are elongated, similar to that of the galaxy stellar light. The number fraction of the RGCs in the central region is much smaller compared to those in other early-type galaxies of similar luminosity. The mean $(g-i)_0$ color of the RGCs in M85 is about 0.1 mag bluer than typical values for other Virgo early-type galaxies of similar luminosity, indicating that a significant fraction of the RGCs in M85 may be younger than typical GCs. These results indicate that M85 might have undergone a major wet merger recently.
We present a wide-field study of the globular cluster system (GCS) of the field lenticular galaxy NGC 1172, based on observations from GMOS/Gemini (optical), FourStar/Magellan (NIR), and archival data from ACS/HST (optical). This analysis covers the full extension of the GCS, and results in a value of specific frequency (S_N=8.6 +/- 1.5) peculiarly high for an intermediate-mass galaxy in a low-density environment such as this one. We find that the GCS appears to be bimodal, although the colour distribution is narrow and does not allow for an accurate separation of the subpopulations. However, …
The Peculiar Chemical Inventory of NGC 2419 -- An Extreme Outer Halo "Globular Cluster"
NGC 2419是一个巨大的外晕星系球状星团，其恒星先前已被证明具有某种特殊的丰度模式。我们用Keck/HIRES在合理的信噪比下观测到了NGC 2419的7颗亮巨星。其中一颗巨行星非常特殊，[Mg/Fe]极低，[K/Fe]极高，但大多数其他元素的丰度正常。丰度模式与任何超新星模型的核合成产率都不匹配。其他六颗恒星的丰度比是典型的内晕星系球状星团，图中以附近球状星团M30中的巨星为代表。虽然我们的测量表明NGC 2419在某些方面是不寻常的，但它的整体性质并没有提供令人信服的证据来证明内晕和外晕球状星团之间的差异。
An intermediate-band photometric study of the "Globular Cluster" NGC 2419
NGC 2419是银河系晕中最遥远的星团之一，它的确切性质尚不清楚：虽然它具有让人想起球状星团（GC）的特征，但它的大半径和丰度分布的建议引发了关于它起源于河外环境的讨论，可能是矮星系吸积的残余物。在这里，我们提出的第一个结果，从深中间波段测光的NGC 2419，这使我们能够寻找化学（轻元素）丰度的变化，金属丰度的蔓延，从而多个恒星星族通过良好校准的Stroemgren指数。
We present a study on stellar population and kinematics of globular clusters (GCs) in the peculiar galaxy M85. We obtain optical spectra of 89 GCs at 8 kpc $< R <$ 160 kpc using the MMT/Hectospec. We divide them into three groups, blue/green/red GCs (B/G/RGCs), with their $(g-i)_0$ colors. All GC subpopulations have mean ages of 10 Gyr, but showing differences in metallicities. The BGCs and RGCs are the most metal-poor ([Z/H] $\sim -1.49$) and metal-rich ([Z/H] $\sim -0.45$), respectively, and the GGCs are in between. We find that the inner GC system exhibits a strong overall rotation that is …
The outskirts of globular clusters (GCs) simultaneously retain crucial information about their formation mechanism and the properties of their host galaxy. Thanks to the advent of precision astrometry both their morphological and kinematic properties are now accessible. Here we present the first dynamical study of the outskirts of the retrograde GC NGC 3201 until twice its Jacobi radius (< 100 pc), using specifically-selected high-quality astrometric data from Gaia DR2. We report the discovery of a stellar overdensity along the South-East/North-West direction that we identify as tidal tails. T…
The photometric properties that we could observe for Extra-Galactic Globular Clusters (EGGCs) are the integrated light of the system and for nearby EGGCs it also is possible to measure both half-light radii and the color spatial distribution, e.g. for areas smaller and larger than the half-light radius. No information about the internal dynamical state of the system could be directly obtained from observations. On the other hand, simulations of Globular Clusters (GCs) can provide detailed information about the dynamical evolution of the system. We present a preliminary study of EGGCs' photomet…
We combine MUSE spectroscopy and Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet (UV) photometry to perform a study of the chemistry and dynamics of the Galactic globular cluster Messier 80 (M80, NGC 6093). Previous studies have revealed three stellar populations that not only vary in their light-element abundances, but also in their radial distributions, with concentration decreasing with increasing nitrogen enrichment. This remarkable trend, which sets M80 apart from the other Galactic globular clusters, points towards a complex formation and evolutionary history. To better understand how M80 formed and …
Globular clusters (GCs) have been at the heart of many longstanding questions in many sub-fields of astronomy and, as such, systematic identification of GCs in external galaxies has immense impacts. In this study, we take advantage of M87's well-studied GC system to implement supervised machine learning (ML) classification algorithms - specifically random forest and neural networks - to identify GCs from foreground stars and background galaxies using ground-based photometry from the Canada-France-Hawai'i Telescope (CFHT). We compare these two ML classification methods to studies of "human-sele…
Hubble Space Telescope imaging for 26 giant early-type galaxies, all drawn from the MAST archive, is used to carry out photometry of their surrounding globular cluster (GC) systems. Most of these targets are Brightest Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) and their distances range from 24 to 210 Mpc. The catalogs of photometry, completed with DOLPHOT, are publicly available. The GC color indices are converted to [Fe/H] through a combination of 12-Gyr SSP (Single Stellar Population) models and direct spectroscopic calibration of the fiducial color index (F475W-F850LP). All the resulting metallicity distribut…
The Peculiar Globular Cluster Palomar 1 and Persistence in the SDSS-APOGEE Database
SDSS-III APOGEE DR 12是一个独特的资源，用于搜索星团潮汐半径以外的恒星。我们已经检查了APOGEE DR 12数据库中年轻星团Palomar 1的新候选者，Palomar 1是一个具有先前报道的潮汐尾的系统（Niederste-Ostholt et al. 2010）。APOGEE ASPCAP数据库包含了两颗已知的恒星I和II的光谱和恒星参数，但这些数据与Sakari等人（2011）根据光谱确定的恒星参数不一致。我们发现这两颗恒星的APOGEE分析受到已知持久性问题的强烈影响（Mauriski et al. 2015; Nidever et al. 2015）。通过重新检查个人的访问，并删除蓝色（有时绿色）APOGEE探测器光谱的持久性影响，然后我们发现在重新分析的组合光谱非常一致。这些方法被应用到另外五颗星的APOGEE领域与类似的径向速度和金属丰度的那些的RISK 1。只有一个新的候选者，星F，可能是位于潮汐尾的成员，基于它的日心径向速度，金属丰度和化学。其他四个候选者并没有很好地与潮汐尾对齐，与贝桑松模型（Robin et al. 2003）的比较表明，它们更有可能是非成员，即星系晕的一部分。如果可以从APOGEE光谱数据库中消除持久性问题，则可以重新检查该APOGEE字段以寻找其他新的候选者。
We present a new photometric study of NGC 3258 and NGC 3268 globular cluster systems (GCSs), using images in filters $B,C,V,R,I$ and $z'$, obtained from four different telescopes. The wide spatial coverage allow us to estimate the whole extension of both GCSs more precisely than in previous works, and new values for the richness of GCs subpopulations. We find differences in the azimuthal distribution between blue (metal-poor) and red (metal-rich) globular clusters (GCs), and confirm that radial profiles flatten towards the centre of the galaxies. In both cases we detected a radial gradient in …
The formation and growth of globular cluster systems (GCSs) is closely related to the evolutionary processes experienced by their host galaxies. In particular, their radial distributions scale with several properties of the galaxies and their halos. We performed a photometric study, by means of HST/ACS archival data of several intermediate luminosity galaxies located in low density environments. It was supplemented with available photometric data of GCSs from the Virgo and Fornax clusters, resulting in a sample of almost 30 GCSs for which we fitted their radial profiles. The resulting overall …
We use high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope imaging data of dwarf galaxies in the Local Volume ($\lesssim 11$ Mpc) to parameterise 19 newly discovered nuclear star clusters (NSCs). Most of the clusters have stellar masses of $M_{\star}^{nsc} \lesssim 10^6$ M$_{\odot}$ and compare to Galactic globular clusters in terms of ellipticity, effective radius, stellar mass, and surface density. The clusters are modelled with a Sérsic profile and their surface brightness evaluated at the effective radius reveals a tight positive correlation to the host galaxy stellar mass. Our data also indicate an in…
We present Hubble Space Telescope (HST) photometric results for NGC 6402, a highly reddened very luminous Galactic globular cluster (GC). Recent spectroscopic observations of its red giant stars have shown a quite peculiar behavior in the chemistry of its multiple populations. These results have prompted UV and optical HST observations aimed at obtaining the cluster's "Chromosome map" (ChM), an efficient tool to classify GCs and characterize their multiple populations. We find that the discontinuity in the abundance distributions of O, Mg, Al and Na inferred from spectroscopy is more nuanced i…
Theory and observations indicate that the distribution of stars along the horizontal branch of Galactic globular clusters mainly depends on the metal content. However, the existence of globular clusters with similar metal content and absolute age but different horizontal branch morphologies, suggests the presence of another parameter affecting the star distribution along the branch. To investigate the variation of the horizontal branch morphology in Galactic globular clusters, we define a new photometric horizontal branch morphology index, overcoming some of the limitations and degeneracies af…
The Hubble Missing Globular Cluster Survey. III. Astro-photometric catalogs, artificial-star tests, and improved absolute proper motions
INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova（意大利国家天体物理研究所帕多瓦天文台）；Space Telescope Science Institute（太空望远镜科学研究所）；INAF - Astrophysics and Space Science Observatory of Bologna（意大利国家天体物理研究所博洛尼亚天体物理学与空间科学观测站）；atlanTTic, Universidade de Vigo, Escola de Enxeñaría de Telecomunicación（维戈大学电信工程学院 AtlanTTic 中心）；Universidad de La Laguna（拉古纳大学）；INFN - Sezione di Pisa, Universitá di Pisa（比萨大学意大利国家核物理研究所比萨分部）；Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna（博洛尼亚大学物理与天文学系）；Institute for Computational Cosmology & Centre for Extragalactic Astronomy, Department of Physics, Durham University（杜伦大学物理学院计算宇宙学研究所与河外天文中心）
