Subscribe to the gold package and get unlimited access to Shamra Academy
Register a new userA 3D view of the Hydra I cluster core - II. Stellar populations
110
0
0.0
(
0
)
Added by
Carlos Eduardo Barbosa
Publication date
2014
fields
Physics
and research's language is
English
Ask ChatGPT about the research
No Arabic abstract
Several observations of the central region of the Hydra I galaxy cluster point to a multi-epoch assembly history. Using our novel FORS2/VLT spectroscopic data set, we were able to map the luminosity-weighted age, [Fe/H] and [$alpha$/Fe] distributions for the stellar populations around the cD galaxy NGC 3311. Our results indicate that the stellar populations follow the trends of the photometric substructures, with distinct properties that may aid to constrain the evolutionary scenarios for the formation of the cluster core.
rate research
Read More
We used FORS2 in MXU mode to mimic a coarse IFU in order to measure the 3D large-scale kinematics around the central Hydra I cluster galaxy NGC 3311. Our data show that the velocity dispersion field varies as a function of radius and azimuthal angle and violates point symmetry. Also, the velocity field shows similar dependence, hence the stellar halo of NGC 3311 is a dynamically young structure. The kinematic irregularities coincide in position with a displaced diffuse halo North-East of NGC 3311 and with tidal features of a group of disrupting dwarf galaxies. This suggests that the superposition of different velocity components is responsible for the kinematic substructure in the Hydra I cluster core.
(Abridged for arXiv) The history of the mass assembly of brightest cluster galaxies may be studied by the mapping the stellar populations at large radial distances from the galaxy centre. We provide extended and robust measurements of the stellar population parameters in NGC 3311, the cD galaxy at the centre of the Hydra I cluster and out to three effective radii. Using seven absorption-features defined in the Lick/IDS system and single stellar populations models, we obtained luminosity-weighted ages, metallicities and alpha element abundances. The trends in the Lick indices and the distribution of the stellar population parameters indicate that the stars of NGC 3311 may be divided into two radial regimes, one within and the another beyond one effective radius, $R_e = 8.4$ kpc, similar to the distinction between inner galaxy and external halo derived from the NGC 3311 velocity dispersion profile. The inner galaxy ($Rleq R_e$) is old (age $sim 14$ Gyr), have negative metallicity gradients and positive alpha element gradients. The external halo is also very old, but the metal and element abundances of the external halo have both a large scatter, indicating that stars from a variety of satellites with different masses have been accreted. The region in the extended halo associated with the off-centred envelope at 0$^o$ < P.A.< 90$^o$ (Arnaboldi et al. 2012) has higher metallicity with respect to the symmetric external halo. The different stellar populations in the inner galaxy and extended halo reflect the dominance of in situ stars in the former and the accreted origin for the large majority of the stars in the latter. These results provide supporting evidence to the recent theoretical models of formation of massive ellipticals as a two-phase process.
NGC 3311, the central galaxy of the Hydra I cluster, shows signatures of recent infall of satellite galaxies from the cluster environment. Previous work has shown that the line-of-sight velocity dispersion of the stars and globular clusters in the extended halo of NGC 3311 rises up to the value of the cluster velocity dispersion. We performed multi-object spectroscopic observations of the diffuse stellar halo of NGC 3311 using VLT/FORS2 in MXU mode to mimic a coarse `IFU. We use pPXF to extract the kinematic information. We find a homogeneous velocity and velocity dispersion field within r<10 kpc. Beyond this radius, both the velocities and dispersions start to depend on azimuth angle and show a significant intrinsic scatter. The inner spheroid of NGC 3311 can be described as a slow rotator. Outside 10 kpc the cumulative angular momentum is rising. If the radial dependence alone is considered, the velocity dispersion does not simply rise but fills an increasingly large range of values with two well defined envelopes. The lower envelope is about constant at 200 km/s. The upper envelope rises smoothly, joining the velocity dispersion of the outer cluster galaxies. We interpret this behaviour as the superposition of tracer populations with increasingly shallower radial distributions between the extremes of the inner stellar populations and the cluster galaxies. Simple Jeans models illustrate that a range of of mass profiles with different anisotropies can account for all observed velocity dispersions, including radial MOND models. Jeans models using one tracer population with a unique density profile are not able to explain the large range of the observed kinematics. Previous claims about the cored dark halo of NGC 3311 are therefore probably not valid. This may in general apply to central cluster galaxies with rising velocity dispersion profiles, where infall processes are important.
The Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal galaxy (Sgr dSph) is in an advanced stage of disruption but still hosts its nuclear star cluster (NSC), M54, at its center. In this paper, we present a detailed kinematic characterization of the three stellar populations present in M54: young metal-rich (YMR); intermediate-age metal-rich (IMR); and old metal-poor (OMP), based on the spectra of $sim6500$ individual M54 member stars extracted from a large MUSE/VLT dataset. We find that the OMP population is slightly flattened with a low amount of rotation ($sim0.8$ km s$^{-1}$) and with a velocity dispersion that follows a Plummer profile. The YMR population displays a high amount of rotation ($sim5$ km s$^{-1}$) and a high degree of flattening, with a lower and flat velocity dispersion profile. The IMR population shows a high but flat velocity dispersion profile, with some degree of rotation ($sim2$ km s$^{-1}$). We complement our MUSE data with information from textit{Gaia DR2} and confirm that the stars from the OMP and YMR populations are comoving in 3D space, suggesting that they are dynamically bound. While dynamical evolutionary effects (e.g. energy equipartition) are able to explain the differences in velocity dispersion between the stellar populations, the strong differences in rotation indicate different formation paths for the populations, as supported by an $N$-body simulation tailored to emulate the YMR-OMP system. This study provides additional evidence for the M54 formation scenario proposed in our previous work, where this NSC formed via GC accretion (OMP) and in situ formation from gas accretion in a rotationally supported disc (YMR).
We use a combination of deep optical and near-infrared light profiles for a morphologically diverse sample of Virgo cluster galaxies to study the radially-resolved stellar populations of cluster galaxies over a wide range of galaxy structure. We find that, in the median, the age gradients of Virgo galaxies are either flat (lenticulars and Sa-Sb spirals) or positive (ellipticals, Sbc+Sc spirals, gas-rich dwarfs, and irregulars), while all galaxy types have a negative median metallicity gradient. Comparison of the galaxy stellar population diagnostics (age, metallicity, and gradients thereof) against structural and environmental parameters also reveals that the ages of gas-rich systems depend mainly on their atomic gas deficiencies. Conversely, the metallicities of Virgo gas-poor galaxies depend on their concentrations, luminosities, and surface brightnesses. The stellar population gradients of all Virgo galaxies exhibit no dependence on either their structure or environment. We interpret these stellar population data for Virgo galaxies in the context of popular formation and evolution scenarios, and suggest that gas-poor giants grew hierarchically (through dissipative starbursts), gas-poor dwarfs have descended from at least two different production channels (e.g., environmental transformation and merging), while spirals formed inside-out, but with star formation in the outskirts of a significant fraction of the population having been quenched due to ram pressure stripping. (Abridged)
Log in to be able to interact and post comments
comments
Fetching comments
Sign in to be able to follow your search criteria
