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The assembly history of the nearest S0 galaxy NGC 3115 from its kinematics out to six half-light radii

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 نشر من قبل Arianna Dolfi
 تاريخ النشر 2020
  مجال البحث فيزياء
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Using new and archival data, we study the kinematic properties of the nearest field S0 galaxy, NGC 3115, out to $sim6.5$ half-light radii ($R_mathrm{e}$) from its stars (integrated starlight), globular clusters (GCs) and planetary nebulae (PNe). We find evidence of three kinematic regions with an inner transition at $sim0.2 R_mathrm{e}$ from a dispersion-dominated bulge ($V_mathrm{rot}/sigma <1$) to a fast-rotating disk ($V_mathrm{rot}/sigma >1$), and then an additional transition from the disk to a slowly rotating spheroid at $sim2-2.5, R_mathrm{e}$, as traced by the red GCs and PNe (and possibly by the blue GCs beyond $sim5, R_mathrm{e}$). From comparison with simulations, we propose an assembly history in which the original progenitor spiral galaxy undergoes a gas-rich minor merger that results in the embedded kinematically cold disk that we see today in NGC 3115. At a later stage, dwarf galaxies, in mini mergers (mass-ratio $<$ 1:10), were accreted building-up the outer slowly rotating spheroid, with the central disk kinematics largely unaltered. Additionally, we report new spectroscopic observations of a sample of ultra-compact dwarfs (UCDs) around NGC 3115 with the Keck/KCWI instrument. We find that five UCDs are inconsistent with the general rotation field of the GCs, suggesting an textit{ex-situ} origin for these objects, i.e. perhaps the remnants of tidally stripped dwarfs. A further seven UCDs follow the GC rotation pattern, suggesting an textit{in-situ} origin and, possibly a GC-like nature.



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