Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – Cosmology and Extragalactic Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2009-11-24
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Cosmology and Extragalactic Astrophysics
Accepted for publication in MNRAS, 11 pages, 10 figures
Scientific paper
Here we present HST/ACS imaging, in the B and I bands, of the edge-on Sb/Sc galaxy NGC 5170. Excluding the central disk region region, we detect a 142 objects with colours and sizes typical of globular clusters (GCs). Our main result is the discovery of a `blue tilt' (a mass-metallicity relation), at the 3sigma level, in the metal-poor GC subpopulation of this Milky Way like galaxy. The tilt is consistent with that seen in massive elliptical galaxies and with the self enrichment model of Bailin & Harris. For a linear mass-metallicity relation, the tilt has the form Z ~ L^{0.42 +/- 0.13}. We derive a total GC system population of 600 +/- 100, making it much richer than the Milky Way. However when this number is normalised by the host galaxy luminosity or stellar mass it is similar to that of M31. Finally, we report the presence of a potential Ultra Compact Dwarf of size ~ 6 pc and luminosity M_I ~ -12.5, assuming it is physically associated with NGC 5170.
Bailin Jeremy
Brodie Jean
Forbes Duncan
Harris William
Larsen Soeren
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