A low surface brightness halo surrounding the globular cluster NGC 5694

Details A low surface brightness halo surrounding the globular cluster NGC 5694 A low surface brightness halo surrounding the globular cluster NGC 5694

2011-05-10

arxiv.org/abs/1105.2001v1

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

Solar and Stellar Astrophysics

7 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

Scientific paper

We report on the discovery of an extended stellar halo surrounding the distant Galactic globular cluster NGC 5694, based on new deep (V ~ 24.5) wide-field (24' * 20') photometry acquired with VIMOS at VLT. Stars with colour and magnitude consistent with the Main Sequence of the cluster are clearly identified out to r ~ 9'(~ 93 pc) from the cluster center, much beyond the tidal radius of the King model that best fits the inner profile (r_t=3.15'). We do not find a clear end of the structure within our field. The overall observed profile cannot be properly fitted with either a King (1966) model, an Elson et al. (1987) model, or a Wilson (1975) model; however it is very smooth and does not show any sign of the break near the tidal radius that is typically observed in stellar systems with tidal tails. The density map we derived does not show evidence of tidal tails, within the considered field. The extra-tidal component contains ~ 3.5% of the cluster light (mass) and has a surface density profile falling as ~ r^{-3.2}. The possible origin of the detected structure is discussed, as a clear-cut conclusion cannot be reached with the available data.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

A low surface brightness halo surrounding the globular cluster NGC 5694 does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with A low surface brightness halo surrounding the globular cluster NGC 5694, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and A low surface brightness halo surrounding the globular cluster NGC 5694 will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-280632