Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – Cosmology and Extragalactic Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2009-06-15
Astrophys.J.700:L11-L15,2009
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Cosmology and Extragalactic Astrophysics
8 pages, 3 figures, accepted for ApJ Letter
Scientific paper
10.1088/0004-637X/700/1/L11
We explore the age distribution of the globular cluster (GC) system of the nearby elliptical galaxy NGC 5128 using ultraviolet (UV) photometry from Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) observations, with UV - optical colors used as the age indicator. Most GCs in NGC 5128 follow the general trends of GCs in M31 and Milky Way in UV - optical color-color diagram, which indicates that the majority of GCs in NGC 5128 are old similar to the age range of old GCs in M31 and Milky Way. A large fraction of spectroscopically identified intermediate-age GC (IAGC) candidates with ~ 3-8 Gyr are not detected in the FUV passband. Considering the nature of intermediate-age populations being faint in the far-UV (FUV) passband, we suggest that many of the spectroscopically identified IAGCs may be truly intermediate in age. This is in contrast to the case of M31 where a large fraction of spectroscopically suggested IAGCs are detected in FUV and therefore may not be genuine IAGCs but rather older GCs with developed blue horizontal branch stars. Our UV photometry strengthens the results previously suggesting the presence of GC and stellar subpopulation with intermediate age in NGC 5128. The existence of IAGCs strongly indicates the occurrence of at least one more major star formation episode after a starburst at high redshift.
Barlow Tom A.
Beasley Michael A.
Bianch Luciana
Chung Chul
Donas Jose
No associations
LandOfFree
Probing the Intermediate-Age Globular Clusters in NGC 5128 from Ultraviolet Observations 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 Probing the Intermediate-Age Globular Clusters in NGC 5128 from Ultraviolet Observations, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Probing the Intermediate-Age Globular Clusters in NGC 5128 from Ultraviolet Observations will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-315528