scholarly journals Observational Constraints on the Formation and Evolution of Globular Cluster Systems

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (S246) ◽  
pp. 394-402
Author(s):  
Stephen E. Zepf
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Dynamical Evolution ◽  
Mass Function ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Cluster Systems ◽  
Cluster Mass ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Globular Cluster System

AbstractThis paper reviews some of the observational properties of globular cluster systems, with a particular focus on those that constrain and inform models of the formation and dynamical evolution of globular cluster systems. I first discuss the observational determination of the globular cluster luminosity and mass function. I show results from new very deep HST data on the M87 globular cluster system, and discuss how these constrain models of evaporation and the dynamical evolution of globular clusters. The second subject of this review is the question of how to account for the observed constancy of the globular cluster mass function with distance from the center of the host galaxy. The problem is that a radial trend is expected for isotropic cluster orbits, and while the orbits are observed to be roughly isotropic, no radial trend in the globular cluster system is observed. I review three extant proposals to account for this, and discuss observations and calculations that might determine which of these is most correct. The final subject is the origin of the very weak mass-radius relation observed for globular clusters. I discuss how this strongly constrains how globular clusters form and evolve. I also note that the only viable current proposal to account for the observed weak mass-radius relation naturally effects the globular cluster mass function, and that these two problems may be closely related.

scholarly journals Dynamical Evolution of the Mass Function of the Globular Cluster System from Fokker-Planck Calculations: Preliminary Results

2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (S235) ◽  
pp. 110-110
Author(s):  
Jihye Shin ◽  
Sungsoo S. Kim
Keyword(s):  
Stellar Evolution ◽  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Dynamical Evolution ◽  
Mass Function ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Dynamical Friction ◽  
Luminosity Functions ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Fokker Planck

AbstractUsing anisotropic Fokker-Planck models, we calculate the evolution of mass and luminosity functions of the Galactic globular cluster system. Our models include two-body relaxation, binary heating, tidal shocks, dynamical friction, and stellar evolution. We perform Fokker-Planck simulations for a large number of virtual globular clusters and synthesize these results to study the relation between the initial and present GCMFs.

scholarly journals Globular Clusters in Elliptical Galaxies: Constraints on Mergers

1999 ◽  
Vol 186 ◽  
pp. 181-184
Author(s):  
Duncan A. Forbes
Keyword(s):  
Galaxy Formation ◽  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Elliptical Galaxies ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Cluster Systems ◽  
Chemical Enrichment ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Parent Galaxy

There exists a relationship between globular cluster mean metallicity and parent galaxy luminosity (e.g. Brodie & Huchra 1991; Forbes et al. 1996), which appears to be similar to that between stellar metallicity and galaxy luminosity. The globular cluster relation has a similar slope but is offset by about 0.5 dex to lower metallicity. The similarity of these relations suggests that both the globular cluster system and their parent galaxy have shared a common chemical enrichment history. If we can understand the formation and evolution of the globulars, we will also learn something about galaxy formation. With this aim in mind we have created the SAGES (Study of the Astrophysics of Globular clusters in Extragalactic Systems) project. Project members include Brodie, Elson, Forbes, Freeman, Grillmair, Huchra, Kissler–Patig and Schroder. We are using HST Imaging and Keck spectroscopy to study extragalactic globular cluster systems. Further details are given at http://www.ucolick.org/~mkissler/Sages/sages.html.

scholarly journals Dynamical Evolution of the Mass Function of the Galactic Globular Cluster System

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (S246) ◽  
pp. 433-434
Author(s):  
Jihye Shin ◽  
Sungsoo S. Kim ◽  
Koji Takahashi
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Dynamical Evolution ◽  
Mass Function ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Peak Mass ◽  
Low Mass ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Log Normal ◽  
Mass Functions

AbstractUsing the most advanced anisotropic (2D) Fokker-Planck (FP) models, we calculate the evolution of the mass functions of the Galactic globular cluster system (GCMF). Our models include two-body relaxation, binary heating, tidal shocks, dynamical friction, stellar evolution, and realistic cluster orbits. We perform 2D-FP simulations for a large number of virtual globular clusters and synthesize these results to study the relation between the initial and present GCMFs. We found two probable IGCMFs that eventually evolve into the Milky Way GCMF : truncated power-law, and log-normal model with higher initial low mass limit and peak mass than the earlier studies.

Globular cluster tidal interactions and mergers in the Galactic disc

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (S351) ◽  
pp. 442-446
Author(s):  
Alessandra Mastrobuono-Battisti ◽  
Sergey Khoperskov ◽  
Paola Di Matteo ◽  
Misha Haywood
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Iron Content ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Dynamical Evolution ◽  
Stellar Populations ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Galactic Disc ◽  
Tidal Interactions ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Shed Light

AbstractThe Galactic globular cluster system went and is still going through dynamical processes that require to be explored in detail. Here we illustrate how primordial massive globular clusters born in the Milky Way’s disc evolved by stripping material from each other or even merging very early during their lives. These processes might explain the puzzling presence of star-by-star spreads in iron content observed in massive globular clusters and should be taken into account when studying globular cluster stellar populations. In this context, we show how the direct comparison between the predictions provided by our direct N-body simulations and observations can shed light on the origin and chemo-dynamical evolution of globular clusters.

scholarly journals A new era for the globular cluster system in M31

2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (S266) ◽  
pp. 117-122
Author(s):  
Myung Gyoon Lee ◽  
Sang Chul Kim ◽  
Ho Seong Hwang ◽  
Hong Soo Park ◽  
Doug Geisler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Entire Body ◽  
Wide Field ◽  
Chemical Abundance ◽  
New Era ◽  
Group A ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Globular Cluster System

AbstractThe globular cluster system in M31 is an ideal laboratory for studying the formation and evolution of M31 as well as the globular clusters themselves. There have been numerous surveys and studies of the globular clusters in M31. However, only recently has the entire body of M31 been searched for globular clusters using wide-field CCD images by our group. A new era for the M31 globular cluster system has begun with the advent of wide-field CCD surveys of M31. We have discovered more than 100 new globular clusters in M31. Our catalog currently includes more than 500 globular clusters confirmed either based on spectra or HST images, many more than in the Milky Way. We present the structure, kinematics and chemical abundance of the M31 globular cluster system based on this large sample, and the implications for the formation and evolution of M31.

scholarly journals The Globular Cluster System of M87

1995 ◽  
Vol 164 ◽  
pp. 441-442
Author(s):  
J.G. Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Matter Content ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
Cluster Systems ◽  
Galaxy Halos ◽  
Resolution Imaging ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Imaging Spectrograph ◽  
Parent Galaxy

We have begun a program with the Low Resolution Imaging Spectrograph, operating with 30 multi-slits per exposure (Oke et al 1994, Cohen et al 1993) on the ten – meter W. M. Keck telescope located on Mauna Kea, Hawaii to observe the globular cluster systems of the Virgo ellipticals. We expect to learn about the dark matter content of galaxy halos, the formation of these halos and their cluster systems, possibly the formation of the galaxy's themselves, the interaction of the cluster system with the galaxy's gravitational potential (i.e. rotation and spinup), and the homogeneity of chemical evolution in various places. The metallicity of the globular clusters versus the metallicity of the underlying galaxy can also by analyzed. In addition the dynamics (i.e. in practice, the rotation and velocity dispersion) of the halo of the parent galaxy versus the globular cluster system can be determined.

scholarly journals Evolution of the Galactic Globular Cluster System

1996 ◽  
Vol 174 ◽  
pp. 401-402
Author(s):  
E. Vesperini
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Initial Conditions ◽  
Structural Parameters ◽  
Mass Function ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Individual Cluster

Recent surveys of the observational properties of galactic globular clusters have shown the existence of interesting correlations and trends between structural parameters and between structural parameters and location inside the Galaxy (Chernoff & Djorgovski 1989, Djorgovski & Meylan 1994). The origin of most of these correlations is not clear yet and it is not clear to what extent they reflect the primordial conditions or the result of evolution. We have carried out a set of simulations following the evolution of the properties of a globular cluster system (mass function, spatial distribution, correlations between structural parameters) starting from given initial conditions. The evolution of each individual cluster has been followed by the same method applied by Chernoff et al. (1986) and Chernoff & Shapiro (1987). The effects of internal relaxation, disk shocking and dynamical friction have been considered. The main goal of the analysis is that of establishing the role of initial conditions and evolutionary processes in determining the present observational properties.

scholarly journals The Globular Cluster System of NGC 5128: Ages, Metallicities, Kinematics and Structural Parameters

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 379-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. A. Woodley ◽  
M. Gómez
Keyword(s):  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Globular Clusters ◽  
Structural Parameters ◽  
Cluster System ◽  
High Signal ◽  
Galactocentric Distance ◽  
Noise Spectroscopy ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Globular Cluster System ◽  
Cluster Age

AbstractWe review our recent studies of the globular cluster system of NGC 5128. First, we have obtained low-resolution, high signal-to-noise spectroscopy of 72 globular clusters using Gemini-S/GMOS to obtain the ages, metallicities, and the level of alpha enrichment of the metal-poor and metal-rich globular cluster subpopulations. Second, we have explored the rotational signature and velocity dispersion of the galaxy's halo using over 560 globular clusters with radial velocity measurements. We have also compared the dependence of these properties on galactocentric distance and globular cluster age and metallicity. Using globular clusters as tracer objects, we have analyzed the mass, and mass-to-light ratio of NGC 5128. Last, we have measured the structural parameters, such as half-light radii, of over 570 globular clusters from a superb 1.2-square-degree Magellan/IMACS image. We will present the findings of these studies and discuss the connection to the formation and evolution of NGC 5128.

scholarly journals Dynamical Evolution of Globular Cluster Systems

2005 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 193-194
Author(s):  
E. Vesperini
Keyword(s):  
Stellar Evolution ◽  
Globular Cluster ◽  
Dynamical Evolution ◽  
Mass Function ◽  
Elliptical Galaxies ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Dynamical Friction ◽  
Evolutionary Processes ◽  
Merging Galaxies ◽  
Cluster Systems

AbstractI present the results of a number of simulations of the dynamical evolution of globular cluster systems (GCS) in elliptical galaxies including the effects of two-body relaxation, dynamical friction, stellar evolution and the effects of the tidal field of the host galaxy. The results of detailed models for the evolution of the M87 GCS are also presented. A significant number of clusters are disrupted by evolutionary processes and the properties of many of the clusters which survive are effected by dynamical evolution. In spite of large differences in the efficiency of evolutionary processes in different galaxies, the final galaxy-to-galaxy variation of the GCS mean mass and its radial variation within individual galaxies in my simulations are small and consistent with observations. The effects of dissolution of low-concentration clusters due to mass loss through stellar evolution are also discussed and are shown to play an important role in the evolution of a power-law GCS mass function (GCMF), similar to that observed in young cluster systems in merging galaxies, towards a final GCMF with properties consistent with observations.

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