A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Low-density star cluster formation: Discovery of a young faint fuzzy on the outskirts of the low-mass spiral galaxy NGC 247
Authors: Romanowsky Aaron J, Larsen Søren S, Villaume Alexa, Carlin Jeffrey L, Janz Joachim, Sand David J, Strader Jay, Brodie Jean P, Chakrabarti Sukanya, Cheng Chloe M, Crnojević Denija, Forbes Duncan A, Garling Christopher T, Hargis Jonathan R, Karunakaran Ananthan, Martín-Navarro Ignacio, Olsen Knut AG, Rider Nicole, Salimkumar Bitha, Santhanakrishnan Vakini, Spekkens Kristine, Tang Yimeng, van Dokkum Pieter G, Willman Beth.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication year: 2023
Journal: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Journal name in source: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Volume: 518
Issue: 2
First page : 3164
Last page: 3182
eISSN: 1365-2966
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stac2898
Publication's open availability at the time of reporting: No Open Access
Publication channel's open availability : Partially Open Access publication channel
Web address : https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/518/2/3164/6763457
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/179814108
Self-archived copy's version: Publisher`s PDF
The classical globular clusters found in all galaxy types have half-light radii of rh ∼ 2–4 pc, which have been tied to formation in the dense cores of giant molecular clouds. Some old star clusters have larger sizes, and it is unclear if these represent a fundamentally different mode of low-density star cluster formation. We report the discovery of a rare, young ‘faint fuzzy’ star cluster, NGC 247-SC1, on the outskirts of the low-mass spiral galaxy NGC 247 in the nearby Sculptor group, and measure its radial velocity using Keck spectroscopy. We use Hubble Space Telescope imaging to measure the cluster half-light radius of rh ≃ 12 pc and a luminosity of LV ≃ 4 × 105L⊙. We produce a colour–magnitude diagram of cluster stars and compare to theoretical isochrones, finding an age of ≃300 Myr, a metallicity of [Z/H] ∼ −0.6 and an inferred mass of M⋆ ≃ 9 × 104M⊙. The narrow width of blue-loop star magnitudes implies an age spread of ≲50 Myr, while no old red-giant branch stars are found, so SC1 is consistent with hosting a single stellar population, modulo several unexplained bright ‘red straggler’ stars. SC1 appears to be surrounded by tidal debris, at the end of an ∼2 kpc long stellar filament that also hosts two low-mass, low-density clusters of a similar age. We explore a link between the formation of these unusual clusters and an external perturbation of their host galaxy, illuminating a possible channel by which some clusters are born with large sizes.
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