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IFS and IR Observations of Star Clusters in the Antennae

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 August 2017

Sabine Mengel ,
Matthew D. Lehnert ,
Niranjan Thatte  and
Reinhard Genzel
Sabine Mengel
Affiliation:
Leiden Observatory, P.O. Box 9513, NL-2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands
Matthew D. Lehnert
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Garching, Germany
Niranjan Thatte
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Garching, Germany
Reinhard Genzel
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Garching, Germany

Abstract

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Over the past decade, it has become clear that interaction induced formation of compact young star clusters is a ubiquitous pheonomenon, and the understanding of this process is thought to also shed light on galaxy evolution in general, because these young clusters are widely believed to be the progenitors of a part of the globular cluster systems seen in local elliptical galaxies. We have observed the prototypical merger NGC 4038/4039 using near-infrared broad- and narrow band imaging, integral field spectroscopy and medium and high resolution spectroscopy. We find that all of the bright star clusters are young (<20 Myrs), but the “overlap region” hosts the youngest clusters (∼5 Myrs), while the nuclear starbursts started ∼100 Myrs ago. Photometric and dynamical masses range from 105 to a few x106M⊙. However, mass-to-light ratios vary from cluster to cluster and suggest differences in the contribution of low-mass stars. While clusters with a deficiency in low-mass stars are likely to evaporate before they are a Hubble time old, those with a high mass-to-light-ratio could represent young globulars.

Type
Part 3. Super Star Clusters and Associations
Information
Symposium - International Astronomical Union , Volume 207: Extragalactic Star Clusters , 2002 , pp. 378 - 382
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of the Pacific 2002 

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