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M31 Globular Cluster Metallicities and Ages

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 August 2017

Pauline Barmby
Pauline Barmby*
Affiliation:
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden St., Mailstop 10, Cambridge MA 02138, USA

Abstract

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Globular cluster ages are more than just lower limits to the age of the universe; the distribution of ages constraints the timescales for galaxy formation and chemical evolution. Globular cluster populations with different metallicities have now been detected in many galaxies, and understanding how these populations formed requires knowing their relative ages. We examined the relative ages of the two M31 globular cluster populations using their color and luminosity distributions and found that the metal-rich clusters could be up to 50% younger than the metal-poor clusters. While a small delay in the formation of metal-rich clusters might be imposed by chemical enrichment timescales, a large age gap demands a more detailed explanation. I outline several possibilities and their promises and problems.

Type
Part 1. The Star Clusters of Local Group Galaxies
Information
Symposium - International Astronomical Union , Volume 207: Extragalactic Star Clusters , 2002 , pp. 58 - 61
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of the Pacific 2002 

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