The Connection Between Diffuse Light and Intracluster Planetary Nebulae in the Virgo Cluster

Abstract

We compare the distribution of diffuse intracluster light detected in the Virgo Cluster via broadband imaging with that inferred from searches for intracluster planetary nebulae (IPNe). We find a rough correspondence on large scales (~ 100 kpc) between the two, but with very large scatter (~ 1.3 mag/arcsec^2). On smaller scales (1 -- 10 kpc), the presence or absence of correlation is clearly dependent on the underlying surface brightness. On these scales, we find a correlation in regions of higher surface brightness (mu_V < ~27) which are dominated by the halos of large galaxies such as M87, M86, and M84. In those cases, we are likely tracing PNe associated with galaxies rather than true IPNe. In true intracluster fields, at lower surface brightness, the correlation between luminosity and IPN candidates is much weaker. While a correlation between broadband light and IPNe is expected based on stellar populations, a variety of statistical, physical, and methodological effects can act to wash out this correlation and explain the lack of a strong correlation at lower surface brightness found here. [abridged]

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Cited by in corpus (14)

• A Revised Parallel-Sequence Morphological Classification of Galaxies: Structure and Formation of S0 and Spheroidal Galaxies
• The Burrell Schmidt Deep Virgo Survey: Tidal Debris, Galaxy Halos, and Diffuse Intracluster Light in the Virgo Cluster
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• The Cluster Velocity Dispersion of the Abell 2199 cD Halo of NGC 6166
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• Quantifying the Origin and Distribution of Intracluster Light in a Fornax-like Cluster
• Diffuse Light in Galaxy Clusters