The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. XXXIV. Ultra-Compact Dwarf (UCD) Galaxies in the Virgo Cluster

Abstract

We present a study of ultra compact dwarf (UCD) galaxies in the Virgo cluster based mainly on imaging from the Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). Using $\sim$100 deg${}^2$ of $u^{\ast }giz$ imaging, we have identified more than 600 candidate UCDs, from the core of Virgo out to its virial radius. Candidates have been selected through a combination of magnitudes, ellipticities, colors, surface brightnesses, half-light radii and, when available, radial velocities. Candidates were also visually validated from deep NGVS images. Subsamples of varying completeness and purity have been defined to explore the properties of UCDs and compare to those of globular clusters and the nuclei of dwarf galaxies with the aim of delineating the nature and origins of UCDs. From a surface density map, we find the UCDs to be mostly concentrated within Virgo's main subclusters, around its brightest galaxies. We identify several subsamples of UCDs -- i.e., the brightest, largest, and those with the most pronounced and/or asymmetric envelopes -- that could hold clues to the origin of UCDs and possible evolutionary links with dwarf nuclei. We find some evidence for such a connection from the existence of diffuse envelopes around some UCDs, and comparisons of radial distributions of UCDs and nucleated galaxies within the cluster.

arXiv comment70 pages, 24 figures, 6 tables, accepted for publication in ApJS

References in corpus (130)

• Maps of Dust IR Emission for Use in Estimation of Reddening and CMBR Foregrounds
• The UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey (UKIDSS)
• The SIMBAD astronomical database
• The Optical and Near-Infrared Properties of Galaxies: I. Luminosity and Stellar Mass Functions
• The EAGLE simulations of galaxy formation: calibration of subgrid physics and model variations
• From dwarf spheroidals to cDs: Simulating the galaxy population in a LCDM cosmology
• A 2MASS All-Sky View of the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy: I. Morphology of the Sagittarius Core and Tidal Arms
• Gaia Data Release 2: Photometric content and validation
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. XIII. SBF Distance Catalog and the Three-Dimensional Structure of the Virgo Cluster
• The Fourteenth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data from the extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey and from the second phase of the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. VI. Isophotal Analysis and the Structure of Early-Type Galaxies
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. VIII. The Nuclei of Early-Type Galaxies
• The ACS Fornax Cluster Survey. V. Measurement and Recalibration of Surface Brightness Fluctuations and a Precise Value of the Fornax--Virgo Relative Distance
• Detection of massive tidal tails around the globular cluster Pal 5 with SDSS commissioning data
• The Hubble Space Telescope UV Legacy Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters. IX. The Atlas of Multiple Stellar Populations
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey IX: The Color Distributions of Globular Cluster Systems in Early-Type Galaxies
• Formation of omega Centauri from an ancient nucleated dwarf galaxy in the young Galactic disc
• Gaia Data Release 3 Properties and validation of the radial velocities
• Modeling the Metallicity Distribution of Globular Clusters
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. XII. The Luminosity Function of Globular Clusters in Early Type Galaxies
• New Insights from HST Studies of Globular Cluster Systems I: Colors, Distances and Specific Frequencies of 28 Elliptical Galaxies
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. I. Introduction to the Survey
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. VII. Resolving the Connection Between Globular Clusters and Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxies
• A class of compact dwarf galaxies from disruptive processes in galaxy clusters
• A Supermassive Black Hole in an Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxy
• Compact Stellar Systems in the Fornax Cluster: Super-massive Star Clusters or Extremely Compact Dwarf Galaxies?
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey X. Half-light Radii of Globular Clusters in Early-Type Galaxies: Environmental Dependencies and a Standard Ruler for Distance Estimation
• What is a globular cluster? An observational perspective
• The central region of the Fornax cluster -- II. Spectroscopy and radial velocities of member and background galaxies
• Galaxies with Wolf-Rayet signatures in the low-redshift Universe - A survey using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• The nucleus of the Sagittarius dSph galaxy and M54: a window on the process of galaxy nucleation
• Globular Cluster Systems I: V-I Color Distributions
• "Galaxy," Defined
• Galaxies at the extremes: Ultra-diffuse galaxies in the Virgo Cluster
• Gaia Data Release 2: Properties and validation of the radial velocities
• Galaxy threshing and the origin of ultra-compact dwarf galaxies in the Fornax cluster
• The Formation of Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxies
• The Relationships Among Compact Stellar Systems: A Fresh View of Ultra Compact Dwarfs
• Dynamics of the Globular Cluster System Associated with M49 (NGC4472): Cluster Orbital Properties and the Distribution of Dark Matter
• Globular Cluster Streams as Galactic High-Precision Scales - The Poster Child Palomar 5
• The AIMSS Project I: Bridging the Star Cluster - Galaxy Divide
• Galaxy threshing and the formation of ultra-compact dwarf galaxies
• Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxies in the Fornax Cluster
• The SLUGGS Survey: Kinematics for over 2500 Globular Clusters in Twelve Early-type Galaxies
• Wide-Field Precision Kinematics of the M87 Globular Cluster System
• Tidal Tails of Star Clusters
• The ACS Fornax Cluster Survey. VIII. The Luminosity Function of Globular Clusters in Virgo and Fornax Early-Type Galaxies and its Use as a Distance Indicator
• Gaia Data Release 2: processing of the photometric data
• Internal Properties of Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxies in the Virgo Cluster
• The GALEX Ultraviolet Virgo Cluster Survey (GUViCS). IV: The role of the cluster environment on galaxy evolution
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. VIII. The Spatial Distribution of Globular Clusters in the Virgo Cluster
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. XXIII. Fundamentals of nuclear star clusters over seven decades in galaxy mass
• A new population of extended, luminous star clusters in the halo of M31
• Ultra compact dwarf galaxy formation by tidal stripping of nucleated dwarf galaxies
• A Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE).I. Introduction to the Survey
• The outer halo globular cluster system of M31 - I. The final PAndAS catalogue
• Globular clusters and the formation of the outer Galactic halo
• Spectroscopic metallicities for Fornax UCDs, GCs and dE,Ns
• Ultra Compact Objects in the Fornax Cluster of Galaxies: Globular clusters or dwarf galaxies?
• Fornax compact object survey FCOS: On the nature of Ultra Compact Dwarf galaxies
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey XI. The Nature of Diffuse Star Clusters in Early-Type Galaxies
• Contribution of stripped nuclear clusters to globular cluster and ultra-compact dwarf galaxy populations
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). XVIII. Measurement and Calibration of Surface Brightness Fluctuation Distances for Bright Galaxies in Virgo (and Beyond)
• Dark Matter in Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies in the Virgo Cluster from their Globular Cluster Populations
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. VI. The Kinematics of Ultra-compact Dwarfs and Globular Clusters in M87
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey - Infrared (NGVS-IR): I. A new Near-UV/Optical/Near-IR Globular Cluster selection tool
• Detection of Supermassive Black Holes in Two Virgo Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxies
• Discovery of Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxies in the Virgo Cluster
• The Densest Galaxy
• Low-mass X-ray binaries indicate a top-heavy stellar initial mass function in ultra compact dwarf galaxies
• The Ubiquity and Dual Nature of Ultra Compact Dwarfs
• A Spectroscopic Analysis of the Galactic Globular Cluster NGC 6273 (M19)
• The Outer Envelopes of Globular Clusters. II. NGC 1851, NGC 5824 and NGC 1261
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). XIII. The Luminosity and Mass Function of Galaxies in the Core of the Virgo Cluster and the Contribution from Disrupted Satellites
• The Black Hole in the Most Massive Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxy M59-UCD3
• The specific frequencies of ultra-compact dwarf galaxies
• A 3.5-million Solar Masses Black Hole in the Centre of the Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxy Fornax UCD3
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. X. Properties of Ultra-Compact Dwarfs in the M87, M49 and M60 Regions
• The AIMSS Project III: The Stellar Populations of Compact Stellar Systems
• SDSSJ124155.33+114003.7 -- a Missing Link Between Compact Elliptical and Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxies
• On the origin of the stellar halo and multiple stellar populations in the globular cluster NGC 1851
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. XII. Stellar Populations and Kinematics of Compact, Low-Mass Early-Type Galaxies from Gemini GMOS-IFU Spectroscopy
• The Outer Envelopes of Globular Clusters. I. NGC 7089 (M2)
• Two formation channels of UCDs in Hickson Compact Groups
• Scl-dE1 GC1: An Extended Globular Cluster in a Low-Luminosity Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy
• Virgo Redux: The Masses and Stellar Content of Nuclei in Early-Type Galaxies from Multi-Band Photometry and Spectroscopy
• A search for ultra-compact dwarf galaxies in the Centaurus galaxy cluster
• Ultra-Compact Dwarfs in the Coma Cluster
• Dynamics of the Globular Cluster System Associated with M87 (NGC 4486). I. New CFHT MOS Spectroscopy and the Composite Database
• Extended Star Clusters in the Remote Halo of the Intriguing Dwarf Galaxy NGC 6822
• The SLUGGS Survey: New evidence for a tidal interaction between the early type galaxies NGC 4365 and NGC 4342
• Constraining ultra-compact dwarf galaxy formation with galaxy clusters in the local universe
• Ultra Compact Dwarf galaxies in Abell 1689: a photometric study with the ACS
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. VII. The intrinsic shapes of low-luminosity galaxies in the core of the Virgo cluster, and a comparison with the Local Group
• Globular cluster clustering and tidal features around ultra compact dwarf galaxies in the halo of NGC1399
• The AIMSS Project II: Dynamical-to-Stellar Mass Ratios Across the Star Cluster - Galaxy Divide
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). XXIV. The Red Sequence to $\sim$10${}^6$ L${}_{\odot }$ and Comparisons with Galaxy Formation Models
• Searches for Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxies in Galaxy Groups
• Discovery of two M32 twins in Abell 1689
• The SLUGGS Survey: a catalog of over 4000 globular cluster radial velocities in 27 nearby early-type galaxies
• Ultra-Compact Dwarfs in the Core of the Coma Cluster
• A Catalog of Bright Star Clusters in the Interacting Galaxy M51
• Nuclei of early-type dwarf galaxies: are they progenitors of UCDs?
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS) XXXI. The kinematics of intra-cluster globular clusters in the core of the Virgo cluster
• Hubble Space Telescope survey of the Perseus Cluster -IV: Compact stellar systems in the Perseus Cluster core and Ultra Compact Dwarf formation in star forming filaments
• UCD Candidates in the Hydra Cluster
• A Gaia-based catalog of candidate stripped nuclei and luminous globular clusters in the halo of Centaurus A
• The Most Massive Ultra-Compact Dwarf Galaxy in the Virgo Cluster
• Deep Chandra Monitoring Observations of NGC 4649: II. Wide-Field Hubble Space Telescope Imaging of the Globular Clusters
• Stellar Population Properties of Ultracompact Dwarfs in M87: a Mass-metallicity Correlation Connecting Low-metallicity Globular Clusters and Compact Ellipticals
• How elevated is the dynamical-to-stellar mass ratio of the ultra-compact dwarf S999?
• The Next Generation Virgo cluster Survey (NGVS). XXV. Fiducial panchromatic colors of Virgo core globular clusters and their comparison to model predictions
• To the Edge of M87 and Beyond: Spectroscopy of Intracluster Globular Clusters and Ultra Compact Dwarfs in the Virgo Cluster
• NGC 3628-UCD1: A possible $\omega$ Cen Analog Embedded in a Stellar Stream
• Hiding in plain sight: record-breaking compact stellar systems in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• The SLUGGS Survey: HST/ACS Mosaic Imaging of the NGC 3115 Globular Cluster System
• Ultra compact dwarfs in the Perseus Cluster: UCD formation via tidal stripping
• A metal-poor ultra compact dwarf galaxy at a kiloparsec distance from the low-mass elliptical galaxy FCC47
• A SLUGGS and Gemini/GMOS combined study of the elliptical galaxy M60: wide-field photometry and kinematics of the globular cluster system
• New Constraints on a complex relation between globular cluster colors and environment
• The Second Nucleus of NGC 7727: Direct Evidence for the Formation and Evolution of an Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxy
• Ultra-Compact Dwarf Candidates Near the Lensing Galaxy in Abell S0740
• Ultra-Compact Dwarfs in the Fossil Group NGC 1132
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey XVI. The Angular Momentum of Dwarf Early-Type Galaxies from Globular Cluster Satellites
• A Gemini/GMOS study of the bright elliptical galaxy NGC 3613 and its globular cluster system
• SUBARU Spectroscopy of the Globular Clusters in the Virgo Giant Elliptical Galaxy M86
• First confirmed ultra-compact dwarf galaxy in the NGC 5044 group
• The ACS Fornax Cluster Survey. XII. Diffuse Star Clusters in Early-type Galaxies
• A census of ultra-compact dwarf galaxies in nearby galaxy clusters
• A search for ultra-compact dwarf galaxies in the NGC 1023 group of galaxies

Cited by in corpus (23)

• Structure and morphology of the MATLAS dwarf galaxies and their central nuclei
• Dwarf galaxies in the MATLAS survey: Hubble Space Telescope observations of the globular cluster system in the ultra-diffuse galaxy MATLAS-2019
• Euclid: Early Release Observations -- Dwarf galaxies in the Perseus galaxy cluster
• An evolutionary continuum from nucleated dwarf galaxies to star clusters
• A Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE).XIV. The main sequence relation in a rich environment down to M_star ~ 10^6 Mo
• CatNorth: An Improved Gaia DR3 Quasar Candidate Catalog with Pan-STARRS1 and CatWISE
• Euclid: Early Release Observations -- Globular clusters in the Fornax galaxy cluster, from dwarf galaxies to the intracluster field
• Euclid: Early Release Observations -- Overview of the Perseus cluster and analysis of its luminosity and stellar mass functions
• The CatSouth Quasar Candidate Catalog for the Southern Sky and a Unified All-Sky Catalog Based on Gaia DR3
• Euclid preparation. LVIII. Detecting globular clusters in the Euclid survey
• Discovery of a Bimodal Environmental Distribution of Compact Ellipticals in the Local Universe
• Testing the tidal stripping scenario of ultra-compact dwarf galaxy formation by using internal properties
• The Jiao Tong University Spectroscopic Telescope Project
• Black Hole Scaling Relations in the Dwarf-galaxy Regime with $Gaia$-Sausage/Enceladus and $\omega$Centauri
• The creation of a massive UCD by tidal threshing from NGC 936
• The ViCTORIA project: description of a multi-frequency radio survey of the Virgo galaxy cluster
• The Color Gradients of the Globular Cluster Systems in M87 and M49
• A Wide Field Map of Ultra-Compact Dwarfs in the Coma Cluster
• Dwarf galaxies in the MATLAS Survey: Hubble Space Telescope observations of nuclear star clusters
• Galaxy mass dependence of metal-enrichment of nuclear star clusters
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). XL. The Morphological Classification of Virgo Cluster Galaxies
• Compact [OIII] emission-line regions ("Green Seeds") in $\mathrm{H}\alpha$ emitters at Cosmic Noon from JWST Observations
• Photometric properties of nuclear star clusters and their host galaxies in the Fornax cluster