Globular Cluster Counts around 700 Nearby Galaxies

Abstract

Empirically, the total number (or total mass) of globular clusters bound in a single galactic system correlates with the viral mass of the system. The form of this relation and its intrinsic scatter are potentially valuable constraints on theories of globular cluster formation and galaxy evolution. In this work, we use the DESI Legacy Imaging Survey to make a large-scale, homogeneous estimate of GC abundance around 707 galaxies at distances $\lesssim 30\mathrm{Mpc}$ with luminosities $8\le {\log }_{10}L/{\mathrm{L}}_{\odot }\le 11.5$. The combination of depth and sky coverage in DESI-LS allow us to extend the techniques used by previous ground-based photometric GC surveys to a larger and potentially more representative sample of galaxies. We find average GC counts and radial profiles that are broadly consistent with the literature on individual galaxies, including good agreement with the distribution of GCs in the Milky Way, demonstrating the viability of DESI-LS images for this purpose. We find a relation between GC counts and virial mass in agreement with previous estimates based on heterogenous datasets, except at the lowest masses we probe, where we find a larger scatter in the number of cluster candidates and a slightly higher average count.

Accepted for publication in ApJ

References in corpus (70)

• SciPy 1.0--Fundamental Algorithms for Scientific Computing in Python
• Astropy: A Community Python Package for Astronomy
• The NumPy array: a structure for efficient numerical computation
• Gaia Data Release 2. Summary of the contents and survey properties
• Planck 2013 results. XVI. Cosmological parameters
• LSST: from Science Drivers to Reference Design and Anticipated Data Products
• The Optical and Near-Infrared Properties of Galaxies: I. Luminosity and Stellar Mass Functions
• Overview of the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys
• The hierarchical formation of the brightest cluster galaxies
• Galactic star formation and accretion histories from matching galaxies to dark matter haloes
• Young massive star clusters
• A Comprehensive Analysis of Uncertainties Affecting the Stellar Mass - Halo Mass Relation for 0<z<4
• How do galaxies populate Dark Matter halos?
• Star Clusters Across Cosmic Time
• EMERGE - An empirical model for the formation of galaxies since $z\sim 10$
• Accurate distances to Galactic globular clusters through a combination of Gaia EDR3, HST and literature data
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey XV. The Formation Efficiencies of Globular Clusters in Early-Type Galaxies: The Effects of Mass and Environment
• Modeling the Metallicity Distribution of Globular Clusters
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. XII. The Luminosity Function of Globular Clusters in Early Type Galaxies
• Formation of globular clusters in hierarchical cosmology
• Globular clusters as the relics of regular star formation in 'normal' high-redshift galaxies
• A Catalog of Globular Cluster Systems: What Determines the Size of a Galaxy's Globular Cluster Population?
• DESI Bright Galaxy Survey: Final Target Selection, Design, and Validation
• Kraken reveals itself -- the merger history of the Milky Way reconstructed with the E-MOSAICS simulations
• The E-MOSAICS Project: simulating the formation and co-evolution of galaxies and their star cluster populations
• The Globular Cluster System of NGC 1399. I. A Wide-field Photometric Study
• The SAGES Legacy Unifying Globulars and GalaxieS Survey (SLUGGS): Sample definition, methods, and initial results
• The Colors of Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy Globular Cluster Systems, Nuclei and Stellar Halos
• A New Method for Estimating Dark Matter Halo Masses using Globular Cluster Systems
• Wide-Field Precision Kinematics of the M87 Globular Cluster System
• Globular Cluster Systems in Nearby Dwarf Galaxies: III. Formation Efficiencies of Old Globular Clusters
• The formation and hierarchical assembly of globular cluster populations
• Galactic Dark Matter Halos and Globular Cluster Populations. III: Extension to Extreme Environments
• New Colour-Mass to Light Relations: the role of the Asymptotic Giant Branch phase and of interstellar dust
• Cosmicflows-4
• The E-MOSAICS project: tracing galaxy formation and assembly with the age-metallicity distribution of globular clusters
• Satellite abundances around bright isolated galaxies
• Extending the Globular Cluster System-Halo Mass Relation to the Lowest Galaxy Masses
• Dark Matter Halos in Galaxies and Globular Cluster Populations
• The Globular Cluster Systems of Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies in the Coma Cluster
• The outer halo globular cluster system of M31 - I. The final PAndAS catalogue
• Globular clusters indicate ultra diffuse galaxies are dwarfs
• The Globular Cluster Luminosity Function and Specific Frequency in Dwarf Elliptical Galaxies
• Dynamical Evolution of Globular Clusters in Hierarchical Cosmology
• Dark Matter Halos in Galaxies and Globular Cluster Populations. II: Metallicity and Morphology
• Mapping the Dark Side with DEIMOS: Globular Clusters, X-ray Gas, and Dark Matter in the NGC 1407 Group
• Globular Cluster Systems in Brightest Cluster Galaxies: A Near-Universal Luminosity Function?
• High-Precision Dark Halo Virial Masses from Globular Cluster Numbers: Implications for Globular Cluster Formation and Galaxy Assembly
• Exploring the Properties of the M31 Halo Globular Cluster System
• The Globular Cluster - Dark Matter Halo Connection
• ELVES II: GCs and Nuclear Star Clusters of Dwarf Galaxies; The Importance of Environment
• Origins of scaling relations of globular cluster systems
• Nitrogen enrichment and clustered star formation at the dawn of the Galaxy
• Unveiling the Milky Way: A New Technique for Determining the Optical Color and Luminosity of our Galaxy
• DESI Observations of the Andromeda Galaxy: Revealing the Immigration History of our Nearest Neighbor
• Globular Clusters and Dark Satellite Galaxies through the Stream Velocity
• Satellite Galaxy Number Density Profiles in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• Globular Clusters Formed within Dark Halos I: present-day abundance, distribution and kinematics
• NGC 5128 globular cluster candidates out to 150 kpc: a comprehensive catalog from Gaia and ground based data
• Formation of globular clusters in dwarf galaxies of the Local Group
• Spectroscopic Confirmation of the Sixth Globular Cluster in the Fornax Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy
• The initial mass spectrum of old globular clusters in dwarf galaxies
• Colour gradients of low-redshift galaxies in the DESI Legacy Imaging Survey
• Rubin Observatory LSST Stars Milky Way and Local Volume Star Clusters Roadmap
• Galaxy assembly revealed by globular clusters
• Young Massive Clusters: Their Population Properties, Formation and Evolution, and Their Relation to the Ancient Globular Clusters
• The large-scale structure of globular clusters in the NGC 1052 group
• PHANGS-HST: Globular Cluster Systems in 17 Nearby Spiral Galaxies
• New Globular Cluster Candidates in the M81 group
• Star Clusters in Pseudo-Bulges of Spiral Galaxies

Cited by in corpus (5)

• The mysterious Globular Cluster population of MATLAS-2019
• Massive Star Clusters in the Semi-Analytical Galaxy Formation Model L-Galaxies 2020
• Globular clusters in M104: Tracing kinematics and metallicities from the centre to the halo
• Evidence for the First Globular Cluster Stellar Stream beyond the Milky Way
• Fuzzy dark matter dynamical friction: stalling of globular clusters induced by dynamical heatings