Stellar Populations and Mass-Loss in M15: A Spitzer Detection of Dust in the Intra-Cluster Medium

Abstract

We present Spitzer Space Telescope IRAC and MIPS observations of the galactic globular cluster M15 (NGC 7078), one of the most metal-poor clusters with a [Fe/H] = -2.4. Our Spitzer images reveal a population of dusty red giants near the cluster center, a previously detected planetary nebula (PN) designated K648, and a possible detection of the intra-cluster medium (ICM) arising from mass loss episodes from the evolved stellar population. Our analysis suggests 9 (+/-2) x 10^-4 solar masses of dust is present in the core of M15, and this material has accumulated over a period of approximately 10^6 years, a timescale ten times shorter than the last galactic plane crossing event. We also present Spitzer IRS follow up observations of K648, including the detection of the [NeII] 12.81 micron line, and discuss abundances derived from infrared fine structure lines.

arXiv commentAccepted for publication in AJ. 20 pages, 10 figures, 6 tables. Full resolution versions of figures 1, 5, 7, and 8 are available in a PDF version of this manuscript at http://ir.astro.umn.edu/~mboyer/ms_060906.pdf

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Cited by in corpus (40)

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• Giants in the globular cluster omega Centauri: dust production, mass loss and distance
• An Infrared Census of DUST in Nearby Galaxies with Spitzer (DUSTiNGS), II. Discovery of Metal-poor Dusty AGB Stars
• Dust, pulsation, chromospheres and their role in driving mass loss from red giants in Galactic globular clusters
• Fast Winds and Mass Loss from Metal-Poor Field Giants
• A Spitzer Space Telescope Atlas of omega Centauri: The Stellar Population, Mass Loss, and the Intracluster Medium
• A Spitzer Study of Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars. III. Dust Production and Gas Return in Local Group Dwarf Irregular Galaxies
• Dust production and mass loss in the Galactic globular cluster 47 Tucanae
• Mass Outflow from Red Giant Stars in M13, M15, and M92
• A spectral atlas of post-main-sequence stars in omega Centauri: kinematics, evolution, enrichment and interstellar medium
• Internal gas models and central black hole in 47 Tucanae using millisecond pulsars
• Is Dust Forming on the Red Giant Branch in 47 Tuc?
• Dust Production and Mass Loss in the Galactic Globular Cluster NGC 362
• A Spitzer/IRAC Census of the Asymptotic Giant Branch Populations in Local Group Dwarfs. I. WLM
• Ejection of globular cluster interstellar media through ionization by white dwarfs
• An empirical mass-loss law for Population II giants from the Spitzer-IRAC survey of Galactic globular clusters
• Mass Outflow and Chromospheric Activity of Red Giant Stars in Globular Clusters I: M15
• Mass Outflow and Chromospheric Activity of Red Giant Stars in Globular Clusters II. M13 and M92
• A Spitzer search for cold dust within globular clusters
• Chemical Abundances and Dust in the Halo Planetary Nebula K648 in M15: Its Origin and Evolution based on an Analysis of Multiwavelength Data
• AKARI observations of circumstellar dust in the globular clusters NGC104 and NGC362
• Clearing the Gas from Globular Clusters & Dwarf Spheroidals with Classical Novae
• A peculiar HI cloud near the distant globular cluster Pal 4
• ALMA reveals sunburn: CO dissociation around AGB stars in the globular cluster 47 Tucanae
• Modelling chromospheric line profiles as diagnostics of velocity fields in ω Centauri red giant stars
• Discovery of long-period variable stars in the very-metal-poor globular cluster M15
• The loss of the intra-cluster medium in globular clusters
• Clearing the Dust from Globular Clusters
• An AKARI Search for Intracluster Dust of Globular Clusters
• On the evolution of intra-cluster gas within Galactic globular clusters
• Should I Stay or Should I Go: Stellar Wind Retention and Expulsion in Massive Star Clusters
• A Detailed Study of Giants and Horizontal Branch Stars in M68: Atmospheric Parameters and Chemical Abundances
• Light-element abundance variations in globular clusters
• Variability in Ultra-luminous X-ray Sources
• Comparing Mid-Infrared Globular Cluster Colors With Population Synthesis Models
• Modeling Gas Evacuation Mechanisms in Present-Day Globular Clusters: Stellar Winds from Evolved Stars and Pulsar Heating
• Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars in the Nearby Dwarf Galaxy Leo P
• Different Characteristics of the Bright Branches of the Globular Clusters M3 and M13
• Synthetic extinction maps around intermediate-mass black holes in Galactic globular clusters