The distance and space distribution of bulge globular clusters
Abstract
We present the distribution of Galactic bulge globular clusters and a method based on simultaneous detection of field and cluster horizontal branches to derive the cluster distances. This method has the advantage of being independent of both reddening and the reddening law, RV = AV/E(B-V). The vast majority of clusters projected in the direction of the Galactic bulge are located on the near side of the Galactic Center. Deviations from the reddening law do not seem to be responsible for this peculiarity. We need to introduce a peculiar, steep dependence of the absolute horizontal-branch magnitude with metallicity in the metal-rich regime if we want to reproduce a symmetrical distribution. Instead, if the observed distribution is correct, we expect a rather large number of bulge globular clusters are still to be discovered.
- Publication:
-
Star Clusters: Basic Galactic Building Blocks Throughout Time and Space
- Pub Date:
- January 2010
- DOI:
- Bibcode:
- 2010IAUS..266...97O
- Keywords:
-
- Galaxy: bulge;
- globular clusters: general;
- Galaxy: structure