Star Clusters in Tidal Debris
Abstract
Tidal tails afford us a unique window into the processes shaping star formation, offering an unobstructed view of the star formation environment in these outskirts. The latest galactic merger simulations are finding an unexpected increase of star formation in extended tidal debris, with 20 - 50% of the systems star formation rate occurring in these regions. We see this observationally in massive clusters forming in the Tadpole galaxy, occupying 30% of the system's star formation rate. These clusters act as luminous tracers of star formation, allowing us to study the star formation history in the tidal debris. We present results from a survey of tidal tails using broadband UBVI data from the Hubble Space Telescope.
- Publication:
-
American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #233
- Pub Date:
- January 2019
- Bibcode:
- 2019AAS...23342903R