Dust patches in globular clusters

Abstract

view Abstract Citations (18) References (29) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Dust patches in globular clusters. Kanagy, S. P. ; Wyatt, S. P. Abstract Previous observations of dark regions in globular star clusters are briefly reviewed, and three high-galactic-latitude globular clusters containing previously reported dark regions (M3, M13, and M15) are examined quantitatively by means of calibrated UBVR photography. A total of five dark regions are studied; extinctions are estimated and evaluated as a function of position in the most prominent dark patches or lanes. Values of R not far from 3 are obtained, indicating that the behavior of the obscuring material is apparently consistent with that of normal interstellar dust grains. Three possible explanations of the dark regions are considered, and an interpretation based on the obscuring effects of intracluster dust clouds is assumed. It is suggested that typical cloud masses are of the order of 0.003 solar mass and that the dust grains originate from the heavy elements involved in the gaseous mass loss from the few hundred cluster stars that at any moment are passing through late phases in their evolution. It is noted that the total grain mass in a globular cluster is reasonably consistent with the production rate in the outer atmospheres of globular-cluster red giants. Publication: The Astronomical Journal Pub Date: July 1978 DOI: 10.1086/112260 Bibcode: 1978AJ.....83..779K Keywords: Astronomical Photometry; Cosmic Dust; Galactic Evolution; Globular Clusters; Star Clusters; Granular Materials; Interstellar Extinction; Star Distribution; Astrophysics; Dust:Globular Clusters; Globular Clusters:Multicolor Photometry full text sources ADS |