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A stellar overdensity associated with the Small Magellanic Cloud

Pieres, A; Santiago, BX; Drlica-Wagner, A; Bechtol, K; Marel, RPVD; Besla, G; Martin, NF; ... Wester, W; + view all (2017) A stellar overdensity associated with the Small Magellanic Cloud. Mon Not R Astron Soc , 468 (2) pp. 1349-1360. 10.1093/mnras/stx507. Green open access

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Abstract

We report the discovery of a stellar overdensity 8° north of the centre of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC; Small Magellanic Cloud Northern Over-Density; SMCNOD), using data from the first 2 yr of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and the first year of the MAGellanic SatelLITEs Survey (MagLiteS). The SMCNOD is indistinguishable in age, metallicity and distance from the nearby SMC stars, being primarily composed of intermediate-age stars (6 Gyr, Z=0.001), with a small fraction of young stars (1 Gyr, Z=0.01). The SMCNOD has an elongated shape with an ellipticity of 0.6 and a size of ∼ 6° × 2°. It has an absolute magnitude of MV ≅ −7.7, rh = 2.1 kpc, and μV(r < rh) = 31.2 mag arcsec−2. We estimate a stellar mass of ∼105 M⊙, following a Kroupa mass function. The SMCNOD was probably removed from the SMC disc by tidal stripping, since it is located near the head of the Magellanic Stream, and the literature indicates likely recent Large Magellanic Cloud-SMC encounters. This scenario is supported by the lack of significant H i gas. Other potential scenarios for the SMCNOD origin are a transient overdensity within the SMC tidal radius or a primordial SMC satellite in advanced stage of disruption.

Type: Article
Title: A stellar overdensity associated with the Small Magellanic Cloud
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stx507
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stx507
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Galaxies, interactions, Magellanic Clouds
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Physics and Astronomy
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1540487
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