The Star Cluster System in the Local Group Starburst Galaxy IC 10

TL;DR

This study surveys star clusters in the halo of the starburst galaxy IC 10, revealing their distribution, ages, and possible formation history, including new clusters and evidence of past interactions.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed UBVRI photometry and age estimates for star clusters in IC 10's halo, highlighting their distribution and potential merger history.

Findings

Five new star clusters discovered in IC 10's halo.

Halo clusters are all older than 1 Gyr, while main body clusters vary in age.

Distribution shows asymmetry and possible past merger or tidal interactions.

Abstract

We present a survey of star clusters in the halo of IC 10, a starburst galaxy in the Local Group based on Subaru R band images and NOAO Local Group Survey UBVRI images. We find five new star clusters. All these star clusters are located far from the center of IC 10, while previously known star clusters are mostly in the main body. Interestingly the distribution of these star clusters shows an asymmetrical structure elongated along the east and south-west direction. We derive UBVRI photometry of 66 star clusters including these new star clusters as well as previously known star clusters. Ages of the star clusters are estimated from the comparison of their UBVRI spectral energy distribution with the simple stellar population models. We find that the star clusters in the halo are all older than 1 Gyr, while those in the main body have various ages from very young (several Myr) to old (>1 Gyr). The young clusters (<10 Myr) are mostly located in the H{\alpha} emission regions and are concentrated on a small region at 2' in the south-east direction from the galaxy center, while the old clusters are distributed in a wider area than the disk. Intermediate-age clusters (~100 Myr) are found in two groups. One is close to the location of the young clusters and the other is at ~4' from the location of the young clusters. The latter may be related with past merger or tidal interaction.