To the Edge of M87 and Beyond: Spectroscopy of Intracluster Globular Clusters and Ultra Compact Dwarfs in the Virgo Cluster

TL;DR

This study uses spectroscopy to analyze intracluster globular clusters and ultra-compact dwarfs in the Virgo Cluster, revealing their distribution, velocities, and origins, and confirming their association with galaxy stripping processes.

Contribution

First spectroscopic survey of Virgo IGCs and UCDs, identifying their velocities, distribution, and origins, providing new insights into cluster dynamics and galaxy interactions.

Findings

Identified 46 genuine intracluster GCs in Virgo.

Discovered bimodal velocity distribution of IGCs.

Confirmed IGCs are mostly stripped from dwarf and massive galaxies.

Abstract

We present the results from a wide-field spectroscopic survey of globular clusters (GCs) in the Virgo Cluster. We obtain spectra for 201 GCs and 55 ultracompact dwarfs (UCDs) using the Hectospec on the Multiple Mirror Telescope, and derive their radial velocities. We identify 46 genuine intracluster GCs (IGCs), not associated with any Virgo galaxies, using the 3D GMM test on the spatial and radial velocity distribution.They are located at the projected distance 200 kpc $\lesssim$ R $\lesssim$ 500 kpc from the center of M87. The radial velocity distribution of these IGCs shows two peaks, one at $v_{\rm r}$ = 1023 km s$^{-1}$ associated with the Virgo main body, and another at $v_{\rm r}$ = 36 km s$^{-1}$ associated with the infalling structure. The velocity dispersion of the IGCs in the Virgo main body is $\sigma_{\rm{GC}} \sim$ 314 km s$^{-1}$, which is smoothly connected to the velocity dispersion profile of M87 GCs, but much lower than that of dwarf galaxies in the same survey field, $\sigma_{\rm{dwarf}} \sim$ 608 km s$^{-1}$. The UCDs are more centrally concentrated on massive galaxies, M87, M86, and M84. The radial velocity dispersion of the UCD system is much smaller than that of dwarf galaxies. Our results confirm the large-scale distribution of Virgo IGCs indicated by previous photometric surveys. The color distribution of the confirmed IGCs shows a bimodality similar to that of M87 GCs. This indicates that most IGCs are stripped off from dwarf galaxies and some from massive galaxies in the Virgo.