Stellar streams reveal the mass loss of globular clusters

TL;DR

This study uses a new particle spray method to analyze globular cluster streams, revealing how their densities relate to the clusters' mass loss rates and identifying key factors influencing this process.

Contribution

It introduces a novel particle spray algorithm to accurately model stream morphology and provides the first catalog of observed GC mass loss rates from Gaia data.

Findings

GC stream density correlates with mass loss rate.

Mass loss rates range from 0.5 to 200 solar masses per Myr.

Positive correlations found between mass loss rate, GC mass, and orbital frequency.

Abstract

Globular cluster (GC) streams, debris of stars that tidally stripped from their progenitor GCs, have densities that correlate positively with the GC mass loss rate. In this work, we employ a novel particle spray algorithm that can accurately reproduce the morphology of streams of various orbital types, enabling us to uncover the relationship between the GC mass loss history and stream density profiles. Using recent discoveries of GC streams from Gaia DR3, we present, for the first time, a catalog of directly observed mass loss rates for 12 Galactic GCs, ranging from 0.5 to 200 $\rm M_\odot\,Myr^{-1}$. By fitting power-law relations between mass loss rate and key GC properties, we identify positive correlations with GC mass and orbital frequency, consistent with the predictions from N-body simulations.