The ACS Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters. VI. NGC 6366: A Heavily Stripped Galactic Globular Cluster
Anderson, Jay; Dotter, Aaron; Sarajedini, Ata; Bedin, Luigi R.; Reid, I. Neill; Piotto, Giampaolo; Hempel, Maren; Marín-Franch, A.; Chaboyer, Brian; Siegel, Michael; Paust, Nathaniel E. Q.; Aparicio, Antonio; Rosenberg, Alfred; Majewski, Steven; Milone, Antonino
United States, Spain, Italy
Abstract
We have used observations obtained as part of the Hubble Space Telescope/ACS Survey of Galactic globular clusters (GCs) to construct a color-magnitude diagram for the bulge cluster, NGC 6366. The luminosity function derived from those data extends to M F606W ~ 9, or masses of ~0.3 M sun. Unlike most GCs, the mass function peaks near the main-sequence turnoff with significantly fewer low-mass stars even after correction for completeness and mass segregation. Using a multimass King model, we extrapolate the global cluster behavior and find the global mass function to be poorly matched by a power law, with a particular deficit of stars with masses between 0.5 and 0.7 M sun. We briefly discuss this interesting anomaly within the context of tidal stripping.
Based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. These observations are associated with program GO-10775.