2015/12/31 by Dongwon Kim, Helmut Jerjen, Dougal Mackey +4 · 3 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Blue straggler #Cluster (spacecraft) #Constellation #Luminosity #Open cluster #RADIUS #Star cluster #Stars #Stellar population #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph.GA
paper · pdf · doi:10.3847/0004-637x/820/2/119
7 pages, 7 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in the ApJ (w.r.t v1: Figure 1 and the last paragraph of Section 4 updated, minor corrections throughout the text)
arxiv created 2016/02/14 · openalex publication_date 2016/03/29 · arxiv updated 2016/04/13 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
ABSTRACT We report the discovery of an ultra-faint star cluster in the constellation of Centaurus. This new stellar system, Kim 3, features a half-light radius of pc and a total luminosity of M V = +0.7 ± 0.3. Approximately 26 stars are identified as candidate member stars down to four magnitudes below the main-sequence turn-off, which makes Kim 3 the least luminous star cluster known to date. The compact physical size and extreme low luminosity place it close to faint star clusters in the size–luminosity plane. The stellar population of Kim 3 appears to be relatively young ( Gyr) and metal-poor ([Fe/H] ) at a heliocentric distance of kpc. The cluster lacks a well-defined center, and a small but prominent group of stars consistent with the Kim 3 isochrone is present approximately 9.7 pc in projection south of the cluster center. Both are signs of the cluster being in the final stage of tidal disruption.