Related papers: The Distance to the M31 Globular Cluster System
Globular clusters at the distance of M31 have apparent angular sizes of a few arcseconds. While many M31 GCs have been detected and studied from ground-based images, the high spatial resolution of HST allows much more robust detection and…
The most common methods to derive the distance to globular clusters using RR Lyrae variables are reviewed, with a special attention to those that have experienced significant improvement in the past few years. From the weighted average of…
Six different distance determination methods of Virgo cluster members yield a mean distance modulus of (m-M)^0(Virgo) = 31.60 +/- 0.09 (20.9 +/- 0.9 Mpc). This value can be carried out to > 10,000 km/s by means of 31 clusters whose…
We searched the Sloan Digital Sky Survey for outer halo globular clusters (GCs) around M31. Our search of non-stellar objects, within the limits 0.3 < (g-i)o < 1.5 and 14.0 < ro < 19.0 concentrated in some remote areas of the extended halo,…
The cosmic distance scale largely depends on distance determinations to Local Group galaxies. In this sense, the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is a key rung to better constrain the cosmic distance ladder. A project was started in 1999 to firmly…
Distances to galaxies in the Local Group are reviewed. In particular, the distance to the Large Magellanic Cloud is found to be $(m-M)_0 = 18.52 \pm 0.10$, corresponding to $50,600 \pm 2,400$ pc. The importance of M31 as an analog of the…
Thanks to the outstanding capabilites of the HST, our current knowledge about the M31 globular clusters (GCs) is similar to our knowledge of the Milky Way GCs in the 1960s-1970s, which set the basis for studying the halo and galaxy…
We use recently updated globular cluster distances to estimate the distance to the Galactic centre, finding 7.4 \pm 0.2|stat \pm 0.2|sys kpc from symmetry considerations. We recalibrate the red clump magnitude from Hipparcos stars, finding…
The accuracy of extragalactic distance measurements ultimately depends on robust, high-precision determinations of the distances to the galaxies in the local volume. Following our detailed study addressing possible publication bias in the…
I derive an upper limit to the distance to SN 1987A of $\dsn<46.77\pm 0.76\,\kpc$, or a distance modulus $\mu_\sn<18.350\pm 0.035$. If SN 1987A lies in the plane of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and hence 500 pc in front of the LMC…
Following an approach by Paczy\'nski & Stanek we compare red clump stars with parallaxes known to better than 10% in the Hipparcos catalog with the red clump stars observed in three fields in M31 using the HST. There are $\sim 600$ and…
Accurate distances are key to obtaining intrinsic properties of astronomical objects such as luminosity or size. Globular clusters (GCs) follow a well-defined relation between their absolute magnitudes and internal stellar velocity…
The dynamical evolution of the globular cluster systems in galaxies is predicted, based on the standard dynamical theory normalized to the example of the Milky Way. The major processes varying with the galactocentric distance are the tidal…
The distance of the Virgo cluster is derived in the B band from the 21 cm-line width-absolute magnitude relation. The latter is calibrated using 18 spirals with Cepheid distances mainly from HST. The calibration is applied to a complete…
A new population of extended, luminous globular clusters has recently been discovered in the outskirts of M31. These objects have luminosities typical of classical globular clusters, but much larger half-light radii. We report the first…
We present the discovery of four remote star clusters in M33, one of which is of an extended nature. Three of the clusters were discovered using survey data from the Isaac Newton Telescope Wide-Field Camera while one was discovered…
In this paper we present a data analysis regarding globular clusters as possible extragalactic distance indicators. For this purpose, we collected all velocity dispersion measurements published for galactic and M31 globular clusters. The…
We present internal velocity dispersion determinations from high-resolution spectroscopic observations of a sample of nine globular clusters in M31. Comprehensive numerical simulations are used to show that the typical uncertainty of our…
We present a progress report of our wide field CCD survey of globular clusters in M31. We have covered 3 deg X 3 deg area centered on M31, using the KPNO 0.9m and Washington CMT1 filters. Our survey is much deeper and more sensitive than…
We present the first results of a large spectroscopic survey of candidate globular clusters located in the extreme outskirts of the nearby M31 galaxy. We obtained low resolution spectra of 48 targets selected from the XSC of 2MASS, as in…