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Ultra-compact oddities are galaxies stripped of stars

Observations have shown that some dwarf galaxies lose their stars through interactions with more massive galaxies. The dense nuclei that remain are ultra-compact dwarf galaxies, the origin of which has long been a subject of debate.
  1. Katja Fahrion

    1. Katja Fahrion is in the Science and Operations Department, European Space Research and Technology Centre, 2201 AZ, Noordwijk, the Netherlands.

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Almost all galaxies are part of larger structures. Our own Galaxy is one of two main galaxies in a collection called the Local Group, but more-distant clusters contain many galaxies, as well as intergalactic gas and dark matter. The Virgo galaxy cluster, for example, hosts more than 1,000 galaxies of various masses and sizes, spread around a massive elliptical galaxy, known as Messier 87, at its core. These cluster environments are extreme, subjecting their dwarf galaxies to processes that are thought to shape their stellar structure profoundly, and affect the galaxies’ evolution. As a remarkable case in point, writing in Nature, Wang et al.1 report observational evidence that Virgo has transformed its dwarf galaxies to a stage at which they are fully stripped — leaving only their dense central star clusters behind.

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Nature 623, 255-256 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-03275-0

References

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Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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