PFLEIDERER 2: IDENTIFICATION OF A NEW GLOBULAR CLUSTER IN THE GALAXY

Abstract

We provide evidence that indicates the star cluster Pfleiderer 2, which is projected in a rich field, as a newly identified Galactic globular cluster. Since it is located in a crowded field, core extraction and decontamination tools were applied to reveal the cluster sequences in B, V, and I color-magnitude diagrams (CMDs). The main CMD features of Pfleiderer 2 are a tilted red giant branch and a red horizontal branch, indicating a high metallicity around solar. The reddening is E(B - V) = 1.01. The globular cluster is located at a distance of d sun = 16 ± 2 kpc from the Sun. The cluster is located 2.7 kpc above the Galactic plane and at a distance of R GC = 9.7 kpc from the Galactic center, which is unusual for a metal-rich globular cluster.Based on observations made with the Italian Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG) operated on the island of La Palma, by the Fundación Galileo Galilei of INAF (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica) at the Spanish Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias.