Planetary nebula velocities in the disc and bulge of M31

Abstract

We present radial velocities for a sample of 723 planetary nebulae in the disc and bulge of M31, measured using the WYFFOS fibre spectrograph on the William Herschel Telescope. Velocities are determined using the O iii λ5007 emission line. Rotation and velocity dispersion are measured to a radius of 50 arcmin (11.5 kpc), the first stellar rotation curve and velocity dispersion profile for M31 to such a radius. Our kinematics are consistent with rotational support at radii well beyond the bulge effective radius of 1.4 kpc, although our data beyond a radius of 5 kpc are limited. We present tentative evidence for kinematic substructure in the bulge of M31 to be studied fully in a later work. This paper is part of an ongoing project to constrain the total mass, mass distribution and velocity anisotropy of the disc, bulge and halo of M31. © 2006 RAS.