Variable Stars and Stellar Populations in Andromeda XXVII. IV. An Off-centered, Disrupted Galaxy*

Abstract

We present B and V time-series photometry of the M31 satellite galaxy Andromeda XXVII (And XXVII) that we observed with the Large Binocular Cameras of the Large Binocular Telescope. In the field of And XXVII we have discovered a total of 90 variables: 89 RR Lyrae stars and 1 Anomalous Cepheid. The average period of the fundamental mode RR Lyrae stars (RRab) ( σ  = 0.05 day) and the period–amplitude diagram place And XXVII in the class of Oosterhoff I/Intermediate objects. Combining information from the color–magnitude diagram (CMD) and the variable stars, we find evidence for a single old and metal-poor stellar population with [Fe/H] ∼ −1.8 dex and t ∼ 13 Gyr in And XXVII. The spatial distributions of RR Lyrae and red giant branch (RGB) stars give clear indication that And XXVII is a completely disrupted system. This is also supported by the spread observed along the line of sight in the distance to the RR Lyrae stars. The highest concentration of RGB and RR Lyrae stars is found in a circular area of 4 arcmin in radius, centered about 0.°2 in the southeast direction from Richardson et al.’s center coordinates of And XXVII. The CMD of this region is well-defined, with a prominent RGB and 15 RR Lyrae stars (out of the 18 found in the region) tracing a very tight horizontal branch at σ  = 0.06 mag (average over 15 stars). We show that And XXVII is a strong candidate building block of the M31 halo.