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P.R. Durrell, R. Ciardullo (PSU), J.J. Feldmeier (CWRU), G.H. Jacoby (NOAO)
Deep HST F814W images of a field in the Virgo cluster (41\prime from M87; within sub-clump A) have been obtained as part of a study of the intracluster (IC) star population. The luminosity function of the stellar objects in the data reaches Ilim~27.5, showing an excess of objects (above that of the background HDF-N and HDF-S fields) with I>27, a feature we attribute to IC stars in the Virgo cluster. We find more IC stars than found by Ferguson et al. (1998) in a field located further from the cluster core region. We will be comparing our results with the observed number of previously discovered intracluster planetary nebulae in both fields, and we will also present preliminary results on the nature of the IC stars based on the RGB tip location.
This research is supported by grants NAG5-9377 and HST-GO-08337.01-A.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: pdurrell@astro.psu.edu