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M. Yukita (SAO), R.E. Kilgard (SAO/University of Leicester), A.H. Prestwich (SAO)
We observed two rich LMC star clusters, NGC 1818 and NGC 1831, using the Chandra X-ray Observatory. These clusters are similar to but not quite as massive as super star clusters found in starburst and star forming galaxies. For NGC 1818, we found 1, 4, and 15 sources within 1, 3 and 5 half-mass radii. For NGC 1831, we found 2,9, and 15 sources within 1, 3 and 5 half-mass radii. The X-ray emission from these sources is most likely derived from the colliding winds of two main sequence or giant stars. We did not find any X-ray sources unambiguously identified as classical high-mass X-ray binaries. If such sources formed early in the lifetime of the clusters they were most probably ejected from the cluster core via 3-body interactions. In such a case, we expect the binaries to be several kilo-parsecs removed from their originating clusters.
This work was supported in part by NASA contract NAS8-39073 and NASA grants GO1-2115X and GO2-3135X.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35#5
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.