Description
NGC 205 is the nearest example of a dwarf elliptical galaxy and the prototype of this enigmatic galaxy class. Photometric evidence suggests that NGC 205, a close satellite of the M31 galaxy, is tidally interacting with its parent galaxy. We present stellar radial velocity measurements out to a projected radius of 20' (5kpc) in NGC 205 based on Keck DEIMOS multislit spectroscopic observations of 725 individual red giant branch stars. Our kinematic measurements extend from the center out to 6 times the effective radius of NGC 205, well past the expected tidal radius. The contamination in our kinematic sample from M31 field stars is estimated to be a few percent based on maximum likelihood fits to the distribution of stars in position-velocity space.
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