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Description
NGC 6229 is a relatively massive outer halo globular cluster that is primarily known for exhibiting a peculiar bimodal horizontal branch morphology. Given the paucity of spectroscopic data on this cluster, we present a detailed chemical composition analysis of 11 red giant branch members based on high resolution (R~38000), high S/N (>100) spectra obtained with the MMT-Hectochelle instrument. We find the cluster to have a mean heliocentric radial velocity of -138.1_-1.0_^+1.0^ km/s, a small dispersion of 3.8_-0.7_^+1.0^ km/s, and a relatively low (M/L_V_)_{sun}_=0.82_-0.28_^+0.49^. The cluster is moderately metal-poor with <[Fe/H]>=-1.13 dex and a modest dispersion of 0.06 dex. However, 18% (2/11) of the stars in our sample have strongly enhanced [La,Nd/Fe] ratios that are correlated with a small (~0.05 dex) increase in [Fe/H]. NGC 6229 shares several chemical signatures with M75, NGC 1851, and the intermediate metallicity populations of {omega} Cen, which lead us to conclude that NGC 6229 is a lower mass iron-complex cluster. The light elements exhibit the classical (anti-)correlations that extend up to Si, but the cluster possesses a large gap in the O-Na plane that separates first and second generation stars. NGC 6229 also has unusually low [Na,Al/Fe] abundances that are consistent with an accretion origin. A comparison with M54 and other Sagittarius clusters suggests that NGC 6229 could also be the remnant core of a former dwarf spheroidal galaxy.
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