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Description
Among the Milky Way satellites discovered in the past three years, Triangulum II has presented the most difficulty in revealing its dynamical status. Kirby+ (2015ApJ...814L...7K) identified it as the most dark-matter-dominated galaxy known, with a mass-to-light ratio within the half-light radius of 3600_-2100_^+3500^M_{sun}_/L_{sun}_. On the other hand, Martin+ (2016ApJ...818...40M) measured an outer velocity dispersion that is 3.5+/-2.1 times larger than the central velocity dispersion, suggesting that the system might not be in equilibrium. From new multi-epoch Keck/DEIMOS measurements of 13 member stars in Triangulum II, we constrain the velocity dispersion to be {sigma}_v_<3.4km/s (90%C.L.). Our previous measurement of {sigma}_v_, based on six stars, was inflated by the presence of a binary star with variable radial velocity. We find no evidence that the velocity dispersion increases with radius. The stars display a wide range of metallicities, indicating that Triangulum II retained supernova ejecta and therefore possesses, or once possessed, a massive dark matter halo. However, the detection of a metallicity dispersion hinges on the membership of the two most metal-rich stars. The stellar mass is lower than galaxies of similar mean stellar metallicity, which might indicate that Triangulum II is either a star cluster or a tidally stripped dwarf galaxy. Detailed abundances of one star show heavily depressed neutron-capture abundances, similar to stars in most other ultra-faint dwarf galaxies but unlike stars in globular clusters.
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