Surface photometry of the irregular galaxy NGC 1427A

CELLONE, S. A.; FORTE, J. C.

Córdoba

Taller; III Reunión Regional de Astronomìa Extragaláctica: "The Formation and Evolution of Galaxies"; 1996

IATE-OAC

Multicolor surface photometry of the irregular galaxy NGC 1427A, a member of the Fornax Cluster, is presented.  This galaxy, not studied previously, shows a very distinctive morphology: a low surface brightness (LSB) stellar background with several bright knots forming a distorted ring-like structure.  An object with roughly circular isophotes is located north of the main body of the galaxy, and is connected to it by very LSB filaments.  The very blue colors of the bright knots show that they are zones of recent star formation. The northern object, although LSB, is bluer than the background of the main body of the galaxy, probably indicating that both objects had different evolutive histories. Structurally, this object is similar to the faint dwarf elliptical or dwarf irregular galaxies which constitute the main population of the Fornax Cluster and other clusters of galaxies as well.The possibility of an interaction being the cause of the particular structure of this galaxy is discussed.