Abstract:
I will present HST observations from the ultraviolet to the near infrared of
the star cluster population of the interacting spiral galaxy, M51. Age, mass,
size, and extinction estimates for each cluster (1152 in total) have been
derived, which are used to search for relationships between the global
properties of M51 (e.g. interaction age) as well relationships between the
derived parameters. The latter is particularly important in order to contrain
models of the formation and evolution of star clusters. Using this data I will
show that: i) there has been a burst of cluster formation at the time of the
last interaction between M51 and it's companion galaxy (i.e. induced cluster
formation, ii) ~60-70% of star clusters will disrupt within the first 10 Myr of
their lives, making a significant contribution to the field star population,
and iii) the size distribution of the young star clusters is remarkably similar
to that of giant molecular clouds, suggesting a common fractal nature imposed
by the turbulent gas on the formation of both types of objects.