Opt-NIR HST photometry of cluster candidates in M82

Based on a careful analysis of the clusters' spectral energy distributions, we determined their galaxy-wide age and mass distributions. The M82 clusters exhibit three clear peaks in their age distribution, thus defining relatively young, log(t/yr)<=7.5, intermediate-age, log(t/yr){isin}[7.5,8.5], and old samples, log(t/yr)>=8.5.

Comparison of the completeness-corrected mass distributions offers a firm handle on the galaxy's star cluster disruption history. The most massive star clusters in the young and old samples are (almost) all concentrated in the most densely populated central region, while the intermediate-age sample's most massive clusters are more spatially dispersed, which may reflect the distribution of the highest-density gas throughout the galaxy's evolutionary history, combined with the solid-body nature of the galaxy's central region.