Vel. Distribution of low-luminosity E galaxies

The sample is dominated by galaxies in the Virgo cluster but also contains ellipticals in nearby groups and low density environments. The parameterization of the LOSVD due to Gerhard and van der Marel & Franx is adopted, which measures the asymmetrical and symmetrical deviations of the LOSVD from a Gaussian by the amplitudes h3 and h4 of the Gauss-Hermite series.

Rotation, velocity dispersion, h3 and h4 are determined as a function of radius for both major and minor axes using the Fourier Correlation Quotient method of Bender (1990). Galaxy spectra are rebinned in the direction of the spectroscopic slit to a minimum signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of 60 per angstrom. Rotation and velocity dispersion are determined separately for S/N = 30 per angstrom.