HST observations of star clusters in NGC 3256

These clusters have luminosity and mass functions that follow power laws, dN/dL{propto}L^{alpha}^ with {alpha}=-2.23+/-0.07, and dN/dM{propto}M^{beta}^ with {beta}=-1.86+/-0.34 for {tau}<10Myr clusters, similar to those found in more quiescent galaxies.

The age distribution can be described by dN/d{tau}{propto}{tau}^{gamma}^, with {gamma}~-0.67+/-0.08 for clusters younger than about a few hundred million years, with no obvious dependence on cluster mass. This is consistent with a picture where ~80% of the clusters are disrupted each decade in time. We investigate the claim that galaxies with high {Sigma}_SFR_ form clusters more efficiently than quiescent systems by determining the fraction of stars in bound clusters ({Gamma}) and the CMF/SFR statistic (CMF is the cluster mass function) for NGC 3256 and comparing the results with those for other galaxies.