GALLETI, SILVIASILVIAGALLETIFederici, L.L.FedericiBELLAZZINI, MicheleMicheleBELLAZZINIBUZZONI, AlbertoAlbertoBUZZONIFusi Pecci, F.F.Fusi Pecci2024-01-292024-01-2920060004-6361http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12386/34638Aims.We present the first results of a large spectroscopic survey of globular clusters and candidate globular clusters in the nearby M 31 galaxy. The survey is aimed at the classification of known candidate M 31 clusters and at the study of their kinematic properties.<BR /> Methods: .We obtained low-resolution spectroscopy (λ/Δλ ≃ 800-1300) for 133 targets, including 76 yet-to-be-confirmed candidate clusters (i.e. with no previous spectroscopic information), 55 already-confirmed genuine M 31 clusters, and 2 uncertain candidates. Our observations allowed a reliable estimate of the target radial velocity, within a typical accuracy of ~± 20 km s<SUP>-1</SUP>. The observed candidates have been robustly classified according to their radial velocity and shape parameters that allowed us to confidently discriminate between point sources and extended objects even from low-spatial-resolution imagery.<BR /> Results: .In our set of 76 candidate clusters we found: 42 newly-confirmed bona-fide M 31 clusters, 12 background galaxies, 17 foreground Galactic stars, 2 Hii regions belonging to M 31 and 3 unclassified (possibly M 31 clusters or foreground stars) objects. The classification of a few other candidates not included in our survey has been also reassessed on various observational bases. All the sources of radial velocity estimates for M 31 known globular clusters available in the literature have been compared and checked, and a homogeneous general list has been obtained for 349 confirmed clusters with radial velocity.<BR /> Conclusions: .Our results suggest that a significant number of genuine clusters (≳100) is still hidden among the plethora of known candidates proposed by various authors. Hence our knowledge of the globular cluster system of the M 31 galaxy is still far from complete even in terms of simple membership.STAMPAenArticle10.1051/0004-6361:200653092-s2.0-33748944639http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0605718v1https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/abs/2006/36/aa5309-06/aa5309-06.html2006A&A...456..985GFIS/05 - ASTRONOMIA E ASTROFISICA