SIMBAD references

Context. Leo A is an isolated gas-rich dwarf irregular galaxy of low stellar mass and metallicity residing at the outskirts of the Local Group. Ages of the stellar populations in Leo A range from ∼10Myr to ∼10Gyr. So far, only one star cluster has been discovered in this galaxy. Aims. Our aim is to search for star cluster candidates in the Leo A galaxy. Methods. We performed photometry of star-like objects on HST ACS archive observation frames in the F475W and F814W passbands and studied the spatial clustering of the Leo A stars down to the turn-off point of the old stellar populations. Results. We report the discovery of four star clusters in the Leo A galaxy. This means that now a sample of five star clusters is known in Leo A. Two clusters are of a young age (∼20Myr; overlapping with HII regions) and low in mass (≥400M_☉ and ≥150M_☉), the other three clusters are older (≥100Myr) and also of low mass (≥300M_☉). These rough estimates are made assuming the isochrones of a metallicity derived for HII regions (Z=0.0007). Colour-magnitude diagrams of the stars residing in the circular areas of a 2.5'' radius around the clusters and integrated aperture photometry results of the clusters are presented.