MOCCA Code for Star Cluster Simulations and the SURVEY Database I Projects

Modeling the evolution of extremely dense stellar systems like globular clusters remains a challenging astrophysical problem. In this talk, I will briefly introduce the basic ideas behind the Monte Carlo method for simulating the long term evolution of star clusters and will describe the MOCCA (MOnte Carlo Cluster simulAtor) code and its features. My talk will focus on the results from two projects that utilized the results of the MOCCA-SURVEY Database I project in which about 2000 star cluster models were simulated using the MOCCA code. In the first project, we used the results from this database of star cluster models to determine the astrophysical properties and local merger rate densities for coalescing binary black holes. In the second project, we describe the dynamical evolution of a unique type of dark star cluster model in which the majority of the cluster mass at Hubble time is dominated by an intermediate mass black hole (IMBH). Taking one of these models, we apply the method of simulating realistic mock observations to obtain the photometric and kinematic observational properties of the dark star cluster model at 12 Gyr. We find that the perplexing Galactic globular cluster NGC 6535 closely matches the observational photometric and kinematic properties of the dark star cluster model and could potentially be harbouring an IMBH. I will also briefly mention other ongoing projects that are using results from the MOCCA-SURVEY Database I project and future plans to further improve and carry out more simulations.