| Abstract | We have used the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 on board the Hubble Space Telescope to obtain V and I images of seven nearby galaxies. For each, we have measured a distance using the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB) method. By comparing the TRGB distances with published Cepheid distances, we investigate the metallicity dependence of the Cepheid period-luminosity relation. Our sample is supplemented by 10 additional galaxies for which both TRGB and Cepheid distances are available in the literature, thus providing a uniform coverage in Cepheid abundances between 1/20 and 2 (O/H)solar. We find that the difference between Cepheid and TRGB distances decreases monotonically with increasing Cepheid abundance, consistent with a mean metallicity dependence of the Cepheid distance moduli of δ(m-M)/δ[O/H]=-0.24+/-0.05 mag dex-1. Based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS5-26555. These observations are associated with program GO-8584. |
