New dwarf galaxy candidates in the Leo-l group

We have carried out a search for low-surface-brightness dwarf galaxies in the region of the Leo-I Group (M96) in images of the second Palomar Sky Survey. We found a total of 36 likely dwarf members of the group with typical magnitudes B-t similar to 18(m)-19(m) in an area of sky covering 120 square degrees. Half of these galaxies are absent from known catalogs and lists of galaxies. The radial-velocity dispersion calculated for 19 galaxies is 130 km/s. The Leo-l Group has a mean distance from the Sun of 10.4 Mpc, a mean projected radius of 352 kpc, an integrated luminosity of 6.7 x 10(10) L-circle dot, a virial mass-to-luminosity ratio of 107 M-circle dot/L-circle dot), and a mean crossing time of 2.7 Gyr. The group shows evidence for a radial segregation of the galaxies according to morphological type and luminosity, suggesting that the group is in a state of dynamical relaxation. The subsystem of bright galaxies in the Leo-l Group is smaller in size (250 kpc) and has a lower velocity dispersion (92 km/s), resulting in a lower virial mass-to-luminosity ratio (34 M-circle dot/L-circle dot), as is typical of the Local Group and other nearby groups of galaxies. (C) 2004 MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica.