ABSOLUTE PROPER MOTIONS OF DISTANT GALACTIC SATELLITES

We describe the motivation for a new program to determine the absolute proper motions (transverse velocities) for distant Galactic globular clusters and satellite dwarf spheroidal galaxies. The topic of globular cluster motions is reviewed with emphasis on the correction from relative to absolute proper motions. Our project relies on astrometry from deep (V>~21), 2-5 meter prime focus plates which contain images of numerous faint galaxies which are used to set a precise extragalactic reference frame. We present first results from the survey, analyses of the space motions for the clusters Palmoar 5 and Palomar 3, at distances of 21 and 88 kpc, respectively.