scholarly journals Kinematics of Distant Galaxies from Keck

Author(s):  
David C. Koo
Keyword(s):  
Author(s):  
Abraham Loeb ◽  
Steven R. Furlanetto

This book provides a comprehensive, self-contained introduction to one of the most exciting frontiers in astrophysics today: the quest to understand how the oldest and most distant galaxies in our universe first formed. Until now, most research on this question has been theoretical, but the next few years will bring about a new generation of large telescopes that promise to supply a flood of data about the infant universe during its first billion years after the big bang. This book bridges the gap between theory and observation. It is an invaluable reference for students and researchers on early galaxies. The book starts from basic physical principles before moving on to more advanced material. Topics include the gravitational growth of structure, the intergalactic medium, the formation and evolution of the first stars and black holes, feedback and galaxy evolution, reionization, 21-cm cosmology, and more.


2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (S237) ◽  
pp. 408-408
Author(s):  
Richard de Grijs

Young, massive star clusters (YMCs) are the most notable and significant end products of violent star-forming episodes triggered by galaxy collisions and close encounters. The question remains, however, whether or not at least a fraction of the compact YMCs seen in abundance in extragalactic starbursts, are potentially the progenitors of (≳10 Gyr) old globular cluster (GC)-type objects. If we could settle this issue convincingly, one way or the other, the implications of such a result would have far-reaching implications for a wide range of astrophysical questions, including our understanding of the process of galaxy formation and assembly, and the process and conditions required for star (cluster) formation. Because of the lack of a statistically significant sample of YMCs in the Local Group, however, we need to resort to either statistical arguments or to the painstaking approach of case-by-case studies of individual objects in more distant galaxies.


2018 ◽  
Vol 618 ◽  
pp. A119
Author(s):  
I. Mendigutía ◽  
C. J. Lada ◽  
R. D. Oudmaijer

Context. The star formation rate (SFR) linearly correlates with the amount of dense gas mass (Mdg) involved in the formation of stars both for distant galaxies and clouds in our Galaxy. Similarly, the mass accretion rate (Ṁacc) and the disk mass (Mdisk) of young, Class II stars are also linearly correlated. Aims. We aim to explore the conditions under which the previous relations could be unified. Methods. Observational values of SFR, Mdg, Ṁacc, and Mdisk for a representative sample of galaxies, star forming clouds, and young stars have been compiled from the literature. Data were plotted together in order to analyze how the rate of gas transformed into stars and the mass of dense gas directly involved in this transformation relate to each other over vastly different physical systems. Results. A statistically significant correlation is found spanning ~16 orders of magnitude in each axis, but with large scatter. This probably represents one of the widest ranges of any empirical correlation known, encompassing galaxies that are several kiloparsec in size, parsec-size star-forming clouds within our Galaxy, down to young, pre-main sequence stars with astronomical unit-size protoplanetary disks. Assuming that this global correlation has an underlying physical reason, we propose a bottom-up hypothesis suggesting that a relation between Ṁacc and the total circumstellar mass surrounding Class 0/I sources (Mcs; disk + envelope) drives the correlation in clouds that host protostars and galaxies that host clouds. This hypothesis is consistent with the fact that the SFRs derived for clouds over a timescale of 2 Myr can be roughly recovered from the sum of instantaneous accretion rates of the protostars embedded within them, implying that galactic SFRs averaged over ~10–100 Myr should be constant over this period too. Moreover, the sum of the circumstellar masses directly participating in the formation of the protostellar population in a cloud likely represents a non-negligible fraction of the dense gas mass within the cloud. Conclusions. If the fraction of gas directly participating in the formation of stars is ~1–35% of the dense gas mass associated with star-forming clouds and galaxies, then the global correlation for all scales has a near unity slope and an intercept consistent with the (proto-)stellar accretion timescale, Mcs/ Ṁacc. Therefore, an additional critical test of our hypothesis is that the Ṁacc−Mdisk correlation for Class II stars should also be observed between Ṁacc and Mcs for Class 0/I sources with similar slope and intercept.


2017 ◽  
Vol 472 (1) ◽  
pp. 217-223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mischa Schirmer ◽  
Vincent Garrel ◽  
Gaetano Sivo ◽  
Eduardo Marin ◽  
Eleazar R. Carrasco

1984 ◽  
Vol 108 ◽  
pp. 243-253
Author(s):  
Nolan R. Walborn

The supergiant H II region 30 Doradus is placed in context as the optically most spectacular component in a much larger region of recent and current star formation in the Large Magellanic Cloud, as shown by deep Hα photographs and the new IRAS results. The current state of knowledge concerning the concentrated central cluster in 30 Dor is summarized. Spectroscopic information exists for only 24 of the brightest members, most of which are WR stars; however, photometry shows over 100 probable members earlier than BO. The spectral classification of these stars is a difficult observational problem currently being addressed; in the meantime their hypothetical ionizing luminosity is calculated from the photometry and compared with that suggested for the superluminous central object R136a alone, and with the H II region luminosity. With reference to related regions in the Galaxy, the likelihood that many of the brightest objects in 30 Dor are multiple systems is emphasized. An interpretation of R136a as a system containing a few very massive stars (as opposed to a single supermassive object) is in good accord with the observations, including the visual micrometer results. The study of 30 Dor and its central cluster is vital for an understanding of the numerous apparently similar regions now being discovered in more distant galaxies.


Author(s):  
Joris Witstok ◽  
Renske Smit ◽  
Roberto Maiolino ◽  
Mirko Curti ◽  
Nicolas Laporte ◽  
...  

Abstract We present a detailed spectroscopic analysis of a galaxy at z ≃ 4.88 that is, by chance, magnified ∼30 × by gravitational lensing. Only three sources at z ≳ 5 are known with such high magnification. This particular source has been shown to exhibit widespread, high equivalent width ${\rm C\, {\small IV}}\, \lambda \, 1549$ emission, implying it is a unique example of a metal-poor galaxy with a hard radiation field, likely representing the galaxy population responsible for cosmic reionisation. Using UV nebular line ratio diagnostics, VLT/X-shooter observations rule out strong AGN activity, indicating a stellar origin of the hard radiation field instead. We present a new detection of ${[\rm Ne\, {\small III}]}\, \lambda \, 3870$ and use the [Ne iii]/[O ii] line ratio to constrain the ionisation parameter and gas-phase metallicity. Closely related to the commonly used [O iii]/[O ii] ratio, our [Ne iii]/[O ii] measurement shows this source is similar to local “Green Pea” galaxies and Lyman-continuum leakers. It furthermore suggests this galaxy is more metal poor than expected from the Fundamental Metallicity Relation, possibly as a consequence of excess gas accretion diluting the metallicity. Finally, we present the highest redshift detection of ${\rm Mg\, {\small II}}\, \lambda \, 2796$, observed at high equivalent width in emission, in contrast to more evolved systems predominantly exhibiting Mg ii absorption. Strong Mg ii emission has been observed in most z ∼ 0 Lyman-continuum leakers known and has recently been proposed as an indirect tracer of escaping ionising radiation. In conclusion, this strongly lensed galaxy, observed just 300 Myr after reionisation ends, enables testing of observational diagnostics proposed to constrain the physical properties of distant galaxies in the JWST/ELT era.


2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (S329) ◽  
pp. 297-304
Author(s):  
Miguel A. Urbaneja ◽  
Rolf P. Kudritzki

AbstractBlue supergiant stars of B and A spectral types are amongst the visually brightest non-transient astronomical objects. Their intrinsic brightness makes it possible to obtain high quality optical spectra of these objects in distant galaxies, enabling the study not only of these stars in different environments, but also to use them as tools to probe their host galaxies. Quantitative analysis of their optical spectra provide tight constraints on their evolution in a wide range of metallicities, as well as on the present-day chemical composition, extinction laws and distances to their host galaxies. We review in this contribution recent results in this field.


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