Contents
Images
Upload your image
DSS Images Other Images
Related articles
The stellar dynamics of spiral arms in barred spiral galaxies
A dynamical mechanism is proposed that explains the spiral structureobserved frequently as a continuation of the bars in barred spiralgalaxies. It is argued that the part of the spirals attached to the baris due to chaotic orbits. These are chaotic orbits that exhibit for longtime intervals a 4:1-resonance orbital behaviour. They are of the sametype of orbit as is responsible for the boxiness of the outer isophotesof the bar in cases like NGC 4314, as indicated by Patsis, Athanassoula& Quillen. The spirals formed this way are faint with respect to thebar, open as they wind out, and do not extend over an angle larger thanπ/2. A possible continuation of the spiral structure towards largerangles can be due to orbits trapped around stable periodic orbits at thecorotation region. We present a family of stable, banana-like periodicorbits, precessing as EJ increases, that can play this role.
| Dark and Baryonic Matter in Bright Spiral Galaxies. I. Near-Infrared and Optical Broadband Surface Photometry of 30 Galaxies
We present photometrically calibrated images and surface photometry inthe B, V, R, J, H, and K bands of 25, and in the g, r, and K bands offive nearby bright (B0T<12.5 mag) spiralgalaxies with inclinations of 30°-65° spanning the Hubblesequence from Sa to Scd. Data are from The Ohio State University BrightSpiral Galaxy Survey, the Two Micron All Sky Survey, and the SloanDigital Sky Survey Second Data Release. Radial surface brightnessprofiles are extracted, and integrated magnitudes are measured from theprofiles. Axis ratios, position angles, and scale lengths are measuredfrom the near-infrared images. A one-dimensional bulge/diskdecomposition is performed on the near-infrared images of galaxies witha nonnegligible bulge component, and an exponential disk is fit to theradial surface brightness profiles of the remaining galaxies.Based in part on observations obtained at the Cerro TololoInter-American Observatory, operated by the Association of Universitiesfor Research in Astronomy, Inc., under a cooperative agreement with theNational Science Foundation.
| Constraining Dark Matter Halo Profiles and Galaxy Formation Models Using Spiral Arm Morphology. I. Method Outline
We investigate the use of spiral arm pitch angles as a probe of diskgalaxy mass profiles. We confirm our previous result that spiral armpitch angles (P) are well correlated with the rate of shear (S) in diskgalaxy rotation curves by using a much larger sample (51 galaxies) thanused previously (17 galaxies). We use this correlation to argue thatimaging data alone can provide a powerful probe of galactic massdistributions out to large look-back times. In contrast to previouswork, we show that observed spiral arm pitch angles are similar whenmeasured in the optical (at 0.4 μm) and the near-infrared (at 2.1μm) with a mean difference of 2.3d+/-2.7d. This is then used tostrengthen the known correlation between P and S using B-band images. Wethen use two example galaxies to demonstrate how an inferred shear ratecoupled with a bulge-disk decomposition model and a Tully-Fisher-derivedvelocity normalization can be used to place constraints on a galaxy'sbaryon fraction and dark matter halo profile. We show that ESO 582-G12,a galaxy with a high shear rate (slightly declining rotation curve) at~10 kpc, favors an adiabatically contracted halo, with high initial NFWconcentration (cvir>16) and a high fraction of halobaryons in the form of stars (~15%-40%). In contrast, IC 2522 has a lowshear rate (rising rotation curve) at ~10 kpc and favorsnonadiabatically contracted models with low NFW concentrations(cvir~=2-8) and a low stellar baryon fraction <10%.
| Dark and Baryonic Matter in Bright Spiral Galaxies. II. Radial Distributions for 34 Galaxies
We decompose the rotation curves of 34 bright spiral galaxies intobaryonic and dark matter components. Stellar mass profiles are createdby applying color-M/L relations to near-infrared and optical photometry.We find that the radial profile of the baryonic-to-dark-matter ratio isself-similar for all galaxies, when scaled to the radius at which thecontribution of the baryonic mass to the rotation curve equals that ofthe dark matter (RX). We argue that this is due to thequasi-exponential nature of disks and rotation curves that are nearlyflat after an initial rise. The radius RX is found tocorrelate most strongly with baryonic rotation speed, such that galaxieswith RX measurements that lie further out in their disksrotate faster. This quantity also correlates very strongly with stellarmass, Hubble type, and observed rotation speed; B-band central surfacebrightness is less related to RX than these other galaxyproperties. Most of the galaxies in our sample appear to be close tomaximal disk. For these galaxies, we find that maximum observed rotationspeeds are tightly correlated with maximum rotation speeds predictedfrom the baryon distributions, such that one can create a Tully-Fisherrelation based on surface photometry and redshifts alone. Finally, wecompare our data to the NFW parameterization for dark matter profileswith and without including adiabatic contraction as it is most commonlyimplemented. Fits are generally poor, and all but two galaxies arebetter fit if adiabatic contraction is not performed. In order to havebetter fits, and especially to accommodate adiabatic contraction,baryons would need to contribute very little to the total mass in theinner parts of galaxies, seemingly in contrast with other observationalconstraints.
| The connection between shear and star formation in spiral galaxies
We present a sample of 33 galaxies for which we have calculated (i) theaverage rate of shear from published rotation curves, (ii) thefar-infrared luminosity from IRAS fluxes, and (iii) theKs-band luminosity from the Two Micron All Sky Survey(2MASS). We show that a correlation exists between the shear rate andthe ratio of the far-infrared to Ks-band luminosity. Thisratio is essentially a measure of the star formation rate per unit mass,or the specific star formation rate. From this correlation we show thata critical shear rate exists, above which star formation would turn offin the discs of spiral galaxies. Using the correlation between shearrate and spiral arm pitch angle, this shear rate corresponds to thelowest pitch angles typically measured in near-infrared images of spiralgalaxies.
| On the Relation between Circular Velocity and Central Velocity Dispersion in High and Low Surface Brightness Galaxies
In order to investigate the correlation between the circular velocityVc and the central velocity dispersion of the spheroidalcomponent σc, we analyzed these quantities for a sampleof 40 high surface brightness (HSB) disk galaxies, eight giant lowsurface brightness (LSB) spiral galaxies, and 24 elliptical galaxiescharacterized by flat rotation curves. Galaxies have been selected tohave a velocity gradient <=2 km s-1 kpc-1 forR>=0.35R25. We used these data to better define theprevious Vc-σc correlation for spiralgalaxies (which turned out to be HSB) and elliptical galaxies,especially at the lower end of the σc values. We findthat the Vc-σc relation is described by alinear law out to velocity dispersions as low as σc~50km s-1, while in previous works a power law was adopted forgalaxies with σc>80 km s-1. Ellipticalgalaxies with Vc based on dynamical models or directlyderived from the H I rotation curves follow the same relation as the HSBgalaxies in the Vc-σc plane. On the otherhand, the LSB galaxies follow a different relation, since most of themshow either higher Vc or lower σc withrespect to the HSB galaxies. This argues against the relevance of baryoncollapse to the radial density profile of the dark matter halos of LSBgalaxies. Moreover, if the Vc-σc relation isequivalent to one between the mass of the dark matter halo and that ofthe supermassive black hole, then these results suggest that the LSBgalaxies host a supermassive black hole (SMBH) with a smaller masscompared to HSB galaxies with an equal dark matter halo. On the otherhand, if the fundamental correlation of SMBH mass is with the halocircular velocity, then LSB galaxies should have larger black holemasses for a given bulge dispersion. Elliptical galaxies withVc derived from H I data and LSB galaxies were not consideredin previous studies.Based on observations made with European Southern Observatory telescopesat the Paranal Observatory under programs 67.B-0283, 69.B-0573, and70.B-0171.
| The Distribution of Bar and Spiral Arm Strengths in Disk Galaxies
The distribution of bar strengths in disk galaxies is a fundamentalproperty of the galaxy population that has only begun to be explored. Wehave applied the bar-spiral separation method of Buta and coworkers toderive the distribution of maximum relative gravitational bar torques,Qb, for 147 spiral galaxies in the statistically well-definedOhio State University Bright Galaxy Survey (OSUBGS) sample. Our goal isto examine the properties of bars as independently as possible of theirassociated spirals. We find that the distribution of bar strengthdeclines smoothly with increasing Qb, with more than 40% ofthe sample having Qb<=0.1. In the context of recurrent barformation, this suggests that strongly barred states are relativelyshort-lived compared to weakly barred or nonbarred states. We do notfind compelling evidence for a bimodal distribution of bar strengths.Instead, the distribution is fairly smooth in the range0.0<=Qb<0.8. Our analysis also provides a first look atspiral strengths Qs in the OSUBGS sample, based on the sametorque indicator. We are able to verify a possible weak correlationbetween Qs and Qb, in the sense that galaxies withthe strongest bars tend to also have strong spirals.
| Bar-induced perturbation strengths of the galaxies in the Ohio State University Bright Galaxy Survey - I
Bar-induced perturbation strengths are calculated for a well-definedmagnitude-limited sample of 180 spiral galaxies, based on the Ohio StateUniversity Bright Galaxy Survey. We use a gravitational torque method,the ratio of the maximal tangential force to the mean axisymmetricradial force, as a quantitative measure of the bar strength. Thegravitational potential is inferred from an H-band light distribution byassuming that the M/L ratio is constant throughout the disc. Galaxiesare deprojected using orientation parameters based on B-band images. Inorder to eliminate artificial stretching of the bulge, two-dimensionalbar-bulge-disc decomposition has been used to derive a reliable bulgemodel. This bulge model is subtracted from an image, the disc isdeprojected assuming it is thin, and then the bulge is added back byassuming that its mass distribution is spherically symmetric. We findthat removing the artificial bulge stretch is important especially forgalaxies having bars inside large bulges. We also find that the massesof the bulges can be significantly overestimated if bars are not takeninto account in the decomposition.Bars are identified using Fourier methods by requiring that the phasesof the main modes (m= 2, m= 4) are maintained nearly constant in the barregion. With such methods, bars are found in 65 per cent of the galaxiesin our sample, most of them being classified as SB-type systems in thenear-infrared by Eskridge and co-workers. We also suggest that as muchas ~70 per cent of the galaxies classified as SAB-types in thenear-infrared might actually be non-barred systems, many of them havingcentral ovals. It is also possible that a small fraction of the SAB-typegalaxies have weak non-classical bars with spiral-like morphologies.
| The star formation history of Seyfert 2 nuclei
We present a study of the stellar populations in the central ~200 pc ofa large and homogeneous sample comprising 79 nearby galaxies, most ofwhich are Seyfert 2s. The star formation history of these nuclei isreconstructed by means of state-of-the-art population synthesismodelling of their spectra in the 3500-5200 Åinterval. Aquasar-like featureless continuum (FC) is added to the models to accountfor possible scattered light from a hidden active galactic nucleus(AGN).We find the following. (1) The star formation history of Seyfert 2nuclei is remarkably heterogeneous: young starbursts, intermediate-ageand old stellar populations all appear in significant and widely varyingproportions. (2) A significant fraction of the nuclei show a strong FCcomponent, but this FC is not always an indication of a hidden AGN: itcan also betray the presence of a young, dusty starburst. (3) We detectweak broad Hβ emission in several Seyfert 2s after cleaning theobserved spectrum by subtracting the synthesis model. These are mostlikely the weak scattered lines from the hidden broad-line regionenvisaged in the unified model, given that in most of these casesindependent spectropolarimetry data find a hidden Seyfert 1. (4) The FCstrengths obtained by the spectral decomposition are substantiallylarger for the Seyfert 2s which present evidence of broad lines,implying that the scattered non-stellar continuum is also detected. (5)There is no correlation between the star formation in the nucleus andeither the central or overall morphology of the parent galaxies.
| Morphological Type Dependence in the Tully-Fisher Relationship
The Tully-Fisher relationship is subject to morphological typedependence such that galaxies of morphology similar to Sc I galaxies andSeyfert galaxies are more luminous at a given rotational velocity thangalaxies of other morphological classification. This effect is mostprevalent in the B band. It is shown that the type effect is not simplyan artifact of the calibrator sample but is also present in clustersamples. The type effect is corrected by creating type-dependentTully-Fisher relations for Sc I group galaxies and Sb/Sc III groupgalaxies. It is shown that with single calibrations, the distances to ScI group galaxies are systematically underestimated, while the distancesto Sb/Sc III group galaxies are systematically overestimated.Tully-Fisher slope and scatter are also considered in the context oftype-dependent Tully-Fisher relations. It is concluded that the use oftype-dependent Tully-Fisher relations provides significant improvementin the distances to individual galaxies and the refined distances toclusters of galaxies.
| Mass Models for Spiral Galaxies from Two-dimensional Velocity Maps
We model the mass distributions of 40 high surface brightness spiralgalaxies inside their optical radii, deriving parameters of mass modelsby matching the predicted velocities to observed velocity maps. We useconstant mass-to-light disk and bulge models, and we have tried fitswith no halo and with three different halo density profiles. The datarequire a halo in most, but not all, cases, while in others the best fitoccurs with negligible mass in the luminous component, which we regardas unphysical. All three adopted halo profiles lead to fits of about thesame quality, and our data therefore do not constrain the functionalform of the halo profile. The halo parameters display large degeneraciesfor two of the three adopted halo functions, but the separate luminousand dark masses are better constrained. However, the fitted disk andhalo masses vary substantially between the adopted halo models,indicating that even high-quality two-dimensional optical velocity mapsdo not provide significant constraints on the dark matter content of agalaxy. We demonstrate that data from long-slit observations are likelyto provide still weaker constraints. We conclude that additionalinformation is needed in order to constrain the separate disk and halomasses in a galaxy.
| Deprojecting spiral galaxies using Fourier analysis. Application to the Ohio sample
We use two new methods developed recently (Barberàet al.\cite{bar03}, A&A, 415, 849), as well as information obtained fromthe literature, to calculate the orientation parameters of the spiralgalaxies in the Ohio State University Bright Galaxy Survey. We comparethe results of these methods with data from the literature, and find ingeneral good agreement. We provide a homogeneous set of mean orientationparameters which can be used to approximately deproject the disks of thegalaxies and facilitate a number of statistical studies of galaxyproperties.Table 1 is only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymousftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/421/595
| Observational evidence for a connection between supermassive black holes and dark matter haloes
We present new velocity dispersion measurements of a sample of 12 spiralgalaxies for which extended rotation curves are available. These dataare used to refine a recently discovered correlation between thecircular velocity and the central velocity dispersion of spiralgalaxies. We find a slightly steeper slope for our larger sample,confirm the negligible intrinsic scatter on this correlation and find astriking agreement with the corresponding relation for ellipticalgalaxies. We combine this correlation with the well-knownMBH-σ relation to obtain a tight correlation betweenthe circular velocities of galaxies and the masses of the supermassiveblack holes they host. This correlation is the observational evidencefor an intimate link between dark matter haloes and supermassive blackholes. Apart from being an important ingredient for theoretical modelsof galaxy formation and evolution, the relation between MBHand circular velocity can serve as a practical tool to estimate blackhole masses in spiral galaxies.
| Stellar population gradients in Seyfert 2 galaxies: northern sample
We use high signal-to-noise ratio long-slit spectra in theλλ3600-4700 range of the 20 brightest northern Seyfert 2galaxies to study the variation of the stellar population properties asa function of distance from the nucleus. In order to characterize thestellar population and other continuum sources (e.g. featurelesscontinuum, FC) we have measured the equivalent width, W, of sixabsorption features, four continuum colours and their radial variations,and performed spectral population synthesis as a function of distancefrom the nucleus. About half of the sample has CaIIK and G band W valuessmaller at the nucleus than at 1 kpc from it, owing to a youngerpopulation and/or FC. The stellar population synthesis shows that, whileat the nucleus, 75 per cent of the galaxies present contribution >20per cent of ages <=100 Myr and/or of an FC, this proportion decreasesto 45 per cent at 3 kpc. In particular, 55 per cent of the galaxies havea contribution >10 per cent of the 3-Myr/FC component (a degeneratecomponent in which one cannot separate what is caused by an FC or by a3-Myr stellar population) at the nucleus, but only 25 per cent of themhave this contribution at 3 kpc. As a reference, the stellar populationof 10 non-Seyfert galaxies, spanning the Hubble types of the Seyfert(from S0 to Sc) was also studied. A comparison between the stellarpopulation of the Seyferts and that of the non-Seyferts shows systematicdifferences: the contribution of ages younger than 1 Gyr is in mostcases larger in the Seyfert galaxies than in non-Seyferts, not only atthe nucleus but up to 1 kpc from it.
| Simulations of dual morphology in spiral galaxies
Gas and stars in spiral galaxies are modelled with a combination ofhydrodynamic and N-body techniques. The simulations reveal morphologicaldifferences mirroring the dual morphologies seen in B and K' bandobservations of many spiral galaxies: gaseous images have tighter pitchangles, are more asymmetric, more flocculent and more likely to havemultiple arms. Morphological decoupling increases as the stellararm-interarm contrast and the Q parameter fall. The flocculence of agalaxy is quantified by decomposing the images into logarithmic spiralsand defining a parameter closely related to the uniformity of theresulting 2D Fourier spectrum. Thus, a significant amount ofmorphological decoupling in spiral galaxies is shown to be due to thedifference in the dynamics of stars and gas, rather than dust, starformation or galaxy interactions.
| Beyond the Bulge: A Fundamental Relation between Supermassive Black Holes and Dark Matter Halos
The possibility that the masses MBH of supermassive blackholes (SBHs) correlate with the total gravitational mass of their hostgalaxy, or the mass MDM of the dark matter halo in which theypresumably formed, is investigated using a sample of 16 spiral and 20elliptical galaxies. The bulge velocity dispersion σc,typically defined within an aperture of size R<~0.5 kpc, is found tocorrelate tightly with the galaxy's circular velocity vc, thelatter measured at distances from the Galactic center at which therotation curve is flat, R~20-80 kpc. By using the well-knownMBH-σc relation for SBHs and a prescriptionto relate vc to the mass of the dark matter haloMDM in a standard ΛCDM cosmology, the correlationbetween σc and vc is equivalent to onebetween MBH and MDM. Such a correlation is foundto be nonlinear, with the ratio MBH/MDM decreasingfrom 2×10-4 for MDM~1014Msolar to 10-5 for MDM~1012Msolar. Preliminary evidence suggests that halos of masssmaller than ~5×1011 Msolar are increasinglyless efficient at forming SBHs-perhaps even unable to form them.
| The H I Line Width/Linear Diameter Relationship as an Independent Test of the Hubble Constant
The relationship between corrected H I line widths and linear diameters(LW/LD) for spiral galaxies is used as an independent check on the valueof the Hubble constant. After calibrating the Tully-Fisher (TF) relationin both the B and I bands, the B-band relation is used for galaxies ofmorphological/luminosity types Sc I, Sc I.2, Sc I.3, Sab, Sb, Sb I-II,and Sb II to derive the LW/LD relation. We find that for this sample thescatter in the LW/LD is smallest with a Hubble constant of 90-95 kms-1 Mpc-1. Lower values of the Hubble constantproduce a separation in the LW/LD relation that is a function ofmorphological type. Since a Hubble constant of 90-95 is significantlylarger than the final Key Project value of 72 km s-1Mpc-1, a comparison of TF, surface brightness fluctuation(SBF), and fundamental plane (FP) is made. This comparison indicatesthat the Key Project TF distances to 21 clusters may be too large. For asample of 11 clusters, the Key Project TF distances provide anunweighted mean Hubble constant of 77 km s-1Mpc-1, while a combination of the FP, SBF, and our TFdistances for the same 11 clusters gives H0=91 kms-1 Mpc-1. A more subtle result in our data is amorphological dichotomy in the Hubble constant. The data suggest that ScI galaxies follow a Hubble constant of 90-95 while Sb galaxies follow aHubble constant closer to 75 km s-1 Mpc-1.Possible explanations for this result are considered, but it is shownthat this Sb/Sc I Hubble flow discrepancy is also present in the VirgoCluster and is consistent with previous investigations that indicatethat some galaxies carry a component of age-related intrinsic redshift.
| The Visibility of Galactic Bars and Spiral Structure at High Redshifts
We investigate the visibility of galactic bars and spiral structure inthe distant universe by artificially redshifting 101 B-band CCD imagesof local spiral galaxies from the Ohio State University Bright SpiralGalaxy Survey. These local galaxy images represent a much fairerstatistical baseline than the galaxy atlas images presented by Frei etal. in 1995, the most commonly used calibration sample for morphologicalwork at high redshifts. Our artificially redshifted images correspond toHubble Space Telescope I814-band observations of the localgalaxy sample seen at z=0.7, with integration times matching those ofboth the very deep northern Hubble Deep Field (HDF) data and the muchshallower HDF flanking field observations. The expected visibility ofgalactic bars is probed in two ways: (1) using traditional visualclassification and (2) by charting the changing shape of the galaxydistribution in ``Hubble space,'' a quantitative two-parameterdescription of galactic structure that maps closely onto Hubble'soriginal tuning fork. Both analyses suggest that over two-thirds ofstrongly barred luminous local spirals (i.e., objects classified as SBin the Third Reference Catalogue) would still be classified as stronglybarred at z=0.7 in the HDF data. Under the same conditions, most weaklybarred spirals (classified SAB in the Third Reference Catalogue) wouldbe classified as regular spirals. The corresponding visibility of spiralstructure is assessed visually, by comparing luminosity classificationsfor the artificially redshifted sample with the corresponding luminosityclassifications from the Revised Shapley-Ames Catalog. We find that forexposure times similar to that of the HDF, spiral structure should bedetectable in most luminous (MB~M*) low-inclination spiralgalaxies at z=0.7 in which it is present. However, obvious spiralstructure is only detectable in ~30% of comparable galaxies in the HDFflanking field data using the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2. Our studyof artificially redshifted local galaxy images suggests that, whenviewed at similar resolution, noise level, and redshift-correctedwavelength, barred spirals are less common at z~0.7 than they are atz=0.0, although more data are needed to definitively rule out thepossibility that cosmic variance is responsible for much of this effect.
| Homogenization of the Stellar Population along Late-Type Spiral Galaxies
We present a study of the broadband UBV color profiles for 257 Sbcbarred and nonbarred galaxies, using photoelectric aperture photometrydata from the literature. Using robust statistical methods, we haveestimated the color gradients of the galaxies, as well as the total andbulge mean colors. A comparative photometric study using CCD images wasdone. In our sample, the color gradients are negative (reddish inward)in approximately 59% of the objects, are almost null in 27%, and arepositive in 14%, considering only the face-on galaxies, which representapproximately 51% of the sample. The results do not change, essentially,when we include the edge-on galaxies. As a consequence of this study wehave also found that barred galaxies are overrepresented among theobjects having null or positive gradients, indicating that bars act as amechanism of homogenization of the stellar population. This effect ismore evident in the U-B color index, although it can also be detected inthe B-V color. A correlation between the total and bulge colors wasfound that is a consequence of an underlying correlation between thecolors of bulges and disks found by other authors. Moreover, the meantotal color is the same irrespective of the gradient regime, whilebulges are bluer in galaxies with null or positive gradients, whichindicates an increase of the star formation rate in the central regionsof these objects. We have also made a quantitative evaluation of theamount of extinction in the center of these galaxies. This was doneusing the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) and the Near InfraredCamera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) Hubble Space Telescope(HST) archival data, as well as CCD B, V, and I images. We show thatalthough the extinction in the V-band can reach values up to 2 mag inthe central region, it is unlikely that dust plays a fundamental role inglobal color gradients. We found no correlation between color and O/Habundance gradients. This result could suggest that the color gradientsare more sensitive to the age rather than to the metallicity of thestellar population. However, the absence of this correlation may becaused by dust extinction. We discuss this result by considering apicture in which bars are a relatively fast, recurrent phenomenon. Theseresults are not compatible with a pure classical monolithic scenario forbulge and disk formation. On the contrary, they favor a scenario inwhich both these components are evolving in a correlated process inwhich stellar bars play a crucial role. Based partly on observationsmade at the Pico dos Dias Observatory (PDO/LNA-CNPq), Brazil.
| Stellar populations in Seyfert 2 galaxies. I. Atlas of near-UV spectra
We have carried out a uniform spectroscopic survey of Seyfert 2 galaxiesto study the stellar populations of the host galaxies. New spectra havebeen obtained for 79 Southern galaxies classified as Seyfert 2 galaxies,7 normal galaxies, and 73 stars at a resolution of 2.2 Å over thewavelength region 3500-5300 Å. Cross-correlation between thestellar spectra is performed to group the individual observations into44 synthesis standard spectra. The standard groups include a solarabundance sequence of spectral types from O5 to M3 for dwarfs, giants,and supergiants. Metal-rich and metal-weak F-K giants and dwarfs arealso included. A comparison of the stellar data with previouslypublished spectra is performed both with the individual spectra and thestandard groups. For each galaxy, two distinct spatial regions areconsidered: the nucleus and the external bulge. Spectroscopic variationsfrom one galaxy to another and from the central to the external regionare briefly discussed. It is found that the central region of a Seyfert2 galaxy, after subtracting the bulge stellar population, always shows anear-UV spectrum similar to one of three representative categories: a)many strong emission lines and only two visible absorption lines (Ca IiK and G band) (Sey2e); b) few emission lines, many absorption lines, anda redder continuum than the previous category (Sey2a); c) an almost flatcontinuum and high-order Balmer lines seen in absorption (Sey2b). Theproportion of Seyfert 2 galaxies belonging to each class is found to be22%, 28%, and 50% respectively. We find no significative differencesbetween morphology distributions of Seyfert 2 galaxies with Balmer linesdetected in absorption and the rest of the sample. This quick lookthrough the atlas indicates that half of Seyfert 2 galaxies harbour ayoung stellar population (about or less than 100 Myr) in their centralregion, clearly unveiled by the high order Balmer series seen inabsorption. Based on observations collected at the European SouthernObservatory, Chile (ESO 65.P-0014(A)). Tables 1-3 and 8 and Fig. A.1(Appendix A) are only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org
| Distances to Galaxies from the Correlation between Luminosities and Line Widths. III. Cluster Template and Global Measurement of H0
The correlation between the luminosities and rotation velocities ofgalaxies can be used to estimate distances to late-type galaxies. It isan appropriate moment to reevaluate this method given the great deal ofnew information available. The major improvements described hereinclude: (1) the template relations can now be defined by large,complete samples, (2) the samples are drawn from a wide range ofenvironments, (3) the relations are defined by photometric informationat the B, R, I, and K' bands, (4) the multiband information clarifiesproblems associated with internal reddening, (5) the template zeropoints are defined by 24 galaxies with accurately known distances, and(6) the relations are applied to 12 clusters scattered across the skyand out to velocities of 8000 km s-1. The biggest change fromearlier calibrations are associated with point 5. Roughly a 15% increasein the distance scale has come about with the fivefold increase in thenumber of zero-point calibrators. The overall increase in the distancescale from the luminosity-line width methodology is about 10% afterconsideration of all factors. Modulo an assumed distance to the LargeMagellanic Cloud of 50 kpc and no metallicity corrections to the Cepheidcalibration, the resulting value of the Hubble constant isH0=77+/-8 km s-1 Mpc-1, where the erroris the 95% probable statistical error. Cumulative systematic errorsinternal to this analysis should not exceed 10%. Uncertainties in thedistance scale ladder external to this analysis are estimated at ~10%.If the Cepheid calibration is shifted from the LMC to NGC 4258 with adistance established by observations of circumnuclear masers, thenH0 is larger by 12%.
| Maximum Disk Mass Models for Spiral Galaxies
We present axisymmetric maximum disk mass models for a sample of 74spiral galaxies taken from the southern sky Fabry-Perot Tully-Fishersurvey by Schommer et al. The sample contains galaxies spanning a largerange of morphologies and having rotation widths from 180 km s-1 to 680 km s -1. For each galaxy we have an I-bandimage and a two-dimensional Hα velocity field. We decompose thedisk and bulge by fitting models directly to the I-band image. Thismethod utilizes both the distinct surface brightness profiles and shapesof the projected disk and bulge in the galaxy images. The luminosityprofiles and rotation curves are derived using consistent centers,position angles, and inclinations derived from the photometry andvelocity maps. The distribution of mass is modeled as a sum of disk andbulge components with distinct, constant mass-to-light ratios. No darkmatter halo is included in the fits. The models reproduce the overallstructure of the rotation curves in the majority of galaxies, providinggood fits to galaxies that exhibit pronounced structural differences intheir surface brightness profiles. Of galaxies for which the rotationcurve is measured to R23.5 or beyond 75% are well fitted by amass-traces-light model for the entire region within R23.5.The models for about 20% of the galaxies do not fit well; the failure ofmost of these models is traced directly to nonaxisymmetric structures,primarily bars but also strong spiral arms. The median I-band M/L of thedisk plus bulge is 2.4+/-0.9 h75 in solar units, consistentwith normal stellar populations. These results require either that themass of dark matter within the optical disk of spiral galaxies is smallor that its distribution is very precisely coupled to the distributionof luminous matter.
| A Dynamical Study of Galaxies in the Hickson Compact Groups
To investigate dynamical properties of spiral galaxies in the Hicksoncompact groups (HCGs), we present rotation curves of 30 galaxies in 20HCGs. We found as follows: (1) There is no significant relation betweendynamical peculiarity and morphological peculiarity in HCG spiralgalaxies. (2) There is no significant relation between the dynamicalproperties and the frequency distribution of nuclear activities in HCGspiral galaxies. (3) There are no significant correlations between thedynamical properties of HCG spiral galaxies and any group properties(i.e., size, velocity dispersion, galaxy number density, and crossingtime). (4) Asymmetric and peculiar rotation curves are more frequentlyseen in the HCG spiral galaxies than in field spiral galaxies or incluster ones. However, this tendency is more obviously seen in late-typeHCG spiral galaxies. These results suggest that the dynamical propertiesof HCG spiral galaxies do not strongly correlate with the morphology,the nuclear activity, and the group properties. Our results also suggestthat more frequent galaxy collisions occur in the HCGs than in the fieldand in the clusters.
| The Frequency of Barred Spiral Galaxies in the Near-Infrared
We have determined the fraction of barred galaxies in the H-band for astatistically well-defined sample of 186 spirals drawn from the OhioState University Bright Spiral Galaxy Survey. We find 56% of our sampleto be strongly barred in the H band while another 16% is weakly barred.Only 27% of our sample is unbarred in the near-infrared. The RC3 and theCarnegie Atlas of Galaxies both classify only about 30% of our sample asstrongly barred. Thus strong bars are nearly twice as prevalent in thenear-infrared as in the optical. The frequency of genuine opticallyhidden bars is significant but lower than many claims in the literature:40% of the galaxies in our sample that are classified as unbarred in theRC3 show evidence for a bar in the H band while the Carnegie Atlas liststhis fraction as 66%. Our data reveal no significant trend in barfraction as a function of morphology in either the optical or H band.Optical surveys of high-redshift galaxies may be strongly biased againstfinding bars, as bars are increasingly difficult to detect at bluer restwavelengths. Based partially on observations obtained at the CerroTololo Inter-American Observatory, operated by the Association ofUniversities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under cooperativeagreement with the National Science Foundation.
| Small-amplitude density waves in galactic discs with radial gradients
Stellar discs of highly flattened giant galaxies, including that of theMilky Way, are studied by linear theory to determine the stability ofsuch discs against small-amplitude gravity perturbations. In order tounderstand the physics of the problem better, the simplest theoreticalmodel is applied. That is, the local disc is studied by employing themethod of particle orbit theory. In this purely Lagrangian method, anapproximate solution of the Newtonian equations of the motion of starsis obtained using a general technique based upon the perturbationmethod. In the second order of Lindblad's epicyclic theory, expressionsare found for the unperturbed motions of stars in a stationary systemwith an axially symmetric mass distribution. Then, expressions are foundfor the perturbed motions of stars when the small non-axisymmetricgravity perturbation is additionally taken into account. The perturbedterms are obtained as second-order oscillations. To describe the orderedbehaviour of a medium near its quasi-equilibrium state, these equationsfor the trajectories of stars are used to obtain the dispersion relationthat connects the frequency of excited collective oscillations with thewavenumber throughout the disc, including resonant regions. Using thedispersion relation, a new class of gradient microinstabilities of anon-uniformly rotating disc inherent in an inhomogeneous system isdiscussed. The Landau mechanism of excitation of spiral density wavesworks at the corotation resonance between stars and hydrodynamically(Jeans) stable perturbations (e.g. those produced by a bar-likestructure, a spontaneous perturbation and/or a companion galaxy). Aphysical aetiology of the gradient microinstabilities of collisionlessstellar discs is explained. Such instabilities can develop only if theinhomogeneous and non-uniformly rotating disc of stars is Jeans-stable.Certain astronomical implications of the theory for actual galaxies areexplored as well. In particular, the development of these instabilitiesof a stellar disc can result directly in the formation of differentobservable structural features, e.g. spiral arms and collisionlessdynamical relaxation of the system on the Hubble time-scale.
| Cosmic Masks Still Dance
The Hubble classification scheme of galaxies is based on their opticalappearance or `masks'. As one goes from early to late type spirals, bothbarred and unbarred, the optical appearance will be dominated more andmore by the young Population I, i.e., blue stars and dust. Atlasesreveal the rich variety of responses of the Population I component ofgas and dust (the mask) to the underlying, older, stellar population.However, the gaseous Population I component, may only constitute 5percent of the dynamical mass of the galaxy. Masks of negligible massmay conceal the human face - and that of galaxy. In the near-infrared,the morphology of older star-dominated disk indicates a simpleclassification scheme: the dominant Fourier m-mode in the dustpenetrated regime, and the associated pitch angle. A ubiquity of low m=1and m=2 modes is confirmed. On the basis of deprojected H (1.65 μm)and K' (2.1μm) images, we propose that the evolved stellar disks maybe grouped into three principal dust penetrated archetypes: those withtightly wound stellar arms characterised by pitch angles at K' of ~10^° (the α class), an intermediate group with pitch angles of~ 25^° (the β class) and thirdly, those with open spiralsdemarcated by pitch angles at K' of ~ 40^° (the γ bin). Flator falling rotation curves give rise to the tightly wound α class;rising rotation curves are associated with the open γ class. Theobserved dust penetrated classes are inextricably related to the rate ofshear in the stellar disk, as determined by A/ω. Here A is thefirst Oort constant andω denotes the angular velocity. There is nocorrelation between our dust penetrated classes and optical Hubblebinning; the Hubble tuning fork does not constrain the morphology of theold stellar Population II disks. NGC 3223 and NGC 7083 (both SbI-II andalmost the same absolute blue magnitude) have identical Hubble types andidentical luminosity classes; the dust penetrated disk of NGC 3223 hastightly wrapped arms of class α, whereas the near-infrared disk ofNGC 7083 has open arms of class γ. This is in turn associated withtheir very different rotation curve shapes yielding different rates ofshear A/ω in their stellar disks. Any specific dust penetratedarchetype may be the resident disk of both an early or late type galaxy.The number of arms and the pitch angle of the arms at K' of theearly-type `a' spiral NGC 718 are almost identical to those for thelate-type `c' spiral NGC 309. We demonstrate that galaxies on oppositeends of the tuning fork can display remarkably similar evolved diskmorphologies and belong to the same dust penetrated class. In thissense, there is no differentiation between an early and late typegalaxy: the Hubble tuning fork becomes a circle. Furthermore, aprototypically flocculent galaxy such as NGC 5055 (Elmegreen arm class3) can have an evolved disk morphology almost identical to that of NGC5861, characterised in the optical as having one of the most regularspiral patterns known and of Elmegreen class 12. Both opticallyflocculent or grand design galaxies can reside within the same dustpenetrated morphological bin. As was suggested by Block et al. (1994a),it is the gas dominated Population I component which determines theoptical types (a, b, c). This may be partially or even fully decoupledfrom the Population II disk. Those L=lopsided galaxies (where m=1 is adominant mode) are designated Lα, Lβ and Lγ accordingto the dust penetrated pitch angle; E=evensided galaxies (where m=2 isthe dominant Fourier mode) are classified into classes Eα, Eβand Eγ, according to our three principal dust penetratedarchetypes. The L and E modes are the most common morphologies in oursample, which spans a range of Hubble types from early (a) to late(irregular).
| The I-Band Tully-Fisher Relation for SC Galaxies: 21 Centimeter H I Line Data
A compilation of 21 cm line spectral parameters specifically designedfor application of the Tully-Fisher (TF) distance method is presentedfor 1201 spiral galaxies, primarily field Sc galaxies, for which opticalI-band photometric imaging is also available. New H I line spectra havebeen obtained for 881 galaxies. For an additional 320 galaxies, spectraavailable in a digital archive have been reexamined to allow applicationof a single algorithm for the derivation of the TF velocity widthparameter. A velocity width algorithm is used that provides a robustmeasurement of rotational velocity and permits an estimate of the erroron that width taking into account the effects of instrumental broadeningand signal-to-noise. The digital data are used to establish regressionrelations between measurements of velocity widths using other commonprescriptions so that comparable widths can be derived throughconversion of values published in the literature. The uniform H I linewidths presented here provide the rotational velocity measurement to beused in deriving peculiar velocities via the TF method.
| The I-Band Tully-Fisher Relation for SC Galaxies: Optical Imaging Data
Properties derived from the analysis of photometric I-band imagingobservations are presented for 1727 inclined spiral galaxies, mostly oftypes Sbc and Sc. The reduction, parameter extraction, and errorestimation procedures are discussed in detail. The asymptotic behaviorof the magnitude curve of growth and the radial variation in ellipticityand position angle are used in combination with the linearity of thesurface brightness falloff to fit the disk portion of the profile. TotalI-band magnitudes are calculated by extrapolating the detected surfacebrightness profile to a radius of eight disk scale lengths. Errors inthe magnitudes, typically ~0.04 mag, are dominated by uncertainties inthe sky subtraction and disk-fitting procedures. Comparison is made withthe similar imaging database of Mathewson, Ford, & Buchhorn, both aspresented originally by those authors and after reanalyzing theirdigital reduction files using identical disk-fitting procedures. Directcomparison is made of profile details for 292 galaxies observed incommon. Although some differences occur, good agreement is found,proving that the two data sets can be used in combination with onlyminor accommodation of those differences. The compilation of opticalproperties presented here is optimized for use in applications of theTully-Fisher relation as a secondary distance indicator in studies ofthe local peculiar velocity field.
| Toward a dust penetrated classification of the evolved stellar Population II disks of galaxies
To derive a coherent physical framework for the excitation of spiralstructure in galaxies, one must consider the co-existence of twodifferent dynamical components: a gas-dominated Population I disk (OBassociations, HII regions, cold interstellar HI gas) and an evolvedstellar Population II component. The Hubble classification scheme has asits focus, the morphology of the Population I component only. In thenear-infrared, the morphology of evolved stellar disks indicates asimple classification scheme: the dominant Fourier m-mode in the dustpenetrated regime, and the associated pitch angle. On the basis ofdeprojected K' (2.1microns ) images, we propose that the evolved stellardisks may be grouped into three principal dust penetrated archetypes:those with tightly wound stellar arms characterised by pitch angles atK' of ~ 10(deg) (the alpha class), an intermediate group with pitchangles of ~ 25(deg) (the beta class) and thirdly, those with openspirals demarcated by pitch angles at K' of ~ 40(deg) (the gamma bin).There is no correlation between our dust penetrated classes and opticalHubble binning; the Hubble tuning fork does not constrain the morphologyof the old stellar Population II disks. Any specific dust penetratedarchetype may be the resident disk of both an early or late type galaxy.The number of arms and the pitch angle of the arms at K' of theearly-type `a' spiral NGC 718 are almost identical to those for thelate-type `c' spiral NGC 309. We demonstrate that galaxies on oppositeends of the tuning fork can display remarkably similar evolved diskmorphologies and belong to the same dust penetrated class. Furthermore,a prototypically flocculent galaxy such as NGC 5055 (Elmegreen arm class3) can have an evolved disk morphology almost identical to that of NGC5861, characterised in the optical as having one of the most regularspiral patterns known and of Elmegreen class 12. Both opticallyflocculent or grand design galaxies can reside within the same dustpenetrated morphological bin. As was suggested by Block et al.(\cite{block94a}), it is the gas dominated Population I component whichdetermines the optical types (a, b, c), decoupled from the PopulationII. Those L=lopsided galaxies (where m=1 is a dominant mode) aredesignated Lalpha , Lbeta and Lgamma according to the dust penetratedpitch angle; E=evensided galaxies (where m=2 is the dominant Fouriermode) are classified into classes Ealpha , Ebeta and Egamma , accordingto our three principal dust penetrated archetypes. The L and E modes arethe most common morphologies in our sample, which spans a range ofHubble types from early (a) to late (irregular). Having formulated ourdust penetrated classification scheme here, we have tested it on anindependent sample of 45 face-on galaxies observed in the near-infraredby Seigar and James (\cite{seigar98a}, b).
| Total magnitude, radius, colour indices, colour gradients and photometric type of galaxies
We present a catalogue of aperture photometry of galaxies, in UBVRI,assembled from three different origins: (i) an update of the catalogueof Buta et al. (1995) (ii) published photometric profiles and (iii)aperture photometry performed on CCD images. We explored different setsof growth curves to fit these data: (i) The Sersic law, (ii) The net ofgrowth curves used for the preparation of the RC3 and (iii) A linearinterpolation between the de Vaucouleurs (r(1/4) ) and exponential laws.Finally we adopted the latter solution. Fitting these growth curves, wederive (1) the total magnitude, (2) the effective radius, (3) the colourindices and (4) gradients and (5) the photometric type of 5169 galaxies.The photometric type is defined to statistically match the revisedmorphologic type and parametrizes the shape of the growth curve. It iscoded from -9, for very concentrated galaxies, to +10, for diffusegalaxies. Based in part on observations collected at the Haute-ProvenceObservatory.
|
Submit a new article
Related links
Submit a new link
Member of following groups:
|
Observation and Astrometry data
Catalogs and designations:
|
