Start year
1986
Organizational Unit
Organizing institutions
Grants related:
General
Description
The basic objective of the broject is to investigate the evolution of galaxies by deepening our understanding of the interaction between the insterstellar medium and the stars.The main technique which we use is the two-dimensional kinematic study of whole galaxies observed using our instrument:GHaFaS, a Fabry-Perot interferometer on the William Herschel Telescope of the ORM.
We combine the data from GHaFaS with our own photometric imaging using ACAM on the same telescope, with a variety of sources of images in the infrared and ultraviolet, and with emission line maps en the radio and milimetre range to explore the effects, and the physical parameters which the determine the star formation rate and the mass function of the stars depending on the sites of their formation in galaxies.
In the present phase of the project the dynamical aspects which we are e xploring are basically two: the resonant structure of discs and bars, and the effects of the zones of massive star formation on their surroundings via stellar winds and supernovae.In addition, in preparation for the exploration of galaxy formation in earlier epochs, we are studying how the interactions between galaxies stimulate and condition star formation within them before they merge. In the future these studies will be extended, methodically, in two directions: outwards to galaxies at increasing redshift, and inwards by applying our methods to the study of interstellar porcesse in the zones of massive star formation in the Local Group galaxy M33.
We combine our research into galaxy kinematics with evolutionary aspects of galaxy discs based on precise observations of their surface brightness profiles, both in local galaxies and in galaxies at intermediate redshift. In order to make progress in this direction we are collaborating with colleagues at the Instituto de Astronomía de la UNAM (México) and the Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille (France) in the implementation of a new instrument, NEFER, which will be a high resolution Fabry-Perot module incorporated into OSIRIS on the GTC. We had successful inicial trials in December 2017, and commissioneed NEFER in March 2018 for use as a visitor instrument permanently on the GTC.
Members
Principal investigator
Prof.
John E. Beckman
Project staff
Dr.
J. Font
Collaborators
Dr.
M. Rosado
Dr.
A. Rodríguez
Dr.
P. Velázquez
Dr.
A. Camps
Dr.
L. Gutierrez Albores
Dr.
P. Amram
Dr.
S. Comerón
Dr.
B. Epinat
María Begoña
García Lorenzo
Johan Hendrik
Knapen Koelstra
Ignacio
Trujillo Cabrera
Results
- The "Font-Beckman" method for analysing resonances in galaxies was shown to give very accurate results, comparing it with the "Tremaine-Weinberg" method using data from GHaFaS (WHT and MUSE (VLT)
- The profiles of Type III (antitruncated) S0 galaxies were measured at z = 0.6 (5 thousan dmillion years ago) for the first time. The "break radius" is the same as that of local galaxies, but its surface brightness is 1.6 magnitudes brighter.
- A new and greatly improved analysis of the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field gave an image with valid photometry down to 33 mag /arcsec squared, revealing the faint outskirts of it galaxies,.
- Comparing galaxies in interacting pairs with isolated galaxies it was shown that the star formation rate in the former is consistently enhanced and that this enhancement is common to the discs and the tidal tails
- The galaxy NGC 864 (CIG 86), apparently isolated, shows an asymmetric distribution of its hI. It was shown that this galaxy is truly isolated, and that HI accretion probably accounts for the asymmetry as well as the star formation in its stellar pseud-ring
Scientific activity
Related publications
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Dust distribution in HII regions in nearby galaxies from optical and IR studies .We report on our ongoing project "Statistical studies of HII regions in the nearby extragalaxies". In EWASS 2014 we presented the overview of our detailed study of warm dust in the nearby Galaxy NGC 4321 (M100), which included new relations between the Halpha luminosity and the near-IR luminosity and temperature of some 275 HII regions in M100. InBeckman, J. E. et al.
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2015 -
Mapping atomic and diffuse interstellar band absorption across the Magellanic Clouds and the Milky WayDiffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) trace warm neutral and weakly ionized diffuse interstellar medium (ISM). Here we present a dedicated, high signal-to-noise spectroscopic survey of two of the strongest DIBs, at 5780 and 5797 Å, in optical spectra of 666 early-type stars in the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds, along with measurements of the atomicBailey, Mandy et al.
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122015 -
Hα kinematics of S4G spiral galaxies - II. Data description and non-circular motionsWe present a kinematical study of 29 spiral galaxies included in the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies, using Hα Fabry-Perot (FP) data obtained with the Galaxy Hα Fabry-Perot System instrument at the William Herschel Telescope in La Palma, complemented with images in the R band and in Hα. The primary goal is to study the evolution andErroz-Ferrer, S. et al.
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72015 -
Photometric scaling relations of anti-truncated stellar discs in S0-Scd galaxiesContext. It has been recently found that the characteristic photometric parameters of anti-truncated discs in S0 galaxies follow tight scaling relations. Aims: We investigate whether similar scaling relations are satisfied by galaxies of other morphological types. Methods: We have analysed the trends in several photometric planes relating theEliche-Moral, M. C. et al.
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82015 -
Comparative internal kinematics of the H II regions in interacting and isolated galaxies: implications for massive star formation modesWe have observed 12 interacting galaxy pairs using the Fabry-Perot interferometer GH αFaS (Galaxy H α Fabry-Perot system) on the 4.2-m William Herschel Telescope at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma. We present here the Hα surface brightness, velocity and velocity dispersion maps for the 10 systems we have not previouslyZaragoza-Cardiel, J. et al.
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82015 -
On the origin of the angular momentum of galaxies: cosmological tidal torques supplemented by the Coriolis forceWe present here a theoretical model which can at least contribute to the observed relation between the specific angular momenta of galaxies and their masses. This study offers prima facie evidence that the origin of an angular momentum of galaxies could be somewhat more complex than previously proposed. The most recent observations point to aCasuso, E. et al.
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52015 -
First EURONEAR NEA discoveries from La Palma using the INTSince 2006, the European Near Earth Asteroids Research (EURONEAR) project has been contributing to the research of near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) within a European network. One of the main aims is the amelioration of the orbits of NEAs, and starting in 2014 February we focus on the recovery of one-opposition NEAs using the Isaac Newton Telescope (INT)Vaduvescu, O. et al.
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52015 -
BUBBLY: a method for detecting and characterizing interstellar bubbles using Fabry-Perot spectroscopyWe present a new method for the detection and characterization of expansion in galaxy discs based on Hα Fabry-Perot spectroscopy, taking advantage of the high spatial and velocity resolution of our instrument (GHαFaS). The method analyses multipeaked emission line profiles to find expansion along the line of sight on a point-by-point basis. At thisCamps-Fariña, A. et al.
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32015 -
Internal Proper Motions in the Eskimo NebulaWe present measurements of internal proper motions at more than 500 positions of NGC 2392, the Eskimo Nebula, based on images acquired with WFPC2 on board the Hubble Space Telescope at two epochs separated by 7.695 yr. Comparisons of the two observations clearly show the expansion of the nebula. We measured the amplitude and direction of the motionGarcía-Díaz, Ma. T. et al.
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12015 -
Composite bulges: the coexistence of classical bulges and discy pseudo-bulges in S0 and spiral galaxiesWe present an analysis of nine S0-Sb galaxies which have (photometric) bulges consisting of two distinct components. The outer component is a flattened, kinematically cool, disc-like structure: a `discy pseudo-bulge'. Embedded inside is a rounder, kinematically hot spheroidal structure: a `classical bulge'. This indicates that pseudo-bulges andErwin, P. et al.
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22015 -
Formation of S0 galaxies through mergers. Antitruncated stellar discs resulting from major mergers <xref ref-type="fn" rid="FN1">Context. Lenticular galaxies (S0s) are more likely to host antitruncated (Type III) stellar discs than galaxies of later Hubble types. Major mergers are popularly considered too violent to make these breaks. Aims: We have investigated whether major mergers can result into S0-like remnants with realistic antitruncated stellar discs or not. MethodsBorlaff, A. et al.
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102014 -
Two physical regimes for the giant H II regions and giant molecular clouds in the Antennae galaxiesWe have combined observations of the Antennae galaxies from the radio interferometer ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) and from the optical interferometer GHαFaS (Galaxy Hα Fabry-Perot System). The two sets of observations have comparable angular and spectral resolutions, enabling us to identify 142 giant molecular clouds (GMCs)Zaragoza-Cardiel, J. et al.
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122014 -
The ratio of pattern speeds in double-barred galaxiesWe have obtained two-dimensional velocity fields in the ionized gas of a set of eight double-barred galaxies, at high spatial and spectral resolution, using their Hα emission fields measured with a scanning Fabry-Perot spectrometer. Using the technique by which phase reversals in the non-circular motion indicate a radius of corotation, takingFont, J. et al.
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102014 -
Bar pattern speed and position of the circumnuclear ring in NGC 1097We present the first galactic-scale model of the gas dynamics of the prototype barred Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 1097. We use large-scale FaNTOmM Fabry-Perot interferometric data covering the entire galactic disc and combine the distribution and kinematics maps with high-resolution two-dimensional spectroscopy from the Gemini telescope. We build avan de Ven, G. et al.
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22014 -
Interlocking Resonance Patterns in Galaxy DisksWe have developed a method for finding dynamical resonances in disk galaxies using the change in sense of the radial component of the in-plane velocity at a resonance radius. Using simulations we show that we would expect to find these changes at corotation radii with a weaker effect at the Lindblad resonances. The method works well withQuerejeta, M. et al.
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12014 -
Hα kinematics of 11 starburst galaxies selected from the Sloan Digital Sky SurveyWe present analysis of Fabry-Perot interferometric observations for a sample of 11 starburst galaxies with redshift z ≲ 0.03 selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We have targeted the Hα λ 6562.78 emission line at spatial sampling of 0.2arcsec-0.4 arcsec and at spectral resolution of R ˜ 16 000. Studying two-dimensional maps for the velocityBlasco-Herrera, J. et al.
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112013 -
Electron densities of HII regions throughout the NGC 6946 diskWe have used the tuneable filter system of OSIRIS to observe the [SII] doublet lines at λλ617.7 and 673.1 nm in emission across the full face of NGC 6946, and estimated the in situ electron densities for 387 HII regions, so far. The values decline steadily from over 350 cm^-3 at 1/3 R_{25} to around 175 cm^-3 at 2/3 R_{25}.Beckman, J. E. et al.
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52013 -
Kinematics of Arp 270: gas flows, nuclear activity and two regimes of star formationWe have observed the Arp 270 system (NGC 3395 and NGC 3396) in Hα emission using the Galaxy Hα Fabry-Perot spectrometer on the 4.2 m William Herschel Telescope (La Palma). In NGC 3396, which is edge-on to us, we detect gas inflow towards the centre, and also axially confined opposed outflows, characteristic of galactic superwinds, and we go on toZaragoza-Cardiel, J. et al.
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62013 -
Statistical studies of HII regions in nearby galaxies. I. Spitzer near-IR luminosities and temperatures, compared with Hα luminosities, from selected HII regions in M100Aims: We systematically study the relations between the Hα luminosity and the near-IR luminosity and temperature of a set of selected HII regions in the disc of M100. Methods: By using the technique of cross-reference between the optical Hα image (the catalogue of HII regions in M100) and the Spitzer IRAC images, we locate the selected HII regionsChan, S. J. et al.
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52013 -
Morphology, Kinematics and Star Formation in Spiral Galaxies in the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G)We present a study of the morphology, kinematics and star formation of a sample of 27 isolated spiral galaxies in the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G), on the basis of Hα Fabry-Perot (FP) data from the GHαFaS instrument at the William Herschel Telescope (WHT) in La Palma, complemented with images at 3.6 micron from the SpitzerS4G Team et al.
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32013
