Start year
1992
Organizational Unit
Organizing institutions
Grants related:
General
Description
Starsbursts play a key role in the cosmic evolution of galaxies, and thus in the star formation (SF) history of the universe, the production of metals, and the feedback coupling galaxies with the cosmic web. Extreme SF conditions prevail early on during the formation of the first stars and galaxies, therefore, the starburst phenomenon constitutes a fundamental ingredient of our understanding of the Universe. Starbursts are observed throughout, from the giant HII regions in nearby spirals, to the massive clumps typical of high redshift objects. This project is aimed at carrying out a comprehensive study of the physics of local massive SF regions in order to enlarge our understanding of the most distant galaxies and most extreme starbursts. We combine observational studies (using ground-based and space-borne spectrophotometry) along with our self-consistent theoretical models. Among the observational facilities, the team is directly involved in the development and scientific exploitation of the GTC instruments EMIR and MEGARA, which will become operational during the timespan of the project.
We have structured our research for the next three years around five main objectives:
1) The interplay between massive SF and the interstellar medium within galaxies.
2) Understanding the formation of disk galaxies.
3) The role of the environment on massive SF and the evolution of galaxies.
4) Extreme starbursting in the early Universe.
5) Participation in the science verification and building of new instrumentation.
The main results expected from this project include: i) constraining the chemical evolution of galaxies using a combination of integral-field spectroscopy and fully bi-dimensional models, ii) understanding the role of molecular gas and high-energy background photons on the formation of galaxies, iii) developing a technique to image the cosmic web gas that feeds the starbursts, iv) characterizing the chemical and dynamical properties of the gas that is falling into the galaxies, v) deciphering the different ways in which the environment can affect the SF in star-forming galaxies along cosmic time; paying special attention to the triggering of violent SF bursts in the lowest metallicity galaxies. vi) explaining how very massive and compact starbursts may evolve in the so-called positive feedback mode, accounting for extreme starbursts in local galaxy analogs to the objects present in the primeval universe. vii) understanding the SF in Lya and Ly-break galaxies, viii) constraining the existence of candidate stars analog to PopIII in extremely metal-poor galaxies, both in the local universe and at high redshift, ix) developing the know-how needed for effective use of EMIR and MEGARA. We aim at getting the most from these new instruments by leading science cases during verification phase and later on.
Members
Principal investigator
Casiana
Muñoz Tuñón
Project staff
Collaborators
Nicola
Caon
José Alfonso
López Aguerri
Jairo
Méndez Abreu
Jorge Francisco
Sánchez Almeida
Antonia
Varela Pérez
Dr.
Nieves D. Castro Rodriguez
Dr.
Cecilia Fariña
Dr.
Daniel Reverte Paya
Claudio
Dalla Vecchia
Artemio
Herrero Davo
Dr.
Ricardo Amorin Barbieri
Dr.
Irene Cruz-González
Dr.
Erika Benitez
Dr.
Omaira González Martín
Dr.
Rafael Guzmán Llorente
Dr.
David Sobral
Dr.
Eduard Salvador Solé
Dr.
Miguel Mas Hesse
Dr.
Jesus Gallego Maestro
Dr.
Guillermo Tenorio Tagle
Dr.
Sergio Martinez
Dr.
Pablo Perez Gonzalez
Dr.
Bruce Elmegreen
Dr.
Debra Elmegreen
Results
- Local anticorrelation between star formation rate and gas-phase metallicity in disc galaxies Using a representative sample of 14 star-forming dwarf galaxies in the local Universe, we show the existence of a spaxel-to-spaxel anticorrelation between the index N2 ≡ log ([N II]λ 6583/H α ) and the H α flux.
- Discovery of a high-metallicity low mass galaxy, confirming the stochasticity of the cosmic web gas feed star formation
- Pyroclastic Blowout: Dust Survival in Supernovi Events
- A simultaneous search for high-z LAEs and LBGs in the SHARDS survey.We derive redshifts, star formation rates, Lyα equivalent widths, and luminosity functions (LFs). Grouping within our sample is also studied, finding 92 pairs or small groups of galaxies
- A possible binary AGN has been found in Mrk 622.
Scientific activity
Related publications
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The intrinsic shape of bulgesThe J-band structural parameters of a magnitude-limited sample of 148 unbarred S0--Sb galaxies were obtained using the GASP2D algorithm and then analyzed to recover the intrinsic shape of their bulges. We developed a new method to derive the intrinsic shape of bulges based only on photometric data and on the geometrical relationships between theCorsini, E. M. et al.
Advertised on:
32012 -
Probing nuclear activity versus star formation at z ˜ 0.8 using near-infrared multi-object spectroscopyWe present near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopic observations of 28 X-ray and mid-infrared selected sources at a median redshift of z ˜ 0.8 in the Extended Groth Strip (EGS). To date this is the largest compilation of NIR spectra of active galactic nuclei (AGN) at this redshift. The data were obtained using the multi-object spectroscopic mode of theRodríguez-Eugenio, N. et al.
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32013 -
Characterization of a Sample of Intermediate-type Active Galactic Nuclei. II. Host Bulge Properties and Black Hole Mass EstimatesWe present a study of the host bulge properties and their relations with the black hole mass for a sample of 10 intermediate-type active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our sample consists mainly of early-type spirals, four of them hosting a bar. For 70+10 –17% of the galaxies, we have been able to determine the type of the bulge, and find that theseBenítez, Erika et al.
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22013 -
Spectral Energy Distributions of Low-luminosity Radio Galaxies at z ~1-3: A High-z View of the Host/AGN ConnectionWe study the spectral energy distributions, SEDs (from FUV to MIR bands), of the first sizeable sample of 34 low-luminosity radio galaxies at high redshifts, selected in the COSMOS field. To model the SEDs, we use two different template-fitting techniques: (1) the Hyperz code that only considers single stellar templates and (2) our own developedSparks, William B. et al.
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12013 -
SHARDS: An Optical Spectro-photometric Survey of Distant GalaxiesWe present the Survey for High-z Absorption Red and Dead Sources (SHARDS), an ESO/GTC Large Program carried out using the OSIRIS instrument on the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC). SHARDS is an ultra-deep optical spectro-photometric survey of the GOODS-N field covering 130 arcmin2 at wavelengths between 500 and 950 nm with 24 contiguous mediumZamorano, Jaime et al.
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12013 -
Characterization of a Sample of Intermediate-type AGNs. I. Spectroscopic Properties and Serendipitous Discovery of New Dual AGNsA sample of 10 nearby intermediate-type active galactic nuclei (AGNs) drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey is presented. The aim of this work is to provide estimations of the black hole (BH) mass for the sample galaxies from the dynamics of the broad-line region. For this purpose, a detailed spectroscopic analysis of the objects was done. UsingChavushyan, Vahram H. et al.
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12013 -
Automated Unsupervised Classification of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Stellar Spectra using k-means ClusteringLarge spectroscopic surveys require automated methods of analysis. This paper explores the use of k-means clustering as a tool for automated unsupervised classification of massive stellar spectral catalogs. The classification criteria are defined by the data and the algorithm, with no prior physical framework. We work with a representative set ofAllende-Prieto, C. et al.
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12013 -
Constraining clumpy dusty torus models using optimized filter setsRecent success in explaining several properties of the dusty torus around the central engine of active galactic nuclei has been gathered with the assumption of clumpiness. The properties of such clumpy dusty tori can be inferred by analysing spectral energy distributions (SEDs), sometimes with scarce sampling given that large aperture telescopesRamos-Almeida, C. et al.
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12013 -
The Nature and Nurture of Bars and DisksThe effects that interactions produce on galaxy disks and how they modify the subsequent formation of bars need to be distinguished to fully understand the relationship between bars and environment. To this aim we derive the bar fraction in three different environments ranging from the field to Virgo and Coma Clusters, covering an unprecedentedlyMéndez-Abreu, J. et al.
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122012 -
The Ninth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data from the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic SurveyThe Sloan Digital Sky Survey III (SDSS-III) presents the first spectroscopic data from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS). This ninth data release (DR9) of the SDSS project includes 535,995 new galaxy spectra (median z ~ 0.52), 102,100 new quasar spectra (median z ~ 2.32), and 90,897 new stellar spectra, along with the dataSheldon, Erin et al.
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122012 -
PKS 0347+05: a radio-loud/radio-quiet double active galactic nucleus system triggered in a major galaxy mergerWe present optical, infrared (IR) and radio observations of the powerful Fanaroff-Riley type II (FR II) radio source PKS 0347+05 (z = 0.3390), and demonstrate that it is a rare example of a radio-loud/radio-quiet double active galactic nucleus (AGN) system, comprising a weak-line radio galaxy (WLRG) separated by 25 kpc (in projection) from aInskip, K. et al.
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122012 -
Hubble Space Telescope Hα imaging of star-forming galaxies at z ≃ 1-1.5: evolution in the size and luminosity of giant H II regionsWe present Hubble Space Telescope/Wide Field Camera 3 narrow-band imaging of the Hα emission in a sample of eight gravitationally lensed galaxies at z = 1-1.5. The magnification caused by the foreground clusters enables us to obtain a median source plane spatial resolution of 360 pc, as well as providing magnifications in flux ranging from ˜10× toLivermore, R. C. et al.
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112012 -
VLT-VIMOS integral field spectroscopy of luminous and ultraluminous infrared galaxies. I. The sample and first resultsContext: (Ultra)Luminous Infrared Galaxies [(U)LIRGs] are much more numerous at cosmological distances than locally, and are likely the precursors of elliptical galaxies. Studies of the physical structure and kinematics of representative samples of these galaxies at low redshift are needed in order to understand the interrelated physical processesArribas, S. et al.
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32008 -
The environs of the H II region Gum 31Aims:We analyze the distribution of the interstellar matter in the environs of the H ii region Gum 31, excited by the open cluster NGC 3324, located in the complex Carina region, with the aim of investigating the action of the massive stars on the surrounding neutral material. Methods: We use neutral hydrogen 21-cm line data, radio continuum imagesCappa, C. et al.
Advertised on:
12008 -
Filaments in Galactic Winds Driven by Young Stellar ClustersThe starburst galaxy M82 shows a system of Hα-emitting filaments that extend to each side of the galactic disk. We model these filaments as the result of the interaction between the winds from a distribution of super stellar clusters (SSCs). We first derive the condition necessary for producing a radiative interaction between the cluster winds (aRodríguez-González, A. et al.
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122008 -
Integral field spectroscopy based Hα sizes of local luminous and ultraluminous infrared galaxies. A direct comparison with high-z massive star-forming galaxiesAims: We study the analogy between local luminous and ultraluminous infrared galaxies (U/LIRGs) and high-z massive star forming galaxies (SFGs) by comparing their basic Hα structural characteristics, such as size and luminosity surface density, in an homogeneous way (i.e. same tracer, size definition, and similar physical scales). Methods: We useArribas, S. et al.
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52012 -
Extended soft X-ray emission in 3CR radio galaxies at z < 0.3: high excitation and broad line galaxiesWe analyze Chandra observations of diffuse soft X-ray emission associated with a complete sample of 3CR radio galaxies at z 0.3. We focus on the properties of the spectroscopic sub-classes of high excitation galaxies (HEGs) and broad line objects (BLOs). Among the 33 HEGs we detect extended (or possibly extended) emission in about 40% of theBalmaverde, B. et al.
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92012 -
X-ray variability of 104 active galactic nuclei. XMM-Newton power-spectrum density profilesContext. Active galactic nuclei (AGN), powered by accretion onto supermassive black holes (SMBHs), are thought to be scaled up versions of Galactic black hole X-ray binaries (BH-XRBs). In the past few years evidence of such correspondence include similarities in the broadband shape of the X-ray variability power spectra, with characteristic bendGonzález-Martín, O. et al.
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82012 -
Quiet-Sun Magnetic Field Measurements Based on Lines with Hyperfine StructureThe Zeeman pattern of Mn I lines is sensitive to hyperfine structure (HFS), and because of this, they respond to hectogauss magnetic field strengths differently than the lines commonly used in solar magnetometry. This peculiarity has been employed to measure magnetic field strengths in quiet-Sun regions, assuming the magnetic field to be constantSánchez Almeida, J. et al.
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32008 -
The GTC project: under commissioningThe GTC (Gran Telescopio Canarias) is an optical/IR telescope, with a 10,4 meter segmented primary, installed at the Observatorio del Roque de Los Muchachos (ORM), at La Palma. Past July 2007 it saw its First Light showing a very promising behaviour. The very good image quality achieved at that an early stage of telescope commissioning is a directAlvarez, P. et al.
Advertised on:
82008
