29 research outputs found
Correlations among global photometric properties of disk galaxies
Using a two-dimensional galaxy image decomposition technique, we extract
global bulge and disk parameters for a complete sample of early type disk
galaxies in the near infrared K band. We find significant correlation of the
bulge parameter n with the central bulge surface brightness and with
effective radius r_e. Using bivar iate analysis techniques, we find that , and are distributed in a plane with small scatter. We
do not find a strong correlation of n with bulge-to-disk luminosity ratio,
contrary to earlier reports. r_e and the disk scale length r_d are well
correlated for these early type disk galaxies, but with large scatter. We
examine the implications of our results to various bulge formation scenarios in
disk galaxies.Comment: 14 pages, LaTeX including 14 figures. To appear in the Astrophysical
Journa
Structural and Photometric Classification of Galaxies - I. Calibration Based on a Nearby Galaxy Sample
In this paper we define an observationally robust, multi-parameter space for
the classification of nearby and distant galaxies. The parameters include
luminosity, color, and the image-structure parameters: size, image
concentration, asymmetry, and surface brightness. Based on an initial
calibration of this parameter space using the ``normal'' Hubble-types surveyed
by Frei et al. (1996), we find that only a subset of the parameters provide
useful classification boundaries for this sample. Interestingly, this subset
does not include distance-dependent scale parameters, such as size or
luminosity. The essential ingredient is the combination of a spectral index
(e.g., color) with parameters of image structure and scale: concentration,
asymmetry, and surface-brightness. We refer to the image structure parameters
(concentration and asymmetry) as indices of ``form.'' We define a preliminary
classification based on spectral index, form, and surface-brightness (a scale)
that successfully separates normal galaxies into three classes. We
intentionally identify these classes with the familiar labels of Early,
Intermediate, and Late. This classification, or others based on the above four
parameters can be used reliably to define comparable samples over a broad range
in redshift. The size and luminosity distribution of such samples will not be
biased by this selection process except through astrophysical correlations
between spectral index, form, and surface-brightness.Comment: to appear in AJ (June, 2000); 34 pages including 4 tables and 12
figure
Einstein Cluster Alignments Revisited
We have examined whether the major axes of rich galaxy clusters tend to point
toward their nearest neighboring cluster. We have used the data of Ulmer,
McMillan, and Kowalski, who used position angles based on X-ray morphology. We
also studied a subset of this sample with updated positions and distances from
the MX Northern Abell Cluster Survey (for rich clusters () with well
known redshifts). A Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) test showed no significant signal
for nonrandom angles on any scale Mpc. However, refining the
null hypothesis with the Wilcoxon rank-sum test, we found a high confidence
signal for alignment. Confidence levels increase to a high of 99.997% as only
near neighbors which are very close are considered. We conclude there is a
strong alignment signal in the data, consistent with gravitational instability
acting on Gaussian perturbations.Comment: Minor revisions. To be published in Ap
Superclustering at Redshift Z=0.54
We present strong evidence for the existence of a supercluster at a redshift
of z=0.54 in the direction of Selected Area 68. From the distribution of
galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts we find that there is a large
over-density of galaxies (a factor of four over the number expected in an
unclustered universe) within the redshift range 0.530 < z < 0.555. By
considering the spatial distribution of galaxies within this redshift range
(using spectroscopic and photometric redshifts) we show that the galaxies in
SA68 form a linear structure passing from the South-West of the survey field
through to the North-East (with a position angle of approximately 35 deg East
of North). This position angle is coincident with the positions of the X-ray
clusters CL0016+16, RX J0018.3+1618 and a new X-ray cluster, RX J0018.8+1602,
centered near the radio source 54W084. All three of these sources are at a
redshift of approximately z=0.54 and have position angles, derived from their
X-ray photon distributions, consistent with that measured for the supercluster.
Assuming a redshift of 0.54 for the distribution of galaxies and a FWHM
dispersion in redshift of 0.020 this represents a coherent structure with a
radial extent of 31 Mpc, transverse dimension of 12 Mpc, and a thickness of
approximately 4 Mpc. The detection of this possible supercluster demonstrates
the power of using X-ray observations, combined with multicolor observations,
to map the large scale distribution of galaxies at intermediate redshifts.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, Latex, aaspp4.sty, accepted for publication in
Ap J Letters. Figure 3 and followup observations can be found at
http://tarkus.pha.jhu.edu/~ajc/papers/supercluster
Internal Dynamics, Structure and Formation of Dwarf Elliptical Galaxies: II. Rotating Versus Non-Rotating Dwarfs
We present spatially-resolved internal kinematics and stellar chemical
abundances for a sample of dwarf elliptical (dE) galaxies in the Virgo Cluster
observed with Keck/ESI. We find that 4 out of 17 dEs have major axis rotation
velocities consistent with rotational flattening, while the remaining dEs have
no detectable major axis rotation. Despite this difference in internal
kinematics, rotating and non-rotating dEs are remarkably similar in terms of
their position in the Fundamental Plane, morphological structure, stellar
populations, and local environment. We present evidence for faint underlying
disks and/or weak substructure in a fraction of both rotating and non-rotating
dEs, but a comparable number of counter-examples exist for both types which
show no evidence of such structure. Absorption-line strengths were determined
based on the Lick/IDS system (Hbeta, Mgb, Fe5270, Fe5335) for the central
region of each galaxy. We find no difference in the line-strength indices, and
hence stellar populations, between rotating and non-rotating dE galaxies. The
best-fitting mean age and metallicity for our 17 dE sample are 5 Gyr and Fe/H =
-0.3 dex, respectively, with rms spreads of 3 Gyr and 0.1 dex. The majority of
dEs are consistent with solar alpha/Fe abundance ratios. By contrast, the
stellar populations of classical elliptical galaxies are, on average, older,
more metal rich, and alpha-enhanced relative to our dE sample. The local
environments of both dEs types appear to be diverse in terms of their proximity
to larger galaxies in real or velocity space within the Virgo Cluster. Thus,
rotating and non-rotating dEs are remarkably similar in terms of their
structure, stellar content, and local environments, presenting a significant
challenge to theoretical models of their formation. (abridged)Comment: 33 pages, 12 figures. To appear in the October 2003 Astronomical
Journal. See http://www.ucolick.org/~mgeha/geha_dE.ps.gz for version with
high resolution figure
Internal Dynamics, Structure and Formation of Dwarf Elliptical Galaxies: I. A Keck/HST Study of Six Virgo Cluster Dwarfs
Keck/ESI spectroscopy is presented for six Virgo Cluster dwarf elliptical
(dE) galaxies. The mean line-of-sight velocity and velocity dispersion are
resolved as a function of radius along the major axis of each galaxy, nearly
doubling the total number of dEs with spatially-resolved stellar kinematics.
None of the observed objects shows evidence of strong rotation: upper limits on
v_rot/sigma are well below those expected for rotationally-flattened objects.
Such limits place strong constraints on dE galaxy formation models. Although
these galaxies continue the trend of low rotation velocities observed in Local
Group dEs, they are in contrast to recent observations of large rotation
velocities in slightly brighter cluster dEs. Using WFPC2 surface photometry and
spherically-symmetric dynamical models, we determine global mass-to-light
ratios 3 < M/L_V < 6. These ratios are comparable to those expected for an
intermediate-age stellar population and are broadly consistent with the (V-I)
colors of the galaxies. This implies that these dEs do not have a significant
dark matter component inside an effective radius. Central black holes more
massive than 10^7 M_sun can be ruled out. For the 5 nucleated dEs in our
sample, we determine kinematic and photometric properties for the central
nucleus separately from the underlying host dE galaxy. These nuclei are as
bright or brighter than the most luminous Galactic globular clusters and lie
near the region of Fundamental Plane space occupied by globular clusters. In
this space, the Virgo dE galaxies lie in the same general region as Local Group
and other nearby dEs, although non-rotating dEs appear to have a slightly
higher mean mass and mass-to-light ratio than their rotating counterparts.Comment: 31 pages, 11 figures. Accepted in the Astronomical Journa
N-body simulations of galaxies and groups of galaxies with the Marseille GRAPE systems
I review the Marseille GRAPE systems and the N-body simulations done with
them. I first describe briefly the available hardware and software, their
possibilities and their limitations. I then describe work done on interacting
galaxies and groups of galaxies. This includes simulations of the formation of
ring galaxies, simulations of bar destruction by massive compact satellites, of
merging in compact groups and of the formation of brightest members in clusters
of galaxies.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures, to be published in "Non-linear Dynamics and
Chaos in Astrophysics", eds. J.R. Buchler, S. Gottesman, J. Hunter and H.
Kandrup, Annals of the New York Academy of Science
Tests of Statistical Methods for Estimating Galaxy Luminosity Function and Applications to the Hubble Deep Field
We studied the statistical methods for the estimation of the luminosity
function (LF) of galaxies. We focused on four nonparametric estimators:
estimator, maximum-likelihood estimator of Efstathiou et al.
(1988), Cho{\l}oniewski's estimator, and improved Lynden-Bell's estimator. The
performance of the estimator has been recently questioned,
especially for the faint-end estimation of the LF. We improved these estimators
for the studies of the distant Universe, and examined their performances for
various classes of functional forms by Monte Carlo simulations. We also applied
these estimation methods to the mock 2dF redshift survey catalog prepared by
Cole et al. (1998). We found that estimator yields a completely
unbiased result if there is no inhomogeneity, but is not robust against
clusters or voids. This is consistent with the well-known results, and we did
not confirm the bias trend of estimator claimed by Willmer
(1997) in the case of homogeneous sample. We also found that the other three
maximum-likelihood type estimators are quite robust and give consistent results
with each other. In practice we recommend Cho{\l}oniewski's estimator for two
reasons: 1. it simultaneously provides the shape and normalization of the LF;
2. it is the fastest among these four estimators, because of the algorithmic
simplicity. Then, we analyzed the photometric redshift data of the Hubble Deep
Field prepared by Fern\'{a}ndez-Soto et al. (1999) using the above four
methods. We also derived luminosity density at - and
-band. Our -band estimation is roughly consistent with that of Sawicki,
Lin, & Yee (1997), but a few times lower at . The evolution of
is found to be less prominent.Comment: To appear in ApJS July 2000 issue. 36 page
Stars, Star Clusters, and Dust in NGC 3077
Images obtained with the CFHTIR camera on the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope
are used to investigate the near-infrared photometric properties of the
star-forming M81 group galaxy NGC 3077. The spectral-energy distribution (SED)
of the near-infrared light within 10 arcsec of the nucleus is consistent with
the 2um light being dominated by hot young (log(t_{yr}) < 6.8) stars reddened
by A_V = 3 - 4, with A_V < 8 mag in some regions. A population like that near
the center of NGC 205 likely contributes only a modest fraction of the light
near 2um. A number of candidate star clusters are detected in and around NGC
3077. The specific frequency of globular clusters falls within the range
measured in nearby dEs. The candidate young clusters have photometric masses
that are similar to those of compact young clusters in other active
star-forming systems, and SEDs consistent with ages log(t_{yr}) < 6.6. Based on
the masses and ages of the young clusters, it is estimated that the star
formation rate in NGC 3077 was at least 0.25 - 0.50 solar masses per year
during the past few million years.Comment: 26 pages + 7 postscript figures; to appear in the Astronomical
Journa
The Apparent and Intrinsic Shape of the APM Galaxy Clusters
We estimate the distribution of intrinsic shapes of APM galaxy clusters from
the distribution of their apparent shapes. We measure the projected cluster
ellipticities using two alternative methods. The first method is based on
moments of the discrete galaxy distribution while the second is based on
moments of the smoothed galaxy distribution. We study the performance of both
methods using Monte Carlo cluster simulations covering the range of APM cluster
distances and including a random distribution of background galaxies. We find
that the first method suffers from severe systematic biases, whereas the second
is more reliable. After excluding clusters dominated by substructure and
quantifying the systematic biases in our estimated shape parameters, we recover
a corrected distribution of projected ellipticities. We use the non-parametric
kernel method to estimate the smooth apparent ellipticity distribution, and
numerically invert a set of integral equations to recover the corresponding
distribution of intrinsic ellipticities under the assumption that the clusters
are either oblate or prolate spheroids. The prolate spheroidal model fits the
APM cluster data best.Comment: 8 pages, including 7 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA