573 research outputs found
The Bar Pattern Speed of NGC 1433 Estimated Via Sticky-Particle Simulations
We present detailed numerical simulations of NGC 1433, an intermediate-type
barred spiral showing strong morphological features including a secondary bar,
nuclear ring, inner ring, outer pseudoring, and two striking, detached spiral
arcs known as ``plumes.'' This galaxy is an ideal candidate for recreating the
observed morphology through dynamical models and determining the pattern speed.
We derived a gravitational potential from an -band image of the galaxy and
simulated the behavior of a two-dimensional disk of 100,000 inelastically
colliding gas particles. We find that the closest matching morphology between a
-band image and a simulation occurs with a pattern speed of 0.89 km s
arcsec 5-10%. We also determine that the ratio of corotation
radius to the average published bar radius is 1.7 0.3, with the ambiguity
in the bar radius being the largest contributor to the error.Comment: Accepted for publication by The Astronomical Journal. 34 pages, 13
figures, 2 table
Dynamical Simulations of NGC 2523 and NGC 4245
We present dynamical simulations of NGC 2523 and NGC 4245, two barred
galaxies (types SB(r)b and SB(r)0/a, respectively) with prominent inner rings.
Our goal is to estimate the bar pattern speeds in these galaxies by matching a
sticky-particle simulation to the -band morphology, using near-infrared
-band images to define the gravitational potentials. We compare the
pattern speeds derived by this method with those derived in our previous paper
using the well-known Tremaine-Weinberg continuity equation method. The inner
rings in these galaxies, which are likely to be resonance features, help to
constrain the dynamical models. We find that both methods give the same pattern
speeds within the errors.Comment: 29 pages, 3 tables, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in The
Astronomical Journa
On the 3D dynamics and morphology of inner rings
We argue that inner rings in barred spiral galaxies are associated with
specific 2D and 3D families of periodic orbits located just beyond the end of
the bar. These are families located between the inner radial ultraharmonic 4:1
resonance and corotation. They are found in the upper part of a type-2 gap of
the x1 characteristic, and can account for the observed ring morphologies
without any help from families of the x1-tree. Due to the evolution of the
stability of all these families, the ring shapes that are favored are mainly
ovals, as well as polygons with `corners' on the minor axis, on the sides of
the bar. On the other hand pentagonal rings, or rings of the NGC 7020 type
hexagon, should be less probable. The orbits that make the rings belong in
their vast majority to 3D families of periodic orbits and orbits trapped around
them.Comment: 11 pages, 12 figures, to appear in MNRA
Comparison of bar strengths in active and non-active galaxies
Bar strengths are compared between active and non-active galaxies for a
sample of 43 barred galaxies. The relative bar torques are determined using a
new technique (Buta and Block 2001), where maximum tangential forces are
calculated in the bar region, normalized to the axisymmetric radial force
field. We use JHK images of the 2 Micron All Sky Survey. We show a first clear
empirical indication that the ellipticies of bars are correlated with the
non-axisymmetric forces in the bar regions. We found that nuclear activity
appears preferentially in those early type galaxies in which the maximum bar
torques are weak and appear at quite large distances from the galactic center.
Most suprisingly the galaxies with the strongest bars are non-active. Our
results imply that the bulges may be important for the onset of nuclear
activity, but that the correlation between the nuclear activity and the early
type galaxies is not straightforward.Comment: MNRAS macro in tex format, 9 pages, 10 figure
The Kinematically Measured Pattern Speeds of NGC 2523 and NGC 4245
We have applied the Tremaine-Weinberg continuity equation method to derive
the bar pattern speed in the SB(r)b galaxy NGC 2523 and the SB(r)0/a galaxy NGC
4245 using the Calcium Triplet absorption lines. These galaxies were selected
because they have strong inner rings which can be used as independent tracers
of the pattern speed. The pattern speed of NGC 2523 is 26.4 6.1 km
s kpc, assuming an inclination of 49.7 and a distance
of 51.0 Mpc. The pattern speed of NGC 4245 is 75.5 31.3 km s
kpc, assuming an inclination of 35.4 and a distance of 12.6
Mpc. The ratio of the corotation radius to the bar radius of NGC 2523 and NGC
4245 is 1.4 0.3 and 1.1 0.5, respectively. These values place the
bright inner rings near and slightly inside the corotation radius, as predicted
by barred galaxy theory. Within the uncertainties, both galaxies are found to
have fast bars that likely indicate dark halos of low central concentration.
The photometric properties, bar strengths, and disk stabilities of both
galaxies are also discussed.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astronomical Journal, 11 figures, 2
table
The Distribution of Dark Matter in a Ringed Galaxy
Outer rings are located at the greatest distance from the galaxy center of
any feature resonant with a bar. Because of their large scale, their morphology
is sensitive to the distribution of the dark matter in the galaxy. We introduce
here how study of these rings can constrain the mass-to-light ratio of the bar,
and so the percentage of dark matter in the center of these galaxies. We
compare periodic orbits integrated in the ringed galaxy NGC 6782 near the outer
Lindblad resonance to the shape of the outer ring. The non-axisymmetric
component of the potential resulting from the bar is derived from a
near-infrared image of the galaxy. The axisymmetric component is derived
assuming a flat rotation curve. We find that the pinched non-self-intersecting
periodic orbits are more elongated for higher bar mass-to-light ratios and
faster bars. The inferred mass-to-light ratio of the bar depends on the assumed
inclination of the galaxy. With an assumed galaxy inclination of i=41 degrees,
for the orbits to be consistent with the observed ring morphology the
mass-to-light ratio of the bar must be high, greater than 70% of a maximal disk
value. For i=45 degrees, the mass-to-light ratio of the bar is of
the maximal disk value. Since the velocity field of these rings can be used to
constrain the galaxy inclination as well as which periodic orbit is represented
in the ring, further study will yield tighter constraints on the mass-to-light
ratio of the bar. If a near maximal disk value for the bar is required, then
either there would be little dark matter within the bar, or the dark matter
contained in the disk of the galaxy would be non-axisymmetric and would rotate
with the bar.Comment: AAS Latex + jpg Figures, Accepted for publication in Ap
A Dust-Penetrated Classification Scheme for Bars as Inferred from their Gravitational Force Fields
The division of galaxies into ``barred'' (SB) and ``normal'' (S) spirals is a
fundamental aspect of the Hubble galaxy classification system. This ``tuning
fork'' view was revised by de Vaucouleurs, whose classification volume
recognized apparent ``bar strength'' (SA, SAB, SB) as a continuous property of
galaxies called the ``family''. However, the SA, SAB, and SB families are
purely visual judgments that can have little bearing on the actual bar strength
in a given galaxy. Until very recently, published bar judgments were based
exclusively on blue light images, where internal extinction or star formation
can either mask a bar completely or give the false impression of a bar in a
nonbarred galaxy. Near-infrared camera arrays, which principally trace the old
stellar populations in both normal and barred galaxies, now facilitate a
quantification of bar strength in terms of their gravitational potentials and
force fields. In this paper, we show that the maximum value, Qb, of the ratio
of the tangential force to the mean radial force is a quantitative measure of
the strength of a bar. Qb does not measure bar ellipticity or bar shape, but
rather depends on the actual forcing due to the bar embedded in its disk. We
show that a wide range of true bar strengths characterizes the category ``SB'',
while de Vaucouleurs category ``SAB'' corresponds to a much narrower range of
bar strengths. We present Qb values for 36 galaxies, and we incorporate our bar
classes into a dust-penetrated classification system for spiral galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal (LaTex, 30
pages + 3 figures); Figs. 1 and 3 are in color and are also available at
http://bama.ua.edu/~rbuta/bars
Inner Molecular Rings in Barred Galaxies: BIMA SONG CO Observations
Although inner star-forming rings are common in optical images of barred
spiral galaxies, observational evidence for the accompanying molecular gas has
been scarce. In this paper we present images of molecular inner rings, traced
using the CO (1-0) emission line, from the
Berkeley-Illinois-Maryland-Association Survey of Nearby Galaxies (BIMA SONG).
We detect inner ring CO emission from all five SONG barred galaxies classified
as inner ring (type (r)). We also examine the seven SONG barred galaxies
classified as inner spiral (type (s)); in one of these, NGC 3627, we find
morphological and kinematic evidence for a molecular inner ring. Inner ring
galaxies have been classified as such based on optical images, which emphasize
recent star formation. We consider the possibility that there may exist inner
rings in which star formation efficiency is not enhanced. However, we find that
in NGC 3627 the inner ring star formation efficiency is enhanced relative to
most other regions in that galaxy. We note that the SONG (r) galaxies have a
paucity of CO and H alpha emission interior to the inner ring (except near the
nucleus), while NGC 3627 has relatively bright bar CO and H alpha emission; we
suggest that galaxies with inner rings such as NGC 3627 may be misclassified if
there are significant amounts of gas and star formation in the bar.Comment: To be published in the Astrophysical Journal, July 2002 A version of
the paper with full resolution figures is available at:
http://www.astro.umd.edu/~mregan/ms.ps.g
Density Waves Inside Inner Lindblad Resonance: Nuclear Spirals in Disk Galaxies
We analyze formation of grand-design two-arm spiral structure in the nuclear
regions of disk galaxies. Such morphology has been recently detected in a
number of objects using high-resolution near-infrared observations. Motivated
by the observed (1) continuity between the nuclear and kpc-scale spiral
structures, and by (2) low arm-interarm contrast, we apply the density wave
theory to explain the basic properties of the spiral nuclear morphology. In
particular, we address the mechanism for the formation, maintenance and the
detailed shape of nuclear spirals. We find, that the latter depends mostly on
the shape of the underlying gravitational potential and the sound speed in the
gas. Detection of nuclear spiral arms provides diagnostics of mass distribution
within the central kpc of disk galaxies. Our results are supported by 2D
numerical simulations of gas response to the background gravitational potential
of a barred stellar disk. We investigate the parameter space allowed for the
formation of nuclear spirals using a new method for constructing a
gravitational potential in a barred galaxy, where positions of resonances are
prescribed.Comment: 18 pages, 9 figures, higher resolution available at
http://www.pa.uky.edu/~ppe/papers/nucsp.ps.g
Geodesics around Weyl-Bach's Ring Solution
We explore some of the gravitational features of a uniform ring both in the
Newtonian potential theory and in General Relativity. We use a spacetime
associated to a Weyl static solution of the vacuum Einstein's equations with
ring like singularity. The Newtonian motion for a test particle in the
gravitational field of the ring is studied and compared with the corresponding
geodesic motion in the given spacetime. We have found a relativistic peculiar
attraction: free falling particle geodesics are lead to the inner rim but never
hit the ring.Comment: 8 figures, 14 pages. LaTeX w/ subfigure, graphic
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