1,510 research outputs found
An HI survey of the Centaurus and Sculptor Groups - Constraints on the space density of low mass galaxies
We present results of two 21-cm HI surveys performed with the Australia
Telescope Compact Array in the nearby Centaurus A and Sculptor galaxy groups.
These surveys are sensitive to compact HI clouds and galaxies with HI masses as
low as 3E+06 Msun, and are therefore among the most sensitive extragalactic HI
surveys to date. The surveys consist of sparsely spaced pointings that sample
approximately 2% of the groups' area on the sky. We detected previously known
group members, but we found no new HI clouds or galaxies down to the
sensitivity limit of the surveys. If the HI mass function had a faint end slope
of alpha = 1.5 below M_{HI} = 10^{7.5} Msun in these groups, we would have
expected ~3 new objects. Cold dark matter theories of galaxy formation predict
the existence of a large number low mass DM sub-halos that might appear as tiny
satellites in galaxy groups. Our results support and extend similar conclusions
derived from previous HI surveys that a HI rich population of these satellites
does not exist.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&
Mitochondrial DNA signature for range-wide populations of Bicyclus anynana suggests a rapid expansion from recent refugia
This study investigates the genetic diversity, population structure and demographic history of the afrotropical butterfly Bicyclus anynana using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). Samples from six wild populations covering most of the species range from Uganda to South Africa were compared for the cytochrome c oxidase subunit gene (COI). Molecular diversity indices show overall high mtDNA diversity for the populations, but low nucleotide divergence between haplotypes. Our results indicate relatively little geographic population structure among the southern populations, especially given the extensive distributional range and an expectation of limited gene flow between populations. We implemented neutrality tests to assess signatures of recent historical demographic events. Tajima's D test and Fu's FS test both suggested recent population growth for the populations. The results were only significant for the southernmost populations when applying Tajima's D, but Fu's FS indicated significant deviations from neutrality for all populations except the one closest to the equator. Based on our own findings and those from pollen and vegetation studies, we hypothesize that the species range of B. anynana was reduced to equatorial refugia during the last glacial period, and that the species expanded southwards during the past 10.000 years. These results provide crucial background information for studies of phenotypic and molecular adaptation in wild populations of B. anynan
Comparing Galaxies and Lyman Alpha Absorbers at Low Redshift
A scenario is explored in which Lyman alpha absorbers at low redshift arise
from lines of sight through extended galaxy disks, including those of dwarf and
low surface brightness galaxies. A population of galaxies is simulated based
upon observed distributions of galaxy properties, and the gas disks are modeled
using pressure and gravity confinement. Some parameter values are ruled out by
comparing simulation results with the observed galaxy luminosity function, and
constraints may be made on the absorbing cross sections of galaxies. Simulation
results indicate that it is difficult to match absorbers with particular
galaxies observationally since absorption typically occurs at high impact
parameters (>200 kpc) from luminous galaxies. Low impact parameter absorption
is dominated by low luminosity dwarfs. A large fraction of absorption lines is
found to originate from low surface brightness galaxies, so that the absorbing
galaxy is likely to be misidentified. Low redshift Lyman alpha absorber counts
can easily be explained by moderately extended galaxy disks when low surface
brightness galaxies are included, and it is easily possible to find a scenario
which is consistent with observed the galaxy luminosity function, with low
redshift Lyman limit absorber counts, and with standard nucleosynthesis
predictions of the baryon density, Omega_Baryon.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, accepted to the Astrophysical Journa
Star Formation and Tidal Encounters with the Low Surface Brightness Galaxy UGC 12695 and Companions
We present VLA H I observations of the low surface brightness galaxy UGC
12695 and its two companions, UGC 12687 and a newly discovered dwarf galaxy
2333+1234. UGC 12695 shows solid body rotation but has a very lopsided
morphology of the H I disk, with the majority of the H I lying in the southern
arm of the galaxy. The H I column density distribution of this very blue, LSB
galaxy coincides in detail with its light distribution. Comparing the H I
column density of UGC 12695 with the empirical (but not well understood) value
of Sigma_c = 10E21 atoms/cm^2 found in, i.e., Skillman's 1986 paper shows the
star formation to be a local affair, occurring only in those regions where the
column density is above this star formation threshold. The low surface
brightness nature of this galaxy could thus be attributed to an insufficient
gas surface density, inhibiting star formation on a more global scale.
Significantly, though, the Toomre criterion places a much lower critical
density on the galaxy (+/-10E20 atoms/cm^2), which is shown by the galaxy's low
SFR to not be applicable.
Within a projected distance of 300kpc/30kms of UGC 12695 lie two companion
galaxies - UGC 12687, a high surface brightness barred spiral galaxy, and
2333+1234, a dwarf galaxy discovered during this investigation. The close
proximity of the three galaxies, combined with UGC 12695's extremely blue color
and regions of localized starburst and UGC 12687's UV excess bring to mind
mutually induced star formation through tidal activity.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures (2 color), To be published in A.J., May 2000
Gas Rich Dwarfs from the PSS-II III. HI Profiles and Dynamical Masses
We present Arecibo neutral hydrogen data on a sample of optically selected
dwarf galaxies. The sample ranges in HI mass from 10^6 M_sun to 5x10^9 M_sun,
with a mean of 7.9x10^8 M_sun. Using estimated HI radii, the HI surface
densities range from 0.6 to 20 M_sun pc^-2, all well below the critical
threshold for star formation (Kennicutt 1998). M_HI/L values of the LSB dwarfs
range from 0.3 to 12 with a mean value of 2.0. Dynamical masses, calculated
from the HI profile widths, range from 10^8 M_sun to 10^11 M_sun. There is a
strong correlation between optical luminosity and dynamical mass for LSB dwarfs
implying that the dark matter (whether baryonic or non-baryonic) follows the
detectable baryonic matter.Comment: 53 pages, AASTeX v4.0, 8 figures, to be published in ApJ Suppl,
images, tables and referee report can be found at http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~j
The stellar disk thickness of LSB galaxies
We present surface photometry results for a sample of eleven edge-on galaxies
observed with the 6m telescope at the Special Astrophysical Observatory
(Russia). The photometric scale length, scale height, and central surface
brightness of the stellar disks of our sample galaxies are estimated. We show
that four galaxies in our sample, which are visually referred as objects of the
lowest surface brightness class in the Revised Flat Galaxies Catalog, have bona
fide low surface brightness (LSB) disks. We find from the comparison of
photometric scales that the stellar disks of LSB galaxies are thinner than
those of high surface brightness (HSB) ones. There is a clear correlation
between the central surface brightness of the stellar disk and its vertical to
radial scale ratio. The masses of spherical subsystems (dark halo + bulge) and
the dark halo masses are obtained for the sample galaxies based on the
thickness of their stellar disks. The LSB galaxies tend to harbor more massive
spherical subsystems than the HSB objects, whereas no systematic difference in
the dark halo masses between LSB and HSB galaxies is found. At the same time,
the inferred mass-to-luminosity ratio for the LSB disks appears to be
systematically higher than for HSB disks.Comment: 33 pages with 17 Postscript figures, uses aastex.cls, accepted by Ap
Impulsive Behaviors in Patients With Pathological Buying
Aim To investigate impulsive behaviors in pathological buying (PB). Methods The study included three groups matched for age and gender: treatment seeking outpatients with PB (PB+), treatment seeking psychiatric inpatients without PB (PB−), and a healthy control group (HC). PB was assessed by means of the Compulsive Buying Scale and by the impulse control disorder (ICD) module of the research version of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-ICD). All participants answered questionnaires concerning symptoms of borderline personality disorder, self-harming behaviors, binge eating and symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In addition, comorbid ICDs were assessed using the SCID-ICD. Results The PB+ and PB− groups did not differ with regard to borderline personality disorder or ADHD symptoms, but both groups reported significantly more symptoms than the HC group. Frequencies of self-harming behaviors did not differ between the three groups. Patients with PB were more often diagnosed with any current ICD (excluding PB) compared to those without PB and the HC group (38.7% vs. 12.9% vs. 12.9%, respectively, p=.017). Discussion Our findings confirm prior research suggesting more impulsive behaviors in patients with and without PB compared to healthy controls. The results of the questionnaire-based assessment indicate that outpatients with PB perceive themselves equally impulsive and self-harm as frequently as inpatients without PB; but they seem to suffer more often from an ICD as assessed by means of an interview
A Unified Scaling Law in Spiral Galaxies
We investigate the origin of a unified scaling relation in spiral galaxies.
Observed spiral galaxies are spread on a plane in the
three-dimensionallogarithmic space of luminosity L, radius R and rotation
velocity V. The plane is expressed as in I-passband,
where is a constant. On the plane, observed galaxies are distributed
in an elongated region which looks like the shape of a surfboard. The
well-known scaling relations, L-V (Tully-Fisher relation), V-R (also the
Tully-Fisher relation) and R-L (Freeman's law), can be understood as oblique
projections of the surfboard-like plane into 2-D spaces. This unified
interpretation of the known scaling relations should be a clue to understand
the physical origin of all the relations consistently. Furthermore, this
interpretation can also explain why previous studies could not find any
correlation between TF residuals and radius.
In order to clarify the origin of this plane, we simulate formation and
evolution of spiral galaxies with the N-body/SPH method, including cooling,
star formation and stellar feedback. Initial conditions are set to isolated 14
spheres with two free parameters, such as mass and angular momentum. The CDM
(h=0.5, ) cosmology is considered as a test case. The simulations
provide the following two conclusions: (a) The slope of the plane is well
reproduced but the zero-point is not. This zero-point discrepancy could be
solved in a low density ($\Omega_00.5) cosmology.
(b) The surfboard-shaped plane can be explained by the control of galactic mass
and angular momentum.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ Letters. 6 pages including 2 figure
The Tully-Fisher relation for low surface brightness galaxies - implications for galaxy evolution
We present the B band Tully-Fisher relation for Low Surface Brightness (LSB)
galaxies. These LSB galaxies follow the same Tully-Fisher relation as normal
spiral galaxies. This implies that the mass-to-light ratio (M/L) of LSB
galaxies is typically a factor of 2 larger than that of normal galaxies of the
same total luminosity and morphological type. Since the dynamical mass of a
galaxy is related to the rotation velocity and scale length via M \propto V^2
h, at fixed linewidth LSB galaxies must be twice as large as normal galaxies.
This is confirmed by examining the relation between scale length and linewidth
for LSB and normal galaxies. The universal nature of the Tully-Fisher relation
can be understood if LSB galaxies are galaxies with low mass surface density,
\sigma. The mass surface density apparently controls the luminosity evolution
of a galaxy such as to keep the product \sigma M/L constant.Comment: 9 pages, PostScript. Accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of
the Royal Astronomical Societ
Tidal stirring and the origin of dwarf spheroidals in the Local Group
N-Body/SPH simulations are used to study the evolution of dwarf irregular
galaxies (dIrrs) entering the dark matter halo of the Milky Way or M31 on
plunging orbits. We propose a new dynamical mechanism driving the evolution of
gas rich, rotationally supported dIrrs, mostly found at the outskirts of the
Local Group (LG), into gas free, pressure supported dwarf spheroidals (dSphs)
or dwarf ellipticals (dEs), observed to cluster around the two giant spirals.
The initial model galaxies are exponential disks embedded in massive dark
matter halos and reproduce nearby dIrrs. Repeated tidal shocks at the
pericenter of their orbit partially strip their halo and disk and trigger
dynamical instabilities that dramatically reshape their stellar component.
After only 2-3 orbits low surface brightness (LSB) dIrrs are transformed into
dSphs, while high surface brightness (HSB) dIrrs evolve into dEs. This
evolutionary mechanism naturally leads to the morphology-density relation
observed for LG dwarfs. Dwarfs surrounded by very dense dark matter halos, like
the archetypical dIrr GR8, are turned into Draco or Ursa Minor, the faintest
and most dark matter dominated among LG dSphs. If disks include a gaseous
component, this is both tidally stripped and consumed in periodic bursts of
star formation. The resulting star formation histories are in good qualitative
agreement with those derived using HST color-magnitude diagrams for local
dSphs.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, to appear on ApJL. Simulation images and movies
can be found at the Local Group web page at
http://pcblu.uni.mi.astro.it/~lucio/LG/LG.htm
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