Home     Getting Started     To Survive in the Universe    
Inhabited Sky
    News@Sky     Astro Photo     The Collection     Forum     Blog New!     FAQ     Press     Login  

NGC 2310


Contents

Images

Upload your image

DSS Images   Other Images


Related articles

Stellar Kinematics of Boxy Bulges: Large-Scale Bars and Inner Disks
Long-slit stellar kinematic observations were obtained along the majoraxis of 30 edge-on spiral galaxies, 24 with a boxy or peanut-shaped(B/PS) bulge and six with other bulge types for comparison. Such B/PSbulges are identified in at least 45% of highly inclined systems, and agrowing body of theoretical and observational work suggests that theyare the edge-on projection of thickened bars. Profiles of the meanstellar velocity V, the velocity dispersion σ, as well as theasymmetric (h3) and symmetric (h4) deviations froma pure Gaussian are presented for all objects. Comparing these profileswith stellar kinematic bar diagnostics developed from N-bodysimulations, we find bar signatures in 24 of our sample galaxies (80%).Galaxies with a B/PS bulge typically show a double-humped rotation curvewith an intermediate dip or plateau. They also frequently show a ratherflat central velocity dispersion profile accompanied by a secondary peakor plateau, and numerous galaxies have a local central σ minimum(>~40%). The h3 profiles display up to three slopereversals. Most importantly, h3 is normally correlated with Vover the presumed bar length, contrary to expectations from axisymmetricdisks. These characteristic bar signatures strengthen the case for aclose relationship between B/PS bulges and bars and leave little roomfor other explanations of the bulges' shape. We also find thath3 is anticorrelated with V in the very center of mostgalaxies (>~60%), indicating that these objects additionally harborcold and dense decoupled (quasi-) axisymmetric central stellar disks,which may be related to the central light peaks. These central diskscoincide with previously identified star-forming ionized-gas disks(nuclear spirals) in gas-rich systems, and we argue that they formed outof gas accumulated by the bar at its center through inflow. As suggestedby N-body models, the asymmetry of the velocity profile (h3)appears to be a reliable tracer of asymmetries in disks, allowing us todiscriminate between axisymmetric and barred disks seen in projection.B/PS bulges (and thus a large fraction of all bulges) appear to be madeup mostly of disk material, which has acquired a large vertical extentthrough bar-driven vertical instabilities. Their formation is thusprobably dominated by secular evolution processes rather than merging.

Thick disks of lenticular galaxies. 3D-photometric thin/thick disk decomposition of eight edge-on s0 galaxies
Thick disks are faint and extended stellar components found aroundseveral disk galaxies including our Milky Way. The Milky Way thick disk,the only one studied in detail, contains mostly old disk stars (≈10Gyr), so that thick disks are likely to trace the early stages of diskevolution. Previous detections of thick disk stellar light in externalgalaxies have been originally made for early-type, edge-on galaxies butdetailed 2D thick/thin disk decompositions have been reported for only ascant handful of mostly late-type disk galaxies. We present in thispaper for the first time explicit 3D thick/thin disk decompositionscharacterising the presence and properties (e.g. scalelength andscaleheight) for a sample of eight lenticular galaxies by fitting 3Ddisk models to the data. For six out of the eight galaxies we were ableto derive a consistent thin/thick disk model. The mean scaleheight ofthe thick disk is 3.6 times larger than that of the thin disk. Thescalelength of the thick disk is about twice, and its central luminositydensity between 3-10% of, the thin disk value. Both thin and thick diskare truncated at similar radii. This implies that thick disks extendover fewer scalelengths than thin disks, and turning a thin disk into athick one requires therefore vertical but little radial heating. Allthese structural parameters are similar to thick disk parameters forlater Hubble-type galaxies previously studied. We discuss our data inrespect to present models for the origin of thick disks, either as pre-or post-thin-disk structures, providing new observational constraints.Based on observations obtained at the European Southern Observatory,Chile.Full appendices are only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org

A Survey for H2O Megamasers. III. Monitoring Water Vapor Masers in Active Galaxies
We present single-dish monitoring of the spectra of 13 extragalacticwater megamasers taken over a period of 9 years and a single epoch ofsensitive spectra for seven others. The primary motivation is a searchfor drifting line velocities analogous to those of the systemic featuresin NGC 4258, which are known to result from centripetal acceleration ofgas in an edge-on, subparsec molecular disk. We detect a velocity driftanalogous to that in NGC 4258 in only one source, NGC 2639. Another, themaser source in NGC 1052, exhibits erratic changes in its broad maserprofile over time. Narrow maser features in all of the other diskgalaxies discussed here either remain essentially constant in velocityover the monitoring period or are sufficiently weak or variable inintensity that individual features cannot be traced reliably from oneepoch to the next. In the context of a circumnuclear, molecular diskmodel, our results suggest that either (a) the maser lines seen aresystemic features subject to a much smaller acceleration than present inNGC 4258, presumably because the gas is farther from the nuclear blackhole, or (b) we are detecting ``satellite'' lines for which theacceleration is in the plane of the sky.Our data include the first K-band science observations taken with thenew 100 m Green Bank Telescope (GBT). The GBT data were taken duringtesting and commissioning of several new components and so are subjectto some limitations; nevertheless, they are in most cases the mostsensitive H2O spectra ever taken for each source and cover800 MHz (~=10,800 km s-1) of bandwidth. Many new maserfeatures are detected in these observations. Our data also include atentative and a clear detection of the megamaser in NGC 6240 at epochs ayear and a few months, respectively, prior to the detections reported byHagiwara et al. and Nakai et al.We also report a search for water vapor masers toward the nuclei of 58highly inclined (i>80deg), nearby galaxies. These sourceswere selected to investigate the tendency that H2O megamasersfavor inclined galaxies. None were detected, confirming that megamasersare associated exclusively with active galactic nuclei.

Redshift-Distance Survey of Early-Type Galaxies: Spectroscopic Data
We present central velocity dispersions and Mg2 line indicesfor an all-sky sample of ~1178 elliptical and S0 galaxies, of which 984had no previous measures. This sample contains the largest set ofhomogeneous spectroscopic data for a uniform sample of ellipticalgalaxies in the nearby universe. These galaxies were observed as part ofthe ENEAR project, designed to study the peculiar motions and internalproperties of the local early-type galaxies. Using 523 repeatedobservations of 317 galaxies obtained during different runs, the dataare brought to a common zero point. These multiple observations, takenduring the many runs and different instrumental setups employed for thisproject, are used to derive statistical corrections to the data and arefound to be relatively small, typically <~5% of the velocitydispersion and 0.01 mag in the Mg2 line strength. Typicalerrors are about 8% in velocity dispersion and 0.01 mag inMg2, in good agreement with values published elsewhere.

Redshift-Distance Survey of Early-Type Galaxies: Circular-Aperture Photometry
We present R-band CCD photometry for 1332 early-type galaxies, observedas part of the ENEAR survey of peculiar motions using early-typegalaxies in the nearby universe. Circular apertures are used to tracethe surface brightness profiles, which are then fitted by atwo-component bulge-disk model. From the fits, we obtain the structuralparameters required to estimate galaxy distances using theDn-σ and fundamental plane relations. We find thatabout 12% of the galaxies are well represented by a pure r1/4law, while 87% are best fitted by a two-component model. There are 356repeated observations of 257 galaxies obtained during different runsthat are used to derive statistical corrections and bring the data to acommon system. We also use these repeated observations to estimate ourinternal errors. The accuracy of our measurements are tested by thecomparison of 354 galaxies in common with other authors. Typical errorsin our measurements are 0.011 dex for logDn, 0.064 dex forlogre, 0.086 mag arcsec-2 for<μe>, and 0.09 for mRC,comparable to those estimated by other authors. The photometric datareported here represent one of the largest high-quality and uniformall-sky samples currently available for early-type galaxies in thenearby universe, especially suitable for peculiar motion studies.Based on observations at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO),National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which is operated by theAssociation of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., undercooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF);European Southern Observatory (ESO); Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory(FLWO); and the MDM Observatory on Kitt Peak.

A new catalogue of ISM content of normal galaxies
We have compiled a catalogue of the gas content for a sample of 1916galaxies, considered to be a fair representation of ``normality''. Thedefinition of a ``normal'' galaxy adopted in this work implies that wehave purposely excluded from the catalogue galaxies having distortedmorphology (such as interaction bridges, tails or lopsidedness) and/orany signature of peculiar kinematics (such as polar rings,counterrotating disks or other decoupled components). In contrast, wehave included systems hosting active galactic nuclei (AGN) in thecatalogue. This catalogue revises previous compendia on the ISM contentof galaxies published by \citet{bregman} and \citet{casoli}, andcompiles data available in the literature from several small samples ofgalaxies. Masses for warm dust, atomic and molecular gas, as well asX-ray luminosities have been converted to a uniform distance scale takenfrom the Catalogue of Principal Galaxies (PGC). We have used twodifferent normalization factors to explore the variation of the gascontent along the Hubble sequence: the blue luminosity (LB)and the square of linear diameter (D225). Ourcatalogue significantly improves the statistics of previous referencecatalogues and can be used in future studies to define a template ISMcontent for ``normal'' galaxies along the Hubble sequence. The cataloguecan be accessed on-line and is also available at the Centre desDonnées Stellaires (CDS).The catalogue is available in electronic form athttp://dipastro.pd.astro.it/galletta/ismcat and at the CDS via anonymousftp to\ cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via\http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/405/5

A catalog of warps in spiral and lenticular galaxies in the Southern hemisphere
A catalog of optical warps of galaxies is presented. This can beconsidered complementary to that reported by Sánchez-Saavedra etal. (\cite{sanchez-saavedra}), with 42 galaxies in the northernhemisphere, and to that by Reshetnikov & Combes(\cite{reshetnikov99}), with 60 optical warps. The limits of the presentcatalog are: logr 25 > 0.60, B_t< 14.5, delta (2000) <0deg, -2.5 < t < 7. Therefore, lenticular galaxies havealso been considered. This catalog lists 150 warped galaxies out of asample of 276 edge-on galaxies and covers the whole southern hemisphere,except the Avoidance Zone. It is therefore very suitable for statisticalstudies of warps. It also provides a source guide for detailedparticular observations. We confirm the large frequency of warpedspirals: nearly all galaxies are warped. The frequency and warp angle donot present important differences for the different types of spirals.However, no lenticular warped galaxy has been found within the specifiedlimits. This finding constitutes an important restriction fortheoretical models.

Properties of tidally-triggered vertical disk perturbations
We present a detailed analysis of the properties of warps andtidally-triggered perturbations perpendicular to the plane of 47interacting/merging edge-on spiral galaxies. The derived parameters arecompared with those obtained for a sample of 61 non-interacting edge-onspirals. The entire optical (R-band) sample used for this study waspresented in two previous papers. We find that the scale height of disksin the interacting/merging sample is characterized by perturbations onboth large ( =~ disk cut-off radius) and short ( =~ z0)scales, with amplitudes of the order of 280 pc and 130 pc on average,respectively. The size of these large (short) -scale instabilitiescorresponds to 14% (6%) of the mean disk scale height. This is a factorof 2 (1.5) larger than the value found for non-interacting galaxies. Ahallmark of nearly all tidally distorted disks is a scale height thatincreases systematically with radial distance. The frequent occurrenceand the significantly larger size of these gradients indicate that diskasymmetries on large scales are a common and persistent phenomenon,while local disturbances and bending instabilities decline on shortertimescales. Nearly all (93%) of the interacting/merging and 45% of thenon-interacting galaxies studied are noticeably warped. Warps ofinteracting/merging galaxies are ~ 2.5 times larger on average thanthose observed in the non-interacting sample, with sizes of the order of340 pc and 140 pc, respectively. This indicates that tidal distortionsdo considerably contribute to the formation and size of warps. However,they cannot entirely explain the frequent occurrence of warped disks.Based on observations obtained at the European Southern Observatory(ESO, La Silla, Chile), Calar Alto Observatory operated by the MPIA(DSAZ, Spain), Lowell Observatory (Flagstaff,AZ, USA), and Hoher ListObservatory (Germany).

Box- and peanut-shaped bulges. I. Statistics
We present a classification for bulges of a complete sample of ~ 1350edge-on disk galaxies derived from the RC3 (Third Reference Catalogue ofBright Galaxies, de Vaucouleurs et al. \cite{rc3}). A visualclassification of the bulges using the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) inthree types of b/p bulges or as an elliptical type is presented andsupported by CCD images. NIR observations reveal that dust extinctiondoes almost not influence the shape of bulges. There is no substantialdifference between the shape of bulges in the optical and in the NIR.Our analysis reveals that 45% of all bulges are box- and peanut-shaped(b/p). The frequency of b/p bulges for all morphological types from S0to Sd is > 40%. In particular, this is for the first time that such alarge frequency of b/p bulges is reported for galaxies as late as Sd.The fraction of the observed b/p bulges is large enough to explain theb/p bulges by bars. Partly based on observations collected at ESO/LaSilla (Chile), DSAZ/Calar Alto (Spain), and Lowell Observatory/Flagstaff(AZ/U.S.A.). Tables 6 and 7 are only available in electronic form at CDSvia anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html

The influence of interactions and minor mergers on the structure of galactic disks I. Observations and disk models
This paper is the first part in our series on the influence of tidalinteractions and minor mergers on the radial and vertical disk structureof spiral galaxies. We report on the sample selection, our observations,and data reduction. Surface photometry of the optical and near infrareddata of a sample of 110 highly-inclined/edge-on disk galaxies arepresented. This sample consists of two subsamples of 61 non-interactinggalaxies (control sample) and of 49 interacting galaxies/minor mergingcandidates. Additionally, 41 of these galaxies were observed in the nearinfrared. We show that the distribution of morphological types of bothsubsamples is almost indistinguishable, covering the range between 0<= T <= 9. An improved, 3-dimensional disk modelling- and fittingprocedure is described in order to analyze and to compare the diskstructure of our sample galaxies by using characteristic parameters. Wefind that the vertical brightness profiles of galactic disks respondvery sensitive even to small deviations from the perfect edge-onorientation. Hence, projection effects of slightly inclined disks maycause substantial changes in the value of the disk scale height and musttherefore be considered in the subsequent study. Based on observationsobtained at the European Southern Observatory (ESO, La Silla, Chile),Calar Alto Observatory operated by the MPIA (DSAZ, Spain), LowellObservatory (Flagstaff/AZ, USA), and Hoher List Observatory (Germany).

Box- and peanut-shaped bulges. II. NIR observations
We have observed 60 edge-on galaxies in the NIR in order to study thestellar distribution in galaxies with box/peanut-shaped bulges. The muchsmaller amount of dust extinction at these wavelengths allows us toidentify in almost all target galaxies with box/peanut-shaped bulges anadditional thin, central component in cuts parallel to the major axis.This structure can be identified with a bar. The length of thisstructure scaled by the length of the bulge correlates with themorphologically classified shape of the bulge. This newly establishedcorrelation is therefore mainly interpreted as the projection of the barat different aspect angles. Galaxies with peanut bulges have a bar seennearly edge-on and the ratio of bar length to thickness, 14 +/- 4, canbe directly measured for the first time. In addition, the correlation ofthe boxiness of bulges with the bar strength indicates that the barcharacteristic could partly explain differences in the bulge shape.Furthermore, a new size relation between the box/peanut structure andthe central bulge is found. Our observations are discussed in comparisonto a N-body simulation for barred galaxies (Pfenniger & Friedli\cite{pfe}). We conclude that the inner region of barred disk galaxiesare build up by three distinct components: the spheroidal bulge, a thinbar, and a b/p structure most likely representing the thick part of thebar. Based on observations collected at ESO/La Silla (61.A-0143),DSAZ/Calar Alto, and TIRGO/Gornergrat.}

The influence of interactions and minor mergers on the structure of galactic disks. II. Results and interpretations
We present the second part of a detailed statistical study focussed onthe effects of tidal interactions and minor mergers on the radial andvertical disk structure of spiral galaxies. In the first part wereported on the sample selection, observations, and applied disk models.In this paper the results are presented, based on disk parametersderived from a sample of 110 highly-inclined/edge-on galaxies. Thissample consists of two subsamples of 49 interacting/merging and 61non-interacting galaxies. Additionally, 41 of these galaxies wereobserved in the NIR. We find significant changes of the disk structurein vertical direction, resulting in ~ 1.5 times larger scale heights andthus vertical velocity dispersions. The radial disk structure,characterized by the cut-off radius and the scale length, shows nostatistically significant changes. Thus, the ratio of radial to verticalscale parameters, h/z0, is ~ 1.7 times smaller for the sampleof interacting/merging galaxies. The total lack of typical flat diskratios h/z0 > 7 in the latter sample implies that verticaldisk heating is most efficient for (extremely) thin disks. Statisticallynearly all galactic disks in the sample (93%) possess non-isothermalvertical luminosity profiles like the sech (60%) and exp (33%)distribution, independent of the sample and passband investigated. Thisindicates that, in spite of tidal perturbations and disk thickening, theinitial vertical distribution of disk stars is not destroyed byinteractions or minor mergers. Based on observations obtained at theEuropean Southern Observatory (ESO, La Silla, Chile), Calar AltoObservatory operated by the MPIA (DSAZ, Spain), Lowell Observatory(Flagstaff/AZ, USA), and Hoher List Observatory (Germany).

The Nature of Boxy/Peanut-Shaped Bulges in Spiral Galaxies
We present a systematic observational study of the relationship betweenbars and boxy/peanut-shaped (B/PS) bulges. We first review and discussproposed mechanisms for their formation, focusing on accretion andbar-buckling scenarios. Using new methods relying on the kinematics ofedge-on disks, we then look for bars in a large sample of edge-on spiralgalaxies with a B/PS bulge and in a smaller control sample of edge-onspirals with more spheroidal bulges. We present position-velocitydiagrams of the ionized gas obtained from optical long-slitspectroscopy. We show that almost all B/PS bulges are due to a thick barviewed edge-on, while only a few extreme cases may be due to theaccretion of external material. This strongly supports the bar-bucklingmechanism for the formation of B/PS bulges. None of the galaxies in thecontrol sample show evidence for a bar, which suggests conversely thatbars are generally B/PS.We consider the effects of dust in the disk ofthe galaxies but conclude that it does not significantly affect ourresults. Unusual emission-line ratios correlating with kinematicalstructures are observed in many objects, and we argue that this isconsistent with the presence of strong bars in the disk of the galaxies.As expected from N-body simulations, the boxy-peanut transition appearsto be related to the viewing angle, but more work is required to derivethe precise orientation of the bars in the bulges. The reliableidentification of bars in edge-on spiral galaxies opens up for the firsttime the possibility of studying observationally the vertical structureof bars.

A catalogue of Mg_2 indices of galaxies and globular clusters
We present a catalogue of published absorption-line Mg_2 indices ofgalaxies and globular clusters. The catalogue is maintained up-to-datein the HYPERCAT database. The measurements are listed together with thereferences to the articles where the data were published. A codeddescription of the observations is provided. The catalogue gathers 3541measurements for 1491 objects (galaxies or globular clusters) from 55datasets. Compiled raw data for 1060 galaxies are zero-point correctedand transformed to a homogeneous system. Tables 1, 3, and 4 areavailable in electronic form only at the CDS, Strasbourg, via anonymousftp 130.79.128.5. Table 2 is available both in text and electronic form.

Total magnitude, radius, colour indices, colour gradients and photometric type of galaxies
We present a catalogue of aperture photometry of galaxies, in UBVRI,assembled from three different origins: (i) an update of the catalogueof Buta et al. (1995) (ii) published photometric profiles and (iii)aperture photometry performed on CCD images. We explored different setsof growth curves to fit these data: (i) The Sersic law, (ii) The net ofgrowth curves used for the preparation of the RC3 and (iii) A linearinterpolation between the de Vaucouleurs (r(1/4) ) and exponential laws.Finally we adopted the latter solution. Fitting these growth curves, wederive (1) the total magnitude, (2) the effective radius, (3) the colourindices and (4) gradients and (5) the photometric type of 5169 galaxies.The photometric type is defined to statistically match the revisedmorphologic type and parametrizes the shape of the growth curve. It iscoded from -9, for very concentrated galaxies, to +10, for diffusegalaxies. Based in part on observations collected at the Haute-ProvenceObservatory.

The fundamental plane of early-type galaxies: stellar populations and mass-to-light ratio.
We analyse the residuals to the fundamental plane (FP) of ellipticalgalaxies as a function of stellar-population indicators; these are basedon the line-strength parameter Mg_2_ and on UBVRI broad-band colors, andare partly derived from new observations. The effect of the stellarpopulations accounts for approximately half the observed variation ofthe mass-to-light ratio responsible for the FP tilt. The residual tiltcan be explained by the contribution of two additional effects: thedependence of the rotational support, and possibly that of the spatialstructure, on the luminosity. We conclude to a constancy of thedynamical-to-stellar mass ratio. This probably extends to globularclusters as well, but the dominant factor would be here the luminositydependence of the structure rather than that of the stellar population.This result also implies a constancy of the fraction of dark matter overall the scalelength covered by stellar systems. Our compilation ofinternal stellar kinematics of galaxies is appended.

A Catalog of Stellar Velocity Dispersions. II. 1994 Update
A catalog of central velocity dispersion measurements is presented,current through 1993 September. The catalog includes 2474 measurementsof 1563 galaxies. A standard set of 86 galaxies is defined, consistingof galaxies with at least three reliable, concordant measurements. It issuggested that future studies observe some of these standard galaxies sothat different studies can be normalized to a consistent system. Allmeasurements are reduced to a normalized system using these standards.

Total and effective colors of 501 galaxies in the Cousins VRI photometric system
Total color indices (V-R)T, (V-I)T and effectivecolor indices (V-R)e, (V-I)e in the Cousins VRIphotometric system are presented for 501 mostly normal galaxies. Thecolors are computed using a procedure outlined in the Third ReferenceCatalogue of Bright Galaxies (RC3) whereby standard color curvesapproximated by Laplace-Gauss integrals are fitted to observedphotoelectric multiaperture photometry. 11 sources of such photometrywere used for our analysis, each source being assigned an appropriateweight according to a rigorous analysis of residuals of the data fromthe best-fitting standard color curves. Together with the integrated B-Vand U-B colors provided in RC3, our analysis widens the range ofwavelength of homogeneously defined colors of normal galaxies of allHubble types. We present color-color and color-type relations that canbe modeled to understand the star formation history of galaxies.

Integrated photoelectric magnitudes and color indices of bright galaxies in the Johnson UBV system
The photoelectric total magnitudes and color indices published in theThird Reference Catalogue of Bright Galaxies (RC3) are based on ananalysis of approximately equals 26,000 B, 25,000 B-V, and 17,000 U-Bmultiaperture measurements available up to mid 1987 from nearly 350sources. This paper provides the full details of the analysis andestimates of internal and external errors in the parameters. Thederivation of the parameters is based on techniques described by theVaucouleurs & Corwin (1977) whereby photoelectric multiaperture dataare fitted by mean Hubble-type-dependent curves which describe theintegral of the B-band flux and the typical B-V and U-B integrated colorgradients. A sophisticated analysis of the residuals of thesemeasurements from the curves was made to allow for the random andsystematic errors that effect such data. The result is a homogeneous setof total magnitudes BTA total colors(B-V)T and (U-B)T, and effective colors(B-V)e and (U-B)e for more than 3000 brightgalaxies in RC3.

Photometrically distinct nuclei in elliptical and early-type disks galaxies.
Not Available

Kinematics of 14 early-type galaxies
We present rotation curves and velocity dispersion profiles at severalposition angles for 9 ellipticals and 5 early type disk systems. Akinematically decoupled inner component is detected in NGC 1374. Centralvelocity dispersions are provided for other 3 early-type galaxies.

UBVRI photoelectric photometry of bright southern early-type galaxies
UBVRI multi-aperture photometry of 207 bright southern galaxies and of72 objects of an additional list is presented. These observations weremade for obtaining the magnitude scale zero-point as an accuratedetermination of the sky background for a two-dimensional photometryprogram concerning these galaxies. We have also inferred the asymptoticmagnitudes, color indices and effective apertures of these objects. Ourresults are in good agreement with those of others authors.

The Photometric Properties of Box / Peanut Galactic Bulges
Optical and near-IR photometry is presented for a sample of 14 edge-ongalaxies displaying `box/peanut' bulge structure. The observedluminosity distributions are modelled using a 2D non-linear,least-squares minimization scheme, and the resulting `best-fitting'model combinations subtracted from the observational data to study thedeviations from the imposed models. In all cases, the models usedunderestimate the observed luminosity in the region of the box/peanutdistortions by typically 5-15 percent of the luminosity of the bulge asa whole in the same regions (rising to ~60 per cent in some cases). Thisluminosity excess appears greater in later type galaxies - whilst thebulges in such systems are small, the box/peanut components contain alarger fraction of the total luminosity of the old stellar populations.The evidence for colour gradients within the bulge components iscontradictory: two systems show clear evidence of a blueing with radiusand Z-height, but in four out of seven cases there is no significantgradient in those regions clearly dominated by the stellar components.Taken together with the similar lack of evidence for low surfacebrightness arcs, shells, filaments, etc. in the present sample, thebox/peanuts do not appear to be the result of recent merger/accretionevents. Moreover, isophote twists with respect to the major axes areunambiguously detected in only two out of nine galaxies, supporting aprevious assertion that box/peanut bulges do not possess a significantdegree of triaxiality. The Z-height of the maximum excess flux withinthe derived (model - data) residual maps has been measured at severalradii (R). This turnover height (Z_peak_) accurately determines theposition of the box/peanut distortions at each radius. Z_peak_ variescontinuously with R in all galaxies, whilst Z_peak_/R fallsmonotonically with R. Both results are contrary to a recent theoreticalanalysis of the orbital families thought to be present within box/peanutbulges (such a study predicting that the zero-velocity curve increaseslinearly with radius, i.e. that Z_peak_/R is constant with R). This maysuggest that the orbits normally used to describe this morphology areinappropriate or, more likely, that each bulge possesses several suchorbital families and that their relative contributions vary withgalactocentric distance. If box/peanuts are the result of the presenceof a bar, regular/periodic orbits appear favoured at the expense of morechaotic orbits. However, the typical radii of the most extremebox/peanut isophotal distortions are larger than those of the inferredinner Lindblad resonances in typical barred potentials. Contrary toprevious expectations, it is clear that photometry alone can be used toplace valuable constraints on a theoretical understanding of thisstructure.

The dependence of the cool matter content on galaxy morphology in galaxies of types E/S0, S0, and SA
Using the material assembled in earlier papers, we examine the manner inwhich the interstellar matter content varies along the Hubble sequencefrom S0 galaxies to Sa galaxies selected from the RSA2 compilation. Forthis we make use of a new and more detailed classification which isdescribed here as applied to these early disk/spiral galaxies. Theprominence of the disk in S0's and the visibility of features (H IIregions) in the Sa's serve as the basis for the subtypes. Three S0categories: subtle, intermediate, and pronounced, and four Sadescriptors: very early, early, intermediate, and late are assigned tothe galaxies. It is found that the total amount of hydrogen (H I + H2)is a function of subtype, being low in the S0's and rising smoothly fromthe early Sa's to the later Sa's. The average surface density ofhydrogen exceeds 3 solar masses/pc-squared only in the latest subtypesof the Sa's. We conclude that the prominence of the disk of a galaxyclosely follows the amount of cool gas which the disk contains.

Velocity dispersions and metallicities of 18 S0/E galaxies - Synthetic Mg I triplet lines in old composite systems
Velocity dispersions and Mg2 indices were measured from CCD spectra of13 box-shaped galaxies and five ellipticals. Evidences for a differentrelation between velocity dispersion and metallicity, relative toellipticals, was found for our S0 sample; we attribute this differenceto the SO disk component, affecting both the mean velocity dispersionand mean metallicity. In a tentative to reproduce the integrated bulgespectra of our sample galaxies, we have built composite spectra using agrid of synthetic spectra, where the basic parameters were assumed to besimilar to those of galactic bulge globular clusters.

Deep Kinematics and Dynamics of Edge-On s0 Galaxies - Part One - NGC3115
As a first step of a program aimed to the detection of dark matter (orradial variations of M/L) in early-type galaxies, we report deepspectroscopic observations of the bulge-dominated edge-on S0 galaxy NGC3115, made at ESO, La Silla, using EFOSC at the 3.6 m telescope and EMMIat NTT. Such observations allow measurements of the rotational velocityout to 1.8a_e_ (effective radii) from the galaxy center, where thesurface brightness is μ_B_~ 24 mag arcsec^-2^. The rotation curvequickly reaches an asymptotic value, ~ 260 km s^-1^ withonly marginal indication of systematic decline within the range of ourobservations. The line-of-sight velocity dispersion has also beenmeasured; it decreases steeply from a rather high central value andflattens out (<σ> ~ 100 km s^-1^) within our observing range(a <~ 1.3a_e_. Models built on these data and simple dynamicalarguments show that the M/L of NGC 3115 must thus be increasing from M/L= 6 (in solar units) in the inner regions (~1a_e_) to at least M/L >=10 in the outermost regions (~2a_e_).

Interstellar matter in early-type galaxies. I - The catalog
A catalog is given of the currently available measurements ofinterstellar matter in the 467 early-type galaxies listed in the secondedition of the Revised Shapley-Ames Catalog of Bright Galaxies. Themorphological type range is E, SO, and Sa. The ISM tracers are emissionin the following bands: IRAS 100 micron, X-ray, radio, neutral hydrogen,and carbon monoxide. Nearly two-thirds of the Es and SOs have beendetected in one or more of these tracers. Additional observed quantitiesthat are tabulated include: magnitude, colors, radial velocity, centralvelocity dispersion, maximum of the rotation curve, angular size, 60micron flux, and supernovae. Qualitative statements as to the presenceof dust or emission lines, when available in the literature, are given.Quantities derivative from the observed values are also listed andinclude masses of H I, CO, X-ray gas, and dust as well as an estimate ofthe total mass and mass-to-luminosity ratio of the individual galaxies.

H I content and FIR emission of S0 galaxies
A sample of 252 S0 galaxies is used to study the relationship between HI content and far-IR emission. Logarithms of the H I content versus thefar-IR emission are employed statistically to develop a best-fit linearregression line which is compared to a slope of approximately unity. Theslopes are different for S0 and SB0 galaxies versus S0/a and SB0/agalaxies. The distribution of the 60-100 micron flux ratio is notsignificantly affected by the presence or absence of bars nor by thedifferences between the S0 and S0/a systems. The flux ratio is higherthan the critical value of Helou in 34 percent of the cases, and thevalue holds when nuclear emission is taken into account. In cases wherethe critical value is exceeded, most far-IR emissions are expected to bedue to star formation. S0 galaxies are generally found to have a normalISM, except where the systems have accreted their H I gas. Systems withdisproportionate FIR emission can be considered galaxies that areexperiencing enhanced star formation or that have had their H I gasswept away.

Characterising 'box/peanut' galactic bulge morphology
Principal component analyses have been conducted on a large sample ofedge-on galaxies displaying 'box' or 'peanut' shaped bulge distortionsin order to identify the characteristic photometric properties of themorphology. The identified parameter space is strictly two-dimensional,indicating that no single parameter exists by which box/peanutmorphology could be fully characterized. The most significant parametersare measures of bulge dimension, and the bulge-to-total luminosityratio. It is shown that weak boxes and extreme peanuts are merelyextrema in a homogeneous family of isophotal distortions. The resultsalso suggest that the disk component is not an important constraint onthe formation and/or subsequent evolution of box/peanut bulgedistortions.

"Deep" rotation curves of edge-on SO galaxies.
Not Available

Submit a new article


Related links

  • - No Links Found -
Submit a new link


Member of following groups:


Observation and Astrometry data

Constellation:Puppis
Right ascension:06h53m53.50s
Declination:-40°51'44.0"
Aparent dimensions:4.677′ × 0.891′

Catalogs and designations:
Proper Names   (Edit)
NGC 2000.0NGC 2310
HYPERLEDA-IPGC 19811

→ Request more catalogs and designations from VizieR