Chapter 21 Galactic Evolution

 

Review of spiral, elliptical, irregular and lenticular galaxies

 

Unlike stars, galaxies aren’t born every day.

So we need to look back in time.  The Hubble Deep Field.

Galaxy Formation

Spiral Galaxies:

         Protogalactic clouds condense until first stars form.

         Then galaxies form their halo (population II stars)

         Disk forms   Step 1   Step 2   Step 3   Step 4  

         Smaller clouds come together for bigger spirals

 

Elliptical Galaxies can form in these situations:

         The protogalaxy has little angular momentum

         The protogalaxy has a high density

         Interstellar gas can be stripped out if the galaxy flies through the center of a dense galaxy-cluster

         Collisions (example NGC 2207 and IC 2163 and Antenna)
                  can make elliptical galaxies (computer simulation model)
                  and momentarily irregular looking galaxies (example NGC 6240)
                  The biggest ellipticals are the galactic cannibals called Central Dominant Galaxies
                  Abell 3827

 

Irregular galaxies:
         The timeline shows many irregular galaxies early in Universe's history

 

Another test on the formation hypotheses

         We can detect protogalactic clouds by their absorption of distant quasar light

Starburst Galaxies

         Starburst galaxies = galaxies with 100 times the Milky Way's rate of star formation
         Collisions can trigger a starburst
                  Cartwheel Galaxy and "intruder" galaxy
         Even "close encounters" can trigger a starburst
                  M81 and M82

         Sometimes these are shrouded in dust but can be seen in the IR

         The underlying galaxy is almost always a spiral or irregular
                  exceptional case of elliptical galaxy NGC3928, in which the
                  central starburst resulted from the absorption of a small spiral galaxy ApJ

         Winds
                  M82 visible light          M82 in X-rays

 

Quasars and Other Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN)

         Variations on the theme: Quasars, Seyfert galaxies, radio galaxies, BL Lac Objects

Discovery of Quasars (Quasi-Stellar Radio Sources) in 1960's
         Absorption lines that were redshifted
         Calculated velocity, distance, luminosity
         Luminosity was huge
         Bright in broad range of wavelengths: spectrum

Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN)
         AGN = extremely bright center of a galaxy, where see galaxy, too
         Examples, NGC5548 vs normal galaxy NGC3277 , NGC 1068 = M77
         Same spectra as quasars
         Can have jets, example: nucleus and jet of M87

Radio Galaxies and Jets
         Core-Jet-Lobe structure
         Examples:     Cygnus A,     Centaurus A     Cartoon
         More examples:     3C 353     3C 219     3C 31     NGC 1265
         Compare Cygnus A with "Herbig Haro Objects" (jets from protostar)
         Radio Galaxies have molecular cloud donuts:     Cartoon
         Radio Galaxies are really AGN viewed from different angle

Where does the energy come from ? !!
         Material flowing into huge black hole in center
         Jets are material flowing along twisted magnetic field
                 Cartoon
         Another cartoon of a supermassive black hole with accretion
         Finding the black hole mass from Kepler's 3rd law applied to orbits in accretion disk
                 M87 Example

 

Supplemental Material:
The brightest of the AGN are quasars

Nearby fainter ones are called Seyfert galaxies.

Quasars –strong emission lines, very redshifted, some are radio-loud

The power source - a supermassive black hole with accretion

 

Sometimes you get jets model  computer model    Cyg A model

A variety or radio galaxies  1 2 3 4)

 

Why do you need a black hole?  It is 100 more efficient than fusion.

          Do we have it right?  Weighing supermassive black holes