Overview
- Presents award-winning thesis work with a foreword by supervisor Professor Shardha Jogee at the University of Texas at Austin
- Addresses galaxy formation across cosmic time, from the present day to three billion years after the Big Bang, in environments ranging from low to extremely high galaxy number density
- Describes state-of-the-art research on using galaxy structural parameters to deduce galaxy assembly history
- Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras
Part of the book series: Springer Theses (Springer Theses)
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Table of contents (5 chapters)
Keywords
About this book
Awarded the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Rodger Doxsey Travel Prize, and with a foreword by thesis supervisor Professor Shardha Jogee at the University of Texas at Austin, this thesis discusses one of the primary outstanding problems in extragalactic astronomy: how galaxies form and evolve. Galaxies consist of two fundamental kinds of structure: rotationally supported disks and spheroidal/triaxial structures supported by random stellar motions. Understanding the balance between these galaxy components is vital to comprehending the relative importance of the different mechanisms (galaxy collisions, gas accretion and internal secular processes) that assemble and shape galaxies. Using panchromatic imaging from some of the largest and deepest space-based galaxy surveys, an empirical census of galaxy structure is made for galaxies at different cosmic epochs and in environments spanning low to extremely high galaxy number densities. An important result of this work is that disk structures are far more prevalent in massive galaxies than previously thought. The associated challenges raised for contemporary theoretical models of galaxy formation are discussed. The method of galaxy structural decomposition is treated thoroughly since it is relevant for future studies of galaxy structure using next-generation facilities, like the James Webb Space Telescope and the ground-based Giant Magellan Telescope with adaptive optics.
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Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Probing Galaxy Evolution by Unveiling the Structure of Massive Galaxies Across Cosmic Time and in Diverse Environments
Authors: Timothy Weinzirl
Series Title: Springer Theses
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06959-3
Publisher: Springer Cham
eBook Packages: Physics and Astronomy, Physics and Astronomy (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-06958-6Published: 01 August 2014
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-37781-0Published: 17 September 2016
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-06959-3Published: 17 July 2014
Series ISSN: 2190-5053
Series E-ISSN: 2190-5061
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XIV, 236
Number of Illustrations: 30 b/w illustrations, 43 illustrations in colour