Environmental effects on galaxy properties

This is a study concerning the investigation of galaxy formation and evolution in small-scale structures and the influence of the environment on the properties of galaxies. The environment plays a key role in the evolution of galaxies since it governs the type of encounters. We present results from low-resolution spectroscopy and R-band surface photometry of multiplets of galaxies found in low-density environments and compare them to cluster environments. Properties such as induced galaxy activity, star formation enhancements, AGN activity and the connection between merging and galaxy morphology are investigated. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Application of an adaptive filtering technique to surface photometry of galaxies. I. The method tested on NGC 3379

This study reports on the results of the application of an adaptive filtering technique to the two-dimensional photometric mapping of galaxies. For this test we used the elliptical galaxy NGC 3379, which is a luminosity standard. Our plate material (B-band), obtained with the Tautenburg Schmidt telescope, was digitized with the Babelsberg microdensitometer and with the ESO PDS. The 2-D scans were reduced according to the Babelsberg Image Processing Systems, whose key feature is an adaptive filter called ‘H-Transform’. By comparing our results (E-W light profile and isophotal parameters) to the most recent studies of NGC 3379 (DE VAUCOULEURS and CAPACCIOLI 1979, and NIETO and VIDAL 1984), we found no systematic errors in the photometric calibration and in the reduction procedure, with typical mean residuals from the other studies not larger than ±0.05 B-mag up to a threshold of 1% of the night sky level on each plate. We also re-confirmed the geometrical properties of the galaxy. The new filtering technique proved quite efficient in reducing the noise, with negligible effects on the photometric and geometric characteristics of the star-like sources.     

改进磁变仪布局的研究

本文讨论了各分量磁变仪磁针之间的相互影响以及地磁场各分量的变化、记录光入射角对记录的影响，并由此认为一套磁变仪的布局应满意三项标准：（１）各分量仪磁针间的相互静磁影响要小，且任一磁针受其它磁针工作的影响要低于该分量仪记录的分辨率；（２）各分量仪的状态函数稳定，即保持定向能力强；（３）可产生较高精度的线性记录磁照图。鉴于目前的磁变仪布局与此三标准有明显差距，故本文提出了一种新的布局方案，可满足此三项     

An Imaging Photon Counting Intensified CCD for High Speed Photometry

The scientific performance evaluation of a photon countingimaging system is presented. The detector is constituted by an ICCD camera with RbTe photocathode(optimized for UV radiation), and dedicated electronics for the acquisition and analysis ofthe events. For each photon event on the CCD, a real-time centroid calculation is performed, inorder to reach spatial resolution down to 25 m FWHM. The system has been tested usingthe 182 cm telescope of the Asiago Observatory.A standard stars field through U Johnson filter,and the Crab pulsar (PSR 0531+21) were observed. From the photometric data, relative magnitudes of the standard stars have been derived, showing a goodlinearity of the detector in the range of flux under consideration, as expected fromprevious laboratory measurements.The pulsar's data have been processed by FFT and epoch foldingtechniques to testthe detector's timing performances in the highest resolutionmode (4.512 ms).These observations show that a space resolved time analysis ofperiodic sources can be performed with 10^-7 s accuracy.     

Ground-based optical measurements of daytime auroral emissions: A new means of investigating space-weather related processes

The first optical signatures of plasmapause associated processes were gleaned from the daytime auroral emissions monitored from Maitri, the Indian station in Antarctica, using the newly built, ground-based, Multiwavelength Daytime Photometer (MWDPM). The plasmapause boundary inferred from these measurements conforms well with the known empirical relationship with the geomagnetic indexKp. The measurements made at 391.4, 486.1, 557.7 and 630.0 nm emissions revealed significant day-to-day variations in their spatial and temporal extents. These preliminary results are presented and discussed.     

北京天文台的WET三通道高速光度计

对北京天文台新近改造成的三通道高速光度计的结构和性能进行介绍,并给出了在兴隆站85公分望远镜的一些实测结果.     

天文底片保存和我国天文底片数字化的建议

阐述了国际上天文照相底片数字化工作的进展:底片的保存、底片数字化的意义和相关技术。扼要地介绍了国际虚拟天文台的情况及其与底片数字化的关系。分析了我国天文底片资料的保存现状,并提出了底片数字化建议:成立由各天文台专家组成的全国底片数字化协调小组,建立各单位保存底片的信息库、改进底片的保存条件、有步骤地对有价值底片上的全部目标进行扫描,以便将其与现代高精度的观测资料相结合,开展有意义的课题研究。     

The galaxy luminosity–size relation and selection biases in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field

We use the Hubble Ultra Deep Field to study the galaxy luminosity–size  ( M – R _e )  distribution. With a careful analysis of selection effects due to both detection completeness and measurement reliability, we identify bias-free regions in the   M – R _e   plane for a series of volume-limited samples. By comparison to a nearby survey also having well-defined selection limits, namely the Millennium Galaxy Catalogue, we present clear evidence for evolution in surface brightness since   z ∼ 0.7  . Specifically, we demonstrate that the mean, rest-frame B -band  〈μ〉 _e   for galaxies in a sample spanning 8 mag in luminosity between   M _B =−22  and −14 mag increases by ∼1.0 mag arcsec⁻² from   z ∼ 0.1  to 0.7. We also highlight the importance of considering surface brightness-dependent measurement biases in addition to incompleteness biases. In particular, the increasing, systematic underestimation of Kron fluxes towards low surface brightnesses may cause diffuse, yet luminous, systems to be mistaken for faint, compact objects.     

Star formation and figure rotation in the early-type galaxy NGC 2974

We present Galaxy Evolution Explorer ( GALEX ) far-ultraviolet (FUV) and near-ultraviolet (NUV) imaging of the nearby early-type galaxy NGC 2974, along with complementary ground-based optical imaging. In the ultraviolet, the galaxy reveals a central spheroid-like component and a newly discovered complete outer ring of radius 6.2 kpc, with suggestions of another partial ring at an even larger radius. Blue FUV–NUV and UV-optical colours are observed in the centre of the galaxy and from the outer ring outwards, suggesting young stellar populations (≲1 Gyr) and recent star formation in both locations. This is supported by a simple stellar population model which assumes two bursts of star formation, allowing us to constrain the age, mass fraction and surface mass density of the young component pixel by pixel. Overall, the mass fraction of the young component appears to be just under 1 per cent (lower limit, uncorrected for dust extinction). The additional presence of a nuclear and an inner ring (radii 1.4 and 2.9 kpc, respectively), as traced by [O  iii ] emission, suggests ring formation through resonances. All three rings are consistent with a single pattern speed of  78 ± 6  km s⁻¹ kpc⁻¹, typical of S0 galaxies and only marginally slower than expected for a fast bar if traced by a small observed surface brightness plateau. This thus suggests that star formation and morphological evolution in NGC 2974 at the present epoch are primarily driven by a rotating asymmetry (probably a large-scale bar), despite the standard classification of NGC 2974 as an E4 elliptical.