Galaxies

Galaxies
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Contents
Articles
Overview 1
Galaxy 1
Galaxy formation and evolution 19
Galaxy merger 25
Galaxy morphological classification 26
Hubble sequence 31
Short-scale structure 36
Dark matter halo 36
Galactic bulge 39
Galactic corona 41
Galactic disc 42
Galactic halo 43
Ionization cone 43
Low-ionization nuclear emission-line region 44
Relativistic jet 46
Supermassive black hole 49
Large-scale structure 53
Galaxy groups and clusters 53
Galaxy supercluster 56
Galaxy filament 60
Types of galaxies 65
Active galaxy 65
Barred lenticular galaxy 71
Barred irregular galaxy 72
Barred spiral galaxy 72
Blazar 77
Blue compact dwarf galaxy 80
Dark galaxy 81
Disc galaxy 83
Dwarf elliptical galaxy 84
Dwarf galaxy 85
Dwarf spheroidal galaxy 88
Dwarf spiral galaxy 89
Elliptical galaxy 90
Faint blue galaxy 92
Field galaxy 93
Flocculent spiral galaxy 94
Grand design spiral galaxy 95
Host galaxy 96
Interacting galaxy 96
Intermediate spiral galaxy 98
Irregular galaxy 100
Lenticular galaxy 101
Low surface brightness galaxy 102
Luminous infrared galaxy 103
Lyman-alpha emitter 104
Lyman-break galaxy 105
Magellanic spiral 106
Pea galaxy 107
Peculiar galaxy 115
Polar-ring galaxy 115
Protogalaxy 117
Quasar 118
Radio galaxy 125
Ring galaxy 130
Seyfert galaxy 131
Spiral galaxy 132
Starburst galaxy 137
Type-cD galaxy 140
Unbarred lenticular galaxy 143
Unbarred spiral galaxy 144
Appendix 146
Brightest cluster galaxy 146
Galaxy color-magnitude diagram 147
List of galaxies 148
Fossil group 165
References
Article Sources and Contributors 166
Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors 170
Article Licenses
License 173
1
Overview
Galaxy
A galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound
system that consists of stars and stellar remnants,
an interstellar medium of gas dust, and an
important but poorly understood component
tentatively dubbed dark matter.[1] [2] The name is
from the Greek root galaxias [γαλαξίας],
literally meaning "milky", a reference to the
Milky Way galaxy. Typical galaxies range from
dwarfs with as few as ten million (107) stars,[3]
up to giants with a hundred trillion (1014)
stars,[4] all orbiting the galaxy's center of mass.
Galaxies may contain many star systems, star
clusters, and various interstellar clouds. The Sun
is one of the stars in the Milky Way galaxy; the
Solar System includes the Earth and all the other
NGC 4414, a typical spiral galaxy in the constellation Coma Berenices, is
objects that orbit the Sun. about 17,000 parsecs in diameter and approximately 20 million parsecs
distant.
Historically, galaxies have been categorized
according to their apparent shape (usually
referred to as their visual morphology). A common form is the elliptical galaxy,[5] which has an ellipse-shaped light
profile. Spiral galaxies are disk-shaped assemblages with dusty, curving arms. Galaxies with irregular or unusual
shapes are known as irregular galaxies, and typically result from disruption by the gravitational pull of neighboring
galaxies. Such interactions between nearby galaxies, which may ultimately result in galaxies merging, may induce
episodes of significantly increased star formation, producing what is called a starburst galaxy. Small galaxies that
lack a coherent structure could also be referred to as irregular galaxies.[6]
There are probably more than 170 billion (1.7 × 1011) galaxies in the observable universe.[7] [8] Most galaxies are
1,000 to 100,000[9] parsecs in diameter and are usually separated by distances on the order of millions of parsecs (or
megaparsecs).[10] Intergalactic space (the space between galaxies) is filled with a tenuous gas of an average density
less than one atom per cubic meter. The majority of galaxies are organized into a hierarchy of associations called
clusters, which, in turn, can form larger groups called superclusters. These larger structures are generally arranged
into sheets and filaments, which surround immense voids in the universe.[11]
Although it is not yet well understood, dark matter appears to account for around 90% of the mass of most galaxies.
Observational data suggests that supermassive black holes may exist at the center of many, if not all, galaxies. They
are proposed to be the primary cause of active galactic nuclei found at the core of some galaxies. The Milky Way
galaxy appears to harbor at least one such object within its nucleus.[12]
Galaxy 2
Etymology
The word galaxy derives from the Greek term for our own galaxy, galaxias (γαλαξίας), or kyklos galaktikos,
meaning "milky circle" for its appearance in the sky. In Greek mythology, Zeus places his son born by a mortal
woman, the infant Heracles, on Hera's breast while she is asleep so that the baby will drink her divine milk and will
thus become immortal. Hera wakes up while breastfeeding and then realizes she is nursing an unknown baby: she
pushes the baby away and a jet of her milk sprays the night sky, producing the faint band of light known as the
Milky Way.[13]
In the astronomical literature, the capitalized word 'Galaxy' is used to refer to our galaxy, the Milky Way, to
distinguish it from the billions of other galaxies. The term Milky Way first appeared in the English language in a
poem by Chaucer.
"See yonder, lo, the Galaxyë
Which men clepeth the Milky Wey,
For hit is whyt."
—Geoffrey Chaucer. The House of Fame, c. 1380.[14]
When William Herschel constructed his catalog of deep sky objects, he used the name spiral nebula for certain
objects such as M31. These would later be recognized as immense conglomerations of stars, when the true distance
to these objects began to be appreciated, and they would be termed island universes. However, the word Universe
was understood to mean the entirety of existence, so this expression fell into disuse and the objects instead became
known as galaxies.[15]
Observation history
The realization that we live in a galaxy, and that there were, in fact, many other galaxies, parallels discoveries that
were made about the Milky Way and other nebulae in the night sky.
The Milky Way

The Greek philosopher Democritus (450–370 B.C.)
proposed that the bright band on the night sky known
as the Milky Way might consist of distant stars.[16]
Aristotle (384–322 B.C.), however, believed the Milky
Way to be caused by "the ignition of the fiery
exhalation of some stars which were large, numerous
and close together" and that the "ignition takes place in
the upper part of the atmosphere, in the region of the
world which is continuous with the heavenly
motions."[17] The Neoplatonist philosopher
Olympiodorus the Younger (c. 495-570 A.D.) criticized
Galactic Center of Milky Way and a meteor
this view, arguing that if the Milky Way were
sublunary it should appear different at different times
and places on the Earth, and that it should have parallax, which it does not. In his view, the Milky Way was celestial.
This idea would be influential later in the Islamic world.[18]
The Arabian astronomer, Alhazen (965–1037), made the first attempt at observing and measuring the Milky Way's
parallax,[19] and he thus "determined that because the Milky Way had no parallax, it was very remote from the Earth
and did not belong to the atmosphere."[20] The Persian astronomer Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī (973–1048) proposed the
Milky Way galaxy to be "a collection of countless fragments of the nature of nebulous stars."[21] The Andalusian
Galaxy 3
astronomer Ibn Bajjah ("Avempace", d. 1138) proposed that the Milky Way was made up of many stars that almost
touch one another and appear to be a continuous image due to the effect of refraction from sublunary material,[17] [22]
citing his observation of the conjunction of Jupiter and Mars as evidence of this occurring when two objects are
near.[17] The Syrian-born Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya (1292–1350) proposed the Milky Way galaxy to be "a myriad of
tiny stars packed together in the sphere of the fixed stars".[23]
Actual proof of the Milky Way consisting of many stars came in 1610 when Galileo Galilei used a telescope to study
the Milky Way and discovered that it is composed of a huge number of faint stars.[24] In 1750 Thomas Wright, in his
An original theory or new hypothesis of the Universe, speculated (correctly) that the galaxy might be a rotating body
of a huge number of stars held together by gravitational forces, akin to the solar system but on a much larger scale.
The resulting disk of stars can be seen as a band on the sky from our perspective inside the disk.[25] In a treatise in
1755, Immanuel Kant elaborated on Wright's idea about the structure of the Milky Way.
The first attempt to describe the shape of the Milky
Way and the position of the Sun in it was carried out by
William Herschel in 1785 by carefully counting the
number of stars in different regions of the sky. He
produced a diagram of the shape of the galaxy with the
The shape of the Milky Way as deduced from star counts by William solar system close to the center.[26] [27] Using a refined
Herschel in 1785; the solar system was assumed to be near the approach, Kapteyn in 1920 arrived at the picture of a
center.
small (diameter about 15 kiloparsecs) ellipsoid galaxy
with the Sun close to the center. A different method by
Harlow Shapley based on the cataloguing of globular clusters led to a radically different picture: a flat disk with
diameter approximately 70 kiloparsecs and the Sun far from the center.[25] Both analyses failed to take into account
the absorption of light by interstellar dust present in the galactic plane, but after Robert Julius Trumpler quantified
this effect in 1930 by studying open clusters, the present picture of our galaxy, the Milky Way, emerged.[28]
Distinction from other nebulae

In the 10th century, the Persian astronomer, Abd
al-Rahman al-Sufi (known in the West as Azophi),
made the earliest recorded observation of the
Andromeda Galaxy, describing it as a "small cloud".[29]
Al-Sufi also identified the Large Magellanic Cloud,
which is visible from Yemen, though not from Isfahan;
it was not seen by Europeans until Magellan's voyage
in the 16th century.[30] [31] These were the first galaxies
other than the Milky Way to be observed from Earth.
Al-Sufi published his findings in his Book of Fixed
Stars in 964.
In 1750 Thomas Wright, in his An original theory or

new hypothesis of the Universe, speculated (correctly)
Sketch of the Whirlpool Galaxy by Lord Rosse in 1845
that Milky Way was a flattened disk of stars, and that
some of the nebulae visible in the night sky might be
separate Milky Ways.[25] [32] In 1755 Immanuel Kant introduced the term "island universe" for these distant nebulae.
Toward the end of the 18th century, Charles Messier compiled a catalog containing the 109 brightest nebulae
(celestial objects with a nebulous appearance), later followed by a larger catalog of 5,000 nebulae assembled by
William Herschel.[25] In 1845, Lord Rosse constructed a new telescope and was able to distinguish between elliptical
Galaxy 4
and spiral nebulae. He also managed to make out individual point sources in some of these nebulae, lending credence
to Kant's earlier conjecture.[33]
In 1912, Vesto Slipher made spectrographic studies of the brightest spiral nebulae to determine if they were made
from chemicals that would be expected in a planetary system. However, Slipher discovered that the spiral nebulae
had high red shifts, indicating that they were moving away at rate higher than the Milky Way's escape velocity. Thus
they were not gravitationally bound to the Milky Way, and were unlikely to be a part of the galaxy.[34] [35]
In 1917, Heber Curtis had observed a nova S Andromedae within the "Great Andromeda Nebula" (Messier object
M31). Searching the photographic record, he found 11 more novae. Curtis noticed that these novae were, on average,
10 magnitudes fainter than those that occurred within our galaxy. As a result he was able to come up with a distance
estimate of 150,000 parsecs. He became a proponent of the so-called "island universes" hypothesis, which holds that
spiral nebulae are actually independent galaxies.[36]
In 1920 the so-called Great Debate took place between
Harlow Shapley and Heber Curtis, concerning the
nature of the Milky Way, spiral nebulae, and the
dimensions of the Universe. To support his claim that
the Great Andromeda Nebula was an external galaxy,
Curtis noted the appearance of dark lanes resembling
the dust clouds in the Milky Way, as well as the
significant Doppler shift.[37]
The matter was conclusively settled in the early 1920s.

In 1922, astronomer Ernst Öpik gave a distance
Photograph of the "Great Andromeda Nebula" from 1899, later determination which supported the theory that the
identified as the Andromeda Galaxy
Andromeda Nebula is indeed a distant extra-galactic
object.[38] Using the new 100 inch Mt. Wilson
telescope, Edwin Hubble was able to resolve the outer parts of some spiral nebulae as collections of individual stars
and identified some Cepheid variables, thus allowing him to estimate the distance to the nebulae: they were far too
distant to be part of the Milky Way.[39] In 1936 Hubble produced a classification system for galaxies that is used to
this day, the Hubble sequence.[40]
Modern research
In 1944 Hendrik van de Hulst predicted microwave radiation at a
wavelength of 21 cm resulting from interstellar atomic hydrogen
gas;[41] this radiation was observed in 1951. The radiation allowed for
much improved study of the Milky Way Galaxy, since it is not affected
by dust absorption and its Doppler shift can be used to map the motion
of the gas in the Galaxy. These observations led to the postulation of a
rotating bar structure in the center of the Galaxy.[42] With improved
radio telescopes, hydrogen gas could also be traced in other galaxies. Rotation curve of a typical spiral galaxy:
predicted (A) and observed (B). The distance is
In the 1970s it was discovered in Vera Rubin's study of the rotation from the galactic core.
speed of gas in galaxies that the total
Galaxy 5
visible mass (from the stars and gas) does not properly
account for the speed of the rotating gas. This galaxy
rotation problem is thought to be explained by the
presence of large quantities of unseen dark matter.[43]
[44]
Beginning in the 1990s, the Hubble Space Telescope

yielded improved observations. Among other things, it
established that the missing dark matter in our galaxy
cannot solely consist of inherently faint and small
stars.[45] The Hubble Deep Field, an extremely long
The most distant galaxy: UDFy-38135539
exposure of a relatively empty part of the sky, provided
evidence that there are about 125 billion (1.25×1011)
galaxies in the universe.[46] Improved technology in detecting the spectra invisible to humans (radio telescopes,
infrared cameras, and x-ray telescopes) allow detection of other galaxies that are not detected by Hubble.
Particularly, galaxy surveys in the zone of avoidance (the region of the sky blocked by the Milky Way) have
revealed a number of new galaxies.[47]
The most distant galaxy as seen in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field is UDFy-38135539 approximately 13 billion ly from
Earth.
Types and morphology

Galaxies come in three main types:
ellipticals, spirals, and irregulars. A
slightly more extensive description of
galaxy types based on their appearance
is given by the Hubble sequence. Since
the Hubble sequence is entirely based
upon visual morphological type, it may
miss certain important characteristics
of galaxies such as star formation rate
(in starburst galaxies) and activity in
the core (in active galaxies).[6]
Types of galaxies according to the Hubble classification scheme. An E indicates a type of
[48]
Ellipticals elliptical galaxy; an S is a spiral; and SB is a barred-spiral galaxy.
The Hubble classification system rates elliptical galaxies on the basis of their ellipticity, ranging from E0, being
nearly spherical, up to E7, which is highly elongated. These galaxies have an ellipsoidal profile, giving them an
elliptical appearance regardless of the viewing angle. Their appearance shows little structure and they typically have
relatively little interstellar matter. Consequently these galaxies also have a low portion of open clusters and a
reduced rate of new star formation. Instead they are dominated by generally older, more evolved stars that are
orbiting the common center of gravity in random directions. In this sense they have some similarity to the much
smaller globular clusters.[49]
The largest galaxies are giant ellipticals. Many elliptical galaxies are believed to form due to the interaction of
galaxies, resulting in a collision and merger. They can grow to enormous sizes (compared to spiral galaxies, for
example), and giant elliptical galaxies are often found near the core of large galaxy clusters.[50] Starburst galaxies are
the result of such a galactic collision that can result in the formation of an elliptical galaxy.[49]
Galaxy 6
Spirals
Spiral galaxies consist of a rotating disk of stars and interstellar
medium, along with a central bulge of generally older stars. Extending
outward from the bulge are relatively bright arms. In the Hubble
classification scheme, spiral galaxies are listed as type S, followed by a
letter (a, b, or c) that indicates the degree of tightness of the spiral arms
and the size of the central bulge. An Sa galaxy has tightly wound,
poorly defined arms and possesses a relatively large core region. At the
other extreme, an Sc galaxy has open, well-defined arms and a small
core region.[51] The Whirlpool Galaxy (on left), an example of an
unbarred spiral galaxy.
In spiral galaxies, the spiral arms do have the shape of approximate
logarithmic spirals, a pattern that can be theoretically shown to result
from a disturbance in a uniformly rotating mass of stars. Like the stars, the spiral arms rotate around the center, but
they do so with constant angular velocity. The spiral arms are thought to be areas of high density matter, or "density
waves". As stars move through an arm, the space velocity of each stellar system is modified by the gravitational
force of the higher density. (The velocity returns to normal after the stars depart on the other side of the arm.) This
effect is akin to a "wave" of slowdowns moving along a highway full of moving cars. The arms are visible because
the high density facilitates star formation, and therefore they harbor many bright and young stars.
A majority of spiral galaxies have a linear,

bar-shaped band of stars that extends
outward to either side of the core, then
merges into the spiral arm structure.[52] In
the Hubble classification scheme, these are
designated by an SB, followed by a
lower-case letter (a, b or c) that indicates the
form of the spiral arms (in the same manner
as the categorization of normal spiral
galaxies). Bars are thought to be temporary
structures that can occur as a result of a
NGC 1300, an example of a barred spiral galaxy. density wave radiating outward from the
core, or else due to a tidal interaction with
[53]
another galaxy. Many barred spiral galaxies are active, possibly as a result of gas being channeled into the core
along the arms.[54]
Our own galaxy is a large disk-shaped barred-spiral galaxy[55] about 30 kiloparsecs in diameter and a kiloparsec in
thickness. It contains about two hundred billion (2×1011)[56] stars and has a total mass of about six hundred billion
(6×1011) times the mass of the Sun.[57]
Galaxy 7
Other morphologies
Peculiar galaxies are galactic formations that develop unusual
properties due to tidal interactions with other galaxies. An example of
this is the ring galaxy, which possesses a ring-like structure of stars and
interstellar medium surrounding a bare core. A ring galaxy is thought
to occur when a smaller galaxy passes through the core of a spiral
galaxy.[58] Such an event may have affected the Andromeda Galaxy, as
it displays a multi-ring-like structure when viewed in infrared
radiation.[59]
A lenticular galaxy is an intermediate form that has properties of both

elliptical and spiral galaxies. These are categorized as Hubble type S0,
and they possess ill-defined spiral arms with an elliptical halo of
stars.[60] (Barred lenticular galaxies receive Hubble classification Hoag's Object, an example of a ring galaxy.
SB0.)
In addition to the classifications mentioned above, there are a

number of galaxies that can not be readily classified into an
elliptical or spiral morphology. These are categorized as irregular
galaxies. An Irr-I galaxy has some structure but does not align
cleanly with the Hubble classification scheme. Irr-II galaxies do
not possess any structure that resembles a Hubble classification,
and may have been disrupted.[61] Nearby examples of (dwarf)
irregular galaxies include the Magellanic Clouds.
Dwarfs
Despite the prominence of large elliptical and spiral galaxies, most
galaxies in the universe appear to be dwarf galaxies. These
galaxies are relatively small when compared with other galactic
formations, being about one hundredth the size of the Milky Way,
NGC 5866, an example of a lenticular galaxy. Credit: containing only a few billion stars. Ultra-compact dwarf galaxies
NASA/ESA.
have recently been discovered that are only 100 parsecs across.[62]
Many dwarf galaxies may orbit a single larger galaxy; the Milky
Way has at least a dozen such satellites, with an estimated 300–500 yet to be discovered.[63] Dwarf galaxies may
also be classified as elliptical, spiral, or irregular. Since small dwarf ellipticals bear little resemblance to large
ellipticals, they are often called dwarf spheroidal galaxies instead.
A study of 27 Milky Way neighbors found that dwarf galaxies were all approximately 10 million solar masses,
regardless of whether they have thousands or millions of stars. This has led to the suggestion that galaxies are largely
formed by dark matter, and that the minimum size may indicate a form of warm dark matter incapable of
gravitational coalescence on a smaller scale.[64]
Galaxy 8
Unusual dynamics and activities
Interacting
The average separation between galaxies within a cluster is a little over an order of magnitude larger than their
diameter. Hence interactions between these galaxies are relatively frequent, and play an important role in their
evolution. Near misses between galaxies result in warping distortions due to tidal interactions, and may cause some
exchange of gas and dust.[65] [66]
Collisions occur when two galaxies pass directly
through each other and have sufficient relative
momentum not to merge. The stars within these
interacting galaxies will typically pass straight
through without colliding. However, the gas and
dust within the two forms will interact. This can
trigger bursts of star formation as the interstellar
medium becomes disrupted and compressed. A
collision can severely distort the shape of one or
both galaxies, forming bars, rings or tail-like
structures.[65] [66]
At the extreme of interactions are galactic

mergers. In this case the relative momentum of
the two galaxies is insufficient to allow the
galaxies to pass through each other. Instead, they
gradually merge together to form a single, larger
galaxy. Mergers can result in significant changes
The Antennae Galaxies are undergoing a collision that will result in their
to morphology, as compared to the original
eventual merger.
galaxies. In the case where one of the galaxies is
much more massive, however, the result is
known as cannibalism. In this case the larger galaxy will remain relatively undisturbed by the merger, while the
smaller galaxy is torn apart. The Milky Way galaxy is currently in the process of cannibalizing the Sagittarius Dwarf
Elliptical Galaxy and the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy.[65] [66]
Galaxy 9
Starburst
Stars are created within galaxies from a reserve
of cold gas that forms into giant molecular
clouds. Some galaxies have been observed to
form stars at an exceptional rate, known as a
starburst. Should they continue to do so,
however, they would consume their reserve of
gas in a time frame lower than the lifespan of the
galaxy. Hence starburst activity usually lasts for
only about ten million years, a relatively brief
period in the history of a galaxy. Starburst
galaxies were more common during the early
history of the universe,[68] and, at present, still
contribute an estimated 15% to the total star
production rate.[69] [67]
M82, the archetype starburst galaxy, has experienced a 10-fold increase
Starburst galaxies are characterized by dusty in star formation rate as compared to a "normal" galaxy.
concentrations of gas and the appearance of

newly formed stars, including massive stars that ionize the surrounding clouds to create H II regions.[70] These
massive stars produce supernova explosions, resulting in expanding remnants that interact powerfully with the
surrounding gas. These outbursts trigger a chain reaction of star building that spreads throughout the gaseous region.
Only when the available gas is nearly consumed or dispersed does the starburst activity come to an end.[68]
Starbursts are often associated with merging or interacting galaxies. The prototype example of such a
starburst-forming interaction is M82, which experienced a close encounter with the larger M81. Irregular galaxies
often exhibit spaced knots of starburst activity.[71]
Active nucleus
A portion of the galaxies we can observe are classified as active. That is, a significant portion of the total energy
output from the galaxy is emitted by a source other than the stars, dust and interstellar medium.
The standard model for an active galactic nucleus is based upon an accretion disc that forms around a supermassive
black hole (SMBH) at the core region. The radiation from an active galactic nucleus results from the gravitational
energy of matter as it falls toward the black hole from the disc.[72] In about 10% of these objects, a diametrically
opposed pair of energetic jets ejects particles from the core at velocities close to the speed of light. The mechanism
for producing these jets is still not well understood.[73]
Galaxy 10
Active galaxies that emit high-energy radiation

in the form of x-rays are classified as Seyfert
galaxies or quasars, depending on the
luminosity. Blazars are believed to be an active
galaxy with a relativistic jet that is pointed in the
direction of the Earth. A radio galaxy emits radio
frequencies from relativistic jets. A unified
model of these types of active galaxies explains
their differences based on the viewing angle of
the observer.[73]
Possibly related to active galactic nuclei (as well

as starburst regions) are low-ionization nuclear
emission-line regions (LINERs). The emission
from LINER-type galaxies is dominated by
weakly ionized elements.[74] Approximately
one-third of nearby galaxies are classified as
containing LINER nuclei.[72] [74] [75]
A jet of particles is being emitted from the core of the elliptical radio galaxy
M87. Formation and evolution
The study of galactic formation and evolution
attempts to answer questions regarding how galaxies formed and their evolutionary path over the history of the
universe. Some theories in this field have now become widely accepted, but it is still an active area in astrophysics.
Formation
Current cosmological models of the early Universe are based on the
Big Bang theory. About 300,000 years after this event, atoms of
hydrogen and helium began to form, in an event called recombination.
Nearly all the hydrogen was neutral (non-ionized) and readily absorbed
light, and no stars had yet formed. As a result this period has been
called the "Dark Ages". It was from density fluctuations (or anisotropic
irregularities) in this primordial matter that larger structures began to
appear. As a result, masses of baryonic matter started to condense
within cold dark matter halos.[76] These primordial structures would
Artist's impression of a young galaxy accreting
eventually become the galaxies we see today.
material.
Evidence for the early appearance of galaxies was found in 2006, when
it was discovered that the galaxy IOK-1 has an unusually high redshift of 6.96, corresponding to just 750 million
years after the Big Bang and making it the most distant and primordial galaxy yet seen.[77] While some scientists
have claimed other objects (such as Abell 1835 IR1916) have higher redshifts (and therefore are seen in an earlier
stage of the Universe's evolution), IOK-1's age and composition have been more reliably established. The existence
of such early protogalaxies suggests that they must have grown in the so-called "Dark Ages".[76]
The detailed process by which such early galaxy formation occurred is a major open question in astronomy. Theories
could be divided into two categories: top-down and bottom-up. In top-down theories (such as the
Eggen–Lynden-Bell–Sandage [ELS] model), protogalaxies form in a large-scale simultaneous collapse lasting about
one hundred million years.[78] In bottom-up theories (such as the Searle-Zinn [SZ] model), small structures such as
Galaxy 11
globular clusters form first, and then a number of such bodies accrete to form a larger galaxy.[79] Modern theories
must be modified to account for the probable presence of large dark matter halos.
Once protogalaxies began to form and contract, the first halo stars (called Population III stars) appeared within them.
These were composed almost entirely of hydrogen and helium, and may have been massive. If so, these huge stars
would have quickly consumed their supply of fuel and became supernovae, releasing heavy elements into the
interstellar medium.[80] This first generation of stars re-ionized the surrounding neutral hydrogen, creating expanding
bubbles of space through which light could readily travel.[81]
Evolution
Within a billion years of a galaxy's formation,
key structures begin to appear. Globular clusters,
the central supermassive black hole, and a
galactic bulge of metal-poor Population II stars
form. The creation of a supermassive black hole
appears to play a key role in actively regulating
the growth of galaxies by limiting the total
amount of additional matter added.[84] During
this early epoch, galaxies undergo a major burst
of star formation.[85]
During the following two billion years, the

accumulated matter settles into a galactic
disc.[86] A galaxy will continue to absorb
infalling material from high velocity clouds and
dwarf galaxies throughout its life.[87] This matter
is mostly hydrogen and helium. The cycle of
stellar birth and death slowly increases the [82] [83]
I Zwicky 18 (lower left) resembles a newly formed galaxy.
abundance of heavy elements, eventually
allowing the formation of planets.[88]
The evolution of galaxies can be significantly affected by interactions and collisions. Mergers of galaxies were
common during the early epoch, and the majority of galaxies were peculiar in morphology.[89] Given the distances
between the stars, the great majority of stellar systems in colliding galaxies will be unaffected. However,
gravitational stripping of the interstellar gas and dust that makes up the spiral arms produces a long train of stars
known as tidal tails. Examples of these formations can be seen in NGC 4676[90] or the Antennae Galaxies.[91]
As an example of such an interaction, the Milky Way galaxy and the nearby Andromeda Galaxy are moving toward
each other at about 130 km/s, and—depending upon the lateral movements—the two may collide in about five to six
billion years. Although the Milky Way has never collided with a galaxy as large as Andromeda before, evidence of
past collisions of the Milky Way with smaller dwarf galaxies is increasing.[92]
Such large-scale interactions are rare. As time passes, mergers of two systems of equal size become less common.
Most bright galaxies have remained fundamentally unchanged for the last few billion years, and the net rate of star
formation probably also peaked approximately ten billion years ago.[93]
Galaxy 12
Future trends
At present, most star formation occurs in smaller galaxies where cool gas is not so depleted.[89] Spiral galaxies, like
the Milky Way, only produce new generations of stars as long as they have dense molecular clouds of interstellar
hydrogen in their spiral arms.[94] Elliptical galaxies are already largely devoid of this gas, and so form no new
stars.[95] The supply of star-forming material is finite; once stars have converted the available supply of hydrogen
into heavier elements, new star formation will come to an end.[96]
The current era of star formation is expected to continue for up to one hundred billion years, and then the "stellar
age" will wind down after about ten trillion to one hundred trillion years (1013–1014 years), as the smallest,
longest-lived stars in our astrosphere, tiny red dwarfs, begin to fade. At the end of the stellar age, galaxies will be
composed of compact objects: brown dwarfs, white dwarfs that are cooling or cold ("black dwarfs"), neutron stars,
and black holes. Eventually, as a result of gravitational relaxation, all stars will either fall into central supermassive
black holes or be flung into intergalactic space as a result of collisions.[96] [97]
Larger-scale structures
Deep sky surveys show that galaxies are often found in relatively close association with other galaxies. Solitary
galaxies that have not significantly interacted with another galaxy of comparable mass during the past billion years
are relatively scarce. Only about 5% of the galaxies surveyed have been found to be truly isolated; however, these
isolated formations may have interacted and even merged with other galaxies in the past, and may still be orbited by
smaller, satellite galaxies. Isolated galaxies[98] can produce stars at a higher rate than normal, as their gas is not being
stripped by other nearby galaxies.[99]
On the largest scale, the universe is continually expanding, resulting in an average increase in the separation between
individual galaxies (see Hubble's law). Associations of galaxies can overcome this expansion on a local scale
through their mutual gravitational attraction. These associations formed early in the universe, as clumps of dark
matter pulled their respective galaxies together. Nearby groups later merged to form larger-scale clusters. This
on-going merger process (as well as an influx of infalling gas) heats the inter-galactic gas within a cluster to very
high temperatures, reaching 30–100 megakelvins.[100] About 70–80% of the mass in a cluster is in the form of dark
matter, with 10–30% consisting of this heated gas and the remaining few percent of the matter in the form of
galaxies.[101]
Galaxy 13
Most galaxies in the universe are gravitationally

bound to a number of other galaxies. These form
a fractal-like hierarchy of clustered structures,
with the smallest such associations being termed
groups. A group of galaxies is the most common
type of galactic cluster, and these formations
contain a majority of the galaxies (as well as
most of the baryonic mass) in the universe.[102]
[103]
To remain gravitationally bound to such a
group, each member galaxy must have a
sufficiently low velocity to prevent it from
escaping (see Virial theorem). If there is
insufficient kinetic energy, however, the group
may evolve into a smaller number of galaxies
through mergers.[104]
Larger structures containing many thousands of

Seyfert's Sextet is an example of a compact galaxy group.
galaxies packed into an area a few megaparsecs
across are called clusters. Clusters of galaxies
are often dominated by a single giant elliptical galaxy, known as the brightest cluster galaxy, which, over time,
tidally destroys its satellite galaxies and adds their mass to its own.[105]
Superclusters contain tens of thousands of galaxies, which are found in clusters, groups and sometimes individually.
At the supercluster scale, galaxies are arranged into sheets and filaments surrounding vast empty voids.[106] Above
this scale, the universe appears to be isotropic and homogeneous.[107]
The Milky Way galaxy is a member of an association named the Local Group, a relatively small group of galaxies
that has a diameter of approximately one megaparsec. The Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy are the two
brightest galaxies within the group; many of the other member galaxies are dwarf companions of these two
galaxies.[108] The Local Group itself is a part of a cloud-like structure within the Virgo Supercluster, a large,
extended structure of groups and clusters of galaxies centered around the Virgo Cluster.[109]
Multi-wavelength observation
After galaxies external to the Milky Way were found to exist, initial observations were made mostly using visible
light. The peak radiation of most stars lies here, so the observation of the stars that form galaxies has been a major
component of optical astronomy. It is also a favorable portion of the spectrum for observing ionized H II regions,
and for examining the distribution of dusty arms.
The dust present in the interstellar medium is opaque to visual light. It is more transparent to far-infrared, which can
be used to observe the interior regions of giant molecular clouds and galactic cores in great detail.[110] Infrared is
also used to observe distant, red-shifted galaxies that were formed much earlier in the history of the universe. Water
vapor and carbon dioxide absorb a number of useful portions of the infrared spectrum, so high-altitude or
space-based telescopes are used for infrared astronomy.
The first non-visual study of galaxies, particularly active galaxies, was made using radio frequencies. The
atmosphere is nearly transparent to radio between 5 MHz and 30 GHz. (The ionosphere blocks signals below this
range.)[111] Large radio interferometers have been used to map the active jets emitted from active nuclei. Radio
telescopes can also be used to observe neutral hydrogen (via 21 centimetre radiation), including, potentially, the
non-ionized matter in the early universe that later collapsed to form galaxies.[112]
Galaxy 14
Ultraviolet and X-ray telescopes can observe highly energetic galactic phenomena. An ultraviolet flare was observed
when a star in a distant galaxy was torn apart from the tidal forces of a black hole.[113] The distribution of hot gas in
galactic clusters can be mapped by X-rays. The existence of super-massive black holes at the cores of galaxies was
confirmed through X-ray astronomy.[114]
See also
• Galactic orientation
• List of galaxies
• List of nearest galaxies
• Luminous infrared galaxy
• Supermassive black hole
• Timeline of knowledge about galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large-scale structure
• Galaxy formation and evolution
• Dark galaxy
Notes
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[91] Struck, Curtis (1999). "Galaxy Collisions" (http:/ / xxx. lanl. gov/ html/ astro-ph/ 9908269/ homepage. html). Galaxy Collisions 321. .
[92] Wong, Janet (2000-04-14). "Astrophysicist maps out our own galaxy's end" (http:/ / web. archive. org/ web/ 20070108183824/ http:/ / www.
news. utoronto. ca/ bin/ 000414b. asp). University of Toronto. Archived from the original (http:/ / www. news. utoronto. ca/ bin/ 000414b.
asp) on January 8, 2007. . Retrieved 2007-01-11.
[93] Panter, Ben; Jimenez, Raul; Heavens, Alan F.; Charlot, Stephane (2007). "The star formation histories of galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky
Survey" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0608531). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 378 (4): 1550–1564.
doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2007.11909.x. . Retrieved 2008-06-04.
[94] Kennicutt Jr., R. C.; Tamblyn, P.; Congdon, C. E. (1994). "Past and future star formation in disk galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
1994ApJ. . . 435. . . 22K). Astrophysical Journal 435 (1): 22–36. doi:10.1086/174790. .
[95] Knapp, G. R. (1999). Star Formation in Early Type Galaxies (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1998astro. ph. . 8266K). San Francisco,
Calif.: Astronomical Society of the Pacific. ISBN 1-886733-84-8. OCLC 41302839. .
[96] Adams, Fred; Laughlin, Greg (2006-07-13). "The Great Cosmic Battle" (http:/ / www. astrosociety. org/ pubs/ mercury/ 0001/ cosmic.
html). Astronomical Society of the Pacific. . Retrieved 2007-01-16.
[97] Pobojewski, Sally (1997-01-21). "Physics offers glimpse into the dark side of the universe" (http:/ / www. umich. edu/ ~urecord/ 9697/
Jan21_97/ artcl17. htm). University of Michigan. . Retrieved 2007-01-13.
[98] The term "field galaxy" is sometimes used to mean an isolated galaxy, although the same term is also used to describe galaxies that do not
belong to a cluster but may be a member of a group of galaxies.
[99] McKee, Maggie (2005-06-07). "Galactic loners produce more stars" (http:/ / www. newscientist. com/ article. ns?id=dn7478). New Scientist.
. Retrieved 2007-01-15.
[100] "Groups & Clusters of Galaxies" (http:/ / chandra. harvard. edu/ xray_sources/ galaxy_clusters. html). NASA Chandra. . Retrieved
2007-01-15.
[101] Ricker, Paul. "When Galaxy Clusters Collide" (http:/ / www. sdsc. edu/ pub/ envision/ v15. 2/ ricker. html). San Diego Supercomputer
Center. . Retrieved 2008-08-27.
[102] Dahlem, Michael (2006-11-24). "Optical and radio survey of Southern Compact Groups of galaxies" (http:/ / web. archive. org/ web/
20070613151936/ http:/ / www. atnf. csiro. au/ people/ mdahlem/ sci/ SCGs. html). University of Birmingham Astrophysics and Space
Research Group. Archived from the original (http:/ / www. atnf. csiro. au/ people/ mdahlem/ sci/ SCGs. html) on June 13, 2007. . Retrieved
2007-01-15.
[103] Ponman, Trevor (2005-02-25). "Galaxy Systems: Groups" (http:/ / www. sr. bham. ac. uk/ research/ groups. html). University of
Birmingham Astrophysics and Space Research Group. . Retrieved 2007-01-15.
[104] Girardi, M.; Giuricin, G. (2000). "The Observational Mass Function of Loose Galaxy Groups" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2000ApJ.
. . 540. . . 45G). The Astrophysical Journal 540 (1): 45–56. doi:10.1086/309314. .
[105] Dubinski, John (1998). "The Origin of the Brightest Cluster Galaxies" (http:/ / www. cita. utoronto. ca/ ~dubinski/ bcg/ ). Astrophysical
Journal 502 (2): 141–149. doi:10.1086/305901. .
[106] Bahcall, Neta A. (1988). "Large-scale structure in the universe indicated by galaxy clusters" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1988ARA&
A. . 26. . 631B). Annual review of astronomy and astrophysics 26: 631–686. doi:10.1146/annurev.aa.26.090188.003215. .
[107] Mandolesi, N.; Calzolari, P.; Cortiglioni, S.; Delpino, F.; Sironi, G. (1986). "Large-scale homogeneity of the Universe measured by the
microwave background" (http:/ / www. nature. com/ nature/ journal/ v319/ n6056/ abs/ 319751a0. html). Letters to Nature 319: 751–753.
doi:10.1038/319751a0. .
Galaxy 18
[108] van den Bergh, Sidney (2000). "Updated Information on the Local Group" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2000astro. ph. . 1040V). The
Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 112 (770): 529–536. doi:10.1086/316548. .
[109] Tully, R. B. (1982). "The Local Supercluster" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1982ApJ. . . 257. . 389T). Astrophysical Journal 257:
389–422. doi:10.1086/159999. .
[110] "Near, Mid & Far Infrared" (http:/ / www. ipac. caltech. edu/ Outreach/ Edu/ Regions/ irregions. html). IPAC/NASA. . Retrieved
2007-01-02.
[111] "The Effects of Earth's Upper Atmosphere on Radio Signals" (http:/ / radiojove. gsfc. nasa. gov/ education/ educ/ radio/ tran-rec/ exerc/
iono. htm). NASA. . Retrieved 2006-08-10.
[112] "Giant Radio Telescope Imaging Could Make Dark Matter Visible" (http:/ / www. sciencedaily. com/ releases/ 2006/ 12/ 061214135537.
htm). ScienceDaily. 2006-12-14. . Retrieved 2007-01-02.
[113] "NASA Telescope Sees Black Hole Munch on a Star" (http:/ / www. nasa. gov/ mission_pages/ galex/ galex-20061205. html). NASA.
2006-12-05. . Retrieved 2007-01-02.
[114] Dunn, Robert. "An Introduction to X-ray Astronomy" (http:/ / www-xray. ast. cam. ac. uk/ xray_introduction/ ). Institute of Astronomy
X-Ray Group. . Retrieved 2007-01-02.
References
Bibliography
• Dickinson, Terence (2004). The Universe and Beyond (4th ed.). Firefly Books Ltd.. ISBN 1552979016.
OCLC 55596414.
• James Binney, Michael Merrifield (1998). Galactic Astronomy. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691004021.
OCLC 39108765.
External links
• Galaxies, SEDS Messier pages (http://www.seds.org/messier/galaxy.html)
• An Atlas of The Universe (http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/)
• Galaxies — Information and amateur observations (http://www.nightskyinfo.com/galaxies)
• The Oldest Galaxy Yet Found (http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2002/08feb_gravlens.htm)
• Galaxies — discussed on BBC Radio 4's "In Our Time" programme (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/
inourtime/inourtime_20060629.shtml)
• Galaxy classification project, harnessing the power of the internet and the human brain (http://www.galaxyzoo.
org)
• How many galaxies are in our universe? (http://www.physics.org/facts/sand-galaxies.asp)
Galaxy formation and evolution

The study of galaxy formation and evolution is concerned with the processes that formed a heterogeneous universe
from a homogeneous beginning, the formation of the first galaxies, the way galaxies change over time, and the
processes that have generated the variety of structures observed in nearby galaxies. It is one of the most active
research areas in astrophysics.
Galaxy formation is hypothesized to occur, from structure formation theories, as a result of tiny quantum fluctuations
in the aftermath of the Big Bang. The simplest model for this that is in general agreement with observed phenomena
is the Cold Dark Matter cosmology; that is to say that clustering and merging is how galaxies gain in mass, and
can also determine their shape and structure.
Formation of the first galaxies

After the Big Bang, the universe, for a time, was remarkably homogeneous, as can be observed in the Cosmic
Microwave Background or CMB (the fluctuations of which are less than one part in one hundred thousand). There
was little-to-no structure in the universe, and thus no galaxies. Thus we must ask how the smoothly distributed
universe of the CMB became the clumpy universe we see today.
The most accepted theory of how these structures came to be is that all the structure we observe today was formed as
a consequence of the growth of the primordial fluctuations, which are small changes in the density of the universe in
a confined region. As the universe cooled clumps of dark matter began to condense, and within them gas began to
condense. The primordial fluctuations gravitationally attracted gas and dark matter to the denser areas, and thus the
seeds that would later become galaxies were formed. These structures constituted the first galaxies. At this point the
universe was almost exclusively composed of hydrogen, helium, and dark matter. Soon after the first proto-galaxies
formed the hydrogen and helium gas within them began to condense and make the first stars. Thus the first galaxies
were then formed. In 2007 the Keck telescope, a team from California Institute of Technology found six star forming
galaxies about 13.2 billion light years (light travel distance) away and therefore created when the universe was only
500 million years old.[1]
The universe was very violent in its early epochs, and galaxies grew quickly, evolving by accretion of smaller mass
galaxies. The result of this process is left imprinted on the distribution of galaxies in the nearby universe (see image
of 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey). Galaxies are not isolated objects in space, but rather galaxies in the universe are
distributed in a great cosmic web of filaments. The locations where the filaments meet are dense clusters of galaxies,
that began as the small fluctuations to the universe. Hence the distribution of galaxies is closely related to the physics
of the early universe.
Despite its many successes, this picture is not sufficient to explain the variety of structure we see in galaxies.
Galaxies come in a variety of shapes, from round featureless elliptical galaxies to the pancake-flat spiral galaxies.
Commonly observed properties of galaxies

Some notable observed features of galaxy structure (including
our own Milky Way) that astronomers wish to explain with
galactic formation theories include (but are certainly not limited
to) the following:
• Spiral galaxies and the Galactic disk are quite thin, dense,
and rotate very fast. The Milky Way disk is 100 times longer
than it is thick.
• The majority of mass in galaxies is made up of dark matter, a
substance which is not directly observable, and does not
interact through any means except gravity.
NGC 891, a very thin disk galaxy.
• Halo stars are typically much older and have much lower
metallicities (that is to say they are almost exclusively
composed of hydrogen and helium) than disk stars.
• Many disk galaxies have a puffed up outer disk (often called
the "thick disk") that is composed of old stars.
• Globular clusters are typically old and metal-poor as well, but
there are a few which are not nearly as metal-poor as most,
and/or have some younger stars. Some stars in globular
clusters appear to be as old as the universe itself (by entirely
different measurement and analysis methods).
• High Velocity Clouds, clouds of neutral hydrogen are
"raining" down on the galaxy, and presumably have been
from the beginning (these would be the necessary source of a
Hubble tuning fork diagram of galaxy morphology
gas disk from which the disk stars formed).
• Galaxies come in a great variety of shapes and sizes (see the Hubble Sequence) from giant featureless blobs of old
stars (called elliptical galaxies) to thin disks with gas and stars arranged in highly ordered spirals.
• The majority of giant galaxies contain a supermassive black hole in their centers, ranging in mass from millions to
billions of times the mass of our sun. The black hole mass is tied to properties of the galaxy that hosts it.
• Many of the properties of galaxies (including the galaxy color-magnitude diagram) indicate that there are
fundamentally two types of galaxies. These groups divide into blue-star forming galaxies that are more like spiral
types, and red-nonstar forming galaxies that are more like elliptical galaxies.
The formation of disk galaxies

The key properties of disk galaxies, which are also commonly
called spiral galaxies, is that they are very thin, rotate rapidly,
and often show spiral structure. One of the main challenges to
galaxy formation is the great number of thin disk galaxies in
the local universe. The problem is that disks are very fragile,
and mergers with other galaxies can quickly destroy thin
disks.
Olin Eggen, Donald Lynden-Bell, and Allan Sandage[2] in

1962, proposed a theory that disk galaxies form through a
monolithic collapse of a large gas cloud. As the cloud
collapses the gas settles into a rapidly rotating disk. Known as
An image of Messier 101 a prototypical spiral galaxy seen
a top-down formation scenario, this theory is quite simple yet face-on.
no longer widely accepted because observations of the early
universe strongly suggest that objects grow from bottom-up
(i.e. smaller objects merging to form larger ones). It was first
proposed by Leonard Searle and Robert Zinn[3] that galaxies
form by the coalescence of smaller progenitors.
More recent theories include the clustering of dark matter

halos in the bottom-up process. Essentially early on in the
universe galaxies were composed mostly of gas and dark
matter, and thus, there were fewer stars. As a galaxy gained
A spiral galaxy, ESO 510-G13, was warped as a result of
mass (by accreting smaller galaxies) the dark matter stays
colliding with another galaxy. After the other galaxy is
mostly on the outer parts of the galaxy. This is because the completely absorbed, the distortion will disappear. The
dark matter can only interact gravitationally, and thus will not process typically takes millions if not billions of years.
dissipate. The gas, however, can quickly contract, and as it
does so it rotates faster, until the final result is a very thin, very rapidly rotating disk.
Astronomers do not currently know what process stops the contraction. In fact, theories of disk galaxy formation are
not successful at producing the rotation speed and size of disk galaxies. It has been suggested that the radiation from
bright newly formed stars, or from an active galactic nuclei can slow the contraction of a forming disk. It has also
been suggested that the dark matter halo can pull the galaxy, thus stopping disk contraction.
In recent years, a great deal of focus has been put on understanding merger events in the evolution of galaxies. Our
own galaxy (the Milky Way) has a tiny satellite galaxy (the Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy) which is currently
gradually being ripped up and "eaten" by the Milky Way. It is thought these kinds of events may be quite common in
the evolution of large galaxies. The Sagittarius dwarf galaxy is orbiting our galaxy at almost a right angle to the disk.
It is currently passing through the disk; stars are being stripped off of it with each pass and joining the halo of our
galaxy. There are other examples of these minor accretion events, and it is likely a continual process for many
galaxies. Such mergers provide "new" gas stars and dark matter to galaxies. Evidence for this process is often
observable as warps or streams coming out of galaxies.
The Lambda-CDM model of galaxy formation underestimates the number of thin disk galaxies in the universe.[4]
The reason is that these galaxy formation models predict a large number of mergers. If disk galaxies merge with
another galaxy of comparable mass (at least 15 percent of its mass) the merger will likely destroy, or at a minimum
greatly disrupt the disk, yet the resulting galaxy is not expected to be a disk galaxy. While this remains an unsolved
problem for astronomers, it does not necessarily mean that the Lambda-CDM model is completely wrong, but rather
that it requires further refinement to accurately reproduce the population of galaxies in the universe.
Galaxy mergers and the formation of elliptical galaxies

The most massive galaxies in the sky are giant elliptical
galaxies. Their stars are on orbits that are randomly oriented
within the galaxy (i.e. they are not rotating like disk galaxies).
They are composed of old stars and have little to no dust. All
elliptical galaxies probed so far have supermassive black
holes in their center, and the mass of these black holes is
correlated with the mass of the elliptical galaxy. They are also
correlated to a property called sigma which is the speed of the
stars at the far edge of the elliptical galaxies. Elliptical
galaxies do not have disks around them, although some bulges
of disk galaxies look similar to elliptical galaxies. One is more
likely to find elliptical galaxies in more crowded regions of
the universe (such as galaxy clusters).
Astronomers now see elliptical galaxies as some of the most

ESO 325-G004, a typical elliptical galaxy. evolved systems in the universe. It is widely accepted that the
main driving force for the evolution of elliptical galaxies is
mergers of smaller galaxies. These mergers can be extremely
violent; galaxies often collide at speeds of 500 kilometers per
second.
Many galaxies in the universe are gravitationally bound to
other galaxies, that is to say they will never escape the pull of
the other galaxy. If the galaxies are of similar size, the
resultant galaxy will appear similar to neither of the two
An image of NGC 4676 (also called the Mice Galaxies) is an galaxies merging.[5] An image of an ongoing merger of equal
example of a present merger. sized disk galaxies is shown left. During the merger, stars and
dark matter in each galaxy become affected by the
approaching galaxy. Toward the late stages of the merger, the gravitational potential, the shape of galaxy, begins
changing so quickly that star orbits are greatly affected, and lose any memory of their previous orbit. This process is
called violent relaxation.[6] Thus if two disk galaxies collide, they begin with their stars in an orderly rotation in the
plane of the disk. During the merger, the ordered motion is transformed into random energy. And the resultant
galaxy is dominated by stars that orbit the galaxy in a complex, and random, web of orbits. And this is what we see
in elliptical galaxies, stars on random unordered orbits.
Mergers are also locations of extreme amounts of star formation.[7]

During a merger some galaxies can make thousands of solar
masses of new stars each year, which is large compared to our
galaxy which makes about 10 new stars each year. Though stars
almost never get close enough to actually collide in galaxy
mergers, giant molecular clouds rapidly fall to the center of the
galaxy where they collide with other molecular clouds. These
collisions then induce condensations of these clouds into new
stars. We can see this phenomenon in merging galaxies in the
nearby universe. Yet, this process was more pronounced during
the mergers that formed most elliptical galaxies we see today,
which likely occurred 1-10 billion years ago, when there was
much more gas (and thus more molecular clouds) in galaxies.
The Antennae Galaxies are a dramatic pair of colliding
Also, away from the center of the galaxy gas clouds will run into galaxies. In such a collision, the stars within each
each other producing shocks which stimulate the formation of new galaxy will pass by each other (virtually) without
stars in gas clouds. The result of all this violence is that galaxies incident. This is due to the relatively large interstellar
distances compared to the relatively small size of an
tend to have little gas available to form new stars after they merge.
individual star. Diffuse gas clouds, however, readily
Thus if a galaxy is involved in a major merger, and then a few collide to produce shocks which in turn stimulate
billion years pass, the galaxy will have very few young stars (see bursts of star formation. The bright, blue knots indicate
Stellar evolution) left. This is what we see in today's elliptical the hot, young stars that have recently ignited as a
result of the merger.
galaxies, very little molecular gas and very few young stars. It is
thought that this is because elliptical galaxies are the end products
of major mergers which use up the majority of gas during the merger, and thus further star formation after the merger
is quenched.
In the Local Group, the Milky Way and M31 (the Andromeda Galaxy) are gravitationally bound, and currently
approaching each other at high speed. If the two galaxies do meet they will pass through each other, with gravity
distorting both galaxies severely and ejecting some gas, dust and stars into intergalactic space. They will travel apart,
slow down, and then again be drawn towards each other, and again collide. Eventually both galaxies will have
merged completely, streams of gas and dust will be flying through the space near the newly formed giant elliptical
galaxy. M31 is actually already distorted: the edges are warped. This is probably because of interactions with its own
galactic companions, as well as possible mergers with dwarf spheroidal galaxies in the recent past - the remnants of
which are still visible in the disk populations.
In our epoch, large concentrations of galaxies (clusters and superclusters) are still assembling.
While scientists have learned a great deal about ours and other galaxies, the most fundamental questions about
formation and evolution remain only tentatively answered.
See also
• Bulge (astronomy)
• Disc (galaxy)
• Galactic coordinate system
• Galactic corona
• Galactic halo
• Galaxy rotation problem
• Pea galaxy
• Zeldovich pancake
References
[1] "New Scientist" 14th July 2007
[2] Eggen, O.J.; Lynden-Bell, D.; Sandage, A. R. (1962). "Evidence from the motions of old stars that the Galaxy collapsed" (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 1962ApJ. . . 136. . 748E). The Astrophysical Journal 136: 748. doi:10.1086/147433. .
[3] Searle, L.; Zinn, R. (1978). "Compositions of halo clusters and the formation of the galactic halo" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
1978ApJ. . . 225. . 357S). The Astrophysical Journal 225: 357–379. doi:10.1086/156499. .
[4] Steinmetz, M.; Navarro, J.F. (2002). "The hierarchical origin of galaxy morphologies" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0202466v1). New
Astronomy 7 (4): 155–160. doi:10.1016/S1384-1076(02)00102-1. .
[5] Barnes,J. Nature, vol. 338, March 9, 1989, p. 123-126
[6] van Albada, T. S. 1982 Royal Astronomical Society, Monthly Notices, vol. 201 p.939
[7] Schweizer, F. Starbursts: From 30 Doradus to Lyman Break Galaxies, Held in Cambridge, UK, 6–10 September 2004. Edited by R. de Grijs
and R.M. González Delgado. Astrophysics & Space Science Library, Vol. 329. Dordrecht: Springer, 2005, p.143
External links
• NOAO gallery of galaxy images (http://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/galaxies.html)
• Image of Andromeda galaxy (M31) (http://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/html/im0685.html)
• Javascript passive evolution calculator (http://www.astro.yale.edu/dokkum/evocalc/) for early type
(elliptical) galaxies
• Video on the evolution of galaxies by Canadian astrophysicist Doctor P (http://spacegeek.org/ep4_flash.shtml)
Galaxy merger 25
Galaxy merger
Galaxy mergers can occur when two (or more) galaxies collide. They are the most violent type of galaxy
interaction. Although galaxy mergers do not involve stars or star systems actually colliding, due to the vast distances
between stars in most circumstances, the gravitational interactions between galaxies and the friction between the gas
and dust have major effects on the galaxies involved. The exact effects of such mergers depend on a wide variety of
parameters such as collision angles, speeds, and relative size/composition, and are currently an extremely active area
of research. There are some generally accepted results, however:
• When one of the galaxies is significantly larger than the other, the larger will often "eat" the smaller, absorbing
most of its gas and stars with little other major effect on the larger galaxy. Our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is
thought to be currently absorbing smaller galaxies in this fashion, such as the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy, and
possibly the Magellanic Clouds. The Virgo Stellar Stream is thought to be the remains of a dwarf galaxy that has
been mostly merged with the Milky Way.
• If two spiral galaxies that are approximately the same size collide at appropriate angles and speeds, they will
likely merge in a fashion that drives away much of the dust and gas through a variety of feedback mechanisms
that often include a stage in which there are active galactic nuclei. This is thought to be the driving force behind
many quasars. The end result is an elliptical galaxy, and many astronomers hypothesize that this is the primary
mechanism that creates ellipticals.
Note that the Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy will probably collide in about 4.5 billion years. If these
galaxies merged, the result would quite possibly be an elliptical galaxy as described above.
One of the largest galaxy mergers ever observed consisted of four elliptical galaxies in the cluster CL0958+4702. It
may form one of the largest galaxies in the Universe.[1]
Galaxy mergers can be simulated in computers, to learn more about galaxy formation. Galaxy pairs initially of any
morphological type can be followed, taking into account all gravitational forces, and also the hydrodynamics and
dissipation of the interstellar gas, the star formation out of the gas, and the energy and mass released back in the
interstellar medium by supernovae. Such a library of galaxy merger simulations can be found on the GALMER
website [2]
Examples
Some galaxies that are suspected to be in the process of merging:
• Antennae Galaxies
• Mice Galaxies
• Centaurus A
• NGC 7318
Galaxy merger 26
See also
• Andromeda-Milky Way collision
• Interacting galaxies
• Pea galaxy
References
[1] "Galaxies clash in four-way merger" (http:/ / news. bbc. co. uk/ 1/ hi/ sci/ tech/ 6933566. stm). BBC News. August 6, 2007. . Retrieved
2007-08-07.
[2] Galaxy merger library (http:/ / galmer. obspm. fr), March 27, 2010, , retrieved 2010-03-27
External links
• "Andromeda involved in galactic collision" (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16872449/)
• "GALMER: Galaxy Merger Simulations" (http://galmer.obspm.fr)
Galaxy morphological classification

Galaxy morphological classification is a system used by astronomers
to divide galaxies into groups based on their visual appearance. There
are several schemes in use by which galaxies can be classified
according to their morphologies, the most famous being the Hubble
sequence, devised by Edwin Hubble and later expanded by Gérard de
Vaucouleurs and Allan Sandage.
Hubble sequence
The Hubble sequence is a morphological classification scheme for Artist's concept illustrating bulge & no bulge
galaxies invented by Edwin Hubble in 1936.[1] It is often known spiral galaxies.
colloquially as the “Hubble tuning-fork” because of the shape in which
it is traditionally represented. Hubble’s scheme divides galaxies into 3 broad classes based on their visual appearance
(originally on photographic plates):
• Elliptical galaxies have smooth,

featureless light distributions and appear
as ellipses in images. They are denoted
by the letter E, followed by an integer
representing their degree of ellipticity on
the sky.
• Spiral galaxies consist of a flattened
disk, with stars forming a (usually
two-armed) spiral structure, and a central
concentration of stars known as the
bulge, which is similar in appearance to
an elliptical galaxy. They are given the
symbol S. Roughly half of all spirals are
also observed to have a bar-like structure,
extending from the central bulge. These
barred spirals are given the symbol SB. Tuning-fork style diagram of the Hubble sequence
• Lenticular galaxies (designated S0) also

consist of a bright central bulge surrounded by an extended, disk-like structure but, unlike spiral galaxies, the
disks of lenticular galaxies have no visible spiral structure and are not actively forming stars in any significant
quantity.
These broad classes can be extended to enable finer distinctions of appearance and to encompass other types of
galaxy, such as irregular galaxies, which have no obvious regular structure (either disk-like or ellipsoidal).
The Hubble sequence is often represented in the form of a two-pronged fork, with the ellipticals on the left (with the
degree of ellipticity increasing from left to right) and the barred and unbarred spirals forming the two parallel prongs
of the fork. Lenticular galaxies are placed between the ellipticals and the spirals, at the point where the two prongs
meet the “handle”.
To this day, the Hubble sequence is the most commonly used system for classifying galaxies, both in professional
astronomical research and in amateur astronomy.
De Vaucouleurs system
The de Vaucouleurs system for classifying galaxies is a
widely used extension to the Hubble sequence, first
described by Gérard de Vaucouleurs in 1959.[2] De
Vaucouleurs argued that Hubble's two-dimensional
classification of spiral galaxies—based on the tightness
of the spiral arms and the presence or absence of a
bar—did not adequately describe the full range of
observed galaxy morphologies. In particular, he argued
that rings and lenses were important structural
components of spiral galaxies.[3]
The de Vaucouleurs system retains Hubble’s basic

division of galaxies into ellipticals, lenticulars, spirals
and irregulars. To complement Hubble’s scheme, de
Vaucouleurs introduced a more elaborate classification
system for spiral galaxies, based on three
morphological characteristics:
• Bars. Galaxies are divided on the basis of the

presence or absence of a nuclear bar. De
Vaucouleurs introduced the notation SA to denote
spiral galaxies without bars, complementing
Hubble’s use of SB for barred spirals. He also
allowed for an intermediate class, denoted SAB,
containing weakly barred spirals. Lenticular galaxies
are also classified as unbarred (SA0) or barred
(SB0), with the notation S0 reserved for those
galaxies for which it is impossible to tell if a bar is
present or not (usually because they are edge-on to
the line-of-sight).
• Rings. Galaxies are divided into those possessing
ring-like structures (denoted ‘(r)’) and those without
NGC 6782: a spiral galaxy (type SB(r)0/a) with
rings (denoted ‘(s)’). So-called ‘transition’ galaxies three rings of different radii, as well as a bar.
are given the symbol (rs).
• Spiral arms. As in Hubble’s original scheme, spiral galaxies are assigned to a class based primarily on the
tightness of their spiral arms. The de Vaucouleurs scheme extends the arms of Hubble’s tuning fork to include
several additional spiral classes:
• Sd (SBd) - diffuse, broken arms made up of individual stellar clusters and nebulae; very faint central bulge
• Sm (SBm) - irregular in appearance; no bulge component
• Im - highly irregular galaxy
Most galaxies in these three classes were classified as Irr I in

Hubble’s original scheme. In addition, the Sd class contains some
galaxies from Hubble’s Sc class. Galaxies in the classes Sm and Im
are termed the “Magellanic” spirals and irregulars, respectively,
after the Magellanic Clouds. The Large Magellanic Cloud is of type
SBm, while the Small Magellanic Cloud is an irregular (Im).
The different elements of the classification scheme are combined - in

the order in which they are listed - to give the complete classification
of a galaxy. For example, a weakly-barred spiral galaxy with
loosely-wound arms and a ring is denoted SAB(r)c.
Visually, the de Vaucouleurs system can be represented as a
three-dimensional version [4] of Hubble’s tuning fork, with stage NGC 7793: a spiral galaxy of type SA(s)d.
(spiralness) on the x-axis, family (barredness) on the y-axis, and

variety (ringedness) on the z-axis.[5]
Numerical Hubble stage

De Vaucouleurs also assigned numerical values to each class of galaxy
in his scheme. Values of the numerical Hubble stage T run from -6 to
+10, with negative numbers corresponding to early-type galaxies
(ellipticals and lenticulars) and positive numbers to late types (spirals
and irregulars). Elliptical galaxies are divided into three 'stages':
The Large Magellanic Cloud: a type SBm galaxy.
compact ellipticals (cE), normal ellipticals (E) and transition types
(E+). Lenticulars are similarly subdivided into early (S-), intermediate
(S0) and late (S+) types.
Numerical Hubble stage

Hubble stage -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
[5] cE E E+ S0- S00 S0+ S0/a Sa Sab Sb Sbc Sc Scd Sd Sdm Sm Im

de Vaucouleurs class
[6] E S0 S0/a Sa Sa-b Sb Sb-c Sc Sc-Irr Irr I

approximate Hubble class
The use of numerical stages allows for more quantitative studies of galaxy morphology.
The Yerkes (or Morgan) scheme

Created by American astronomer William Wilson Morgan. Together with Philip Keenan, Morgan developed the MK
system for the classification of stars through their spectra. The Yerkes scheme uses the spectra of stars in the galaxy;
the shape, real and apparent; and the degree of the central concentration to classify galaxies.
Spectral Type Explanation
a Prominent A stars
af Prominent A-F stars
f Prominent F stars
fg Prominent F-G stars
g Prominent G stars
gk Prominent G-K stars
k Prominent K stars
Galactic Shape Explanation
B Barred spiral
D Rotational symmetry without pronounced spiral or elliptical structure
E Elliptical
Ep Elliptical with dust absorption
I Irregular
L Low surface brightness
N small bright nucleus
S Spiral
Inclination Explanation
1 Galaxy is "Face-on"
7 Galaxy is "Edge-on"
So, for example, the Andromeda Galaxy is classified as kS5.
See also
• Morphological Catalogue of Galaxies
• Galaxy color-magnitude diagram
• Galaxy Zoo
• William Wilson Morgan
• Fritz Zwicky
References
[1] Hubble, E. P. (1936). The Realm of the Nebulae. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 36018182.
[2] De Vaucouleurs, G. (1959). "Classification and Morphology of External Galaxies". Handbuch der Physik 53: 275.
[3] Binney, J.; Merrifield, M. (1998). Galactic Astronomy. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691025650.
[4] http:/ / www. astr. ua. edu/ keel/ galaxies/ classify. html
[5] De Vaucouleurs, G. (1994) (PostScript). Global Physical Parameters of Galaxies (http:/ / www. stsci. edu/ institute/ conference/
galaxy-morphology/ devaucouleurs. ps). . Retrieved 2008-01-02.
External links
• Galaxies and the Universe (http://www.astr.ua.edu/keel/galaxies/classify.html) - an introduction to galaxy
classification
• Near-Infrared Galaxy Morphology Atlas (http://www.ipac.caltech.edu/2mass/gallery/galmorph/), T.H.
Jarrett
• The Spitzer Infrared Nearby Galaxies Survey (SINGS) Hubble Tuning-Fork (http://sings.stsci.edu/
Publications/sings_poster.html), SINGS (http://sings.stsci.edu/) Spitzer Space Telescope Legacy Science
Project
• Go to GalaxyZoo.org (http://www.galaxyzoo.org) to try your hand at classifying galaxies as part of an Oxford
University open community project
Hubble sequence
The Hubble sequence is a morphological classification scheme for galaxies invented by Edwin Hubble in 1926.[1]
[2] [3] [4]
It is often known colloquially as the Hubble tuning-fork diagram because of the shape in which it is
traditionally represented.
Hubble’s scheme divides regular
galaxies into 3 broad classes -
ellipticals, lenticulars and spirals -
based on their visual appearance
(originally on photographic plates). A
fourth class contains galaxies with an
irregular appearance. To this day, the
Hubble sequence is the most
commonly used system for classifying
galaxies, both in professional
astronomical research and in amateur
astronomy.
Classes of galaxies
Tuning-fork style diagram of the Hubble sequence

Hubble sequence 32
Ellipticals
The giant elliptical galaxy ESO 325-G004.
On the left (in the sense that the sequence is usually drawn) lie the ellipticals. Elliptical galaxies have smooth,
featureless light distributions and appear as ellipses in photographic images. They are denoted by the letter E,
followed by an integer representing their degree of ellipticity on the sky. By convention, is ten times the
ellipticity of the galaxy, rounded to the nearest integer, where the ellipticity is defined as for an ellipse
[5]
with semi-major and semi-minor axes of lengths and respectively. The ellipticity increases from left to right
on the Hubble diagram, with near-circular (E0) galaxies situated on the very left of the diagram. It is important to
note that the ellipticity of a galaxy on the sky is only indirectly related to the true 3-dimensional shape (for example,
a flattened, discus-shaped galaxy can appear almost round if viewed face-on or elliptical if viewed at an angle).
Observationally, the most flattened elliptical galaxies have ellipticities e=0.7 (denoted E7). This is consistent with
their being truly ellipsoidal structures rather than disks viewed at a range of angles.
Examples of elliptical galaxies: M49, M59, M60, M87, NGC 4125.
Spirals
On the right of the Hubble sequence diagram are two parallel branches
encompassing the spiral galaxies. A spiral galaxy consists of a
flattened disk, with stars forming a (usually two-armed) spiral
structure, and a central concentration of stars known as the bulge.
Roughly half of all spirals are also observed to have a bar-like
structure, extending from the central bulge, at the ends of which the
spiral arms begin. In the tuning-fork diagram, the regular spirals
occupy the upper branch and are denoted by the letter S, while the
lower branch contains the barred spirals, given the symbol SB. Both
type of spirals are further subdivided according to the detailed The Pinwheel Galaxy (Messier 101/NGC 5457):
appearance of their spiral structures. Membership of one of these a spiral galaxy classified as type Scd on the
Hubble sequence
subdivisions is indicated by adding a lower-case letter to the
morphological type, as follows:
• Sa (SBa) - tightly-wound, smooth arms; large, bright central bulge

• Sb (SBb) - less tightly-wound spiral arms than Sa (SBa); somewhat fainter bulge
Hubble sequence 33
• Sc (SBc) - loosely wound spiral arms, clearly resolved into

individual stellar clusters and nebulae; smaller, fainter bulge
Hubble originally described three classes of spiral galaxy. This was
extended by de Vaucouleurs[6] to include a fourth class:
• Sd (SBd) - very loosely-wound, fragmentary arms; most of the
luminosity is in the arms and not the bulge
Although strictly part of the de Vaucouleurs system of classification, The barred spiral galaxy NGC 1300: a type SBbc
the Sd class is often included in the Hubble sequence. The basic spiral
types can be extended to enable finer distinctions of appearance. For example, spiral galaxies whose appearance is
intermediate between two of the above classes are often identified by appending 2 lower-case letters to the main
galaxy type (for example Sbc for a galaxy that is intermediate between an Sb and an Sc).
Our own Milky Way is generally classed as SBb, making it a barred spiral with well-defined arms. However, this
classification is somewhat uncertain since we can only infer how our galaxy would appear to an outside observer.
Examples of regular spiral galaxies: M31 (Andromeda Galaxy), M74, M81, M104 (Sombrero Galaxy), M51a
(Whirlpool Galaxy), NGC 300, NGC 772.
Examples of barred spiral galaxies: M91, M95, NGC 1097, NGC 1300, NGC1672, NGC 2536, NGC 2903.
Lenticulars
At the centre of the Hubble tuning fork, where the two spiral arms
meet the elliptical branch lies an intermediate class of galaxies known
as lenticulars and given the symbol S0. These galaxies consist of a
bright central bulge, similar in appearance to an elliptical galaxy,
surrounded by an extended, disk-like structure. Unlike spiral galaxies,
the disks of lenticular galaxies have no visible spiral structure and are
not actively forming stars in any significant quantity. The bulge
component is often the dominant source of light in a lenticular
galaxy.[7]
Face-on lenticulars are difficult to distinguish from ellipticals of type The Spindle Galaxy (NGC 5866), a lenticular
E0, making the classification of many such galaxies uncertain. When galaxy with a prominent dust lane in the
viewed edge-on, prominent dust-lanes are sometimes visible in constellation of Draco.
absorption against the light of stars in the disk.

At the time of the initial publication of Hubble's galaxy classification scheme, the existence of lenticular galaxies
was purely hypothetical. Hubble believed that they were necessary as an intermediate stage between the
highly-flattened ellipticals and spirals. Later observations (by Hubble himself, among others) showed Hubble's belief
to be correct and the S0 class was included in the definitive exposition of the Hubble sequence by Allan Sandage.[8]
Lenticular and spiral galaxies, taken together, are often referred to as disk galaxies.
Examples of lenticular galaxies: M85, M86, NGC 1316, NGC 2787, NGC 5866 (Spindle Galaxy), Centaurus A.
Hubble sequence 34
Irregulars
Galaxies that do not fit into the Hubble sequence, because they have no
regular structure (either disk-like or ellipsoidal), are termed irregular
galaxies. Hubble defined two classes of irregular galaxy:[9]
• Irr I galaxies have asymmetric profiles and lack a central bulge or
obvious spiral structure; instead they contain many individual
clusters of young stars
• Irr II galaxies have smoother, asymmetric appearances and are not
clearly resolved into individual stars or stellar clusters
The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) - a dwarf
In his extension to the Hubble sequence, de Vaucouleurs called the Irr I irregular galaxy
galaxies 'Magellanic irregulars', after the Magellanic Clouds - two
satellites of the Milky Way which Hubble classified as Irr I. The discovery of a faint spiral structure[10] in the Large
Magellanic Cloud led de Vaucouleurs to further divide the irregular galaxies into those that, like the LMC, show
some evidence for spiral structure (these are given the symbol Sm) and those that have no obvious structure, such as
the Small Magellanic Cloud (denoted Im). In the extended Hubble sequence, the Magellanic irregulars are usually
placed at the end of the spiral branch of the Hubble tuning fork.
Examples of irregular galaxies: M82, NGC 1427A, Large Magellanic Cloud, Small Magellanic Cloud.
Physical significance
Elliptical and lenticular galaxies are commonly referred to together as “early-type” galaxies, while spirals and
irregular galaxies are referred to as “late types”. This nomenclature is the source of the common,[11] but erroneous,
belief that the Hubble sequence was intended to reflect a supposed evolutionary sequence, from elliptical galaxies
through lenticulars to either barred or regular spirals. In fact, Hubble was clear from the beginning that no such
interpretation was implied:
The nomenclature, it is emphasized, refers to position in the sequence, and temporal connotations are
made at one's peril. The entire classification is purely empirical and without prejudice to theories of
evolution...[3]
The evolutionary picture appears to be lent weight by the fact that the disks of spiral galaxies are observed to be
home to many young stars and regions of active star formation, while elliptical galaxies are composed of
predominantly old stellar populations. In fact, current evidence suggests the opposite: the early Universe appears to
be dominated by spiral and irregular galaxies. In the currently favored picture of galaxy formation, present-day
ellipticals formed as a result of mergers between these earlier building blocks. Lenticular galaxies may also be
evolved spiral galaxies, whose gas has been stripped away leaving no fuel for continued star formation.
Shortcomings
A common criticism of the Hubble scheme is that the criteria for assigning galaxies to classes are subjective, leading
to different observers assigning galaxies to different classes (although experienced observers usually agree to within
less than a single Hubble type [12] ). The different classification criteria can also be at odds with each other: for
example, a more dominant bulge component does not always go hand-in-hand with more loosely-wound spiral arms.
Another criticism of the Hubble classification scheme is that, being based on the appearance of a galaxy in a
two-dimensional image, the classes are only indirectly related to the true physical properties of galaxies. In
particular, problems arise because of orientation effects (the same galaxy looks very different when viewed edge-on,
as opposed to face-on), because visual classifications are less reliable for faint or distant galaxies, and because the
appearance of galaxies changes depending on the wavelength of light in which they are observed. Nevertheless, the
Hubble sequence 35
Hubble sequence is still commonly used in the field of extragalactic astronomy and Hubble types are known to
correlate with many physically relevant properties of galaxies, such as luminosities, colours, masses (of stars and
gas) and star formation rates.[13]
See also
• Edwin Hubble
• Gérard de Vaucouleurs
• Galaxy morphological classification
References
[1] Hubble, E. P. (1926). "Extra-galactic nebulae". Contributions from the Mount Wilson Observatory / Carnegie Institution of Washington 324:
1–49.
[2] Hubble, E. P. (1926). "Extra-galactic nebulae". Astrophysical Journal 64: 321–369.
[3] Hubble, E. P. (1927). "The Classification of Spiral Nebulae". The Observatory 50: 276.
[6] de Vaucouleurs, G.; Oemler, Augustus, Jr.; Butcher, Harvey R.; Gunn, James E. (1959). "Classification and Morphology of External
Galaxies". Handbuch der Physik 53: 275. doi:10.1086/174386.
[7] Graham, A.; Worley, C. (August 2008). "Inclination- and dust-corrected galaxy parameters: bulge-to-disc ratios and size-luminosity
relations" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2008MNRAS. 388. 1708G). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 388: 1708–1728.
doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13506.x. . Retrieved 2008-10-23.
[8] Sandage, A. (1975). "Classification and Stellar Content of Galaxies Obtained from Direct Photography" (http:/ / nedwww. ipac. caltech. edu/
level5/ Sandage/ frames. html). In A. Sandage. . M. Sandage and J. Kristian. . Retrieved 2007-11-20.
[9] Longair, M. S. (1998). Galaxy Formation. New York: Springer. ISBN 3540637850.
[10] de Vaucouleurs, G.; Oemler, Augustus, Jr.; Butcher, Harvey R.; Gunn, James E. (1955). "Studies of Magellanic Clouds. I. Dimensions and
structure of the Large Cloud" (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1955AJ. . . . . 60. . 126D). The Astronomical Journal 160: 126–140.
doi:10.1086/174386. . Retrieved 2007-11-18.
[11] Baldry, I. K. (2008). "Hubble's Galaxy Nomenclature". Astronomy & Geophysics 49: 5.25.
[12] Dressler, A.; Oemler, A., Jr.; Butcher, H. R.; Gunn, J.E. (July 1994). "The morphology of distant cluster galaxies. 1: HST observations of
CL 0939+4713" (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1994ApJ. . . 430. . 107D). The Astrophysical Journal 430 (1): 107–120.
doi:10.1086/174386. . Retrieved 2007-09-15.
[13] Roberts, M. S.; Haynes, M. P. (1994). "Physical Parameters along the Hubble Sequence" (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/
1994ARA& A. . 32. . 115R). Annual Reviews of Astronomy & Astrophysics 32: 115–152. doi:10.1146/annurev.aa.32.090194.000555. .
External links
• Galaxies and the Universe (http://www.astr.ua.edu/keel/galaxies/classify.html) - an introduction to galaxy
classification
• Near-Infrared Galaxy Morphology Atlas (http://www.ipac.caltech.edu/2mass/gallery/galmorph/), T.H.
Jarrett
• The Spitzer Infrared Nearby Galaxies Survey (SINGS) Hubble Tuning-Fork (http://sings.stsci.edu/
Publications/sings_poster.html), SINGS (http://sings.stsci.edu/) Spitzer Space Telescope Legacy Science
Project
• Galaxy Zoo (http://www.galaxyzoo.org/) - Galaxy classification participation project.
36
Short-scale structure
Dark matter halo

A dark matter halo is a hypothetical component of a
galaxy, which extends beyond the edge of the visible
galaxy and dominates the total mass. Since they consist of
dark matter, haloes cannot be observed directly, but their
existence is inferred through their effects on the motions
of stars and gas in galaxies. Dark matter halos play a key
role in current models of galaxy formation and evolution.
Simulated dark matter halo from a cosmological N-body

simulation
Rotation curves as evidence

of a dark matter halo
The presence of dark matter in the halo is
demonstrated by its gravitational effect on a
spiral galaxy's rotation curve. Without large
amounts of mass in the extended halo, the
rotational velocity of the galaxy should
decrease at large distance from the galactic
core. However, observations of spiral
galaxies, particularly radio observations of
line emission from neutral atomic hydrogen
(known, in astronomical parlance, as HI),
show that the rotation curve of most spiral Galaxy rotation curve for the Milky Way. Vertical axis is speed of rotation about
galaxies remains flat far beyond the visible the galactic center. Horizontal axis is distance from the galactic center. The sun is
matter. The absence of any visible matter to marked with a yellow ball. The observed curve of speed of rotation is blue. The
predicted curve based upon stellar mass and gas in the Milky Way is red. Scatter in
account for these observations implies the
observations roughly indicated by gray bars. The difference is due to dark matter or
presence of unobserved (i.e. dark) matter. perhaps a modification of the law of gravity.
[1] [2] [3]
Asserting that this dark matter does not exist
would mean that the accepted theory of gravitation (General Relativity) is incomplete, and while that could be
Dark matter halo 37
possible, most scientists would require extensive amounts of compelling evidence before considering it. This is
because if standard model calculations do not match observations, then the burden of proof is not on the proponents
of the model, but on the critics.
The Navarro-Frenk-White profile:[4]
is often used to model the distribution of mass in dark matter halos. Theoretical dark matter halos produced in
computer simulations are best described by the Einasto profile:[5]
Theories about the nature of dark matter

The nature of dark matter in the galactic halo of spiral galaxies is still undetermined, but there are two popular
theories: either the halo is composed of weakly-interacting elementary particles known as WIMPs, or it is home to
large numbers of small, dark bodies known as MACHOs. It seems unlikely that the halo is composed of large
quantities of gas and dust, because both ought to be detectable through observations. Searches for gravitational
microlensing events in the halo of the Milky Way show that the number of MACHOs is likely not sufficient to
account for the required mass.
Milky Way dark matter halo

The dark matter halo is the single largest part of the Galaxy as it covers the space between 100,000 light-years to
300,000 light-years from the galactic center. It is also the most mysterious part of the Galaxy. It is now believed that
about 95% of the Galaxy is composed of dark matter, a type of matter that does not seem to interact with the rest of
the Galaxy's matter and energy in any way except through gravity. The dark matter halo is the location of nearly all
of the Galaxy's dark matter, which is more than ten times as much mass as all of the visible stars, gas, and dust in the
rest of the Galaxy. The luminous matter makes up approximately 90,000,000,000 (9 x 1010) solar masses. The dark
matter halo is likely to include around 600,000,000,000 (6 x 1011) to 3,000,000,000,000 (3 x 1012) solar masses of
dark matter.[6]
See also
• Disc (galaxy)
• Galactic halo
• Spiral arm
• Dark matter
• Dark galaxy
Dark matter halo 38
References
[1] Peter Schneider (2006). Extragalactic Astronomy and Cosmology (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=uP1Hz-6sHaMC& pg=PA100&
dq=rotation+ Milky+ way& lr=& as_brr=0& as_pt=ALLTYPES#PPA5,M1). Springer. p. 4, Figure 1.4. ISBN 3540331743. .
[2] Theo Koupelis, Karl F Kuhn (2007). In Quest of the Universe (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=6rTttN4ZdyoC& pg=PA491&
dq=Milky+ Way+ "rotation+ curve"& lr=& as_brr=0& as_pt=ALLTYPES#PPA492,M1). Jones & Bartlett Publishers. p. 492; Figure 16-13.
ISBN 0763743879. .
[3] Mark H. Jones, Robert J. Lambourne, David John Adams (2004). An Introduction to Galaxies and Cosmology (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=36K1PfetZegC& pg=PA20& dq=Milky+ Way+ "rotation+ curve"& lr=& as_brr=0& as_pt=ALLTYPES#PPA21,M1). Cambridge
University Press. p. 21; Figure 1.13. ISBN 0521546230. .
[4] Navarro, J. et al. (1997), A Universal Density Profile from Hierarchical Clustering (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1997ApJ. . . 490. .
493N)
[5] Merritt, D. et al. (2006), Empirical Models for Dark Matter Halos. I. Nonparametric Construction of Density Profiles and Comparison with
Parametric Models (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2006AJ. . . . 132. 2685M)
[6] Battaglia et al. (2005, The radial velocity dispersion profile of the Galactic halo: constraining the density profile of the dark halo of the Milky
Way (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2005MNRAS. 364. . 433B)
Further reading
• Bertone, Gianfranco (2010). Particle Dark Matter: Observations, Models and Searches. Cambridge University
Press. pp. 762. ISBN 13: 9780521763684.
External links
• Rare Blob Unveiled: Evidence For Hydrogen Gas Falling Onto A Dark Matter Clump? (http://www.
sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/07/060703163148.htm) European Southern Observatory (ScienceDaily) July
3, 2006
• Dark Matter Search Experiment , PICASSO Experiment (http://www.picassoexperiment.ca/)
Galactic bulge 39
Galactic bulge
In astronomy, a bulge is a tightly packed group of stars within a larger formation. The term almost exclusively refers
to the central group of stars found in most spiral galaxies. Bulges were historically thought to be elliptical galaxies
that happen to have a disk of stars around them. Yet, high resolution images, using Hubble Space Telescope reveal
that many bulges have properties that are more like spiral galaxies. It is now thought that there are at least two types
of bulges, bulges that are like ellipticals and bulges that are like spiral galaxies.
Classical Bulges
Bulges that have properties similar to elliptical galaxies[1] are
often called classical bulges due to their similarity to the historic
view of bulges. These bulges are composed primarily of stars that
are older Population II, and hence redder (see stellar evolution).
They are also in orbits that are essentially random compared to the
plane of the galaxy, whence the round shape arises. Furthermore,
they have very little dust and gas compared to the disk portion of
the galaxy, explaining why there are so few young stars (that is,
there is little material left from which to form stars). The
An image of Messier 81, a galaxy with a classical
distribution of light is well described by de Vaucouleurs' law. At
bulge. Notice that the spiral structure ends at the onset
right, we show an example of a galaxy that harbors a bulge with of the bulge.
properties similar to an elliptical galaxy, Messier object 81. Notice
that the bulge is devoid of spiral structure, and the blue stars (indicating younger stars) are mainly in the outer disk
surrounding the bulge.
It is this set of properties, that leads many astronomers to conclude that classical bulges are a product of the galactic
merging process. It is thought that classical bulges are the result of the coalescences of smaller structures. This is a
violent process, and thus disrupts the path of the stars, result in the randomness of bulge orbits. Also during the
merger, gas clouds are more likely to be converted into stars, due to the shocks from the mergers. Thus the majority
of the gas is converted into stars. A bulge may be the end result of many mergers. This process is more likely in the
distant past, when the mergers were more common. Thus most classical bulges are old today, and have not evolved
significantly in the past 10 billion years. Then the remaining gas and stars, that did not participate in the merger,
could settle around the bulge, thus making the outer disk.
Galactic bulge 40
Disk-like Bulges
Many bulges have properties more similar to spiral galaxies than
elliptical galaxies.[2] [3] [4] They are often referred to as
pseudobulges or disky-bulges. It was first discovered that the stars
in some bulges orbit around the galaxy like disk stars. These
bulges have stars that are not orbiting randomly, but rather orbit in
an ordered fashion in the same plane as the outer disk. This is very
different than elliptical galaxies.
Subsequent studies (using the Hubble Space Telescope) show that

bulges of many galaxies are not devoid of dust, but rather show a
varied and complex structure. This structure often looks similar to
a spiral galaxy, but is much smaller. Giant spiral galaxies are An image of Messier 63, a galaxy with a
non-classical bulge. Notice that the spiral
typically 2–100 times the size of those spirals that exist in bulges.
structure goes all the way to the center of the
When they exist these central spirals dominate the light of the galaxy.
bulge in which they reside. Many bulges also have young stars and
ongoing star formation, this is not a feature commonly found in
elliptical galaxies. Typically the rate at which new stars are formed
in pseudobulges is similar to the rates at which stars form in disk
galaxies. Sometimes bulges contain nuclear rings that are forming
stars at much higher rates than (per area) is typically found in
outer disks, as shown in NGC 4314 (right).
These properties (such as spiral structure and young stars) suggest

that some bulges did not form through the same process that made
elliptical galaxies and classical bulges. Yet the theories for the
formation of pseudobulges is less certain than those of classical
bulges. Pseudobulges may be the result of extremely gas-rich
mergers than happened more recently than those mergers that
formed classical bulges (within the last 5 billion years). However,
A Hubble Space Telescope image of the central region
it is difficult for disks to survive the merging process, casting
of NGC 4314, a galaxy with a star-forming nuclear
doubt on this scenario. ring.
Many astronomers suggest that bulges that appear similar to disks
form internally out of the disk, and are not the product of the merging process. When left alone disks galaxies can
rearrange their stars and gas (as a response to instabilities). The products of this process (called secular evolution) are
often observed in disk galaxies; both spiral disks and galactic bars are can result from secular evolution of galaxy
disks. Secular evolution is also expected to send gas and stars to the center of a galaxy. If this happens that would
increase the density at the center of a galaxy, and thus make a bulge that has properties similar to disk galaxies.
If secular evolution is responsible for the formation of a significant number of bulges, then that many galaxies have
not experienced a merger since the formation of their disk. This would then mean that current theories of galaxy
formation and evolution greatly over-predict the number of mergers in the past few billion years.
Most bulges are thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center. Such black holes by definition can not be
observed (light cannot escape them), but various pieces of evidence strongly suggest their existence, both in the
bulges of spiral galaxies and in the centers of ellipticals. The masses of the black holes correlate tightly with bulge
properties; the tightest such correlation, the M-sigma relation, is between black hole mass and the velocity dispersion
of stars in the bulge.[5] Until recently it was thought that one could not have a supermassive black hole without a
bulge around it, but galaxies hosting supermassive black holes without accompanying bulges have now been
Galactic bulge 41
observed.[6]
See also
• Disc galaxy
• Spiral arm
• Galactic halo
• Galactic spheroid
• Galactic corona
• M-sigma relation
References
[1] Sandage, Allan "The Hubble Atlas of Galaxies" Washington: Carnegie Institution, 1961
[2] The formation of galactic bulges edited by C.M. Carollo, H.C. Ferguson, R.F.G. Wyse. Cambridge, U.K. ; New York : Cambridge University
Press, 1999. (Cambridge contemporary astrophysics)
[3] Kormendy, J. & Kennicutt, R.C. Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 42, Issue 1, pp.603-683
[4] Athanassoula, E. (2005) MNRAS 358 p1477
[5] Ferrarese, F. and Merritt, D. (2000), A Fundamental Relation between Supermassive Black Holes and Their Host Galaxies (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 2000ApJ. . . 539L. . . 9F)
[6] SPACE.com - Even Thin Galaxies Pack Hefty Black Holes (http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/ 080110-aas-fat-black-holes. html)
The Galactic Bulge: A Review (http://arxiv.org/abs/0710.3104)
Galactic corona
The terms galactic corona and gaseous corona have been used in the first decade of the twenty-first century to
describe a hot, ionised, gaseous component in the Galactic halo of the Milky Way. A similar body of very hot and
tenuous gas in the halo of any spiral galaxy may also be described by these terms.
This coronal gas may be sustained by the galactic fountain, in which superbubbles of ionised gas from supernova
remnants expand vertically through galactic chimneys into the halo. As the gas cools, it is pulled back into the
galactic disc of the galaxy by gravitational forces.
See also
• Galactic bulge
• Disc galaxy
• Spiral arm
• Galactic halo
Galactic corona 42
External links
• THE GALACTIC CORONA [1], Jerry Bonnell, 1995
• Absorption Line Studies in the Halo [2], Philipp Richter, 2003
• Multi-phase High-Velocity Clouds toward HE 0226-4110 and PG 0953+414 [3], Andrew J. Fox et al., 2005
• Galactic Corona or Local Group Intergalactic Medium? [4], Rik J. Williams, Smita Mathur, & Fabrizio Nicastro,
2005
• NGC 5746: Detection of Hot Halo Gets Theory Out of Hot Water [5]
References
[1] http:/ / antwrp. gsfc. nasa. gov/ diamond_jubilee/ papers/ lamb/ node4. html
[2] http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0309693
[5] http:/ / chandra. harvard. edu/ photo/ 2006/ n5746/
Galactic disc
A disc is a component of disc galaxies, such as spiral galaxies, or lenticular galaxies.
The galactic disc is the plane in which the spirals, bars and discs of disc galaxies exist. Galaxy discs tend to have
more gas and dust, and younger stars than galactic bulges, or galactic haloes.
The galactic disc is mainly composed of gas, dust and stars. The gas and dust component of the galactic disk is called
the gaseous disk. The star component of the galactic disk is called the stellar disk.
Inconsistent orbital velocities of stars

It has been noted that the orbital velocity of stars in the disc of most disc galaxies is inconsistent with the amount of
luminous matter calculated for the galaxy. A possible explanation for this problem is the non-luminous dark matter.
See also
• Galactic corona
Galactic halo 43
Galactic halo
The term galactic halo is used to denote an extended, roughly spherical component of a galaxy, which extends
beyond the main, visible component. It can refer to any of several distinct components which share these properties:
• the galactic spheroid (stars)
• the galactic corona (hot gas, i.e. a plasma)
• the dark matter halo
The distinction between the halo and the main body of the galaxy is clearest in spiral galaxies, where the spherical
shape contrasts with the flat disc. In an elliptical galaxy, there is no sharp transition between the body of the galaxy
and the halo.
See also
• Galactic bulge
• Disc galaxy
• Spiral arm
• Galactic corona
Ionization cone
Ionisation cones are cones of material extending out from spiral galaxies. They are visible because of their
emissions which are believed to be from re-emission of photons produced by nuclear activity within the galaxy
itself.[1] [2]
There is not yet a scientific consensus on the mechanics of such cones.
References
[1] Paper by Wilson on the properties of such cones (http:/ / www. springerlink. com/ content/ j4276u12119nr290/ )
[2] Paper proposing a model for Ionisation cone operation (http:/ / www. springerlink. com/ content/ j4276u12119nr290/ )
Low-ionization nuclear emission-line region

A low-ionization nuclear emission-line
region (LINER) is a type of galactic nucleus
that is defined by its spectral line emission.
The spectra typically include line emission
from weakly ionized or neutral atoms, such
as O, O+, N+, and S+. Conversely, the
spectral line emission from strongly ionized
atoms, such as O++, Ne++, and He+, is
relatively weak.[2] The class of galactic
nuclei was first identified by Timothy
Heckman in the third of a series of papers
The Sombrero Galaxy (M104) as observed by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST).
on the spectra of galactic nuclei that were [1]
The Sombrero Galaxy is an example of a LINER galaxy. Credit:
published in 1980.[2] HST/NASA/ESA.
Demographics of LINER
galaxies
Galaxies that contain LINERs are often referred to as LINER galaxies. LINER galaxies are very common;
approximately one-third of all nearby galaxies (galaxies within approximately 20-40 Mpc) may be classified as
LINER galaxies.[2] [3] Approximately 75% of LINER galaxies are either elliptical galaxies, lenticular galaxies, or
S0/a-Sab galaxies (spiral galaxies with large bulges and tightly-wound spiral arms). LINERs are found less
frequently in Sb-Scd galaxies (spiral galaxies with small bulges and loosely-wound spiral arms), and they are very
rare in nearby irregular galaxies.[3] LINERs also may be commonly found in luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs), a
class of galaxies defined by their infrared luminosities that are frequently formed when two galaxies collide with
each other. Approximately one-quarter of LIRGs may contain LINERs.[4]
Scientific debates: energy sources and ionization mechanisms

LINERs have been at the center of two major debates. First, astronomers have debated the source of energy that
excites the ionized gas in the centers of these galaxies. Some astronomers have proposed that active galactic nuclei
(AGN) with supermassive black holes are responsible for the LINER spectral emission.[2] [5] Other astronomers have
asserted that the emission is powered by star formation regions.[6] [7] The other major issue is related to how the ions
are excited. Some astronomers have suggested that shock waves propagating through the gas may ionize the gas,[2]
while others have suggested that photoionization (ionization by ultraviolet light) may be responsible.[6] [7] [5]
These debates are complicated by the fact that LINERs are found in a wide variety of objects with different
brightnesses and morphologies. Moreover, the debate over the energy sources for LINERs is entangled with a similar
debate over whether the light from star formation regions or the light from AGN produce the high infrared
luminosities seen in LIRGs.[4]
Although both the energy sources and the excitation mechanisms for LINER emission are still being studied, many
LINERs are frequently referred to as AGN.[1]
Star formation in LINERs

A number of surveys have been performed to explore the connection between star formation and LINER activity. If a
connection can be found between star formation activity and LINER activity, then this strengthens the possibility
that LINERs are powered by the hot stars found in star formation regions. However, if star formation cannot be
found in LINERs, then this definitively excludes star formation as powering LINER emission.
Star formation in LIRGs with LINERs

Recent observations with the Spitzer Space Telescope show a clear connection between LINER emission in
luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs) and star formation activity. The mid-infrared spectra of LIRGs with LINERs
have been shown to look similar to the mid-infrared spectra of starburst galaxies, which suggest that infrared-bright
LINERs are powered by star formation activity. However, some mid-infrared spectral line emission from AGN have
also been detected in these galaxies, indicating that star formation may not be the only energy sources in these
galaxies.[8]
Star formation in normal galaxies with LINERs

Normal nearby galaxies with LINERs, however, appear to be different. A few near-infrared spectroscopic surveys
have identified some LINERs in normal galaxies that may be powered by star formation.[9] However, most LINERs
in nearby galaxies have low levels of star formation activity.[9] [10] [11] Moreover, the stellar populations of many
LINERs appear to be very old,[12] [13] [11] and the mid-infrared spectra, as observed by the Spitzer Space Telescope,
do not appear similar to the spectra expected from star formation.[8] These results demonstrate that most LINER in
nearby normal galaxies may not be powered by star formation, although a few exceptions clearly exist.
Notable LINER galaxies

• Messier 94[1]
• NGC 5005[1]
• NGC 5195[1]
• Sombrero Galaxy[1]
See also
• Seyfert galaxy - Another class of galaxies that contain AGN
References
[1] L. C. Ho, A. V. Filippenko, W. L. W. Sargent (1997). "A Search for "Dwarf" Seyfert Nuclei. III. Spectroscopic Parameters and Properties of
the Host Galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1997ApJS. . 112. . 315H). Astrophysical Journal Supplement 112: 315–390.
doi:10.1086/313041. .
[2] T. M. Heckman (1980). "An optical and radio survey of the nuclei of bright galaxies - Activity in normal galactic nuclei" (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 1980A& A. . . . 87. . 152H). Astronomy and Astrophysics 87: 152–164. .
[3] L. C. Ho, A. V. Filippenko, W. L. W. Sargent (1997). "A Search for "Dwarf" Seyfert Nuclei. V. Demographics of Nuclear Activity in Nearby
Galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1997ApJ. . . 487. . 568H). Astrophysical Journal 487: 568–578. doi:10.1086/304638. .
[4] S. Veilleux, D.-C. Kim, D. B. Sanders, J. M. Mazzarella, B. T. Soifer (1995). "Optical Spectroscopy of Luminous Infrared Galaxies. II.
Analysis of the Nuclear and Long-Slit Data" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1995ApJS. . . 98. . 171V). Astrophysical Journal Supplement
Series 98: 171–217. doi:10.1086/192158. .
[5] L. C. Ho, A. V. Filippenko, W. L. W. Sargent (1993). "A Reevaluation of the Excitation Mechanism of LINERs" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard.
edu/ abs/ 1993ApJ. . . 417. . . 63H). Astrophysical Journal 417: 63–81. doi:10.1086/173291. .
[6] R. Terlevich, J. Melnick (1985). "Warmers - The missing link between Starburst and Seyfert galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
1985MNRAS. 213. . 841T). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 213: 841–856. .
[7] J. C. Shields (1992). "Normal O stars in dense media generate LINERs" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1992ApJ. . . 399L. . 27S).
Astrophysical Journal 399: L27–L30. doi:10.1086/186598. .
[8] E. Sturm, D. Rupke, A. Contursi, D.-C. Kim, D. Lutz, H. Netzer, S. Veilleux, R. Genzel, M. Lehnert, L. J. Tacconi, D. Maoz, J. Mazzarella,
S. Lord, D. Sanders, A. Sternberg (2006). "Mid-Infrared Diagnostics of LINERS" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2006ApJ. . . 653L. . 13S).
Astrophysical Journal 653: L13–L16. doi:10.1086/510381. .
[9] J. E. Larkin, L. Armus, R. A. Knop, B. T. Soifer, K. Matthews (1998). "A Near-Infrared Spectroscopic Survey of LINER Galaxies" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1998ApJS. . 114. . . 59L). Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series 114: 59–72. doi:10.1086/313063. .
[10] G. J. Bendo, R. D. Joseph, M. Wells, P. Gallais, M. Haas, A. M. Heras, U. Klaas, R. J. Laureijs, K. Leech, D. Lemke, L. Metcalfe, M.
Rowan-Robinson, B. Schulz, C. Telesco (2002). "Star Formation in the Infrared Space Observatory Atlas of Bright Spiral Galaxies" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2002AJ. . . . 124. 1380B). Astronomical Journal 124: 1380–1392. doi:10.1086/342283. .
[11] G. J. Bendo, R. D. Joseph (2004). "Nuclear Stellar Populations in the Infrared Space Observatory Atlas of Bright Spiral Galaxies" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2004AJ. . . . 127. 3338B). Astronomical Journal 127: 3338–3360. doi:10.1086/420712. .
[12] R. Cid Fernandes, R. M. González Delgado, H. Schmitt, T. Storchi-Bergmann, Thaisa, L. P. Martins, E. Pérez, T. Heckman, C. Leitherer, D.
Schaerer (2004). "The Stellar Populations of Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei. I. Ground-based Observations" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard.
edu/ abs/ 2004ApJ. . . 605. . 105C). Astrophysical Journal 605: 105–126. doi:10.1086/382217. .
[13] R. M. González Delgado, R. Cid Fernandes, E. Pérez, L. P. Martins, T. Storchi-Bergmann, H. Schmitt, T. Heckman, C. Leitherer (2004).
"The Stellar Populations of Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei. II. Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph Observations" (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 2004ApJ. . . 605. . 127G). Astrophysical Journal 605: 127–143. doi:10.1086/382216. .
Relativistic jet
The lower-energy non-relativistic version of this phenomenon is described at polar jet.
Relativistic jets are extremely powerful jets of
plasma which emerge from presumed massive
objects at the centers of some active galaxies,
notably radio galaxies and quasars. Their lengths
can reach several thousand[1] or even hundreds of
thousands of light years.[2] The hypothesis is that
the twisting of magnetic fields in the accretion disk
collimates the outflow along the rotation axis of
the central object, so that when conditions are
suitable, a jet will emerge from each face of the
accretion disk. If the jet is oriented along the line
of sight to Earth, relativistic beaming will change
its apparent brightness. The mechanics behind both
the creation of the jets[3] [4] and the composition of
the jets[5] are still a matter of much debate in the Relativistic jet. The environment around the AGN where the relativistic
scientific community; it is hypothesized that the plasma is collimated into jets which escape along the pole of the
jets are composed of an electrically neutral mixture supermassive black hole
of electrons, positrons, and protons in some

proportion.
Relativistic jet 47
Similar jets, though on a much smaller scale, can develop around the
accretion disks of neutron stars and stellar black holes. These systems
are often called microquasars. A famous example is SS433, whose
well-observed jet has a velocity of 0.23c, although other microquasars
appear to have much higher (but less well measured) jet velocities.
Even weaker and less-relativistic jets may be associated with many
binary systems; the acceleration mechanism for these jets may be
similar to the magnetic reconnection processes observed in the Earth's
magnetosphere and the solar wind.
The general hypothesis among astrophysicists is that the formation of

relativistic jets is the key to explaining the production of gamma-ray
bursts. These jets have Lorentz factors of ~100 (that is, speeds of
Elliptical Galaxy M87 emitting a relativistic jet,
as seen by Hubble Space Telescope's WFPC2 in roughly 0.99995c), making them one of the swiftest celestial objects
the visible spectrum. currently known.
Rotating black hole as energy source

Because of the enormous amount of energy needed to launch a relativistic jet, some jets are thought to be powered
by spinning black holes. There are two competing theories for how the energy is transferred from the black hole to
the jet.
• Blandford-Znajek process.[6] This is the most popular theory for the extraction of energy from the central black
hole. The magnetic fields around the accretion disk are dragged by the spin of the black hole. The relativistic
material is possibly launched by the tightening of the field lines.
• Penrose mechanism.[7] This extracts energy from a rotating black hole by frame dragging. This theory was later
proven to be able to extract relativistic particle energy and momentum,[8] and subsequently shown to be a possible
mechanism for the formation of jets.[9]
Other images
Centaurus A in x-rays showing the The M87 jet seen by the Very Large Array in Hubble Legacy
relativistic jet radio frequency (the viewing field is larger Archive Near-UV
and rotated with respect to the above image). image of the
relativistic jet
coming out of 3C
66B.
Relativistic jet 48
See also
• Bipolar outflow
• Polar jet
• Blandford-Znajek process
Further reading
• Melia, Fulvio, The Edge of Infinity. Supermassive Black Holes in the Universe 2003, Cambridge University Press,
ISBN 978-0-521-81405-8 (Cloth)
References
[1] Biretta, J. (1999, January 6). Hubble Detects Faster-Than-Light Motion in Galaxy M87 (http:/ / www. stsci. edu/ ftp/ science/ m87/ m87.
html)
[2] Yale University - Office of Public Affairs (2006, June 20). Evidence for Ultra-Energetic Particles in Jet from Black Hole (http:/ / web.
archive. org/ web/ 20080513034113/ http:/ / www. yale. edu/ opa/ newsr/ 06-06-20-01. all. html)
[3] Meier, L. M. (2003). The Theory and Simulation of Relativistic Jet Formation: Towards a Unified Model For Micro- and Macroquasars,
2003, New Astron. Rev. , 47, 667. (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0312048)
[4] Semenov, V.S., Dyadechkin, S.A. and Punsly (2004, August 13). Simulations of Jets Driven by Black Hole Rotation. Science, 305, 978-980.
(http:/ / www. sciencemag. org/ cgi/ content/ abstract/ sci;305/ 5686/ 978?maxtoshow=& HITS=10& hits=10& RESULTFORMAT=&
fulltext=relativistic+ jet& searchid=1& FIRSTINDEX=10& resourcetype=HWCIT)
[5] Georganopoulos, M.; Kazanas, D.; Perlman, E.; Stecker, F. (2005) Bulk Comptonization of the Cosmic Microwave Background by
Extragalactic Jets as a Probe of their Matter Content, The Astrophysical Journal , 625, 656. (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0502201)
[6] Blandford, R. D., Znajek, R. L. (1977), Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 179, 433
[7] Penrose, R. (1969). Gravitational collapse: The role of general relativity. Nuovo Cimento Rivista, Numero Speciale 1, 252-276.
[8] Williams, R. K. (1995, May 15). Extracting x rays, Ύ rays, and relativistic e-e+ pairs from supermassive Kerr black holes using the Penrose
mechanism. Physical Review, 51(10), 5387-5427.
[9] Williams, R. K. (2004, August 20). Collimated escaping vortical polar e-e+ jets intrinsically produced by rotating black holes and Penrose
processes. The Astrophysical Journal, 611, 952-963. (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0404135)
Supermassive black hole

A supermassive black hole is the largest type of black hole in a
galaxy, on the order of hundreds of thousands to billions of solar
masses. Most, and possibly all galaxies, including the Milky Way,[2]
are believed to contain supermassive black holes at their centers.[3] [4]
Supermassive black holes have properties which distinguish them from
lower-mass classifications:
• The average density of a supermassive black hole (defined as the
mass of the black hole divided by the volume within its
Schwarzschild radius) can be as low as the density of water for very
large mass black holes. This is because the Schwarzschild radius is
directly proportional to mass, while density is inversely proportional
to the volume. Since the volume of a spherical object (such as the
event horizon of a non-rotating black hole) is directly proportional
Top: artist's conception of a supermassive black
to the cube of the radius, and mass merely increases linearly, the
hole tearing apart a star. Bottom: images believed
volume increases by a much greater factor than the mass as a black to show a supermassive black hole devouring a
hole grows. Thus, average density decreases for increasingly larger star in galaxy RXJ 1242-11. Left: X-ray image,
[1]
radii of black holes (due to volume increasing much faster than Right: optical image.
mass).
• The tidal forces in the vicinity of the event horizon are significantly weaker. Since the central singularity is so far
away from the horizon, a hypothetical astronaut traveling towards the black hole center would not experience
significant tidal force until very deep into the black hole.
Formation
There are many models for the formation of black holes of this size.
The most obvious is by slow accretion of matter starting from a black
hole of stellar size. Another model[5] of supermassive black hole
formation involves a large gas cloud collapsing into a relativistic star
of perhaps a hundred thousand solar masses or larger. The star would
then become unstable to radial perturbations due to electron-positron
pair production in its core, and may collapse directly into a black hole
without a supernova explosion, which would eject most of its mass and
prevent it from leaving a supermassive black hole as a remnant. Yet
another model[6] involves a dense stellar cluster undergoing An artist's conception of a supermassive black
core-collapse as the negative heat capacity of the system drives the hole & accretion disk.
velocity dispersion in the core to relativistic speeds. Finally, primordial
black holes may have been produced directly from external pressure in the first instants after the Big Bang.
The difficulty in forming a supermassive black hole resides in the need for enough matter to be in a small enough
volume. This matter needs to have very little angular momentum in order for this to happen. Normally the process of
accretion involves transporting a large initial endowment of angular momentum outwards, and this appears to be the
limiting factor in black hole growth, and explains the formation of accretion disks.
Currently, there appears to be a gap in the observed mass distribution of black holes. There are stellar-mass black
holes, generated from collapsing stars, which range up to perhaps 33 solar masses. The minimal supermassive black
hole is in the range of a hundred thousand solar masses. Between these regimes there appears to be a dearth of
intermediate-mass black holes. Such a gap would suggest qualitatively different formation processes. However,
some models[7] suggest that ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) may be black holes from this missing group.
Doppler measurements
Direct Doppler measures of water masers surrounding the nucleus of nearby galaxies have revealed a very fast
keplerian motion, only possible with a high concentration of matter in the center. Currently, the only known objects
that can pack enough matter in such a small space are black holes, or things that will evolve into black holes within
astrophysically short timescales. For active galaxies farther away, the width of broad spectral lines can be used to
probe the gas orbiting near the event horizon. The technique of reverberation mapping uses variability of these lines
to measure the mass and perhaps the spin of the black hole that powers the active galaxy's "engine".
Such supermassive black holes in the center of many galaxies are thought to be the "engine" of active objects such as
Seyfert galaxies and quasars.
Supermassive black hole hypothesis

Astronomers are confident that our own Milky Way galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its center, in a region
called Sagittarius A*[8] because:
• The star S2 follows an elliptical orbit with a period of 15.2 years and a pericenter (closest distance) of 17 light
hours from the center of the central object.[9]
• From the motion of star S2, we estimate the object's mass as 4.1 million solar masses.[10]
• We also know that the radius of the central object is significantly less than 17 light hours, because otherwise,
S2 would either collide with it or be ripped apart by tidal forces. In fact, recent observations[11] indicate that
the radius is no more than 6.25 light-hours, about the diameter of Uranus' orbit.
• The only known object which can pack 4.1 million solar masses into a volume that small is a black hole.
The Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics and UCLA Galactic Center Group[12] have provided the
strongest evidence to date that Sagittarius A* is the site of a supermassive black hole,[8] based on data from the
ESO[13] and the Keck telescope.[14] Our galactic central black hole is calculated to have a mass of approximately 4.1
million solar masses,[15] or about 8.2 × 1036 kg.
Supermassive black holes outside the Milky Way

It is now widely accepted that the center of nearly every galaxy contains a supermassive black hole.[16] [17] The close
observational correlation between the mass of this hole and the velocity dispersion of the host galaxy's bulge, known
as the M-sigma relation[18] , strongly suggests a connection between the formation of the black hole and the galaxy
itself.[16]
The explanation for this correlation remains an unsolved problem in astrophysics. It is believed that black holes and
their host galaxies coevolved between 300-800 million years after the Big Bang, passing through a quasar phase and
developing correlated characteristics, but models differ on the causality of whether black holes triggered galaxy
formation or vice versa, and sequential formation cannot be excluded. The unknown nature of dark matter is a
crucial variable in these models.[19] [20]
At least one galaxy, Galaxy 0402+379, appears to have two supermassive black holes at its center, forming a binary
system. If they collide, the event would create strong gravitational waves. Binary supermassive black holes are
believed to be a common consequence of galactic mergers.[21] As of November 2008, another binary pair, in OJ 287,
contains the most massive black hole known, with a mass estimated at 18 billion solar masses.[22]
See also
• Active galactic nucleus
• Black hole
• Fuzzball (string theory)
• Galaxy
• Galactic center
• Hypercompact stellar system
• Neutron star
• Quasar
• Sagittarius A*
• Spin-flip
References
[1] Chandra :: Photo Album :: RX J1242-11 :: 18 Feb 04 (http:/ / chandra. harvard. edu/ photo/ 2004/ rxj1242/ )
[2] Schödel, R.; et al. (2002). "A star in a 15.2-year orbit around the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way". Nature 419
(6908): 694–696. doi:10.1038/nature01121. PMID 12384690.
[3] Antonucci, R. (1993). "Unified Models for Active Galactic Nuclei and Quasars". Annual Reviews in Astronomy and Astrophysics 31 (1):
473–521. doi:10.1146/annurev.aa.31.090193.002353.
[4] Urry, C.; Paolo Padovani (1995). "Unified Schemes for Radio-Loud Active Galactic Nuclei". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the
Pacific 107: 803–845. doi:10.1086/133630.
[5] Begelman, M. C.; et al. (Jun 2006). "Formation of supermassive black holes by direct collapse in pre-galactic haloes". Monthly Notices of the
Royal Astronomical Society 370 (1): 289–298. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2006.10467.x.
[6] Spitzer, L. (1987). Dynamical Evolution of Globular Clusters. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691083096.
[7] Winter, L.M.; et al. (Oct 2006). "XMM-Newton Archival Study of the ULX Population in Nearby Galaxies". Astrophysical Journal 649:
730–752. doi:10.1086/506579.
[8] Henderson, Mark (December 9, 2008). "Astronomers confirm black hole at the heart of the Milky Way" (http:/ / www. timesonline. co. uk/
tol/ news/ uk/ science/ article5316001. ece). Times Online. . Retrieved 2009-05-17.
[9] Schödel, R.; et. al. (17 October 2002). "A star in a 15.2-year orbit around the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way" (http:/ /
www. nature. com/ nature/ journal/ v419/ n6908/ abs/ nature01121. html). Nature 419 (419): 694–696. doi:10.1038/nature01121.
arXiv:astro-ph/0210426. PMID 12384690. . Retrieved 2009-07-27.
[10] Ghez, A. M.; et al. (December 2008). "Measuring Distance and Properties of the Milky Way's Central Supermassive Black Hole with Stellar
Orbits" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2008ApJ. . . 689. 1044G). Astrophysical Journal 689: 1044–1062. doi:10.1086/592738.
arXiv:astro-ph/0808.2870. .
[11] Ghez, A. M.; Salim, S.; Hornstein, S. D.; Tanner, A.; Lu, J. R.; Morris, M.; Becklin, E. E.; Duchêne, G. (May 2005). "Stellar Orbits around
the Galactic Center Black Hole" (http:/ / www. journals. uchicago. edu/ doi/ abs/ 10. 1086/ 427175). The Astrophysical Journal 620 (2):
744–757. doi:10.1086/427175. arXiv:astro-ph/0306130v2. . Retrieved 2008-05-10.
[12] UCLA Galactic Center Group (http:/ / www. astro. ucla. edu/ ~ghezgroup/ gc/ )
[13] ESO - 2002 (http:/ / www. eso. org/ outreach/ press-rel/ pr-2002/ pr-17-02. html)
[14] http:/ / www. keckobservatory. org/ news/ old_pages/ andreaghez. html
[15] http:/ / www. skyandtelescope. com/ news/ 27621359. html
[16] King, Andrew (2003-09-15). "Black Holes, Galaxy Formation, and the MBH-σ Relation" (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ 1538-4357/
596/ 1/ L27/ 17559. text. html). The Astrophysical Journal (The American Astronomical Society.): 596:L27–L29. .
[17] Richstone, D. et al. (January 13, 1997). "Massive Black Holes Dwell in Most Galaxies, According to Hubble Census" (http:/ / hubblesite.
org/ newscenter/ archive/ releases/ 1997/ 01/ text/ ). 189th Meeting of the American Astronomical Society. . Retrieved 2009-05-17.
[18] Merritt, D.; Ferrarese, Laura (2001-01-15). "The MBH-σ Relation for Supermassive Black Holes" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
2001ApJ. . . 547. . 140M). The Astrophysical Journal (The American Astronomical Society.) 547: 547:140–145. doi:10.1086/318372. .
[19] Robert Roy Britt (2003-07-29). "The New History of Black Holes: 'Co-evolution' Dramatically Alters Dark Reputation" (http:/ / www.
space. com/ scienceastronomy/ blackhole_history_030128-1. html). .
[20] "Astronomers crack cosmic chicken-or-egg dilemma" (http:/ / www. astronomy. com/ asy/ default. aspx?c=a& id=2165). 2003-07-22. .
[21] D. Merritt and M. Milosavljevic (2005). "Massive Black Hole Binary Evolution." http:/ / relativity. livingreviews. org/ Articles/ lrr-2005-8/
[22] Shiga, David (10 January 2008). "Biggest black hole in the cosmos discovered" (http:/ / space. newscientist. com/ article/
dn13166-biggest-black-hole-in-the-cosmos-discovered. html). NewScientist.com news service. .
Further reading
• Fulvio Melia (2003). The Edge of Infinity. Supermassive Black Holes in the Universe. Cambridge University
Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81405-8.
• Laura Ferrarese and David Merritt (2002). "Supermassive Black Holes" (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/
2002astro.ph..6222F). Physics World 15 (1): 41–46.
• Fulvio Melia (2007). The Galactic Supermassive Black Hole. Princeton University Press.
ISBN 978-0-691-13129-0.
• Julian Krolik (1999). Active Galactic Nuclei. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01151-6.
External links
• Black Holes: Gravity's Relentless Pull (http://www.hubblesite.org/go/blackholes) Award-winning interactive
multimedia Web site about the physics and astronomy of black holes from the Space Telescope Science Institute
• Images of supermassive black holes (http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2002/0157/0157_composite.jpg)
• NASA images of supermassive black holes (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0210/
mwcentre_eso_big.jpg)
• The black hole at the heart of the Milky Way (http://www.einstein-online.info/en/spotlights/milkyway_bh/
index.html)
• ESO video clip of orbiting star (http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-2002/video/vid-02-02.mpg) (533
KB MPEG Video)
• Star Orbiting Massive Milky Way Centre Approaches to within 17 Light-Hours (http://www.eso.org/outreach/
press-rel/pr-2002/pr-17-02.html) ESO, October 21, 2002
• Images, Animations, and New Results from the UCLA Galactic Center Group (http://www.astro.ucla.edu/
research/galcenter/)
• Washington Post article on Supermassive black holes (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/
article/2007/10/30/AR2007103002073.html?nav=most_emailed)
• A simulation of the stars orbiting the Milky Way's central massive black hole (http://www.orbitsimulator.com/
gravity/articles/mwblackhole.html)
53
Large-scale structure
Galaxy groups and clusters

Galaxy groups and clusters are the largest known gravitationally
bound objects to have arisen thus far in the process of cosmic
structure formation.[1] They form the densest part of the large scale
structure of the universe. In models for the gravitational formation
of structure with cold dark matter, the smallest structures collapse
first and eventually build the largest structures, clusters of
galaxies. Clusters are then formed relatively recently between 10
billion years ago and now. Groups and clusters may contain from
ten to thousands of galaxies. The clusters themselves are often
associated with larger groups called superclusters.
Groups of galaxies
Groups of galaxies are the smallest aggregates of galaxies. They
The galaxies of HCG 87, about four hundred million
typically contain fewer than 50 galaxies in a diameter of 1 to 2
light-years distant. The large edge-on spiral, the fuzzy
megaparsecs (Mpc) (see 1022 m for distance comparisons). Their elliptical galaxy immediately to its right, and the spiral
mass is approximately 1013 solar masses. The spread of velocities near the top of the image are members of the group,
for the individual galaxies is about 150 km/s. However, this while the small spiral galaxy exactly in the middle is a
more distant background galaxy. Credit: NASA/ESA.
definition should be used as a guide only, as larger and more
massive galaxy systems are sometimes classified as galaxy groups.
Our own galaxy, the Milky Way, is contained in the Local Group of galaxies, which contains more than 40
galaxies.[2]
Clusters of galaxies
Clusters are larger than groups, although there is no sharp dividing line
between the two. When observed visually, clusters appear to be
collections of galaxies held together by mutual gravitational attraction.
However, their velocities are too large for them to remain
gravitationally bound by their mutual attractions, implying the
presence of either an additional invisible mass component, or an
additional attractive force besides gravity. X-ray studies have revealed
the presence of large amounts of intergalactic gas known as the
intracluster medium. This gas is very hot, between 107K and 108K, and
hence emits X-rays in the form of bremsstrahlung and atomic line
Galaxy cluster ACO 3341.
emission. The total mass of the gas is greater than that of the galaxies
by roughly a factor of two. However this is still not enough mass to
keep the galaxies in the cluster. Since this gas is in approximate hydrostatic equilibrium with the overall cluster
gravitational field, the total mass distribution can be determined. It turns out the total mass deduced from this
measurement is approximately six times larger than the mass of the galaxies or the hot gas. The missing component
is known as dark matter and its nature is unknown. In a typical cluster perhaps only 5% of the total mass is in the
form of galaxies, maybe 10% in the form of hot X-ray emitting gas and the remainder is dark matter. Brownstein and
Moffat[3] use a theory of modified gravity to explain X-ray cluster masses without dark matter. Observations of the
Bullet Cluster, however, are considered to be some of the strongest evidence for the existence of dark matter.
Clusters typically have the following properties.
• They contain 50 to 1,000 galaxies, hot X-ray emitting gas and large amounts of dark matter
• The distribution of these three components is approximately the same in the cluster.
• They have total masses of 1014 to 1015 solar masses.
• They typically have a diameter from 2 to 10 Mpc (see 1023 m for distance comparisons).
• The spread of velocities for the individual galaxies is about 800–1000 km/s.
Notable galaxy clusters in the relatively nearby universe include the Virgo cluster, Fornax Cluster, Hercules Cluster,
and the Coma Cluster. A very large aggregation of galaxies known as the Great Attractor, dominated by the Norma
cluster, is massive enough to affect the local expansion of the universe (Hubble flow).
In the last few decades, they are also found to be relevant sites of particle acceleration, a feature which has been
discovered by the observing non-thermal diffuse radio emissions as radio halos and radio relics.
Note: clusters of galaxies should not be confused with star clusters such as galactic clusters and open clusters, which
are structures within galaxies, as well as globular clusters, which typically orbit galaxies.
Observational methods
Clusters of galaxies have been found in surveys by a number of observational techniques and have been studied in
detail using many methods:
• Optical or infrared: The individual galaxies of clusters can be studied through optical or infrared imaging and
spectroscopy. Galaxy clusters are found by optical or infrared telescopes by searching for overdensities, and then
confirmed by finding several galaxies at a similar redshift. Infrared searches are more useful for finding more
distant (higher redshift) clusters.
• X-ray: The hot plasma emits X-rays which can be detected by X-ray telescopes. The cluster gas can be studied
using both X-ray imaging and X-ray spectroscopy. Clusters are quite prominent in X-ray surveys and along with
AGN are the brightest X-ray emitting extragalactic objects.
• Radio: A number of diffuse structures emitting at radio frequencies have been found in clusters. Groups of radio
sources (which may include diffuse structures or AGN have been used as tracers of cluster location. At high
redshift imaging around individual radio sources (in this case AGN) has been used to detect proto-clusters
(clusters in the process of forming).
• Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect: The hot electrons in the intracluster medium scatter radiation from the cosmic
microwave background through inverse Compton scattering. This produces a "shadow" in the observed cosmic
microwave background at some radio frequencies.
• Gravitational lensing: Clusters of galaxies contain enough matter to distort the observed orientations of galaxies
behind them. The observed distortions can be used to model the distribution of dark matter in the cluster.
Temperature and density

Clusters of galaxies are the most recent and most massive objects to have arisen in the hierarchical structure
formation of the universe and the study of clusters tells one about the way galaxies form and evolve. Clusters have
two important properties: their masses are large enough to retain any energetic gas ejected from member galaxies
and the thermal energy of the gas within the cluster is observable within the X-Ray bandpass. The observed state of
gas within a cluster is determined by a combination of shock heating during accretion, radiative cooling, and thermal
feedback triggered by that cooling. The density, temperature, and substructure of the intracluster X-Ray gas therefore
represents the entire thermal history of cluster formation. To better understand this thermal history one needs to
study the entropy of the gas because entropy is the quantity most directly changed by increasing or decreasing the
thermal energy of intracluster gas.
See also
• Fossil group
• Galactic orientation
• List of galaxy clusters
• Large-scale structure of the cosmos
• Supercluster
• Timeline of galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large-scale structure
• Intracluster medium
• Entropy
References
[1] Voit, G.M.; "Tracing cosmic evolution with clusters of galaxies"; Reviews of Modern Physics, vol. 77, Issue 1, pp. 207-258
[2] Mike Irwin. "The Local Group" (http:/ / www. ast. cam. ac. uk/ ~mike/ local_more. html). . Retrieved 2009-11-07.
[3] Galaxy Cluster Masses Without Non-Baryonic Dark Matter "Galaxy Cluster Masses Without Non-Baryonic Dark Matter" (http:/ / arxiv. org/
abs/ astro-ph/ 0507222). Mon.Not.Roy.Astron.Soc. 367 (2006) 527-540. July 8, 2005. Galaxy Cluster Masses Without Non-Baryonic Dark
Matter. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
Galaxy supercluster
Superclusters are large groups of smaller galaxy
groups and clusters and are among the largest structures
of the cosmos. They are so large that they are not
gravitationally bound and, consequently, partake in the
Hubble expansion.
Existence
The existence of superclusters indicates that the
galaxies in our Universe are not uniformly distributed;
most of them are drawn together in groups and clusters,
with groups containing up to 50 galaxies and clusters
up to several thousand. Those groups and clusters and
additional isolated galaxies in turn form even larger
structures called superclusters.
A map of the nearest (to Virgo) Superclusters
Once thought to be the largest structures in nature,
superclusters are now understood to be subordinate to enormous walls or sheets, usually called "filaments",
sometimes called "supercluster complexes", "walls" or "sheets", that can span a billion light-years in length, more
than 5% of the observable universe. Superclusters themselves can span several hundred million light-years. The
typical speed of a galaxy is about 1000 km/s. Hubble's law implies that typical galaxies would only move about 30
million light-years at that speed in a Hubble time of 1/H, which is approximately the age of the universe. While this
is a huge distance in human terms, it is much smaller than the size of superclusters. In an expanding universe, saying
that the distance d an object has moved equals its present velocity v times the elapsed time t underestimates d when t
is not small compared to 1/H. The calculation above still gives some idea of how long it would take the normal
movements of galaxies to form or obliterate these structures, and thus indicates their great age. When we observe
superclusters and larger structures today, we learn about the condition of the universe when these superclusters were
created. The directions of the rotational axes of galaxies within superclusters also gives us insight into the formation
process of galaxies early in the history of the Universe.[1]
According to some astronomers, no clusters of superclusters (“hyperclusters”) are known; the existence of structures
larger than superclusters is debated (see Galaxy filament). Interspersed among superclusters are large voids of space
in which few galaxies exist. Even though superclusters are the largest structures confirmed, the total number of
superclusters leaves possibilities for structural distribution.
Superclusters are frequently subdivided into groups of clusters called galaxy clouds.
List of superclusters
Nearby superclusters
Galaxy Data Notes

supercluster
Local Supercluster • z=0.000 (0 light It contains the Local Group with our galaxy, the Milky Way. It also contains the Virgo cluster near
years away) its center, and is sometimes called the Virgo Supercluster.
• Length = 33 Mpc
(110 million light
years)
Hydra-Centaurus It is composed of two lobes, sometimes also referred to as superclusters, or sometimes the entire
Supercluster supercluster is referred to by these other two names
• Hydra Supercluster
• Centaurus Supercluster
Perseus-Pisces
Supercluster
Pavo-Indus
Supercluster
Coma Supercluster Forms most of the CfA Homunculus, the center of the CfA2 Great Wall galaxy filament
Phoenix
Supercluster
Sculptor SCl 9
Superclusters
Hercules SCl 160

Superclusters
Leo Supercluster SCl 93
Ophiuchus • 17h 10m -22° Forming the far wall of the Ophiuchus Void, it may be connected in a filament, with the
Supercluster • cz=8500-9000 km/s Pavo-Indus-Telescopium Supercluster and the Hercules Supercluster. This supercluster is centered
(centre) on the cD cluster Ophiuchus Cluster, and has at least two more galaxy clusters, four more galaxy
[2]
• 18 Mpc x 26 Mpc groups, several field galaxies, as members.
Shapley The second supercluster found, after the Local Supercluster.

Supercluster
Distant superclusters
Galaxy supercluster Data Notes
Pisces-Cetus Supercluster
Bootes Supercluster SCl 138
Horologium Supercluster z=0.063 (700 Mly) The entire supercluster is referred to as the Horologium-Reticulum Supercluster
Length = 550 Mly
Corona Borealis Supercluster
Columba Supercluster
Aquarius Supercluster
Aquarius B Supercluster
Aquarius-Capricornus Supercluster
Aquarius-Cetus Supercluster
Bootes A Supercluster
Caelum Supercluster SCl 59

Draco Supercluster
Draco-Ursa Major Supercluster
Fornax-Eridanus Supercluster
Grus Supercluster
Leo A Supercluster
Leo-Sextans Supercluster
Leo-Virgo Supercluster SCl 107
Microscopium Supercluster SCl 174
Pegasus-Pisces Supercluster SCl 3
Pisces Supercluster SCl 24
Pisces-Aries Supercluster
Ursa Major Supercluster
Virgo-Coma Supercluster SCl 111
Far distant superclusters
Galaxy supercluster Data Notes
Lynx Supercluster z=1.27 [3]

Discovered in 1999 (as ClG J0848+4453, a name now used to describe the western cluster, with ClG
[4]
J0849+4452 being the eastern one), it contains at least two clusters RXJ 0848.9+4452 (z=1.26) and
[5]
RXJ 0848.6+4453 (z=1.27) . At the time of discovery, it became the most distant known supecluster.
[6]
Additionally, seven smaller groups of galaxies are associated with the supercluster.
SCL @ 1338+27 at z=1.1 A rich supercluster with several galaxy clusters was discovered around an unusual concentration of 23
z=1.1 Length=70Mpc QSOs at z=1.1 in 2001. The size of the complex of clusters may indicate a wall of galaxies exists there,
instead of a single supercluster. The size discovered approaches the size of the CfA2 Great Wall
[7]
filament. At the time of the discovery, it was the largest and most distant supercluster beyond z=0.5
[8]
SCL @ 1604+43 at z=0.91 This supercluster at the time of its discovery was the largest supercluster found so deep into space, in
z=0.9 2000. It consisted of two known rich clusters and one newly discovered cluster as a result of the study
that discovered it. The then known clusters were Cl 1604+4304 (z=0.897) and Cl 1604+4321 (z=0.924),
which then known to have 21 and 42 known galaxies respectively. The then newly discovered cluster
[9]
was located at 16h 04m 25.7s, +43° 14′ 44.7″
SCL @ 0018+16 at z=0.54 This supercluster lies around radio galaxy 54W084C (z=0.544) and is composed of at least three large
z=0.54 in SA26 [10]
clusters, CL 0016+16 (z=0.5455), RX J0018.3+1618 (z=0.5506), RX J0018.8+1602 .
MS 0302+17 z=0.42 This supercluster has at least three member clusters, the eastern cluster CL 0303+1706, southern cluster
[11]
Length=6Mpc MS 0302+1659 and northern cluster MS 0302+1717.
SPT-CL_J0546-5345 z=1.07 The most massive supercluster yet found in the early universe at 7 billion years away. It has 800 trillion
[12]
suns packed into hundreds of galaxies, but is likely to be much larger by now.
References
[1] Hu, F. X.; Wu, G. X.; Song, G. X.; Yuan, Q. R.; Okamura, S. (2006). "Orientation of Galaxies in the Local Supercluster: A Review" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ cgi-bin/ nph-bib_query?bibcode=2006Ap& SS. 302. . . 43H). Astrophysics and Space Science 302 (1-4): 43–59.
doi:10.1007/s10509-005-9006-7. .
[2] Hasegawa, Takashi; Wakamatsu, Ken-ichi; Malkan, Matthew; Sekiguchi, Kazuhiro; Menzies, John W.; Parker, Quentin A.; Jugaku, Jun;
Karoji, Hiroshi; Okamura, Sadanori (2000) "Large-scale structure of galaxies in the Ophiuchus region" (http:/ / cdsads. u-strasbg. fr/ cgi-bin/
nph-iarticle_query?2000MNRAS. 316. . 326H& amp;data_type=PDF_HIGH& amp;whole_paper=YES& amp;type=PRINTER&
amp;filetype=. pdf) (PDF) Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Volume 316, Issue 2, pp. 326-344
Bibcode: 2000MNRAS.316..326H doi:10.1046/j.1365-8711.2000.03531.x
[3] Piero Rosati et al (1999) "An X-Ray-Selected Galaxy Cluster at z = 1.26" (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ abstract/ -link=10009729/ 1538-3881/
118/ 1/ 76) The Astronomical Journal 118 76-85
[4] SIMBAD, "Lynx Supercluster" (http:/ / simbad. u-strasbg. fr/ simbad/ sim-id?Ident=NAME LYNX SUPERCLUSTER)
[5] Fumiaki Nakata, Tadayuki Kodama, Kazuhiro Shimasaku, Mamoru Doi, Hisanori Furusawa, Masaru Hamabe, Masahiko Kimura, Yutaka
Komiyama, Satoshi Miyazaki, Sadanori Okamura, Masami Ouchi, Maki Sekiguchi, Masafumi Yagi and Naoki Yasuda (2004) "Discovery of a
large-scale clumpy structure of the Lynx supercluster at z∼1.27" (http:/ / journals. cambridge. org/ download. php?file=/ IAU/
IAU2004_IAUC195/ S1743921304000080a. pdf& code=d459918c34d5d3cd559d97c60a9e146d), (PDF) Proceedings IAU Colloquium No.
195, doi:10.1017/S1743921304000080
[6] Kouji Ohta, Masayuki Akiyama, Yoshihiro Ueda, Toru Yamada, Kouichiro Nakanishi, Gavin B. Dalton, Yasushi Ogasaka, Tsuneo Kii,
Kiyoshi Hayashida (2003) "Optical Identification of the ASCA Lynx Deep Survey: An Association of Quasi-Stellar Objects and a
Supercluster at z = 1.3?" (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ 0004-637X/ 598/ 1/ 210/ 58425. text. html) The Astrophysical Journal,
598:210-215
[7] Ichi Tanaka (2004) "Subaru Observation of a Supercluster of Galaxies and QSOS at Z = 1.1" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2004sgyu.
conf. . . 61T) Studies of Galaxies in the Young Universe with New Generation Telescope, Proceedings of Japan-German Seminar, held in
Sendai, Japan, July 24-28, 2001 Bibcode: 2004sgyu.conf...61T
[8] Ichi Tanaka, Toru Yamada, Edwin L. Turner, Yasushi Suto (2000) "Superclustering of Faint Galaxies in the Field of a QSO Concentration at
z ~ 1.1" (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ 0004-637X/ 547/ 2/ 521/ 52628. text. html) The Astrophysical Journal, 547:521-530
[9] Lori M. Lubin et al (2000) "A Definitive Optical Detection of a Supercluster at z~0.91" (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ -link=10009726/
1538-4357/ 531/ 1/ L5/ 995833. web. pdf?request-doi=f88e19d1-e5ad-494f-82fa-209b71deb313) (PDF) The Astrophysical Journal,
531:L5–L8 10.1086/312518
[10] A. J. Connolly et al (1996) "Superclustering at Redshift z = 0.54" (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ -link=10009724/ 1538-4357/ 473/ 2/
L67/ 5314. pdf?request-doi=57cce217-e8d5-46db-9f16-6aefdc96e347) (PDF) The Astrophysical Journal, 473:L67–L70 10.1086/310395
[11] University of Hawaii, "The MS0302+17 Supercluster" (http:/ / www. ifa. hawaii. edu/ ~kaiser/ pictures/ ms0302/ caption. html), Nick
Kaiser. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
[12] Space.com, "The SPT-CL_J0546-5345 Supercluster" (http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/
most-massive-galaxy-cluster-distant-universe-101014. html), Mark Brodwin. Retrieved 16 October 2010.
External links
• Overview of local superclusters (http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/superc.html)
• The Nearest Superclusters (http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/nearsc.html)
• Universe family tree: Supercluster (http://www.astro.uu.nl/~strous/AA/en/boom/supercluster.html)
See also
• Large-scale structure of the cosmos
• Galaxy groups and clusters
• Galaxy filament
• Galaxy cloud
• Galaxy
Galaxy filament 60
Galaxy filament
In physical cosmology, filaments are the
largest known structures in the universe,
thread-like structures with a typical length
of 50 to 80 megaparsecs h-1 that form the
boundaries between large voids in the
universe.[3] Filaments consist of
gravitationally-bound galaxies; parts where
a large number of galaxies are very close to
each other are called superclusters.
Discoveries about "hyperclusters" (clusters

of superclusters) started in the 1980s. In
1987 astronomer R. Brent Tully of the
University of Hawaii’s Institute of
Astronomy identified what he called the
Pisces-Cetus Supercluster Complex.[4] [5] In
1989 the CfA2 Great Wall was discovered,
[6]
followed by the Sloan Great Wall in
2003.[7]
The present day dark matter distribution in a slice cut through a simulation of a flat
In 2006, scientists announced the discovery universe with cosmological constant, using the overall pattern of structure in our
of three filaments aligned to form the largest [1]
local neighbourhood as a simulation constraint . The distribution reveals fine,
structure known to humanity, composed of filamentary structures. The slice has a side length of 520 million light years, and a
thickness of 100 million light years. It contains the so-called "supergalactic plane".
densely-packed galaxies and enormous [2]
The major nearby clusters, like Coma, Virgo, Perseus cluster, are labelled.
blobs of gas known as Lyman alpha blobs.[8]
List
Filaments
Filament subtype of filaments have roughly similar major and minor axes in cross-section, along the lengthwise axis.
Filaments of Galaxies
Filament Mean Distance Notes
Date Dimension
Coma Filament [9]

The Coma Supercluster lies within the Coma Filament. It forms
[10]
part of the CfA2 Great Wall.
Perseus-Pegasus Filament 1985 Connected to the Pisces-Cetus Supercluster, with the

[11]
Perseus-Pisces Supercluster being a member of the filament.
Ursa Major Filament Connected to the CfA Homunculus, a portion of the filament forms
[12]
a portion of the "leg" of the Homunculus.
Lynx-Ursa Major Filament 1999 from 2000km/s to Connected to and separate from the Lynx-Ursa Major Supercluster.
(LUM Filament) 8000km/s in redshift [12]
space
Galaxy filament 61
z=2.38 filament around 2004 z=2.38 110Mpc A filament the length of the Great Wall was discovered in 2004. As
protocluster ClG J2143-4423 [13] [14]
of 2008, it was still the largest structure beyond redshift 2.
[15] [16]
Galaxy walls
The Galaxy wall subtype of filaments have a significantly greater major axis than minor axis in cross-section, along
the lengthwise axis.
Walls of Galaxies
Wall Mean Dimension Notes
Date Distance
CfA2 Great Wall (Coma 1989 z=0.03058 251Mpc long This was the first super-large large-scale structure or pseudo-structure in the
Wall, Great Wall, Northern 750 Mly universe to be discovered. It is also the second largest. The CfA Homunculus
Great Wall, Great Northern long lies at the heart of the Great Wall, and the Coma Supercluster forms most of
Wall, CfA Great Wall) 250 Mly the homunculus structure. The Coma Cluster lies at the core. [17] [18]
wide
20 Mly
thick
Sloan Great Wall (SDSS 2005 z=0.07804 433Mpc long This is the largest known structure or pseudo-structure in the universe
Great Wall) [17]
discovered so far.
Sculptor Wall (Southern 8000km/s long The Sculptor Wall is "parallel" to the Fornax Wall and "perpendicular" to the
Great Wall, Great Southern 5000km/s wide [19] [20]
Grus Wall.
Wall, Southern Wall) 1000km/s deep
(in redshift
space
dimensions)
Grus Wall [20]

The Grus Wall is "perpendicular" to the Fornax and Sculptor Walls.
Fornax Wall The Fornax Cluster is part of this wall. The wall is "parallel" to the Sculptor
[19] [20]
Wall and "perpendicular" to the Grus Wall.
• A Centaurus Wall or Centaurus Great Wall has been proposed, and would have the Fornax Wall as a portion of it,
visually created by the Zone of Avoidance. It would also include the Centaurus Supercluster and the Local
Supercluster, (this would then be the Local Wall or Local Great Wall) [19] [20]
• A wall has been proposed to be the physical embodiment of the Great Attractor, with the Norma Cluster as part of
this wall. This wall is also referred to as the Great Attractor Wall or Norma Wall. [21]
• A wall has been proposed, in 2000, to lie at z=1.47 in the vicinity of radio galaxy B3 0003+387. [22]
• A wall has been proposed, in 2000, to lie at z=0.559 in the northern Hubble Deep Field (HDF North). [23] [24]
Galaxy filament 62
Map of nearest galaxy walls
The Universe within 500 million Light Years, showing the nearest galaxy walls
Maps of large scale distribution
The universe Map of nearest 2dF survey map, 2MASS XSC infrared sky map
within 1 billion walls, voids and containing the SDSS
light-years (307 superclusters. Great Wall
Mpc) of Earth,
showing local
superclusters
forming filaments
and voids.
Galaxy filament 63
See also
• Galaxy
• Galaxy clusters
• Galaxy superclusters
• List of galaxies
• List of galaxy superclusters
• Large-scale structure of the universe
• Void (astronomy)
References
[1] "Simulating the Local Galaxy Population" (http:/ / www. mpa-garching. mpg. de/ HIGHLIGHT/ 2001/ highlight0107_e. html).
Max-Planck-Institut für Astrophysik. .
[2] http:/ / www. mpa-garching. mpg. de/ galform/ data_vis/
[3] Bharadwaj, Somnath; Bhavsar, Suketu; Sheth, Jatush V. The Size of the Longest Filaments in the Universe (http:/ / www. journals. uchicago.
edu/ doi/ full/ 10. 1086/ 382140). Astrophys.J. 606 (2004) 25-31
[4] Massive Clusters of Galaxies Defy Concepts of the Universe N.Y. Times Tue. November 10, 1987: (http:/ / www. nytimes. com/ 1987/ 11/
10/ science/ massive-clusters-of-galaxies-defy-concepts-of-the-universe. html?pagewanted=all)
[5] Map of the Pisces-Cetus Supercluster Complex: (http:/ / plasmascience. net/ tpu/ LargeScale. html)
[6] M. J. Geller & J. P. Huchra, Science 246, 897 (1989). (http:/ / www. sciencemag. org/ cgi/ content/ abstract/ 246/ 4932/ 897)
[7] Sky and Telescope, "Refining the Cosmic Recipe" (http:/ / www. skyandtelescope. com/ news/ 3308301. html?page=1& c=y), 14 November
2003
[8] Than, Ker (2006-07-28). "Scientists: Cosmic blob biggest thing in universe" (http:/ / edition. cnn. com/ 2006/ TECH/ space/ 07/ 28/ universe.
blob/ index. html). SPACE.com. . Retrieved 2007-03-11.
[9] 'Astronomy and Astrophysics' (ISSN 0004-6361), vol. 138, no. 1, Sept. 1984, p. 85-92. Research supported by Cornell University "The
Coma/A 1367 filament of galaxies" 09/1984 Bibcode: 1984A&A...138...85F
[10] THE ASTRONOMICAL JOURNAL, 115:1745-1777, 1998 May ; THE STAR FORMATION PROPERTIES OF DISK GALAXIES: Hα
IMAGING OF GALAXIES IN THE COMA SUPERCLUSTER (http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ 1538-3881/ 115/ 5/ 1745/ 970234. text.
html)
[11] 'Astrophysical Journal', Part 1 (ISSN 0004-637X), vol. 299, Dec. 1, 1985, p. 5-14. "A possible 300 megaparsec filament of clusters of
galaxies in Perseus-Pegasus" 12/1985 Bibcode: 1985ApJ...299....5B
[12] 'The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series', Volume 121, Issue 2, pp. 445-472. "Photometric Properties of Kiso Ultraviolet-Excess
Galaxies in the Lynx-Ursa Major Region" 04/1999 Bibcode: 1999ApJS..121..445T
[13] NASA, GIANT GALAXY STRING DEFIES MODELS OF HOW UNIVERSE EVOLVED (http:/ / www. nasa. gov/ centers/ goddard/
news/ topstory/ 2004/ 0107filament. html), January 7, 2004
[14] 'The Astrophysical Journal', Volume 602, Issue 2, pp. 545-554. The Distribution of Lyα-Emitting Galaxies at z=2.38 02/2004
Bibcode: 2004ApJ...602..545P doi:10.1086/381145
[15] 'The Astrophysical Journal', Volume 614, Issue 1, pp. 75-83. The Distribution of Lyα-emitting Galaxies at z=2.38. II. Spectroscopy
10/2004 Bibcode: 2004ApJ...614...75F doi:10.1086/423417
[16] 'Relativistic Astrophysics Legacy and Cosmology - Einstein's, ESO Astrophysics Symposia', Volume . ISBN 978-3-540-74712-3.
Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2008, p. 358 Ultraviolet-Bright, High-Redshift ULIRGS 00/2008 Bibcode: 2008ralc.conf..358W
[17] Chin. J. Astron. Astrophys. Vol. 6 (2006), No. 1, 35–42 Super-Large-Scale Structures in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (http:/ / www. iop.
org/ EJ/ article/ 1009-9271/ 6/ 1/ 004/ chjaa_6_1_004. pdf)PDF
[18] 'Scientific American', Vol. 280, No. 6, p. 30 - 37 Mapping the Universe (http:/ / cosmos. phy. tufts. edu/ ~zirbel/ ast21/ sciam/
MappingUniverse. pdf)PDF (1.43 MB) 06/1999 Bibcode: 1999SciAm.280f..30L
[19] Unveiling large-scale structures behind the Milky Way. Astronomical Society of the Pacific Conference Series, Vol. 67; Proceedings of a
workshop at the Observatoire de Paris-Meudon; 18-21 January 1994; San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP); c1994; edited
by Chantal Balkowski and R. C. Kraan-Korteweg, p.21 ; Visualization of Nearby Large-Scale Structures (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/
1994ASPC. . . 67. . . 21F) ; Fairall, A. P., Paverd, W. R., & Ashley, R. P. ; 1994ASPC...67...21F
[20] 'Astrophysics and Space Science', Volume 230, Issue 1-2, pp. 225-235 Large-Scale Structures in the Distribution of Galaxies 08/1995
Bibcode: 1995Ap&SS.230..225F
[21] World Science, Wall of galaxies tugs on ours, astronomers find (http:/ / www. world-science. net/ exclusives/ exclusives-nfrm/
060419_attractor. htm) April 19, 2006
[22] 'The Astronomical Journal', Volume 120, Issue 5, pp. 2331-2337. B3 0003+387: AGN-Marked Large-Scale Structure at Redshift 1.47?
11/2000 Bibcode: 2000AJ....120.2331T doi:10.1086/316827
Galaxy filament 64
[23] FermiLab, Astronomers Find Wall of Galaxies Traversing the Hubble Deep Field (http:/ / www. spaceref. ca/ news/ viewpr. html?pid=634),
DARPA, Monday, January 24, 2000
[24] 'The Astronomical Journal', Volume 119, Issue 6, pp. 2571-2582 ; QSOS and Absorption-Line Systems surrounding the Hubble Deep Field
(http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/ 1538-3881/ 119/ 6/ 2571/ 990560. text. html) ; 06/2000 ; doi:10.1086/301404 ;
Bibcode: 2000AJ....119.2571V ;
Further reading
• arXiv, Pulling out Threads from the Cosmic Tapestry:Defining Filaments of Galaxies (http://www.publish.
csiro.au/?act=view_file&file_id=AS05006.pdf)PDF, Kevin A. Pimbblet, 14 March 2005
External links
• Pictures of the filamentary network (http://pil.phys.uniroma1.it/twiki/bin/view/Pil/GalaxyStructures)
• Astronomical Institute / Utrecht University - Astronomy Answers - Universe Family Tree: Filament (http://
www.astro.uu.nl/~strous/AA/en/boom/filament.html#filament) (Dr Louis Strous)
• Astronomical Institute / Utrecht University - Astronomy Answers - From the Astronomical Dictionary - filament
(http://www.astro.uu.nl/~strous/cgi-bin/glossary.cgi?l=en&o=filaments) (Dr Louis Strous)
65
Types of galaxies
Active galaxy
An active galactic nucleus (AGN) is a compact region at the centre of a galaxy that has a much higher than normal
luminosity over at least some portion, and possibly all, of the electromagnetic spectrum. Such excess emission has
been observed in the radio, infrared, optical, ultra-violet, X-ray and gamma ray wavebands. A galaxy hosting an
AGN is called an active galaxy. The radiation from AGN is believed to be a result of accretion of mass by the
supermassive black hole at the centre of the host galaxy. AGN are the most luminous persistent sources of
electromagnetic radiation in the universe, and as such can be used as a means of discovering distant objects; their
evolution as a function of cosmic time also provides constraints on models of the cosmos.
Discovery
The issue of the Activity of Nuclei of
Galaxies (AGN) was first raised by
soviet-armenian physicist Prof. Victor
Ambartsumian in the early 50s. Although
the idea concerning the activity of galactic
nuclei for the first time was accepted very
skeptically, after many years, as a result of
the pressure of observations (the discovery
of quasars, radio outbursts of galaxies,
consequences of explosions in nuclei,
ejection from nuclei, etc.) did it gain
recognition. The concept of AGN now is
widely accepted.[1]
Models of the active nucleus

For a long time it has been argued[2] that
AGN must be powered by accretion onto
Hubble Space Telescope image of a 5000 light-year long jet being ejected from the
massive black holes (with masses between active nucleus of the active galaxy M87, a radio galaxy. The blue synchrotron
106 and 1010 times that of the Sun). AGN radiation of the jet contrasts with the yellow starlight from the host galaxy.
are both compact and persistently extremely
luminous; accretion can potentially give very efficient conversion of potential and kinetic energy to radiation, and a
massive black hole has a high Eddington luminosity, so that it can provide the observed high persistent luminosity.
Central supermassive black holes are now believed to exist in the centers of most or all massive galaxies: the mass of
the black hole correlates well with the velocity dispersion of the galaxy bulge (the M-sigma relation) or with bulge
luminosity (e.g.[3] ). Thus AGN-like characteristics are expected whenever a supply of material for accretion comes
within the sphere of influence of the central black hole.
Active galaxy 66
Accretion disk
In the standard model of AGN, cold material close to the central black hole forms an accretion disc. Dissipative
processes in the accretion disc transport matter inwards and angular momentum outwards, while causing the
accretion disc to heat up. The expected spectrum of an accretion disc around a supermassive black hole peaks in the
optical-ultraviolet waveband; in addition, a corona of hot material forms above the accretion disc and can
inverse-Compton scatter photons up to X-ray energies. The radiation from the accretion disc excites cold atomic
material close to the black hole and this radiates via emission lines. A large fraction of the AGN's primary output
may be obscured by interstellar gas and dust close to the accretion disc, but (in a steady-state situation) this will be
re-radiated at some other waveband, most likely the infrared.
Relativistic jets
At least some accretion discs produce jets, twin highly collimated and fast outflows that emerge in opposite
directions from close to the disc (the direction of the jet ejection must be determined either by the angular
momentum axis of the disc or the spin axis of the black hole). The jet production mechanism and indeed the jet
composition on very small scales are not known at present, as observations cannot distinguish between the various
theoretical models that exist. The jets have the most obvious observational effects in the radio waveband, where
Very Long Baseline Interferometry can be used to study the synchrotron radiation they emit down to sub-parsec
scales. However, they radiate in all wavebands from the radio through to the gamma-ray via the synchrotron and
inverse-Compton process, and so AGN with jets have a second potential source of any observed continuum
radiation.
Radiatively inefficient AGN

There exists a class of 'radiatively inefficient' solutions to the equations that govern accretion. The most widely
known of these is the Advection Dominated Accretion Flow (ADAF),[4] but others exist. In this type of accretion,
which is important for accretion rates well below the Eddington limit, the accreting matter does not form a thin disc
and consequently does not radiate away the energy that it has acquired in moving close to the black hole. Radiatively
inefficient accretion has been used to explain the lack of strong AGN-type radiation from massive black holes in the
centres of elliptical galaxies in clusters, where otherwise we might expect high accretion rates and corresponding
high luminosities[5] . Radiatively inefficient AGN would be expected to lack many of the characteristic features of
standard AGN with an accretion disc.
Observational characteristics
There is no single observational signature of an AGN. The list below covers some of the historically important
features that have allowed systems to be identified as AGN.
• Nuclear optical continuum emission. This is visible whenever we have a direct view of the accretion disc. Jets can
also contribute to this component of the AGN emission. The optical emission has a roughly power-law
dependence on wavelength.
• Nuclear infra-red emission. This is visible whenever the accretion disc and its environment are obscured by gas
and dust close to the nucleus and then re-emitted ('reprocessing'). As it is thermal emission, it can be distinguished
from any jet or disc-related component.
• Broad optical emission lines. These come from cold material close to the central black hole. The lines are broad
because the emitting material is revolving around the black hole with high speeds, emitting photons at varying
Doppler shifts.
• Narrow optical emission lines. These come from more distant cold material, and so are narrower than the broad
lines.
Active galaxy 67
• Radio continuum emission. This is always due to a jet. It shows a spectrum characteristic of synchrotron
radiation.
• X-ray continuum emission. This can arise both from a jet and from the hot corona of the accretion disc via
scattering processes: in both cases it shows a power-law spectrum. In some radio-quiet AGN there is a `soft
excess' in the X-ray emission in addition to the power-law component. The origin of the soft excess is not clear at
present.
• X-ray line emission. This is a result of illumination of cold heavy elements by the X-ray continuum. Fluorescence
gives rise to various emission lines, the best-known of which is the iron feature around 6.4 keV. This line may be
narrow or broad: relativistically broadened iron lines can be used to study the dynamics of the accretion disc very
close to the nucleus and therefore the nature of the central black hole.
Types of active galaxy

It is convenient to divide AGN into two classes, conventionally called radio-quiet and radio-loud. In the radio-loud
objects a contribution from the jet(s) and the lobes they inflate dominates the luminosity of the AGN, at least at radio
wavelengths but possibly at some or all others. Radio-quiet objects are simpler since jet and jet-related emission can
be neglected.
AGN terminology is often confusing, since the distinctions between different types of AGN sometimes reflect
historical differences in how objects were discovered or initially classified, rather than real physical differences.
Radio-quiet AGN
• Low-ionization nuclear emission-line regions (LINERs). As the name suggests, these systems show only weak
nuclear emission-line regions, and no other signatures of AGN emission. It is debatable whether all such systems
are true AGN (powered by accretion on to a supermassive black hole). If they are, they constitute the
lowest-luminosity class of radio-quiet AGN. Some may be radio-quiet analogues of the low-excitation radio
galaxies (see below).
• Seyfert galaxies. Seyferts were the earliest distinct class of AGN to be identified. They show optical nuclear
continuum emission, narrow and (sometimes) broad emission lines, (sometimes) strong nuclear X-ray emission
and sometimes a weak small-scale radio jet. Originally they were divided into two types known as Seyfert 1 and
2: Seyfert 1s show strong broad emission lines while Seyfert 2s do not, and Seyfert 1s are more likely to show
strong low-energy X-ray emission. Various forms of elaboration on this scheme exist: for example, Seyfert 1s
with relatively narrow broad lines are sometimes referred to as narrow-line Seyfert 1s. The host galaxies of
Seyferts are usually spiral or irregular galaxies.
• Radio-quiet quasars/QSOs. These are essentially more luminous versions of Seyfert 1s: the distinction is arbitrary
and is usually expressed in terms of a limiting optical magnitude. Quasars were originally 'quasi-stellar' in optical
images, and so had optical luminosities that were greater than that of their host galaxy. They always show strong
optical continuum emission, X-ray continuum emission, and broad and narrow optical emission lines. Some
astronomers use the term QSO (Quasi-Stellar Object) for this class of AGN, reserving 'quasar' for radio-loud
objects, while others talk about radio-quiet and radio-loud quasars. The host galaxies of quasars can be spirals,
irregulars or ellipticals: there is a correlation between the quasar's luminosity and the mass of its host galaxy, so
that the most luminous quasars inhabit the most massive galaxies (ellipticals).
• 'Quasar 2s'. By analogy with Seyfert 2s, these are objects with quasar-like luminosities but without strong optical
nuclear continuum emission or broad line emission. They are hard to find in surveys, though a number of possible
candidate quasar 2s have been identified.
Active galaxy 68
Radio-loud AGN
See main article radio galaxies for discussion of the large-scale behaviour of the jets. Here only the active nuclei are
discussed.
• Radio-loud quasars. These behave exactly like radio-quiet quasars with the addition of emission from a jet. Thus
they show strong optical continuum emission, broad and narrow emission lines, and strong X-ray emission,
together with nuclear and often extended radio emission.
• 'Blazars' (BL Lac objects and OVV quasars). These classes are distinguished by rapidly variable, polarized
optical, radio and X-ray emission. BL Lac objects show no optical emission lines, broad or narrow, so that their
redshifts can only be determined from features in the spectra of their host galaxies. The emission-line features
may be intrinsically absent or simply swamped by the additional variable component: in the latter case, emission
lines may become visible when the variable component is at a low level.[6] OVV quasars behave more like
standard radio-loud quasars with the addition of a rapidly variable component. In both classes of source, the
variable emission is believed to originate in a relativistic jet oriented close to the line of sight. Relativistic effects
amplify both the luminosity of the jet and the amplitude of variability.
• Radio galaxies. These objects show nuclear and extended radio emission. Their other AGN properties are
heterogeneous. They can broadly be divided into low-excitation and high-excitation classes.[7] [8] Low-excitation
objects show no strong narrow or broad emission lines, and the emission lines they do have may be excited by a
different mechanism.[9] Their optical and X-ray nuclear emission is consistent with originating purely in a jet.[10]
[11]
They may be the best current candidates for AGN with radiatively inefficient accretion. By contrast,
high-excitation objects (narrow-line radio galaxies) have emission-line spectra similar to those of Seyfert 2s. The
small class of broad-line radio galaxies, which show relatively strong nuclear optical continuum emission[12]
probably includes some objects that are simply low-luminosity radio-loud quasars. The host galaxies of radio
galaxies, whatever their emission-line type, are essentially always ellipticals.
Summary
These galaxies can be broadly summarised by the following table:
Differences between active galaxy types and normal galaxies.

Galaxy Type Active Nuclei Emission Lines X-rays Excess of Strong Radio Jets Variable Radio loud
Narrow Broad UV Far-IR
Normal no weak none weak none none none none no no
Starburst no yes no some no yes some no no no
Seyfert I yes yes yes some some yes no no yes no
Seyfert II yes yes no some some yes no yes yes no
Quasar yes yes yes some yes yes some some yes 10%
Blazar yes no some yes yes no yes yes yes yes
BL Lac yes no none/faint yes yes no yes yes yes yes
OVV yes no stronger than BL Lac yes yes no yes yes yes yes
Radio galaxy yes some some some some yes yes yes yes yes
Active galaxy 69
Unification
Unified models of AGN unite two or more classes of objects, based on the
traditional observational classifications, by proposing that they are really
a single type of physical object observed under different conditions. The
currently favoured unified models are 'orientation-based unified models'
meaning that they propose that the apparent differences between different
types of objects arise simply because of their different orientations to the
observer. For an overview of these see[14] and [15] , though some details in
the discussion below have emerged since these reviews were written.
Radio-quiet unification
At low luminosities, the objects to be unified are Seyfert galaxies. The
unified models propose that in Seyfert 1s the observer has a direct view of
the active nucleus. In Seyfert 2s it is observed through an obscuring
structure which prevents a direct view of the optical continuum,
broad-line region or (soft) X-ray emission. The key insight of
orientation-dependent accretion models is that the two types of object can
be the same if only certain angles to the line of sight are observed. The
standard picture is of a torus of obscuring material surrounding the
accretion disc. It must be large enough to obscure the broad-line region
but not large enough to obscure the narrow-line region, which is seen in
both classes of object. Seyfert 2s are seen through the torus. Outside the
torus there is material that can scatter some of the nuclear emission into
our line of sight, allowing us to see some optical and X-ray continuum Unification by viewing angle. From bottom to
top: down the jet - Blazar, at an angle to the
and, in some cases, broad emission lines—which are strongly polarized,
jet - Quasar/Seyfert 1 Galaxy, at 90 degrees
showing that they have been scattered and proving that some Seyfert 2s from the jet - Radio galaxy / Seyfert 2
[13]
really do contain hidden Seyfert 1s. Infrared observations of the nuclei of Galaxy
Seyfert 2s also support this picture.
At higher luminosities, quasars take the place of Seyfert 1s, but, as already mentioned, the corresponding 'quasar 2s'
are elusive at present. If they do not have the scattering component of Seyfert 2s they would be hard to detect except
through their luminous narrow-line and hard X-ray emission.
Radio-loud unification
Historically work on radio-loud unification has concentrated on high-luminosity radio-loud quasars. These can be
unified with narrow-line radio galaxies in a manner directly analoguous to the Seyfert 1/2 unification (but without
the complication of much in the way of a reflection component: narrow-line radio galaxies show no nuclear optical
continuum or reflected X-ray component, although they do occasionally show polarized broad-line emission). The
large-scale radio structures of these objects provide compelling evidence that the orientation-based unified models
really are true.[16] [17] [18] X-ray evidence, where available, supports the unified picture: radio galaxies show
evidence of obscuration from a torus, while quasars do not, although care must be taken since radio-loud objects also
have a soft unabsorbed jet-related component, and high resolution is necessary to separate out thermal emission from
the sources' large-scale hot-gas environment.[19] At very small angles to the line of sight, relativistic beaming
dominates, and we see a blazar of some variety.
Active galaxy 70
However, the population of radio galaxies is completely dominated by low-luminosity, low-excitation objects. These
do not show strong nuclear emission lines — broad or narrow — they have optical continua which appear to be
entirely jet-related,[10] and their X-ray emission is also consistent with coming purely from a jet, with no heavily
absorbed nuclear component in general.[11] These objects cannot be unified with quasars, even though they include
some high-luminosity objects when looking at radio emission, since the torus can never hide the narrow-line region
to the required extent, and since infrared studies show that they have no hidden nuclear component:[20] in fact there
is no evidence for a torus in these objects at all. Most likely, they form a separate class in which only jet-related
emission is important. At small angles to the line of sight, they will appear as BL Lac objects.[21]
Cosmological uses and evolution

For a long time, active galaxies held all the records for the highest-redshift objects known, because of their high
luminosity (either in the optical or the radio): they still have a role to play in studies of the early universe, but it is
now recognised that by its nature an AGN gives a highly biased picture of the 'typical' high-redshift galaxy.
More interesting is the study of the evolution of the AGN population. Most luminous classes of AGN (radio-loud
and radio-quiet) seem to have been much more numerous in the early universe. This suggests (1) that massive black
holes formed early on and (2) that the conditions for the formation of luminous AGN were more readily available in
the early universe — for example, that there was a much higher availability of cold gas near the centre of galaxies
than there is now. It also implies, of course, that many objects that were once luminous quasars are now much less
luminous, or entirely quiescent. The evolution of the low-luminosity AGN population is much less well constrained
because of the difficulty of detecting and observing these objects at high redshifts.
See also
• Radio galaxy
• Quasar
• Relativistic jet
References
[1] http:/ / www. astroscu. unam. mx/ massive_stars/ news/ news24. pdf
[2] Lynden-Bell, D. (1969). "Galactic Nuclei as Collapsed Old Quasars". Nature 223 (5207): 690–694. doi:10.1038/223690a0.
[3] Marconi, A.; L. K. Hunt (2003). "The Relation between Black Hole Mass, Bulge Mass, and Near-Infrared Luminosity". The Astrophysical
Journal 589 (1): L21–L24. doi:10.1086/375804.
[4] Narayan, R.; I. Yi (1994). "Advection-Dominated Accretion: A Self-Similar Solution". Journal reference: Astrophys. J 428: L13.
[5] Fabian, A. C.; M. J. Rees (1995). "The accretion luminosity of a massive black hole in an elliptical galaxy". Monthly Notices of the Royal
Astronomical Society 277 (2): L55–L58.
[6] Vermeulen, R. C.; P. M. Ogle, H. D. Tran, I. W. A. Browne, M. H. Cohen, A. C. S. Readhead, G. B. Taylor, R. W. Goodrich (1995). "When
Is BL Lac Not a BL Lac?". The Astrophysical Journal Letters 452 (1): 5–8.
[7] HINE, RG; MS LONGAIR (1979). "Optical spectra of 3 CR radio galaxies". Royal Astronomical Society, Monthly Notices 188: 111–130.
[8] Laing, R. A.; C. R. Jenkins, J. V. Wall, S. W. Unger (1994). "Spectrophotometry of a Complete Sample of 3CR Radio Sources: Implications
for Unified Models". The First Stromlo Symposium: the Physics of Active Galaxies. ASP Conference Series, 54.
[9] Baum, S. A.; E. L. Zirbel, C. P. O'Dea (1995). "Toward Understanding the Fanaroff-Riley Dichotomy in Radio Source Morphology and
Power". The Astrophysical Journal 451: 88. doi:10.1086/176202.
[10] Chiaberge, M.; A. Capetti, A. Celotti (2002). "Understanding the nature of FRII optical nuclei: a new diagnostic plane for radio galaxies".
Journal reference: Astron. Astrophys 394: 791–800. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20021204.
[11] Hardcastle, M. J.; D. A. Evans, J. H. Croston (2006). "The X-ray nuclei of intermediate-redshift radio sources". Monthly Notices of the
Royal Astronomical Society 370 (4): 1893–1904. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2006.10615.x.
[12] Grandi, S. A.; D. E. Osterbrock (1978). "Optical spectra of radio galaxies". Astrophysical Journal 220 (Part 1).
[13] http:/ / www. whatsnextnetwork. com/ technology/ media/ active_galactic_nuclei. jpg
Active galaxy 71
[14] Antonucci, R. (1993). "Unified Models for Active Galactic Nuclei and Quasars". Annual Reviews in Astronomy and Astrophysics 31 (1):
473–521. doi:10.1146/annurev.aa.31.090193.002353.
[15] Urry, P.; Paolo Padovani (1995). "Unified schemes for radioloud AGN". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 107:
803–845. doi:10.1086/133630.
[16] Laing, R. A. (1988). "The sidedness of jets and depolarization in powerful extragalactic radio sources". Nature 331 (6152): 149–151.
doi:10.1038/331149a0.
[17] Garrington, S. T.; J. P. Leahy, R. G. Conway, RA LAING (1988). "A systematic asymmetry in the polarization properties of double radio
sources with one jet". Nature 331 (6152): 147–149. doi:10.1038/331147a0.
[18] Barthel, P. D. (1989). "Is every quasar beamed?". Astrophysical Journal 336: 606–611. doi:10.1086/167038.
[19] Belsole, E.; D. M. Worrall, M. J. Hardcastle (2006). "High-redshift Faranoff-Riley type II radio galaxies: X-ray properties of the cores".
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 366 (1): 339–352. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.09882.x.
[20] Ogle, P.; D. Whysong, R. Antonucci (2006). "Spitzer Reveals Hidden Quasar Nuclei in Some Powerful FR II Radio Galaxies". The
Astrophysical Journal 647 (1): 161–171. doi:10.1086/505337.
[21] Browne, I. W. A. (1983). "Is it possible to turn an elliptical radio galaxy into a BL Lac object?". Royal Astronomical Society, Monthly
Notices (ISSN 0035-8711), 204: 23P–27P.
External links
• Media related to Active galactic nuclei at Wikimedia Commons
Barred lenticular galaxy

A barred lenticular galaxy is a lenticular
version of a barred spiral galaxy. They have
the Hubble type of SB0
See also
• Unbarred lenticular galaxy
NGC 2787 is an example of a barred lenticular galaxy

Barred irregular galaxy 72
Barred irregular galaxy

A barred irregular galaxy is an irregular version of a barred spiral galaxy. Examples include the Large Magellanic
Cloud[1] and NGC 6822.[2] Some barred irregular galaxies (like the Large Magellanic Cloud) may actually be dwarf
spiral galaxies, which have been distorted into an irregular shape by tidal interactions with a more massive neighbor.
References
[1] Sidney van den Bergh, The Local Group of Galaxies, National Research Council of Canada (http:/ / arxiv. org/ pdf/ astro-ph/ 9908050)
[2] Norbert Przybilla, Quantitative Spectroscopy of Supergiants, Munich, 2002 (http:/ / edoc. ub. uni-muenchen. de/ archive/ 00000082/ 01/
Przybilla_Norbert. pdf)
Barred spiral galaxy

A barred spiral galaxy is a spiral
galaxy with a central bar-shaped
structure composed of stars. Bars are
found in approximately two-thirds of
all spiral galaxies.[1] Bars generally
affect both the motions of stars and
interstellar gas within spiral galaxies
and can affect spiral arms as well.[1]
Edwin Hubble classified these types of

spiral galaxies as "SB" (Spiral, Barred)
in his Hubble sequence, and arranged
them into three sub-categories based NGC 1300, viewed nearly face-on; Hubble Space Telescope image.
on how open the arms of the spiral are.
SBa types feature tightly bound arms, while SBc types are at the other extreme and have loosely bound arms. SBb
type galaxies lie in between. A fourth type, SBm, was subsequently created to describe somewhat irregular barred
spirals, such as the Magellanic Cloud galaxies, which were once classified as irregular galaxies, but have since been
found to contain barred spiral structures. Among other types in Hubble's classifications for the galaxies are: spiral
galaxy, elliptical galaxy and irregular galaxy.
In 2005, observations by the Spitzer Space Telescope backed up previously collected evidence that suggested the
Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy.

Observations by radio telescopes had
for years suggested our galaxy to be
barred, but Spitzer's vision in the
infrared region of the spectrum has
provided a more definite calculation.
The bars
Barred spiral galaxies are relatively
common, with surveys showing that up
to two-thirds of all spiral galaxies
contain a bar.[2] The current hypothesis
is that the bar structure acts as a type of
stellar nursery, fueling star birth at
their centers. The bar is thought to act
as a mechanism that channels gas
inwards from the spiral arms through The Sculptor Galaxy, a barred spiral starburst galaxy, (2MASS).
orbital resonance, in effect funneling
the flow to create new stars.[3] This process is also thought to explain why many barred spiral galaxies have active
galactic nuclei, such as that seen in the Southern Pinwheel Galaxy.
The creation of the bar is generally thought to be the result of a density wave radiating from the center of the galaxy
whose effects reshape the orbits of the inner stars. This effect builds over time to stars orbiting further out, which
creates a self-perpetuating bar structure.[4] Another possible cause of bar creation is gravitational disruptions
between galaxies or a collision of two galaxies.
Bars are thought to be a temporary phenomenon in the life of spiral galaxies, the bar structure decaying over time,
transforming the galaxy from a barred spiral to a "regular" spiral pattern. Past a certain size the accumulated mass of
the bar compromises the stability of the overall bar structure. Barred spiral galaxies with high mass accumulated in
their center tend to have short, stubby bars.[5] Since so many spiral galaxies have a bar structure, it is likely that it is a
recurring phenomenon in spiral galaxy development. The oscillating evolutionary cycle from spiral galaxy to barred
spiral galaxy is thought to take on the average about two billion years.[6]
Recent studies have confirmed the idea that bars are a sign of galaxies reaching full maturity as the "formative years"
end. A team led by Kartik Sheth of the Spitzer Science Center at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena
discovered that only 20 percent of the spiral galaxies in the distant past possessed bars, compared with nearly 70
percent of their modern counterparts.[7]
The bulges
Studying the core of the Milky Way, scientists found out that the Milky Way's bulge was peanut-shaped. This led to
the conclusion that all barred spiral galaxies have a peanut shaped bulge. When observing a distant spiral galaxy with
a rotational axis perpendicular to the line of sight, or one that appears "edge-on" to the observer, the shape of the
bulge can be easily observed, and therefore quickly classified as either a barred spiral or a regular spiral. Galaxy
NGC 4565 has been tentatively classified as a barred spiral galaxy using this method.[8]
Grades
Under the de Vaucouleurs classification system, SB-galaxies are one of three

types of spiral galaxy
Example Type Image Information Notes
SB0- SB0- is a type of lenticular galaxy
SB0 SB0 is a type of lenticular galaxy
SB0+ SB0+ is a type of lenticular galaxy
SB0/a SB0/a can also be considered a type of barred lenticular galaxy
NGC 4314 SBa This is actually an "SB(rs)a"
NGC 4921 SBab This is actually an "SB(rs)ab"
Messier 95 SBb This is actually an "SB(r)b"
NGC 3953 SBbc This is actually an "SB(r)bc"

NGC 1073 SBc This is actually an "SB(rs)c"
Messier 108 SBcd This is actually an "SB(s)cd"
NGC 2903 SBd This is actually an "SB(s)d"
NGC 5398 SBdm SBdm can also be considered a type of barred Magellanic spiral This is actually an "SB(rs)dm"
NGC 55 SBm SBm is a type of Magellanic spiral (Sm) This is actually an "SB(s)m"
Examples
Name Type Constellation
M58 SBc Virgo
M91 SBb Coma Berenices
M95 SBb Leo
M109 SBb Ursa Major
NGC 1300 SBbc Eridanus
NGC 1365 SBc Fornax
Magellanic Clouds SBm Dorado, Tucana
See also
• Lenticular galaxy
• Spiral galaxy
• Firehose instability
External links
• Britt, Robert Roy. "Milky Way’s Central Structure Seen with Fresh Clarity." [9] SPACE.com [10] 16 August 2005.
• An article about the Spitzer Space Telescope's Milky Way discovery
• Devitt, Terry. "Galactic survey reveals a new look for the Milky Way." [11] 16 August 2005.
• The original press release regarding the article above, from the Univ. of Wisconsin
• SPACE.com staff writers. "'Barred' Spiral Galaxy Pic Highlights Stellar Birth." [12] SPACE.com [10] 2 March
2001.
• Hastings, George and Jane Hastings. Classifying Galaxies: Barred Spirals [13], 1995.
• Buta, Ronald, D. A. Crocker, and G. G. Byrd. "Astronomers Find Multiple Generations of Star Formation in
Central Starburst Ring of a Barred Spiral Galaxy." [14] January 15, 2000.
• A press release concerning NGC 1326
• Barred spirals come and go [15] Sky & Telescope April 2002.
• "ESO Provides An Infrared Portrait of the Barred Spiral Galaxy Messier 83." [16] November 29, 2001.
• A press release from the European Southern Observatory.
• 04/03/07: Hubble: Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1672 [17]
References
[1] D. Mihalas (1968). Galactic Astronomy. W. H. Freeman. ISBN 9780716703266.
[2] P. B. Eskridge, J. A. Frogel (1999). "What is the True Fraction of Barred Spiral Galaxies?" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1999Ap& SS.
269. . 427E). Astrophysics and Space Science 269/270: 427–430. doi:10.1023/A:1017025820201. .
[3] J. H. Knapen, D. Pérez-Ramírez, S. Laine (2002). "Circumnuclear regions in barred spiral galaxies - II. Relations to host galaxies" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2002MNRAS. 337. . 808K). Monthly Notice of the Royal Astronomical Society 337 (3): 808–828.
doi:10.1046/j.1365-8711.2002.05840.x. .
[4] F. Bournaud, F. Combes (2002). "Gas accretion on spiral galaxies: Bar formation and renewal" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2002A& A.
. . 392. . . 83B). Astronomy and Astrophysics 392: 83–102. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20020920. .
[5] Barred Spirals Come and Go (http:/ / web. archive. org/ web/ 20020512044348/ http:/ / www. govertschilling. nl/ artikelen/ archief/ 2002/
0204/ 020401_st. htm), Sky and Telescope, April 2002
[6] Ripples in a Galactic Pond (http:/ / www. sciamdigital. com/ index. cfm?fa=Products. ViewIssuePreview&
ARTICLEID_CHAR=3BC08F0C-2B35-221B-67A9F2AE04AFC79A), Scientific American, October 2005
[7] Barred Spiral Galaxies are Latecomers to the Universe (http:/ / newswise. com/ articles/ view/ 542997/ ) Newswise, Retrieved on July 29,
2008.
[8] INTERMEDIATE-BAND SURFACE PHOTOMETRY OF THE EDGE-ON GALAXY NGC 4565 at http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ article/
1538-3881/ 123/ 3/ 1364/ 201272. text. html
[9] http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/ 050816_milky_way. html
[10] http:/ / www. space. com/
[11] http:/ / www. news. wisc. edu/ 11405. html
[12] http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/ astronomy/ hubble_bar_010302. html
[13] http:/ / www. smv. org/ hastings/ bsmain. htm
[14] http:/ / bama. ua. edu/ ~rbuta/ press-release. html
[15] http:/ / www. govertschilling. nl/ artikelen/ archief/ 2002/ 0204/ 020401_st. htm
[16] http:/ / www. spaceref. com/ news/ viewpr. html?pid=6736
[17] http:/ / www. exploration-space. com/ 03-apr-2007-esa-2. html
Blazar 77
Blazar
A blazar (blazing quasi-stellar object) is a very compact quasar (quasi-stellar object) associated with a presumed
supermassive black hole at the center of an active, giant elliptical galaxy. Blazars are among the most violent
phenomena in the universe and are an important topic in extragalactic astronomy.
Blazars are members of a larger group of active galaxies, also termed active galactic nuclei (AGN). A few rare
objects may be "intermediate blazars" that appear to have a mixture of properties from both OVV quasars and BL
Lac objects. The name "blazar" was originally coined in 1978 by astronomer Edward Spiegel to denote the
combination of these two classes.
Blazars are AGN with a relativistic jet that is pointing in the general direction of the Earth. We observe "down" the
jet, or nearly so, and this accounts for the rapid variability and compact features of both types of blazars. Many
blazars have apparent superluminal features within the first few parsecs of their jets, probably due to relativistic
shock fronts.[1]
The generally accepted picture is that OVV quasars are intrinsically powerful radio galaxies while BL Lac objects
are intrinsically weak radio galaxies. In both cases the host galaxies are giant ellipticals.
Alternative models, for example, gravitational microlensing, may account for a few observations of some blazars
which are not consistent with the general properties.
Structure
Blazars, like all AGN, are thought to be ultimately powered by
material falling onto a supermassive black hole at the center of the host
galaxy. Gas, dust and the occasional star are captured and spiral into
this central black hole creating a hot accretion disk which generates
enormous amounts of energy in the form of photons, electrons,
positrons and other elementary particles. This region is quite small, approximately 10−3 parsecs in size.
There is also a larger opaque toroid extending several parsecs from the central black hole, containing a hot gas with
embedded regions of higher density. These "clouds" can absorb and then re-emit energy from regions closer to the
black hole. On Earth the clouds are detected as emission lines in the blazar spectrum.
Perpendicular to the accretion disk, a pair of relativistic jets carries a highly energetic plasma away from the AGN.
The jet is collimated by a combination of intense magnetic fields and powerful winds from the accretion disk and
toroid. Inside the jet, high energy photons and particles interact with each other and the strong magnetic field. These
relativistic jets can extend as far as many tens of kiloparsecs from the central black hole.
All of these regions can produce a variety of observed energy, mostly in the form of a nonthermal spectrum ranging
from very low frequency radio to extremely energetic gamma rays, with a high polarization (typically a few percent)
at some frequencies. The nonthermal spectrum consists of synchrotron radiation in the radio to X-ray range, and
inverse Compton emission in the X-ray to gamma-ray region. A thermal spectrum peaking in the ultraviolet region
and faint optical emission lines are also present in OVV quasars, but faint or non-existent in BL Lac objects.
Blazar 78
Relativistic Beaming
The observed emission from a Blazar is greatly enhanced by relativistic
effects in the jet, a process termed relativistic beaming.The bulk speed of
the plasma that constitutes the jet can be in the range of 95%–99% of the
speed of light. (This bulk velocity is not the speed of a typical electron or
proton in the jet. The individual particles move in many directions with
the result being that the net speed for the plasma is in the range
mentioned.)
The relationship between the luminosity emitted in the rest frame of the
jet and the luminosity observed from Earth depends on the characteristics
of the jet. These include whether the luminosity arises from a shock front
or a series of brighter blobs in the jet, as well as details of the magnetic
fields within the jet and their interaction with the moving particles.
A simple model of beaming however, illustrates the basic relativistic
effects connecting the luminosity emitted in the rest frame of the jet, Se
and the luminosity observed on Earth, So. These are connected by a term
referred to in astrophysics as the doppler factor, D, where So is
proportional to Se × D2.
When looked at in much more detail than shown here, three relativistic
effects are at involved:
• Relativistic Aberration contributes a factor of D2. Aberration is a
consequence of special relativity where directions which appear
isotropic in the rest frame (in this case, the jet) appear pushed towards
Viewing angle - 1. at 90 degrees to the jet::
the direction of motion in the observer's frame (in this case, the Earth). Radio galaxy / Seyfert 2 Galaxy; 2, 3. at an
• Time Dilation contributed a factor of D+1. This effect speeds up the angle to the jet: Quasar/Seyfert 1 Galaxy; 4.
[2]
down the jet: Blazar.
apparent release of energy. If the jet emits a burst of energy every
minute in its own rest frame this may be observed on Earth as being a
much faster release, perhaps one burst every ten seconds.
• Windowing can contribute a factor of D−1 and then works to decrease the amount of boosting. This happens for a
steady flow, because there are then D fewer elements of fluid within the observed window, as each element has
been expanded by factor D. However, for a freely propagating blob of material, the radiation is boosted by the full
D+3.
An Example
Consider a jet with an angle to the lines of sight θ = 5 degrees and a speed of 99.9% of the speed of light. On Earth
the observed luminiosity is 70 times that of the emitted luminosity. However if θ is at the minimum value of 0
degrees the jet will appear 600 times brighter from Earth.
Beaming Away
Relativistic beaming also has another critical consequence. The jet which is not approaching Earth will appear
dimmer because of the same relativistic effects. Therefore two intrinsically identical jets will appear significantly
asymmetric. Indeed, in the example given above any jet where θ < 35 degrees will be observed on Earth as less
luminous than it would be from the rest frame of the jet.
Blazar 79
A further consequence is that a population of intrinsically identical AGN scattered in space with random jet
orientations will look like a very inhomogeneous population on Earth. The few objects where θ is small will have
one very bright jet, while the rest will apparently have considerably weaker jets. Those where θ varies from 90° will
appear to have asymmetric jets.
This is the essence behind the connection between blazars and radio galaxies. AGN which have jets oriented close to
the line of sight with Earth can appear extremely different from other AGN even if they are intrinsically identical.
Discovery
Many of the brighter blazars were first identified, not as powerful distant galaxies, but as irregular variable stars in
our own galaxy. These blazars, like genuine irregular variable stars, changed in brightness on periods of days or
years, but with no pattern.
The early development of radio astronomy had shown that there are numerous bright radio sources in the sky. By the
end of the 1950s the resolution of radio telescopes was sufficient to be able to identify specific radio sources with
optical counterparts, leading to the discovery of quasars. Blazars were highly represented among these early quasars,
and indeed the first redshift was found for 3C 273 — a highly variable quasar which is also a blazar.
In 1968 a similar connection between the "variable star" BL Lacertae and a powerful radio source VRO 42.22.01[3]
was made. BL Lacertae shows many of the characteristics of quasars, but the optical spectrum was devoid of the
spectral lines used to determine redshift. Faint indications of an underlying galaxy — proof that BL Lacertae was not
a star — were found in 1974.
The extragalactic nature of BL Lacertae was not a surprise. In 1972 a few variable optical and radio sources were
grouped together and proposed as a new class of galaxy: BL Lacertae-type objects. This terminology was soon
shortened to "BL Lacertae object," "BL Lac object," or simply "BL Lac." (Note that the latter term can also mean the
original blazar and not the entire class.)
As of 2003, a few hundred BL Lac objects are known.
Current vision
Blazars are thought to be active galaxy nuclei, with relativistic jets oriented close to the line of sight with the
observer.
The special jet orientation explains the general peculiar characteristics: high observed luminosity, very rapid
variation, high polarization (when compared with non-blazar quasars), and the apparent superluminal motions
detected along the first few parsecs of the jets in most blazars.
A Unified Scheme or Unified Model has become generally accepted where highly variable quasars are related to
intrinsically powerful radio galaxies, and BL Lac objects are related to intrinsically weak radio galaxies. The
distinction between these two connected populations explains the difference in emission line properties in blazars.
Alternate explanations for the relativistic jet/unified scheme approach which have been proposed include
gravitational microlensing and coherent emission from the relativistic jet. Neither of these explain the overall
properties of blazars. For example microlensing is achromatic, that is all parts of a spectrum will rise and fall
together. This is very clearly not observed in blazars. However it is possible that these processes, as well as more
complex plasma physics can account for specific observations or some details.
Some examples of blazars include 3C 454.3, 3C 273, BL Lacertae, PKS 2155-304, Markarian 421, and Markarian
501. The latter two are also called "TeV Blazars" for their high energy (Tera electron volt range) gamma-ray
emission.
Blazar 80
See also
• Astrophysics
Notes
[1] Biretta, John (1999-01-06). "HUBBLE DETECTS FASTER-THAN-LIGHT MOTION IN GALAXY M87" (http:/ / www. stsci. edu/ ftp/
science/ m87/ press. txt). Baltimore, Maryland: Space Telecsope Science Institute. .
[2] http:/ / www. whatsnextnetwork. com/ technology/ media/ active_galactic_nuclei. jpg
[3] Schmitt J. L. (1968): "BL Lac identified as radio source", Nature 218, 663
External links
• AAVSO High Energy Network (http://www.aavso.org/observing/programs/hen/blazar.shtml)
• Expanding Gallery of Hires Blazar Images (http://www.perseus.gr/Astro-DSO-Quasars-Blazars.htm)
• News service (April 2008). "Michigan telescope helps give astronomers insight into blazars" (http://www.ns.
umich.edu/htdocs/releases/story.php?id=6499). University of Michigan. Retrieved 2008-06-04. (with
animation)
Blue compact dwarf galaxy

In astronomy, a blue compact dwarf galaxy (BCD galaxy) is a
small galaxy which contains large clusters of young, hot, massive
stars. These stars cause the galaxy to appear blue in color.[1]
Nearby examples include NGC 1705, NGC 2915 and NGC
3353.[1] [2]
See also
• Pea galaxy
References
[1] blue compact dwarf galaxy (BCD) (http:/ / www. daviddarling. info/
encyclopedia/ B/ blue_compact_dwarf_galaxy. html), David Darling, entry in
The Internet Encyclopedia of Science. Accessed on line October 14, 2007.
[2] Optical observations of NGC 2915: A nearby blue compact dwarf galaxy
(http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1994AJ. . . . 107. 2021M), G. R. Meurer, G. NGC 1705, a nearby example of a blue compact dwarf
Mackie and C. Carignan, The Astronomical Journal 107, #6 (June 1994), pp. galaxy. Image from the Hubble Space Telescope.
2021–2035.
Dark galaxy 81
Dark galaxy
A dark galaxy is a hypothetical galaxy composed of dark matter[1] . Dark galaxies receive their name because they
have no stars and are theoretically invisible. An influential community of scientist conjecture the existence of dark
galaxies to support theories based on other well studied celestial bodies[2] . There is experimental evidence to support
the existence of dark galaxies, although scientists have no conclusive evidence and continue their research[3] .
Observational Evidence
Astronomers first suspected that there was an invisible galaxy, dark galaxy, out there when they spied galaxy NGC
4254. This unusual-looking galaxy appears to be one partner in a cosmic collision. The only evidence is the
following: gas is being siphoned away into a tenuous stream, and one of its spiral arms is being stretched out. The
other partner in this collision is nowhere to be seen. The researchers calculated that an object with 100 billion solar
masses theoretically careened past NGC 4254 within the last 100 million years creating the gas stream and tearing at
one of its arms. This was the clue that an invisible dark matter galaxy might be lurking nearby[4] .
Nature of Dark Galaxy
Origin
In 2000 astronomers found a gas cloud VIRGOHI21 and tried to find a theory of what it was and or why it could
cause such a gravitational pull from NGC 4254 galaxy. After years of running out of other explanations some have
concluded that VIRGOHI21 is a dark galaxy, due to the massive effect it had on NGC 4254[1] .
Size
The actual size of a dark galaxy is unknown, because they cannot be spotted with a normal telescope. There have
been various estimations that dark galaxies. Two potential sizes could be either double the size of the Milky Way[4]
or the size of a small quasar.
Structure
Dark galaxies are composed of dark matter. Furthermore, dark galaxies are theoretically composed of hydrogen and
dust[1] . Some scientists support the idea that dark galaxies may contain stars[3] . Yet the exact composition of dark
galaxies is unknown because there is no conclusive way to spot them so far.
Methodology to Observer Dark Bodies

Dark galaxies contain no stars, and are not visible through conventional methods, i.e. telescopes. Arecibo Galaxy
Environment Survey (AGES) a current study using the Arecibo radio telescope to search for dark galaxies. The
Arecibo radio telescope is useful where others are not because of its ability to detect neutral-hydrogen wavelengths[5]
.
Dark galaxy 82
Alternative Theories
Scientists do not have much explanation for some astronomic events, so some use the idea of a dark galaxy to
explain these events. Little is known about dark galaxies, and some scientists believe dark galaxy is actually a newly
forming galaxy. One such candidate is in the Virgo cluster. This candidate contains very few stars. Scientist classify
this galaxy as a newly forming galaxy, rather than a dark galaxy. [6] .
Potential Dark Galaxies
HE0450-2958
HE0450-2958 is an unusual quasar (a star like object that may send out radio waves and other forms of energy). This
one in particular has many large red shifts [7] . HE0450-2958 has no visible host galaxy (a galaxy surrounding the
quasar) detected around it. It has been suggested that this may be a dark galaxy in which a quasar has become active.
However subsequent observations revealed that a normal host galaxy is probably present [8] .
HVC 127-41-330
HVC 127-41-330 is a cloud at high speed between the Andromeda and the Triangulum Galaxy. Astronomer Josh
Simon considers this cloud to be a dark galaxy because of the speed of its rotation and its predicted mass[9] .
VIRGOHI21
The discovery of VIRGOHI21 was announced in February 2005, and it was the first good candidate to be a true dark
galaxy [3] [2] [10] [11] . It was found when AGES was looking for the 21cm-wavelength radio waves emitted by
hydrogen (H). Its dynamics are apparently inconsistent with the predictions of the Modified Newtonian Dynamics
(MOND) theory [12] . Some researchers have since discounted the possibility of VIRGOHI21 being a dark galaxy
and believe it is more likely a "tidal tail"[13] . of nearby galaxy NGC 4254, which is experiencing gravitational
perturbations as it enters the Virgo cluster
See also
• Low surface brightness galaxy
• Dwarf spheroidal galaxy
• Dark matter halo
• Dark matter
References
[1] http:/ / www. universetoday. com/ 1888/ no-stars-shine-in-this-dark-galaxy/
[2] Clark, Stuart (2005-02-23). "Astronomers claim first 'dark galaxy' find" (http:/ / www. newscientist. com/ article. ns?id=dn7056).
NewScientist.com news service. . Retrieved 2006-10-26.
[3] Stuart Clark. "Dark galaxy' continues to puzzle astronomers" (http:/ / space. newscientist. com/ article/
dn12100-dark-galaxy-continues-to-puzzle-astronomers. html). New Scientist. . Retrieved 2008-02-26.
[4] http:/ / www. spacedaily. com/ reports/ Arecibo_Survey_Produces_Dark_Galaxy_Candidate. html
[5] http:/ / www. dailygalaxy. com/ my_weblog/ 2009/ 12/ darkmatter-galaxy-ten-billion-xs-the-mass-of-the-sun. html
[6] http:/ / newsblaze. com/ story/ 20091130170354drex. nb/ topstory. html
[7] Magain, P. et al. (2005), Discovery of a bright quasar without a massive host galaxy (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2005Natur. 437. .
381M), Nature, 437, 381
[8] Merritt, D. et al. (2005), The nature of the HE0450-2958 System (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0511315), arXiv:astro-ph/0511315
[9] Josh Simon (2005). Dark Matter in Dwarf Galaxies: Observational Tests of the Cold Dark Matter Paradigm on Small Scales (http:/ / www.
astro. caltech. edu/ ~jsimon/ thesis/ jdsthesis. pdf). .
[10] Shiga, David (2005-02-26). "Ghostly Galaxy: Massive, dark cloud intrigues scientists" (http:/ / www. sciencenews. org/ view/ generic/ id/
5929/ title/ Ghostly_Galaxy_Massive,_dark_cloud_intrigues_scientists). Science News Online (Society for Science &#38) 167 (9): 131.
Dark galaxy 83
doi:10.2307/4015891. . Retrieved 2008-09-14.

[11] Britt, Roy (2005-02-23). "First Invisible Galaxy Discovered in Cosmology Breakthrough" (http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/
050223_dark_galaxy. html). Space.com. .
[12] Funkhouser, Scott (2005). "Testing MOND with VirgoHI21" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0503104). Monthly Notices of the Royal
Astronomical Society 364: 237. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.09565.x. . Retrieved 2006-10-26.
[13] Haynes, Martha P.; Giovanelli, Riccardo; Kent, Brian R. (2007). "NGC 4254: An Act of Harassment Uncovered by the Arecibo Legacy Fast
ALFA Survey". Astrophysical Journal 665 (1): L19–22. doi:10.1086/521188.
• Battersby, Stephen (2003-10-20). "Astronomers find first 'dark galaxy'" (http://www.newscientist.com/article.

ns?id=dn4272). New Scientist.
External links
• Universe Today, Some Galaxies Are Made Almost Entirely of Dark Matter (http://www.universetoday.com/
2007/02/26/some-galaxies-are-made-almost-entirely-of-dark-matter/)
Disc galaxy
Disc galaxies are galaxies which have discs, a flattened circular
volume of stars. These galaxies may, or may not include a central
non-disc-like region (central bulge).
Disc galaxy types include
• spiral galaxies
• barless spiral galaxies (type S, SA)
• barred spiral galaxies (type SB)
• intermediate barred spiral galaxies (type SAB)
• lenticular galaxies (type E8, S0, SA0, SB0, SAB0)
The Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253)
Dwarf elliptical galaxy

Dwarf elliptical galaxies, or dEs, are elliptical galaxies
that are much smaller than others. They are classified
as dE, and are quite common in galaxy groups and
clusters, and are usually companions to other galaxies.
Examples
One of the most nearby Dwarf ellipticals (dEs) is
Messier 110 (also known as NGC205), a satellite of the
Andromeda galaxy. It was discovered by the French
comet hunter Charles Messier in 1773. It remained the The dwarf elliptical galaxy Messier 110 (also known as NGC205)
only known dwarf elliptical galaxy until, in 1944, Credit: John Lanoue.
Walter Baade confirmed NGC147 and NGC185 as
members of the Local Group by resolving them into individual stars. Resolving stars in NGC147 and NGC185 was
only possible because these dEs are very nearby galaxies. In the 1950s, dEs were also discovered in the nearby
Fornax and Virgo clusters.[1]
Comparison with giant ellipticals

Dwarf elliptical galaxies have blue absolute magnitudes within the range -18 mag < M < -14 mag, fainter than giant
elliptical galaxies. While the surface brightness profiles of giant elliptical galaxies are well described by de
Vaucouleur's law, dEs have exponentially declining surface brightness profiles. However, both types can be well fit
by the same more general law, Sersic's law, and there is a continuity of Sersic index as a function of luminosity,[2]
suggesting that dwarf and giant elliptical galaxies belong to a single sequence. Still fainter elliptical-like galaxies,
called dwarf spheroidal galaxies, appear to be genuinely distinct.
Two hypotheses for origins

Dwarf ellipticals may be primordial objects. Within the currently favoured cosmological Lambda-CDM model, small
objects (consisting of dark matter and gas) are the first to form. Because of their mutual gravitational attraction,
some of these will coalesce and merge, forming more massive objects. Further mergers lead to ever more massive
objects.
The process of coalescence is thought to lead to the present-day galaxies, and has been called "hierarchical merging".
If this hypothesis is correct, dwarf galaxies may be the building blocks of today's giant galaxies.
An alternative suggestion[3] is that dEs could be the remnants of low-mass spiral galaxies that obtained a rounder
shape through the action of repeated gravitational interactions with giant galaxies within a cluster. This process of
changing a galaxy's morphology by interactions has been called "galaxy harassment". Evidence for this latter
hypothesis has been found in the form taken by stellar disks and spiral arms of spiral galaxies. Under this alternative
hypothesis the disks and arms are modified version of the original stellar disk of the transformed spiral galaxy, and
similarly, small remnants of disks and arms are embedded within "harassed" dEs.
See also
• Dwarf galaxy
• Elliptical galaxy
• Irregular galaxy
References
[1] G. Reaves (1956), Dwarf galaxies in the Virgo cluster (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1956AJ. . . . . 61. . . 69R)
[2] A. Graham and R. Guzman (2003), HST Photometry of Dwarf Elliptical Galaxies in Coma, and an Explanation for the Alleged Structural
Dichotomy between Dwarf and Bright Elliptical Galaxies (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2003AJ. . . . 125. 2936G)
[3] Moore, B. et al. (1996), Galaxy harassment and the evolution of clusters of galaxies (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1996Natur. 379. .
613M)
Dwarf galaxy
A dwarf galaxy is a small galaxy composed of up to several billion stars, a small number compared to our own
Milky Way's 200-400 billion stars. The Large Magellanic Cloud, containing over 30 billion stars, is sometimes
classified as a dwarf galaxy while others consider it a full-fledged galaxy going around the Milky Way galaxy.
Creation of dwarf galaxies

Current theory states that most galaxies, including dwarf galaxies, form in association with dark matter or out of gas
containing metals. However, NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer space probe identified new dwarf galaxies forming
out of gases lacking metals. These galaxies were located in the Leo Ring, a cloud of hydrogen and helium around
two massive galaxies in the constellation Leo.[1]
Local dwarfs
There are many dwarf galaxies in the Local Group: these small galaxies frequently orbit around larger galaxies, such
as the Milky Way, the Andromeda Galaxy and the Triangulum Galaxy. A 2007 paper[2] has suggested that many
dwarf galaxies were created by tidal forces during the early evolution of the Milky Way and Andromeda. Tidal
dwarf galaxies are produced when galaxies collide and their gravitational masses interact. Streams of galactic
material are pulled out away from the parent galaxies and the halos of dark matter that surround them.[3]
The Milky Way has 14 known dwarf galaxies orbiting it, and recent observations[4] have also led astronomers to
believe the largest globular cluster in the Milky Way, Omega Centauri, is in fact the core of a dwarf galaxy with a
black hole in its center, which was at some time absorbed by the Milky Way.
Dwarf galaxy 86
Dwarf galaxies
Dwarf galaxies come in many different morphologies:
• Elliptical galaxy: dwarf elliptical galaxy (dE) and its subtype dwarf spheroidal galaxy (dSph)
• Irregular galaxy: dwarf irregular galaxy (dI)
• Spiral galaxy: dwarf spiral galaxy
Hobbit galaxies
The recently coined term, hobbit galaxy has been used to describe galaxies smaller and dimmer than dwarf
galaxies.[5] [6]
Ultra Compact Dwarfs

Ultra Compact Dwarf galaxies (UCD) are a recently discovered class of very compact galaxies with very high
stellar population counts. They are thought to be on the order of 200 light years across, with a hundred million
stars.[7] It is theorized that these are the cores of nucleated dwarf elliptical galaxies, that have been stripped of gas
and outlying stars by tidal interactions, travelling through the hearts of rich clusters.[8] UCDs have been found in the
Virgo Cluster, Fornax Cluster, Abell 1689, Coma Cluster, amongst other clusters.[9]
Partial list of dwarf galaxies

• Aquarius Dwarf
• Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy
• I Zwicky 18
• Irregular Galaxy IC 10
• Large Magellanic Cloud
• NGC 1569
• NGC 1705
• Pegasus Dwarf Irregular Galaxy
• Phoenix Dwarf
• Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy
• Sagittarius Dwarf Irregular Galaxy
• Sculptor Dwarf Galaxy
• Sculptor Dwarf Irregular Galaxy
• Sextans A
• Sextans Dwarf
• Small Magellanic Cloud
• Tucana Dwarf
• Ursa Minor Dwarf
• Willman 1
• Carina Dwarf
• Draco Dwarf
• Fornax Dwarf
• Leo II (dwarf galaxy)
Dwarf galaxy 87
See also
• Pea galaxy
External links
• Milky Way Satellite Galaxies [10]
• SPACE.com article on "hobbit galaxies" [11]
• Science article on "hobbit galaxies" [12]
References
[1] UPI, "New Recipe For Dwarf Galaxies: Start With Leftover Gas", Science Daily, 19 Feb 2009 (http:/ / www. sciencedaily. com/ releases/
2009/ 02/ 090218132145. htm)
[2] Metz, M (2007) Dwarf-spheroidal satellites: are they of tidal origin? http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0701289
[3] New Recipe for Dwarf Galaxies: Start with Leftover Gas (http:/ / newswise. com/ articles/ view/ 549307/ ) Newswise, Retrieved on February
20, 2009.
[4] Noyola, E. and Gebhardt, K. and Bergmann, M. (apr 2008). "Gemini and Hubble Space Telescope Evidence for an Intermediate-Mass Black
Hole in ω Centauri" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2008ApJ. . . 676. 1008N). The Astrophysical Journal 676: 1008–1015.
doi:10.1086/529002. arXiv:0801.2782. .
[5] SPACE.com - New 'Hobbit' Galaxies Discovered Around Milky Way (http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/
070115_mm_hobbit_galaxies. html)
[6] http:/ / sciencenow. sciencemag. org/ cgi/ content/ full/ 2007/ 109/ 1
[7] Anglo-Australian Observatory Astronomers discover dozens of mini-galaxies (http:/ / www. aao. gov. au/ press/ mini_galaxies. html) 0100
AEST Friday 2 April 2004
[8] arXiv:astro-ph/0307362 Galaxies and Overmerging: What Does it Take to Destroy a Satellite Galaxy? Mon, 21 Jul 2003 10:33:02 GMT
[9] arXiv:astro-ph/0406613 Ultra Compact Dwarf galaxies in Abell 1689: a photometric study with the ACS, Mon, 28 Jun 2004 08:34:37 GMT
[10] http:/ / www. astro. uu. se/ ~ns/ mwsat. html
[11] http:/ / www. space. com/ scienceastronomy/ 070115_mm_hobbit_galaxies. html
[12] http:/ / sciencenow. sciencemag. org/ cgi/ content/ full/ 2007/ 109/ 1
Dwarf spheroidal galaxy

Dwarf spheroidal galaxy (dSph) is a term
in astronomy applied to low luminosity
galaxies that are companions to the Milky
Way and to the similar systems that are
companions to the Andromeda Galaxy M31.
While similar to dwarf elliptical galaxies in
appearance and properties such as little to
no gas or dust or recent star formation, they
are approximately spheroidal in shape,
generally lower luminosity, and are only
recognized as satellite galaxies in the Local
Group.[1]
While there were nine "classical" dSph

galaxies discovered up until 2005, the Sloan
Digital Sky Survey has resulted in the NGC 147, a dwarf spheroidal galaxy of the Local Group
discovery of 11 more dSph galaxies -- this
has radically changed the understanding of these galaxies by providing a much larger sample to study.[2]
Recently, as growing evidence has indicated that the vast majority of dwarf ellipticals have properties that are not at
all similar to elliptical galaxies, but are closer to irregular and late-type spiral galaxies, this term has been used to
refer to all of the galaxies that share the properties of those above. These sorts of galaxies may in fact be the most
common type of galaxies in the universe, but are much harder to see than other types of galaxies because they are so
faint.
Because of the faintness of the lowest luminosity dwarf spheroidals and the nature of the stars contained within
them, some astronomers suggest that dwarf spheroidals and globular clusters may not be clearly separate and distinct
types of objects.[3] Other recent studies, however, have found a distinction in that the total amount of mass inferred
from the motions of stars in dwarf spheroidals is many times that which can be accounted for by the mass of the stars
themselves. In the current predominantly accepted Cold Dark Matter cosmology, this is seen as a sure sign of
dark matter, and the presence of dark matter is often cited as a reason to classify dwarf spheroidals as a different
class of object from globular clusters (which show little to no signs of dark matter). Because of the extremely large
amounts of dark matter in these objects, they may deserve the title "most dark matter-dominated galaxies" [4]
See also
• Galaxy
• Dwarf galaxy
• Dwarf elliptical galaxy
• Groups and clusters of galaxies
• Local group
• Dark galaxy
External links
• A popular overview [5]
• Universe Today, Some Galaxies Are Made Almost Entirely of Dark Matter [6]
References
[1] Mashchenko, Sergey; Sills, Alison; Couchman, H. M. (March 2006), "Constraining Global Properties of the Draco Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy"
(http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2006ApJ. . . 640. . 252M), The Astrophysical Journal 640 (1): 252–269, doi:10.1086/499940,
[2] Simon, Josh; Geha, Marla (November 2007), "The Kinematics of the Ultra-faint Milky Way Satellites: Solving the Missing Satellite
Problem" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2007ApJ. . . 670. . 313S), The Astrophysical Journal 670: 313–331, doi:10.1086/521816,
[3] van den Bergh, Sidney (November 2007), "Globular Clusters and Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
2007arXiv0711. 4795V), MNRAS (Letters), in press 385: L20, doi:10.1111/j.1745-3933.2008.00424.x,
[4] Strigari, Louie; Koushiappas, et al; Bullock, James S.; Kaplinghat, Manoj; Simon, Joshua D.; Geha, Marla; Willman, Beth (September 2007),
"The Most Dark Matter Dominated Galaxies: Predicted Gamma-ray Signals from the Faintest Milky Way Dwarfs" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard.
edu/ abs/ 2007arXiv0709. 1510S), The Astrophysical Journal 678: 614, doi:10.1086/529488,
[5] http:/ / www. astro. uu. se/ ~ns/ review. html
[6] http:/ / www. universetoday. com/ 2007/ 02/ 26/ some-galaxies-are-made-almost-entirely-of-dark-matter/
Dwarf spiral galaxy

A dwarf spiral galaxy is the dwarf version of a spiral galaxy. Dwarf galaxies are characterized as having low
luminosities, small diameters (less than 5 kpc), low surface brightnesses, and low hydrogen masses.[1] The galaxies
may be considered a subclass of low surface brightness galaxies.
Dwarf spiral galaxies, particularly the dwarf counterparts of Sa-Sc type spiral galaxies, are quite rare. In contrast,
dwarf elliptical galaxies, dwarf irregular galaxies, and the dwarf versions of Sm type galaxies (which may be
considered transitory between spiral and irregular in terms of morphology) are very common.[1]
Location
Most identified dwarf spiral galaxies are located outside clusters. Strong gravitational interactions between galaxies
and interactions between galaxies and intracluster gas are expected to destroy the disks of most dwarf spiral
galaxies.[1] [2] Nonetheless, dwarf galaxies with spiral-like structure have been identified within the Virgo Cluster
and Coma Cluster.[3] [4] [2] [5]
References
[1] J. M. Schombert, R. A. Pildis, J. A. Eder, A. Oelmer, Jr. (1995). "Dwarf Spirals" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1995AJ. . . . 110. 2067S).
Astronomical Journal 110: 2067–2074. doi:10.1086/117669. .
[2] A. W. Graham, H. Jerjen, R. Guzmán (2003). "Hubble Space Telescope Detection of Spiral Structure in Two Coma Cluster Dwarf Galaxies"
(http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2003AJ. . . . 126. 1787G). Astronomical Journal 126: 1787–1793. doi:10.1086/378166. .
[3] H. Jerjen, A. Kalnajs, B. Binggeli (2000). "IC3328: A "dwarf elliptical galaxy" with spiral structure" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
2000A& A. . . 358. . 845J). Astronomy and Astrophysics 358: 845–849. .
[4] F. D. Barazza, B. Binggeli, H. Jerjen (2002). "More evidence for hidden spiral and bar features in bright early-type dwarf galaxies" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2002A& A. . . 391. . 823B). Astronomy and Astrophysics 391: 823–831. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20020875. .
[5] T. Lisker, E. K. Grebel, B. Binggeli (2006). "Virgo Cluster Early-Type Dwarf Galaxies with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. I. On the Possible
Disk Nature of Bright Early-Type Dwarfs" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2006AJ. . . . 132. . 497L). Astronomical Journal 132: 497–513.
doi:10.1086/505045. .
Elliptical galaxy
An elliptical galaxy is a galaxy having an approximately ellipsoidal
shape and a smooth, nearly featureless brightness profile. They range
in shape from nearly spherical to highly flat and in size from hundreds
of millions to over one trillion stars. They can be the result of two
galaxies colliding.
Elliptical galaxies are one of the three main classes of galaxy originally
described by American astronomer Edwin Hubble in his 1936 work
The Realm of the Nebulae,[1] along with spiral and lenticular galaxies.
Most elliptical galaxies are composed of older, low-mass stars, with a
sparse interstellar medium and minimal star formation activity. They
are surrounded by large numbers of globular clusters. Elliptical
galaxies are believed to make up approximately 10–15% of galaxies in
The giant elliptical galaxy ESO 325-G004.
the local Universe[2] but are not the dominant type of galaxy in the
universe overall. They are preferentially found close to the centers of
galaxy clusters[3] and are less common in the early Universe.
General characteristics
Elliptical galaxies are characterized by several properties that make them distinct from other classes of galaxy. The
motion of stars in elliptical galaxies is predominantly radial, unlike the disks of spiral galaxies, which are dominated
by rotation. Furthermore, there is very little interstellar matter (neither gas nor dust), which results in low rates of
star formation, few open star clusters, and few young stars; rather elliptical galaxies are dominated by old stellar
populations, giving them red colours. Large elliptical galaxies typically have an extensive system of globular
clusters.[4]
The dynamical properties of elliptical galaxies and the bulges of disk galaxies are similar, [5] suggesting that they are
formed by the same physical processes, although this remains controversial. The luminosity profiles of both elliptical
galaxies and bulges are well fit by Sersic's law.
Elliptical galaxies are preferentially found in galaxy clusters and in compact groups of galaxies.
Star formation
This traditional portrait of elliptical galaxies paints them as galaxies where star formation has finished after the initial
burst, leaving them to shine with only their aging stars. Very little star formation is thought to occur, because of the
lack of gas, dust, and space. In general, they appear yellow-red, which is in contrast to the distinct blue tinge of a
typical spiral galaxy, a colour emanating largely from the young, hot stars in its spiral arms.
Sizes and shapes

There is a wide range in size and mass for elliptical galaxies: as small as a tenth of a kiloparsec to over 100
kiloparsecs, and from 107 to nearly 1013 solar masses. This range is much broader for this galaxy type than for any
other. The smallest, the Dwarf elliptical galaxies, may be no larger than a typical globular cluster, but contain a
considerable amount of dark matter not present in clusters. Most of these small galaxies may not be related to other
ellipticals.
The Hubble classification of elliptical galaxies contains an integer that describes how elongated the galaxy image is.
The classification is determined by the ratio of the major (a) to the minor (b) axes of the galaxy's isophotes:
Thus for a spherical galaxy with a equal to b, the number is 0, and the Hubble type is E0. The limit is about E7,
which is believed to be due to a bending instability that causes flatter galaxies to puff up. The most common shape is
close to E3. Hubble recognized that his shape classification depends both on the intrinsic shape of the galaxy, as well
as the angle with which the galaxy is observed. Hence, some galaxies with Hubble type E0 are actually elongated.
There are two physical types of ellipticals; the "boxy" giant ellipticals, whose shapes result from random motion
which is greater in some directions than in others (anisotropic random motion), and the "disky" normal and low
luminosity ellipticals, which have nearly isotropic random velocities but are flattened due to rotation.
Dwarf elliptical galaxies have properties that are intermediate between those of regular elliptical galaxies and
globular clusters. Dwarf spheroidal galaxies appear to be a distinct class: their properties are more similar to those of
irregulars and late spiral-type galaxies.
At the large end of the elliptical spectrum, there is further division, beyond Hubble classification. Beyond gE giant
ellipticals, lies D-galaxies and cD-galaxies. These are similar to their smaller brethren, but more diffuse, with larger
haloes. Some even appear more akin to lenticular galaxies.
Evolution
Current thinking is that an elliptical galaxy may be the result of a long process where two galaxies of comparable
mass, of any type, collide and merge.
Such major galactic mergers are thought to have been common at early times, but may carry on more infrequently
today. Minor galactic mergers involve two galaxies of very different masses, and are not limited to giant ellipticals.
For example, our own Milky Way galaxy is known to be "ingesting" a couple of small galaxies right now. The Milky
Way galaxy, is also, depending upon an unknown tangential component, on a collision course in 3-4 billion years
with the Andromeda Galaxy. It has been theorized that an elliptical galaxy will result from a merger of the two
spirals.
Every bright elliptical galaxy is believed to contain a supermassive black hole at its center. The mass of the black
hole is tightly correlated with the mass of the galaxy, via the M-sigma relation. It is believed that black holes may
play an important role in limiting the growth of elliptical galaxies in the early universe by inhibiting star formation.
Examples
• M32
• M49
• M59
• M60 (NGC 4649)
• M87 (NGC 4486)
• M89
• M105 (NGC 3379)
• Maffei 1, the closest giant elliptical galaxy.
See also
• Firehose instability
• Hubble sequence
• Lenticular galaxy
• Osipkov-Merritt model
• Sersic profile
References
[2] Loveday, J. (February 1996). "The APM Bright Galaxy Catalogue." (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1996MNRAS. 278. 1025L).
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 278 (4): 1025–1048. . Retrieved 2007-09-15.
[3] Dressler, A. (March 1980). "Galaxy morphology in rich clusters - Implications for the formation and evolution of galaxies." (http:/ / articles.
adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1980ApJ. . . 236. . 351D). The Astrophysical Journal 236: 351–365. doi:10.1086/157753. . Retrieved 2007-09-15.
[4] Binney, J.; Merrifield, M. (1998). Galactic Astronomy. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691025650. OCLC 39108765.
[5] Merritt, D. (February 1999). "Elliptical galaxy dynamics" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1999PASP. . 111. . 129M). The Astronomical
Journal 756: 129–168. doi:10.1086/316307. .
External links
• Elliptical Galaxies (http://www.seds.org/messier/elli.html), SEDS Messier pages
• Elliptical Galaxies (http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/galaxies/elliptical.html)
Faint blue galaxy

The faint blue galaxy (FBG) problem in astrophysics first arose with observations starting in 1978 that there were
more galaxies with a bolometric magnitude > 22 than then-current theory predicted.[1] [2] [3] Galaxies can appear
faint because they are small or because they are far away. Neither explanation, nor any combination, initially
matched the observations. The distribution of these galaxies has since been found to be consistent with Cosmic
Inflation, measurements of the Cosmic Microwave Background, and a non-zero cosmological constant, that is, with
the existence of the now-accepted dark energy.[4] [5] It thus serves as a confirmation of supernova observations
requiring dark energy.
A second problem arose in 1988, with even deeper observations showing a much greater excess of faint galaxies.[6]
These are now interpreted as dwarf galaxies undergoing large bursts of star formation, resulting in blue light from
young, massive stars.[7] Thus FBGs are extremely bright for their size and distance.
Most FBGs appear between redshift 0.5 and 2. It is believed that they disappear as separate objects by merger with
other galaxies.[8] [9] However, the problem has not been definitively solved.
Faint blue galaxy 93
References
[1] Kron R 1978 Ph.D. Thesis, University of California, Berkeley
[2] Peterson, B.A.; Ellis, R.S.; Kibblewhite, E.J.; Bridgeland, M.T.; Hooley, T.; Horne, D. (Nov. 1, 1979), "Number magnitude counts of faint
galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1979ApJ. . . 233L. 109P), Astrophysical Journal, Part 2 - Letters to the Editor 233: L109-L113,
doi:10.1086/183087,
[3] Tyson, J.A.; Jarvis, J.F. (June 15, 1979), "Evolution of galaxies - Automated faint object counts to 24th magnitude" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard.
edu/ abs/ 1979ApJ. . . 230L. 153T), Astrophysical Journal, Part - 2 Letters to the Editor 230: L153-L156, doi:10.1086/182982,
[4] Yoshii, Yuzuru; Takahara, Fumio (Nov. 1, 1989), "On the redshift-volume measurement of the cosmological density parameter" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1989ApJ. . . 346. . . 28Y), Astrophysical Journal, Part 1 346: 28–33, doi:10.1086/167983,
[5] David C., Koo (June 21-23, 1989). "The evolution of field galaxies - Is Omega = 1?" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1990ASPC. . . 10. .
268K). . Berkeley, CA: Astronomical Society of the Pacific. pp. 268-285. .
[6] Broadhurst, T.J.; Ellis, R.S.; Shanks, T. (Dec. 1, 1988), "The Durham/Anglo-Australian Telescope faint galaxy redshift survey" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1988MNRAS. 235. . 827B), Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 235: 827–856,
[7] Colless, Matthew; Ellis, Richard S.; Broadhurst, T.J.; Taylor, Keith; Peterson, Bruce A. (03/1993), "Faint blue galaxies - High or low
redshift?" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1993MNRAS. 261. . . 19C), Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 261: 19–38,
[8] Carlberg, R.G. (11/1992), "Merging and fast galaxy evolution" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1992ApJ. . . 399L. . 31C), Astrophysical
Journal, Part 2 - Letters 399 (1): L31-L34,
[9] Carlberg, R.G.; Charlot, Stephane (09/1992), "Faint galaxy evolution via interactions" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1992ApJ. . . 397. . . .
5C), Astrophysical Journal, Part 1 397 (1): 5–13, doi:10.1086/171759,
Field galaxy
A field galaxy is a galaxy that does not belong to a larger cluster of galaxies, but is gravitationally alone. The vast
majority of galaxies exist outside of clusters.
Most low surface brightness galaxies are field galaxies[1] .
References
[1] An Introduction to Galaxies and Cosmology by David J. Adams and others
Flocculent spiral galaxy

A flocculent spiral galaxy is a type of spiral galaxy, that is the
functional opposite of the grand design spiral galaxy.[1] Unlike the well
defined spiral architecture of a grand design galaxy, flocculent galaxies
are patchy, with discontinuous spiral arms.[2] Approximately 30% of
spirals are flocculent, 10% are grand design, and the rest are
"multi-armed".[3] The "multiple arm" type is sometimes folded into the
flocculent-type.[4]
The prototypical flocculent spiral is NGC 2841.[5]
NGC 4414, a flocculent spiral
Examples
Example Class Image Constellation Notes
NGC 4414 SA(rs)c Coma Berenices [6]
NGC 2841 SA(r)b Ursa Major [5]
NGC 7793 SA(s)d Sculptor [5]
Pinwheel Galaxy SAB(rs)cd Ursa Major [7]
References
[1] COSMOS - SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "Grand Design Spiral" (http:/ / astronomy. swin. edu. au/ cms/ astro/ cosmos/ G/ Grand+
Design+ Spiral) (accessed 23 April 2010)
[2] COSMOS - SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "Flocculent Spiral" (http:/ / astronomy. swin. edu. au/ cms/ astro/ cosmos/ F/ Flocculent+
Spiral) (accessed 23 April 2010)
[3] Case Western Reserve University, Chris Mihos, ASTR222 - Spring 2008, "Spiral Structure" (http:/ / burro. cwru. edu/ Academics/ Astr222/
Galaxies/ Spiral/ spiral. html) (accessed 23 April 2010)
[4] University of Virginia, Mark Whittle, ASTR 553/554 : Extragalactic Astronomy (2007), "Lecture 5: Spiral Galaxies" (http:/ / www. astro.
virginia. edu/ class/ whittle/ astr553/ Topic05/ Lecture_5. html) (accessed 23 April 2010)
[5] "A Near-Infrared Atlas of Spiral Galaxies", Debra Meloy Elmegreen, "CH3. Discussion" (http:/ / nedwww. ipac. caltech. edu/ level5/
Elmegreen/ Elm3. html) (accessed 23 April 2010)
[6] APOD, "NGC 4414: A Flocculent Spiral Galaxy" (http:/ / apod. nasa. gov/ apod/ ap020403. html), 3 April 2002 (accessed 23 April 2010)
[7] Spitzer/JPL/NASA, "The Pinwheel Galaxy, M101, in the Infrared" (http:/ / spitzer. caltech. edu/ images/
1945-ssc2008-14b-The-Pinwheel-Galaxy-M101-in-the-Infrared), 07.21.08 (accessed 23 April 2010)
• PDF (http://nedwww.ipac.caltech.edu/level5/Elmegreen/paper.pdf) "A Near-Infrared Atlas of Spiral

Galaxies", Debra Meloy Elmegreen, 1981, doi:10.1086/190757, Bibcode: 1981ApJS...47..229E
External links
• COSMOS astronomy encyclopedia - Flocculent Spiral (http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/cms/astro/cosmos/F/
Flocculent+Spiral)
Grand design spiral galaxy

A grand design spiral galaxy is a type of spiral galaxy with
prominent and well-defined spiral arms, as opposed to multi-arm and
flocculent spirals which have subtler structural features. The spiral
arms of a grand design galaxy extend clearly around the galaxy
through many radians and can be observed over a large fraction of the
galaxy's radius. Approximately ten percent of spiral galaxies are
classified as grand design type spirals,[1] including M81, M51 and
M74.
A Spitzer Space Telescope Image of Messier 81,

The origin of Grand Design structure a grand design spiral
Density wave theory is the preferred explanation for the well-defined

structure of grand design spirals.[2] According to this theory, the spiral arms are created inside density waves that
turn around the galaxy at different speeds from the stars in the galaxy’s disk. Stars are clumped in these dense
regions due to gravitational attraction towards the dense material, though their location in the spiral arm may not be
permanent. When they come close to the spiral arm, they are pulled towards the dense material by the force of
gravity; and as they travel through the arm, they are slowed from exiting by the same gravitational pull. This causes
material to clump in the dense regions.
References
[1] Mihos, Chris (2002-01-11), Spiral Structure (http:/ / burro. cwru. edu/ Academics/ Astr222/ Galaxies/ Spiral/ spiral. html), , retrieved
2007-05-30
[2] Masters, Karen (2002-09), What is the Origin of Spiral Structure in Galaxies (http:/ / curious. astro. cornell. edu/ question. php?number=199),
, retrieved 2007-05-30
Host galaxy 96
Host galaxy
A host galaxy is one with an active galactic nucleus at its core. Most powerful quasars and all BL Lacertae objects
appear to be situated within giant elliptical galaxies.
Interacting galaxy
Interacting galaxies (Colliding galaxies) are galaxies
whose gravitational fields result in a disturbance of one
another. An example of a minor interaction is a satellite
galaxy's disturbing the primary galaxy's spiral arms. An
example of a major interaction is a galactic collision.
Satellite interaction
A giant galaxy interacting with its satellites is common.
A satellite's gravity could attract one of the primary's
spiral arms. Or the satellite could dive in to the primary
(e.g. Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy). This could
trigger a small amount of star formation.
Galaxy collision
Colliding galaxies are common in galaxy evolution.
Due to the extremely tenuous distribution of matter in
galaxies, these are not collisions in the normal sense of
the word, but rather gravitational interaction. Colliding
may lead to merging. This occurs when two galaxies
collide and do not have enough momentum to continue
The Whirlpool Galaxy with its satellite NGC 5195
traveling after the collision. Instead, they fall back into
each other and eventually merge after many passes
through each other, forming one galaxy. If one of the
colliding galaxies is much larger than the other, it will
remain largely intact after the merger; that is, the larger
galaxy will look much the same while the smaller
galaxy will be stripped apart and become part of the
larger galaxy. Through-passes are less disruptive of
galaxy shapes than mergers in that both galaxies largely
retain their material and shape after the pass. The Mice Galaxies
Galaxy collisions are now frequently simulated on

computers, with all the realistic physics, including gravity forces, gas dissipation, star formation and feedback.
Dynamical friction slows down galaxy pairs, which may or may not merge at some point, according to the initial
relative energy of the orbits. A simulated library of galaxy collisions can be found at the Paris Observatory website:
GALMER [1]
Interacting galaxy 97
Galactic cannibalism
Galactic cannibalism refers to the process by which a large galaxy, through tidal gravitational interactions with a
companion, merges with that companion, resulting in a larger, often irregular galaxy.
The most common result of the gravitational merger of two or more galaxies is an irregular galaxy of one form or
another, although elliptical galaxies may also result.
It has been suggested that galactic cannibalism is currently occurring between the Milky Way and the Large and
Small Magellanic Clouds. Streams of gravitationally-attracted hydrogen arcing from these dwarf galaxies to the
Milky Way is taken as evidence for this theory.
Notable interacting galaxies

Name Type Distance Magnitude Notes
(million ly)
Whirlpool Galaxy (M51) SAc (SB0-a) 37 +8.4 Satellite interacting with its primary
NGC 2207 and IC 2163 SAc/SAbc 114 +11 galaxies going through the first phase in galactic collision
Mice Galaxies (IC 819/20) S0/SB(s)ab 300 +13.5 galaxies going through the second phase in galactic collision
NGC 1097 SB(s)bc (E6) 45 +9.5 Satellite interacting with its primary
Antennae Galaxies (NGC 4038/9) SAc/SBm 45 +10.3 galaxies going through the third phase in galactic collision
NGC 520 S 100 +11.3 galaxies going through the third phase in galactic collision
Future collision of the Milky Way with Andromeda

Astronomers have estimated that our galaxy, the Milky Way galaxy, will collide with the Andromeda galaxy in
about 3 billion years. It is thought that the two spiral galaxies will merge to become an elliptical galaxy. [2] [3]
See also
• Galactic tide
• Galaxy merger
• NGC 7318
• Whirlpool Galaxy
References
[1] GALMER 27 March 2010 (http:/ / galmer. obspm. fr)
[2] Hazel Muir, " Galactic merger to 'evict' Sun and Earth," New Scientist 4 May 2007 (http:/ / space. newscientist. com/ article/
dn11852-galactic-merger-to-evict-sun-and-earth. html)
[3] Astronomy, June 2008, page 28, by Abraham Loeb and T.J.Cox
External links
• Galaxy Collisions (http://www.public.iastate.edu/~curt/cg/homepage.html)
• Galactic cannibalism (http://www.iac.es/gabinete/noticias/2001/mar08i.htm)
• Galactic Collision Simulation (http://burro.cwru.edu/JavaLab/GalCrashWeb/)
• GALMER: Galaxy Merger Simulations (http://galmer.obspm.fr)
Intermediate spiral galaxy

An intermediate spiral galaxy is a galaxy that is in between the
classifications of a barred spiral galaxy and an unbarred spiral
galaxy.[1] [2] It is designated as SAB in the galaxy morphological
classification scheme.[1] [2]
Messier 61; M61 is an intermediate spiral galaxy
Grades
Under the de Vaucouleurs classification system, SAB-galaxies are intermediate

between SA-galaxies and SB-galaxies
SAB0- SAB0- is a type of lenticular galaxy
SAB0 SAB0 is a type of lenticular galaxy
SAB0+ SAB0+ is a type of lenticular galaxy
SAB0/a SAB0/a can also be considered a type of intermediate

lenticular galaxy
Messier 65 SABa M65 is actually an "SAB(rs)a"
NGC 4725 SABab NGC 4725 is actually an "SAB(r)ab

pec"
Messier 66 SABb M66 is actually an "SAB(s)b"
Messier 106 SABbc M106 is actually an "SAB(s)bc"
Sculptor SABc Sculptor is actually an "SAB(s)c"

Galaxy
NGC 2403 SABcd NGC 2403 is actually an

"SAB(s)cd"
SABd
SABdm SABdm can also be considered a type of intermediate

Magellanic spiral
NGC 4625 SABm SABm is a type of Magellanic spiral (Sm) NGC 4625 is actually an "SAB(rs)m
pec"
References
[1] "Building Galaxies", Leslie Kipp Hunt, 15 October 2004
[2] "Galaxy Formation", Malcolm S. Longair, 1998, Springer, ISSN 0941-7834
Tags
Irregular galaxy 100
Irregular galaxy
An irregular galaxy is a galaxy that does not have a regular shape,
like a spiral or an elliptical galaxy.[1] The shape of an irregular galaxy
is uncommon – they do not fall into any of the regular classes of the
Hubble sequence, and they are often chaotic in appearance, with
neither a nuclear bulge nor any trace of spiral arm structure.[2]
Collectively they are thought to make up about a quarter of all
galaxies. Most irregular galaxies were once spiral or elliptical galaxies
but were deformed by disorders in gravitational pull. Irregular galaxies
The Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are
also contain abundant amounts of gas and dust. irregular dwarf galaxies.
There are two major Hubble types of irregular galaxies:[3]

• An Irr-I galaxy (Irr I) is an irregular galaxy that features some
structure but not enough to place it cleanly into the Hubble
sequence. De Vaucouleurs subtypes this into galaxies that have
some spiral structure Sm, and those that do not Im.
• An Irr-II galaxy (Irr II) is an irregular galaxy that does not appear
to feature any structure that can place it into the Hubble sequence.
A third classification of irregular galaxies are the dwarf irregulars,
labelled as dI or dIrrs.[4] This type of galaxy is now thought to be
important to understand the overall evolution of galaxies, as they tend
to have a low level of metallicity and relatively high levels of gas, and
are thought to be similar to the earliest galaxies that populated the
Universe. They may represent a local (and therefore more recent)
version of the faint blue galaxies known to exist in deep field galaxy NGC 1427A, an example of an irregular galaxy
surveys. about 52 Mly distant.
Some of the irregular galaxies are small spiral galaxies that are being
distorted by the gravity of a larger neighbor.
The Magellanic Cloud galaxies were once classified as irregular galaxies, but have since been found to contain
barred spiral structures, and have been since re-classified as "SBm", a fourth type of barred spiral galaxy, the barred
Magellanic spiral type.
See also
• Dwarf galaxy
• Dwarf elliptical galaxy
References
[1] Butz, Stephen D. (2002). Science of Earth Systems. Cengage Learning. p. 107. ISBN 978-0766833913.
[2] Morgan, W. W. & Mayall, N. U. (1957). "A Spectral Classification of Galaxies." Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 69
(409): 291–303.
[3] Gallagher, J. S. & Hunter, D. A. (1984). "Structure and Evolution of Irregular Galaxies." Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics. 22:
37-74. doi:10.1146/annurev.aa.22.090184.000345
[4] Grebal, Eva K. (2004). The evolutionary history of Local Group irregular galaxies. in McWilliam, Andrew; Rauch, Michael (eds) Origin and
evolution of the elements. Cambridge University Press. p. 234-254. ISBN 978-0521755788.
Lenticular galaxy
A lenticular galaxy is a type of galaxy which is intermediate between
an elliptical galaxy and a spiral galaxy in galaxy morphological
classification schemes.[1] Lenticular galaxies are disc galaxies (like
spiral galaxies) which have used up or lost most of their interstellar
matter and therefore have very little ongoing star formation.[2] As a
result, they consist mainly of aging stars (like elliptical galaxies). The
dust in most lenticular galaxies is generally found only near the
nucleus and generally follows the light profile of the galaxies' bulges.
Because of their ill-defined spiral arms, if they are inclined face-on it is
often difficult to distinguish between them and elliptical galaxies.
Despite the morphological differences, lenticular and elliptical galaxies
share common properties like spectral features, scaling relations and
both can be considered as early type galaxies which are passively
evolving, at least in the local universe. The Spindle Galaxy (NGC 5866), a lenticular
galaxy in the Draco constellation.
Credit:NASA/ESA
Morphological variations
Although lenticular galaxies do not vary in shape as much as spiral
galaxies, they may still be divided into a series of subclasses based on
their appearance. Some of these subclasses are described below.
Bars
In the de Vaucouleurs classification system, lenticular galaxies may be
split into three subclasses based on the presence or absence of a central
bar structure. The SA0 designation is used for lenticular galaxies with
no apparent bars. The SB0 designation is used for galaxies with a
strong bar. The SAB0 designation is an intermediate class that may be
referred to as weakly barred.[1] It is also referred to as the
quatridienticedent. Dust ring near NGC 1553's nucleus by HST. 0.3′
view
Inner ring and S-shaped subtypes

Some lenticular galaxies are also given inner ring (S0(r)) and S-shaped (S0(s)) designations as well as an
intermediate designation (S0(rs)). However, these designations were defined primarily for spiral galaxies, and
finding objects that represent some of these classes is very difficult.[1]
Examples
• IC 1101, the largest known galaxy
• NGC 2787, a barred lenticular galaxy
References
[1] R. J. Buta, H. G. Corwin, Jr., S. C. Odewahn (2007s). The de Vaucouleurs Atlas of Galaxies. Cambridge: Cambridge University.
ISBN 0-521-82048-6.
[2] DeGraaff, Regina Barber; Blakeslee, John P.; Meurer, Gerhardt R.; Putman, Mary E. (December 2007). "A Galaxy in Transition: Structure,
Globular Clusters, and Distance of the Star-Forming S0 Galaxy NGC 1533 in Dorado" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2007ApJ. . . 671.
1624D). The Astrophysical Journal 671 (2): 1624–1639. doi:10.1086/523640. .
Low surface brightness galaxy

A low surface brightness galaxy, or LSB galaxy, is a diffuse galaxy with a surface brightness that, when viewed
from Earth, is at least one magnitude lower than the ambient night sky.
Most LSBs are dwarf galaxies, and most of their baryonic matter is in the form of neutral gaseous hydrogen, rather
than stars. They appear to have over 95% of their mass as non-baryonic dark matter. There appears to be no
supernova activity in these galaxies.
Rotation curve measurements indicate an extremely high mass-to-light ratio, meaning that stars and luminous gas
contribute only very little to the overall mass balance of an LSB. The centers of LSBs show no large overdensities in
stars, unlike e.g. the bulges of normal spiral galaxies. Therefore they seem to be dark matter-dominated even in their
centers which makes them excellent laboratories for the study of dark matter.
In comparison to the more well-studied high-surface brightness galaxies, LSBs are mainly isolated field galaxies,
found in regions devoid of other galaxies. In their past, they had fewer tidal interactions or mergers with other
galaxies, which could have triggered enhanced star formation. This is an explanation for the small stellar content.
Examples
• Andromeda V • Phoenix Dwarf Galaxy • Sextans B
• Pegasus Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy • Sagittarius Dwarf Irregular Galaxy (SagDIG) • Wolf-Lundmark-Melotte Galaxy (WLM)
• IC 10 • Sextans A
References
• K. O'Neil, The HI Content and Extent of Low Surface Brightness Galaxies - Could LSB Galaxies be Responsible
for Damped Ly-alpha Absorption? [1]. For publication in Extragalactic Gas at Low Redshift, by Mulchaey, et al.,
eds (2001).
• S.D. Rosenbaum and D.J.Bomans, The environment of Low Surface Brightness Galaxies [2]. Astronomy &
Astrophysics Letters, 422, 5-8 (2004).
• A.J. Barth, A normal stellar disk in the galaxy Malin 1 [3]. Astronomical Journal 133, 1085-1091 (2007).
References
[1] http:/ / aps. arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0107064
[2] http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2004A%26A. . . 422L. . . 5R
[3] http:/ / lanl. arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0701018
Luminous infrared galaxy 103
Luminous infrared galaxy

A luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG), is a galactic body whose
defining characteristic is in emitting more than 1011 solar
luminosities in the far-infrared part of the electromagnetic
spectrum. A more luminous system, emitting more than 1012 solar
luminosities in the far-infrared, is called ultraluminous infrared
galaxy (ULIRG). An even more luminous system, emitting more
than 1013 solar luminosities in the far-infrared, is called
hyperluminous infrared galaxy (HLIRG). Most LIRGs and
ULIRGs emit at least 90% of their light in the infrared.
Most LIRGs and all ULIRGs show signs of recent or continuing

interactions and disruptions. Many are starburst galaxies, and some
also contain an active galactic nucleus. On average, ULIRGs
spawn about 100 new stars yearly, as compared to our own galaxy
Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxy IRAS 19297-0406
which spawns one new star a year. ULIRGs are implicated in a
variety of interesting astrophysical phenomena including the
formation of quasars and elliptical galaxies. Local examples of ULIRGs are often used as analogs of galaxy
formation at high redshift. ULIRGs seem to be embedded in dark matter halo with masses of around 10 trillion solar
masses.
External links
• Nearby Extreme Galaxies Linked To Humble Roots [1] (SkyNightly) Jun 07, 2006
• How To Bake A Galaxy [2] (SpaceDaily) Jun 19, 2006
• The Great Observatory All-sky LIRG Survey [3]
See also
• II Zw 96 - a luminous infrared galaxy containing young powerful starburst regions.
• NGC 6240 - a luminous infrared galaxy with two nuclei.
• Arp 220 - the closest known ultraluminous infrared galaxy.
References
[1] http:/ / www. skynightly. com/ reports/ Nearby_Extreme_Galaxies_Linked_To_Humble_Roots. html
[2] http:/ / www. spacedaily. com/ reports/ How_To_Bake_A_Galaxy. html
[3] http:/ / goals. ipac. caltech. edu
Lyman-alpha emitter 104
Lyman-alpha emitter
Lyman alpha emitters (LAEs) are a type of distant galaxy that emits
Lyman-alpha radiation. They are extremely distant and because of the
finite travel time of light they are glimpses of the past history of the
universe. They are thought to be the progenitors of most modern Milky
Way type galaxies. These galaxies can be found nowadays rather easily
in narrow-band searches by an excess of their narrow-band flux at a
wavelength which may be interpreted as their redshift:
A Lyman alpha emitter (left) and an artists
impression of what one might look like if viewed
at a relatively close distance (right).
where z is the redshift, is the observed wavelength, and 1215.67 Å is the wavelength of Lyman-alpha emission.
The Lyman-alpha line is thought to be caused by an ongoing outburst of star-formation. Experimental observations
of the redshift of LAEs are important in cosmology[1] because they trace dark matter halos and subsequently the
evolution of matter distribution in the universe.
See also
• Lyman series
• Lyman alpha blob
• Lyman-break galaxy
• Damped Lyman-alpha system
• Lyman-alpha forest
• Lyman limit
References
[1] "The Lyman-alpha Emission Line as a Cosmological Tool" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ 0711. 2199). arXiv.org. . Retrieved 2008-12-01.
Lyman-break galaxy 105
Lyman-break galaxy
Lyman-break galaxies are star-forming galaxies at high redshift that are selected using the differing appearance of
the galaxy in several imaging filters due to the position of the Lyman limit. The technique has primarily been used to
select galaxies at redshifts of z=3-4 using ultraviolet and optical filters, but progress in infrared astronomy has
allowed the use of this technique at higher redshifts using infrared filters.
The Lyman-break galaxy selection technique relies on the fact that radiation at higher energies than the Lyman limit
at 912 Å is almost completely absorbed by neutral gas around star-forming regions of galaxies. In the rest frame of
the emitting galaxy, the emitted spectrum is bright at wavelengths longer than 912 Å, but very dim or imperceptible
at shorter wavelengths--this sharp drop (or "break") can be used to find the position of the Lyman limit. Light with a
wavelength shorter than 912 Å is in the far-ultraviolet range and is blocked by the Earth's atmosphere, but for very
distant galaxies the wavelengths of light are stretched considerably because of the expansion of the Universe. For a
galaxy at redshift z=3, the Lyman break will appear to be at wavelengths of about 3600 Å, which is long enough to
be detected by ground- or space-based telescopes.
Candidate galaxies around redshift z=3 can then be selected by looking for galaxies which appear in optical images
(which are sensitive to wavelengths greater than 3600 Å), but do not appear in ultraviolet images (which are
sensitive to light at wavelengths shorter than 3600 Å). The technique may be adapted to look for galaxies at other
redshifts by choosing different sets of filters--the method works as long as images may be taken through at least one
filter above and below the wavelength of the redshifted Lyman break. In order to confirm the redshift estimated by
the color selection, follow-up spectroscopy is performed. Although spectroscopic measurements are necessary to
obtain a high-precision redshift, spectroscopy is typically much more time-consuming than imaging, so the selection
of candidate galaxies via the Lyman-break technique greatly improves the efficiency of high-redshift galaxy
surveys.[1] [2]
See also
• Lyman series
• Lyman-alpha forest
• Lyman alpha emitter
• Lyman alpha blob
• Damped Lyman-alpha system
• Lyman limit
References
[1] "Spectroscopic Confirmation of a Population of Normal Star-forming Galaxies at Redshifts z > 3" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
1996ApJ. . . 462L. . 17S). http:/ / www. iop. org/ EJ/ journal/ apj. . Retrieved 2010-01-08.
[2] "Lyman Break Galaxies at z~3 and Beyond" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 9812167). arXiv.org. . Retrieved 2010-01-08.
Magellanic spiral
Magellanic spiral galaxies are galaxies which are classified as the type Sm (and SAm , SBm , SABm). They are
galaxies with one spiral arm, and are named after their prototype, the Large Magellanic Cloud, an SBm galaxy.
Magellanic spirals
SAm galaxies are a type of unbarred spiral galaxy, while SBm are a type of barred spiral galaxy.[1] SABm are a type
of intermediate spiral galaxy.
Type Sm and Im galaxies have also been categorized as irregular galaxies with some structure (type Irr-1). Sm
galaxies are typically disrupted and asymmetric.[2] dSm galaxies are dwarf spiral galaxies or dwarf irregular
galaxies, depending on categorization scheme.
The Magellanic spiral classification was introduced by Gerard de Vaucouleurs, along with Magellanic irregular (Im),
when he revamped the Hubble classification of galaxies.
Grades
Magellanic Spiral Galaxies
Example Type Image Information Notes Example Type Image Information Notes
SAdm dSAdm
SAm dSAm
SABdm dSABdm
SABm dSABm
SBdm dSBdm
SBm dSBm
Sdm dSdm
Sm dSm
List of Magellanic spirals

This list is incomplete.
Barred (SBm)
• Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)
• NGC 1311 [3]
• NGC 4618 [4]
References
[1] Linda S. Sparke, John Sill Gallagher, "Galaxies in the Universe: An Introduction", 2ed., Cambridge University Press, '2007', ISBN
9780521855938
[2] citeBase; Neutral Hydrogen in the Interacting Magellanic Spirals NGC 4618/4625 (http:/ / www. citebase. org/ abstract?id=oai:arXiv.
org:astro-ph/ 0409209); Stephanie J. Bush; Eric M. Wilcots; (accessed 1 March 2009)
[3] Paul B. Eskridge; " Recent Star and Cluster Formation in the Nearby Magellanic Spiral NGC 1311 (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
2006AAS. . . 208. 1404E)"; 'American Astronomical Society Meeting' 208, #14.04; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol.
38, p.93; (accessed 1 March 2009)

[4] University of Wisconsin, BARRED MAGELLANIC SPIRALS (http:/ / www. astro. wisc. edu/ ~ewilcots/ research/ sbm/ ) (accessed 1 March
2009)
See also
• Galaxy classification
Pea galaxy
A Pea galaxy, also referred to as a Pea
or Green Pea, is a rare class of
low-mass compact galaxy which is
undergoing very high rates of star
formation.[1] Pea Galaxies were first
discovered in 2007 by the volunteer
users within the forum section of the
online astronomy project Galaxy Zoo
(GZ).[2] This project seeks to classify
up to one million galaxies and has been
online since July 2007. Pea galaxies Galaxy Zoo Green Peas
are so-named because of their small
size and greenish appearance in the
images taken by the Sloan Digital Sky
Survey (SDSS) that are used as the
database for GZ. One of GZ's founders
Kevin Schawinski said, "This is a
genuine citizen science project. It's a
great example of how a new way of
doing Science produced a result that
Three HST pictures of Starburst Peas.
wouldn't have been possible
[3]
otherwise."
History of discovery
Alongside its main pages that enable the user to classify galaxies, GZ has an online forum. On this forum, users get
to ask questions and post interesting images, ideas or unusual objects. In July 2007, a few days after the start of GZ,
a thread was started by Hanny Van Arkel called "Give peas a chance" in which various green objects were posted.
This thread started humorously, but by December 2007, it had become clear that some of these unusual objects were
a distinct group of galaxies. These "Pea galaxies" appear in the SDSS as unresolved green images. This is because
the Peas have a very bright, or powerful, emission line in their spectra for highly-ionized Oxygen, which in SDSS
color composites increases the luminosity, or brightness, of the "r" color band with respect to the two other color
bands "g" and "i". The "r" color band shows as green in SDSS images.[1] [4] Enthusiasts, calling themselves the "Peas
Corps", collected over a hundred of these Peas, which were eventually placed together into a dedicated thread started
by Carolin Cardamone in July 2008. The collection, once refined, provided values that could be used in a systematic
computer search of the GZ database of one million objects, which eventually resulted in a sample of 251 Green Peas.
In July 2009, a paper titled "Galaxy Zoo Green Peas: Discovery of A Class of Compact Extremely Star-Forming
Pea galaxy 108
Galaxies" (Cardamone et al. 2009) was published by the MNRAS.[1] (e.g. [5] [6] [7] [8] ) Within the Galaxy Zoo Green
Peas paper, 10 GZ volunteers are acknowledged as having made a particularly significant contribution. They are:
Elisabeth Baeten, Gemma Coughlin, Dan Goldstein, Brian Legg, Mark McCallum, Christian Manteuffel, Richard
Nowell, Richard Proctor, Alice Sheppard and Hanny Van Arkel. They are thanked for "giving Peas a chance." In
April 2010 in a paper which appears as a letter to The Astrophysical Journal, R. Amorin, E. Perez-Montero and J.
Vilchez from the IAA-CISC explore issues concerning the metallicity of the 80 starburst Peas.[9] Ongoing research is
also taking place, including a forthcoming paper based on observations from the ESO at La Silla in Chile, as well as
a survey by the GMRT in India.
Description
Pea galaxies are essentially compact oxygen-rich emission line galaxies (ELG) that are at redshifts between z=0.112
and 0.360. These low-mass galaxies have an upper size limit generally no bigger than 16300 light-years (5000 pc)[1]
across, and typically they reside in environments less than two-thirds the density of normal galaxy environments. An
average starburst Pea has a redshift of z=0.258, a mass of around 3,160 million solar masses, a star formation rate of
13 solar masses a year, an [OIII] equivalent width of 69.4 nm and a low metallicity.[1] [9] They have a strong
emission line at the [OIII] wavelength of 500.7 nm. [OIII], O++ or doubly ionized oxygen, is a forbidden line of the
visual spectrum and is only possible at very low densities. Pea galaxies are among the most active star-forming
galaxies ever found.[3]
Comparing a Pea galaxy to the Milky Way can be useful when trying to visualize these star-forming rates. The
Milky Way is a spiral galaxy and has a solar mass (M☉) of 580,000 million M☉.[10] [11] Research by the European
Space Agency and NASA has shown the Milky Way makes around 4 M☉/yr.[12]
An average starburst Pea galaxy has a mass of around 3,162 million M☉.[1] So, approximately, the Milky Way has
the mass of 175 Peas. An average Pea makes around 13 M☉/yr, or 3.25 times as many M☉/yr as the Milky Way.[1] If
the mass of a Pea is made the same as the Milky Way, it can be seen that these Peas make solar masses 568 times as
fast. If the Pea with the highest star-forming rate of 59 M☉/yr is compared, SDSS reference number
587728906099687546 has a mass of 7,075 million M☉.[1] This Pea forms stars 14.75 times as fast as the Milky Way,
which has the same mass as 80 of this Pea. If the mass of SDSS 587..546 is made the same as the Milky Way, it can
be seen that this Pea makes solar masses 1,180 times as fast.
Pea galaxies exist at a time when the Universe was three-quarters of its present age and so are clues as to how galaxy
formation took place in the earlier Universe.[13] [14] "These galaxies would have been normal in the early Universe,
but we just don’t see such active galaxies today," said Schawinski. "Understanding the Green Peas may tell us
something about how stars were formed in the early Universe and how galaxies evolve."[3]
Pea galaxy 109
Physics
To date only five Pea galaxies have been imaged by the Hubble Space
Telescope (HST). Three of these images, above right, reveal Peas to be
made up of bright clumps of star formation and low surface density
features indicative of recent or ongoing galaxy mergers.[1] These three
HST images were imaged as part of a study of local ultraviolet
(UV)-luminous galaxies in 2005.[15] Major mergers are frequently sites
of active star-formation and to the right a graph is shown that plots
specific star formation rate (SFR / Galaxy Mass) against galaxy
mass.[16] In this graph, the Peas are compared to the 3003 mergers
from the Galaxy Zoo Merger Sample.[6] It shows that the Peas have
Graph showing specific star formation rate
low masses typical of dwarf galaxies and much higher star-forming
plotted against galaxy mass, with the Peas (purple
rates compared to the GZ mergers. The black, dashed line shows a diamonds) and the Galaxy Zoo Merger Sample
constant SFR of 10 M☉/yr. Most Peas have SFR between 3 and 30 (black points).
M☉/yr, so follow this line closely.
Pea galaxies are rare. Of the one million objects that make up GZ's
image bank, only 251 Green Peas were found. After having to discard
148 of these 251 because of atmospheric contamination of their
spectra, the 103 that were left, with the highest signal-to-noise ratio
(SNR), were analyzed further and 80 were found to be starburst
galaxies.[1] The graph left, classifies 103 narrow-line Peas (all with
SNR ≥ 3 in the emission lines) as 10 Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN)
(blue diamonds), 13 transition objects (green crosses) and 80 starbursts
(red stars). The solid line is: Kewley et al. (2001) maximal starburst
contribution (labelled Ke01).[17] [18] The dashed line is: Kauffmann et
Graph showing 103 Peas plotted as Starburst
galaxies (red stars), transition objects (green
al. (2003) separating purely star-forming objects from AGN (labelled
crosses) or A.G.N. (blue diamonds). Ka03).[19]
Pea galaxies have a strong emission line when compared to the rest of
their spectral continuum.[20] On an SDSS spectrum, this shows up as a
large peak with [OIII] at the top.[21] The wavelength of [OIII]
(500.7 nm) was chosen to determine the luminosities of the Peas using
Equivalent Width (Eq.Wth.). The histogram on the right shows on the
horizontal scale the Eq.Wth. of a comparison of 10,000 normal
galaxies (marked red), UV-luminous Galaxies (marked blue) and Peas
(marked green).[1] As can be seen from the histogram, the Eq.Wth. of
the Peas is much larger than normal for even prolific starburst galaxies
such as UV-luminous Galaxies.[22]
Within the GZ Green Peas paper, comparisons are made with other
Histogram showing [OIII] Eq.Wth. of 10,000
compact galaxies, namely Blue Compact Dwarfs and UV-luminous
comparison galaxies (red); 215 UV-luminous
Galaxies, at local and much higher distances.[23] The findings show Galaxies (blue); Peas (green).
that Peas form a different class of galaxies than Ultra Blue Compact
Dwarfs, but may be similar to the most luminous members of the Blue Compact Dwarf Galaxy category.[24] The
Pea galaxy 110
Green Peas are also similar to UV luminous high redshift galaxies such as Lyman-break Galaxies and Lyman-alpha
emitters.[25] [26] [27] It is concluded that if the underlying processes occurring in the Peas are similar to that found in
the UV-luminous high redshift galaxies, the Peas may be the last remnants of a mode of star formation common in
the early Universe.[1] [28] [29]
When compiling the paper, spectral classification was made using Gas
And Absorption Line Fitting (GANDALF).[1] This sophisticated
software was programmed by Marc Sarzi, who helped analyze the
SDSS spectra.[30] Also, a classic emission line diagnostic by Baldwin,
Phillips and Terlevich was used to separate starbursts from AGN.[31]
On the left is an example spectral fit from GANDALF, showing the
spectrum from a typical star-forming Pea. In black is the rest-frame
GANDALF spectrum for 587724241767825591
observed spectrum and in red the fit from GANDALF. The SDSS filter
band passes are included as blue dotted lines, shifted into the
rest-frame of the Pea. Notice in the example, the [OIII] wavelength at 500.7 nm is redshifted inside the "r" color
band.
Pea galaxies have low interstellar reddening values, as shown in the

histogram on the right, with nearly all Peas having E(B-V) ≤ 0.25. The
distribution shown indicates that the line-emitting regions of
star-forming Peas are not highly reddened, particularly when compared
to more typical star-forming or starburst galaxies.[1] This low
reddening combined with very high UV luminosity is rare in galaxies
in the local Universe and is more typically found in galaxies at higher
redshifts.[7]
Histogram showing reddening values for Peas.
Cardamone et al. describe Pea galaxies as having a low metallicity, but
that the oxygen present is highly ionized. It should be explained that
Astronomers label all elements other than hydrogen or helium as 'metals'. The average Pea has a metallicity of
log[O/H]+12~8.69, which is solar or sub-solar, depending on which set of standard values is used.[1] [32] [33] [34] [35]
Although the Peas are in general consistent with the mass-metallicity relation, they depart from it at the highest mass
end and thus do not follow the trend. Peas have a range of masses, but a more uniform metallicity than the sample
compared against.[36] These metallicities are common in low mass galaxies such as Peas.[1]
However, in April 2010, Amorin et al. dispute the metallicities calculated in the original Cardamone et al. Green
Peas paper, which are found in Table 4, Column 8, page 16.[1] [9] In a paper, which appears as a letter to The
Astrophysical Journal, R. Amorin, E. Perez-Montero and J. Vilchez from the IAA-CISC, use a different
methodology from Cardamone et al. to produce metallicity values more than one fifth (20%) of the previous values
(about 20% solar or one fifth solar). These mean values are log[O/H]+12~8.05, which shows a clear offset of
0.65dex between the two papers' values. It should be noted that Amorin et al. use a smaller sample of 80 Peas, of
which all are starburst galaxies, rather than the sample of over 200 that were used by Cardamone et al. For these 80
Peas, Amorin et al., using a direct method, rather than strong-line methods as used in Cardamone et al., calculate
physical properties, as well as oxygen and nitrogen ionic abundances.[37] These metals pollute hydrogen and helium,
which make up the majority of the substances present in galaxies. As these metals are produced in Supernovae, the
older a galaxy is, the more metals it would have. As Peas are in the nearby, or older, Universe, they should have
more metals than galaxies at an earlier time.
Pea galaxy 111
Amorin et al. find that the amount of metals, including the abundance
of nitrogen, are different from normal values and that Peas are not
consistent with the mass-metallicity relation, as concluded by
Cardamone et al.[1] [38] This analysis indicates that Peas can be
considered as genuine metal-poor galaxies. They then argue that this
oxygen under-abundance is due to a recent interaction-induced inflow
of gas, possibly coupled with a selective metal-rich gas loss driven by
Supernovae winds and that this can explain their findings.[36] [39] This
Amorin's Pea Metallicity graph. further suggests that Peas are likely very short-lived as the intense star
formation in them would quickly enrich the gas.[9]
As well as the optical images from the SDSS, measurements from the GALEX survey were used to determine the
ultraviolet values.[40] This survey is well matched in depth and area, and 139 of the sampled 251 Green Peas are
found in GALEX Release 4 (G.R.4).[41] For the 56 of the 80 star-forming Peas with GALEX detections, the median
luminosity is 30,000 million .
Facts, figures and analysis of the Peas paper

These figures are from Table 4, pages 16–17 of "Galaxy Zoo
Green Peas" showing the 80 starburst Peas that were analyzed
in the Peas paper. The long 18-digit numbers are the SDSS
reference numbers, which link to the appropriate entry at the
SDSS Skyserver website.
The 80 starburst Peas.
Greatest Least Average Nearest to Average
Distance z=0.2583
z=0.348 z=0.141 z=0.261
[42] [43] [44]
(587732134315425958 ) (587738947196944678 ) (587724240158589061 )
Mass 1010.48 M☉ 108.55 M☉ 109.48 M☉ 109.48 M☉

[45] [46] [47]
(588023240745943289 ) (587741392649781464 ) (587724241767825591 )
Rate of star-forming 13.02 M☉/yr

59 M☉/yr 2 M☉/yr 13 M☉/yr
[48] [49] [50]
(587728906099687546 ) (588018090541842668 ) (588011122502336742 )
Luminosity ([OIII] Eq.Wth.) 69.4 nm

238.83 nm 1.2 nm 67.4 nm
[51] [52] [49]
(587738410863493299 ) (587741391573287017 ) (588018090541842668 )
Luminosity (UV) 36.1×1036 W 1.9×1036 W 12.36×1036 W 12.3×1036 W

[53] [54] [55]
(587733080270569500 ) (588848899919446344 ) (588018055652769997 )
Pea galaxy 112
Color selection was by using the difference in the levels of three filters,
in order to capture these color limits: u-r ≤ 2.5 (1), r-i ≤ -0.2 (2), r-z ≤
0.5 (3), g-r ≥ r-i + 0.5 (4), u-r ≥ 2.5 (r-z) (5).[1] If the diagram on the
right (one of two in the paper) is looked at, the effectiveness of this
color selection can be seen. The color-color diagram shows ~100
Green Peas (green crosses), 10,000 comparison galaxies (red points)
and 9,500 comparison quasars (purple stars) at similar redshifts to
Peas. The black lines show how these figures directly above are on the
diagram.
One of the original ways of recognizing Pea galaxies, before SQL

programming was involved, was because of a discrepancy about how
the SDSS labels them within Skyserver.[56] Out of the 251 of the r-i vs g-r color-color diagram for 251 Peas (green
crosses), a sample of normal galaxies (red points)
original sample that were identified by the SDSS spectroscopic
and all quasars (purple points).
pipeline as having galaxy spectra, only 7 were targeted by the SDSS
spectral fibre allocation as galaxies i.e. 244 were not.[1] [57] Indeed the
majority of them are incorrectly classified as "stars". If the SDSS Skyserver pages for the following three (randomly
chosen) Peas are looked at, then it can be read on the second line down that the SDSS incorrectly classifies these as
stars, whereas further down the page under the picture they are correctly classified as galaxies:
1. 587726102030451047 [58]
2. 587724240158589061 [44]
3. 587742014876745993 [59]
Peas of varying colors

Speculative examples of Peas at differing distances have been found throughout the search for green Peas. These
have a variety of colors, according to redshift. Some examples are given here: these are classified as 'stars' and then
as 'galaxies', thereby following the trend of green Peas. 587727179003723785, 587731521744928978,
587727180597625000, 587739408378626262, 587735666917114003, 587736585507766663. None of the galaxies
listed directly above are able to have citations, but seem to be good candidates at this time.
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See also
• Galaxy merger
• Interacting galaxies
• Starburst galaxy
• Star formation
• Dwarf galaxy
• Blue compact dwarf galaxy
• Astronomy
• Ultraviolet astronomy
• Sloan Digital Sky Survey
Peculiar galaxy 115
Peculiar galaxy
A peculiar galaxy is a galaxy which is unusual in its size, shape, or composition. Peculiar galaxies come about as a
result of interactions between galaxies, and they may contain atypical amounts of dust or gas, may have higher or
lower surface brightness than a typical galaxy, or may have features such as nuclear jets. They can be highly
irregular in shape due to the immense gravitational forces which act on them during encounters with other galaxies.
Peculiar galaxies are designated by "p" or "pec" in some catalogs.
See also
• Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies • Ring galaxy
• Irregular galaxy • Starburst galaxy
External links
• Peculiar galaxy [1]
References
[1] http:/ / www. daviddarling. info/ encyclopedia/ P/ peculiar_galaxy. html
Polar-ring galaxy
A polar-ring galaxy is a type of galaxy in which an outer ring of gas and stars
rotates over the poles of the galaxy.[1] These polar rings are thought to form
when two galaxies gravitationally interact with each other. One possibility is
that a material is tidally stripped from a passing galaxy to produce the polar ring
seen in the polar-ring galaxy. The other possibility is that a smaller galaxy
collides orthogonally with the plane of rotation of the larger galaxy, with the
smaller galaxy effectively forming the polar-ring structure.[2]
The best-known polar-ring galaxies are S0s (lenticular galaxies), but from the
physical point of view they are part of a wider category of galaxies, including
several ellipticals.
NGC 4650A, an example of a

polar-ring galaxy. Credit:Hubble
Space Telescope/NASA/ESA.
The first four S0 galaxies that were

identified as polar-ring galaxies were
NGC 2685,[3] NGC 4650A,[4] [5] A
0136 -0801,[2] and ESO 415 -G26.[5]
While these galaxies have been
extensively studied, many other
polar-ring galaxies have since been
identified.[6] Polar-ring S0 galaxies
may be found around 0.5% of all
nearby lenticular galaxies, and it is
possible that 5% of lenticular galaxies
may have had polar rings at some point
during their lifetimes.[6]
The first polar-ring elliptical galaxies

were identified in 1978. They were
NGC 5128, NGC 5363, NGC 1947 and
NGC660 polar galaxy. 24-inch telescope on Mt. Lemmon, AZ. Courtesy Joseph D. Cygnus A[7] , while the polar-ring S0
Schulman galaxies NGC 2685 and NGC 4650
were at that time indicated as resulting
[7]
from similar formation processes . Only some years later, when the first observations of the stellar and gas motion
of polar-ring elliptical and S0 galaxies were possible with a better spectroscopic technology, the external origin of
the gaseous rings was clarified.[2] [5] [8] [9] In addition to the best-known example, NGC 5128 (Cen A), a very regular
polar ring elliptical, is NGC 5266[9]
References
[1] James Binney, Michael Merrifield (1998). Galactic Astronomy. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-00402-1.
[2] F. Schweizer, B. C. Whitmore, V. C. Rubin (1983). "Colliding and merging galaxies. II - S0 galaxies with polar rings" (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 1983AJ. . . . . 88. . 909S). Astronomical Journal 88: 909–925. doi:10.1086/113377. .
[3] P. L. Schecter, J. E. Gunn (1978). "NGC 2685 - Spindle or pancake" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1978AJ. . . . . 83. 1360S).
Astronomical Journal 83: 1360–1362. doi:10.1086/112324. .
[4] J. L. Sérsic (1967). "Southern Peculiar Galaxies III" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1967ZA. . . . . 67. . 306S). Zeitschrift für Astrophysik
67: 306–311. .
[5] B. C. Whitmore, D. B. McElroy, F. Schweizer (1987). "The shape of the dark halo in polar-ring galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
1987ApJ. . . 314. . 439W). Astrophysical Journal 314: 439–456. doi:10.1086/165077. .
[6] B. C. Whitmore, R. A. Lucas, D. B. McElroy, T. Y. Steiman-Cameron, P. D. Sackett, R. P. Olling (1990). "New observations and a
photographic atlas of polar-ring galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1990AJ. . . . 100. 1489W). Astronomical Journal 100:
1489–1522, 1721–1755. doi:10.1086/115614. .
[7] Bertola, F. and Galletta, G. (1978). "A new type of galaxy with prolate structure" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1978ApJ. . . 226L.
115B). Astrophysical Journal 226: L115–L118. doi:10.1086/182844. .,
[8] Bertola, F., Galletta, G., Zeilinger, W.~W. (1985,). "Warped dust lanes in elliptical galaxies - Transient or stationary phenomena?" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1985ApJ. . . 292L. . 51B). Astrophysical Journal 292,: L51–L55. doi:10.1086/184471. .
[9] Varnas, S.R. Bertola, F., Galletta, G., Freeman, K.C., Carter, D. (1987). "NGC 5266 - an elliptical galaxy with a dust ring" (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 1987ApJ. . . 313. . . 69V). Astrophysical Journal 313: 69–88,. doi:10.1086/164949. .
External links
• Astronomy Picture of the Day
• Polar Ring Galaxy NGC 4650A (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990510.html) - May 10, 1999
• Polar Ring Galaxy NGC 2685 (http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap070216.html) - 2007 February 16
• Polar Ring Galaxy NGC 660 (http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091203.html) - 2009 December 3
• Internet Voters Get Two Galaxies in One from Hubble (http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/
1999/16/)
• X marks the spot in dark matter web (http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19726455.
500-x-marks-the-spot-in-dark-matter-web.html?feedId=online-news_rss20) - Polar ring galaxies offer first-hand
evidence of the existence of the cosmic web, New Scientist, 29 February 2008
See also
• List of polar-ring galaxies
• Ring galaxy
Protogalaxy
In physical cosmology, a protogalaxy, which could also be called a "primeval galaxy", is a cloud of gas which is
forming into a galaxy. It is believed that the rate of star formation, during this period of galactic evolution, will
determine whether a galaxy is a spiral or elliptical galaxy; a slower star formation tends to produce a spiral galaxy.
The smaller clumps of gas in a protogalaxy form into stars. The term protogalaxy was mainly used in the Big Bang
Theory.
See also
• Dwarf galaxy
• Globular cluster
• Big Bang
External links
• Rare Blob Unveiled: Evidence For Hydrogen Gas Falling Onto A Dark Matter Clump? [1] European Southern
Observatory (ScienceDaily) July 3, 2006
References
[1] http:/ / www. sciencedaily. com/ releases/ 2006/ 07/ 060703163148. htm
Quasar 118
Quasar
A quasi-stellar radio source ("quasar") is a very
energetic and distant active galactic nucleus. They are
the most luminous objects in the universe. Quasars
were first identified as being high redshift sources of
electromagnetic energy, including radio waves and
visible light, that were point-like, similar to stars, rather
than extended sources similar to galaxies.
While there was initially some controversy over the

nature of these objects—as recently as the early 1980s,
there was no clear consensus as to their nature—there is
now a scientific consensus that a quasar is a compact
region in the center of a massive galaxy surrounding its
central supermassive black hole. Its size is 10–10,000 An artist's impression of a growing quasar.
times the Schwarzschild radius of the black hole. The
quasar is powered by an accretion disc around the black hole.
Overview
Quasars show a very high redshift, which is an effect of the expansion of the universe between the quasar and the
Earth.[1] They are the most luminous, powerful, and energetic objects known in the universe. They tend to inhabit the
very centers of active young galaxies and can emit up to a thousand times the energy output of the Milky Way.
When combined with Hubble's law, the implication of the redshift is that the quasars are very distant—and thus, it
follows, objects from much earlier in the universe's history. The most luminous quasars radiate at a rate that can
exceed the output of average galaxies, equivalent to one trillion (1012) suns. This radiation is emitted across the
spectrum, almost equally, from X-rays to the far-infrared with a peak in the ultraviolet-optical bands, with some
quasars also being strong sources of radio emission and of gamma-rays. In early optical images, quasars looked like
single points of light (i.e. point sources), indistinguishable from stars, except for their peculiar spectra. With infrared
telescopes and the Hubble Space Telescope, the "host galaxies" surrounding the quasars have been identified in some
cases.[2] These galaxies are normally too dim to be seen against the glare of the quasar, except with these special
techniques. Most quasars cannot be seen with small telescopes, but 3C 273, with an average apparent magnitude of
12.9, is an exception. At a distance of 2.44 billion light-years, it is one of the most distant objects directly observable
with amateur equipment.
Some quasars display changes in luminosity which are rapid in the optical range and even more rapid in the X-rays.
This implies that they are small (Solar System sized or less) because an object cannot change faster than the time it
takes light to travel from one end to the other; but relativistic beaming of jets pointed nearly directly toward us
explains the most extreme cases. The highest redshift known for a quasar (as of December 2007) is 6.43,[3] which
corresponds to a proper distance of approximately 28 billion light-years from Earth.
Quasars are believed to be powered by accretion of material into supermassive black holes in the nuclei of distant
galaxies, making these luminous versions of the general class of objects known as active galaxies. Since light cannot
escape the super massive black holes that are at the centre of quasars, the escaping energy is actually generated
outside the event horizon by gravitational stresses and immense friction on the incoming material.[4] Large central
masses (106 to 109 Solar masses) have been measured in quasars using 'reverberation mapping'. Several dozen
nearby large galaxies, with no sign of a quasar nucleus, have been shown to contain a similar central black hole in
their nuclei, so it is thought that all large galaxies have one, but only a small fraction emit powerful radiation and so
Quasar 119
are seen as quasars. The matter accreting onto the black hole is unlikely to fall directly in, but will have some angular
momentum around the black hole that will cause the matter to collect in an accretion disc. Quasars may also be
ignited or re-ignited from normal galaxies when infused with a fresh source of matter. In fact, it has been theorized
that a quasar could form as the Andromeda galaxy collides with our own Milky Way galaxy in approximately 3–5
billion years.[4] [5] [6]
Properties of quasars
More than 200,000 quasars are known, most from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. All observed quasar spectra have
redshifts between 0.06 and 6.5. Applying Hubble's law to these redshifts, it can be shown that they are between 780
million and 28 billion light-years away (in terms of proper distance). Because of the great distances to the furthest
quasars and the finite velocity of light, we see them and their surrounding space as they existed in the very early
universe.
Most quasars are known to be farther than three billion light-years away. Although quasars appear faint when viewed
from Earth, the fact that they are visible from so far away means that quasars are the most luminous objects in the
known universe. The quasar that appears brightest in the sky is 3C 273 in the constellation of Virgo. It has an
average apparent magnitude of 12.8 (bright enough to be seen through a medium-size amateur telescope), but it has
an absolute magnitude of −26.7. From a distance of about 33 light-years, this object would shine in the sky about as
brightly as our sun. This quasar's luminosity is, therefore, about 2 trillion (2 × 1012) times that of our sun, or about
100 times that of the total light of average giant galaxies like our Milky Way. However, this assumes the quasar is
radiating energy in all directions. An active galactic nucleus can be associated with a powerful jet of matter and
energy; it need not be radiating in all directions. In a universe containing hundreds of billions of galaxies, most of
which had active nuclei billions of years ago and would be seen located billions of light-years away, it is statistically
certain that thousands of energy jets are pointed toward us, some more directly than others. In many cases it is likely
that the brighter the quasar, the more directly its jet is aimed at us.
The hyperluminous quasar APM 08279+5255 was, when discovered in 1998, given an absolute magnitude of −32.2,
although high resolution imaging with the Hubble Space Telescope and the 10 m Keck Telescope revealed that this
system is gravitationally lensed. A study of the gravitational lensing in this system suggests that it has been
magnified by a factor of ~10. It is still substantially more luminous than nearby quasars such as 3C 273.
Quasars were much more common in the early universe. This discovery by Maarten Schmidt in 1967 was early
strong evidence against the Steady State cosmology of Fred Hoyle, and in favor of the Big Bang cosmology. Quasars
show where massive black holes are growing rapidly (via accretion). These black holes grow in step with the mass of
stars in their host galaxy in a way not understood at present. One idea is that the jets, radiation and winds from
quasars shut down the formation of new stars in the host galaxy, a process called 'feedback'. The jets that produce
strong radio emission in some quasars at the centers of clusters of galaxies are known to have enough power to
prevent the hot gas in these clusters from cooling and falling down onto the central galaxy.
Quasars are found to vary in luminosity on a variety of time scales. Some vary in brightness every few months,
weeks, days, or hours. This means that quasars generate and emit their energy from a very small region, since each
part of the quasar would have to be in contact with other parts on such a time scale to coordinate the luminosity
variations. As such, a quasar varying on the time scale of a few weeks cannot be larger than a few light-weeks
across. The emission of large amounts of power from a small region requires a power source far more efficient than
the nuclear fusion which powers stars. The release of gravitational energy by matter falling towards a massive black
hole is the only process known that can produce such high power continuously. (Stellar explosions - Supernovas and
gamma-ray bursts - can do so, but only for a few weeks.) Black holes were considered too exotic by some
astronomers in the 1960s, and they suggested that the redshifts arose from some other (unknown) process, so that the
quasars were not really so distant as the Hubble law implied. This 'redshift controversy' lasted for many years. Many
lines of evidence (seeing host galaxies, finding 'intervening' absorption lines, gravitational lensing) now demonstrate
Quasar 120
that the quasar redshifts are due to the Hubble expansion, and quasars are as powerful as first thought.[7]
Quasars have all the same properties as active galaxies, but are more powerful: Their radiation is partially
'nonthermal' (i.e. not due to a black body), and some (~10%) are observed to also have jets and lobes like those of
radio galaxies that also carry significant (but poorly known) amounts of energy in the form of high energy (i.e.
rapidly moving, close to the speed of light) particles (either electrons and protons or electrons and positrons).
Quasars can be detected over the entire observable electromagnetic spectrum including radio, infrared, optical,
ultraviolet, X-ray and even gamma rays. Most quasars are brightest in their rest-frame near-ultraviolet (near the 1216
angstrom (121.6 nm) Lyman-alpha emission line of hydrogen), but due to the tremendous redshifts of these sources,
that peak luminosity has been observed as far to the red as 9000 angstroms (900 nm or 0.9 µm), in the near infrared.
A minority of quasars show strong radio emission, which originates from jets of matter moving close to the speed of
light. When looked at down the jet, these appear as a blazar and often have regions that appear to move away from
the center faster than the speed of light (superluminal expansion). This is an optical illusion due to the properties of
special relativity.
Quasar redshifts are measured from the strong spectral lines that dominate their optical and ultraviolet spectra. These
lines are brighter than the continuous spectrum, so they are called 'emission' lines. They have widths of several
percent of the speed of light. These widths are due to Doppler shifts caused by the high speeds of the gas emitting the
lines. Fast motions strongly indicate a large mass. Emission lines of hydrogen (mainly of the Lyman series and
Balmer series), helium, carbon, magnesium, iron and oxygen are the brightest lines. The atoms emitting these lines
range from neutral to highly ionized, i.e. many of the electrons are stripped off the ion, leaving it highly charged.
This wide range of ionization shows that the gas is highly irradiated by the quasar, not merely hot, and not by stars,
which cannot produce such a wide range of ionization
Iron quasars show strong emission lines resulting from low ionization iron (FeII), such as IRAS 18508-7815.
Quasar emission generation

Since quasars exhibit properties common to all active galaxies, the
emissions from quasars can be readily compared to those of small
active galaxies powered by supermassive black holes. To create a
luminosity of 1040 W, or Joules per second, (the typical brightness of a
quasar), a super-massive black hole would have to consume the
material equivalent of 10 stars per year. The brightest known quasars
devour 1000 solar masses of material every year. The largest known is
estimated to consume matter equivalent to 600 Earths per minute.
Quasars 'turn on' and off depending on their surroundings, and since
quasars cannot continue to feed at high rates for 10 billion years, after
a quasar finishes accreting the surrounding gas and dust, it becomes an
ordinary galaxy. This view, taken with infrared light, is a
false-color image of a quasar-starburst tandem
Quasars also provide some clues as to the end of the Big Bang's
with the most luminous starburst ever seen in
reionization. The oldest quasars (redshift ≥ 6) display a Gunn-Peterson such a combination.
trough and have absorption regions in front of them indicating that the
intergalactic medium at that time was neutral gas. More recent quasars show no absorption region but rather their
spectra contain a spiky area known as the Lyman-alpha forest. This indicates that the intergalactic medium has
undergone reionization into plasma, and that neutral gas exists only in small clouds.
One other interesting characteristic of quasars is that they show evidence of elements heavier than helium, indicating
that galaxies underwent a massive phase of star formation, creating population III stars between the time of the Big
Bang and the first observed quasars. Light from these stars may have been observed in 2005 using NASA's Spitzer
Quasar 121
Space Telescope,[8] although this observation remains to be confirmed.
Quasar as an X-ray source

QSO 0836+7107 is a Quasi-Stellar Object that emits baffling
amounts of radio energy. The radio signal is caused by
electrons spiraling along the magnetic fields. These electrons
can also interact with visible light emitted by the disk around
the AGN or the black hole at its center, and that pumps them to
emit X- and gamma-radiation.
On board the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) is

the Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) which
detects in the 20 keV to 8 MeV range. QSO 0836+7107 or 4C
71.07 was detected by BATSE as a source of soft gamma rays
and hard X-rays. "What BATSE has discovered is that it can be
a soft gamma-ray source", McCollough said. QSO 0836+7107
is the faintest and most distant object to be observed in soft
gamma rays. It has already been observed in gamma rays by A view of 4C 71.07 from observations by the Burst and
the Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET) Transient Source Experiment. This helped convince
scientists that they were studying data from the quasar and
also aboard the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory.[9]
not some other source in the neighborhood.
In visible light, 4C 71.07 is less than impressive, just a

distant speck of light. It's in radio and in X-rays - and now,
gamma rays - that this object really shines. 4C 71.07 is its
designation in the 4th Cambridge University catalog of
radio sources. 4C 71.07 has a red shift of z=2.17, putting it
about 11 billion years away in a 12 to 15-billion year-old
universe (using z=1 as 5 billion light years).
Quasar 122
The Chandra X-ray Observatory has imaged the quasar PKS

1127-145, a highly luminous source of X-rays and visible
light about 10 billion light years from Earth. The jet exhibited
in X-rays coming from PKS 1127-145 is likely due to the
collision of a beam of high-energy electrons with microwave
photons.
History of quasar observation

The first quasars were discovered with radio telescopes in the
late 1950s. Many were recorded as radio sources with no
corresponding visible object. Using small telescopes and the
Lovell Telescope as an interferometer, they were shown to
The Chandra X-ray image is of the quasar PKS 1127-145, a
have a very small angular size.[10] Hundreds of these objects
highly luminous source of X-rays and visible light about 10
were recorded by 1960 and published in the Third Cambridge billion light years from Earth. An enormous X-ray jet
Catalogue as astronomers scanned the skies for the optical extends at least a million light years from the quasar. Image
counterparts. In 1960, radio source 3C 48 was finally tied to is 60 arcsec on a side. RA 11h 30m 7.10s Dec -14° 49' 27" in
Crater. Observation date: May 28, 2000. Instrument: ACIS.
an optical object. Astronomers detected what appeared to be a
Credit:
faint blue star at the location of the radio source and obtained NASA/CXC/A.Siemiginowska(CfA)/J.Bechtold(U.Arizona).
its spectrum. Containing many unknown broad emission lines,
the anomalous spectrum defied interpretation — a claim by John Bolton of a large redshift was not generally
accepted.
In 1962 a breakthrough was achieved. Another radio source, 3C 273, was predicted to undergo five occultations by
the moon. Measurements taken by Cyril Hazard and John Bolton during one of the occultations using the Parkes
Radio Telescope allowed Maarten Schmidt to optically identify the object and obtain an optical spectrum using the
200-inch Hale Telescope on Mount Palomar. This spectrum revealed the same strange emission lines. Schmidt
realized that these were actually spectral lines of hydrogen redshifted at the rate of 15.8 percent. This discovery
showed that 3C 273 was receding at a rate of 47,000 km/s.[11] This discovery revolutionized quasar observation and
allowed other astronomers to find redshifts from the emission lines from other radio sources. As predicted earlier by
Bolton, 3C 48 was found to have a redshift of 37% the speed of light.
The term quasar was coined by Chinese-born U.S. astrophysicist Hong-Yee Chiu in 1964, in Physics Today, to
describe these puzzling objects:
So far, the clumsily long name 'quasi-stellar radio sources' is used to describe these objects. Because the nature
of these objects is entirely unknown, it is hard to prepare a short, appropriate nomenclature for them so that
their essential properties are obvious from their name. For convenience, the abbreviated form 'quasar' will be
used throughout this paper.
– Hong-Yee Chiu in Physics Today, May, 1964
Later it was found that not all (actually only 10% or so) quasars have strong radio emission (are 'radio-loud'). Hence
the name 'QSO' (quasi-stellar object) is used (in addition to 'quasar') to refer to these objects, including the
'radio-loud' and the 'radio-quiet' classes.
One great topic of debate during the 1960s was whether quasars were nearby objects or distant objects as implied by
their redshift. It was suggested, for example, that the redshift of quasars was not due to the expansion of space but
rather to light escaping a deep gravitational well. However a star of sufficient mass to form such a well would be
unstable and in excess of the Hayashi limit.[12] Quasars also show unusual spectral emission lines which were
previously only seen in hot gaseous nebulae of low density, which would be too diffuse to both generate the
Quasar 123
observed power and fit within a deep gravitational well.[13] There were also serious concerns regarding the idea of
cosmologically distant quasars. One strong argument against them was that they implied energies that were far in
excess of known energy conversion processes, including nuclear fusion. At this time, there were some suggestions
that quasars were made of some hitherto unknown form of stable antimatter and that this might account for their
brightness. Others speculated that quasars were a white hole end of a wormhole. However, when accretion disc
energy-production mechanisms were successfully modeled in the 1970s, the argument that quasars were too
luminous became moot and today the cosmological distance of quasars is accepted by almost all researchers.
In 1979 the gravitational lens effect predicted by Einstein's General Theory of Relativity was confirmed
observationally for the first time with images of the double quasar 0957+561.[14]
In the 1980s, unified models were developed in which quasars were classified as a particular kind of active galaxy,
and a consensus emerged that in many cases it is simply the viewing angle that distinguishes them from other
classes, such as blazars and radio galaxies. The huge luminosity of quasars results from the accretion discs of central
supermassive black holes, which can convert on the order of 10% of the mass of an object into energy as compared
to 0.7% for the p-p chain nuclear fusion process that dominates the energy production in sun-like stars.
This mechanism also explains why quasars were more common in the early universe, as this energy production ends
when the supermassive black hole consumes all of the gas and dust near it. This means that it is possible that most
galaxies, including our own Milky Way, have gone through an active stage (appearing as a quasar or some other
class of active galaxy depending on black hole mass and accretion rate) and are now quiescent because they lack a
supply of matter to feed into their central black holes to generate radiation.
In 2006 Radio astronomers at the University of Manchester’s Jodrell Bank Observatory discovered a strange new
object in a nearby galaxy, and question if it could be the closest micro-quasar yet discovered. If this object is an
extragalactic micro-quasar, it would be the first that has been detected at radio wavelengths. The very high
luminosity suggests that it is likely to be associated with a massive black hole system of some type; however this and
its longevity imply that this type of object is extremely unusual and has not yet been seen within our Galaxy.[15]
Further reading
• Melia, Fulvio, The Edge of Infinity. Supermassive Black Holes in the Universe 2003, Cambridge University Press,
ISBN 978-0-521-81405-8 (Cloth)
• The fine-structure constant and the nature of the universe-The Economist [16]
See also
• Active galactic nuclei (AGN)
• Blazar
• List of quasars
• Optically Violently Variable (OVV) quasars
• Microquasar
• BL Lac object
• Star
• Multiply imaged quasar
Quasar 124
References
[1] Grupen, Claus; Cowan, Glen (2005). Astroparticle physics. Springer. pp. 11–12. ISBN 3540253122.
[2] Hubble Surveys the "Homes" of Quasars (http:/ / hubblesite. org/ newscenter/ archive/ releases/ 1996/ 35/ image/ a/ ) Hubblesite News
Archive, 1996-35
[3] Chris J. Willott et al. (2007). "Four Quasars above Redshift 6 Discovered by the Canada-France High-z Quasar Survey" (http:/ / www. iop.
org/ EJ/ abstract/ 1538-3881/ 134/ 6/ 2435). The Astronomical Journal 134: 2435–2450. doi:10.1086/522962. .
[4] http:/ / www. jstor. org/ pss/ 3971408
[5] http:/ / www. galaxydynamics. org/ papers/ GreatMilkyWayAndromedaCollision. pdf
[6] www.cfa.harvard.edu/~tcox/localgroup/lg.pdf
[7] Keel, William C. (October 2009). "Alternate Approaches and the Redshift Controversy" (http:/ / www. astr. ua. edu/ keel/ galaxies/ arp.
html). The University of Alabama. . Retrieved 2010-09-27.
[8] NASA Goddard Space Flight Center: News of light that may be from population III stars (http:/ / www. nasa. gov/ centers/ goddard/ news/
topstory/ 2005/ universe_objects. html)
[9] Dooling D. "BATSE finds most distant quasar yet seen in soft gamma rays Discovery will provide insight on formation of galaxies" (http:/ /
science. nasa. gov/ NEWHOME/ HEADLINES/ ast24nov99_1. htm). .
[10] "The MKI and the discovery of Quasars" (http:/ / www. jb. man. ac. uk/ public/ story/ mk1quasars. html). Jodrell Bank Observatory. .
[11] Schmidt Maarten (1963). "3C 273: a star-like object with large red-shift" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ cgi-bin/
nph-bib_query?bibcode=1963Natur. 197. 1040S& amp;db_key=AST& amp;data_type=HTML& amp;format=&
amp;high=4521318e0232118). Nature 197: 1040–1040. doi:10.1038/1971040a0. .
[12] S. Chandrasekhar (1964). "The Dynamic Instability of Gaseous Masses Approaching the Schwarzschild Limit in General Relativity".
Astrophysical Journal 140 (2): 417–433. doi:10.1086/147938.
[13] J. Greenstein and M. Schmidt (1964). "The Quasi-Stellar Radio Sources 3C 48 and 3C ". Astrophysical Journal 140 (1): 1–34.
doi:10.1086/147889.
[14] Active Galaxies and Quasars - Double Quasar 0957+561 (http:/ / www. astr. ua. edu/ keel/ agn/ q0957. html)
[15] http:/ / www. ras. org. uk/ index. php?option=com_content& task=view& id=1747& Itemid=2
[16] http:/ / www. economist. com/ node/ 16930866
External links
• Formation of quasars (Heymann, 2010) (http://fr.calameo.com/books/000145333186209bbc0f5)
• 3C 273: Variable Star Of The Season (http://www.aavso.org/vstar/vsots/)
• SKY-MAP.ORG SDSS image of quasar 3C 273 (http://www.sky-map.org/?object=3C 273&zoom=12&
img_source=SDSS)
• Expanding Gallery of Hires Quasar Images (http://www.perseus.gr/Astro-DSO-Quasars.htm)
• Gallery of Quasar Spectra from SDSS (http://www.sdss.org/gallery/gal_zqso.html)
• SDSS Advanced Student Projects: Quasars (http://cas.sdss.org/dr6/en/proj/advanced/quasars/default.asp)
• Black Holes: Gravity's Relentless Pull (http://www.hubblesite.org/go/blackholes) Award-winning interactive
multimedia Web site about the physics and astronomy of black holes from the Space Telescope Science Institute
• Research Sheds New Light On Quasars (http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/
Research_Sheds_New_Light_On_Quasars_999.html) (SpaceDaily) July 26, 2006
• Audio: Fraser Cain/Pamela L. Gay - Astronomy Cast. Quasars - July 2008 (http://www.astronomycast.com/
astronomy/galaxies/ep-98-quasars/)
Radio galaxy 125
Radio galaxy
Radio galaxies and their relatives, radio-loud quasars and blazars, are types of active galaxy that are very luminous
at radio wavelengths (up to 1039 W between 10 MHz and 100 GHz). The radio emission is due to the synchrotron
process. The observed structure in radio emission is determined by the interaction between twin jets and the external
medium, modified by the effects of relativistic beaming. The host galaxies are almost exclusively large elliptical
galaxies. Radio-loud active galaxies are interesting not only in themselves, but also because they can be detected at
large distances, making them valuable tools for observational cosmology. Recently, much work has been done on the
effects of these objects on the intergalactic medium, particularly in galaxy groups and clusters.
Emission processes
The radio emission from radio-loud active galaxies is synchrotron
emission, as inferred from its very smooth, broad-band nature and
strong polarization. This implies that the radio-emitting plasma
contains, at least, electrons with relativistic speeds (Lorentz factors of
~104) and magnetic fields. Since the plasma must be neutral, it must
also contain either protons or positrons. There is no way of
determining the particle content directly from observations of
synchrotron radiation. Moreover, there is no way of determining the
energy densities in particles and magnetic fields from observation (that
is, the same synchrotron emissivity may be a result of a few electrons
False-colour image of the nearby radio galaxy
and a strong field, or a weak field and many electrons, or something in
Centaurus A, showing radio (red), 24-micrometre
between). It is possible to determine a minimum energy condition infrared (green) and 0.5-5 keV X-ray emission
which is the minimum energy density that a region with a given (blue). The jet can be seen to emit synchrotron
emissivity can have,[1] but for many years there was no particular emission in all three wavebands. The lobes only
emit in the radio frequency range, and so appear
reason to believe that the true energies were anywhere near the
red. Gas and dust in the galaxy emits thermal
minimum energies. radiation in the infrared. Thermal X-ray radiation
from hot gas and non-thermal emission from
A sister process to synchrotron radiation is the inverse-Compton relativistic electrons can be seen in the blue
process, in which the relativistic electrons interact with ambient 'shells' around the lobes, particularly to the south
photons and Thomson scatter them to high energies. Inverse-Compton (bottom).
emission from radio-loud sources turns out to be particularly important

in X-rays,[2] and, because it depends only on the density of electrons (and on the density of photons, which is
known), a detection of inverse-Compton scattering allows a (somewhat model-dependent) estimate of the energy
densities in the particles and magnetic fields. This has been used to argue that many powerful sources are actually
quite near the minimum-energy condition.
Synchrotron radiation is not confined to radio wavelengths: if the radio source can accelerate particles to high
enough energies, features which are detected in the radio may also be seen in the infrared, optical, ultraviolet or even
X-ray, though in the latter case the electrons responsible must have energies in excess of 1 TeV in typical magnetic
field strengths. Again, polarization and continuum spectrum are used to distinguish synchrotron radiation from other
emission processes. Jets and hotspots (see below) are the usual sources of high-frequency synchrotron emission. It is
hard to distinguish observationally between synchrotron and inverse-Compton radiation, and there is ongoing
disagreement about what processes we are seeing in some objects, particularly in the X-ray.
The process(es) that produce the population of relativistic, non-thermal particles that give rise to synchrotron and
inverse-Compton radiation are collectively known as particle acceleration. Fermi acceleration is one plausible
particle acceleration process in radio-loud active galaxies.
Radio galaxy 126
Radio structures
Radio galaxies (and, to a lesser extent, radio-loud quasars) display a
wide range of structures in radio maps. The most common large-scale
structures are called lobes: these are double, often fairly symmetrical,
roughly ellipsoidal structures placed on either side of the active
nucleus. A significant minority of low-luminosity sources exhibit
structures usually known as plumes which are much more elongated.
Some radio galaxies show one or two long narrow features known as
jets (the most famous example being the giant galaxy M87 in the Virgo
cluster) coming directly from the nucleus and going to the lobes. Since
the 1970s,[3] [4] the most widely accepted model has been that the lobes
or plumes are powered by beams of high-energy particles and magnetic
field coming from close to the active nucleus. The jets are believed to
be the visible manifestations of the beams, and often the term jet is
used to refer both to the observable feature and to the underlying flow.
Pseudo-colour image of the large-scale radio

structure of the FRII radio galaxy 3C98. Lobes,
jet and hotspot are labelled.
In 1974, radio sources were divided by Fanaroff and Riley into two
classes, now known as Fanaroff and Riley Class I (FRI), and Class II
(FRII).[5] The distinction was originally made based on the
morphology of the large-scale radio emission (the type was determined
by the distance between the brightest points in the radio emission): FRI
sources were brightest towards the centre, while FRII sources were
brightest at the edges. Fanaroff and Riley observed that there was a
reasonably sharp divide in luminosity between the two classes: FRIs
were low-luminosity, FRIIs were high luminosity.[5] With more
detailed radio observations, the morphology turns out to reflect the
method of energy transport in the radio source. FRI objects typically
have bright jets in the centre, while FRIIs have faint jets but bright
hotspots at the ends of the lobes. FRIIs appear to be able to transport
energy efficiently to the ends of the lobes, while FRI beams are
inefficient in the sense that they radiate a significant amount of their
energy away as they travel.
In more detail, the FRI/FRII division depends on host-galaxy

environment in the sense that the FRI/FRII transition appears at higher
luminosities in more massive galaxies.[6] FRI jets are known to be
decelerating in the regions in which their radio emission is brightest,[7]
Pseudo-colour image of the large-scale radio
and so it seems that the FRI/FRII transition reflects whether a jet/beam structure of the FRI radio galaxy 3C31. Jets and
plumes are labelled.
Radio galaxy 127
can propagate through the host galaxy without being decelerated to sub-relativistic speeds by interaction with the
intergalactic medium. From analysis of relativistic beaming effects, the jets of FRII sources are known to remain
relativistic (with speeds of at least 0.5c) out to the ends of the lobes. The hotspots that are usually seen in FRII
sources are interpreted as being the visible manifestations of shocks formed when the fast, and therefore supersonic,
jet (the speed of sound cannot exceed c/√3) abruptly terminates at the end of the source, and their spectral energy
distributions are consistent with this picture.[8] Often multiple hotspots are seen, reflecting either continued outflow
after the shock or movement of the jet termination point: the overall hotspot region is sometimes called the hotspot
complex.
Names are given to several particular types of radio source based on their radio structure:
• Classical double refers to an FRII source with clear hotspots.
• Wide-angle tail normally refers to a source intermediate between standard FRI and FRII structure, with efficient
jets and sometimes hotspots, but with plumes rather than lobes, found at or near the centres of clusters.
• Narrow-angle tail or Head-tail source describes an FRI that appears to be bent by ram pressure as it moves
through a cluster.
• Fat doubles are sources with diffuse lobes but neither jets nor hotspots. Some such sources may be relics whose
energy supply has been permanently or temporarily turned off.
Life cycles and dynamics

The largest radio galaxies have lobes or plumes extending to megaparsec scales (more in the case of giant radio
galaxies like 3C236), implying a timescale for growth of the order of tens to hundreds of millions of years. This
means that, except in the case of very small, very young sources, we cannot observe radio source dynamics directly,
and so must resort to theory and inferences from large numbers of objects. Clearly radio sources must start small and
grow larger. In the case of sources with lobes, the dynamics are fairly simple[3] : the jets feed the lobes, the pressure
of the lobes increases, and the lobes expand. How fast they expand depends on the density and pressure of the
external medium. The highest-pressure phase of the external medium, and thus the most important phase from the
point of view of the dynamics, is the X-ray emitting diffuse hot gas. For a long time it was assumed that powerful
sources would expand supersonically, pushing a shock through the external medium. However, X-ray observations
show that the internal lobe pressures of powerful FRII sources are often close to the external thermal pressures
(e.g.[9] ) and not much higher than the external pressures, as would be required for supersonic expansion. The only
unambiguously supersonically expanding system known consists of the inner lobes of the low-power radio galaxy
Centaurus A [10] (see figure) which are probably a result of a comparatively recent outburst of the active nucleus.
Host galaxies and environments

Radio galaxies are almost universally found hosted by elliptical galaxies. (The only well-documented exception is
reported by [11] .) Some Seyfert galaxies show weak, small radio jets, but they are not radio-luminous enough to be
classified as radio-loud. Such information as we have about the host galaxies of radio-loud quasars and blazars
suggests that they are also hosted by elliptical galaxies.
There are several possible reasons for this very strong preference for ellipticals. One is that ellipticals generally
contain the most massive black holes, and so are capable of powering the most luminous active galaxies (see
Eddington luminosity). Another is that ellipticals generally inhabit richer environments, providing a large-scale
intergalactic medium to confine the radio source. It may also be that the larger amounts of cold gas in spiral galaxies
in some way disrupts or stifles a forming jet. To date there is no compelling single explanation for the observations.
Radio galaxy 128
Unified models
The different types of radio-loud active galaxies are linked by unified models (see active galaxy). The key
observation that led to the adoption of unified models for powerful radio galaxies and radio-loud quasars was that all
quasars appear to be beamed towards us, showing superluminal motion in the cores[12] and bright jets on the side of
the source nearest to us (the Laing-Garrington effect:[13] [14] ). If this is the case, there must be a population of
objects not beamed towards us, and, since we know the lobes are not affected by beaming, they would appear as
radio galaxies, provided that the quasar nucleus is obscured when the source is seen side-on. It is now accepted that
at least some powerful radio galaxies have 'hidden' quasars, though it is not clear whether all such radio galaxies
would be quasars if viewed from the right angle. In a similar way, low-power radio galaxies are a plausible parent
population for BL Lac objects.
Uses of radio galaxies
Distant sources
Radio galaxies and radio-loud quasars have been widely used, particularly in the 80s and 90s, to find distant
galaxies: by selecting based on radio spectrum and then observing the host galaxy it was possible to find objects at
high redshift at modest cost in telescope time. The problem with this method is that hosts of active galaxies may not
be typical of galaxies at their redshift. Similarly, radio galaxies have in the past been used to find distant X-ray
emitting clusters, but unbiased selection methods are now preferred.
Standard rulers
Some work has been done attempting to use radio galaxies as standard rulers to determine cosmological parameters.
This method is fraught with difficulty because a radio galaxy's size depends on both its age and its environment (see
above). When a model of the radio source is used, though, methods based on radio galaxies can give good agreement
with other cosmological observations (e.g.[15] ).
Effects on environment
Whether a radio source is expanding supersonically or not (see above), it must do work against the external medium
in expanding, and so it puts energy into heating and lifting the external plasma. The minimum energy stored in the
lobes of a powerful radio source might be 1053 J. The lower limit on the work done on the external medium by such
a source is several times this. A good deal of the current interest in radio sources focusses on the effect they must
have at the centres of clusters at the present day, e.g.[16] . Equally interesting is their likely effect on structure
formation over cosmological time: it is thought that they may provide a feedback mechanism to slow the formation
of the most massive objects.
Terminology
Widely used terminology is awkward now that it is generally accepted that quasars and radio galaxies are the same
objects (see above). The acronym DRAGN (for 'Double Radiosource Associated with Galactic Nucleus') has been
coined [17] . but has not yet taken off. Extragalactic radio source is common but can lead to confusion, since many
other extragalactic objects are detected in radio surveys, notably starburst galaxies. Radio-loud active galaxy is
unambiguous, and so is often used in this article.
Radio galaxy 129
See also
• Active galaxy
• Quasar
• Blazar
• Black hole
• Relativistic jet
• C-shaped radio galaxy
• S-shaped radio galaxy
• X-shaped radio galaxy
• Z-shaped radio galaxy
• Death Star Galaxy
References
[1] Burbidge, G (1956). "On synchrotron radiation from Messier 87". Astrophysical Journal 124: 416. doi:10.1086/146237.
[2] Croston JH, Hardcastle MJ, Harris DE, Belsole E, Birkinshaw M, Worrall DM (2005). "An X-ray study of magnetic field strengths and
particle content in FRII radio sources" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/ 0503203v1). Astrophysical Journal 626: 733–47.
doi:10.1086/430170. . Retrieved 2008-08-24.
[3] Scheuer, PAG (1974). "Models of extragalactic radio sources with a continuous energy supply from a central object". Monthly Notices of the
Royal Astronomical Society 166: 513.
[4] Blandford RD, Rees MJ (1974). "A 'twin-exhaust' model for double radio sources". Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 169:
395.
[5] Fanaroff, Bernard L., Riley Julia M. (May 1974). "The morphology of extragalactic radio sources of high and low luminosity" (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 1974MNRAS. 167P. . 31F). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 167: 31P–36P. . Retrieved 2008-08-24.
[6] Owen FN, Ledlow MJ (1994). "The FRI/II Break and the Bivariate Luminosity Function in Abell Clusters of Galaxies". In G.V. Bicknell,
M.A. Dopita, and P.J. Quinn, (Eds.). The First Stromlo Symposium: The Physics of Active Galaxies. ASP Conference Series,. 54. Astronomical
Society of the Pacific Conference Series. pp. 319. ISBN 0-937707-73-2.
[7] Laing RA, Bridle AH (2002). "Relativistic models and the jet velocity field in the radio galaxy 3C31" (http:/ / arxiv. org/ abs/ astro-ph/
0206215). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 336: 328–57. doi:10.1046/j.1365-8711.2002.05756.x. . Retrieved 2008-08-24.
[8] Meisenheimer K, Röser H-J, Hiltner PR, Yates MG, Longair MS, Chini R, Perley RA (1989). "The synchrotron spectra of radio hotspots".
Astronomy and Astrophysics 219: 63–86.
[9] Hardcastle MJ., Birkinshaw M, Cameron RA, Harris DE, Looney LW, Worrall DM (2003). "Magnetic field strengths in the hotspots and
lobes of three powerful FRII radio sources". Astrophysical Journal 581: 948. doi:10.1086/344409.
[10] Kraft RP, Vázquez S, Forman WR, Jones C, Murray SS, Hardcastle MJ, Worrall DM (2003). "X-ray emission from the hot ISM and SW
radio lobe of the nearby radio galaxy Centaurus A". Astrophysical Journal 592: 129. doi:10.1086/375533.
[11] Ledlow MJ, Owen FN, Keel WC (1998). "An Unusual Radio Galaxy in Abell 428: A Large, Powerful FR I Source in a Disk-dominated
Host" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1998ApJ. . . 495. . 227L). Astrophysical Journal 495: 227. doi:10.1086/305251. . Retrieved
2008-08-24.
[12] Barthel PD (1989). "Is every quasar beamed?". Astrophysical Journal 336: 606. doi:10.1086/167038.
[13] Laing RA (1988). "The sidedness of jets and depolarization in powerful extragalactic radio sources". Nature 331: 149.
doi:10.1038/331149a0.
[14] Garrington S, Leahy JP, Conway RG, Laing RA (1988). "A systematic asymmetry in the polarization properties of double radio sources".
Nature 331: 147. doi:10.1038/331147a0.
[15] Daly RA, Djorgovski SG (2003). "A Model-Independent Determination of the Expansion and Acceleration Rates of the Universe as a
Function of Redshift and Constraints on Dark Energy" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2003ApJ. . . 597. . . . 9D). Astrophysical Journal
597: 9. doi:10.1086/378230. . Retrieved 2008-08-24.
[16] "Perseus Cluster: Chandra "Hears" a Supermassive Black Hole in Perseus" (http:/ / chandra. harvard. edu/ photo/ 2003/ perseus/ ). .
[17] Leahy JP (1993). "DRAGNs". In Röser, H-J, Meisenheimer, K (Eds.). Jets in Extragalactic Radio Sources. Springer-Verlag.
Radio galaxy 130
External links
• Atlas of DRAGNs (http://www.jb.man.ac.uk/atlas/) A collection of radio images of the 3CRR catalogue of
radio-loud active galaxies.
• Radio and optical images of radio galaxies and quasars (http://www.cv.nrao.edu/~abridle/images.htm)
• The on-line 3CRR catalogue of radio sources (http://3crr.extragalactic.info/)
Ring galaxy
A ring galaxy is a galaxy with a ring-like appearance. The ring
consists of massive, relatively young blue stars, which are extremely
bright. The central region contains relatively little luminous matter.
Some astronomers believe that ring galaxies are formed when a smaller
galaxy passes through the center of a larger galaxy. Because most of a
galaxy consists of empty space, this "collision" rarely results in any
actual collisions between stars. However, the gravitational disruptions
caused by such an event could cause a wave of star formation to move
through the larger galaxy. Others think that rings are formed around
some galaxies when external accretion takes place. Star formation
would then take place in the accreted material because of the shocks
and compressions of the accreted material. There might be a link Hoag's Object, a ring galaxy.
between ring galaxies and polar-ring galaxies.
Hoag's Object, discovered by Art Hoag in 1950, is an example of a ring galaxy.
See also
• Interacting galaxy
• Cartwheel galaxy
• AM 0644-741
• Hoag's Object
External links
• Hoag's Object [1] at Astronomy Picture of the Day.
References
[1] http:/ / antwrp. gsfc. nasa. gov/ apod/ ap100822. html
Seyfert galaxy 131
Seyfert galaxy
Seyfert galaxies are a class of galaxies with nuclei that produce
spectral line emission from highly ionized gas,[1] named after Carl
Keenan Seyfert, the astronomer who first identified the class in 1943.[2]
The centres of Seyfert galaxies form a subclass of active galactic nuclei
(AGN), and are thought to contain supermassive black holes[1] with
masses between 107 and 108 solar masses.[3]
Characteristics
Seyfert galaxies are characterized by extremely bright nuclei, and
spectra which have very bright emission lines of hydrogen, helium,
nitrogen, and oxygen. These emission lines exhibit strong Doppler
The Circinus Galaxy, a Seyfert 2 galaxy. Credit:
broadening, which implies velocities from 500 to 4000 km/s, and are A. S. Wilson, P. L. Shopbell, C. Simpson, T.
believed to originate near an accretion disk surrounding the central Storchi-Bergmann, F. K. B. Barbosa, M. J. Ward,
black hole.[4] WFPC2, HST, NASA.
These emission lines may come from the surface of the accretion disk
itself, or may come from clouds of gas illuminated by the central engine in an ionization cone. The exact geometry
of the emitting region is difficult to determine due to poor resolution. However, each part of the accretion disk has a
different velocity relative to our line of sight, and the faster the gas is rotating around the black hole, the broader the
line will be. Similarly, an illuminated disc wind also has a position-dependent velocity.
The narrow lines are believed to originate from the outer part of the AGN where velocities are lower, while the broad
lines originate closer to the black hole. This is confirmed by the fact that the narrow lines do not vary detectably,
which implies that the emitting region is large, contrary to the broad lines which can vary on relatively short
timescales. Reverberation mapping is a technique which uses this variability to try to determine the location and
morphology of the emitting region.
Seyfert galaxies also show strong emission in the infrared, ultraviolet, and X-ray parts of the spectrum, whereas only
less than 5% are radio loud. The radio emission is believed to be synchrotron emission from the jet. The infrared
emission is due to radiation in other bands being reprocessed by dust near the nucleus. The highest energy photons
are believed to be created by inverse compton scattering by a high temperature corona near the black hole.[5]
Classification
Seyferts were first classified as Type 1 or 2, depending upon whether the spectra show both narrow and broad
emission lines (Type 1), or only narrow lines (Type 2). They are now given a fractional classification depending
upon the relative strengths of the narrow and broad components (e.g. Type 1.5 or Type 1.9).[4] It is believed that
Type 1 and Type 2 galaxies are in essence the same, and they only differ due to the angle at which they are observed.
This is known as Seyfert Unification theory. In Type 2 Seyferts it is believed that the broad component is obscured
by dust and/or by our viewing angle on the galaxy. In some Type 2 Seyfert galaxies, the broad component can be
observed in polarized light; it is believed that light from the broad-line region is scattered by a hot, gaseous halo
surrounding the nucleus, allowing us to view it indirectly. This effect was first discovered by Antonucci and Miller
in the Type 2 Seyfert NGC 1068.
Seyfert galaxy 132
See also
• Low-ionization nuclear emission-line region, another class of galaxies that contain AGN
References
[1] L. S. Sparke, J. S. Gallagher III (2007). Galaxies in the Universe: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
ISBN 0-521-67186-6.
[2] C. K. Seyfert (1943). "Nuclear Emission in Spiral Nebulae" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1943ApJ. . . . 97. . . 28S). Astrophysical
Journal 97: 28–40. doi:10.1086/144488. .
[3] Osterbrock, Donald E. and Ferland, Gary J. (2006). Astrophysics of Gaseous Nebulae and Active Galactic Nuclei (2nd ed.). University
Science Books. p. 390. ISBN 1-891389-34-3.
[4] Donald E. Osterbrock, Gary J. Ferland (2006). Astrophysics of Gaseous Nebulae and Active Galactic Nuclei. Sausalito, CA: University
Science Books. ISBN 1-891389-34-3.
[5] Haardt, F., & Maraschi, L. (1991). ""A two-phase model for the X-ray emission from Seyfert galaxies"" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/
1991ApJ. . . 380L. . 51H). Astrophysical Journal 380: L51–L54. doi:10.1086/186171. .
External links
• Seyfert Galaxies (http://www.seyfertgalaxies.com)
Spiral galaxy
A spiral galaxy is a certain kind of galaxy originally described by
Edwin Hubble in his 1936 work The Realm of the Nebulae[1] and, as
such, forms part of the Hubble sequence. Spiral galaxies consist of a
flat, rotating disk containing stars, gas and dust, and a central
concentration of stars known as the bulge. These are surrounded by a
much fainter halo of stars, many of which reside in globular clusters.
Spiral galaxies are named for the (usually two-armed) spiral structures
that extend from the center into the disk. The spiral arms are sites of
ongoing star formation and are brighter than the surrounding disk
An example of a spiral galaxy, the Pinwheel
because of the young, hot OB stars that inhabit them. Roughly half of
Galaxy (also known as Messier 101 or NGC
all spirals are observed to have an additional component in the form of 5457)
a bar-like structure, extending from the central bulge, at the ends of
which the spiral arms begin. Our own Milky Way has recently (in the 1990s) been confirmed to be a barred spiral,
although the bar itself is difficult to observe from our position within the Galactic disk.[2] The most convincing
evidence for its existence comes from a recent survey [3], performed by the Spitzer Space Telescope, of stars in the
Galactic center.[4]
Together with irregulars, spiral galaxies make up approximately 60% of galaxies in the local Universe.[5] They are
mostly found in low-density regions and are rare in the centers of galaxy clusters.[6]
Spiral galaxy 133
Structure
Spiral galaxies consist of four distinct components:
• A flat, rotating disc of (mostly newly created) stars and interstellar matter
• A central stellar bulge of mainly older stars, which resembles an elliptical galaxy
• A near-spherical halo of stars, including many in globular clusters
• A supermassive black hole at the very center of the central bulge
The relative importance, in terms of mass, brightness and size, of the different components varies from galaxy to
galaxy.
Spiral arms
Spiral arms are regions of stars that extend from the center of spiral
and barred spiral galaxies. These long, thin regions resemble a spiral
and thus give spiral galaxies their name. Naturally, different
classifications of spiral galaxies have distinct arm-structures. Sc and
SBc galaxies, for instance, have very "loose" arms, whereas Sa and
SBa galaxies tightly wrapped arms (with reference to the Hubble
sequence). Either way, spiral arms contain a great many young, blue
stars (due to the high mass density and the high rate of star formation),
which make the arms so remarkable.
Galactic bulge
NGC 1300 in infrared light.
A bulge is a huge, tightly packed group of stars. The term commonly
refers to the central group of stars found in most spiral galaxies.
Using the Hubble classification, the bulge of Sa galaxies is usually composed of population II stars, that is old, red
stars with low metal content. Further, the bulge of Sa and SBa galaxies tends to be large. In contrast, the bulges of Sc
and SBc galaxies are a great deal lesser, and are composed of young, blue, Population I stars. Some bulges have
similar properties to those of elliptical galaxies (scaled down to lower mass and luminosity), and others simply
appear as higher density centers of disks, with properties similar to disk galaxies.
Many bulges are thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center. Such black holes have never been directly
observed, but many indirect proofs exist. In our own galaxy, for instance, the object called Sagittarius A* is believed
to be a supermassive black hole. There is a tight correlation between the mass of the black hole and the velocity
dispersion of the stars in the bulge, the M-sigma relation.
Galactic spheroid
The bulk of the stars in a spiral galaxy are located either close to a single plane (the Galactic plane) in more or less
conventional circular orbits around the center of the galaxy (the galactic centre), or in a spheroidal galactic bulge
around the galactic core.
However, some stars inhabit a spheroidal halo or galactic spheroid. The orbital behaviour of these stars is disputed,
but they may describe retrograde and/or highly inclined orbits, or not move in regular orbits at all. Halo stars may be
acquired from small galaxies which fall into and merge with the spiral galaxy—for example, the Sagittarius Dwarf
Elliptical Galaxy is in the process of merging with the Milky Way and observations show that some stars in the halo
of the Milky Way have been acquired from it.
Unlike the galactic disc, the halo seems to be free of dust, and in further contrast, stars in the galactic halo are of
Population II, much older and with much lower metallicity than their Population I cousins in the galactic disc (but
Spiral galaxy 134
similar to those in the galactic bulge). The galactic halo also contains many globular clusters.
The motion of halo stars does bring them through the disc on occasion, and a number of small red dwarf stars close
to the Sun are thought to belong to the galactic halo, for example Kapteyn's Star and Groombridge 1830. Due to their
irregular movement around the centre of the galaxy—if they do so at all—these stars often display unusually high
proper motion.
Origin of the spiral structure

The pioneer of studies of the rotation of the Galaxy and the formation of the spiral arms was Bertil Lindblad in 1925.
He realized that the idea of stars arranged permanently in a spiral shape was untenable due to the "winding
dilemma". Since the angular speed of rotation of the galactic disk varies with distance from the centre of the galaxy
(via a standard solar system type of gravitational model), a radial arm (like a spoke) would quickly become curved as
the galaxy rotates. The arm would, after a few galactic rotations, become increasingly curved and wind around the
galaxy ever tighter. This is called the winding problem. Measurements in the late 1960s showed that the orbital
velocity of stars in spiral galaxies with respect to their distance from the galactic center is indeed higher than
expected from Newtonian dynamics but still cannot explain the stability of the spiral structure.
There are two leading hypotheses or models for the spiral structures of galaxies:
• Star formation caused by density waves in the galactic disk of the galaxy.
• The SSPSF model - Star formation caused by shock waves in the interstellar medium.
These different hypotheses do not have to be mutually exclusive, as they may explain different types of spiral arms.
Density waves model

Bertil Lindblad proposed that the arms represent regions of enhanced density (density waves) that rotate more slowly
than the galaxy’s stars and gas. As gas enters a density wave, it gets squeezed and makes new stars, some of which
are short-lived blue stars that light the arms.
This idea was developed into density wave theory by C. C. Lin and
Frank Shu in 1964.[7] They suggested that the spiral arms were
manifestations of spiral density waves, attempting to explain the
large-scale structure of spirals in terms of a small-amplitude wave
propagating with fixed angular velocity, that revolves around the
galaxy at a speed different from that of the galaxy's gas and stars.
Historical theory of Lin and Shu

Explanation of spiral galaxy arms.
The first acceptable theory for the spiral structure was devised by C. C.
Lin and Frank Shu in 1964.
• They suggested that the spiral arms were manifestations of spiral density waves.
• They assumed that the stars travel in slightly elliptical orbits and that the orientations of their orbits is correlated
i.e. the ellipses vary in their orientation (one to another) in a smooth way with increasing distance from the
galactic centre. This is illustrated in the diagram. It is clear that the elliptical orbits come close together in certain
areas to give the effect of arms. Stars therefore do not remain forever in the position that we now see them in, but
pass through the arms as they travel in their orbits.
Spiral galaxy 135
Star formation caused by density waves

The following hypotheses exist for star formation caused by density waves:
• As gas clouds move into the density wave, the local mass density increases. Since the criteria for cloud collapse
(the Jeans instability) depends on density, a higher density makes it more likely for clouds to collapse and form
stars.
• As the compression wave goes through, it triggers star formation on the leading edge of the spiral arms.
• As clouds get swept up by the spiral arms, they collide with one another and drive shock waves through the gas,
which in turn causes the gas to collapse and form stars.
More young stars in spiral arms

The arms appear brighter because there are more young stars (hence
more massive, bright stars). These massive, bright stars also die out
quickly, which would leave just the (darker) background stellar
distribution behind the waves, hence making the waves visible.
While stars, therefore, do not remain forever in the position that we The bright galaxy NGC 3810 demonstrates
now see them in, they also do not follow the arms. The arms simply classical spiral structure in this very detailed
appear to pass through the stars as the stars travel in their orbits. image from Hubble. Credit: ESA/Hubble and
NASA.
Alignment of spin axis with cosmic voids

Recent results suggest that the orientation of the spin axis of spiral galaxies is not a chance result, but instead they
are preferentially aligned along the surface of cosmic voids.[8] That is, spiral galaxies tend to be oriented at a high
angle of inclination relative to the large-scale structure of the surroundings. They have been described as lining up
like "beads on a string," with their axis of rotation following the filaments around the edges of the voids.[9]
Spiral nebula
“Spiral nebula” is an old term for a spiral galaxy. Until the early 20th century, most astronomers believed that objects
like the Whirlpool Galaxy were just one more form of nebula that were within our own Milky Way galaxy. The idea
that they might instead be other galaxies, independent of the Milky Way, was the subject of The Great Debate of
1920, between Heber Curtis of Lick Observatory and Harlow Shapley of Mt. Wilson Observatory. In 1926, Edwin
Hubble[10] observed Cepheid variables in several spiral nebulae, including the Andromeda Galaxy, proving that they
are, in fact, entire galaxies outside our own. The term “spiral nebula” has since fallen into disuse.
The Milky Way

The Milky Way was once considered an ordinary spiral galaxy. Astronomers first began to suspect that the Milky
Way is a barred spiral galaxy in the 1990s.[11] Their suspicions were confirmed by the Spitzer Space Telescope
observations in 2005[12] which showed the galaxy's central bar to be larger than previously suspected.
Famous examples
• Triangulum Galaxy • Andromeda Galaxy • Sunflower Galaxy
• Whirlpool Galaxy • Pinwheel Galaxy
Spiral galaxy 136
See also
Components
• Galactic disk • Galactic halo • Galactic corona

Classification
• Galaxy color-magnitude diagram • Dwarf galaxy • Lenticular galaxy

• Galaxy morphological classification • Dwarf elliptical galaxy • Ring galaxy
• Hubble sequence • Dwarf spheroidal galaxy • Starburst galaxy
• Disc galaxy • Elliptical galaxy • Seyfert galaxy
• Active galaxy • Grand design spiral galaxy • Unbarred spiral galaxy
• Barred spiral galaxy • Intermediate spiral galaxy
Other
• Galactic coordinate system • List of galaxies • Timeline of galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large scale structure
• Galaxy formation and evolution • List of nearest galaxies • Tully-Fisher relation
• Groups and clusters of galaxies
References
[2] Ripples in a Galactic Pond (http:/ / www. sciamdigital. com/ index. cfm?fa=Products. ViewIssuePreview&
ARTICLEID_CHAR=3BC08F0C-2B35-221B-67A9F2AE04AFC79A), Scientific American, October 2005
[3] http:/ / www. astro. wisc. edu/ sirtf/
[4] Benjamin, R. A. et al.; Churchwell, E.; Babler, B. L.; Indebetouw, R.; Meade, M. R.; Whitney, B. A.; Watson, C.; Wolfire, M. G. et al.
(September 2005). "First GLIMPSE Results on the Stellar Structure of the Galaxy." (http:/ / www. journals. uchicago. edu/ doi/ full/ 10. 1086/
491785). The Astrophysical Journal Letters 630 (2): L149–L152. doi:10.1086/491785. . Retrieved 2007-09-21.
[5] Loveday, J. (February 1996). "The APM Bright Galaxy Catalogue." (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1996MNRAS. 278. 1025L).
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 278 (4): 1025–1048. . Retrieved 2007-09-15.
[6] Dressler, A. (March 1980). accessdate= 2007-09-15 "Galaxy morphology in rich clusters — Implications for the formation and evolution of
galaxies." (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1980ApJ. . . 236. . 351D). The Astrophysical Journal 236: 351–365.
doi:10.1086/157753. accessdate= 2007-09-15.
[7] Lin, C. C.; Shu, F. H. (August 1964). "On the spiral structure of disk galaxies." (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1964ApJ. . . 140. .
646L). The Astrophysical Journal 140: 646–655. doi:10.1086/147955. . Retrieved 2007-09-26.
[8] Trujillo, I.; Carretero, C.; Patiri, S.G. (2006). "Detection of the Effect of Cosmological Large-Scale Structure on the Orientation of Galaxies"
(http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2005astro. ph. 11680T). The Astrophysical Journal 640 (2): L111–L114. doi:10.1086/503548. .
[9] Alder, Robert (2006). "Galaxies like necklace beads" (http:/ / www. astronomy. com/ asy/ default. aspx?c=a& id=4215). Astronomy
magazine. . Retrieved 2006-08-10.
[10] Hubble, E. P. (May 1926). "A spiral nebula as a stellar system: Messier 33." (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1926ApJ. . . . 63. .
236H). The Astrophysical Journal 63: 236–274. doi:10.1086/142976. . Retrieved 2007-09-21.
[11] Chen, W.; Gehrels, N.; Diehl, R.; Hartmann, D. (1996). "On the spiral arm interpretation of COMPTEL ^26^Al map features" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1996A& AS. . 120C. 315C). Space Science Reviews 120: 315–316. . Retrieved 2007-03-14.
[12] McKee, Maggie (August 16, 2005). "Bar at Milky Way's heart revealed" (http:/ / www. newscientist. com/ article/
dn7854--bar-at-milky-ways-heart-revealed. html). New Scientist. . Retrieved 2009-06-17.
Spiral galaxy 137
External links
• Giudice, G.F.; Mollerach, S.; Roulet, E. (1994). "Can EROS/MACHO be detecting the galactic spheroid instead
of the galactic halo?" (http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/9312047). Physical Review D 50: 2406–2413.
doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.50.2406. Retrieved 2007-02-04.
• Stephens, Tim (March 6, 2007). "AEGIS survey reveals new principle governing galaxy formation and evolution"
(http://www.ucsc.edu/news_events/press_releases/text.asp?pid=1080). UC Santa Cruz. Retrieved
2006-05-24.
• Spiral Galaxies @ SEDS Messier pages (http://www.seds.org/messier/spir.html)
• SpiralZoom.com (http://spiralzoom.com/Science/spiralgalaxies/SpiralGalaxies.html), an educational website
about Spiral Galaxies and other spiral formations found in nature. For high school & general audience.
• Spiral Structure explained (http://burro.cwru.edu/Academics/Astr222/Galaxies/Spiral/spiral.html)
Starburst galaxy
A starburst galaxy is a galaxy in the process of
an exceptionally high rate of star formation,
compared to the usual star formation rate seen in
most galaxies. Galaxies are often observed to
have a burst of star formation after a collision or
close encounter between two galaxies. The rate
of star formation is so great for a galaxy
undergoing a starburst that, if the rate was
sustained, the gas reservoirs from which stars are
formed would be used up on timescales much
shorter than that of the galaxy. For this reason, it
is presumed that starbursts are temporary.
Well-known starburst galaxies include M82,
NGC 4038/NGC 4039 (the Antennae Galaxies),
and IC 10.
Starburst definitions
The Antennae Galaxies are an example of a very high starburst galaxy
Several definitions of the term starburst galaxy occurring from the collision of NGC 4038/NGC 4039. Credit: NASA/ESA
exist and there isn't really a strict definition on

which all astronomers agree. However, many generally agree that the definition must in some way be related to these
three factors:
1. the rate at which the galaxy is currently converting gas into stars (the star-formation rate, or SFR)
2. the available quantity of gas from which stars can be formed
3. comparison of the timescale of star formation with the age or rotation period of the galaxy.
Commonly used definitions include:
• Continued star-formation with the current

SFR would exhaust the available gas
reservoir in much less than the age of the
Universe (the Hubble Time). This is
sometimes referred to as a "true" starburst.
• Continued star-formation with the current
SFR would exhaust the available gas
reservoir in much less than the dynamical
timescale of the galaxy (perhaps one rotation
period in a disk type galaxy).
• The current SFR, normalised by the
past-averaged SFR is much greater than unity.
This ratio is referred to as the birthrate
Starburst activity in the central region of nearby dwarf galaxy NGC 1569
parameter.
(Arp 210). Taken by Hubble Space Telescope
Starburst triggering mechanisms

Essentially to ignite a starburst, it is necessary to
concentrate a large amount of cool molecular gas
in a small volume. Such concentrations and
perturbations are strongly suspected to cause
global starburst phenomena in major galaxy
mergers, although the exact mechanisms are not
fully understood.
Observational surveys have long since shown
that there is often a burst of disk star-formation
in merging and interacting pairs of galaxies. It is
also currently believed that nearby interactions
between galaxies that don't actually merge can
trigger unstable rotation modes, such as the bar
instability, that cause gas to be funneled towards
the nucleus, igniting bursts of star formation near
the galactic nucleus.
Types of starburst As viewed from our position 12.2 billion light years away, the Baby Boom
Galaxy is seen to be creating 4,000 stars per year. Credit: NASA
Classifying the starburst category itself isn't easy
since starburst galaxies don't represent a specific
type in themselves. Starbursts can occur in disk galaxies, and irregular galaxies often exhibit knots of starburst, often
spread throughout the irregular galaxy. However, several different subtypes of starburst are currently under
discussion among galactic astronomers:
• Blue compact galaxies (BCGs). These galaxies are often low mass, low metallicity, dust-free objects. Because
they are dust-free and contain a large number of hot, young stars, they are often blue in optical and ultraviolet
colours. It was initially thought that BCGs were genuinely young galaxies in the process of forming their first
generation of stars, thus explaining their low metal content. However old stellar populations have been found in
most BCGs and it is thought that efficient mixing may explain the apparent lack of dust and metals. Most BCGs
show signs of recent mergers and/or close interactions. Well-studied BCGs include IZw18 (the most metal poor
galaxy known), ESO338-IG04 and Haro11.
• Blue compact dwarf galaxies (BCD galaxies) are small compact galaxies
• Pea galaxy (Pea galaxies) are small compact galaxies resembling primordial starbursts. They were found by
citizen scientists taking part in the Galaxy Zoo project.
• Luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs)
• Ultra-luminous Infrared Galaxies (ULIRGs). These galaxies are generally extremely dusty objects. The
ultraviolet radiation produced by the obscured star-formation is absorbed by the dust and reradiated in the
infrared spectrum at wavelengths of around 100 micrometres. This explains the extreme red colours associated
with ULIRGs. It is not known for sure that the UV radiation is produced purely by star-formation and some
astronomers believe ULIRGs to be powered (at least in part) by active galactic nuclei (AGN). X-ray
observations of many ULIRGs that penetrate the dust suggest that many starburst are double cored systems,
lending support to the hypothesis that ULIRGs are powered by star-formation triggered by major mergers.
Well-studied ULIRGs include Arp 220.
• Hyperluminous Infrared galaxies (HLIRGs)
• Wolf-Rayet galaxies (WR galaxies), galaxy where a large portion of the bright stars are Wolf-Rayet stars.
The ingredients of a starburst

Firstly, a starburst must have a large supply of gas available to form stars. The burst itself may be triggered by a
close encounter with another galaxy (such as M81/M82), a collision with another galaxy (such as the Antennae), or
by another process which forces material into the center of the galaxy (such as a stellar bar).
Inside the starburst is quite an extreme environment. The large amounts of gas mean that very massive stars are
formed. Young, hot stars ionize the gas (mainly hydrogen) around them creating H II regions. Groups of very hot
stars are known as OB associations. These stars burn very bright and very fast, and are quite likely to explode at the
end of their lives as supernovae.
After the supernova explosion, the ejected material expands and becomes a supernova remnant. These remnants
interact with the surrounding environment within the starburst (the interstellar medium) and can be the site of
naturally occurring masers.
Studying nearby starburst galaxies can help us determine the history of galaxy formation and evolution. Large
numbers of the very distant galaxies seen, for example, in the Hubble Deep Field are known to be starbursts, but they
are too far away to be studied in any detail. Observing nearby examples and exploring their characteristics can give
us an idea of what was happening in the early universe as the light we see from these distant galaxies left them when
the universe was much younger (see redshift). Unfortunately however, starburst galaxies seem to be quite rare in our
local universe, and are more common further away - indicating that there were more of them billions of years ago.
All galaxies were closer together then, and therefore more likely to be influenced by each other's gravity. More
frequent encounters produced more starbursts as galactic forms evolved with the expanding universe.
Well-known starbursts
M82 is the archetypal starburst galaxy. Its high level of star formation is due to a close encounter with the nearby
spiral M81. Maps of the regions made with radio telescopes show large streams of neutral hydrogen [1] connecting
the two galaxies, also as a result of the encounter. Radio images of the central regions of M82 also show a large
number of young supernova remnants, left behind when the more massive stars created in the starburst came to the
end of their lives. The Antennae is another well-known starburst system, made famous by a stunning Hubble picture
[2]
, released in 1997.
Sources
• "Chandra :: Field Guide to X-ray Sources :: Starburst Galaxies" [3]. chandra.harvard.edu. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
See also
• Active galaxy
• Baby Boom Galaxy
• Blue compact dwarf galaxy
• Messier 82
• Pea galaxy
• Starburst
References
[1] http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ cgi-bin/ nph-build_image?bg=%23FFFFFF& / seri/ A%2BA. . / 0075/ 600/ 0000106. 000&
db_key=AST& bits=4& res=100& filetype=. gif
[2] http:/ / hubblesite. org/ newscenter/ newsdesk/ archive/ releases/ 1997/ 34/
[3] http:/ / chandra. harvard. edu/ xray_sources/ starburst. html
Type-cD galaxy
The type-cD galaxy[1] (also cD-type galaxy[2] , cD galaxy[3] ) is a galaxy morphology classification, a subtype of
type-D giant elliptical galaxy and have a large halo of stars[4] . They can be found near the centres of some rich
galaxy clusters.[5] They are also known as supergiant ellipticals[6] or central dominant galaxies[7] .
cD galaxies
The cD-type is a classification in the Yerkes galaxy classification scheme, one of two Yerkes classifications still in
common use, along with D-type.[8] The "c" in "cD" refers to the fact that the galaxies are very large, hence
supergiant, while the "D" refers to the fact that the galaxies appear diffuse.[9] A backformation of "cD" is frequently
used to mean central Dominant galaxy.[7] cD's are also frequently considered the largest galaxies around.[10] [11]
cD galaxies are similar to lenticular galaxies (S0) or elliptical galaxies (E#), but many times larger, some having
envelopes that exceed one million lightyears in radius.[12] They appear elliptical-like, with large low surface
brightness envelopes.[13] It is currently thought that cD's are the result of galaxy mergers.[14] Some cD's have
multiple galactic nuclei.[15] cD galaxies are one of the types frequently found to be the Brightest cluster galaxy
(BCG) of a cluster.[16] Many fossil group galaxies are similar to cD BCG galaxies, leading some to theorize that the
cD results from the creation of a fossil group, and then the new cluster accumulating around the fossil group.[17]
However, cD's themselves are not found as field galaxies, unlike fossil groups.[13] cD's form around 20% of
BCGs.[13]
Type-cD galaxy 141
Growth
cD galaxies are believed to grow via mergers of galaxies that spiral in to the center of a galaxy cluster, a theory first
proposed by Herbert J. Rood in 1965.[18] This "cannibalistic" mode of growth leads to the overwhelming diameter
and luminosity of the cD's.[19] The second-brightest galaxy in the cluster is usually under-luminous, a consequence
of its having been "eaten".[20] Remains of "eaten" galaxies sometimes appear as a diffuse halo of gas and dust.[19]
This halo can be up to 3 million light years in diameter.[14]
Dynamical friction
Dynamical friction is believed to play an important role in the formation of cD galaxies at the centres of galaxy
clusters.[21] This process begins when the motion of a large galaxy in a cluster attracts smaller galaxies and dark
matter into a wake behind it. This over-density follows behind the larger galaxy and exerts a constant gravitational
force on it, causing it to slow down. As it loses kinetic energy, the large galaxy gradually spirals toward the centre of
the cluster. Once there, the stars, gas, dust and dark matter of the large galaxy and its trailing galaxies will join with
those of other galaxies who preceded them in the same fate.[22] A giant or supergiant diffuse or elliptical galaxy will
result from this accumulation.[23] The centers of merged or merging galaxies can remain recognizable for long times,
appearing as multiple "nuclei" of the cD galaxy.[24]
cD clusters
Type-cD galaxies are also used to define clusters. A galaxy cluster with a cD at its centre is termed a "cD cluster" or
"cD galaxy cluster" or "cD cluster of galaxies".[25]
Examples of cD galaxies
• Perseus A [26]
• NGC 6166 [27]
• IC 1101 — the largest known galaxy, in terms of diameter (around 6 million light years) [28] [29] [30]
• Messier 87, the central galaxy in the Virgo Cluster.
• NGC 1399 in the Fornax Cluster
References
[1] Sidereal Times, June 2002, page 3
[2] Proceedings of PATRAS 2008, page 59
[3] Galaxy Clusters, Jan Hartlap, page 3
[4] Surface Photometry and the Structure of Elliptical Galaxies, "Chapter 11. cD and Brightest Cluster Galaxies" (http:/ / nedwww. ipac. caltech.
edu/ level5/ Sept01/ Kormendy/ Kormendy11. html), John Kormendy, S. Djorgovski, 1989
[5] A Dictionary of Astronomy, "cD galaxy" (http:/ / www. highbeam. com/ doc/ 1O80-cDgalaxy. html) (accessed 14 April 2010)
[6] encyclopedia.com "supergiant elliptical" (http:/ / www. encyclopedia. com/ doc/ 1O80-supergiantelliptical. html)
[7] "Uncertainties on Clusters of Galaxies Distances", C. Adami, M.P. Ulmer, 18 July 2000, arXiv:astro-ph/0007265 (accessed 14 April 2010)
[8] An Atlas of DRAGNs, "Glossary" (http:/ / www. jb. man. ac. uk/ atlas/ gloss. html#cD), J. P. Leahy, 15 March 1997 (accessed 14 April
2010)
[9] Global Telescope Network, "Types of Galaxies" (http:/ / gtn. sonoma. edu/ resources/ normal_galaxies/ types. php), Kevin McLin, 14 April
2010 (accessed 14 April 2010)
[10] Universe Today, "What is the Largest Galaxy?" (http:/ / www. universetoday. com/ guide-to-space/ galaxies/ what-is-the-largest-galaxy/ ),
Fraser Cain (accessed 14 April 2010)
[11] EurekAlert, "Scientists observe largest explosion in space" (http:/ / www. eurekalert. org/ pub_releases/ 2005-01/ ou-sol010505. php),
Andrea Gibson, 5 January 2005 (accessed 15 April 2010)
[12] Encyclopedia Britannica, "cD-galaxy" (http:/ / www. britannica. com/ EBchecked/ topic/ 100915/ cD-galaxy) (accessed 14 April 2010)
[13] Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, "Intracluster light and the extended stellar envelopes of cD galaxies: an analytical
description", Marc S. Seigar, Alister W. Graham, Helmut Jerjen, July 2007, Volume 378, Issue 4, pp. 1575-1588,
doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2007.11899.x, Bibcode: 2007MNRAS.378.1575S, arXiv:astro-ph/0612229v2 (accessed 15 April 2010)
Type-cD galaxy 142
[14] COSMOS - The SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "CD Galaxies" (http:/ / astronomy. swin. edu. au/ cosmos/ C/ CD+ Galaxies),
Swinburne University of Technology (accessed 14 April 2010)
[15] Internet Encyclopedia of Science, "D galaxy" (http:/ / www. daviddarling. info/ encyclopedia/ D/ D_galaxy. html), David Darling (accessed
14 April 2010)
[16] IAU Symposium 245, "Star Formation in Bulges from GALEX", Sukyoung K. Yi, 5 September 2007, doi:10.1017/S174392130801819X,
arXiv:0709.0177 (accessed 14 April 2010)
[17] Universe Today, "How Do Fossil Galaxy Clusters Form so Quickly?" (http:/ / www. universetoday. com/ 2006/ 04/ 27/
how-do-fossil-galaxy-clusters-form-so-quickly/ ), Fraser Cain, 27 April 2006 (accessed 15 April 2010)
[18] Rood, H. J. (1965). The Dynamics of the Coma Cluster of Galaxies (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1965PhDT. . . . . . . . . 3R). (PhD
thesis). The University of Michigan.
[19] "Curious About Astronomy?" (http:/ / curious. astro. cornell. edu/ ). . Retrieved 28 March 2007.
[20] Hausman, M. J.; Ostriker, J. P. (November 1977). "Cannibalism among the galaxies - Dynamically produced evolution of cluster luminosity
functions" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1977ApJ. . . 217L. 125O). The Astrophysical Journal Letters 217: L125-L128. .
[21] Merritt, David (January 1983). "Relaxation and tidal stripping in rich clusters of galaxies. I. Evolution of the mass distribution" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1983ApJ. . . 264. . . 24M). The Astrophysical Journal 264: 24–48. .
[22] Merritt, David (January 1984). "Relaxation and tidal stripping in rich clusters of galaxies. II. Evolution of the luminosity distribution" (http:/
/ adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1984ApJ. . . 276. . . 26M). The Astrophysical Journal 276: 26–37. .
[23] Merritt, David (February 1985). "Relaxation and tidal stripping in rich clusters of galaxies. III. Growth of a massive central galaxy" (http:/ /
adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1985ApJ. . . 289. . . 18M). The Astrophysical Journal 289: 18–32. .
[24] Merritt, David (May 1984). "The nature of multiple-nucleus cluster galaxies" (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1984ApJ. . . 280L. . . 5M).
The Astrophysical Journal 280: L5–8. .
[25] PDF (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard. edu/ cgi-bin/ nph-iarticle_query?1971PASP. . . 83. . 313R& amp;data_type=PDF_HIGH&
amp;whole_paper=YES& amp;type=PRINTER& amp;filetype=. pdf), "'Tuning Fork' Classification of Rich Clusters of Galaxies", Herbert
J.Rood, Gummuluru N. Sastry, June 1971, doi:10.1086/129128, Bibcode: 1971PASP...83..313R (accessed 14 April 2010)
[26] Nature, "FIGURE 4. Optical, radio and X-ray images of the Perseus cluster." (http:/ / www. nature. com/ nature/ journal/ v460/ n7252/
fig_tab/ nature08135_F4. html) 9 July 2009, ISSN 0028-0836 ; EISSN 1476-4687 ; (accessed 15 April 2010)
[27] Nature, "FIGURE 3. The entropy of the intracluster medium in spherical shells of radius r." (http:/ / www. nature. com/ nature/ journal/
v460/ n7252/ fig_tab/ nature08135_F3. html) 9 July 2009, ISSN 0028-0836 ; EISSN 1476-4687 ; (accessed 15 April 2010)
[28] Science, "The Central Galaxy in Abell 2029: An Old Supergiant" (http:/ / www. sciencemag. org/ cgi/ content/ abstract/ 250/ 4980/ 539),
Juan M. Uson, Stephen P. Boughn, and Jeffrey R. Kuhn, 26 October 1990, Vol. 250, no. 4980, pp.539-540,
doi:10.1126/science.250.4980.539
[29] Ellensburg Daily Record, "Galaxy Found", United Press International, 27 October 1990, p.16
[30] Lodi News-Sentinel, "Giant Galaxy Discovered", UPI, 26 October 1990, pg.9
Further reading
• PDF (http://nedwww.ipac.caltech.edu/level5/Morgan2/paper.pdf) - "A Preliminary Classification of the
Forms of Galaxies According to Their Stellar Population" (http://nedwww.ipac.caltech.edu/level5/Morgan2/
frames.html), W. W. Morgan, Yerkes Obeservatory, 1958, doi:10.1086/127415, Bibcode: 1959PASP...71..394M
(PASP 70)
• PDF (http://arxiv.org/pdf/astro-ph/0612229v2) - "Intracluster light and the extended stellar envelopes of cD
galaxies: an analytical description", Marc S. Seigar, Alister W. Graham, Helmut Jerjen, July 2007
doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2007.11899.x, Bibcode: 2007MNRAS.378.1575S, arXiv:astro-ph/0612229v2 (MNRAS
07/2007)
Type-cD galaxy 143
See also
• Giant elliptical galaxy (gE)
• Giant galaxy
• Elliptical galaxy (E#)
• Lenticular galaxy (S0, SA0, SAB0, SB0, E9)
• Type-D galaxy
Unbarred lenticular galaxy

An unbarred lenticular galaxy is a
lenticular version of an unbarred spiral
galaxy. They have the Hubble type of SA0
An example of this is the Galaxy AM
0644-741. For other examples see
Category:Unbarred lenticular galaxies.
See also
• Barred lenticular galaxy
An example of this type, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope

Unbarred spiral galaxy

An unbarred spiral galaxy[1] [2] is a type of spiral galaxy without a
central bar, or one that is not a barred spiral galaxy. It is designated
with an SA in the galaxy morphological classification scheme.
The Sombrero Galaxy is an unbarred spiral galaxy.
Barless spiral galaxies are one of three general types of spiral galaxies
under the de Vaucouleurs system classification system, the other two
being intermediate spiral galaxy and barred spiral galaxy. Under the
Hubble tuning fork, it is one of two general types of spiral galaxy, the
The Whirlpool Galaxy and its companion
other being barred spirals.
satellite. The Whirlpool is an unbarred spiral
galaxy
Grades
Under the de Vaucouleurs classification system, SA-galaxies are one of three

types of spiral galaxy
SA0- SA0- is a type of lenticular galaxy
SA0 SA0 is a type of lenticular galaxy
SA0+ SA0+ is a type of lenticular galaxy
NGC 3593 SA0/a SA0/a can also be considered a type of unbarred lenticular NGC 3593 is actually an
galaxy "SA(s)0/a"
NGC 3169 SAa NGC 3169 is actually an "SA(s)a

pec"
Messier 81 SAab M81 is actually an "SA(s)ab"
Messier 88 SAb M88 is actually an "SA(rs)b"
NGC 3949 SAbc NGC 3949 is actually an "SA(s)bc"
NGC 4414 SAc NGC 4414 is actually an "SA(rs)c"
Triangulum SAcd Triangulum is actually an

Galaxy "SA(s)cd"
NGC 300 SAd NGC 300 is actually an "SA(s)d"
NGC 45 SAdm SAdm can also be considered a type of unbarred Magellanic NGC 45 is actually an "SA(s)dm"
spiral
NGC 4395 SAm SAm is a type of Magellanic spiral (Sm) NGC 4395 is actually an "SA(s)m"
References
[1] Astronomical Journal, "Near-infrared surface photometry and morphology in virgo cluster spiral galaxy nuclear regions", Bernard J.
Rauscher, April 1995, Bibcode: 1995AJ....109.1608R, doi:10.1086/117389
[2] Astronomy Pictures, "M99" (http:/ / www. astronomy-pictures. com/ 2008/ ST-2000_m99-2008. htm) (accessed 18 April 2010)
146
Appendix
Brightest cluster galaxy

Brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) is defined as the brightest galaxy in a
cluster of galaxies. BCGs include the most massive galaxies in the
universe. They are generally elliptical galaxies which lie close to the
geometric and kinematical center of their host galaxy cluster, hence at
the bottom of the cluster potential well. They are also generally
coincident with the peak of the cluster X-ray emission.
Their brightness, coupled with their small variance in luminosity, make

them excellent standard candles for distance determination.
Formation scenarios for BCGs include:
• Cooling flow—Star formation from the central cooling flow in high
density cooling centers of X-ray cluster halos.
The study of accretion populations in BCGs [1] has cast doubt over this
This image from NASA's Hubble Space
theory and astronomers have seen no evidence of cooling flows in Telescope shows the galaxy cluster Abell S0740
radiative cooling clusters[2] . The two remaining theories exhibit that is over 450 million light-years away in the
healthier prospects. direction of the constellation Centaurus. The
giant elliptical galaxy ESO 325-G004 looms large
• Galactic cannibalism—Galaxies sink to the center of the cluster due at the cluster's center. This BCG is as massive as
to dynamical friction and tidal stripping[3] . 100 billion of our suns.
• Galactic merger—Rapid galactic mergers between several galaxies

take place during cluster collapse[4] .
It is possible to differentiate the cannibalism model from the merging model by considering the formation period of
the BCGs. In the cannibalism model, there are numerous small galaxies present in the evolved cluster, whereas in the
merging model, a hierarchical cosmological model is expected due to the collapse of clusters. The merging model is
now generally accepted as the most likely one.[5]
BCGs are divided into various classes of galaxies: giant ellipticals (gE), D galaxies and cD galaxies [6] . cD and D
galaxies both exhibit an extended diffuse envelope surrounding an elliptical-like nucleus akin to regular elliptical
galaxies. The light profiles of BCGs are well described by a Sersic surface brightness law.
Brightest cluster galaxy 147
References
[1] McNamara and O’Connell (1989), Star formation in cooling flows in clusters of galaxies (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1989AJ. . . . . 98.
2018M)
[2] Motl et al. (2004), Formation of Cool Cores in Galaxy Clusters via Hierarchical Mergers (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2004ApJ. . . 606. .
635M)
[3] J. Ostriker and M. Hausman (1977), Cannibalism among the galaxies - Dynamically produced evolution of cluster luminosity functions (http:/
/ adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1977ApJ. . . 217L. 125O)
[4] D. Merritt (1984), Relaxation and tidal stripping in rich clusters of galaxies. II - Evolution of the luminosity distribution (http:/ / adsabs.
harvard. edu/ abs/ 1984ApJ. . . 276. . . 26M)
[5] J. Dubinski (1998), The Origin of the Brightest Cluster Galaxies (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1998ApJ. . . 502. . 141D)
[6] Matthews, T. A., Morgan, W. W. and Schmidt, M. (1964), A Discussion of Galaxies Identified with Radio Sources (http:/ / adsabs. harvard.
edu/ abs/ 1964ApJ. . . 140. . . 35M)
See also
• Fossil group
Galaxy color-magnitude diagram

The Galaxy color-magnitude diagram
shows the relationship between absolute
magnitude, luminosity, and mass of
galaxies. A preliminary description of the
three areas of this diagram was made in
2003 by Eric F. Bell et al. from the
COMBO-17 survey[1] that clarified the
bimodal distribution of red and blue galaxies
as seen in analysis of Sloan Digital Sky
Survey data[2] and even in de Vaucouleurs'
1961 analyses of galaxy morphology[3]
Noticed in this diagram are three main
features: the red sequence, the green valley,
and the blue cloud. The red sequence
includes most red galaxies which are
generally elliptical galaxies. The blue cloud
includes most blue galaxies which are
generally spirals. In between the two
distributions is an underpopulated space A mock-up of the galaxy color-magnitude diagram with three populations: the red
sequence, the blue cloud, and the green valley.
known as the green valley which includes a
number of red spirals. Unlike the
comparable HR diagram for stars, galaxy properties are not necessarily completely determined by their location on
the color-magnitude diagram. The diagram also shows considerable evolution through time. The red sequence earlier
in evolution of the universe was more constant in color across magnitudes and the blue cloud was not as uniformly
distributed but showed sequence progression.
Galaxy color-magnitude diagram 148
References
[1] Bell, Eric F. et al. Nearly 5000 Distant Early‐Type Galaxies in COMBO‐17: A Red Sequence and Its Evolution since z=1, The Astrophysical
Journal, 608:752–767, 2004 June 20. (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 2004ApJ. . . 608. . 752B)
[2] Strateva, I., et al. Color Separation of Galaxy Types in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Imaging Data, 2001, The Astronomical Journal, 122,
1861 (http:/ / www. journals. uchicago. edu/ servlet/ linkout?suffix=rf95& dbid=64& doi=10. 1086/ 420778& key=2001AJ. . . . 122. 1861S)
[3] de Vaucouleurs, G. Integrated Colors of Bright Galaxies in the u, b, V System. 1961, The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, 5, 233.
(http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1961ApJS. . . . 5. . 233D)
List of galaxies
This is a list of notable galaxies.
The Hubble Ultra Deep Field shows over 10,000

galaxies in a mere 0.000024% of the sky
List of galaxies
Galaxy Notes
M82 This is the prototype starburst galaxy.
M87 [1]
This is the central galaxy of the Virgo Cluster, the central cluster of the Local Supercluster.
M102 This galaxy cannot be definitively identified, with the most likely candidate being NGC 5866, and a good chance of it being a
misidentification of M101. Other candidates have also been suggested.
NGC 2770 NGC 2770 is referred to as the Supernova Factory due to three recent supernovae occurring within it.
NGC 3314 This is a pair of spiral galaxies, one superimposed on another, at two separate and distinct ranges, and unrelated to each other. It is
NGC a rare chance visual alignment.
3314a
NGC
3314b
ESO 137-001 Lying in the galaxy cluster Abell 3627, this galaxy is being stripped of its gas by the pressure of the intracluster medium (ICM),
due to its high speed traversal through the cluster, and is leaving a high density tail with large amounts of star formation. The tail
features the largest amount of star formation outside of a galaxy seen so far. The galaxy has the appearance of a comet, with the
[2] [3] [4] [5]
head being the galaxy, and a tail of gas and stars.
Comet Galaxy Lying in galaxy cluster Abell 2667, this spiral galaxy is being tidally stripped of stars and gas through its high speed traversal
through the cluster, having the appearance of a comet.
List of named galaxies

This is a list of galaxies that are well known by something other than an entry in a catalog or list, or a set of
coordinates, or a systematic designation.
Galaxy Origin of name Notes
Milky Way This is the galaxy that contains Earth, it is named after the nebulosity
Galaxy in the night sky that marks the densest concentration of stars of our
galaxy in the sky, which appears to blur together into a faint glow,
called the Milky Way.
Andromeda Commonly just Andromeda, this, called the Andromeda Galaxy,

Andromeda Nebula, Great Andromeda Nebula, Andromeda Spiral
Nebula, and such, has been traditionally called Andromeda, after the
constellation in which it lies.
Bode's Galaxy Named for Johann Elert Bode who discovered this galaxy in 1774.
Cartwheel Its visual appearance is similar to that of a spoked cartwheel.

Galaxy
Cigar Galaxy Appears similar in shape to a cigar.
Comet Galaxy This galaxy is named after its unusual appearance, looking like a The comet effect is caused by tidal stripping by its galaxy
comet. cluster, Abell 2667.
Hoag's Object This is named after Art Hoag, who discovered this ring galaxy. It is of the subtype Hoag-type galaxy, and may in fact be a
polar-ring galaxy with the ring in the plane of rotation of
the central object.
Large Named after Ferdinand Magellan This is the fourth largest galaxy in the Local Group, and
Magellanic forms a pair with the SMC, and from recent research, may
Cloud not be part of the Milky Way system of satellites at all.
Small Named after Ferdinand Magellan This forms a pair with the LMC, and from recent research,
Magellanic may not be part of the Milky Way system of satellites at
Cloud all.
Mayall's This is named after Nicholas U. Mayall, of the Lick Observatory, who Also called VV 32 and Arp 148, this is a very peculiar
Object [6] [7] [8] looking object, and is likely to be not one galaxy, but two
discovered it.
galaxies undergoing a collision. Event in images is a
spindle shape and a ring shape.
Pinwheel Similar in appearance to a pinwheel (toy).

Galaxy
Sombrero Similar in appearance to a sombrero.

Galaxy
Sunflower
Galaxy
Tadpole The name comes from the resemblance of the galaxy to a tadpole. This shape resulted from tidal interaction that drew out a
Galaxy long tidal tail.
Whirlpool From the whirlpool appearance this gravitationally disturbed galaxy

Galaxy exhibits.
List of naked-eye galaxies

This is a list of galaxies that are visible to the naked-eye, for at the very least, keen-eyed observers in a very dark-sky
environment that is high in altitude, during clear and stable weather.
Naked-eye Galaxies
Galaxy Apparent Distance Notes
Magnitude
Milky Way Galaxy -26.74 (the 0 This is our galaxy, most things visible to the naked-eye in the sky are part of it,
Sun) [9]
including the Milky Way composing the zone of avoidance.
Large Magellanic 0.9 160 kly (50kpc) Visible only from the southern hemisphere. It is also the brightest patch of nebulosity in
Cloud [9] [10] [11]
the sky.
Small Magellanic 2.7 200 kly (60kpc) [9] [12]

Visible only from the southern hemisphere.
Cloud (NGC292)
Andromeda Galaxy 3.4 2.5 Mly Once called the Great Andromeda Nebula, it is situated in the Andromeda
(M31 , NGC224) (780kpc) [9] [13]
constellation.
Omega Centauri 3.7 18 kly (5.5kpc) Once thought to be a star and later a globular cluster, Omega Centauri was confirmed as
(NGC5139) having a black hole at its center and thus its status has been changed to being a dwarf
[14]
galaxy as of April 2010.
Triangulum Galaxy 5.7 2.9 Mly (900 Being a diffuse object, its visibility is strongly affected by even small amounts of light
(M33 , NGC598) kpc) pollution, ranging from easily visible in direct vision in truly dark skies to a difficult
[15]
averted vision object in rural/suburban skies.
Centaurus A (NGC 7.8 13.7 ± 0.9 Mly [16]

Centaurus A has been spotted with the naked eye by Stephen James O'Meara
5128) (4.2 ± 0.3 Mpc)
Bode's Galaxy (M81 7.89 12 Mly Highly experienced amateur astronomers may be able to see Messier 81 under
, NGC3031) (3.6Mpc) [17] [18] [19]
exceptional observing conditions.
Sculptor Galaxy 8.0 11.4 ± 0.7 Mly According to Brian A. Skiff, the naked- ey visibility of this galaxy is discussed in an old
(NGC 253) (3.5 ± 0.2 Mpc) [20]
Sky & Telescope letter or note from the late 1960s or early 1970s.
Messier 83 (NGC 8.2 14.7 Mly (4.5 [21]

M83 has reportedly been seen with the naked eye.
5236) Mpc)
• Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy is not listed, because it is not discernible as being a separate galaxy in the sky.
Firsts
Galactic Firsts
First Galaxy Notes
Date
First galaxy Milky Way 1923 Edwin Hubble determined the distance to the Andromeda Nebula, and found that it could not
Galaxy & be part of the Milky Way, so defining that Milky Way was not the entire universe, and
Andromeda making the two separate objects, and two galaxies. However, the first galaxies seen would be
Galaxy all of the naked-eye galaxies, but they were not identified as such until the 20th century.
First radio galaxy Cygnus A 1952 Of several items, then called radio stars, Cygnus A was identified with a distant galaxy,
[22]
being the first of many radio stars to become a radio galaxy.
First quasar 3C273 1962 3C273 was the first quasar with its redshift determined, and by some considered the first
3C48 1960 quasar. 3C48 was the first "radio-star" with an unreadable spectrum, and by others
considered the first quasar.
First Seyfert galaxy NGC 1068 (M77) 1908 The characteristics of Seyfert galaxies were first observed in M77 in 1908, however, Seyferts
[23]
were defined as a class in 1943.
First discovered object, Omega Centauri Omega Centauri is considered the core of a disrupted dwarf spheroidal galaxy cannibalized
later identified to be a by the Milky Way, and was originally catalogued in 1677 as a nebula. It is currently
cannibalized galaxy catalogued as a globular cluster.
First superluminal 3C279 1971 The jet is emitted by a quasar

galactic jet
First superluminal jet III Zw 2 2000 [24]

from a Seyfert
First spiral galaxy Whirlpool Galaxy 1845 Lord William Parsons, Earl of Rosse discovered the first spiral nebula from observing the
[25]
M51 white nebula.
Prototypes
This is a list of galaxies that became prototypes for a class of galaxies.
Prototype Galaxies
Class Galaxy Date Notes
BL Lac object BL Lacertae (BL This AGN was originally catalogued as a variable star, and "stars" of its type are considered BL
Lac) Lac objects.
Hoag-type Hoag's Object This is the prototype Hoag-type Ring Galaxy

Galaxy
Extremes
This list is incomplete.
Title Galaxy Data Notes
Least separation between binary central 4C 24 ly OJ 287 has an inferred pair with a 12 year orbital period, and thus would be much
black holes 37.11 (7.3pc) closer than 4C 37.11's pair.
Distances
Title Galaxy Distance Notes
Closest neighbouring Canis Major Dwarf 0.025 Discovered in 2003, a satellite of the Milky Way, slowly
galaxy Mly being cannibalized by it.
Most distant galaxy UDFy-38135539 z=8.55 Discovered in 2010, it became the most remote object
[26]
known, exceeding GRB 090423.
Closest quasar 3C 273 z=0.158 First identified quasar, this is the most commonly accepted
nearest quasar.
Most distant quasar CFHQS J2329-0301 z=6.43 Discovered in 2007.
Closest radio galaxy Centaurus A (NGC 5128 , PKS 1322-427) 13.7 Mly [27]
Most distant radio TN J0924-2201 z=5.2

galaxy
Closest Seyfert galaxy Circinus Galaxy 13 Mly This is also the closest Seyfert 2 galaxy. The closest Seyfert
1 galaxy is NGC 4151.
Most distant Seyfert z=

galaxy
Closest blazar Markarian 421 (Mrk 421, Mkn 421, PKS z=0.030 [28] [29]
This is a BL Lac object.
1101+384, LEDA 33452)
Most distant blazar Q0906+6930 z=5.47 [30]

This is a flat spectrum radio-loud quasar type blazar.
[31]
Closest BL Lac object Markarian 421 (Mkn 421, Mrk 421, PKS z=0.030 [28] [29]
1101+384, LEDA 33452)
Most distant BL Lac z=

object
Closest LINER
Most distant LINER z=
Closest LIRG
Most distant LIRG z=
Closest ULIRG IC 1127 (Arp 220 , APG 220) z=0.018 [32]
Most distant ULIRG z=
Closest starburst Cigar Galaxy (M82 , Arp 337/APG 337 , 3C 3.2Mpc [33] [34]
galaxy 231 , Ursa Major A)
Most distant starburst z=

galaxy
Brightness and power

Title Galaxy Data Notes
Apparently brightest galaxy Baby Boom Galaxy Starburst galaxy located in the very distant universe.
Apparently faintest galaxy Apparent magnitude
Intrinsically brightest Absolute magnitude Markarian 231 is the most luminous nearby galaxy (~590Mly;
galaxy apmag 13.8).
Intrinsically faintest galaxy Boötes Dwarf Galaxy (Boo Absolute magnitude This does not include dark galaxies.
dSph) -6.75
Highest surface brightness

galaxy
Lowest surface brightness Andromeda IX

galaxy
Visually brightest galaxy Large Magellanic Cloud Apparent magnitude This galaxy has high surface brightness combined with high
0.6 apparent brightness.
Visually faintest galaxy This galaxy has low surface brightness combined with low
apparent brightness.
Mass
Title Galaxy Mass Notes
Least massive galaxy Willman 1 [35]
Most massive galaxy Messier 87 (M87, NGC 4486, Virgo [36]

A)
Most massive spiral galaxy ISOHDFS 27 The preceding most massive spiral was UGC
[37]
12591
Least massive galaxy with globular Andromeda I [38]

cluster(s)
Dimension
Title Galaxy Size Notes
Most expansive galaxy IC 1101 5-6 million light-years
Least expansive galaxy
Closest galaxies
5 Closest Galaxies
Rank Galaxy Distance
1 Milky Way Galaxy 0 This is our galaxy, as such, we are part of it.
2 Omega Centauri 0.0183 Mly
3 Canis Major Dwarf 0.025 Mly
4 Virgo Stellar Stream 0.030 Mly
5 Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy 0.081 Mly
6 Large Magellanic Cloud 0.163 Mly
• Mly represents millions of light-years, a measure of distance.

• Distances are measured from Earth, with Earth being at zero.
Nearest Galaxies by Type

Title Galaxy Date Distance Notes
Nearest galaxy Milky Way always 0 This is our galaxy
Nearest galaxy to our own Canis Major Dwarf 2003 0.025 Mly
Nearest dwarf galaxy Canis Major Dwarf 2003 0.025 Mly
Nearest large galaxy to our own Andromeda Galaxy always 2.54 Mly First identified as a separate galaxy in 1923
Nearest giant galaxy Centaurus A 12 Mly
Nearest Neighbouring Galaxy Title-holder

Galaxy Date Distance Notes
Canis Major Dwarf 2003 - 0.025

Mly
Sagittarius Dwarf 1994 − 2003 0.081

Elliptical Galaxy Mly
Large Magellanic antiquity − 1994 0.163 This is the upper bound, as it is nearest galaxy observable with the naked-eye.
Cloud Mly
Small Magellanic 1913 - 1914 This was the first intergalactic distance measured. In 1913, Ejnar Hertzsprung measures the
Cloud distance to SMC using Cepheid variables. In 1914, he did it for LMC.
Andromeda Galaxy 1923 This was the first galaxy determined to be not part of the Milky Way.
• Mly represents millions of light-years, a measure of distance.

• Distances are measured from Earth, with Earth being at zero.
• Omega Centauri does not appear on this list because is not currently considered a galaxy, per se, it is considered a
former galaxy, and all that remains of one that was cannibalized by the Milky Way.
Farthest galaxies
Most Remote Galaxies by Type

Title Galaxy Date Distance Notes
Most remote galaxy UDFy-38135539 2010 z=8.55 [26]
Most remote normal galaxy UDFy-38135539 2010 z=8.55 [26]
Most remote quasar CFHQS J2329-0301 2007 z=6.43 This is the undisputed most remote quasar of any
type
Most distant non-quasar Baby Boom Galaxy (EQ 2008 z=4.547 [39]
SMG J100054+023435)
• z represents redshift, a measure of recessional velocity and inferred distance due to cosmological expansion
Most Remote Galaxy Record-holders

Galaxy Date Distance Notes
UDFy-38135539 2010 - z=8.55 This was the remotest object known at time of discovery. It exceeded the
[26]
distance of IOK-1 and GRB 090423
IOK-1 2006 − 2010 z=6.96 This was the remotest object known at time of discovery. In 2009, gamma
ray burst GRB 090423 was discovered at z=8.2, taking the title of most
distant object. The next galaxy to hold the title also succeeded GRB
[40] [41] [26]
090423, that being UDFy-38135539.
SDF J132522.3+273520 2005 − 2006 z=6.597 [41] [42]

This was the remotest object known at time of discovery.
SDF J132418.3+271455 2003 − 2005 z=6.578 [42] [43] [44] [45]

This was the remotest object known at time of discovery.
HCM-6A 2002 − 2003 z=6.56 This was the remotest object known at time of discovery. The galaxy is
lensed by galaxy cluster Abell 370. This was the first galaxy, as opposed to
quasar, found to exceed redshift 6. It exceeded the redshift of quasar SDSSp
[43] [44] [46] [47] [48] [49]
J103027.10+052455.0 of z=6.28
SSA22−HCM1 1999 − 2002 z=5.74 This was the remotest object known at time of discovery. In 2000, the
quasar SDSSp J104433.04-012502.2 was discovered at z=5.82, becoming
the most remote object in the universe known. This was followed by another
quasar, SDSSp J103027.10+052455.0 in 2001, the first object exceeding
[50] [51]
redshift 6, at z=6.28
HDF 4-473.0 1998 − 1999 z=5.60 [51]

This was the remotest object known at the time of discovery.
RD1 (0140+326 RD1) 1998 z=5.34 This was the remotest object known at time of discovery. This was the first
[51] [52] [53] [54] [55]
object found beyond redshift 5.
CL 1358+62 G1 & 1997 − 1998 z=4.92 These were the remotest objects known at the time of discovery. The pair of
CL 1358+62 G2 galaxies were found lensed by galaxy cluster CL1358+62 (z=0.33). This
was the first time since 1964 that something other than a quasar held the
record for being the most distant object in the universe. It exceeded the
[51] [53] [54] [56] [57] [58]
mark set by quasar PC 1247-3406 at z=4.897
[58]
From 1964 to 1997, the title of most distant object in the universe were held by a succession of quasars. That list is available at list of quasars.
8C 1435+63 1994 − 1997 z=4.25 This is a radio galaxy. At the time of its discovery, quasar PC 1247-3406 at
z=4.73, discovered in 1991 was the most remote object known. This was the
last radio galaxy to hold the title of most distant galaxy. This was the first
[59] [60]
galaxy, as opposed to quasar, that was found beyond redshift 4.
[51] [61]
4C 41.17 1990 − 1994 z=3.792 This is a radio galaxy. At the time of its discovery, quasar PC 1158+4635,
discovered in 1989, was the most remote object known, at z=4.73 In 1991,
quasar PC 1247-3406, became the most remote object known, at
[51] [60] [61] [62] [63]
z=4.897
1 Jy 0902+343 (GB6 1988 − 1990 z=3.395 This is a radio galaxy. At the time of discovery, quasar Q0051-279 at
B0902+3419 , B2 z=4.43, discovered in 1987, was the most remote object known. In 1989,
0902+34) quasar PC 1158+4635 was discovered at z=4.73, making it the most remote
object known. This was the first galaxy discovered above redshift 3. It was
[51] [63] [64] [65] [66]
also the first galaxy found above redshift 2.
3C 256 1984 − 1988 z=1.819 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar PKS
[51] [67]
2000-330, at z=3.78, found in 1982.
3C 241 1984 z=1.617 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar PKS
[68] [69]
2000-330, at z=3.78, found in 1982.
3C 324 1983 − 1984 z=1.206 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar PKS
[51] [68] [70]
2000-330, at z=3.78, found in 1982.
3C 65 1982 − 1983 z=1.176 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar
OQ172, at z=3.53, found in 1974. In 1982, quasar PKS 2000-330 at z=3.78
became the most remote object.
3C 368 1982 z=1.132 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar
[51]
OQ172, at z=3.53, found in 1974.
3C 252 1981 − 1982 z=1.105 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar
OQ172, at z=3.53, found in 1974.
3C 6.1 1979 - z=0.840 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar
[51] [71]
OQ172, at z=3.53, found in 1974.
3C 318 1976 - 0.752 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar
[51]
OQ172, at z=3.53, found in 1974.
3C 411 1975 - 0.469 This is a radio galaxy. At the time, the most remote object was quasar
[51]
OQ172, at z=3.53, found in 1974.
[58]
From 1964 to 1997, the title of most distant object in the universe were held by a succession of quasars. That list is available at list of quasars.
3C 295 1960 - z=0.461 This is a radio galaxy. This was the remotest object known at time of
discovery of its redshift. This was the last non-quasar to hold the title of
most distant object known until 1997. In 1964, quasar 3C 147 became the
[51] [58] [72] [73] [74]
most distant object in the universe known.
LEDA 25177 1951 − 1960 z=0.2 This galaxy lies in the Hydra Supercluster. It is located at B1950.0
(MCG+01-23-008) (V=61000km/s) 08h 55m 4s +03° 21′ and is the BCG of the fainter Hydra Cluster Cl
[51] [74] [75] [76] [77] [68] [78]
0855+0321 (ACO 732).
LEDA 51975 1936 - z=0.13 The brightest cluster galaxy of the Bootes cluster (ACO 1930), an elliptical
(MCG+05-34-069) (V=39000km/s) galaxy at B1950.0 14h 30m 6s +31° 46′ apparent magnitude 17.8, was found
by Milton L. Humason in 1936 to have a 40,000 km/s recessional redshift

[68] [79] [80]
velocity.
LEDA 20221 1932 - z=0.075 This is the BCG of the Gemini Cluster (ACO 568) and was located at
(MCG+06-16-021) (V=23000km/s) B1950.0 07h 05m 0s +35° 04′[79] [81]
BCG of WMH Christie's 1931 − 1932 z= [81] [82] [83] [84]

Leo Cluster (V=19700km/s)
BCG of Baede's Ursa 1930 − 1931 z= [84] [85]

Major Cluster (V=11700km/s)
NGC 4860 1929 − 1930 z=0.026 [86] [87]

(V=7800km/s)
NGC 7619 1929 z=0.012 Using redshift measurements, NGC 7619 was the highest at the time of
(V=3779km/s) measurement. At the time of announcement, it was not yet accepted as a
general guide to distance, however, later in the year, Edwin Hubble
described redshift in relation to distance, leading to a seachange, and having
[86] [88] [89]
this being accepted as an inferred distance.
NGC 584 (Dreyer nebula 1921 − 1929 z=0.006 At the time, nebula had yet to be accepted as independent galaxies.
584) (V=1800km/s) However, in 1923, galaxies were generally recognized as external to the
[68] [86] [88] [90] [91] [92] [52]
Milky Way.
M104 (NGC 4594) 1913 − 1921 z=0.004 This was the second galaxy whose redshift was determined; the first being
(V=1180km/s) Andromeda - which is approaching us and thus cannot have its redshift used
to infer distance. Both were measured by Vesto Melvin Slipher. At this
time, nebula had yet to be accepted as independent galaxies. NGC 4594 was
originally measured as 1000 km/s, then refined to 1100, and then to 1180 in
[86] [90] [52]
1916.
M81 antiquity - 20th 11.8 Mly This is the lower bound, as it is remotest galaxy observable with the
century (z=-0.10) naked-eye. It is 12 million light-years away. Redshift cannot be used to
antiquity - infer distance, because it's moving toward us faster than cosmological
1913 (based expansion.
on redshift)
antiquity -
1930 (based
on Cepheids)
Messier 101 1930 - Using the pre-1950's Cepheid measurements, M101 was one of the most
distant so measured.
Triangulum Galaxy 1924 - 1930 In 1924, Edwin Hubble announced the distance to M33 Triangulum.
Andromeda Galaxy 1923 - 1924 In 1923, Edwin Hubble measured the distance to Andromeda, and settled
the question whether there were galaxies, or was everything in the Milky
Way.
Small Magellanic Cloud 1913 - 1923 This was the first intergalactic distance measured. In 1913, Ejnar
Hertzsprung measures the distance to SMC using Cepheid variables.
• z represents redshift, a measure of recessional velocity and inferred distance due to cosmological expansion
• quasars and other AGN are not included on this list, since they are only galactic cores, unless the host galaxy was observed when it was most
distant
[51]
• A1689-zD1, discovered in 2008, with z=7.6, does not appear on this list because it has not been confirmed with a
spectroscopic redshift.
• Abell 68 c1 and Abell 2219 c1, discovered in 2007, with z=9, do not appear on this list because they have not
been confirmed.[93]
• IOK4 and IOK5, discovered in 2007, with z=7, do not appear on this list because they have not been confirmed
with a spectroscopic redshift.
• Abell 1835 IR1916, discovered in 2004, with z=10.0, does not appear on this list because its claimed redshift is
disputed. Some follow-up observations have failed to find the object at all.
• STIS 123627+621755, discovered in 1999, with z=6.68, does not appear on this list because its redshift was based
on an erroneous interpretation of an oxygen emission line as a hydrogen emission line.[94] [95] [96]
• BR1202-0725 LAE, discovered in 1998 at z=5.64 does not appear on the list because it was not definitively
pinned. BR1202-0725 (QSO 1202-07) refers to a quasar that the Lyman alpha emitting galaxy is near. The quasar
itself lies at z=4.6947[52] [55]
• BR2237-0607 LA1 and BR2237-0607 LA2 were found at z=4.55 while investigating around the quasar
BR2237-0607 in 1996. Neither of these appear on the list because they were not definitively pinned down at the
time. The quasar itself lies at z=4.558[97] [98]
• Two absorption dropouts in the spectrum of quasar BR 1202-07 (QSO 1202-0725, BRI 1202-0725, BRI1202-07)
were found, one in early 1996, another later in 1996. Neither of these appear on the list because they were not
definitively pinned down at the time. The early one was at z=4.38, the later one at z=4.687, the quasar itself lies at
z=4.695[51] [99] [100] [101] [102]
• In 1986, a gravitationally lensed galaxy forming a blue arc was found lensed by galaxy cluster CL 2224-02
(C12224 in some references). However, its redshift was only determined in 1991, at z=2.237, by which time, it
would no longer be the most distant galaxy.[103] [104]
• An absorption drop was discovered in 1985 in the light spectrum of quasar PKS 1614+051 at z=3.21 This does
not appear on the list because it was not definitively fixed down. At the time, it was claimed to be the first
non-QSO galaxy found beyond redshift 3. The quasar itself is at z=3.197[51] [105]
• In 1975, 3C 123 was incorrectly determined to lie at z=0.637 (actually z=0.218)[106] [107]
• From 1964 to 1997, the title of most distant object in the universe were held by a succession of quasars.[58] That
list is available at list of quasars.
• In 1958, cluster Cl 0024+1654 and Cl 1447+2619 were estimated to have redshifts of z=0.29 and z=0.35
respectively. However, no galaxy was spectroscopically determined.[74]
Field galaxies
List of field galaxies

Galaxy Data Notes
NGC 4555
Interacting galaxies
List of galaxies in tidal interaction

Galaxies Notes
Data
• Milky Way Galaxy The Magellanic Clouds are being tidally disrupted by the Milky Way Galaxy, resulting in the Magellanic
• Large Magellanic Cloud Stream drawing a tidal tail away from the LMC and SMC, and the Magellanic Bridge drawing material from
• Small Magellanic Cloud the clouds to our galaxy.
• Messier 51 (Arp 85) The smaller galaxy NGC 5195 is tidally interacting with the larger Whirlpool Galaxy, creating its grand
• Whirlpool Galaxy design spiral galaxy architecture.
(NGC 5194, M51a)
• NGC 5195 (M51b)
• M81 These three galaxies interact with each other and draw out tidal tails, which are dense enough to form star
• M82 [108]
clusters. The bridge of gas between these galaxies is known as Arp's Loop.
• NGC 3077
• NGC 6872 and IC 4970 NGC 6872 is a barred spiral galaxy with a grand design spiral nucleus, and distinct well-formed outer
• NGC 6872 barred-spiral architecture, caused by tidal interaction with satellite galaxy IC 4970.
• IC 4970
Tadpole Galaxy The Tadpole Galaxy tidally interacted with another galaxy in a close encounter, and remains slightly
disrupted, with a long tidal tail.
List of galaxies in non-merger significant collision

Galaxies Data Notes
Arp 299 (NGC 3690 & IC 694) These two galaxies have recently collided and are now both barred irregular galaxies.
List of galaxies disrupted post significant non-merger collisions

Galaxies Data Notes
Mayall's Object This is a pair of galaxies, one which punched through the other, resulting in a ring galaxy.
Galaxy mergers
List of galaxies undergoing near-equal merger

Galaxies Data Notes
Antennae Galaxies (Ringtail Galaxy, 2 Two spiral galaxies currently starting a collision, tidally interacting, and in the process of
NGC 4038 & NGC 4039, Arp 244) galaxies merger.
Butterfly Galaxies (Siamese Twins 2 Two spiral galaxies in the process of starting to merge.
Galaxies, NGC 4567 & NGC 4568) galaxies
Mice Galaxies (NGC 4676, NGC 2 Two spiral galaxies currently tidally interacting and in the process of merger.
4676A & NGC 4676B, IC 819 & IC galaxies
820, Arp 242)
NGC 520 2 Two spiral galaxies undergoing collision, in the process of merger.
galaxies
NGC 2207 and IC 2163 (NGC 2207 & 2 These are two spiral galaxies starting to collide, in the process of merger.
IC 2163) galaxies
NGC 5090 and NGC 5091 (NGC 5090 2 These two galaxies are in the process of colliding and merging.
& NGC 5091) galaxies
NGC 7318 (Arp 319, NGC 7318A & 2 These are two starting to collide
NGC 7318B) galaxies
Four galaxies in CL0958+4702 4 These four near-equals at the core of galaxy cluster CL 0958+4702 are in the process of
galaxies [109]
merging.
Galaxy protocluster LBG-2377 z=3.03 This was announced as the most distant galaxy merger ever discovered. It is expected that this
proto-cluster of galaxies will merge together to form a brightest cluster galaxy, and become the
[110] [111]
core of a larger galaxy cluster.
List of recently merged galaxies of near-equals

Galaxy Data Notes
Starfish Galaxy (NGC 6240, IC 4625) This recently coalesced galaxy still has two prominent nuclei.
List of galaxies undergoing disintegration by cannibalization

Disintegrating Galaxy Consuming Galaxy Notes
Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy Milky Way Galaxy The Monoceros Ring is thought to be the tidal tail of the disrupted CMa dg.
Virgo Stellar Stream Milky Way Galaxy This is thought to be a completely disrupted dwarf galaxy.
Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy Milky Way Galaxy M54 is thought to the be core of this dwarf galaxy.
List of objects considered destroyed galaxies

Defunct Galaxy Notes
Galaxy
Omega Milky Way This is now categorized a globular cluster of the Milky Way. However, it is considered the core of a dwarf
Centauri Galaxy [14]
galaxy that the Milky Way cannibalized.
Mayall II Andromeda This is now categorized a globular cluster of Andromeda. However, it is considered the core of a dwarf galaxy
Galaxy that Andromeda cannibalized.
List of objects mistakenly identified as galaxies

"Galaxy" Object Data Notes
G350.1-0.3 Supernova remnant Due to its unusual shape, it was originally misidentified as a galaxy.
Lists of galaxies
• Local Group
• List of polar-ring galaxies
• List of spiral galaxies
• List of quasars
References
[1] Hayden Planetarium, Local Large-Scale Structure (http:/ / haydenplanetarium. org/ universe/ duguide/ exgt_local_structure. php)
[2] Sky and Telescope, New Stars in a Galaxy's Wake (http:/ / www. skyandtelescope. com/ community/ skyblog/ newsblog/ 10003481. html), 28
September 2007
[3] NASA, 'Orphan' Stars Found in Long Galaxy Tail (http:/ / www. nasa. gov/ mission_pages/ chandra/ news/ 07-103. html), 09.20.07
[4] arXiv, H-alpha tail, intracluster HII regions and star-formation: ESO137-001 in Abell 3627 (http:/ / xxx. lanl. gov/ abs/ 0706. 1220), Fri, 8
June 2007 17:50:48 GMT
[5] Universe Today, Galaxy Leaves New Stars Behind in its Death Plunge (http:/ / www. universetoday. com/ 2007/ 09/ 20/
galaxy-leaves-news-stars-behind-in-its-death-plunge/ ) ; September 20th, 2007
[6] Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, Vol. 53, No. 313, p.187 ; The Radial Velocity of a Peculiar Nebula (http:/ / articles.
adsabs. harvard. edu/ full/ 1941PASP. . . 53. . 187S) ; 1941PASP...53..187S
[7] Astrophysical Journal, vol. 140, p.1617 ; The Strange Extragalactic Systems: Mayall's Object and IC 883 (http:/ / articles. adsabs. harvard.
edu/ full/ 1964ApJ. . . 140. 1617B) ; 1964ApJ...140.1617B
[8] Astrophysical Journal, vol. 119, p.215 ; On the Indentification of Radio Sources (http:/ / adsabs. harvard. edu/ abs/ 1954ApJ. . . 119. . 215B) ;
01/1954 ; 1954ApJ...119..215B
[9] Karen Masters (December 2003). "Curious About Astronomy: Can any galaxies be seen with the naked eye?" (http:/ / curious. astro. cornell.
edu/ question. php?number=590). Curious.astro.cornell.edu. . Retrieved 2008-11-01.
[10] Astronomy Knowledge Base, Magellanic Cloud (http:/ / www. site. uottawa. ca:4321/ astronomy/ index. html#MagellanicCloud), UOttawa
[11] SEDS, The Large Magellanic Cloud, LMC (http:/ / seds. org/ MESSIER/ xtra/ ngc/ lmc. html)
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External links
• Wolfram Research: Scientific Astronomer Documentations - Brightest Galaxies (http://documents.wolfram.
com/applications/astronomer/Atlas/BrightestGalaxies.html)
• 1956 Catalogue of Galaxy Redshifts: Redshifts and magnitudes of extragalactic nebulae (http://articles.adsabs.
harvard.edu/full/1956AJ.....61...97H) by Milton L. Humason, Nicholas U. Mayall, Allan Sandage
• 1936 Catalogue of Galaxy Redshifts: The Apparent Radial Velocities of 100 Extra-Galactic Nebulae (http://
adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1936ApJ....83...10H) by Milton L. Humason
• 1925 Catalogue of Galaxy Redshifts: [ ] by Vesto Slipher
• (1917) First Catalogue of Galaxy Redshifts: Nebulae (http://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu//full/1917PAPhS..
56..403S/0000405.000.html) by Vesto Slipher
See also
• Galaxy
• Milky Way Galaxy
• Local Group
• Galaxy groups and clusters
• Local Supercluster
• Supercluster
• List of galaxy superclusters
Fossil group 165
Fossil group
Fossil Galaxy Groups, fossil Groups, or fossil clusters are believed to be the end-result of galaxy merging within a
normal galaxy group, leaving behind the X-ray halo. Galaxies within a group interact and merge. The physical
process behind this galaxy-galaxy merger is dynamical friction. The time-scales for dynamical friction on luminous
(or L*) galaxies suggest that fossil groups are old, undisturbed systems that have seen little infall of L* galaxies
since their initial collapse. Fossil groups are thus an important laboratory for studying the formation and evolution of
galaxies and the intragroup medium in an isolated system.
External links
• Fossil galaxies 'eat neighbours' [1]
• Concentrated Dark Matter at the Cores of Fossil Galaxies [2]
• A fossil galaxy cluster [3]
See also
• Brightest Cluster Galaxy
• Type-cD galaxy
References
[1] http:/ / news. bbc. co. uk/ 1/ hi/ sci/ tech/ 4423651. stm
[2] http:/ / chandra. harvard. edu/ press/ 05_releases/ press_040705. html
[3] http:/ / www. esa. int/ esaCP/ SEMCFFOFGLE_index_0. html
Article Sources and Contributors

Galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395834950 Contributors: -- April, 05jdunn, 2D, A Train, ABF, ACSE, Abce2, Abhimat.gautam, Adamwang, AdjustShift,
Adrianisgood, Afita, Ageekgal, Ahoerstemeier, Aitias, Aka042, Akhil.aggarwal2, Alansohn, Aldren kenji, AlexPlank, AlexiusHoratius, Alfio, Alienware9955, Alison, Allstarecho,
Andattaca2010, Andres, AndrewWTaylor, Andrewrp, Andrij Kursetsky, Andy17061993, Animum, Anomalocaris, Antandrus, Aranherunar, Ardric47, Argo Navis, Arpingstone, Art LaPella,
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Banes, Beland, Ben-Zin, Bencherlite, Bender235, Bentley4, Betacommand, Big Bird, BigMar992, Bilboon, Billypancho, Binary TSO, Birkett, Blah master man, Bletch, Bluerasberry, Blurpeace,
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Xiner, Yonatan, Zachareth, Zanaq, Zhou Yu, Zoz, Петър Петров, 1103 anonymous edits
Galaxy formation and evolution Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=390626429 Contributors: -- April, 195.92.168.xxx, 209.2.165.xxx, 212.185.227.xxx, Abtract,
Ahoerstemeier, Alastair Haines, Andycjp, Archanamiya, Arpingstone, AstroNomer, Astrotwitch, AxelBoldt, Azcolvin429, Bacteria, Boud, Bruin69, Bryan Derksen, CambridgeBayWeather,
Celiviel, Cgingold, Charles Matthews, CharlotteWebb, Chris 73, ColinFrayn, Conversion script, Cosmo0, Crag, Dark jedi requiem, Doc Perel, Dr. Submillimeter, Eric Kvaalen, Evil Monkey,
FT2, FlorianMarquardt, Gandalf61, Giftlite, GorgonzolaCheese, Grendelkhan, Gurch, GwydionM, HKL47, Headbomb, Hebb l, Hetar, Hubie59, Hurricane Floyd, IVAN3MAN, Iantresman,
Icairns, Ilmari Karonen, Immunize, Jahter, Jitterro, John D. Croft, Jorichoma, Jyril, Karol Langner, Keflavich, Kot Barsik, Kris1284x, Lights, LikeHolyWater, Looxix, Luckypengu07, MJT1331,
Megaton, Merovingian, Muad, Nikai, Noisy, Nuno Tavares, Oashi, Olivier, Palica, Paymanpayman, Pika ten10, Pringl123, QuadrivialMind, R6144, RJHall, RetiredUser2, Reuben, Richard
Nowell, Roadrunner, Robma, Rodasmith, Ruslik0, ScienceApologist, Scog, Sheliak, Shp0ng1e, SqueakBox, Stirling Newberry, Sverdrup, Template namespace initialisation script, Tetracube,
Tothebarricades.tk, Trevor MacInnis, TutterMouse, UrukHaiLoR, Vanished User 0001, Viking59, Viriditas, Vsmith, Ward3001, Warut, Wsiegmund, Zigger, 98 anonymous edits
Galaxy merger Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=363690617 Contributors: Cornellrockey, Eteq, Fcombes, IVAN3MAN, Incnis Mrsi, Lights, Richard Nowell, Robofish, Scog,
Skullers, 5 anonymous edits
Galaxy morphological classification Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=391148962 Contributors: Anton Gutsunaev, Argo Navis, Arthena, CRGreathouse, Carcharoth,
Cosmo0, Curps, DIUZOMA, Dekimasu, Dr. Submillimeter, El C, Geremia, Harloshaply, Hcagri, Hurricane Devon, Icairns, Ivan T., JGrochow, KGyST, Karl D. Gordon, Karol Langner,
KathrynLybarger, Kcordina, Keflavich, Leia, M1ss1ontomars2k4, MIT Trekkie, Marasama, Med, Neilc, Neko-chan, Newone, Northgrove, Octoberasian, Omodaka, Originalwana, Paul venter,
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XJamRastafire, Zandperl, Zero sharp, Zoicon5, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 57 anonymous edits
Hubble sequence Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394847232 Contributors: -- April, Ahoerstemeier, Alfio, AstroNomer, AxelBoldt, CielProfond, Cosmo0, Curps, Emijrp,
Fvw, Harloshaply, Hurricane Devon, JohnOwens, Josh Grosse, Jyril, Karl D. Gordon, Kcordina, Lightmouse, Looxix, Lumos3, Mav, Midway, Ojay123, Ojigiri, OlEnglish, Poor Yorick,
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Dark matter halo Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=391631276 Contributors: Aeron Daly, Ahoerstemeier, Beno1000, Bm gub, Boud, Brews ohare, Cosmo0, Djxerox,
Editfreak66, Gandalf61, Hamiltondaniel, Jeremygoodman, Jtsch, Marasama, Mhatthei, Micasta, Oldnoah, Onebravemonkey, RedBLACKandBURN, Reuben, Rjwilmsi, Robertvan1,
ScienceApologist, Scikid, Shanes, WilliamKF, Zurich Astro, 26 anonymous edits
Galactic bulge Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=391665993 Contributors: AEVanVogt, Alfio, Amikake3, Astrotwitch, Az29, Bryan Derksen, Cacycle, CommonsDelinker,
Computor, Długosz, Edwinhubbel, Eequor, Eteq, EugeneForrester, Gothic2, GregorB, H2g2bob, Hairy Dude, Hcagri, Icairns, Iokseng, It's-is-not-a-genitive, JRGL, Lights, Marasama, Meco,
Mnmngb, Mramz88, PMDrive1061, PurpleHz, RJHall, Redrocketboy, Rjwilmsi, Robina Fox, Rory096, Rpyle731, Serendipodous, Shantavira, Slakr, Sury1313, Susanlarsen, The Anome, 27
anonymous edits
Galactic corona Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=369062008 Contributors: A2Kafir, Boud, Cocytus, Cosmo0, Craigy144, Eroica, Jyril, LrdChaos, Marasama,
Prsephone1674, Shanes, Tarnum, Wolfy, 5 anonymous edits
Galactic disc Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=384199971 Contributors: Caco de vidro, Emersoni, Marasama, PigFlu Oink, Poppy, RHaworth, Rich Farmbrough, RobertG,
Rpyle731, Sax Russell, Zyxwfgh127, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 24 anonymous edits
Galactic halo Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=363085902 Contributors: Alfio, Avono, Betacommand, Boleyn3, Boud, Bryan Derksen, Bthv, Canderson7, Cosmo0,
Dgrichevsky, Einsidler, Eleferen, Funandtrvl, Gerry Lynch, Hcagri, Iantresman, Icairns, J.delanoy, Jennavecia, Marasama, Morenooso, Naturehead, Onebravemonkey, Palica, RetiredUser2,
RexNL, Satori, Scapler, Sgauria, Sintaku, Station1, Trevor MacInnis, Vespristiano, Vinsfan368, Wolfy, Zotel, 24 anonymous edits
Ionization cone Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=208164229 Contributors: CaptinJohn, DragonflySixtyseven, GregorB
Low-ionization nuclear emission-line region Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=356139818 Contributors: ChristieGera, Dr. Submillimeter, Element16, Mythealias, Parejkoj,
Roberto Mura, TheInfinityPoint, WilliamKF, 6 anonymous edits
Relativistic jet Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=388335712 Contributors: 81120906713, Ajaxkroon, Angr, Audriusa, Barrons, Boothy443, Bryan Derksen, Caco de vidro,
Christopher Thomas, CosineKitty, Curps, DabMachine, Dar-Ape, DemonThing, Dispenser, Djily, Dr. Submillimeter, Edcolins, Egowiki, Epolk, Eteq, Gaius Cornelius, HieronymousCrowley, I do
not exist, IVAN3MAN, IanOsgood, Ixfd64, Ketiltrout, Kheider, Lempel, Liquidat, Mac Davis, Mgiganteus1, Mhardcastle, Mrbrak, N328KF, Nevermore4ever, Orionus, Parejkoj, PauloHelene,
RadRafe, Rama, Ravencc, Roberto Mura, SMesser, Sharkbait784, Spacepotato, Tachyonics, Tasudrty, Tcisco, TotoBaggins, Txomin, VoidLurker, Wereon, Xioxox, Ylai, 24 anonymous edits
Supermassive black hole Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394194965 Contributors: 100DashSix, 1to0to-1, 84user, Abyssoft, Adrian.benko, Ahoerstemeier, Alansohn,
Alfiboy, Alfie66, Alfio, Andy Dingley, AnthonyQBachler, Anyeverybody, Aranherunar, Archanamiya, Artem Karimov, Arvindn, AstroNomer, Author3, Avidmosh, B, BIL, Bastian964,
Benandorsqueaks, Bender235, Bibliomaniac15, Bkell, Blanchardb, BlurTento, Boing! said Zebedee, Bongwarrior, Bornfury, Bryan Derksen, Cacycle, CamXV, Can't sleep, clown will eat me,
Captain panda, Chase me ladies, I'm the Cavalry, Christopher Thomas, ClovisHopman, Cmg8462, Coneslayer, Crass Spektakel, Crazysunshine, Curlymeatball38, Curps, Cwilli201, Cyclotis04,
Da Joe, Daniels220, Dave6, Deathphoenix, DerHexer, Dr. Submillimeter, DrCrisp, E Wing, EdC, Edwinhubbel, Ekilfeather, El C, El3mentary, Enviroboy, Eroica, EugeneForrester, Everybody's
Got One, Extra999, Falcon8765, Flubeca, Foodman, Fvasconcellos, GHe, Gajamukhu, Gary King, Gerardw, Giftlite, Greg L, Grrow, Hairy Dude, Hbackman, Headbomb, Hifrommike65,
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Kazvorpal, Keilana, Kemosobby, Kieff, Knightshield, Kurtan, Kwamikagami, Kyzersawsay, Lightmouse, Lights, Lilac Soul, Little Mountain 5, Looxix, Lysdexia, Maldek, Markjdb, Martin451,
Mattweng, MattyB17, Maxis ftw, Megastar, Miguel, Minesweeper, Moeron, Moheezy, Motley Crue Rocks, Mpatel, MrBell, MrWhipple, Msa11usec, NatureA16, NawlinWiki, Neparis,
NerdyScienceDude, Newone, Nickersonl, Nymetsfan, Omicronpersei8, Oscar Bravo, Owlbuster, Palica, Parejkoj, Patrick, Patty144, Pauljr231, Permafrost, Perugrl2, Peruvianllama, Peter Isotalo,
Philippe, Photobiker, PhySusie, Piano non troppo, Pickhorn, Plingggggg, Pmsyyz, ProfessorPaul, Puzl bustr, Pyxzer, Quaint and curious, RJHall, RUL3R, Rake, Remember, Remurmur, RexNL,
Rich Farmbrough, Ringy, Rjwilmsi, Romanm, Roznoni, Rumpuscat, Sacolcor, Saravask, Sarthella, Scepia, Sean D Martin, Seraphim, Sfuerst, Slicky, Slon02, Sonicology, SqueakBox, Steve3849,
Submitter to Truth, Super-Magician, SuperStingray, Susanpalwick, Susurrus, Sverdrup, TechnoFaye, Tetracube, That Guy, From That Show!, The Rambling Man, Thehelpfulone, Thejk1026,
Theusernameiwantedisalreadyinuse, Thrane, Tide rolls, Timwi, Tommy2010, Tony873004, Trent215, Twaz, UMD NR, Ulric1313, Uriel8, UrukHaiLoR, Vanillaflavouredpinapples, Variable,
Versus22, Vipershark22, Vlmastra, Vonspringer, Vsmith, WASD, WandringMinstrel, Wetman, Wikieditor1988, WilyD, Wknight94, Wnt, Work permit, Wtfdontkill, Wwheaton, Xanzzibar,
Yamamoto Ichiro, Zahd, Zeldafan237, Zharradan.angelfire, ‫ةيناريد دهاجم دابع‬, 400 anonymous edits
Galaxy groups and clusters Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=392228405 Contributors: Ahoerstemeier, Alansohn, Alfio, Argo Navis, Arpingstone, Art Carlson, Atrizu,
AxelBoldt, Bnord, Bryan Derksen, Caco de vidro, ChristopherWillis, Ckatz, Conversion script, Cosmo jaime, DanMS, Darkwind6000, DavidLevinson, DeadEyeArrow, Decumanus, Dekaels,
DocWatson42, Dr. Submillimeter, DrFO.Jr.Tn, Drgonzophd, Enigmaman, Enviroboy, Ericoides, Etacar11, George100, Geremia, Gracefool, Halfblue, Heron, Hjb26, Icairns, JRP, Joseph
Dwayne, Jyril, Kanthoney, Ketiltrout, Kozuch, Lars Lindberg Christensen, Looxix, Magnus Manske, Martynas Patasius, Mathew Carrier, Mhoenig, Michael C Price, Michael Hardy, Mjquinn id,
MockTurtle, Motorneuron, Mrh30, NawlinWiki, Nguyen Thanh Quang, Nickshanks, Originalwana, Oth, Polemos, Pyxelator, RJHall, Rcech, Rnt20, SAE1962, Sardanaphalus, Scog, Shamiboy9,
Solipsist, Sverdrup, Territory, Tevatron, Themusicgod1, Timwi, Tokenizeman, Tomruen, Valhallasw, WadeSimMiser, Worldtraveller, XJamRastafire, 80 anonymous edits
Galaxy supercluster Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395196450 Contributors: -- April, Ace45954, Alfio, Alro, Argo Navis, AxelBoldt, Azcolvin429, Bobby D. Bryant,
Boo2u81, Bryan Derksen, Carbuncle, Cardamon, Chrisjj, Citylover, Conversion script, Cutter, David Latapie, Dispenser, El C, Ellywa, Fram, Harald Khan, Heron, I do not exist, Icairns, Ixfd64,
JWB, Jerzy, Jesusjuice08, Keraunos, KnightRider, KnowledgeOfSelf, Mathew Carrier, Michael C Price, MisfitToys, Mnmngb, Mxn, Oth, Patrick1982, Pde, Peaches1955, PiccoloNamek,
Pyrospirit, RadicalOne, Rich Farmbrough, Schneelocke, SchuminWeb, Scwlong, Signalhead, Silverxxx, Slakr, Starkiller88, Steven Andrew Scarface220995, StuffOfInterest, Sverdrup, Trv003,
Twinsday, Versus, VeryVerily, WilliamKF, Ziggurat, ‫לורק לארשי‬, 127 anonymous edits
Galaxy filament Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=385355685 Contributors: 122589423KM, Alfio, Allander, Anthony Appleyard, Art LaPella, Atlant, Beland, Bender235,
Bryan Derksen, Caco de vidro, Chris the speller, Cyclopia, DabMachine, David Latapie, Dorftrottel, DougsTech, El C, Frostyservant, Giftlite, Iantresman, Icairns, Jyril, Kpjas, Lightmouse,
MER-C, Mathias-S, Mendaliv, Mnmngb, Mosesofmason, Motorneuron, Mxn, Njál, Phantom in ca, Pie4all88, Poliocretes, Poulpy, Rjwilmsi, Saulelis, Schneelocke, SchuminWeb,
ScienceApologist, Serendipodous, Sheliak, Smack, Starwed, StuffOfInterest, Sverdrup, Tarotcards, Timsdad, Timwi, Tom-, Twinsday, Tyler, William Allen Simpson, 71 anonymous edits
Active galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395644607 Contributors: Alansohn, Alfio, AnOddName, Andre Engels, ArielGold, Arpingstone, Astrobiologist, Avihu,
Beland, BigDukeSix, Boud, Bryan Derksen, Ctj, Dbundy, DinDraithou, Dr. Submillimeter, Dysfunktion, Edwinhubbel, EmersonLowry, Enviroboy, Epbr123, Evanreyes, Falcon8765, Finlay
McWalter, Gene Nygaard, Ghhs, Giftlite, Glenn, Grant76, GutoAndreollo, Headbomb, Hellothere17, IVAN3MAN, Icairns, Jdearden, Jolielegal, Joseph Dwayne, Julianonions, Kat23, Kirx,
Krash, Kurgus, Laurascudder, Looxix, Lwinte01, MBK004, Mateuszica, Mattisse, Meno25, Mhardcastle, Michael Hardy, Mnmngb, Moshe Constantine Hassan Al-Silverburg, Moxy, Mrbrak,
NaiPiak, Nebulosus, Neko-chan, Newone, OlEnglish, PaddyLeahy, Parejkoj, Pathoschild, Paul Pogonyshev, Postdlf, Privong, RJHall, RNoble21, Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ), Roadrunner,
Scog, Sevela.p, Slightsmile, Spacepotato, Tetracube, Tevatron, Thaisk, Tom87020, Topbanana, WookieInHeat, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 94 anonymous edits
Barred lenticular galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395601694 Contributors: Dr. Submillimeter, Fotaun, Hurricane Devon, OlEnglish, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 5 anonymous
edits
Barred irregular galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=369048520 Contributors: DaMatriX, Doprendek, Dr. Submillimeter, Hurricane Devon, LilHelpa, Nohomework,
PigFlu Oink, TenaliBorogovy, Zzuuzz, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 2 anonymous edits
Barred spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394888115 Contributors: A2Kafir, Abb3w, Adriellerner, Ageekgal, Alpha Quadrant, Angr, Arthena, Atakdoug,
CanOfWorms, Canuck100, Captmondo, Chaos syndrome, Christopher1968, Clh288, Cpastern, Craigsjones, Da Joe, DaMatriX, Dan East, David R Merritt, Dr. Submillimeter, Dragons flight,
Dratman, Etacar11, Fredrik, Fvw, George100, Ginsengbomb, Gogo Dodo, Hairy Dude, Hurricane Devon, Icairns, JorisvS, Joseph Dwayne, KGyST, Keraunos, KnightRider, Knowledge Seeker,
Livajo, Marsve, Mhdkandil, Midway, Mike s, Mintleaf, Mnmngb, Modest Genius, Neurophyre, Nihiltres, Nikolay94, Northgrove, Numbo3, OlEnglish, Pauli133, Pikiwyn, Princessliana, Quaeler,
RJHall, Rahga, Raskolnikov The Penguin, RichiH, Ringbang, ShaunES, Ste4k, Sweetmoose6, Territory, Tide rolls, WilliamKF, Woohookitty, Wwagner, XJamRastafire, Xandi, Xerxes314,
Zzzzzzzzzzz, 103 anonymous edits
Blazar Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395014008 Contributors: Aarchiba, Alfio, Alton, Bgold, Billjefferys, Charles Matthews, Chupon, ConradPino, Curps, Cwenger,
Dantheman531, David Gerard, Dekker, Discospinster, Dorftrottel, Dr. Submillimeter, El C, Evil saltine, Gadfium, Gary King, Harmil, Harp, Icairns, Infinoid, JHunterJ, JaGa, Jmacwiki, JoJan,
KnightRider, Kurgus, Looxix, M3r3p1, Marcelo-Silva, Michael Hardy, Milstein, Mirv, Monedula, Mrbrak, Nipisiquit, Ondon, Paranoid, Parejkoj, Pjacobi, Plushy, Poor Yorick, Promatrax161,
Quantumobserver, Reyk, Rich Farmbrough, Roadrunner, RobertAustin, STHayden, Sam Hocevar, Shappy, Sonicology, Spacepotato, Sukida, Variable, Venny85, Wikiborg, WilliamKF, Wwoods,
Blue compact dwarf galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=393795570 Contributors: KGyST, NeilN, Rich Farmbrough, Richard Nowell, Spacepotato, 2 anonymous edits
Dark galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395971177 Contributors: A2Kafir, Allen3, Ataleh, Crum375, Dr. Submillimeter, El C, Gadz, Giftlite, J.delanoy, JHUastro,
Karmos, Marasama, Mike Rosoft, Mike s, Mnmngb, NSR, Onebravemonkey, Plumbago, Reyk, Rich Farmbrough, Roberto Mura, ScienceApologist, Silver Spoon, SimonP, Spacefem, St3vo,
Stardustdeath, Whiteboycat, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 45 anonymous edits
Disc galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=332257803 Contributors: Axeman89, Beland, Dr. Submillimeter, Emersoni, Jean-François Clet, John Belushi, Kanesue,
Mindmatrix, Qwertyus, RHaworth, Tarnum, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 6 anonymous edits
Dwarf elliptical galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=362478274 Contributors: A2Kafir, Alfio, Alpha Quadrant, Barticus88, Brownlee, Captmondo, Chopchopwhitey,
ChrisCork, Dr. Submillimeter, Eteq, Gaius Cornelius, Harloshaply, Hynespb, IanOsgood, Icairns, Ilikeverin, Joaquim™ Filho, Lee937, Mrmrbeaniepiece, No1lakersfan, Plato, Rjwilmsi, Rursus,
SD6-Agent, Sam Hocevar, Secretlondon, Uber nemo, VeryVerily, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 23 anonymous edits
Dwarf galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=390751320 Contributors: A2Kafir, Alexander110, Allen McC., Alpha Quadrant, Arthena, Captmondo, Ccchen63, Colonies
Chris, Cosmo0, Craigsjones, Da Joe, Dr. Submillimeter, Edgar181, Erud, FKmailliW, GABaker, Gadykozma, Garion96, Grrow, Hurricane Devon, Huwr, Icairns, KGyST, Looxix, Lzz, Meco,
Mnmngb, Naturehead, Neko-chan, Neurophyre, Pauli133, Polylepsis, Puzl bustr, RetiredUser2, Richard Nowell, Siroxo, Tarnum, Tonyrex, Uber nemo, Vary, WilliamKF, XJamRastafire,
Dwarf spheroidal galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=367160509 Contributors: A2Kafir, Alfio, Alpha Quadrant, Captmondo, Da Joe, Dr. Submillimeter, Eteq, Icairns,
Igodard, Jackie, Joaquim™ Filho, Joseph Dwayne, KGyST, Pentasyllabic, Safalra, Shashwat986, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 17 anonymous edits
Dwarf spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=362478631 Contributors: Alpha Quadrant, Ardric47, Dr. Submillimeter, Hurricane Devon, Imasleepviking, Joaquim™
Filho, Marcosm21, Roberto Mura, Ste4k, Tarnum, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 7 anonymous edits
Elliptical galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394779512 Contributors: 1210Poppy, 2D, AEVanVogt, Alansohn, Alfio, Alpha Quadrant, Argo Navis, Arpingstone, Art
LaPella, Arthena, Astrotwitch, Attilios, B.d.mills, Banaticus, Bender235, Bobo192, Captmondo, CardinalDan, Cherlin, Collinp6, Cosmo0, Cremepuff222, Cygnus78, David R Merritt, Dino,
Discospinster, Dr. Submillimeter, DrFO.Jr.Tn, Dragons flight, El C, EngineerShorty, Etacar11, Falcorian, Friendlystar, Fvw, GreekAlexander, Harald Khan, Hi IM Bi, Hobartimus, Hurricane
Devon, Icairns, Igoldste, ImperatorExercitus, J.delanoy, JSpung, Jac16888, Jake Wartenberg, Jeff G., Joanjoc, John D. Croft, Jyril, KGyST, Katalaveno, Kostmo, Kyng, Leia, Leslie Mateus,
LilHelpa, Looxix, Magnus Manske, Mallignamius, Marasama, Marcos, Maxis ftw, Mendaliv, Mikeo, Mintleaf, Moshe Constantine Hassan Al-Silverburg, Npk, Palica, Pepsi Lite, Pgk, Philip
Trueman, Philip tao, Pickhorn, Pill, Pingveno, Pmronchi, RJHall, RexNL, Rjwilmsi, Robert Treat, RyanCross, S Schaffter, Scapler, ScienceApologist, SiegeLord, Sleeping123, Snowolf, Ste4k,
Sverdrup, Synchronism, Tide rolls, Tom, Trv003, Tzepish, Unapachita, Unyoyega, Versus22, Vsst, Wiikkiiwriter, WilliamKF, Xpegahx, Yakudza, Z-d, Zzzzzzzzzzz, ‫ينام‬, 189 anonymous edits
Faint blue galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=385862187 Contributors: A2Kafir, Android79, Charles Matthews, Cherlin, CielProfond, Deirdre, Dr. Submillimeter,
Drunken Pirate, FK65, Lomn, Mateuszica, RJHall, Reinyday, Strangelv, Xezbeth, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 6 anonymous edits
Field galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=345071728 Contributors: Dr. Submillimeter, Mohamed Magdy, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 4 anonymous edits
Flocculent spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=387383985 Contributors: Alpha Quadrant, Anthony Appleyard, Headbomb, Rich Farmbrough, Timotheus Canens,
7 anonymous edits
Grand design spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=373343134 Contributors: Alton, ArchetypeRyan, BlueMoonlet, Clpo13, Doradus, Fidelia, Jan1nad, Larry V,
MisfitToys, Nono64, Oerjan, Safalra, Selfworm, Sonicology, 5 anonymous edits
Host galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=286831234 Contributors: A2Kafir, Bobo192, Curps, Dr. Submillimeter, El C, GK, Gadfium, George100, Johnbobyray, Mrbrak,
NatureA16, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 9 anonymous edits
Interacting galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394763585 Contributors: Arthena, Azcolvin429, Bacteria, Bryan Derksen, Chowbok, Dark dude, DaveRusin, Dorftrottel,
Dr. Submillimeter, Emesee, Emijrp, Eteq, Fcombes, Friendlystar, Funnybunny, Harald Khan, Heron, Hurricane Devon, Jeandré du Toit, Jpo, KGyST, Keraunos, Knightshield, Kozuch, Kross,
KyuuA4, Martarius, Mboverload, Mtwykstr, Mu301, NatureA16, Neverquick, Nibios, Parejkoj, Piledhigheranddeeper, Proxima Centauri, PuzzletChung, RJHall, Roberto Mura, Rotational, Ryt,
Serendipodous, SiliconDioxide, Silly rabbit, Silver Spoon, Sin-man, Slightsmile, Ste4k, Vsmith, Welsh, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 30 anonymous edits
Intermediate spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395602010 Contributors: Dr. Submillimeter, Eras-mus, Fotaun, Poulpy, Rich Farmbrough, WilliamKF,
XJamRastafire, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 15 anonymous edits
Irregular galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395281148 Contributors: .:Ajvol:., A2Kafir, Afri, Ahoerstemeier, Alfio, Alpha Quadrant, Argo Navis, Art LaPella,
Blablason, Buddharox101, Caltas, Captmondo, CommonsDelinker, Corpx, Cosmo0, Da Joe, Darth Panda, Dr. Submillimeter, Dragons flight, FKmailliW, Fvw, Gilliam, Hobartimus, Hurricane
Devon, Icairns, Imasleepviking, J.delanoy, Japo, Joseph Dwayne, Jpo, Jusdafax, Katharineamy, KnightRider, Kuru, Leia, Looxix, Lzz, Midway, Mild Bill Hiccup, Originalwana, Palica,
Polylepsis, Praetor alpha, Realist2, Recognizance, RedRollerskate, Robert Weemeyer, RobertG, Rothorpe, Scog, Sheep81, SimonP, Ste4k, The Singing Badger, The Thing That Should Not Be,
TomDaemon, Tothebarricades.tk, Wiki1905, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, Алиса Селезньова, 127 anonymous edits
Lenticular galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394411787 Contributors: A2Kafir, Ahoerstemeier, Alfio, Argo Navis, Arpingstone, Avicennasis, Badgernet,
CRGreathouse, Captmondo, Cosmo0, Da Joe, DerHexer, Docu, Dr. Submillimeter, Dragons flight, FKmailliW, Friendlystar, Fvw, Gogo Dodo, Gungey300, Hurricane Devon, Iam on andromeda,
Icairns, Joseph Dwayne, KnightRider, Koshyg, Leia, LilHelpa, Mintleaf, Mnmngb, Mtruch, Ojay123, Polylepsis, Radoslaw Ziomber, Schneelocke, SimonP, Snoyes, Spencer, Stan Shebs, Ste4k,
Sverdrup, Timwi, Tsiaojian lee, WilliamKF, XJamRastafire, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 42 anonymous edits
Low surface brightness galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394957079 Contributors: A2Kafir, Ardric47, Art LaPella, Bluemoose, Dr. Submillimeter, El C, Fueled,
Greymancer, Icairns, JHUastro, JzG, Kikuyu3, Reuben, Scog, Stevertigo, Wikiborg, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 15 anonymous edits
Luminous infrared galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=389160712 Contributors: Axeman89, Davecl, Dr. Submillimeter, Drumguy8800, Dutchsatellites.com, El C,
FKmailliW, Jsurace, Kevin Nelson, Poispois, Quaristice, Roberto Mura, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 8 anonymous edits
Lyman-alpha emitter Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=385010114 Contributors: Alejandr013, Colonies Chris, Headbomb, Imasleepviking, Mnmngb, Originalwana, RJHall,
Reedy, The Anome, 11 anonymous edits
Lyman-break galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=356117315 Contributors: DragonflySixtyseven, Ryantrainor, 4 anonymous edits
Magellanic spiral Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=357769431 Contributors: MSGJ, Tide rolls, 16 anonymous edits
Pea galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=396132151 Contributors: Chrislintott, Christopher Thomas, Falcorian, Gene Nygaard, Half65, HedgeFundBob, James McBride,
Jezhotwells, Kosebamse, Magioladitis, Marasama, Neko-chan, Phil Boswell, Rich Farmbrough, Richard Nowell, Ruhrfisch, Salavat, Scog, Ukexpat, 60 anonymous edits
Peculiar galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=371415515 Contributors: Charles Matthews, Denni, Discospinster, Dr. Submillimeter, Frotz, JYolkowski, Jeandré du Toit,
Liveste, Mirek256, Porktober1, Poulpy, Roberto Mura, Tasudrty, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 14 anonymous edits
Polar-ring galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394889728 Contributors: Acom, Astronomer g, Dr. Submillimeter, Epistemos, Fredgoat, Hqb, Jdubs409, John Belushi,
JohnBlackburne, JorisvS, Jschulman555, Petersam, Pickom, R9tgokunks, RHB, Roberto Mura, Sakurambo, SeanMD80, Smithbrenon, The Mad Genius, Utanapishti, Variable, WilliamKF, Zotel,
凌雲, 16 anonymous edits
Protogalaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=396062968 Contributors: A2Kafir, Andres, Argo Navis, Autoplayer, Calton, CharlotteWebb, Cyde, DW40, Dori, Dr.
Submillimeter, Grendelkhan, Imaninjapirate, Karol Langner, Kikuyu3, Mani1, Neelix, Rentier, Roberto Mura, ScienceApologist, WilliamKF, XJamRastafire, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 5 anonymous edits
Quasar Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=393863317 Contributors: (jarbarf), 1to0to-1, AStext, Aalejandrino, Abrech, Academic Challenger, AdjustShift, Ageekgal,
AgentFade2Black, Agge1000, Ahoerstemeier, Alain r, Alansohn, AlexiusHoratius, AlphaPikachu578, Anarchy Cave, Anchoress, AndersMNelson, Andre Engels, Andrew Hampe, Andromachi,
AndyWestside, Animum, Anoko moonlight, Anonymous Dissident, Anotherwikifan, Antandrus, Antelan, Apetre, Aragorn2, Archiesteel, Arlen22, ArnoLagrange, Art Carlson, AstroNomer,
AstroPaul, Ataleh, Atlant, Avenue, Awakened crowe, AxelBoldt, BatteryIncluded, Bcz, Beefcalf, BenRG, Bobo192, Bongwarrior, Bryan Derksen, Bushytails, C0N6R355, Calcobrena, Can't
sleep, clown will eat me, CanadianLinuxUser, Chaos, Chaos0mega, CharlesC, Chetvorno, Chickenfeed9, Chimesmonster, Chlaub, Chrisbolt, Christopher Thomas, Closedmouth, Cmapm, Coder
Dan, Conchobhair II, Coneslayer, Conversion script, Corpx, Crazycomputers, Cremepuff222, Crusty007, Css, Curps, Cyde, Cyp, DVD R W, Dangeruss79, DataWraith, DaveGorman, David
Gerard, Db099221, Dbfirs, DeadEyeArrow, Deathphoenix, Defender of torch, Delldot, DerHexer, Deskana, DinDraithou, Distantbody, Diverman, DivineAlpha, Donarreiskoffer, DoubleBlue,
Doug Bell, Dr. Submillimeter, Dragana666, Drrebellious, Dukeofalba, Długosz, EWS23, EddEdmondson, Edwinhubbel, Eilthireach, Ekilfeather, El C, Eleo87, Elliotontheradio, Enviroboy,
Essjay, Etacar11, Eteq, EvilSupahFly, Extra999, Ezzeloharr, Faradayplank, Fireburnme, Fivemack, Flehmen, Fox, Freddyd945, Freedomlinux, Fyyer, Gaius Cornelius, Gene Nygaard, Giftlite,
Gilliam, Gogo Dodo, Goodant, GregorB, Gurch, Gökhan, Hadal, Hagerman, Haham hanuka, Hairy Dude, HappyCamper, Happywaffle, Harp, Headbomb, Henning Makholm, Hobartimus,
Horsten, II MusLiM HyBRiD II, Iain99, Iantresman, Icairns, Ilke71, Inuit7, Irbisgreif, Isomorphic, Isoptera, Ispy1981, Ixfd64, JForget, JLaTondre, JRSpriggs, JYolkowski, Ja 62, James919,
Jaysweet, Jbeans, Jeandré du Toit, Jeffrey O. Gustafson, Jerry-va, Jhbdel, John Darrow, John0101ddd, Joke137, Jose piratilla, Josh Grosse, Joshua777, Jovianeye, Juliancolton, Jyril, Jérôme,
Kashk1, Khamosh, Khukri, Killiondude, Kirx, Knakts, Kostya30, Kozuch, L337 kybldmstr, Laurascudder, Lee J Haywood, Lengis, Lesmothian, LiDaobing, LiamE, Liberal Classic, Lithium
cyanide, Loopygrumpkins, Looxix, Lordofhyperspace, Lottamiata, MER-C, MPF, Mac Davis, Madhero88, Maelor, Maggosh, Magioladitis, MaizeAndBlue86, Makeyev, Malamockq, Marcello,
Markjdb, Marqueed, Marshallsumter, Martarius, Martin451, MartinElvis, Maurice Carbonaro, Maximaximax, Maximillion Pegasus, Maximus Rex, McSly, Megaton, Melsaran, Mhardcastle,
Mhking, Mike Peel, Minesweeper, Mintleaf, Mirv, Moogenmeister, Mozzerati, Mrwuggs, Myrrhlin, N328KF, NSH001, Naddy, NatureA16, NawlinWiki, NewEnglandYankee, Newone, Nivix,
Nneonneo, Noclevername, NotAnonymous0, NuclearWarfare, Numbo3, Objectivist, Octahedron80, Orionus, OverlordQ, Pagw, Palica, Paranoid, Parejkoj, ParticleMan, Patbert, Patespi,
Patrick1982, Paulley, Pbn, Pc13, Person6789, PeterJeremy, Phil Boswell, Philip Trueman, PhySusie, Picus viridis, Pklolkyle, Plautus satire, Poor Yorick, Pqn0308, Prickus, Prolog, Prototime,
Puchiko, Punarbhava, Pwhitwor, Quidproquo2004, Quintote, Quizmaster1, Qxz, RJHall, Random astronomer, RandomGuy42, Raul654, RexNL, Richard Taylor, Rje, Rnt20, Roadrunner,
RobertMfromLI, Robinh, Robma, Robogun, Roflbater, Rory096, Runningonbrains, Ruslik0, S.Bowen, SaRiisRipples, Salamurai, Schneelocke, ScienceApologist, ShakataGaNai, Shii, Silsor,
Smartech, Songjin, Sonicology, Spark Moon, SpookyMulder, Sportachris, Srborlongan, Srleffler, Stephenb, SteveVer256, Sverdrup, TUF-KAT, Tango, Tavilis, Tempodivalse, Texas.veggie, That
Guy, From That Show!, The Thing That Should Not Be, Thegoodlocust, Thunderbrand, Tide rolls, Titoxd, Toby Bartels, Todder1995, Tohd8BohaithuGh1, Tonyfaull, Trusilver, Unbeatable0,
UnitedStatesian, Unschool, Uranometria, Useight, Uxh, Vanished user 03, Variable, VoxLuna, Vsmith, W4rg, Waggers, WereSpielChequers, Whisky drinker, Wiki alf, WikiLaurent,
WikiMarshall, Wikkidd, WilliamKF, WilliamThweatt, Wimt, Wired2narnia, Wwagner, Wwheaton, Wysprgr2005, XJamRastafire, Zeptomoon, Zzzzzzzzzzz, ‫دمحأ‬, 699 anonymous edits
Radio galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=373408585 Contributors: Bobblewik, Brroga, Casliber, ClarketheK, Da Joe, Dr. Submillimeter, Edwinhubbel, Epbr123, Epolk,
Fig wright, FillyfromPhilly, Fxmastermind, Iridescent, Jonverve, Katieh5584, Krash, Looxix, Mattisse, Mhardcastle, Mnmngb, Naturehead, PaddyLeahy, Parejkoj, Ph0kin, Privong,
Quantumobserver, Reyk, ScienceApologist, Slicky, Stepa, Trik The Atheist, Variable, WilliamKF, X-shaped, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 24 anonymous edits
Ring galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394890168 Contributors: A2Kafir, Alfio, Captmondo, Cyde, DA3N, DIUZOMA, Da Joe, Dr. Submillimeter, George100,
Icairns, Jkelly, JorisvS, Kalki, MER-C, NatureA16, Petersam, Roberto Mura, Romanc19s, Rparle, SiegeLord, Tarnum, XJamRastafire, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 9 anonymous edits
Seyfert galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=366107695 Contributors: Ahpook, Alfio, Argo Navis, Arpingstone, Astroal1947, Bronger, Coccoinomane, Conti, Cryptic
C62, Da Joe, Deschain785, Dr. Submillimeter, GraL, Habj, Hairy Dude, Icairns, Ingolfson, Jason.grossman, Joseph Dwayne, KGyST, KnightRider, Kurtan, Looxix, MPF, MartinCZ, Megan1967,
Mike18xx, Mnmngb, Mylon, Naddy, Paranoidzachandroid, Pie4all88, Pol098, RJHall, Rdb, Rentier, Rich Farmbrough, Rjwilmsi, Serguei S. Dukachev, StuartCarter, Sweetmoose6, Tetracube,
Tsiaojian lee, Vicki Rosenzweig, Wikiborg, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 17 anonymous edits
Spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=396144136 Contributors: (jarbarf), AEVanVogt, Acroterion, Aeon1006, Agathoclea, Ajr, Alansohn, Aldaron, Alfio,
Amwilson2000, Anton Markov, Arakunem, Argo Navis, ArnoldReinhold, Arpingstone, Art LaPella, Arthena, Astrotwitch, Attilios, Babomb, Ben Standeven, BlueMoonlet, Bogdangiusca,
Brighterorange, Caco de vidro, Cam, Canuck100, Captmondo, Confession0791, Cool Blue, Coolieboy84, Cosmo0, Courcelles, Curps, Cyrillic, DARTH SIDIOUS 2, Da Joe, DarkAudit,
Dbenbenn, DerHexer, Dicklyon, DivineAlpha, Dr. Submillimeter, Dragons flight, Duemellon, Edgerck, Ekespe, El C, Elmoro, Epbr123, Etacar11, Evil Monkey, Exphysus, FKmailliW, Foobaz,
Fvw, Gangsta124, GuyQuest, Hairy Dude, HexaChord, Hi IM Bi, Hongkongresident, Hurricane Devon, Hydrogen Iodide, I dream of horses, Iantresman, Icairns, Ikiroid, JNW, Jkelly, Jmencisom,
John D. Croft, Johnuniq, Joseph Dwayne, Jruderman, Junglecat, Jyril, KGyST, Kalsermar, Keraunos, Kitty the Random, Kooolioa, Kubigula, Lars Lindberg Christensen, Leia, Lightmouse,
Looxix, Lpgeffen, MC10, Macinapp, Magnus Manske, McSly, Mentifisto, Michael Devore, Mike s, Mintleaf, Mysid, N328KF, NHRHS2010, NatureA16, NellieBly, NewEnglandYankee,
Numbo3, NyyDave, Oleg Alexandrov, Onebravemonkey, Oskar71, Pagw, Pepper, Persian Poet Gal, Pika ten10, Polylepsis, Quaeler, RJHall, RQG, RainbowOfLight, Random astronomer,
Razimantv, Reconsider the static, Resident of arkham, Reyk, Rich Farmbrough, Robertgreer, Rrburke, Schneelocke, ScienceApologist, Sciurinæ, Serendipodous, Shadowjams, SimonKagstrom,
SimonP, Space girl 9, Spiritia, Squash, Ste4k, Stuart Morrow, Submitter to Truth, SuyoungL, Sverdrup, Sławomir Biały, Tarnum, Tide rolls, Titanium Dragon, Tommy2010, Tonicthebrown,
Tony Fox, Tsiaojian lee, TutterMouse, Tv316, Ularevalo98, Vreejack, Wavelength, WilliamKF, Wimt, Wisdom89, Ykemper, Yuckfoo, Zbayz, Zmcdargh, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 259 anonymous edits
Starburst galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=390054892 Contributors: Ageekgal, Alansohn, AndrewHowse, Argo Navis, Axeman89, Bobblewik, Bobo192, Ceyockey,
Chris the speller, Cmdrjameson, ConradPino, Corpx, Discospinster, Dorftrottel, Dr. Submillimeter, El C, Emc2, Epolk, Etacar11, Eugene van der Pijll, Fatal!ty, Fernando Estel, Fournax,
Hellothere17, Icairns, Jehochman, JesseW, KGyST, Kurt Shaped Box, KyNephi, Lars Lindberg Christensen, Lights, Lzz, Marasama, Marcelo-Silva, Matthewhayes, MeganKA, Pathoschild,
Pilchard, Platyfish625, Richard Nowell, Rjwilmsi, Roberto Mura, Sam Hocevar, Scog, Seth Ilys, Shyam, SimonP, Toby Douglass, Tom Lougheed, Tryphiodorus, Variable, WilliamKF, Wnt,
Ynilp, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 63 anonymous edits
Type-cD galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394500235 Contributors: Alpha Quadrant, Edrowland, Emmykm, Ilmari Karonen, IncognitoErgoSum, LilHelpa,
NHRHS2010, Rich Farmbrough, Skysmith, 39 anonymous edits
Unbarred lenticular galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395648075 Contributors: Dr. Submillimeter, Fotaun, OlEnglish, Rich Farmbrough, WilliamKF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 2
anonymous edits
Unbarred spiral galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395647563 Contributors: Dr. Submillimeter, Fotaun, George100, John Belushi, Martarius, Numbo3, OlEnglish,
Poulpy, WilliamKF, Yupik, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 19 anonymous edits
Brightest cluster galaxy Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=357785283 Contributors: Argo Navis, Auntof6, ClarketheK, Colonies Chris, Dominic Renshaw, UoD 2006,
Domren111, Dr. Submillimeter, Edwinhubbel, El C, EugeneForrester, Hadrianheugh, Jyril, Mel Etitis, Mike Peel, Quaristice, Rjwilmsi, Roberto Mura, Twinsday, Vegasbri, Wikiborg,
WolfmanSF, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 4 anonymous edits
Galaxy color-magnitude diagram Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=369414282 Contributors: Mike s, ScienceApologist, Scorpion0422, StaticGull, Tjic, 6 anonymous edits
List of galaxies Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=392192901 Contributors: 1234r00t, Aka042, Alexander110, Amerias, Anton Gutsunaev, Art LaPella, Blankfaze, BrianY,
Bunnyhop11, CHG, CWitte, CanadianLinuxUser, Canis Lupus, Captain-n00dle, CaptainMike, Count Iblis, Curps, Czj, Davecrosby uk, Dispenser, Dr. Submillimeter, Elijya, Evil Monkey,
Excirial, Falcon8765, Fatal!ty, FillyfromPhilly, Frankie816, Gaius Cornelius, Goobergunch, Gtrmp, Hewholooks, Iam on andromeda, Icairns, Icemaja, Iridescent, JMK, Ja 62, JamesHoadley,
John Vandenberg, JohnLynch, Johnuniq, Joseph Dwayne, Karol Langner, Kheider, Kungfuadam, Ladsgroup, Latitude0116, Leuko, MER-C, Maccoat, Maxis ftw, Nergaal, Neurophyre, Nono64,
Noodle snacks, Optim, Pika ten10, Polylepsis, RC Master, Ragesoss, RainbowOfLight, Rholton, Rich Farmbrough, Rmrfstar, SJP, Seth Ilys, Signalhead, SkE, Starcluster, SuperHamster, Texture,
Tommy2010, Uber nemo, Vegasbri, WIKIKNIGHTX, Wienerline, Wikipelli, WilliamKF, XJamRastafire, Xezbeth, 371 anonymous edits
Fossil group Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=380113920 Contributors: Radagast83, Zzzzzzzzzzz, 13 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

Image:NGC 4414 (NASA-med).jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:NGC_4414_(NASA-med).jpg License: unknown Contributors: NASA Headquarters - Greatest
Images of NASA (NASA-HQ-GRIN)
Image:Milky Way Galaxy and a meteor.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Milky_Way_Galaxy_and_a_meteor.jpg License: unknown Contributors: Mila Zinkova
Image:Herschel-Galaxy.png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Herschel-Galaxy.png License: Public Domain Contributors: BRUTE, FredA, H.Seldon, 5 anonymous edits
Image:M51Sketch.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:M51Sketch.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Juiced lemon, Szdori, Winiar
Image:Pic iroberts1.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Pic_iroberts1.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Isaac Roberts (d. 1904)
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Galaxies

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What are galaxies composed of?

What are galaxies composed of?

What are the different types of galaxies mentioned?

What are the different types of galaxies mentioned?

Galaxies

The Milky Way

Distinction from other nebulae

In 1750 Thomas Wright, in his An original theory or

The matter was conclusively settled in the early 1920s.

Beginning in the 1990s, the Hubble Space Telescope

Types and morphology

A majority of spiral galaxies have a linear,

A lenticular galaxy is an intermediate form that has properties of both

In addition to the classifications mentioned above, there are a

Unusual dynamics and activities

At the extreme of interactions are galactic

concentrations of gas and the appearance of

Active galaxies that emit high-energy radiation

Possibly related to active galactic nuclei (as well

During the following two billion years, the

Most galaxies in the universe are gravitationally

Larger structures containing many thousands of

Galaxy formation and evolution

Formation of the first galaxies

Commonly observed properties of galaxies

The formation of disk galaxies

Olin Eggen, Donald Lynden-Bell, and Allan Sandage[2] in

More recent theories include the clustering of dark matter

Galaxy mergers and the formation of elliptical galaxies

Astronomers now see elliptical galaxies as some of the most

Mergers are also locations of extreme amounts of star formation.[7]

Galaxy morphological classification

• Elliptical galaxies have smooth,

• Lenticular galaxies (designated S0) also

The de Vaucouleurs system retains Hubble’s basic

• Bars. Galaxies are divided on the basis of the

Most galaxies in these three classes were classified as Irr I in

The different elements of the classification scheme are combined - in

(spiralness) on the x-axis, family (barredness) on the y-axis, and

Numerical Hubble stage

Numerical Hubble stage

[5] cE E E+ S0- S00 S0+ S0/a Sa Sab Sb Sbc Sc Scd Sd Sdm Sm Im

[6] E S0 S0/a Sa Sa-b Sb Sb-c Sc Sc-Irr Irr I

The Yerkes (or Morgan) scheme

Spectral Type Explanation

af Prominent A-F stars

fg Prominent F-G stars

gk Prominent G-K stars

Galactic Shape Explanation

D Rotational symmetry without pronounced spiral or elliptical structure

Ep Elliptical with dust absorption

L Low surface brightness

N small bright nucleus

So, for example, the Andromeda Galaxy is classified as kS5.

Tuning-fork style diagram of the Hubble sequence

The giant elliptical galaxy ESO 325-G004.

• Sa (SBa) - tightly-wound, smooth arms; large, bright central bulge

• Sc (SBc) - loosely wound spiral arms, clearly resolved into

absorption against the light of stars in the disk.

Dark matter halo