• Title/Summary/Keyword: Galactic evolution

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DARK MATTER CONTENT IN GLOBULAR CLUSTER NGC 6397

  • Shin, Jihye;Kim, Sungsoo S.;Lee, Young-Wook
    • Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.46 no.4
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    • pp.173-181
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    • 2013
  • We trace the dynamical evolution of dark matter (DM) content in NGC 6397, one of the native Galactic globular clusters (GCs). The relatively strong tidal field (Galactocentric radius of ~ 6 kpc) and short relaxation timescale (~0.3 Gyr) of the cluster can cause a significant amount of DM particles to evaporate from the cluster in the Hubble time. Thus, the cluster can initially contain a non-negligible amount of DM. Using the most advanced Fokker-Planck (FP) method, we calculate the dynamical evolution of GCs for numerous initial conditions to determine the maximum initial DM content in NGC 6397 that matches the present-day brightness and velocity dispersion profiles of the cluster. We find that the maximum allowed initial DM mass is slightly less than the initial stellar mass in the cluster. Our findings imply that NGC 6397 did not initially contain a significant amount of DM, and is similar to that of NGC 2419, the remotest and the most massive Galactic GC.

MASSIVE BLACK HOLE EVOLUTION IN RADIO-LOUD ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI

  • FLETCHER ANDRE B.
    • Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.36 no.3
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    • pp.177-187
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    • 2003
  • Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are distant, powerful sources of radiation over the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to gamma-rays. There is much evidence that they are driven by gravitational accretion of stars, dust, and gas, onto central massive black holes (MBHs) imprisoning anywhere from $\~$1 to $\~$10,000 million solar masses; such objects may naturally form in the centers of galaxies during their normal dynamical evolution. A small fraction of AGNs, of the radio-loud type (RLAGNs), are somehow able to generate powerful synchrotron-emitting structures (cores, jets, lobes) with sizes ranging from pc to Mpc. A brief summary of AGN observations and theories is given, with an emphasis on RLAGNs. Preliminary results from the imaging of 10000 extragalactic radio sources observed in the MITVLA snapshot survey, and from a new analytic theory of the time-variable power output from Kerr black hole magnetospheres, are presented. To better understand the complex physical processes within the central engines of AGNs, it is important to confront the observations with theories, from the viewpoint of analyzing the time-variable behaviours of AGNs - which have been recorded over both 'short' human ($10^0-10^9\;s$) and 'long' cosmic ($10^{13} - 10^{17}\;s$) timescales. Some key ingredients of a basic mathematical formalism are outlined, which may help in building detailed Monte-Carlo models of evolving AGN populations; such numerical calculations should be potentially important tools for useful interpretation of the large amounts of statistical data now publicly available for both AGNs and RLAGNs.

Thermal and Dynamical Evolution of a Gaseous Medium and Star Formation in Disk Galaxies

  • Kim, Chang-Goo;Kim, Woong-Tae;Ostriker, Eve C.
    • The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.36 no.1
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    • pp.54.1-54.1
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    • 2011
  • Formation of self-gravitating gas clouds and hence stars in galaxies is a consequence of both thermal and dynamical evolution of a gaseous medium. Using hydrodynamics simulations including cooling and heating explicitly, we follow simultaneously thermal and dynamical evolution of galactic gas disks to study dynamics and structures of galactic spiral shocks with thermal instability and regulation of the star formation rates (SFRs). We first perform one-dimensional simulations in direction perpendicular to spiral arms. The multiphase gas flows across the arm soon achieve a quasi-steady state characterized by transitions from warm to cold phases at the shock and from cold to warm phases in the postshock expansion zone, producing a substantial fraction of intermediate-temperature gas. Next, we allow a vertical degree of freedom to model vertically stratified disks. The shock front experiences unsteady flapping motions, driving a significant amount of random gas motions, and self-gravity promotes formation of bound clouds inside spiral arms. Finally, we include the star formation feedback in both mechanical (due to supernova explosion) and radiative (due to FUV heating by young stars) forms in the absence of spiral arms. At saturation, gravitationally bound clouds form via thermal and gravitational instabilities, which are compensated by disruption via supernova explosions. We find that the FUV heating regulates the SFRs when gas surface density is low, confirming the prediction of the thermal and dynamical equilibrium model of Ostriker et al. (2010) for star formation regulation.

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THE EVOLUTION OF THE GALACTIC GLOBULAR CLUSTERS.: I. METAL ABUNDANCE CALIBRATIONS

  • Lee, See-Woo;Park, Nam-Kyu
    • Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.17 no.2
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    • pp.69-103
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    • 1984
  • Five different calibrations of metal abundances of globular clusters are examined and these are compared with metallicity ranking parameters such as $(Sp)_c$, . Q39 and IR-indices. Except for the calibration $[Fe/H]_H$ by the high dispersion echelle analysis. the other calibration scales are correlated with the morphological parameters of red giant branch. In the $[Fe/H]_H$-scale. the clusters later than ${\sim}F8$ have nearly a constant metal abundance. $[Fe/H]_H{\simeq}-1.05$, regradless of morphological characteristics of horizontal branch and red giant branch. By the two fundamental calibration scales of $[Fe/H]_L$ (derived by the low dispersion analysis) and $[Fe/H]_{{\Delta}s}$ (derived by the spectral analysis of RR Lyrae stars). the globular clusters are divided into the halo clusters with [Fe/H]<-1.0 and the disk clusters confined within the galactocentric distance ${\tau}_G=10\;kpc$ and galactic plane distance |z|=3 kpc. In this case the abundance gradient is given by d[Fe/H]/$dr_G{\approx}-0.05\;kpc^{-1}$ and d[Fe/H]/$d|z|{\simeq}-0.08\;kpc^{-1}$ within ${\tau}_G=20\;kpc$ and |z|=10 kpc, respectively. According to these characteristics of the spatial distribution of globular clusters. the chemical evolution of the galactic globular clusters can be accounted for by the two-zone (disk-halo) slow collapse model when the $[Fe/H]_L$-or $[Fe/H]_{{\Delta}s}$-scale is applied. In the case of $[Fe/H]_H$-scale, the one-zone fast collapse model is preferred for the evolution of globular clusters.

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Tracing Metallicity in the Scenario of High Velocity Clouds (HVCs) Colliding with our Milky Way

  • Sung, Kwang Hyun;Kwak, Kyujin
    • The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.39 no.2
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    • pp.77.2-77.2
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    • 2014
  • Questions of how our Milky Way evolves through the interaction with its environment have been constantly raised. One particularly interesting question is how the metallicity would change as our Milky Way goes through collision with HVCs. Because of the possibility of HVCs providing fuel for star formation in the Galactic disk, we simulate the collision between HVCs and the Galactic disk. More specifically, we trace how the Galactic metallicity changes throughout the process of HVCs colliding with our Milky Way based upon a specific scenario that HVCs are primordial gas left-overs from an ancient galaxy formation. Such mixing between metal-rich gas (disk) and metal-poor HVC can be traced by running numerical simulations with the FLASH code due to its capability of tracking down the abundance change of a specific element such as carbon at each time step of the hydrodynamic evolution. As for now, we give how this mixing depends on model parameters that we choose such as collision speed, initial metallicities, temperature and so on.

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Initial Size Distribution of the Milky Way Globular Clusters

  • Shin, Ji-Hye;Kim, Sung-Soo S.
    • The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.35 no.2
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    • pp.35.1-35.1
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    • 2010
  • Unlike the initial mass function, the initial size distribution of globular cluster (GC) systems is not well known. We calculate the evolution of the mass function (MF), radial distribution (RD), and size distribution (SD) of the Galactic GC system. By comparing the results from this calculation and the present-day MF, RD, and SD of the Galactic GC system, we infer the initial SD of the GC system. We find that a Gaussian distribution of the half-mass radius and a Gaussian distribution of the half-mass to Jacobi radius ratio are the best-fit initial SDs of the Galactic GC system.

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Regulation of Star Formation Rates in Multiphase Galactic Disks: Numerical Tests of the Thermal/Dynamical Equilibrium Model

  • Kim, Chang-Goo;Kim, Woong-Tae;Ostriker, Eve C.
    • The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.35 no.2
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    • pp.74.1-74.1
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    • 2010
  • Using two-dimensional numerical hydrodynamic simulations, we investigate the regulation of star ormation rates in turbulent, multiphase, galactic gaseous disks. Our simulation domain is xisymmetric, and local in the radial direction and global in the vertical direction. Our models nclude galactic rotation, vertical stratification, self-gravity, heating and cooling, and thermal onduction. Turbulence in our models is driven by momentum feedback from supernova events ccurring in localized dense regions formed by thermal and gravitational instabilities. Self-onsistent radiative heating, representing enhanced/reduced FUV photons from the star formation, s also taken into account. Evolution of our model disks is highly dynamic, but reaches a quasi-teady state. The disks are overall in effective hydrostatic equilibrium with the midplane thermal ressure set by the vertical gravity. The star formation rate is found to be proportional pproximately linearly to the midplane thermal pressure. These results are in good agreement with the predictions of a recent theory by Ostriker, McKee, and Leroy (2010) for the thermal/dynamic equilibrium model of star formation regulation.

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Identifying clusters of red supergiants in Galactic plane using 2MASS and GAIA G band colors

  • Lee, Jae-Joon;Chun, Sang Hyun
    • The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.46 no.2
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    • pp.80.2-80.2
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    • 2021
  • Galactic young massive clusters are the ideal laboratories to study massive stellar evolution. Unfortunately, such objects are rare. Of particular interest are so-called Red Supergiant Clusters (RSGCs) that are currently only found toward the Scutum-Crux Galactic arm. Confirming their nature as RSGC is often not straight-fortward as distinguishing RSGs from AGB stars is still difficult even with high spectral resolution spectra. Here we report that broad band colors using 2MASS JHK and GAIA G band data can be useful in reducing the AGB contamination, thus providing selection criteria that effectively reveal the known RSGCs with negligible false positives. On the other hand, we suggest that RSGC4, one of the proposed RSGC candidates, may not be a cluster of RSGs as their colors are not compatible with our selection criteria. We discuss the nature of these stars together with our IGRINS spectroscopic observations. We also employ the same selection criteria to search for RSGC candidates in other parts of the plane, resulting in no prominent candidates.

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