Descripción del proyecto
Una visión sin precedentes de la región central de las galaxias espirales
A menudo, los científicos extrapolan los datos basándose en las tendencias existentes y en la suposición de que esos datos nos llevarán a incógnitas del pasado o del futuro. En el caso de la formación de galaxias espirales como la Vía Láctea, la teoría estándar era que la formación del bulbo precedía a la del disco. Los científicos se basan en esta teoría para extrapolar el perfil del disco al centro galáctico, pero recientes pruebas observacionales indirectas sugieren que la teoría puede no ser exacta. Con el apoyo de las Acciones Marie Skłodowska-Curie, el equipo del proyecto GALYKOS está llevando a cabo una exploración sin precedentes de la región central de las galaxias espirales para comprender mejor la formación y la evolución de las galaxias.
Objetivo
The standard paradigm of the build-up of spiral galaxies recognises a two-phase scenario that comprises a quasi-monolithic formation of the bulge early-on, followed by the gradual assembly of the disk. However, recent observational evidence strongly suggests joint formation and perpetual co-evolution of both structures. Elucidating this process in its full complexity is of key astrophysical relevance and only possible through accurate characterisation of the main stellar components (bulge, disk and bar). These are primarily studied via photometric decomposition techniques, conventionally by extrapolating the exponential profile of the disk up to the galactic centre. Though hardly ever questioned, this is a strong assumption with broad and far-reaching implications, which could effectively be violated, particularly if the disk evolves in tandem with the bulge. Our latest work, Breda et al. (2020b), provided, for the first time, indirect observational evidence for a central down-bending of the disk, reinforcing theoretical predictions. This project, GALYKOS, will pioneer an unprecedented exploration of the central region of spiral galaxies through the combination of two techniques, i.e. spatially resolved spectral synthesis and kinematical Schwarzschild orbital decomposition of optical and K-band integral field spectroscopy data. This innovative methodology will permit to quantitatively constrain the true structure of the disk within the galactic centre and explore its dependence on the physical properties of spirals, revolutionizing photometric decomposition studies. Apart from opening new routes for the exploration of the assembly history of galaxies, this action will prompt for conceptual changes in our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution. Finally, it will rectify well-established galaxy scaling relations such as super-massive black hole vs. bulge and yield crucial insight into the nature of bulgeless galaxies, a remaining challenge for the ΛCDM model.
Ámbito científico
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Régimen de financiación
MSCA-PF - MSCA-PFCoordinador
1010 Wien
Austria