Hot atmospheres of massive galaxies are enriched with metals. Elemental abundances measured in the X-ray band have been used to study the chemical enrichment of supernova remnants, elliptical... Show moreHot atmospheres of massive galaxies are enriched with metals. Elemental abundances measured in the X-ray band have been used to study the chemical enrichment of supernova remnants, elliptical galaxies, groups, and clusters of galaxies. Here we measure the elemental abundances of the hot atmosphere of luminous infrared galaxy Arp 299 observed with XMM-Newton. To measure the abundances in the hot atmosphere, we use a multi-temperature thermal plasma model, which provides a better fit to the Reflection Grating Spectrometer data. The observed Fe/O abundance ratio is subsolar, while those of Ne/O and Mg/O are slightly above solar. Core-collapse supernovae (SNcc) are the dominant metal factory of elements like O, Ne, and Mg. We find some deviations between the observed abundance patterns and theoretical ones from a simple chemical enrichment model. One possible explanation is that massive stars with M-star greater than or similar to 23-27 M-circle dot might not explode as SNcc and enrich the hot atmosphere. This is in accordance with the missing massive SNcc progenitors problem, where very massive progenitors M-star greater than or similar to 18 M-circle dot of SNcc have not been clearly detected. It is also possible that theoretical SNcc nucleosynthesis yields of Mg/O yields are underestimated. Show less
The origin and evolution of galaxies are closely tied to the cyclic feedback processes between stars and the interstellar medium (ISM). The aim of this thesis is to explore characteristics of the... Show moreThe origin and evolution of galaxies are closely tied to the cyclic feedback processes between stars and the interstellar medium (ISM). The aim of this thesis is to explore characteristics of the ISM, on global (galactic) scales down to sub-cloud (pc) scales. We explore new methods to investigate the ISM in external galaxies, through radio recombination line observations, and develop the tools and strategies needed to process new low-frequency observations with the Low Frequency Array. We also infer the presence of massive stars and characterize their properties and influence on the ISM. This thesis addresses the questions:- How does low-density ionized gas affect the evolution of the massive, galactic star-forming region, Cygnus X? Are the same fingerprints present in surveys of low-density ionized gas in our Galaxy?- What are the properties of star formation (star clusters) in the central starburst of the galaxy NGC 4945?- Can the ISM be explored outside of the local universe through radio recombination line observations? What are the ISM properties of a dwarf-like galaxy at z=1.1?- What techniques are best suited to detect faint radio recombination lines (at a previously unknown redshift) in extragalactic sources? Show less
Levy, R.C.; Bolatto, A.D.; Leroy, A.K.; Emig, K.L.; Gorski, M.; Krieger, N.; ... ; Zwaan, M.A. 2021
The aim of this work is to study starbursts and the dynamical processes involved, both from gas and stellar components. For this purpose, one nearby galaxy with a nuclear starburst was selected, as... Show moreThe aim of this work is to study starbursts and the dynamical processes involved, both from gas and stellar components. For this purpose, one nearby galaxy with a nuclear starburst was selected, as well as a sample of 6 ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs). Observations of these sources were carried out with SINFONI, the spectrograph for integral field observations in the near-infrared, an instrument that is mounted on the VLT in Chile. The thesis contains a study of the spectral features that are characteristic for starbursts, and a comparison of dynamical masses and mass-to-light ratios of the ULIRGs, calculated with different methods both from stellar dynamics and gas dynamics. Show less
This thesis discusses the dynamical properties of high redshift infrared selected and morphologically large disk selected galaxies at redshifts between 0.7 and 2.4 and their Tully-Fisher relations.... Show moreThis thesis discusses the dynamical properties of high redshift infrared selected and morphologically large disk selected galaxies at redshifts between 0.7 and 2.4 and their Tully-Fisher relations. Most observations were done using the near infrared integral field spectrograph SINFONI of the Very Large Telescope (VLT). Show less
