Start year
2006
Organizational Unit
Organizing institutions
Grants related:
General
Description
Welcome to the Traces of Galaxy Formation research group website.
We are a large, diverse, and very active research group aiming to provide a comprehensive picture for the formation of galaxies in the Universe. Rooted in detailed stellar population analysis, we are constantly exploring and developing new tools and ideas to understand how galaxies came to be what we now observe.
A complex star formation history, as the one expected to describe galaxy evolution, needs a multidisciplinary approach to be fully understood. Our group at the IAC consists of experienced researchers in cosmological simulations, dynamical studies, stellar populations and morphological properties of galaxies up to high redshift. We combine different approaches (e.g. observations and theory, secular and cosmological evolution studies) to obtain a complete view of the dominant mechanisms driving the evolution of galaxies.
Within this general framework, we are currently exploring three main areas of research:
- Stellar population synthesis models
- Development of new stellar population synthesis models
- Stellar population analysis tools
- Universality of the stellar initial mass function (IMF)
- Cosmic evolution of galaxies
- Massive galaxy evolution
- Stellar populations in different environments
- Low surface brightness science
- Machine learning and cosmological simulations
- Evolutionary processes in nearby galaxies
- The role of black holes in the evolution of galaxies
- Surveys of nearby galaxies
- Stellar kinematics and dynamical models
If you want to get in contact or work with us, please send an email to the head of the group (Ignacio Martín-Navarro ignacio.martin [at] iac.es (ignacio[dot]martin[at]iac[dot]es)).
Members
Principal investigator
Ignacio
Martín Navarro
Project staff
Ignacio
Trujillo Cabrera
Alexandre
Vazdekis Vazdekis
Ignacio Alfonso
Ferreras Páez
Jesús
Falcón Barroso
Marc
Huertas-Portocarrero Company
Adriana de
Lorenzo-Cáceres Rodríguez
Anna
Ferré Mateu
Mireia
Montes Quiles
Regina
Sarmiento
Iveth Adaena
Gaspar Gorostieta
Eirini
Angeloudi
Giulia
Golini
Laura Elizabeth
Scholz Díaz
Pablo
Rodríguez Beltrán
Results
Here you can find some of our most recent highlights:
- Local variations of the stellar velocity ellipsoid - II. The effect of the bar in the inner regions of Auriga galaxies. Walo et al. 2022, MNRAS (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2022MNRAS.513.4587W)
- Anisotropic satellite galaxy quenching modulated by black hole activity. Martín-Navarro et al. 2021, Nature (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021Natur.594..187M)
- Evaluating hydrodynamical simulations with green valley galaxies. Angthopo et al. 2021, MNRAS (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021MNRAS.502.3685A)
- Sub one per cent mass fractions of young stars in red massive galaxies. Salvador-Rusiñol et al. 2020, Nature Astronomy (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2020NatAs...4..252S)
- Detection of young stellar populations in apparently quenched low-mass galaxies using red spectral line indices. de Lorenzo-Cáceres et al. 2020, MNRAS (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2020MNRAS.498.1002D)
Scientific activity
Related publications
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The kinematics of young and old stellar populations in nuclear rings of MUSE TIMER galaxiesContext. Studying the stellar kinematics of galaxies is a key tool in the reconstruction of their evolution. However, the current measurements of the stellar kinematics are complicated by several factors, including dust extinction and the presence of multiple stellar populations. Aims: We use integral field spectroscopic data of four galaxies fromRosado-Belza, D. et al.
Advertised on:
122020 -
Galactic cirri in deep optical imagingThe ubiquitous presence of Galactic cirri in deep optical images represents a major obstacle to study the low surface brightness features of extragalactic sources. To address this issue, we have explored the optical properties of cirri using g, r, i, and z bands in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Stripe82 region. Using state-of-the-art, customRomán, Javier et al.
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122020 -
The Galaxy "Missing Dark Matter" NGC 1052-DF4 is Undergoing Tidal DisruptionThe existence of long-lived galaxies lacking dark matter represents a challenge to our understanding of how galaxies form. Here, we present evidence that explains the lack of dark matter in one such galaxy: NGC 1052-DF4. Deep optical imaging of the system has detected tidal tails in this object caused by its interaction with its neighboring galaxyMontes, Mireia et al.
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122020 -
Detecting outliers in astronomical images with deep generative networksWith the advent of future big-data surveys, automated tools for unsupervised discovery are becoming ever more necessary. In this work, we explore the ability of deep generative networks for detecting outliers in astronomical imaging data sets. The main advantage of such generative models is that they are able to learn complex representationsMargalef-Bentabol, Berta et al.
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62020 -
Stellar masses of giant clumps in CANDELS and simulated galaxies using machine learningA significant fraction of high redshift star-forming disc galaxies are known to host giant clumps, whose nature and role in galaxy evolution are yet to be understood. In this work, we first present a new method based on neural networks to detect clumps in galaxy images. We use this method to detect clumps in the rest-frame optical and UV images ofHuertas-Company, Marc et al.
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92020 -
Inside-out formation of nuclear discs and the absence of old central spheroids in barred galaxies of the TIMER surveyThe centres of disc galaxies host a variety of structures built via both internal and external processes. In this study, we constrain the formation and evolution of these central structures, in particular, nuclear rings and nuclear discs, by deriving maps of mean stellar ages, metallicities, and [α/Fe] abundances. We use observations obtained withBittner, Adrian et al.
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112020 -
Kinematic signatures of nuclear discs and bar-driven secular evolution in nearby galaxies of the MUSE TIMER projectThe central regions of disc galaxies hold clues to the processes that dominate their formation and evolution. To exploit this, the TIMER project has obtained high signal-to-noise and spatial resolution integral-field spectroscopy data of the inner few kpc of 21 nearby massive barred galaxies, which allows studies of the stellar kinematics in theirGadotti, Dimitri A. et al.
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112020 -
The principle of maximum entropy explains the cores observed in the mass distribution of dwarf galaxiesCold dark matter (CDM) simulations predict a central cusp in the mass distribution of galaxies. This prediction is in stark contrast with observations of dwarf galaxies that show a central plateau or "core" in their density distribution. The proposed solutions to this core-cusp problem can be classified into two types. One invokes feedbackSánchez Almeida, Jorge et al.
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102020 -
The Fornax Deep Survey with VST. X. The assembly history of the bright galaxies and intra-group light in the Fornax A subgroupContext. We present the study of the south-west group in the Fornax cluster centred on the brightest group galaxy (BGG) Fornax A, which was observed as part of the Fornax Deep Survey (FDS). This includes the analysis of the bright group members (m B < 16 mag) and the intra-group light (IGL). Aims: The main objective of this work is to investigateRaj, M. A. et al.
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82020 -
Detection of young (≤20 Myr) stellar populations in apparently quenched low-mass galaxies using red spectral line indicesWe report on the detection of a small contribution (around and below 1 per cent in mass) from young stellar components with ages ≤20 Myr in low-mass galaxies purposely selected from the MaNGA survey to be already-quenched systems. Among the sample of 28 galaxies, 8 of them show signatures of having suffered a very recent burst of star formationde Lorenzo-Cáceres, A. et al.
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82020 -
NIHAO XXIV: rotation- or pressure-supported systems? Simulated Ultra Diffuse Galaxies show a broad distribution in their stellar kinematicsIn recent years, a new window on galaxy evolution opened, thanks to the increasing discovery of galaxies with a low-surface brightness, such as Ultra Diffuse Galaxies (UDGs). The formation mechanism of these systems is still a much debated question and so are their kinematical properties. In this work, we address this topic by analysing the stellarCardona-Barrero, Salvador et al.
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72020 -
The SAMI-Fornax Dwarfs Survey I: sample, observations, and the specific stellar angular momentum of dwarf elliptical galaxiesDwarf ellipticals are the most common galaxy type in cluster environments; however, the challenges associated with their observation mean that their formation mechanisms are still poorly understood. To address this, we present deep integral field observations of a sample of 31 low-mass (10 7.5 < M ⋆ < 10 9.5 M ☉) early-type galaxies in the FornaxScott, Nicholas et al.
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72020 -
On the accretion of a new group of galaxies on to Virgo: I. Internal kinematics of nine in-falling dEsGalaxy environment has been shown to play an important role in transforming late-type, star-forming galaxies to quiescent spheroids. This transformation is expected to be more severe for low-mass galaxies ( $M \lt 10^{10}\, \mathrm{M}_\odot$ ) in dense galaxy groups and clusters, mostly due to the influence of their past host haloes (also known asBidaran, Bahar et al.
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72020 -
The Fornax Deep Survey with VST. IX. Catalog of sources in the FDS area with an example study for globular clusters and background galaxiesContext. A possible pathway for understanding the events and the mechanisms involved in galaxy formation and evolution is an in-depth investigation of the galactic and inter-galactic fossil sub-structures with long dynamical timescales: stars in the field and in stellar clusters. Aims: This paper continues the Fornax Deep Survey (FDS) seriesCantiello, Michele et al.
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72020 -
Disentangling the formation history of galaxies via population-orbit superposition: method validationWe present population-orbit superposition models for external galaxies based on Schwarzschild's orbit-superposition method, by tagging the orbits with age and metallicity. The models fit the density distributions, kinematic, and age and metallicity maps from integral field unit (IFU) spectroscopy observations. We validate the method and demonstrateZhu, Ling et al.
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62020 -
Larger λ<SUB>R</SUB> in the disc of isolated active spiral galaxies than in their non-active twinsWe present a comparison of the spin parameter λ R, measured in a region dominated by the galaxy disc, between 20 pairs of nearby (0.005 < z < 0.03) seemingly isolated twin galaxies differing in nuclear activity. We find that 80-82% of the active galaxies show higher values of λ R than their corresponding non-active twin(s), indicating largerdel Moral-Castro, I. et al.
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72020 -
Quenching as a Contest between Galaxy Halos and Their Central Black HolesExisting models of galaxy formation have not yet explained striking correlations between structure and star formation activity in galaxies, notably the sloped and moving boundaries that divide star-forming from quenched galaxies in key structural diagrams. This paper uses these and other relations to "reverse engineer" the quenching process forChen, Zhu et al.
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72020 -
The Fornax Deep Survey with VST. VIII. Connecting the accretion history with the cluster densityContext. This work is based on deep multi-band (g, r, i) data from the Fornax Deep Survey with the VLT Survey Telescope (VST). We analyse the surface brightness profiles of the 19 bright early-type galaxies (ETGs; m B ≤ 15 mag) inside the virial radius of the Fornax cluster (R vir ∼ 0.7 Mpc), in the mass range 8 × 10 8 ≤ M * ≤ 1.2 × 10 11 M ☉. AimsSpavone, M. et al.
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72020 -
The Fornax Deep Survey with the VST. IV. A size and magnitude limited catalog of dwarf galaxies in the area of the Fornax cluster (Corrigendum)Venhola, Aku et al.
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62020 -
The SAMI Galaxy Survey: Stellar Population Gradients of Central GalaxiesWe examine the stellar population radial gradients (age, metallicity, and [α/Fe]) of 96 passive central galaxies up to ∼2 R e in the SAMI Galaxy Survey. The targeted groups have a halo mass range of $11\lt \mathrm{log}({M}_{200}/{M}_{\odot })\lt 15$ . The main goal of this work is to determine whether central galaxies have different stellarSantucci, Giulia et al.
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62020
