We have observed a sample of 12 interacting galaxies using the Fabry-Perot interferometer GHαFaS (Galaxy Hα Fabry-Perot system) on the 4.2m William Herschel Telescope (WHT) at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma, deriving maps in Hα surface brightness, velocity and velocity dispersion. We extracted the physical parameters (Hα

During the late stages of their evolution, Sun-like stars bring the products of nuclear burning to the surface. Most of the carbon in the Universe is believed to originate from stars with masses up to a few solar masses. Although there is a chemical dichotomy between oxygen-rich and carbon-rich evolved stars, the dredge-up itself has never been

Using multiwavelength kinematic and photometric data we have analysed the gaseous and stellar properties of a previously uncharacterized low-mass star-forming companion and newly discovered stellar stream seen projected against the edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 7241. The companion object was identified serendipitously as an offset velocity component in

Context. We present the discovery of two transiting extrasolar planets by the satellite CoRoT. Aims: We aim at a characterization of the planetary bulk parameters, which allow us to further investigate the formation and evolution of the planetary systems and the main properties of the host stars. Methods: We used the transit light curve to

Interactions and mergers have proved to be fundamental mechanisms for galaxy evolution. Galaxy-galaxy encounters could induce inflows of material as well as the enhancement of star formation. They could also lead to outflows by (stellar or active galactic nuclear) feedback. Despite the efforts to characterize and to understand the evolution of the

We analyse the stellar absorption features in high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) near-infrared (NIR) spectra of the nuclear region of 12 nearby galaxies, mostly spirals. The features detected in some or all of the galaxies in this sample are the TiO (0.843 and 0.886 μm), VO (1.048 μm), CN (1.1 and 1.4 μm), H2O (1.4 and 1.9 μm) and CO (1.6 and 2.3 μm)