Related papers: Structures in galaxies: nature versus nurture. Inp…
Cosmological simulations predict that during the evolution of galaxies, the specific star formation rate continuously decreases. In a previous study we showed that generally this is not caused by the galaxies running out of cold gas but…
Over the last decades, cosmological simulations of galaxy formation have been instrumental for advancing our understanding of structure and galaxy formation in the Universe. These simulations follow the non-linear evolution of galaxies…
For the first time, the combination of semi-analytic modelling of galaxy formation and N-body simulations of cosmic structure formation enables us to model, at the same time, both the photometric and the clustering properties of galaxies.…
Large surveys of the local Universe have shown that galaxies with different intrinsic properties, such as colour, luminosity and morphological type display a range of clustering amplitudes. Galaxies are therefore not faithful tracers of the…
I review the subject of the cosmological evolution of galaxies, including different aspects of growth in disk galaxies, by focussing on the angular momentum problem, mergers, and their by-products. I discuss the alternative to merger-driven…
We explore the motivation behind large stellar surveys in Galactic astronomy, in particular, surveys that measure the photometric, phase space and abundance properties of thousands or millions of stars. These observations are essential to…
We study the evolution of disk galaxies using galaxy evolutionary models with initial and boundary conditions linked to the hierarchical formation scenario. Disks galaxies are modeled locally within growing cold dark matter halos and…
The morphological classification of galaxies provides vital physical information about the orbital motions of stars in galaxies, and correlates in interesting ways with star formation history, and other physical properties. Galaxy…
This paper addresses the questions of what we have learned about how and when dense star clusters form, and what studies of star clusters have revealed about galaxy formation and evolution. One important observation is that globular…
It is currently believed that galaxies were assembled via chaotic hierarchical mergers between massive cold dark matter halos, in which baryonic star forming matter was embedded. One would therefore expect the properties of individual…
(ABBREVIATED) Understanding the formation of stars in galaxies is central to much of modern astrophysics. In this review the relation between interstellar turbulence and star formation is discussed. Supersonic turbulence can provide support…
Our current understanding of the physical processes of star formation is reviewed, with emphasis on processes occurring in molecular clouds like those observed nearby. The dense cores of these clouds are predicted to undergo gravitational…
It is widely believed that structure in the Universe evolves hierarchically, as primordial density fluctuations, amplified by gravity, collapse and merge to form progressively larger systems. The structure and evolution of X-ray clusters,…
I review the standard paradigm for understanding the formation and evolution of cosmic structure, based on the gravitational instability of dark matter, but many variations on this basic theme are viable. Despite the great progress that has…
Galaxy formation is at the forefront of observation and theory in cosmology. An improved understanding is essential for improving our knowledge both of the cosmological parameters, of the contents of the universe, and of our origins. In…
Observations of circumstellar disks around stars as a function of stellar properties such as mass, metallicity, multiplicity, and age, provide constraints on theories concerning the formation and evolution of planetary systems. Utilizing…
The chemical abundances in the atmosphere of a star provide unique information about the gas from which that star formed, and, modulo processes that are not important for the vast majority of stars, such as mass transfer in close binary…
Protoplanetary disks around young stars are the birth sights of planetary systems like our own. Disks represent the gaseous dusty matter left after the formation of their central stars. The mass and luminosity of the star, initial disk mass…
New observations in favour of a significant role of secular evolution are reviewed: central star formation boosted in pseudo-bulge barred galaxies, relations between bulge and disk, evidence for rejuvenated bulges. Numerical simulations…
Circumstellar disks are an integral part of the star formation process and the sites where planets are formed. Understanding the physical processes that drive their evolution, as disks evolve from optically thick to optically thin, is…