Related papers: Galaxy Formation: Where Do We Stand?
This article reviews the prevailing paradigm for how galaxies and larger structures formed in the universe: gravitational instability. Basic observational facts are summarized to motivate the standard cosmological framework underlying most…
The study of the morphology of galaxies is important in order to understand the formation and evolution of galaxies and their sub-components as a function of luminosity, environment, and star-formation and galaxy assembly over cosmic time.…
I discuss current observational constraints on the star-formation and stellar-assembly histories of galaxies at high redshifts. The data on massive galaxies at z<1 implies that their stellar populations formed at z>2, and that their…
Star formation lies at the center of a web of processes that drive cosmic evolution: generation of radiant energy, synthesis of elements, formation of planets, and development of life. Decades of observations have yielded a variety of…
I review the general progress made in the study of galaxy evolution concentrating on the impact of systematic ground-based spectroscopic surveys of faint galaxies and high resolution imaging with Hubble Space Telescope. The picture emerging…
The stellar mass assembly of massive galaxies in the first few billion years of cosmic history remains a central challenge in galaxy formation. Galaxies with $M_\star \gtrsim 10^{10}M_\odot$ observed at $z \gtrsim 4$ must grow rapidly under…
We use hydrodynamic simulations to examine how the baryonic components of galaxies are assembled, focusing on the relative importance of mergers and smooth accretion in the formation of ~L_* systems. In our primary simulation, which models…
Gas accretion is necessary to maintain star formation, spiral and bar structure, and secular evolution in galaxies. This can occur through tidal interaction, or mass accretion from cosmic filaments. Different processes will be reviewed to…
In the present universe, the gas is a minor component of giant galaxies, and its dominant phase is atomic (HI). During galaxy evolution in cosmic times, models predict that gas fractions were much higher in galaxies, and gas phases could be…
Understanding how galaxies evolved from the early Universe through cosmic time is a fundamental part of modern astrophysics. In order to study this evolution it is important to sample the galaxies at various times in a consistent way…
We study the stellar mass distribution for galaxies in 160 X-ray detected groups of 10^13<Log(M_200/M_sun)<2x10^14 and compare it with that of galaxies in the field, to investigate the action of environment on the build up of the stellar…
How stellar mass assembles within galaxies is still an open question. We present measurements of the stellar mass distribution on kpc-scale for $\sim5500$ galaxies with stellar masses above $\log(M_{\ast}/M_{\odot})\geqslant9.8$ up to the…
Galaxy evolution depends strongly on the environment. Dynamical interactions and subsequent evolution make galaxies more concentrated, with higher surface densities, and also trigger star-formation, which consumes the available cold gas.…
Theory predicts that cosmological gas accretion plays a fundamental role fuelling star formation in galaxies. However, a detailed description of the accretion process to be used when interpreting observations is still lacking. Using the…
We study the links between star formation history and structure for a large mass-selected galaxy sample at 0.05 < z_phot < 0.30. The galaxies inhabit a very broad range of environments, from cluster cores to the field. Using HST images, we…
Galaxies undergoing formation and evolution can now be observed over a time baseline of some 12 Gyr. An inherent difficulty with high-redshift observations is that the objects are very faint and the best resolution (HST) is only ~0.5 kpc.…
Mass accretion is the key factor for evolution of galaxies. It can occur through secular evolution, when gas in the outer parts is driven inwards by dynamical instabilities, such as spirals or bars. This secular evolution proceeds very…
We use our model for the formation and evolution of galaxies within a two-phase galaxy formation scenario, showing that the high-redshift domain typically supports the growth of spheroidal systems, whereas at low redshifts the predominant…
We review the most recent observational results on the formation and evolution of early-type galaxies and their mass assembly by focusing on: the existence, properties and role of distant old, massive, passive systems to z~2, the stellar…
In these lectures I review observations of star-forming molecular clouds in our Galaxy and nearby galaxies to develop a physical intuition for understanding star formation in the local and high-redshift Universe. A lot of this material is…