Related papers: Stellar Mergers Are Common
We derive the constraints on the mass ratio for a binary system to merge in a violent process. We find that the secondary to primary stellar mass ratio should be ~0.003 < (M_2/M_1) < ~0.15. A more massive secondary star will keep the…
We measure the number of companions per galaxy (Nc) as a function of r-band absolute magnitude for both the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the Croton et al. (2006) semi-analytic catalog applied to the Millennium Run simulation. For close…
We derive the number of dynamically close companions per galaxy ($N_c$) and their total luminosity ($L_c$) for galaxies in the Millennium Galaxy Catalogue: $N_c$ is similar to the fraction of galaxies in close pairs and is directly related…
We perform a comprehensive estimate of the frequency of galaxy mergers and their impact on star formation over z~0.24--0.80 (lookback time T_b~3--7 Gyr) using 3698 (M*>=1e9 Msun) galaxies with GEMS HST, COMBO-17, and Spitzer data. Our…
We calculate the projected two point correlation function for samples of luminous and massive galaxies in the COMBO-17 photometric redshift survey, focusing particularly on the amplitude of the correlation function at small projected radii…
We derive the close pair fractions and volume merger rates as a function of luminosity and morphology for galaxies in the GAMA survey with -23 < M(r) < -17 at 0.01 < z < 0.22. The merger fraction is about 0.015 at all luminosities (assuming…
We argue that the recent groundbreaking discovery by Badenes et al. (2009) of a nearby (~50 pc) white dwarf-neutron star (or black hole) binary (SDSS 1257+5428) with a merger timescale ~500 Myr implies that such systems are common; we…
Galaxy merging is the late time manifestation of the galaxy formation process and likely significantly effects $z<1$ galaxies. A ``maximum reasonable rate'' model for merging finds a $\sim2$ mag K band increase in the luminosities of dwarf…
We measure the fraction of luminous galaxies in pairs at projected separations of 5-20 kpc out to z=1.2 in the COSMOS field using ACS images and photometric redshifts derived from an extensive multiwavelength dataset. Analysis of a complete…
Galaxy mergers play a crucial role in shaping the morphology, the star formation, and the mass growth of galaxies across cosmic time. While mergers have been extensively investigated in the local Universe, the evolution of their frequency…
Imaging spectroscopy using the new Palomar Integral Field Spectrograph is presented for the Pa-alpha line in four ultraluminous infrared galaxies. In most cases, we are able to establish the geometry of the merger, and thus estimate the…
We present a measurement of the galaxy merger fraction and number density from observations in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field for 0.5<z<2.5. We fit the combination of broadband data and slitless spectroscopy of 1308 galaxies with stellar…
We present a study of the influence of galaxy mergers on star formation at 0.3<z<2.5. Major mergers are selected from the CANDELS/3D-HST catalog using a peak-finding algorithm. Mergers have projected galaxy nuclei separation of their…
We employ a high-resolution LCDM N-body simulation to present merger rate predictions for dark matter halos and investigate how common merger-related observables for galaxies--such as close pair counts, starburst counts, and the…
Recent independent results from numerical simulations and observations have shown that brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) have increased their stellar mass by a factor of almost two between z~0.9 and z~0.2. The numerical simulations further…
We explore the galaxy-galaxy merger rate with the empirical model for galaxy formation, Emerge. On average, we find that between $2$ per cent and $20$ per cent of massive galaxies ($\log_{10}(m_{*}/M_{\odot}) \geq 10.3$) will experience a…
HST images of a sample of 285 galaxies with measured z from the CFRS and Autofib-LDSS redshift surveys are analysed to derive the evolution of the merger fraction out to z~1. We have performed visual and machine-based merger…
Galaxy mergers are key events in galaxy evolution, often causing massive starbursts and fueling active galactic nuclei (AGN). In these highly dynamic systems, it is not yet precisely known how much starbursts and AGN respectively contribute…
We estimate the evolution of the galaxy-galaxy merger fraction for $M_\star>10^{10.5}M_\odot$ galaxies over $0.25<z<1$ in the $\sim$18.6 deg$^2$ deep CLAUDS+HSC-SSP surveys. We do this by training a Random Forest Classifier to identify…
In this review we discuss the evidence for galaxy interactions and mergers in the distant universe and the role of mergers in forming galaxies. Observations show that the fraction of massive (M> M_*) galaxies involved in major mergers is…