Related papers: Light-weight Local Group Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxies
We present an analysis of star-formation and nuclear activity in galaxies as a function of both luminosity and environment in the SDSS DR4 dataset. Using a sample of 27753 galaxies at 0.005<z<0.037 that is >90% complete to Mr=-18.0 we find…
We use kinematic data from three new, nearby, extremely low-luminosity Milky Way dwarf galaxies (Ursa Major II, Willman 1, and Coma Berenices) to constrain the properties of their dark matter halos, and from these make predictions for the…
I discuss Local Group galaxies from the perspective of external galaxies that define benchmark scaling relations. Making use of this information leads to a model for the Milky Way that includes bumps and wiggles due to spiral arms. This…
Galaxy evolution by interaction driven transformation is probably highly efficient in groups of galaxies. Dwarf galaxies with their shallow potential are expected to reflect the interaction most prominently in their observable structure.…
A galaxy's mean metallicity is usually closely correlated with its luminosity and mass. Consequently the most metal-poor galaxies in the local universe are dwarf galaxies. Blue compact dwarfs and tidal dwarfs tend to deviate from the…
We consider dark masses measured from kinematic tracers at discrete radii in galaxies for which baryonic contributions to overall potentials are either subtracted or negligible. Recent work indicates that rotation curves due to dark matter…
Spectra for stars located redward of the fiducial red giant branches of the Ursa Minor and Draco dwarf spheroidal galaxies have been obtained with the Hobby-Eberly telescope and the Marcario Low Resolution Spectrometer. From a comparison of…
The nature of Milky Way dwarf spheroidals (MW dSphs) has been questioned, in particular whether they are dominated by dark matter (DM). Here we investigate an alternative scenario, for which tidal shocks are exerted by the MW to DM-free…
The star formation histories of Local Group galaxies are summarized. The three large spirals are discussed individually, whereas the discussion of the Local Group dwarfs concentrates on differences and commonalities. While Local Group…
We present a suite of FIRE-2 cosmological zoom-in simulations of isolated field dwarf galaxies, all with masses of $M_\mathrm{halo} \approx 10^{10}\,$M$_\odot$ at $z=0$, across a range of dark matter models. For the first time, we compare…
The Milky Way (MW) dwarf system presents two exceptional features, namely it forms a thick plane called the Vast Polar Structure (VPOS), and the two biggest dwarves, the Magellanic Clouds (MCs), are irregular galaxies that are almost never…
Analyses of their internal stellar kinematics imply that the dwarf spheroidal (dSph) companion galaxies to the Milky Way are among the most dark-matter dominated systems known. Should there be significant dark matter in the form of faint…
The known galaxies most dominated by dark matter (Draco, Ursa Minor and Andromeda IX) are satellites of the Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxies. They are members of a class of faint galaxies, devoid of gas, known as dwarf spheroidals, and…
Dwarf galaxies in the Local Group appear to be stripped of their gas within 270 kpc of the host galaxy. Color-magnitude diagrams of these dwarfs, however, show clear evidence of episodic star formation (\Delta{}t ~ a few Gyr) over cosmic…
A particular population of galaxies have drawn much interest recently, which are as faint as typical dwarf galaxies but have the sizes as large as $L^*$ galaxies, the so called "ultra-diffuse galaxie" (UDGs). The lack of tidal features of…
We use a complete, unbiased sample of 257 dwarf (10^8 MSun < Mstar < 10^9.5 MSun) galaxies at z < 0.08, in the COSMOS field, to study the morphological mix of the dwarf population in low-density environments. Visual inspection of extremely…
The Milky Way's dwarf spheroidal satellites include the nearest, smallest and least luminous galaxies known. They also exhibit the largest discrepancies between dynamical and luminous masses. This article reviews the development of…
A conclusive model for the formation of dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies still remains elusive. Owing to their proximity to the massive spirals Milky Way (MW) and M31, various environmental processes have been invoked to explain their…
Recent observations of tidal debris around galaxies have revealed that the structural properties of the spheroidal components of tidally disturbed galaxies are similar to those found in non-interacting early-type galaxies(ETGs), likely due…
Maximum disk mass models fitted to galaxy rotation curves are used to show that dark matter (DM) halos in late-type and dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies satisfy well defined scaling laws. Halos in less luminous galaxies have smaller core…