Related papers: Fueling and morphology of central starbursts
Although it is clear that the circumnuclear regions of galaxies are intimately related to their host galaxies, most directly through their bars, it remains unclear what exactly initiates and fuels nuclear stellar (starburst) and non-stellar…
There is considerable evidence that the circumnuclear regions of galaxies are intimately related to their host galaxies, most directly through their bars. There is also convincing evidence for relations between the properties of…
Except in the most extreme cases of nuclear activity, either starbursts or AGN, it is difficult to find observationnally a close link between the dynamics and the activity. Theoretically however, the necessary step to fuel the gas to the…
Observations at multiple wavelengths are reviewed to search for evidence for fueling mechanisms in galaxies, both for nuclear starbursts and AGN activity. Although it is undisputed that dynamical perturbations such as bars or tidal…
Active Galactic Nuclei are fueled from material (gas or stars) that are in general far away from the gravitational influence of the central black hole, the engine thought to be responsible for their activity. The required material has a lot…
Massive star formation in the central regions of spiral galaxies plays an important role in the dynamical and secular evolution of their hosts. Here, we summarise a number of recent investigations of the star formation history and the…
Galaxy interactions/mergers, gravitational instabilities and density waves, such as bars, are frequently invoked to trigger starbursts. These mechanisms have been explored through numerical simulations, with the help of various star…
Asymmetries in galactic potentials, either self-induced, or caused by a passing companion, play an important role in global gas dynamics in galaxies. In particular, they are able to trigger gas inflow, which in turn feeds nuclear activity.…
The strongest starbursts are observed towards galaxy nuclei, or circumnuclear regions. However in interacting galaxies, star formation is also triggered in overlap regions far from nuclei, in spiral arms and sometimes in tidal tails. What…
The main requirements for fueling an active galactic nucleus and to form massive black holes are reviewed. Low-luminosity AGN can be fueled easily from the local star clusters, near the nucleus, and the various stellar processes are…
This lecture reviews the fundamental physical processes involved in star formation in galaxy interactions and mergers. Interactions and mergers often drive intense starbursts, but the link between interstellar gas physics, large scale…
Although nuclear rings of gas and star formation are common in barred spiral galaxies, current theories of why and how they form do not provide the level of detail needed to quantify the effect that these rings can have on the fueling of…
The distribution of gas in the central kiloparsec of a galaxy has a dynamically rapid evolution. Nonaxisymmetries in the gravitational potential of the galactic disk, such as a large scale stellar bar or spiral, can lead to significant…
How does the gas get in nuclear regions to fuel black holes? How efficient is the feedback? The different processes to cause rapid gas inflow (or outflow) in galaxy centers are reviewed. Non axisymmetries can be created or maintained by…
Dynamical evolution of spiral galaxies is strongly dependent on non-axisymmetric patterns that develop from gravitational instabilities, either spontaneously or externally triggered. Some evolutionary sequences are described through which a…
I present an overview of the observational signatures of feeding of Active Galactic Nuclei, discussing briefly the role of interactions among galaxies on extragalactic scales, and of non-axisymmetric gravitational potentials -- such as bars…
Supplying gas to the galactic central regions is one of key ingredients for AGN activity. I will review various fueling mechanisms for a R ~ 1 kpc region, determined mainly by numerical simulations over the last decade. I will also comment…
Galaxy interactions and mergers play a significant, but still debated and poorly understood role in the star formation history of galaxies. Numerical and theoretical models cannot yet explain the main properties of merger-induced…
We suggest that most nearby active galactic nuclei are fed by a series of small--scale, randomly--oriented accretion events. Outside a certain radius these events promote rapid star formation, while within it they fuel the supermassive…
Nuclear rings in barred galaxies are sites of active star formation. We use hydrodynamic simulations to study temporal and spatial behavior of star formation occurring in nuclear rings of barred galaxies where radial gas inflows are…