Related papers: Dynamical Mass Determination for Elliptical Galaxi…
Aims. The predictions of the ellipticity of the dark matter halos from models of structure formation are notoriously difficult to test with observations. A direct measurement would give important constraints on the formation of galaxies,…
We propose a new technique to directly measure the shapes of dark matter halos of galaxies using weak gravitational lensing. Extending the standard galaxy-galaxy lensing method, we show that the shape parameters of the mass distribution of…
The formation of elliptical galaxies as a result of the merging of spiral galaxies is discussed. We analyse a large set of numerical N-Body merger simulations which show that major mergers can in principle explain the observed isophotal…
Different ways of the determination of masses of galactic disks, based on the kinematic data, are briefly discussed. The analysis of the rotation curves which reach maximum inside of a disk, and N-body modeling, reproducing the rotation…
The kinematical properties of elliptical galaxies formed during the mergers of equal mass, stars+gas+dark matter spiral galaxies are compared to the observed low velocity dispersions found for planetary nebulae on the outskirts of…
Galaxies lose mass as a result of their luminosity or gaseous outflows. I calculate the resulting radial migration of stars outwards and show that it could potentially be measured with high resolution spectrographs on the next generation of…
We consider the consequences of applying general relativity to the description of the dynamics of a galaxy, given the observed flattened rotation curves. The galaxy is modeled as a stationary axially symmetric pressure-free fluid. In spite…
We show that the kinematics of the shells seen around some elliptical galaxies provide a new, independent means for measuring the gravitational potentials of elliptical galaxies out to large radii. A numerical simulation of a set of shells…
Determining the velocity field of structures such as galaxies, stars, and fluid planets is a relevant topic in astrophysics and astronomy. Depending on the shape of the astrophysical object, the internal velocity field may be obtained by…
We study the variation of the dark matter mass fraction of elliptical galaxies as a function of their luminosity, stellar mass, and size using a sample of 29,469 elliptical galaxies culled from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We model…
Recent work on the construction of spherical, Axisymmetric and triaxial dynamical models for elliptical galaxies is reviewed briefly, including their role in providing evidence for dark halos and central black holes. The different orbital…
In order to investigate the nature and origin of dust in elliptical galaxies, a method for the dust mass evaluation, which accounts for the dust temperature distribution, is here presented and discussed. The derived dust masses turn out to…
Gravitational lensing is one of a number of methods used to probe the distribution of dark mass in the Universe. On galactic scales, complementary techniques include the use of stellar kinematics, kinematics and morphology of the neutral…
We use the statistics of strong gravitational lensing from the CLASS survey to impose constraints on the velocity dispersion and density profile of elliptical galaxies. This approach differs from much recent work, where the luminosity…
(Abridged) We study the properties of anisotropic and axisymmetric velocity ellipsoids from maps of the gas velocity dispersion in nearby galaxies. This data allow us to measure the azimuthal-to-radial axis ratio of gas velocity ellipsoids,…
The mass distribution in the Galaxy is determined by dynamical and photometric methods. Rotation curves are the major tool for determining the dynamical mass distribution in the Milky Way and spiral galaxies. The photometric (statistical)…
We compare the performance of mass estimators for elliptical galaxies that rely on the directly observable surface brightness and velocity dispersion profiles, without invoking computationally expensive detailed modeling. These methods…
A review of the present observational and theoretical status of elliptical galaxies is presented with the aim to clarify whether the monolithic or the hierarchical, is a more viable scenario for the origin of these structures. We describe…
Recent results from gravitational lensing are combined with new modeling of the stellar velocity distributions in nearby galaxies to probe the connection between the luminous and the dark matter in elliptical galaxies. From analysing a…
We review the origin and structure of hot (cooling flow) gas in elliptical galaxies. X-ray observations can be used to determine the stellar mass to light ratio, the mass profiles of dark matter halos, and the interstellar magnetic field.…