Related papers: The Formation History of Early-Type Galaxies: An O…
Any realistic theory of galaxy formation must be set in the context of a model for the formation of structure in the universe. We describe a powerful approach -- semi-analytic modelling -- that combines a set of simple rules describing the…
Galaxies cover a wide range of masses and star formation histories. In this review, I summarize some of the evolutionary key features of common galaxy types. At the high-mass end, very rapid, efficient early star formation is observed,…
It is an obvious statement that all the galaxies we see today in and around our Local Group have been forming and evolving for a significant fraction of the age of the Universe. It is not a great leap of logic to further state that the…
We present a pedagogical review on the formation and evolution of galaxies in groups, utilizing observational information from the Local Group to galaxies at z~6. The majority of galaxies in the nearby universe are found in groups, and…
We present results from an optical-IR photometric study of early-type galaxies in 19 galaxy clusters out to z=0.9. The galaxy sample is selected on the basis of morphologies determined from HST WFPC2 images, and is photometrically defined…
The most recent results and some of the open key questions on the evolution of early-type galaxies are reviewed in the general cosmological context of massive galaxy formation.
This paper presents a review of the topic of galaxy formation and evolution, focusing on basic features of galaxies, and how these observables reveal how galaxies and their stars assemble over cosmic time. I give an overview of the observed…
The colour-magnitude diagrams of resolved stellar populations are the best tool to study the star formation histories of the host galactic regions. In this review the method to derive star formation histories by means of synthetic…
The combination of huge databases of galaxy spectra and advances in evolutionary synthesis models in the past few years has renewed interest in an old question: How to estimate the star formation history of a galaxy out of its integrated…
Color gradients in early-type galaxies contain valuable clues about their formation and evolutionary histories and mechanisms. We examine color gradients in 1,700 early-type galaxies in 159 galaxy clusters spanning a redshift range of 0.05…
This paper addresses the questions of what we have learned about how and when dense star clusters form, and what studies of star clusters have revealed about galaxy formation and evolution. One important observation is that globular…
Elliptical and S0 galaxies dominate the galaxy population in nearby rich clusters such as Coma. Studies of the evolution of the colors, M/L ratios, and line indices of early-type galaxies indicate that they have been a highly homogeneous,…
A comparison is carried out among the star formation histories of early-type galaxies (ETG) in fossil groups, clusters and low density environments. Although they show similar evolutionary histories, a significant fraction of the fossils…
If we are to develop a comprehensive and predictive theory of galaxy formation and evolution, it is essential that we obtain an accurate assessment of how and when galaxies assemble their stellar populations, and how this assembly varies…
The slow evolution of the M/L ratios, colors, and line strengths of cluster early-type galaxies to z=1 suggests that their stars were formed at very high redshift. At the same time, morphological studies of distant clusters indicate…
Their ubiquity and extreme densities make star clusters probes of prime importance of galaxy evolution. Old globular clusters keep imprints of the physical conditions of their assembly in the early Universe, and younger stellar objects,…
Galaxy formation is at the heart of our understanding of cosmic evolution. Although there is a consensus that galaxies emerged from the expanding matter background by gravitational instability of primordial fluctuations, a number of…
I discuss recent theoretical work on the formation and evolution of galaxies paying particular attention to the ability of current models to make detailed comparisons with observations of the galaxy population both nearby and at high…
The history of galaxy formation via star formation and stellar mass assembly rates is now known with some certainty, yet the connection between high redshift and low redshift galaxy populations is not yet clear. By identifying and studying…
This review focuses on how galaxies and their globular cluster systems form. I first discuss the now fairly convincing evidence that some globular clusters form in galaxy starbursts/mergers. One way these observations are valuable is they…