Related papers: Wolf-Rayet stars as tracing the AGN-starburst conn…
Dense populations of stars surround the nuclear regions of galaxies. In this work, we study the interaction of a WR star with relativistic jets in active galactic nuclei. A bow-shaped double-shock structure will form as a consequence of the…
We find that a preliminary classification of LINERs' energetics may be made in terms of the FIR-radio correlation of Wolf-Rayet galaxies. The AGN- or starburst-supported LINERs can be distinguished by their FIR-to-radio ratio, $Q\equiv…
The issue of a starburst-AGN connection in local and distant galaxies is relevant for understanding galaxy formation and evolution, the star formation and metal enrichment history of the universe, the origin of the extragalactic background…
Wolf-Rayet stars (WRs) represent the end of a massive star's life as it is about to turn into a supernova. Obtaining complete samples of such stars across a large range of metallicities poses observational challenges, but presents us with…
Nuclear stellar clusters are a common phenomenon in spirals and in starbursts galaxies, and they may be a natural consequence of the star formation processes in the central regions of galaxies. HST UV imaging of a few Seyfert 2 galaxies…
Wolf-Rayet (WR) galaxies provide detailed information on massive star populations in starbursts and thereby represent ideal objects to determine accurate ages for young systems, to measure the burst duration, and to probe the upper end of…
Massive stars deeply influence their surroundings by their luminosity and the injection of kinetic energy. So far, they have mostly been studied with spatially unresolved observations, although evidence of geometrical complexity of their…
Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars comprise a class of stars whose spectra are dominated by strong, broad emission lines that are associated with copious mass loss. In the massive-star regime, roughly 90% of the known WR stars are thought to have…
Wolf-Rayet stars have been detected in a large number of galaxies experiencing intense bursts of star formation. All stars initially more massive than a certain, metallicity-dependent, value are believed to experience the Wolf-Rayet phase…
Detection and analysis of Wolf-Rayet (WR) star populations in young starbursts is a powerful tool to reveal the properties of the star-forming events. We present new high S/N optical spectra of a sample of well-known WR galaxies, in which…
The Wolf-Rayet (WR) phenomenon is widespread in astronomy. It involves classical WRs, very massive stars (VMS), WR central stars of planetary nebula CSPN [WRs], and supernovae (SNe). But what is the root cause for a certain type of object…
Gamma-ray observations of young star clusters have recently provided evidence for particle acceleration occurring at stellar wind termination shocks, fueled by the mechanical energy of stellar winds from massive stars. In this work, we…
We present narrowband H$\alpha$ imaging of nearby Wolf-Rayet (WR) galaxies known as a subset of starburst galaxies. The H$\alpha$ images have been used to show morphology of star-forming regions in galaxies, which leads to speculate that…
Presently there are several classes of detected gamma-ray extragalatic sources. They are mostly associated to active galactic nuclei (AGN) and (at soft gamma rays) to gamma-ray bursts (GRB), but not only. Active galactic nuclei consist of…
Wolf-Rayet stars are the evolved descendents of massive stars. Their extraordinary properties make them useful tracers of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) in a young stellar population. I discuss how the interpretation of spectral…
Long gamma-ray bursts involve the most powerful cosmic explosions since the Big Bang. Whilst it has been established that GRBs are related to the death throes of massive stars, the identification of their progenitors has proved challenging.…
Ever since the co-existence of an active galactic nucleus (AGN) and a starburst was observationally discovered, there has been a significant controversy over whether there is a physical connection between starbursts and AGNs. If yes, it is…
We summarize past and current surveys for Wolf-Rayet stars among the Local Group galaxies, emphasizing both the how and the why. Such studies are invaluable for helping us learn about massive star evolution, and for providing sensitive…
We analyze X-ray spectra and images of a sample of Seyfert 2 galaxies that unambiguously contain starbursts, based on their optical and UV characteristics. Although all sample members contain active galactic nuclei (AGNs), supermassive…
Over the past decade, the number of planetary nebula central stars (CSPN) known to exhibit the Wolf-Rayet (WR) phenomenon has grown substantially. Many of these discoveries have resulted from the Macquarie/AAO/Strasbourg Ha (MASH) PN…