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Highlights of Spanish Astrophysics V pp 163–170Cite as

A Pilot Survey of Stellar Tidal Streams in Nearby Spiral Galaxies

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Part of the book series: Astrophysics and Space Science Proceedings ((ASSSP))

Abstract

Within the hierarchical framework for galaxy formation, merging and tidal interactions are expected to shape large galaxies to this day. While major mergers are quite rare at present, minor mergers and satellite disruptions–which result in stellar streams–should be common, and are indeed seen in both the Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy. As a pilot study, we have carried out ultra-deep, wide-field imaging of some spiral galaxies in the Local Volume, which has revealed external views of such stellar tidal streams at unprecedented detail, with data taken at small robotic telescopes (0.1−0.5m) that provide exquisite surface brightness sensitivity. The goal of this project is to undertake the first systematic and comprehensive imaging survey of stellar tidal streams, from a sample of∼50 nearby Milky Way-like spiral galaxies within 15Mpc, that features a surface brightness sensitivity of∼30mag/arcsec2. The survey will result in estimates of the incidence, size/geometry and stellar luminosity/mass distribution of such streams. This will not only put our Milky Way and M31 in context but, for the first time, also provide an extensive statistical basis for comparison with state-of-the-art, self-consistent cosmological simulations of this phenomenon.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully thank the following astrophotographers whose collaboration helped make our initial survey possible: Ray Gralak (Fig.2, M63), Steve Mandel (Fig.3, NGC 3628), Kenneth Crawford and Mischa Schirmer.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias, La Laguna, Spain

    David Martínez–Delgado & Ignacio Trujillo

  2. Max-Planck-Institute fur Astronomie, Heidelberg, Germany

    Hans-Walter Rix

  3. Black Bird Observatory, NM, USA

    R. Jay Gabany

  4. Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge, UK

    Jorge Peñarrubia

  5. Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, Virginia, USA

    Steven R. Majewski

  6. Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Michael Pohlen

Authors
  1. David Martínez–Delgado
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  2. R. Jay Gabany
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  3. Jorge Peñarrubia
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  4. Hans-Walter Rix
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  5. Steven R. Majewski
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  6. Ignacio Trujillo
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  7. Michael Pohlen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to David Martínez–Delgado .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Física de Cantabria, Avda. de Los Castros s/n, Santander, 39005, Cantabria, Spain

    Jose M. Diego

  2. Depto. Física Moderna, Universidad de Cantabria, Avda. de Los Castros s/n, Santander, 39005, Cantabria, Spain

    Luis J. Goicoechea

  3. Instituto de Física de Cantabria, Avda. de Los Castros s/n, Santander, 39005, Cantabria, Spain

    J. Ignacio González-Serrano

  4. Depto. Astrofísica, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, Madrid, 28040, Spain

    Javier Gorgas

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Martínez–Delgado, D. et al. (2010). A Pilot Survey of Stellar Tidal Streams in Nearby Spiral Galaxies. In: Diego, J., Goicoechea, L., González-Serrano, J., Gorgas, J. (eds) Highlights of Spanish Astrophysics V. Astrophysics and Space Science Proceedings. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11250-8_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11250-8_16

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-11249-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-11250-8

  • eBook Packages: Physics and AstronomyPhysics and Astronomy (R0)

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