Background:
Galaxy cannibalism/merging appears to be an important process through which galaxies grow in mass/size and evolve. There are many examples of ongoing collisions between two large galaxies and many involving the tidal disruption of a small (“dwarf”) galaxy by a large one. We have identified a rare case of a dwarf galaxy cannibalizing an even smaller galaxy. Earlier this year, our team obtained spectra of red giant stars associated with the disrupted smaller galaxy in order to better characterize/understand this event.
Analysis procedure:
The interns will start by checking the extraction window of each slit to make sure its location agrees with the information in the mask design file. They will then assess spectral quality by inspecting spectra and identifying and excluding sections of/entire spectra affected by instrumental and atmospheric artifacts. Next, they will identify and exclude background galaxies. The remaining spectra will then be co-added in groups according to sky position in order to boost the signal-to-noise ratio. Radial velocities will be measured via cross-correlation against existing bright spectral templates.
Mentor: Aaron Romanowsky, Professor
Secondary Mentors: Dr. Jacob Arnold, Dr. Elisa Toloba, Prof. Raja GuhaThakurta