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Dwarf “transition” types: searching for the holy grail(s)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 November 2005
Abstract
The evolution of dwarf galaxies, particularly any potential morphological evolution among the different types of dwarf galaxies, remains poorly understood. The interstellar medium (ISM) in dwarf galaxies is thought to be more strongly disturbed by star formation episodes in these low mass galaxies, including supernovae-driven winds during starbursts and star formation induced by galaxy-galaxy interactions. Loss of the ISM has been postulated to result in the evolution of dIrrs to dE/dSphs. However, disentangling the relative importance of environmental (galaxy harassment) versus local stocastic processes on star formation, and their effects on subsequent morphological evolution is still a very active area of research. So-called “transition dwarf” galaxies are galaxies that have properties that fall somewhere between gas-rich dIrrs and gas-poor dE/dSphs, and may provide clues to the overall evolutionary history of dwarf galaxies. We report on some recent work on a sample of vigorously star-forming dwarf “transition” galaxies, and suggest that they may be examples of the bridge between dIrrs and dEs/dSphs.
- Type
- Contributed Papers
- Information
- Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 1 , Colloquium C198: Near-Field Cosmology with Dwarf Elliptical Galaxies , March 2005 , pp. 249 - 254
- Copyright
- © 2005 International Astronomical Union