Preface: Special Session SpS3 Galaxy Evolution through Secular Processes
Abstract
The meeting ``Galaxy Evolution through Secular Processes,'' hosted as Special Session 3 at the XVIIIth General Assembly of the IAU in Beijing, brought together a broad community of astronomers actively working on topics related to the evolution of galaxies. This evolution is currently thought to have two phases: (1) a formative chaotic phase, where baryonic matter collected into dark halo ``seeds'' with the occurrence of frequent mergers; and (2) a slower secular evolutionary phase where internal perturbations such as bars and spirals interacted (and likely still interact) with a galaxy's stars and gas clouds to redistribute material and slowly change the morphology, such as growing bulges or pseudobulges from disk material.
- Publication:
-
Highlights of Astronomy
- Pub Date:
- March 2015
- DOI:
- 10.1017/S1743921315001593
- Bibcode:
- 2015HiA....16..315M