Fast and slow rotators: the build-up of the red sequence
Abstract
Using the unique dataset obtained within the course of the SAURON project, a radically new view of the structure, dynamics and stellar populations of early-type galaxies has emerged. We show that galaxies come in two broad flavours (slow and fast rotators), depending on whether or not they exhibit clear large-scale rotation, as indicated via a robust measure of the specific angular momentum of baryons. This property is also linked with other physical characteristics of early-type galaxies, such as: the presence of dynamically decoupled cores, orbital structure and anisotropy, stellar populations and dark matter content. I here report on the observed link between this baryonic angular momentum and a mass sequence, and how this uniquely relates to the building of the red sequence via dissipative/dissipationless mergers and secular evolution.
- Publication:
-
Formation and Evolution of Galaxy Bulges
- Pub Date:
- July 2008
- DOI:
- 10.1017/S1743921308017158
- arXiv:
- arXiv:0709.3964
- Bibcode:
- 2008IAUS..245...11E
- Keywords:
-
- galaxies: elliptical and lenticular;
- cD;
- galaxies: evolution;
- galaxies: stellar dynamics;
- Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- 4 pages, 1 figure. To appear in the Proceedings of IAU Symposium 245 "Formation and Evolution of Galaxy Bulges", Eds M. Bureau, E. Athanassoula, and B. Barbuy