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Fundamental Relationships in Galactic Disks

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2016

Stuart D. Ryder
Stuart D. Ryder*
Affiliation:
School of Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
*
Present address: Joint Astronomy Centre, 660 N. A'Ohoku Place, Hilo, HI 96720, USA sryder@jach.hawaii.edu
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Abstract

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Although a number of correlations have been demonstrated between observable parameters in galaxies, such as surface brightness, luminosity, metallicity, etc., debate continues as to which of these parameters are truly fundamental. Following a major surface photometry program and Hii region abundance analysis, we have been able to show that the surface density of recent massive star formation, the surface density of stars already formed, and the mean oxygen abundance at a given galactic radius are all fundamentally related within and between the disks of spiral galaxies. Such relationships can serve as powerful constraints on models of galactic evolution, requiring, for instance, a star formation law dependent not only on gas surface density, but also on the total mass surface density.

Keywords

galaxies: evolutiongalaxies: fundamental parametersgalaxies: spiral
Type
Research Article
Information
Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , 1997 , pp. 133 - 139
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of Australia 1997

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