Introduction to Galaxy Formation and Evolution: From Primordial Gas to Present-Day Galaxies

Present-day elliptical, spiral and irregular galaxies are large systems made of stars, gas and dark matter. Their properties result from a variety of physical processes that have occurred during the nearly fourteen billion years since the Big Bang. This comprehensive textbook, which bridges the gap between introductory and specialized texts, explains the key physical processes of galaxy formation, from the cosmological recombination of primordial gas to the evolution of the different galaxies that we observe in the Universe today. In a logical sequence, the book introduces cosmology, illustrates the properties of galaxies in the present-day Universe, then explains the physical processes behind galaxy formation in the cosmological context, taking into account the most recent developments in this field. The text ends on how to find distant galaxies with multi-wavelength observations, and how to extract the physical and evolutionary properties based on imaging and spectroscopic data. INDICE: Preface; 1. Introduction; 2. The cosmological framework; 3. Present-day galaxies as a benchmark for evolutionary studies; 4. Present-day star-forming galaxies; 5. Present-day early-type galaxies; 6. The environment of present-day galaxies; 7. Formation, evolution and properties of dark matter halos; 8. Main ingredients of galaxy formation theory; 9. From recombination to reionisation; 10. Theory of galaxy formation; 11. Observing galaxy evolution; Appendix A. Acronyms; Appendix B. Constants and units; Appendix C. Astronomical compendium; Appendix D. Physics compendium; References; Index.

• ISBN: 978-1-107-13476-8
• Editorial: Cambridge University Press
• Encuadernacion: Cartoné
• Páginas: 582
• Fecha Publicación: 17/10/2019
• Nº Volúmenes: 1
• Idioma: Inglés