The Evolving Structure of Galactic Disks

dc.creatorMartel, Hugo
dc.creatorBrook, Chris
dc.creatorMcGee, Sean
dc.creatorGibson, Brad
dc.creatorKawata, Daisuke
dc.date2005-09-14
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-25T12:31:21Z
dc.descriptionObservations suggest that the structural parameters of disk galaxies have not changed greatly since redshift 1. We examine whether these observations are consistent with a cosmology in which structures form hierarchically. We use SPH/N-body galaxy-scale simulations to simulate the formation and evolution of Milky-Way-like disk galaxies by fragmentation, followed by hierarchical merging. The simulated galaxies have a thick disk, that forms in a period of chaotic merging at high redshift, during which a large amount of alpha-elements are produced, and a thin disk, that forms later and has a higher metallicity. Our simulated disks settle down quickly and do not evolve much since redshift z~1, mostly because no major mergers take place between z=1 and z=0. During this period, the disk radius increases (inside-out growth) while its thickness remains constant. These results are consistent with observations of disk galaxies at low and high redshift.
dc.descriptionWill appear in Proceedings of the 9th Asian Pacific Regional IAU Meeting
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0509371
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0509371
dc.identifier.urihttps://dspace.dare.co.zw/handle/123456789/10426
dc.subjectAstrophysics
dc.titleThe Evolving Structure of Galactic Disks
dc.typetext

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