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# NGC 2863

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 Star formation history in early-type galaxies - I. The line absorption indices diagnosticsTo unravel the formation mechanism and the evolutionary history ofelliptical galaxies (EGs) is one of the goals of modern astrophysics. Ina simplified picture of the issue, the question to be answered iswhether they have formed by hierarchical merging of pre-existingsubstructures (maybe disc galaxies) made of stars and gas, with eachmerging event probably accompanied by strong star formation, orconversely, whether they originated from the early aggregation of lumpsof gas turned into stars in the remote past via a burst-like episodeever since followed by quiescence so as to mimic a sort of monolithicprocess. Even if the two alternatives seem to oppose each other,actually they may both contribute to shaping the final properties of EGsas seen today. Are there distinct signatures of the underlying dominantprocess in the observational data? To this aim we have examined the lineabsorption indices on the Lick system of the normal, field EGs of Tragerand the interacting EGs (pair- and shell-objects) of Longhetti et al.The data show that both normal, field and interacting galaxies have thesame scattered but smooth distribution in the Hβ versus [MgFe]plane even if the interacting ones show a more pronounced tail towardhigh Hβ values. This may suggest that a common physical cause is atthe origin of their distribution. There are two straightforwardinterpretations of increasing complexity. (i) EGs span true large rangesof ages and metallicities. A young age is the signature of theaggregation mechanism, each event accompanied by metal enrichment. Thissimple scheme cannot, however, explain other spectro-photometricproperties of EGs and has to be discarded. (ii) The bulk population ofstars is old but subsequent episodes of star formation scatter the EGsin the diagnostic planes. However, this scheme would predict anoutstanding clump at low Hβ values, contrary to what is observed.The model can be cured by supposing that the primary star formationactivity lasted for a significant fraction of the Hubble time (5<=T<= 13 Gyr) accompanied by global metal enrichment. Theyounger' galaxies are more metal-rich. The later burst of starformation should be small otherwise too many high-Hβ objects wouldbe observed. Therefore, the distribution of normal, pair- andshell-galaxies in the Hβ versus [MgFe] plane is due to global metalenrichment. Even though the above schemes provide a formal explanation,they seem to be too demanding because of the many ad hoc ingredientsthat have to be introduced. Furthermore, they neglect theobservationally grounded hint that the stellar content of EGs is likelyto be enhanced in α-elements with [α/Fe] ranging from 0.1 to0.4 dex. Here we propose a new scheme, in which the bulk dispersion ofgalaxies in the Hβ versus [MgFe] plane is caused by a differentmean degree of enhancement. In this model, neither the large age rangesnor the universal enrichment law for the old component are required andthe observed distribution along Hβ is naturally recovered.Furthermore, later bursts of stellar activity are a rare event,involving only those galaxies with very high Hβ (roughly >2.5).Finally, simulations of the scatter in broad-band colours of EGs seem toconfirm that the bulk stars have formed in the remote past, and thatmergers and companion star formation in a recent past are not likely,unless the intensity of the secondary activity is very small. HYPERLEDA. II. The homogenized HI dataAfter a compilation of HI data from 611 references and new observationsmade in Nançay, we produce a catalog of homogenized HI data for16781 galaxies. The homogenization is made using the EPIDEMIC methodfrom which all data are progressively converted into the adoptedstandard. The result is a catalog giving: 1) the logarithm of twice themaximum rotation velocity, log 2V_Msin i, converted to thesystem of Mathewson et al. (\cite{Mathewson1996}). This quantity isgiven without correction for inclination; 2) the HI magnitude,m21, (area of the 21-cm line width expressed in magnitude)converted to the flux system of Theureau et al. (\cite{Theureau1998});3) the HI velocity, V_HI, expressed with the optical definition (i.e.,using wavelengths instead frequencies). The typical uncertainties are:0.04 for log 2V_Msin i, 0.25 mag for m21 and 9 kms-1 for V_HI.Full Tables \ref{epidemicw}, \ref{epidemicw2}, \ref{epidemicf},\ref{epidemicf2} and Fig. \ref{profiles} are available in electronicform at http://www.edpsciences.org. Full Tables \ref{references},\ref{cataf}, \ref{newdata} and \ref{notes} are available in electronicform at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5)or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/412/57 A search for Low Surface Brightness galaxies in the near-infrared. III. Nançay H I line observationsA total of 334 Low Surface Brightness galaxies detected in the 2MASSall-sky near-infrared survey have been observed in the 21 cm H I lineusing the Nançay telescope. All have a Ks-band meancentral surface brightness, measured within a 5'' radius, fainter than18 mag arcsec-2 and a Ks-band isophotal radius atthe 20 mag arcsec-2 level larger than 20''. We present globalH I line parameters for the 171 clearly detected objects and the 23marginal detections, as well as upper limits for the undetected objects.The 171 clear detections comprise 50 previously uncatalogued objects and41 objects with a PGC entry only.Tables 3-5 are only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/408/465Figures 1 and 2 are only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org A search for Low Surface Brightness galaxies in the near-infrared. I. Selection of the sampleA sample of about 3800 Low Surface Brightness (LSB) galaxies wasselected using the all-sky near-infrared (J, H and Ks-band)2MASS survey. The selected objects have a mean central surfacebrightness within a 5'' radius around their centre fainter than 18 magarcsec-2 in the Ks band, making them the lowestsurface brightness galaxies detected by 2MASS. A description is given ofthe relevant properties of the 2MASS survey and the LSB galaxy selectionprocedure, as well as of basic photometric properties of the selectedobjects. The latter properties are compared to those of other samples ofgalaxies, of both LSBs and `classical'' high surface brightness (HSB)objects, which were selected in the optical. The 2MASS LSBs have aBT_c-KT colour which is on average 0.9 mag bluerthan that of HSBs from the NGC. The 2MASS sample does not appear tocontain a significant population of red objects.All tables and Figs. 2a-c are only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org An image database. II. Catalogue between δ=-30deg and δ=70deg.A preliminary list of 68.040 galaxies was built from extraction of35.841 digitized images of the Palomar Sky Survey (Paper I). For eachgalaxy, the basic parameters are obtained: coordinates, diameter, axisratio, total magnitude, position angle. On this preliminary list, weapply severe selection rules to get a catalog of 28.000 galaxies, wellidentified and well documented. For each parameter, a comparison is madewith standard measurements. The accuracy of the raw photometricparameters is quite good despite of the simplicity of the method.Without any local correction, the standard error on the total magnitudeis about 0.5 magnitude up to a total magnitude of B_T_=17. Significantsecondary effects are detected concerning the magnitudes: distance toplate center effect and air-mass effect. Mean galaxy luminosity classificationsTo prepare a catalog of weighted means on the classification system ofvan den Bergh, we have combined eight independent lists of luminosityclass estimates, L. Luminosity class values from each set weretransformed to the standard system and weighted according to the errorsderived through a statistical comparison of L differences betweencatalog pairs. Relations were derived for predicting accidental errorsassociated with galaxy diameter and inclination. In addition, we presentformulas for correcting systematic errors associated with diameter andinclination. Finally, we tabulate a high weight subsample of the meanluminosity classes usable as standards. Most values are tabulated in theThird Reference Catalog of Bright Galaxies.
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