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PRODID:UW-Madison-Physics-Events
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SEQUENCE:0
UID:UW-Physics-Event-2534
DTSTART:20120126T213000Z
DURATION:PT1H0M0S
DTSTAMP:20260420T071814Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20120112T141614Z
LOCATION:4421 Sterling Hall
SUMMARY:Probing the dark hearts of dusty galaxies - molecules as diagn
ostic tools\, Astronomy Colloquium\, Susanne Aalto\, Chalmers Universi
ty of Technology
DESCRIPTION:Spectacular starburst and AGN activity occurs when mergers
of gas-rich systems funnel massive amounts of molecular gas and dust<
br>
\ninto the remnant centers of ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULI
RGs). In these compact regions molecular gas rotating in the cores obs
cures and feeds the activity. Much of the ongoing research into initia
l phases of galaxy building\, however\, also focuses on the pre-ULIRG
phases of starbursts\, QSOs and assembly of galaxies via major mergers
. These phases parallel conditions in lower luminosity starbursts (LIR
Gs) with spatially extended starburst regions. Detailed studies of LIR
GS\, ULIRGs\, and AGN in the near-field are therefore essential both f
or defining the evolution of present day galaxies and sorting out key
astrophysical processes in their more distant predecessors.
\n
\nI will present how we can probe the nature and evolution of the de
nse interstellar medium (ISM)\, a primary evolutionary vector in starb
urst and AGN activity\, using molecular tracers that penetrate the vas
t columns of dust - and also enable unique investigations of chemical
and physical conditions in the molecular gas and dust. The most compac
t obscured nuclei\, for example\, need to be studied with radiatively
excited molecular emission to get past the optically thick barrier.
\nWith the emerging unprecedented capacities of ALMA we can address
the nature of AGNs and starbursts\, their associated molecular outflo
ws in the context of their evolution and the starburst-AGN connection
near and far.
URL:https://www.physics.wisc.edu/events/?id=2534
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