Download or read book Clues to Galaxy Evolution from the Major Merger Rate at High Redshift written by Russell E. Ryan and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The First Galaxies written by Tommy Wiklind and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-15 with total page 434 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: New observations of the period between the cosmic recombination and the end of reionization are posing intriguing questions about where the first generations of stars were formed, how the first galaxies were assembled, whether these galaxies have low redshift counterparts, and what role the early galaxies played in the reionization process. Combining the new observational data with theoretical models can shed new light on open issues regarding the star formation process, its role in the reionization of the Universe, and the metal enrichment in galaxies at those early epochs. This volume brings together leading experts in the field to discuss our current level of understanding and what may come in the near future as our observational as well as theoretical tools improve. The book confronts the theory of how the first stars, black holes, and galaxies formed with current and planned observations. This synthesis is very timely, just ahead of the establishment of major new facilities, such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), a next-generation, millimeter/sub-millimeter observatory in the Atacama desert (ALMA), and ground-based Extremely Large Telescopes (ELT). Together, they will revolutionize the study of the most distant objects in the Universe. This volume is aimed at beginning graduate students but can also serve as a reference work for active researchers in the field. Apart from presenting the fundamental concepts involved, it also provides an introduction to the methods and techniques used. The book will also be useful to anyone with an astrophysical background who needs an effective starting point for learning about the first stars and galaxies.
Download or read book The Star Formation and Merger Evolution of Interacting Galaxies written by Carrie Ruth Bridge and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hierarchical models and observations show that galaxy mergers and interactions play a key role in galaxy assembly and star formation, but to what extent is still unclear. This thesis attempts to quantify their contribution to galaxy evolution by probing the number of interactions and mergers, along with their star forming properties as a function of redshift. The presence of long tidal tails and bridges are robust signatures of recent merger activity. This completely dynamical phenomenon was used to develop a new classification scheme to identify interacting galaxies and probe the interaction fraction and merger rate. We applied this new technique to large area, multi-band imaging obtained via the Canada France Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey (CFHTLS-Deep), yielding the first statistically secure, lower limit of the galaxy interaction fraction between 0.1 z 1.0. Optically, the fraction of galaxies undergoing an interaction evolves moderately with redshift as (1 + z)2.24+/-0.24The Spitzer 24mum coverage of both the Extragalactic First Look Survey (XFLS) and CFHTLSDeep Survey were used to carry out one of the first and largest merger studies of IR bright galaxies. Within the ACS component of the XFLS, interactions were identified over the full merger sequence using traditional techniques, finding a merger rate increase for 24microm galaxies of (1 + z) & sim;2. This result implies that merging is an increasingly important process in the evolution of luminous IR galaxies (LIRGs), contributing 40--60% of the IR luminosity density and at least 30--40% of the star formation rate density at z & sim; 1. Galaxy interactions at all stages are found to have elevated star formation rates greater than a factor of two-four (on average) and a higher incidence of AGN activity compared to non-interacting field galaxies. This result supports a causal connection between galaxy merging, induced star formation, and AGN activity. Ultimately, major mergers provide a moderate contribution to the evolution of the cosmic star formation rate density and IR luminosity density to z & sim; 1, with an increasing trend suggesting that merging plays a larger role at higher redshifts (z 1). It is also clear that merging plays a significant role in triggering the processes that power the IR emission of LIRG galaxies at z 0.5.
Download or read book Merger Histories of Dark Matter Halos in LambdaCDM and Implications for the Evolution of Milky Way size Galaxies written by Kyle Robert Stewart and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 173 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is a concern in galaxy formation that mergers are too common in LambdaCDM to explain the prominence of thin disk-dominated galaxies in the local universe. In my dissertation, I analyze merger histories of dark matter halos from high resolution N-body simulations and compare dark halo merger statistics to the observable properties of galaxies, in order to study the implications of cosmologically motivated merger histories. I use empirical relations between a galaxy's dark matter halo mass, stellar mass, and cold gas mass to investigate these merger histories in the context of galaxy evolution, focusing on a dark matter mass regime within an order of magnitude of the Milky Way. The principle results of this dissertation may be summarized as follows. Firstly, 70% of Milky Way-size halos have accreted an object with more than twice the mass of the Milky-Way's disk in the past 10 Gyr. To meet the observed fraction of disk dominated galaxies, mergers of this size must not always destroy galactic disks. Secondly, The merger rate of dark halos increases strongly with redshift. A simple `universal' fitting formula describes these merger rates as a function of halo mass, merger mass ratio, and redshift. Thirdly, the fraction of halos have ever experienced a gas poor major merger roughly matches the observed early-type morphological fractions within the regime M=10^11-13 Msun, providing a possible solution to disk survivability, if gas rich mergers do not destroy disk-dominated morphologies. Fourthly, because the mapping between dark matter halo mass and galaxy stellar mass (or baryonic mass) is a non-trivial function, it is important to distinguish between definitions of a merger "mass ratio'' that use dark matter, stellar, or galaxy baryonic masses as a means of comparison. For example, major dark matter mergers in smaller galaxies (Mvir
Download or read book Dwarf Galaxies Keys to Galaxy Formation and Evolution written by Polychronis Papaderos and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-04-23 with total page 347 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dwarf galaxy research constitutes an extremely vibrant field of astrophysical research, with many long-standing questions still unsettled and new ones constantly arising. The intriguing diversity of the dwarf galaxy population, observed with advanced ground-based and space-borne observatories over a wide spectral window providing an unprecedented level of detail, poses new challenges for both observers and theoreticians. The aim of this symposium was to bring together these two groups to exchange ideas and new results on the many evolutionary aspects of and open issues concerning dwarf galaxies. The main topics addressed include: the birth of dwarf galaxies: theoretical concepts and observable relics across wavelengths and time, the morphological, structural and chemical evolution of dwarf galaxies, possible evolutionary connections between early-type and late-type dwarfs, the star formation history of dwarf galaxies and its dependence on intrinsic and environmental properties, the origin and implications of starburst activity in dwarf galaxies, the fate of dwarfish systems born out of tidally ejected matter in galaxy collisions.
Download or read book Multiwavelength Mapping of Galaxy Formation and Evolution written by Alvio Renzini and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2005-05-23 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The possibilities of astronomical observation have dramatically increased over the last decade. Major satellites, like the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra and XMM Newton, are complemented by numerous large ground-based observatories, from 8m-10m optical telescopes to sub-mm and radio facilities. As a result, observational astronomy has access to virtually the whole electromagnetic spectrum of galaxies, even at high redshifts. Theoretical models of galaxy formation and cosmological evolution now face a serious challenge to match the plethora of observational data. In October 2003, over 170 astronomers from 15 countries met for a 4-day workshop to extensively illustrate and discuss all major observational projects and ongoing theoretical efforts to model galaxy formation and evolution. This volume contains the complete proceedings of this meeting and is therefore a unique and timely overview of the current state of research in this rapidly evolving field.
Download or read book Galaxy Formation and Mergers with Stars and Massive Black Holes written by Chi-hun Kim and published by Stanford University. This book was released on 2011 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While mounting observational evidence suggests the coevolution of galaxies and their embedded massive black holes (MBHs), a comprehensive astrophysical understanding which incorporates both galaxies and MBHs has been missing. To tackle the nonlinear processes of galaxy formation, we develop a state-of-the-art numerical framework which self-consistently models the interplay between galactic components: dark matter, gas, stars, and MBHs. Utilizing this physically motivated tool, we present an investigation of a massive star-forming galaxy hosting a slowly growing MBH in a cosmological LCDM simulation. The MBH feedback heats the surrounding gas and locally suppresses star formation in the galactic inner core. In simulations of merging galaxies, the high-resolution adaptive mesh allows us to observe widespread starbursts via shock-induced star formation, and the interplay between the galaxies and their embedding medium. Fast growing MBHs in merging galaxies drive more frequent and powerful jets creating sizable bubbles at the galactic centers. We conclude that the interaction between the interstellar gas, stars and MBHs is critical in understanding the star formation history, black hole accretion history, and cosmological evolution of galaxies. Expanding upon our extensive experience in galactic simulations, we are well poised to apply this tool to other challenging, yet highly rewarding tasks in contemporary astrophysics, such as high-redshift quasar formation.
Download or read book The Kiloparsec Scale Structure and Kinematics of High Redshift Star Forming Galaxies written by David R. Law and published by Universal-Publishers. This book was released on 2008-09 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We study the spatially resolved properties of star-forming galaxies at redshift z 2 - 3 on scales 1 kpc using a combination of morphological and kinematic analyses in an effort to characterize the major mechanisms of galaxy formation in the young universe. Using a sample of 216 galaxies which have been spectroscopically confirmed to lie between redshifts z = 1.8 - 3.4 in the GOODS-N field we demonstrate that rest-UV morphology (as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope) is statistically uncorrelated with physical properties such as star formation rate and is therefore unable to support the hypothesis that the prevalence of irregular morphologies indicates a high major merger fraction. Further, we present a sample of 13 galaxies observed with the OSIRIS integral field spectrograph and the Keck laser-guide star adaptive optics system which demonstrate the prevalence of high velocity dispersions 80 km/s and generally little in the way of spatially resolved velocity gradients, inconsistent with favored rotating disk models. We discuss the implications of these results for galaxy formation models, including gas accretion via cold flows and gravitational instability of early gas-rich galactic disks. There is some evidence for a trend towards stronger rotational signatures in galaxies with more massive stellar populations.
Download or read book Galaxy Mergers and Dark Matter Halo Mergers in LCDM written by and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 11 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We employ a high-resolution LCDM N-body simulation to present merger rate predictions for dark matter halos and investigate how common merger-related observables for galaxies - such as close pair counts, starburst counts, and the morphologically disturbed fraction - likely scale with luminosity, stellar mass, merger mass ratio, and redshift from z = 0 to z = 4. We provide a simple 'universal' fitting formula that describes our derived merger rates for dark matter halos a function of dark halo mass, merger mass ratio, and redshift, and go on to predict galaxy merger rates using number density-matching to associate halos with galaxies. For example, we find that the instantaneous merger rate of m/M> 0.3 mass ratio events into typical L (almost equal to)> fL{sub *} galaxies follows the simple relation dN/dt (asymptotically equal to) 0.03(1+f)Gyr−1 (1+z){sup 2.1}. Despite the rapid increase in merger rate with redshift, only a small fraction of> 0.4L{sub *} high-redshift galaxies ((almost equal to) 3% at z = 2) should have experienced a major merger (m/M> 0.3) in the very recent past (t 100 Myr). This suggests that short-lived, merger-induced bursts of star formation should not contribute significantly to the global star formation rate at early times, in agreement with observational indications. In contrast, a fairly high fraction ((almost equal to) 20%) of those z = 2 galaxies should have experienced a morphologically transformative merger within a virial dynamical time. We compare our results to observational merger rate estimates from both morphological indicators and pair-fraction based determinations between z = 0-2 and show that they are consistent with our predictions. However, we emphasize that great care must be made in these comparisons because the predicted observables depend very sensitively on galaxy luminosity, redshift, overall mass ratio, and uncertain relaxation timescales for merger remnants. We show that the majority of bright galaxies at z = 3 should have undergone a major merger ( 0.3) in the last 700 Myr and conclude that mergers almost certainly play an important role in delivering baryons and influencing the kinematic properties of Lyman Break Galaxies (LBGs).
Download or read book The Production and Evolution of Scaling Laws Via Galaxy Merging written by Matthew D. Covington and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Star Formation in Merging Clusters of Galaxies written by Alison Seiler Mansheim and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This thesis straddles two areas of cosmology, each of which are active, rich and plagued by controversy in their own right: merging clusters and the environmental dependence of galaxy evolution. While the greater context of this thesis is major cluster mergers, our individual subjects are galaxies, and we apply techniques traditionally used to study the differential evolution of galaxies with environment. Our first system (Chapter 2) is a cluster merger known as Musket Ball that is in a post-merging state. Our second system (Chapter 3), referred to as Cl J0910, is comprised of two clusters that have not yet merged. The order in which they are presented is intentional because, while it would have made more sense to study the pre-merger system first, our approach in Chapter 3 was shaped by what we learned by handling the significantly more difficult post-merger system. The body of this thesis is drawn from two papers: Mansheim et al. 2016a and Mansheim et al. 2016b, one on each system. Both projects benefited from exquisite data sets assembled as part of the Merging Cluster Collaboration (MC2), and Observations of Redshift Evolution in Large Scale Environments (ORELSE) survey, allowing us to scrutinize the evolutionary states of galaxy populations in multiple lights. Multi-band optical and near-infrared imaging was available for both systems, allowing us to calculate photometric redshifts for completeness corrections, colors (red vs. blue) and stellar masses to view the ensemble properties of the populations in and around each merger. High-resolution spectroscopy was also available for both systems, allowing us to confirm cluster members by measuring spectroscopic redshifts, which are unparalleled in accuracy, and gauge star formation rates and histories by measuring the strengths of certain spectral features. We had the luxury of HST imaging for Musket Ball, allowing us to use galaxy morphology (late-type vs. early-type) as an additional diagnostic. For Cl J0910, 24 [mu]m imaging allowed us to defeat a most pernicious source of uncertainty (dusty starburst vs. quiescent). Details on the acquisition and reduction of multi-wavelength data for each system are found within each respective chapter. It is important to note that the research presented in Chapter 3 is based on a letter which had significant space restrictions, so much of the observational details are outsourced to papers written by ORELSE collaboration members. Below is a free-standing summary of each project, drawn from the abstracts of each paper. The Chapter 1 contains an introduction to the topic and motivation to fill a vacuum in knowledge using our hypothesis. Chapter 4, following the meat of the thesis in Chapters 2 and 3, gives closure and looks to the future. In Chapter 2, we investigate star formation in DLSCL J0916.2+2953, a dissociative merger of two clusters at z=0.53 that has progressed 1.1[superscript +1.3][subscript-0.4] Gyr since first pass-through. We attempt to reveal the effects a collision may have had on the evolution of the cluster galaxies by tracing their star formation history. We probe current and recent activity to identify a possible star formation event at the time of the merger using EW(H[delta]), EW[(OII)], and D[subscript n](4000) measured from the composite spectra of 64 cluster and 153 coeval field galaxies. We supplement Keck DEIMOS spectra with DLS and HST imaging to determine the color, stellar mass, and morphology of each galaxy and conduct a comprehensive study of the populations in this complex structure. Spectral results indicate the average cluster and cluster red sequence galaxies experienced no enhanced star formation relative to the surrounding field during the merger, ruling out a predominantly merger-quenched population. We find that the average blue galaxy in the North cluster is currently active and in the South cluster is currently post-starburst having undergone a recent star formation event. While the North activity could be latent or long-term merger effects, a young blue stellar population and irregular geometry suggest the cluster was still forming prior the collision. While the South activity coincides with the time of the merger, the blue early-type population could be a result of secular cluster processes. The evidence suggests that the dearth or surfeit of activity is indiscernible from normal cluster galaxy evolution. In Chapter 3, we examine the effects of an impending cluster merger on galaxies in the large scale structure (LSS) RX Cl J0910 at z =1.105. Using multi-wavelength data, including 102 spectral members drawn from the ORELSE survey and precise photometric redshifts, we calculate extinction-corrected star formation rates and map the specific star formation rate density of the LSS galaxies. These analyses along with an investigation of the color-magnitude properties of LSS galaxies indicate lower levels of star formation activity in the region between the merging clusters relative to the outskirts of the system. We suggest gravitational tidal forces due to the potential of merging halos may be the physical mechanisms responsible for the observed suppression of star formation in galaxies caught between the merging clusters.
Download or read book Hubble Space Telescope And The High Redshift Universe The Proceedings Of The 37th Herstmonceux Conference written by Nial R Tanvir and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 1997-05-03 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the successful refurbishment mission, the Hubble Space Telescope has made dramatic and exciting progress in unravelling the nature of sources at high redshift. The upcoming installation of the next generation of instruments will give further impetus to the field, particularly in the infrared spectral region.The proceedings of this landmark meeting review the results of the first three years of post-repair data, including the deepest astronomical images ever obtained: the Hubble Deep Field. This was the first presentation of these exciting results at a major international conference. The interface between HST and ground-based facilities and planned programmes with forthcoming HST instruments are also extensively discussed.
Download or read book Star Formation and Galaxy Evolution Since Z 2 written by Drew Grinnell Brisbin and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Our recent studies in galaxy evolution have revealed a surprising new paradigm of star formation. Contrary to the notion that major mergers play an increasingly dominant role going backwards in cosmic history, we find that over the last ~10 Gyr, much of star formation has been fueled by accreting cold gas from the cosmic web. Accretion rates were presumably larger in the past, so star forming systems may have very different properties in the early Universe and today. Large scale astronomical surveys, such as the Herschel Multi-Tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES), and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) have provided a wealth of extragalactic data covering a statistically large number of sources. Targeted, niche surveys, like our fine structure line survey of star forming galaxies in the early Universe observed with the redshift (z) Early Universe Spectrometer (ZEUS) have provided detailed observations of high interest sources. We have made use of this diverse set of data to study galaxy evolution from the epoch of peak star formation at z=1-2 up to the present. Data from HerMES is a reliable probe of infrared emission, particularly useful for characterizing the far infrared dust peak, and therefore determining star formation rates out to redshifts of a few. Deep integrations with the Herschel SPIRE photometer rapidly reach the confusion limit, tempering its utility in studying faint high redshift galaxies. With appropriate care taken to identify blended sources, however, HerMES data is useful in identifying bright, red- shifted, star forming sources. We have compiled spectral energy distributions from HerMES and ancillary data and found that, even sources at high redshift are well fit by local star forming galaxy templates. In the local Universe, spectroscopic SDSS data has allowed us to estimate crucial galaxy properties on ~105 sources, providing an opportunity to observe general statistical trends, and constrain theories of galaxy evolution. A toy model of cold flow accretion powered star formation reproduces the observed fundamental plane of galaxy stellar mass, metallicity, and star formation for small and medium mass galaxies. Our fine structure line survey with ZEUS detected the [CII] 157.7 [MICRO SIGN]m line in eight galaxies from the epoch of peak star formation at z=1-2. We augmented this survey with observations of the [OI] 63 [MICRO SIGN]m line and far infrared photometry from Herschel, as well as Spitzer IRS spectra from the literature. Most of our sources have higher than average gas heating efficiency with L[CII] /LF IR 10[-]2 . We interpret the majority of them as being dominated by star formation powered PDRs, extending to kpc scales. In two sources there is evidence for enhanced [CII] emission due to heating by low velocity shocks. These findings are consistent with a picture of gas accretion fueling star formation on a near galaxy-wide scale. In synthesizing this data we find a remarkable consistency in the nature of star formation over the last 10 Gyr. In contrast with the model of sustained hierarchical merging, we find that star formation since z~2 is fueled largely by cold flow accretion of gas from the cosmic web, which presents itself as moderate density star formation with correspondingly moderate UV fields.
Download or read book Merging Galaxies and Dark Matter Halos written by Andrew Rodger Wetzel and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mergers between distinct objects are a natural part of hierarchical structure formation. Mergers are also one of the most critical elements in the evolution of both galaxies and halos. I use high-resolution, cosmological volume simulations to explore galaxy and halo evolution and merging activity in a cosmological context, including environmental dependence, merger rates and dynamics, and how these processes in halos connect with those of galaxies. I first explore halo merging and evolution, focusing on its interplay with large-scale environment. While halo spatial clustering has been thought to depend only on mass, I ex- amine how spatial clustering depends on secondary parameters such as halo formation time, concentration, and recent merger history, a phenomenon known as "assembly bias". Next, I examine the extent to which close spatial pairs of objects can be used to predict mergers, finding limited utility to the pair-merger method arising from a competition between merger efficiency and completeness. I also explore the dependence of merging on environmental density, discovering that merging is less efficient in overdense environments. I then investigate how a massive galaxy/halo population at high redshift connects to a massive population of the same number density today, finding that scatter in mass growth and mergers between massive objects preclude a direct population mapping either forward or backward in time. In the latter part of this work, I explore the dynamics and mergers of galaxies in groups and clusters. I first examine the orbital distributions of satellite halos/galaxies at the time of infall onto a more massive host halo, finding that satellite orbits become more radial and penetrate deeper at higher host halo mass and higher redshift. I then track the evolution of galaxies in groups directly, examining the merger rates of galaxies over time and finding that galaxy mergers do not simply trace halo mergers. I also examine the small-scale environments of galaxy mergers, discovering that recently merged galaxies exhibit enhanced small-scale spatial clustering for a short time after a merger. Finally, by using abundance matching to assign stellar mass to subhalos, I explore the importance of merging vs. disruption processes for satellite galaxy evolution. I rigorously test the connection of galaxies to subhalos by comparing simulations against observed galaxy spatial clustering, satellite fractions, and cluster satellite luminosity functions, finding agreement in all cases.
Download or read book Constraining the Major Merging History of Massive Galaxies written by Kameswara Bharadwaj Mantha and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Major galaxy merging is a fundamental aspect of the hierarchical structure-growth scenario of the universe, and it is theoretical expected to contribute to several key aspects of galaxy evolution. As such, empirically identifying major mergers is a key methodological step towards assessing the ``merging -- galaxy evolution'' connection, and close-pair and morphology-based methods are established empirical merger identification techniques. Yet, the merger rate measurements from these methods vary up to a factor of five owing to their unique but analogous systematic biases, especially during the key epoch of galaxy growth (7-11 Gyr ago), highlighting that the merger contribution to galaxy growth remains poorly constrained. As a step towards addressing key open questions pertaining to empirical merger identification methodologies, we carryout comprehensive analysis of close pairs and merging induced tidal features (and in general galactic substructures) using forefront observational data from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and realistic mock observations from leading theoretical simulations. We analyze the incidence of major, similar-mass (mass ratio4) close pairs among a large sample of ~9800 massive galaxies (log Mstellar/Msun 10.3) from the HST-CANDELS survey and quantify the major merger rate evolution over 11 Gyr in cosmic history (published in Mantha et al., 2018). Using the mock light cone data from the leading SantaCruz Semi-Analytical Model (SAM), we systematically analyze the impact of different observational effects on the measurement of close-pair frequency and provide detailed statistical corrections to account for them. We also developed a new public software tool to extract and quantify different kinds of faint morphological substructures hosted by massive galaxies in the HST imaging and demonstrated its applicability in extracting tidal features using mock observations of a galaxy merger from a cosmological simulation (published in Mantha et al., 2019). Finally, using supervised and unsupervised deep-learning models, we also investigate the automated characterization of different morphological substructures hosted within the parametric light-profile subtracted residual images of 10,000 massive galaxies from the HST CANDELS survey.
Download or read book Dissertation Abstracts International written by and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 800 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Galaxy Interactions at Low and High Redshift written by J.E. Barnes and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 530 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These proceedings offer professional astronomers an overview of the rapidly advancing subject of galaxy interactions at low and high redshifts. The symposium gave participants an exciting glimpse of a developing synthesis highlighting galactic encounters and their role in the history of the Universe.
