ORCID Profile
0000-0002-8505-0079
Current Organisation
Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA)
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Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 11-03-2019
DOI: 10.1093/MNRAS/STZ696
Abstract: A $25\\, \\rm deg^2$ region, including the M81 complex (M81, M82, and NGC 3077), NGC 2976, and IC2574, was mapped during ∼3000 h with the DRAO synthesis telescope. With a physical resolution of ∼1 kpc, these observations allow us to probe a large region down to column density levels of ${\\sim }1\\times 10^{18}\\, \\rm cm^{-2}$ over 16 km s−1, mapping the extent of the H i arm connecting the system and NGC 2976, and resolving the H i clouds adjacent to the arm. The observations also reveal a few clouds located between the system and IC 2574, probably tidally stripped from a past interaction between the two systems. Given the regular velocity distribution in the H i envelope of the system, we attempt and derive an idealized large-scale rotation curve of the system. We observe a flat trend for the rotation velocity of the overall system from 20 kpc out to 80 kpc, well beyond the outskirts of the M81 disk, although with asymmetries like a wiggle at the vicinity of M82. This supports the assumption that intergalactic gas and galaxies in the system participate to a large-scale ordered rotation motion which is dominated by M81. Also, our H i analysis of the group further supports the hypothesis that the galaxies forming the system moved closer from afar, in agreement with numerical simulations.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 16-07-2020
Abstract: Centromeres are the complex structures responsible for the proper segregation of chromosomes during cell ision. Structural or functional alterations of the centromere cause aneuploidies and other chromosomal aberrations that can induce cell death with consequences on health and survival of the organism as a whole. Because of their essential function in the cell, centromeres have evolved high flexibility and mechanisms of tolerance to preserve their function following stress, whether it is originating from within or outside the cell. Here, we review the main epigenetic mechanisms of centromeres’ adaptability to preserve their functional stability, with particular reference to neocentromeres and holocentromeres. The centromere position can shift in response to altered chromosome structures, but how and why neocentromeres appear in a given chromosome region are still open questions. Models of neocentromere formation developed during the last few years will be hereby discussed. Moreover, we will discuss the evolutionary significance of diffuse centromeres (holocentromeres) in organisms such as nematodes. Despite the differences in DNA sequences, protein composition and centromere size, all of these erse centromere structures promote efficient chromosome segregation, balancing genome stability and adaptability, and ensuring faithful genome inheritance at each cellular generation.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 27-09-2019
Abstract: We present the mass models of 31 spiral and irregular nearby galaxies obtained using hybrid rotation curves (RCs) combining high-resolution GHASP Fabry–Perot H α RCs and extended WHISP H i ones together with 3.4 $\\mu$m WISE photometry. The aim is to compare the dark matter (DM) halo properties within the optical radius using only H α RCs with the effect of including and excluding the mass contribution of the neutral gas component, and when using H i or hybrid RCs. Pseudo-isothermal (ISO) core and Navarro–Frenk–White (NFW) cuspy DM halo profiles are used with various fiducial fitting procedures. Mass models using H α RCs including or excluding the H i gas component provide compatible disc M/L. The correlations between DM halo and baryon parameters do not strongly depend on the RC. Clearly, the differences between the fitting procedures are larger than between the different data sets. Hybrid and H i RCs lead to higher M/L values for both ISO and NFW best-fitting models but lower central densities for ISO haloes and higher concentration for NFW haloes than when using H α RCs only. The agreement with the mass model parameters deduced using hybrid RCs, considered as a reference, is better for H i than for H α RCs. ISO density profiles better fit the RCs than the NFW ones, especially when using H α or hybrid RCs. Halo masses at the optical radius determined using the various data sets are compatible even if they tend to be overestimated with H α RCs. Hybrid RCs are thus ideal to study the mass distribution within the optical radius.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 18-10-2017
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 30-05-2023
Abstract: The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) will explore the radio sky to new depths in order to conduct transformational science. SKAO data products made available to astronomers will be correspondingly large and complex, requiring the application of advanced analysis techniques to extract key science findings. To this end, SKAO is conducting a series of Science Data Challenges, each designed to familiarize the scientific community with SKAO data and to drive the development of new analysis techniques. We present the results from Science Data Challenge 2 (SDC2), which invited participants to find and characterize 233 245 neutral hydrogen (H i) sources in a simulated data product representing a 2000 h SKA-Mid spectral line observation from redshifts 0.25–0.5. Through the generous support of eight international supercomputing facilities, participants were able to undertake the Challenge using dedicated computational resources. Alongside the main challenge, ‘reproducibility awards’ were made in recognition of those pipelines which demonstrated Open Science best practice. The Challenge saw over 100 participants develop a range of new and existing techniques, with results that highlight the strengths of multidisciplinary and collaborative effort. The winning strategy – which combined predictions from two independent machine learning techniques to yield a 20 per cent improvement in overall performance – underscores one of the main Challenge outcomes: that of method complementarity. It is likely that the combination of methods in a so-called ensemble approach will be key to exploiting very large astronomical data sets.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 12-02-2020
Abstract: We analyse the eastern region of a 5° × 5° deep H i survey of the M81 group containing the dwarf galaxy IC 2574 and the H i complex HIJASS J1021+68, located between the dwarf and the M81 system. The data show that IC 2574 has an extended H i envelope that connects to HIJASS J1021+68 in the form of a collection of small clouds, but no evident connection has been found between IC 2574 and the central members of the M81 group. We argue, based on the morphology of the clouds forming HIJASS J1021+68 and its velocity distribution, that the complex is not a dark galaxy as previously suggested, but is instead a complex of clouds either stripped from, or falling on to the primordial H i envelope of IC 2574. We also use the deep H i observations to map the extended H i envelope around IC 2574 and, using a 3D tilted-ring model, we derive the rotation curve of the galaxy to a larger extent than has been done before. Combining the obtained rotation curve to higher resolution curves from the literature, we constrain the galaxy’s dark matter halo parameters.
Publisher: American Astronomical Society
Date: 03-2021
Abstract: We present the analysis of the diffuse, low column density H i environment of 18 MHONGOOSE galaxies. We obtained deep observations with the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope and reached down to a 3 σ column density detection limit of N HI = 6.3 × 10 17 cm −2 over a 20 km s −1 line width. We analyze the environment around these galaxies, with a focus on H i gas that reaches column densities below N HI = 10 19 cm −2 . We calculate the total amount of H i gas in and around the galaxies, revealing that nearly all of these galaxies contained excess H i outside of their disks. We quantify the amount of diffuse gas in the maps of each galaxy, defined by H i gas with column densities below 10 19 cm −2 , and find a large spread in percentages of diffuse gas. However, by binning the percentage of diffuse H i into quarters, we find that the bin with the largest number of galaxies is the lowest quartile (0%–25% diffuse H i ). We identified several galaxies that may be undergoing gas accretion onto the galaxy disk using multiple methods of analysis, including azimuthally averaging column densities beyond the disk, and identifying structure within our integrated intensity (moment 0) maps. We measured H i mass outside the disks of most of our galaxies, with rising cumulative flux even at large radii. We also find a strong correlation between the fraction of diffuse gas in a galaxy and its baryonic mass, and we test this correlation using both Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficients. We see evidence of a dark matter halo mass threshold of M halo ∼ 10 11.1 M ☉ in which galaxies with high fractions of diffuse H i all reside below. It is in this regime that cold-mode accretion should dominate. Finally, we suggest a rotation velocity of v rot ∼ 80 km s −1 as an upper threshold to find diffuse-gas-dominated galaxies.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 15-10-2018
No related grants have been discovered for Laura Leo.