Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Dec 2000
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2000mnras.319..821p&link_type=abstract
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Volume 319, Issue 3, pp. 821-825.
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
11
Galaxies: Evolution, Galaxies: Formation, Galaxies: Individual: Ngc6946, Galaxies: Interactions
Scientific paper
We report the results of a survey of the Hi environment of NGC 6946 in a search for gas-rich companions to the galaxy. Such gas-rich companions could include material left over from the galaxy assembly process which could persist into the current day around an isolated galaxy such as NGC 6946. NGC 6946 is prolifically forming stars, has a nuclear starburst, and has widespread high-velocity clouds associated with the disc. All of these features could be explained by the accretion of low-mass Hi clouds by NGC 6946. Our survey recovered two previously detected dwarf galaxies associated with NGC 6946, but otherwise found no signatures of interactions in the NGC 6946 system. The companions are small enough, and distant enough from NGC 6946 that they should have minimal effect on the main galaxy. Some tidal debris may be expected due to interaction between the two dwarf galaxies, but none is observed. This could be because it is at low column densities, or because the dwarf galaxies are more separated than they appear on the sky. This study of the system suggests that NGC 6946 is a gravitationally bound system with two dwarf galaxies in stable orbits about the larger primary galaxy.
Pisano Daniel J.
Wilcots Eric M.
No associations
LandOfFree
Companions and interactions in the NGC 6946 system does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Companions and interactions in the NGC 6946 system, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Companions and interactions in the NGC 6946 system will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1053116