Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2000-08-25
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
5 pages, Latex, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in P.A.S.P
Scientific paper
10.1086/317719
We report on the first observation of cosmologically distant field galaxies with an high order Adaptive Optics (AO) system on an 8-10 meter class telescope. Two galaxies were observed at 1.6 microns at an angular resolution as high as 50 milliarcsec using the AO system on the Keck-II telescope. Radial profiles of both objects are consistent with those of local spiral galaxies and are decomposed into a classic exponential disk and a central bulge. A star-forming cluster or companion galaxy as well as a compact core are detected in one of the galaxies at a redshift of 0.37+/-0.05. We discuss possible explanations for the core including a small bulge, a nuclear starburst, or an active nucleus. The same galaxy shows a peak disk surface brightness that is brighter than local disks of comparable size. These observations demonstrate the power of AO to reveal details of the morphology of distant faint galaxies and to explore galaxy evolution.
Acton Daniel S.
Coil Alison L.
Filippenko Alexei V.
Glassman Tiffany Michelle
Lai Olivier
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