Optically luminous early type galaxies host X-ray luminous, hot atmospheres. These hot atmospheres, which we refer to as coronae, undergo the same cooling and feedback processes as are commonly found in their more massive cousins, the gas rich atmospheres of galaxy groups and galaxy clusters. In particular, the hot coronae around galaxies radiatively cool and show cavities in X-ray images that are filled with relativistic plasma originating from jets powered by supermassive black holes (SMBH) at the galaxy centers. We discuss the SMBH feedback using an X-ray survey of early type galaxies carried out using Chandra X-ray Observatory observations. Early type galaxies with coronae very commonly have weak X-ray active nuclei and have associated radio sources. Based on the enthalpy of observed cavities in the coronae, there is sufficient energy to “balance” the observed radiative cooling. There are a very few remarkable examples of optically faint galaxies that are 1) unusually X-ray luminous, 2) have large dark matter halo masses, and 3) have large SMBHs (e.g., NGC4342 and NGC4291). These properties suggest that, in some galaxies, star formation may have been truncated at early times, breaking the simple scaling relations.

Despite many theoretical studies and observations, we still do not fully understand the feeding mechanism in AGNs even in nearby galaxies, and how feedback from AGNs affects the gas dynamics itself in the galactic central regions. In this article, we summarize our recent theoretical studies and preliminary results in terms of the mass inflow and outflows on sub-parsec to 100 parsecs scales around AGNs. We introduce different studies: 1) How do galaxy-galaxy mergers trigger AGN activity and obscuration?, 2) How do the radiative feedback affect formation of outflows and obscuration of the nucleus? and 3) How does the AGN plus starburst feedback contribute to the obscuration?

We employ Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) data to study the ionized and very ionized gas phase of the feedback in Circinus, the closest Seyfert 2 galaxy. The analysis of the nebular emission allowed us to detect a remarkable high-ionization gas outflow, out of the galaxy plane, traced by the coronal lines [Fe viii] 6089Å and [Fe x] 6374Å, extending up to 700 parsecs north-west from the nucleus. The gas kinematics reveal expanding gas shells with velocities of a few hundred km s-1, spatially coincident with prominent hard X-ray emission detected by Chandra. Density and temperature sensitive line ratios show that the extended high-ionization gas is characterized by a temperature of up to 18000 K and a gas density of ne > 102 cm−3. We propose two scenarios consistent with the observations to explain the high-ionization component of the outflow: an active galactic nuclei (AGN) ejection that took place ⁓105 yr ago or local gas excitation by shocks produced by the passage of a radio jet.

In this work, we performed two distinct non-cosmological, three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations that evolved the gas component of a galaxy similar to the classical dwarf spheroidal galaxy Ursa Minor. Both simulations take into account types II and Ia supernovae feedback constrained by chemical evolution models, while ram-pressure stripping mechanism is added into one of them considering an intergalactic medium and a galactic velocity that resemble what is observed nowadays for the Ursa Minor galaxy. Our results show no difference in the amount of gas left inside the galaxy until 400 Myr of evolution. Moreover, the ram-pressure wind was stalled and inverted by thermal pressure of the interstellar medium and supernovae feedback during the same interval.

Often associated with the regulation of star formation in galaxies, active galactic nuclei (AGN) play a fundamental role in the evolution of galaxies through their feedback effects. To investigate the impact of these effects, we analysed the optical emission-line properties of 8 type II AGNs with bolometric luminosities LBol > 1045 erg s−1, using integral field spectroscopy (IFS) observations with Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS). The gas kinematics was obtained by fitting Gaussian components to the profiles of the emission lines of the ionized gas. Using only the broadest component – that we associate with the gas in outflow – we calculated the mass outflow rate (Ṁout), finding values of up to 10 M⊙ yr−1. The outflow kinetic power (Ėout reaches maximum values between 1041 and 1043 erg s−1, which correspond to feedback efficiencies of ∼0.001−0.1 % of Lbol. These values are below that required to quench the star formation during the evolution of galaxies in simulations and analytical models. We also investigated the effect of uncertainties on the values of the physical quantities used in the calculations – such as the electron density – on the final values of Ṁout and Ėout.

We investigated the interstellar medium (ISM) properties in the central regions of nearby Seyfert galaxies characterised by prominent conical or bi-conical outflows belonging to the MAGNUM survey by exploiting the unprecedented sensitivity, spatial and spectral coverage of the integral field spectrograph MUSE at the Very Large Telescope. We developed a novel approach based on the gas and stars kinematics to disentangle high-velocity gas in the outflow from gas in the disc to spatially track the differences in their ISM properties. This allowed us to reveal the presence of an ionisation structure within the extended outflows that can be interpreted with different photoionisation and shock conditions, and to trace tentative evidence of outflow-induced star formation (“positive” feedback) in a galaxy of the sample, Centaurus A.

We present studies of a protocluster at z =2.5, an overdense region found close to a radio galaxy, 4C 23.56, using ALMA. We observed 1.1 mm continuum, two CO lines (CO (4–3) and CO (3–2)) and the lower atomic carbon line transition ([CI](3P1-3P0)) at a few kpc (0″.3-0″.9) resolution. The primary targets are 25 star-forming galaxies selected as Hα emitters (HAEs) that are identified with a narrow band filter. These are massive galaxies with stellar masses of > 1010 Mʘ that are mostly on the galaxy main sequence at z =2.5. We measure the molecular gas mass from the independent gas tracers of 1.1 mm, CO (3–2) and [CI], and investigate the gas kinematics of galaxies from CO (4–3). Molecular gas masses from the different measurements are consistent with each other for detection, with a gas fraction (fgas = Mgas/(Mgas+ Mstar)) of ≃ 0.5 on average but with a caveat. On the other hand, the CO line widths of the protocluster galaxies are typically broader by ˜50% compared to field galaxies, which can be attributed to more frequent, unresolved gas-rich mergers and/or smaller sizes than field galaxies, supported by our high-resolution images and a kinematic model fit of one of the galaxies. We discuss the expected scenario of galaxy evolution in protoclusters at high redshift but future large surveys are needed to get a more general view.

We present the first results of the Deep Integral Field Spectroscopy View of Nuclei of Galaxies (DIVING3D) survey, obtained from the analysis of the nuclear emission-line spectra of a sub-sample we call mini-DIVING3D, including all southern galaxies with B < 11.2 and |b| >15°. In comparison with previous studies, very few galaxies were classified as Transition objects. A possible explanation is that at least part of the Transition objects are composite systems, with a central low-ionization nuclear emission-line region (LINER) contaminated by the emission from circumnuclear H II regions. The high spatial resolution of the DIVING3D survey allowed us to isolate the nuclear emission from circumnuclear contaminations, reducing the number of Transition objects.

Overdense regions at high redshift, which are often called “protoclusters”, are thought to be a place where the early active structure formations are in progress. Thanks to the wide and deep-sky survey of Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program, we have selected 179 protocluster candidates at z ˜ 4, enabling us to statistically discuss high-z overdense regions. I report results of the HSC-SSP protocluster project, focusing on a couple of results on the bright-end of protocluster galaxies. We identify the UV-brightest galaxies, which are likely progenitors of Brightest Cluster Galaxies. We find that these are dustier and larger than field galaxies. This suggests that galaxies in protoclusters have experienced different star formation histories at z ˜ 4. Also, the UV luminosity function of galaxies in protoclusters (PC UVLF) has a significant excess on the bright-end from field UVLF. The PC UVLF suggests that protoclusters contribute ˜ 5 – 16% of the total cosmic SFRD at z ˜ 4. The result implies that early galaxy formation occurs in protoclusters.

Red Geysers are quiescent galaxies that show a bi-polar outflow, but the mechanism that produces this outflow is still unclear. Using MaNGA data, we find that Red Geysers correspond to ∼1.6% of the sample of galaxies already observed by MaNGA. About ∼16% of the Red Geysers show clear evidence of Active Galactic Nuclei, as revealed by emission-line ratios.

We investigate the processes of active galactic nuclei (AGN) feeding and feedback in the narrow line regions (NLRs) and host galaxies of nearby AGN through spatially resolved spectroscopy with the Gemini Near-Infrared Integral Field Spectrograph (NIFS) and the Hubble Space Telescope’s Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS). We examine the connection between nuclear and galactic inflows and outflows by adding long-slit spectra of the host galaxies from Apache Point Observatory. We demonstrate that nearby AGN can be fueled by a variety of mechanisms. We find that the NLR kinematics can often be explained by in situ ionization and radiative acceleration of ambient gas, often in the form of dusty molecular spirals that may be the fueling flow to the AGN.

We present Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph Integral Field Unit (GMOS-IFU) observations of the inner 1.1 kpc of the interacting Seyfert galaxy NGC 2992. From full spectral synthesis we found that the stellar population is mainly (up to 80 per cent of the total light) composed by an old (t ≥ 1.4 Gyr) metal-rich (Z ≥ 2.0) populations with a smaller but considerable contribution (up to 30 per cent) from young (t ≤ 100 Myr) metal-poor (Z ≥ 1.0) populations. The gas kinematics presents two main components: one from gas in orbit in the galaxy disk and an outflow with mass outflow rate of ˜2 Mʘ yr–1 and a kinematic power of ˜ 2 × 1040 erg s–1.

Jellyfish are the most extreme cases of galaxies undergoing ram-pressure stripping. In order to analyse the stellar populations distribution along these galaxies, we have performed stellar population synthesis in data cubes of jellyfish from the GASP programme, using both Starlight and FADO codes.

We study the behaviour of the dynamical and stellar mass inside the effective radius as function of local density for early-type galaxies (ETGs). We use several samples of ETGs - ranging from 19000 to 98000 objects - from the ninth data release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We consider Newtonian dynamics, different light profiles and different initial mass functions (IMF) to calculate the dynamical and stellar mass. We assume that any difference between these two masses is due to dark matter and/or a non-universal IMF. The main results are: (i) the amount of dark matter (DM) inside ETGs depends on the environment; (ii) ETGs in low-density environments span a wider DM range than ETGs in dense environments; (iii) the amount of DM inside ETGs in the most dense environments will be less than approximately 55-65 per cent of the dynamical mass; (iv) the accurate value of this upper limit depends on the impact of the IMF on the stellar mass estimation.

Red Nugget galaxies found at high-z have analogues in the Local Universe which are called relic galaxies. Because of their proximity to Earth, the relics allow a more detailed analysis of their properties and can help us understand the formation of massive early-type galaxies, since Red Nuggets could be their first phase of formation. The main goal of this work is to characterize the structure and morphology of candidates and confirmed relic galaxies in the Local Universe to further search for similar objects observationally and within cosmological simulations.

NGC 7469 is a well-known type 1 AGN with a cirumnuclear star formation ring. It has previous detections of X-rays warm absorbers and an infrared biconical outflow. We analysed archival MUSE/VLT observations of this galaxy in order to look for an optical counterpart of these outflows. We report spatially resolved winds in the [O III] λ5007 emission line in two regimes: a high velocity regime possibly associated with the AGN and a slower one associated with the massive star formation of the ring. This slower regime is also detected with Hβ.

This work is focused on the characterization of the Seyfert-2 galaxies hosting very large, ultra-luminous narrow-line regions (NLRs) at redshifts z = 0.2−0.34. With a space density of 4.4 Gcp−3 at z ∼ 0.3, these “Low Redshift Lyman-α Blob” (LAB) host galaxies are amongst the rarest objects in the universe, and represent an exceptional and short-lived phenomenon in the life cycle of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We present the study of GMOS spectra for 13 LAB galaxies covering the rest frame spectral range 3700–6700 Å. Predominantly, the [OIII]λ5007 emission line radial distribution is as widespread as that of the continuum one. The emission line profiles exhibit FWHM between 300–700 Km s−1. In 7 of 13 cases a broad kinematical component is detected with FWHM within the range 600–1100 Km s−1. The exceptionally high [OIII]λ5007 luminosity is responsible for very high equivalent width reaching 1500 Å at the nucleus.

We aim to do forecasts for the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) with a theoretical modeling of the two point angular correlation function. The Fisher matrix is the starting point. This is a square matrix over the cosmological parameters, whose diagonal contains direct informations on the parameters expected uncertainties.

Detecting the seed black holes from which quasars formed is extremely challenging; however, those seeds that did not grow into supermassive should be found as intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) of 100 – 105 M⊙ in local dwarf galaxies. The use of deep multiwavelength surveys has revealed that a population of actively accreting IMBHs (low-mass AGN) exists in dwarf galaxies at least out to z ˜3. The black hole occupation fraction of these galaxies suggests that the early Universe seed black holes formed from direct collapse of gas, which is reinforced by the possible flattening of the black hole-galaxy scaling relations at the low-mass end. This scenario is however challenged by the finding that AGN feedback can have a strong impact on dwarf galaxies, which implies that low-mass AGN in dwarf galaxies might not be the untouched relics of the early seed black holes. This has important implications for seed black hole formation models.

Based on very deep photometry, Surface Brightness Fluctuations (SBF) have been traditionally used to determine galaxy distances. We have recently computed SBF spectra of stellar populations at moderately high resolution, which are fully based on empirical stars. We show that the SBF spectra provide an unprecedented potential for stellar population studies that, so far, have been tackled on the basis of the mean fluxes. We find that the SBFs are able to unveil metal-poor stellar components at the one percent level, which are not possible to disentangle with the standard analysis. As these metal-poor components correspond to the first stages of the chemical enrichment, the SBF analysis provides stringent constrains on the quenching epoch.