We present an overview of the project “The Physics of Galaxy Assembly: IFS observations of high-z galaxies”, a Guaranteed Time Observations (GTO) programme of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). It an ambitious project aimed at investigating the internal structure of distant galaxies with the NIRSpec integral field spectrograph (IFS), having allocated 273 hours of JWST prime time. The NIRSpec capability will provide us with spatially resolved spectroscopy in the 1-5 μm range of a sample of over forty galaxies and Active Galactic Nuclei in the redshift range 3 < z 9. IFS observations of individual galaxies will enable us to investigate in detail the most important physical processes driving galaxy evolution across the cosmic epoch. More in detail, the main specific objectives are: to trace the distribution of star formation, to map the resolved properties of the stellar populations, to trace the gas kinematics (i.e. velocity fields, velocity dispersion) and, hence, determine dynamical masses and also identify non-virial motions (outflow and inflows), and to map metallicity gradients and dust attenuation.

Even though galactic winds are common in galaxies with starbursts or active galactic nuclei (AGN), the role of such gas flows in galaxy evolution remains uncertain. Here we examine how winds vary along a likely evolutionary sequence connecting starburst to post-starburst to quiescent galaxies. To detect the interstellar medium and measure its bulk flows, we examine the residual Na D absorption line doublet after the stellar contribution has been removed from each galaxy’s spectrum. We discover that outflows diminish along this sequence, i.e., as star formation ends. We then focus on the wind behavior within the post-starburst sample, for which we have measured the time elapsed since the starburst ended (post-burst age) via detailed modeling of their star formation histories (French et al.2018). Even within our post-starburst sample, the fraction of galaxies with significant winds and the average wind velocities decrease with post-burst age after controlling for stellar mass.

Mass-loss and radiation feedback from evolving massive stars produce galactic-scale superwinds, sometimes surrounded by pressure-driven bubbles. Using the time-dependent stellar population typically seen in star-forming regions, we conduct hydrodynamic simulations of a starburst-driven superwind model coupled with radiative efficiency rates to investigate the formation of radiative cooling superwinds and bubbles. Our numerical simulations depict the parameter space where radiative cooling superwinds with or without bubbles occur. Moreover, we employ the physical properties and time-dependent ionization states to predict emission line profiles under the assumption of collisional ionization and non-equilibrium ionization caused by wind thermal feedback in addition to photoionization created by the radiation background. We see the dependence of non-equilibrium ionization structures on the time-evolving ionizing source, leading to a deviation from collisional ionization in radiative cooling wind regions over time.

We have studied the star formation properties of a massive void galaxy - I Zw 81. We performed 2D structural decomposition on Canada France Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) g- and r-band observation of I Zw 81 using GALFIT. The galaxy consists of an unresolved small bulge, a bar, an inner ring, and a truncated disk. We have used far-ultraviolet (FUV) and near-UV (NUV) observation of Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UVIT) onboard AstroSat for our analysis. The NUV–r color map of the lenticular galaxy illustrates a shallow positive color gradient in the profile, implying that the bar and inner ring are more star-forming than the outer disk. The FUV emission is mainly concentrated in the central region of the galaxy. A tidal tail-like feature is detected in the CFHT observations. We infer that bar and minor mergers-like interactions enhance the gas inflow and drive star formation in the center of I Zw 81.

We show the application of the δ- and Ω-slow hydrodynamical solutions to describe the velocity profiles of massive stars. In particular, these solutions can help to unravel some of the problems within the winds of massive stars such as the approximation of the β-law for the velocity profile of B supergiant stars and the slow outflow wind observed in Be stars.

We study the effect of minor mergers on star formation using simulations. We use GADGET4 code which has both collisionless and hydrodynamical particles. Our goal is to establish a relation between gas percentage present in the galaxies and the star formation in the merged galaxy. We use 1:10 minor mergers and we run the isolated simulations with varying gas percentages in the primary galaxy. We observe that the gas particles convert into stars due to the impact of the minor merger. As the gas percentage increases in the primary disk of the galaxy, more number of stars are formed. We also observed that newly formed star particles settle down in the disk of the primary galaxy and increase the thickness of the disk. We also observe that the thickness of the stellar disk containing the old stars also increases due to the impact of the merger.

We study the role the the p-mode-like vertical oscillation on the photosphere in driving solar winds in the framework of Alfvén-wave-driven winds. By performing one-dimensional magnetohydrodynamical numerical simulations from the photosphere to the interplanetary space, we discover that the mass-loss rate is raised up to ≈ 4 times as the amplitude of longitudinal perturbations at the photosphere increases. When the longitudinal fluctuation is added, transverse waves are generated by the mode conversion from longitudinal waves in the chromosphere, which increases Alfvénic Poynting flux in the corona. As a result, the coronal heating is enhanced to yield higher coronal density by the chromospheric evaporation, leading to the increase of the mass-loss rate. Our findings clearly show the importance of the p-mode oscillation in the photosphere and the mode conversion in the chromosphere in determining the basic properties of the wind from the sun and solar-type stars.

The Atacama Large Millimetre/Sub-millimetre Array (ALMA) is obtaining the deepest observations of early galaxies ever achieved at (sub-)millimetre wavelengths, and detecting the dust emission of young galaxies in the first billion years of cosmic history, well in the epoch of reionization. Here I review some of the latest results from these observations, with special focus on the REBELS large programme, which targets a sample of 40 star-forming galaxies at z ⋍ 7. ALMA detects significant amounts of dust in very young galaxies, and this dust might have different properties to dust in lower-redshift galaxies. I describe the evidence for this, and discuss theoretical/modelling efforts to explain the dust properties of these young galaxies. Finally, I describe two additional surprising results to come out of the REBELS survey: (i) a new population of completely dust-obscured galaxies at z ⋍ 7, and (ii) the prevalence of spatial offsets between the ultraviolet and infrared emission of UV-bright, high-redshift star-forming galaxies.

The discovery of abundant carbon-chain molecules in protostellar cores motivates the development of the warm carbon-chain chemistry. To understand the role of warm carbon-chain chemistry in star-forming regions, we studied C2H and c-C3H2 in 15 embedded protostars in the Taurus molecular cloud, whose evolutionary stages range from prestellar to Class I/II, using data from the Submillimeter Telescope (SMT). We calculated the excitation temperature, column density, and abundance of C2H and c-C3H2 in each source. We compared those properties with evolutionary indicators of the protostars. We also estimated the kinetic temperature using RADEX. Finally, we compared the abundance of C2H and c-C3H2 in our survey with that in the survey of protostellar cores in the Perseus molecular cloud. While we are unable to identify new WCCCs, our results suggest that the abundances of C2H and c-C3H2 could be an indicator to find WCCC candidates.

Winds of massive stars are an important ingredient in determining their evolution, final remnant mass, and feedback to the surrounding interstellar medium. We compare empirical results for OB star winds at low metallicity with theoretical predictions. Observations suggest very weak winds at SMC metallicity, but there are exceptions. We identified promising candidates for rotationally enhanced mass-loss rates with two component wind and partially stripped stars hiding among OB stars with slow but dense wind in the SMC. A preliminary analysis of these systems, derived parameters, and their implications are discussed. Finally, we briefly discuss the interaction of OB winds near black holes in X-ray binaries.

The intense extreme ultraviolet radiation heats the upper atmosphere of close-in exoplanets and drives the atmospheric escape. The escaping process determines the planetary evolution of close-in planets. The mass loss rate depends on the UV flux at the planet. We introduce the relevant physical quantities which describe the dominant physics in the atmosphere. We find that the equilibrium temperature and the characteristic temperature determine whether the system becomes energy-limited or recombination-limited. We classify the observed close-in planets using the physical conditions. We also find that many of the Lyman-α absorptions detected planets receive intenser flux than the critical flux which can be determined from physical conditions. Our classification method can quantitatively reveal whether the EUV is not strong enough to drive the outflow or the Lyman- α absorption is not detected for some reason (e.g. stellar wind confinement). We also discuss the thermo-chemical structure of hydrodynamic simulations with the relevant physics.

Generally it is thought that shaping of planetary nebula from initially spherical envelope of asymptotic giant branch stars into non-spherical morphologies is a consequence of binary interactions. However, post asymptotic giant branch stars HD 235858 and HD 161796 seem to be at odds with this idea and perhaps the non-spherical nebulae surrounding them arose from intrinsic change in the nature of the stellar wind which is poorly understood for this evolutionary phase. Spectroscopic monitoring of these two stars has revealed signatures in the spectra that point to variable outflow. This indicates the prospect of spectroscopic monitoring to advance the knowledge of wind launching mechanism in post asymptotic giant branch stars and other dynamical processes in their extended atmospheres.

In this work we seek to derive simultaneously the stellar and wind parameters of massive stars, mainly A and B type supergiant stars. Our stellar properties encompass the effective temperature, the surface gravity, the micro-turbulence velocity and, silicon abundance. For wind properties we consider the line–force parameters (α, k and δ) obtained from the standard line-driven wind theory. To model the data we use the radiative transport code Fastwind considering the hydrodynamic solutions derived with the stationary code Hydwind. Then, ISOSCELES, a grid of stellar atmosphere and hydrodynamic models of massive stars is created. Together with the observed spectra and a semi-automatic tool the physical properties from these stars are determined through spectral line fittings. This quantitative spectroscopic analysis provide an estimation about the line–force parameters. In addition, we confirm that the hydrodynamic solutions, called δ-slow solutions, describe quite reliable the radiation line-driven winds of B supergiant stars.

Star-formation is one of the main processes that shape galaxies, defining its stellar population and metallicity production and enrichment. It is nowadays known that this process is ruled by a set of relations that connect three parameters: the molecular gas mass, the stellar mass and the star-formation rate itself. These relations are fulfilled at a wide range of scales in galaxies, from galaxy wide to kpc-scales. At which scales they are broken, and how universal they are (i.e., if they change at different scales or for different galaxy types) it is still an open question. We explore here how those relations compare at different scales using as proxy the new analysis done using Integral Field Spectroscopy data and CO observations data from the EDGE-CALIFA survey and the AMUSSING++ compilation.

Remarkable progress has been made in the last few years in understanding the global properties of galaxies and how they evolve through cosmic time. Major focus has been given to studies of how the availability of molecular gas regulates star-forming activity and galaxy growth, the eventual quenching of star formation, and how these mechanisms evolve through cosmic time. Most of these advances have been made thanks to ALMA and the upgraded capabilities of NOEMA. In this contribution, I briey review the latest constraints on the molecular gas content based on dierent tracers of the interstellar medium (ISM; dust continuum and CO, [CI] and [CII] line emission), including recent determinations of the molecular gas fraction, gas depletion timescales, and molecular gas cosmic density provided by the recent ALMA programs out to z ∼ 7. Finally, I concentrate on recent and ongoing studies aiming to spatially and kinematically resolve the cold ISM and star formation activity down to kpc scales in galaxies out to z ∼ 6 – 7, which represent an unprecedented view of the galaxy assembly and feedback processes in the early universe.

NGC 5128 galaxy is a giant elliptical galaxy located in the Centaurus group of galaxies at 3.8 Mpc. We aim to study the star formation history (SFH) of two different fields of the galaxy. The northeastern field (Field 1) is located at a distance of 18.8 kpc, while the southern field (Field 2) is at 9.9 kpc. We use a photometric method that is based on identifying long period variable (LPV) stars and asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, as they are strong tracers of star formation and galaxy evolution due to their luminosity and variability; 395 LPVs in Field 1 and 671 LPVs in Field 2 have been identified. These two fields present similar SFHs, although the SF rate of Field 2 is more enhanced. We find that the galaxy has three major star formation episodes t ∼ 800 Myr ago, t ∼ 3.2 Gyr ago, and t ∼ 10 Gyr ago, where t is look-back time. The rate of star formation at ∼ 800 Myr ago agrees with previous studies suggesting that the galaxy experienced a merger around that time. Furthermore, NGC 5128 has experienced a lower star formation rate in its recent history which could have been driven by jet-induction star formation and multiple outbursts of AGN activity in this galaxy, as well as a minor merger around 400 Myr ago.

In order to study gas evolution in the central region of a barred galaxy, we have performed numerical simulations of gas in the potential of the barred galaxy. We have found that the bar potential produces a gas ring within the central 1 kpc region. In the gas ring, active star and star cluster formations take place. Since the gas ring is dense enough to become self-gravitationally unstable, gas clouds form in the ring. These gas clouds interact gravitationally and collide with the other clouds. Such interaction and collision reduces their angular momentums effectively, and finally gas clouds fall into the galactic center. These processes triggers episodic gas fueling to the galactic center.

HI and CO observations indicate that the cold gas in galaxies is very turbulent. However, the turbulent energy is expected to be quickly dissipated, implying that some energy source is needed to explain the observations. The nature of such turbulence was long unclear, as even the main candidate, supernova (SN) feedback, seemed insufficient. Other mechanisms have been proposed, but without reaching a general consensus. The key novelty of our work is considering that the gas disc thickness and flaring increase the dissipation timescale of turbulence, thus reducing the energy injection rate required to sustain it. In excellent agreement with the theoretical expectations, we found that the fraction of the SN energy (a.k.a. SN coupling efficiency) needed to maintain the cold gas turbulence is ∼ 1%, solving a long-standing conundrum.

The solar hydrologic cycle is the process of comets delivering water and gasses to the planets by collision, and solar wind stripping water and gasses from the planets and delivering them back to the Kuiper Belt. This new theory of solar hydrologic cycle provides that the solar hydrologic cycle is the continuation of planetary formation, and the cause of outer planets becoming gas giants, inner planets staying small rocks.