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Wolf-Rayet stars as tracing the AGN-starburst connection

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 May 2016

Daniel Kunth
Affiliation:
Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, France
Thierry Contini
Affiliation:
European Southern Observatory, Garching, Germany

Abstract

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We stress the importance of Wolf-Rayet stars for the understanding of the AGN phenomenon in galaxies. WR stars provide an unique opportunity to explore from the ground whether non-thermal nuclear activity and circumnuclear starbursts are connected. We review the known reported WR signatures observed so far in AGNs and point out some intrincacies related to the analysis of the spectra, linked to reddening correction, the origin of the Hβ line, etc. Finally, we advocate that integral field spectroscopy is a very promising tool to study this problem and present preliminary results of a long-term project that have been obtained at the CFHT in 1998.

Type
Part 6. Starbursts in normal and active galaxies: their effects on the ISM and on chemical evolution
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of the Pacific 1999 

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