Galactic Atmospheres

Galactic Atmospheres Synopsis

Observational progress on numerous fronts, particularly with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope, have revealed that most of the gas associated with a galaxy lies outside of it, in its atmosphere and have also shown that what happens inside a galaxy is closely connected to what is happening in its atmosphere. Driven by these findings, astronomers are increasingly reconsidering the critical role of galactic atmospheres in regulating galaxy evolution. This book will present a unique perspective on galaxies and how they evolve, motivated by these recent findings about the surrounding gas. It will show how atmospheres around all galaxies, from small dwarf galaxies to the giant galaxies at the centers of galaxy clusters, respond to a common set of physical principles. Its focus will be on building physical intuition about how galaxies function as self-regulating systems, emphasizing how feedback powered by supernova explosions and gas accretion onto supermassive black holes shapes the populations of stars within galaxies. And it will conclude by pointing forward into the near future, anticipating what astronomers may soon learn about galactic atmospheres from coming advances in observational capabilities.

Key Features:

• Written by a world leading expert in the field

• Gives a unique synthesis of the atmospheric properties of galaxies, going from dwarf galaxies all the way up to the universe's biggest galaxies

• Provides a pedagogical approach that builds upon concepts from undergraduate physics and connects them with current research topics

• Suitable for supporting graduate courses that include galaxy evolution