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[KKS2000]04 (NGC1052-DF2) has become a controversial and well-studied galaxy after the claims suggesting a lack of dark matter and the presence of an anomalously bright globular cluster (GC) system around it. A precise determination of its overall star formation history (SFH) as well as a better characterisation of its GC or planetary nebulae (PN) systems are crucial aspects to: i) understand its real nature, in particular placing it within the family of ultra diffuse galaxies; ii) shed light on its possible formation, evolution, and survival in the absence of dark matter. With this purpose we expand on the knowledge of [KKS2000]04 from the analysis of OSIRIS@GTC spectroscopic data. On the one hand, we claim the possible detection of two new PNe and confirm membership of 5 GCs. On the other hand, we find that the stars shaping [KKS2000]04 are intermediate-age to old (90\% of its stellar mass older than 5 Gyr, average age of 8.7 $\pm$ 0.7 Gyr) and metal-poor ([M/H] $\sim$ -1.18 $\pm$ 0.05), in general agreement with previous results. We do not find any clear hints of significant changes in its stellar content with radius. In addition, the possibility of [KKS2000]04 being a tidal dwarf galaxy with no dark matter is highly disfavoured., 10 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

Taking advantage of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Stripe82 data, we have explored the spatial distribution of ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs) within an area of 8$\times$8 Mpc$^2$ centred around the galaxy cluster Abell 168 ($z$ = 0.045). This intermediate massive cluster ($\sigma$ = 550 km s$^{-1}$) is surrounded by a complex large-scale structure. Our work confirms the presence of UDGs in the cluster and in the large-scale structure that surrounds it, and it is the first detection of UDGs outside clusters. Approximately 50 per cent of the UDGs analysed in the selected area inhabit the cluster region ($\sim$11 $\pm$ 5 per cent in the core and $\sim$39 $\pm$ 9 per cent in the outskirts), whereas the remaining UDGs are found outside the main cluster structure ($\sim$50 $\pm$ 11 per cent). The colours and the spatial distribution of the UDGs within this large-scale structure are more similar to the dwarf galaxies than to L$_\star$ galaxies, suggesting that most of UDGs could be bona fide dwarf galaxies., Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures. Accepted version for publication in MNRAS

To provide a quantitative cosmological context to ongoing observational work on the formation histories and location of compact massive galaxies, we locate and study a sample of exceptionally compact systems in the Bolshoi simulation, using the dark matter structural parameters from a real, compact massive galaxy (NGC 1277) as a basis for our working criteria. We find that over 80% of objects in this nominal compact category are substructures of more massive groups or clusters, and that the probability of a given massive substructure being this compact increases significantly with the mass of the host structure; rising to ~30% for the most massive clusters in the simulation. Tracking the main progenitors of this subsample back to z=2, we find them all to be distinct structures with scale radii and densities representative of the population as a whole at this epoch. What does characterise their histories, in addition to mostly becoming substructures, is that they have almost all experienced below-average mass accretion since z=2; a third of them barely retaining, or even losing mass during the intervening 10 Gyr., 9 pages, 9 figures

To study how the environment can influence the relation between stellar mass and effective radius of nearby galaxies (z < 0.12), we use a mass-complete sample extracted from the NYU-Value Added Catalogue. This sample contains almost 232000 objects with masses up to $3\times10^{11}M_{\odot}$. For every galaxy in our sample, we explore the surrounding density within 2 Mpc using two different estimators of the environment. We find that galaxies tend to be larger in the field than in high density regions. This effect is more pronounced for late-type morphologies (~7.5% larger) and especially at low masses ($M < 2\times10^{10}M_{\odot}$), although early-type galaxies also show differences (~3.5%). The environment also leaves a subtle imprint in the scatter of the stellar mass-size relation. This scatter is larger in low density regions than in high density regions for both morphologies, on average ~3.5% larger for early-type and ~0.8% for late-type galaxies. Late-type galaxies with low masses ($M, 18 pages, 12 figures, 7 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

In order to probe the inside-out formation of the most massive galaxies in the Universe, we have explored the radial (0.1 < R < 8 kpc) variation of the spectral energy distribution (SED) of M87 from UV to IR. For this purpose, we have combined high resolution data in 16 different bands. Our analysis indicate that the age of the stellar population of M87 remains almost unchanged with radius. However, the metallicity ([Z/H]) profile presents three different zones: the innermost kpc shows a plateau with supersolar metallicity, followed by a decline in metallicity down to 5 kpc and another plateau afterwards. The size of the inner plateau is similar to the expected size (Re) of an object with the predicted mass of M87 at z=2. The global [Z/H] gradient is -0.26 +- 0.10, similar to those found in other nearby massive ellipticals. The observed change in the stellar population of M87 is consistent with a rapid formation of the central part (R, Accepted in MNRAS

The mechanism causing breaks in the radial surface brightness distribution of spiral galaxies is not yet well known. Despite theoretical efforts, there is not a unique explanation for these features and the observational results are not conclusive. In an attempt to address this problem, we have selected a sample of 34 highly inclined spiral galaxies present both in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and in the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies. We have measured the surface brightness profiles in the five Sloan optical bands and in the 3.6$\mu m$ Spitzer band. We have also calculated the color and stellar surface mass density profiles using the available photometric information, finding two differentiated features: an innermost break radius at distances of $\sim 8 \pm 1$ kpc [$0.77 \pm 0.06$ $R_{25}$] and a second characteristic radius, or truncation radius, close to the outermost optical extent ($\sim 14 \pm 2$ kpc [$1.09 \pm 0.05$ $R_{25}$]) of the galaxy. We propose in this work that the breaks might be a phenomena related to a threshold in the star formation, while truncations are more likely a real drop in the stellar mass density of the disk associated with the maximum angular momentum of the stars.

We characterize the kinematics, morphology, stellar populations and star formation histories of a sample of massive compact galaxies in the nearby Universe, which might provide a closer look at the nature of their high-redshift (z >rsim 1.0) massive counterparts. We find that nearby compact massive objects show elongated morphologies and are fast rotators. New high-quality long-slit spectra show that they have young mean luminosity-weighted ages (2 Gyr) and metallicities solar or above ([Z/H] >rsim 0.0). No significant stellar population gradients are found. The analysis of their star formation histories suggests that these objects have experienced recently enormous bursts which, in some cases, represent unprecedented large fractions of their total stellar mass. These galaxies seem to be truly unique, as they do not follow the characteristic kinematical and stellar population patterns of present-day massive ellipticals, spirals or even dwarfs.

Accretion of minor satellites has been postulated as the most likely mechanism to explain the significant size evolution of the massive galaxies over cosmic time. Using a sample of 629 massive (Mstar~10^11 Msun) galaxies from the near-infrared Palomar/DEEP-2 survey, we explore which fraction of these objects has satellites with 0.01 Msat < Mcentral < 1 (1:100) up to z=1 and which fraction has satellites with 0.1 Msat < Mcentral < 1 (1:10) up to z=2 within a projected radial distance of 100 kpc. We find that the fraction of massive galaxies with satellites, after the background correction, remains basically constant and close to ~30% for satellites with a mass ratio down to 1:100 up to z=1, and ~15% for satellites with a 1:10 mass ratio up to z=2. The family of spheroid-like massive galaxies presents a 2-3 times larger fraction of objects with satellites than the group of disk-like massive galaxies. A crude estimation of the number of 1:3 mergers a massive spheroid-like galaxy experiences since z~2 is around 2. For a disk-like galaxy this number decreases to ~1.

We present measurements of the mean mid-infrared-to-submillimeter flux densities of massive (M\ast \approx 2 \times 10^11 Msun) galaxies at redshifts 1.7 2 (spheroid-like) population may be forming stars at a median [interquartile] SFR = 14 [9,20] Msun yr^-1, if at all. Finally, we show that star formation is a plausible mechanism for size evolution in this population as a whole, but find only marginal evidence that it is what drives the expansion of the spheroid-like galaxies.

At a fixed stellar mass, the size of low-redshift early-type galaxies is found to be a factor of 2 larger than that of their counterparts at z∼ 1, a result with important implications for galaxy formation models. In this paper, we have explored the buildup of the local mass–size relation of elliptical galaxies using two visually classified samples. At low redshift, we compiled a subsample of 2656 elliptical galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, whereas at higher redshift (up to z∼ 1), we extracted a sample of 228 objects from the Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys images of the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey. All the galaxies in our study have spectroscopic data, allowing us to determine the age and mass of the stellar component. Contrary to previous claims in the literature, using the fossil record information contained in the stellar populations of our local sample, we do not find any evidence for an age segregation at a given stellar mass, depending on the size of the galaxies. At a fixed dynamical mass, there is only a ≲9 per cent size difference in the two extreme age quartiles of our sample. Consequently, the local evidence does not support a scenario whereby the present-day mass–size relation has been progressively established via a bottom-up sequence, where older galaxies occupy the lower part of this relation, remaining in place since their formation. We do not find any age-segregation difference in our high-z sample either. Therefore, we find a trend in size that is insensitive to the age of the stellar populations, at least since z∼ 1. This result supports the idea that the stellar mass–size relation is formed at z∼ 1, with all galaxies populating a region which roughly corresponds to 1/2 of the present size distribution. We have explored two possible scenarios for size growth: puffing up or minor merging. The fact that the evolution in size is independent of the stellar age, together with the absence of an increase in the scatter of the relationship with redshift does not support the puffing-up mechanism. The observational evidence, however, cannot reject at this stage the minor-merging hypothesis. We have made an estimation of the number of minor-merger events necessary to bring the high-z galaxies into the local relation compatible with the observed size evolution. Since z= 0.8, if the mass ratio of the merger is 1:3, then we estimate ∼3 ± 1 minor mergers and if the ratio is 1:10, then we obtain ∼8 ± 2 events.

We present a new cataloge of EROs from the Groth strip and study the relation between their morphology and mass. We find 102 EROs (F814W-K=>4, K

We present the details and early results from a deep near-infrared survey utilising the NICMOS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope centred around massive M_* > 10^11 M_0 galaxies at 1.7 10^11 M_0, whereby we find an increase of a factor of eight between z = 3 and z = 1.5, demonstrating that this is an epoch when massive galaxies establish most of their mass.

We have analysed the rest-frame far infrared (FIR) properties of a sample of massive (Mstar > 10^11Msun) galaxies at 2

The population of compact massive galaxies observed at z > 1 are hypothesised, both observationally and in simulations, to be merger remnants of gas-rich disc galaxies. To probe such a scenario we analyse a sample of 12 gas-rich and active star forming sub-mm galaxies (SMGs) at 1.8 < z < 3. We present a structural and size measurement analysis for all of these objects using very deep ACS and NICMOS imaging in the GOODS-North field. Our analysis reveals a heterogeneous mix of morphologies and sizes. We find that four galaxies (33% \pm 17%) show clear signs of mergers or interactions, which we classify as early-stage mergers. The remaining galaxies are divided into two categories: five of them (42% \pm 18%) are diffuse and regular disc-like objects, while three (25% \pm 14%) are very compact, spheroidal systems. We argue that these three categories can be accommodated into an evolutionary sequence, showing the transformation from isolated, gas-rich discs with typical sizes of 2-3 kpc, into compact (< 1 kpc) galaxies through violent major merger events, compatible with the scenario depicted by theoretical models. Our findings that some SMGs are already dense and compact provides strong support to the idea that SMGs are the precursors of the compact, massive galaxies found at slightly lower redshift.

We present the results of a study on the properties and evolution of massive (M_* > 10^11 M_0) galaxies at z~0.4 - 2 utilising Keck spectroscopy, near-Infrared Palomar imaging, and Hubble, Chandra, and Spitzer data covering fields targeted by the DEEP2 galaxy spectroscopic survey. Our sample is K band selected based on wide-area NIR imaging from the Palomar Observatory Wide-Field Infrared Survey, which covers 1.53 deg^2 to K_s,vega~20.5. Our major findings include: (i) statistically the mass and number densities of M_* > 10^11 M_0 galaxies show little evolution between z = 0 - 1, and from z ~ 0 - 2 for M_* > 10^11.5 M_0 galaxies. (ii) Using Hubble ACS imaging, we find that M_* > 10^11 selected galaxies show a nearly constant elliptical fraction of ~70-90% at all redshifts. The remaining objects are peculiars possibly undergoing mergers at z > 0.8, while spirals dominate the remainder at lower redshifts. (iii) We find that only a fraction (~60%) of massive galaxies with M_* > 10^11 M_0 are on the red-sequence at z~1.4, while nearly 100% evolve onto it by z~0.4. (iv) By utilising Spitzer MIPS imaging and [OII] line fluxes we argue that M_* > 10^11.5 galaxies have a steeply declining star formation rate density ~(1+z)^6. By examining the contribution of star formation to the evolution of the mass function, as well as the merger history through the CAS parameters, we determine that M_* >10^11 M_0 galaxies undergo on average 0.9^+0.7_-0.5 major mergers at 0.4 10^11 M_0 galaxies are X-ray emitters. Roughly half of these are morphologically distorted ellipticals or peculiars. We compare our results with the Millennium simulation, finding that the number and mass densities of M_* > 10^11.5 M_0 galaxies are under predicted by a factor of > 100.

We present a detailed surface density analysis of a large sample of simulated collisionless mergers of disc galaxies with bulges (mass ratios 1:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, and 6:1) and without bulges (mass ratios 1:1 and 3:1). They were classified, according to their bulge--to--total ($B/T$) ratio, either as a one-component system or as a two-component systems. In general projection effects change the classification of a remnant. Only merger remnants of discs with bulges show properties similar to observed early--type galaxies. Their B/T ratios are in the range $0.2

Quantitative structural analysis of the galaxies present in the Hawaiian Deep Fields SSA13 and SSA22 is reported. The structural parameters of the galaxies have been obtained automatically by fitting a two-component model (Sersic r^{1/n} bulge and exponential disc) to the surface brightness of the galaxies. The galaxies were classified on the basis of the bulge-to-total luminosity ratio (B/T). The magnitude selection criteria and the reliability of our method have been checked by using Monte Carlo simulations. A complete sample of objects up to redshift 0.8 has been achieved. Spheroidal objects (E/S0) represent ~33% and spirals ~41% of the total number of galaxies, while mergers and unclassified objects represent ~26%. We have computed the comoving space density of the different kinds of objects. In an Einstein-de Sitter universe a decrease in the comoving density of E/S0 galaxies is observed as redshift increases (a ~30% less at z=0.8), while for spiral galaxies a relatively quiet evolution is reported. The framework of hierarchical clustering evolution models of galaxies seems to be the most appropriate to explain our results., 9 pages, 5 figures, 3 tables, MNRAS accepted

We present deep K-band adaptive-optics observations of eight very massive (M* ~ 4 x 10^11 Msun) galaxies at 1 < z < 2 utilizing the Gemini NIRI/Altair Laser Guide System. These systems are selected from the Palomar Observatory Wide-Field Infrared (POWIR) survey, and are amongst the most massive field galaxies at these epochs. The depth and high spatial resolution of our images allow us to explore for the first time the stellar mass surface density distribution of massive distant galaxies from 1 to 15 kpc on an individual galaxy basis, rather than on stacked images. We confirm that some of these massive objects are extremely compact with measured effective radii between 0."1 - 0."2, giving sizes which are < 2 kpc, a factor of ~ 7 smaller in effective radii than similar mass galaxies today. Examining stellar mass surface densities as a function of fixed physical aperture, we find an over-density of material within the inner profiles, and an under-density in the outer profile, within these high-z galaxies compared with similar mass galaxies in the local universe. Consequently, massive galaxies should evolve in a way to decrease the stellar mass density in their inner region, and at the same time creating more extensive outer light envelopes. We furthermore show that ~ 38% +- 20% of our sample contains evidence for a disturbed outer stellar matter distribution suggesting that these galaxies are undergoing a recent dynamical episode, such as a merger or accretion event. We calculate that massive galaxies at z < 2 will undergo on the order of five of these events, a much higher rate than observed for major mergers, suggesting that these galaxies are growing in size and stellar mass in part through minor mergers during this epoch.