• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.73.2-73.2
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• 2019

The physical origin of low escape fractions of ionizing radiation derived from Lyman-break galaxies (LBGs) at z ~ 3 - 4 is a puzzle in the theory of reionization. We perform idealized disk galaxy simulations to investigate how galactic properties, such as metallicity and gas mass, affect the escape of Lyman continuum (LyC) photons using radiation-hydrodynamic code RAMSES-RT, with strong stellar feedback. We find that the luminosity-weighted escape fraction from a metal-poor (Z=0.002) galaxy embedded in a halo of mass M_h ~ 10¹¹ M_⊙ is 〈f^3D_esc〉 ~ 8%. However, when the gas metallicity is increased to Z=0.02, the escape fraction is significantly reduced to 〈f^3D_esc〉 ~ 1%, as young stars are enshrouded by their birth clouds for a longer period of time. On the other hand, increasing the gas mass by a factor of 5 leads to 〈f^3D_esc〉 ~ 4%, as LyC photons are only moderately absorbed by the thicker disk. Our experiments seem to suggest that high metallicity is primarily responsible for the low escape fractions observed from LBGs, supporting the scenario in which the escape fraction has a negative correlation with halo mass. Indeed, our simulated galaxy with the typical metallicity of LBGs (Z=0.006) shows the relative escape fraction of 8%, consistent with recent observations of galaxies with M₁₅₀₀ = -20.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.53.3-54
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• 2016

We combine a semi-analytic model of galaxy evolution with constraints on circumstellar habitable zones and the distribution of terrestrial planets in order to probe the suitability of galaxies of different mass and type to host habitable planets, and how it evolves with time. We find that the fraction of stars with terrestrial planets in their habitable zone (known as habitability) depends only weakly on galaxy mass, with a maximum around $4{\times}10^{10}M_{\odot}$. We estimate that 0.7% of all stars in Milky Way-type galaxies to host a terrestrial planet within their habitable zone, consistent with the value derived from Kepler observations. On the other hand, the habitability of passive galaxies is slightly but systematically higher, unless we assume an unrealistically high sensitivity of planets to supernovae. We find that the overall habitability of galaxies has not changed significantly in the last ~8 Gyr, with most of the habitable planets in local disk galaxies having formed ~1.5 Gyr before our own solar system. Finally, we expect that ${\sim}1.4{\times}10^9$ planets similar to present-day Earth have existed so far in our galaxy.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.53-58
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• 2010

The origin of the galaxies represents an important focus of current cosmological research, both observational and theoretical. Its resolution involves a comprehensive understanding of star formation and evolution, galaxy dynamics, supermassive black holes, and the cosmology of the very early universe. In this paper, I will review our current understanding of galaxy formation and review some of the challenges that lie ahead. Specific issues that I address include the galaxy luminosity function, feedback by supernovae and by AGN, and downsizing. I argue that current evidence favours two distinct modes of star formation in the early universe, in order to account for the origin of disk and massive spheroidal galaxies. However perhaps the most urgent need is for a robust theory of star formation.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.77.2-77.2
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• 2017

We investigate star formation activities of ~400 barred and unbarred faced-on late-type galaxies from the SDSS-IV MaNGA (Mapping Nearby Galaxies at APO) IFU survey. We find the star formation activities in gas-poor, barred galaxies are considerably suppressed than gas-rich, barred galaxies, while there is no difference among unbarred galaxies regardless of their HI gas content. The gas-poor and barred galaxies show the steeper difference of gradient in metallicity and age with respect to the stellar mass than gas-rich or unbarred galaxies, in that their centre is more metal-rich and younger. The results suggest that, combined with the gas contents available, the bar structure plays a significant role in quenching star formation in a galaxy by transporting/mixing gas via gas inflow.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.69.1-69.1
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• 2012

We present a comprehensive study of star-forming regions and young star clusters in M33. We use GALEX far-UV and near-UV imaging to detect these young stellar populations tracing recent star formation across the disk of M33. The GALEX imaging, combining deep sensitivity and entire coverage of the galaxy, provides a complete view of the recent star formation in M33 and its variation with environment throughout the galaxy. We discuss variation of various properties (e.g., age, mass, spatial distribution) of star-forming regions and young star clusters in M33 which allow to provide constraints of recent star formation history of this galaxy.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.70.1-70.1
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• 2019

Recent investigation of the APOGEE bulge stars by Zasowski et al. (2018) shows a fraction of stars enhanced in O, Ca, and Mg abundances. It is not clear, however, that this apparent ${\alpha}$-bimodality is reflecting a real feature or an artifact from spectral fitting. We will report our progress in understanding the nature and reality of this phenomenon. We will also discuss the spread in Na abundance among the inner bulge stars with respect to that observed among disk sample.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.48.3-48.3
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• 2015

Using numerical simulations, we study the effects of ram pressure stripping on dwarf galaxies. It is commonly assumed that ram pressure only affects the gas component of a galaxy. We find that it actually can affect the dynamics of the stars too, and even the dark matter surrounding the disk - an effect dubbed 'ram pressure drag'. We study the effects of ram pressure drag on tidal dwarf galaxies, and find the response is very strong. Tidal dwarfs may be entirely destroyed by gas removal, and their stellar dynamics may appear heavily dark matter dominated where no dark matter exists. We discuss the consequences for tidal dwarf evolution, tidal streams, and disk galaxy evolution in general.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.28.2-28.2
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• 2017

Using numerical hydrodynamics code RAMSES, we perform idealized galaxy merger simulations and study the star formation of merging disk galaxies. In our simulations, we consider the active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback effect. In order to investigate the star formation influenced by AGN, we run ~60 simulations with various initial conditions. We confirm that star formation is more efficiently suppressed in merging galaxies than in isolated galaxies. In the mergers, AGN effect is more significant when the masses of two galaxies are similar. Furthermore, we find that bulge fraction does not affect the star formation when the AGN effect is considered. We discuss the implications on semi-analytic galaxy formation models and the limitation of the current AGN prescriptions.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.40.3-41
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• 2016

Previous HI survey data have shown that the central HI gas in the Milky Way that resides within ~1.5 kpc of the Galactic Centre (GC) is tilted by ${\sim}15^{\circ}$ with respect to the Galactic plane. Although several models, such as a tilted disk model, have been suggested to interpret the observed morphology of the HI layer, it is still unknown what causes and how it preserves its tilted structure. We study the behavior of a gas disk near the GC using an N-body / SPH code. Our galaxy model includes four components; nuclear bulge, bulge, disk and halo. We construct a HI model whose radius is 1.3 kpc, scale height is 100 pc and mass is $3.6{\times}10^6M_{\odot}$. We also assume that the gas disk is initially tilted $30^{\circ}$ with respect to the Galactic plane. Here we report our simulation results and discuss the evolution of the tilted gas disk.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.31.3-31.3
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• 2017

The presence of a bar in disk galaxies indicates that galaxies reached their dynamical maturity, and secular evolution has started to play key roles in the evolution of disk galaxies. Numerical simulations predicted that as a barred galaxy evolves, the bar becomes longer by capturing its immediate neighbor disk stars. We test the hypothesis by exploring bar lengths and measuring the light deficit around the bar at various redshift. Supplementing already classified barred galaxies in later type disk galaxies ($$T{\geq_-}2$$, Sheth et al. 2008), we classify barred galaxies among earlier type disk galaxies (T<2) up to z~0.8 using F814W images from the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS). We estimate the length of bars analytically for ~400 galaxies, and find that there is a slight decrease in bar length with redshift. We also find that longer bars show more prominent light deficit around the bar and this trend is stronger for nearby galaxies. Our results are consistent with the predictions from numerical simulations, and imply that the bar induced secular evolution is already in place since z~0.8.