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Stellar Populations in Nearby Lenticular Galaxies
We have obtained two-dimensional spectral data for a sample of 58 nearbyS0 galaxies with the Multi-Pupil Fiber/Field Spectrograph of the 6 mtelescope of the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the RussianAcademy of Sciences. The Lick indices Hβ, Mg b, and arecalculated separately for the nuclei and for the bulges taken as therings between R=4'' and 7", and the luminosity-weighted ages,metallicities, and Mg/Fe ratios of the stellar populations are estimatedby comparing the data to single stellar population (SSP) models. Fourtypes of galaxy environments are considered: clusters, centers ofgroups, other places in groups, and the field. The nuclei are found tobe on average slightly younger than the bulges in any type ofenvironment, and the bulges of S0 galaxies in sparse environments areyounger than those in dense environments. The effect can be partlyattributed to the well-known age correlation with the stellar velocitydispersion in early-type galaxies (in our sample the galaxies in sparseenvironments are on average less massive than those in denseenvironments), but for the most massive S0 galaxies, withσ*=170-220 km s-1, the age dependence on theenvironment is still significant at the confidence level of 1.5 σ.Based on observations collected with the 6 m telescope (BTA) at theSpecial Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) of the Russian Academy ofSciences (RAS).

The Hubble Space Telescope View of LINER Nuclei: Evidence for a Dual Population?
We study a complete, distance-limited sample of 25 LINERs, 21 of whichhave been imaged with the Hubble Space Telescope. In nine objects wedetect an unresolved nucleus. To study their physical properties, wecompare the radio and optical properties of the nuclei of LINERs withthose of other samples of local active galactic nuclei (AGNs), namely,Seyfert galaxies and low-luminosity radio galaxies (LLRGs). Our resultsshow that the LINER population is not homogeneous, as there are twosubclasses: (1) the first class is similar to the LLRG class, as itextends the population of radio-loud nuclei to lower luminosities; (2)the second is similar to Seyfert galaxies and extends the properties ofradio-quiet nuclei toward the lowest luminosities. The objects areoptimally discriminated in the plane formed by the black hole massversus nuclear radio loudness: all radio-loud LINERs haveMBH>~108Msolar, while Seyfertgalaxies and radio-quiet LINERs haveMBH<~108Msolar. The different natureof the various classes of local AGNs are best understood when thefraction of the Eddington luminosity they irradiate,Lo/LEdd, is plotted against the nuclearradio-loudness parameter: Seyfert galaxies are associated withrelatively high radiative efficienciesLo/LEdd>~10-4 (and high accretionrates onto low-mass black holes); LLRGs are associated with lowradiative efficiencies (and low accretion rates onto high-mass blackholes); all LINERs have low radiative efficiency (and accretion rates)and can be radio-loud or radio-quiet, depending on their black holemass.Based on observations obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute,which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research inAstronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS5-26555.

A New Nonparametric Approach to Galaxy Morphological Classification
We present two new nonparametric methods for quantifying galaxymorphology: the relative distribution of the galaxy pixel flux values(the Gini coefficient or G) and the second-order moment of the brightest20% of the galaxy's flux (M20). We test the robustness of Gand M20 to decreasing signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) and spatialresolution and find that both measures are reliable to within 10% forimages with average S/N per pixel greater than 2 and resolutions betterthan 1000 and 500 pc, respectively. We have measured G andM20, as well as concentration (C), asymmetry (A), andclumpiness (S) in the rest-frame near-ultraviolet/optical wavelengthsfor 148 bright local ``normal'' Hubble-type galaxies (E-Sd) galaxies, 22dwarf irregulars, and 73 0.05

Spectrophotometry of galaxies in the Virgo cluster. II. The data
Drift-scan mode (3600-6800 Å) spectra with 500

Deprojecting spiral galaxies using Fourier analysis. Application to the Frei sample
We present two methods that can be used to deproject spirals, based onFourier analysis of their images, and discuss their potential andrestrictions. Our methods perform particularly well for galaxies moreinclined than 50° or for non-barred galaxies moreinclined than 35°. They are fast and straightforward touse, and thus ideal for large samples of galaxies. Moreover, they arevery robust for low resolutions and thus are appropriate for samples ofcosmological interest. The relevant software is available from us uponrequest. We use these methods to determine the values of the positionand inclination angles for a sample of 79 spiral galaxies contained inthe Frei et al. (\cite{frei96}) sample. We compare our results with thevalues found in the literature, based on other methods. We findstatistically very good agreementTable 7 is only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymousftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/415/849

The Relationship between Stellar Light Distributions of Galaxies and Their Formation Histories
A major problem in extragalactic astronomy is the inability todistinguish in a robust, physical, and model-independent way how galaxypopulations are physically related to each other and to their formationhistories. A similar, but distinct, and also long-standing question iswhether the structural appearances of galaxies, as seen through theirstellar light distributions, contain enough physical information tooffer this classification. We argue through the use of 240 images ofnearby galaxies that three model-independent parameters measured on asingle galaxy image reveal its major ongoing and past formation modesand can be used as a robust classification system. These parametersquantitatively measure: the concentration (C), asymmetry (A), andclumpiness (S) of a galaxy's stellar light distribution. When combinedinto a three-dimensional ``CAS'' volume all major classes of galaxies invarious phases of evolution are cleanly distinguished. We argue thatthese three parameters correlate with important modes of galaxyevolution: star formation and major merging activity. This is arguedthrough the strong correlation of Hα equivalent width andbroadband colors with the clumpiness parameter S, the uniquely largeasymmetries of 66 galaxies undergoing mergers, and the correlation ofbulge to total light ratios, and stellar masses, with the concentrationindex. As an obvious goal is to use this system at high redshifts totrace evolution, we demonstrate that these parameters can be measured,within a reasonable and quantifiable uncertainty with available data outto z~3 using the Hubble Space Telescope GOODS ACS and Hubble Deep Fieldimages.

Redshift-Distance Survey of Early-Type Galaxies: Spectroscopic Data
We present central velocity dispersions and Mg2 line indicesfor an all-sky sample of ~1178 elliptical and S0 galaxies, of which 984had no previous measures. This sample contains the largest set ofhomogeneous spectroscopic data for a uniform sample of ellipticalgalaxies in the nearby universe. These galaxies were observed as part ofthe ENEAR project, designed to study the peculiar motions and internalproperties of the local early-type galaxies. Using 523 repeatedobservations of 317 galaxies obtained during different runs, the dataare brought to a common zero point. These multiple observations, takenduring the many runs and different instrumental setups employed for thisproject, are used to derive statistical corrections to the data and arefound to be relatively small, typically <~5% of the velocitydispersion and 0.01 mag in the Mg2 line strength. Typicalerrors are about 8% in velocity dispersion and 0.01 mag inMg2, in good agreement with values published elsewhere.

A new catalogue of ISM content of normal galaxies
We have compiled a catalogue of the gas content for a sample of 1916galaxies, considered to be a fair representation of ``normality''. Thedefinition of a ``normal'' galaxy adopted in this work implies that wehave purposely excluded from the catalogue galaxies having distortedmorphology (such as interaction bridges, tails or lopsidedness) and/orany signature of peculiar kinematics (such as polar rings,counterrotating disks or other decoupled components). In contrast, wehave included systems hosting active galactic nuclei (AGN) in thecatalogue. This catalogue revises previous compendia on the ISM contentof galaxies published by \citet{bregman} and \citet{casoli}, andcompiles data available in the literature from several small samples ofgalaxies. Masses for warm dust, atomic and molecular gas, as well asX-ray luminosities have been converted to a uniform distance scale takenfrom the Catalogue of Principal Galaxies (PGC). We have used twodifferent normalization factors to explore the variation of the gascontent along the Hubble sequence: the blue luminosity (LB)and the square of linear diameter (D225). Ourcatalogue significantly improves the statistics of previous referencecatalogues and can be used in future studies to define a template ISMcontent for ``normal'' galaxies along the Hubble sequence. The cataloguecan be accessed on-line and is also available at the Centre desDonnées Stellaires (CDS).The catalogue is available in electronic form athttp://dipastro.pd.astro.it/galletta/ismcat and at the CDS via anonymousftp to\ cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via\http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/405/5

Identification and classification of galaxies using a biologically-inspired neutral network
Recognition/Classification of galaxies is an important issue in thelarge-scale study of the Universe; it is not a simple task. According toestimates computed from the Hubble Deep Field (HDF), astronomers predictthat the universe may potentially contain over 100 billion galaxies.Several techniques have been reported for the classification ofgalaxies. Parallel developments in the field of neural networks havecome to a stage that they can participate well in the recognition ofobjects. Recently, the Pulse-Coupled Neural Network (PCNN) has beenshown to be useful for image pre-processing. In this paper, we present anovel way to identify optical galaxies by presenting the images of thegalaxies to a hierarchical neural network involving two PCNNs. The imageis presented to the network to generate binary barcodes (one periteration) of the galaxies; the barcodes are unique to the inputgalactic image. In the current study, we exploit this property toidentify optical galaxies by comparing the signatures (binary barcode)from a corresponding database.

Bar Galaxies and Their Environments
The prints of the Palomar Sky Survey, luminosity classifications, andradial velocities were used to assign all northern Shapley-Ames galaxiesto either (1) field, (2) group, or (3) cluster environments. Thisinformation for 930 galaxies shows no evidence for a dependence of barfrequency on galaxy environment. This suggests that the formation of abar in a disk galaxy is mainly determined by the properties of theparent galaxy, rather than by the characteristics of its environment.

Redshift-Distance Survey of Early-Type Galaxies. I. The ENEARc Cluster Sample
This paper presents data on the ENEARc subsample of the larger ENEARsurvey of nearby early-type galaxies. The ENEARc galaxies belong toclusters and were specifically chosen to be used for the construction ofa Dn-σ template. The ENEARc sample includes newmeasurements of spectroscopic and photometric parameters (redshift,velocity dispersion, line index Mg2, and the angular diameterdn), as well as data from the literature. New spectroscopicdata are given for 229 cluster early-type galaxies, and new photometryis presented for 348 objects. Repeat and overlap observations withexternal data sets are used to construct a final merged catalogconsisting of 640 early-type galaxies in 28 clusters. Objectivecriteria, based on catalogs of groups of galaxies derived from completeredshift surveys of the nearby universe, are used to assign galaxies toclusters. In a companion paper, these data are used to construct thetemplate Dn-σ distance relation for early-typegalaxies, which has been used to estimate galaxy distances and derivepeculiar velocities for the ENEAR all-sky sample. Based on observationsat Complejo Astronomico El Leoncito, operated under agreement betweenthe Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas de laRepública Argentina and the National Universities of La Plata,Córdoba, and San Juan; Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory,National Optical Astronomical Observatory, which is operated by theAssociation of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., undercooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation; the EuropeanSouthern Observatory (ESO), partially under the ESO-ON agreement; theFred Lawrence Whipple Observatory; the Observatório do Pico dosDias, operated by the Laboratório Nacional de Astrofísicaand the MDM Observatory at Kitt Peak.

The UZC-SSRS2 Group Catalog
We apply a friends-of-friends algorithm to the combined Updated ZwickyCatalog and Southern Sky Redshift Survey to construct a catalog of 1168groups of galaxies; 411 of these groups have five or more members withinthe redshift survey. The group catalog covers 4.69 sr, and all groupsexceed the number density contrast threshold, δρ/ρ=80. Wedemonstrate that the groups catalog is homogeneous across the twounderlying redshift surveys; the catalog of groups and their membersthus provides a basis for other statistical studies of the large-scaledistribution of groups and their physical properties. The medianphysical properties of the groups are similar to those for groupsderived from independent surveys, including the ESO Key Programme andthe Las Campanas Redshift Survey. We include tables of groups and theirmembers.

Compact groups in the UZC galaxy sample
Applying an automatic neighbour search algorithm to the 3D UZC galaxycatalogue (Falco et al. \cite{Falco}) we have identified 291 compactgroups (CGs) with radial velocity between 1000 and 10 000 kms-1. The sample is analysed to investigate whether Tripletsdisplay kinematical and morphological characteristics similar to higherorder CGs (Multiplets). It is found that Triplets constitute lowvelocity dispersion structures, have a gas-rich galaxy population andare typically retrieved in sparse environments. Conversely Multipletsshow higher velocity dispersion, include few gas-rich members and aregenerally embedded structures. Evidence hence emerges indicating thatTriplets and Multiplets, though sharing a common scale, correspond todifferent galaxy systems. Triplets are typically field structures whilstMultiplets are mainly subclumps (either temporarily projected orcollapsing) within larger structures. Simulations show that selectioneffects can only partially account for differences, but significantcontamination of Triplets by field galaxy interlopers could eventuallyinduce the observed dependences on multiplicity. Tables 1 and 2 are onlyavailable in electronic at the CDS via anonymous ftp tocdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.125.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/391/35

Radio continuum and CO emission in star-forming galaxies
We combine the radio continuum images from the NRAO VLA Sky Survey withthe CO-line observations from the extragalactic CO survey of the FiveCollege Radio Astronomy Observatory to study the relationship betweenmolecular gas and the star formation rate within the disks of 180 spiralgalaxies at 45\arcsec resolution. We find a tight correlation betweenthese quantities. On average, the ratio between the radio continuum andthe CO emission is constant, within a factor of 3, both inside the samegalaxy and from galaxy to galaxy. The mean star formation efficiencydeduced from the radio continuum corresponds to convert 3.5% of theavailable molecular gas into stars on a time scale of 108 yrand depends weakly on general galaxy properties, such as Hubble type ornuclear activity. A comparison is made with another similar analysisperformed using the Halpha luminosity as star formationindicator. The overall agreement we find between the two studiesreinforces the use of the radio luminosity as star formation rateindicator not only on global but also on local scales.

Molecular gas in normal late-type galaxies
We present 12CO(J=1-0) line observations of 22 low-luminosityspiral galaxies in the Virgo cluster. These data, together with 244others available in the literature, allow us to build a large samplethat we use to study the molecular gas properties of galaxies spanning alarge range of morphological types and luminosities and belonging todifferent environments (clusters - field). The molecular gas content ofthe target galaxies is estimated using a luminosity-dependent X =N(H_2)/I(CO) conversion factor that has been calibrated on a sample ofnearby galaxies. X spans from ~ 1020 mol cm-2 (Kkm s-1)-1 in giant spirals to ~ 1021mol cm-2 (K km s-1)-1 in dwarfirregulars. The value of the X conversion factor is found consistentwith a value derived independently from dust masses estimated from FIRfluxes, with a metallicity-dependent dust to gas ratio. Therelationships between X and the UV radiation field (as traced by theHα +[NII]EW), the metallicity and the H band luminosity areanalysed. We show that the molecular gas contained in molecular cloudsor complexes is of the order of 15% of the total gas on average whateverthe luminosity or the Hubble type of the galaxies. We discuss therelation between the star formation rate and the molecular gas contentand estimate the average star formation efficiency of late-typegalaxies. Based on observations made with the 12-m National RadioAstronomical Observatory, Kitt Peak, Arizona.

The Soft X-Ray Properties of Nearby Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei and their Contribution to the Cosmic X-Ray Background
We have examined ROSAT soft X-ray observations of a complete,distance-limited sample of Seyfert and LINER galaxies. X-ray data areavailable for 46 out of 60 such objects which lie within a hemisphere ofradius 18 Mpc. We have constructed radial profiles of the nuclearsources in order to characterize their spatial extent and, in somecases, to help constrain the amount of flux associated with a nuclearpoint source. PSPC data from ROSAT have been used to explore thespectral characteristics of the objects with sufficient numbers ofdetected counts. Based on the typical spectral parameters of thesesources, we have estimated the luminosities of the weaker sources in thesample. We then explore the relationship between the soft X-ray andHα luminosities of the observed objects; these quantities arecorrelated for higher luminosity AGNs. We find a weak correlation at lowluminosities as well, and we have used this relationship to predictLX for the 14 objects in our sample that lack X-ray data.Using the results of the spatial and spectral analyses, we have comparedthe X-ray properties of Seyferts and LINERs, finding no strikingdifferences between the two classes of objects. However, both types ofobjects often exhibit significant amounts of extended emission, whichcould minimize the appearance of differences in their nuclearproperties. The soft X-ray characteristics of the type 1 and type 2active galaxies in the sample are also discussed. We then compute thelocal X-ray volume emissivity of low-luminosity Seyferts and LINERs andinvestigate their contribution to the cosmic X-ray background. The0.5-2.0 keV volume emissivity of 2.2×1038 ergss-1 Mpc-3 we obtain for our sample suggests thatlow-luminosity AGNs produce at least 9% of the soft X-ray background.

Asymmetry in Isolated, Morphologically Normal SA Galaxies
We have examined the morphological and dynamical H I symmetry propertiesof a sample of moderately inclined Sa galaxies classified asmorphologically normal. The sample galaxies were known a priori toexhibit kinematic peculiarities ranging from warps to independent,wholly decoupled disks and are possibly the remnants of minor mergers.We compare the asymmetry of the rotation curves to global kinematicasymmetry and find a relationship between rotation curve asymmetry andthe kinematic n=2 mode. We have also examined the kinematics of thesegalaxies following the discussion of Briggs and find that the warpsobserved in the H I disks of these galaxies deviate significantly fromthe simple rules for warps that commonly apply.

Nearby Optical Galaxies: Selection of the Sample and Identification of Groups
In this paper we describe the Nearby Optical Galaxy (NOG) sample, whichis a complete, distance-limited (cz<=6000 km s-1) andmagnitude-limited (B<=14) sample of ~7000 optical galaxies. Thesample covers 2/3 (8.27 sr) of the sky (|b|>20deg) andappears to have a good completeness in redshift (97%). We select thesample on the basis of homogenized corrected total blue magnitudes inorder to minimize systematic effects in galaxy sampling. We identify thegroups in this sample by means of both the hierarchical and thepercolation ``friends-of-friends'' methods. The resulting catalogs ofloose groups appear to be similar and are among the largest catalogs ofgroups currently available. Most of the NOG galaxies (~60%) are found tobe members of galaxy pairs (~580 pairs for a total of ~15% of objects)or groups with at least three members (~500 groups for a total of ~45%of objects). About 40% of galaxies are left ungrouped (field galaxies).We illustrate the main features of the NOG galaxy distribution. Comparedto previous optical and IRAS galaxy samples, the NOG provides a densersampling of the galaxy distribution in the nearby universe. Given itslarge sky coverage, the identification of groups, and its high-densitysampling, the NOG is suited to the analysis of the galaxy density fieldof the nearby universe, especially on small scales.

Radio Sources in Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei. I. VLA Detections of Compact, Flat-Spectrum Cores
We report a high-resolution (0.2"), 15 GHz survey of a sample of 48low-luminosity active galactic nuclei with the Very LargeArray.5 Compact radio emission has beendetected above a flux density of 1.1 mJy in 57% (17 of 30) oflow-ionization nuclear emission-line region (LINER) nuclei andlow-luminosity Seyfert galaxies. The 2 cm radio power is significantlycorrelated with the emission-line ([O I] λ6300) luminosity. Usingradio fluxes at other frequencies from the literature, we find that atleast 15 of the 18 detected radio cores have a flat to inverted spectrum(α>=-0.3, Sν~να). While thepresent observations are consistent with the radio emission originatingin star-forming regions (the brightness temperatures are>=102.5-4.5 K), higher resolution radio observations of 10of the detected sources, reported in an accompanying paper, show thatthe cores are very compact (<~1 pc), of high brightness temperature(Tb>~108 K), and probably synchrotronself-absorbed, ruling out a starburst origin. Thus, our results suggestthat at least 50% of low-luminosity Seyfert galaxies and LINERs in thesample are accretion powered, with the radio emission presumably comingfrom jets or advection-dominated accretion flows. We have detected only1 of 18 ``transition'' (i.e., LINER+H II) nuclei observed, indicatingthat their radio cores are significantly weaker than those of ``pure''LINERs. Compact 2 cm radio cores are found in both type 1 (i.e., withbroad Hα) and type 2 (without broad Hα) nuclei. There isweak evidence, limited in significance by small numbers, thatlow-luminosity active galactic nuclei with compact radio cores exhibitradio ejecta preferentially aligned along the rotation axis of thegalaxy disk. If this result were confirmed by a larger sample, it wouldlend support to the idea that the misalignment of accretion disks withthe galaxy stellar disk in more luminous Seyfert galaxies is a result ofradiation-pressure-induced warping of their accretion disks.

The Asymmetry of Galaxies: Physical Morphology for Nearby and High-Redshift Galaxies
We present a detailed study of rotational asymmetry in galaxies for bothmorphological and physical diagnostic purposes. An unambiguous methodfor computing asymmetry is developed, which is robust for both distantand nearby galaxies. By degrading real galaxy images, we test thereliability of this asymmetry measure over a range of observationalconditions, e.g., spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio (S/N).Compared to previous methods, this new algorithm avoids the ambiguityassociated with choosing a center by using a minimization method andsuccessfully corrects for variations in S/N. There is, however, a strongrelationship between the rotational asymmetry and physical resolution(distance at fixed spatial resolution): objects become more symmetricwhen less well-resolved. We further investigate asymmetry as a functionof galactic radius and rotation. We find the asymmetry index has astrong radial dependence that differs vastly between Hubble types. As aresult, a meaningful asymmetry index must be specified within awell-defined radius representative of the physical galaxy scale. Weenumerate several viable alternatives, which exclude the use ofisophotes. Asymmetry as a function of angle (Aφ) is alsoa useful indicator of ellipticity and higher order azimuthal structure.In general, we show that the power of asymmetry as a morphologicalparameter lies in the strong correlation with B-V color for galaxiesundergoing normal star formation spanning all Hubble types fromellipticals to irregular galaxies. The few interacting galaxies in ourstudy do not fall on this asymmetry-color ``fiducial sequence,'' asthese galaxies are too asymmetric for their color. We suggest this factcan be used to distinguish between ``normal'' galaxies and galaxiesundergoing an interaction or merger.

Kinematic Evidence of Minor Mergers in Normal SA Galaxies: NGC 3626, NGC 3900, NGC 4772, and NGC 5854
BVRI and Hα imaging and long-slit optical spectroscopic data arepresented for four morphologically normal and relatively isolated Sagalaxies, NGC 3626, NGC 3900, NGC 4772, and NGC 5854. VLA H I synthesisimaging is presented for the first three objects. In all four galaxies,evidence of kinematic decoupling of ionized gas components is found inthe long-slit spectroscopic data; the degree and circumstances of thedistinct kinematics vary from complete counterrotation of all of the gasfrom all of the stars (NGC 3626) to nuclear gas disks decoupled from thestars (NGC 5854) to anomalous velocity central gas components (NGC 3900and NGC 4772). In the three objects mapped in H I, the neutral gasextends far beyond the optical radius, RHI/R25>=2. In general, the H I surface density isvery low, and the outer H I is patchy and asymmetric (NGC 3900) or foundin a distinct ring, exterior to the optical edge (NGC 3626 and NGC4772). While the overall H I velocity fields are dominated by circularmotions, strong warps are suggested in the outer regions by bending ofthe minor axis isovelocity contours (NGC 3900) and/or systematic shiftsin position angle between inner and outer rings (NGC 3626 and NGC 4772).In the interior, coincidence is found between the Hα and H I inrings, sometimes partial and crisscrossed by dust lanes. Optical imagingis also presented for NGC 4138 previously reported by Jore et al. toshow counterrotating stellar components. The multiwavelength evidence isinterpreted in terms of the kinematic ``memory'' of past minor mergersin objects that otherwise exhibit no morphological signs of interaction.

Structural and Photometric Classification of Galaxies. I. Calibration Based on a Nearby Galaxy Sample
In this paper we define an observationally robust, multiparameter spacefor the classification of nearby and distant galaxies. The parametersinclude luminosity, color, and the image-structure parameters: size,image concentration, asymmetry, and surface brightness. Based on aninitial calibration of this parameter space using the ``normal'' Hubbletypes surveyed in 1996 by Frei et al., we find that only a subset of theparameters provide useful classification boundaries for this sample.Interestingly, this subset does not include distance-dependent scaleparameters such as size or luminosity. The essential ingredient is thecombination of a spectral index (e.g., color) with parameters of imagestructure and scale: concentration, asymmetry, and surface brightness.We refer to the image structure parameters (concentration and asymmetry)as indices of ``form.'' We define a preliminary classification based onspectral index, form, and surface brightness (a scale) that successfullyseparates normal galaxies into three classes. We intentionally identifythese classes with the familiar labels of early, intermediate, and late.This classification, or others based on the above four parameters, canbe used reliably to define comparable samples over a broad range inredshift. The size and luminosity distribution of such samples will notbe biased by this selection process except through astrophysicalcorrelations between spectral index, form, and surface brightness.

Box- and peanut-shaped bulges. I. Statistics
We present a classification for bulges of a complete sample of ~ 1350edge-on disk galaxies derived from the RC3 (Third Reference Catalogue ofBright Galaxies, de Vaucouleurs et al. \cite{rc3}). A visualclassification of the bulges using the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) inthree types of b/p bulges or as an elliptical type is presented andsupported by CCD images. NIR observations reveal that dust extinctiondoes almost not influence the shape of bulges. There is no substantialdifference between the shape of bulges in the optical and in the NIR.Our analysis reveals that 45% of all bulges are box- and peanut-shaped(b/p). The frequency of b/p bulges for all morphological types from S0to Sd is > 40%. In particular, this is for the first time that such alarge frequency of b/p bulges is reported for galaxies as late as Sd.The fraction of the observed b/p bulges is large enough to explain theb/p bulges by bars. Partly based on observations collected at ESO/LaSilla (Chile), DSAZ/Calar Alto (Spain), and Lowell Observatory/Flagstaff(AZ/U.S.A.). Tables 6 and 7 are only available in electronic form at CDSvia anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html

1.65 ^mum (H-band) surface photometry of galaxies. IV. observations of 170 galaxies with the Calar Alto 2.2 m telescope
We present near-infrared (H band) surface photometry of 170 galaxies,obtained in 1997 using the Calar Alto 2.2 m telescope equipped with theNICMOS3 camera MAGIC. The majority of our targets are selected amongbright members of the Virgo cluster, however galaxies in the A262 andCancer clusters and in the Coma/A1367 supercluster are also included.This data set is aimed at complementing the NIR survey in the Virgocluster discussed in \cite[Boselli et al. (1997)]{B97} and in the ComaSupercluster, presented in Papers I, II and III of this series.Magnitudes at the optical radius, total magnitudes, isophotal radii andlight concentration indices are derivedTables 1 and 2 (full version) are only available in electronic form atthe CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html.Based on observations taken at the Calar Alto Observatory, operated bythe Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (Heidelberg) jointly withthe Spanish National Commission for Astronomy.

Arcsecond Positions of UGC Galaxies
We present accurate B1950 and J2000 positions for all confirmed galaxiesin the Uppsala General Catalog (UGC). The positions were measuredvisually from Digitized Sky Survey images with rms uncertaintiesσ<=[(1.2")2+(θ/100)2]1/2,where θ is the major-axis diameter. We compared each galaxymeasured with the original UGC description to ensure high reliability.The full position list is available in the electronic version only.

Galaxy Structural Parameters: Star Formation Rate and Evolution with Redshift
The evolution of the structure of galaxies as a function of redshift isinvestigated using two parameters: the metric radius of the galaxy(R_eta) and the power at high spatial frequencies in the disk of thegalaxy (chi). A direct comparison is made between nearby (z~0) anddistant (0.2<~z<~1) galaxies by following a fixed range in restframe wavelengths. The data of the nearby galaxies comprise 136broadband images at ~4500 Å observed with the 0.9 m telescope atKitt Peak National Observatory (23 galaxies) and selected from thecatalog of digital images of Frei et al. (113 galaxies). Thehigh-redshift sample comprises 94 galaxies selected from the Hubble DeepField (HDF) observations with the Hubble Space Telescope using the WideField Planetary Camera 2 in four broad bands that range between ~3000and ~9000 Å (Williams et al.). The radius is measured from theintensity profile of the galaxy using the formulation of Petrosian, andit is argued to be a metric radius that should not depend very stronglyon the angular resolution and limiting surface brightness level of theimaging data. It is found that the metric radii of nearby and distantgalaxies are comparable to each other. The median value of the radius ofthe local sample is ~5+/-1 kpc, and the median radius ofthe HDF sample is ~6+/-2 kpc for q_0=0.5, H_0=65 km s^-1Mpc^-1 however, for q_0=0.1, ~7 kpc and for q_0=1,~5 kpc. In the HDF, galaxies with redshifts larger thanz>0.6 have flatter R_eta distributions than galaxies with redshiftssmaller than z<=0.6. However, the median R_eta values of high- andlow-redshift galaxies are consistent with each other. This result isconsistent with the simulations of galaxy images at redshifts z=0.35,z=0.5, and z=0.9, which show that the metric sizes can be recoveredwithin +/-2 kpc. The flocculency or power at high spatial frequencies isquantified using a simple method that is based on surface photometry inone band and that depends on the size of the star-forming regions and onthe intensity profile of the galaxy. In nearby galaxies, the flocculencyis found to trace the star formation rate as chi is correlated withoptical colors (B-V) and the strength of the hydrogen recombinationlines (Hα). In the HDF, galaxies at redshifts smaller than z~1 andwith fluxes brighter than B=25 have values of chi similar to what ismeasured in nearby galaxies and to what is expected from simulations ofdistant galaxy images. Among the HDF galaxies, I find that at most 4%can be identified as dwarf galaxies with rates of star formation similarto NGC 4449 and NGC 1569. Most HDF galaxies are giants with starformation rates similar to those in nearby giant galaxies. In summary,in this study I have introduced a method to measure the metric sizes andflocculency of the two-dimensional light distribution of galaxies. As aresult, I find that the high spatial frequency power is related to thestar formation rate. Further, I find that the sizes and power at highspatial frequencies of HDF galaxies remain largely unchanged between thepresent epoch and redshifts lower than z~1.

Kinematic Disturbances in Optical Rotation Curves among 89 Virgo Disk Galaxies
For 89 galaxies, mostly spirals, in the Virgo Cluster region, we haveobtained optical long-slit major-axis spectra of the ionized gas. Wefind the following: (1) One-half of the Virgo galaxies we observed haveregular rotation patterns, while the other half exhibit kinematicdisturbances ranging from mild to major. Velocity complexities aregenerally consistent with those resulting from tidal encounters oraccretion events. Since kinematic disturbances are expected to fadewithin ~10^9 yr, many Virgo galaxies have experienced severalsignificant kinematic disturbances during their lifetimes. (2) There isno strong correlation of rotation curve complexity with Hubble type,with galaxy luminosity, with local galaxy density, or with H Ideficiency. (3) A few Virgo galaxies have ionized gas of limited extent,with velocities exceptionally low for their luminosities. In thesegalaxies the gas must be not rotationally supported. (4) There is aremarkable difference in the distribution of galaxy systemic velocityfor galaxies with regular rotation curves and galaxies with disturbedrotation curves. Galaxies with regular rotation patterns show a flatdistribution with velocities ranging from V_0=-300 km s^-1 to V_0=+2500km s^-1 galaxies with disturbed kinematics have a Gaussian distributionthat peaks at V_0=+1172+/-100 km s^-1, close to the cluster meanvelocity. This latter distribution is virtually identical to thedistribution of systemic velocity for elliptical galaxies in Virgo.However, disturbed galaxies are less concentrated to the cluster corethan are the ellipticals; those near the periphery have velocitiescloser to the mean cluster velocity. Thus, spirals with disturbedkinematics are preferentially on radial orbits, which bring them to thedenser core, where tidal interactions are strong and/or more common.Because they spend much time near apocenter, we observe them near thecluster periphery. Some may be falling into the core for the first time.These observations suggest that for a nonvirialized cluster like Virgo,galaxies may encounter either local (nearby galaxies) or global(cluster-related) interactions. These interactions may alter themorphology of the galaxy and may also play a role in driving the VirgoCluster toward dynamical equilibrium.

The Star Formation Properties of Disk Galaxies: Hα Imaging of Galaxies in the Coma Supercluster
We present integrated Hα measurements obtained from imagingobservations of 98 late-type galaxies, primarily selected in the Comasupercluster. These data, combined with Hα photometry from theliterature, include a magnitude-selected sample of spiral (Sa to Irr)galaxies belonging to the ``Great Wall'' complete up to m_p = 15.4, andthus composed of galaxies brighter than M_p = -18.8 (H_0 = 100 km s^-1Mpc^-1). The frequency distribution of the Hα equivalent width,determined for the first time from an optically complete sample, isapproximately Gaussian, peaking at EW ~ 25 Å. We find that, at thepresent limiting luminosity, the star formation properties of spiral +Irr galaxy members of the Coma and A1367 Clusters do not differsignificantly from those of the isolated ones belonging to the GreatWall. The present analysis confirms the well-known increase of thecurrent massive star formation rate (SFR) with Hubble type. Moreover,perhaps a more fundamental anticorrelation exists between the SFR andthe mass of disk galaxies: low-mass spirals and dwarf systems havepresent SFRs ~50 times higher than giant spirals. This result isconsistent with the idea that disk galaxies are coeval, evolving as``closed systems'' with exponentially declining SFR, and that the massof their progenitor protogalaxies is the principal parameter governingtheir evolution. Massive systems having high initial efficiency ofcollapse, or a short collapse timescale, have retained little gas tofeed the present epoch of star formation. These findings support theconclusions of Gavazzi & Scodeggio, who studied the color-massrelation of a local galaxy sample, and agree with the analysis by Cowieet al., who traced the star formation history of galaxies up to z >1. Based on observations made at the Observatorio AstronómicoNacional (OAN), San Pedro Mártir, B.C., of the UniversidadNacional Autónoma de México (UNAM).

A catalogue of Mg_2 indices of galaxies and globular clusters
We present a catalogue of published absorption-line Mg_2 indices ofgalaxies and globular clusters. The catalogue is maintained up-to-datein the HYPERCAT database. The measurements are listed together with thereferences to the articles where the data were published. A codeddescription of the observations is provided. The catalogue gathers 3541measurements for 1491 objects (galaxies or globular clusters) from 55datasets. Compiled raw data for 1060 galaxies are zero-point correctedand transformed to a homogeneous system. Tables 1, 3, and 4 areavailable in electronic form only at the CDS, Strasbourg, via anonymousftp 130.79.128.5. Table 2 is available both in text and electronic form.

Catalogue of HI maps of galaxies. I.
A catalogue is presented of galaxies having large-scale observations inthe HI line. This catalogue collects from the literature the informationthat characterizes the observations in the 21-cm line and the way thatthese data were presented by means of maps, graphics and tables, forshowing the distribution and kinematics of the gas. It containsfurthermore a measure of the HI extension that is detected at the levelof the maximum sensitivity reached in the observations. This catalogueis intended as a guide for references on the HI maps published in theliterature from 1953 to 1995 and is the basis for the analysis of thedata presented in Paper II. The catalogue is only available inelectronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp 130.79.128.5 orhttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html

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Dades d'Observació i Astrometria

Constel·lació:Virgo
Ascensió Recta:12h59m27.00s
Declinació:+14°10'14.0"
Dimensions aparents:6.457′ × 1.096′

Catàlegs i designacions:
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NGC 2000.0NGC 4866
HYPERLEDA-IPGC 44600

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