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Fourier Analysis of Spiral Tracers. A Progress Report

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 August 2017

S. Considère
Affiliation:
Observatoire de Besançon
E. Athanassoula
Affiliation:
Observatoire de Besançon

Extract

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Fourier analysis of the observed distribution of spiral tracers (e.g. HII regions) can yield a wealth of information about the spiral structure of a given galaxy. A description of the method has been given by Kalnajs (1975) and, in brief, involves decomposing the observed distribution into components with given angular periodicity m. Component m = 0 corresponds to the axisymmetric part, m = 1 to either a one-armed spiral or an asymmetry, m = 2 to a spiral or a bar, etc. Each component is then analysed into a superposition of logarithmic spirals. This does not imply that the observed spirals are assumed to be logarithmic, but rather that logarithmic spirals are convenient building blocks.

Type
II. Spiral Structure
Copyright
Copyright © Reidel 1983 

References

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Kalnajs, A.J.: 1975, in “La dynamique des galaxies spirales”, ed. Weliachew, L., p. 103.Google Scholar
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Toomre, A.: 1981, in “Structure and Evolution of Normal Galaxies”, ed. Fall, S.M. and Lynden-Bell, D., Cambridge, p. 111.Google Scholar