Recent star formation in nearby galaxies from GALEX imaging:M101 and M51

Abstract

The GALEX (Galaxy Evolution Explorer) Nearby Galaxies Survey is providing deep far-UV and near-UV imaging for a representative sample of galaxies in the local universe. We present early results for M51 and M101, from GALEX UV imaging and SDSS optical data in five bands. The multi-band photometry of compact stellar complexes in M101 is compared to population synthesis models, to derive ages, reddening, reddening-corrected luminosities and current/initial masses. The GALEX UV photometry provides a complete census of young compact complexes on a approximately 160pc scale. A galactocentric gradient of the far-UV - near-UV color indicates younger stellar populations towards the outer parts of the galaxy disks, the effect being more pronounced in M101 than in M51.

arXiv commentThis paper will be published as part of the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) Astrophysical Journal Letters Special Issue. Full paper available from http://dolomiti.pha.jhu.edu . Links to full set of papers will be available at http://www.galex.caltech.edu/PUBLICATIONS/ after November 22, 2004

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Cited by in corpus (42)

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• Recent Star Formation in the Extreme Outer Disk of M83
• Nobeyama CO Atlas of Nearby Spiral Galaxies: Distribution of Molecular Gas in Barred and Non-barred Spiral Galaxies
• Discovery of an extended ultraviolet disk in the nearby galaxy NGC4625
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• Hierarchical Star Formation in M51: Star/Cluster Complexes
• Panoramic GALEX FUV and NUV imaging of M31 and M33
• Star formation in M33: multiwavelength signatures across the disk
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• GALEX observations of Low Surface Brightness Galaxies: UV color and star formation efficiency
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• Gas Dynamics and Star Formation in the Galaxy Pair NGC1512/1510
• On The Extended Knotted Disks of Galaxies
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• UV Morphology and Star Formation in the Tidal Tails of NGC 4038/39
• GALEX Ultraviolet Photometry of Globular Clusters in M31: Three Year Results and a Catalog
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• Early Ultraviolet, Optical and X-Ray Observations of the Type IIP SN 2005cs in M51 with Swift
• Gradients of Stellar Population Properties and Evolution Clues in a Nearby Galaxy M 101
• The spatial distribution and origin of the FUV excess in early-type galaxies
• Limits on the X-ray and optical luminosity of the progenitor of the type Ia supernova SN2007sr
• A new method to derive star formation histories of galaxies from their star cluster distributions
• Galaxy Evolution in Local Group Analogs. I. A GALEX study of nearby groups
• The 100 Myr Star Formation History of NGC 5471 from Cluster and Resolved Stellar Photometry
• Galaxy Collisions - Dawn of a New Era
• The recent star formation in NGC 6822 from HST imaging
• An XMM-Newton view of M101 - III. Diffuse X-ray emission
• Spatially Resolved Star Formation History Along the Disk of M82 Using Multi-Band Photometric Data
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• Multiwavelength study of the star formation in the bar of NGC 2903
• Infrared dust emission in the outer disk of M51
• The Bright Symbiotic Mira EF Aquilae
• The unusual ISM in Blue and Dusty Gas Rich Galaxies (BADGRS)
• Iron emission line from the spiral galaxy M101
• A FUV-optical approach for studying hierarchical star formation in nearby galaxies with UVIT
• High reddening patches in Gaia DR2. Possible artifacts or indication of star formation at the edge of the Galactic disk
• A Dynamic Galaxy: Stellar Age Patterns Across the Disk of M101
• Investigating the young stellar populations and hierarchies in nearby galaxies with the UVIT. II. Presenting the properties of ~25,000 UV-detected star-forming clumps