Don’t Miss the Next Monthly Meeting: November 19, 2021
Dense Molecular Gas in the Galactic Bar Dust Lanes
Natalie Butterfield, PhD, Villanova University
A barred spiral galaxy is a spiral galaxy with a central bar-shaped structure composed of stars. Roughly half of all spiral galaxies, including our own Milky Way, contain a Galactic Bar. The dust lane features within the Galactic Bar are thought to mediate the flow of material from the Galactic Disk, towards the Galactic Center, fueling the extreme environment found within the Central Molecular Zone. One current hypothesis is that the bar structure acts as a type of stellar nursery, fueling star birth at the center. The study of galaxy bars is important for our understanding of how mass and energy are transported across galaxies and how galaxies evolve.
Dr. Butterfield is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Villanova University. She received her PhD in Astronomy and Astrophysics from the University of Iowa.
DVAA Virtual Meeting: November 19, 2021, 7:30 PM (sign-on starts at 7:00pm).
¨DVAA Members via Zoom (check your email for the link)
¨Members of the public can watch the livestream on YouTube