STScI Preprint #1238

Star Formation in Dwarf Galaxies

We explore mechanisms for the regulation of star formation in dwarf galaxies. We concentrate primarily on a sample in the Virgo cluster, which has HI and blue total photometry, for which we collected H data at the Wise Observatory. We find that dwarf galaxies do not show the tight correlation of the surface brightness of H (a star formation indicator) with the HI surface density, or with the ratio of this density to a dynamical timescale, as found for large disk or starburst galaxies. On the other hand, we find the strongest correlation to be with the average blue surface brightness, indicating the presence of a mechanism regulating the star formation by the older (up to 1 Gyr) stellar population if present, or by the stellar population already formed in the present burst.

Status:

Appeared in: The Astrophysical Journal, 504:720-724, 1998

Affiliations:

¹)Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
²) On sabbatical leave from the Wise Observatory and the School of Physics and Astronomy Raymond and Beverly Sackler Faculty of Exact Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
³)The Wise Observatory, the School of Physics, Astronomy , Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel