E06: Ultra Diffuse Galaxies ft. Ananthan

Introduction:

• Low Surface Brightness galaxies are a class of hard to find galaxies because they are so faint
• Ultra Diffuse Galaxies (UDGs) are a sub-category that are also very large 
• These are very hard to find, but you can look for them in surveys like the DESI-Legacy-Imaging-Survey
• The Green Bank Telescope is what Ananthan Karunakaran used to make radio measurements of a whole sample of UDGs 
• From this radio data he could see the HI emission line to learn more about these fascinating galaxies

SMUDGes:

• SMUDGes stands for "Systematically Measuring Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies survey"
• Ananthan recently published the analysis of HI emission data for a collection of UDGs
• This data helps us understand how UDGs form, as there are three competing scenarios for where they come from.
• Ananthan also found that determining the inclination for these galaxies is very challenging, but important for their understanding.
• This inclination modelling might help us understand why UDGs seem to not follow a pattern that all other galaxies seem to follow.

The Future:

• Finally answering these questions will need powerful new telescopes like MeerKat and the future SKA
•  These telescopes will let use see UDGs in fine detail to determine their inclination and ultimately how they fit with other galaxies
• Ananthan is almost done his PhD and is applying to further research positions so he can continue to investigate these mysteries!

Links to Science Outreach Material:

• McDonald Institute
• Royal Astronomical Society
• Astronomy on Tap

Special thanks to Colin Vendromin for the music also thanks to Zac Kenny for the logo!