Modeling the Panchromatic Spectral Energy Distributions of Galaxies

2013/01/29 by Charlie Conroy · 950 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Abundance (ecology) #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Cosmic dust #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Galaxy #Luminosity #Panchromatic film #Population #Spectral energy distribution #Stellar mass #Stellar population #astro-ph.CO

paper · pdf · doi:10.1146/annurev-astro-082812-141017

published in Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics 51(1), 393-455 (Annual Reviews) · 66 pages, 14 figures, to appear in Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics (ARAA), vol 51

arxiv created 2013/01/29 · openalex publication_date 2013/08/18 · arxiv updated 2015/06/12 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/06

Abstract

The spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of galaxies are shaped by nearly every physical property of the system, including the star-formation history, metal content, abundance pattern, dust mass, grain size distribution, star-dust geometry, and interstellar radiation field. The principal goal of stellar population synthesis (SPS) is to extract these variables from observed SEDs. In this review I provide an overview of the SPS technique and discuss what can be reliably measured from galaxy SEDs. Topics include stellar masses, star-formation rates and histories, metallicities and abundance patterns, dust properties, and the stellar initial mass function.

Citations

• CLOUDY 90: Numerical Simulation of Plasmas and Their Spectra
• Fitting the integrated spectral energy distributions of galaxies
• Star Formation in the Milky Way and Nearby Galaxies
• STAR FORMATION IN GALAXIES ALONG THE HUBBLE SEQUENCE
• Galactic Stellar and Substellar Initial Mass Function
• The Chemical Composition of the Sun

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