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