Galactic bulges: overview

Abstract

This overview of galactic bulges begins with a discussion of the various kinds of bulges (classical, boxy/peanut-shaped, pseudo) and their likely formation mechanisms. Other specific topics include the Galactic bar/bulge and its chemical evolution, the bulge of M31, the relation between bulges and metal-poor halos (often lumped together as spheroids), the morphology-density relation and the formation of S0 galaxies, the color-structure bimodality, and scaling laws for bulges. Finally I will briefly discuss the current difficulty of forming bulgeless disk galaxies in CDM. Show more