We use data from large surveys of the local universe (SDSS+Galaxy Zoo) to show that the galaxy–black hole connection is linked to host morphology at a fundamental level. The fraction of early-type galaxies with actively growing black holes, and therefore the AGN duty cycle, declines significantly with increasing black hole mass. Late-type galaxies exhibit the opposite trend: the fraction of actively growing black holes increases with black hole mass.

The absence of vigorous star formation in early-type galaxies is a mystery because early-type galaxies do have a copious supply of cold gas. Various heating mechanisms have been put forward to explain this, and AGN feedback is one of the most widely suspected culprits. The GALEX UV telescope detects even a small amount of star formation and allows an estimate of the current and recent star formation. We find that star formation is still common in early-type galaxies with low velocity dispersion where the black hole mass is believed to be small. We compare the star-formation rates of the galaxies with predictions from various semi-analytic models with different feedback prescriptions. We find that the passive behavior of central galaxies in groups and clusters is reproduced by semi-analytic models with AGN feedback. However, the same prescriptions causes satellite (i.e., non-central) galaxies to be quenched as well, much more than observed by GALEX, leading to a “satellite over-quenching problem.”

Since 1995, the University the Carabobo, in Venezuela, has come developing a program of astronomical popularization and learning Astronomy using the Non formal education methods. A synopsis of the activities is presented. We will also discuss some conceptual aspects about the extension of the knowledge like supplementary function of the investigation and the university teaching. We illustrate the characteristics of the communication with an example of lectures and printed material. The efficiency of the heuristic arguments could be evaluated through a ethnology study. In that order of ideas, we show some images of the activities of astronomical popularization. We can see the population and great concurrence with chronological (and cultural) heterogeneity. We conclude that the Non formal education, structured with characteristic different to the usual educational instruction, constitutes a successful strategy in the diffusion and the communicating astronomy.

GAME (Gamma Astrometric Measurement Experiment) is a concept for a small mission whose main goal is to measure from space the γ parameter of the Parameterized Post-Newtonian formalism, Will (2001)) A satellite, looking as close as possible to the Solar limb, measures the gravitational bending of light in a way similar to that followed by past experiments from the ground during solar eclipses. In the cited formalism, deviations of the γ parameter from unity are interpreted as deviations from the predictions of General Relativity which are foreseen by several competing theories of gravity. In the present theoretical scenario, such deviations are expected to appear in the range between 10−5 and 10−7. The most stringent experimental constraints available up to now are those of the Cassini mission, that gives 1−γ≲10−5 Bertotti et al. (2003), while future space missions are expected to reach the 10−7 level of accuracy. (Vecchiato et al. (2003), Turyshev et al. (2004), Ni (2008))

Preliminary simulations have shown that the expected final accuracy of GAME can reach the 10−7 level, or better if the mission profile can be extended to fit a larger budget Vecchiato et al. (2009), Gai et al. (2009). This work, which has recently been extended to better assess the mission performances, has confirmed the previous results and has given indications on how further improve various aspects of the mission profile.

Moreover, thanks to its flexible observation strategy, GAME is also able to target other interesting scientific goals in the realm of General Relativity, as well as in those involving observations of selected extrasolar systems in the brown dwarf and planetary regime.

The fundamental dimensionless physical constants cannot be predicted by theory but can only be measured experimentally. And so it is of their possible variation where there are several theoretical predictions but unfortunately with little theoretical guidance on the expected rate of change. The role of fundamental constants in the representation of nature as well as the implications of their variability for the Equivalence Principle and cosmology have been highlighted in many contributions at this conference (cfr K. Olive and J.P Uzan, these proceedings). Measuring the variability of the fine structure constant α or the electron-to-proton ratio μ by means of absorption lines implies the measurement of a tiny variation of the position of one or a few lines with regard to other lines which are taken as reference. For the fine structure constant the relation between its change and the doppler velocity shift is:

We discuss a numerical model for black hole (BH) growth and feedback that allows simultaneous tracking of the evolution of galaxies and their central BHs in fully cosmological simulations. After describing the main features of the numerical model adopted, we show how BHs in these simulations affect the properties of their host halos and how this in turn impacts the growth of the BHs themselves. We also present results from a set of simulations specifically designed to address the issue of BH assembly in the early Universe and discuss whether or not different extensions of the model, in particular rapidly spinning BHs and gravitational recoils, can hamper the formation of the first bright quasars.

How can teachers and researchers contribute to a new world-wide way to teach astronomy? The Hands-On-Universe group proposes multi-media tools, from remote telescopes to image processing, inspired by the most recent research activities in astronomy and astrophysics. Teachers and students can learn, in a quantitative way, to analyse images and spectra using free data sets and softwares available at the website www.eu-hou.org.

The Standard Model and General Relativity provide a good description of phenomena at low energy. These theories, which agree very well with the experiment, contain a set of parameters called “fundamental constants”, that are assumed invariant under changes in location and reference system. However, their possible variation has been studied since Dirac made the large numbers hypothesis (LNH). Moreover, unified field theory and extra dimensions theories such as Kaluza-Klein or Superstring theories, state not only the variation of these constants, but also the simultaneity of the variations.

The Eötvös effect is one of the most sensitive indicators of changes in fundamental constants. Bekenstein (2002) showed that in his theory, using a classical static particle model of matter, there is no Eötvös effect and therefore met the Universality of Free Fall and the Principle of Equivalence.

We present different results than those obtained by Bekenstein, Kraiselburd, Vucetich (2009). Modifying his theory, taking more realistic models of matter and using the model THεμ techniques (Ligtman-Lee (1975) and Haugan (1979), not used before to analyze this model), very small but measurable effects have been found.

The International Astronomy Olympiad (IAO) is an annual scientific-educating event for students of the junior high-school classes, aged 14–18 years. The Euro-Asian Astronomical Society founded the IAO in 1996. The Olympiad includes an intellectual competition between these students. The style of the problems is aimed at developping the imagination, creativity and independent thinking.

Recent numerical relativity simulations predict that coalescing supermassive black holes (SMBHs) can receive kick velocities up to several thousands of kilometers per second due to anisotropic emission of gravitational waves, leading to long-lived oscillations of the SMBHs in galaxy cores and even SMBH ejections from their host galaxies. Observationally, accreting recoiling SMBHs would appear as quasars spatially and/or kinematically offset from their host galaxies. The presence of these “kicks” and “superkicks” has a wide range of exciting astrophysical implications which only now are beginning to be explored, including consequences for black hole and galaxy growth at the epoch of structure formation, modes of feedback, unified models of AGN, and the number of obscured AGN. SMBH recoil oscillations beyond the torus scale can be on the order of a quasar lifetime, thus potentially affecting a large fraction of the quasar population. We discuss how this might explain the long-standing puzzle of a deficiency of obscured type 2 quasars at high luminosities. Observational signatures of recoiling SMBHs are discussed and results from follow-up studies of the candidate recoiling SMBH SDSSJ0927+2943 are presented.

The recent observational evidence for the current cosmic acceleration have stimulated renewed interest in alternative cosmologies, such as scenarios with interaction in the dark sector (dark matter and dark energy). In general, such models contain an unknown negative-pressure dark component coupled with the pressureless dark matter and/or with the baryons that results in an evolution for the Universe rather different from the one predicted by the standard ΛCDM model. In this work we test the observational viability of such scenarios by using the most recent galaxy cluster gas mass fraction versus redshift data (42 X-ray luminous, dynamically relaxed galaxy clusters spanning the redshift range 0.063 < z < 1.063), Allen et al. (2008), to place bounds on the parameter ε that characterizes the dark matter/dark energy coupling. The resulting are consistent with, and typically as constraining as, those derived from other cosmological data. Although a time-independent cosmological constant (ΛCDM model) is a good fit to these galaxy cluster data, an interacting energy component cannot yet be ruled out.

The popular event Nuits des étoiles has become in France the summer encounter with the sky. More than 400 events are set up for three consecutive days each year: several thousands of voluntary organisers invite more and more people to observe the heavens and discover astronomy. Each summer, those collective star parties reach about one hundred thousand people, several millions of sky maps are printed and distributed by newspapers and the associated TV live program broadcast by France 2 channel interested 1 to 3 millions spectators. Since 1991, Nuits des étoiles has helped to develop organisations at the local level and increased the stakeholders' interest in general public awareness. It contributed in France to strengthen and professionalise an astronomical leisure offer.

The interplay between active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and their host galaxies' star-formation activities is one of the central topics in pursuing an understanding of galaxy evolution. With the advent of the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX), we have much more accurate information than ever about the recent star formation (RSF) histories of early-type galaxies within ~ 1.5 Gyr in the local universe. Using a subset of ~ 1000 GALEX/SDSS type 2 AGN-host early-type galaxies (E/S0) based on the emission-line ratio diagnosis, we explore how AGNs affect the RSF histories of the early-type hosts and vice versa. In this contribution, we present a preliminary yet interesting result on the intimate connection between AGN activity and the RSF histories of early-type galaxies.

“Astrophysique sur Mesure” (astrophysics made-to-measure) is a set of e-learning programmes started 4 years ago at the Paris Observatory. In order to deliver attractive and efficient programmes, we have added many multimedia tools to usual lectures: animations, Java applets. The programmes are presented on two different platforms. The first one offers the content of all the lectures in free access. A second platform with restricted access is provided to registered students taking part in the e-learning program and benefiting from the help of tutors. The development of these programs helps to increase the sphere of influence of astronomy taught at the Paris Observatory, hence to increase the presence of astronomy in various degree courses. Instead of teaching classical astronomy lectures to a happy few, we can bring astronomy and astrophysics to a wider audience.

Within the hierarchical CDM framework, gas-poor mergers contribute substantially to the building of the most massive galaxies (Faber et al. 2007). We want to test this scenario by studying the fundamental plane (FP) and the stellar populations of the most massive galaxies. We investigate a well-defined sample of massive early-type galaxies at 0.1<z<0.4, identified from the SDSS database. Out of 42,000 possible targets in the SDSS database, we extracted 23 luminous early-type galaxies with bona fide high velocity dispersions of σ>350 km s−1. These systems are located either in high or low-density environments and show a variety of small surface-brightness structure. Using archival HST/ACS images and Gemini/GMOS spectroscopy, we will explore the photometric and spectroscopic properties of these galaxies.

This work aims to determine the feasibility of an assumed cosmological model by means of a detailed analysis of the brightness profiles of distant galaxies. Starting from the theory of Ellis & Perry (1979) connecting the angular diameter distance obtained from a relativistic cosmological model and the detailed photometry of galaxies, we assume the presently most accepted cosmology with Λ ¬ = 0 and seek to predict the brightness profile of a galaxy in a given redshift z. To do so, we have to make assumptions concerning the galactic brightness structure and evolution, assuming a scenario where the specific emitted surface brightness Be,νe can be characterized as, Be,νe (r,z) = B0(z)J(νe,z)f[r(z)/a(z)]. Here r is the intrinsic galactic radius, νe the emitted frequency, B0(z) the central surface brightness, J(νe,z) the spectral energy distribution (SED), f[r(z)/a(z)] characterizes the shape of the surface profile distribution and a(z) is the scaling radius. The dependence on z is due to the galactic evolution. As spacetime curvature affects the received surface brightness, the reciprocity theorem (Ellis 1971) allows us to predict the theoretical received surface brightness. So, we are able to compare the theoretical surface brightness with its equivalent observational data already available for high redshift galaxies in order to test the consistency of the assumed cosmological model. The function f[r(z)/a(z)] is represented in the literature by various different shapes, like the Hubble, Hubble-Oemler and Abell-Mihalas single parameter profiles, characterizing the galactic surface brightness quite well when the disk or bulge dependence is dominant. Sérsic and core-Sérsic profiles use two or more parameters and reproduce the galactic profile almost exactly (Trujillo et al. 2004). If we consider all wavelengths, the theory tells us that the total intensity is equal to the surface brightness, so the chosen bandwidth should include most of the SED. In order to analyze only the effect of the cosmological model in the surface brightness and minimize evolutionary effects, we assume that there exists a homogeneous class of objects, whose properties are similar in all redshifts, allowing us to carry out comparisons at different values of z. Studying the parameters that affect the galactic evolution, as well as in others geometrical tests, we will be able to infer some possible galaxy evolution which could reproduce a theoretical surface brightness profile, in order to compare with the observational data and reach conclusions about the observational feasibility of the underlying cosmological model.

We investigate the origin of the color-magnitude relation (CMR) observed in cluster galaxies by using a combination of a cosmological N-body simulation of a cluster of galaxies and a semi-analytic model of galaxy formation. The departure of galaxies in the bright end of the CMR with respect to the trend defined by less luminous galaxies could be explained by the influence of minor mergers.

We relate the success story of an amateur astronomy association based at Constantine, which has spearheaded the efforts of spreading astronomy and scientific culture in Algeria. This association has organised throughout the past decade many activities from large national yearly gatherings to a weekly radio program, through public sighting campaigns. It has been instrumental in the establishment of a pluri-university graduate study program in astrophysics, the so called Ecole Doctorale d'Astrophysique (EDA), the first of its kind in Algeria. We describe in particular how astronomers from various parts of Algeria involved in amateur astronomy have known each other, and banded together to the point of constituting a critical size group able to set up such a national graduate program with plans for the establishment of the first observatory in our country, the Aurès Observatory in Eastern Algeria Aurès mountain range. A strong interest for the project has been shown by the astronomical community, some site testing undertaken, and international collaboration sought. With some dedicated support, its foundation could take place within the year 2009. Could IAY2009 be turned into an annus mirabilis for Algeria and a showcase for the astronomy community worldwide with behind it a textbook case of synergy between amateur astronomy and academic endeavor in the astronomical sciences?

Laser Comb Wavelength calibration shows ThAr one locally unreliable with deviations up to 100 m s−1 (or Δα/α ≈ 7 · 10−6 for a Fe ii-Mg ii pair) while delivering an overall 1 m s−1 accuracy. Comparison of line shifts of the 5 Fe ii lines with identical sensitivity to Δα/α offers a clean way to test local wavelength calibration errors of whatever origin.

We present binary galaxy merger simulations of gas-rich disks (Sp-Sp), of early-type galaxies and disks (E-Sp, mixed mergers), and mergers of early-type galaxies (E-E, dry mergers) including radiative cooling, star formation, black hole (BH) accretion, and the associated feedback processes. The numerical simulations include cooling, star formation, supernova feedback, and BH accretion modeled following a Bondi–Hoyle accretion parameterization. The maximum accretion rate is limited to the Eddington rate, with a total of 0.5% of the accreted rest-mass energy distributed as thermal energy to the surrounding gas.