Context. The mechanisms giving rise to diffuse radio emission in galaxy clusters, and in particular their connection with cluster mergers, are still debated. Aims: We seek to explore the internal dynamics of the cluster Abell 545, which has been shown to host a radio halo. Abell 545 is also peculiar for hosting in its center a very bright, red

Context. The mechanisms giving rise to diffuse radio emission in galaxy clusters, and in particular their connection with cluster mergers, are still debated. Aims: We seek to explore the internal dynamics of the cluster Abell 2294, which has been shown to host a radio halo. Methods: Our analysis is mainly based on redshift data for 88 galaxies

Context. The mechanisms giving rise to diffuse radio emission in galaxy clusters and, in particular, their connection with cluster mergers are still being debated. Aims: We explore the internal dynamics of Abell 2254, which has been shown to host a very clumpy and irregular radio halo. Methods: Our analysis is mainly based on redshift data for 128

Context: The mechanisms giving rise to diffuse radio emission in galaxy clusters, and in particular their connection with cluster mergers, are still debated. Aims: We aim to obtain new insights into the internal dynamics of the cluster Abell 1240, which appears to contain two roughly symmetric radio relics, separated by ~2 h_70-1 Mpc. Methods: Our

It has been posited that lunar eclipse observations may help predict the in-transit signature of Earth-like extrasolar planets. However, a comparative analysis of the two phenomena addressing in detail the transport of stellar light through the planet's atmosphere has not yet been presented. Here, we proceed with the investigation of both phenomena

Context. The dependence of the luminosity function (LF) of cluster galaxies on the evolutionary state of the parent cluster is still an open question, in particular concerning the formation/evolution of the brightest cluster galaxies. Aims: We study the bright part of the LFs of a sample of very unrelaxed clusters ("DARC" clusters showing evidence

Of the 342 planets so far discovered orbiting other stars, 58 `transit' the stellar disk, meaning that they can be detected through a periodic decrease in the flux of starlight. The light from the star passes through the atmosphere of the planet, and in a few cases the basic atmospheric composition of the planet can be estimated. As we get closer

Context: The connection of cluster mergers with the presence of extended, diffuse radio sources in galaxy clusters is still debated. An interesting case is the rich, merging cluster Abell 520, containing a radio halo. A recent gravitational analysis has shown in this cluster the presence of a massive dark core suggested to be a possible problem for

Context. The mechanisms producing the diffuse radio emission in galaxy clusters, and in particular their connection with cluster mergers, are still debated. Aims: We seek to explore the internal dynamics of the cluster Abell 1758N, which has been shown to host a radio halo and two relics, and is known to be a merging bimodal cluster. Methods: Our

We present a study of the bar fraction in the Coma Cluster galaxies based on a sample of ~190 galaxies selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 6 and observed with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Advanced Camera for Survey (ACS). The unprecedented resolution of the HST-ACS images allows us to explore the presence of bars, detected

We investigate the role of stellar mass in shaping the intrinsic thickness of galaxy discs by determining the probability distribution of apparent axial ratios (b/a) for two different samples that probe the faint end of the galaxy luminosity function. We find that the b/a distribution has a characteristic `U-shape' and identify a limiting mass M* ~

Context. NRAO 150 is one of the brightest radio and mm AGN sources in the northern sky, and is an interesting source to study extreme relativistic jet phenomena. However, its cosmological distance has not yet been calibrated, because of its optical faintness due to strong Galactic extinction. Aims: We measure the redshift of NRAO 150, to enable us

Context: Bars are very common in the centre of the disc galaxies, and they drive the evolution of their structure. The state-of-the-art imaging and redshift surveys of galaxies allow us to study the relationships between the properties of the bars and those of their hosts in statistically significant samples. Aims: A volume-limited sample of 2106

As part of the ongoing CALIFA survey, we have conducted a thorough bidimensional analysis of the ionized gas in two E/S0 galaxies, NGC 6762 and NGC 5966, aiming to shed light on the nature of their warm ionized ISM. Specifically, we present optical (3745-7300 Å) integral field spectroscopy obtained with the PMAS/PPAK integral field

Context. It has been reported that the intrinsic dispersion at constant magnitude in the structural relations of early-type galaxies is a useful tool to study the universality of these structural relations, that is to say, to study whether the structural relations depend on luminosity, wavelength, redshift, and/or environment. Aims: We study the

Aims: We characterise the underlying stellar host in a sample of 20 blue compact galaxies (BCGs), by fitting their two-dimensional light distributions. Their derived host structural parameters and those of eight other BCGs already obtained in a previous paper are related to galaxy properties, such as colours and gas content. These properties are

Aims: Previous studies have found that the coefficients and intrinsic dispersions of both the Kormendy relation and the Fundamental Plane depend on the magnitude range within which the galaxies are contained. We study whether this type of behaviour is also present for the Faber-Jackson relation. Methods: We take a sample of early-type galaxies from

Aims: We study the kinematics and dynamics of the extreme outer halo of M 87, the central galaxy in the Virgo cluster, and its transition to the intracluster light (ICL). Methods: We present high resolution FLAMES/VLT spectroscopy of intracluster planetary nebula (PN) candidates, targeting three new fields in the Virgo cluster core with surface

Aims: Following the study presented in our previous paper, based on the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT) sample, which consists of five clusters of galaxies within the redshift range 0.18 ≤ z ≤ 0.25 imaged in the central 0.5-2 Mpc in very good seeing conditions, we have studied the quantitative morphology of their bright galaxy population Methods: We

Aims: Using data from five clusters of galaxies within the redshift range 0.15 ≤ z ≤ 0.25, imaged with the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT) in the central ≈1 Mpc2 in very good seeing conditions, we have performed an exhaustive inspection of their bright galaxy population. That range of redshift, where only a small amount of data with the required