Speaker: Vivienne Wild (St. Andrews)
Massive bursts of star formation represent a transient, and perhaps infrequent phase in the life of massive galaxies, and it is currently thought that the majority of stars in the Universe are formed in a more “quiescent” mode of star formation. However, mergers between gas rich galaxies triggering starbursts at high redshift are a leading candidate for the near-coincident morphological and spectral disruption required to build red elliptical galaxies. I will start this talk with a case study: the Mice merger, recently observed as part of the CALIFA integral field survey. I will then turn to statistical samples, that can be used to track the properties (black hole accretion, star formation, dust and gas content) of starburst galaxies for up to a Gyr following the triggering event. Finally, I’ll look towards the future: quantifying precisely the contribution of gas-rich mergers to the birth and growth of elliptical galaxies.