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We here report the detection of extended HeII4686 nebular emission in the central region of NGC1569 using the integral field spectrograph MEGARA at the 10.4-m Gran Telescopio Canarias. The observations cover a Field of View (FoV) of 12.5 arcsec x 11.3 arcsec at seeing-limited spatial resolution of ~15 pc and at a spectral resolution of R=6000 in the wavelength range 4330--5200 Angstrom. The emission extends over a semi-circular arc of ~40 pc width and ~150 pc diameter around the super star cluster A (SSC-A). The Av derived using Balmer decrement varies from the Galactic value of 1.6 mag to a maximum of ~4.5 mag, with a mean value of 2.65+/-0.60 mag. We infer 124+/-11 Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars in SSC-A using the HeII4686 broad feature and Av=2.3 mag. The He+ ionizing photon rate from these WR stars is sufficient to explain the luminosity of the HeII4686 nebula. The observationally-determined total He+ and H0 ionizing photon rates, their ratio, and the observed number of WR stars in SSC-A are all consistent with the predictions of simple stellar population models at an age of 4.0+/-0.5 Myr, and mass of (5.5+/-0.5)x10^5 Msun. Our observations reinforce the absence of WR stars in SSC-B, the second most massive cluster in the FoV. None of the other locations in our FoV where HeII4686 emission has been reported from narrow-band imaging observations contain WR stars., Comment: 20 pages. Accepted in MNRAS

We present the sensitivity of HAWC to Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs). HAWC is a very high-energy gamma-ray observatory currently under construction in Mexico at an altitude of 4100 m. It will observe atmospheric air showers via the water Cherenkov method. HAWC will consist of 300 large water tanks instrumented with 4 photomultipliers each. HAWC has two data acquisition (DAQ) systems. The main DAQ system reads out coincident signals in the tanks and reconstructs the direction and energy of individual atmospheric showers. The scaler DAQ counts the hits in each photomultiplier tube (PMT) in the detector and searches for a statistical excess over the noise of all PMTs. We show that HAWC has a realistic opportunity to observe the high-energy power law components of GRBs that extend at least up to 30 GeV, as it has been observed by Fermi LAT. The two DAQ systems have an energy threshold that is low enough to observe events similar to GRB 090510 and GRB 090902b with the characteristics observed by Fermi LAT. HAWC will provide information about the high-energy spectra of GRBs which in turn could help to understanding about e-pair attenuation in GRB jets, extragalactic background light absorption, as well as establishing the highest energy to which GRBs accelerate particles.

We present 1D numerical simulations, which consider the effects of radiative cooling and gravity on the hydrodynamics of the matter reinserted by stellar winds and supernovae within young nuclear starbursts with a central supermassive black hole (SMBH). The simulations confirm our previous semi-analytic results for low energetic starbursts, evolving in a quasi-adiabatic regime, and extend them to more powerful starbursts evolving in the catastrophic cooling regime. The simulations show a bimodal hydrodynamic solution in all cases. They present a quasi-stationary accretion flow onto the black hole, defined by the matter reinserted by massive stars within the stagnation volume and a stationary starburst wind, driven by the high thermal pressure acquired in the region between the stagnation and the starburst radii. In the catastrophic cooling regime, the stagnation radius rapidly approaches the surface of the starburst region, as one considers more massive starbursts. This leads to larger accretion rates onto the SMBH and concurrently to powerful winds able to inhibit interstellar matter from approaching the nuclear starburst. Our self-consistent model thus establishes a direct physical link between the SMBH accretion rate and the nuclear star formation activity of the host galaxy and provides a good upper limit to the accretion rate onto the central black hole., Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal.

We present a detailed study of the hydrodynamics of the matter reinserted by massive stars via stellar winds and supernovae explosions in young assembling galaxies. We show that the interplay between the thermalization of the kinetic energy provided by massive stars, radiative cooling of the thermalized plasma and the gravitational pull of the host galaxy, lead to three different hydrodynamic regimes. These are: a) The quasi-adiabatic supergalactic winds. b) The bimodal flows, with mass accumulation in the central zones and gas expulsion from the outer zones of the assembling galaxy. c) The gravitationally bound regime, for which all of the gas returned by massive stars remains bound to the host galaxy and is likely to be reprocessed into futher generations of stars. Which of the three possible solutions takes place, depends on the mass of the star forming region its mechanical luminosity (or star formation rate) and its size. The model predicts that massive assembling galaxies with large star formation rates similar to those detected in SCUBA sources ($\sim 1000$ M$_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$) are likely to evolve in a positive star-formation feedback condition, either in the bimodal, or in the gravitationally bound regime. This implies that star formation in these sources may have little impact on the intergalactic medium and result instead into a fast interstellar matter enrichment, as observed in high redshift quasars., Comment: accepted by ApJ, 16 pages, 5 figures

The origin of supersonic infrared and radio recombination nebular lines often detected in young and massive superstar clusters are discussed. We suggest that these arise from a collection of repressurizing shocks (RSs), acting effectively to re-establish pressure balance within the cluster volume and from the cluster wind which leads to an even broader although much weaker component. The supersonic lines are here shown to occur in clusters that undergo a bimodal hydrodynamic solution (Tenorio-Tagle et al. 2007), that is within clusters that are above the threshold line in the mechanical luminosity or cluster mass vs the size of the cluster (Silich et al. 2004). The plethora of repressurizing shocks is due to frequent and recurrent thermal instabilities that take place within the matter reinserted by stellar winds and supernovae. We show that the maximum speed of the RSs and of the cluster wind, are both functions of the temperature reached at the stagnation radius. This temperature depends only on the cluster heating efficiency ($\eta$). Based on our two dimensional simulations (Wunsch et al. 2008) we calculate the line profiles that result from several models and confirm our analytical predictions. From a comparison between the predicted and observed values of the half-width zero intensity of the two line components we conclude that the thermalization efficiency in SSC's above the threshold line must be lower than 20%., Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures, accepted by ApJ

In this work, we present a comprehensive X-ray picture of the interaction between a super star cluster and the ISM. In order to do that, we compare and combine the X-ray emission from the superwind driven by the cluster with the emission from the wind-blown bubble. Detailed analytical models for the hydrodynamics and X-ray luminosity of fast polytropic superwinds are presented. The superwind X-ray luminosity models are an extension of the results obtained in Paper I of this series. Here, the superwind polytropic character allows to parameterize a wide variety of effects, for instance, radiative cooling. Additionally, X-ray properties that are valid for all bubble models taking thermal evaporation into account are derived. The final X-ray picture is obtained by calculating analytically the expected surface brightness and weighted temperature of each component. All of our X-ray models have an explicit dependence on metallicity and admit general emissivities as functions of the hydrodynamical variables. We consider a realistic X-ray emissivity that separates the contributions from hydrogen and metals. The paper ends with a comparison of the models with observational data., Comment: 30 pages, 15 figures. Accepted by MNRAS

The mounting evidence for violent nuclear star formation in Seyfert galaxies has led us to consider the hydrodynamics of the matter reinserted by massive stars through strong stellar winds and supernovae, under the presence of a central massive BH. We show that in all cases there is a bimodal solution strongly weighted by the location of the stagnation radius (Rst), which splits the star cluster into two different zones. Matter reinserted within the stagnation volume is to be accreted by the BH while its outer counterpart would composed a star cluster wind. The mechanical power of the latter, ensures that there is no accretion of the ISM into the BH and thus the BH accretion and its luminosity is regulated by the star formation feedback. The location of the stagnation radius is a function of three parameters: the BH mass, the mechanical power (or mass) of the star formation event and the size of the star forming region. Here we present our self-consistent, stationary solution, discuss the accretion rates and BH luminosities and show that our model predicts the intrinsic link between the BH activity and the starburst parameters., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. To appear in the proceedings of the workshop "The Central Kiloparsec: Active Galactic Nuclei and Their Host ", Ierapetra, Crete. June 2008

Blue Compact Dwarf (BCD) galaxies are metal poor systems going through a major starburst that cannot last for long. We have identified galaxies which may be BCDs during quiescence (QBCD), i.e., before the characteristic starburst sets in or when it has faded away. These QBCD galaxies are assumed to be like the BCD host galaxies. The SDSS/DR6 database provides ~21500 QBCD candidates. We also select from SDSS/DR6 a complete sample of BCD galaxies to serve as reference. The properties of these two galaxy sets have been computed and compared. The QBCD candidates are thirty times more abundant than the BCDs, with their luminosity functions being very similar except for the scaling factor, and the expected luminosity dimming associated with the end of the starburst. QBCDs are redder than BCDs, and they have larger HII region based oxygen abundance. QBCDs also have lower surface brightness. The BCD candidates turn out to be the QBCD candidates with the largest specific star formation rate (actually, with the largest H_alpha equivalent width). One out of each three dwarf galaxies in the local universe may be a QBCD. The properties of the selected BCDs and QBCDs are consistent with a single sequence in galactic evolution, with the quiescent phase lasting thirty times longer than the starburst phase. The resulting time-averaged star formation rate is low enough to allow this cadence of BCD -- QBCD phases during the Hubble time., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 17 pages. 13 Figs

Using the hydrodynamic code ZEUS, we perform 2D simulations to determine the fate of the gas ejected by massive stars within super star clusters. It turns out that the outcome depends mainly on the mass and radius of the cluster. In the case of less massive clusters, a hot high velocity ($\sim 1000$ km s$^{-1}$) stationary wind develops and the metals injected by supernovae are dispersed to large distances from the cluster. On the other hand, the density of the thermalized ejecta within massive and compact clusters is sufficiently large as to immediately provoke the onset of thermal instabilities. These deplete, particularly in the central densest regions, the pressure and the pressure gradient required to establish a stationary wind, and instead the thermally unstable parcels of gas are rapidly compressed, by a plethora of re-pressurizing shocks, into compact high density condensations. Most of these are unable to leave the cluster volume and thus accumulate to eventually feed further generations of star formation. The simulations cover an important fraction of the parameter-space, which allows us to estimate the fraction of the reinserted gas which accumulates within the cluster and the fraction that leaves the cluster as a function of the cluster mechanical luminosity, the cluster size and heating efficiency., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ; 27 pages, 9 figures, 1 table

We look for a simple analytic model to distinguish between stellar clusters undergoing a bimodal hydrodynamic solution from those able to drive only a stationary wind. Clusters in the bimodal regime undergo strong radiative cooling within their densest inner regions, which results in the accumulation of the matter injected by supernovae and stellar winds and eventually in the formation of further stellar generations, while their outer regions sustain a stationary wind. The analytic formulae are derived from the basic hydrodynamic equations. Our main assumption, that the density at the star cluster surface scales almost linearly with that at the stagnation radius, is based on results from semi-analytic and full numerical calculations. The analytic formulation allows for the determination of the threshold mechanical luminosity that separates clusters evolving in either of the two solutions. It is possible to fix the stagnation radius by simple analytic expressions and thus to determine the fractions of the deposited matter that clusters evolving in the bimodal regime blow out as a wind or recycle into further stellar generations., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, accepted by A&A

We argue that the discrepancies observed in HII regions between abundances derived from optical recombination lines (ORLs) and collisionally excited lines (CELs) might well be the signature of a scenario of the enrichment of the interstellar medium (ISM) proposed by Tenorio-Tagle (1996). In this scenario, the fresh oxygen released during massive supernova explosions is confined within the hot superbubbles as long as supernovae continue to explode. Only after the last massive supernova explosion, the metal-rich gas starts cooling down and falls on the galaxy within metal-rich droplets. Full mixing of these metal-rich droplets and the ISM occurs during photoionization by the next generations of massive stars. During this process, the metal-rich droplets give rise to strong recombination lines of the metals, leading to the observed ORL-CEL discrepancy. (The full version of this work is submitted to Astronomy and Astrophysics.), Comment: 4 pages, 5 colour figures, to be published in the proceedings of the conference "The Metal-Rich Universe", Cambridge University Press

Different hydrodynamic regimes for the gaseous outflows generated by multiple supernovae explosions and stellar winds occurring within compact and massive star clusters are discussed. It is shown that there exists the threshold energy that separates clusters whose outflows evolve in the quasi-adiabatic or radiative regime from those within which catastrophic cooling and a positive feedback star-forming mode sets in. The role of the surrounding ISM and the observational appearance of the star cluster winds evolving in different hydrodynamic regimes are also discussed., Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, to be published in the Proceedings IAU Symposium 237 "Triggered Star Formation in a Turbulent ISM", eds. B.G. Elmegreen & J. Palous

We review the structural properties of giant extragalactic HII regions and HII galaxies based on two dimensional hydrodynamic calculations, and propose an evolutionary sequence that accounts for their observed detailed structure. The model assumes a massive and young stellar cluster surrounded by a large collection of clouds. These are thus exposed to the most important star-formation feedback mechanisms: photoionization and the cluster wind. The models show how the two feedback mechanisms compete with each other in the disruption of clouds and lead to two different hydrodynamic solutions: The storage of clouds into a long lasting ragged shell that inhibits the expansion of the thermalized wind, and the steady filtering of the shocked wind gas through channels carved within the cloud stratum that results into the creation of large-scale superbubbles. Both solutions are here claimed to be concurrently at work in giant HII regions and HII galaxies, causing their detailed inner structure. A full description of the calculations can be found in The Astrophysical Journal 643, 186. Animated version of the models presented can be found at http://www.iaa.csic.es/\~{}eperez/ssc/ssc.html., Comment: 4 pages, to be published in Proceedings IAU Symposium 237 "Triggered Star Formation in a Turbulent ISM", eds. B.G. Elmegreen & J. Palous

We review the structural properties of giant extragalactic HII regions and HII galaxies based on 2D hydrodynamic calculations, and propose an evolutionary sequence that accounts for their observed detailed structure. The model assumes a massive and young stellar cluster surrounded by a large collection of clouds. These are thus exposed to the most important star-formation feedback mechanisms: photoionization and the cluster wind. The models show how the two feedback mechanisms compete in the disruption of clouds and lead to two different hydrodynamic solutions: The storage of clouds into a long lasting ragged shell that inhibits the expansion of the thermalized wind, and the steady filtering of the shocked wind gas through channels carved within the cloud stratum. Both solutions are claimed to be concurrently at work in giant HII regions and HII galaxies, causing their detailed inner structure. This includes multiple large-scale shells, filled with an X-ray emitting gas, that evolve to finally merge with each other, giving the appearance of shells within shells. The models also show how the inner filamentary structure of the giant superbubbles is largely enhanced with matter ablated from clouds and how cloud ablation proceeds within the original cloud stratum. The calculations point at the initial contrast density between the cloud and the intercloud media as the factor that defines which of the two feedback mechanisms becomes dominant throughout the evolution. Animated version of the models can be found at http://www.iaa.csic.es/\~{}eperez/ssc/ssc.html., Comment: 28 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in the ApJ. Animated version of the models can be found at http://www.iaa.csic.es/\~{}eperez/ssc/ssc.html

Recent results from Hubble Space Telescope (HST) have resolved starbursts as collections of compact young stellar clusters. Here we present a photometric catalogue of the young stellar clusters in the nuclear starburst of M82, observed with the HST WFPC2 in Halpha (F656N) and in four optical broad-band filters. We identify 197 young super stellar clusters. The compactness and high density of the sources led us to develop specific techniques to measure their sizes. Strong extinction lanes divide the starburst into five different zones and we provide a catalogue of young super star clusters for each of these. In the catalogue we include relative coordinates, radii, fluxes, luminosities, masses, equivalent widths, extinctions, and other parameters. Extinction values have been derived from the broad-band images. The radii range between 3 and 9 pc, with a mean value of 5.7 +/- 1.4pc, and a stellar mass between 10e4 and 10e6 Mo. The inferred masses and mean separation, comparable to the size of super star clusters, together with their high volume density, provides strong evidence for the key ingredients postulated by Tenorio et al. (2003) as required for the development of a supergalactic wind., Comment: 45 pages, 5 figures, 12 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ. Added Erratum

We present the results of a high resolution UV 2-D spectroscopic survey of star forming galaxies observed with HST-STIS. Our main aim was to map the Lyman alpha profiles to learn about the gas kinematics and its relation with the escape of Lyman alpha photons and to detect extended Lyman alpha emission due to scattering in gaseous halos. We have combined our data with previously obtained UV spectroscopy on other three star-forming galaxies. We find that the P-Cygni profile is spatially extended, smooth and spans several kiloparsecs covering a region much larger than the starburst itself. We propose a scenario whereby an expanding super-shell is generated by the interaction of the combined stellar winds and supernova ejecta from the young starbursts, with an extended low density halo. The variety of observed Lyman alpha profiles both in our sample and in high redshift starbursts is explained as phases in the time evolution of the super-shell expanding into the disk and halo of the host galaxy. The observed shapes, widths and velocities are in excellent agreement with the super-shell scenario predictions and represent a time sequence. We confirm that among the many intrinsic parameters of a star forming region that can affect the properties of the observed Lyman alpha profiles, velocity and density distributions of neutral gas along the line of sight are by far the dominant ones, while the amount of dust will determine the intensity of the emission line, if any., Comment: 57 pages, 22 figures, LaTex

We present two dimensional hydrodynamic calculations of free expanding supergalactic winds, taking into consideration strong radiative cooling. Our main premise is that supergalactic winds are powered by collections of superstar clusters. Every individual superstar cluster is a source of a high metallicity radiative supersonic outflow (paper I, 2003, ApJ, 590, 791). The interaction of winds from neighboring knots of star formation is shown to lead to a collection of stationary oblique shocks and crossing shocks, able to structure the general outflow into a network of dense and cold, kpc long filaments that originate near the base of the outflow. The shocks also lead to extended regions of diffuse soft X-ray emission and furthermore, to channel the outflow with a high degree of collimation into the intergalactic medium., Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal

Here we present semi-analytical solutions of the hydrodynamics of compact supernova remnants (cSNRs) and their chemical evolution. Two models of $15 M_{\odot}$ and $25 M_{\odot}$ supernova explosions evolving in a high density medium ($n_0 \sim 10^7 cm^{-3}$) are throughly discussed., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in Revista Mexicana de Astronomia & Astrofisica

The steady state numerical solution and two dimensional hydrodynamic calculations of supergalactic winds generated by super star clusters are presented. Two possible regimes: quasi-adiabatic and strongly radiative are thoroughly discussed. It is shown that superwinds driven by compact and powerful starbursts undergo catastrophic cooling close to their sources, and establish a temperature distribution radically different from those obtained in the adiabatic solution. At the same time, both velocity and density radial distributions remain almost unchanged given the speed of the rapidly diverging flow. The rapid fall in temperature as a function of radius reduces the size of the zone radiating in X-rays and decreases the superwind X-ray luminosity. At the same time, cooling brings the 10$^4$ K boundary closer to the wind center, and promotes the establishment of an extended ionized fast moving envelope. This should show up as a weak and broad ($\sim 1000$ km s$^{-1}$) line emission component at the base of the much narrower line caused by the central HII region., Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal

We stress some of the major differences between supergalactic winds and giant superbubbles evolving into the giant low density haloes of galaxies. We review major properties of bursts of star formation and the critical energy required for mass ejection both in the case of an ISM strongly flattened by rotation and that imposed by a more extended ISM distribution arising from a smaller rotation. The limits are thus establish for galaxies with an ISM mass in the range 10$^6$ M$_\odot$ to more than 10$^9$ M$_\odot$, and are compared with a sample of local galaxies. Some of these galaxies seem to be above the critical limit despite the fact that their structure is clearly that of a superbubble. True supergalactic winds, as evidence by M82, are shown to exceed the critical limit by more than an order of magnitude and thus the limit derived by Silich & Tenorio-Tagle (2001) for mass ejection should be regarded as a lower limit., Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure, Accepted for publication in the Proceedings of The Eighth Texas-Mexico Conference on Astrophysics: Energetics of Cosmic Plasmas

The recent history of star formation in the BCD galaxy VII Zw403, is analysed with accounts for the dynamics of the remnant generated either by an instantaneous burst or by a continuous star formation event. We have re-observed VII Zw403 with a better sensitivity corresponding to the threshold H$_{\alpha}$ flux $8.15 \times 10^{-17}$ erg cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$. The total H$_{\alpha}$ luminosity derived from our data is much larger than reported before, and presents a variety of ionized filaments and incomplete shells superimposed on the diffuse H$_{\alpha}$ emission. This result has a profound impact on the predicted properties of the starburst blown superbubble. Numerical calculations based on the previous H$_{\alpha}$ data, predict two different scenarios of star formation able to match simultaneously all observed parameters. These are an instantaneous burst of star formation with a total mass of $5 \times 10^5$ M$_{\odot}$ and a star-forming event with a constant SFR = $4 \times 10^{-3}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$, which lasts for 35 Myrs. The numerical calculations based on the energy input rate derived from our observations predict a short episode of star formation lasting less than 10 Myrs with a total star cluster mass $\sim (1 - 3) \times 10^6$ M$_{\odot}$., Comment: 23 pages, 6 figures, 4 table, Accepted for publication in Astronomical Journal

A thorough analysis of well studied giant HII regions on galactic discs for which we know the ionizing stellar population, the gas metallicity and the Wolf-Rayet population, leads to photoionization models which can only match all observed line intensity ratios ([OIII], [OII], [NII], [SII] and [SIII] with respect to the intensity of H$\beta$), as well as the H$\beta$ luminosity and equivalent width if one allows for an important escape of energetic ionizing radiation. For the three regions presented here, the fractions of escaping Lyman continuum photons amount to 10 to 73 % and, in all cases, the larger fraction of escaping photons has energies between 13.6 and 24.4 eV. These escaping photons clearly must have an important impact as a source of ionization of the diffuse ionized gas (DIG) found surrounding many galaxies, as well as of the intergalactic medium (IGM)., Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure. Accepted for publication in ApJLetters

We report the detection of a very narrow P Cygni profile on top of the broad emission Ha and Hb lines of the Type IIn Supernova 1997eg. A similar feature has been detected in SN 1997ab (Salamanca et al. 1998), SN 1998S (Meikle & Geballe 1998, Fassia et al. 2001) and SN 1995G (Filippenko & Schlegel 1995). The detection of the narrow P Cygni profile indicates the existence of a dense circumstellar material (CSM) into which the ejecta of the supernova is expanding. From the analysis of the spectra of SN 1997eg we deduce (a) that such CSM is very dense (n ~ 5x10^7 cm^-3), (b) that has a low expanding velocity of about 160 \kms. The origin of such dense CSM can be either a very dense progenitor wind (dotM ~ 10^-2 solar masses per year) or a circumstellar shell product of the progenitor wind expanding into a high pressure environment., Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS

The recent history of star formation in VIIZw 403 is analyzed taking into account the dynamics of the starburst blown superbubble and the restrictions that follow from X-ray observations, and from our H$\alpha$ data. Our results show that the starburst energizing VIIZw 403 is NOT coeval, but rather the star forming phase has lasted for more than 30Myr and at such a low pace that most probably the newly processed metals will not be ejected into the intergalactic medium., Comment: 1 page, 1 figure, Conference Proceedings: Ionized Gaseous Nebulae, to be published in Rev. Mex. A.A. Conf. Ser

We present in this paper a detailed study of the kinematical properties of the ionized gas around the young massive star clusters in the nucleus of NGC 4214. The analysis is based on bidimensional spectroscopical data, allowing to derive the spatial variation of different properties (intensity, velocity and width / line splitting) of the emission lines H\alpha and [O III] \lambda 5007 along the nuclear region. We have found that the Giant H II region around the two most massive clusters in NGC 4214 (A and B) is resolved into two clearly separated regions. We have not detected superbubbles with the properties we would expect according to the evolutionary state of the stellar clusters, but just a partial ring feature around the most massive one and two expanding shells around cluster B. The first expanding shell seems to have experienced blowout, whereas the second one is still complete. A possible explanation to this phenomenon is that the most massive stars in a starburst spend a large fraction of their lives buried inside their original molecular clouds. Champagne flows might have formed at the borders of the regions, especially on the SE complex, explaining the existence of the diffuse ionized gas around the galaxy. As a consequence of these results we postulate that NGC 4214 is indeed a dwarf spiral galaxy, with a thin (around 200 pc) disk that inhibits the formation of large scale structures in the ISM. The mechanical input deposited by the star formation complexes, in a variety of physical processes that include the free expanding bubbles liberated after blowout and photoevaporation of the parent clouds, have succeeded in generating the structures now detected far from the disk, giving place to the large-scale structure which now enriches the optical appearance of the galaxy., Comment: 18 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics

We review the Lyan alpha emission in local star-forming galaxies. In most cases as already shown by the IUE, the emission is absent or much weaker than expected. This occurs because Lyman alpha photons can be resonantly scattered by the neutral gas and destroyed by even very low amounts of dust. However new Hubble Space Telescope observations (HST) indicate that other factors such as the velocity structure of the gas play a crucial role. Gas flows are likely to occur as powered by the kinetic energy released via stellar winds and supernova. We propose a scenario based on the hydrodynamics of superbubbles powered by massive bursts of star formation that naturally accounts for the variety of Lyman alpha line detections in star-forming galaxies. We caution with the attempts to derive the co-moving star formation rate at high redshift from Lyman alpha emission searches., Comment: 12 pages, 4 Postscript figures; to appear in the proceedings of ``Dwarf Galaxies and Cosmology'' ed. T.X.Thuan et al. (Editions Frontieres, Gif-sur-Yvette)

We examine the evolution of inhomogeneities (fragments) of supernova ejecta in compact supernova remnants by means of hydrodynamical modeling and simplified analytical calculations. Under the influence of intense post-shock cooling the fragments become strongly compressed as they traverse the hot shocked region between the reverse and outer shocks of the remnant. We find that the most likely outcome of the interaction of fragments with the reverse shock and the hot shocked region is their disruption resulting in generation of secondary fragments. Secondary fragments arriving at the thin and dense outer shell of the remnant give rise to brief X-ray flashes. Under suitable conditions the primary fragments may traverse the hot shocked region without being completely destroyed, to eventually reach the outer shell as dense, elongated structures. Collisions of such fragments with the shell are likely to give rise to powerful X-ray flares., Comment: 13 pages, latex (mn.sty, epsf.sty), 3 Postscript and 2 xwd figures (not included); accepted for publication in MNRAS. A complete version with figures (self-unpacking uuencoded archive) is available at http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/Hydro/AMR/papers/frag.uu

The presence of giant shells or loops in giant HII regions are clear witness of the mechanical energy input from massive stars. Here we evaluate the impact that winds may have on the structure of giant nebulae and on their supersonic velocity dispersion. We follow the suggestion from Chu \& Kennicutt (1994) to see if a combination of a large number of unresolved wind-driven shells caused by massive stars could produce the integrated broad Gaussian profiles typical of giant HII regions. The results, accounting for a wide range of energies, densities and velocity or age of the expanding shells, show that supersonic Gaussian profiles may arise only from a collection of unresolved wind-driven shells if the shells present a peculiar velocity distribution which implies a strongly peaked age distribution leading to an awkward star formation history. On the other hand, a uniform distribution of ages originates profiles with a flat-topped core defined by the terminal shell velocity and a steep decay as $v^{-6}$ up to the largest detectable shell speed. Thus, supersonic profiles can arise only if the final speed of the unresolved shells is supersonic. This implies an equally supersonic random speed of motions in the ionized gas disrupting the shells before they slow down to subsonic speeds. It also implies a mechanism, independent of the shells caused by massive stars, responsible for the supersonic stirring of the background medium. These facts together with the conditions for shells to remain unresolved to present day devices (energies, final speeds and ages), indicate that the winds may be produced by low-mass stars. In this latter case, if the sources move supersonically in the gravitational potential of the whole system they could stir the gas, with their, Comment: uuencoded gzipped postscript. The complete preprint is also available at http://www.ast.cam.ac.uk/preprint/PrePrint.html

The stellar content of the Im galaxy NGC 2366 is discussed on the basis of CCD BVR photometry. The three brightest blue and red stars have been used to estimate its distance, obtaining a balue of 2.9 Mpc. The spatial distribution of the young stellar population is discussed in the light of the integrated color indices and the color-magnitude diagrams of different zones of the galaxy. A generalized star formation burst seems to have taken place about 50 Myr ago. The youngest stars are preferentially formed in the South-West part of the bar, where the giant HII complex NGC 2363 is located, being younger and bluer. The bar seems to play a role favouring star formation in one of its extremes. Self-propagation however, does not seem to be triggering star formation at large scale. A small region, populated by very young stars has also been found at the East of the galaxy., Comment: Astronomical Journal, accepted. This is a uuencoded, compressed, tar file (102 Kbytes) of 1 text, 1 table postscript files. Figures are retrieved as a separate file. One single file with all figures and tables (552Kb) also available from http://www.ast.cam.ac.uk/~etelles/astronomy.html

The effects of the onset of star formation on the residual gas in primordial low-mass Local-Group dwarf spheroidal galaxies is studied by a series of hydrodynamical simulations. The models have concentrated on the effect of photoionization. The results indicate that photoionization in the presence of a moderate gas density gradient can eject most of the residual gas on a time scale of a few 10 to the 7th power years. High central gas density combined with inefficient star formation, however, may prevent mass ejection. The effect of supernova explosions is discussed briefly.