Title:

Structure and Origin of Elliptical Galaxies




Andreas Burkert
University of Munich


Abstract:

I will discuss the formation of elliptical galaxies,
resulting from major galaxy mergers, a scenario that is
suggested by standard cosmological models of galaxy
frmation.  Numerical merger simulations provide valuable
insight into the equilibrium structure of ellipticals as
function of the merging parameters which can be compared
with observations. This allows us to identify the peculiar
conditions which lead to the two distinct populations of
disky and boxy early-type galaxies. A comparison with
observations leads to interesting conclusions on galaxy
evolution as function of cosmological redshift.