Distance Measurements and Stellar Population Properties via Surface Brightness Fluctuations
Alexander Fritz
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
Gemini Observatory, 670 N. A’ohoku Place, Hilo, HI 96720, USA and Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica – Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica Milano, Via E. Bassini 15, 20133 Milano, Italy. Email: afritz@iasf-milano.inaf.it
Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia 29(4) 489-508 https://doi.org/10.1071/AS11076
Submitted: 22 December 2011 Accepted: 26 March 2012 Published: 9 May 2012
Abstract
Surface Brightness Fluctuations (SBFs) are one of the most powerful techniques to measure the distance and to constrain the unresolved stellar content of extragalactic systems. For a given bandpass, the absolute SBF magnitude 
depends on the properties of the underlying stellar population. Multi-band SBFs allow scientists to probe different stages of the stellar evolution: ultraviolet and blue wavelength band SBFs are sensitive to the evolution of stars within the hot horizontal branch and post-asymptotic giant branch phases, whereas optical SBF magnitudes explore the stars within the red giant branch and horizontal branch regimes. Near- and far-infrared SBF luminosities probe the important stellar evolution stage within the asymptotic giant branch and thermally pulsating asymptotic giant branch phases. Since the first successful application by Tonry and Schneider, a multiplicity of works have used this method to expand the distance scale up to 150 Mpc and beyond. This article gives a historical background of distance measurements, reviews the basic concepts of the SBF technique, presents a broad sample of investigations and discusses possible selection effects, biases, and limitations of the method. In particular, exciting new developments and improvements in the field of stellar population synthesis are discussed that are essential to understand the physics and properties of the populations in unresolved stellar systems. Further, promising future directions of the SBF technique are presented. With new upcoming space-based satellites such as Gaia, the SBF method will remain as one of the most important tools to derive distances to galaxies with unprecedented accuracy and to give detailed insights into the stellar content of globular clusters and galaxies.
Keywords: stars: statistics — galaxies: distances and redshifts — galaxies: elliptical and lenticular, cD — galaxies: fundamental parameters — galaxies: stellar content — cosmology: distance scale
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