by Michelle Cluver (UCT)

Near-infrared images of HIZOA J0836-43 show a bulge-dominated spiral at the center of its HI-massive disk. However, the mid-infrared uncovers a star-forming disk housing an intense starburst with a star formation rate of approximately 21 Msun/yr (Cluver et al. 2008 , 2010 ).This luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG) appears to be undergoing asymmetric inside-out disk building, with a star formation efficiency comparable to local disk galaxies and quite different to merger-driven starbursts. This suggests a tantalizing link to a distant epoch of star formation when gas-rich spirals consumed similar amounts of fuel.

This week in Sydney: The Most Massive Galaxies and their Precursors conference