Over the last few years, the existence of mutual feedback effects between accreting supermassive black holes powering AGN and star formation in their host galaxies has become evident. This means that the formation and the evolution of AGN and galaxies should be considered as one and the same problem. As a consequence, the search for, and the characterization of the evolutionary and physical properties of AGN over a large redshift interval is a key topic of present research in the field of observational cosmology. Significant advances have been obtained in the last ten years thanks to the sizable number of XMM–Newton and Chandra surveys, complemented by multiwavelength follow-up programs. I will present some of the recent results and the ongoing efforts (mostly from the COSMOS and CDFS surveys) aimed at obtaining a complete census of accreting black holes in the universe, and a characterization of the properties of the host galaxies.

A program is outlined, and first results described, in which fully three-dimensional, time dependent simulations of hydrodynamic turbulence are used as a basis for theoretical investigation of the physics of turbulence. The inadequacy of the treatment of turbulent convection as a diffusive process is indicated. A generalization to rotation and magnetohydrodynamics is indicated, as are connections to simulations of 3D stellar atmospheres.

Making use of public spectra from Cimatti et al. (2008), we measure for the first time the velocity dispersion of spheroid-like massive (M* ~ 1011M⊙) galaxies at z ~ 1.6. By comparing with galaxies of similar stellar mass at lower redshifts, we find evidence for a mild evolution in velocity dispersion, decreasing from ~240 kms−1 at z ~ 1.6 down to ~180 km s−1 at z ~ 0. Such mild evolution contrasts with the strong change in size (a factor of ~4) found for these type of objects in the same cosmic time, and it is consistent with a progressive larger role, at lower redshift, of the dark matter halo in setting the velocity dispersion of these galaxies. We discuss the implications of our results within the context of different scenarios proposed for the evolution of these massive objects.

We present CCD photometry in the Washington-system C and T1 passbands down to T1 ~ 22.5 mag in the fields of NGC 1697, SL 133, NGC 1997, SL 663, and OHSC 28, five mostly unstudied star clusters in the LMC. Cluster radii were estimated from star counts in appropriately sized boxes distributed throughout the entire observed fields. We perform a detailed analysis of field-star contamination and derive cluster colour–magnitude diagrams (CMDs). Based on the best fits of isochrones computed by the Padova group to the (C − T1, T1) CMDs, the δ(T1) index and the ‘standard giant-branch’ procedure, we derive metallicities and ages for the five clusters. With the exception of NGC 1697 (age = 0.7 Gyr, [Fe/H] = 0.0 dex), the remaining four clusters are of intermediate age (from 2.2 to 3.0 Gyr) and relatively metal poor ([Fe/H] = −0.7 dex). We combine our sample with clusters with ages and metallicities on a similar scale and examine relationships between position in the LMC, age and metallicity. We confirm previous results that clusters younger than ~ 1 Gyr were formed during an outside-in process; this occurred after a burst of cluster formation that took place mainly in the outer disk and peaked ~ 2 Gyr ago. Finally, the cluster and field age–metallicity relations (AMRs) show evidence for a metallicity offset but do overlap, particularly on the upper-envelope side of the cluster AMR.

Galaxies with low-mass black holes and high accretion rates, i.e., narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies, are important objects when addressing the issues of black hole growth and evolution, and of feeding and feedback. We have studied a sample of such objects, and find (1) that the locus of NLS1 galaxies on the MBH–σ plane appears to follow the relation of non-active galaxies after removing objects obviously dominated by outflows, (2) the presence of “blue outliers” that hint at extreme outflows as predicted by recent merger models, and (3) more subtle evidence for winds/outflows across the whole NLS1 population.

Magnetic activity on cool stars expresses itself in a bewildering variety of radiative and particle output originating from magnetic regions between the photosphere and the corona. Given its origin in evolving magnetic fields, most of this output is variable in time. Radiation in the ultraviolet, the extreme ultraviolet, and the X-ray ranges are important for heating and ionizing upper planetary atmospheres and thus driving atmospheric evaporation. Additionally, stellar winds interact with the upper atmospheres and may lead to further erosion. The stellar high-energy output is therefore a prime factor in determining habitability of planets. We summarize our knowledge of magnetic activity in young solar analogs and lower-mass stars and show how the stellar output changes on evolutionary timescales.

The first asteroid to be discovered in space and subsequently observed to impact Earth, asteroid 2008 TC3, exploded at a high 37 km altitude and stopped ablating at 32 km. This would classify the fireball as of Ceplecha's PE-criterion IIIb/a, meaning “cometary” in nature. In this case, the structural weakness may have come from pores found in some of the recovered meteorites, called “Almahata Sitta” (= Station 6 in Arabic). The explosion turned most of the asteroid mass to dust and vapor, only a tiny fraction shattered into macroscopic meteorites, the heaviest of which was 283 gram. Other similarly frail asteroids may be related to main belt comets.

A new empirical formulae is given for estimating the masses of black holes in AGNs from the Hβ velocity dispersion and the continuum luminosity at 5100 Å. It is calibrated to reverberation-mapping and stellar-dynamical estimates of black hole masses. The resulting mass estimates are as accurate as reverberation-mapping and stellar-dynamical estimates. The new mass estimates show that there is very little scatter in the MBH–Lbulge relationship for high-luminosity galaxies, and that the scatter increases substantially in lower-mass galaxies.

The Galactic bulge is the central spheroid of our Galaxy, containing about one quarter of the total stellar mass of the Milky Way (Mbulge = 1.8 × 1010M⊙; Sofue, Honma & Omodaka 2009). Being older than the disk, it is the first massive component of the Galaxy to have collapsed into stars. Understanding its structure, and the properties of its stellar population, is therefore of great relevance for galaxy formation models. I will review our current knowledge of the bulge properties, with special emphasis on chemical abundances, recently measured for several hundred stars.

The total stellar mass loss that a star suffers through post-main-sequence evolution is of vital importance to understand its subsequent evolution. The mass-loss rate along the first-ascent red-giant branch alone determines the upper red-giant-branch luminosity function and horizontal-branch morphology. The distribution of stars in these phases directly affects our interpretation of the integrated colors of distant galaxies, and is therefore of fundamental importance for galaxy formation and evolution studies in the higher-redshift Universe. Yet, these mass-loss rates, especially as a function of age and metallicity, are very poorly constrained in current models. I present new constraints on this field based on imaging and spectroscopic observations of the end products from this evolution, white dwarfs. By studying the mass distribution of these dead stars in nearby star clusters with a range of (known) ages and metallicities, we can directly constrain the mass-loss rates of stars across a range of environments. These observations directly impact several fields in astrophysics, including our knowledge of the enrichment of the interstellar medium, our ability to construct population synthesis models to interpret galaxy colors and the general interpretation of the sources and processes responsible for the observed ultraviolet upturn in elliptical galaxies.

Recent work (Baskin & Laor 2004; Dong et al. 2009a, b) suggests that the Eddington ratio (l ≡ L/LEdd) is the origin of all the significant first-order object-to-object variations of quasar spectral properties from the zeroth-order similarity of AGN spectra; specifically, this includes the PC1 of Boroson & Green (1992), the classic or inverse Baldwin effect (Baldwin 1977), and even blueshifting (i.e., blue asymmetry) of high-ionization emission lines (Dong et al. 2009c).

We present the first results of a Spitzer Space Telescope survey of 28 LIRGs and ULIRGs. We used infrared emission lines to separeate AGN and starburst powered systems. We find strong evidence that the incidence of nuclear activity increases with infrared luminosity.

The Dark Energy Survey (DES) will cover 5000 sq. deg. in grizY filters. Although its main goals are related to cosmology, it will yield photometric measurements of over 108 stars, most of them belonging to the Galaxy. DES will increase the sampling depth of very low-luminosity stellar and sub-stellar species, such as white, red, and brown dwarfs, by a factor of several as compared to SDSS. The structure of the Galactic halo, including its complex sub-structures caused by accretion remnants and globular cluster tidal tails, will also be probed and analyzed. DES will also allow comparison of star counts between Northern and Southern Galactic hemispheres to unprecedented detail. Finally, a significant sample of stars in the outskirts of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) will be studied, providing new light into the debate about the existence of an LMC spheroidal component. These, among other important research goals attainable with the DES stellar data, are discussed in this contribution.

To constrain the origin of scaling relations between black hole mass and galaxy properties, i.e., stellar velocity dispersion and bulge luminosity, we investigate the evolution of scaling relations in the past 6 Gyrs. Over the last three years, we have obtained high signal-to-noise ratio Keck spectra of ~ 50 intermediate luminosity broad-line AGNs at z ~ 0.4 and z ~ 0.6, to measure stellar velocity dispersion, and HST (ACS and NICMOS) images of the same objects (~ 40 so far), to measure bulge luminosity from the two-dimensional AGN-galaxy decomposition analysis. In this paper, we will summarize the main results on the MBH–σ and MBH–bulge luminosity relations and their evolution to the present-day universe. The measured scaling relations show that the relations have evolved significantly in the past 6 billion years, and that black hole growth predates the final galaxy assembly.

Observational data concerning the long-term history of cyclic solar activity as recorded in sunspot and isotopic data are discussed in the context of solar dynamo theory. In particular, a simple dynamo model based on differential rotation and the mirror asymmetry of convection with random fluctuations of dynamo governing parameters is shown to reproduce some basic features of the solar magnetic activity evolution.

We serendipitiously found that the iron-rich low-ionization broad absorption-line (FeLoBAL) quasar SDSS J 163255.46+420407.7 showed a dramatic change in its spectrum over 3.4 years in the rest frame of the quasar. A simple photoionization model suggests the increase in the nuclear radiation caused these changes. Given the recombination coefficient of Fe+, the relaxation time of the absorbing gas suggests ne > 104 cm−3.

Solar activity and its consequences for the interplanetary space are governing and perturbing the Earth's magnetosphere. The response of the terrestrial magnetosphere displayed as geomagnetic disturbances is measured by several geomagnetic indices. This paper analyses the geomagnetic variability during the ascendant phases of the last four solar cycles (nos. 20-23) under the influence of the high speed solar wind. The ascendant phase of a solar cycle is a proper interval of the irrespective cycle during which the influences of the solar cycles adjacent to it (the precedent and the following ones) are not present. The correlation between the geomagnetic indices and the high speed stream intensity during the analysed intervals was examined. Lomb-Scargle method of spectral analysis was applied on the solar wind velocity series during the ascendant phases.

We observed several H ii regions in the dwarf irregular galaxy NGC 6822 using the infrared spectrograph on the Spitzer Space Telescope. Our aim is twofold: first, to examine the neon to sulfur abundance ratio in order to determine how much it may vary and whether or not, it is fairly ‘universal’; second, to discriminate and test the predicted ionizing spectral energy distribution between various stellar atmosphere models by comparing with our derivation of the ratio of fractional ionizations involving neon and sulfur. This work extends our previous similar studies of H ii regions in M83 and M33 to lower metallicities.

Broad absorption lines (BALs) in quasar spectra identify high-velocity outflows that likely exist in all quasars and could play a major role in feedback to galaxy evolution (e.g., Di Matteo et al. 2005). Studying the variability in these BALs can help us understand the structure, evolution, and basic physical properties of these outflows. We are investigating BAL variability in a sample of 25 luminous quasars at 1.2 < z < 2.9 with multi-epoch observations that cover time scales from less than around a month to 7.7 years in the quasar rest-frame. We investigate changes in the C iv λ1549 BALs, and we see a variety of phenomena, including some BALs that either appeared or disappeared completely and other BALs that did not change at all over the whole observation period.