Last updated: Jan-27-00

Spectroscopic Criteria

The properties of UV excess galaxies are reviewed in [76]. A list of active galaxies is contained in [21]. Seyfert galaxies: see Byurakan Nuclear Types, Bright Nuclei Galaxies, and Seyfert Galaxies, Table H, and 9.5. For recent compilations see [58, 77, 89, 198]. A survey of 75 bright galaxies for signs of dwarf Seyfert activity [44]; see also [79]. A spectrophotometric catalogue of 425 HII galaxies [184]; H alpha galaxies [74, 151, 201]; H alpha galaxies in Abell 347 / 1367 [131].

Wolf-Rayet galaxies are defined to be that subset of emission-line galaxies in which broad emission from HeII lambda 4686 is present in the integrated spectrum, and is attributed to Wolf-Rayet stars, in the nucleus or in giant HII regions.

The first catalog of Wolf-Rayet galaxies is presented and discussed in Conti, P., 1991, Ap.J., 377, 115 = [23]. These galaxies are a subset of emission-line galaxies in which a broad 4686 He II emission feature due to Wolf-Rayet (W-R) stars is observed in the integrated spectrum. About one-quarter of these galaxies also show a broad line at 4640 Å due to N III which is prominent in the latest type WN stars. The number of Lyman-continuum photons emitted by W-R galaxies scales roughly with their integrated magnitudes, similar to emission-line galaxies. Both W-R galaxies and emission-line galaxies form an overlap with and luminous extension of giant H II regions in these properties. The fraction of W-R stars to O stars in some of these galaxies appears to be large, which if confirmed by more detailed quantitative work would imply that the initial mass function was relatively ``flat.'' There is also another small subset of emission-line galaxies in which a narrow 4686 He II emission feature is found - this is likely a recombination nebular line whose excitation mechanism is uncertain.

Follow-up optical spectra of 10 Wolf-Rayet galaxies and four other starburst galaxies are presented in Vacca, W.D., & Conti, P.S., 1992, Ap.J., 401, 543.