Person:
Castillo Morales, María África

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First Name
María África
Last Name
Castillo Morales
Affiliation
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Faculty / Institute
Ciencias Físicas
Department
Física de la Tierra y Astrofísica
Area
Astronomía y Astrofísica
Identifiers
UCM identifierORCIDScopus Author IDWeb of Science ResearcherIDDialnet ID

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 20
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    MEGARA: the future IFU and MOS of the 10.4 M GTC
    (Revista Mexicana de astronomía y astrofísica, 2013) Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Castillo Morales, María África; Eliche Moral, María del Carmen; Marino, Raffaella Anna; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Zamorano Calvo, Jaime; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Pérez González, Pablo Guillermo; ... otros
    In these proceedings we summarize the characteristics and current status of MEGARA, the future optical IFU and MOS for the 10.4 m GTC. MEGARA is being built by a Consortium led by the UCM (Spain) that also includes the INAOE (Mexico), the IAA-CSIC (Spain) and the UPM (Spain). The MEGARA IFU offers two different bundles, one called LCB with a field-of-view of 14 x 12 arcsec^2 and a spaxel size of 0.685 arcsec yielding spectral resolutions between R=6000-19000 and another one called SCB covering 10 x 8 arcsec^2 with 0.48 arcsec spaxels and resolutions R=8000-25000. The MOS component allows observing up to 100 targets in 3.5x3.5 arcmin^2. In September 2010 MEGARA was selected as the next optical spectrograph for GTC. Its PDR is scheduled for March 2012 with First Light on 2015.
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    Project number: 244
    Prácticas de observaciones astronómicas remotas con telescopios profesionales a través de internet
    (2017) Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Zamorano Calvo, Jaime; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Castillo Morales, María África; Cacho Martínez, Raúl; Tapia Ayuga, Carlos Eugenio; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Pedraz Marcos, Santos
    Este proyecto se resume como un intento de implementar unas prácticas de laboratorio que permitan llevar a cabo observaciones astronómicas de calidad científica mediante el uso remoto a través de Internet de telescopios profesionales situados en un gran observatorio astronómico.
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    Outer-disk reddening and gas-phase metallicities: The CALIFA connection
    (Astronomy & Astrophysics, 2016) Marino, Raffaella Anna; Gil De Paz, Armando; Sánchez, S. F.; Sánchez Blázquez, Patricia; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Castillo Morales, María África; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Vílchez, J.; Kehrig, C.; Mollá, M.; Mendez Abreu, J.; Catalán Torrecilla, Cristina; Florido, E.; Perez, I.; Ruiz Lara, T.; Ellis, S.; López Sánchez, A. R.; González Delgado, R. M.; Lorenzo Cáceres, A. de; García Benito, R.; Galbany, L.; Zibetti, S.; Cortijo, C.; Kalinova, V.; Mast, D.; Iglesias Páramo, J.; Papaderos, P.; Walcher, C. J.; Bland Hawthorn, J.; CALIFA Team
    We study, for the first time in a statistically significant and well-defined sample, the relation between the outer-disk ionized-gas metallicity gradients and the presence of breaks in the surface brightness profiles of disk galaxies. Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) g′- and r′-band surface brightness, (g′ – r′) color, and ionized-gasoxygen abundance profiles for 324 galaxies within the Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area (CALIFA) survey are used for this purpose. We perform a detailed light-profile classification, finding that 84% of our disks show down- or up-bending profiles (Type II and Type III, respectively), while the remaining 16% are well fitted by one single exponential (Type I). The analysis of the color gradients at both sides of this break shows a U-shaped profile for most Type II galaxies with an average minimum (g′ − r′) color of ~0.5  mag and an ionized-gas metallicity flattening associated with it only in the case of low-mass galaxies. Comparatively, more massive systems show a rather uniform negative metallicity gradient. The correlation between metallicity flattening and stellar mass for these systems results in p-values as low as 0.01. Independent of the mechanism having shaped the outer light profiles of these galaxies, stellar migration or a previous episode of star formation in a shrinking star-forming disk, it is clear that the imprint in their ionized-gas metallicity was different for low- and high-mass Type II galaxies. In the case of Type III disks, a positive correlation between the change in color and abundance gradient is found (the null hypothesis is ruled out with a p-value of 0.02), with the outer disks of Type III galaxies with masses ≤10^10 M_⊙ showing a weak color reddening or even a bluing. This is interpreted as primarily due to a mass downsizing effect on the population of Type III galaxies that recently experienced an enhanced inside-out growth.
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    MEGARA control system
    (Revista Mexicana de astronomía y astrofísica, 2013) Castillo Morales, María África; Eliche Moral, María del Carmen; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Marino, Raffaella Anna; Villar, V.; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Morales, I.; González, E.; Cedazo, R.; Serena, F.; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Carrasco, E.; Vílchez, J. M.; Sánchez, F. M.; Gil De Paz, Armando; García Vargas, M. L.
    MEGARA (Multi-Espectrografo en GTC de Alta Resolucion para Astronomia) is an optical Integral-Field Unit (IFU) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) designed for the GTC 10.4 m telescope in La Palma. The MEGARA Control System will provide the capabilities to move the different mechanisms of the instrument, to readout the data from the detector controller and the necessary routines for the Inspector Panels, the MEGARA Observing Preparation Software Suite, the Data Factory and the Sequencer strategies.
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    NGC 7469 as seen by MEGARA: new results from high-resolution IFU spectroscopy
    (Monthly notices of The Royal Astronomical Society, 2020) Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Castillo Morales, María África; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Cardiel López, Nicolás
    We present our analysis of high-resolution (R ∼ 20 000) GTC/MEGARA integral-field unit spectroscopic observations, obtained during the commissioning run, in the inner region (12.5 arcsec × 11.3 arcsec) of the active galaxy NGC 7469, at spatial scales of 0.62 arcsec. We explore the kinematics, dynamics, ionization mechanisms, and oxygen abundances of the ionized gas, by modelling the H α-[N II] emission lines at high signal-to-noise (> 15) with multiple Gaussian components. MEGARA observations reveal, for the first time for NGC 7469, the presence of a very thin (20 pc) ionized gas disc supported by rotation (V/σ = 4.3), embedded in a thicker (222 pc), dynamically hotter (V/σ = 1.3) one. These discs nearly corotate with similar peak-to-peak velocities (163 versus 137 km s^(−1)), but with different average velocity dispersion (38 ± 1 versus 108 ± 4 km s^(−1)). The kinematics of both discs could be possibly perturbed by star-forming regions. We interpret the morphology and the kinematics of a third (broader) component (σ > 250 km s^(−1)) as suggestive of the presence of non-rotational turbulent motions possibly associated either to an outflow or to the lense. For the narrow component, the [N II]/H α ratios point to the star-formation as the dominant mechanism of ionization, being consistent with ionization from shocks in the case of the intermediate component. All components have roughly solar metallicity. In the nuclear region of NGC 7469, at r ≤ 1.85 arcsec, a very broad (FWHM = 2590 km s^(−1)) H α component is contributing (41 per cent) to the global H α-[N II] profile, being originated in the (unresolved) broad line region of the Seyfert 1.5 nucleus of NGC 7469.
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    Spatially resolved analysis of neutralwWinds, stars, and ionized gas kinematics with MEGARA/GTC: new insights on the nearby galaxy UGC 10205
    (Astrophysical journal, 2020) Catalán Torrecilla, Cristina; Castillo Morales, María África; Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Chamorro Cazorla, Mario; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Dullo, Bililign
    We present a comprehensive analysis of the multiphase structure of the interstellar medium (ISM) and the stellar kinematics in the edge-on nearby galaxy UGC 10205 using integral field spectroscopy (IFS) data taken with MultiEspectrógrafo en GTC de Alta Resolución para Astronomía (MEGARA) at the GTC. We explore both the neutral and the ionized gas phases using the interstellar Na I D doublet absorption (LR−V setup, R ∼ 6000) and the Hα emission line (HR−R setup, R ∼ 18000), respectively. The high-resolution data show the complexity of the Hα emission-line profile revealing the detection of up to three kinematically distinct gaseous components. Despite of this fact, a thin-disk model is able to reproduce the bulk of the ionized gas motions in the central regions of UGC 10205. The use of asymmetric drift corrections is needed to reconciliate the ionized and the stellar velocity rotation curves. We also report the detection of outflowing neutral gas material blueshifted by ∼ 87 km s^(−1) . The main physical properties that describe the observed outflow are a total mass M_(out) = (4.55 ± 0.06) × 10^(7) Mʘ and a coldgas mass outflow rate M_(out) = 0.78  0.03 Mʘ yr^(−1) . This work points out the necessity of exploiting highresolution IFS data to understand the multiphase components of the ISM and the multiple kinematical components in the central regions of nearby galaxies.
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    Spatially resolved properties of the ionized gas in the HII galaxy J084220+115000
    (Monthly notices of The Royal Astronomical Society, 2023) Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Castillo Morales, María África; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio
    We present a spatially resolved spectroscopic study for the metal poor H_(II) galaxy J084220+115000 using MEGARA Integral Field Unit observations at the Gran Telescopio Canarias. We estimated the gas metallicity using the direct method for oxygen, nitrogen and helium and found a mean value of 12+log(O/H)=8.03±0.06, and integrated electron density and temperature of ∼ 161 cm^(−3) and ∼ 15400 K, respectively. The metallicity distribution shows a large range of ∆(O/H) = 0.72 dex between the minimum and maximum (7.69±0.06 and 8.42±0.05) values, unusual in a dwarf starforming galaxy. We derived an integrated log(N/O) ratio of −1.51 ± 0.05 and found that both N/O and O/H correspond to a primary production of metals. Spatially resolved maps indicate that the gas appears to be photoionized by massive stars according to the diagnostic line ratios. Between the possible mechanisms to explain the starburst activity and the large variation of oxygen abundance in this galaxy, our data support a possible scenario where we are witnessing an ongoing interaction triggering multiple star-forming regions localized in two dominant clumps.
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    MEGARA developments at LICA-UCM
    (Revista Mexicana de astronomía y astrofísica, 2013) Zamorano Calvo, Jaime; Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Eliche Moral, María del Carmen; Pascual Ramírez, Sergio; Castillo Morales, María África; Marino, Raffaella Anna; Villar, V.; García Vargas, M. L.; Tulloch, S. M.; Maldonado, M.; Sánchez Blanco, E.; Carrasco, E.; Sánchez, F. M.; Vílchez, J. M.; Muñoz, V.; Aguirre, D.
    LICA-UCM is the brand new laboratory for scientific advanced instrumentation (Laboratorio de Investigacion Cientifica Avanzada) at Universidad Complutense de Madrid where MEGARA integration will take place.
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    MEGARA, the R=6000-20000 IFU and MOS of GTC
    (Ground-based and airborne instrumentation for astronomy, 2018) Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Bouquin, A.; Carbajo, J.; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Castillo Morales, María África; Esteban San Román, Segundo; López Orozco, José Antonio; Pascual, S.; Picazo, P.; Sánchez Penim, Ainhoa; Velázquez, M.; Zamorano Calvo, Jaime; Catalán Torrecilla, Cristina; Dullo, Bililign; Pérez González, P.G.; Roca Fábrega, Santi
    MEGARA is the new generation IFU and MOS optical spectrograph built for the 10.4m Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC). The project was developed by a consortium led by UCM (Spain) that also includes INAOE (Mexico), IAA-CSIC (Spain) and UPM (Spain). The instrument arrived to GTC on March 28th 2017 and was successfully integrated and commissioned at the telescope from May to August 2017. During the on-sky commissioning we demonstrated that MEGARA is a powerful and robust instrument that provides on-sky intermediate-to-high spectral resolutions R_(FWHM) ~ 6,000, 12,000 and 20,000 at an unprecedented efficiency for these resolving powers in both its IFU and MOS modes. The IFU covers 12.5 x 11.3 arcsec2 while the MOS mode allows observing up to 92 objects in a region of 3.5 x 3.5 arcmin^(2) . In this paper we describe the instrument main subsystems, including the Folded-Cassegrain unit, the fiber link, the spectrograph, the cryostat, the detector and the control subsystems, and its performance numbers obtained during commissioning where the fulfillment of the instrument requirements is demonstrated.
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    MEGARA, the new intermediate-resolution optical IFU and MOS for GTC: getting ready for the telescope
    (Proceedings of SPIE, 2016) Gil De Paz, Armando; Gallego Maestro, Jesús; Cardiel López, Nicolás; Castillo Morales, María África; Cruz García, Jesús Manuel de la; Esteban San Román, Segundo; López Orozco, José Antonio; Pascual, S.; Picazo, P.; Sánchez-Penim, A.; Zamorano Calvo, Jaime; Pérez González, Pablo Guillermo
    MEGARA (Multi-Espectrografo en GTC de Alta Resolucion para Astronomia) is an optical Integral-Field Unit (IFU) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) designed for the GTC 10.4m telescope in La Palma that is being built by a Consortium led by UCM (Spain) that also includes INAOE (Mexico), IAA-CSIC (Spain), and UPM (Spain). The instrument is currently finishing AIV and will be sent to GTC on November 2016 for its on-sky commissioning on April 2017. The MEGARA IFU fiber bundle (LCB) covers 12.5x11.3 arcsec(2) with a spaxel size of 0.62 arcsec while the MEGARA MOS mode allows observing up to 92 objects in a region of 3.5x3.5 arcmin(2) around the IFU. The IFU and MOS modes of MEGARA will provide identical intermediate-to-high spectral resolutions (R-FWHM similar to 6,000, 12,000 and 18,700, respectively for the low-, mid-and high-resolution Volume Phase Holographic gratings) in the range 3700-9800 angstrom angstrom. An x-y mechanism placed at the pseudo-slit position allows (1) exchanging between the two observing modes and (2) focusing the spectrograph for each VPH setup. The spectrograph is a collimator-camera system that has a total of 11 VPHs simultaneously available (out of the 18 VPHs designed and being built) that are placed in the pupil by means of a wheel and an insertion mechanism. The custom-made cryostat hosts a 4kx4k 15-mu m CCD. The unique characteristics of MEGARA in terms of throughput and versatility and the unsurpassed collecting are of GTC make of this instrument the most efficient tool to date to analyze astrophysical objects at intermediate spectral resolutions. In these proceedings we present a summary of the instrument characteristics and the results from the AIV phase. All subsystems have been successfully integrated and the system-level AIV phase is progressing as expected.