We present a detailed study of the stellar kinematics in the barred galaxy NGC 5728 based on I-band photometry and long-slit spectroscopic observations in the region of the near-IR Ca II triplet. The analysis of the stellar line-of-sight velocity distribution (LOSVD) has revealed, in the central regions of the bar, the presence of a cold (v/sigma~2

The properties of the evolution of solar granulation have been studied using an 80 minute time series of high spatial resolution white-light images obtained with the Swedish Vacuum Solar Telescope at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma. An automatic tracking algorithm has been developed to follow the evolution of individual

Two-dimensional spectroscopy of the low-redshift active galaxy NGC 4303 obtained with the Two-Dimensional Fiber ISIS System is presented. The ionization structure and velocity field of the nuclear region of this galaxy, where a compact UV-bright spiral structure connected with the UV-bright core has been detected with the Hubble Space Telescope

We have obtained high resolution optical spectroscopy of the accretion disc corona source 2S0921-630 (=V395 Car) that constrains the spectral type of the companion star to be most probably K0iii. At 6500 Angstroms the secondary star is found to contribute ~ 25% to the observed flux. The absorption line spectrum of the K0iii companion star is

We present a re-analysis of the outburst radial velocity data for X-ray Nova Scorpii 1994. Using a model based on X-ray heating of the secondary star, we suggest a more realistic treatment of the radial velocity data. Solutions are obtained in the (K_2,q) plane which, when combined with the published value for the binary mass ratio and inclination

The Euroconference “The Evolution of Galaxies on Cosmological Timescales” was held in Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain between 1998 November 30 and December 5. It brought together two communities of astronomers who normally do not talk sufficiently together: those studying the detailed evolution of nearby galaxies, and those studying the