The epoch in which galactic discs settle is a major benchmark for testing models of galaxy formation and evolution but remains largely unknown. Once discs settle and become sufficiently self-gravitating, stellar bars are able to form; therefore, determining the ages of bars can shed light on the epoch of disc settling, and on the onset of secular

Context. In the accretion-driven growth scenario, part of the intracluster light is formed in the group environment. Aims: We report the serendipitous discovery of a group of galaxies with signs of diffuse light in the foreground of the known galaxy cluster MACS J0329−0211 at z ∼ 0.45. Methods: Our investigation began with the detection of diffuse

Accretion disks around compact objects are expected to enter an unstable phase at high luminosity 1. One instability may occur when the radiation pressure generated by accretion modifies the disk viscosity, resulting in the cyclic depletion and refilling of the inner disk on short timescales 2. Such a scenario, however, has only been quantitatively

Context. The Copernican principle, the notion that we are not at a special location in the Universe, is one of the cornerstones of modern cosmology. Its violation would invalidate the Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker metric, causing a major change in our understanding of the Universe. Thus, it is of fundamental importance to perform

Direct observational evidence for the creation of nuclear star clusters (NSCs) is needed to support the proposed scenarios for their formation. We analysed the dwarf galaxy UGC 7346, located in the peripheral regions of the Virgo Cluster, to highlight a series of properties that indicate the formation of a NSC caught in its earlier stages. First