Measuring kinematics in elliptical galaxies

N. Douglas
Kapteyn Institute, Groeningen, The Netherlands


Deriving the dynamical characteristics of elliptical galaxies is in many respects more complicated than the analysis of spiral systems, especially since the sole diagnostic has for a long time been the interpretation of integrated stellar spectra. Some of the difficulties in carrying out such an analysis will be made clear during the talks scheduled for later in this session. My goal in this talk is to review the techniques that have led to other dynamical diagnostics becoming available, especially (but not solely) the kinematics of the planetary nebula population. I will describe the pioneering work involving fibre and multi-object spectroscopy, the Fabry-Perot, and various forms of slitless spectroscopy. This will lead on to a description of the Planetary Nebula Spectrograph and related projects. I will conclude with a brief discussion of some observational possibilities which have, as far as I know, not yet been exploited.