Description
We present the results of an imaging program of distant galaxies (z~0.8) at high spatial resolution (~0.1") aiming at studying their morphological evolution. We observed 7 fields of 1'x1' with the NACO Adaptive Optics system (VLT) in Ks (2.16{mu}m) band with typical V~14 guide stars and 3h integration time per field. Observed fields are selected within the COSMOS survey area, in which multi-wavelength photometric and spectroscopic observations are ongoing. High angular-resolution K-band data have the advantage of probing old stellar populations in the rest-frame, enabling a determination of galaxy morphological types unaffected by recent star formation, which are more closely linked to the underlying mass than classical optical morphology studies (HST). Adaptive optics on ground based telescopes is the only method today for obtaining such a high resolution in the K-band, but it suffers from limitations since only small fields are observable and long integration times are necessary.
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