We study the relation of AGN accretion, star formation rate (SFR), and stellar mass (M$_*$) using a sample of $\approx$ 8600 star-forming galaxies up to z=2.5 selected with \textit{Herschel} imaging in the GOODS and COSMOS fields. For each of them we derive SFR and M$_*$, both corrected, when necessary, for emission from an active galactic nucleus (AGN), through the decomposition of their spectral energy distributions (SEDs). About 10 per cent of the sample are detected individually in \textit{Chandra} observations of the fields. For the rest of the sample we stack the X-ray maps to get average X-ray properties. After subtracting the X-ray luminosity expected from star formation and correcting for nuclear obscuration, we derive the average AGN accretion rate for both detected sources and stacks, as a function of M$_{*}$, SFR and redshift. The average accretion rate correlates with SFR and with M$_*$. The dependence on SFR becomes progressively more significant at z$>$0.8. This may suggest that SFR is the original driver of these correlations. We find that average AGN accretion and star formation increase in a similar fashion with offset from the star-forming "main-sequence". Our interpretation is that accretion onto the central black hole and star formation broadly trace each other, irrespective of whether the galaxy is evolving steadily on the main-sequence or bursting.
We introduce a force correction term to better model the dynamical friction (DF) experienced by a supermassive black hole (SMBH) as it orbits within its host galaxy. This new approach accurately follows the orbital decay of a SMBH and drastically improves over commonly used advection methods. The force correction introduced here naturally scales with the force resolution of the simulation and converges as resolution is increased. In controlled experiments we show how the orbital decay of the SMBH closely follows analytical predictions when particle masses are significantly smaller than that of the SMBH. In a cosmological simulation of the assembly of a small galaxy, we show how our method allows for realistic black hole orbits. This approach overcomes the limitations of the advection scheme, where black holes are rapidly and artificially pushed toward the halo center and then forced to merge, regardless of their orbits. We find that SMBHs from merging dwarf galaxies can spend significant time away from the center of the remnant galaxy. Improving the modeling of SMBH orbital decay will help in making robust predictions of the growth, detectability, and merger rates of SMBHs, especially at low galaxy masses or at high redshift.
Expanding X-ray cavities observed in hot gas atmospheres of many galaxy groups and clusters generate shock waves and turbulence that are primary heating mechanisms required to avoid uninhibited radiatively cooling flows which are not observed. However, we show here that the evolution of buoyant cavities also stimulates radiative cooling of observable masses of low-temperature gas. During their early evolution, radiative cooling occurs in the wakes of buoyant cavities in two locations: in thin radial filaments parallel to the buoyant velocity and more broadly in gas compressed beneath rising cavities. Radiation from these sustained compressions removes entropy from the hot gas. Gas experiencing the largest entropy loss cools first, followed by gas with progressively less entropy loss. Most cooling occurs at late times, $\sim 10^8-10^9$ yrs, long after the X-ray cavities have disrupted and are impossible to detect. During these late times, slightly denser low entropy gas sinks slowly toward the centers of the hot atmospheres where it cools intermittently, forming clouds near the cluster center. Single cavities of energy $10^{57}-10^{58}$ ergs in the atmosphere of the NGC 5044 group create $10^8 - 10^9$ $M_{\odot}$ of cooled gas, exceeding the mass of extended molecular gas currently observed in that group. The cooled gas clouds we compute share many attributes with molecular clouds recently observed in NGC 5044 with ALMA: self-gravitationally unbound, dust-free, quasi-randomly distributed within a few kpc around the group center.
The first mechanism invoked to explain the existence of the thick disk in the Milky Way Galaxy, were the spiral arms. Up-to-date work summon several other possibilities that together seem to better explain this component of our Galaxy. All these processes must affect differently in distinct types of galaxies, but the contribution of each one has not been straightforward to quantify. In this work, we present a first comprehensive study of the effect of the spiral arms in the formation of thick disks, as going from early to late type disk galaxies, in an attempt to characterize and quantify this specific mechanism in galactic potentials. To this purpose, we perform numerical simulations of test particles in a three-dimensional spiral galaxy potential of normal spiral galaxies (from early to late types). By varying the parameters of the spiral arms we found that the vertical heating of the stellar disk becomes very important in some cases, and strongly depends on the galaxy morphology, pitch angle, arms mass and its pattern speed. The later the galaxy type, the larger is the effect on the disk heating. This study shows that the physical mechanism causing the vertical heating is different from simple resonant excitation. The spiral pattern induce chaotic behavior not linked necessarily to resonances but to direct scattering of disk stars, which leads to an increase of the velocity dispersion. We applied this study to the specific example of the Milky Way Galaxy, for which we have also added an experiment that includes the Galactic bar. From this study we deduce that the effect of spiral arms of a Milky-Way-like potential, on the dynamical vertical heating of the disk is negligible, unlike later galactic potentials for disks.
Recent work suggests blue ellipticals form in mergers and migrate quickly from the blue cloud of star-forming galaxies to the red sequence of passively evolving galaxies, perhaps as a result of black hole feedback. Such rapid reddening of stellar populations implies that large gas reservoirs in the pre-merger star-forming pair must be depleted on short time scales. Here we present pilot observations of atomic hydrogen gas in four blue early-type galaxies that reveal increasing spatial offsets between the gas reservoirs and the stellar components of the galaxies, with advancing post-starburst age. Emission line spectra show associated nuclear activity in two of the merged galaxies, and in one case radio lobes aligned with the displaced gas reservoir. These early results suggest that a kinetic process (possibly feedback from black hole activity) is driving the quick truncation of star formation in these systems, rather than a simple exhaustion of gas supply.
Measuring of the masses of galactic supermassive black holes (SMBHs) is an important task, since they correlate with the host galaxy properties and play an important role in evolution of galaxies. Here we present a new method for measuring of SMBH masses using the polarization of the broad lines emitted from active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We performed spectropolarometric observations of 9 AGNs and find that this method gives measured masses which are in a good agreement with reverberation measurements. An advantage of this method is that it can be used to measure the masses of SMBHs in a consistent way at different cosmological epochs.
We have constructed two types of analytical models for an isothermal filamentary cloud supported mainly by magnetic tension. The first one describes an isolated cloud while the second considers filamentary clouds spaced periodically. Both the models assume that the filamentary clouds are highly flattened. The former is proved to be the asymptotic limit of the latter in which each filamentary cloud is much thinner than the distance to the neighboring filaments. We show that these models reproduce main features of the 2D equilibrium model of Tomisaka (2014) for filamentary cloud threaded by perpendicular magnetic field. It is also shown that the critical mass to flux ratio is $ M /\Phi = (2 \pi \sqrt{G}) ^{-1} $, where $ M $, $ \Phi $ and $ G $ denote the cloud mass, the total magnetic flux of the cloud, and the gravitational constant, respectively. This upper bound coincides with that for an axisymmetric cloud supported by poloidal magnetic fields. We applied the variational principle for studying the Jeans instability of the first model. Our model cloud is unstable against fragmentation as well as the filamentary clouds threaded by longitudinal magnetic field. The fastest growing mode has a wavelength several times longer than the cloud diameter. The second model describes quasi-static evolution of filamentary molecular cloud by ambipolar diffusion.
Context: The north-west photo-dissociation region (PDR) in the reflection nebula NGC 7023 displays a complex structure. Filament-like condensations at the edge of the cloud can be traced via the emission of the main cooling lines, offering a great opportunity to study the link between the morphology and energetics of these regions. Aims: We study the spatial variation of the far-infrared fine-structure lines of [C II] (158 um) and [O I] (63 and 145 um). These lines trace the local gas conditions across the PDR. Methods: We used observations from the Herschel/PACS instrument to map the spatial distribution of these fine-structure lines. The observed region covers a square area of about 110" x 110" with an angular resolution that varies from 4" to 11". We compared this emission with ground-based and Spitzer observations of H2 lines, Herschel/SPIRE observations of CO lines, and Spitzer/IRAC 3.6 um images that trace the emission of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Results: The [C II] (158 um) and [O I] (63 and 145 um) lines arise from the warm cloud surface where the PDR is located and the gas is warm, cooling the region. We find that although the relative contribution to the cooling budget over the observed region is dominated by [O I]63 um (>30%), H2 contributes significantly in the PDR (35%), as does [C II]158 um outside the PDR (30%). Other species contribute little to the cooling ([O I]145 um 9%, and CO 4%). The [O I] maps resolve these condensations into two structures and show that the peak of [O I] is slightly displaced from the molecular H2 emission. The size of these structures is about 8" (0.015 pc) and in surface cover about 9% of the PDR emission. Finally, we did not detect emission from [N II]122 um, suggesting that the cavity is mostly filled with non-ionised gas.
The origin of elements made by the rapid neutron-capture process (r-process) is not fully understood. Different sources have been proposed, e.g., core-collapse supernovae and neutron star mergers. Old metal-poor stars carry the signature of the astrophysical r-process source(s). Europium is the most indicative element to trace the r-process production, since it is mostly made by the r-process and it is easy to observe compared to other heavy r-process elements. In this work we simulate the evolution of europium in our Galaxy with the inhomogeneous chemical evolution model ICE, and we compare our results with spectroscopic observations. We test the most important parameters affecting the chemical evolution of the r-process element Eu: (a) for neutron star mergers the coalescence time scale of the merger and the probability to experience a neutron star merger event after two supernova explosions occurred and formed a double neutron star system ) and (b) for the sub-class of magneto-rotationally driven Supernovae (Jet-SNe, their occurrence rate compared to standard supernovae ). The main results can be summarized as follows. The observed [Eu/Fe] pattern in the galaxy can be reproduced by a combination of neutron star mergers and magneto-rotationally driven supernovae as r-process sources, while neutron star mergers alone seem to set in at too high metallicities. Jet-SNe provide a cure for this deficiency at low metallicities. Furthermore, we confirm that local inhomogeneities can explain the observed large spread in the europium abundances at low metallicities. We also predict the evolution of [O/Fe] to test whether the spread in alpha-elements for in- homogeneous models agrees with observations and whether this provides constraints on supernova explosion models and their nucleosynthesis.
We present probability distribution functions (PDFs) of the surface densities of ionized and neutral gas in the nearby spiral galaxies M31 and M51, as well as of dust emission and extinction Av in M31. The PDFs are close to lognormal and those for HI and Av in M31 are nearly identical. However, the PDFs for H2 are wider than the HI PDFs and the M51 PDFs have larger dispersions than those for M31. We use a simple model to determine how the PDFs are changed by variations in the line-of-sight (LOS) pathlength L through the gas, telescope resolution and the volume filling factor of the gas, f_v. In each of these cases the dispersion sigma of the lognormal PDF depends on the variable with a negative power law. We also derive PDFs of mean LOS volume densities of gas components in M31 and M51. Combining these with the volume density PDFs for different components of the ISM in the Milky Way (MW), we find that sigma decreases with increasing length L with an exponent of -0.76 +/- 0.06, which is steeper than expected. We show that the difference is due to variations in f_v. As f_v is similar in M31, M51 and the MW, the density structure in the gas in these galaxies must be similar. Finally, we demonstrate that an increase in f_v with increasing distance to the Galactic plane explains the decrease in sigma with latitude of the PDFs of emission measure and FUV emission observed for the MW.
Hypervelocity stars are those that have speeds exceeding the escape speed and are hence unbound from the Milky Way. We investigate a sample of low-mass hypervelocity candidates obtained using data from the high-precision SDSS Stripe 82 catalogue, which we have combined with spectroscopy from the 200-inch Hale Telescope at Palomar Observatory. We find four good candidates, but without metallicities it is difficult to pin-down their distances and therefore total velocities. Our best candidate has a significant likelihood that it is escaping the Milky Way for a wide-range of metallicities.
We present near-IR spectroscopy of red supergiant (RSG) stars in NGC 6822, obtained with the new VLT-KMOS instrument. From comparisons with model spectra in the J-band we determine the metallicity of 11 RSGs, finding a mean value of [Z] = -0.52 $\pm$ 0.21 which agrees well with previous abundance studies of young stars and HII regions. We also find an indication for a low-significance abundance gradient within the central 1 kpc. We compare our results with those derived from older stellar populations and investigate the difference using a simple chemical evolution model. By comparing the physical properties determined for RSGs in NGC 6822 with those derived using the same technique in the Galaxy and the Magellanic Clouds, we show that there appears to be no significant temperature variation of RSGs with respect to metallicity, in contrast with recent evolutionary models.
New spectroscopic surveys offer the promise of consistent stellar parameters and abundances ('stellar labels') for hundreds of thousands of stars in the Milky Way: this poses a formidable spectral modeling challenge. In many cases, there is a sub-set of reference objects for which the stellar labels are known with high(er) fidelity. We take advantage of this with The Cannon, a new data-driven approach for determining stellar labels from spectroscopic data. The Cannon learns from the 'known' labels of reference stars how the continuum-normalized spectra depend on these labels by fitting a flexible model at each wavelength; then, The Cannon uses this model to derive labels for the remaining survey stars. We illustrate The Cannon by training the model on only 543 stars in 19 clusters as reference objects, with Teff, log g and [Fe/H] as the labels, and then applying it to the spectra of 56,000 stars from APOGEE DR10. The Cannon is very accurate. Its stellar labels compare well to the stars for which APOGEE pipeline (ASPCAP) labels are provided in DR10, with rms differences that are basically identical to the stated ASPCAP uncertainties. Beyond the reference labels, The Cannon makes no use of stellar models nor any line-list, but needs a set of reference objects that span label-space. The Cannon performs well at lower signal-to-noise, as it delivers comparably good labels even at one ninth the APOGEE observing time. We discuss the limitations of The Cannon and its future potential, particularly, to bring different spectroscopic surveys onto a consistent scale of stellar labels.
Calcium-rich supernovae (Ca-rich SNe) are peculiar low-luminosity SNe Ib with relatively strong Ca spectral lines at ~2 months after peak brightness. This class also has an extended projected offset distribution, with several members of the class offset from their host galaxies by 30 - 150 kpc. There is no indication of any stellar population at the SN positions. Using a sample of 13 Ca-rich SNe, we present kinematic evidence that the progenitors of Ca-rich SNe originate near the centers of their host galaxies and are kicked to the locations of the SN explosions. Specifically, SNe with small projected offsets have large line-of-sight velocity shifts as determined by nebular lines, while those with large projected offsets have no significant velocity shifts. Therefore, the velocity shifts must not be primarily the result of the SN explosion. There is an excess of SNe with blueshifted velocity shifts within two isophotal radii (5/6 SNe), indicating that the SNe are moving away from their host galaxies and redshifted SNe on the far sides of their galaxies are selectively missed in SN surveys. Additionally, nearly every Ca-rich SN is hosted by a galaxy with indications of a recent merger and/or is in a dense environment. We propose a progenitor model which fits all current data: The progenitor system for a Ca-rich SN is a double white dwarf (WD) system where at least one WD has a significant He abundance. This system, through an interaction with a super-massive black hole (SMBH) is ejected from its host galaxy and the binary is hardened, significantly reducing the merger time. After 10 - 100 Myr (on average), the system explodes with a large physical offset. The rate for such events is significantly enhanced for galaxies which have undergone recent mergers, potentially making Ca-rich SNe new probes of both the galaxy merger rate and (binary) SMBH population. (abridged)
This paper gives a complete characterization of resonant orbits in a Kerr spacetime. A resonant orbit is defined as a geodesic for which the longitudinal and radial orbital frequencies are commensurate. Our analysis is based on expressing the resonance condition in its most symmetric form using Carlson's integrals. We provide a number of concise formulae for the dependence of resonances on the system parameters. Resonant effects may be observable during the in-spiral of a compact object into a super-massive black hole. When the slowly evolving orbital frequencies pass through a series of low-order resonances, rapid changes in the orbital parameters could produce measurable phase shifts in the emitted gravitational radiation (GW). Resonant orbits may also capture dust leading to electromagnetic emission. The KAM theorem indicates that, low order resonant orbits demarcate the regions where the onset of chaos could occur around a perturbed black-hole. We find that the 1/2 and 2/3 resonances occur at ~4 and 5.4 Schwarzschild radii (Rs) from the event horizon. For compact object in-spirals around super-massive black holes, this region lies within the sensitivity band of space-based GW detectors. For Sgr A*, length scales of ~41 and 55 microarcseconds and timescales of 50 and 79 min respectively should be associated with resonant effects, if Sgr A* is non-spinning. Spin decreases these values by up to ~32% and ~28%. These length-scales are potentially resolvable with VLBI measurements. We find that all low-order resonances are localized to the strong field region r < 50 Rs. This fact guarantees the validity of using approximations based on averaging to model the frequency evolution of a test object in region 50 Rs <r <1000 Rs. The systematic determination of the multipole moments of the central object by observing the orbit of a pulsar, free of chaotic effects, is thus possible.
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In comparison to gas and dust in star-forming galaxies at the peak epoch of galaxy assembly, which are presently the topic of intense study, little is known about the interstellar medium (ISM) of distant, passively evolving galaxies. We report on a deep 3 mm-band search with IRAM/PdBI for molecular gas in a massive ($M_{\star}{\sim}6{\times}10^{11}M_{\odot}$) elliptical galaxy at z=1.4277, the first observation of this kind ever attempted. We place a 3$\sigma$ upper limit of 0.30 Jy km/s on the flux of the CO($J$=$2\rightarrow$1) line or $L'_{\rm CO}$$<$8.3$\times$10$^{9}$ K km/s pc$^2$, assuming a line width in accordance with the stellar velocity dispersion of $\sigma_{\star}{\sim}330$ km/s. This translates to a molecular gas mass of $<$3.6$\times$10$^{10}$($\alpha_{\rm CO}$/4.4)$M_{\odot}$ or a gas fraction of $\lesssim$5% assuming a Salpeter initial mass function (IMF) and an ISM dominated by molecular gas, as observed in local early-type galaxies (ETGs). This low gas fraction approaches that of local ETGs, suggesting that the low star formation activity in massive, high-z passive galaxies reflects a true dearth of gas and a secondary role for inhibitive mechanisms like morphological quenching.
We present kinematical analyses of 22 Galactic globular clusters using the Hubble Space Telescope proper motion (HSTPROMO) catalogues recently presented in Bellini et al. (2014). For most clusters, this is the first proper-motion study ever performed, and, for many, this is the most detailed kinematic study of any kind. We use cleaned samples of bright stars to determine binned velocity-dispersion and velocity-anisotropy radial profiles and two-dimensional velocity-dispersion spatial maps. Using these profiles, we search for correlations between cluster kinematics and structural properties. We find that: (1) more centrally-concentrated clusters have steeper radial velocity-dispersion profiles; (2) on average, at 1\sigma confidence in two dimensions, the photometric and kinematic centres of globular clusters agree to within ~1", with a cluster-to-cluster rms of 4" (including observational uncertainties); (3) on average, the cores of globular clusters have isotropic velocity distributions to within 1% (\sigma_t/\sigma_r = 0.992 +/- 0.005), with a cluster-to-cluster rms of 2% (including observational uncertainties); (4) clusters generally have mildly radially anisotropic velocity distributions (\sigma_t/\sigma_r ~ 0.8-1.0) near the half-mass radius, with bigger deviations from isotropy for clusters with longer relaxation times; (5) there is a relation between \sigma_minor/\sigma_major and ellipticity, such that the more flattened clusters in the sample tend to be more anisotropic, with \sigma_minor/\sigma_major ~ 0.9-1.0. Aside from these general results and correlations, the profiles and maps presented here can provide a basis for detailed dynamical modelling of individual globular clusters. Given the quality of the data, this is likely to provide new insights into a range of topics concerning globular cluster mass profiles, structure, and dynamics.
We explored the role of X-ray binaries composed by a black hole and a massive stellar companion (BHXs) as sources of kinetic feedback by using hydrodynamical cosmological simulations. Following previous results, our BHX model selects low metal-poor stars ($Z = [0,10^{-4}]$) as possible progenitors. The model that better reproduces observations assumes that a $\sim 20\%$ fraction of low-metallicity black holes are in binary systems which produce BHXs. These sources are estimated to deposit $\sim 10^{52}$ erg of kinetic energy per event. With these parameters and in the simulated volume, we find that the energy injected by BHXs represents $\sim 30\%$ of the total energy released by SNII and BHX events at redshift $z\sim7$ and then decreases rapidly as baryons get chemically enriched. Haloes with virial masses smaller than $\sim 10^{10} \,M_{\odot}$ (or $T_{\rm vir} \lesssim 10^5 $ K) are the most directly affected ones by BHX feedback. These haloes host galaxies with stellar masses in the range $10^7 - 10^8$ M$_\odot$. Our results show that BHX feedback is able to keep the interstellar medium warm, without removing a significant gas fraction, in agreement with previous analytical calculations. Consequently, the stellar-to-dark matter mass ratio is better reproduced at high redshift. Our model also predicts a stronger evolution of the number of galaxies as a function of the stellar mass with redshift when BHX feedback is considered. These findings support previous claims that the BHXs could be an effective source of feedback in early stages of galaxy evolution.
Young Galactic supernova remnants (SNRs) are where we can observe closely the supernova (SN) ejecta and its interaction with circumstellar/interstellar medium. Therefore, they provide an opportunity to explore the explosion and the final stage of the evolution of massive stars. Near-infrared (NIR) emission lines in SNRs mostly originate from shocked dense material. In shocked SN ejecta, forbidden lines from heavy ions are prominent, while in shocked circumstellar/interstellar medium, [Fe II] and H2 lines are prominent. [Fe II] lines are strong in both media, and therefore [Fe II] line images provide a good starting point for the NIR study of SNRs. There are about twenty SNRs detected in [Fe II] lines, some of which have been studied in NIR spectroscopy. We will review the NIR [Fe II] observations of SNRs and introduce our recent NIR spectroscopic study of the young core-collapse SNR Cas A where we detected strong [P II] lines.
We show that warm dark matter keV fermions (`inos') can be responsible for both core and halo galactic structure, in agreement with current astrophysical/cosmological constraints. We identify the inos with sterile right-handed neutrinos. The possible mass range of up to a few tens of keV, obtained independently from the galactic structure and dark matter astroparticle physics, points towards an important role of the right-handed neutrinos in the cosmic structure.
We study the warping and tearing of a geometrically thin, non-self-gravitating disk surrounding binary supermassive black holes on an eccentric orbit. The circumbinary disk is significantly misaligned with the binary orbital plane, and is subject to the time-dependent tidal torques. In principle, such a disk is warped and precesses, and is torn into mutually misaligned rings in the region, where the tidal precession torques are stronger than the local viscous torques. We derive the tidal-warp and tearing radii of the misaligned circumbinary disks around eccentric SMBH binaries. We find that in disks with the viscosity parameter, alpha, larger than a critical value depending on the disk aspect ratio, the disk warping appears outside the tearing radius. This condition is expressed as alpha > sqrt{H/3r} for H/r ~<0.1, where H is the disk scale height. If alpha < sqrt{H/3r}, only the disk tearing occurs because the tidal warp radius is inside the tearing radius, where most of disk material is likely to rapidly accrete onto SMBHs. In warped and torn disks, both the tidal-warp and the tearing radii most strongly depend on the binary semi-major axis, although they also mildly depend on the other orbital and disk parameters. This strong dependence enables us to estimate the semi-major axis, once the tidal warp or tearing radius is determined observationally: For the tidal warp radius of 0.1 pc, the semi-major axis is estimated to be ~10^{-2} pc for 10^7 Msun black hole with typical orbital and disk parameters. We also briefly discuss the possibility that central objects of observed warped maser disks in active galactic nuclei are supermassive black hole binaries.
We study the GMC environments surrounding 10 IRDCs, based on 13CO molecular line emission from the Galactic Ring Survey. Using a range of physical scales, we measure the physical properties of the IRDCs and their surrounding molecular material extending out to radii, R, of 30pc. By comparing different methods for defining cloud boundaries and for deriving mass surface densities, Sigma, and velocity dispersions, sigma, we settled on a preferred "CE,tau,G" method of "Connected Extraction" in position-velocity space along with Gaussian fitting to opacity-corrected line profiles for velocity dispersion and mass estimation. We examine how cloud definition affects measurements of the magnitude and direction of line of sight velocity gradients and velocity dispersions, including the associated dependencies on size scale. CE,tau,G-defined IRDCs and GMCs show velocity gradient versus size relations that scale approximately as dv_0/ds~s^(-1/2) and velocity dispersion versus size relations sigma~s^(1/2), which are consistent with the large scale gradients being caused by turbulence. Interpreting velocity gradients as due to rotation, we find a broad spread in rotation directions with respect to Galactic rotation and rotation to gravitational energy fractions beta~0.1. We examine the dynamical state of the clouds finding mean virial parameters alpha_vir~2, consistent with models of magnetized virialized pressure-confined polytropic clouds. "CE,tau,G" IRDCs and GMCs exhibit a strikingly tight correlation of sigma/R^(1/2)~Sigma^n, with n~0.5, the value expected for virial equilibrium. We conclude this is strong evidence of cloud virialization over a wide range of scales from IRDCs to their parent GMCs, perhaps representing a self-similar hierarchy of self-gravitating virialized structures, which is the initial dynamical state of gas that is likely to form star clusters.
In this paper we present the discussion on the salient points of the computational analysis that are at the basis of the paper \emph{Rotation Curves of Galaxies by Fourth Order Gravity} \citep{StSc}. In fact in this paper any galactic component (bulge, disk and Dark matter component) required an onerous numerical computation since the Gauss theorem is not applicable in the Fourth Order Gravity. The computational and data analysis have been made with the software Mathematica$^\circledR$.
We have developed a fast numerical 2-D model of galaxy disk evolution (resolved along the galaxy radius and azimuth) by adopting a scheme of parameterized stochastic self-propagating star formation. We explore the parameter space of the model and demonstrate its capability to reproduce 1-D radial profiles of the galaxy M33: gas surface density, surface brightness in the i and GALEX FUV passbands, and metallicity.
We investigate the effects of stochasticity on the observed galaxy parameters by comparing our stochastic star formation two-dimensional (2-D) galaxy evolution models with the commonly used one-dimensional (1-D) models with smooth star formation. The 2-D stochastic models predict high variability of the star formation rate and the surface photometric parameters across the galactic disks and in time.
Neutral Helium multiplets, HeI*3189,3889,10830 are very useful diagnostics to the geometry and physical conditions of the absorbing gas in quasars. So far only a handful of HeI* detections have been reported. Using a newly developed method, we detected HeI*3889 absorption line in 101 sources of a well-defined sample of 285 MgII BAL quasars selected from the SDSS DR5. This has increased the number of HeI* BAL quasars by more than one order of magnitude. We further detected HeI*3189 in 50% (52/101) quasars in the sample. The detection fraction of HeI* BALs in MgII BAL quasars is about 35% as a whole, and increases dramatically with increasing spectral signal-to-noise ratios, from 18% at S/N <= 10 to 93% at S/N >= 35. This suggests that HeI* BALs could be detected in most MgII LoBAL quasars, provided spectra S/N is high enough. Such a surprisingly high HeI* BAL fraction is actually predicted from photo-ionization calculations based on a simple BAL model. The result indicates that HeI* absorption lines can be used to search for BAL quasars at low-z, which cannot be identified by ground-based optical spectroscopic survey with commonly seen UV absorption lines. Using HeI*3889, we discovered 19 BAL quasars at z<0.3 from available SDSS spectral database. The fraction of HeI* BAL quasars is similar to that of LoBAL objects.
The knowledge of the intrinsic three-dimensional (3D) structure of galaxy components provides crucial information about the physical processes driving their formation and evolution. In this paper I discuss the main developments and results in the quest to better understand the 3D shape of galaxy bulges. I start by establishing the basic geometrical description of the problem. Our understanding of the intrinsic shape of elliptical galaxies and galaxy discs is then presented in a historical context, in order to place the role that the 3D structure of bulges play in the broader picture of galaxy evolution. Our current view on the 3D shape of the Milky Way bulge and future prospects in the field are also depicted.
We identify some of the most HI massive and fastest rotating disk galaxies in the local universe with the aim of probing the processes that drive the formation of these extreme disk galaxies. By combining data from the Cosmic Flows project, which has consistently reanalyzed archival galaxy HI profiles, and 3.6$\mu$m photometry obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope, with which we can measure stellar mass, we use the baryonic Tully-Fisher (BTF) relationship to explore whether these massive galaxies are distinct. We discuss several results, but the most striking is the systematic offset of the HI-massive sample above the BTF. These galaxies have both more gas and more stars in their disks than the typical disk galaxy of similar rotational velocity. The "condensed" baryon fraction, $f_C$, the fraction of the baryons in a dark matter halo that settle either as cold gas or stars into the disk, is twice as high in the HI-massive sample than typical, and almost reaches the universal baryon fraction in some cases, suggesting that the most extreme of these galaxies have little in the way of a hot baryonic component or cold baryons distributed well outside the disk. In contrast, the star formation efficiency, measured as the ratio of the mass in stars to that in both stars and gas, shows no difference between the HI-massive sample and the typical disk galaxies. We conclude that the star formation efficiency is driven by an internal, self-regulating process, while $f_C$ is affected by external factors. We also found that the most massive HI detected galaxies are located preferentially in filaments. We present the first evidence of an environmental effect on galaxy evolution using a dynamical definition of a filament.
We present a new measurement of the mass-concentration relation and the stellar-to-halo mass ratio over a 5*10^(12) solar mass to 2*10^(14) solar mass range. To achieve this, we use the CFHT Stripe 82 Survey (CS82) weak lensing data combined with a well defined catalog of clusters (the redMaPPer catalogue) and the LOWZ/CMASS galaxies of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey Tenth Data Release (SDSS-III BOSS DR10). The stacked lensing signals around these samples are modeled as a sum of contributions from the central galaxy, the dark matter halo, and the neighboring halos. We measure the mass-concentration relation: c200(M)=A(M200/M0)^(B) with A=5.25+/-1.67, B=-0.13+/-0.12 for 0.2<z<0.4 and A=6.77+/-1.13, B=-0.15+/-0.06 for 0.4<z<0.6. We conclude that the amplitude A and slope B are both consistent with the simulation predictions by Klypin et al. (2014) within the errors. We also measure the stellar-to-halo mass ratio and find it to be flatter than previous measurement for high stellar masses because of the complex structures and merger history in massive dark matter halos.
We study the radio--far infrared (FIR) correlation in "blue cloud" galaxies chosen from the PRism MUltiobject Survey (PRIMUS) up to redshift ($z$) of 1.2 in the XMM-LSS field. We use rest-frame emission at 1.4 GHz in the radio and both monochromatic (at 70$\mu$m) and bolometric (between $8-1000~\mu$m) emission in the FIR. To probe the nature of the correlation up to $z\sim1.2$, where direct detection of blue star-forming galaxies is impossible with current technology, we employ the technique of image stacking at 0.325 and 1.4 GHz in the radio and in six infrared bands, viz. 24, 70, 160, 250, 350 and $500~\mu$m. For comparison, we also study the correlation for more luminous galaxies that are directly detected. The stacking analysis allows us to probe the radio--FIR correlation for galaxies that are up to 2 orders of magnitude fainter than the ones detected directly. The $k-$correction in the infrared wavebands is obtained by fitting the observed spectral energy distribution (SED) with a composite mid-IR power law and a single temperature greybody model. We find that the radio luminosity at 1.4 GHz ($L_{\rm 1.4GHz}$) is strongly correlated with monochromatic FIR luminosity at 70 $\mu$m ($L_{\rm 70\mu m}$) having slope $1.09\pm0.05$ and with bolometric luminosity ($L_{\rm TIR}$) having slope $1.11\pm0.04$. The quantity $q_{\rm TIR} (=\log_{10}[L_{\rm TIR}/(3.75\times 10^{12} L_{\rm 1.4 GHz})])$ is observed to decrease with redshift as $q_{\rm TIR} \propto (1+z)^{-0.16\pm0.03}$ probably caused due to the non-linear slope of the radio--FIR correlation. Within the uncertainties of our measurement and the limitations of our flux-limited and color-selected sample, we do not find any evolution of the radio--FIR correlation with redshift.
The condensation of complex silicates with pyroxene and olivine composition at conditions prevailing in molecular clouds has been experimentally studied. For this purpose, molecular species comprising refractory elements were forced to accrete on cold substrates representing the cold surfaces of surviving dust grains in the interstellar medium. The efficient formation of amorphous and homogeneous magnesium iron silicates at temperatures of about 12 K has been monitored by IR spectroscopy. The gaseous precursors of such condensation processes in the interstellar medium are formed by erosion of dust grains in supernova shock waves. In the laboratory, we have evaporated glassy silicate dust analogs and embedded the released species in neon ice matrices that have been studied spectroscopically to identify the molecular precursors of the condensing solid silicates. A sound coincidence between the 10 micron band of the interstellar silicates and the 10 micron band of the low-temperature siliceous condensates can be noted.
We use X-ray and optical microlensing measurements of 47 image pairs in 18 lens systems to study the shape of the dark matter density profile in the lens galaxies and the size of the (soft) X-ray emission region. We show that single epoch X-ray microlensing is sensitive to the source size. Our results, in good agreement with previous estimates, show that the X-ray size scales roughly linearly with the black hole mass, with a half light radius of $R_{1/2}\simeq(20\pm12) r_g$ (for $r_g=GM_{BH}/c^2$). This corresponds to a size of $\sim$ 1 light day for a black hole mass of $M_{BH}=10^9 M_\sun$. We simultaneously estimated the fraction of the local surface mass density in stars, finding that the stellar mass fraction is $\alpha=0.20\pm0.05$ at an average radius of $\sim 1.9 R_{e}$, where $R_e$ is the effective radius of the lens. This stellar mass fraction is insensitive to the X-ray source size and in excellent agreement with our earlier results based on optical data. By combining the X-ray and optical microlensing data, we can divide this larger sample into two radial bins. We find that the surface mass density in the form of stars is $\alpha=0.31\pm0.15$ and $\alpha=0.13\pm0.05$ at $(1.3\pm0.3) R_{e}$ and $(2.3\pm0.3) R_{e}$, respectively, in good agreement with expectations and some previous results.
Double-barred galaxies account for almost one third of all barred galaxies, suggesting that secondary stellar bars, which are embedded in large-scale primary bars, are long-lived structures. However, up to now it has been hard to self-consistently simulate a disc galaxy that sustains two nested stellar bars for longer than a few rotation periods. N-body/hydrodynamical simulations including star formation recipes have been performed. Their properties have been compared with the most recent observational data in order to prove that they are representative of double-barred galaxies, even SB0. Overlaps in dynamical resonances and bar modes have been looked for using Fourier spectrograms. Double-barred galaxies have been successfully simulated with lifetimes as long as 7 Gyr. The stellar population of the secondary bar is younger on average than for the primary large-scale bar. An important feature of these simulations is the absence of any resonance overlap for several Gyr. In particular, there is no overlap between the primary bar ILR and the secondary bar corotation. Therefore, mode coupling cannot sustain the secondary bar mode. Star formation is identified here as possibly being responsible for bringing energy to the nuclear mode. Star formation is also responsible for limiting the amount of gas in the central region which prevents the orbits sustaining the secondary bar from being destroyed. Therefore, the secondary bar can dissolve but reappear after approx. 1 Gyr. When star formation is switched off the dynamical perturbation associated with the secondary bar needs several Gyr to fully vanish. Double-bars can be long-lived in numerical simulations with a gaseous component, even in the absence of overlap of resonances or mode coupling, provided that star formation remains active in the central region where the nuclear bar lies.
We present the results of a pilot JVLA project aimed at studying the bulk of the radio-emitting AGN population, unveiled by the NVSS/FIRST and SDSS surveys.We obtained A-array observations at the JVLA at 1.4, 4.5, and 7.5 GHz for 12 sources of the SDSS/NVSS sample. The radio maps reveal compact unresolved or slightly resolved radio structures on a scale of 1-3 kpc, with only one exception of a FRI/FRII source extended over $\sim$40 kpc. We isolate the radio core component in most of them. The sample splits into two groups. Four sources have small black hole (BH) masses (mostly $\sim$10$^{7}$ M$_{\odot}$) and are hosted by blue galaxies, often showing evidence of a contamination from star formation to their radio emission and associated with radio-quiet AGN. The second group consists in seven radio-loud AGN, which live in red massive ($\sim10^{11}$ M$_{\odot}$) early-type galaxies, with large BH masses ($\gtrsim$10$^{8}$ M$_{\odot}$), and spectroscopically classified as Low Excitation Galaxies, all characteristics typical of FRI radio galaxies. They also lie on the correlation between radio core power and [O III] line luminosity defined by FRIs. However, they are more core dominated (by a factor of $\sim$30) than FRIs and show a deficit of extended radio emission. We dub these sources 'FR0' to emphasize their lack of prominent extended radio emission, the single distinguishing feature with respect to FRIs. The differences in radio properties between FR0s and FRIs might be ascribed to an evolutionary effect, with the FR0 sources undergoing to rapid intermittency that prevents the growth of large scale structures. In our preferred scenario the lack of extended radio emission in FR0s is due to their smaller jet Lorentz $\Gamma$ factor with respect to FRIs, causing possible instabilities and their premature disruption.[abridged]
The spatial and temporal relationships between stellar age, kinematics, and chemistry are a fundamental tool for uncovering the physics driving galaxy formation and evolution. Observationally, these trends are derived using carefully selected samples isolated via the application of appropriate magnitude, colour, and gravity selection functions of individual stars; conversely, the analysis of chemodynamical simulations of galaxies has traditionally been restricted to the age, metallicity, and kinematics of `composite' stellar particles comprised of open cluster-mass simple stellar populations. As we enter the Gaia era, it is crucial that this approach changes, with simulations confronting data in a manner which better mimics the methodology employed by observers. Here, we use the \textsc{SynCMD} synthetic stellar populations tool to analyse the metallicity distribution function of a Milky Way-like simulated galaxy, employing an apparent magnitude plus gravity selection function similar to that employed by the RAdial Velocity Experiment (RAVE); we compare such an observationally-motivated approach with that traditionally adopted - i.e., spatial cuts alone - in order to illustrate the point that how one analyses a simulation can be, in some cases, just as important as the underlying sub-grid physics employed.
We present a model for producing tidal streams from disrupting progenitors in arbitrary potentials, utilizing the idea that the majority of stars escape from the progenitor's two Lagrange points. The method involves releasing test particles at the Lagrange points as the satellite orbits the host and dynamically evolving them in the potential of both host and progenitor. The method is sufficiently fast to allow large-dimensional parameter exploration using Monte Carlo methods. We provide the first direct modelling of 6-D stream observations -- assuming a stream rather than an orbit -- by applying our methods to GD-1. This is a kinematically cold stream spanning $60^{\circ}$ of the sky and residing in the outer Galaxy $\approx 15$ kpc distant from the centre. We assume the stream moves in a flattened logarithmic potential characterised by an asymptotic circular velocity $v_0$ and a flattening $q$. We recover values of normalisation $v_0$ = $227.2^{+15.6}_{-18.2}$ kms$^{-1}$ and flattening $q$ = $0.91^{+0.04}_{-0.1}$, if the stream is assumed to leading, and $v_0$ = $226.5^{+17.9}_{-17.0}$ kms$^{-1}$, $q$ = $0.90^{+0.05}_{-0.09}$, if it is assumed to be trailing. This can be compared to the values $v_0 = 224 \pm 13$ kms$^{-1}$ and $q= 0.87^{+0.07}_{-0.04}$ obtained by Koposov et al (2010) using the simpler technique of orbit fitting. Although there are differences between stream and orbit fitting, we conclude that orbit fitting can provide accurate results given the current quality of the data, at least for this kinematically cold stream in this logarithmic model of the Galaxy.
During the formation of a star, material is ejected along powerful jets that impact the ambient material. This outflow regulates star formation by e.g. inducing turbulence and heating the surrounding gas. Understanding the associated shocks is therefore essential to the study of star formation. We present comparisons of shock models with CO, H2, and SiO observations in a 'pure' shock position in the BHR71 bipolar outflow. These comparisons provide an insight into the shock and pre-shock characteristics, and allow us to understand the energetic and chemical feedback of star formation on Galactic scales. New CO (Jup = 16, 11, 7, 6, 4, 3) observations from the shocked regions with the SOFIA and APEX telescopes are presented and combined with earlier H2 and SiO data (from the Spitzer and APEX telescopes). The integrated intensities are compared to a grid of models that were obtained from a magneto-hydrodynamical shock code which calculates the dynamical and chemical structure of these regions combined with a radiative transfer module based on the 'large velocity gradient' approximation. The CO emission leads us to update the conclusions of our previous shock analysis: pre-shock densities of 1e4 cm-3 and shock velocities around 20-25 km s-1 are still constrained, but older ages are inferred ( 4000 years). We evaluate the contribution of shocks to the excitation of CO around forming stars. The SiO observations are compatible with a scenario where less than 4% of the pre-shock SiO belongs to the grain mantles. We infer outflow parameters: a mass of 1.8x1e-2 Msun was measured in our beam, in which a momentum of 0.4 Msun km s-1 is dissipated, for an energy of 4.2x1e43erg. We analyse the energetics of the outflow species by species. Comparing our results with previous studies highlights their dependence on the method: H2 observations only are not sufficient to evaluate the mass of outflows.
Major components of ices on interstellar grains in molecular clouds - water and carbon oxides - occur at various optical depths. This implies that selective desorption mechanisms are at work. An astrochemical model of a contracting low-mass molecular cloud core is presented. Ice was treated as consisting of the surface and three subsurface layers (sublayers). Photodesorption, reactive desorption, and indirect reactive desorption were investigated. The latter manifests itself through desorption from H+H reaction on grains. Desorption of shallow subsurface species was included. Modeling results suggest the existence of a "photon-dominated ice" during the early phases of core contraction. Subsurface ice is chemically processed by interstellar photons, which produces complex organic molecules. Desorption from the subsurface layer results in high COM gas-phase abundances at Av = 2.4...10mag. This may contribute towards an explanation for COM observations in dark cores. It was found that photodesorption mostly governs the onset of ice accumulation onto grains. Reaction-specific reactive desorption is efficient for small molecules that form via highly exothermic atom-addition reactions. Higher reactive desorption efficiency results in lower gas-phase abundances of COMs. Indirect reactive desorption allows to closely reproduce the observed H2O:CO:CO2 ratio towards a number of background stars. Presumably this can be done by any mechanism whose efficiency fits with the sequence CO > CO2 >> H2O. After the freeze-out has ended, the three sublayers represent chemically distinct parts of the mantle. 8...10.5mag is the likely AV threshold for the appearance of CO ice. The lower value is supported by observations.
New integral field spectroscopy has been obtained for IZw18, the nearby lowest-metallicity galaxy considered our best local analog of systems forming at high-z. Here we report the spatially resolved spectral map of the nebular HeII4686 emission in IZw18, from which we derived for the first time its total HeII-ionizing flux. Nebular HeII emission implies the existence of a hard radiation field. HeII-emitters are observed to be more frequent among high-z galaxies than for local objects. So investigating the HeII-ionizing source(s) in IZw18 may reveal the ionization processes at high-z. HeII emission in star-forming galaxies, has been suggested to be mainly associated with Wolf-Rayet stars (WRs), but WRs cannot satisfactorily explain the HeII-ionization at all times, in particular at lowest metallicities. Shocks from supernova remnants, or X-ray binaries, have been proposed as additional potential sources of HeII-ionizing photons. Our data indicate that conventional HeII-ionizing sources (WRs, shocks, X-ray binaries) are not sufficient to explain the observed nebular HeII4686 emission in IZw18. We find that the HeII-ionizing radiation expected from models for either low-metallicity super-massive O stars or rotating metal-free stars could account for the HeII-ionization budget measured, while only the latter models could explain the highest values of HeII4686/Hbeta observed. The presence of such peculiar stars in IZw18 is suggestive and further investigation in this regard is needed. This letter highlights that some of the clues of the early Universe can be found here in our cosmic backyard.
We investigate the orbital dynamics of a \textit{barred-spiral} model when the system is rotating slowly and corotation is located beyond the end of the spiral arms. In the characteristic of the central family of periodic orbits we find a "bistable region". In the response model we observe a ring surrounding the bar and spiral arms starting tangential to the ring. This is a morphology resembling barred-spiral systems with inner rings. However, the dynamics associated with this structure in the case we study is different from that of a typical bar ending close to corotation. The ring of our model is round, or rather elongated perpendicular to the bar. It is associated with a folding (an "S" shaped feature) of the characteristic of the central family, which is typical in bistable bifurcations. Along the "S" part of the characteristic we have a change in the orientation of the periodic orbits from a x1-type to a x2-type morphology. The orbits populated in the response model change rather abruptly their orientation when reaching the lowest energy of the "S". The spirals of the model follow a standard "precessing ellipses flow" and the orbits building them have energies beyond the "S" region. The bar is structured mainly by sticky orbits from regions around the stability islands of the central family. This leads to the appearance of X-features in the bars \textit{on} the galactic plane. Such a bar morphology appears in the unsharp-masked images of some moderately inclined galaxies.
We predict Lyman-$\alpha$ (Ly$\alpha$) luminosity functions (LFs) of Ly$\alpha$-selected galaxies (Ly$\alpha$ emitters, or LAEs) at $z=3-6$ using the phenomenological model of Dijkstra & Wyithe (2012). This model combines observed UV-LFs of Lyman-break galaxies (LBGs, or drop out galaxies), with constraints on their distribution of Ly$\alpha$ line strengths as a function of UV-luminosity and redshift. Our analysis shows that while Ly$\alpha$ LFs of LAEs are generally not Schechter functions, these provide a good description over the luminosity range of $\log_{10}( L_{\alpha}/{\rm erg}\,{\rm s}^{-1})=41-44$. Motivated by this result, we predict Schechter function parameters at $z=3-6$. Our analysis further shows that (i) the faint end slope of the Ly$\alpha$ LF is steeper than that of the UV-LF of Lyman-break galaxies, (with a median $\alpha_{Ly\alpha} < -2.0$ at $z\gtrsim 4$), and (ii) a turn-over in the Ly$\alpha$ LF of LAEs at Ly$\alpha$ luminosities $10^{40}$ erg s$^{-1}<L_{\alpha}\lesssim 10^{41}$ erg s$^{-1}$ may signal a flattening of UV-LF of Lyman-break galaxies at $-12>M_{\rm UV}>-14$. We discuss the implications of these results - which can be tested directly with upcoming surveys - for the Epoch of Reionization.
A striking coincidence of revolution periods of S-stars orbiting a supermassive black hole at the Galactic Center of the Milky Way and oscillation periods of such solar and terrestrial observables as the sunspot number, the geomagnetic field Y-component and the global temperature is established on basis of the corresponding experimental data. Rejecting randomness of this discovered coincidence, we put forward a hypothesis that modulation of dark matter flows in the Milky Way by the S-stars is responsible for such a frequency transfer from the Galactic Center to the Solar System.
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We report on high resolution CO(1-0), CS(2-1) and 3mm continuum Combined Array for Research in Millimeter Astronomy (CARMA) observations of the molecular outflow host and nearest quasar Markarian 231. We use the CS(2-1) measurements to derive a dense gas mass within Mrk 231 of $1.8\pm0.3\times10^{10}$ $M_\odot$, quite consistent with previous measurements. The CS(2-1) data also seem to indicate that the molecular disk of Mrk 231 is forming stars at normal efficiency. The high resolution CARMA observations were able to resolve the CO(1-0) outflow into two distinct lobes, allowing for a size estimate to be made and further constraining the molecular outflow dynamical time, further constraining the molecular gas escape rate. We find that 15% of the molecular gas within the Mrk 231 outflow actually exceeds the escape velocity in the central kiloparsec. Assuming that molecular gas is not constantly being accelerated, we find the depletion timescale of molecular gas in Mrk 231 to be 49 Myr, rather than 32 Myr, more consistent with the poststarburst stellar population observed in the system.
We present accurate models of the gravitational potential produced by a radially exponential disk mass distribution. The models are produced by combining three separate Miyamoto-Nagai disks. Such models have been used previously to model the disk of the Milky Way, but here we extend this framework to allow its application to disks of any mass, scalelength, and a wide range of thickness from infinitely thin to near spherical (ellipticities from 0 to 0.9). The models have the advantage of simplicity of implementation, and we expect faster run speeds over a double exponential disk treatment. The potentials are fully analytical, and differentiable at all points. The mass distribution of our models deviates from the radial mass distribution of a pure exponential disk by <0.4% out to 4 disk scalelengths, and <1.9% out to 10 disk scalelengths. We tabulate fitting parameters which facilitate construction of exponential disks for any scalelength, and a wide range of disk thickness (a user-friendly, web-based interface is also available). Our recipe is well suited for numerical modelling of the tidal effects of a giant disk galaxy on star clusters or dwarf galaxies. We consider three worked examples; the Milky Way thin and thick disk, and a disky dwarf galaxy.
We have conducted an optical long-slit spectroscopic survey of 1022 galaxies using the 10m Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) at McDonald Observatory. The main goal of the HET Massive Galaxy Survey (HETMGS) is to find nearby galaxies that are suitable for black hole mass measurements. In order to measure accurately the black hole mass, one should kinematically resolve the region where the black hole dominates the gravitational potential. For most galaxies, this region is much less than an arcsecond. Thus, black hole masses are best measured in nearby galaxies with telescopes that obtain high-spatial resolution. The HETMGS focuses on those galaxies predicted to have the largest sphere-of-influence, based on published stellar velocity dispersions or the galaxy fundamental plane. To ensure coverage over galaxy types, the survey targets those galaxies across a face-on projection of the fundamental plane. We present the sample selection and resulting data products from the long-slit observations, including central stellar kinematics and emission line ratios. The full dataset, including spectra and resolved kinematics, is available online. Additionally, we show that the current crop of black hole masses are highly biased towards dense galaxies and that especially large disks and low dispersion galaxies are under-represented. This survey provides the necessary groundwork for future systematic black hole mass measurement campaigns.
We construct dynamical models of the Milky Way's Box/Peanut (B/P) bulge, using the recently measured 3D density of Red Clump Giants (RCGs) as well as kinematic data from the BRAVA survey. We match these data using the NMAGIC Made-to-Measure method, starting with N-body models for barred discs in different dark matter haloes. We determine the total mass in the bulge volume of the RCGs measurement (+-2.2 x +- 1.4 x +- 1.2 kpc) with unprecedented accuracy and robustness to be 1.84 +- 0.07 x10^10 Msun. The stellar mass in this volume varies between 1.25-1.6 x10^10 Msun, depending on the amount of dark matter in the bulge. We evaluate the mass-to-light and mass-to-clump ratios in the bulge and compare them to theoretical predictions from population synthesis models. We find a mass-to-light ratio in the K-band in the range 0.8-1.1. The models are consistent with a Kroupa or Chabrier IMF, but a Salpeter IMF is ruled out for stellar ages of 10 Gyr. To match predictions from the Zoccali IMF derived from the bulge stellar luminosity function requires about 40% or 0.7 x10^10 Msun dark matter in the bulge region. The BRAVA data together with the RCGs 3D density imply a low pattern speed for the Galactic B/P bulge of 25-30 km.s-1.kpc-1. This would place the Galaxy among the slow rotators (R >= 1.5). Finally, we show that the Milky Way's B/P bulge has an off-centred X structure, and that the stellar mass involved in the peanut shape accounts for at least 20% of the stellar mass of the bulge, significantly larger than previously thought.
We present the formation of a Kinematically Decoupled Core (KDC) in an elliptical galaxy, resulting from a major merger simulation of two disk galaxies. We show that although the two progenitor galaxies are initially following a prograde orbit, strong reactive forces during the merger can cause a short-lived change of their orbital spin; the two progenitors follow a retrograde orbit right before their final coalescence. This results in a central kinematic decoupling and the formation of a large-scale (~2 kpc radius) counter-rotating core (CRC) at the center of the final elliptical-like merger remnant (M*=1.3x10^11 Msun), while its outer parts keep the rotation direction of the initial orbital spin. The stellar velocity dispersion distribution of the merger remnant galaxy exhibits two symmetrical off-centered peaks, comparable to the observed "2-sigma galaxies". The KDC/CRC consists mainly of old, pre-merger population stars (older than 5 Gyr), remaining prominent in the center of the galaxy for more than 2 Gyr after the coalescence of its progenitors. Its properties are consistent with KDCs observed in massive elliptical galaxies. This new channel for the formation of KDCs from prograde mergers is in addition to previously known formation scenarios from retrograde mergers and can help towards explaining the substantial fraction of KDCs observed in early-type galaxies.
The origin of the Cosmic Infrared Background (CIB) is still poorly understood, and represents a challenge from both the theoretical and observational points of view. We analysed 18 ALMA continuum maps in band 6 and 7, with rms down to 7.8 $\mu$Jy, to estimate differential number counts down to 60 $\mu$Jy and 100 $\mu$Jy at $\lambda =$1.3 mm and $\lambda =$1.1 mm, respectively. We improved the source extraction method to detect sources down to S/N = 3.5. We detected 50 faint sources ($<$ 1 mJy) down to 60 $\mu$Jy. Determining the fraction of CIB resolved by the ALMA observations is hampered by the large uncertainties plaguing the CIB measurements (a factor of four in flux). However, our results provide a solid lower limit to CIB intensity. Moreover, the flattening of the integrated number counts at faint fluxes strongly suggest that we are close to resolving 100% of the CIB. Our data imply that galaxies with $\rm SFR < 40 ~M_{\odot}/yr$ certainly contribute less than 50% to the CIB, and probably a much lower fraction, while the bulk of the CIB must be produced by galaxies with $\rm SFR > 40 ~M_{\odot}/yr$. The differential number counts are in nice agreement with recent semi-analytical models of galaxy formation down to our faint fluxes, therefore supporting the galaxy evolutionary scenarios and assumptions made in these models.
We report the first results from a survey for 1665, 1667, and 1720 MHz OH emission over a small region of the Outer Galaxy centered at $l \approx 105.0\deg , b \approx +1.0\deg$ . This sparse, high-sensitivity survey ($\Delta Ta \approx \Delta Tmb \approx 3.0 - 3.5$ mK rms in 0.55 km/s channels), was carried out as a pilot project with the Green Bank Telescope (GBT, FWHM $\approx 7.6'$) on a 3 X 9 grid at $0.5\deg$ spacing. The pointings chosen correspond with those of the existing $^{12}$CO(1-0) CfA survey of the Galaxy (FWHM $\approx 8.4'$). With 2-hr integrations, 1667 MHz OH emission was detected with the GBT at $\gtrsim 21$ of the 27 survey positions ($\geq 78\%$ ), confirming the ubiquity of molecular gas in the ISM as traced by this spectral line. With few exceptions, the main OH lines at 1665 and 1667 MHz appear in the ratio of 5:9 characteristic of LTE at our sensitivity levels. No OH absorption features are recorded in the area of the present survey, in agreement with the low levels of continuum background emission in this direction. At each pointing the OH emission appears in several components extending over a range of radial velocity and coinciding with well-known features of Galactic structure such as the Local Arm and the Perseus Arm. In contrast, little CO emission is seen in the survey area; less than half of the $\gtrsim 50$ identified OH components show detectable CO at the CfA sensitivity levels, and these are generally faint. There are no CO profiles without OH emission. With few exceptions, peaks in the OH profiles coincide with peaks in the GBT HI spectra (obtained concurrently, FWHM $8.9'$), although the converse is not true. We conclude that main-line OH emission is a promising tracer for the "dark molecular gas" in the Galaxy discovered earlier in Far-IR and gamma-ray emission. Further work is needed to establish the quantitative details of this connection.
In a single optical spectrum, the quasar narrow-line region (NLR) reveals low density, photoionized gas in the host galaxy interstellar medium, while the immediate vicinity of the central engine generates the accretion disk continuum and broad emission lines. To isolate these two components, we construct a library of high S/N optical composite spectra created from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-DR7). We divide the sample into bins of continuum luminosity and Hbeta FWHM that are used to construct median composites at different redshift steps up to 0.75. We measure the luminosities of the narrow-emission lines [NeV]3427, [NeIII]3870, [OIII]5007, and [OII]3728 with ionization potentials (IPs) of 97, 40, 35, and 13.6 eV respectively. The high IP lines' luminosities show no evidence of increase with redshift consistent with no evolution in the AGN SED or the host galaxy ISM illuminated by the continuum. In contrast, we find that the [OII] line becomes stronger at higher redshifts, and we interpret this as a consequence of enhanced star formation contributing to the [OII] emission in host galaxies at higher redshifts. The SFRs estimated from the [OII] luminosities show a flatter increase with z than non-AGN galaxies given our assumed AGN contribution to the [OII] luminosity. Finally, we confirm an inverse correlation between the strength of the FeII4570 complex and both the [OIII] EW (though not the luminosity) and the width of the Hbeta line as known from the eigenvector 1 correlations.
We explore the connection between the central supermassive blackholes (SMBH) in galaxies and the dark matter halo through the relation between the masses of the SMBHs and the maximum circular velocities of the host galaxies, as well as the relationship between stellar velocity dispersion of the spheroidal component and the circular velocity. Our assumption here is that the circular velocity is a proxy for the mass of the dark matter halo. We rely on a heterogeneous sample containing galaxies of all types. The only requirement is that the galaxy has a direct measurement of the mass of its SMBH and a direct measurement of its circular velocity and its velocity dispersion. Previous studies have analyzed the connection between the SMBH and dark matter halo through the relationship between the circular velocity and the bulge velocity dispersion, with the assumption that the bulge velocity dispersion stands in for the mass of the SMBH, via the well{}-established SMBH mass{}-bulge velocity dispersion relation. Using intermediate relations may be misleading when one is studying them to decipher the active ingredients of galaxy formation and evolution. We believe that our approach will provide a more direct probe of the SMBH and the dark matter halo connection. We find that the correlation between the mass of supermassive blackholes and the circular velocities of the host galaxies is extremely weak, leading us to state the dark matter halo may not play a major role in regulating the blackhole growth in the present Universe.
We develop a method to estimate photometric metallicities by simultaneously fitting the dereddened colors u-g, g-r, r-i and i-z from the SDSS with those predicted by the metallicity-dependent stellar loci. The method is tested with a spectroscopic sample of main-sequence stars in Stripe 82 selected from the SDSS DR9 and three open clusters. With 1 per cent photometry, the method is capable of delivering photometric metallicities precise to about 0.05, 0.12, and 0.18 dex at metallicities of 0.0, -1.0, and -2.0, respectively, comparable to the precision achievable with low-resolution spectroscopy at a signal-to-noise ratio of 10. We apply this method to the re-calibrated Stripe 82 catalog and derive metallicities for about 0.5 million stars of colors 0.3 < g-i < 1.6 mag and distances between 0.3 -- 18 kpc. Potential systematics in the metallicities thus derived, due to the contamination of giants and binaries, are investigated. Photometric distances are also calculated. About 91, 72, and 53 per cent of the sample stars are brighter than r = 20.5, 19.5, and 18.5 mag, respectively. The median metallicity errors are around 0.19, 0.16, 0.11, and 0.085 dex for the whole sample, and for stars brighter than r = 20.5, 19.5, and 18.5 mag, respectively. The median distance errors are 8.8, 8.4, 7.7, and 7.3 per cent for the aforementioned four groups of stars, respectively. The data are publicly available. Potential applications of the data in studies of the distribution, (sub)structure, and chemistry of the Galactic stellar populations, are briefly discussed. The results will be presented in future papers.
Supernova generated shock waves are responsible for most of the destruction of dust grains in the interstellar medium (ISM). Calculations of the dust destruction timescale have so far been carried out using plane parallel steady shocks, however that approximation breaks down when the destruction timescale becomes longer than that for the evolution of the supernova remnant (SNR) shock. In this paper we present new calculations of grain destruction in evolving, radiative SNRs. To facilitate comparison with the previous study by Jones et al. (1996), we adopt the same dust properties as in that paper. We find that the efficiencies of grain destruction are most divergent from those for a steady shock when the thermal history of a shocked gas parcel in the SNR differs significantly from that behind a steady shock. This occurs in shocks with velocities >~ 200 km/s for which the remnant is just beginning to go radiative. Assuming SNRs evolve in a warm phase dominated ISM, we find dust destruction timescales are increased by a factor of ~2 compared to those of Jones et al. (1996), who assumed a hot gas dominated ISM. Recent estimates of supernova rates and ISM mass lead to another factor of ~3 increase in the destruction timescales, resulting in a silicate grain destruction timescale of ~2-3 Gyr. These increases, while not able resolve the problem of the discrepant timescales for silicate grain destruction and creation, are an important step towards understanding the origin, and evolution of dust in the ISM.
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We present a high spatial resolution ($\approx 20$ pc) of $^{12}$CO($2-1$) observations of the lenticular galaxy NGC4526. We identify 103 resolved Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs) and measure their properties: size $R$, velocity dispersion $\sigma_v$, and luminosity $L$. This is the first GMC catalog of an early-type galaxy. We find that the GMC population in NGC4526 is gravitationally bound, with a virial parameter $\alpha \sim 1$. The mass distribution, $dN/dM \propto M^{-2.39 \pm 0.03}$, is steeper than that for GMCs in the inner Milky Way, but comparable to that found in some late-type galaxies. We find no size-linewidth correlation for the NGC4526 clouds, in contradiction to the expectation from Larson's relation. In general, the GMCs in NGC4526 are more luminous, denser, and have a higher velocity dispersion than equal size GMCs in the Milky Way and other galaxies in the Local Group. These may be due to higher interstellar radiation field than in the Milky Way disk and weaker external pressure than in the Galactic center. In addition, a kinematic measurement of cloud rotation shows that the rotation is driven by the galactic shear. For the vast majority of the clouds, the rotational energy is less than the turbulent and gravitational energy, while the four innermost clouds are unbound and will likely be torn apart by the strong shear at the galactic center. We combine our data with the archival data of other galaxies to show that the surface density $\Sigma$ of GMCs is not approximately constant as previously believed, but varies by $\sim 3$ orders of magnitude. We also show that the size and velocity dispersion of GMC population across galaxies are related to the surface density, as expected from the gravitational and pressure equilibrium, i.e. $\sigma_v R^{-1/2} \propto \Sigma^{1/2}$.
We carry out direct numerical simulations of turbulent astrophysical media that explicitly track ionizations, recombinations, and species-by-species radiative cooling. The simulations assume solar composition and follows the evolution of hydrogen, helium, carbon, oxygen, sodium, and magnesium, but they do not include the presence of an ionizing background. In this case, the medium reaches a global steady state that is purely a function of the one-dimensional turbulent velocity dispersion, $\sigma_{\rm 1D},$ and the product of the mean density and the driving scale of turbulence, $n L.$ Our simulations span a grid of models with $\sigma_{\rm 1D}$ ranging from 6 to 58 km s$^{-1}$ and $n L$ ranging from 10$^{16}$ to 10$^{20}$ cm$^{-2},$ which correspond to turbulent Mach numbers from $M=0.2$ to 10.6. The species abundances are well described by single-temperature estimates whenever $M$ is small, but local equilibrium models can not accurately predict the global equilibrium abundances when $M \gtrsim 1.$ To allow future studies to account for nonequilibrium effects in turbulent media, we gather our results into a series of tables, which we will extend in the future to encompass a wider range of elements, compositions, and ionizing processes.
The radio frequency 1.4 GHz transition of the atomic hydrogen is one of the important tracers of the diffuse neutral interstellar medium. Radio astronomical observations of this transition, using either a single dish telescope or an array interferometer, reveal different properties of the interstellar medium. Such observations are particularly useful to study the multiphase nature and turbulence in the interstellar gas. Observations with multiple radio telescopes have recently been used to study these two closely related aspects in greater detail. Using various observational techniques, the density and the velocity fluctuations in the Galactic interstellar medium was found to have a Kolmogorov-like power law power spectra. The observed power law scaling of the turbulent velocity dispersion with the length scale can be used to derive the true temperature distribution of the medium. Observations from a large ongoing atomic hydrogen absorption line survey have also been used to study the distribution of gas at different temperature. The thermal steady state model predicts that the multiphase neutral gas will exist in cold and warm phase with temperature below 200 K and above 5000 K respectively. However, these observations clearly show the presence of a large fraction of gas in the intermediate unstable phase. These results raise serious doubt about the validity of the standard model, and highlight the necessity of alternative theoretical models. Interestingly, numerical simulations suggest that some of the observational results can be explained consistently by including the effects of turbulence in the models of the multiphase medium. This review article presents a brief outline of some of the basic ideas of radio astronomical observations and data analysis, summarizes the results from recent observations, and discusses possible implications of the results.
We measure the location and evolutionary vectors of 69 Herschel-detected broad-line active galactic nuclei (BLAGNs) in the M_BH-M_* plane. BLAGNs are selected from the COSMOS and CDF-S fields, and span the redshift range 0.2< z<2.1. Black-hole masses are calculated using archival spectroscopy and single-epoch virial mass estimators, and galaxy total stellar masses are calculated by fitting the spectral energy distribution (subtracting the BLAGN component). The mass-growth rates of both the black hole and galaxy are calculated using Chandra/XMM-Newton X-ray and Herschel far-infrared data, reliable measures of the BLAGN accretion and galaxy star formation rates, respectively. We use Monte Carlo simulations to account for biases in our sample, due to both selection limits and the steep slope of the massive end of the galaxy stellar-mass distribution. We find our sample is consistent with no evolution in the M_BH-M_* relation from z~2 to z~0. BLAGNs and their host galaxies which lie off the black hole mass galaxy total stellar mass relation tend to have evolutionary vectors anti-correlated with their mass ratios: that is, galaxies with over-massive (under-massive) black holes tend to have a low (high) ratio of the specific accretion rate to the specific star formation rate. We also use the measured growth rates to estimate the preferred AGN duty cycle for our galaxies to evolve most consistently onto the local M_BH-M_Bul relation. Under reasonable assumptions of exponentially declining star formation histories, the data suggest a non-evolving (no more than a factor of a few) BLAGN duty cycle among star-forming galaxies of 10% (1sigma range of 1-42% at z<1 and 2-34% at z>1).
The Main Sequence (MS) of star-forming galaxies plays a fundamental role in driving galaxy evolution and in our efforts to understand it. However, different studies find significant differences in the normalization, slope and shape of the MS. These discrepancies arise mainly from the different selection criteria adopted to isolate star-forming galaxies, that may include or exclude galaxies with specific star formation rate (SFR) substantially below the MS value. To obviate this limitation of all current criteria, we propose an objective definition of the MS that does not rely at all on a pre-selection of star-forming galaxies. Constructing the 3D SFR-Mass-Number plot, the MS is then defined as the ridge line of the star-forming peak, as illustrated with various figures. The advantages of such definition are manifold. If generally adopted it will facilitate the inter-comparison of results from different groups using the same star formation rate (SFR) and stellar mass diagnostics, or to highlight the relative systematics of different diagnostics. All this could help understanding MS galaxies as systems in a quasi-steady state equilibrium and would also provide a more objective criterion for identifying quenching galaxies.
We study the influence of the presence of a strong bar in disc galaxies which host an active galactic nucleus (AGN). Using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and morphological classifications from the Galaxy Zoo 2 project, we create a volume-limited sample of 19,756 disc galaxies at $0.01<z<0.05$ which have been visually examined for the presence of a bar. Within this sample, AGN host galaxies have a higher overall percentage of bars (51.8%) than inactive galaxies exhibiting central star formation (37.1%). This difference is primarily due to known effects; that the presence of both AGN and galactic bars is strongly correlated with both the stellar mass and integrated colour of the host galaxy. We control for this effect by examining the difference in AGN fraction between barred and unbarred galaxies in fixed bins of mass and colour. Once this effect is accounted for, there remains a small but statistically significant increase that represents 16% of the average barred AGN fraction. Using the $L_{\rm{[O III]}}/M_{BH} $ratio as a measure of AGN strength, we show that barred AGN do not exhibit stronger accretion than unbarred AGN at a fixed mass and colour. The data are consistent with a model in which bar-driven fueling does contribute to the probability of an actively growing black hole, but in which other dynamical mechanisms must contribute to the direct AGN fueling via smaller, non-axisymmetric perturbations.
We present host stellar velocity dispersion measurements for a sample of 88 broad-line quasars at 0.1<z<1 (46 at z>0.6) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Reverberation Mapping (SDSS-RM) project. High signal-to-noise ratio coadded spectra (average S/N~30 per 69 km/s pixel) from SDSS-RM allowed decomposition of the host and quasar spectra, and measurement of the host stellar velocity dispersions and black hole (BH) masses using the single-epoch (SE) virial method. The large sample size and dynamic range in luminosity (L5100=10^(43.2-44.7) erg/s) lead to the first clear detection of a correlation between SE virial BH mass and host stellar velocity dispersion far beyond the local universe. However, the observed correlation is significantly flatter than the local relation, suggesting that there are selection biases in high-z luminosity-threshold quasar samples for such studies. Our uniform sample and analysis enable an investigation of the redshift evolution of the M-sigma relation free of caveats by comparing different samples/analyses at disjoint redshifts. We do not observe evolution of the M-sigma relation in our sample, up to z~1, but there is an indication that the relation flattens towards higher redshifts. Coupled with the increasing threshold luminosity with redshift in our sample, this again suggests certain selection biases are at work, and simple simulations demonstrate that a constant M-sigma relation is favored to z~1. Our results highlight the scientific potential of deep coadded spectroscopy from quasar monitoring programs, and offer a new path to probe the co-evolution of BHs and galaxies at earlier times.
In order to better understand the nature of post-starburst quasars (PSQs) in the context of galaxy evolution, we compare their properties to those of post-starburst galaxies and quasars from appropriately selected samples possessing similar redshift ($z \sim 0.3$), luminosity ($M_r \sim -$23), and data quality. We consider morphologies, spectral features, and derived physical properties of the stellar populations and central supermassive black hole. PSQs themselves come in two types: the more luminous AGNs with more luminous post-starburst stellar populations hosted by elliptical galaxies, some which are clearly merger products, and the less luminous systems existing within relatively undisturbed spiral galaxies and possessing signs of a more extended period of star formation. Post-starburst galaxies (PSQs) have elliptical and disturbed/post-merger morphologies similar to those of the more luminous PSQs, display similar spectral properties, but also can have younger stellar populations for a given starburst mass. Quasars at similar redshifts and luminosities around the Seyfert/quasar transition possess similar AGN characteristics, in terms of black hole mass and accretion rate, compared with those of PSQs, but do not appear to be hosted by galaxies with significant post-starburst populations. Recent studies of more luminous quasars find hosts consistent with those of our luminous PSQs, suggesting that these PSQs may be in transition between post-starburst galaxies and a more luminous quasar stage when the post-starburst stellar population remains dominant. The lower luminosity PSQs appear to differ from lower luminosity quasars (Seyfert galaxies) in terms of more significant star formation in their past.
We perform realistic simulations of the Sun's birth cluster in order to predict the current distribution of solar siblings in the Galaxy. We study the possibility of finding the solar siblings in the Gaia catalogue by using only positional and kinematic information. We find that the number of solar siblings predicted to be observed by Gaia will be around 100 in the most optimistic case, and that a phase space only search in the Gaia catalogue will be extremely difficult. It is therefore mandatory to combine the chemical tagging technique with phase space selection criteria in order to have any hope of finding the solar siblings.
AIMS: The aim of this study is to investigate the origin and evolution of Sc, V, Mn, and Co for a homogeneous and statistically significant sample of stars probing the different populations of the Milky Way, in particular the thin and thick disks. METHODS: Using high-resolution spectra obtained with MIKE, FEROS, SOFIN, FIES, UVES and HARPS spectrographs, we determine Sc, V, Mn, and Co abundances for a large sample of F and G dwarfs in Solar neighbourhood. The method is based on spectral synthesis and using one-dimensional (1-D), plane-parallel, LTE model stellar atmospheres calculated with the MARCS 2012 code. NLTE corrections from literature were applied to Mn and Co. RESULTS: We find that the abundance trends derived for Sc (594 stars), V (466 stars), and Co (567 stars) are very similar to what has been observed for the alpha-elements in the thin and thick disks. On the contrary Mn (569 stars) is generally underabundant relative to the Sun (i.e. [Mn/Fe]<0) for [Fe/H]<0. Also, for Mn, when NLTE corrections are applied, the trend changes and is almost flat over the entire metallicity range that the stars in our sample span (-2<[Fe/H]<+0.4). The [Sc/Fe]-[Fe/H] abundance trends show a small separation between the thin and thick disks, while for V and Co they completely overlap. For Mn there is a small difference in [Mn/Fe] but only when NLTE corrections are used. Comparisons with Ti as a reference element show flat trends for all the elements except for Mn that show well separated [Mn/Ti]-[Ti/H] trends for the thin and thick disks. CONCLUSIONS: Sc and V present trends compatible with production from SNII events. In addition, Sc clearly shows a metallicity dependence for [Fe/H]<-1. Mn instead is produced in SNII events for [Fe/H]<-0.4 and then SNIa start to produce Mn. Finally, Co appears to be produced mainly in SNII with suggestion of enrichment from hypernovae at low metallicities.
We present a proper-motion study on models of the dwarf spheroidal galaxy Sculptor, based on the predicted proper-motion accuracy of Gaia measurements. Gaia will measure proper motions of several hundreds of stars for a Sculptor-like system. Even with an uncertainty on the proper motion of order 1.5 times the size of an individual proper-motion value of ~10 mas/century, we find that it is possible to recover Sculptor's systemic proper motion at its distance of 79 kpc.
We study the dependence of the properties of group galaxies on the surrounding large-scale environment, using SDSS-DR7 data. Galaxies are ranked according to their luminosity within each group and classified morphologically by the S\'ersic index. We have considered samples of the host groups in superstructures of galaxies, and elsewhere. We find a significant dependence of the properties of late-type brightest group galaxies on the large-scale environment: they show statistically significant higher luminosities and stellar masses, redder u-r colours, lower star formation activity and longer star-formation time-scale when embedded in superstructures. By contrast, the properties of the early-type brightest group galaxies are remarkably similar regardless of the group global environment. The other group member galaxies exhibit only the local influence of the group they inhabit. Our analysis comprises tests against the dependence on the host group luminosity and we argue that group brightest member properties are not only determined by the host halo, but also by the large-scale structure which can influence the accretion process onto their late-type brightest galaxies.
The recent discover of intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs) and dense compact objects in the centre of several galactic and extra-galactic stellar clusters opened a series of questions about their formation and evolution. One possibility is that gravitational encounters carry heavy stars to concentrate toward the cluster centre, leading to the formation of a compact sub-system composed mainly by high-mass stars. Correlations between those compact objects and the cluster in which they are contained could help to constraint their formation scenario. Using theoretical and statistical arguments, we show here that gravitational encounters lead to the formation of a dense system placed at the centre of the host stellar cluster. Moreover, we used one-to-one N -body realization of star clusters to follow the core formation process and its evolution. We derive scaling relations connecting the cluster mass and the deposited, central mass, comparing such results with observations. This work is the first showing that mass segregation in a stellar cluster gives rise, within the cluster centre, to a massive core whose mass correlates with the cluster mass as observations suggest.
We show that the ratio between the stellar mass of central galaxy and the mass of its host halo, $f_c \equiv M_{*,c}/M_{\rm h}$, can be used as an observable proxy of halo assembly time, in that galaxy groups with higher $f_c$ assembled their masses earlier. Using SDSS groups of Yang et al., we study how $f_c$ correlates with galaxy properties such as color, star formation rate, metallicity, bulge to disk ratio, and size. Central galaxies of a given stellar mass in groups with $f_c>0.02$ tend to be redder in color, more quenched in star formation, smaller in size, and more bulge dominated, as $f_c$ increases. The trends in color and star formation appear to reverse at $f_c<0.02$, reflecting a down-sizing effect that galaxies in massive halos formed their stars earlier although the host halos themselves assembled later (lower $f_c$). No such reversal is seen in the size of elliptical galaxies, suggesting that their assembly follows halo growth more closely than their star formation. Satellite galaxies of a given stellar mass in groups of a given halo mass tend to be redder in color, more quenched in star formation and smaller in size as $f_c$ increases. For a given stellar mass, satellites also tend to be smaller than centrals. The trends are stronger for lower mass groups. For groups more massive than $\sim 10^{13}{\rm M}_\odot$, a weak reversed trend is seen in color and star formation. The observed trends in star formation are qualitatively reproduced by an empirical model based on halo age abundance matching, but not by a semi-analytical model tested here.
We introduce a numerical method to integrate tidal effects on collisional systems, using any definition of the external potential as a function of space and time. Rather than using a linearisation of the tidal field, this new method follows a differential technique to numerically evaluate the tidal acceleration and its time derivative. Theses are then used to integrate the motions of the components of the collisional systems, like stars in star clusters, using a predictor-corrector scheme. The versatility of this approach allows the study of star clusters, including their tidal tails, in complex, multi-components, time-evolving external potentials. The method is implemented in the code nbody6 (Aarseth 2003).
We present high-resolution rotation curves and mass models of 26 dwarf galaxies from LITTLE THINGS. LITTLE THINGS is a high-resolution Very Large Array HI survey for nearby dwarf galaxies in the local volume within 11 Mpc. The rotation curves of the sample galaxies derived in a homogeneous and consistent manner are combined with Spitzer archival 3.6 micron and ancillary optical U, B, and V images to construct mass models of the galaxies. We decompose the rotation curves in terms of the dynamical contributions by baryons and dark matter halos, and compare the latter with those of dwarf galaxies from THINGS as well as Lambda CDM SPH simulations in which the effect of baryonic feedback processes is included. Being generally consistent with THINGS and simulated dwarf galaxies, most of the LITTLE THINGS sample galaxies show a linear increase of the rotation curve in their inner regions, which gives shallower logarithmic inner slopes alpha of their dark matter density profiles. The mean value of the slopes of the 26 LITTLE THINGS dwarf galaxies is alpha =-0.32 +/- 0.24 which is in accordance with the previous results found for low surface brightness galaxies (alpha = -0.2 +/- 0.2) as well as the seven THINGS dwarf galaxies (alpha =-0.29 +/- 0.07). However, this significantly deviates from the cusp-like dark matter distribution predicted by dark-matter-only Lambda CDM simulations. Instead our results are more in line with the shallower slopes found in the Lambda CDM SPH simulations of dwarf galaxies in which the effect of baryonic feedback processes is included. In addition, we discuss the central dark matter distribution of DDO 210 whose stellar mass is relatively low in our sample to examine the scenario of inefficient supernova feedback in low mass dwarf galaxies predicted from recent Lambda SPH simulations of dwarf galaxies where central cusps still remain.
We report the discovery and follow-up observations of a system of three objects identified by the ALFALFA extragalactic HI survey, cataloged as (almost) dark extragalactic sources, i.e., extragalactic HI detections with no discernible counterpart in publicly available, wide-field, imaging surveys. We have obtained deep optical imaging with WIYN pODI and HI synthesis maps with WSRT of the HI1232+20 system. The source with the highest HI flux has a newly discovered ultra-low surface brightness (LSB) optical counterpart associated with it, while the other two sources have no detected optical counterparts in our images. Our optical observations show that the detected LSB optical counterpart has a peak surface brightness of ~26.4 mag/arcsec^2 in g', which is exceptionally faint. This source (AGC 229385) has the largest accurately measured HI mass-to-light ratio of an isolated object: MHI/Lg'=46 Msun/Lsun, and has an HI mass of 7.2*10^8 Msun. The other two HI sources (with HI masses 2.0*10^8 and 1.2*10^8 Msun) without optical counterparts have upper limit surface brightnesses of 27.9 and 27.8 mag/arcsec^2 in g', and lower limits on their gas mass-to-light ratio of MHI/Lg'>57 and >31 Msun/Lsun. This system lies relatively close in projection to the Virgo Cluster, but velocity flow models indicate that it is located at ~25 Mpc, substantially beyond Virgo. The system appears to be quite isolated, with no known object closer than 500 kpc. These HI sources may represent both sides of the threshold between "dark" star-less galaxies and galaxies with stellar populations. We discuss a variety of possible formation scenarios for the HI1232+20 system.
We present multi-epoch optical spectroscopy of seven southern Fermi-monitored blazars from 2008 - 2013 using the Small and Medium Aperture Research Telescope System (SMARTS), with supplemental spectroscopy and polarization data from the Steward Observatory. We find that the emission lines are much less variable than the continuum; 4 of 7 blazars had no detectable emission line variability over the 5 years. This is consistent with photoionization primarily by an accretion disk, allowing us to use the lines as a probe of disk activity. Comparing optical emission line flux with Fermi $\gamma$-ray flux and optical polarized flux, we investigate whether relativistic jet variability is related to the accretion flow. In general, we see no such dependence, suggesting the jet variability is likely caused by internal processes like turbulence or shock acceleration rather than a variable accretion rate. However, three sources showed statistically significant emission line flares in close temporal proximity to very large Fermi $\gamma$-ray flares. While we do not have sufficient emission line data to quantitatively assess their correlation with the $\gamma$-ray flux, it appears that in some cases, the jet might provide additional photoionizing flux to the broad line region, which implies some gamma-rays are produced within the broad line region, at least for these large flares.
We present a 67--93.6 GHz spectral line survey of Orion-KL with the new 4 mm Receiver on the Green Bank Telescope (GBT). The survey reaches unprecedented depths and covers the low-frequency end of the 3 mm atmospheric window which has been relatively unexplored previously. The entire spectral-line survey is published electronically for general use by the astronomical community. The calibration and performance of 4 mm Receiver on the GBT is also summarized.
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We have constructed merger trees for galaxies in the Illustris Simulation by directly tracking the baryonic content of subhalos. These merger trees are used to calculate the galaxy-galaxy merger rate as a function of descendant stellar mass, progenitor stellar mass ratio, and redshift. We demonstrate that the most appropriate definition for the mass ratio of a galaxy-galaxy merger consists in taking both progenitor masses at the time when the secondary progenitor reaches its maximum stellar mass. Additionally, we avoid effects from `orphaned' galaxies by allowing some objects to `skip' a snapshot when finding a descendant, and by only considering mergers which show a well-defined `infall' moment. Adopting these definitions, we obtain well-converged predictions for the galaxy-galaxy merger rate with the following main features, which are qualitatively similar to the halo-halo merger rate except for the last one: a strong correlation with redshift that evolves as $\sim (1+z)^{2.4-2.8}$, a power law with respect to mass ratio, and an increasing dependence on descendant stellar mass, which steepens significantly for descendant stellar masses greater than $\sim 2 \times 10^{11} \, {\rm M_{\odot}}$. These trends are consistent with observational constraints for medium-sized galaxies ($M_{\ast} \gtrsim 10^{10} \, {\rm M_{\odot}}$), but in tension with some recent observations of the close pair fraction for massive galaxies ($M_{\ast} \gtrsim 10^{11} \, {\rm M_{\odot}}$), which report a nearly constant or decreasing evolution with redshift. Finally, we provide a fitting function for the galaxy-galaxy merger rate which is accurate over a wide range of stellar masses, progenitor mass ratios, and redshifts.
Currently-proposed galaxy quenching mechanisms predict very different behaviours during major halo mergers, ranging from significant quenching enhancement (e.g., clump-induced gravitational heating models) to significant star formation enhancement (e.g., gas starvation models). To test real galaxies' behaviour, we present an observational galaxy pair method for selecting galaxies whose host haloes are preferentially undergoing major mergers. Applying the method to central L* (10^10 Msun < M* < 10^10.5 Msun) galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) at z<0.06, we find that major halo mergers can at most modestly reduce the star-forming fraction, from 59% to 47%. Consistent with past research, however, mergers accompany enhanced specific star formation rates for star-forming L* centrals: ~10% when a paired galaxy is within 200 kpc (approximately the host halo's virial radius), climbing to ~70% when a paired galaxy is within 30 kpc. No evidence is seen for even extremely close pairs (<30 kpc separation) rejuvenating star formation in quenched galaxies. For galaxy formation models, our results suggest: (1) quenching in L* galaxies likely begins due to decoupling of the galaxy from existing hot and cold gas reservoirs, rather than a lack of available gas or gravitational heating from infalling clumps, (2) state-of-the-art semi-analytic models currently over-predict the effect of major halo mergers on quenching, and (3) major halo mergers can trigger enhanced star formation in non-quenched central galaxies.
Context. Measuring star formation at a local scale is important to constrain star formation laws. Yet, it is not clear whether and how the measure of star formation is affected by the spatial scale at which a galaxy is observed. Aims. We want to understand the impact of the resolution on the determination of the spatially resolved star formation rate (SFR) and other directly associated physical parameters such as the attenuation. Methods. We have carried out a multi-scale, pixel-by-pixel study of the nearby galaxy M33. Assembling FUV, Halpha, 8, 24, 70, and 100 micron maps, we have systematically compared the emission in individual bands with various SFR estimators from a resolution of 33 pc to 2084 pc. Results. We have found that there are strong, scale-dependent, discrepancies up to a factor 3 between monochromatic SFR estimators and Halpha+24 micron. The scaling factors between individual IR bands and the SFR show a strong dependence on the spatial scale and on the intensity of star formation. Finally, strong variations of the differential reddening between the nebular emission and the stellar continuum are seen, depending on the specific SFR (sSFR) and on the resolution. At the finest spatial scales, there is little differential reddening at high sSFR. The differential reddening increases with decreasing sSFR. At the coarsest spatial scales the differential reddening is compatible with the canonical value found for starburst galaxies. Conclusions. Our results confirm that monochromatic estimators of the SFR are unreliable at scales smaller than 1 kpc. Furthermore, the extension of local calibrations to high redshift galaxies presents non-trivial challenges as the properties of these systems may be poorly known.
We present a detailed analysis of a H2-bearing metal-rich sub-damped Lyman-alpha system at zabs = 0.10115 towards the radio-loud quasar J0441-4313, at a projected separation of ~7.6 kpc from a star-forming galaxy. The H2, C I and Na I absorption are much stronger in the redder of the two components seen in the Hubble Space Telescope / Cosmic Origins Spectrograph spectrum. The best single component fit to the strong H2 component gives log N(H2) = 16.61 +/- 0.05. However, possible hidden saturation in the medium resolution spectrum can allow for log N(H2) to be as high as 18.9. The rotational excitation temperature of H2 in this component is 133 +33/-22 K. Photoionization models suggest 30-80% of the total N(H I) is associated with the strong H2 component, that has a density <= 100 cm^-3 and is subject to a radiation field that is <= 0.5 times the Galactic mean field. The Very Large Baseline Array 1.4 GHz continuum image of the radio source contains only 27% of the arcsecond scale emission. Using a previously published spectrum, no 21-cm absorption is found to be associated with the strong H2 component. This suggests that either the N(H I) associated with this component is <= 50% of the total N(H I) or the gas covering factor is <= 0.27. This is consistent with the results of the photoionization model that uses UV radiation due to stars in the associated galaxy. The 21-cm absorption previously reported from the weaker H2 component suggests a spin temperature of <= 90 K, at odds with the weakness of H2, C I and Na I absorption in this component. From the inferred physical and chemical conditions, we suggest that the gas may be tracing a recent metal-rich outflow from the host-galaxy.
Distant regions close to the plane of our Galaxy are largely unexplored by optical surveys as they are hidden by dust. We have used near-infrared data (that minimizes dust obscuration) from the ESO Public survey VISTA Variables of the Via Lactea (VVV) (Minniti et al. 2011; Saito et al. 2012; henceforth S12) to search for distant stars at low latitudes. We have discovered four Cepheid variables within an angular extent of one degree centered at Galactic longitude of $l = -27.4^\circ$ and Galactic latitude of $b = -1.08 ^\circ$. We use the tightly constrained period-luminosity relationship that these pulsating stars obey (Persson et al. 2004; Matsunaga et al. 2011) to derive distances. We infer an average distance to these Cepheid variables of 90 kpc. The Cepheid variables are highly clustered in angle (within one degree) and in distance (the standard deviation of the distances is 12 kpc). They are at an average distance of $\sim 2~\rm kpc$ from the plane and their maximum projected separation is $\sim 1~ \rm kpc$. These young ($\sim$ 100 Myr old), pulsating stars (Bono et al. 2005) are unexpected at such large distances from the Galactic disk, which terminates at $\sim$ 15 kpc (Minniti et al. 2011). The highly clustered nature in distance and angle of the Cepheid variables suggests that the stars may be associated with a dwarf galaxy, one that was earlier predicted by a dynamical analysis (Chakrabarti \& Blitz 2009).
We present the Planck Catalogue of Galactic Cold Clumps (PGCC), an all-sky catalogue of Galactic cold clump candidates detected by Planck. This catalogue is the full version of the Early Cold Core (ECC) catalogue, which was made available in 2011 with the Early Release Compact Source Catalogue (ERCSC) and contained 915 high S/N sources. It is based on the Planck 48 months mission data that are currently being released to the astronomical community. The PGCC catalogue is an observational catalogue consisting exclusively of Galactic cold sources. The three highest Planck bands (857, 545, 353 GHz) have been combined with IRAS data at 3 THz to perform a multi-frequency detection of sources colder than their local environment. After rejection of possible extragalactic contaminants, the PGCC catalogue contains 13188 Galactic sources spread across the whole sky, i.e., from the Galactic plane to high latitudes, following the spatial distribution of the main molecular cloud complexes. The median temperature of PGCC sources lies between 13 and 14.5 K, depending on the quality of the flux density measurements, with a temperature ranging from 5.8 to 20 K after removing sources with the 1% largest temperature estimates. Using seven independent methods, reliable distance estimates have been obtained for 5574 sources, which allows us to derive their physical properties such as their mass, physical size, mean density and luminosity. The PGCC sources are located mainly in the solar neighbourhood, up to a distance of 10.5 kpc towards the Galactic centre, and range from low-mass cores to large molecular clouds. Because of this diversity and because the PGCC catalogue contains sources in very different environments, the catalogue is useful to investigate the evolution from molecular clouds to cores. Finally, the catalogue also includes 54 additional sources located in the SMC and LMC.
A novel idea is presented for removing mag- netic flux from the galactic disc in order to satisfy the boundary conditions of the alpha- omega dynamo. The idea involves making use of superbubbles that break out of the galactic disc. When this happens, their shells break up into many fragments, and from these fragments, spikes can arise that can move small pieces of the galactic flux lines in the superbubble shell and move them so high enough into the halo that they do not return. As a result the flux lines remaining in the disc are effectively cut into short pieces of finite length that, although weakly connected to the halo, have no tensile strength at their ends. They are thus free to randomly rotate until no net flux is left. In the first section, the boundary condition problem is discussed and then this solution is discussed.. In the second section the proper- ties of the superbubble that are necessary for the model are laid out. It is shown by a rough numerical estimate, that enough lines can be cut to resolve the dynamo problem. Lastly, conditions under which the spike instability exists are discussed.
We have serendipitously identified the first lithium-rich giant star located close to the red giant branch bump in a globular cluster. Through intermediate-resolution FLAMES spectra we derived a lithium abundance of A(Li)=2.55 (assuming local thermodynamical equilibrium), which is extremely high considering the star's evolutionary stage. Kinematic and photometric analysis confirm the object as a member of the globular cluster NGC 362. This is the fourth Li-rich giant discovered in a globular cluster but the only one known to exist at a luminosity close to the bump magnitude. The three previous detections are clearly more evolved, located close to, or beyond the tip of their red giant branch. Our observations are able to discard the accretion of planets/brown dwarfs, as well as an enhanced mass-loss mechanism as a formation channel for this rare object. Whilst the star sits just above the cluster bump luminosity, its temperature places it towards the blue side of the giant branch in the colour-magnitude diagram. We require further dedicated observations to unambiguously identify the star as a red giant: we are currently unable to confirm whether Li production has occurred at the bump of the luminosity function or if the star is on the pre zero-age horizontal branch. The latter scenario provides the opportunity for the star to have synthesised Li rapidly during the core helium flash or gradually during its red giant branch ascent via some extra mixing process.
Ly$\alpha$ photons scattered by neutral hydrogen atoms in the circumgalactic media or produced in the halos of star-forming galaxies are expected to lead to extended Ly$\alpha$ emission around galaxies. Such low surface brightness Ly$\alpha$ halos (LAHs) have been detected by stacking Ly$\alpha$ images of high-redshift star-forming galaxies. We study the origin of LAHs by performing radiative transfer modeling of nine $z=3.1$ Lyman-Alpha Emitters (LAEs) in a high resolution hydrodynamic galaxy formation simulation. We develop a method of computing the mean Ly$\alpha$ surface brightness profile of each LAE by effectively integrating over many different observing directions. Without adjusting any parameters, our model yields an average Ly$\alpha$ surface brightness profile in remarkable agreement with observations. We find that observed LAHs can not be accounted for solely by photons originating from the central LAE and scattered to large radii by hydrogen atoms in the circumgalactic gas. Instead, Ly$\alpha$ emission from regions in the outer halo is primarily responsible for producing the extended LAHs seen in observations, which potentially includes both star-forming and cooling radiation. The contribution from star formation in the outer halo regions can be strongly constrained to be negligible by the observed absence of an extended ultra-violet (UV) halo. Our results therefore suggest that cooling radiation from the outer halo regions of LAEs plays a major role in forming their extended LAHs. We discuss the implications and caveats of such a picture.
Yellowballs are a collection of approximately 900 compact, infrared sources identified and named by volunteers participating in the Milky Way Project (MWP), a citizen-science project that uses GLIMPSE/MIPSGAL images from Spitzer to explore topics related to Galactic star formation. In this paper, through a combination of catalog cross-matching and infrared color analysis, we show that yellowballs are a mix of compact star-forming regions, including ultra-compact and compact HII regions, as well as analogous regions for less massive B-type stars. The resulting MWP yellowball catalog provides a useful complement to the Red MSX Source (RMS) survey. It similarly highlights regions of massive star formation, but the selection of objects purely on the basis of their infrared morphology and color in Spitzer images identifies a signature of compact star-forming regions shared across a broad range of luminosities, and by inference, masses. We discuss the origin of their striking mid-infrared appearance, and suggest that future studies of the yellowball sample will improve our understanding of how massive and intermediate-mass star-forming regions transition from compact to more extended bubble-like structures.
OTELO is an emission-line object survey carried out with the red tunable filter of the instrument OSIRIS at the GTC, whose aim is to become the deepest emission-line object survey to date. With 100% of the data of the first pointing finally obtained in June 2014, we present here some aspects of the processing of the data and the very first results of the OTELO survey. We also explain the next steps to be followed in the near future.
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