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At least 181 records · Page 10
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Infrared spectroscopy of nearby radio active early-type galaxies - II: spectral atlas

ABSTRACT We present a near-infrared spectroscopic atlas of nearby, bright early-type galaxies with radio emission, containing 163 galaxies observed by the Palomar 200″ TripleSpec instrument, measuring the emission line fluxes for H, He, [Fe ii], and H2 and determined the nuclear excitation mechanisms. By stacking spectra, we deduced the H2 excitation temperature (1957 ± 182 K) and dominant excitation mechanism (thermal and shock heating combined) from the K-band emission line sequence. Stacking also produces an ‘average’ spectrum of absorption features and spectral indices from the literature; the CO12 absorption line index versus J − K colour shows a trend of stronger nuclear activity producing a weaker CO12 index and a redder (flatter) continuum. The correlations between the radio and the emission-line luminosities finds a trend with radio power; however, the large scatter in the upper limits shows that the two are not directly coupled and the duty cycles of SF and AGN activity are not synchronized.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1983

Radiative accretion of intracluster gas onto dominant galaxies in poor clusters

An analysis of X-ray images of MKW 4, MKW 3, AMW 4, and AMW 7 indicates that the hot gas in poor clusters is cooling and accreting onto the central, dominant galaxies. The deprojection technique of Fabian et al (1980) is applied to deduce the detailed density and temperature profiles for a wide range of assumed parameters. For each cluster, the mass accretion rates computed vary by less than a factor of 2 over the full range of the assumed parameters. Examinations of the gas and light density profiles, and of the effects of contraction of the gravitational potential, lead to the conclusion that the high gas densities giving rise to cooling flows are not primarily the result of dynamical evolution of the cluster, especially the merger of galaxies to form the dominant galaxy. Instead, the general initial condition of high material density favors both mergers and cooling flows.

Stewart, G. C.↗
NASA NTRS1991

The ultraviolet spectra of nearby radio galaxies

New and archival IUE SWP spectra are reported for nine nearby radio galaxies (V is less than 15 mag), together with optical emissionlike data for these galaxies as well as a number of candidates with weaker line emission. Both their UV line and continuum properties, as well as their UV and UV-optical line ratios, are examined. Ly-alpha emission is found to be common among local radio galaxies, at modest luminosities (typically 10 exp 41-42 erg/s). No apparent relation is found between L(Ly-alpha) and radio power for the nearby radio galaxies alone. The Ly-alpha/H-alpha ratio in low power nearby radio galaxies is 2-5 times lower than the prediction for case B recombination. The destruction of Ly-alpha photons by grains during resonant scattering can explain the observed deficiency for reasonable metallicities. The nearby radio galaxies have in general a small C IV/Ly-alpha ratio (less than 0.1). Comparison of the C IV and Ly-alpha strengths with those in luminous AGN suggests that most of the UV continuum comes from the stellar population, and not from the AGN.

Keel, William C.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Diagnostics of dust content in spiral galaxies: Numerical simulations of radiative transfer

In order to find the best observable diagnostics for the amount of internal extinction within spiral galaxies, we have constructed realistic models for disk galaxies with immersed dust layers. The radiative transfer including both scattering and absorption has been computed for a range of model galaxies in various orientations. Standard galaxy surface photometry techniques were then applied to the numerical data to illustrate how different observables such as total magnitude, color and luminosity distribution behave under given conditions of dust distribution. This work reveals a set of superior diagnostics for the dust in the disk. These include not only the integrated parameters, but also the apparent disk structural parameters, the amplitude of the asymmetry between the near and far sides of the galaxy as divided by the apparent major axis and their dependence on the orientation of the galaxy with respect to the observer. Combining the above diagnostics with our impressions of real galaxies, we arrive at the qualitative conclusion that galaxy disks are generally optically thin. Quantitative conclusions will appear in subsequent work.

Byun, Y. I.↗
NASA NTRS2014

First Hard X-Ray Detection of the Non-Thermal Emission Around the Arches Cluster: Morphology and Spectral Studies With NuSTAR

The Arches cluster is a young, densely packed massive star cluster in our Galaxy that shows a high level of star formation activity. The nature of the extended non-thermal X-ray emission around the cluster remains unclear. The observed bright Fe K(alpha) line emission at 6.4 keV from material that is neutral or in a low ionization state can be produced either by X-ray photoionization or by cosmic-ray particle bombardment or both. In this paper, we report on the first detection of the extended emission around the Arches cluster above 10 keV with the NuSTAR mission, and present results on its morphology and spectrum. The spatial distribution of the hard X-ray emission is found to be consistent with the broad region around the cluster where the 6.4 keV line is observed. The interpretation of the hard X-ray emission within the context of the X-ray reflection model puts a strong constraint on the luminosity of the possible illuminating hard X-ray source. The properties of the observed emission are also in broad agreement with the low-energy cosmic-ray proton excitation scenario. Key words: cosmic rays - Galaxy: center - ISM: general - X-rays: individual (Arches cluster)

Arches cluster↗
NASA NTRS1984

The structure of clusters of galaxies observed with Einstein

Imaging observations from the Einstein Observatory are used to determine properties of galactic clusters and the intracluster gas. The hydrostatic-isothermal gas model is applied to obtain the cluster core radius, the limiting slope of the X-ray surface brightness distribution, and the presence and magnitude of a central luminosity excess above that predicted from the model when fit to the outer regions of the cluster. It is concluded that clusters can be divided into two basic families, one with small core radii and X-ray emission centered on a central dominant galaxy, and one with larger core radii and generally no central, stationary bright galaxy. The former type probably begins to form in the early stages of a cluster's dynamical evolution. The intracluster gas has a larger scale height than that of the galaxies based on the fit of the hydrostatic-isothermal model to the X-ray surface brightness profiles.

Jones, C.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Correlations between environmental parameters and nuclear activity

The occurrence and quantitative properties of Seyfert 1 and Seyfert 2 galaxies as a function of the galaxy environment were studied in a systematic way. For this investigation the authors selected from the Catalogue of Quasars and Active Nuclei (Veron & Veron, 1989) all Seyfert galaxies with the following properties: (1) m sub V less than or equal to 15; (2) listed classification as Sey 1, Sey 2, or Sey 3; (3) v sub rad less than or equal to 20,000 km s(sup -1). This results in a sample size of 242 Seyfert galaxies. For all these objects their galaxy environment was inspected on plates. The vicinity of each sample Seyfert galaxy was searched for companion galaxies out to at least 0.5 Mpc. Lacking redshift information, the authors adopted as a companion galaxy any galaxy in this area having a size between 20 and 200 percent of the Seyfert galaxy size. As an important environmental parameter for Seyfert activity, the authors consider the galaxy density within an environment of 500 kpc radius. They distinguish four density classes: D1: no companion (isolated Seyfert); D2: 1 companion; D3: 2 to 5 companions (group); and D4: less than or equal to 6 companions (dense group). The distribution of the various Seyfert classes among these density classes is listed in tabular form, both in absolute numbers and in percentages (given in brackets). From these statistics the environments of Sey 1, Sey 2, and Sey 3 galaxies do not differ in general with the exception that among the isolated galaxies the Seyfert 1 galaxies dominate conspicuously. No significant dependence of morphological type (de Vaucouleurs T-type) on density class is observed both for Sey 1 and Sey 2 galaxies. On the basis of an extensive search of the Seyfert literature the authors also investigated the dependence of the intrinsic parameters of the sample Seyfert galaxies on density class.

Kollatschny, W.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Galaxy cluster matter profiles - I. Self-similarity, mass calibration, and observable-mass relation validation employing cluster mass posteriors

We present a study of the weak lensing inferred matter profiles ΔΣ(R) of 698 South Pole Telescope (SPT) thermal Sunyaev-Zel’dovich effect (tSZE) selected and MCMF optically confirmed galaxy clusters in the redshift range 0.25 < z < 0.94 that have associated weak gravitational lensing shear profiles from the Dark Energy Survey (DES). Rescaling these profiles to account for the mass dependent size and the redshift dependent density produces average rescaled matter profiles ΔΣ(R/R200c)/(ρcritR200c) with a lower dispersion than the unscaled ΔΣ(R) versions, indicating a significant degree of self-similarity. Galaxy clusters from hydrodynamical simulations also exhibit matter profiles that suggest a high degree of self-similarity, with RMS variation among the average rescaled matter profiles with redshift and mass falling by a factor of approximately six and 23, respectively, compared to the unscaled average matter profiles. We employed this regularity in a new Bayesian method for weak lensing mass calibration that employs the so-called cluster mass posterior P(M200|ζ̂, λ̂, z), which describes the individual cluster masses given their tSZE (ζ̂) and optical (λ̂, z) observables. This method enables simultaneous constraints on richness λ-mass and tSZE detection significance ζ-mass relations using average rescaled cluster matter profiles. We validated the method using realistic mock datasets and present observable-mass relation constraints for the SPT×DES sample, where we constrained the amplitude, mass trend, redshift trend, and intrinsic scatter. Our observable-mass relation results are in agreement with the mass calibration derived from the recent cosmological analysis of the SPT×DES data based on a cluster-by-cluster lensing calibration. Our new mass calibration technique offers a higher efficiency when compared to the single cluster calibration technique. We present new validation tests of the observable-mass relation that indicate the underlying power-law form and scatter are adequate to describe the real cluster sample but that also suggest a redshift variation in the intrinsic scatter of the λ-mass relation may offer a better description. In addition, the average rescaled matter profiles offer high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) constraints on the shape of real cluster matter profiles, which are in good agreement with available hydrodynamical ΛCDM simulations. This high S/N profile contains information about baryon feedback, the collisional nature of dark matter, and potential deviations from general relativity.Key words: gravitational lensing: weak / galaxies: clusters: general / large-scale structure of Universe

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Cosmological Constraints from Gas Mass Fractions of Massive, Relaxed Galaxy Clusters

We present updated cosmological constraints from measurements of the gas mass fractions (f(gas)) of massive, dynamically relaxed galaxy clusters. Our new data set has greater leverage on models of dark energy, thanks to the addition of the Perseus cluster at low redshifts, two new clusters at redshifts z greater than or similar to 1, and significantly longer observations of four clusters at 0.6 < z < 0.9. Our low-redshift (z < 0.16) f(gas) data, combined with the cosmic baryon fraction measured from the cosmic microwave background (CMB), imply a Hubble constant of h = 0.722 +/- 0.067. Combining the full f(gas) data set with priors on the cosmic baryon density and the Hubble constant, we constrain the dark energy density to be Omega(Lambda) = 0.865 +/- 0.119 in non-flat Lambda cold dark matter (cosmological constant) models, and its equation of state to be in flat, constant-w models, respectively 41percent and 29percent tighter than our previous work, and comparable to the best constraints available from other probes. Combining f(gas), CMB, supernova, and baryon acoustic oscillation data, we also constrain models with global curvature and evolving dark energy. For the massive, relaxed clusters employed here, we find the scaling of f(gas) with mass to be consistent with a constant, with an intrinsic scatter that corresponds to just similar to 3percent in distance.

clusters: general – X-rays:↗
NASA NTRS2013

The Radial Distribution of Star Formation in Galaxies at z~1 From The 3D-HST Survey

The assembly of galaxies can be described by the distribution of their star formation as a function of cosmic time.Thanks to the WFC3 grism on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) it is now possible to measure this beyond thelocal Universe. Here we present the spatial distribution of H emission for a sample of 54 strongly star-forming-galaxies at z~1 in the 3D-HST Treasury survey. By stacking the Halpha emission, we find that star formation occurredin approximately exponential distributions at z~1, with a median Sersic index of n=1.0 plus or minus 0.2. The stacks areelongated with median axis ratios of b/a 0.58 plus or minus 0.09 in Halpha consistent with (possibly thick) disks at randomorientation angles. Keck spectra obtained for a subset of eight of the galaxies show clear evidence for rotation, withinclination corrected velocities of 90-330 km per second. The most straightforward interpretation of our results is that starformation in strongly star-forming galaxies at z~1 generally occurred in disks. The disks appear to be scaled-upversions of nearby spiral galaxies: they have EW(Halpha)~100 Angstroms out to the solar orbit and they have star formation surface densities above the threshold for driving galactic scale winds.

Radial↗
NASA NTRS1971

Cosmic rays from supernovae and comments on the Vela X pre-supernova

A possible history of the production of elements in the galaxy is presented, based on assumptions about the end points of stellar evolution and of the general evolution of the galaxy. A wide range of quantities involving the relative abundances of nucleosynthesis products observed in the solar system, and various galactic quantities such as the current rate of supernova production and the present gas content of the galaxy, were considered. These assumptions were utilized in a computer program in which the gas content of the galaxy is gradually turned into stars. The stars are continually enriched in the products of nucleosynthesis as they approach the ends of their evolutionary lifetimes. It is suggested that supernova explosions are associated with the mass range of about 4-8 solar masses. Possible theories on the type of stellar explosive event represented by the Vela supernova are discussed.

Cameron, A. G. W.↗
DOE OSTI2024

DESI Massive Poststarburst Galaxies at z ~ 1.2 Have Compact Structures and Dense Cores

Poststarburst galaxies (PSBs) are young quiescent galaxies that have recently experienced a rapid decrease in star formation, allowing us to probe the fast-quenching period of galaxy evolution. In this work, we obtained Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/WFC3 F110W imaging to measure the sizes of 171 massive (log(M $\ast$ /M ⊙ ) ~ 11) spectroscopically identified PSBs at 1 < z 1.3 selected from the DESI Survey Validation luminous red galaxy sample. This statistical sample constitutes an order of magnitude increase from the ~20 PSBs with space-based imaging and deep spectroscopy. We perform structural fitting of the target galaxies with pysersic and compare them to quiescent and star-forming galaxies in the 3D-HST survey. We find that these PSBs are more compact than the general population of quiescent galaxies, lying systematically ~0.1 dex below the established size–mass relation. However, their central surface mass densities are similar to those of their quiescent counterparts (log(Σ 1kpc /(M ⊙ kpc -2 ))~10.1). These findings are easily reconciled by later ex situ growth via minor mergers or a slight progenitor bias. These PSBs are round in projection (b/a median ~ 0.8), suggesting that they are primarily spheroids, not disks, in 3D. We find no correlation between the time since quenching and light-weighted PSB sizes or central densities. This disfavors apparent structural growth due to the fading of centralized starbursts in this galaxy population. Instead, we posit that the fast quenching of massive galaxies at this epoch occurs preferentially in galaxies with preexisting compact structures.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1994

Multiple Core Galaxies: Implications for M31

It is generally perceived that two cores cannot survive very long within the nuclear regions of a galaxy. The recent HST discovery of a double nucleus in M31 brings this question into prominence. Physical conditions in the nuclear regions of a typical galaxy help a second core survive so it can orbit for a long time, possibly for thousands of orbits. Given the nearly uniform mass density in a core, tidal forces within a core radius are compressive in all directions and help the core survive the buffeting it takes as it orbits near the center of the galaxy. We use numerical experiments to illustrate these physical principles. Modifications to the experimental method allow the full power of the experiments to be concentrated on the nuclear regions. Spatial resolution of about 0.2 parsec comfortably resolves detail within the 1.4 parsec core radius of the second, but brighter, core (P1) in M31. The same physical principles apply in other astronomical situations, such as dumbbell galaxies, galaxies orbiting near the center of a galaxy cluster, and subclustering in galaxy clusters. The experiments also illustrate that galaxy encounters and merging are quite sensitive to external tidal forces, such as those produced by the gravitational potential in a group or cluster of galaxies.

Smith, B. F.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Investigating the large-scale environment of wide-angle tailed radio galaxies in the local Universe

We present a statistical analysis of the large-scale (up to two Mpc) environment of a homogeneous and complete sample, both in radio and optical selection, of wide-angle tailed radio galaxies (WATs) in the local Universe (i.e., with redshifts z ≲ 0.15). The analysis is carried out using the parameters obtained from cosmological neighbors within two Mpc of the target source. Results regarding the large-scale environments of the WATs are then compared with those of Fanaroff–Riley type I (FR Is) and type II (FR IIs) radio galaxies listed in two other homogeneous and complete catalogs and selected with the same criterion adopted for the WATs catalog. We obtain indication that at low redshift, WATs inhabit environments with a larger number of galaxies than those of FR Is and FR IIs. In the explored redshift range, the physical size of the galaxy group or cluster in which the WATs reside appears to be almost constant with respect to FR Is and FR IIs, being around one Mpc. From the distribution of the concentration parameter, defined as the ratio between the number of cosmological neighbors lying within 500 kpc and within one Mpc, we conclude that WATs tend to inhabit the central region of the group or cluster in which they reside, in agreement with the general paradigm that WATs are the brightest cluster or group galaxy.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Searching for Spectroscopic Signatures of Ongoing Quenching in SDSS Galaxies

In this paper, we estimate the “star formation change parameter,” SFR 79 , which characterizes the current SFR relative to the average during the last 800 Myr, for ~300,000 galaxies selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The goals are to examine, in a much larger and independent sample, the trends previously reported in a sample of star-forming (SF) MaNGA galaxies and also to search for spectroscopic signatures of ongoing quenching in the so-called “Green Valley,” which is generally believed to contain galaxies that are migrating from the SF population to the quenched population of galaxies. Measuring SFR 79 for our large sample of SDSS galaxies, we first confirm the basic results of SF galaxies published by Wang & Lilly. We then discuss in detail the calibration and meaning of SFR 79 for galaxies that are well below the SFMS and establish the expected statistical signature of systematic ongoing quenching from modeling the z ~ 0 quenching rate of the SF population. We conclude that it is not possible at present to establish unambiguous observational evidence for systematic ongoing quenching processes, due to limitations both in the noise of the observational data, in particular in the measurements of H δ absorption, and in the calibration of SFR 79 , as well as biases introduced by the necessity of selecting objects with significant H α emission. We do however see plausible indications of ongoing quenching, which are quantitatively consistent with expectations from “growth+quenching” models of galaxy evolution and a typical e-folding timescale for quenching of ~500 Myr.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1988

Ultraviolet and optical spectra of broadline radio galaxies

Near-simultaneous ultraviolet and optical spectra of three broadline radio galaxies (3C 382, 3C 445, and PKS 2349-014) have been obtained, and the emission lines of Ly-alpha, H-beta, and H-alpha have been deconvolved into narrow and broad components; published fluxes for 3C 390.3 are also included in this study. Although the broad Ly-alpha/H-beta ratios in these objects cover a large range (1.2-22.3), there is no evidence that these ratios are intrinsically different from those of Seyfert 1 galaxies or quasars. Thus, in general, the higher H-alpha/H-beta ratios in these broadline radio galaxies cannot entirely be due to additional reddening of the broadline region. However, in the specific case of 3C 445, there is evidence that the nonstellar continuum and broadline region are highly reddened.

Crenshaw, D. Michael↗
NASA NTRS1989

The Wasilewski sample of emission-line galaxies - Follow-up CCD imaging and spectroscopic and IRAS observations

The results of an extensive imaging and spectroscopic follow-up of the objective prism-selected emission line galaxy (ELG) sample of Wasilewski (1982) are presented. Fluxes at 12, 25, 60, and 100 microns were also obtained from the coadded IRAS survey data. ELGs found by objective prism surveys are found to be generally small and underluminous galaxies which usually have higher than average optical surface brightness. The Seyfert detection rate in objective prism surveys is roughly 10 percent and the ratio of the space densities of Seyfert 2 to Seyfert 1 galaxies is significantly larger than unity. Most of the galaxies selected by objective prism surveys are star-forming, late-type spirals which often show disturbed morphology. About 25 percent of the galaxies detected by the surveys are faint, high-excitation metal-poor compact H II regions.

Bothun, Gregory D.↗