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NASA NTRS1990

The interacting pair Mkn 305/306

Direct images and spectra at different slit positions of the interacting system Mkn 305/306 are discussed. Both galaxies show starburst properties due to tidal interaction. The morphology and velocity structure of Mkn 306 reveals the strongest warp of a stellar disk so far known. The galaxies Mkn 305 and Mkn 306 form a double system with 30 arcsec separation and having a common envelope at m sub B greater than or equal to 24.5. Furthermore a small tidal tail west of Mkn 305A, an isophote twist of Mkn 305 and the near identical redshifts of the two galaxies prove that this is a physical pair. Mkn 306 itself was classified as a double nucleus galaxy (Petrosyan et al., 1978). The optical morphology of Mkn 306 has the form of an integral sign which is similar to the radio morphology of strongly warped galaxies (Bottema et al., 1987). But in the optical the warp of the stellar component is normally far weaker than in the radio for the HI-gas. Therefore the authors investigate whether the double nucleus structure of Mkn 306 is real or an artifact due to an extreme warp in the optical. The origin for the warp phenomenon is not clear yet. Direct images of the galaxy system were taken with the Calar Alto 2.2m telescope in the B-band and at La Silla in the r-band using the 2.2m telescope; low dispersion spectra (240 A/mm) as well as high dispersion spectra (56 A/mm) for studying the velocity field were taken with the Calar Alto 3.5m telescope at different position angles. Also a spectrum of Mkn 305 was taken at Calar Alto with the 3.5m telescope covering the whole spectral range (240 A/mm).

Dietrich, Matthias↗
NASA NTRS1998

A2111: A z= 0.23 Butcher-Oemler Cluster with a Non-Isothermal Atmosphere and Normal Metallicity

We report results from an x-ray spectral study of the z=0.23 Abell 2111 galaxy cluster using the Advanced Satellite for Astrophysics and Cosmology and the ROSAT Position Sensitive Proportional Counter. By correcting for the energy-dependent point-spread function of the instruments, we have examined the temperature structure of the cluster. The cluster's core within 3 is found to have a temperature of 5.4 +/- 0.5 keV, significantly higher than 2.8 +/-0.7 keV in the surrounding region of r = 3-6. This radially decreasing temperature structure can be parameterized by a polytropic index of gamma less than 1.4. Furthermore, the intracluster medium appears clumpy on scales less than 1. Early studies have revealed that the x-ray centroid of the cluster shifts with spatial scale and the overall optical and x-ray morphology is strongly elongated. These results together suggest that A2111 in undergoing a merger, which is likely responsible for the high fraction of blue galaxies observed in the cluster. We have further measured the abundance of the medium as 0.25 +/- 0.14 solar. This value is similar to those of nearby clusters which do not show a large blue galaxy function, suggesting that star formation in disk galaxies and subsequent loss to the intracluster medium do not drastically alter the average abundance of a cluster since z=0.23.

Wang, Q. Daniel↗
NASA NTRS1994

The motions of clusters and group of galaxies

The distributions of peculiar velocities of rich clusters and of groups of galaxies are investigated for different cosmological models and are compared with observations. Four cosmological models are studied: standard cold dark matter (CDM) (omega = 1); low-density CDM (omega = 0.3); hot dark matter (HDM) (omega = 1); and primeval baryonic isocurvature (PBI) (omega = 0.3). All models are normalized to the microwave background fluctuations observed by Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). We find that rich clusters of galaxies exhibit a Maxwellian distribution of peculiar velocities in all models, as expected from a Gaussian initial density field. The clusters appear to be fundamental and efficient tracers of the large-scale velocity field. The cluster three-dimensional velocity distribution typically peaks at v approximately 600 km/s and extends to high cluster velocities of v approximately 2000 km/s. The low-density CDM model exhibits somewhat lower velocities: it peaks at approximately 400 km/s and extends to approximately 1200 km/s. Approximately 10% (approximately 1% for low-density CDM) of all model rich clusters move with high peculiar velocities of V greater than or = 10(exp 3) km/s. The highest velocity clusters frequently originate in dense superclusters. The model velocity distributions of rich clusters are compared with the model velocity distributions of small groups of galaxies, and of the total matter. The group velocity distribution is, in general, similar to the velocity distribution of the rich clusters. The matter velocity distribution is similar to that of the rich clusters for the omega = 0.3 models; these models exhibit Maxwellian velocity distributions for clusters, for groups, and for matter that are all similar to one another. The mass distribution in the omega = 1 models, however, exhibits a longer tail of high velocities than do the clusters. This high-velocity tail originates mostly from the high velocities that exist within rich clusters. The model velocity distributions of groups and clusters of galaxies are compared with observations. The data exhibit a larger high-velocity tail, to v(sub r) greater than or = 2000 km/s, than is seen in the model simulations (except for HDM). Because of the large observational uncertainties, however, the data are consistent at a approximately 1-3 sigma level with the model predictions and with a Gaussian initial density field. Accurate observations of cluster peculiar velocities, especially at the high-velocity tail, shoud provide powerful constraints on the cosmological models.

Bahcall, Neta A.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Upper limit to the mass of pulsationally stable stars with uniform chemical composition

Nuclear-energized pulsational instability is a well-known feature of models of chemically homogeneous stars above a critical mass. With the Rogers-Iglesias opacities, the instability occurs above 120-150 solar mass for normal Galactic Population I chemical compositions, and above approximately 90 solar mass for stars in metal-poor environments like the outer Galaxy and the Small Magellanic Cloud. Models of homogeneous helium-burning stars are unstable above masses of 19 and 14 solar mass, respectively. These significant increases of the critical masses, in the normal metallicity cases, over the values derived previously with the Los Alamos opacities can explain the stability of the brightest observed O-type stars, but they do not exclude the possibility that the most luminous hydrogen-deficient Wolf-Rayet stars are experiencing this type of instability.

Stothers, Richard B.↗
NASA NTRS1995

The difference between radio-loud and radio-quiet active galaxies

The recent development of unified theories of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) has indicated that there are two physically distinct classes of these objects--radio-loud and radio-quiet. Despite differences, the (probable) thermal emissions from the AGNs (continua and lines from X-ray to infrared wavelengths) are quite similar to the two classes of object. We argue that this last result suggests that the black hole masses and mass accretion rates in the two classes are not greatly different, and that the difference between the classes is associated with the spin of the black hole. We assume that the normal process of accretion through a disk does not lead to rapidly spinning holes and propose that galaxies (e.g., spirals) which have not suffered a recent major merger event contain nonrotating or only slowly rotating black holes. When two such galaxies merge, the two black holes are known to form a binary and we assume that they eventually coalesce. The ratio of the number of radio-loud to radio-quiet AGNs at a given thermal (e.g., optical) luminosity is determined by the galaxy merger rate. Comparisons between the predicted and observed radio luminosity functions constrain the efficiencies with which jet power is extracted from the spinning hole and radio emission is produced by the jet.

Wilson, A. S.↗
NASA NTRS1993

The velocity dispersion of the caustic network due to random motion of individual stars in the lensing galaxy

We present a method of computing the velocity distribution of the caustic network due to the random motion of stars in the lensing galaxy. This method is illustrated on the example of the two-point mass lens and then applied to a large sample of stars. We conclude that the proper motion of the stars increases significantly the frequency of the high magnification events in comparison with a static lens configuration with constant stream or constant bulk velocity. The stream velocity is the velocity of the star field relative to the global bulk velocity of the galaxy. We show that the global bulk and the stream velocity of the star field have to be considered separately for any microlensing situation. The higher the surface mass density of the stars in the lensing galaxy, the higher the influence of proper motion of stars on the statistics of high magnification events. The influence of a Gaussian velocity distribution of the stars in the lensing galaxy compared with a constant stream velocity of the stars increases the number of high magnification events by a factor 1.30 +/- 0.06 for a normalized surface density of the stars cr = 0.1 and by a factor 1.7 +/- 0.1 for sigma = 0.5. This means that for some microlensing situations the proper motion of the stars in a lensing galaxy has to be considered for exact microlensing predictions.

Kundik, Tomislav↗
NASA NTRS1995

Ultraviolet to optical spectral distributions of northern star-forming galaxies

We report spectral energy distribution from the UV to the optical for a sample of 31 northern star-forming galaxies. We also present measurements for emission-line fluxes, continuum levels, and equivalent widths of absorption features for each individual spectrum as well as averages for the eight galactic activity classes, including normal, starburst, Seyfert 2, blue compact dwarf, blue compact, Low-Inonization Nuclear Emission Regions (LINER), H II, and combination LINER-H II galaxies.

Mcquade, Kerry↗
NASA NTRS1982

On the local standard of rest

Under the influence of a spiral gravitational field, there should be differences among the mean motions of different types of objects with different dispersion velocities in a sipral galaxy. The old stars with high dispersion velocity should have essentially no mean motion normal to the galactic rotation. On the other hand, young objects and interstellar gas may be moving relative to the old stars at a velocity of a few kilometer per second in both the radial (galacto-centric), and circular directions, depending on the spiral model adopted. Such a velocity is usually referred as the systematic motion or the streaming motion. The conventionally adopted local standard of rest is indeed co-moving with the young objects of the solar vicinity. Therefore, it has a net systematic motion with respect to the circular motion of an equilibrium galactic model, defined by the old stars.

Yuan, C.↗
NASA NTRS1983

On the local standard of rest

Under the influence of a spiral gravitational field, there should be differences among the mean motions of different types of objects with different dispersion velocities in a spiral galaxy. The old stars with high dispersion velocity should have essentially no mean motion normal to the galactic rotation. On the other hand, young objects and interstellar gas may be moving relative to the old stars at a velocity of a few kilometer per second in both the radial (galacto-centric), and circular directions, depending on the spiral model adopted. Such a velocity is usually referred as the systematic motion or the streaming motion. The conventionally adopted local standard of rest is indeed co-moving with the young objects of the solar vicinity. Therefore, it has a net systematic motion with respect to the circular motion of an equilibrium galactic model, defined by the old stars. Previously announced in STAR as N83-24443

Yuan, C.↗
NASA NTRS1993

An X-ray image of the Fornax dwarf spheroidal galaxy

A ROSAT X-ray observation of the Fornax dwarf spheroidal galaxy is presented. A total of 19 sources are identified, one of which is a probable background galaxy cluster. This is consistent with the number expected due to the extragalactic background. Scaling in luminosity from normal ellipticals and bulges, we would expect to see at most one accreting binary source. This is consistent with our results, and implies that the IMF was not heavily biased towards massive stars. Scaling instead from globular clusters, we would expect eight sources in Fornax in the energy range 10 exp 36 - 10 exp 38 erg/s. We observe none. The low-density environment of the dwarf galaxy evidently does not produce a population of accreting neutron stars through star-star collisions. We place an upper limit of 4 x 10 exp -12 erg sq cm s on any diffuse gas component, corresponding to 10 exp 5 solar mass of gas at 107 K. However, if heated to X-ray temperatures, gas could escape Fornax.

Gizis, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Final Results from the BIMA CMB Anisotropy Survey and Search for Signature of the SZ Effect

We report the final results of our study of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) with the BIMA array. Over 1000 hours of observation were dedicated to this project exploring CMB anisotropy on scales between 1' and 2' in eighteen 6'.6 FWHM fields. In the analysis of the CMB power spectrum, the visibility data is divided into two bins corresponding to different angular scales. Modeling the observed excess power as a flat band of average multipole l(sub eff)= 5237, we find deltaT(sup 2)(sub 1) = 220(sup +140)(sub -120) mu K(sup 2) at 68% confidence and deltaT(sup 2)(sub 1) greater than 0 muK(sup 2) with 94.7% confidence. In a second band with average multipole of l(sub eff) = 8748, we find deltaT(sup 2)(sub 2) consistent with zero, and an upper limit 880 muK(sup 2) at 95% confidence. An extensive series of tests and supplemental observations with the VLA provide strong evidence against systematic errors or radio point sources being the source of the observed excess power. The dominant source of anisotropy on these scales is expected to arise from the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect in a population of distant galaxy clusters. If the excess power is due to the SZ effect, we can place constraints on the normalization of the matter power spectrum sigma(sub 8) = 1.03(sup +0.20)(sub -0.29) at 68% confidence. The distribution of pixel fluxes in the BIMA images are found to be consistent with simulated observations of the expected SZ background and rule out instrumental noise or radio sources as the source of the observed excess power with similar confidence to the detection of excess power. Follow-up optical observations to search for galaxy over-densities anti-correlated with flux in the BIMA images, as might be expected from the SZ effect, proved to be inconclusive.

Dawson, K. S.↗
NASA NTRS2014

The Rise of SN 2014J in the Nearby Galaxy M 82

We report on the discovery of SN 2014J in the nearby galaxy M 82. Given its proximity, it offers the best opportunity to date to study a thermonuclear supernova over a wide range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Optical, near-IR and mid-IR observations on the rising lightcurve, orchestrated by the intermediate Palomar Transient Factory (iPTF), show that SN 2014J is a spectroscopically normal Type Ia supernova, albeit exhibiting high-velocity features in its spectrum and heavily reddened by dust in the host galaxy. Our earliest detections start just hours after the fitted time of explosion. We use high-resolution optical spectroscopy to analyze the dense intervening material and do not detect any evolution in the resolved absorption features during the lightcurve rise. Similarly to other highly reddened Type Ia supernovae, a low value of total-to-selective extinction, R (sub V) less than or approximately equal to 2, provides the best match to our observations. We also study pre-explosion optical and near-IR images from HST with special emphasis on the sources nearest to the SN location.

galaxy↗
NASA NTRS1989

Setting limits on q0 from gravitational lensing

Gravitational lensing by galaxies in a wide variety of cosmological models is considered. For closed models, the lensing depends on the parameter beta(crit). If beta(crit) is greater than zero, a normal lensing case can be obtained with two bright images separated by an angle twice beta(crit) and a third, arbitrarily dim image between them coincident with the position of the lensing galaxy nucleus. As the QSO approaches the antipodal redshift, which can occur in models with large values of the cosmological constant, the cross sections for lensing blow up. An overfocused case where beta(crit) is less than zero can be obtained for a QSO beyond the antipodal redshift. In this case, when a lensing event occurs, only one arbitrarily dim image coincident with the position of the lensing galaxy nucleus is seen. If galaxy rotation curves are always flat or slowly rising, the overfocused case always produces one image.

Gott, J. Richard, III↗
NASA NTRS1987

PG 1411 + 442 - The nearest broad absorption line quasar

IUE observations reveal strong, moderately broad absorption troughs in the blue wings of the C IV and N V emission lines of the quasar PG 1411 + 442. No absorption from weakly ionized gas is detected. The emission-line strengths and overall shape of the ultraviolet/optical/near-infrared/far-infrared continuum of the new broad absorption line quasar are within the range normally measured in quasars. Its redshift is low enough to allow the morphology of the host galaxy to be studied in deep broad-band and intermediate-band CCD images. The galaxy appears to be a large spiral with a very long arm or tail. The inclination angle is 57 deg, which rules out the possibility that the line of sight to the nucleus intersects a large path length in a galactic disk.

Malkan, Matthew A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Powering the superwind in NGC 253

NGC 253 is a prototypical moderate nuclear starburst galaxy. It is a barred SBc spiral galaxy at a distance of approximately 3 Mpc and can be studied on scales down to 15 pc in the optical and near IR. It is a bright IRAS source with a flux of 1000 Jy at 60 microns and a FIR luminosity of 3 x 10(exp 10) solar luminosity. It has a strong Br(gamma) emission line, a signature of ongoing massive star formation and deep CO absorption bands, which are indicative of the dominance of red supergiants in the near IR. It contains a population of compact radio sources, similar to those seen in M82. Optical spectra show that the nucleus is heavily reddened, with a Balmer decrement of approximately 30. NGC 253 possesses a 'superwind,' seen both in x-ray emission and in optical line emission. Nuclear ejection was first suggested to explain the kinematics of the nuclear region. We have obtained J, H, and K images of the entire galaxy at 1.3 arcsec/pixel (18 pc/pixel) using the superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) on the KPNO 1.3 m. We have constructed a mosaic of 180 s exposures which traces the galaxy over much of its optical extent. The data were shifted, rotated, magnified, and calibrated following normal practice.

Watson, Alan↗
NASA NTRS1988

Evidence for biasing in the CfA survey

Intrinsically bright galaxies appear systematically more correlated than faint galaxies in the Center for Astrophysics redshift survey. The amplification of the two-point correlation function behaves exponentially with luminosity, being essentially flat up to the knee of the luminosity function, then increasing markedly. The amplification reaches a factor of 3.5e + or - 0.4 in the very brightest galaxies. The effect is dominated by spirals rather than ellipticals, so that the correlation function of bright spirals becomes comparable to that of normal ellipticals. Similar results are obtained whether the correlation function is measured in two or three dimensions. The effect persists to separations of a correlation length or more, and is not confined to the cores of the Virgo, Coma, and Abell 1367 clusters, suggesting that the effect is caused by biasing, that is, galaxies kindle preferentially in more clustered regions, rather than by gravitational relaxation.

Hamilton, A. J. S.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Near-infrared images and color maps of Arp 220

Near-infrared images (1.3-3.7 microns) are presented for the nuclear region of Arp 220. Color maps in J - H and H - K reveal steep gradients, and the two nuclei previously detected at 20 cm and 2.2 microns appear on the J - H image as peaks separated by 1 arcsec. Hot dust emission (T about 1000 K) at 3.7 microns and extremely red J - H and H - K colors are found for both nuclei. The increasingly red color approaching the center of the galaxy are explained most naturally by a mixture of extinction and emission by increasing amounts of hot dust. The near-infrared emission is consistent with a circumnuclear starburst extending to a radius of about 1.5 kpc from the nuclei; further from the center the colors are consistent with a normal late-type stellar population. Inside a radius of 1 kpc the color maps show a NE-SW elongation that aligns with the concentration of molecular gas seen in CO images. The observed 3.7-micron luminosity, when corrected for nuclear extinction determined by 10-micron silicate absorption measurements and normalized by the bolometric luminosity, is consistent with UV-excess quasars and is about 10 times greater than that found in infrared luminous starburst galaxies.

Mazzarella, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1994

A hydrodynamic approach to cosmology: The mixed dark matter cosmological scenario

We compute the evolution of spatially flat, mixed cold and hot dark matter models containing both baryonic matter and two kinds of dark matter. Hydrodynamics is treated with a highly developed Eulerian hydrodynamic code (see Cen 1992). A standard particle-mesh (PM) code is also used in parallel to calculate the motion of the dark matter components. We adopt the following parameters: h equivalent to (sub 0)/100 km/s Mpc(exp -1) = 0.5, OMEGA(sub C) = 0.3, and OMEGA(sub B) = 0.06, with amplitude of the perturbation spectrum fixed by the Cosmic Background Explorer Satellite (COBE) Dark Matter Radiation (DMR) measurements (Smoot et al. 1992) being sigma (sub 8) = 0.67. Four different boxes are simulated with box sizes of L = (64, 16, 4, 1) h(exp -1) Mpc, respectively, the two small boxes providing good resolution but little valid information due to absence of large-scale power. We use 128(exp 3) approximate 10(exp 6.3) baryonic cells, 128(exp .3) cold dark matter particles, and 2 x 128(exp 3) hot dark matter particles. In addition to the dark matter we follow separately six baryonic species (H, H(+), He, He(+), He(++), e(-)) with allowance for both (nonequilibrium) collisional and radiative ionization in every cell. The background radiation field is also followed in detail with allowance made for both continuum and line processes, to allow nonequilibrium heating and cooling processes to be followed in detail. The mean final Zeldovich-Sunyaev y parameter is estimated to be y Bar = (5.4 + or - 2.7) x 10(exp -7) below currently attainable observations, with a rms fluctuation of approximately delta bar y = (0.6 + or - 3.0) x 10(exp -7) on arcminute scales. The rate of galaxy formation peaks at an even later epoch (z approximate 0.3) than in the standard (OMEGA = 1, sigma sub 8 = 0.67) cold dark matter (CDM) model (z approximate 0.5) and, at a redshift of z = 4, is nearly a factor of 100 lower than for the CDM model with the same value of sigma sub 8. With regard to mass function, the smallest objects are stabilized against collapse by thermal energy: the mass-weighted mass spectrum has a broad peak in the vicinity of M(sub B) = 10(exp 9.5) solar mass with a reasonable fit to the Schechter luminosity function if the ratio of baryon mass to blue light is approximately 4. In addition, one very large PM simulation was made in a box with size (320 h(exp - 1) Mpc) containing 3 x 200(exp 3) = 10(exp 7.4) particles. Utilizing this simulation we find that the model yields a cluster mass function which is about a factor of 4 higher than observed, but a cluster-cluster correlation length marginally lower than observed, but that both are closer to observations than in the (COBE) normalized CDM model. The one-dimensional pairwise velocity dispersion is 605 + or - 8 km/s at 1/h separation, lower than that of the DCM model normalized to COBE, but still significant higher than observations (Davis & Peebles 1983). A plausible velocity bias b(sub v) = 0.8 + or - 0.1 on this scale will reduce but not remove the discrepancy. The velocity auto-correlat ion function has a coherence length of 40/h Mpc, which is somewhat lower than the observed counterpart. In all these respects the model would be improved by decreasing the cold fraction of the dark OMEGA(sub CDM)/ (OMEGA(sub CDM) + OMEGA(sub HDB). But formation of galaxies and clusters of galaxies is much later in this model than in COBE-normalized CDM, perhaps too late. To improve on these constraints a larger ratio of OMEGA(sub CDM)/ (OMEGA(sub CDM) + OMEGA(sub HDM)) is required than the value of 0.67 adopted here. It does not seem possible to find a value for this ratio which would satisfy all tests. Overall, the model is similar both on large and intermediate scales to the standard CDM model normalized to the same value of sigma(sub B), but the problem with regard to late formation of galaxies is more severe in this model than in that CDM model. Adding hot dark matter, significantly improves the ability of the COBE-normalized CDM scenario to fit existing observations, but the model is in fact not as good as the CDM model with the same sigma(sub 8) and is still probably unsatisfactory with regard to several critical tests.

Cen, Renyue↗