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At least 505 records · Page 28

Molecular gas temperature and density in spiral galaxies

We combine beam-matched CO-13, CO-12 J = 3 yields 2 and J = 2 yields 1 line data to infer the molecular gas excitation conditions in the central 500 to 1600 pc diameters of a small sample of infrared-bright external galaxies: NGC253, IC342, M 83, Maffei 2, and NGC6946. Additional observations of the J = 1 yields 0 lines of C-18O and CO-13 set limits on the opacity of the CO-13 J = 1 yields 0 line averaged over the central kiloparsec of these spiral galaxies.

Wall, W. F.↗

A correlation between the IRAS infrared cirrus at 60 or 100 microns and neutral atomic hydrogen in the outer galaxy

A linear correlation was found between the infrared cirrus at 100 or 60 microns and neutral atomic hydrogen near the galactic plane. Infrared Astronomy Satellite (IRAS) Sky Brightness images were compared to the 0.5 deg resolution Weaver-Williams HI survey in two regions of the outer Galaxy near l = 125 deg and l = 215 deg. The dust temperature inferred is nearly uniform and in reasonable agreement with theoretical predictions of thermal dust emission.

Terebey, Susan↗

Profuse central star formation in 'SO' galaxies

Radio continuum flux densities, far infrared flux densities, far infrared colors, and ultraviolet and optical spectra indicate that high rates of star formation are occurring in some SO galaxies, especially barred galaxies. Radio continuum and infrared images show that the star forming region is typically concentrated within the central few kpc of the galaxy. The high incidence of central star formation in barred galaxies suggests that bar-driven inflow of gas is fueling the star-forming regions in these galaxies.

Dressel, L. L.↗

The End of Galaxy Surveys

For nearly a century, imaging and spectroscopic surveys of galaxies have given us information about the contents of the universe. We attempt to define the logical end point of such surveys by defining not the next galaxy survey but rather the final galaxy survey at near-infrared wavelengths; this would be the galaxy survey that exhausts the information content useful for addressing extant questions. Such a survey would require incredible advances in a number of technologies, and the survey details will depend on the as yet poorly constrained properties of the earliest galaxies. Using an exposure time calculator, we define nominal surveys for extracting the useful information for three science cases: dark energy cosmology, galaxy evolution, and supernovae (SN). We define scaling relations that trade off sky background, telescope aperture, and focal plane size to allow for a survey of a given depth over a given area. For optimistic assumptions, a 280 m telescope with a marginally resolved focal plane of 20 deg 2 operating at L2 could potentially exhaust the cosmological information content of galaxies in a 10 yr survey. For galaxy evolution (making use of gravitational lensing to magnify the earliest galaxies) and SN, the same telescope would suffice. We discuss the technological advances needed to complete the last galaxy survey. While the final galaxy survey remains well outside of our technical reach today, we present scaling relations that show how we can progress toward the goal of exhausting the information content encoded in the shapes, positions, and colors of galaxies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

The Milky Way, the Local Group & the IR Tully-Fisher Diagram

Using the near infrared fluxes of local group galaxies derived from Cosmic Background Explorer/Diffuse Infrared Background Experiment band maps and published Cepheid distances, we construct Tully-Fisher diagrams for the Local Group.

Milky Way↗

A catalog of IRAS observations of large optical galaxies

A catalog is presented of IRAS observations of 85 galaxies with blue-light isophotal diameters greater than 8 arcmin. The observations, data processing, and data measurement techniques are described, and total IRAS flux densities and integrated infrared emission properties of the sample are reported. Infrared brightness profiles of the detected galaxies and infrared surface brightness contour maps of the galaxies for which structural features were resolved are displayed. A classification scheme based on the degree of central concentration and spatial structure of the 60 micron emission of the best-resolved galaxies is proposed. The 60 micron and blue-light isophotal diameters of the largest galaxies are compared.

Rice, W.↗

ESO 103-G35 - A new Seyfert galaxy and possible X-ray source

By means of an objective prism plate, two emission-line galaxies have been identified within the 0.7-sq deg HEAO-A2 error box for the X-ray source H1834-653. Optical spectrophotometric observations are reported for both objects as well as the galaxy NGC 6684, which also lies near the position of H1834-653. These data show that one of the emission-line galaxies, ESO 103-G35, is a Seyfert galaxy with a high-excitation forbidden-line spectrum and weak broad emission wings at H-alpha. Further measurements of this galaxy reveal an infrared excess at wavelengths longer than 2.2 microns. The H-alpha luminosity of ESO 103-G35 is consistent with the X-ray luminosity estimated from the HEAO-A2 data, thus strengthening the likelihood of association of this galaxy with the X-ray emission.

Phillips, M. M.↗

First Results from Faint Infrared Grism Survey (Figs): First Simultaneous Detection of Ly Alpha Emission and Lyman Break From a Galaxy at Z =7.51

Galaxies at high redshifts provide a valuable tool to study cosmic dawn, and therefore it is crucial to reliably identify these galaxies. Here, we present an unambiguous and first simultaneous detection of both the Lyman-Alpha emission and the Lyman break from a z = 7.512 +/- 0.004 galaxy, observed in the Faint Infrared Grism Survey (FIGS). These spectra, taken with G102 grism on Hubble SpaceTelescope (HST), show a significant emission line detection (6 Sigma) in two observational position angles (PA), with Lyman-Alpha line flux of 1.06 +/- 0.19 x 10(exp -17) erg s(exp -1) cm(exp -2). The line flux is nearly a factor of four higher than in the archival MOSFIRE spectroscopic observations. This is consistent with other recent observations implying that ground-based near-infrared spectroscopy underestimates total emission line fluxes, and if confirmed, can have strong implications for reionization studies that are based on ground-based Lyman-Alpha measurements. A 4-Alpha detection of the NV line in one PA also suggests a weak Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN), and if confirmed would make this source the highest-redshift AGN yet found.These observations from the Hubble Space Telescope thus clearly demonstrate the sensitivity of the FIGS survey, and the capability of grism spectroscopy to study the epoch of reionization.

Faint Galaxy Z=7.51↗

Observations of the motion and distribution of the ionized gas in the central parsec of the Galaxy. II

Observations of infrared fine-structure line emission from compact clouds of ionized gas within Sgr A West are presented. These clouds have diameters of 0.1-0.5 pc, internal velocity dispersions of 100 km/s (FWHM), and line center velocities up to + or - 260 km/s. Their masses are not accurately determined but are probably between 0.1 and 10 solar masses. They are ionized by radiation like that of stars of effective temperature not greater than 35,000 K. The clouds are shown to have lifetimes of 10,000 yr and so must be generated and dissipated at a rate of a few per 1000 yr. From analysis of the distribution of the velocities of the clouds, a most probable mass distribution is derived which includes a central pointlike mass of several x 10 to the 6th solar masses in addition to several x 10 to the 6th solar masses of stars within 1 pc of the center.

Lacy, J. H.↗

Far-infrared observations of the type 1 Seyfert galaxy NGC 4051

The Kuiper Airborne Observatory was used, together with a seven-element array, in measurements of the far-IR flux from the Seyfert galaxy NGC 4051. Flux densities within and outside of the central region were found to be comparable, with a possible local peak of emission in the west, and a total far-IR luminosity of 3.4 + or - 0.8 billion solar luminosities. The spectral shape of the radiation and its extended distribution, together with data at other wavelengths, suggest that the IR emission arises from warm dust. The relatively weak IR flux, and the apparent lack of dust and gas by comparison to the total (virial) material, indicate less active star formation than that found in such galaxies as the type 2 Seyfert, NGC 1068.

Smith, H. A.↗

Large-scale mapping of the Galaxy by IRAS

The Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), launched Jan. 25, 1983, has conducted a high-sensitivity, high-resolution all-sky photometric survey at wavelengths of 12, 25, 60, and 100 microns in the infrared. One of the data products to be developed from the survey is a map of the entire Milky Way within latitude limits of 10 degrees at a resolution of 4 arcmin. The dc-coupled, extremely stable detector system permits mapping with reliable information at all spatial scales larger than the map resolution. The extremely high sensitivity of the IRAS instrument for the detection of interstellar material in the survey mode is illustrated in terms of visual extinction and dust and gas column densities.

Gautier, T. N., III↗

A model for the infrared emission from the bulge of our Galaxy

A quantitative model for the IR emission from the bulge of the Galaxy is constructed using a sequence of models for circumstellar dust shells around late-type stars. The luminosity function for asymptotic giant branch stars and the distribution function for the dust-shell optical depth are derived. The total bolometric luminosity of the bulge population is 170 million solar luminosities and the total mass loss rate is 0.0083 solar mass/yr. The 12 microns and most of the 25 microns flux from the inner part of M31 can be understood as emission from a bulge population similar to that in the Galaxy. A simple model for the IR emission from late-type stars in the disk of the Galaxy is also given.

Rowan-Robinson, M.↗

Near-infrared mass-to-light ratios in galaxies - Stellar mass and star formation in the heart of the Whirlpool

The observed stellar population in the solar neighborhood is used to derive a relationship between the local stellar mass density and the visual and near-IR brightness, which is then extended to a wide range of galaxies. This technique is applied to near-IR (J, H, and K) images of the central 2.3 kpc (50 arcsec) of the Whirlpool Galaxy (M51, NGC 5194). It is estimated that the current high rate of star formation can last no more than about another 10-million years, and that, if a large fraction of the stars in the nucleus of M51 was created in periods of enhanced formation, the duty cycle for such events is about 5 percent.

Thronson, Harley A., Jr.↗

The far-infrared luminosity of molecular clouds in the Galaxy

A detailed analysis is presented of the IR emission and CO properties of a large sample of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) with and without H II regions. It is found that high-mass star-forming clouds have significantly higher peak dust temperatures, but averaged over the entire cloud volume, their IR color temperatures are not very different from those of the general GMC population and the mean disk temperature. The results indicate that the bulk of the IR emission in GMCs is excited by embedded stars within the clouds rather than the exterior interstellar radiation field, that only a small fraction of the IR luminosity originates from stars which ionize the H II region. An overall higher level of star-formation activity for the H II region GMCs than the general population is indicated.

Scoville, N. Z.↗

Far-infrared emission and star formation in spiral galaxies

The correlations between the emission in the far-IR, H-alpha, and blue in a sample of normal spiral galaxies are investigated. It is found that the luminosities in these three bands are all tightly correlated, although both the strength of the correlations and their functional dependencies are a function of the galaxies' morphological types. The best-fit power laws to these correlations are different for the comparison of different quantities and deviate significantly from linearity in some cases, implying the presence of additional emission mechanisms not related to the general increase of luminosity with galactic mass. Clear evidence is found of two independent effects in the incidence of warm far-IR emission in late-type spirals. One is a luminosity effect shown by the presence of excess far-IR relative to H-alpha or optical emission in the more luminous galaxies. The other is a dependence on widespread star-formation activity.

Trinchieri, G.↗

Correlations between the far-infrared, radio, and blue luminosities of spiral galaxies

FIR-radio luminosity correlations are presently derived for two statistically complete samples spanning a wide luminosity range. While observed correlations are tight, they are not linear; the observed scattering is mostly intrinsic. An empirical correction to the radio luminosities, based on observed blue luminosities, makes the corrected FIR-radio correlation linear and eliminates most of the residual variance. A two-component model that is consistent with the improved correlation is proposed for the heating luminosity within galaxies. The first, radio-loud component contains young massive stars that heat the dust, while contributing to the cool cirrus dust-heating interstellar radiation field. The second, radio-quiet component is made up of less massive older stars.

Condon, J. J.↗

Ultraviolet to near-infrared spectral distributions of star-forming galaxies: Metallicity and age effects

Spectral distributions from the UV to the near-IR of a sample of 44 star-forming galaxies are used to calculate the metallicity (O/H), star-formation rate (SFR) and age of the starbursts. The oxygen abundance covers the range 8.3 less than O/H less than 9.4 and nitrogen (N) is found to be mostly a product of secondary nucleosynthesis for O/H greater than 8.4. Due to its secondary origin, N/O ratios up to approximately equals 4 times the solar value can be obtained for metal-rich starbursts. The SFR ranges 0.01 to 100 solar mass/year. The lower metallicity galaxies seem to be experiencing an instantaneous burst of star formation, with ages ranging from under 5 x 10(exp 6) to 10(exp 7) yr. The highest metallicity galaxies are most probably experiencing a continuous burst. Correlations between the calculated quantities and several spectral features are investigated. We found a highly significant correlation between the equivalent width W(C IV lambda 1550)-a stellar (absorption) feature- and the oxygen abundance of the emitting gas (O/H). Thus we show for the first time that the stellar metallicity is well correlated with the gas metallicity in star-bursting galaxies. The equivalent width W(Si IV lambda 1400) and the emission line ratio (N II) lambda lambda 6548.84/H(sub alpha) also correlate well with O/H, and all three features can be used as metallicity indicators for star-forming galaxies. The continuum color between lambda 1400 and lambda 3500 (C(14 - 35)) is shown to correlate with O/H, although it is better correlated with E(B - V). It was not possible to disentangle the metallicity from the reddening effect in C(14- 35). We estimate that the reddening affecting the UV continuum is about half the one derived from the Balmer decrement of the emitting gas. The SFR correlates well with the galaxy luminosity and there is no dependence of the continuum color on the SFR. The higher metallicities are only found in the more luminous galaxies, while low metallicities are found over the whole luminosity interval (-16 less than M(sub B) less than -23, H(sub 0) = 50 km/sec/Mpc) covered by the sample.

Storchi-Bergmann, Thaisa↗

The Ultraviolet and Infrared Star Formation Rates of Compact Group Galaxies: An Expanded Sample

Compact groups of galaxies provide insight into the role of low-mass, dense environments in galaxy evolution because the low velocity dispersions and close proximity of galaxy members result in frequent interactions that take place over extended time-scales. We expand the census of star formation in compact group galaxies by Tzanavaris et al. (2010) and collaborators with Swift UVOT, Spitzer IRAC and MIPS 24 m photometry of a sample of 183 galaxies in 46 compact groups. After correcting luminosities for the contribution from old stellar populations, we estimate the dust-unobscured star formation rate (SFRUV) using the UVOT uvw2 photometry. Similarly, we use the MIPS 24 m photometry to estimate the component of the SFR that is obscured by dust (SFRIR). We find that galaxies which are MIR-active (MIR-red), also have bluer UV colours, higher specific SFRs, and tend to lie in Hi-rich groups, while galaxies that are MIR-inactive (MIR-blue) have redder UV colours, lower specific SFRs, and tend to lie in Hi-poor groups. We find the SFRs to be continuously distributed with a peak at about 1 M yr1, indicating this might be the most common value in compact groups. In contrast, the specific SFR distribution is bimodal, and there is a clear distinction between star-forming and quiescent galaxies. Overall, our results suggest that the specific SFR is the best tracer of gas depletion and galaxy evolution in compact groups.

galaxies: star formation↗