The Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey. V. Statistical Study of Bars and Buckled Bars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zhao-Yu; Ho, Luis C.; Barth, Aaron J.

2017-08-01

Simulations have shown that bars are subject to a vertical buckling instability that transforms thin bars into boxy or peanut-shaped structures, but the physical conditions necessary for buckling to occur are not fully understood. We use the large sample of local disk galaxies in the Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey to examine the incidence of bars and buckled bars across the Hubble sequence. Depending on the disk inclination angle (I), a buckled bar reveals itself as either a boxy/peanut-shaped bulge (at high I) or as a barlens structure (at low I). We visually identify bars, boxy/peanut-shaped bulges, and barlenses, and examine the dependence of bar and buckled bar fractions on host galaxy properties, including Hubble type, stellar mass, color, and gas mass fraction. We find that the barred and unbarred disks show similar distributions in these physical parameters. The bar fraction is higher (70%-80%) in late-type disks with low stellar mass (M * < 1010.5 M ⊙) and high gas mass ratio. In contrast, the buckled bar fraction increases to 80% toward massive and early-type disks (M * > 1010.5 M ⊙), and decreases with higher gas mass ratio. These results suggest that bars are more difficult to grow in massive disks that are dynamically hotter than low-mass disks. However, once a bar forms, it can easily buckle in the massive disks, where a deeper potential can sustain the vertical resonant orbits. We also find a probable buckling bar candidate (ESO 506-G004) that could provide further clues to understand the timescale of the buckling process.

The Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey. V. Statistical Study of Bars and Buckled Bars

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Zhao-Yu; Ho, Luis C.; Barth, Aaron J., E-mail: lizy@shao.ac.cn

Simulations have shown that bars are subject to a vertical buckling instability that transforms thin bars into boxy or peanut-shaped structures, but the physical conditions necessary for buckling to occur are not fully understood. We use the large sample of local disk galaxies in the Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey to examine the incidence of bars and buckled bars across the Hubble sequence. Depending on the disk inclination angle ( i ), a buckled bar reveals itself as either a boxy/peanut-shaped bulge (at high i ) or as a barlens structure (at low i ). We visually identify bars, boxy/peanut-shaped bulges, andmore » barlenses, and examine the dependence of bar and buckled bar fractions on host galaxy properties, including Hubble type, stellar mass, color, and gas mass fraction. We find that the barred and unbarred disks show similar distributions in these physical parameters. The bar fraction is higher (70%–80%) in late-type disks with low stellar mass ( M {sub *} < 10{sup 10.5} M {sub ⊙}) and high gas mass ratio. In contrast, the buckled bar fraction increases to 80% toward massive and early-type disks ( M {sub *} > 10{sup 10.5} M {sub ⊙}), and decreases with higher gas mass ratio. These results suggest that bars are more difficult to grow in massive disks that are dynamically hotter than low-mass disks. However, once a bar forms, it can easily buckle in the massive disks, where a deeper potential can sustain the vertical resonant orbits. We also find a probable buckling bar candidate (ESO 506−G004) that could provide further clues to understand the timescale of the buckling process.« less

Do Nuclear Star Clusters and Supermassive Black Holes Follow the Same Host-Galaxy Correlations?

DOE PAGES

Erwin, Peter; Gadotti, Dimitri Alexei

2012-01-01

Smore » tudies have suggested that there is a strong correlation between the masses of nuclear star clusters (NCs) and their host galaxies, a correlation which is said to be an extension of the well-known correlations between supermassive black holes (MBHs) and their host galaxies. But careful analysis of disk galaxies—including 2D bulge/disk/bar decompositions—shows that while MBHs correlate with the stellar mass of the bulge component of galaxies, the masses of NCs correlate much better with the total galaxy stellar mass. In addition, the mass ratio M NC / M ⋆ ,  tot for NCs in spirals (at least those with Hubble types c and later) is typically an order of magnitude smaller than the mass ratio M BH / M ⋆ ,  bul of MBHs. The absence of a universal “central massive object” correlation argues against common formation and growth mechanisms for both MBHs and NCs. We also discuss evidence for a break in the NC-host galaxy correlation, galaxies with Hubble types earlier than bc appear to host systematically more massive NCs than do types c and later.« less

Isolated Galaxies and Isolated Satellite Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ann, H. B.; Park, C.; Choi, Y. Y.

2010-10-01

We search for isolated galaxies using a volume-limited sample of galaxies with 0.02 < z < 0.04742 from SDSS DR7 supplemented by bright galaxies. We devise a diagnostic tool to select isolated galaxies in different environments using the projected separation (rp) normalized by the virial radius of the nearest neighbor (rvir,nei) and the local background density. We find that the isolation condition of rp > rvir,nei and ρ < ρbar well segregates the CIG galaxies. We confirm the morphology conformity between the host and their satellites, which suggests the importance to galaxy evolution of hydrodynamic interactions among galaxies within their virial radii.

Connections between Star Cluster Populations and Their Host Galaxy Nuclear Rings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Chao; de Grijs, Richard; Ho, Luis C.

2018-04-01

Nuclear rings are excellent laboratories for probing diverse phenomena such as the formation and evolution of young massive star clusters and nuclear starbursts, as well as the secular evolution and dynamics of their host galaxies. We have compiled a sample of 17 galaxies with nuclear rings, which are well resolved by high-resolution Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescope imaging. For each nuclear ring, we identified the ring star cluster population, along with their physical properties (ages, masses, and extinction values). We also determined the integrated ring properties, including the average age, total stellar mass, and current star formation rate (SFR). We find that Sb-type galaxies tend to have the highest ring stellar mass fraction with respect to the host galaxy, and this parameter is correlated with the ring’s SFR surface density. The ring SFRs are correlated with their stellar masses, which is reminiscent of the main sequence of star-forming galaxies. There are striking correlations between star-forming properties (i.e., SFR and SFR surface density) and nonaxisymmetric bar parameters, appearing to confirm previous inferences that strongly barred galaxies tend to have lower ring SFRs, although the ring star formation histories turn out to be significantly more complicated. Nuclear rings with higher stellar masses tend to be associated with lower cluster mass fractions, but there is no such relation for the ages of the rings. The two youngest nuclear rings in our sample, NGC 1512 and NGC 4314, which have the most extreme physical properties, represent the young extremity of the nuclear ring age distribution.

Star formation quenching in green valley galaxies at 0.5 ≲ z ≲ 1.0 and constraints with galaxy morphologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nogueira-Cavalcante, J. P.; Gonçalves, T. S.; Menéndez-Delmestre, K.; Sheth, K.

2018-01-01

We calculate the star formation quenching time-scales in green valley galaxies at intermediate redshifts (z ∼ 0.5-1) using stacked zCOSMOS spectra of different galaxy morphological types: spheroidal, disc-like, irregular and merger, dividing disc-like galaxies further into unbarred, weakly barred and strongly barred, assuming a simple exponentially decaying star formation history model and based on the H δ absorption feature and the 4000 Å break. We find that different morphological types present different star formation quenching time-scales, reinforcing the idea that the galaxy morphology is strongly correlated with the physical processes responsible for quenching star formation. Our quantification of the star formation quenching time-scale indicates that discs have typical time-scales 60 per cent to five times longer than that of galaxies presenting spheroidal, irregular or merger morphologies. Barred galaxies, in particular, present the slowest transition time-scales through the green valley. This suggests that although secular evolution may ultimately lead to gas exhaustion in the host galaxy via bar-induced gas inflows that trigger star formation activity, secular agents are not major contributors in the rapid quenching of galaxies at these redshifts. Galaxy interaction, associated with the elliptical, irregular and merger morphologies, contributes, to a more significant degree, to the fast transition through the green valley at these redshifts. In light of previous works suggesting that both secular and merger processes are responsible for the star formation quenching at low redshifts, our results provide an explanation to the recent findings that star formation quenching happened at a faster pace at z ∼ 0.8.

Stellar Photometric Structures of the Host Galaxies of Nearby Type 1 Active Galactic Nuclei

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kim, Minjin; Ho, Luis C.; Peng, Chien Y.

2017-10-01

We present detailed image analysis of rest-frame optical images of 235 low-redshift ( z ≲ 0.35) Type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) observed with the Hubble Space Telescope . The high-resolution images enable us to perform rigorous two-dimensional image modeling to decouple the luminous central point source from the host galaxy, which, when warranted, is further decomposed into its principal structural components (bulge, bar, and disk). In many cases, care must be taken to account for structural complexities such as spiral arms, tidal features, and overlapping or interacting companion galaxies. We employ Fourier modes to characterize the degree of asymmetrymore » of the light distribution of the stars as a quantitative measure of morphological distortion due to interactions or mergers. We examine the dependence of the physical parameters of the host galaxies on the properties of the AGNs, namely, radio-loudness and the width of the broad emission lines. In accordance with previous studies, narrow-line (H β FWHM ≤ 2000 km s{sup −1}) Type 1 AGNs, in contrast to their broad-line (H β FWHM > 2000 km s{sup −1}) counterparts, are preferentially hosted in later-type, lower-luminosity galaxies, which have a higher incidence of pseudo-bulges, are more frequently barred, and are less morphologically disturbed. This suggests that narrow-line Type 1 AGNs experienced a more quiescent evolutionary history driven primarily by internal secular evolution instead of external dynamical perturbations. The fraction of AGN hosts showing merger signatures is larger for more luminous sources. Radio-loud AGNs generally preferentially live in earlier-type (bulge-dominated), more massive hosts, although a minority of them appear to contain a significant disk component. We do not find convincing evidence for enhanced merger signatures in the radio-loud population.« less

Frequency and properties of bars in cluster and field galaxies at intermediate redshifts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barazza, F. D.; Jablonka, P.; Desai, V.; Jogee, S.; Aragón-Salamanca, A.; De Lucia, G.; Saglia, R. P.; Halliday, C.; Poggianti, B. M.; Dalcanton, J. J.; Rudnick, G.; Milvang-Jensen, B.; Noll, S.; Simard, L.; Clowe, D. I.; Pelló, R.; White, S. D. M.; Zaritsky, D.

2009-04-01

We present a study of large-scale bars in field and cluster environments out to redshifts of ~0.8 using a final sample of 945 moderately inclined disk galaxies drawn from the EDisCS project. We characterize bars and their host galaxies and look for relations between the presence of a bar and the properties of the underlying disk. We investigate whether the fraction and properties of bars in clusters are different from their counterparts in the field. The properties of bars and disks are determined by ellipse fits to the surface brightness distribution of the galaxies using HST/ACS images in the F814W filter. The bar identification is based on quantitative criteria after highly inclined (> 60°) systems have been excluded. The total optical bar fraction in the redshift range z = 0.4-0.8 (median z = 0.60), averaged over the entire sample, is 25% (20% for strong bars). For the cluster and field subsamples, we measure bar fractions of 24% and 29%, respectively. We find that bars in clusters are on average longer than in the field and preferentially found close to the cluster center, where the bar fraction is somewhat higher (~31%) than at larger distances (~18%). These findings however rely on a relatively small subsample and might be affected by small number statistics. In agreement with local studies, we find that disk-dominated galaxies have a higher optical bar fraction (~45%) than bulge-dominated galaxies (~15%). This result is based on Hubble types and effective radii and does not change with redshift. The latter finding implies that bar formation or dissolution is strongly connected to the emergence of the morphological structure of a disk and is typically accompanied by a transition in the Hubble type. The question whether internal or external factors are more important for bar formation and evolution cannot be answered definitely. On the one hand, the bar fraction and properties of cluster and field samples of disk galaxies are quite similar, indicating that internal processes are crucial for bar formation. On the other hand, we find evidence that cluster centers are favorable locations for bars, which suggests that the internal processes responsible for bar growth are supported by the typical interactions taking place in such environments. Based on observations collected at the European Southern Observatory, Chile, as part of large programme 166.A-0162 (the ESO Distant Cluster Survey). Also based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. These observations are associated with proposal 9476. Support for this porposal was provided by NASA through a grant from Space Telescope Science Institute.

New insights into the X-ray properties of nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC 1672

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenkins, L. P.; Brnadt, W. N.; Colbert, E. J. M.; Levan, A. J.; Roberts, T. P.; Ward, M. J.; Zezas, A.

2008-02-01

We present some preliminary results from new Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray observations of the nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC1672. It shows dramatic nuclear and extra-nuclear star formation activity, including starburst regions located near each end of its strong bar, both of which host ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). With the new high-spatial-resolution Chandra imaging, we show for the first time that NGC1672 possesses a faint ($L(X)~10^39 erg/s), hard central X-ray source surrounded by an X-ray bright circumnuclear starburst ring that dominates the X-ray emission in the region. The central source may represent low-level AGN activity, or alternatively the emission from X-ray binaries associated with star-formation in the nucleus.

Hubble Spots a Barred Lynx Spiral

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Discovered by British astronomer William Herschel over 200 years ago, NGC 2500 lies about 30 million light-years away in the northern constellation of Lynx. As this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows, NGC 2500 is a particular kind of spiral galaxy known as a barred spiral, its wispy arms swirling out from a bright, elongated core. Barred spirals are actually more common than was once thought. Around two-thirds of all spiral galaxies — including the Milky Way — exhibit these straight bars cutting through their centers. These cosmic structures act as glowing nurseries for newborn stars, and funnel material towards the active core of a galaxy. NGC 2500 is still actively forming new stars, although this process appears to be occurring very unevenly. The upper half of the galaxy — where the spiral arms are slightly better defined — hosts many more star-forming regions than the lower half, as indicated by the bright, dotted islands of light. There is another similarity between NGC 2500 and our home galaxy. Together with Andromeda, Triangulum and many smaller natural satellites, the Milky Way is part of the Local Group of galaxies, a gathering of over 50 galaxies all loosely held together by gravity. NGC 2500 forms a similar group with some of its nearby neighbors, including NGC 2541, NGC 2552, NGC 2537 and the bright, Andromeda-like spiral NGC 2481 (known collectively as the NGC 2841 group). Image Credit: ESA/Hubble/NASA NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

VizieR Online Data Catalog: CGS. V. Statistical study of bars and buckled bars (Li+, 2017)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Z.-Y.; Ho, L. C.; Barth, A. J.

2018-04-01

Images in B-, V-, R-, and I-band filters were taken with the du Pont 2.5m telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, with a field of view (FOV) of 8.9'x8.9'. The typical depths of the B-, V-, R-, and I-band images are 27.5, 26.9, 26.4, and 25.3mag/arcsec2, respectively. More information about the Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey (CGS) design, data reduction, and photometric measurements can be found in Papers I (Ho+, 2011, J/ApJS/197/21) and II (Li+, 2011, J/ApJS/197/22). In this work, we use the CGS I-band images to minimize the effect of dust extinction. The selected sample contains 376 disk galaxies with 264 disks hosting bars. (1 data file).

Stellar Photometric Structures of the Host Galaxies of Nearby Type 1 Active Galactic Nuclei

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Minjin; Ho, Luis C.; Peng, Chien Y.; Barth, Aaron J.; Im, Myungshin

2017-10-01

We present detailed image analysis of rest-frame optical images of 235 low-redshift (z ≲ 0.35) Type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) observed with the Hubble Space Telescope. The high-resolution images enable us to perform rigorous two-dimensional image modeling to decouple the luminous central point source from the host galaxy, which, when warranted, is further decomposed into its principal structural components (bulge, bar, and disk). In many cases, care must be taken to account for structural complexities such as spiral arms, tidal features, and overlapping or interacting companion galaxies. We employ Fourier modes to characterize the degree of asymmetry of the light distribution of the stars as a quantitative measure of morphological distortion due to interactions or mergers. We examine the dependence of the physical parameters of the host galaxies on the properties of the AGNs, namely, radio-loudness and the width of the broad emission lines. In accordance with previous studies, narrow-line (Hβ FWHM ≤ 2000 km s-1) Type 1 AGNs, in contrast to their broad-line (Hβ FWHM > 2000 km s-1) counterparts, are preferentially hosted in later-type, lower-luminosity galaxies, which have a higher incidence of pseudo-bulges, are more frequently barred, and are less morphologically disturbed. This suggests that narrow-line Type 1 AGNs experienced a more quiescent evolutionary history driven primarily by internal secular evolution instead of external dynamical perturbations. The fraction of AGN hosts showing merger signatures is larger for more luminous sources. Radio-loud AGNs generally preferentially live in earlier-type (bulge-dominated), more massive hosts, although a minority of them appear to contain a significant disk component. We do not find convincing evidence for enhanced merger signatures in the radio-loud population. Based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained from the Data Archive at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), Inc., under NASA contract NAS5-26555. These data are associated with program AR-12133 and AR-12818.

Galaxy Zoo: secular evolution of barred galaxies from structural decomposition of multiband images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kruk, Sandor J.; Lintott, Chris J.; Bamford, Steven P.; Masters, Karen L.; Simmons, Brooke D.; Häußler, Boris; Cardamone, Carolin N.; Hart, Ross E.; Kelvin, Lee; Schawinski, Kevin; Smethurst, Rebecca J.; Vika, Marina

2018-02-01

We present the results of two-component (disc+bar) and three-component (disc+bar+bulge) multiwavelength 2D photometric decompositions of barred galaxies in five Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) bands (ugriz). This sample of ∼3500 nearby (z < 0.06) galaxies with strong bars selected from the Galaxy Zoo citizen science project is the largest sample of barred galaxies to be studied using photometric decompositions that include a bar component. With detailed structural analysis, we obtain physical quantities such as the bar- and bulge-to-total luminosity ratios, effective radii, Sérsic indices and colours of the individual components. We observe a clear difference in the colours of the components, the discs being bluer than the bars and bulges. An overwhelming fraction of bulge components have Sérsic indices consistent with being pseudo-bulges. By comparing the barred galaxies with a mass-matched and volume-limited sample of unbarred galaxies, we examine the connection between the presence of a large-scale galactic bar and the properties of discs and bulges. We find that the discs of unbarred galaxies are significantly bluer compared to the discs of barred galaxies, while there is no significant difference in the colours of the bulges. We find possible evidence of secular evolution via bars that leads to the build-up of pseudo-bulges and to the quenching of star formation in the discs. We identify a subsample of unbarred galaxies with an inner lens/oval and find that their properties are similar to barred galaxies, consistent with an evolutionary scenario in which bars dissolve into lenses. This scenario deserves further investigation through both theoretical and observational work.

The Stability Of Disk Barred Galaxies Over the Past 7 Billion Years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tapia, Amauri; Simmons, Brooke

2017-01-01

A recently released model of interacting disk galaxies provides a hypothesis for the origins of off center bars in disks. No systematic search for offset bars in the early universe has yet been undertaken. The Galaxy Zoo project has produced data regarding the large-scale bars of many galaxies. Using this data alongside images collected by the Hubble Space Telescope and other sources, we have examined 5190 galaxies for signatures of off-centered bars. Less than 5 percent of the sample shows clear signs of an offset bar. We describe their overall properties of this sub-sample and compare the properties of galaxies with offset bars to those with centered bars. We assess the feasibility of the proposed model and place these galaxies in the context of the overall evolution of galaxies.

Secular Evolution in Disk Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kormendy, John

2013-10-01

Self-gravitating systems evolve toward the most tightly bound configuration that is reachable via the evolution processes that are available to them. They do this by spreading -- the inner parts shrink while the outer parts expand -- provided that some physical process efficiently transports energy or angular momentum outward. The reason is that self-gravitating systems have negative specific heats. As a result, the evolution of stars, star clusters, protostellar and protoplanetary disks, black hole accretion disks and galaxy disks are fundamentally similar. How evolution proceeds then depends on the evolution processes that are available to each kind of self-gravitating system. These processes and their consequences for galaxy disks are the subjects of my lectures and of this Canary Islands Winter School. I begin with a review of the formation, growth and death of bars. Then I review the slow (`secular') rearrangement of energy, angular momentum, and mass that results from interactions between stars or gas clouds and collective phenomena such as bars, oval disks, spiral structure and triaxial dark haloes. The `existence-proof' phase of this work is largely over: we have a good heuristic understanding of how nonaxisymmetric structures rearrange disk gas into outer rings, inner rings and stuff dumped onto the centre. The results of simulations correspond closely to the morphology of barred and oval galaxies. Gas that is transported to small radii reaches high densities. Observations confirm that many barred and oval galaxies have dense central concentrations of gas and star formation. The result is to grow, on timescales of a few Gyr, dense central components that are frequently mistaken for classical (elliptical-galaxy-like) bulges but that were grown slowly out of the disk (not made rapidly by major mergers). The resulting picture of secular galaxy evolution accounts for the richness observed in galaxy structure. We can distinguish between classical and pseudo bulges because the latter retain a `memory' of their disky origin. That is, they have one or more characteristics of disks: (1) flatter shapes than those of classical bulges, (2) correspondingly large ratios of ordered to random velocities, (3) small velocity dispersions with respect to the Faber-Jackson correlation between velocity dispersion and bulge luminosity, (4) spiral structure or nuclear bars in the `bulge' part of the light profile, (5) nearly exponential brightness profiles and (6) starbursts. So the cleanest examples of pseudobulges are recognisable. However, pseudo and classical bulges can coexist in the same galaxy. I review two important implications of secular evolution: (1) The existence of pseudobulges highlights a problem with our theory of galaxy formation by hierarchical clustering. We cannot explain galaxies that are completely bulgeless. Galaxy mergers are expected to happen often enough so that every giant galaxy should have a classical bulge. But we observe that bulgeless giant galaxies are common in field environments. We now realise that many dense centres of galaxies that we used to think are bulges were not made by mergers; they were grown out of disks. So the challenge gets more difficult. This is the biggest problem faced by our theory of galaxy formation. (2) Pseudobulges are observed to contain supermassive black holes (BHs), but they do not show the well-known, tight correlations between BH mass and the mass and velocity dispersion of the host bulge. This leads to the suggestion that there are two fundamentally different BH feeding processes. Rapid global inward gas transport in galaxy mergers leads to giant BHs that correlate with host ellipticals and classical bulges, whereas local and more stochastic feeding of small BHs in largely bulgeless galaxies evidently involves too little energy feedback to result in BH-host coevolution. It is an important success of the secular evolution picture that morphological differences can be used to divide bulges into two types that correlate differently with their BHs. I review environmental secular evolution -- the transformation of gas-rich, star-forming spiral and irregular galaxies into gas-poor, `red and dead' S0 and spheroidal (`Sph') galaxies. I show that Sph galaxies such as NGC205 and Draco are not the low-luminosity end of the structural sequence (the `fundamental plane') of elliptical galaxies. Instead, Sph galaxies have structural parameters like those of low-luminosity S+Im galaxies. Spheroidals are continuous in their structural parameters~with~the disks of S0 galaxies. They are bulgeless S0s. S+Im -->S0+Sph transformation involves a variety of internal (supernova-driven baryon ejection) and environmental processes (e.g., ram-pressure gas stripping, harassment, and starvation). Finally, I summarise how hierarchical clustering and secular processes can be combined into a consistent and comprehensive picture of galaxy evolution.

Chemical Evidence for Evolution of galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dutil, Yvan

I have compiled the very best data published on abundance gradients. From this sample of 29 galaxies, some information can be gained on the mecanism of morphological evolution in disk galaxies. From this sample, I find that early-type galaxies show an identical trend in the behavior of extrapolated central abundance versus morphological type to that shown by late-type galaxies with strong bars, even in the absence of bar! On a a diagram showing extrapolated central abundance versus morphological type, two sequences appear: late-type barred galaxies and early-type galaxies (barred or not barred) fall on sequence 0.5 dex below that of normal late-type galaxies. This behavior is consistent with a scenario of morphological evolution of disk galaxies by formation and dissolution of a bar over a period of a few 10^^9 yr, where later type galaxies (Sd,Sc,Sbc, evolve into earlier-type disk galaxies trough transitory SBc and SBb phases.

Measuring the X-shaped structures in edge-on galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savchenko, S. S.; Sotnikova, N. Ya.; Mosenkov, A. V.; Reshetnikov, V. P.; Bizyaev, D. V.

2017-11-01

We present a detailed photometric study of a sample of 22 edge-on galaxies with clearly visible X-shaped structures. We propose a novel method to derive geometrical parameters of these features, along with the parameters of their host galaxies based on the multi-component photometric decomposition of galactic images. To include the X-shaped structure into our photometric model, we use the imfit package, in which we implement a new component describing the X-shaped structure. This method is applied for a sample of galaxies with available Sloan Digital Sky Survey and Spitzer IRAC 3.6 μm observations. In order to explain our results, we perform realistic N-body simulations of a Milky Way-type galaxy and compare the observed and the model X-shaped structures. Our main conclusions are as follows: (1) galaxies with strong X-shaped structures reside in approximately the same local environments as field galaxies; (2) the characteristic size of the X-shaped structures is about 2/3 of the bar size; (3) there is a correlation between the X-shaped structure size and its observed flatness: the larger structures are more flattened; (4) our N-body simulations qualitatively confirm the observational results and support the bar-driven scenario for the X-shaped structure formation.

Multi-wavelength observations of barred, flocculent galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ratay, Douglas Lee

Although it is generally accepted that large galaxies form through the assemblage of smaller objects, an explanation for the morphology of galaxies is not available. Any complete theory of galaxy morphology must include production and dissolution mechanisms for galactic bars, rings, nuclear bars, spiral arms, and companions. This theory does not exist because of the lack of detailed data from many types of galaxies in different environments. We have defined a new sample of galaxies which are simultaneously flocculent, barred, and isolated. We have performed optical, near-infrared, and radio (HI) observations of the galaxies in this sample. We measured properties of our galaxies including bar length, bar axis ratio, HI diameter, HI mass, and dynamical mass. We found that our sample group is heterogeneous, and compares well to a standard samples of galaxies. We found two of our galaxies to possess companions, and two others to show evidence of current interactions. This is consistent with other observations indicating that local isolated galaxies do not possess a large number of small companions. We cannot rule out the possibility of very small companions. We find that as a group our sample is slightly less luminous than normal galaxies and may be more likely to be involved in interactions. We conclude that the bar and spiral arm features in our sample are due to processes internal to the galaxies, likely involving the interaction between the galactic disk and halo. We defined a control sample of barred, grand design galaxies to further determine the acceptability of barred, flocculent galaxies as a physically meaningful subset of galaxies.

Morphology Is a Link to the Past: Examining Formative and Secular Galactic Evolution through Morphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galloway, Melanie A.

Galaxy morphology is one of the primary keys to understanding a galaxy's evolutionary history. External mechanisms (environment/clustering, mergers) have a strong impact on the formative evolution of the major galactic components (disk, bulge, Hubble type), while internal instabilities created by bars, spiral arms, or other substructures drive secular evolution via the rearrangement of material within the disk. This thesis will explore several ways in which morphology impacts the dynamics and evolution of a galaxy using visual classifications from several Galaxy Zoo projects. The first half of this work will detail the motivations of using morphology to study galaxy evolution, and describe how morphology is measured, debiased, and interpreted using crowdsourced classification data via Galaxy Zoo. The second half will present scientific studies which make use of these classifications; first by focusing on the morphology of galaxies in the local Universe (z < 0.2) using data from Galaxy Zoo 2 and Galaxy Zoo UKIDSS. Last, the high-redshift Universe will be explored by examining populations of morphologies at various lookback times, from z = 0 out to z = 1 using data from Galaxy Zoo Hubble. The investigation of the physical implications of morphology in the local Universe will first be presented in Chapter 4, in a study of the impact of bars on the fueling of an active galactic nucleus (AGN). Using a sample of 19,756 disk galaxies at 0.01 < z < 0.05 imaged by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and morphologically classified by Galaxy Zoo 2 (GZ2), the difference in AGN fraction in barred and unbarred disks was measured. A weak, but statistically significant, effect was found in that the population of AGN hosts exhibited a 16.0% increase in bar fraction as compared to their unbarred counterparts at fixed mass and color. These results are consistent with a cosmological model in which bar-driven fueling contributes to the growth of black holes, but other dynamical mechanisms must also play a significant role. Next, the morphological dependence on wavelength is studied in Chapter 5 by comparing the optical morphological classifications from GZ2 to classifications done on infrared images in GZ:UKIDSS. Consistent morphologies were found in both sets and similar bar fractions, which confirms that for most galaxies, both old and young stellar populations follow similar spatial distributions. Last, the morphological changes in galaxy populations are computed as a function of their age using classifications from Galaxy Zoo: Hubble (Chapter 6). The evolution of the passive disc population from z = 1 to z = 0.3 was studied in a sample of 20,000 galaxies from the COSMOS field and morphologically classified by the Galaxy Zoo: Hubble project. It was found that the fraction of disc galaxies that are red, as well as the fraction of red sequence galaxies that are discs, decreases for the most massive galaxies (log(M/M solar masses) > 11) but increases for lower masses. The observations are consistent with a physical scenario in which more massive galaxies are more likely to enter a red disc phase, and more massive red discs are more likely to morphologically transform into ellipticals than their less massive counterparts. Additionally, the challenges of visual classification that are particular to galaxies at high redshift were investigated. To address these biases, a new correction technique is presented using simulated images of nearby SDSS galaxies which were artificially redshifted using the FERENGI code and classified in GZH.

The Comparative Observational Study of Timescale of Feedback by Bar Structure in Late-type Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woong-bae Woong-bae Zee, Galaxy; Yoon, Suk-jin

2018-01-01

We investigate star formation activities of ~400 barred and ~1400 unbarred faced-on late-type galaxies from the SDSS DR13. We find that gas-poor and barred galaxies are considerably show enhanced high central star formation activities, while there is no difference among gas-rich barred and unbarred galaxies regardless of their HI gas content. This seems counter-intuitive given that gas contents simply represent the total star formation rate of galaxies and suggests that there is a time delation between the central gas migration/consumption through bar structures and the enhancement of star formation activity at the centre. We analysed the distribution of the stellar population of specific galaxies with MaNGA (Mapping Nearby Galaxies at APO) IFU survey among the total samples. The gas-poor and barred galaxies show the flatter gradient in metallicity and age with respect to the stellar mass than other types of galaxies, in that their centre is more metal-rich and younger. There is an age difference, about 5-6 Gyrs, between centrally star-forming gas-poor barred galaxies and gas-rich galaxies and this value is a plausible candidate of the longevity of bar feedback. The results indicate that the gas migration/mixing driven by bar structure plays a significant role in the evolution of galaxies in a specific of timescale.

Bar-spheroid interaction in galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hernquist, Lars; Weinberg, Martin D.

1992-01-01

N-body simulation and linear analysis is employed to investigate the secular evolution of barred galaxies, with emphasis on the interaction between bars and spheroidal components of galaxies. This interaction is argued to drive secular transfer of angular momentum from bars to spheroids, primarily through resonant coupling. A moderately strong bar, having mass within corotation about 0.3 times the enclosed spheroid mass, is predicted to shed all its angular momentum typically in less than about 10 exp 9 yr. Even shorter depletion time scales are found for relatively more massive bars. It is suggested either that spheroids around barred galaxies are structured so as to inhibit strong coupling with bars, or that bars can form by unknown processes long after disks are established. The present models reinforce the notion that bars can drive secular evolution in galaxies.

Bar quenching in gas-rich galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khoperskov, S.; Haywood, M.; Di Matteo, P.; Lehnert, M. D.; Combes, F.

2018-01-01

Galaxy surveys have suggested that rapid and sustained decrease in the star-formation rate (SFR), "quenching", in massive disk galaxies is frequently related to the presence of a bar. Optical and near-IR observations reveal that nearly 60% of disk galaxies in the local universe are barred, thus it is important to understand the relationship between bars and star formation in disk galaxies. Recent observational results imply that the Milky Way quenched about 9-10 Gyr ago, at the transition between the cessation of the growth of the kinematically hot, old, metal-poor thick disk and the kinematically colder, younger, and more metal-rich thin disk. Although perhaps coincidental, the quenching episode could also be related to the formation of the bar. Indeed the transfer of energy from the large-scale shear induced by the bar to increasing turbulent energy could stabilize the gaseous disk against wide-spread star formation and quench the galaxy. To explore the relation between bar formation and star formation in gas rich galaxies quantitatively, we simulated gas-rich disk isolated galaxies. Our simulations include prescriptions for star formation, stellar feedback, and for regulating the multi-phase interstellar medium. We find that the action of stellar bar efficiently quenches star formation, reducing the star-formation rate by a factor of ten in less than 1 Gyr. Analytical and self-consistent galaxy simulations with bars suggest that the action of the stellar bar increases the gas random motions within the co-rotation radius of the bar. Indeed, we detect an increase in the gas velocity dispersion up to 20-35 km s-1 at the end of the bar formation phase. The star-formation efficiency decreases rapidly, and in all of our models, the bar quenches the star formation in the galaxy. The star-formation efficiency is much lower in simulated barred compared to unbarred galaxies and more rapid bar formation implies more rapid quenching.

THE NATURE AND NURTURE OF BARS AND DISKS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mendez-Abreu, J.; Aguerri, J. A. L.; Zarattini, S.

The effects that interactions produce on galaxy disks and how they modify the subsequent formation of bars need to be distinguished to fully understand the relationship between bars and environment. To this aim we derive the bar fraction in three different environments ranging from the field to Virgo and Coma Clusters, covering an unprecedentedly large range of galaxy luminosities (or, equivalently, stellar masses). We confirm that the fraction of barred galaxies strongly depends on galaxy luminosity. We also show that the difference between the bar fraction distributions as a function of galaxy luminosity (and mass) in the field and Comamore » Cluster is statistically significant, with Virgo being an intermediate case. The fraction of barred galaxies shows a maximum of about 50% at M{sub r} {approx_equal} - 20.5 in clusters, whereas the peak is shifted to M{sub r} {approx_equal} - 19 in the field. We interpret this result as a variation of the effect of environment on bar formation depending on galaxy luminosity. We speculate that brighter disk galaxies are stable enough against interactions to keep their cold structure, thus, the interactions are able to trigger bar formation. For fainter galaxies, the interactions become strong enough to heat up the disks inhibiting bar formation and even destroying the disks. Finally, we point out that the controversy regarding whether the bar fraction depends on environment could be resolved by taking into account the different luminosity ranges probed by the galaxy samples studied so far.« less

Mass and metallicity scaling relations of high-redshift star-forming galaxies selected by GRBs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arabsalmani, M.; Møller, P.; Perley, D. A.; Freudling, W.; Fynbo, J. P. U.; Le Floc'h, E.; Zwaan, M. A.; Schulze, S.; Tanvir, N. R.; Christensen, L.; Levan, A. J.; Jakobsson, P.; Malesani, D.; Cano, Z.; Covino, S.; D'Elia, V.; Goldoni, P.; Gomboc, A.; Heintz, K. E.; Sparre, M.; de Ugarte Postigo, A.; Vergani, S. D.

2018-01-01

We present a comprehensive study of the relations between gas kinematics, metallicity and stellar mass in a sample of 82 gamma-ray burst (GRB)-selected galaxies using absorption and emission methods. We find the velocity widths of both emission and absorption profiles to be a proxy of stellar mass. We also investigate the velocity-metallicity correlation and its evolution with redshift. Using 33 GRB hosts with measured stellar mass and metallicity, we study the mass-metallicity relation for GRB host galaxies in a stellar mass range of 108.2-1011.1 M⊙ and a redshift range of z ∼ 0.3-3.4. The GRB-selected galaxies appear to track the mass-metallicity relation of star-forming galaxies but with an offset of 0.15 towards lower metallicities. This offset is comparable with the average error bar on the metallicity measurements of the GRB sample and also the scatter on the mass-metallicity relation of the general population. It is hard to decide whether this relatively small offset is due to systematic effects or the intrinsic nature of GRB hosts. We also investigate the possibility of using absorption-line metallicity measurements of GRB hosts to study the mass-metallicity relation at high redshifts. Our analysis shows that the metallicity measurements from absorption methods can significantly differ from emission metallicities and assuming identical measurements from the two methods may result in erroneous conclusions.

Gas inflow patterns and nuclear rings in barred galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Juntai; Li, Zhi

2017-06-01

Nuclear rings, dust lanes, and nuclear spirals are common structures in the inner region of barred galaxies, with their shapes and properties linked to the physical parameters of the galaxies. We use high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations to study gas inflow patterns in barred galaxies, with special attention on the nuclear rings. The location and thickness of nuclear ringsare tightly correlated with galactic properties, such as the bar pattern speed and bulge central density, within certain ranges. We identify the backbone of nuclear rings with a major orbital family of bars. The rings form exactly at the radius where the residual angular momentum of inflowing gas balances the centrifugal force. We propose a new simple method to predict the bar pattern speed for barred galaxies possessing a nuclear ring, without actually doing simulations. We apply this method to some real galaxies and find that our predicted bar pattern speed compare reasonably well with other estimates. Our study may have important implications for using nuclear ringsto measure the parameters of real barred galaxies with detailed gas kinematics. We have also extended current hydrodynamical simulations to model gas features in the Milky Way.

The IR properties of ringed galaxies and the IRAS database

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buta, Ronald J.; Crocker, Deborah A.

1993-01-01

Our study of the Infrared Astronomy Satellite (IRAS) properties of ringed galaxies has been largely successful. We have identified what we think is the probable cause of the differences in the IRAS properties among non-interacting barred galaxies as the pattern speed of the bar. The key to identifying this parameter has been our focusing the study on outer-ringed galaxies where we know precisely what is present in the central regions (from available BVI CCD images in our library of images). The theory is that outer rings, through their morphology and other characteristics, can be identified with the outer Lindblad resonance, one of the major resonances in galaxy structure. Using a library of n-body simulations for comparison, we can reliably infer both low and high pattern speed galaxies from the appearance of outer rings and the existence of other ring features. It is clear that in some barred galaxies, the bar pattern speed is high enough to avoid an inner Lindblad resonance, hence such objects do not contain nuclear or circumnuclear star formation. The IRAS observations are most sensitive to nuclear star formation in early-type barred galaxies, and will thus select those barred galaxies where the pattern speed is low enough to allow an inner Lindblad resonance to exist. High pattern speed barred galaxies therefore weaken the correlation between bars and infrared excess. This finding helps to reconcile the inconsistent results found between different studies on the correlation between bars and far-IR emission.

Secular Evolution in Barred Galaxies: Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merrifield, M.

2002-12-01

This paper describes a framework for studying galaxy morphology, particularly bar strength, in a quantitative manner, and presents applications of this approach that reveal observational evidence for secular evolution in bar morphology. The distribution of bar strength in galaxies is quite strongly bimodal, suggesting that barred and unbarred systems are distinct entities, and that any evolution between these two states must occur on a relatively rapid timescale. Bars' strengths appear to be correlated with their pattern speeds, implying that these structures weaken as they start to slow, and disappear entirely before the bars have slowed significantly. There is also tantalizing evidence that bars are rare beyond a redshift of z ~ 0.7, indicating that galaxies have only recently evolved to a point where bars can readily form.

The Formation of Galactic Bulges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carollo, C. Marcella; Ferguson, Henry C.; Wyse, Rosemary F. G.

2000-03-01

Part I. Introduction: What are galactic bulges?; Part II. The Epoch of Bulge Formation: Origin of bulges; Deep sub-mm surveys: High-z ULIRGs and the formation of spheroids; Ages and metallicities for stars in the galactic bulge; Integrated stellar populations of bulges: First results; HST-NICMOS observations of galactic bulges: Ages and dust; Inside-out bulge formation and the origin of the Hubble sequence; Part III. The Timescales of Bulge Formation: Constraints on the bulge formation timescale from stellar populations; Bulge building with mergers and winds; Role of winds, starbursts, and activity in bulge formation; Dynamical timescales of bulge formation; Part IV. Physical Processes in Bulge Formation: the role of bars for secular bulge formation; Bars and boxy/peanut-shaped bulges: an observational point of view; Boxy- and peanut-shaped bulges; A new class of bulges; The role of secondary bars in bulge formation; Radial transport of molecular gas to the nuclei of spiral galaxies; Dynamical evolution of bulge shapes; Two-component stellar systems: Phase-space constraints; Central NGC 2146 - a firehose-type bending instability?; Bulge formation: the role of the multi-phase ISM; Global evolution of a self-gravitating multi-phase ISM in the central kpc region of galaxies; Part V. Bulge Phenomenology: Bulge-disk decomposition of spiral galaxies in the near-infrared; The triaxial bulge of NGC 1371; The bulge-disk orthogonal decoupling in galaxies: NGC 4698 and NGC 4672; The kinematics and the origin of the ionized gas in NGC 4036; Optically thin thermal plasma in the galactic bulge; X-ray properties of bulges; The host galaxies of radio-loud AGN; The centers of radio-loud early-type galaxies with HST; Central UV spikes in two galactic spheroids; Conference summary: where do we stand?

A Modern Picture of Barred Galaxy Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petersen, Michael; Weinberg, Martin; Katz, Neal

2018-01-01

Observations of disk galaxies suggest that bars are responsible for altering global galaxy parameters (e.g. structures, gas fraction, star formation rate). The canonical understanding of the mechanisms underpinning bar-driven secular dynamics in disk galaxies has been largely built upon the analysis of linear theory, despite galactic bars being clearly demonstrated to be nonlinear phenomena in n-body simulations. We present simulations of barred Milky Way-like galaxy models designed to elucidate nonlinear barred galaxy dynamics. We have developed two new methodologies for analyzing n-body simulations that give the best of both powerful analytic linear theory and brute force simulation analysis: orbit family identification and multicomponent torque analysis. The software will be offered publicly to the community for their own simulation analysis.The orbit classifier reveals that the details of kinematic components in galactic disks (e.g. the bar, bulge, thin disk, and thick disk components) are powerful discriminators of evolutionary paradigms (i.e. violent instabilities and secular evolution) as well as the basic parameters of the dark matter halo (mass distribution, angular momentum distribution). Multicomponent torque analysis provides a thorough accounting of the transfer of angular momentum between orbits, global patterns, and distinct components in order to better explain the underlying physics which govern the secular evolution of barred disk galaxies.Using these methodologies, we are able to identify the successes and failures of linear theory and traditional n-body simulations en route to a detailed understanding of the control bars exhibit over secular evolution in galaxies. We present explanations for observed physical and velocity structures in observations of barred galaxies alongside predictions for how structures will vary with dynamical properties from galaxy to galaxy as well as over the lifetime of a galaxy, finding that the transfer of angular momentum through previously unidentified channels can more fully explain the observed dynamics.

Galaxy Zoo: finding offset discs and bars in SDSS galaxies★

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kruk, Sandor J.; Lintott, Chris J.; Simmons, Brooke D.; Bamford, Steven P.; Cardamone, Carolin N.; Fortson, Lucy; Hart, Ross E.; Häußler, Boris; Masters, Karen L.; Nichol, Robert C.; Schawinski, Kevin; Smethurst, Rebecca J.

2017-08-01

We use multiwavelength Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) images and Galaxy Zoo morphologies to identify a sample of ˜270 late-type galaxies with an off-centre bar. We measure offsets in the range 0.2-2.5 kpc between the photometric centres of the stellar disc and stellar bar. The measured offsets correlate with global asymmetries of the galaxies, with those with largest offsets showing higher lopsidedness. These findings are in good agreement with predictions from simulations of dwarf-dwarf tidal interactions producing off-centre bars. We find that the majority of galaxies with off-centre bars are of Magellanic type, with a median mass of 109.6 M⊙, and 91 per cent of them having M⋆ < 3 × 1010 M⊙, the characteristic mass at which galaxies start having higher central concentrations attributed to the presence of bulges. We conduct a search for companions to test the hypothesis of tidal interactions, but find that a similar fraction of galaxies with offset bars have companions within 100 kpc as galaxies with centred bars. Although this may be due to the incompleteness of the SDSS spectroscopic survey at the faint end, alternative scenarios that give rise to offset bars such as interactions with dark companions or the effect of lopsided halo potentials should be considered. Future observations are needed to confirm possible low-mass companion candidates and to determine the shape of the dark matter halo, in order to find the explanation for the off-centre bars in these galaxies.

Internal Kinematics of AGN Hosts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masegosa, Josefa; Márquez, Isabel; Durret, Florence; DEGAS Consortium

In order to understand the fueling mechanism to power AGNs, a large effort has been done by the DEGAS (Dynamics and nuclear Engine of GAlaxies of Spiral type) consortium to collect the necessary observational material. We defined an AGN sample which is not contaminated by interacting galaxies and a control sample made of normal spirals with the same properties than the AGN sample, i.e. luminosity and redshift distribution, morphology and percentage of bars. In total we have analyzed a sample of 17 active galaxies and 16 normal spirals. All the galaxies are isolated with the following criteria: not having a companion within 0.4 Mpc and cz < 500 km/s. We want to stress this aspect of our sample, since claimed differences between active and normal galaxies (Knapen et al. 2000) disappear when the samples are decontaminated of interacting systems.

The imprints of bars on the vertical stellar population gradients of galactic bulges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molaeinezhad, A.; Falcón-Barroso, J.; Martínez-Valpuesta, I.; Khosroshahi, H. G.; Vazdekis, A.; La Barbera, F.; Peletier, R. F.; Balcells, M.

2017-05-01

This is the second paper of a series aimed to study the stellar kinematics and population properties of bulges in highly inclined barred galaxies. In this work, we carry out a detailed analysis of the stellar age, metallicity and [Mg/Fe] of 28 highly inclined (I > 65°) disc galaxies, from S0 to S(B)c, observed with the SAURON integral-field spectrograph. The sample is divided into two clean samples of barred and unbarred galaxies, on the basis of the correlation between the stellar velocity and h3 profiles, as well as the level of cylindrical rotation within the bulge region. We find that while the mean stellar age, metallicity and [Mg/Fe] in the bulges of barred and unbarred galaxies are not statistically distinct, the [Mg/Fe] gradients along the minor axis (away from the disc) of barred galaxies are significantly different than those without bars. For barred galaxies, stars that are vertically further away from the mid-plane are in general more [Mg/Fe]-enhanced and thus the vertical gradients in [Mg/Fe] for barred galaxies are mostly positive, while for unbarred bulges the [Mg/Fe] profiles are typically negative or flat. This result, together with the old populations observed in the barred sample, indicates that bars are long-lasting structures, and therefore are not easily destroyed. The marked [Mg/Fe] differences with the bulges of unbarred galaxies indicate that different formation/evolution scenarios are required to explain their build-up, and emphasizes the role of bars in redistributing stellar material in the bulge-dominated regions.

Characterizing bars in low surface brightness disc galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peters, Wesley; Kuzio de Naray, Rachel

2018-05-01

In this paper, we use B-band, I-band, and 3.6 μm azimuthal light profiles of four low surface brightness galaxies (LSBs; UGC 628, F568-1, F568-3, F563-V2) to characterize three bar parameters: length, strength, and corotation radius. We employ three techniques to measure the radius of the bars, including a new method using the azimuthal light profiles. We find comparable bar radii between the I-band and 3.6 μm for all four galaxies when using our azimuthal light profile method, and that our bar lengths are comparable to those in high surface brightness galaxies (HSBs). In addition, we find the bar strengths for our galaxies to be smaller than those for HSBs. Finally, we use Fourier transforms of the B-band, I-band, and 3.6 μm images to characterize the bars as either `fast' or `slow' by measuring the corotation radius via phase profiles. When using the B- and I-band phase crossings, we find three of our galaxies have faster than expected relative bar pattern speeds for galaxies expected to be embedded in centrally dense cold dark matter haloes. When using the B-band and 3.6 μm phase crossings, we find more ambiguous results, although the relative bar pattern speeds are still faster than expected. Since we find a very slow bar in F563-V2, we are confident that we are able to differentiate between fast and slow bars. Finally, we find no relation between bar strength and relative bar pattern speed when comparing our LSBs to HSBs.

Galaxy-scale Bars in Late-type Sloan Digital Sky Survey Galaxies Do Not Influence the Average Accretion Rates of Supermassive Black Holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goulding, A. D.; Matthaey, E.; Greene, J. E.; Hickox, R. C.; Alexander, D. M.; Forman, W. R.; Jones, C.; Lehmer, B. D.; Griffis, S.; Kanek, S.; Oulmakki, M.

2017-07-01

Galaxy-scale bars are expected to provide an effective means for driving material toward the central region in spiral galaxies, and possibly feeding supermassive black holes (BHs). Here we present a statistically complete study of the effect of bars on average BH accretion. From a well-selected sample of 50,794 spiral galaxies (with {M}* ˜ 0.2{--}30× {10}10 {M}⊙ ) extracted from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Galaxy Zoo 2 project, we separate those sources considered to contain galaxy-scale bars from those that do not. Using archival data taken by the Chandra X-ray Observatory, we identify X-ray luminous ({L}{{X}}≳ {10}41 {erg} {{{s}}}-1) active galactic nuclei and perform an X-ray stacking analysis on the remaining X-ray undetected sources. Through X-ray stacking, we derive a time-averaged look at accretion for galaxies at fixed stellar mass and star-formation rate, finding that the average nuclear accretion rates of galaxies with bar structures are fully consistent with those lacking bars ({\\dot{M}}{acc}≈ 3× {10}-5 {M}⊙ yr-1). Hence, we robustly conclude that large-scale bars have little or no effect on the average growth of BHs in nearby (z< 0.15) galaxies over gigayear timescales.

Estimatining biases in the stellar dynamical black hole mass measurements in barred galaxies and prospects for measuring SMBH masses with JWST

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valluri, Monica; Vasiliev, Eugene; Bentz, Misty; Shen, Juntai

2018-04-01

Although 60% of disk galaxies are barred, stellar dynamical measurements of the masses of supermassive black holes (SMBH) in barred galaxies have always been obtained under the assumption that the bulges are axisymmetric. We use N-body simulations with self-consistently grown SMBHs in barred and unbarred galaxies to create a suite of mock Integral Field Spectrographic (IFS) datasets for galaxies with various observed orientations. We then apply an axisymmetric orbit superposition code to these mock IFS datasets to assess the reliability with which SMBH masses can be recovered. We also assess which disk and bar orientations give rise to biases. We use these simulations to assess whether or not existing SMBH measurements in barred galaxies are likely to be biased. We also present a brief preview of our JWST Early Release Science proposal to study the nuclear dynamics of nearby Seyfert I galaxy NGC 4151 with the NIRSpec Integral Field Spectrograph and describe how simulations of disk galaxies will used to create mock NIRSpec data to prepare for the real data.

Tidally Induced Bars of Galaxies in Clusters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Łokas, Ewa L.; Ebrová, Ivana; del Pino, Andrés; Sybilska, Agnieszka; Athanassoula, E.; Semczuk, Marcin; Gajda, Grzegorz; Fouquet, Sylvain

2016-08-01

Using N-body simulations, we study the formation and evolution of tidally induced bars in disky galaxies in clusters. Our progenitor is a massive, late-type galaxy similar to the Milky Way, composed of an exponential disk and a Navarro-Frenk-White dark matter halo. We place the galaxy on four different orbits in a Virgo-like cluster and evolve it for 10 Gyr. As a reference case, we also evolve the same model in isolation. Tidally induced bars form on all orbits soon after the first pericenter passage and survive until the end of the evolution. They appear earlier, are stronger and longer, and have lower pattern speeds for tighter orbits. Only for the tightest orbit are the properties of the bar controlled by the orientation of the tidal torque from the cluster at pericenter. The mechanism behind the formation of the bars is the angular momentum transfer from the galaxy stellar component to its halo. All of the bars undergo extended periods of buckling instability that occur earlier and lead to more pronounced boxy/peanut shapes when the tidal forces are stronger. Using all simulation outputs of galaxies at different evolutionary stages, we construct a toy model of the galaxy population in the cluster and measure the average bar strength and bar fraction as a function of clustercentric radius. Both are found to be mildly decreasing functions of radius. We conclude that tidal forces can trigger bar formation in cluster cores, but not in the outskirts, and thus can cause larger concentrations of barred galaxies toward the cluster center.

Cinematique et dynamique des galaxies spirales barrees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hernandez, Olivier

The total mass (luminous and dark) of galaxies is derived from their circular velocities. Spectroscopic Fabry-Perot observations of the ionized gas component of spiral galaxies allow one to derive their kinematics. In the case of purely axisymmetric velocity fields--as in non-active and unbarred spirals galaxies-- the circular velocities can be derived directly. However, the velocity fields of barred galaxies (which constitute two thirds of the spirals) exhibit strong non-circular motions and need a careful analysis to retrieve the circular component. This thesis proposes the necessary steps to recover the axisymmetric component of barred spiral galaxies. The first step was to develop the best instrumentation possible for this work. [Special characters omitted.] , which is the most sensitive photon counting camera ever developed, was coupled to a Fabry-Perot interferometer. The observations of a sample of barred spiral galaxies--the BH a BAR sample--was assembled in order to obtain the most rigourous velocity fields. Then, the Tremaine-Weinberg method, which can determine the bar pattern speed and is usually used with the observations of stellar component, has been tested on the ionised gas and gave satisfactory results. Finally, all the above techniques have been applied to the BH a BAR sample in order to study the key parameters of the galaxies' evolution--bar pattern speeds, multiple stationary waves, resonances etc.--which will allow one to use N-body+SPH simulations to model properly the non-circular motions and determine the true total mass of barred spiral galaxies.

The dependence of bar frequency on galaxy mass, colour, and gas content - and angular resolution - in the local universe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erwin, Peter

2018-03-01

I use distance- and mass-limited subsamples of the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G) to investigate how the presence of bars in spiral galaxies depends on mass, colour, and gas content and whether large, Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)-based investigations of bar frequencies agree with local data. Bar frequency reaches a maximum of fbar ≈ 0.70 at M⋆ ˜ 109.7M⊙, declining to both lower and higher masses. It is roughly constant over a wide range of colours (g - r ≈ 0.1-0.8) and atomic gas fractions (log (M_{H I}/ M_{\\star }) ≈ -2.5 to 1). Bars are thus as common in blue, gas-rich galaxies are they are in red, gas-poor galaxies. This is in sharp contrast to many SDSS-based studies of z ˜ 0.01-0.1 galaxies, which report fbar increasing strongly to higher masses (from M⋆ ˜ 1010 to 1011M⊙), redder colours, and lower gas fractions. The contradiction can be explained if SDSS-based studies preferentially miss bars in, and underestimate the bar fraction for, lower mass (bluer, gas-rich) galaxies due to poor spatial resolution and the correlation between bar size and stellar mass. Simulations of SDSS-style observations using the S4G galaxies as a parent sample, and assuming that bars below a threshold angular size of twice the point spread function full width at half-maximum cannot be identified, successfully reproduce typical SDSS fbar trends for stellar mass and gas mass ratio. Similar considerations may affect high-redshift studies, especially if bars grow in length over cosmic time; simulations suggest that high-redshift bar fractions may thus be systematically underestimated.

Barred Ring Galaxy NGC 1291

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-05-05

This ultraviolet image left and visual image right from NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer is of the barred ring galaxy NGC 1291. The VIS image is dominated by the inner disk and bar. The UV image is dominated by the low surface brightness outer arms.

On the Offset of Barred Galaxies from the Black Hole M BH-σ Relationship

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Jonathan S.; Valluri, Monica; Shen, Juntai; Debattista, Victor P.

2013-12-01

We use collisionless N-body simulations to determine how the growth of a supermassive black hole (SMBH) influences the nuclear kinematics in both barred and unbarred galaxies. In the presence of a bar, the increase in the velocity dispersion σ (within the effective radius) due to the growth of an SMBH is on average <~ 10%, whereas the increase is only <~ 4% in an unbarred galaxy. In a barred galaxy, the increase results from a combination of three separate factors: (1) orientation and inclination effects; (2) angular momentum transport by the bar that results in an increase in the central mass density; and (3) an increase in the vertical and radial velocity anisotropy of stars in the vicinity of the SMBH. In contrast, the growth of the SMBH in an unbarred galaxy causes the velocity distribution in the inner part of the nucleus to become less radially anisotropic. The increase in σ following the growth of the SMBH is insensitive to a variation of a factor of 10 in the final mass of the SMBH, showing that it is the growth process rather than the actual SMBH mass that alters bar evolution in a way that increases σ. We argue that using an axisymmetric stellar dynamical modeling code to measure SMBH masses in barred galaxies could result in a slight overestimate of the derived M BH, especially if a constant M/L ratio is assumed. We conclude that the growth of a black hole in the presence of a bar could result in an increase in σ that is roughly 4%-8% larger than the increase that occurs in an axisymmetric system. While the increase in σ due to SMBH growth in a barred galaxy might partially account for the claimed offset of barred galaxies and pseudo bulges from the M BH-σ relation obtained for elliptical galaxies and classical bulges in unbarred galaxies, it is inadequate to account for all of the offset.

Exploring the Origin of Kinematically Irregular Galaxies with MaNGA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stark, David Vincent; Bundy, Kevin; Westfall, Kyle; Bershady, Matthew; Cheung, Edmond; Soler, Juan; Brinchmann, Jarle; Abraham, Roberto; Bizyaev, Dmitry; Masters, Karen; Weijmans, Anne-Marie; Chen, Yanmei; Jin, Yifei; Drory, Niv; Lopes, Alexandre Roman; Law, David

2018-01-01

Deviations from normal rotation in galaxies may have a number of potential drivers, including tidal interactions, gas inflows/outflows, spiral structure, bar/oval distortions, or other internally generated instabilities. Thanks to new massive IFU surveys like MaNGA, we can now characterize the gas and stellar kinematics of thousands of galaxies in the local universe, enabling statistical analyses on the frequency of disturbed kinematics, their origin, and their impact on their host galaxies. We present a census of kinematics in MaNGA using a modified version of the Radon transform to map radial variations in kinematic position angles (PA). We discuss the frequency of kinematically irregular disks, and describe commonly observed patterns in radial PA profiles. In order to constrain the drivers of these kinematic signatures, we analyze how they correlate with galaxy mass, environment, star formation history, and gas-phase metallicity.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Van den Bergh, Sidney, E-mail: sidney.vandenbergh@nrc.gc.ca

No significant color differences are found between normal and barred spirals over the range of Hubble stages a-ab-b-bc. Furthermore, no significant difference is seen between the luminosity distributions of normal and barred galaxies over the same range of Hubble stages. However, SBc galaxies are found to be systematically fainter than Sc galaxies at 99% confidence. The observation that normal and barred spirals with Hubble stages a-ab-b-bc have indistinguishable intrinsic colors hints at the possibility that the bars in such spiral galaxies might be ephemeral structures. Finally, it is pointed out that lenticular galaxies of types S0 and SB0 are systematicallymore » fainter than are other early-type galaxies, suggesting that such galaxies are situated on evolutionary tracks that differ systematically from those of galaxies that lie along the E-Sa-Sb-Sc and E-SBa-SBb-SBc sequences.« less

Large velocity dispersion of molecular gas in bars of strongly barred galaxies NGC 1300 and NGC 5383

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maeda, Fumiya; Ohta, Kouji; Fujimoto, Yusuke; Habe, Asao; Baba, Junichi

2018-06-01

We carried out ^{12}CO(J = 1-0) observations toward bar and arm regions of the strongly barred galaxies NGC 1300 and NGC 5383 with the Nobeyama 45 m radio telescope (beam size of 1-2 kpc in the galaxies). The aim of the observations is to qualitatively examine a new scenario for the suppression of star formation in bars based on recent high-resolution numerical simulations: higher speed collisions between molecular clouds in the bar region compared with the arm region suppress the massive star formation. CO emissions were detected from all the regions, indicating the presence of molecular gases in the strong bars without associating clear H II regions. In both galaxies, the velocity width of the CO line profile tends to be larger in the bar region than in the arm region, which is qualitatively consistent with the new scenario.

Spiral Arm Morphology of Nearby Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ann, Hong Bae; Lee, Hyun-Rok

2013-06-01

We analyze the spiral structure of 1725 nearby spiral galaxies with redshift less than 0.02. We use the color images provided by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We determine the arm classes (grand design, multiple-arm, flocculent) and the broad Hubble types (early, intermediate, late) as well as the bar types (SA, SAB, SB) by visual inspection. We find that flocculent galaxies are mostly of late Hubble type while multiple-arm galaxies are likely to be of early Hubble type. The fractional distribution of grand design galaxies is nearly constant along the Hubble type. The dependence of arm class on bar type is not as strong as that of the Hubble type. However, there is about a three times larger fraction of grand design spirals in SB galaxies than in SA galaxies, with nearly constant fractions of multiple-arm galaxies. However, if we consider the Hubble type and bar type together, grand design spirals are more frequent in early types than in late types for SA and SAB galaxies, while they are almost constant along the Hubble type for SB galaxies. There are clear correlations between spiral structures and the local background density: strongly barred, early-type, grand design spirals favor high-density regions, while non-barred, late-type, flocculent galaxies are likely to be found in low-density regions.

THE HST/ACS COMA CLUSTER SURVEY. VIII. BARRED DISK GALAXIES IN THE CORE OF THE COMA CLUSTER

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Marinova, Irina; Jogee, Shardha; Weinzirl, Tim

2012-02-20

We use high-resolution ({approx}0.''1) F814W Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) images from the Hubble Space Telescope ACS Treasury survey of the Coma cluster at z {approx} 0.02 to study bars in massive disk galaxies (S0s), as well as low-mass dwarf galaxies in the core of the Coma cluster, the densest environment in the nearby universe. Our study helps to constrain the evolution of bars and disks in dense environments and provides a comparison point for studies in lower density environments and at higher redshifts. Our results are: (1) we characterize the fraction and properties of bars in a sample ofmore » 32 bright (M{sub V} {approx}< -18, M{sub *} > 10{sup 9.5} M{sub Sun }) S0 galaxies, which dominate the population of massive disk galaxies in the Coma core. We find that the measurement of a bar fraction among S0 galaxies must be handled with special care due to the difficulty in separating unbarred S0s from ellipticals, and the potential dilution of the bar signature by light from a relatively large, bright bulge. The results depend sensitively on the method used: the bar fraction for bright S0s in the Coma core is 50% {+-} 11%, 65% {+-} 11%, and 60% {+-} 11% based on three methods of bar detection, namely, strict ellipse fit criteria, relaxed ellipse fit criteria, and visual classification. (2) We compare the S0 bar fraction across different environments (the Coma core, A901/902, and Virgo) adopting the critical step of using matched samples and matched methods in order to ensure robust comparisons. We find that the bar fraction among bright S0 galaxies does not show a statistically significant variation (within the error bars of {+-}11%) across environments which span two orders of magnitude in galaxy number density (n {approx} 300-10,000 galaxies Mpc{sup -3}) and include rich and poor clusters, such as the core of Coma, the A901/902 cluster, and Virgo. We speculate that the bar fraction among S0s is not significantly enhanced in rich clusters compared to low-density environments for two reasons. First, S0s in rich clusters are less prone to bar instabilities as they are dynamically heated by harassment and are gas poor as a result of ram pressure stripping and accelerated star formation. Second, high-speed encounters in rich clusters may be less effective than slow, strong encounters in inducing bars. (3) We also take advantage of the high resolution of the ACS ({approx}50 pc) to analyze a sample of 333 faint (M{sub V} > -18) dwarf galaxies in the Coma core. Using visual inspection of unsharp-masked images, we find only 13 galaxies with bar and/or spiral structure. An additional eight galaxies show evidence for an inclined disk. The paucity of disk structures in Coma dwarfs suggests that either disks are not common in these galaxies or that any disks present are too hot to develop instabilities.« less

Why Are Some Galaxies Not Barred?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saha, Kanak; Elmegreen, Bruce

2018-05-01

Although more than two-thirds of star-forming disk galaxies in the local universe are barred, some galaxies remain unbarred, occupying the upper half of the Hubble tuning fork diagram. Numerical simulations almost always produce bars spontaneously, so it remains a challenge to understand how galaxies sometimes prevent bars from forming. Using a set of collisionless simulations, we first reproduce the common result that cold stellar disks surrounding a classical bulge become strongly unstable to non-axisymmetric perturbations, leading to the rapid formation of spiral structure and bars. However, our analyses show that galaxy models with compact classical bulges (whose average density is greater than or comparable to the disk density calculated within bulge half-mass radii) are able to prevent bar formation for at least 4 Gyr even when the stellar disk is maximal and having low Toomre Q. Such bar prevention is the result of several factors such as (a) a small inner Lindblad resonance with a high angular rate, which contaminates an incipient bar with x 2 orbits, and (b) rapid loss of angular momentum accompanied by a rapid heating in the center from initially strong bar and spiral instabilities in a low-Q disk; in other words, a rapid initial rise to a value larger than ∼5 of the ratio of the random energy to the rotational energy in the central region of the galaxy.

Bar formation as driver of gas inflows in isolated disc galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fanali, R.; Dotti, M.; Fiacconi, D.; Haardt, F.

2015-12-01

Stellar bars are a common feature in massive disc galaxies. On a theoretical ground, the response of gas to a bar is generally thought to cause nuclear starbursts and, possibly, AGN activity once the perturbed gas reaches the central supermassive black hole. By means of high-resolution numerical simulations, we detail the purely dynamical effects that a forming bar exerts on the gas of an isolated disc galaxy. The galaxy is initially unstable to the formation of non-axisymmetric structures, and within ˜1 Gyr it develops spiral arms that eventually evolve into a central stellar bar on kpc scale. A first major episode of gas inflow occurs during the formation of the spiral arms while at later times, when the stellar bar is establishing, a low-density region is carved between the bar corotational and inner Lindblad resonance radii. The development of such `dead zone' inhibits further massive gas inflows. Indeed, the gas inflow reaches its maximum during the relatively fast bar-formation phase and not, as often assumed, when the bar is fully formed. We conclude that the low efficiency of long-lived, evolved bars in driving gas towards galactic nuclei is the reason why observational studies have failed to establish an indisputable link between bars and AGNs. On the other hand, the high efficiency in driving strong gas inflows of the intrinsically transient process of bar formation suggests that the importance of bars as drivers of AGN activity in disc galaxies has been overlooked so far. We finally prove that our conclusions are robust against different numerical implementations of the hydrodynamics routinely used in galaxy evolution studies.

The Black Hole Mass-Bulge Luminosity Relationship for Reverberation- Mapped AGNs in the Near-IR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manne-Nicholas, Emily R.; Bentz, Misty C.

2013-02-01

We propose to use WHIRC on WIYN to obtain high spatial resolution near-IR images of the remaining host galaxies in our sample of reverberation-mapped AGNs in order to study the effect of host-galaxy morphology on the M_BH-L_bulge scaling relationship. Recent studies of the M_BH-sigma_star relationship, which is based on the stellar and gas-dynamical sample of black hole masses, have uncovered a possible offset in the relationship due to the presence of a pseudobulge or bar in the host galaxy. This offset would adversely affect ones ability to use the M_BH-sigma_star relationship as a way to estimate black hole masses efficiently because it would require the detailed morphology of the galaxy to be known it a priori. Preliminary results based on optical HST data suggest that the M_BH-L_bulge is not plagued by this same offset. However, due to dust and on-going star formation, the optical data yield an M_BH-L_bulge relationship with a slightly higher scatter. WHIRC near-IR imaging is essential to minimize the effects of dust and star formation in order to confirm the M_BH-L_bulge relationship as a more accurate predictor of black hole masses and a potentially more fundamental relationship, thus informing our understanding of black hole and galaxy co-evolution across cosmic time. emphThe proposed observations will comprise a significant portion of the PI's PhD thesis.

Box/peanut and bar structures in edge-on and face-on nearby galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey - I. Catalogue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoshino, Akira; Yamauchi, Chisato

2015-02-01

We investigate box/peanut and bar structures in image data of edge-on and face-on nearby galaxies taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) to present catalogues containing the surface brightness parameters and the morphology classification. About 1700 edge-on galaxies and 2600 face-on galaxies are selected from SDSS DR7 in the g, r and i-bands. The images of each galaxy are fitted with the model of two-dimensional surface brightness of the Sérsic bulge and exponential disk. After removing some irregular data, the box/peanut, bar and other structures are easily distinguished by eye using residual (observed minus model) images. We find 292 box/peanut structures in the 1329 edge-on samples and 630 bar structures in 1890 face-on samples in the i-band, after removing some irregular data. The fraction of box/peanut galaxies is about 22 per cent against the edge-on samples, and that of bar galaxies is about 33 per cent (about 50 per cent if 629 elliptical galaxies are removed) against the face-on samples. Furthermore the strengths of the box/peanuts and bars are evaluated as strong, standard or weak. We find that the strength increases slightly with increasing B/T (bulge-to-total flux ratio), and that the fraction of box/peanuts is generally about a half of that of bars, irrespective of the strength and B/T. Our result supports the idea that a box/peanut is a bar seen edge-on.

Two-dimensional multi-component photometric decomposition of CALIFA galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Méndez-Abreu, J.; Ruiz-Lara, T.; Sánchez-Menguiano, L.; de Lorenzo-Cáceres, A.; Costantin, L.; Catalán-Torrecilla, C.; Florido, E.; Aguerri, J. A. L.; Bland-Hawthorn, J.; Corsini, E. M.; Dettmar, R. J.; Galbany, L.; García-Benito, R.; Marino, R. A.; Márquez, I.; Ortega-Minakata, R. A.; Papaderos, P.; Sánchez, S. F.; Sánchez-Blazquez, P.; Spekkens, K.; van de Ven, G.; Wild, V.; Ziegler, B.

2017-02-01

We present a two-dimensional multi-component photometric decomposition of 404 galaxies from the Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area data release 3 (CALIFA-DR3). They represent all possible galaxies with no clear signs of interaction and not strongly inclined in the final CALIFA data release. Galaxies are modelled in the g, r, and I Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) images including, when appropriate, a nuclear point source, bulge, bar, and an exponential or broken disc component. We use a human-supervised approach to determine the optimal number of structures to be included in the fit. The dataset, including the photometric parameters of the CALIFA sample, is released together with statistical errors and a visual analysis of the quality of each fit. The analysis of the photometric components reveals a clear segregation of the structural composition of galaxies with stellar mass. At high masses (log (M⋆/M⊙) > 11), the galaxy population is dominated by galaxies modelled with a single Sérsic or a bulge+disc with a bulge-to-total (B/T) luminosity ratio B/T > 0.2. At intermediate masses (9.5 < log (M⋆/M⊙) < 11), galaxies described with bulge+disc but B/T < 0.2 are preponderant, whereas, at the low mass end (log (M⋆/M⊙) < 9.5), the prevailing population is constituted by galaxies modelled with either purediscs or nuclear point sources+discs (I.e., no discernible bulge). We obtain that 57% of the volume corrected sample of disc galaxies in the CALIFA sample host a bar. This bar fraction shows a significant drop with increasing galaxy mass in the range 9.5 < log (M⋆/M⊙) < 11.5. The analyses of the extended multi-component radial profile result in a volume-corrected distribution of 62%, 28%, and 10% for the so-called Type I (pure exponential), Type II (down-bending), and Type III (up-bending) disc profiles, respectively. These fractions are in discordance with previous findings. We argue that the different methodologies used to detect the breaks are the main cause for these differences. The catalog of fitted parameters is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (http://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/598/A32

Detection of bars in galaxies using a deep convolutional neural network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abraham, Sheelu; Aniyan, A. K.; Kembhavi, Ajit K.; Philip, N. S.; Vaghmare, Kaustubh

2018-06-01

We present an automated method for the detection of bar structure in optical images of galaxies using a deep convolutional neural network that is easy to use and provides good accuracy. In our study, we use a sample of 9346 galaxies in the redshift range of 0.009-0.2 from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), which has 3864 barred galaxies, the rest being unbarred. We reach a top precision of 94 per cent in identifying bars in galaxies using the trained network. This accuracy matches the accuracy reached by human experts on the same data without additional information about the images. Since deep convolutional neural networks can be scaled to handle large volumes of data, the method is expected to have great relevance in an era where astronomy data is rapidly increasing in terms of volume, variety, volatility, and velocity along with other V's that characterize big data. With the trained model, we have constructed a catalogue of barred galaxies from SDSS and made it available online.

Effects of the Bar Strength of Gaseous Features in Barred Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Woong-Tae; Seo, W.; Kim, Y.

2013-01-01

Barred galaxies commonly possess gaseous structures such as a pair of dust lanes, a nuclear ring, and nuclear spirals at their centers. We use hydrodynamic simulations to study the physical properties of the gaseous structures in barred galaxies and their relationships with the bar strength. We vary the bar mass fbar relative to the spheroidal component as well as its aspect ratio. We derive expressions for the bar strength Qb and the radius where the maximum bar torque occurs. When applied to observations, these expressions suggest that bars in real galaxies are most likely to have fbar = 0.25-0.5. Dust lanes approximately follow one of x1-orbits and tend to be more straight under a stronger and more elongated bar. A nuclear ring of a conventional x2 type forms only when the bar is not so massive or elongated. The radius of an x2-type ring is generally smaller than the inner Lindblad resonance, decreases systematically with increasing Qb, evidencing that the ring position is not determined by the resonance but by the bar strength. Nuclear spirals exist only when the ring is of the x2-type and sufficiently large in size. Unlike the other features, nuclear spirals are transient in that they start out as being tightly-wound and weak, and then due to the nonlinear effect unwind and become stronger until turning into shocks, with an unwinding rate higher for larger Qb. These results suggest that the bar strength is the primary factor that determine the properties of gaseous structures in barred galaxies.

Galactic rings revisited. II. Dark gaps and the locations of resonances in early-to-intermediate-type disc galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buta, Ronald J.

2017-10-01

Dark gaps are commonly seen in early-to-intermediate-type barred galaxies having inner and outer rings or related features. In this paper, the morphologies of 54 barred and oval ringed galaxies have been examined with the goal of determining what the dark gaps are telling us about the structure and evolution of barred galaxies. The analysis is based mainly on galaxies selected from the Galaxy Zoo 2 data base and the Catalogue of Southern Ringed Galaxies. The dark gaps between inner and outer rings are of interest because of their likely association with the L4 and L5 Lagrangian points that would be present in the gravitational potential of a bar or oval. Since the points are theoretically expected to lie very close to the corotation resonance (CR) of the bar pattern, the gaps provide the possibility of locating corotation in some galaxies simply by measuring the radius rgp of the gap region and setting rCR=rgp. With the additional assumption of generally flat rotation curves, the locations of other resonances can be predicted and compared with observed morphological features. It is shown that this `gap method' provides remarkably consistent interpretations of the morphology of early-to-intermediate-type barred galaxies. The paper also brings attention to cases where the dark gaps lie inside an inner ring, rather than between inner and outer rings. These may have a different origin compared to the inner/outer ring gaps.

The ALMA and HST Views of the Molecular Gas and Star Formation in the Prototypical Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1097

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheth, Kartik; Regan, Michael W.; Kim, Taehyun; Kohno, Kotaro; Martin, Sergio; Villard, Eric; Onishi, Kyoko

2016-01-01

We mapped the entire inner disk of NGC 1097 (the circumnuclear ring, bar ends, the bar and inner spiral arms) using ALMA in the CO J=1-0 line at resolution of 1" (~65 pc). We also mapped the northern half of the bar in every other common molecular gas tracer at 3mm (HCN, HCO+, C18O, 13CO, C34S). Together these data provide the most detailed and highest resolution map of the molecular gas distribution and kinematics in a nearby barred spiral, rivalling the incredible maps seen for galaxies like M51 in the northern hemisphere. The data show the impact of the different environments in the galaxy as well as evidence for a multi-phased molecular medium. The data also evidence how the shear induced by the bar shock completely inhibits the star formation activity in the inner ends of the bar (clearly showing an anti-correlation between the strength of the CO line emission and Halpha emission). We will also present multiwavelength HST observations of the galaxy which are used to identify and map star clusters across the inner disk of the galaxy. We use these data to understand how star formation proceeds from one environment to the next across the galaxy.

Nuclear Rings in Galaxies - A Kinematic Perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mazzuca, Lisa M.; Swaters, Robert A.; Knapen, Johan H.; Veilleux, Sylvain

2011-01-01

We combine DensePak integral field unit and TAURUS Fabry-Perot observations of 13 nuclear rings to show an interconnection between the kinematic properties of the rings and their resonant origin. The nuclear rings have regular and symmetric kinematics, and lack strong non-circular motions. This symmetry, coupled with a direct relationship between the position angles and ellipticities of the rings and those of their host galaxies, indicate the rings are in the same plane as the disc and are circular. From the rotation curves derived, we have estimated the compactness (v(sup 2)/r) up to the turnover radius, which is where the nuclear rings reside. We find that there is evidence of a correlation between compactness and ring width and size. Radially wide rings are less compact, and thus have lower mass concentration. The compactness increases as the ring width decreases. We also find that the nuclear ring size is dependent on the bar strength, with weaker bars allowing rings of any size to form.

Formation of Tidally Induced Bars in Galactic Flybys: Prograde versus Retrograde Encounters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Łokas, Ewa L.

2018-04-01

Bars in disk galaxies can be formed by interactions with other systems, including those of comparable mass. It has long been established that the effect of such interactions on galaxy morphology depends strongly on the orbital configuration, in particular the orientation of the intrinsic spin of the galactic disk with respect to its orbital angular momentum. Prograde encounters modify the morphology strongly, including the formation of tidally induced bars, while retrograde flybys should have little effect on morphology. Recent works on the subject reached conflicting conclusions, one using the impulse approximation and claiming no dependence on this angle in the properties of tidal bars. To resolve the controversy, we performed self-consistent N-body simulations of hyperbolic encounters between two identical Milky Way-like galaxies assuming different velocities and impact parameters, with one of the galaxies on a prograde and the other on a retrograde orbit. The galaxies were initially composed of an exponential stellar disk and an NFW dark halo, and they were stable against bar formation in isolation for 3 Gyr. We find that strong tidally induced bars form only in galaxies on prograde orbits. For smaller impact parameters and lower relative velocities, the bars are stronger and have lower pattern speeds. Stronger bars undergo extended periods of buckling instability that thicken their vertical structure. The encounters also lead to the formation of two-armed spirals with strength inversely proportional to the strength of the bars. We conclude that proper modeling of prograde and retrograde encounters cannot rely on the simplest impulse approximation.

Estimating non-circular motions in barred galaxies using numerical N-body simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Randriamampandry, T. H.; Combes, F.; Carignan, C.; Deg, N.

2015-12-01

The observed velocities of the gas in barred galaxies are a combination of the azimuthally averaged circular velocity and non-circular motions, primarily caused by gas streaming along the bar. These non-circular flows must be accounted for before the observed velocities can be used in mass modelling. In this work, we examine the performance of the tilted-ring method and the DISKFIT algorithm for transforming velocity maps of barred spiral galaxies into rotation curves (RCs) using simulated data. We find that the tilted-ring method, which does not account for streaming motions, under-/overestimates the circular motions when the bar is parallel/perpendicular to the projected major axis. DISKFIT, which does include streaming motions, is limited to orientations where the bar is not aligned with either the major or minor axis of the image. Therefore, we propose a method of correcting RCs based on numerical simulations of galaxies. We correct the RC derived from the tilted-ring method based on a numerical simulation of a galaxy with similar properties and projections as the observed galaxy. Using observations of NGC 3319, which has a bar aligned with the major axis, as a test case, we show that the inferred mass models from the uncorrected and corrected RCs are significantly different. These results show the importance of correcting for the non-circular motions and demonstrate that new methods of accounting for these motions are necessary as current methods fail for specific bar alignments.

On the nature of the barlens component in barred galaxies: what do boxy/peanut bulges look like when viewed face-on?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Athanassoula, E.; Laurikainen, E.; Salo, H.; Bosma, A.

2015-12-01

Barred galaxies have interesting morphological features whose presence and properties set constraints on galactic evolution. Here we examine barlenses, i.e. lens-like components whose extent along the bar major axis is shorter than that of the bar and whose outline is oval or circular. We identify and analyse barlenses in N-body plus SPH simulations, compare them extensively with those from the NIRS0S (Near-IR S0 galaxy Survey) and the S4G samples (Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies) and find very good agreement. We observe barlenses in our simulations from different viewing angles. This reveals that barlenses are the vertically thick part of the bar seen face-on, i.e. a barlens seen edge-on is a boxy/peanut/X bulge. In morphological studies, and in the absence of kinematics or photometry, a barlens, or part of it, may be mistaken for a classical bulge. Thus the true importance of classical bulges, both in numbers and mass, is smaller than currently assumed, which has implications for galaxy formation studies. Finally, using the shape of the isodensity curves, we propose a rule of thumb for measuring the barlens extent along the bar major axis of moderately inclined galaxies, thus providing an estimate of which part of the bar is thicker.

A study of the effect of bulges on bar formation in disc galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kataria, Sandeep Kumar; Das, Mousumi

2018-04-01

We use N-body simulations of bar formation in isolated galaxies to study the effect of bulge mass and bulge concentration on bar formation. Bars are global disc instabilities that evolve by transferring angular momentum from the inner to outer discs and to the dark matter halo. It is well known that a massive spherical component such as halo in a disc galaxy can make it bar stable. In this study, we explore the effect of another spherical component, the bulge, on bar formation in disc galaxies. In our models, we vary both the bulge mass and concentration. We have used two sets of models: one that has a dense bulge and high surface density disc, and the other model has a less concentrated bulge and a lighter disc. In both models, we vary the bulge to disc mass fraction from 0 to 0.7. Simulations of both the models show that there is an upper cut-off in bulge-to-disc mass ratio Mb/Md above which bars cannot form; the cut-off is smaller for denser bulges (Mb/Md = 0.2) compared to less denser ones (Mb/Md = 0.5). We define a new criterion for bar formation in terms of the ratio of bulge to total radial force (Fb/Ftot) at the disc scale lengths above which bars cannot form. We find that if Fb/Ftot > 0.35, a disc is stable and a bar cannot form. Our results indicate that early-type disc galaxies can still form strong bars in spite of having massive bulges.

The road to the red sequence via secular and environmental processes: insights from the local Universe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Consolandi, Guido

2017-04-01

The evolution of galaxies can be thought as the result of the cumulative effects of two broad classes of processes: (i) secular (internal) processes determined by the very nature of the galaxy, and (ii) external processes that are determined by the environment in which the object is embedded. In this thesis I face both aspects of galaxy evolution. Among secular processes, I investigated the effects of stellar bars on the gaseous components of galaxies and their consequences on their evolution. In particular I show how bars affect both the ionized and cold gas in two different samples: the sample of the Halpha3 survey, an Halpha imaging survey of galaxies selected from ALFALFA in the Local and Coma superclusters; the Herschel Reference Sample, a representative sample of 323 local galaxies observed with the space-based Herschel observatory sensitive to the far-infrared emission of dust, a good tracer of cold gas. Owing to the Halpha3 data I demonstrate that main sequence barred galaxies have specific star formation rate suppressed with respect to pure disks. Here I propose a simple model in which bars drive the evolution of disk galaxies. Hydrodynamical simulations indeed show that a barred potential funnels the gas inside the corotation radius toward the center of the galaxy where it reaches high densities, cools and can be consumed by a burst of star formation. At the same time the dynamical torque of the bar keeps the gas outside the corotation radius in place, cutting the gas supply to the central region that consequently stops its star formation activity. Taking advantage of the images of the HRS sample, we show the evidences of such quenching. The aforementioned model is further tested by studying the stellar population properties of galaxies belonging to a sample of 6000 galaxies extracted from SDSS. To this aim, I designed in-house IDL codes that automatically perform aperture photometry and isophotal fitting recovering reliable magnitudes, colors, ellipticity, position angle (P.A.) and color pr! ofiles. The automatic procedure is complemented by an automatic bar finder able to extract a fairly pure sample of barred galaxies on the basis of their P.A. and ellipticity profiles. The analysis of color profiles show that disk galaxies have their central regions redder (therefore quenched) than their outer regions and that this is more evident at high mass. The high local bar fraction that we extrapolate as well as the analysis of the average color profile of barred galaxies shows the strong contribution of bars to the observed colors. In a second part, I present the work done in the field of environmental processes. The work is focused on the analysis of the observations, carried on with the IFU MUSE, of a system belonging to the nearby galaxy cluster A1367. These observations mosaicked the galaxies UGC-66967 and CGCG-97087N, two galaxies suffering ram pressure stripping and that have possibly interacted, as hinted by the presence of gas in the region between them. Owing to in-house automatic Python codes and by comparing the gas velocities to the stellar kinematics, we could separate the emission of the ionized gas in a stripped component and a component still attached to the potential of the galaxy. While the gas onboard the galaxy shows low velocity dispersions and ionizations states consistent with photoionization by stars, the stripped gas is more turbulent and ionized by shocks. The HII regions that formed in the tail of UGC-66967 (but are absent in the tail of CGCG-97087N) are systematically found in regions where the velocity dispersion of the gas is lower than 50 km/s, while the stripped gas show typical velocity dispersions about or greater than 100 km/s.

Simulating a slow bar in the low surface brightness galaxy UGC 628

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chequers, Matthew H.; Spekkens, Kristine; Widrow, Lawrence M.; Gilhuly, Colleen

2016-12-01

We present a disc-halo N-body model of the low surface brightness galaxy UGC 628, one of the few systems that harbours a `slow' bar with a ratio of corotation radius to bar length of R ≡ R_c/a_b ˜ 2. We select our initial conditions using SDSS DR10 photometry, a physically motivated radially variable mass-to-light ratio profile, and rotation curve data from the literature. A global bar instability grows in our submaximal disc model, and the disc morphology and dynamics agree broadly with the photometry and kinematics of UGC 628 at times between peak bar strength and the onset of buckling. Prior to bar formation, the disc and halo contribute roughly equally to the potential in the galaxy's inner region, giving the disc enough self-gravity for bar modes to grow. After bar formation, there is significant mass redistribution, creating a baryon-dominated inner and dark matter-dominated outer disc. This implies that, unlike most other low surface brightness galaxies, UGC 628 is not dark matter dominated everywhere. Our model nonetheless implies that UGC 628 falls on the same relationship between dark matter fraction and rotation velocity found for high surface brightness galaxies, and lends credence to the argument that the disc mass fraction measured at the location where its contribution to the potential peaks is not a reliable indicator of its dynamical importance at all radii.

N-body modeling of barlens galaxies: Boxy/Peanut/X observed at different viewing geometries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salo, Heikki; Laurikainen, Eija

2017-06-01

We use stellar dynamical N-body simulations to explore barlens galaxies, i.e. galaxies with lens-like central structures embedded in their bars, with a size about one-half of the narrow bar component. Because of their roundish isophotes, barlenses are often confused with classical bulges. However, growing evidence indicates that barlenses form a part of the bar, corresponding to the face-on projection of the vertically extended Boxy/Peanut/X central structures seen in edge-on barred galaxies (see Laurikainen et al. 2014, 2016, Athanassoula et al. 2015). B/P/X/barlens structures appear mostly in galaxies with stellar masses above 1010 solar masses. It has been suggested by Bland-Hawthorn & Gerhard (2016) that in face-on view also our Milky Way is likely to be a barlens galaxy.Here we review the morphological appearance of B/P/X/barlens galaxies (aspect ratio, size compared to the narrow bar) as a function of viewing inclination, by comparing synthetic images from simulations with the 3.6 micron data from S4G (Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies). We demonstrate how the X/barlens morphology depends on the central mass concentration in galaxies; the pure barlens morphology requires steep inner rotation curves, while for shallower slopes the central structure still resembles a barlens, but shows boxy isophotes or X-signature even at low inclinations. This simulated behavior is confirmed with S4G data (Salo & Laurikainen 2017). We also use broadband SDSS colors and CALIFA DR3 data from literature, to analyze the ages and metallicities of the barlens components with respect to the narrow bar and the centralpeak of the galaxies. Finally, kinematic maps of the simulated galaxies are presented, illustrating the expected signatures of barlens component on the H3 and H4 Hermite-moments.

The study of two barred galaxies with curious kinematical features

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saburova, A. S.; Katkov, I. Y.; Khoperskov, S. A.; Zasov, A. V.; Uklein, R. I.

2017-09-01

We performed long-slit spectral observations of two SB-type galaxies: NGC 5347 and UGC 1344. They were previously suspected as the galaxies with unusually low mass-to-light ratios (on the ground of mass estimates from the H I linewidths), which are in conflict with their observed colours. The observations were conducted at the Russian 6-m telescope. The aim of this study was to clarify the kinematics and structure, as well as the properties of stellar populations of the galaxies. The results of observations disproved the peculiarly low mass-to-light ratios of both galaxies. The most probable reasons of underestimation of their masses are discussed. We tried to reproduce the main observed features of kinematical profiles of the galaxies in the N-body simulations of barred galaxies. We found that both galaxies possess central components of different structures. Indeed, the age and velocity dispersion of stellar population in NGC 5347 are low in its innermost part in comparison to that of the bulge or a bar, which agrees with the presence of nuclear kinematically decoupled disc. It probably was formed due to the bar that supplied the inner region with gas. The kinematical profiles of the second galaxy UGC 1344 give evidence in favour of the central peanut-shaped bulge. In spite of the different luminosities of the two galaxies, they possess nearly equal (close to solar) central stellar abundance and the flattening of the stellar metallicity gradient in the bar regions. However, in the less luminous NGC 5347, the mean stellar age is younger than that in UGC 1344.

The Black Hole Mass-Bulge Luminosity Relationship for Reverberation-Mapped AGNs in the Near-IR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicholas, Emily; Bentz, M. C.

2014-01-01

We present preliminary results for a near-IR M-L scaling relationship for active galaxies in the reverberation sample. We are particularly interested in the effect of host-galaxy morphology on the M-L scaling relationship. In order to study evolution over cosmic time we must employ scaling relations, which are calibrated to the direct methods of black hole mass measurement and rely on correlations between host galaxy properties and black hole masses. However, it remains uncertain which scaling relation most reliably predicts black hole masses based on host galaxy observables. Recent studies of the M- relationship have uncovered a possible offset in the relationship due to the presence of a pseudobulge or bar in the host galaxy. This offset would adversely affect one's ability to use the M-relationship as a way to estimate black hole masses efficiently because it would require the detailed morphology of the galaxy to be known a priori. Preliminary results based on optical HST data suggest that the M-L relation for active galaxies with reverberation-based black hole masses is not plagued by the same offsets. However, due to dust and on-going star formation, the optical data yield an M-L relationship with a slightly higher scatter than the M- relation. We have carried out near-IR imaging with the WIYN High-Resolution Infrared Camera (WHIRC) on the WIYN telescope to minimize the effects of dust and star formation in order to test whether the M-L relationship is a more accurate predictor of black hole masses and a potentially more fundamental relationship. The imaging campaign has been completed, and we are currently in the process of carefully modeling the galaxy surface brightness features so that we can accurately remove the contribution from the point spread function of the active nucleus. We present our preliminary results here, and we expect that the final results will prove to be quite useful in conjunction with future large imaging surveys, such as LSST, which have no dedicated spectroscopic component. Our team is also in the process of improving distance measurements to these galaxies, which could potentially help to decrease the scatter in bulge luminosity measurements for the reverberation sample.

Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA): variation in galaxy structure across the green valley

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelvin, Lee S.; Bremer, Malcolm N.; Phillipps, Steven; James, Philip A.; Davies, Luke J. M.; De Propris, Roberto; Moffett, Amanda J.; Percival, Susan M.; Baldry, Ivan K.; Collins, Chris A.; Alpaslan, Mehmet; Bland-Hawthorn, Joss; Brough, Sarah; Cluver, Michelle; Driver, Simon P.; Hashemizadeh, Abdolhosein; Holwerda, Benne W.; Laine, Jarkko; Lara-Lopez, Maritza A.; Liske, Jochen; Maciejewski, Witold; Napolitano, Nicola R.; Penny, Samantha J.; Popescu, Cristina C.; Sansom, Anne E.; Sutherland, Will; Taylor, Edward N.; van Kampen, Eelco; Wang, Lingyu

2018-07-01

Using a sample of 472 local Universe (z < 0.06) galaxies in the stellar mass range 10.25 {<} log {M}_{\\star }/{M}_{⊙} {<} 10.75, we explore the variation in galaxy structure as a function of morphology and galaxy colour. Our sample of galaxies is subdivided into red, green, and blue colour groups and into elliptical and non-elliptical (disk-type) morphologies. Using Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS) and Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) Kilo-Degree Infrared Galaxy Survey (VIKING) derived postage stamp images, a group of eight volunteers visually classified bars, rings, morphological lenses, tidal streams, shells, and signs of merger activity for all systems. We find a significant surplus of rings (2.3σ) and lenses (2.9σ) in disk-type galaxies as they transition across the green valley. Combined, this implies a joint ring/lens green valley surplus significance of 3.3σ relative to equivalent disk-types within either the blue cloud or the red sequence. We recover a bar fraction of {˜ }44 per cent which remains flat with colour, however, we find that the presence of a bar acts to modulate the incidence of rings and (to a lesser extent) lenses, with rings in barred disk-type galaxies more common by ˜20-30 percentage points relative to their unbarred counterparts, regardless of colour. Additionally, green valley disk-type galaxies with a bar exhibit a significant 3.0σ surplus of lenses relative to their blue/red analogues. The existence of such structures rules out violent transformative events as the primary end-of-life evolutionary mechanism, with a more passive scenario the favoured candidate for the majority of galaxies rapidly transitioning across the green valley.

Catalogue of the morphological features in the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herrera-Endoqui, M.; Díaz-García, S.; Laurikainen, E.; Salo, H.

2015-10-01

Context. A catalogue of the features for the complete Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G), including 2352 nearby galaxies, is presented. The measurements are made using 3.6 μm images, largely tracing the old stellar population; at this wavelength the effects of dust are also minimal. The measured features are the sizes, ellipticities, and orientations of bars, rings, ringlenses, and lenses. Measured in a similar manner are also barlenses (lens-like structures embedded in the bars), which are not lenses in the usual sense, being rather the more face-on counterparts of the boxy/peanut structures in the edge-on view. In addition, pitch angles of spiral arm segments are measured for those galaxies where they can be reliably traced. More than one pitch angle may appear for a single galaxy. All measurements are made in a human-supervised manner so that attention is paid to each galaxy. Aims: We create a catalogue of morphological features in the complete S4G. Methods: We used isophotal analysis, unsharp masking, and fitting ellipses to measured structures. Results: We find that the sizes of the inner rings and lenses normalized to barlength correlate with the galaxy mass: the normalized sizes increase toward the less massive galaxies; it has been suggested that this is related to the larger dark matter content in the bar region in these systems. Bars in the low mass galaxies are also less concentrated, likely to be connected to the mass cut-off in the appearance of the nuclear rings and lenses. We also show observational evidence that barlenses indeed form part of the bar, and that a large fraction of the inner lenses in the non-barred galaxies could be former barlenses in which the thin outer bar component has dissolved. Full Tables 2 and 3 are only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/582/A86

Supermassive Black Holes and Their Host Spheroids. I. Disassembling Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savorgnan, G. A. D.; Graham, A. W.

2016-01-01

Several recent studies have performed galaxy decompositions to investigate correlations between the black hole mass and various properties of the host spheroid, but they have not converged on the same conclusions. This is because their models for the same galaxy were often significantly different and not consistent with each other in terms of fitted components. Using 3.6 μm Spitzer imagery, which is a superb tracer of the stellar mass (superior to the K band), we have performed state-of-the-art multicomponent decompositions for 66 galaxies with directly measured black hole masses. Our sample is the largest to date and, unlike previous studies, contains a large number (17) of spiral galaxies with low black hole masses. We paid careful attention to the image mosaicking, sky subtraction, and masking of contaminating sources. After a scrupulous inspection of the galaxy photometry (through isophotal analysis and unsharp masking) and—for the first time—2D kinematics, we were able to account for spheroids large-scale, intermediate-scale, and nuclear disks bars rings spiral arms halos extended or unresolved nuclear sources; and partially depleted cores. For each individual galaxy, we compared our best-fit model with previous studies, explained the discrepancies, and identified the optimal decomposition. Moreover, we have independently performed one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) decompositions and concluded that, at least when modeling large, nearby galaxies, 1D techniques have more advantages than 2D techniques. Finally, we developed a prescription to estimate the uncertainties on the 1D best-fit parameters for the 66 spheroids that takes into account systematic errors, unlike popular 2D codes that only consider statistical errors.

SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES AND THEIR HOST SPHEROIDS. I. DISASSEMBLING GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Savorgnan, G. A. D.; Graham, A. W., E-mail: gsavorgn@astro.swin.edu.au

Several recent studies have performed galaxy decompositions to investigate correlations between the black hole mass and various properties of the host spheroid, but they have not converged on the same conclusions. This is because their models for the same galaxy were often significantly different and not consistent with each other in terms of fitted components. Using 3.6 μm Spitzer imagery, which is a superb tracer of the stellar mass (superior to the K band), we have performed state-of-the-art multicomponent decompositions for 66 galaxies with directly measured black hole masses. Our sample is the largest to date and, unlike previous studies, containsmore » a large number (17) of spiral galaxies with low black hole masses. We paid careful attention to the image mosaicking, sky subtraction, and masking of contaminating sources. After a scrupulous inspection of the galaxy photometry (through isophotal analysis and unsharp masking) and—for the first time—2D kinematics, we were able to account for spheroids; large-scale, intermediate-scale, and nuclear disks; bars; rings; spiral arms; halos; extended or unresolved nuclear sources; and partially depleted cores. For each individual galaxy, we compared our best-fit model with previous studies, explained the discrepancies, and identified the optimal decomposition. Moreover, we have independently performed one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) decompositions and concluded that, at least when modeling large, nearby galaxies, 1D techniques have more advantages than 2D techniques. Finally, we developed a prescription to estimate the uncertainties on the 1D best-fit parameters for the 66 spheroids that takes into account systematic errors, unlike popular 2D codes that only consider statistical errors.« less

An Elegant Galaxy in an Unusual Light

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2010-09-01

A new image taken with the powerful HAWK-I camera on ESO's Very Large Telescope at Paranal Observatory in Chile shows the beautiful barred spiral galaxy NGC 1365 in infrared light. NGC 1365 is a member of the Fornax cluster of galaxies, and lies about 60 million light-years from Earth. NGC 1365 is one of the best known and most studied barred spiral galaxies and is sometimes nicknamed the Great Barred Spiral Galaxy because of its strikingly perfect form, with the straight bar and two very prominent outer spiral arms. Closer to the centre there is also a second spiral structure and the whole galaxy is laced with delicate dust lanes. This galaxy is an excellent laboratory for astronomers to study how spiral galaxies form and evolve. The new infrared images from HAWK-I are less affected by the dust that obscures parts of the galaxy than images in visible light (potw1037a) and they reveal very clearly the glow from vast numbers of stars in both the bar and the spiral arms. These data were acquired to help astronomers understand the complex flow of material within the galaxy and how it affects the reservoirs of gas from which new stars can form. The huge bar disturbs the shape of the gravitational field of the galaxy and this leads to regions where gas is compressed and star formation is triggered. Many huge young star clusters trace out the main spiral arms and each contains hundreds or thousands of bright young stars that are less than ten million years old. The galaxy is too remote for single stars to be seen in this image and most of the tiny clumps visible in the picture are really star clusters. Over the whole galaxy, stars are forming at a rate of about three times the mass of our Sun per year. While the bar of the galaxy consists mainly of older stars long past their prime, many new stars are born in stellar nurseries of gas and dust in the inner spiral close to the nucleus. The bar also funnels gas and dust gravitationally into the very centre of the galaxy, where astronomers have found evidence for the presence of a super-massive black hole, well hidden among myriads of intensely bright new stars. NGC 1365, including its two huge outer spiral arms, spreads over around 200 000 light-years. Different parts of the galaxy take different times to make a full rotation around the core of the galaxy, with the outer parts of the bar completing one circuit in about 350 million years. NGC 1365 and other galaxies of its type have come to more prominence in recent years with new observations indicating that the Milky Way could also be a barred spiral galaxy. Such galaxies are quite common - two thirds of spiral galaxies are barred according to recent estimates, and studying others can help astronomers understand our own galactic home. More information ESO, the European Southern Observatory, is the foremost intergovernmental astronomy organisation in Europe and the world's most productive astronomical observatory. It is supported by 14 countries: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. ESO carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities enabling astronomers to make important scientific discoveries. ESO also plays a leading role in promoting and organising cooperation in astronomical research. ESO operates three unique world-class observing sites in Chile: La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor. At Paranal, ESO operates the Very Large Telescope, the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory and VISTA, the world's largest survey telescope. ESO is the European partner of a revolutionary astronomical telescope ALMA, the largest astronomical project in existence. ESO is currently planning a 42-metre European Extremely Large optical/near-infrared Telescope, the E-ELT, which will become "the world's biggest eye on the sky".

Establishing the connection between peanut-shaped bulges and galactic bars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuijken, Konrad; Merrifield, Michael R.

1995-01-01

It has been suggested that the peanut-shaped bulges seen in some edge-on disk galaxies are due to the presence of a central bar. Although bars cannot be detected photometrically in edge-on galaxies, we show that barred potentials produce a strong kinematic signature in the form of double-peaked line-of-sight velocity distributions with a characteristic 'figure-of-eight' variation with radius. We have obtained spectroscopic observations of two edge-on galaxies with peanut-shaped bulges (NGC 5746 and NGC 5965), and they reveal exactly such line-of-sight velocity distributions in both their gaseous (emission line) and their stellar (absorption line) components. These observations provide strong observational evidence that peanut-shaped bulges are a by-product of bar formation.

Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA): Variation in Galaxy Structure Across the Green Valley

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelvin, Lee S.; Bremer, Malcolm N.; Phillipps, Steven; James, Philip A.; Davies, Luke J. M.; De Propris, Roberto; Moffett, Amanda J.; Percival, Susan M.; Baldry, Ivan K.; Collins, Chris A.; Alpaslan, Mehmet; Bland-Hawthorn, Joss; Brough, Sarah; Cluver, Michelle; Driver, Simon P.; Hashemizadeh, Abdolhosein; Holwerda, Benne W.; Laine, Jarkko; Lara-Lopez, Maritza A.; Liske, Jochen; Maciejewski, Witold; Napolitano, Nicola R.; Penny, Samantha J.; Popescu, Cristina C.; Sansom, Anne E.; Sutherland, Will; Taylor, Edward N.; van Kampen, Eelco; Wang, Lingyu

2018-04-01

Using a sample of 472 local Universe (z < 0.06) galaxies in the stellar mass range 10.25< log M_{\\star }/M_{⊙}<10.75, we explore the variation in galaxy structure as a function of morphology and galaxy colour. Our sample of galaxies is sub-divided into red, green and blue colour groups and into elliptical and non-elliptical (disk-type) morphologies. Using KiDS and VIKING derived postage stamp images, a group of eight volunteers visually classified bars, rings, morphological lenses, tidal streams, shells and signs of merger activity for all systems. We find a significant surplus of rings (2.3σ) and lenses (2.9σ) in disk-type galaxies as they transition across the green valley. Combined, this implies a joint ring/lens green valley surplus significance of 3.3σ relative to equivalent disk-types within either the blue cloud or the red sequence. We recover a bar fraction of ˜44% which remains flat with colour, however, we find that the presence of a bar acts to modulate the incidence of rings and (to a lesser extent) lenses, with rings in barred disk-type galaxies more common by ˜20 - 30 percentage points relative to their unbarred counterparts, regardless of colour. Additionally, green valley disk-type galaxies with a bar exhibit a significant 3.0σ surplus of lenses relative to their blue/red analogues. The existence of such structures rules out violent transformative events as the primary end-of-life evolutionary mechanism, with a more passive scenario the favoured candidate for the majority of galaxies rapidly transitioning across the green valley.

External versus internal triggers of bar formation in cosmological zoom-in simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zana, Tommaso; Dotti, Massimo; Capelo, Pedro R.; Bonoli, Silvia; Haardt, Francesco; Mayer, Lucio; Spinoso, Daniele

2018-01-01

The emergence of a large-scale stellar bar is one of the most striking features in disc galaxies. By means of state-of-the-art cosmological zoom-in simulations, we study the formation and evolution of bars in Milky Way-like galaxies in a fully cosmological context, including the physics of gas dissipation, star formation and supernova feedback. Our goal is to characterize the actual trigger of the non-axisymmetric perturbation that leads to the strong bar observable in the simulations at z = 0, discriminating between an internal/secular and an external/tidal origin. To this aim, we run a suite of cosmological zoom-in simulations altering the original history of galaxy-satellite interactions at a time when the main galaxy, though already bar-unstable, does not feature any non-axisymmetric structure yet. We find that the main effect of a late minor merger and of a close fly-by is to delay the time of bar formation and those two dynamical events are not directly responsible for the development of the bar and do not alter significantly its global properties (e.g. its final extension). We conclude that, once the disc has grown to a mass large enough to sustain global non-axisymmetric modes, then bar formation is inevitable.

The BaLROG project - II. Quantifying the influence of bars on the stellar populations of nearby galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seidel, M. K.; Falcón-Barroso, J.; Martínez-Valpuesta, I.; Sánchez-Blázquez, P.; Pérez, I.; Peletier, R.; Vazdekis, A.

2016-08-01

We continue the exploration of the BaLROG (Bars in Low Redshift Optical Galaxies) sample: 16 large mosaics of barred galaxies observed with the integral field unit Spectrographic Areal Unit for Research on Optical Nebulae. We quantify the influence of bars on the composition of the stellar component. We derive line-strength indices of H β, Fe5015 and Mgb. Based on single stellar population (SSP) models, we calculate ages, metallicities and [Mg/Fe] abundances and their gradients along the bar major and minor axes. The high spatial resolution of our data allows us to identify breaks among index and SSP profiles, commonly at 0.13 ± 0.06 bar length, consistent with kinematic features. Inner gradients are about 10 times steeper than outer gradients and become larger when there is a central rotating component, implying that the gradients are not independent of dynamics and orbits. Central ages appear to be younger for stronger bars. Yet, the bar regions are usually old. We find a flattening of the iron (Fe5015) and magnesium (Mgb) outer gradients along the bar major axis, translating into a flattening of the metallicity gradient. This gradient is found to be 0.03 ± 0.07 dex kpc-1 along the bar major axis while the mean value of the bar minor axis compares well with that of an unbarred control sample and is significantly steeper, namely -0.20 ± 0.04 dex kpc-1. These results confirm recent simulations and discern the important localized influence of bars. The elevated [Mg/Fe] abundances of bars and bulges compared to the lower values of discs suggest an early formation, in particular for early-type galaxies.

Uncertainties in the deprojection of the observed bar properties

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zou, Yanfei; Shen, Juntai; Li, Zhao-Yu, E-mail: jshen@shao.ac.cn

2014-08-10

In observations, it is important to deproject the two fundamental quantities characterizing a bar, i.e., its length (a) and ellipticity (e), to face-on values before any careful analyses. However, systematic estimation on the uncertainties of the commonly used deprojection methods is still lacking. Simulated galaxies are well suited in this study. We project two simulated barred galaxies onto a two-dimensional (2D) plane with different bar orientations and disk inclination angles (i). Bar properties are measured and deprojected with the popular deprojection methods in the literature. Generally speaking, deprojection uncertainties increase with increasing i. All of the deprojection methods behave badlymore » when i is larger than 60°, due to the vertical thickness of the bar. Thus, future statistical studies of barred galaxies should exclude galaxies more inclined than 60°. At moderate inclination angles (i ≤ 60°), 2D deprojection methods (analytical and image stretching), and Fourier-based methods (Fourier decomposition and bar-interbar contrast) perform reasonably well with uncertainties ∼10% in both the bar length and ellipticity, whereas the uncertainties of the one-dimensional (1D) analytical deprojection can be as high as 100% in certain extreme cases. We find that different bar measurement methods show systematic differences in the deprojection uncertainties. We further discuss the deprojection uncertainty factors with the emphasis on the most important one, i.e., the three-dimensional structure of the bar itself. We construct two triaxial toy bar models that can qualitatively reproduce the results of the 1D and 2D analytical deprojections; they confirm that the vertical thickness of the bar is the main source of uncertainties.« less

Bars in dark-matter-dominated dwarf galaxy discs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marasco, A.; Oman, K. A.; Navarro, J. F.; Frenk, C. S.; Oosterloo, T.

2018-05-01

We study the shape and kinematics of simulated dwarf galaxy discs in the APOSTLE suite of Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) cosmological hydrodynamical simulations. We find that a large fraction of these gas-rich, star-forming discs show weak bars in their stellar component, despite being dark-matter-dominated systems. The bar pattern shape and orientation reflect the ellipticity of the dark matter potential, and its rotation is locked to the slow figure rotation of the triaxial dark halo. The bar-like nature of the potential induces non-circular motions in the gas component, including strong bisymmetric flows that can be readily seen as m = 3 harmonic perturbations in the H I line-of-sight velocity fields. Similar bisymmetric flows are seen in many galaxies of The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey (THINGS) and Local Irregulars That Trace Luminosity Extremes THINGS (LITTLE THINGS), although on average their amplitudes are a factor of ˜2 weaker than in our simulated discs. Our results indicate that bar-like patterns may arise even when baryons are not dominant, and that they are common enough to warrant careful consideration when analysing the gas kinematics of dwarf galaxy discs.

Characterization of galactic bars from 3.6 μm S4G imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Díaz-García, S.; Salo, H.; Laurikainen, E.; Herrera-Endoqui, M.

2016-03-01

Context. Stellar bars play an essential role in the secular evolution of disk galaxies because they are responsible for the redistribution of matter and angular momentum. Dynamical models predict that bars become stronger and longer in time, while their rotation speed slows down. Aims: We use the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G) 3.6 μm imaging to study the properties (length and strength) and fraction of bars at z = 0 over a wide range of galaxy masses (M∗ ≈ 108-1011 M⊙) and Hubble types (-3 ≤ T ≤ 10). Methods: We calculated gravitational forces from the 3.6 μm images for galaxies with a disk inclination lower than 65°. We used the maximum of the tangential-to-radial force ratio in the bar region (Qb) as a measure of the bar-induced perturbation strength for a sample of ~600 barred galaxies. We also used the maximum of the normalized m = 2 Fourier density amplitude (A2max) to characterize the bar. Bar sizes were estimated I) visually; II) from ellipse fitting; III) from the radii of the strongest torque; and iv) from the radii of the largest m = 2 Fourier amplitude in the bar region. By combining our force calculations with the H I kinematics from the literature, we estimated the ratio of the halo-to-stellar mass (Mh/M∗) within the optical disk and by further using the universal rotation curve models, we obtained a first-order model of the rotation curve decomposition of 1128 disk galaxies. Results: We probe possible sources of uncertainty in our Qb measurements: the assumed scale height and its radial variation, the influence of the spiral arms torques, the effect of non-stellar emission in the bar region, and the dilution of the bar forces by the dark matter halo (our models imply that only ~10% of the disks in our sample are maximal). We find that for early- and intermediate-type disks (-3 ≤ T< 5), the relatively modest influence of the dark matter halo leads to a systematic reduction of the mean Qb by about 10-15%, which is of the same order as the uncertainty associated with estimating the vertical scale height. The halo correction on Qb becomes important for later types, implying a reduction of ~20-25% for T = 7-10. Whether the halo correction is included or not, the mean Qb shows an increasing trend with T. However, the mean A2max decreases for lower mass late-type systems. These opposing trends are most likely related to the reduced force dilution by bulges when moving towards later type galaxies. Nevertheless, when treated separately, both the early- and late-type disk galaxies show a strong positive correlation between Qb and A2max. For spirals the mean ɛ ≈ 0.5 is nearly independent of T, but it drops among S0s (≈0.2). The Qb and ɛ show a relatively tight dependence, with only a slight difference between early and late disks. For spirals, all our bar strength indicators correlate with the bar length (scaled to isophotal size). Late-type bars are longer than previously found in the literature. The bar fraction shows a double-humped distribution in the Hubble sequence (~75% for Sab galaxies), with a local minimum at T = 4 (~40%), and it drops for M∗ ≲ 109.5-10 M⊙. If we use bar identification methods based on Fourier decomposition or ellipse fitting instead of the morphological classification, the bar fraction decreases by ~30-50% for late-type systems with T ≥ 5 and correlates with Mh/M∗. Our Mh/M∗ ratios agree well with studies based on weak lensing analysis, abundance matching, and halo occupation distribution methods, under the assumption that the halo inside the optical disk contributes roughly a constant fraction of the total halo mass (~4%). Conclusions: We find possible evidence for the growth of bars within a Hubble time; as (1) bars in early-type galaxies show larger density amplitudes and disk-relative sizes than their intermediate-type counterparts; and (2) long bars are typically strong. We also observe two clearly distinct types of bars, between early- and intermediate-type galaxies (T< 5) on one side, and the late-type systems on the other, based on the differences in the bar properties. Most likely this distinction is connected to the higher halo-to-stellar ratio that we observe in later types, which affects the disk stability properties. Full Tables A.1-A.3, the tabulated radial force profiles, and the rotation curve decomposition model of each individual galaxy are available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/587/A160

Hα3: an Hα imaging survey of HI selected galaxies from ALFALFA. VI. The role of bars in quenching star formation from z = 3 to the present epoch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gavazzi, G.; Consolandi, G.; Dotti, M.; Fanali, R.; Fossati, M.; Fumagalli, M.; Viscardi, E.; Savorgnan, G.; Boselli, A.; Gutiérrez, L.; Hernández Toledo, H.; Giovanelli, R.; Haynes, M. P.

2015-08-01

A growing body of evidence indicates that the star formation rate per unit stellar mass (sSFR) decreases with increasing mass in normal main-sequence star-forming galaxies. Many processes have been advocated as being responsible for this trend (also known as mass quenching), e.g., feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and the formation of classical bulges. In order to improve our insight into the mechanisms regulating the star formation in normal star-forming galaxies across cosmic epochs, we determine a refined star formation versus stellar mass relation in the local Universe. To this end we use the Hα narrow-band imaging follow-up survey (Hα3) of field galaxies selected from the HI Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA Survey (ALFALFA) in the Coma and Local superclusters. By complementing this local determination with high-redshift measurements from the literature, we reconstruct the star formation history of main-sequence galaxies as a function of stellar mass from the present epoch up to z = 3. In agreement with previous studies, our analysis shows that quenching mechanisms occur above a threshold stellar mass Mknee that evolves with redshift as ∝ (1 + z)2. Moreover, visual morphological classification of individual objects in our local sample reveals a sharp increase in the fraction of visually classified strong bars with mass, hinting that strong bars may contribute to the observed downturn in the sSFR above Mknee. We test this hypothesis using a simple but physically motivated numerical model for bar formation, finding that strong bars can rapidly quench star formation in the central few kpc of field galaxies. We conclude that strong bars contribute significantly to the red colors observed in the inner parts of massive galaxies, although additional mechanisms are likely required to quench the star formation in the outer regions of massive spiral galaxies. Intriguingly, when we extrapolate our model to higher redshifts, we successfully recover the observed redshift evolution for Mknee. Our study highlights how the formation of strong bars in massive galaxies is an important mechanism in regulating the redshift evolution of the sSFR for field main-sequence galaxies. Based on observations taken at the observatory of San Pedro Martir (Baja California, Mexico), belonging to the Mexican Observatorio Astronómico Nacional.

A young elliptical

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-11-16

At the centre of this amazing image is the elliptical galaxy NGC 3610. Surrounding the galaxy are a wealth of other galaxies of all shapes. There are spiral galaxies, galaxies with a bar in their central regions, distorted galaxies and elliptical galaxies, all visible in the background. In fact, almost every bright dot in this image is a galaxy — the few foreground stars are clearly distinguishable due to the diffraction spikes that overlay their images. NGC 3610 is of course the most prominent object in this image — and a very interesting one at that! Discovered in 1793 by William Herschel, it was later found that this elliptical galaxy contains a disc. This is very unusual, as discs are one of the main distinguishing features of a spiral galaxy. And NGC 3610 even hosts a memarkable bright disc. The reason for the peculiar shape of NGC 3610 stems from its formation history. When galaxies form, they usually resemble our galaxy, the Milky Way, with flat discs and spiral arms where star formation rates are high and which are therefore very bright. An elliptical galaxy is a much more disordered object which results from the merging of two or more disc galaxies. During these violent mergers most of the internal structure of the original galaxies is destroyed. The fact that NGC 3610 still shows some structure in the form of a bright disc implies that it formed only a short time ago. The galaxy’s age has been put at around four billion years and it is an important object for studying the early stages of evolution in elliptical galaxies.

Signatures of the Galactic bar on stellar kinematics unveiled by APOGEE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palicio, Pedro A.; Martinez-Valpuesta, Inma; Prieto, Carlos Allende; Vecchia, Claudio Dalla; Zamora, Olga; Zasowski, Gail; Fernandez-Trincado, J. G.; Masters, Karen L.; García-Hernández, D. A.; Roman-Lopes, Alexandre

2018-05-01

Bars are common galactic structures in the local universe that play an important role in the secular evolution of galaxies, including the Milky Way. In particular, the velocity distribution of individual stars in our galaxy is useful to shed light on stellar dynamics, and provides information complementary to that inferred from the integrated light of external galaxies. However, since a wide variety of models reproduce the distribution of velocity and the velocity dispersion observed in the Milky Way, we look for signatures of the bar on higher-order moments of the line-of-sight velocity (V_los) distribution. We make use of two different numerical simulations -one that has developed a bar and one that remains nearly axisymmetric- to compare them with observations in the latest APOGEE data release (SDSS DR14). This comparison reveals three interesting structures that support the notion that the Milky Way is a barred galaxy. A high skewness region found at positive longitudes constrains the orientation angle of the bar, and is incompatible with the orientation of the bar at ℓ = 0° proposed in previous studies. We also analyse the V_los distributions in three regions, and introduce the Hellinger distance to quantify the differences among them. Our results show a strong non-Gaussian distribution both in the data and in the barred model, confirming the qualitative conclusions drawn from the velocity maps. In contrast to earlier work, we conclude it is possible to infer the presence of the bar from the kurtosis distribution.

Investigating the Environmental Properties of Galaxies in the SDSS-MaNGA Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spindler, Ashley

2018-05-01

This thesis presents a study of galaxy evolution in the local universe. I study how environments shape the structures of galaxies, and how internal and external processes affect star formation. I perform four investigations of galaxy properties: a study of the relations between size, mass and velocity dispersion of 124,524 galaxies from SDSS DR7; I estimate star formation rates using Hα and Dn4000 for galaxies in the MaNGA survey; a study of the spatial distribution of star formation in 1494 MaNGA galaxies; and finally, a study of 215 barred and 402 unbarred galaxies, to investigate how bars affect star formation. I find that environment plays a key role in the evolution of galaxies, both structurally and in terms of their star formation. Using core velocity dispersion to study the effects of minor mergers and tidal/ram pressure stripping, I find that central galaxies are up to 30% larger and more massive than satellites. I suggest that minor mergers play a crucial role in the increase in size and mass of centrals. In addition, I find that satellites have a uniform radial suppression of star formation, compared to centrals, which may be due to the strangulation of their cold gas supplies. I study the internal processes that affect star formation and find that specific star formation rate is suppressed at all radii for high mass galaxies. Massive galaxies are more likely to have suppressed star formation in their cores, which I determined is caused by a combination of morphological quenching and AGN feedback. Finally, I study the role of galaxy bars in regulating the circumnuclear and disk star formation in late-type galaxies. I find that barred galaxies have lower star formation in their disks than unbarred galaxies, and that they are more likely to have enhanced star formation in their cores.

Understanding the scatter in the spatially resolved star formation main sequence of local massive spiral galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdurro'uf; Akiyama, Masayuki

2017-08-01

We investigate the relation between star formation rate (SFR) and stellar mass (M*) at the sub-galactic scale (˜1 kpc) of 93 local (0.01 < z < 0.02) massive (M* > 1010.5 M⊙) spiral galaxies. To derive a spatially resolved SFR and stellar mass, we perform the so-called pixel-to-pixel spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting, which fits an observed spatially resolved multiband SED with a library of model SEDs using Bayesian statistics. We use two bands (far-ultraviolet or FUV and near-ultraviolet or NUV) and five bands (u, g, r, I and z) of imaging data from Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) and Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), respectively. We find a tight nearly linear relation between the local surface density of SFR (ΣSFR) and stellar mass (Σ*), which is flattened at high Σ*. The near linear relation between Σ* and ΣSFR suggests a constant specific SFR (sSFR) throughout the galaxies, and the scatter of the relation is directly related to that of the sSFR. Therefore, we analyse the variation of the sSFR in various scales. More massive galaxies on average have lower sSFR throughout them than less massive galaxies. We also find that barred galaxies have a lower sSFR in the core region than non-barred galaxies. However, in the outer region, the sSFRs of barred and non-barred galaxies are similar and lead to a similar total sSFR.

Properties of the giant H II regions and bar in the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 5430

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brière, É.; Cantin, S.; Spekkens, K.

2012-09-01

In order to better understand the impact of the bar on the evolution of spiral galaxies, we measure the properties of giant H II regions and the bar in the SB(s)b galaxy NGC 5430. We use two complementary data sets, both obtained at the Observatoire du Mont-Mégantic: a hyperspectral data cube from the imaging Fourier transform spectrograph SpIOMM (Spectromètre-Imageur à transformée de Fourier de l-Observatoire du Mont-Mégantic) and high-resolution spectra across the bar from a long-slit spectrograph. We flux-calibrate SpIOMM spectra for the first time, and produce Hα and [N II]λ6584 Å intensity maps from which we identify 51 giant H II regions in the spiral arms and bar. We evaluate the type of activity, the oxygen abundance and the age of the young populations contained in these giant H II regions and in the bar. Thus, we confirm that NGC 5430 does not harbour a strong active galactic nucleus, and that its Wolf-Rayet knot shows a pure H II region nature. We find no variation in abundance or age between the bar and spiral arms, nor as a function of galactocentric radius. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that a chemical mixing mechanism is at work in the galaxy's disc to flatten the oxygen abundance gradient. Using the STARBURST99 model, we estimate the ages of the young populations, and again find no variations in age between the bar and the arms or as a function of radius. Instead, we find evidence for two galaxy-wide waves of star formation, about 7.1 and 10.5 Myr ago. While the bar in NGC 5430 is an obvious candidate to trigger these two episodes, it is not clear how the bar could induce widespread star formation on such a short time-scale.

Effect of Central Mass Concentration on the Formation of Nuclear Spirals in Barred Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thakur, Parijat; Ann, H. B.; Jiang, Ing-Guey

2009-03-01

We have performed smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations to study the response of the central kiloparsec region of a gaseous disk to the imposition of nonaxisymmetric bar potentials. The model galaxies are composed of three axisymmetric components (halo, disk, and bulge) and a nonaxisymmetric bar. These components are assumed to be invariant in time in the frame corotating with the bar. The potential of spherical γ-models of Dehnen is adopted for the bulge component whose density varies as r -γ near the center and r -4 at larger radii and, hence, possesses a central density core for γ = 0 and cusps for γ>0. Since the central mass concentration of the model galaxies increases with the cusp parameter γ, we have examined here the effect of the central mass concentration by varying the cusp parameter γ on the mechanism responsible for the formation of the symmetric two-armed nuclear spirals in barred galaxies. Our simulations show that the symmetric two-armed nuclear spirals are formed by hydrodynamic spiral shocks driven by the gravitational torque of the bar for the models with γ = 0 and 0.5. On the other hand, the symmetric two-armed nuclear spirals in the models with γ = 1 and 1.5 are explained by gas density waves. Thus, we conclude that the mechanism responsible for the formation of symmetric two-armed nuclear spirals in barred galaxies changes from hydrodynamic shocks to gas density waves as the central mass concentration increases from γ = 0 to 1.5.

Galaxy Zoo and SPARCFIRE: constraints on spiral arm formation mechanisms from spiral arm number and pitch angles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hart, Ross E.; Bamford, Steven P.; Hayes, Wayne B.; Cardamone, Carolin N.; Keel, William C.; Kruk, Sandor J.; Lintott, Chris J.; Masters, Karen L.; Simmons, Brooke D.; Smethurst, Rebecca J.

2017-12-01

In this paper, we study the morphological properties of spiral galaxies, including measurements of spiral arm number and pitch angle. Using Galaxy Zoo 2, a stellar mass-complete sample of 6222 SDSS spiral galaxies is selected. We use the machine vision algorithm SPARCFIRE to identify spiral arm features and measure their associated geometries. A support vector machine classifier is employed to identify reliable spiral features, with which we are able to estimate pitch angles for half of our sample. We use these machine measurements to calibrate visual estimates of arm tightness, and hence estimate pitch angles for our entire sample. The properties of spiral arms are compared with respect to various galaxy properties. The star formation properties of galaxies vary significantly with arm number, but not pitch angle. We find that galaxies hosting strong bars have spiral arms substantially (4°-6°) looser than unbarred galaxies. Accounting for this, spiral arms associated with many-armed structures are looser (by 2°) than those in two-armed galaxies. In contrast to this average trend, galaxies with greater bulge-to-total stellar mass ratios display both fewer and looser spiral arms. This effect is primarily driven by the galaxy disc, such that galaxies with more massive discs contain more spiral arms with tighter pitch angles. This implies that galaxy central mass concentration is not the dominant cause of pitch angle and arm number variations between galaxies, which in turn suggests that not all spiral arms are governed by classical density waves or modal theories.

Building the Peanut: Simulations and Observations of Peanut-shaped Structures and Ansae in Face-on Disk Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saha, Kanak; Graham, Alister W.; Rodríguez-Herranz, Isabel

2018-01-01

Peanut/x-shaped features observed in a significant fraction of disk galaxies are thought to have formed from vertically buckled bars. Despite being three-dimensional structures, they are preferentially detected in near edge-on projection. Only a few galaxies are found to have displayed such structures when their disks are relatively face-on—suggesting that either they are generally weak in face-on projection or many may be hidden by the light of their galaxy’s face-on disk. Here, we report on three (collisionless) simulated galaxies displaying peanut-shaped structures when their disks are seen both face-on and edge-on—resembling a three-dimensional peanut or dumbbell. Furthermore, these structures are accompanied by ansae and an outer ring at the end of the bar—as seen in real galaxies such as IC 5240. The same set of quantitative parameters used to measure peanut structures in real galaxies has been determined for the simulated galaxies, and a broad agreement is found. In addition, the peanut length grows in tandem with the bar, and is a maximum at half the length of the bar. Beyond the cutoff of these peanut structures, toward the end of the bar, we discover a new positive/negative feature in the B 6 radial profile associated with the isophotes of the ansae/ring. Our simulated, self-gravitating, three-dimensional peanut structures display cylindrical rotation even in the near-face-on disk projection. In addition, we report on a kinematic pinch in the velocity map along the bar minor axis, matching that seen in the surface density map.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: Catalogue of features in the S4G (Herrera-Endoqui+, 2015)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herrera-Endoqui, M.; Diaz-Garcia, S.; Laurikainen, E.; Salo, H.

2015-08-01

Table 2 contains the properties of bars, ring- and lens-structures in the S4G. Data for bars contains the visual estimated barlength, the maximum ellipticity in the bar region, the visual estimated position angle, and the barlength obtained from the ellipticity maximum. They are given in both the sky plane and the disk plane, the conversion is made using P4 orientation parameters (Salo et al., 2015ApJS..219....4S; Table 1). For bars the disk plane values are given only when a reliable ellipticity maximum was found and the galaxy inclination i<65 deg. For other features the parameters are obtained from fitting ellipses to points tracing the structure. A quality flag for our measurement is also given: 1 indicates a good fit and unambiguously identified feature, 2 indicates a hard to trace feature, 3 indicates an uncertain feature identification (due to high inclination of host galaxy or incomplete feature). Table 3 contains the properties of spiral arms in the S4G. Type of spiral arms, the pitch angle, the inner and the outer radius are given for every spiral segment (see the catalogue web page). The type of spiral arms are taken from Buta et al. (2015ApJS..217...32B, Cat. J/ApJS/217/32): G for grand design, M for multiple, and F for flocculent spiral arms. Our estimation of the quality of the fit is also given (1.0 = good; 2.0 = acceptable). (2 data files).

Bars and spirals in tidal interactions with an ensemble of galaxy mass models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pettitt, Alex R.; Wadsley, J. W.

2018-03-01

We present simulations of the gaseous and stellar material in several different galaxy mass models under the influence of different tidal fly-bys to assess the changes in their bar and spiral morphology. Five different mass models are chosen to represent the variety of rotation curves seen in nature. We find a multitude of different spiral and bar structures can be created, with their properties dependent on the strength of the interaction. We calculate pattern speeds, spiral wind-up rates, bar lengths, and angular momentum exchange to quantify the changes in disc morphology in each scenario. The wind-up rates of the tidal spirals follow the 2:1 resonance very closely for the flat and dark matter-dominated rotation curves, whereas the more baryon-dominated curves tend to wind-up faster, influenced by their inner bars. Clear spurs are seen in most of the tidal spirals, most noticeable in the flat rotation curve models. Bars formed both in isolation and interactions agree well with those seen in real galaxies, with a mixture of `fast' and `slow' rotators. We find no strong correlation between bar length or pattern speed and the interaction strength. Bar formation is, however, accelerated/induced in four out of five of our models. We close by briefly comparing the morphology of our models to real galaxies, easily finding analogues for nearly all simulations presenter here, showing passages of small companions can easily reproduce an ensemble of observed morphologies.

A Dwarf Galaxy Star Bar and Dusty Wing

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-01-10

In combined data from ESA Herschel and NASA Spitzer telescopes, irregular distribution of dust in the Small Magellanic Cloud becomes clear. A stream of dust extends to left, known as the galaxy wing, and a bar of star formation appears to right.

The dynamics of stellar discs in live dark-matter haloes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujii, M. S.; Bédorf, J.; Baba, J.; Portegies Zwart, S.

2018-06-01

Recent developments in computer hardware and software enable researchers to simulate the self-gravitating evolution of galaxies at a resolution comparable to the actual number of stars. Here we present the results of a series of such simulations. We performed N-body simulations of disc galaxies with between 100 and 500 million particles over a wide range of initial conditions. Our calculations include a live bulge, disc, and dark-matter halo, each of which is represented by self-gravitating particles in the N-body code. The simulations are performed using the gravitational N-body tree-code BONSAI running on the Piz Daint supercomputer. We find that the time-scale over which the bar forms increases exponentially with decreasing disc-mass fraction and that the bar formation epoch exceeds a Hubble time when the disc-mass fraction is ˜0.35. These results can be explained with the swing-amplification theory. The condition for the formation of m = 2 spirals is consistent with that for the formation of the bar, which is also an m = 2 phenomenon. We further argue that the non-barred grand-design spiral galaxies are transitional, and that they evolve to barred galaxies on a dynamical time-scale. We also confirm that the disc-mass fraction and shear rate are important parameters for the morphology of disc galaxies. The former affects the number of spiral arms and the bar formation epoch, and the latter determines the pitch angle of the spiral arms.

Signatures of the Galactic bar on stellar kinematics unveiled by APOGEE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palicio, Pedro A.; Martinez-Valpuesta, Inma; Allende Prieto, Carlos; Dalla Vecchia, Claudio; Zamora, Olga; Zasowski, Gail; Fernandez-Trincado, J. G.; Masters, Karen L.; García-Hernández, D. A.; Roman-Lopes, Alexandre

2018-07-01

Bars are common galactic structures in the local universe that play an important role in the secular evolution of galaxies, including the Milky Way. In particular, the velocity distribution of individual stars in our galaxy is useful to shed light on stellar dynamics, and provides information complementary to that inferred from the integrated light of external galaxies. However, since a wide variety of models reproduce the distribution of velocity and the velocity dispersion observed in the Milky Way, we look for signatures of the bar on higher order moments of the line-of-sight velocity (V_{los}) distribution. We use two different numerical simulations - one that has developed a bar and one that remains nearly axisymmetric - to compare them with observations in the latest Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment data release (SDSS DR14). This comparison reveals three interesting structures that support the notion that the Milky Way is a barred galaxy. A high-skewness region found at positive longitudes constrains the orientation angle of the bar, and is incompatible with the orientation of the bar at ℓ = 0° proposed in previous studies. We also analyse the V_{los} distributions in three regions, and introduce the Hellinger distance to quantify the differences among them. Our results show a strong non-Gaussian distribution both in the data and in the barred model, confirming the qualitative conclusions drawn from the velocity maps. In contrast to earlier work, we conclude it is possible to infer the presence of the bar from the kurtosis distribution.

New Insights Into The X-ray Properties Of NGC 1672

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenkins, Leigh; Roberts, T.; Brandt, N.; Colbert, E.; Levan, A.; Zezas, A.; Ward, M.

2006-09-01

We present the first results of new Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray observations of the barred spiral galaxy NGC1672. Previously classified as a Seyfert galaxy, the new combined X-ray imaging and spectral information provides evidence that the nucleus of the galaxy may be almost entirely starburst in nature, presumably triggered and sustained by gas and dust driven to the central region along the galactic bar.

Investigating the Nuclear Activity of Barred Spiral Galaxies: The Case of NGC 1672

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenkins, L. P.; Brandt, W. N.; Colbert, E. J. M.; Koribalski, B.; Kuntz, K. D.; Levan, A. J.; Ojha, R.; Roberts, T. P.; Ward, M. J.; Zezas, A.

2011-06-01

We have performed an X-ray study of the nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC 1672, primarily to ascertain the effect of the bar on its nuclear activity. We use both Chandra and XMM-Newton observations to investigate its X-ray properties, together with supporting high-resolution optical imaging data from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), infrared imaging from the Spitzer Space Telescope, and Australia Telescope Compact Array ground-based radio data. We detect 28 X-ray sources within the D 25 area of the galaxy; many are spatially correlated with star formation in the bar and spiral arms, and two are identified as background galaxies in the HST images. Nine of the X-ray sources are ultraluminous X-ray sources, with the three brightest (LX > 5 × 1039 erg s-1) located at the ends of the bar. With the spatial resolution of Chandra, we are able to show for the first time that NGC 1672 possesses a hard (Γ ~ 1.5) nuclear X-ray source with a 2-10 keV luminosity of 4 × 1038 erg s-1. This is surrounded by an X-ray-bright circumnuclear star-forming ring, comprised of point sources and hot gas, which dominates the 2-10 keV emission in the central region of the galaxy. The spatially resolved multiwavelength photometry indicates that the nuclear source is a low-luminosity active galactic nucleus (LLAGN), but with star formation activity close to the central black hole. A high-resolution multiwavelength survey is required to fully assess the impact of both large-scale bars and smaller-scale phenomena such as nuclear bars, rings, and nuclear spirals on the fueling of LLAGN.

Investigating the Nuclear Activity of Barred Spiral Galaxies: The Case of NGC 1672

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jenkins, L. P.; Brandt, W. N.; Colbert, E. J.; Koribalski, B.; Kuntz, K. D.; Levan, A. J.; Ojha, R.; Roberts, T. P.; Ward, M. J.; Zezas, A.

2011-01-01

We have performed an X-ray study of the nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC 1672, primarily to ascertain the effect of the bar on its nuclear activity. We use both Chandra and XMM-Newton observations to investigate its X-ray properties, together with supporting high-resolution optical imaging data from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) infrared imaging from the Spitzer Space Telescope, and Australia Telescope Compact Array ground-based radio data. We detect 28 X-ray sources within the D25 area of the galaxy; many are spatially correlated with star formation in the bar and spiral arms, and two are identified as background galaxies in the HST images. Nine of the X-ray sources are ultraluminous X-ray sources, with the three brightest (LX 5 * 10(exp 39) erg s(exp -1)) located at the ends of the bar. With the spatial resolution of Chandra, we are able to show for the first time that NGC 1672 possesses a hard (1.5) nuclear X-ray source with a 2-10 keV luminosity of 4 * 10(exp 38) erg s(exp -1). This is surrounded by an X-ray-bright circumnuclear star-forming ring, comprised of point sources and hot gas, which dominates the 2-10 keV emission in the central region of the galaxy. The spatially resolved multiwavelength photometry indicates that the nuclear source is a low-luminosity active galactic nucleus (LLAGN), but with star formation activity close to the central black hole. A high-resolution multiwavelength survey is required to fully assess the impact of both large-scale bars and smaller-scale phenomena such as nuclear bars, rings, and nuclear spirals on the fueling of LLAGN.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Van den Bergh, Sidney, E-mail: sidney.vandenbergh@nrc.gc.ca

Lenticular galaxies with M{sub B} < -21.5 are almost exclusively unbarred, whereas both barred and unbarred objects occur at fainter luminosity levels. This effect is observed both for objects classified in blue light, and for those that were classified in the infrared. This result suggests that the most luminous (massive) S0 galaxies find it difficult to form bars. As a result, the mean luminosity of unbarred lenticular galaxies in both B and IR light is observed to be {approx}0.4 mag brighter than that of barred lenticulars. A small contribution to the observed luminosity difference that is found between SA0 andmore » SB0 galaxies may also be due to the fact that there is an asymmetry between the effects of small classification errors on SA0 and SB0 galaxies. An elliptical (E) galaxy might be misclassified as a lenticular (S0) or an S0 as an E. However, an E will never be misclassified as an SB0, nor will an SB0 ever be called an E. This asymmetry is important because E galaxies are typically twice as luminous as S0 galaxies. The present results suggest that the evolution of luminous lenticular galaxies may be closely linked to that of elliptical galaxies, whereas fainter lenticulars might be more closely associated with ram-pressure stripped spiral galaxies. Finally, it is pointed out that fine details of the galaxy formation process might account for some of the differences between the classifications of the same galaxy by individual competent morphologists.« less

Stellar population gradients in galaxy discs from the CALIFA survey. The influence of bars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sánchez-Blázquez, P.; Rosales-Ortega, F. F.; Méndez-Abreu, J.; Pérez, I.; Sánchez, S. F.; Zibetti, S.; Aguerri, J. A. L.; Bland-Hawthorn, J.; Catalán-Torrecilla, C.; Cid Fernandes, R.; de Amorim, A.; de Lorenzo-Caceres, A.; Falcón-Barroso, J.; Galazzi, A.; García Benito, R.; Gil de Paz, A.; González Delgado, R.; Husemann, B.; Iglesias-Páramo, Jorge; Jungwiert, B.; Marino, R. A.; Márquez, I.; Mast, D.; Mendoza, M. A.; Mollá, M.; Papaderos, P.; Ruiz-Lara, T.; van de Ven, G.; Walcher, C. J.; Wisotzki, L.

2014-10-01

While studies of gas-phase metallicity gradients in disc galaxies are common, very little has been done towards the acquisition of stellar abundance gradients in the same regions. We present here a comparative study of the stellar metallicity and age distributions in a sample of 62 nearly face-on, spiral galaxies with and without bars, using data from the CALIFA survey. We measure the slopes of the gradients and study their relation with other properties of the galaxies. We find that the mean stellar age and metallicity gradients in the disc are shallow and negative. Furthermore, when normalized to the effective radius of the disc, the slope of the stellar population gradients does not correlate with the mass or with the morphological type of the galaxies. In contrast to this, the values of both age and metallicity at ~2.5 scale lengths correlate with the central velocity dispersion in a similar manner to the central values of the bulges, although bulges show, on average, older ages and higher metallicities than the discs. One of the goals of the present paper is to test the theoretical prediction that non-linear coupling between the bar and the spiral arms is an efficient mechanism for producing radial migrations across significant distances within discs. The process of radial migration should flatten the stellar metallicity gradient with time and, therefore, we would expect flatter stellar metallicity gradients in barred galaxies. However, we do not find any difference in the metallicity or age gradients between galaxies with and without bars. We discuss possible scenarios that can lead to this lack of difference. Tables 1-3 and Appendices are available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

Which Galaxies Are the Most Habitable?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2015-09-01

Habitable zones are a hot topic in exoplanet studies: where, around a given star, could a planet exist that supports life? But if you scale this up, you get a much less common question: which type of galaxy is most likely to host complex life in the universe? A team of researchers from the UK believes it has the answer.Criteria for HabitabilityLed by Pratika Dayal of the University of Durham, the authors of this study set out to estimate the habitability of a large population of galaxies. The first step in this process is to determine what elements contribute to a galaxys habitability. The authors note three primary factors:Total number of starsMore stars means more planets!Metallicity of the starsPlanets are more likely to form in stellar vicinities with higher metallicities, since planet formation requires elements heavier than iron.Likelihood of Type II supernovae nearbyPlanets that are located out of range of supernovae have a higher probability of being habitable, since a major dose of cosmic radiation is likely to cause mass extinctions or delay evolution of complex life. Galaxies supernova rates can be estimated from their star formation rates (the two are connected via the initial mass function).Hospitable Cosmic GiantsLower panel: the number of Earth-like habitable planets (given by the color bar, which shows the log ratio relative to the Milky Way) increases in galaxies with larger stellar mass and lower star formation rates. Upper panel: the larger stellar-mass galaxies tend to be elliptical (blue line) rather than spiral (red line). Click for larger view. [Dayal et al. 2015]Interestingly, these three conditions have previously been shown to be linked via something termed the fundamental metallicity relation, which relates the total stellar masses, metallicities, and star formation rates of galaxies. By using this relation, the authors were able to create predictions for the number of habitable planets in more than 100,000 galaxies in the local universe (cataloged by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey).Based on these predictions, the authors find that the galaxies likely to host the largest number of habitable planets are those that have a mass greater than twice that of the Milky Way and star formation rates less than a tenth of that of the Milky Way.These galaxies tend to be giant elliptical galaxies, rather than compact spirals like our own galaxy. The authors calculate that the most hospitable galaxies can host up to 10,000 times as many Earth-like planets and 1,000,000 times as many gas-giants (which might have habitable moons) as the Milky Way!CitationPratika Dayal et al.2015 ApJ 810 L2 doi:10.1088/2041-8205/810/1/L2

Gaseous Structures in Barred Galaxies: Effects of the Bar Strength

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Woong-Tae; Seo, Woo-Young; Kim, Yonghwi

2012-10-01

Using hydrodynamic simulations, we investigate the physical properties of gaseous substructures in barred galaxies and their relationships with the bar strength. The gaseous medium is assumed to be isothermal and unmagnetized. The bar potential is modeled as a Ferrers prolate with index n. To explore situations with differing bar strength, we vary the bar mass f bar relative to the spheroidal component as well as its aspect ratio { R}. We derive expressions as functions of f bar and { R} for the bar strength Qb and the radius r(Qb ) where the maximum bar torque occurs. When applied to observations, these expressions suggest that bars in real galaxies are most likely to have f bar ~ 0.25-0.50 and n <~ 1. Dust lanes approximately follow one of the x 1-orbits and tend to be straighter under a stronger and more elongated bar, but are insensitive to the presence of self-gravity. A nuclear ring of a conventional x 2 type forms only when the bar is not so massive or elongated. The radius of an x 2-type ring is generally smaller than the inner Lindblad resonance, decreases systematically with increasing Qb , and is slightly larger when self-gravity is included. This is evidence that the ring position is not determined by the resonance, but instead by the amount of angular momentum loss at dust-lane shocks. Nuclear spirals exist only when the ring is of the x 2 type and is sufficiently large in size. Unlike the other features, nuclear spirals are transient in that they start out being tightly wound and weak, and then, due to the nonlinear effect, unwind and become stronger until they turn into shocks, with an unwinding rate that is higher for larger Qb . The mass inflow rate to the galaxy center is found to be less than 0.01 M ⊙ yr-1 for models with Qb <~ 0.2, while becoming larger than 0.1 M ⊙ yr-1 when Qb >~ 0.2 and self-gravity is included.

Supernova Cosmology Inference with Probabilistic Photometric Redshifts (SCIPPR)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peters, Christina; Malz, Alex; Hlozek, Renée

2018-01-01

The Bayesian Estimation Applied to Multiple Species (BEAMS) framework employs probabilistic supernova type classifications to do photometric SN cosmology. This work extends BEAMS to replace high-confidence spectroscopic redshifts with photometric redshift probability density functions, a capability that will be essential in the era the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope and other next-generation photometric surveys where it will not be possible to perform spectroscopic follow up on every SN. We present the Supernova Cosmology Inference with Probabilistic Photometric Redshifts (SCIPPR) Bayesian hierarchical model for constraining the cosmological parameters from photometric lightcurves and host galaxy photometry, which includes selection effects and is extensible to uncertainty in the redshift-dependent supernova type proportions. We create a pair of realistic mock catalogs of joint posteriors over supernova type, redshift, and distance modulus informed by photometric supernova lightcurves and over redshift from simulated host galaxy photometry. We perform inference under our model to obtain a joint posterior probability distribution over the cosmological parameters and compare our results with other methods, namely: a spectroscopic subset, a subset of high probability photometrically classified supernovae, and reducing the photometric redshift probability to a single measurement and error bar.

K-band observations of boxy bulges - I. Morphology and surface brightness profiles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bureau, M.; Aronica, G.; Athanassoula, E.; Dettmar, R.-J.; Bosma, A.; Freeman, K. C.

2006-08-01

In this first paper of a series on the structure of boxy and peanut-shaped (B/PS) bulges, Kn-band observations of a sample of 30 edge-on spiral galaxies are described and discussed. Kn-band observations best trace the dominant luminous galactic mass and are minimally affected by dust. Images, unsharp-masked images, as well as major-axis and vertically summed surface brightness profiles are presented and discussed. Galaxies with a B/PS bulge tend to have a more complex morphology than galaxies with other bulge types, more often showing centred or off-centred X structures, secondary maxima along the major-axis and spiral-like structures. While probably not uniquely related to bars, those features are observed in three-dimensional N-body simulations of barred discs and may trace the main bar orbit families. The surface brightness profiles of galaxies with a B/PS bulge are also more complex, typically containing three or more clearly separated regions, including a shallow or flat intermediate region (Freeman Type II profiles). The breaks in the profiles offer evidence for bar-driven transfer of angular momentum and radial redistribution of material. The profiles further suggest a rapid variation of the scaleheight of the disc material, contrary to conventional wisdom but again as expected from the vertical resonances and instabilities present in barred discs. Interestingly, the steep inner region of the surface brightness profiles is often shorter than the isophotally thick part of the galaxies, itself always shorter than the flat intermediate region of the profiles. The steep inner region is also much more prominent along the major-axis than in the vertically summed profiles. Similarly to other recent work but contrary to the standard `bulge + disc' model (where the bulge is both thick and steep), we thus propose that galaxies with a B/PS bulge are composed of a thin concentrated disc (a disc-like bulge) contained within a partially thick bar (the B/PS bulge), itself contained within a thin outer disc. The inner disc likely formed secularly through bar-driven processes and is responsible for the steep inner region of the surface brightness profiles, traditionally associated with a classic bulge, while the bar is responsible for the flat intermediate region of the surface brightness profiles and the thick complex morphological structures observed. Those components are strongly coupled dynamically and are formed mostly of the same (disc) material, shaped by the weak but relentless action of the bar resonances. Any competing formation scenario for galaxies with a B/PS bulge, which represent at least 45 per cent of the local disc galaxy population, must explain equally well and self-consistently the above morphological and photometric properties, the complex gas and stellar kinematics observed, and the correlations between them.

Comparison of stellar and gasdynamics of a barred galaxy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Contopoulos, G.; Gottesman, S.T.; Hunter, J.H. Jr.

1989-08-01

The stellar and gas dynamics of several models of barred galaxies were studied, and results for some representative cases are reported for galaxies in which the stars and gas respond to the same potentials. Inside corotation there are two main families of periodic orbits, designated x1 and 4/1. Close to the center, the x1 orbits are like elongated ellipses. As the 4/1 resonance is approached, these orbits become like lozenges, with apices along the bar and perpendicular to it. The family 4/1 consists of orbits like parallelograms which produce the boxy component of the bar. The orbits in spirals outsidemore » corotation enhance the spiral between the outer -4/1 resonance and the outer Lindblad resonance. Between corotation and the -4/1 resonance in strong spirals, the orbits are mostly stochastic and fill almost circular rings. A spiral field must be added to gasdynamical models to obtain gaseous arms extending from the end of a bar. 38 refs.« less

The Barred Inner Region of the Milky Way

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gerhard, Ortwin

2018-04-01

The central few kpc of our Galaxy, the Milky Way, are dominated by thegravitational field of the Galactic bar. This talk describes dynamicalmodels of the bar and box/peanut bulge, and what we have learnt fromthem about the dynamical structure, the distribution of stellar anddark matter mass, and the spatial and orbital distributions of theGalactic stellar populations. Finally I discuss models for theformation of galaxies like ours, and how Milky Way studies enlightengalaxy formation theories in general.

A Cosmic Variance Cookbook

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moster, Benjamin P.; Somerville, Rachel S.; Newman, Jeffrey A.; Rix, Hans-Walter

2011-04-01

Deep pencil beam surveys (<1 deg2) are of fundamental importance for studying the high-redshift universe. However, inferences about galaxy population properties (e.g., the abundance of objects) are in practice limited by "cosmic variance." This is the uncertainty in observational estimates of the number density of galaxies arising from the underlying large-scale density fluctuations. This source of uncertainty can be significant, especially for surveys which cover only small areas and for massive high-redshift galaxies. Cosmic variance for a given galaxy population can be determined using predictions from cold dark matter theory and the galaxy bias. In this paper, we provide tools for experiment design and interpretation. For a given survey geometry, we present the cosmic variance of dark matter as a function of mean redshift \\bar{z} and redshift bin size Δz. Using a halo occupation model to predict galaxy clustering, we derive the galaxy bias as a function of mean redshift for galaxy samples of a given stellar mass range. In the linear regime, the cosmic variance of these galaxy samples is the product of the galaxy bias and the dark matter cosmic variance. We present a simple recipe using a fitting function to compute cosmic variance as a function of the angular dimensions of the field, \\bar{z}, Δz, and stellar mass m *. We also provide tabulated values and a software tool. The accuracy of the resulting cosmic variance estimates (δσ v /σ v ) is shown to be better than 20%. We find that for GOODS at \\bar{z}=2 and with Δz = 0.5, the relative cosmic variance of galaxies with m *>1011 M sun is ~38%, while it is ~27% for GEMS and ~12% for COSMOS. For galaxies of m * ~ 1010 M sun, the relative cosmic variance is ~19% for GOODS, ~13% for GEMS, and ~6% for COSMOS. This implies that cosmic variance is a significant source of uncertainty at \\bar{z}=2 for small fields and massive galaxies, while for larger fields and intermediate mass galaxies, cosmic variance is less serious.

Understanding the nature of luminous red galaxies (LRGs): connecting LRGs to central and satellite subhaloes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masaki, Shogo; Hikage, Chiaki; Takada, Masahiro; Spergel, David N.; Sugiyama, Naoshi

2013-08-01

We develop a novel abundance matching method to construct a mock catalogue of luminous red galaxies (LRGs) in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), using catalogues of haloes and subhaloes in N-body simulations for a Λ-dominated cold dark matter model. Motivated by observations suggesting that LRGs are passively evolving, massive early-type galaxies with a typical age ≳5 Gyr, we assume that simulated haloes at z = 2 (z2-halo) are progenitors for LRG-host subhaloes observed today, and we label the most tightly bound particles in each progenitor z2-halo as LRG `stars'. We then identify the subhaloes containing these stars to z = 0.3 (SDSS redshift) in descending order of the masses of z2-haloes until the comoving number density of the matched subhaloes becomes comparable to the measured number density of SDSS LRGs, bar{n}_LRG=10^{-4} h^3 Mpc^{-3}. Once the above prescription is determined, our only free parameter is the number density of haloes identified at z = 2 and this parameter is fixed to match the observed number density at z = 0.3. By tracing subsequent merging and assembly histories of each progenitor z2-halo, we can directly compute, from the mock catalogue, the distributions of central and satellite LRGs and their internal motions in each host halo at z = 0.3. While the SDSS LRGs are galaxies selected by the magnitude and colour cuts from the SDSS images and are not necessarily a stellar-mass-selected sample, our mock catalogue reproduces a host of SDSS measurements: the halo occupation distribution for central and satellite LRGs, the projected autocorrelation function of LRGs, the cross-correlation of LRGs with shapes of background galaxies (LRG-galaxy weak lensing) and the non-linear redshift-space distortion effect, the Finger-of-God effect, in the angle-averaged redshift-space power spectrum. The mock catalogue generated based on our method can be used for removing or calibrating systematic errors in the cosmological interpretation of LRG clustering measurements as well as for understanding the nature of LRGs such as their formation and assembly histories.

Supermassive black holes and their host galaxies. I. Bulge luminosities from dedicated near-infrared data

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Läsker, Ronald; Van de Ven, Glenn; Ferrarese, Laura, E-mail: laesker@mpia.de

2014-01-01

In an effort to secure, refine, and supplement the relation between central supermassive black hole masses, M {sub •}, and the bulge luminosities of their host galaxies, L {sub bul}, we obtained deep, high spatial resolution K-band images of 35 nearby galaxies with securely measured M {sub •}, using the wide-field WIRCam imager at the Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope. A dedicated data reduction and sky subtraction strategy was adopted to estimate the brightness and structure of the sky, a critical step when tracing the light distribution of extended objects in the near-infrared. From the final image product, bulge and total magnitudes were extractedmore » via two-dimensional profile fitting. As a first order approximation, all galaxies were modeled using a simple Sérsic-bulge+exponential-disk decomposition. However, we found that such models did not adequately describe the structure that we observed in a large fraction of our sample galaxies which often include cores, bars, nuclei, inner disks, spiral arms, rings, and envelopes. In such cases, we adopted profile modifications and/or more complex models with additional components. The derived bulge magnitudes are very sensitive to the details and number of components used in the models, although total magnitudes remain almost unaffected. Usually, but not always, the luminosities and sizes of the bulges are overestimated when a simple bulge+disk decomposition is adopted in lieu of a more complex model. Furthermore, we found that some spheroids are not well fit when the ellipticity of the Sérsic model is held fixed. This paper presents the details of the image processing and analysis, while we discuss how model-induced biases and systematics in bulge magnitudes impact the M {sub •}-L {sub bul} relation in a companion paper.« less

Supermassive Black Holes and Their Host Galaxies. I. Bulge Luminosities from Dedicated Near-infrared Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Läsker, Ronald; Ferrarese, Laura; van de Ven, Glenn

2014-01-01

In an effort to secure, refine, and supplement the relation between central supermassive black hole masses, M •, and the bulge luminosities of their host galaxies, L bul, we obtained deep, high spatial resolution K-band images of 35 nearby galaxies with securely measured M •, using the wide-field WIRCam imager at the Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope. A dedicated data reduction and sky subtraction strategy was adopted to estimate the brightness and structure of the sky, a critical step when tracing the light distribution of extended objects in the near-infrared. From the final image product, bulge and total magnitudes were extracted via two-dimensional profile fitting. As a first order approximation, all galaxies were modeled using a simple Sérsic-bulge+exponential-disk decomposition. However, we found that such models did not adequately describe the structure that we observed in a large fraction of our sample galaxies which often include cores, bars, nuclei, inner disks, spiral arms, rings, and envelopes. In such cases, we adopted profile modifications and/or more complex models with additional components. The derived bulge magnitudes are very sensitive to the details and number of components used in the models, although total magnitudes remain almost unaffected. Usually, but not always, the luminosities and sizes of the bulges are overestimated when a simple bulge+disk decomposition is adopted in lieu of a more complex model. Furthermore, we found that some spheroids are not well fit when the ellipticity of the Sérsic model is held fixed. This paper presents the details of the image processing and analysis, while we discuss how model-induced biases and systematics in bulge magnitudes impact the M •-L bul relation in a companion paper.

On wave dark matter in spiral and barred galaxies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Martinez-Medina, Luis A.; Matos, Tonatiuh; Bray, Hubert L., E-mail: lmedina@fis.cinvestav.mx, E-mail: bray@math.duke.edu, E-mail: tmatos@fis.cinvestav.mx

2015-12-01

We recover spiral and barred spiral patterns in disk galaxy simulations with a Wave Dark Matter (WDM) background (also known as Scalar Field Dark Matter (SFDM), Ultra-Light Axion (ULA) dark matter, and Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC) dark matter). Here we show how the interaction between a baryonic disk and its Dark Matter Halo triggers the formation of spiral structures when the halo is allowed to have a triaxial shape and angular momentum. This is a more realistic picture within the WDM model since a non-spherical rotating halo seems to be more natural. By performing hydrodynamic simulations, along with earlier test particlesmore » simulations, we demonstrate another important way in which wave dark matter is consistent with observations. The common existence of bars in these simulations is particularly noteworthy. This may have consequences when trying to obtain information about the dark matter distribution in a galaxy, the mere presence of spiral arms or a bar usually indicates that baryonic matter dominates the central region and therefore observations, like rotation curves, may not tell us what the DM distribution is at the halo center. But here we show that spiral arms and bars can develop in DM dominated galaxies with a central density core without supposing its origin on mechanisms intrinsic to the baryonic matter.« less

Orbits in elementary, power-law galaxy bars - 1. Occurrence and role of single loops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Struck, Curtis

2018-05-01

Orbits in galaxy bars are generally complex, but simple closed loop orbits play an important role in our conceptual understanding of bars. Such orbits are found in some well-studied potentials, provide a simple model of the bar in themselves, and may generate complex orbit families. The precessing, power ellipse (p-ellipse) orbit approximation provides accurate analytic orbit fits in symmetric galaxy potentials. It remains useful for finding and fitting simple loop orbits in the frame of a rotating bar with bar-like and symmetric power-law potentials. Second-order perturbation theory yields two or fewer simple loop solutions in these potentials. Numerical integrations in the parameter space neighbourhood of perturbation solutions reveal zero or one actual loops in a range of such potentials with rising rotation curves. These loops are embedded in a small parameter region of similar, but librating orbits, which have a subharmonic frequency superimposed on the basic loop. These loops and their librating companions support annular bars. Solid bars can be produced in more complex potentials, as shown by an example with power-law indices varying with radius. The power-law potentials can be viewed as the elementary constituents of more complex potentials. Numerical integrations also reveal interesting classes of orbits with multiple loops. In two-dimensional, self-gravitating bars, with power-law potentials, single-loop orbits are very rare. This result suggests that gas bars or oval distortions are unlikely to be long-lived, and that complex orbits or three-dimensional structure must support self-gravitating stellar bars.

Environment Dependence of Disk Morphology of Spiral Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ann, Hong Bae

2014-02-01

We analyze the dependence of disk morphology (arm class, Hubble type, bar type) of nearby spiral galaxies on the galaxy environment by using local background density (Σ_{n}), project distance (r_{p}), and tidal index (TI) as measures of the environment. There is a strong dependence of arm class and Hubble type on the galaxy environment, while the bar type exhibits a weak dependence with a high frequency of SB galaxies in high density regions. Grand design fractions and early-type fractions increase with increasing Σ_{n}, 1/r_{p}, and TI, while fractions of flocculent spirals and late-type spirals decrease. Multiple-arm and intermediate-type spirals exhibit nearly constant fractions with weak trends similar to grand design and early-type spirals. While bar types show only a marginal dependence on Σ_{n}, they show a fairly clear dependence on r_{p} with a high frequency of SB galaxies at small r_{p}. The arm class also exhibits a stronger correlation with r_{p} than Σ_{n} and TI, whereas the Hubble type exhibits similar correlations with Σ_{n} and r_{p}. This suggests that the arm class is mostly affected by the nearest neighbor while the Hubble type is affected by the local densities contributed by neighboring galaxies as well as the nearest neighbor.

Tidal Disruption Event Host Galaxies in the Context of the Local Galaxy Population

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Law-Smith, Jamie; Ramirez-Ruiz, Enrico; Ellison, Sara L.; Foley, Ryan J.

2017-11-01

We study the properties of tidal disruption event (TDE) host galaxies in the context of a catalog of ˜500,000 galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We explore whether selection effects can account for the overrepresentation of TDEs in E+A/post-starburst galaxies by creating matched galaxy samples. Accounting for possible selection effects due to black hole (BH) mass, redshift completeness, strong active galactic nucleus presence, bulge colors, and surface brightness can reduce the apparent overrepresentation of TDEs in E+A host galaxies by a factor of ˜4 (from ˜×100-190 to ˜×25-48), but cannot fully explain the preference. We find that TDE host galaxies have atypical photometric properties compared to similar, “typical” galaxies. In particular, TDE host galaxies tend to live in or near the “green valley” between star-forming and passive galaxies, and have bluer bulge colors ({{Δ }}(g-r)≈ 0.3 mag), lower half-light surface brightnesses (by ˜1 mag/arcsec2), higher Sérsic indices ({{Δ }}{n}{{g}}≈ 3), and higher bulge-to-total-light ratios ({{Δ }}B/T≈ 0.5) than galaxies with matched BH masses. We find that TDE host galaxies appear more centrally concentrated and that all have high galaxy Sérsic indices and B/T fractions—on average in the top 10% of galaxies of the same BH mass—suggesting a higher nuclear stellar density. We identify a region in the Sérsic index and BH mass parameter space that contains ˜2% of our reference catalog galaxies but ≥slant 60 % of TDE host galaxies. The unique photometric properties of TDE host galaxies may be useful for selecting candidate TDEs for spectroscopic follow-up observations in large transient surveys.

DUST-CORRECTED COLORS REVEAL BIMODALITY IN THE HOST-GALAXY COLORS OF ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI AT z {approx} 1

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cardamone, Carolin N.; Megan Urry, C.; Brammer, Gabriel

2010-09-20

Using new, highly accurate photometric redshifts from the MUSYC medium-band survey in the Extended Chandra Deep Field-South (ECDF-S), we fit synthetic stellar population models to compare active galactic nucleus (AGN) host galaxies to inactive galaxies at 0.8 {<=} z {<=} 1.2. We find that AGN host galaxies are predominantly massive galaxies on the red sequence and in the green valley of the color-mass diagram. Because both passive and dusty galaxies can appear red in optical colors, we use rest-frame near-infrared colors to separate passively evolving stellar populations from galaxies that are reddened by dust. As with the overall galaxy population,more » {approx}25% of the 'red' AGN host galaxies and {approx}75% of the 'green' AGN host galaxies have colors consistent with young stellar populations reddened by dust. The dust-corrected rest-frame optical colors are the blue colors of star-forming galaxies, which imply that these AGN hosts are not passively aging to the red sequence. At z {approx} 1, AGN activity is roughly evenly split between two modes of black hole growth: the first in passively evolving host galaxies, which may be heating up the galaxy's gas and preventing future episodes of star formation, and the second in dust-reddened young galaxies, which may be ionizing the galaxy's interstellar medium and shutting down star formation.« less

Stellar streams and the galaxies they reside in

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pearson, Sarah

2018-01-01

As galaxies collide, as smaller galaxies are disrupted by larger galaxies, or as clusters of stars orbit a galaxy, a gravitational tidal interaction unfolds and the systems tear apart into distinct morphological and kinematic structures. In my thesis, I have exploited these structures to understand various components of galaxies, such as the baryon cycle in dwarf galaxy interactions (Pearson et al. 2016, Pearson et al. 2017b). In this talk, I will focus on my thesis work related to the stellar stream emerging from the old, globular cluster, Palomar 5 (Pal 5), orbiting our own Milky Way. As the stellar stream members were once closely tied together in energy and angular momentum space, we can use their distribution in phase space to trace back where they were once located and what affected them along their paths. In particular, I will show that the mere existence of Pal 5’s thin stream can rule out a moderately triaxial potential model of our Galaxy (Pearson et al. 2015) and that the debris of Pal 5-like streams will spread much further in space in a triaxial potential (a mechanism which I dubbed “stream fanning”) . Additionally, I will show that the Milky Way's Galactic bar, can punch holes in stellar streams and explain the recently discovered length asymmetry between Pal 5’s leading and trailing arm (Pearson et al. 2017a). These holes grow and have locations along stellar streams dependent on the Galactic bar orientation, mass and rotational speed, which provides an intriguing methodology for studying our own Milky Way’s Galactic bar in more detail. The fact that the bar can create under densities in stellar streams, further demonstrates that we should be careful when interpreting gaps in stellar streams as indirect evidence of the existence of dark matter subhalos in our Galaxy.

ON THE HOST GALAXY OF GRB 150101B AND THE ASSOCIATED ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xie, Chen; Fang, Taotao; Wang, Junfeng

We present a multi-wavelength analysis of the host galaxy of short-duration gamma-ray burst (GRB) 150101B. Follow-up optical and X-ray observations suggested that the host galaxy, 2MASX J12320498-1056010, likely harbors low-luminosity active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our modeling of the spectral energy distribution has confirmed the nature of the AGN, making it the first reported GRB host that contains an AGN. We have also found the host galaxy is a massive elliptical galaxy with stellar population of ∼5.7 Gyr, one of the oldest among the short-duration GRB hosts. Our analysis suggests that the host galaxy can be classified as an X-ray bright,more » optically normal galaxy, and the central AGN is likely dominated by a radiatively inefficient accretion flow. Our work explores an interesting connection that may exist between GRB and AGN activities of the host galaxy, which can help in understanding the host environment of the GRB events and the roles of AGN feedback.« less

The early phase of the SMBH-galaxy coevolution in low-z "young" galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagao, Tohru

2014-01-01

It is now widely recognized that most galaxies have a supermassive black hole (SMBH) in their nucleus, and the evolution of SMBHs is closely related with that of their host galaxies (the SMBH-galaxy coevolution). This is suggested by the correlation in the mass of SMBHs and their host galaxies, that has been observed in low redshifts. However, the physics of the coevolution is totally unclear, that prevents us from complete understandings of the galaxy evolution. One possible strategy to tackle this issue is measuring the mass ratio between SMBHs and their host galaxies (M_BH/M_host) at high redshifs, since different scenarios predict different evolution of the ratio ofMBH/Mhost. However it is extremely challenging to measure the mass of the host of high-z quasars, given the faint surface brightness of the host at close to the glaring quasar nucleus. Here we propose a brand-new approach to assess the early phase of the SMBH-galaxy coevolution, by focusing on low-z AGN-hosting "young" galaxies. Specifically, we focus on some very metal-poor galaxies with broadline Balmer lines at z ~ 0.1 - 0.3. By examining the SMBH scaling relations in some low-z metal-poor AGNs through high-resolution IRCS imaging observations, we will discriminate various scenarios for the SMBH-galaxy coevolution.

On the Bar Pattern Speed Determination of NGC 3367

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gabbasov, R. F.; Repetto, P.; Rosado, M.

2009-09-01

An important dynamic parameter of barred galaxies is the bar pattern speed, Ω P . Among several methods that are used for the determination of Ω P , the Tremaine-Weinberg method has the advantage of model independence and accuracy. In this work, we apply the method to a simulated bar including gas dynamics and study the effect of two-dimensional spectroscopy data quality on robustness of the method. We added white noise and a Gaussian random field to the data and measured the corresponding errors in Ω P . We found that a signal to noise ratio in surface density ~5 introduces errors of ~20% for the Gaussian noise, while for the white noise the corresponding errors reach ~50%. At the same time, the velocity field is less sensitive to contamination. On the basis of the performed study, we applied the method to the NGC 3367 spiral galaxy using Hα Fabry-Pérot interferometry data. We found Ω P = 43 ± 6 km s-1 kpc-1 for this galaxy.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: Barred & unbarred galaxies N, O abundance ratio (Florido+, 2015)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Florido, E.; Zurita, A.; Perez, I.; Perez-Montero, E.; Coelho, P. R. T.; Gadotti, D. A.

2015-11-01

The tables contain nebular emission line fluxes for the central region of 251 barred and 324 unbarred galaxies. The sample contains all spiral face-on galaxies (axial ratio b/a>=0.9) in the SDSS DR-2, with stellar masses larger than 1010 the solar mass, redshift 0.02

Nuclear Spiral Shocks and Induced Gas Inflows in Weak Oval Potentials

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kim, Woong-Tae; Elmegreen, Bruce G., E-mail: wkim@astro.snu.ac.kr, E-mail: bge@us.ibm.com

Nuclear spirals are ubiquitous in galaxy centers. They exist not only in strong barred galaxies but also in galaxies without noticeable bars. We use high-resolution hydrodynamic simulations to study the properties of nuclear gas spirals driven by weak bar-like and oval potentials. The amplitude of the spirals increases toward the center by a geometric effect, readily developing into shocks at small radii even for very weak potentials. The shape of the spirals and shocks depends rather sensitively on the background shear. When shear is low, the nuclear spirals are loosely wound and the shocks are almost straight, resulting in largemore » mass inflows toward the center. When shear is high, on the other hand, the spirals are tightly wound and the shocks are oblique, forming a circumnuclear disk through which gas flows inward at a relatively lower rate. The induced mass inflow rates are enough to power black hole accretion in various types of Seyfert galaxies as well as to drive supersonic turbulence at small radii.« less

GALAXY EVOLUTION. An over-massive black hole in a typical star-forming galaxy, 2 billion years after the Big Bang.

PubMed

Trakhtenbrot, Benny; Urry, C Megan; Civano, Francesca; Rosario, David J; Elvis, Martin; Schawinski, Kevin; Suh, Hyewon; Bongiorno, Angela; Simmons, Brooke D

2015-07-10

Supermassive black holes (SMBHs) and their host galaxies are generally thought to coevolve, so that the SMBH achieves up to about 0.2 to 0.5% of the host galaxy mass in the present day. The radiation emitted from the growing SMBH is expected to affect star formation throughout the host galaxy. The relevance of this scenario at early cosmic epochs is not yet established. We present spectroscopic observations of a galaxy at redshift z = 3.328, which hosts an actively accreting, extremely massive BH, in its final stages of growth. The SMBH mass is roughly one-tenth the mass of the entire host galaxy, suggesting that it has grown much more efficiently than the host, contrary to models of synchronized coevolution. The host galaxy is forming stars at an intense rate, despite the presence of a SMBH-driven gas outflow. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Enormous disc of cool gas surrounding the nearby powerful radio galaxy NGC612 (PKS0131-36)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Emonts, B. H. C.; Morganti, R.; Oosterloo, T. A.; Holt, J.; Tadhunter, C. N.; van der Hulst, J. M.; Ojha, R.; Sadler, E. M.

2008-06-01

We present the detection of an enormous disc of cool neutral hydrogen (HI) gas surrounding the S0 galaxy NGC612, which hosts one of the nearest powerful radio sources (PKS0131-36). Using the Australia Telescope Compact Array, we detect MHI = 1.8 × 109Msolar of HI emission-line gas that is distributed in a 140-kpc wide disc-like structure along the optical disc and dust lane of NGC612. The bulk of the gas in the disc appears to be settled in regular rotation with a total velocity range of 850kms-1, although asymmetries in this disc indicate that perturbations are being exerted on part of the gas, possibly by a number of nearby companions. The HI disc in NGC612 suggests that the total mass enclosed by the system is Menc ~ 2.9 × 1012 sin-2 iMsolar, implying that this early-type galaxy contains a massive dark matter halo. We also discuss an earlier study by Holt et al. that revealed the presence of a prominent young stellar population at various locations throughout the disc of NGC612, indicating that this is a rare example of an extended radio source that is hosted by a galaxy with a large-scale star-forming disc. In addition, we map a faint HI bridge along a distance of 400kpc in between NGC612 and the gas-rich (MHI = 8.9 × 109Msolar) barred galaxy NGC619, indicating that likely an interaction between both systems occurred. From the unusual amounts of HI gas and young stars in this early-type galaxy, in combination with the detection of a faint optical shell and the system's high infrared luminosity, we argue that either ongoing or past galaxy interactions or a major merger event are a likely mechanism for the triggering of the radio source in NGC612. This paper is part of an ongoing study to map the large-scale neutral hydrogen properties of nearby radio galaxies and it presents the first example of large-scale HI detected around a powerful Fanaroff-Riley type II (FR-II) radio galaxy. The HI properties of the FR-II radio galaxy NGC612 are very similar to those found for low-power compact radio sources, but different from those of extended Fanaroff-Riley type I (FR-I) sources.

Spirality: A Noval Way to Measure Spiral Arm Pitch Angle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shields, Douglas W.; Boe, Benjamin; Henderson, Casey L.; Hartley, Matthew; Davis, Benjamin L.; Pour Imani, Hamed; Kennefick, Daniel; Kennefick, Julia D.

2015-01-01

We present the MATLAB code Spirality, a novel method for measuring spiral arm pitch angles by fitting galaxy images to spiral templates of known pitch. For a given pitch angle template, the mean pixel value is found along each of typically 1000 spiral axes. The fitting function, which shows a local maximum at the best-fit pitch angle, is the variance of these means. Error bars are found by varying the inner radius of the measurement annulus and finding the standard deviation of the best-fit pitches. Computation time is typically on the order of 2 minutes per galaxy, assuming at least 8 GB of working memory. We tested the code using 128 synthetic spiral images of known pitch. These spirals varied in the number of spiral arms, pitch angle, degree of logarithmicity, radius, SNR, inclination angle, bar length, and bulge radius. A correct result is defined as a result that matches the true pitch within the error bars, with error bars no greater than ±7°. For the non-logarithmic spiral sample, the correct answer is similarly defined, with the mean pitch as function of radius in place of the true pitch. For all synthetic spirals, correct results were obtained so long as SNR > 0.25, the bar length was no more than 60% of the spiral's diameter (when the bar was included in the measurement), the input center of the spiral was no more than 6% of the spiral radius away from the true center, and the inclination angle was no more than 30°. The synthetic spirals were not deprojected prior to measurement. The code produced the correct result for all barred spirals when the measurement annulus was placed outside the bar. Additionally, we compared the code's results against 2DFFT results for 203 visually selected spiral galaxies in GOODS North and South. Among the entire sample, Spirality's error bars overlapped 2DFFT's error bars 64% of the time. For those galaxies in which Source code is available by email request from the primary author.

Circumnuclear Regions In Barred Spiral Galaxies. 1; Near-Infrared Imaging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perez-Ramirez, D.; Knapen, J. H.; Peletier, R. F.; Laine, S.; Doyon, R.; Nadeau, D.

2000-01-01

We present sub-arcsecond resolution ground-based near-infrared images of the central regions of a sample of twelve barred galaxies with circumnuclear star formation activity, which is organized in ring-like regions typically one kiloparsec in diameter. We also present Hubble Space Telescope near-infrared images of ten of our sample galaxies, and compare them with our ground-based data. Although our sample galaxies were selected for the presence of circumnuclear star formation activity, our broad-band near-infrared images are heterogeneous, showing a substantial amount of small-scale structure in some galaxies, and practically none in others. We argue that, where it exists, this structure is caused by young stars, which also cause the characteristic bumps or changes in slope in the radial profiles of ellipticity, major axis position angle, surface brightness and colour at the radius of the circumnuclear ring in most of our sample galaxies. In 7 out of 10 HST images, star formation in the nuclear ring is clearly visible as a large number of small emitting regions, organised into spiral arm fragments, which are accompanied by dust lanes. NIR colour index maps show much more clearly the location of dust lanes and, in certain cases, regions of star formation than single broad-band images. Circumnuclear spiral structure thus outlined appears to be common in barred spiral galaxies with circumnuclear star formation.

Shape of LOSVDs in Barred Disks: Implications for Future IFU Surveys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zhao-Yu; Shen, Juntai; Bureau, Martin; Zhou, Yingying; Du, Min; Debattista, Victor P.

2018-02-01

The shape of line-of-sight velocity distributions (LOSVDs) carries important information about the internal dynamics of galaxies. The skewness of LOSVDs represents their asymmetric deviation from a Gaussian profile. Correlations between the skewness parameter (h 3) and the mean velocity (\\overline{V}) of a Gauss–Hermite series reflect the underlying stellar orbital configurations of different morphological components. Using two self-consistent N-body simulations of disk galaxies with different bar strengths, we investigate {h}3-\\overline{V} correlations at different inclination angles. Similar to previous studies, we find anticorrelations in the disk area, and positive correlations in the bar area when viewed edge-on. However, at intermediate inclinations, the outer parts of bars exhibit anticorrelations, while the core areas dominated by the boxy/peanut-shaped (B/PS) bulges still maintain weak positive correlations. When viewed edge-on, particles in the foreground/background disk (the wing region) in the bar area constitute the main velocity peak, whereas the particles in the bar contribute to the high-velocity tail, generating the {h}3-\\overline{V} correlation. If we remove the wing particles, the LOSVDs of the particles in the outer part of the bar only exhibit a low-velocity tail, resulting in a negative {h}3-\\overline{V} correlation, whereas the core areas in the central region still show weakly positive correlations. We discuss implications for IFU observations on bars, and show that the variation of the {h}3-\\overline{V} correlation in the disk galaxy may be used as a kinematic indicator of the bar and the B/PS bulge.

Elegant spiral hides a hungry monster

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-10-12

NGC 4639 is a beautiful example of a type of galaxy known as a barred spiral. It lies over 70 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo and is one of about 1500 galaxies that make up the Virgo Cluster. In this image, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, one can clearly see the bar running through the bright, round core of the galaxy. Bars are found in around two thirds of spiral galaxies, and are thought to be a natural phase in their evolution. The galaxy’s spiral arms are sprinkled with bright regions of active star formation. Each of these tiny jewels is actually several hundred light-years across and contains hundreds or thousands of newly formed stars. But NGC 4639 also conceals a dark secret in its core — a massive black hole that is consuming the surrounding gas. This is known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN), and is revealed by characteristic features in the spectrum of light from the galaxy and by X-rays produced close to the black hole as the hot gas plunges towards it. Most galaxies are thought to contain a black hole at the centre. NGC 4639 is in fact a very weak example of an AGN, demonstrating that AGNs exist over a large range of activity, from galaxies like NGC 4639 to distant quasars, where the parent galaxy is almost completely dominated by the emissions from the AGN.

Galaxy NGC5398

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-07-25

This is an ultraviolet color image of the galaxy NGC5398 taken by NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer on June 7, 2003. NGC5398 is a barred spiral galaxy located 60 million light-years from Earth. The star formation is concentrated in the two bright regions of the image. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA04633

VizieR Online Data Catalog: Galaxy structural parameters from 3.6um images (Kim+, 2014)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, T.; Gadotti, D. A.; Sheth, K.; Athanassoula, E.; Bosma, A.; Lee, M. G.; Madore, B. F.; Elmegreen, B.; Knapen, J. H.; Zaritsky, D.; Ho, L. C.; Comeron, S.; Holwerda, B.; Hinz, J. L.; Munoz-Mateos, J.-C.; Cisternas, M.; Erroz-Ferrer, S.; Buta, R.; Laurikainen, E.; Salo, H.; Laine, J.; Menendez-Delmestre, K.; Regan, M. W.; de Swardt, B.; Gil de Paz, A.; Seibert, M.; Mizusawa, T.

2016-03-01

We select our samples from the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G; Sheth et al. 2010, cat. J/PASP/122/1397). We chose galaxies that had already been processed by the first three S4G pipelines (Pipelines 1, 2, and 3; Sheth et al. 2010, cat. J/PASP/122/1397) at the moment of this study (2011 November). In brief, Pipeline processes images and provides science-ready images. Pipeline 2 prepares mask images (to exclude foreground and background objects) for further analysis, and Pipeline 3 derives surface brightness profiles and total magnitudes using IRAF ellipse fits. We excluded highly inclined (b/a<0.5), significantly disturbed, very faint, or irregular galaxies. Galaxies were also discarded if their images are unsuitable for decomposition due to contamination such as a bright foreground star or significant stray light from stars in the IRAC scattering zones. Then we chose barred galaxies from all Hubble types from S0 to Sdm using the numerical Hubble types from Hyperleda (Paturel et al. 2003, cat. VII/237, VII/238). The assessment of the presence of a bar was done visually by K. Sheth, T. Kim, and B. de Swardt. Later, we also confirmed the presence of a bar by checking the mid-infrared classification (Buta et al. 2010, cat. J/ApJS/190/147; Buta et al. 2015, cat. J/ApJS/217/32). A total of 144 barred galaxies were selected that satisfy our criteria, and we list our sample in Table1 with basic information. Table2 presents the measures of structural parameters for all galaxies in the sample obtained from the 2D model fit with BUDDA (BUlge/disk Decomposition Analysis, de Souza et al., 2004ApJS..153..411D; Gadotti, 2008MNRAS.384..420G) code. (2 data files).

Investigating The Nuclear Activity Of Barred Spirals: The case of NGC 1672

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenkins, Leigh; Brandt, N.; Colbert, E.; Levan, A.; Roberts, T.; Ward, M.; Zezas, A.

2008-03-01

We present new results from Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray observations of the nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC1672. It shows dramatic nuclear and extra-nuclear star formation activity, including starburst regions located either end of its prominent bar. Using new X-ray imaging and spectral information, together with supporting multiwavelength data, we show for the first time that NGC1672 possesses a faint, hard, central X-ray source surrounded by a circumnuclear starburst ring that dominates the X-ray emission in the region, presumably triggered and sustained by gas and dust driven inwards along the galactic bar. The faint central source may represent low-level AGN activity, or alternatively emission associated with star-formation in the nucleus. More generally, we present some preliminary results on a Chandra archival search for low-luminosity AGN activity in barred galaxies.

Cosmic evolution and metal aversion in superluminous supernova host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schulze, S.; Krühler, T.; Leloudas, G.; Gorosabel, J.; Mehner, A.; Buchner, J.; Kim, S.; Ibar, E.; Amorín, R.; Herrero-Illana, R.; Anderson, J. P.; Bauer, F. E.; Christensen, L.; de Pasquale, M.; de Ugarte Postigo, A.; Gallazzi, A.; Hjorth, J.; Morrell, N.; Malesani, D.; Sparre, M.; Stalder, B.; Stark, A. A.; Thöne, C. C.; Wheeler, J. C.

2018-01-01

The SUperluminous Supernova Host galaxIES survey aims to provide strong new constraints on the progenitors of superluminous supernovae (SLSNe) by understanding the relationship to their host galaxies. We present the photometric properties of 53 H-poor and 16 H-rich SLSN host galaxies out to z ∼ 4. We model their spectral energy distributions to derive physical properties, which we compare with other galaxy populations. At low redshift, H-poor SLSNe are preferentially found in very blue, low-mass galaxies with high average specific star formation rates. As redshift increases, the host population follows the general evolution of star-forming galaxies towards more luminous galaxies. After accounting for secular evolution, we find evidence for differential evolution in galaxy mass, but not in the B band and the far-ultraviolet luminosity (3σ confidence). Most remarkable is the scarcity of hosts with stellar masses above 1010 M⊙ for both classes of SLSNe. In case of H-poor SLSNe, we attribute this to a stifled production efficiency above ∼0.4 solar metallicity. However, we argue that, in addition to low metallicity, a short-lived stellar population is also required to regulate the SLSN production. H-rich SLSNe are found in a very diverse population of star-forming galaxies. Still, the scarcity of massive hosts suggests a stifled production efficiency above ∼0.8 solar metallicity. The large dispersion of the H-rich SLSNe host properties is in stark contrast to those of gamma-ray burst, regular core-collapse SN, and H-poor SLSNe host galaxies. We propose that multiple progenitor channels give rise to this subclass.

Spatially Resolved Spectroscopy of Narrow-line Seyfert 1 Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scharwächter, J.; Husemann, B.; Busch, G.; Komossa, S.; Dopita, M. A.

2017-10-01

We present optical integral field spectroscopy for five z< 0.062 narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies, probing their host galaxies at ≳ 2{--}3 {kpc} scales. Emission lines from the active galactic nucleus (AGN) and the large-scale host galaxy are analyzed separately, based on an AGN-host decomposition technique. The host galaxy gas kinematics indicates large-scale gas rotation in all five sources. At the probed scales of ≳ 2{--}3 {kpc}, the host galaxy gas is found to be predominantly ionized by star formation without any evidence of a strong AGN contribution. None of the five objects shows specific star formation rates (SFRs) exceeding the main sequence of low-redshift star-forming galaxies. The specific SFRs for MCG-05-01-013 and WPVS 007 are roughly consistent with the main sequence, while ESO 399-IG20, MS 22549-3712, and TON S180 show lower specific SFRs, intermediate to the main sequence and the red quiescent galaxies. The host galaxy metallicities, derived for the two sources with sufficient data quality (ESO 399-IG20 and MCG-05-01-013), indicate central oxygen abundances just below the low-redshift mass-metallicity relation. Based on this initial case study, we outline a comparison of AGN and host galaxy parameters as a starting point for future extended NLS1 studies with similar methods.

Spatially Resolved Patchy Lyα Emission within the Central Kiloparsec of a Strongly Lensed Quasar Host Galaxy at z = 2.8

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bayliss, Matthew B.; Sharon, Keren; Acharyya, Ayan; Gladders, Michael D.; Rigby, Jane R.; Bian, Fuyan; Bordoloi, Rongmon; Runnoe, Jessie; Dahle, Hakon; Kewley, Lisa; Florian, Michael; Johnson, Traci; Paterno-Mahler, Rachel

2017-08-01

We report the detection of extended Lyα emission from the host galaxy of SDSS J2222+2745, a strongly lensed quasar at z = 2.8. Spectroscopic follow-up clearly reveals extended Lyα in emission between two images of the central active galactic nucleus (AGN). We reconstruct the lensed quasar host galaxy in the source plane by applying a strong lens model to HST imaging and resolve spatial scales as small as ˜200 pc. In the source plane, we recover the host galaxy morphology to within a few hundred parsecs of the central AGN and map the extended Lyα emission to its physical origin on one side of the host galaxy at radii ˜0.5-2 kpc from the central AGN. There are clear morphological differences between the Lyα and rest-frame ultraviolet stellar continuum emission from the quasar host galaxy. Furthermore, the relative velocity profiles of quasar Lyα, host galaxy Lyα, and metal lines in outflowing gas reveal differences in the absorbing material affecting the AGN and host galaxy. These data indicate the presence of patchy local intervening gas in front of the central quasar and its host galaxy. This interpretation is consistent with the central luminous quasar being obscured across a substantial fraction of its surrounding solid angle, resulting in strong anisotropy in the exposure of the host galaxy to ionizing radiation from the AGN. This work demonstrates the power of strong-lensing-assisted studies to probe spatial scales that are currently inaccessible by other means.

A Bayesian approach to multi-messenger astronomy: identification of gravitational-wave host galaxies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fan, XiLong; Messenger, Christopher; Heng, Ik Siong

We present a general framework for incorporating astrophysical information into Bayesian parameter estimation techniques used by gravitational wave data analysis to facilitate multi-messenger astronomy. Since the progenitors of transient gravitational wave events, such as compact binary coalescences, are likely to be associated with a host galaxy, improvements to the source sky location estimates through the use of host galaxy information are explored. To demonstrate how host galaxy properties can be included, we simulate a population of compact binary coalescences and show that for ∼8.5% of simulations within 200 Mpc, the top 10 most likely galaxies account for a ∼50% ofmore » the total probability of hosting a gravitational wave source. The true gravitational wave source host galaxy is in the top 10 galaxy candidates ∼10% of the time. Furthermore, we show that by including host galaxy information, a better estimate of the inclination angle of a compact binary gravitational wave source can be obtained. We also demonstrate the flexibility of our method by incorporating the use of either the B or K band into our analysis.« less

A dynamical model for the formation of gas rings and episodic starbursts near galactic centres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krumholz, Mark R.; Kruijssen, J. M. Diederik

2015-10-01

We develop a simple dynamical model for the evolution of gas in the centres of barred spiral galaxies, using the Milky Way's Central Molecular Zone (CMZ, i.e. the central few hundred pc) as a case study. We show that, in the presence of a galactic bar, gas in a disc in the central regions of a galaxy will be driven inwards by angular momentum transport induced by acoustic instabilities within the bar's inner Lindblad resonance. This transport process drives turbulence within the gas that temporarily keeps it strongly gravitationally stable and prevents the onset of rapid star formation. However, at some point the rotation curve must transition from approximately flat to approximately solid body, and the resulting reduction in shear reduces the transport rates and causes gas to build up, eventually producing a gravitationally unstable region that is subject to rapid and violent star formation. For the observed rotation curve of the Milky Way, the accumulation happens ˜100 pc from the centre of the Galaxy, in good agreement with the observed location of gas clouds and young star clusters in the CMZ. The characteristic time-scale for gas accumulation and star formation is of the order of 10-20 Myr. We argue that similar phenomena should be ubiquitous in other barred spiral galaxies.

Detailed Quantitative Classifications of Galaxy Morphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nair, Preethi

2018-01-01

Understanding the physical processes responsible for the growth of galaxies is one of the key challenges in extragalactic astronomy. The assembly history of a galaxy is imprinted in a galaxy’s detailed morphology. The bulge-to-total ratio of galaxies, the presence or absence of bars, rings, spiral arms, tidal tails etc, all have implications for the past merger, star formation, and feedback history of a galaxy. However, current quantitative galaxy classification schemes are only useful for broad binning. They cannot classify or exploit the wide variety of galaxy structures seen in nature. Therefore, comparisons of observations with theoretical predictions of secular structure formation have only been conducted on small samples of visually classified galaxies. However large samples are needed to disentangle the complex physical processes of galaxy formation. With the advent of large surveys, like the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and the upcoming Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) and WFIRST, the problem of statistics will be resolved. However, the need for a robust quantitative classification scheme will still remain. Here I will present early results on promising machine learning algorithms that are providing detailed classifications, identifying bars, rings, multi-armed spiral galaxies, and Hubble type.

A Spatially Resolved Study of the GRB 020903 Host Galaxy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thorp, Mallory D.; Levesque, Emily M.

2018-03-01

GRB 020903 is a long-duration gamma-ray burst with a host galaxy close enough and extended enough for spatially resolved observations, making it one of less than a dozen GRBs where such host studies are possible. GRB 020903 lies in a galaxy host complex that appears to consist of four interacting components. Here we present the results of spatially resolved spectroscopic observations of the GRB 020903 host. By taking observations at two different position angles, we were able to obtain optical spectra (3600–9000 Å) of multiple regions in the galaxy. We confirm redshifts for three regions of the host galaxy that match that of GRB 020903. We measure the metallicity of these regions, and find that the explosion site and the nearby star-forming regions both have comparable subsolar metallicities. We conclude that, in agreement with past spatially resolved studies of GRBs, the GRB explosion site is representative of the host galaxy as a whole rather than localized in a metal-poor region of the galaxy.

Host galaxy identification for supernova surveys

DOE PAGES

Gupta, Ravi R.; Kuhlmann, Steve; Kovacs, Eve; ...

2016-11-08

Host galaxy identification is a crucial step for modern supernova (SN) surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), which will discover SNe by the thousands. Spectroscopic resources are limited, so in the absence of real-time SN spectra these surveys must rely on host galaxy spectra to obtain accurate redshifts for the Hubble diagram and to improve photometric classification of SNe. In addition, SN luminosities are known to correlate with host-galaxy properties. Therefore, reliable identification of host galaxies is essential for cosmology and SN science. We simulate SN events and their locations withinmore » their host galaxies to develop and test methods for matching SNe to their hosts. We use both real and simulated galaxy catalog data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys General Catalog and MICECATv2.0, respectively. We also incorporate "hostless" SNe residing in undetected faint hosts into our analysis, with an assumed hostless rate of 5%. Our fully automated algorithm is run on catalog data and matches SNe to their hosts with 91% accuracy. We find that including a machine learning component, run after the initial matching algorithm, improves the accuracy (purity) of the matching to 97% with a 2% cost in efficiency (true positive rate). Although the exact results are dependent on the details of the survey and the galaxy catalogs used, the method of identifying host galaxies we outline here can be applied to any transient survey.« less

HOST GALAXY IDENTIFICATION FOR SUPERNOVA SURVEYS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gupta, Ravi R.; Kuhlmann, Steve; Kovacs, Eve

Host galaxy identification is a crucial step for modern supernova (SN) surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, which will discover SNe by the thousands. Spectroscopic resources are limited, and so in the absence of real-time SN spectra these surveys must rely on host galaxy spectra to obtain accurate redshifts for the Hubble diagram and to improve photometric classification of SNe. In addition, SN luminosities are known to correlate with host-galaxy properties. Therefore, reliable identification of host galaxies is essential for cosmology and SN science. We simulate SN events and their locations within theirmore » host galaxies to develop and test methods for matching SNe to their hosts. We use both real and simulated galaxy catalog data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys General Catalog and MICECATv2.0, respectively. We also incorporate “hostless” SNe residing in undetected faint hosts into our analysis, with an assumed hostless rate of 5%. Our fully automated algorithm is run on catalog data and matches SNe to their hosts with 91% accuracy. We find that including a machine learning component, run after the initial matching algorithm, improves the accuracy (purity) of the matching to 97% with a 2% cost in efficiency (true positive rate). Although the exact results are dependent on the details of the survey and the galaxy catalogs used, the method of identifying host galaxies we outline here can be applied to any transient survey.« less

Host galaxy identification for supernova surveys

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gupta, Ravi R.; Kuhlmann, Steve; Kovacs, Eve

Host galaxy identification is a crucial step for modern supernova (SN) surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), which will discover SNe by the thousands. Spectroscopic resources are limited, so in the absence of real-time SN spectra these surveys must rely on host galaxy spectra to obtain accurate redshifts for the Hubble diagram and to improve photometric classification of SNe. In addition, SN luminosities are known to correlate with host-galaxy properties. Therefore, reliable identification of host galaxies is essential for cosmology and SN science. We simulate SN events and their locations withinmore » their host galaxies to develop and test methods for matching SNe to their hosts. We use both real and simulated galaxy catalog data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys General Catalog and MICECATv2.0, respectively. We also incorporate "hostless" SNe residing in undetected faint hosts into our analysis, with an assumed hostless rate of 5%. Our fully automated algorithm is run on catalog data and matches SNe to their hosts with 91% accuracy. We find that including a machine learning component, run after the initial matching algorithm, improves the accuracy (purity) of the matching to 97% with a 2% cost in efficiency (true positive rate). Although the exact results are dependent on the details of the survey and the galaxy catalogs used, the method of identifying host galaxies we outline here can be applied to any transient survey.« less

HOST GALAXY IDENTIFICATION FOR SUPERNOVA SURVEYS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gupta, Ravi R.; Kuhlmann, Steve; Kovacs, Eve

Host galaxy identification is a crucial step for modern supernova (SN) surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, which will discover SNe by the thousands. Spectroscopic resources are limited, and so in the absence of real-time SN spectra these surveys must rely on host galaxy spectra to obtain accurate redshifts for the Hubble diagram and to improve photometric classification of SNe. In addition, SN luminosities are known to correlate with host-galaxy properties. Therefore, reliable identification of host galaxies is essential for cosmology and SN science. We simulate SN events and their locations within theirmore » host galaxies to develop and test methods for matching SNe to their hosts. We use both real and simulated galaxy catalog data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys General Catalog and MICECATv2.0, respectively. We also incorporate "hostless" SNe residing in undetected faint hosts into our analysis, with an assumed hostless rate of 5%. Our fully automated algorithm is run on catalog data and matches SNe to their hosts with 91% accuracy. We find that including a machine learning component, run after the initial matching algorithm, improves the accuracy (purity) of the matching to 97% with a 2% cost in efficiency (true positive rate). Although the exact results are dependent on the details of the survey and the galaxy catalogs used, the method of identifying host galaxies we outline here can be applied to any transient survey.« less

TRACING REJUVENATION EVENTS IN NEARBY S0 GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Marino, Antonietta; Bianchi, Luciana; Thilker, David A.

2011-08-01

With the aim of characterizing rejuvenation processes in early-type galaxies, we analyzed five barred S0 galaxies showing a prominent outer ring in ultraviolet (UV) imaging. We analyzed Galaxy Evolution Explorer far-UV (FUV) and near-UV (NUV), and optical data using stellar population models and estimated the age and the stellar mass of the entire galaxies and the UV-bright ring structures. Outer rings consist of young ({approx}<200 Myr old) stellar populations, accounting for up to 70% of the FUV flux but containing only a few percent of the total stellar mass. Integrated photometry of the whole galaxies places four of these objectsmore » on the green valley, indicating a globally evolving nature. We suggest such galaxy evolution is likely driven by bar-induced instabilities, i.e., inner secular evolution, that conveys gas to the nucleus and the outer rings. At the same time, H I observations of NGC 1533 and NGC 2962 suggest external gas re-fueling can play a role in the rejuvenation processes of such galaxies.« less

A Kinematic Link Between Boxy Bulges, Stellar Bars, and Nuclear Activity in NGC 3079 and NGC 4388

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Veilleux, S.; Bland-Hawthrorn, J.; Cecil, Gerald

1999-01-01

We present direct kinematic evidence for bar streaming in two active galaxies with boxy stellar bulges. The Hawaii Imaging Fabry-Perot Interferometer was used on the Canada-France-Hawaii 3.6-m telescope and the University of Hawaii 2.2-m telescope to derive the two-dimensional velocity field of the line-emitting gas in the disks of the Sc galaxy NGC 3079 and the Sb galaxy NGC 4388. In contrast to previous work based on long-slit data, the detection of the bar potential from the Fabry-Perot data does not rely on the existence of inner Lindblad resonances or strong bar-induced shocks. Simple kinematic models which approximate the intrinsic gas orbits as nonintersecting, inclined elliptical annuli that conserve angular momentum characterize the observed velocity fields. In NGC 3079, bar streaming motions with moderately eccentric orbits (e = b/a approx. 0.7) aligned along PA = 130 deg. intrinsic to the disk (PA = 97 deg. on the sky) are detected out to R(sub b) = 3.6 kpc. The orbits become increasingly circular beyond that radius (e = 1 at R(sub d) approx. = 6 kpc). The best model for NGC 4388 includes highly eccentric orbits (e approx. 0.3) for R(sub) less than or equal to 1.5 kpc which are aligned along PA = 135 deg. intrinsic to the disk (PA = 100 deg. on the sky). The observed "spiral arms" are produced by having the orbits become increasingly circular from the ends of the bar to the edge of the disk (R(sub d) approx. = 5 kpc), and the intrinsic bar PA shifting from 135 deg. to 90 deg.. Box-shaped bulges in both NGC 3079 and NGC 4388 are confirmed using new near-infrared images to reduce dust obscuration. Morphological analysis of starlight in these galaxies is combined with the gas kinematics derived from the Fabry-Perot spectra to test evolutionary models of stellar bars that involve transitory boxy bulges, and to quantify the importance of such bars in fueling active nuclei. Our data support the evolutionary bar models, but fail to prove convincingly that the stellar bars in NGC 3079 and NGC 4388 directly trigger or sustain the nuclear activity.

A BRIGHT RING OF STAR BIRTH AROUND A GALAXY'S CORE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

n image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope reveals clusters of infant stars that formed in a ring around the core of the barred-spiral galaxy NGC 4314. This stellar nursery, whose inhabitants were created within the past 5 million years, is the only place in the entire galaxy where new stars are being born. The Hubble image is being presented today (June 11) at the American Astronomical Society meeting in San Diego, Calif. This close-up view by Hubble also shows other interesting details in the galaxy's core: dust lanes, a smaller bar of stars, dust and gas embedded in the stellar ring, and an extra pair of spiral arms packed with young stars. These details make the center resemble a miniature version of a spiral galaxy. While it is not unusual to have dust lanes and rings of gas in the centers of galaxies, it is uncommon to have spiral arms full of young stars in the cores. NGC 4314 is one of the nearest (only 40 million light-years away in the constellation Coma Berenices) examples of a galaxy with a ring of infant stars close to the core. This stellar ring - whose radius is 1,000 light-years - is a great laboratory to study star formation in galaxies. The left-hand image, taken in February 1996 by the 30-inch telescope Prime Focus Camera at the McDonald Observatory in Texas, shows the entire galaxy, including the bar of stars bisecting the core and the outer spiral arms, which begin near the ends of this bar. The box around the galaxy's core pinpoints the focus of the Hubble image. The right-hand image shows Hubble's close-up view of the galaxy's core, taken in December 1995 by the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2. The bluish-purple clumps that form the ring are the clusters of infant stars. Two dark, wispy lanes of dust and a pair of blue spiral arms are just outside the star-forming ring. The lanes of dust are being shepherded into the ring by the longer, primary stellar bar seen in the ground-based (left-hand) image. The gas is trapped inside the ring through the stars' gravitational attraction. The two spiral arms outside the ring are probably unrelated to the dust lanes, and seem to contain very little dust or gas. The stars in these spiral arms are bluer than most of the galaxy, indicating that many of them are relatively young, less than 200 million years old. However, they are older than those in the ring. This information suggests that the neighborhood of star formation is moving closer to the galaxy's core. Another interpretation has the arms formed through the gravitational interaction of the embedded bar and ring of stars, causing them to spray outward. This picture was created by combining images taken in ultraviolet, blue, visible, infrared, and H-alpha. The purple color represents hydrogen gas being excited by hot, young star clusters. Credits: G. Fritz Benedict, Andrew Howell, Inger Jorgensen, David Chapell (University of Texas), Jeffery Kenney (Yale University), and Beverly J. Smith (CASA, University of Colorado), and NASA. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Hubble Space Telescope Astrometry Science Team: Principal Investigator W.H. Jefferys, R. Duncombe, P. Shelus, B. McArthur (University of Texas), P. Hemenway (University of Rhode Island), O. Franz (Lowell Observatory), A. Whipple (Allied-Signal Corp.), Wm. van Altena (Yale University), and, L. Fredrick (University of Virginia).

Cold dust in the giant barred galaxy NGC 1365

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabatabaei, F. S.; Weiß, A.; Combes, F.; Henkel, C.; Menten, K. M.; Beck, R.; Kovács, A.; Güsten, R.

2013-07-01

Constraining the physcial properties of dust requires observations at submm wavelengths. This will provide important insight into the gas content of galaxies. We mapped NGC 1365 at 870 μm with LABOCA, the Large APEX Bolometer Camera, allowing us to probe the central mass concentration as well as the rate at which the gas flows to the center. We obtained the dust physical properties both globally and locally for different locations in the galaxy. A 20 K modified black body represents about 98% of the total dust content of the galaxy, the rest can be represented by a warmer dust component of 40 K. The bar exhibits an east-west asymmetry in the dust distribution: The eastern bar is heavier than the western bar by more than a factor of 4. Integrating the dust spectral energy distribution, we derived a total infrared luminosity, LTIR, of 9.8 × 1010 L⊙, leading to a dust-enshrouded star formation rate of SFRTIR ≃ 16.7 M⊙ yr-1 in NGC 1365. We derived the gas mass from the measurements of the dust emission, resulting in a CO-to-H2 conversion factor of XCO ≃ 1.2 × 1020 mol cm-2 (K km s-1)-1 in the central disk, including the bar. Taking into account the metallicity variation, the central gas mass concentration is only ≃20% at R < 40″ (3.6 kpc). On the other hand, the timescale on which the gas flows into the center, ≃300 Myr, is relatively short. This indicates that the current central mass in NGC 1365 is evolving fast because of the strong bar.

Host Galaxy Properties and Black Hole Mass of Swift J164449.3+573451 from Multi-wavelength Long-term Monitoring and HST Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoon, Yongmin; Im, Myungshin; Jeon, Yiseul; Lee, Seong-Kook; Choi, Philip; Gehrels, Neil; Pak, Soojong; Sakamoto, Takanori; Urata, Yuji

2015-07-01

We study the host galaxy properties of the tidal disruption object Swift J164449.3+573451 using long-term optical to near-infrared (NIR) data. First, we decompose the galaxy surface brightness distribution and analyze the morphology of the host galaxy using high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 images. We conclude that the host galaxy is bulge-dominant and well described by a single Sérsic model with Sérsic index n=3.43+/- 0.05. Adding a disk component, the bulge to total host galaxy flux ratio (B/ T) is 0.83 ± 0.03, which still indicates a bulge-dominant galaxy. Second, we estimate multi-band fluxes of the host galaxy through long-term light curves. Our long-term NIR light curves reveal the pure host galaxy fluxes ˜500 days after the burst. We fit spectral energy distribution models to the multi-band fluxes from the optical to NIR of the host galaxy and determine its properties. The stellar mass, the star formation rate, and the age of the stellar population are {log}({M}\\star /{M}⊙ )={9.14}-0.10+0.13, {0.03}-0.03+0.28 {M}⊙ yr-1, and {0.63}-0.43+0.95 Gyr. Finally, we estimate the mass of the central super massive black hole which is responsible for the tidal disruption event. The black hole mass is estimated to be {10}6.7+/- 0.4 {M}⊙ from {M}{BH}-{M}\\star ,{bul} and {M}{BH}-{L}{bul} relations for the K band, although a smaller value of ˜ {10}5 {M}⊙ cannot be excluded convincingly if the host galaxy harbors a pseudobulge.

Spatially Resolved Patchy Ly α Emission within the Central Kiloparsec of a Strongly Lensed Quasar Host Galaxy at z = 2.8

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bayliss, Matthew B.; Bordoloi, Rongmon; Sharon, Keren

We report the detection of extended Ly α emission from the host galaxy of SDSS J2222+2745, a strongly lensed quasar at z = 2.8. Spectroscopic follow-up clearly reveals extended Ly α in emission between two images of the central active galactic nucleus (AGN). We reconstruct the lensed quasar host galaxy in the source plane by applying a strong lens model to HST imaging and resolve spatial scales as small as ∼200 pc. In the source plane, we recover the host galaxy morphology to within a few hundred parsecs of the central AGN and map the extended Ly α emission tomore » its physical origin on one side of the host galaxy at radii ∼0.5–2 kpc from the central AGN. There are clear morphological differences between the Ly α and rest-frame ultraviolet stellar continuum emission from the quasar host galaxy. Furthermore, the relative velocity profiles of quasar Ly α , host galaxy Ly α , and metal lines in outflowing gas reveal differences in the absorbing material affecting the AGN and host galaxy. These data indicate the presence of patchy local intervening gas in front of the central quasar and its host galaxy. This interpretation is consistent with the central luminous quasar being obscured across a substantial fraction of its surrounding solid angle, resulting in strong anisotropy in the exposure of the host galaxy to ionizing radiation from the AGN. This work demonstrates the power of strong-lensing-assisted studies to probe spatial scales that are currently inaccessible by other means.« less

Galactic satellite systems: radial distribution and environment dependence of galaxy morphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ann, H. B.; Park, Changbom; Choi, Yun-Young

2008-09-01

We have studied the radial distribution of the early (E/S0) and late (S/Irr) types of satellites around bright host galaxies. We made a volume-limited sample of 4986 satellites brighter than Mr = -18.0 associated with 2254 hosts brighter than Mr = -19.0 from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 5 sample. The morphology of satellites is determined by an automated morphology classifier, but the host galaxies are visually classified. We found segregation of satellite morphology as a function of the projected distance from the host galaxy. The amplitude and shape of the early-type satellite fraction profile are found to depend on the host luminosity. This is the morphology-radius/density relation at the galactic scale. There is a strong tendency for morphology conformity between the host galaxy and its satellites. The early-type fraction of satellites hosted by early-type galaxies is systematically larger than that of late-type hosts, and is a strong function of the distance from the host galaxies. Fainter satellites are more vulnerable to the morphology transformation effects of hosts. Dependence of satellite morphology on the large-scale background density was detected. The fraction of early-type satellites increases in high-density regions for both early- and late-type hosts. It is argued that the conformity in morphology of galactic satellite system is mainly originated by the hydrodynamical and radiative effects of hosts on satellites.

Hubble Sees Galaxies Spiraling around Leo

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-18

Shown here is a spiral galaxy known as NGC 3455, which lies some 65 million light-years away from us in the constellation of Leo (the Lion). Galaxies are classified into different types according to their structure and appearance. This classification system is known as the Hubble Sequence, named after its creator Edwin Hubble. In this image released 14, April, 2014, NGC 3455 is known as a type SB galaxy — a barred spiral. Barred spiral galaxies account for approximately two thirds of all spirals. Galaxies of this type appear to have a bar of stars slicing through the bulge of stars at their center. The SB classification is further sub-divided by the appearance of a galaxy's pinwheeling spiral arms; SBa types have more tightly wound arms, whereas SBc types have looser ones. SBb types, such as NGC 3455, lie in between. NGC 3455 is part of a pair of galaxies — its partner, NGC 3454, lies out of frame. This cosmic duo belong to a group known as the NGC 3370 group, which is in turn one of the Leo II groups, a large collection of galaxies scattered some 30 million light-years to the right of the Virgo cluster. This image is from Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Acknowledgement: Nick Rose NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Physical Properties of Sub-galactic Clumps at 0.5 ≤ Z ≤ 1.5 in the UVUDF

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soto, Emmaris; de Mello, Duilia F.; Rafelski, Marc; Gardner, Jonathan P.; Teplitz, Harry I.; Koekemoer, Anton M.; Ravindranath, Swara; Grogin, Norman A.; Scarlata, Claudia; Kurczynski, Peter; Gawiser, Eric

2017-03-01

We present an investigation of clumpy galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field at 0.5≤slant z≤slant 1.5 in the rest-frame far-ultraviolet (FUV) using Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 broadband imaging in F225W, F275W, and F336W. An analysis of 1404 galaxies yields 209 galaxies that host 403 kpc scale clumps. These host galaxies appear to be typical star-forming galaxies, with an average of 2 clumps per galaxy and reaching a maximum of 8 clumps. We measure the photometry of the clumps and determine the mass, age, and star formation rates (SFR) using the spectral energy distribution fitting code FAST. We find that clumps make an average contribution of 19% to the total rest-frame FUV flux of their host galaxy. Individually, clumps contribute a median of 5% to the host galaxy SFR and an average of ˜4% to the host galaxy mass, with total clump contributions to the host galaxy stellar mass ranging widely from lower than 1% up to 93%. Clumps in the outskirts of galaxies are typically younger, with higher SFRs, than clumps in the inner regions. The results are consistent with clump migration theories in which clumps form through violent gravitational instabilities in gas-rich turbulent disks, eventually migrate toward the center of the galaxies, and coalesce into the bulge.

Orbital tori for non-axisymmetric galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Binney, James

2018-02-01

Our Galaxy's bar makes the Galaxy's potential distinctly non-axisymmetric. All orbits are affected by non-axisymmetry, and significant numbers are qualitatively changed by being trapped at a resonance with the bar. Orbital tori are used to compute these effects. Thick-disc orbits are no less likely to be trapped by corotation or a Lindblad resonance than thin-disc orbits. Perturbation theory is used to create non-axisymmetric orbital tori from standard axisymmetric tori, and both trapped and untrapped orbits are recovered to surprising accuracy. Code is added to the TorusModeller library that makes it as easy to manipulate non-axisymmetric tori as axisymmetric ones. The augmented TorusModeller is used to compute the velocity structure of the solar neighbourhood for bars of different pattern speeds and a simple action-based distribution function. The technique developed here can be applied to any non-axisymmetric potential that is stationary in a rotating from - hence also to classical spiral structure.

THE HOST GALAXY PROPERTIES OF VARIABILITY SELECTED AGN IN THE PAN-STARRS1 MEDIUM DEEP SURVEY

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Heinis, S.; Gezari, S.; Kumar, S.

2016-07-20

We study the properties of 975 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) selected by variability in the Pan-STARRS1 Medium deep Survey. Using complementary multi-wavelength data from the ultraviolet to the far-infrared, we use spectral energy distribution fitting to determine the AGN and host properties at z < 1 and compare to a well-matched control sample. We confirm the trend previously observed: that the variability amplitude decreases with AGN luminosity, but we also observe that the slope of this relation steepens with wavelength, resulting in a “redder when brighter” trend at low luminosities. Our results show that AGNs are hosted by more massivemore » hosts than control sample galaxies, while the rest frame dust-corrected NUV r color distribution of AGN hosts is similar to control galaxies. We find a positive correlation between the AGN luminosity and star formation rate (SFR), independent of redshift. AGN hosts populate the entire range of SFRs within and outside of the Main Sequence of star-forming galaxies. Comparing the distribution of AGN hosts and control galaxies, we show that AGN hosts are less likely to be hosted by quiescent galaxies and more likely to be hosted by Main Sequence or starburst galaxies.« less

Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA): the red fraction and radial distribution of satellite galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prescott, Matthew; Baldry, I. K.; James, P. A.; Bamford, S. P.; Bland-Hawthorn, J.; Brough, S.; Brown, M. J. I.; Cameron, E.; Conselice, C. J.; Croom, S. M.; Driver, S. P.; Frenk, C. S.; Gunawardhana, M.; Hill, D. T.; Hopkins, A. M.; Jones, D. H.; Kelvin, L. S.; Kuijken, K.; Liske, J.; Loveday, J.; Nichol, R. C.; Norberg, P.; Parkinson, H. R.; Peacock, J. A.; Phillipps, S.; Pimbblet, K. A.; Popescu, C. C.; Robotham, A. S. G.; Sharp, R. G.; Sutherland, W. J.; Taylor, E. N.; Tuffs, R. J.; van Kampen, E.; Wijesinghe, D.

2011-10-01

We investigate the properties of satellite galaxies that surround isolated hosts within the redshift range 0.01 < z < 0.15, using data taken as part of the Galaxy And Mass Assembly survey. Making use of isolation and satellite criteria that take into account stellar mass estimates, we find 3514 isolated galaxies of which 1426 host a total of 2998 satellites. Separating the red and blue populations of satellites and hosts, using colour-mass diagrams, we investigate the radial distribution of satellite galaxies and determine how the red fraction of satellites varies as a function of satellite mass, host mass and the projected distance from their host. Comparing the red fraction of satellites to a control sample of small neighbours at greater projected radii, we show that the increase in red fraction is primarily a function of host mass. The satellite red fraction is about 0.2 higher than the control sample for hosts with ?, while the red fractions show no difference for hosts with ?. For the satellites of more massive hosts, the red fraction also increases as a function of decreasing projected distance. Our results suggest that the likely main mechanism for the quenching of star formation in satellites hosted by isolated galaxies is strangulation.

The Non-Axisymmetric Milky Way

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spergel, David N.

1996-01-01

The Dwek et al. model represents the current state-of-the-art model for the stellar structure of our Galaxy. The improvements we have made to this model take a number of forms: (1) the construction of a more detailed dust model so that we can extend our modeling to the galactic plane; (2) simultaneous fits to the bulge and the disk; (3) the construction of the first self-consistent model for a galactic bar; and (4) the development and application of algorithms for constructing nonparametric bar models. The improved Galaxy model has enabled a number of exciting science projects. In Zhao et al., we show that the number and duration of microlensing events seen by the OGLE and MACHO collaborations towards the bulge were consistent with the predictions of our bar model. In Malhotra et al., we constructed an infrared Tully-Fisher (TF) relation for the local group. We found the tightest TF relation ever seen in any band and in any group of galaxies. The tightness of the correlation places strong constraints on galaxy formation models and provides a independent check of the Cepheid distance scale.

A Hubble Space Telescope imaging study of four FeLoBAL quasar host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lawther, D.; Vestergaard, M.; Fan, X.

2018-04-01

We study the host galaxies of four Iron Low-Ionization Broad Absorption-line Quasars (FeLoBALs), using Hubble Space Telescope imaging data, investigating the possibility that they represent a transition between an obscured active galactic nucleus (AGN) and an ordinary optical quasar. In this scenario, the FeLoBALs represent the early stage of merger-triggered accretion, in which case their host galaxies are expected to show signs of an ongoing or recent merger. Using PSF subtraction techniques, we decompose the images into host galaxy and AGN components at rest-frame ultraviolet and optical wavelengths. The ultraviolet is sensitive to young stars, while the optical probes stellar mass. In the ultraviolet we image at the BAL absorption trough wavelengths so as to decrease the contrast between the quasar and host galaxy emission. We securely detect an extended source for two of the four FeLoBALs in the rest-frame optical; a third host galaxy is marginally detected. In the rest-frame UV we detect no host emission; this constrains the level of unobscured star formation. Thus, the host galaxies have observed properties that are consistent with those of non-BAL quasars with the same nuclear luminosity, i.e. quiescent or moderately star-forming elliptical galaxies. However, we cannot exclude starbursting hosts that have the stellar UV emission obscured by modest amounts of dust reddening. Thus, our findings also allow the merger-induced young quasar scenario. For three objects, we identify possible close companion galaxies that may be gravitationally interacting with the quasar hosts.

A remarkable double-ring galaxy in the cluster Abell 2199

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pence, W.D.; Oegerle, W.; Borne, K.D.

B and R CCD images have been obtained of the morphologically peculiar galaxy A1627 + 39, which lies near the center of the rich cluster of galaxies A2199. The galaxy is determined to be a nearly face-on barred S0 galaxy containing two nonconcentric rings. The rings are quite unusual in that they are displaced in opposite directions from the galactic center. There is no color difference across the rings, indicating no recent burst of star formation. Two hypotheses for the origin of the rings have been investigated: (1) a resonance effect with the central bar, and (2) the result ofmore » an off-axis, deeply penetrating collision with another cluster member. Models of such a collision are presented, which can reproduce the observed rings. However, neither hypothesis can provide a completely satisfactory explanation of all the observations reported here. 32 refs.« less

Long-Duration Gamma-Ray Burst Host Galaxies in Emission and Absorption

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perley, Daniel A.; Niino, Yuu; Tanvir, Nial R.; Vergani, Susanna D.; Fynbo, Johan P. U.

2016-12-01

The galaxy population hosting long-duration GRBs provides a means to constrain the progenitor and an opportunity to use these violent explosions to characterize the nature of the high-redshift universe. Studies of GRB host galaxies in emission reveal a population of star-forming galaxies with great diversity, spanning a wide range of masses, metallicities, and redshifts. However, as a population GRB hosts are significantly less massive and poorer in metals than the hosts of other core-collapse transients, suggesting that GRB production is only efficient at metallicities significantly below Solar. GRBs may also prefer compact galaxies, and dense and/or central regions of galaxies, more than other types of core-collapse explosion. Meanwhile, studies of hosts in absorption against the luminous GRB optical afterglow provide a unique means of unveiling properties of the ISM in even the faintest and most distant galaxies; these observations are helping to constrain the chemical evolution of galaxies and the properties of interstellar dust out to very high redshifts. New ground- and space-based instrumentation, and the accumulation of larger and more carefully-selected samples, are continually enhancing our view of the GRB host population.

The Luminosity Function of QSO Host Galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hamilton, Timothy S.; Casertano, Stefano; Turnshek, David A.; White, Nicholas E. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

We present some results from our HST archival image study of 71 QSO host galaxies. The objects are selected to have z less than or equal to 0.46 and total absolute magnitude M(sub v) less than or equal to -23 in our adopted cosmology (H(sub 0) = 50 kilometers per second Mpc(sup-1), q(sub 0) = 0.5, lambda = 0)). The aim of this initial study is to investigate the composition of the sample with respect to host morphology and radio loudness, as well as derive the QSO host galaxy luminosity function. We have analyzed available WFPC2 images in R or I band (U in one case), using a uniform set of procedures. The host galaxies span a narrow range of luminosities and are exceptionally bright, much more so than normal galaxies, usually L greater than L*(sub v). The QSOs are almost equally divided among three subclasses: radio-loud QSOs with elliptical hosts, radio-quiet QSOs with elliptical hosts, and radio-quiet QSOs with spiral hosts. Radio-loud QSOs with spiral hosts are extremely rare. Using a weighting procedure, we derive the combined luminosity function of QSO host galaxies. We find that the luminosity function of QSO hosts differs in shape from that of normal galaxies but that they coincide at the highest luminosities. The ratio of the number of quasar hosts to the number of normal galaxies at a luminosity L*(sub v) is R = (Lv/11.48L*(sub v))(sup 2.46), where L*(sub v) corresponds to M*(sub v)= -22.35, and a QSO is defined to be an object with total nuclear plus host light M(sub v) less than or equal to -23. This ratio can be interpreted as the probability that a galaxy with luminosity L(sub V) will host a QSO at redshift z approximately equal to 0.26.

SDSS-II SUPERNOVA SURVEY: AN ANALYSIS OF THE LARGEST SAMPLE OF TYPE IA SUPERNOVAE AND CORRELATIONS WITH HOST-GALAXY SPECTRAL PROPERTIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wolf, Rachel C.; Gupta, Ravi R.; Sako, Masao

2016-04-20

Using the largest single-survey sample of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) to date, we study the relationship between properties of SNe Ia and those of their host galaxies, focusing primarily on correlations with Hubble residuals (HRs). Our sample consists of 345 photometrically classified or spectroscopically confirmed SNe Ia discovered as part of the SDSS-II Supernova Survey (SDSS-SNS). This analysis utilizes host-galaxy spectroscopy obtained during the SDSS-I/II spectroscopic survey and from an ancillary program on the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey that obtained spectra for nearly all host galaxies of SDSS-II SN candidates. In addition, we use photometric host-galaxy properties frommore » the SDSS-SNS data release such as host stellar mass and star formation rate. We confirm the well-known relation between HR and host-galaxy mass and find a 3.6 σ significance of a nonzero linear slope. We also recover correlations between HR and host-galaxy gas-phase metallicity and specific star formation rate as they are reported in the literature. With our large data set, we examine correlations between HR and multiple host-galaxy properties simultaneously and find no evidence of a significant correlation. We also independently analyze our spectroscopically confirmed and photometrically classified SNe Ia and comment on the significance of similar combined data sets for future surveys.« less

Near-infrared imaging of CfA Seyfert galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McLeod, K. K.; Rieke, G. H.

1995-03-01

We present near-IR images of 43 Seyfert galaxies from the CfA Seyfert sample. The near-IR luminosity is a good tracer of luminous mass in these galaxies. Most of the Seyfert nuclei are found in hosts of mass similar to that of L* galaxies and ranging in type from S0 to Sc. In addition, there is a population of low-mass host galaxies with very low luminosity Seyfert nuclei. We have examined our images for signs of perturbations that could drive fuel toward the galaxy nucleus, but there are none we can identify at a significant level. The critical element for fueling is evidently not reflected clearly in the large-scale distribution of luminous mass in the galaxy. The Seyfert hosts are compared with a sample of 50 low-redshift quasar host galaxies we have also imaged. The radio-quiet quasars and the Seyfert nuclei lie in similar kinds of galaxies spanning the same range of mass centered around L*. However, for the most luminous quasars, there is a correlation between the minimum host-galaxy mass and the luminosity of the active nucleus. Radio-loud quasars are generally found in hosts more massive than an L* galaxy. The low-luminosity quasars and the Seyfert nuclei both tend to lie in host galaxies seen preferentially face-on, which suggests that there is a substantial amount of obscuration coplanar with the galaxian disk. The obscuration must be geometrically thick (thickness-to-radius ratio approximately 1) and must cover a significant fraction of the narrow-line region (r greater than 100 pc).

Hubble Spotlight on Irregular Galaxy

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

This delicate blue group of stars — actually an irregular galaxy named IC 3583 — sits some 30 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo (The Virgin). It may seem to have no discernable structure, but IC 3583 has been found to have a bar of stars running through its center. These structures are common throughout the Universe, and are found within the majority of spiral, many irregular, and some lenticular galaxies. Two of our closest cosmic neighbors, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, are barred, indicating that they may have once been barred spiral galaxies that were disrupted or torn apart by the gravitational pull of the Milky Way. Researchers at the University of Leicester, England note there are two types of irregular galaxy. Type I's are usually single galaxies of peculiar appearance. They contain a large fraction of young stars, and show the luminous nebulae that are also visible in spiral galaxies. Type II irregulars include the group known as interacting or disrupting galaxies, in which the strange appearance is due to two or more galaxies colliding, merging or otherwise interacting gravitationally. Something similar might be happening with IC 3583. This small galaxy is thought to be gravitationally interacting with one of its neighbors, the spiral Messier 90. Together, the duo form a pairing known as Arp 76. It’s still unclear whether these flirtations are the cause of IC 3583’s irregular appearance — but whatever the cause, the galaxy makes for a strikingly delicate sight in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image, glimmering in the blackness of space. Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

The Smaller Alignment Index (SALI) applied in a study of stellar orbits in barred galaxies potential models using the LP-VIcode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caritá, Lucas Antonio; Rodrigues, Irapuan; Puerari, Ivânio; Schiavo, Luiz Eduardo Camargo Aranha

2018-04-01

The Smaller Alignment Index (SALI) is a mathematical tool, not yet conventional, for chaos detection in the phase space of Hamiltonian Dynamical Systems. The SALI values has temporal behaviors very specific to ordered or chaotic motions, what makes the distinction between order and chaos easily observable in these systems. In this paper, this method will be applied to the stability study of stellar orbits immersed in gravitational potential of barred galaxies, since the motion of a test particle in a rotating barred galaxy model is given by a Hamiltonian function. Extracting four parameter sets from the Manos and Athanassoula (2011) work and elaborating a different initial conditions set for each case, we were able to introduce another point of view of their stability study for two degrees of freedom. We have also introduced two new extreme models that corroborates with the conclusions that more axisymmetric bars create an environment with less chaos and that more massive bars create an environment with more chaos. Separate studies were carried out for prograde and retrograde orbits that showed that the retrograde orbits seem more conducive to chaos. To perform all the orbits integrations we used the LP-VIcode program.

LOFAR discovery of radio emission in MACS J0717.5+3745

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonafede, A.; Brüggen, M.; Rafferty, D.; Zhuravleva, I.; Riseley, C. J.; van Weeren, R. J.; Farnes, J. S.; Vazza, F.; Savini, F.; Wilber, A.; Botteon, A.; Brunetti, G.; Cassano, R.; Ferrari, C.; de Gasperin, F.; Orrú, E.; Pizzo, R. F.; Röttgering, H. J. A.; Shimwell, T. W.

2018-05-01

We present results from LOFAR and GMRT observations of the galaxy cluster MACS J0717.5+3745. The cluster is undergoing a violent merger involving at least four sub-clusters, and it is known to host a radio halo. LOFAR observations reveal new sources of radio emission in the Intra-Cluster Medium: (i) a radio bridge that connects the cluster to a head-tail radio galaxy located along a filament of galaxies falling into the main cluster, (ii) a 1.9 Mpc radio arc, that is located North West of the main mass component, (iii) radio emission along the X-ray bar, that traces the gas in the X-rays South West of the cluster centre. We use deep GMRT observations at 608 MHz to constrain the spectral indices of these new radio sources, and of the emission that was already studied in the literature at higher frequency. We find that the spectrum of the radio halo and of the relic at LOFAR frequency follows the same power law as observed at higher frequencies. The radio bridge, the radio arc, and the radio bar all have steep spectra, which can be used to constrain the particle acceleration mechanisms. We argue that the radio bridge could be caused by the re-acceleration of electrons by shock waves that are injected along the filament during the cluster mass assembly. Despite the sensitivity reached by our observations, the emission from the radio halo does not trace the emission of the gas revealed by X-ray observations. We argue that this could be due to the difference in the ratio of kinetic over thermal energy of the intra-cluster gas, suggested by X-ray observations.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: 3.6um S4G Galactic bars characterization (Diaz-Garcia+, 2016)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diaz-Garcia, S.; Salo, H.; Laurikainen, E.; Herrera-Endoqui, M.

2015-11-01

Here, we provide the bar strength measurements of a sample of ~600 barred galaxies drawn from the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (Sheth et al., 2010, Cat. J/PASP/122/1397). Bars were identified based on the morphological classifications by Buta et al. (2015, Cat. J/ApJS/217/32). Besides, we provide a parameterization of the stellar contribution to the rotation curve and an estimate to the stellar-to-halo mass ratio within the optical radius for a sample of 1345 non-highly inclined galaxies (i<65°). The radial force profiles and rotation curve decomposition models of each of these galaxies are also given. Table A1 contains fundamental parameters of the galaxies such as the total stellar mass and distances (values for all the S4G sample are calculated in Munoz-Mateos et al., 2015ApJS..219....3M). Besides, we provide an estimate of the scale-heights and optical radii. We also list the inclination-corrected HI maximum velocities, the parameters of the stellar and halo components of the rotation curves, and the estimates of the halo-to-stellar mass ratios within the optical disk. In Table A2 it is given the gravitational torque parameters and radii, with and without spiral arms and halo correction. In Table A3 it is provided the maximum normalized Fourier amplitudes and radii (for the m = 2, 4, 6 and 8 components) and the bar ellipticities (from Herrera-Endoqui et al., 2015A&A...582A..86H) deprojected to the disk plane using the orientation parameters from S4G Pipeline 4 (Salo et al., 2015, Cat. J/ApJS/219/4). The evaluation of the gravitational torques and m=2 Fourier amplitude at the bar radius is also listed in both tables. In the directory "rfp" we provide the gravitational torque radial profiles, with and without spiral arms and halo correction, even Fourier amplitudes and m=2 phase of 1345 non-highly inclined disk S4G galaxies ("radialforce_profiles.dat"). Likewise, for the same sample, in the directory "rcdm" we tabulate the rotation curve decomposition model ("rotationcurve_decomposition.dat"), with the stellar component inferred from the 3.6~μm imaging and the halo component estimated using the universal rotation curve models). (5 data files).

First neutral atomic hydrogen images of quasar host galaxies.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, J.; Ho, P. T. P.

1999-12-01

Violent galactic encounters or mergers are the leading contenders for triggering luminous quasar activity at low redshifts: such interactions can lead to the concentration of gas in the host galactic nucleus, thus fueling the suspected central supermassive black hole. Here the authors image quasar host galaxies in the redshifted 21-cm line emission of neutral atomic hydrogen (H I) gas, which in nearby galaxies has proven to be a particularly sensitive as well as enduring tracer of tidal interactions. The three quasars studied have different optical environments normally seen around low-redshift quasars, ranging from a perhaps mildly interacting system to a relatively undisturbed host with a projected neighbouring galaxy to an isolated and apparently serene host galaxy. By contrast with their optical appearences, all three quasar host galaxies exhibit ongoing or remnant tidal H I disruptions tracing galactic encounters or mergers. These observations provide a better understanding of the likely stage of their interaction.

Galaxy Zoo: evidence for rapid, recent quenching within a population of AGN host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smethurst, R. J.; Lintott, C. J.; Simmons, B. D.; Schawinski, K.; Bamford, S. P.; Cardamone, C. N.; Kruk, S. J.; Masters, K. L.; Urry, C. M.; Willett, K. W.; Wong, O. I.

2016-12-01

We present a population study of the star formation history of 1244 Type 2 active galactic nuclei (AGN) host galaxies, compared to 6107 inactive galaxies. A Bayesian method is used to determine individual galaxy star formation histories, which are then collated to visualize the distribution for quenching and quenched galaxies within each population. We find evidence for some of the Type 2 AGN host galaxies having undergone a rapid drop in their star formation rate within the last 2 Gyr. AGN feedback is therefore important at least for this population of galaxies. This result is not seen for the quenching and quenched inactive galaxies whose star formation histories are dominated by the effects of downsizing at earlier epochs, a secondary effect for the AGN host galaxies. We show that histories of rapid quenching cannot account fully for the quenching of all the star formation in a galaxy's lifetime across the population of quenched AGN host galaxies, and that histories of slower quenching, attributed to secular (non-violent) evolution, are also key in their evolution. This is in agreement with recent results showing that both merger-driven and non-merger processes are contributing to the co-evolution of galaxies and supermassive black holes. The availability of gas in the reservoirs of a galaxy, and its ability to be replenished, appear to be the key drivers behind this co-evolution.

The Host Galaxies of Type Ia Supernovae Discovered by the Palomar Transient Factory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pan, Y.-C.; Sullivan, M.; McGuire, K.; Hook, I. M.; Nugent, P. E.; Howell, D. A.; Arcavi, I.; Botyanszki, J.; Cenko, Stephen Bradley; DeRose, J.

2013-01-01

We present spectroscopic observations of the host galaxies of 82 low-redshift type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) discovered by the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF). We determine star-formation rates, gas-phase stellar metallicities, and stellar masses and ages of these objects. As expected, strong correlations between the SN Ia light-curve width (stretch) and the host age mass metallicity are found: fainter, faster-declining events tend to be hosted by older massive metal-rich galaxies. There is some evidence that redder SNe Ia explode in higher metallicity galaxies, but we found no relation between the SN colour and host galaxy extinction based on the Balmer decrement, suggesting that the colour variation of these SNe does not primarily arise from this source. SNe Ia in higher-mass metallicity galaxies also appear brighter after stretch colour corrections than their counterparts in lower mass hosts, and the stronger correlation is with gas-phase metallicity suggesting this may be the more important variable. We also compared the host stellar mass distribution to that in galaxy targeted SN surveys and the high-redshift untargeted Supernova Legacy Survey (SNLS). SNLS has many more low mass galaxies, while the targeted searches have fewer. This can be explained by an evolution in the galaxy stellar mass function, coupled with a SN delay-time distribution proportional to t1. Finally, we found no significant difference in the mass--metallicity relation of our SN Ia hosts compared to field galaxies, suggesting any metallicity effect on the SN Ia rate is small.

Secular Evolution of Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falcón-Barroso, Jesús; Knapen, Johan H.

2013-10-01

Preface; 1. Secular evolution in disk galaxies John Kormendy; 2. Galaxy morphology Ronald J. Buta; 3. Dynamics of secular evolution James Binney; 4. Bars and secular evolution in disk galaxies: theoretical input E. Athanassoula; 5. Stellar populations Reynier F. Peletier; 6. Star formation rate indicators Daniela Calzetti; 7. The evolving interstellar medium Jacqueline van Gorkom; 8. Evolution of star formation and gas Nick Z. Scoville; 9. Cosmological evolution of galaxies Isaac Shlosman.

NGC 1291

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-11-14

This image from NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer shows the galaxy NGC 1291, located about 33 million light-years away in the constellation Eridanus. NGC 1291 is notable for its unusual inner bar and outer ring structure.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: S4G disk galaxies stellar mass distribution (Diaz-Garcia+, 2016)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diaz-Garcia, S.; Salo, H.; Laurikainen, E.

2016-08-01

We provide the tabulated radial profiles of mean stellar mass density in bins of total stellar mass (M*, from Munoz-Mateos et al., 2015ApJS..219....3M) and Hubble stage (T, from Buta et al., 2015, Cat. J/ApJS/217/32). We used the 3.6um imaging for the non-highly inclined galaxies (i<65° in Salo et al., 2015, Cat. J/ApJS/219/4) in the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (Sheth et al., 2010, Cat. J/PASP/122/1397). We also provide the averaged stellar contribution to the circular velocity, computed from the radial force profiles of individual galaxies (from Diaz-Garcia et al., 2016A&A...587A.160D). Besides, we provide the FITS files of the bar synthetic images (2D) obtained by stacking images rescaled to a common frame determined by the bar parameters (from Herrera-Endoqui et al., 2015A&A...582A..86H) in bins of M*, T, and galaxy family (from Buta et al. 2015). For the bar stacks, we also tabulate the azimuthally averaged luminosity profiles, the tangential-to-radial forces (Qt), the m=2,4 Fourier amplitudes (A2,A4), and the radial profiles of ellipticity and b4 parameter. The fits files (.fit) of the bar stacks, in units of flux (MJy/sr). The pixel size is 0.02 x rbar, where rbar refers to the bar radius. The images are cut at a radius of 3 x rbar. In every folder, the terminology used to label the ".dat" and ".fit" files, in relation to their content, is the following: a) The term "starmass" is used when the binning of the sample was based on the total stellar mass of the galaxy, from Munoz-Mateos et al. (2015ApJS..219....3M). We indicate the common logarithm of the boundaries: (8.5,9.9.5,10,10.5,11). b) The term "ttype" is used when the binning of the sample was based on the Hubble stage of the galaxy (-3,0,3,5,8,11), from Buta et al. (2015, Cat. J/ApJS/217/32) c) The term "family" is used when the binning of the sample was based on the morphological family of the galaxy (AB,AB,AB,B), from Buta et al. (2015, Cat. J/ApJS/217/32). d) The term "hr" is used when the 1-D luminosity stacks were obtained in a common frame determined by the scalelength of the disks (from Salo et al., 2015, Cat. J/ApJS/219/4). e) The term "kpc" is used when the 1-D luminosity stacks were obtained in a common frame determined by the disk extent in physical units (kpc). f) The term "barred" is used when only barred galaxies are stacked (according to Buta et al., 2015, Cat. J/ApJS/217/32). g) The term "unbarred" is used when only non-barred galaxies are stacked. IDL reading: readcol,'luminositydiskkpc/luminositydiskkpc_*.dat',Radius,$ Steldens,bSteldens,BSteldens,SuBr,bSuBr,BSuBr,Nsample,$ format='F,F,F,F,F,F,F,F',delim=' ' readcol,'luminositydiskhr/luminositydiskhr_*.dat',Radius,$ Steldens,bSteldens,BSteldens,SuBr,bSuBr,BSuB,Nsample,$ format='F,F,F,F,F,F,F,F',delim=' ' readcol,'vrotdiskkpc/vrotdiskkpc_*.dat',Radius,Vrotmean,$ Vrotmedian,Sigma,Nsample,format='F,F,F,F,F',delim=' ' readcol,'vrotdiskhr/vrotdiskhr_*.dat',Radius,Vrotmean,Vrotmedian,$ Sigma,Nsample,format='F,F,F,F,F',delim=' ' readcol,'luminositybar/barsradialluminosity*.dat',Radius,$ Steldens,SuBr,format='F,F,F',delim=' ' readcol,'forceprofbar/barsradialforces_*.dat',Radius,Qt,A2,A4,$ format='F,F,F,F',delim=' ' readcol,'ellipseprofbar/barsradialellipse_*.dat',Radius,ellipticity,b4,$ format='F,F,F',delim=' ' fitsread,'barstackfits/barstack_*.fit',image (10 data files).

Why are classical bulges more common in S0 galaxies than in spiral galaxies?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Preetish K.; Wadadekar, Yogesh; Barway, Sudhanshu

2018-05-01

In this paper, we try to understand why the classical bulge fraction observed in S0 galaxies is significantly higher than that in spiral galaxies. We carry out a comparative study of the bulge and global properties of a sample of spiral and S0 galaxies in a fixed environment. Our sample is flux limited and contains 262 spiral and 155 S0 galaxies drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We have classified bulges into classical and pseudobulge categories based on their position on the Kormendy diagram. Dividing our sample into bins of galaxy stellar mass, we find that the fraction of S0 galaxies hosting a classical bulge is significantly higher than the classical bulge fraction seen in spirals even at fixed stellar mass. We have compared the bulge and the global properties of spirals and S0 galaxies in our sample and find indications that spiral galaxies which host a classical bulge, preferentially get converted into S0 population as compared to pseudobulge hosting spirals. By studying the star formation properties of our galaxies in the NUV - r color-mass diagram, we find that the pseudobulge hosting spirals are mostly star forming while the majority of classical bulge host spirals are in the green valley or in the passive sequence. We suggest that some internal process, such as AGN feedback or morphological quenching due to the massive bulge, quenches these classical bulge hosting spirals and transforms them into S0 galaxies, thus resulting in the observed predominance of the classical bulge in S0 galaxies.

Why are classical bulges more common in S0 galaxies than in spiral galaxies?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Preetish K.; Wadadekar, Yogesh; Barway, Sudhanshu

2018-07-01

In this paper, we try to understand why the classical bulge fraction observed in S0 galaxies is significantly higher than that in spiral galaxies. We carry out a comparative study of the bulge and global properties of a sample of spiral and S0 galaxies in a fixed environment. Our sample is flux limited and contains 262 spiral and 155 S0 galaxies drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We have classified bulges into classical and pseudo-bulge categories based on their position on the Kormendy diagram. Dividing our sample into bins of galaxy stellar mass, we find that the fraction of S0 galaxies hosting a classical bulge is significantly higher than the classical bulge fraction seen in spirals even at fixed stellar mass. We have compared the bulge and the global properties of spirals and S0 galaxies in our sample and find indications that spiral galaxies which host a classical bulge, preferentially get converted into S0 population as compared to pseudo-bulge hosting spirals. By studying the star formation properties of our galaxies in the NUV-r colour-mass diagram, we find that the pseudo-bulge hosting spirals are mostly star forming while the majority of classical bulge host spirals are in the green valley or in the passive sequence. We suggest that some internal process, such as AGN feedback or morphological quenching due to the massive bulge, quenches these classical bulge hosting spirals and transforms them into S0 galaxies, thus resulting in the observed predominance of the classical bulge in S0 galaxies.

Violent Tidal Disruptions of Atomic Hydrogen Gas in Quasar Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, Jeremy; Ho, Paul T. P.

1999-01-01

Violent galactic encounters or mergers are the leading contenders for triggering luminous quasar activity at low redshifts: such interactions can lead to the concentration of gas in the host galactic nucleus, thus fueling the suspected central supermassive black hole. Although optical images show a number of violently interacting systems, in many cases, the evidence for such interactions is only circumstantial (e.g., asymmetric optical morphologies, projected nearby companion galaxies) or not at all apparent. Here we image quasar host galaxies for the first time in the redshifted 21 cm line emission of neutral atomic hydrogen (H I) gas, which, in nearby galaxies, has proved to be a particularly sensitive as well as enduring tracer of tidal interactions. The three quasars studied have different optical environments that are normally seen around low-redshift quasars, ranging from a perhaps mildly interacting system to a relatively undisturbed host with a projected neighboring galaxy to an isolated and apparently serene host galaxy. By contrast with their optical appearances, all three quasar host galaxies exhibit ongoing or remnant tidal H I disruptions tracing galactic encounters or mergers. These observations demonstrate the utility of H I at revealing tidal interactions in quasar host galaxies and, combined with optical studies, provide a fuller understanding of the likely stage of the interaction.

Barlenses and X-shaped features compared: two manifestations of boxy/peanut bulges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laurikainen, E.; Salo, H.

2017-02-01

Aims: We study the morphological characteristics of boxy/peanut-shaped bulges. In particular, we are interested to determine whether most of the flux associated with bulges in galaxies with masses similar to those of the Milky Way at redshift z 0 might belong to the vertically thick inner part of the bar, in a similar manner as in the Milky Way itself. At high galaxy inclinations, these structures are observed as boxy/peanut/X-shaped features, and when the view is near to face-on, they are observed as barlenses. We also study the possibility that bulges in some fraction of unbarred galaxies might form in a similar manner as the bulges in barred galaxies. Methods: We used the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S4G) and the Near-IR S0 galaxy Survey (NIRS0S) to compile complete samples of galaxies with barlenses (N = 85) and X-shaped features (N = 88). A sample of unbarred galaxies (N = 41) is also selected. For all 214 galaxies unsharp mask images were created, used to recognize the X-shaped features and to measure their linear sizes. To detect possible boxy isophotes (using the B4-parameter), we also performed an isophotal analysis for the barlens galaxies. We use recently published N-body simulations: the models that exhibit boxy/peanut/X/barlens morphologies are viewed from isotropically chosen directions that cover the full range of galaxy inclinations in the sky. The synthetic images were analyzed in a similar manner as the observations. Results: This is the first time that the observed properties of barlenses and X-shaped features are directly compared across a wide range of galaxy inclinations. A comparison with the simulation models shows that the differences in their apparent sizes, a/rbar ≳ 0.5 for barlenses and a/rbar ≲ 0.5 for X-shapes, can be explained by projection effects. Observations at various inclinations are consistent with intrinsic abl ≈ aX ≈ 0.5rbar: here intrinsic size means the face-on semimajor axis length for bars and barlenses, and the semilength of the X-shape when the bar is viewed exactly edge-on. While X-shapes are quite common at intermediate galaxy inclinations (for I = 40°-60° their frequency is about half that of barlenses), they are seldom observed at smaller inclinations. This is consistent with our simulation models, which have a small compact classical bulge that produces a steep inner rotation slope, whereas bulgeless shallow rotation curve models predict that X-shapes should be visible even in a face-on geometry. The steep rotation curve models are also consistent with the observed trend that B4 is positive at low inclination and with negative values for I ≳ 40°-60°; this implies boxy isophotes. In total, only about one quarter of the barlenses (with I ≤ 60°) show boxy isophotes. Conclusions: Our analyses are consistent with the idea that barlenses and X-shaped features are physically the same phenomenon. However, the observed nearly round face-on barlens morphology is expected only when at least a few percent of the disk mass is located in a central component, within a region much smaller than the size of the barlens itself. Barlenses contribute to secular evolution of galaxies, and might even act as a transition phase between barred and unbarred galaxies. We also discuss that the wide range of stellar population ages obtained for the photometric bulges in the literature are consistent with our interpretation.

The Sizes of z ˜ 6-8 Lensed Galaxies from the Hubble Frontier Fields Abell 2744 Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawamata, Ryota; Ishigaki, Masafumi; Shimasaku, Kazuhiro; Oguri, Masamune; Ouchi, Masami

2015-05-01

We investigate the sizes of z ˜ 6-8 dropout galaxies using the complete data of the Abell 2744 cluster and parallel fields in the Hubble Frontier Fields program. By directly fitting light profiles of observed galaxies with lensing-distorted Sérsic profiles on the image plane with the glafic software, we accurately measure intrinsic sizes of 31 z ˜ 6-7 and 8 z˜ 8 galaxies, including those as faint as {{M}UV}≃ -16.6. We find that half-light radii re positively correlates with UV luminosity at each redshift, although the correlation is not very tight. The largest ({{r}e}\\gt 0.8 kpc) galaxies are mostly red in UV color while the smallest ({{r}e}\\lt 0.08 kpc) ones tend to be blue. We also find that galaxies with multiple cores tend to be brighter. Combined with previous results at 2.5≲ z≲ 12, our result confirms that the average {{r}e} of bright ((0.3-1)Lz=3*) galaxies scales as {{r}e}\\propto {{≤ft( 1+z \\right)}-m} with m=1.24+/- 0.1. We find that the ratio of re to virial radius is virtually constant at 3.3 ± 0.1% over a wide redshift range, where the virial radii of hosting dark matter halos are derived based on the abundance matching. This constant ratio is consistent with the disk formation model by Mo et al. with {{j}d}˜ {{m}d}, where jd and md are the fractions of the angular momentum and mass within halos confined in the disks. A comparison with various types of local galaxies indicates that our galaxies are most similar to circumnuclear star-forming regions of barred galaxies in the sense that a sizable amount of stars are forming in a very small area.

Host galaxy properties of mergers of stellar binary black holes and their implications for advanced LIGO gravitational wave sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Liang; Lu, Youjun; Zhao, Yuetong

2018-03-01

Understanding the host galaxy properties of stellar binary black hole (SBBH) mergers is important for revealing the origin of the SBBH gravitational wave sources detected by advanced LIGO and helpful for identifying their electromagnetic counterparts. Here, we present a comprehensive analysis of the host galaxy properties of SBBHs by implementing semi-analytical recipes for SBBH formation and merger into cosmological galaxy formation model. If the time delay between SBBH formation and merger ranges from ≲ Gyr to the Hubble time, SBBH mergers at redshift z ≲ 0.3 occur preferentially in big galaxies with stellar mass M* ≳ 2 × 1010 M⊙ and metallicities Z peaking at ˜0.6 Z⊙. However, the host galaxy stellar mass distribution of heavy SBBH mergers (M•• ≳ 50 M⊙) is bimodal with one peak at ˜109 M⊙ and the other peak at ˜2 × 1010 M⊙. The contribution fraction from host galaxies with Z ≲ 0.2 Z⊙ to heavy mergers is much larger than that to less heavy mergers. If SBBHs were formed in the early Universe (e.g. z > 6), their mergers detected at z ≲ 0.3 occur preferentially in even more massive galaxies with M* > 3 × 1010 M⊙ and in galaxies with metallicities mostly ≳ 0.2 Z⊙ and peaking at Z ˜ 0.6 Z⊙, due to later cosmic assembly and enrichment of their host galaxies. SBBH mergers at z ≲ 0.3 mainly occur in spiral galaxies, but the fraction of SBBH mergers that occur in elliptical galaxies can be significant if those SBBHs were formed in the early Universe; and about two-thirds of those mergers occur in the central galaxies of dark matter haloes. We also present results on the host galaxy properties of SBBH mergers at higher redshift.

Barred Spiral Galaxy

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1300 Credit: NASA, ESA, and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) Acknowledgment: P. Knezek (WIYN) The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute conducts Hubble science operations. Goddard is responsible for HST project management, including mission and science operations, servicing missions, and all associated development activities. To learn more about the Hubble Space Telescope go here: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html

The Star Formation Reference Survey - II. Activity demographics and host-galaxy properties for infrared-selected galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maragkoudakis, A.; Zezas, A.; Ashby, M. L. N.; Willner, S. P.

2018-04-01

We present activity demographics and host-galaxy properties of infrared-selected galaxies in the local Universe, using the representative Star Formation Reference Survey (SFRS). Our classification scheme is based on a combination of optical emission-line diagrams (BPT) and infrared (IR)-colour diagnostics. Using the weights assigned to the SFRS galaxies based on its parent sample, a far-IR-selected sample comprises 71 per cent H II galaxies, 13 per cent Seyferts, 3 per cent transition objects (TOs), and 13 per cent low-ionization nuclear emission-line regions (LINERs). For the SFRS H II galaxies, we derive nuclear star formation rates and gas-phase metallicities. We measure host-galaxy metallicities for all galaxies with available long-slit spectroscopy and abundance gradients for a subset of 12 face-on galaxies. The majority of H II galaxies show a narrow range of metallicities, close to solar, and flat metallicity profiles. Based on their host-galaxy and nuclear properties, the dominant ionizing source in the far-infrared selected TOs is star-forming activity. LINERs are found mostly in massive hosts (median of 1010.5 M⊙), median L(60 μm) = 109 L⊙, median dust temperatures of F60/F100 = 0.36, and median LH α surface density of 1040.2 erg s-1kpc-2, indicating older stellar populations as their main ionizing source rather than active galactic nucleus activity.

The Diverse Environments of Gamma-Ray Bursts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perley, Daniel Alan

I present results from several years of concerted observations of the afterglows and host galaxies of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), the most energetic explosions in the Universe. Short gamma-ray bursts originate from a wide variety of environments, including disk galaxies, elliptical galaxies, galaxy haloes, and intracluster and intergalactic space. Long gamma ray bursts associate almost exclusively with star-forming hosts, but the properties of these galaxies also vary widely. Some are hosted in extremely small galaxies, difficult to identify directly in emission or infer from the absorption of afterglow light, but the host luminosity distribution extends up to very luminous (> L*) systems as well. A significant fraction of long GRBs are observed along highly dust-obscured sightlines through their host medium. Some of these events are hosted within conspicuously dusty galaxies, although the hosts of other dust-obscured events show no outward signs of significant internal dust content. By measuring the wavelength dependence of dust absorption profiles using a few well-observed GRB afterglows, I provide evidence for ordinary dust with properties similar to those of dust in the Milky Way in a system at z ˜ 3, but a very different absorption profile from the dust in a galaxy at z ˜ 5, providing tentative evidence to support a transition in dust composition early in the history of the Universe. I present an observationally-determined redshift distribution for Swift GRBs, showing few to originate from high redshifts (z ≳ 5). I also provide the first photometric and spectroscopic catalogs from one of the largest GRB host-galaxy surveys ever conducted, including observations of almost 150 distinct GRB fields.

Matching Supernovae to Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2016-12-01

One of the major challenges for modern supernova surveys is identifying the galaxy that hosted each explosion. Is there an accurate and efficient way to do this that avoids investing significant human resources?Why Identify Hosts?One problem in host galaxy identification. Here, the supernova lies between two galaxies but though the centroid of the galaxy on the right is closer in angular separation, this may be a distant background galaxy that is not actually near the supernova. [Gupta et al. 2016]Supernovae are a critical tool for making cosmological predictions that help us to understand our universe. But supernova cosmology relies on accurately identifying the properties of the supernovae including their redshifts. Since spectroscopic followup of supernova detections often isnt possible, we rely on observations of the supernova host galaxies to obtain redshifts.But how do we identify which galaxy hosted a supernova? This seems like a simple problem, but there are many complicating factors a seemingly nearby galaxy could be a distant background galaxy, for instance, or a supernovas host could be too faint to spot.The authors algorithm takes into account confusion, a measure of how likely the supernova is to be mismatched. In these illustrations of low (left) and high (right) confusion, the supernova is represented by a blue star, and the green circles represent possible host galaxies. [Gupta et al. 2016]Turning to AutomationBefore the era of large supernovae surveys, searching for host galaxies was done primarily by visual inspection. But current projects like the Dark Energy Surveys Supernova Program is finding supernovae by the thousands, and the upcoming Large Synoptic Survey Telescope will likely discover hundreds of thousands. Visual inspection will not be possible in the face of this volume of data so an accurate and efficient automated method is clearly needed!To this end, a team of scientists led by Ravi Gupta (Argonne National Laboratory) has recently developed a new automated algorithm for matching supernovae to their host galaxies. Their work builds on currently existing algorithms and makes use of information about the nearby galaxies, accounts for the uncertainty of the match, and even includes a machine learning component to improve the matching accuracy.Gupta and collaborators test their matching algorithm on catalogs of galaxies and simulated supernova events to quantify how well the algorithm is able to accurately recover the true hosts.Successful MatchingThe matching algorithms accuracy (purity) as a function of the true supernova-host separation, the supernova redshift, the true hosts brightness, and the true hosts size. [Gupta et al. 2016]The authors find that when the basic algorithm is run on catalog data, it matches supernovae to their hosts with 91% accuracy. Including the machine learning component, which is run after the initial matching algorithm, improves the accuracy of the matching to 97%.The encouraging results of this work which was intended as a proof of concept suggest that methods similar to this could prove very practical for tackling future survey data. And the method explored here has use beyond matching just supernovae to their host galaxies: it could also be applied to other extragalactic transients, such as gamma-ray bursts, tidal disruption events, or electromagnetic counterparts to gravitational-wave detections.CitationRavi R. Gupta et al 2016 AJ 152 154. doi:10.3847/0004-6256/152/6/154

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shao, X.; Liang, Y. C.; Chen, X. Y.

We compare the host galaxies of 902 supernovae (SNe), including SNe Ia, SNe II, and SNe Ibc, which are selected by cross-matching the Asiago Supernova Catalog with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7. We selected an additional 213 galaxies by requiring the light fraction of spectral observations to be >15%, which could represent well the global properties of the galaxies. Among these 213 galaxies, 135 appear on the Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich diagram, which allows us to compare the hosts in terms of whether they are star-forming (SF) galaxies, active galactic nuclei (AGNs; including composites, LINERs, and Seyfert 2s) ormore » absorption-line galaxies (Absorps; i.e., their related emission lines are weak or non-existent). The diagrams related to the parameters D{sub n}(4000), Hδ{sub A}, stellar masses, star formation rates (SFRs), and specific SFRs for the SNe hosts show that almost all SNe II and most of the SNe Ibc occur in SF galaxies, which have a wide range of stellar masses and low D{sub n}(4000). The SNe Ia hosts as SF galaxies following similar trends. A significant fraction of SNe Ia occurs in AGNs and absorption-line galaxies, which are massive and have high D{sub n}(4000). The stellar population analysis from spectral synthesis fitting shows that the hosts of SNe II have a younger stellar population than hosts of SNe Ia. These results are compared with those of the 689 comparison galaxies where the SDSS fiber captures less than 15% of the total light. These comparison galaxies appear biased toward higher 12+log(O/H) (∼0.1 dex) at a given stellar mass. Therefore, we believe the aperture effect should be kept in mind when the properties of the hosts for different types of SNe are discussed.« less

Star formation suppression and bar ages in nearby barred galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

James, P. A.; Percival, S. M.

2018-03-01

We present new spectroscopic data for 21 barred spiral galaxies, which we use to explore the effect of bars on disc star formation, and to place constraints on the characteristic lifetimes of bar episodes. The analysis centres on regions of heavily suppressed star formation activity, which we term `star formation deserts'. Long-slit optical spectroscopy is used to determine H β absorption strengths in these desert regions, and comparisons with theoretical stellar population models are used to determine the time since the last significant star formation activity, and hence the ages of the bars. We find typical ages of ˜1 Gyr, but with a broad range, much larger than would be expected from measurement errors alone, extending from ˜0.25 to >4 Gyr. Low-level residual star formation, or mixing of stars from outside the `desert' regions, could result in a doubling of these age estimates. The relatively young ages of the underlying populations coupled with the strong limits on the current star formation rule out a gradual exponential decline in activity, and hence support our assumption of an abrupt truncation event.

Spatially resolved analysis of superluminous supernovae PTF 11hrq and PTF 12dam host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cikota, Aleksandar; De Cia, Annalisa; Schulze, Steve; Vreeswijk, Paul M.; Leloudas, Giorgos; Gal-Yam, Avishay; Perley, Daniel A.; Cikota, Stefan; Kim, Sam; Patat, Ferdinando; Lunnan, Ragnhild; Quimby, Robert; Yaron, Ofer; Yan, Lin; Mazzali, Paolo A.

2017-08-01

Superluminous supernovae (SLSNe) are the most luminous supernovae in the Universe. They are found in extreme star-forming galaxies and are probably connected with the death of massive stars. One hallmark of very massive progenitors would be a tendency to explode in very dense, UV-bright and blue regions. In this paper, we investigate the resolved host galaxy properties of two nearby hydrogen-poor SLSNe, PTF 11hrq and PTF 12dam. For both galaxies Hubble Space Telescope multifilter images were obtained. Additionally, we perform integral field spectroscopy of the host galaxy of PTF 11hrq using the Very Large Telescope Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (VLT/MUSE), and investigate the line strength, metallicity and kinematics. Neither PTF 11hrq nor PTF 12dam occurred in the bluest part of their host galaxies, although both galaxies have overall blue UV-to-optical colours. The MUSE data reveal a bright starbursting region in the host of PTF 11hrq, although far from the SN location. The SN exploded close to a region with disturbed kinematics, bluer colour, stronger [O III] and lower metallicity. The host galaxy is likely interacting with a companion. PTF 12dam occurred in one of the brightest pixels, in a starbursting galaxy with a complex morphology and a tidal tail, where interaction is also very likely. We speculate that SLSN explosions may originate from stars generated during star formation episodes triggered by interaction. High-resolution imaging and integral field spectroscopy are fundamental for a better understanding of SLSNe explosion sites and how star formation varies across their host galaxies.

Multipole analysis of redshift-space distortions around cosmic voids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamaus, Nico; Cousinou, Marie-Claude; Pisani, Alice; Aubert, Marie; Escoffier, Stéphanie; Weller, Jochen

2017-07-01

We perform a comprehensive redshift-space distortion analysis based on cosmic voids in the large-scale distribution of galaxies observed with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. To this end, we measure multipoles of the void-galaxy cross-correlation function and compare them with standard model predictions in cosmology. Merely considering linear-order theory allows us to accurately describe the data on the entire available range of scales and to probe void-centric distances down to about 2 h-1Mpc. Common systematics, such as the Fingers-of-God effect, scale-dependent galaxy bias, and nonlinear clustering do not seem to play a significant role in our analysis. We constrain the growth rate of structure via the redshift-space distortion parameter β at two median redshifts, β(bar z=0.32)=0.599+0.134-0.124 and β(bar z=0.54)=0.457+0.056-0.054, with a precision that is competitive with state-of-the-art galaxy-clustering results. While the high-redshift constraint perfectly agrees with model expectations, we observe a mild 2σ deviation at bar z=0.32, which increases to 3σ when the data is restricted to the lowest available redshift range of 0.15

Observational constraints to boxy/peanut bulge formation time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pérez, I.; Martínez-Valpuesta, I.; Ruiz-Lara, T.; de Lorenzo-Caceres, A.; Falcón-Barroso, J.; Florido, E.; González Delgado, R. M.; Lyubenova, M.; Marino, R. A.; Sánchez, S. F.; Sánchez-Blázquez, P.; van de Ven, G.; Zurita, A.

2017-09-01

Boxy/peanut bulges are considered to be part of the same stellar structure as bars and both could be linked through the buckling instability. The Milky Way is our closest example. The goal of this Letter is to determine if the mass assembly of the different components leaves an imprint in their stellar populations allowing the estimation the time of bar formation and its evolution. To this aim, we use integral field spectroscopy to derive the stellar age distributions, SADs, along the bar and disc of NGC 6032. The analysis clearly shows different SADs for the different bar areas. There is an underlying old (≥12 Gyr) stellar population for the whole galaxy. The bulge shows star formation happening at all times. The inner bar structure shows stars of ages older than 6 Gyr with a deficit of younger populations. The outer bar region presents an SAD similar to that of the disc. To interpret our results, we use a generic numerical simulation of a barred galaxy. Thus, we constrain, for the first time, the epoch of bar formation, the buckling instability period and the posterior growth from disc material. We establish that the bar of NGC 6032 is old, formed around 10 Gyr ago while the buckling phase possibly happened around 8 Gyr ago. All these results point towards bars being long-lasting even in the presence of gas.

Collisionless Boltzmann equation approach for the study of stellar discs within barred galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bienaymé, Olivier

2018-04-01

We have studied the kinematics of stellar disc populations within the solar neighbourhood in order to find the imprints of the Galactic bar. We carried out the analysis by developing a numerical resolution of the 2D2V (two-dimensional in the physical space, 2D, and two-dimensional in the velocity motion, 2V) collisionless Boltzmann equation and modelling the stellar motions within the plane of the Galaxy within the solar neighbourhood. We recover similar results to those obtained by other authors using N-body simulations, but we are also able to numerically identify faint structures thanks to the cancelling of the Poisson noise. We find that the ratio of the bar pattern speed to the local circular frequency is in the range ΩB/Ω = 1.77 to 1.91. If the Galactic bar angle orientation is within the range from 24 to 45 degrees, the bar pattern speed is between 46 and 49 km s-1 kpc-1.

GETTING TO THE HEART OF A GALAXY

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

This collage of images in visible and infrared light reveals how the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1365 is feeding material into its central region, igniting massive star birth and probably causing its bulge of stars to grow. The material also is fueling a black hole in the galaxy's core. A galaxy's bulge is a central, football-shaped structure composed of stars, gas, and dust. The black-and-white image in the center, taken by a ground-based telescope, displays the entire galaxy. But the telescope's resolution is not powerful enough to reveal the flurry of activity in the galaxy's hub. The blue box in the galaxy's central region outlines the area observed by the NASA Hubble Space Telescope's visible-light camera, the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2). The red box pinpoints a narrower view taken by the Hubble telescope's infrared camera, the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS). A barred spiral is characterized by a lane of stars, gas, and dust slashing across a galaxy's central region. It has a small bulge that is dominated by a disk of material. The spiral arms begin at both ends of the bar. The bar is funneling material into the hub, which triggers star formation and feeds the bulge. The visible-light picture at upper left is a close-up view of the galaxy's hub. The bright yellow orb is the nucleus. The dark material surrounding the orb is gas and dust that is being funneled into the central region by the bar. The blue regions pinpoint young star clusters. In the infrared image at lower right, the Hubble telescope penetrates the dust seen in the WFPC2 picture to reveal more clusters of young stars. The bright blue dots represent young star clusters; the brightest of the red dots are young star clusters enshrouded in dust and visible only in the infrared image. The fainter red dots are older star clusters. The WFPC2 image is a composite of three filters: near-ultraviolet (3327 Angstroms), visible (5552 Angstroms), and near-infrared (8269 Angstroms). The NICMOS image, taken at a wavelength of 16,000 Angstroms, was combined with the visible and near-infrared wavelengths taken by WFPC2. The WFPC2 image was taken in January 1996; the NICMOS data were taken in April 1998. Credits for the ground-based image: Allan Sandage (The Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington) and John Bedke (Computer Sciences Corporation and the Space Telescope Science Institute) Credits for the WFPC2 image: NASA and John Trauger (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) Credits for the NICMOS image: NASA, ESA, and C. Marcella Carollo (Columbia University)

The dust masses of powerful radio galaxies: clues to the triggering of their activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tadhunter, C.; Dicken, D.; Morganti, R.; Konyves, V.; Ysard, N.; Nesvadba, N.; Ramos Almeida, C.

2014-11-01

We use deep Herschel Space Observatory observations of a 90 per cent complete sample of 32 intermediate-redshift 2Jy radio galaxies (0.05 < z < 0.7) with strong emission lines to estimate the dust masses of their host galaxies and thereby investigate the triggering mechanisms for their quasar-like AGN. The dust masses derived for the radio galaxies (7.2 × 105 < Md < 2.6 × 108 M⊙) are intermediate between those of quiescent elliptical galaxies on the one hand, and ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) on the other. Consistent with simple models for the co-evolution of supermassive black holes and their host galaxies, these results suggest that most radio galaxies represent the late time re-triggering of AGN activity via mergers between the host giant elliptical galaxies and companion galaxies with relatively low gas masses. However, a minority of the radio galaxies in our sample (˜20 per cent) have high, ULIRG-like dust masses, along with evidence for prodigious star formation activity. The latter objects are more likely to have been triggered in major, gas-rich mergers that represent a rapid growth phase for both their host galaxies and their supermassive black holes.

Why Buckling Stellar Bars Weaken in Disk Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martinez-Valpuesta, Inma; Shlosman, Isaac

2004-09-01

Young stellar bars in disk galaxies experience a vertical buckling instability that terminates their growth and thickens them, resulting in a characteristic peanut/boxy shape when viewed edge-on. Using N-body simulations of galactic disks embedded in live halos, we have analyzed the bar structure throughout this instability and found that the outer (approximately) third of the bar dissolves completely while the inner part (within the vertical inner Lindblad resonance) becomes less oval. The bar acquires the frequently observed peanut/boxy-shaped isophotes. We also find that the bar buckling is responsible for a mass injection above the plane, which is subsequently trapped by specific three-dimensional families of periodic orbits of particular shapes explaining the observed isophotes, in line with previous work. Using a three-dimensional orbit analysis and surfaces of sections, we infer that the outer part of the bar is dissolved by a rapidly widening stochastic region around its corotation radius-a process related to the bar growth. This leads to a dramatic decrease in the bar size, decrease in the overall bar strength, and a mild increase in its pattern speed but is not expected to lead to a complete bar dissolution. The buckling instability appears primarily responsible for shortening the secular diffusion timescale to a dynamical one when building the boxy isophotes. The sufficiently long timescale of the described evolution, ~1 Gyr, can affect the observed bar fraction in the local universe and at higher redshifts, both through reduced bar strength and the absence of dust offset lanes in the bar.

MOLECULAR GAS AND STAR-FORMATION PROPERTIES IN THE CENTRAL AND BAR REGIONS OF NGC 6946

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pan, Hsi-An; Sorai, Kazuo; Kuno, Nario

In this work, we investigate the molecular gas and star-formation properties in the barred spiral galaxy NGC 6946 using multiple molecular lines and star-formation tracers. A high-resolution image (100 pc) of {sup 13}CO (1–0) is created for the inner 2 kpc disk by the single-dish Nobeyama Radio Observatory 45 m telescope and interferometer Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy, including the central region (nuclear ring and bar) and the offset ridges of the primary bar. Single-dish HCN (1–0) observations were also made to constrain the amount of dense gas. The physical properties of molecular gas are inferred from (1)more » the large velocity gradient calculations using our observations and archival {sup 12}CO (1–0), {sup 12}CO(2–1) data, (2) the dense gas fraction suggested by the luminosity ratio of HCN to {sup 12}CO (1–0), and (3) the infrared color. The results show that the molecular gas in the central region is warmer and denser than that of the offset ridges. The dense gas fraction of the central region is similar to that of luminous infrared galaxies/ultraluminous infrared galaxies, whereas the offset ridges are close to the global average of normal galaxies. The coolest and least-dense region is found in a spiral-like structure, which was misunderstood to be part of the southern primary bar in previous low-resolution observations. The star-formation efficiency (SFE) changes by about five times in the inner disk. The variation of SFE agrees with the prediction in terms of star formation regulated by the galactic bar. We find a consistency between the star-forming region and the temperature inferred by the infrared color, suggesting that the distribution of subkiloparsec-scale temperature is driven by star formation.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Martinez-Medina, L. A.; Pichardo, B.; Moreno, E.

We present a dynamical study of the effect of the bar and spiral arms on the simulated orbits of open clusters in the Galaxy. Specifically, this work is devoted to the puzzling presence of high-altitude open clusters in the Galaxy. For this purpose we employ a very detailed observationally motivated potential model for the Milky Way and a careful set of initial conditions representing the newly born open clusters in the thin disk. We find that the spiral arms are able to raise an important percentage of open clusters (about one-sixth of the total employed in our simulations, depending onmore » the structural parameters of the arms) above the Galactic plane to heights beyond 200 pc, producing a bulge-shaped structure toward the center of the Galaxy. Contrary to what was expected, the spiral arms produce a much greater vertical effect on the clusters than the bar, both in quantity and height; this is due to the sharper concentration of the mass on the spiral arms, when compared to the bar. When a bar and spiral arms are included, spiral arms are still capable of raising an important percentage of the simulated open clusters through chaotic diffusion (as tested from classification analysis of the resultant high-z orbits), but the bar seems to restrain them, diminishing the elevation above the plane by a factor of about two.« less

Using diffusion k-means for simple stellar population modeling of low S/N quasar host galaxy spectra

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mosby, Gregory; Tremonti, Christina A.; Hooper, Eric; Wolf, Marsha J.; Sheinis, Andrew; Richards, Joseph

2016-01-01

Quasar host galaxies (QHGs) represent a unique stage in galaxy evolution that can provide a glimpse into the relationship between an active supermassive black hole (SMBH) and its host galaxy. However, observing the hosts of high luminosity, unobscured quasars in the optical is complicated by the large ratio of quasar to host galaxy light. One strategy in optical spectroscopy is to use offset longslit observations of the host galaxy. This method allows the centers of QHGs to be analyzed apart from other regions of their host galaxies. But light from the accreting black hole's point spread function still enters the host galaxy observations, and where the contrast between the host and intervening quasar light is favorable, the host galaxy is faint, producing low signal-to-noise (S/N) data. This stymies traditional stellar population methods that might rely on high S/N features in galaxy spectra to recover key galaxy properties like its star formation history (SFH). In response to this challenge, we have developed a method of stellar population modeling using diffusion k-means (DFK) that can recover SFHs from rest frame optical data with S/N ~ 5 Å^-1. Specifically, we use DFK to cultivate a reduced stellar population basis set. This DFK basis set of four broad age bins is able to recover a range of SFHs. With an analytic description of the seeing, we can use this DFK basis set to simultaneously model the SFHs and the intervening quasar light of QHGs as well. We compare the results of this method with previous techniques using synthetic data and find that our new method has a clear advantage in recovering SFHs from QHGs. On average, the DFK basis set is just as accurate and decisively more precise. This new technique could be used to analyze other low S/N galaxy spectra like those from higher redshift or integral field spectroscopy surveys.This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under grant no. DGE -0718123 and the Advanced Opportunity fellowship program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This research was performed using the computer resources and assistance of the UW-Madison Center For High Throughput Computing (CHTC) in the Department of Computer Sciences.

Using Satellite Galaxies to Weigh the Milky Way

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2018-06-01

Weighing galaxies is a tricky business especially when that galaxy is our own! In a recent study, scientists have tackled this problem by harnessing incredibly precise measurements of the motions of Milky-Way satellites.A Challenging MeasurementLocations of some of the 50 satellite galaxies known around the Milky Way. [AndrewRT]Our spot in the middle of our galaxys disk makes it difficult for us to assess the total mass of gas, dust, stars, and dark matter surrounding us; estimates for the Milky Ways mass span from 700 billion to 2 trillion solar masses! Pinning down this number is critical for better understanding the structure and dynamics of our local universe.So whats the key to precisely weighing the Milky Way? A new study led by Ekta Patel (University of Arizona) presented at the American Astronomical Society meeting two weeks ago suggests it may be the barely preceptible motions of the small satellite galaxies that orbit around the Milky Way. Around 50 Milky-Way satellites are currently known, and simulations suggest that there may be up to 100200 in total. By watching the motions of these satellites, we can trace the potential of their host the Milky Way and estimate its mass.The Illustris-Dark simulation evolves our universe to the present day, providing a view of how dark matter organizes itself into galaxy halos over time. [Illustris Collaboration]Tiny Motions of Tiny GalaxiesIn this era of precision astronomy, remarkable measurements are becoming possible. In their study, Patel and collaborators use years of proper-motion observations from the Hubble Space Telescope for nine satellite galaxies of the Milky Way. The precision needed for measurements like these is insane: watching these satellites move is roughly like watching a human hair grow at the distance of the Moon.Rather than using the instantaneous position and velocity measured for a satellite which changes over time during the satellites orbit Patel and collaborators demonstrate that the satellites specific angular momentum is a more useful parameter when attempting to estimate its host galaxys mass.For each of the nine individual satellite galaxies, the authors compare its measured momentum to that of 90,000 simulated satellite galaxies from the Illustris-Dark cosmological simulation. This matching is used to build a probability distribution for the mass of the host galaxy most likely to be orbited by such a satellite. The probability distributions for the nine satellite galaxies are then combined to find the best overall estimate for the Milky Ways mass.Tipping the ScaleTop: summary of the most likely Milky-Way mass estimated from each of the 9 satellite galaxies, using the instantaneous positions and velocities (left) and the momentum (right) of the satellites. The momentum method shows less scatter in the host masses. Bottom: probability distributions for the most likely Milky-Way mass for each of the satellites (colored curves) and combined (grey curve). Click for a better look. [Patel et al. 2018]Using this technique, Patel and collaborators find a mass of 0.96 trillion solar masses for the Milky Way. The error bars for their measurement are around 30% and while this is more confined than the broad range of past estimates, its not yet extremely precise. The beauty of Patel and collaborators method, however, is that it is both extendable and generalizable.The authors only had access to precise proper motions for nine satellite galaxies when they conducted their study but since then, the Gaia mission has provided measurements for 30 satellites, with more expected in the future. Including these additional satellites and using improved, higher-resolution cosmological simulations for comparison will continue to increase the precision of Patel and collaborators estimate in the future.In addition, this approach can also be used to weigh our neighboring Andromeda galaxy, or any other galaxy for which were able to get precise proper-motion measurements for its satellites. Keep an eye out in the future, as techniques like this continue to reveal more properties of our local universe.CitationEkta Patel et al 2018 ApJ 857 78. doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aab78f

Secular Black Hole Growth and Feedback in Merger-Free Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simmons, Brooke

2016-10-01

We will measure the merger-free galaxy-black hole mass relation for the first time, using a unique, newly-discovered sample of luminous active galactic nuclei (AGN) hosted in galaxies that have not grown via mergers. Our preliminary study has shown that supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in bulgeless galaxies - i.e., galaxies that have never undergone a significant merger - can have substantial growth: bulges are not required for the formation and growth of SMBHs. The proposed targets are broad-line AGN with black hole masses spanning a wide mass range (1e6 to >1e9 M_Sun) and hosted in strongly disk dominated galaxies (>80% light from a disk). This sample is an ideal laboratory for understanding merger-free black hole growth and its feedback on the host galaxy. HST imaging will allow us to disentangle bright nuclear emission from host galaxy, measure bulge type and strength, and identify bulgeless galaxies that have evolved under purely secular conditions. In addition, we will determine whether merger-free galaxies lie on the same SMBH-galaxy relation as galaxies with substantial past mergers, or whether merger-free growth results in a separate relation. The answer to this question has profound consequences for the role of baryon dynamics in driving black hole-galaxy co-evolution.

Demise of faint satellites around isolated early-type galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Changbom; Hwang, Ho Seong; Park, Hyunbae; Lee, Jong Chul

2018-02-01

The hierarchical galaxy formation scenario in the Cold Dark Matter cosmology with a non-vanishing cosmological constant Λ and geometrically flat space (ΛCDM) has been very successful in explaining the large-scale distribution of galaxies. However, there have been claims that ΛCDM over-predicts the number of satellite galaxies associated with massive galaxies compared with observations—the missing satellite galaxy problem1-3. Isolated groups of galaxies hosted by passively evolving massive early-type galaxies are ideal laboratories for identifying the missing physics in the current theory4-11. Here, we report—based on a deep spectroscopic survey—that isolated massive and passive early-type galaxies without any signs of recent wet mergers or accretion episodes have almost no satellite galaxies fainter than the r-band absolute magnitude of about Mr = -14. If only early-type satellites are used, the cutoff is at the somewhat brighter magnitude of about Mr = -15. Such a cutoff has not been found in other nearby satellite galaxy systems hosted by late-type galaxies or those with merger features. Various physical properties of satellites depend strongly on the host-centric distance. Our observations indicate that the satellite galaxy luminosity function is largely determined by the interaction of satellites with the environment provided by their host.

Characterizing bar structures: application to NGC 1300, NGC 7479 and NGC 7723

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aguerri, J. A. L.; Muñoz-Tuñón, C.; Varela, A. M.; Prieto, M.

2000-09-01

Detailed surface photometry has been carried out for three barred galaxies with use of high resolution CCD broad-band images in the B, V and I bands. Using azimuthal luminosity profiles and their decomposition into Fourier Series, the structural parameters (length and strength) of the bars in the three galaxies have been obtained. We have also inferred the corotation radii (CR) using information available in the B-I and B-V colour index profiles. The regions selected for the CR were the ends of the bars, or a little further out and with an older stellar population than the su rrounding regions. The resulting values, RCR ~ 100''+/-10'' for NGC 1300, RCR ~ 63'' for NGC 7479 and RCR ~ 23'' for NGC 7723, are in agreement with those previously reported in the literature. This demonstrates the utility of accurate photometry for this type of observation.

A molecular gas-rich GRB host galaxy at the peak of cosmic star formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arabsalmani, M.; Le Floc'h, E.; Dannerbauer, H.; Feruglio, C.; Daddi, E.; Ciesla, L.; Charmandaris, V.; Japelj, J.; Vergani, S. D.; Duc, P.-A.; Basa, S.; Bournaud, F.; Elbaz, D.

2018-05-01

We report the detection of the CO(3-2) emission line from the host galaxy of gamma-ray burst (GRB) 080207 at z = 2.086. This is the first detection of molecular gas in emission from a GRB host galaxy beyond redshift 1. We find this galaxy to be rich in molecular gas with a mass of 1.1 × 10^{11} M_{{\\odot }} assuming αCO = 4.36 M_{{\\odot }} (K km s^{-1} pc^2)^{-1}. The molecular gas mass fraction of the galaxy is ˜0.5, typical of star-forming galaxies (SFGs) with similar stellar masses and redshifts. With an SFR_{FIR} of 260 M_{{\\odot }} yr^{-1}, we measure a molecular gas depletion time-scale of 0.43 Gyr, near the peak of the depletion time-scale distribution of SFGs at similar redshifts. Our findings are therefore in contradiction with the proposed molecular gas deficiency in GRB host galaxies. We argue that the reported molecular gas deficiency for GRB hosts could be the artefact of improper comparisons or neglecting the effect of the typical low metallicities of GRB hosts on the CO-to-molecular-gas conversion factor. We also compare the kinematics of the CO(3-2) emission line to that of the H α emission line from the host galaxy. We find the H α emission to have contributions from two separate components, a narrow and a broad one. The narrow component matches the CO emission well in velocity space. The broad component, with a full width at half-maximum of ˜1100 km s^{-1}, is separated by +390 km s^{-1} in velocity space from the narrow component. We speculate this broad component to be associated with a powerful outflow in the host galaxy or in an interacting system.

A Census of Broad-line Active Galactic Nuclei in Nearby Galaxies: Coeval Star Formation and Rapid Black Hole Growth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trump, Jonathan R.; Hsu, Alexander D.; Fang, Jerome J.; Faber, S. M.; Koo, David C.; Kocevski, Dale D.

2013-02-01

We present the first quantified, statistical map of broad-line active galactic nucleus (AGN) frequency with host galaxy color and stellar mass in nearby (0.01 < z < 0.11) galaxies. Aperture photometry and z-band concentration measurements from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey are used to disentangle AGN and galaxy emission, resulting in estimates of uncontaminated galaxy rest-frame color, luminosity, and stellar mass. Broad-line AGNs are distributed throughout the blue cloud and green valley at a given stellar mass, and are much rarer in quiescent (red sequence) galaxies. This is in contrast to the published host galaxy properties of weaker narrow-line AGNs, indicating that broad-line AGNs occur during a different phase in galaxy evolution. More luminous broad-line AGNs have bluer host galaxies, even at fixed mass, suggesting that the same processes that fuel nuclear activity also efficiently form stars. The data favor processes that simultaneously fuel both star formation activity and rapid supermassive black hole accretion. If AGNs cause feedback on their host galaxies in the nearby universe, the evidence of galaxy-wide quenching must be delayed until after the broad-line AGN phase.

Study of GRBs Hosts Galaxies Vicinity Properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernal, S.; Vasquez, N.; Hoyle, F.

2017-07-01

The study of GRBs host galaxies and its vicinity could provide constrains on the progenitor and an opportunity to use these violent explosions to characterize the nature of the highredshift universe. Studies of GRB host galaxies reveal a population of starforming galaxies with great diversity, spanning a wide range of masses, star formation rate, and redshifts. In order to study the galactic ambient of GRBs we used the S. Savaglio catalog from 2015 where 245 GRBs are listed with RA-Dec position and z. We choose 22 GRBs Hosts galaxies from Savaglio catalog and SDSS DR12, with z range 0

CHARACTERIZATION OF A SAMPLE OF INTERMEDIATE-TYPE ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI. II. HOST BULGE PROPERTIES AND BLACK HOLE MASS ESTIMATES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Benitez, Erika; Cruz-Gonzalez, Irene; Martinez, Benoni

2013-02-15

We present a study of the host bulge properties and their relations with the black hole mass for a sample of 10 intermediate-type active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our sample consists mainly of early-type spirals, four of them hosting a bar. For 70{sup +10} {sub -17}% of the galaxies, we have been able to determine the type of the bulge, and find that these objects probably harbor a pseudobulge or a combination of classical bulge/pseudobulge, suggesting that pseudobulges might be frequent in intermediate-type AGNs. In our sample, 50% {+-} 14% of the objects show double-peaked emission lines. Therefore, narrow double-peaked emissionmore » lines seem to be frequent in galaxies harboring a pseudobulge or a combination of classical bulge/pseudobulge. Depending on the bulge type, we estimated the black hole mass using the corresponding M {sub BH}-{sigma}* relation and found them within a range of 5.69 {+-} 0.21 < log M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} < 8.09 {+-} 0.24. Comparing these M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} values with masses derived from the FWHM of H{beta} and the continuum luminosity at 5100 A from their SDSS-DR7 spectra (M {sub BH}), we find that 8 out of 10 (80{sup +7} {sub -17}%) galaxies have black hole masses that are compatible within a factor of 3. This result would support that M {sub BH} and M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} are the same for intermediate-type AGNs, as has been found for type 1 AGNs. However, when the type of the bulge is taken into account, only three out of the seven (43{sup +18} {sub -15}%) objects of the sample have their M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} and M {sub BH} compatible within 3{sigma} errors. We also find that estimations based on the M {sub BH}-{sigma}* relation for pseudobulges are not compatible in 50% {+-} 20% of the objects.« less

INTEGRAL-FIELD STELLAR AND IONIZED GAS KINEMATICS OF PECULIAR VIRGO CLUSTER SPIRAL GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cortés, Juan R.; Hardy, Eduardo; Kenney, Jeffrey D. P., E-mail: jcortes@alma.cl, E-mail: ehardy@nrao.cl, E-mail: jeff.kenney@yale.edu

2015-01-01

We present the stellar and ionized gas kinematics of 13 bright peculiar Virgo cluster galaxies observed with the DensePak Integral Field Unit at the WIYN 3.5 m telescope in order to look for kinematic evidence that these galaxies have experienced gravitational interactions or gas stripping. Two-dimensional maps of the stellar velocity V, stellar velocity dispersion σ, and the ionized gas velocity (Hβ and/or [O III]) are presented for the galaxies in the sample. The stellar rotation curves and velocity dispersion profiles are determined for 13 galaxies, and the ionized gas rotation curves are determined for 6 galaxies. Misalignments between themore » optical and kinematical major axes are found in several galaxies. While in some cases this is due to a bar, in other cases it seems to be associated with gravitational interaction or ongoing ram pressure stripping. Non-circular gas motions are found in nine galaxies, with various causes including bars, nuclear outflows, or gravitational disturbances. Several galaxies have signatures of kinematically distinct stellar components, which are likely signatures of accretion or mergers. For all of our galaxies, we compute the angular momentum parameter λ {sub R}. An evaluation of the galaxies in the λ {sub R} ellipticity plane shows that all but two of the galaxies have significant support from random stellar motions, and have likely experienced gravitational interactions. This includes some galaxies with very small bulges and truncated/compact Hα morphologies, indicating that such galaxies cannot be fully explained by simple ram pressure stripping, but must have had significant gravitational encounters. Most of the sample galaxies show evidence for ICM-ISM stripping as well as gravitational interactions, indicating that the evolution of a significant fraction of cluster galaxies is likely strongly impacted by both effects.« less

Associating Fast Radio Bursts with Their Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eftekhari, T.; Berger, E.

2017-11-01

The first precise localization of a fast radio burst (FRB) sheds light on the nature of these mysterious bursts and the physical mechanisms that power them. Increasing the sample of FRBs with robust host galaxy associations is the key impetus behind ongoing and upcoming searches and facilities. Here, we quantify the robustness of FRB host galaxy associations as a function of localization area and galaxy apparent magnitude. We also explore the use of FRB dispersion measures to constrain the source redshift, thereby reducing the number of candidate hosts. We use these results to demonstrate that even in the absence of a unique association, a constraint can be placed on the maximum luminosity of a host galaxy as a function of localization and dispersion measure (DM). We find that localizations of ≲ 0.5\\text{'}\\text{'} are required for a chance coincidence probability of ≲ 1 % for dwarf galaxies at z≳ 0.1; if some hosts have luminosities of ˜ {L}\\ast , then localizations of up to ≈ 5\\prime\\prime may suffice at z˜ 0.1. Constraints on the redshift from the DM only marginally improve the association probability unless the DM is low, ≲ 400 pc cm-3. This approach also relies on the determination of galaxy redshifts, which is challenging at z≳ 0.5 if the hosts are dwarf galaxies. Finally, interesting limits on the maximum host luminosity require localizations of ≲ 5\\prime\\prime at z≳ 0.1. Even a few such localizations will explain the nature of FRB progenitors, their possible diversity, and their use as cosmological tools.

AM 2217-490: A polar ring galaxy under construction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Freitas-Lemes, P.; Rodrigues, I.; Faúndez-Abans, M.; Dors, O.

2014-10-01

This work is part of a series of case studies of Polar Ring Galaxies (PRGs) (see also Posters GAL-1: 163, GAL-2: 178). A PRG is formed by an early type host galaxy (e.g. lenticular or elliptical), surrounded by a ring of gas and stars orbiting approximately at the polar plane of the host galaxy. AM2217-490 is an interesting case of PRG in formation, with a still asymmetrical ring that surrounds the host galaxy. Apparently, this bluish structure (characteristic of the rings of PRGs), is not yet in equilibrium with the host galaxy. This study is based on spectra on the range 6250-7250 Å obtained with the CTIO 1.5 m telescope - Chile. From them, we measure a heliocentric radial velocity of 9152± 18 km/s. The value of the ionization parameter (log U = -3.5) is similar to that in interacting galaxies (Freitas-Lemes et al. 2013, submitted to MNRAS; and Krabbe et al. 2013, MNRAS Accepted), and lower than that of isolated ones. The electron density shows little variation along the major axis of the host galaxy, and a mean value typical of interacting galaxies. Diagnostic diagrams show that the nuclear region harbors an AGN, following a trend among polar ring galaxies. The low-resolution images of the SDSS show no tails or bridges connecting the galaxy to other objects, however, in a radius of 5 arcmin there are three other galaxies with similar speeds, featuring a group. A plausible hypothesis is that one of these galaxies may have interacted with AM2217-490, donating material to form the ring.

Quenching and ram pressure stripping of simulated Milky Way satellite galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simpson, Christine; Grand, Robert; Gomez, Facundo; Marinacci, Federico; Pakmor, Rüdiger; Springel, Volker; Campbell, David; Frenk, Carlos; Auriga Project, Virgo Consortium

2018-01-01

We present predictions for the quenching of star formation in satellite galaxies of the Local Group from a suite of 30 cosmological zoom simulations of Milky Way-like host galaxies. The Auriga simulations resolve satellites down to the luminosity of the classical dwarf spheroidal galaxies of the Milky Way. We find strong mass-dependent and distance-dependent quenching signals, where dwarf systems beyond 600 kpc are only strongly quenched below a stellar mass of 107 M⊙. Ram pressure stripping appears to be the dominant quenching mechanism and 50% of quenched systems cease star formation within 1 Gyr of first infall. We demonstrate that systems within a host galaxy's R200 radius are comprised of two populations: (i) a first infall population that has entered the host halo within the past few Gyrs and (ii) a population of returning `backsplash' systems that have had a much more extended interaction with the host. Backsplash galaxies that do not return to the host galaxy by redshift zero exhibit quenching properties similar to galaxies within R200 and are distinct from other external systems. The simulated quenching trend with stellar mass has some tension with observations, but our simulations are able reproduce the range of quenching times measured from resolved stellar populations of Local Group dwarf galaxies.

Quenching and ram pressure stripping of simulated Milky Way satellite galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simpson, Christine M.; Grand, Robert J. J.; Gómez, Facundo A.; Marinacci, Federico; Pakmor, Rüdiger; Springel, Volker; Campbell, David J. R.; Frenk, Carlos S.

2018-07-01

We present predictions for the quenching of star formation in satellite galaxies of the Local Group from a suite of 30 cosmological zoom simulations of Milky Way-like host galaxies. The Auriga simulations resolve satellites down to the luminosity of the classical dwarf spheroidal galaxies of the Milky Way. We find strong mass-dependent and distance-dependent quenching signals, where dwarf systems beyond 600 kpc are only strongly quenched below a stellar mass of 107 M⊙. Ram pressure stripping appears to be the dominant quenching mechanism and 50 per cent of quenched systems cease star formation within 1 Gyr of first infall. We demonstrate that systems within a host galaxy's R200 radius are comprised of two populations: (i) a first infall population that has entered the host halo within the past few Gyrs and (ii) a population of returning `backsplash' systems that have had a much more extended interaction with the host. Backsplash galaxies that do not return to the host galaxy by redshift zero exhibit quenching properties similar to galaxies within R200 and are distinct from other external systems. The simulated quenching trend with stellar mass has some tension with observations, but our simulations are able reproduce the range of quenching times measured from resolved stellar populations of Local Group dwarf galaxies.

Quenching and ram pressure stripping of simulated Milky Way satellite galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simpson, Christine M.; Grand, Robert J. J.; Gómez, Facundo A.; Marinacci, Federico; Pakmor, Rüdiger; Springel, Volker; Campbell, David J. R.; Frenk, Carlos S.

2018-03-01

We present predictions for the quenching of star formation in satellite galaxies of the Local Group from a suite of 30 cosmological zoom simulations of Milky Way-like host galaxies. The Auriga simulations resolve satellites down to the luminosity of the classical dwarf spheroidal galaxies of the Milky Way. We find strong mass-dependent and distance-dependent quenching signals, where dwarf systems beyond 600 kpc are only strongly quenched below a stellar mass of 107 M⊙. Ram pressure stripping appears to be the dominant quenching mechanism and 50% of quenched systems cease star formation within 1 Gyr of first infall. We demonstrate that systems within a host galaxy's R200 radius are comprised of two populations: (i) a first infall population that has entered the host halo within the past few Gyrs and (ii) a population of returning `backsplash' systems that have had a much more extended interaction with the host. Backsplash galaxies that do not return to the host galaxy by redshift zero exhibit quenching properties similar to galaxies within R200 and are distinct from other external systems. The simulated quenching trend with stellar mass has some tension with observations, but our simulations are able reproduce the range of quenching times measured from resolved stellar populations of Local Group dwarf galaxies.

Starbursts and their dynamics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norman, Colin

1987-01-01

Detailed mechanisms associated with dynamical process occurring in starburst galaxies are considered including the role of bars, waves, mergers, sinking satellites, self gravitating gas and bulge heating. The current understanding of starburst galaxies both observational and theoretical is placed in the context of theories of galaxy formations, Hubble sequence evolution, starbursts and activity, and the nature of quasar absorption lines.

DISCOVERY OF A PSEUDOBULGE GALAXY LAUNCHING POWERFUL RELATIVISTIC JETS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kotilainen, Jari K.; Olguín-Iglesias, Alejandro; León-Tavares, Jonathan

Supermassive black holes launching plasma jets at close to the speed of light, producing gamma-rays, have ubiquitously been found to be hosted by massive elliptical galaxies. Since elliptical galaxies are generally believed to be built through galaxy mergers, active galactic nuclei (AGN) launching relativistic jets are associated with the latest stages of galaxy evolution. We have discovered a pseudobulge morphology in the host galaxy of the gamma-ray AGN PKS 2004-447. This is the first gamma-ray emitter radio-loud AGN found to have been launched from a system where both the black hole and host galaxy have been actively growing via secularmore » processes. This is evidence of an alternative black hole–galaxy co-evolutionary path to develop powerful relativistic jets, which is not merger driven.« less

A dichotomy in satellite quenching around L* galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, John I.; Wheeler, Coral; Boylan-Kolchin, Michael; Bullock, James S.; Cooper, Michael C.; Tollerud, Erik J.

2014-01-01

We examine the star formation properties of bright (˜0.1 L*) satellites around isolated ˜L* hosts in the local Universe using spectroscopically confirmed systems in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 7. Our selection method is carefully designed with the aid of N-body simulations to avoid groups and clusters. We find that satellites are significantly more likely to be quenched than a stellar mass-matched sample of isolated galaxies. Remarkably, this quenching occurs only for satellites of hosts that are themselves quenched: while star formation is unaffected in the satellites of star-forming hosts, satellites around quiescent hosts are more than twice as likely to be quenched than stellar-mass-matched field samples. One implication of this is that whatever shuts down star formation in isolated, passive L* galaxies also play at least an indirect role in quenching star formation in their bright satellites. The previously reported tendency for `galactic conformity' in colour/morphology may be a by-product of this host-specific quenching dichotomy. The Sérsic indices of quenched satellites are statistically identical to those of field galaxies with the same specific star formation rates, suggesting that environmental and secular quenching give rise to the same morphological structure. By studying the distribution of pairwise velocities between the hosts and satellites, we find dynamical evidence that passive host galaxies reside in dark matter haloes that are ˜45 per cent more massive than those of star-forming host galaxies of the same stellar mass. We emphasize that even around passive hosts, the mere fact that galaxies become satellites does not typically result in star formation quenching: we find that only ˜30 per cent of ˜0.1L* galaxies that fall in from the field are quenched around passive hosts, compared with ˜0 per cent around star-forming hosts.

Gamma-Ray Burst Host Galaxies Have "Normal" Luminosities.

PubMed

Schaefer

2000-04-10

The galactic environment of gamma-ray bursts can provide good evidence about the nature of the progenitor system, with two old arguments implying that the burst host galaxies are significantly subluminous. New data and new analysis have now reversed this picture: (1) Even though the first two known host galaxies are indeed greatly subluminous, the next eight hosts have absolute magnitudes typical for a population of field galaxies. A detailed analysis of the 16 known hosts (10 with redshifts) shows them to be consistent with a Schechter luminosity function with R*=-21.8+/-1.0, as expected for normal galaxies. (2) Bright bursts from the Interplanetary Network are typically 18 times brighter than the faint bursts with redshifts; however, the bright bursts do not have galaxies inside their error boxes to limits deeper than expected based on the luminosities for the two samples being identical. A new solution to this dilemma is that a broad burst luminosity function along with a burst number density varying as the star formation rate will require the average luminosity of the bright sample (>6x1058 photons s-1 or>1.7x1052 ergs s-1) to be much greater than the average luminosity of the faint sample ( approximately 1058 photons s-1 or approximately 3x1051 ergs s-1). This places the bright bursts at distances for which host galaxies with a normal luminosity will not violate the observed limits. In conclusion, all current evidence points to gamma-ray burst host galaxies being normal in luminosity.

Host galaxies of type ia supernovae from the nearby supernova factory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Childress, Michael Joseph

Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) are excellent distance indicators, yet the full details of the underlying physical mechanism giving rise to these dramatic stellar deaths remain unclear. As large samples of cosmological SNe Ia continue to be collected, the scatter in brightnesses of these events is equally affected by systematic errors as statistical. Thus we need to understand the physics of SNe Ia better, and in particular we must know more about the progenitors of these SNe so that we can derive better estimates for their true intrinsic brightnesses. The host galaxies of SNe Ia provide important indirect clues as to the nature of SN Ia progenitors. In this Thesis we utilize the host galaxies of SNe Ia discovered by the Nearby Supernova Factory (SNfactory) to pursue several key investigations into the nature of SN Ia progenitors and their effects on SN Ia brightnesses. We first examine the host galaxy of SN 2007if, an important member of the subclass of SNe Ia whose extreme brightnesses indicate a progenitor that exceeded the canonical Chandrasekhar-mass value presumed for normal SNe Ia, and show that the host galaxy of this SN is composed of very young stars and has extremely low metallicity, providing important constraints on progenitor scenarios for this SN. We then utilize the full sample of SNfactory host galaxy masses (measured from photometry) and metallicities (derived from optical spectroscopy) to examine several global properties of SN Ia progenitors: (i) we show that SN Ia hosts show tight agreement with the normal galaxy mass-metallicity relation; (ii) comparing the observed distribution of SN Ia host galaxy masses to a theoretical model that couples galaxy physics to the SN Ia delay time distribution (DTD), we show the power of the SN Ia host mass distribution in constraining the SN Ia DTD; and (iii) we show that the lack of ultra-low metallicities in the SNfactory SN Ia host sample gives provisional support for the theorized low-metallicity inhibition of SNe Ia. Finally we revisit recent studies which found that the corrected brightnesses of SNe Ia (after application of the standard light curve width and color corrections) correlate with the masses of their host galaxies. We confirm this trend with host mass using SNfactory data, and for the first time confirm that an analogous trend exists with host metallicity. We then apply a spectroscopic standardization technique developed by SNfactory and show that this method significantly reduces the observed bias. In this Thesis we show that SN Ia host galaxies continue to provide key insight into SN Ia progenitors, and also illuminate possible biases in SN Ia brightness standardization techniques.

Internal and environmental secular evolution of disk galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kormendy, John

2015-03-01

This Special Session is devoted to the secular evolution of disk galaxies. Here `secular' means `slow' i.e., evolution on time scales that are generally much longer than the galaxy crossing or rotation time. Internal and environmentally driven evolution both are covered. I am indebted to Albert Bosma for reminding me at the 2011 Canary Islands Winter School on Secular Evolution that our subject first appeared in print in a comment made by Ivan King (1977) in his introductory talk at the Yale University meeting on The Evolution of Galaxies and Stellar Populations: `John Kormendy would like us to consider the possibility that a galaxy can interact with itself.. . . I'm not at all convinced, but John can show you some interesting pictures.' Two of the earliest papers that followed were Kormendy (1979a, b); the first discusses the interaction of galaxy components with each other, and the second studies these phenomena in the context of a morphological survey of barred galaxies. The earliest modeling paper that we still use regularly is Combes & Sanders (1981), which introduces the now well known idea that box-shaped bulges in edge-on galaxies are side-on, vertically thickened bars. It is gratifying to see how this subject has grown since that time. Hundreds of papers have been written, and the topic features prominently at many meetings (e.g., Block et al. 2004; Falcoń-Barroso & Knapen 2012, and this Special Session). My talk here introduces both internal and environmental secular evolution; a brief abstract follows. My Canary Islands Winter School review covers both subjects in more detail (Kormendy 2012). Kormendy & Kennicutt (2004) is a comprehensive review of internal secular evolution, and Kormendy & Bender (2012) covers environmental evolution. Both of these subject make significant progress at this meeting. Secular evolution happens because self-gravitating systems evolve toward the most tightly bound configuration that is reachable by the evolution processes that are available to them. They do this by spreading - the inner parts shrink while the outer parts expand. Significant changes happen only if some process efficiently transports energy or angular momentum outward. The consequences are very general: evolution by spreading happens in stars, star clusters, protostellar and protoplanetary disks, black hole accretion disks and galaxy disks. This meeting is about disk galaxies, so the evolution most often involves the redistribution of angular momentum. We now have a good heuristic understanding of how nonaxisymmetric structures rearrange disk gas into outer rings, inner rings and stuff dumped onto the center. Numerical simulations reproduce observed morphologies very well. Gas that is transported to small radii reaches high densities that are seen in CO observations. Star formation rates measured (e.g.) in the mid-infrared show that many barred and oval galaxies grow, on timescales of a few Gyr, dense central `pseudobulges' that are frequently mistaken for classical (elliptical-galaxy-like) bulges but that were grown slowly out of the disk (not made rapidly by major mergers). Our resulting picture of secular evolution accounts for the richness observed in morphological classification schemes such as those of de Vaucouleurs (1959) and Sandage (1961). State-of-the art morphology discussions include the de Vaucouleurs Atlas of Galaxies (Buta et al. 2007) and Buta (2012, 2013). Pseudobulges as disk-grown alternatives to merger-built classical bulges are important because they impact many aspects of our understanding of galaxy evolution. For example, they are observed to contain supermassive black holes (BHs), but they do not show the well known, tight correlations between BH mass and host properties (Kormendy et al. 2011). We can distinguish between classical and pseudo bulges because the latter retain a `memory' of their disky origin. That is, they have one or more characteristics of disks: (1) flatter shapes than those of classical bulges, (2) correspondingly large ratios of ordered to random velocities, (3) small velocity dispersions σ with respect to the Faber-Jackson correlation between σ and bulge luminosity, (4) spiral structure or nuclear bars in the `bulge' part of the light profile, (5) nearly exponential brightness profiles and (6) starbursts. None of the above classification criteria are 100% reliable. Published disagreements on (pseudo)bulge classifications usually result from the use of diffferent criteria. It is very important to use as many classification criteria as possible. When two or more criteria are used, the probability of misclassification becomes very small. I also review environmental secular evolution - the transformation of gas-rich, star-forming spiral and irregular galaxies into gas-poor, `red and dead' S0 and spheroidal (`Sph') galaxies. I show that Sph galaxies such as NGC 205 and Draco are not the low-luminosity end of the structural sequence (the `fundamental plane') of elliptical galaxies. Instead, Sph galaxies have structural parameters like those of low-luminosity S+Im galaxies. Spheroidals are continuous in their structural parameters with the disks of S0 galaxies. They are bulgeless S0s. S+Im -> S0+Sph transformation involves a variety of internal (supernova-driven baryon ejection) and environmental processes (e.g., ram-pressure gas stripping, harassment, and starvation). Improved evidence for galaxy transformation is presented in several papers at this meeting.

Revealing the Host Galaxy of a Quasar 2175 Å Dust Absorber at z =  2.12

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Jingzhe; Brammer, Gabriel; Ge, Jian; Prochaska, J. Xavier; Lundgren, Britt

2018-04-01

We report the first detection of the host galaxy of a strong 2175 Å dust absorber at z = 2.12 toward the background quasar SDSS J121143.42+083349.7 using Hubble Space Telescope/Wide Field Camera 3 (HST/WFC3) IR F140W direct imaging and G141 grism spectroscopy. The spectroscopically confirmed host galaxy is located at a small impact parameter of ∼5.5 kpc (∼0.″65). The F140W image reveals a disk-like morphology with an effective radius of 2.24 ± 0.08 kpc. The extracted 1D spectrum is dominated by a continuum with weak emission lines ([O III] and [O II]). The [O III]-based unobscured star formation rate (SFR) is 9.4 ± 2.6 M ⊙ yr‑1, assuming an [O III]/Hα ratio of 1. The moderate 4000 Å break (Dn(4000) index ∼1.3) and Balmer absorption lines indicate that the host galaxy contains an evolved stellar population with an estimated stellar mass M * of (3–7) × 1010 M ⊙. The SFR and M * of the host galaxy are comparable to, though slightly lower than, those of typical emission-selected galaxies at z ∼ 2. As inferred from our absorption analysis in Ma et al., the host galaxy is confirmed to be a chemically enriched, evolved, massive, and star-forming disk-like galaxy that is likely in the transition from a blue star-forming galaxy to a red quiescent galaxy.

Morphology of Dwarf Galaxies in Isolated Satellite Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ann, Hong Bae

2017-08-01

The environmental dependence of the morphology of dwarf galaxies in isolated satellite systems is analyzed to understand the origin of the dwarf galaxy morphology using the visually classified morphological types of 5836 local galaxies with z ≲ 0.01. We consider six sub-types of dwarf galaxies, dS0, dE, dE_{bc}, dSph, dE_{blue}, and dI, of which the first four sub-types are considered as early-type and the last two as late-type. The environmental parameters we consider are the projected distance from the host galaxy (r_{p}), local and global background densities, and the host morphology. The spatial distributions of dwarf satellites of early-type galaxies are much different from those of dwarf satellites of late-type galaxies, suggesting the host morphology combined with r_{p} plays a decisive role on the morphology of the dwarf satellite galaxies. The local and global background densities play no significant role on the morphology of dwarfs in the satellite systems hosted by early-type galaxies. However, in the satellite system hosted by late-type galaxies, the global background densities of dE and dSph satellites are significantly different from those of dE_{bc}, dE_{blue}, and dI satellites. The blue-cored dwarf satellites (dE_{bc}) of early-type galaxies are likely to be located at r_{p} > 0.3 Mpc to keep their cold gas from the ram pressure stripping by the hot corona of early-type galaxies. The spatial distribution of dE_{bc} satellites of early-type galaxies and their global background densities suggest that their cold gas is intergalactic material accreted before they fall into the satellite systems.

Hosts and environments of low luminosity active galaxies in the local universe: The care and feeding of weak AGN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parejko, John Kenneth

The observed relationship between the mass of a galaxy's supermassive black hole and the galaxy's bulge mass suggests a relationship between the growth of the galaxy and the growth of its central black hole. When these black holes grow, they release phenomenal amounts of energy into their surroundings, possibly disrupting further growth of the galaxy. The feeding (inflowing matter) and feedback (outflowing energy) of a galaxy's central black hole may be intimately related to the properties of the host's environment, on scales many orders of magnitude beyond the black hole's gravitational influence. While feeding, a massive black hole reveals itself as an Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN), but only a few percent of all galaxies show evidence of an AGN. This thesis focuses on this question: What distinguishes galaxies that are currently hosting actively accreting black holes from those that are not? We use the vast data set provided by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7 (DR7) to study the environments of a well defined sample of AGN hosts. To reduce contamination by galaxies that do not harbor actively accreting black holes, we define a clear, unambiguous sample of local AGN. Using this sample, we search for AGN in merging galaxies and measure the 2-point cross-correlation function of AGN and all galaxies to estimate the environments of AGN hosts compared to non-AGN hosts. We also describe trends in different subsamples of AGN, including luminosity and classification sub-type. Finally, we show how these techniques may be applied to future data sets such as forthcoming SDSS III data and X-ray data from the eROSITA satellite.

An evolutionary missing link? A modest-mass early-type galaxy hosting an oversized nuclear black hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Loon, Jacco Th.; Sansom, Anne E.

2015-11-01

SAGE1C J053634.78-722658.5 is a galaxy at redshift z = 0.14, discovered behind the Large Magellanic Cloud in the Spitzer Space Telescope`Surveying the Agents of Galaxy Evolution' Spectroscopy survey. It has very strong silicate emission at 10 μm but negligible far-IR and UV emission. This makes it a candidate for a bare active galactic nuclei (AGN) source in the IR, perhaps seen pole-on, without significant IR emission from the host galaxy. In this paper we present optical spectra taken with the Southern African Large Telescope to investigate the nature of the underlying host galaxy and its AGN. We find broad H α emission characteristic of an AGN, plus absorption lines associated with a mature stellar population (>9 Gyr), and refine its redshift determination to z = 0.1428 ± 0.0001. There is no evidence for any emission lines associated with star formation. This remarkable object exemplifies the need for separating the emission from any AGN from that of the host galaxy when employing IR diagnostic diagrams. We estimate the black hole mass, MBH = 3.5 ± 0.8 × 108 M⊙, host galaxy mass, M_stars=2.5^{2.5}_{1.2}× 10^{10} M⊙, and accretion luminosity, Lbol(AGN) = 5.3 ± 0.4 × 1045 erg s-1 (≈12 per cent of the Eddington luminosity), and find the AGN to be more prominent than expected for a host galaxy of this modest size. The old age is in tension with the downsizing paradigm in which this galaxy would recently have transformed from a star-forming disc galaxy into an early-type, passively evolving galaxy.

Neutral Hydrogen Radio Propperties of ASAS-SN Supernovae Hosts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ross, Timothy W.; Salter, Chris; Ghosh, Tapasi; Minchin, Robert; Jones, Kristen; All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN)

2018-01-01

We compiled properties of the galaxies containing recent supernovae. The galaxies were observed in the Hydrogen 21-cm region using the Arecibo 305-m Radio Telescope, and the supernovae were found by the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN) project. We were able to detect the neutral hydrogen hyperfine transition in 50 new galaxies to date, and retrieved information on 52 host galaxies with previous detections. Including archival detections, the detection rates of Type CC SNe was 96.9%, that of Type Ia was 76.3%, while no Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs) had detections. In all we calculated the integrated HI flux of 102 host galaxies in the Arecibo sky. With the integrated HI flux we calculated mass values. The median HI mass, log [MHI/(h‑2C M⊙)], with h =.73, for all SN host galaxies was 9.47±0.02, with the median for Type Ia hosts being 9.55±0.02 and the median for Type CC being 9.30±0.02.

Dancing around the Black Hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2001-08-01

ISAAC Finds "Cool" Young Stellar Systems at the Centres of Active Galaxies Summary Supermassive Black Holes are present at the centres of many galaxies, some weighing hundreds of millions times more than the Sun. These extremely dense objects cannot be observed directly, but violently moving gas clouds and stars in their strong gravitational fields are responsible for the emission of energetic radiation from such "active galaxy nuclei" (AGN) . A heavy Black Hole feeds agressively on its surroundings . When the neighbouring gas and stars finally spiral into the Black Hole, a substantial fraction of the infalling mass is transformed into pure energy. However, it is not yet well understood how, long before this dramatic event takes place, all that material is moved from the outer regions of the galaxy towards the central region. So how is the food for the central Black Hole delivered to the table in the first place? To cast more light on this central question, a team of French and Swiss astronomers [1] has carried out a series of trailblazing observations with the VLT Infrared Spectrometer And Array Camera (ISAAC) on the VLT 8.2-m ANTU telescope at the ESO Paranal Observatory. The ISAAC instrument is particularly well suited to this type of observations. Visible light cannot penetrate the thick clouds of dust and gas in the innermost regions of active galaxies, but by recording the infrared light from the stars close to the Black Hole , their motions can be studied. By charting those motions in the central regions of three active galaxies (NGC 1097, NGC 1808 and NGC 5728), the astronomers were able to confirm the presence of "nuclear bars" in all three. These are dynamical structures that "open a road" for the flow of material towards the innermost region. Moreover, the team was surprised to discover signs of a young stellar population near the centres of these galaxies - stars that have apparently formed quite recently in a central gas disk. Such a system is unstable, however, and will soon disrupt. At some moment, many of those young stars may get too close to the monster in the centre and suffer an unhappy fate... PR Photo 25a/01 : The active galaxy NGC 1097 (R-band image) PR Photo 25b/01 : The active galaxy NGC 1808 (H-band image) PR Photo 25c/01 : The active galaxy NGC 5728 (K-band image) PR Photo 25d/01 : Schematic drawing of the various structural components mentioned in the text. PR Photo 25e/01 : ISAAC spectrum (2.3 µm) of the central region of NGC 1808 PR Photo 25f/01 : Stellar motions at the centre of NGC 1808 Central black holes in galaxies ESO PR Photo 25a/01 ESO PR Photo 25a/01 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 489 pix - 39k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 977 pix - 296k] ESO PR Photo 25b/01 ESO PR Photo 25b/01 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 499 pix - 40k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 997 pix - 168k] ESO PR Photo 25c/01 ESO PR Photo 25c/01 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 488 pix - 47k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 975 pix - 384k] Caption : Photos of three active galaxies that were observed with ISAAC during the present programme. They show NGC 1097 (R-band; Photo 25a/01) and the central areas of NGC 1808 (H-band; Photo 25b/01) and NGC 5728 (K-band; Photo 25c/01). The bar-like structures and the luminous centres where the Black Holes are located are well visible - they are discussed in the text. The distances to these galaxies are approximately 55, 35 and 120 million light-years, respectively; the local scales are indicated in the photos. Technical information about these photos is available below. Recent research with space- and ground-based astronomical telescopes indicate that there are very heavy Black Holes at the centres of most galaxies. There is also general agreement among scientists that many of the closest neighbours of our own Milky Way Galaxy, for example the large spiral Andromeda Galaxy and the peculiar Centaurus A galaxy (cf. ESO PR 04/01 ), do contain central black holes with masses from millions to billions of solar masses [2]. Black Holes have an extremely intense gravitational field and as light can not escape from them, they are dark and invisible. Indeed, with presently available observational tools, they cannot be detected directly, only by effects resulting from interaction with their immediate surroundings. A small fraction of the black holes in galaxies are thus revealed by the spectacular activity they trigger in the central part of their hosts. Attracted by that heavy object, enormous quantities of gas (mostly hydrogen) spiral inwards towards the black hole. A disk-shaped structure forms in which the gas moves ever faster around the black hole while enormous amounts of energy are radiated at all wavelengths [3]. Getting the food to the Black Hole A great debate is now going on among scientists about how exactly the black holes are "fed". How is the gas first transported into the disk to fuel the seemingly insatiable supermassive black hole? It is still not well understood how the gas is moved from the outside to within a distance of 1000 light-years of the centre. Various violent processes have been mentioned in this context, like the merger of galaxies. A fine example of such an event was recently observed at the distant quasar HE 1013-2136 with the ESO Very Large Telescope, cf. ESO PR 13/01. The role of "nuclear bars" ESO PR Photo 25d/01 ESO PR Photo 25d/01 [Preview - JPEG: 364 x 400 pix - 89k] [Normal - JPEG: 727 x 800 pix - 264k] Caption : PR Photo 25d/01 is a schematic drawing of the various components of a double-barred galaxy, as mentioned in the text. Another possibility to move the gas inwards is the presence of bar-like structures at the centres of some galaxies, so-called "nuclear bars" . They look like small versions of the well-known, beautiful large-scale bar-like structures seen in galaxies like NGC 1365 (cf. ESO PR Photos 08a-e/99 ), but the responsible dynamical processes may possibly be somewhat different. Photo 25d/01 shows the various components that are discussed here in a schematic way. Acting as a gravitational brush, a bar that is thousands of light-years long efficiently "sweeps" the gas in that galaxy towards its core. When sufficient material has collected there, that matter may become dynamically "decoupled", forming a smaller bar at the centre of the larger "primary" bar. Such a "nuclear bar" may then, at least in theory, take over and let the gas move further inwards towards the central black hole. Until now, nuclear bars have mostly been seen on detailed images as small, elongated structures embedded within the larger primary bars - such structures may ressemble a "Russian doll". In addition, nuclear bars have been detected indirectly due to their gravitational effects, by means of very accurate measurements of the motions of the gas in the central region in a few galaxies. A first observational campaign by a team of French and Swiss astronomers [1] with the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) has now brought new, important insights about these nuclear bars. ISAAC spectra of the innermost regions of three active galaxies ESO PR Photo 25e/01 ESO PR Photo 25e/01 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 424 pix - 40k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 847 pix - 256k] ESO PR Photo 25f/01 ESO PR Photo 25f/01 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 241 pix - 40k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 401 pix - 112k] Caption : PR Photo 25e/01 is a reproduction of a long-slit ISAAC spectrum of the central region of the active galaxy NGC 1808 . It is in the 2.3 µm spectral region and the wavelength increases towards right. Several strong, vertical bands are seen; they are caused by CO-molecules in the atmospheres of the stars in this area. The bright band at the centre corresponds to the nucleus of the galaxy within which the central black hole is located. The characteristic S-shape is a result of the rotation of the stars around this centre, due to the Doppler effect. Technical information about this photo is available below. In the left half of PR Photo 25f/01 , the measured velocities (ordinate) of the stars near the centre of NGC 1808 are plotted at different distances from the nucleus (abscissa). The right half shows the corresponding curve after "removal" of the effect from the rotation - the remaining spread is a direct measure of the "velocity dispersion" and the individual stellar motions. As can be clearly seen, the width of the "band" decreases towards the centre, indicating the presence of a "dynamically cool" central stellar system. For more details, see the text. The scientists embarked upon a project with the goal of investigating in detail the motions of stars in the central regions of some active, comparatively "nearby" galaxies. As the innermost regions of such galaxies are usually quite dusty, the observations were carried out in infrared light that penetrates the dust clouds much better than does visible light. Thanks to its high efficiency and excellent imaging quality and spectral resolution, the VLT Infrared Spectrometer And Array Camera (ISAAC) is superbly suited for such work. Several galaxies with active centres were selected for the first observing runs in 1999 and 2000, among these NGC 1097, NGC 1808 and NGC 5728 that are shown in PR Photos 25a-c/01 . Infrared spectra were obtained in the 2.3 µm wavelength region in which a number of molecular spectral bands are seen, cf. PR Photo 25e/01 . They are caused by carbon monoxide ( 12 CO) molecules in the atmospheres of the stars located near the centres of the galaxies. Stellar motions By measuring the exact wavelengths of these molecular bands, it is possible to determine (from the Doppler effect), first, the mean velocity of the stars ( PR Photo 25f/01 ; left) and, secondly, the spread in this velocity (known as the "velocity dispersion" ; right). The first value reflects the general speed with which the stars move around the central black hole. The second indicates the extent to which the individual stellar motions deviate from that mean value. The comparison with the flight of a swarm of bees is useful: the mean velocity tells how fast the swarm moves forward as a whole - this is the ordered motion of the group. The second value instead indicates how much (or how fast) the individual bees move around inside the swarm - this is the spread in random velocities among the bees. Dynamical temperature is another concept defined by velocity dispersion. A warm gas is a gas where the molecules swarm around at high random speeds, while the molecules in a cold gas have low velocity dispersion. Astronomers often borrow this terminology and refer to stellar systems with low velocity dispersions as "dynamically cool systems". Confirming the "nuclear bars"... When "mapped" over the entire central area of a galaxy, these stellar velocity values provide detailed information about the gravitational field, and thus the mass distribution in the innermost region of the galaxy. The ISAAC observations did confirm the presence of "nuclear bars" in NGC 1097, NGC 1808 and NGC 5728. They also showed that these bars are truly "decoupled" stellar systems - their motions are only determined by the mass distribution in that area. ...and discovering a "dynamically cool" stellar system! However, the astronomers were very surprised to discover that in all three galaxies, the velocity dispersion is decreasing towards the centre, exactly contrary to what is predicted by simple models . The likely reason is the presence in the central region of a "newborn" system of stars whose individual velocities have not yet had time to "heat up". The project leader, Eric Emsellem explains: "Slower individual stellar motions correspond to a lower 'dynamical temperature' of the stellar system in this innermost region. We interpret this as evidence for a recent infall of gas that was induced by the nuclear bar. This has created a new gaseous disk at the centre of the galaxy, which has given birth to new stars. They all move around the black hole with more or less the same circular velocity as the gas from which they were born" . Agreement between observations and models This interesting scenario is supported by recent, extensive model computations by the team. In these computer models, large numbers of "stars" (mass points) move in a model galaxy with both a large and a nuclear bar, as observed in the three galaxies. Herve Wozniak refers to them as "self-consistent N-body simulations" and explains why the team is enthusiastic: "When our models also include star formation in the gas in the central region, a new, "dynamically cool" component of young stars emerges and mixes with the old stellar population" . He goes on: "The light from those young stars is superposed on that from the older ones in that area. Because of this, the overall "velocity dispersion" in the central region is then smaller than what it is further out. This is exactly as we observed in the ISAAC spectra obtained in the present programme" . Eric Emsellem points out that such a "dynamically cold" system is unstable and cannot last very long . "Soon it will "heat up" due to complex dynamical processes. It is quite possible that some of these stars will eventually end up as food for the hungry Black Hole.." Prospects With these new high-resolution infrared observations of the structure and the objects in the innermost regions of active galaxies, ISAAC and the VLT are paving the way for future studies of the processes that take place in the immediate neighbourhood of the central black holes. More active galaxies will now be observed with this method and it will be interesting to see if the presently discovered "cool" and young stellar systems represent a common phenomenon or not. More information The first stages of the research project reported in this Press Release are described in a scientific article ("Dynamics of embedded bars and the connection with AGN" by E. Emsellem et al.) that appeared in the European research journal Astronomy & Astrophysics (Vol. 368, p. 52). Two other articles about the new models and the implied properties of the central stellar population of young stars will follow. Notes [1]: The team consists of Eric Emsellem (Principal Investigator, Centre de Recherche Astronomique de Lyon, France), Didier Greusard and Daniel Friedli (Geneva Observatory, Switzerland), Francoise Combes (DEMIRM, Paris, France), Herve Wozniak (Marseille Observatory, France), Emmanuel Pecontal (Centre de Recherche Astronomique de Lyon, France) and Stephane Leon (University of Cologne, Germany). [2]: Black Holes represent an extreme physical phenomenon; if the Earth were to become one, it would measure no more than a few millimetres across. The gravitational field around a black hole is so intense that even light can not escape from it. [3]: On its most energetic and dramatic scale, this scenario results in a quasar , a type of object first discovered in 1963. In this case, the highly energetic centre of a galaxy completely outshines the outer structures and the "quasi-stellar object" appears star-like in smaller telescopes. Technical information about the photos PR Photo 25a/01 with NGC 1097 is a reproduction from the ESO LV archive, extracted via the Hypercat facility. It is based on a 2-hour photographic exposure in the R-band (Kodak IIIa-F emulsion + RG630 filtre) with the ESO 1-m Schmidt Telescope at La Silla and covers a field of about 35 x 35 arcmin 2. On this and the following photos, North is up and East is left. PR Photo 25b/01 of the central region of NGC 1808 was reproduced from an H-band (1.6 µm) image obtained with the IRAC2 camera (now decommissioned) at the MPG/ESO 2.2-m telescope on La Silla. The exposure time was 50 sec and the field measures 2.0 x 2.1 arcmin 2 (original pixel size = 0.52 arcsec). PR Photo 25c/01 of the central region of NGC 5728 was obtained at the 3.5-m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) and the Adaptive-Optics PUEO instrument; the K-band (2.3 µm) exposure lasted 60 sec and the field measures 38 X 38 arcsec 2. PR Photo 25e/01 shows a raw, long-slit IR-spectrum in the 2.3 µm wavelength region, obtained with ISAAC along the major axis of this galaxy.

Peanut-shaped metallicity distributions in bulges of edge-on galaxies: the case of NGC 4710

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonzalez, Oscar A.; Debattista, Victor P.; Ness, Melissa; Erwin, Peter; Gadotti, Dimitri A.

2017-03-01

Bulges of edge-on galaxies are often boxy/peanut-shaped (B/PS), and unsharp masks reveal the presence of an X shape. Simulations show that these shapes can be produced by dynamical processes driven by a bar which vertically thickens the centre. In the Milky Way, which contains such a B/PS bulge, the X-shaped structure is traced by the metal-rich stars but not by the metal-poor ones. Recently, Debattista et al. interpreted this property as a result of the varying effect of the bar on stellar populations with different starting kinematics. This kinematic fractionation model predicts that cooler populations at the time of bar formation go on to trace the X shape, whereas hotter populations are more uniformly distributed. As this prediction is not specific to the Milky Way, we test it with Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) observations of the B/PS bulge in the nearby galaxy NGC 4710. We show that the metallicity map is more peanut-shaped than the density distribution itself, in good agreement with the prediction. This result indicates that the X-shaped structure in B/PS bulges is formed of relatively metal-rich stars that have been vertically redistributed by the bar, whereas the metal-poor stars have a more uniform, box-shaped distribution.

eXtragalactic astronomy: the X-games of adaptive optics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lai, Olivier

2000-07-01

Observing active nuclei, Ultra-Luminous Infrared Galaxies, starburst and merging galaxies, is both a challenge and a requirement for adaptive optics. It is a requirement, because models needed to explain the high infrared flux and the physics of these monsters need constraints that come, in part, from the fine details gleaned on high angular resolution images, and it is a challenge because, being distant, these objects are usually faint in apparent visual magnitude, meaning that the wavefront sensors have to operate in a photon starved regime. Many observations have been controversial in the past, and it is always difficult to tell an artifact such as astigmatism from an inner bar. The importance of observing the point spread function is therefore even more crucial than on bright objects, as PSF reconstruction methods 'a la Veran' break down when the photon noise dominates the statistics of the wave front, or when locking the loop on extended objects. Yet, while some cases have been controversial, some very clear and profound results have been obtained in the extragalactic domain, such as the detection of host galaxy to quasars and star formation studies. It turns out that the fundamental prerequisite to such success stories is a stable, well understood and well calibrated PSF.

Multipole analysis of redshift-space distortions around cosmic voids

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hamaus, Nico; Weller, Jochen; Cousinou, Marie-Claude

We perform a comprehensive redshift-space distortion analysis based on cosmic voids in the large-scale distribution of galaxies observed with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. To this end, we measure multipoles of the void-galaxy cross-correlation function and compare them with standard model predictions in cosmology. Merely considering linear-order theory allows us to accurately describe the data on the entire available range of scales and to probe void-centric distances down to about 2 h {sup −1}Mpc. Common systematics, such as the Fingers-of-God effect, scale-dependent galaxy bias, and nonlinear clustering do not seem to play a significant role in our analysis. We constrainmore » the growth rate of structure via the redshift-space distortion parameter β at two median redshifts, β( z-bar =0.32)=0.599{sup +0.134}{sub −0.124} and β( z-bar =0.54)=0.457{sup +0.056}{sub −0.054}, with a precision that is competitive with state-of-the-art galaxy-clustering results. While the high-redshift constraint perfectly agrees with model expectations, we observe a mild 2σ deviation at z-bar =0.32, which increases to 3σ when the data is restricted to the lowest available redshift range of 0.15< z <0.33.« less

Hubble Sees Elegant Spiral Hiding a Hungry Monster

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NGC 4639 is a beautiful example of a type of galaxy known as a barred spiral. It lies over 70 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo and is one of about 1,500 galaxies that make up the Virgo Cluster. In this image, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, one can clearly see the bar running through the bright, round core of the galaxy. Bars are found in around two-thirds of spiral galaxies, and are thought to be a natural phase in their evolution. The galaxy’s spiral arms are sprinkled with bright regions of active star formation. Each of these tiny jewels is actually several hundred light-years across and contains hundreds or thousands of newly formed stars. But NGC 4639 also conceals a dark secret in its core — a massive black hole that is consuming the surrounding gas. This is known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN), and is revealed by characteristic features in the spectrum of light from the galaxy and by X-rays produced close to the black hole as the hot gas plunges towards it. Most galaxies are thought to contain a black hole at the center. NGC 4639 is in fact a very weak example of an AGN, demonstrating that AGNs exist over a large range of activity, from galaxies like NGC 4639 to distant quasars, where the parent galaxy is almost completely dominated by the emissions from the AGN. Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

A Missing Link in Galaxy Evolution: The Mysteries of Dissolving Star Clusters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pellerin, Anne; Meyer, Martin; Harris, Jason; Calzetti, Daniela

2007-05-01

Star-forming events in starbursts and normal galaxies have a direct impact on the global stellar content of galaxies. These events create numerous compact clusters where stars are produced in great number. These stars eventually end up in the star field background where they are smoothly distributed. However, due to instrumental limitations such as spatial resolution and sensitivity, the processes involved during the transition phase from the compact clusters to the star field background as well as the impact of the environment (spiral waves, bars, starburst) on the lifetime of clusters are still poorly constrained observationally. I will present our latest results on the physical properties of dissolving clusters directly detected in HST/ACS archival images of the three nearby galaxies IC 2574, NGC 1313, and IC 10 (D < 5 Mpc). The ACS has the capability to detect and spatially resolve individual stars in nearby galaxies within a large field-of-view. For all ACS images obtained in three filters (F435W, F555W or F606W, and F814W), we performed PSF stellar photometry in crowded field. Color-magnitude diagrams (CMD) allow us to identify the most massive stars more likely to be part of dissolving clusters (A-type and earlier), and to isolate them from the star field background. We then adapt and use a clustering algorithm on the selected stars to find groups of stars to reveal and quantify the properties of all star clusters (compactness, size, age, mass). With this algorithm, even the less compact clusters are revealed while they are being destroyed. Our sample of three galaxies covers an interesting range in gravitational potential well and explores a variety of galaxy morphological types, which allows us to discuss the dissolving cluster properties as a function of the host galaxy characteristics. The properties of the star field background will also be discussed.

Sarcocystis strixi, n. sp. from barred owls (Strix varia) definitive hosts and gamma interferon gene knockout mice as experimental intermediate host

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sarcocystis species have 2-host life cycles with the sexual cycle in the definitive hosts and an asexual cycle in the intermediate hosts. Raptors are definitive hosts for several species of Sarcocystis but intestinal infection with Sarcocystis has not been reported from Barred owls (Strix varia). He...

A Weak Bar Potential and Massive Core in the Seyfert 2 Galaxy NGC 3079: CO(1--0) observations using the Nobeyama Millimeter Array

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koda, J.; Sofue, Y.; Kohno, K.; Okumura, S. K.; Irwin, Judith A.

We present our recent 12CO (1-0) observations in the central molecular disk of the Hα/radio lobe galaxy NGC 3079 with the Nobeyama Millimeter Array. We show four kinematically distinct components in the observed molecular disk: a main disk, spiral arms, a nuclear disk and a nuclear core. We discuss their possible origins using a simple orbit-analysis model in a weak bar potential. We show that three of the four components are well-understood by typical gaseous orbits in a weak bar, such as gaseous x1- and x2-orbits. The main disk and spiral arms are well-understood as the gaseous x1-orbits and their associated crowding, respectively. The nuclear disk is naturally explained by the x2-orbits. However, the nuclear core, showing a high velocity of about 200kmps at a radius of about 100pc, cannot be explained by those gaseous orbits in a bar. Furthermore, no other orbits, derived by bars, cannot be responsible for the nuclear core. Thus we discuss that this component should be attributed to a central massive core with a dynamical mass of about 109Msun within the central 100pc radius. This mass is three orders of magnitude more massive than that of a central black hole in this galaxy. More detailed descriptions are presented in Koda et al. (2002).

Chemical Evolution and History of Star Formation in the Large Magellanic Cloud

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gustafsson, Bengt

1995-07-01

Large scale processes controlling star formation and nucleosynthesis are fundamental but poorly understood. This is especially true for external galaxies. A detailed study of individual main sequence stars in the LMC Bar is proposed. The LMC is close enough to allow this, has considerable spread in stellar ages and a structure permitting identification of stellar populations and their structural features. The Bar presumably plays a dominant role in the chemical and dynamical evolution of the galaxy. Our knowledge is, at best, based on educated guesses. Still, the major population of the Bar is quite old, and many member stars are relatively evolved. The Bar seems to contain stars similar to those of Intermediate to Extreme Pop II in the Galaxy. We want to study the history of star formation, chemical evolution and initial mass function of the population dominating the Bar. We will use field stars close to the turn off point in the HR diagram. From earlier studies, we know that 250-500 such stars are available for uvby photometry in the PC field. We aim at an accuracy of 0.1 -0.2 dex in Me/H and 25% or better in relative ages. This requires an accuracy of about 0.02 mag in the uvby indices, which can be reached, taking into account errors in calibration, flat fielding, guiding and problems due to crowding. For a study of the luminosity function fainter stars will be included as well. Calibration fields are available in Omega Cen and M 67.

Multi-scale simulations of black hole accretion in barred galaxies. Self-gravitating disk models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jung, M.; Illenseer, T. F.; Duschl, W. J.

2018-06-01

Due to the non-axisymmetric potential of the central bar, in addition to their characteristic arms and bar, barred spiral galaxies form a variety of structures within the thin gas disk, such as nuclear rings, inner spirals, and dust lanes. These structures in the inner kiloparsec are extremely important in order to explain and understand the rate of black hole feeding. The aim of this work is to investigate the influence of stellar bars in spiral galaxies on the thin self-gravitating gas disk. We focus on the accretion of gas onto the central supermassive black hole and its time-dependent evolution. We conducted multi-scale simulations simultaneously resolving the galactic disk and the accretion disk around the central black hole. In all the simulations we varied the initial gas disk mass. As an additional parameter we chose either the gas temperature for isothermal simulations or the cooling timescale for non-isothermal simulations. Accretion was either driven by a gravitationally unstable or clumpy accretion disk or by energy dissipation in strong shocks. Most of the simulations show a strong dependence of the accretion rate at the outer boundary of the central accretion disk (r < 300 pc) on the gas flow at kiloparsec scales. The final black hole masses reach up to 109 M⊙ after 1.6 Gyr. Our models show the expected influence of the Eddington limit and a decline in growth rate at the corresponding sub-Eddington limit.

Dissecting the assembly and star formation history of disks and bulges in nearby spirals using the VENGA IFU survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carrillo, Andreia Jessica; Jogee, Shardha; Kaplan, Kyle; Weinzirl, Tim; Blanc, Guillermo A.

2017-06-01

Integral field spectroscopy of nearby galaxies provides a powerful and unparalleled tool for studying how galaxies assemble the different components -- the bulge, bar, and disk-- that define the Hubble sequence. We explore the assembly and star formation history of these components using galaxies in the VIRUS-P Exploration of Nearby Galaxies (VENGA) survey of 30 nearby spiral galaxies. Compared to other integral field spectroscopy studies of spirals, our study benefits from high spatial sampling and resolution (typically a few 100 pc), large coverage from the bulge to the outer disk, broad wavelength range (3600-6800 A), and medium spectral resolution (120 km/s at 5000 A). In this poster, we present the methodology and data illustrating the exquisite, high-quality, spatially-resolved spectra out to large radii, and the distribution, kinematics, and metallicity of stars and ionized gas. We discuss the next steps in deriving the star formation history (SFH) of bulge, bar, and disk components, and elucidating their assembly pathway by comparing their SFH and structural properties to theoretical models of galaxy evolution. This project is supported by the NSF grants AST-1614798 and AST-1413652.

The environment of x ray selected BL Lacs: Host galaxies and galaxy clustering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wurtz, Ron; Stocke, John T.; Ellingson, Erica; Yee, Howard K. C.

1993-01-01

Using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, we have imaged a complete, flux-limited sample of Einstein Medium Sensitivity Survey BL Lacertae objects in order to study the properties of BL Lac host galaxies and to use quantitative methods to determine the richness of their galaxy cluster environments.

Morphologies of mid-IR variability-selected AGN host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Polimera, Mugdha; Sarajedini, Vicki; Ashby, Matthew L. N.; Willner, S. P.; Fazio, Giovanni G.

2018-05-01

We use multi-epoch 3.6 and 4.5 μm data from the Spitzer Extended Deep Survey (SEDS) to probe the AGN population among galaxies to redshifts ˜3 via their mid-IR variability. About 1 per cent of all galaxies in our survey contain varying nuclei, 80 per cent of which are likely to be AGN. Twenty-three per cent of mid-IR variables are also X-ray sources. The mid-IR variables have a slightly greater fraction of weakly disturbed morphologies compared to a control sample of normal galaxies. The increased fraction of weakly distorted hosts becomes more significant when we remove the X-ray emitting AGN, while the frequency of strongly disturbed hosts remains similar to the control galaxy sample. These results suggest that mid-IR variability identifies a unique population of obscured, Compton-thick AGN revealing elevated levels of weak distortion among their host galaxies.

The luminous, massive and solar metallicity galaxy hosting the Swift γ-ray burst GRB 160804A at z = 0.737

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heintz, K. E.; Malesani, D.; Wiersema, K.; Jakobsson, P.; Fynbo, J. P. U.; Savaglio, S.; Cano, Z.; Covino, S.; D'Elia, V.; Gomboc, A.; Hammer, F.; Kaper, L.; Milvang-Jensen, B.; Møller, P.; Piranomonte, S.; Selsing, J.; Rhodin, N. H. P.; Tanvir, N. R.; Thöne, C. C.; de Ugarte Postigo, A.; Vergani, S. D.; Watson, D.

2018-02-01

We here present the spectroscopic follow-up observations with VLT/X-shooter of the Swift long-duration gamma-ray burst GRB 160804A at z = 0.737. Typically, GRBs are found in low-mass, metal-poor galaxies that constitute the sub-luminous population of star-forming galaxies. For the host galaxy of the GRB presented here, we derive a stellar mass of log (M*/ M⊙) = 9.80 ± 0.07, a roughly solar metallicity (12 + log (O/H) = 8.74 ± 0.12) based on emission line diagnostics, and an infrared luminosity of M3.6/(1 + z) = -21.94 mag, but find it to be dust-poor (E(B - V) < 0.05 mag). This establishes the galaxy hosting GRB 160804A as one of the most luminous, massive and metal-rich GRB hosts at z < 1.5. Furthermore, the gas-phase metallicity is found to be representative of the physical conditions of the gas close to the explosion site of the burst. The high metallicity of the host galaxy is also observed in absorption, where we detect several strong Fe II transitions as well as Mg II and Mg I. Although host galaxy absorption features are common in GRB afterglow spectra, we detect absorption from strong metal lines directly in the host continuum (at a time when the afterglow was contributing to < 15 per cent). Finally, we discuss the possibility that the geometry and state of the absorbing and emitting gas are indicative of a galactic scale outflow expelled at the final stage of two merging galaxies.

Improving Calibration of the MBH-σ* Relation for AGN with the BRAVE Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Batiste, Merida; Bentz, Misty C.; Manne-Nicholas, Emily; Raimundo, Sandra I.; Onken, Christopher A.; Vestergaard, Marianne; Bershady, Matthew A.

2017-01-01

The MBH - σ* relation for AGN, which relates the mass of the central supermassive black hole (MBH) to the bulge stellar velocity dispersion (σ*) of the host galaxy, is a powerful tool for studying the evolution of structure across cosmic time. Accurate calibration of this relation is essential, and much effort has been put into improving MBH determinations with this in mind. However calibration remains difficult because many nearby AGN with secure MBH determinations are hosted by late-type galaxies, with significant kinematic substructure such as bars, disks and rings. Kinematic substructure is known to contaminate and bias σ* determinations from long-slit and single aperture spectroscopy, ultimately limiting the utility of the MBH - σ* relation, and hampering efforts to investigate morphological dependencies. Integral-field spectroscopy (IFS) can be used to map the two dimensional kinematics, providing a method for measuring σ* absent some of the biases inherent in other methods, and giving a more complete picture of the spatial variations in the dynamics. We present the first set of results from the BRAVE program, the long-term goal of which is to use IFS to more accurately determine σ* for the calibrating sample of reverberation-mapped AGN. We present IFS kinematic maps for the sample of galaxies we have so far observed, which show clearly how spatial variation can impact σ* determinations from long-slit spectroscopy. We present a new fit to the MBH - σ* relation for the sample of 16 reverberation-mapped AGN for which we currently have σ* determinations from IFS, as well as a new determination of the virial scaling factor, f, for use with reverberation-mapping.

TIME-DEPENDENT COROTATION RESONANCE IN BARRED GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wu, Yu-Ting; Taam, Ronald E.; Pfenniger, Daniel, E-mail: ytwu@asiaa.sinica.edu.tw, E-mail: daniel.pfenniger@unige.ch, E-mail: taam@asiaa.sinica.edu.tw

2016-10-20

The effective potential neighboring the corotation resonance region in barred galaxies is shown to be strongly time-dependent in any rotating frame, due to the competition of nearby perturbations of similar strengths with differing rotation speeds. Contrary to the generally adopted assumption that in the bar rotating frame the corotation region should possess four stationary equilibrium points (Lagrange points), with high quality N -body simulations, we localize the instantaneous equilibrium points (EPs) and find that they circulate or oscillate broadly in azimuth with respect to the pattern speeds of the inner or outer perturbations. This implies that at the particle levelmore » the Jacobi integral is not well conserved around the corotation radius. That is, angular momentum exchanges decouple from energy exchanges, enhancing the chaotic diffusion of stars through the corotation region.« less

Active Galactic Nucleus Host Galaxy Morphologies in COSMOS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gabor, J. M.; Impey, C. D.; Jahnke, K.; Simmons, B. D.; Trump, J. R.; Koekemoer, A. M.; Brusa, M.; Cappelluti, N.; Schinnerer, E.; Smolčić, V.; Salvato, M.; Rhodes, J. D.; Mobasher, B.; Capak, P.; Massey, R.; Leauthaud, A.; Scoville, N.

2009-01-01

We use Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys images and a photometric catalog of the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field to analyze morphologies of the host galaxies of ~400 active galactic nucleus (AGN) candidates at redshifts 0.3 < z < 1.0. We compare the AGN hosts with a sample of nonactive galaxies drawn from the COSMOS field to match the magnitude and redshift distribution of the AGN hosts. We perform two-dimensional surface brightness modeling with GALFIT to yield host galaxy and nuclear point source magnitudes. X-ray-selected AGN host galaxy morphologies span a substantial range that peaks between those of early-type, bulge-dominated and late-type, disk-dominated systems. We also measure the asymmetry and concentration of the host galaxies. Unaccounted for, the nuclear point source can significantly bias results of these measured structural parameters, so we subtract the best-fit point source component to obtain images of the underlying host galaxies. Our concentration measurements reinforce the findings of our two-dimensional morphology fits, placing X-ray AGN hosts between early- and late-type inactive galaxies. AGN host asymmetry distributions are consistent with those of control galaxies. Combined with a lack of excess companion galaxies around AGN, the asymmetry distributions indicate that strong interactions are no more prevalent among AGN than normal galaxies. In light of recent work, these results suggest that the host galaxies of AGN at these X-ray luminosities may be in a transition from disk-dominated to bulge-dominated, but that this transition is not typically triggered by major mergers. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by AURA Inc, under NASA contract NAS 5-26555; also based on data collected at: the Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan; the XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA Member States and NASA; the European Southern Observatory under Large Program 175.A-0839, Chile; Kitt Peak National Observatory, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which are operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation; the National Radio Astronomy Observatory which is a facility of the National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc; and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope with MegaPrime/MegaCam operated as a joint project by the CFHT Corporation, CEA/DAPNIA, the National Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Astronomy Data Centre, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique de France, TERAPIX and the University of Hawaii.

Satellite dwarf galaxies in a hierarchical universe: the prevalence of dwarf-dwarf major mergers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Deason, Alis; Wetzel, Andrew; Garrison-Kimmel, Shea, E-mail: alis@ucolick.org

Mergers are a common phenomenon in hierarchical structure formation, especially for massive galaxies and clusters, but their importance for dwarf galaxies in the Local Group remains poorly understood. We investigate the frequency of major mergers between dwarf galaxies in the Local Group using the ELVIS suite of cosmological zoom-in dissipationless simulations of Milky Way- and M31-like host halos. We find that ∼10% of satellite dwarf galaxies with M {sub star} > 10{sup 6} M {sub ☉} that are within the host virial radius experienced a major merger of stellar mass ratio closer than 0.1 since z = 1, with amore » lower fraction for lower mass dwarf galaxies. Recent merger remnants are biased toward larger radial distance and more recent virial infall times, because most recent mergers occurred shortly before crossing within the virial radius of the host halo. Satellite-satellite mergers also occur within the host halo after virial infall, catalyzed by the large fraction of dwarf galaxies that fell in as part of a group. The merger fraction doubles for dwarf galaxies outside of the host virial radius, so the most distant dwarf galaxies in the Local Group are the most likely to have experienced a recent major merger. We discuss the implications of these results on observable dwarf merger remnants, their star formation histories, the gas content of mergers, and massive black holes in dwarf galaxies.« less

Host Galaxy Properties of the Swift BAT Ultra Hard X-Ray Selected AGN

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koss, Michael; Mushotzky, Richard; Veilleux, Sylvain; Winter, Lisa M.; Baumgartner, Wayne; Tueller, Jack; Gehrels, Neil; Valencic, Lynne

2011-01-01

We have assembled the largest sample of ultra hard X-ray selected (14-195 keV) AGN with host galaxy optical data to date, with 185 nearby (z<0.05), moderate luminosity AGN from the Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) sample. The BAT AGN host galaxies have intermediate optical colors (u -- r and g -- r) that are bluer than a comparison sample of inactive galaxies and optically selected AGN from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) which are chosen to have the same stellar mass. Based on morphological classifications from the RC3 and the Galaxy Zoo, the bluer colors of BAT AGN are mainly due to a higher fraction of mergers and massive spirals than in the comparison samples. BAT AGN in massive galaxies (log Stellar Mass >10.5) have a 5 to 10 times higher rate of spiral morphologies than in SDSS AGN or inactive galaxies. We also see enhanced far-IR emission in BAT AGN suggestive of higher levels of star formation compared to the comparison samples. BAT AGN are preferentially found in the most massive host galaxies with high concentration indexes indicative of large bulge-to-disk ratios and large supermassive black holes. The narrow-line (NL) BAT AGN have similar intrinsic luminosities as the SDSS NL Seyferts based on measurements of [O III] Lambda 5007. There is also a correlation between the stellar mass and X-ray emission. The BAT AGN in mergers have bluer colors and greater ultra hard X-ray emission compared to the BAT sample as whole. In agreement with the Unified Model of AGN, and the relatively unbiased nature of the BAT sources, the host galaxy colors and morphologies are independent of measures of obscuration such as X-ray column density or Seyfert type. The high fraction of massive spiral galaxies and galaxy mergers in BAT AGN suggest that host galaxy morphology is related to the activation and fueling of local AGN.

HOST GALAXY PROPERTIES OF THE SWIFT BAT ULTRA HARD X-RAY SELECTED ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Koss, Michael; Mushotzky, Richard; Veilleux, Sylvain

We have assembled the largest sample of ultra hard X-ray selected (14-195 keV) active galactic nucleus (AGN) with host galaxy optical data to date, with 185 nearby (z < 0.05), moderate luminosity AGNs from the Swift BAT sample. The BAT AGN host galaxies have intermediate optical colors (u - r and g - r) that are bluer than a comparison sample of inactive galaxies and optically selected AGNs from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) which are chosen to have the same stellar mass. Based on morphological classifications from the RC3 and the Galaxy Zoo, the bluer colors of BATmore » AGNs are mainly due to a higher fraction of mergers and massive spirals than in the comparison samples. BAT AGNs in massive galaxies (log M{sub *} >10.5) have a 5-10 times higher rate of spiral morphologies than in SDSS AGNs or inactive galaxies. We also see enhanced far-infrared emission in BAT AGN suggestive of higher levels of star formation compared to the comparison samples. BAT AGNs are preferentially found in the most massive host galaxies with high concentration indexes indicative of large bulge-to-disk ratios and large supermassive black holes. The narrow-line (NL) BAT AGNs have similar intrinsic luminosities as the SDSS NL Seyferts based on measurements of [O III] {lambda}5007. There is also a correlation between the stellar mass and X-ray emission. The BAT AGNs in mergers have bluer colors and greater ultra hard X-ray emission compared to the BAT sample as a whole. In agreement with the unified model of AGNs, and the relatively unbiased nature of the BAT sources, the host galaxy colors and morphologies are independent of measures of obscuration such as X-ray column density or Seyfert type. The high fraction of massive spiral galaxies and galaxy mergers in BAT AGNs suggest that host galaxy morphology is related to the activation and fueling of local AGN.« less

Photometric Properties of Face-on Isolated Spiral Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahr, Alexander; Epstein, P.; Durbala, A.

2011-05-01

We want to quantify the relative role of nature versus nurture in defining the observed properties of galaxies. In simpler terms we would like to disentangle the ``genetic'’ and the environmental influences in shaping the morphology of galaxies. In order to do that one needs to firstly define a zero-order baseline, i.e., a sample of galaxies that have been minimally perturbed by neighbors in the last few billion years of their existence. Such a sample has been produced and refined in different stages in the context of the AMIGA international project (www.iaa.es/AMIGA.html). The recent catalogue ``The All-Sky Catalog of Isolated Galaxies Selected from 2MASS'’ (Karachentseva, V. E. et al. 2010) allows us to complete and enrich the initial sample constructed within AMIGA with new objects, thus enhancing the statistical relevance of our study. Our focus is to define a subset of isolated disk spiral galaxies. We constrain the sample selection by: 1) orientation, restricting to almost face-on galaxies and 2) availability of good photometric images in SDSS. The goal is to ``dissect'’ (decompose) these galaxies in major components (disk, bulge, bars, etc.) and to study the properties of the components in a statistical context. Having a reasonable representation of all morphological types, we aim to test the bimodality of bulges and bars. We present a progress report of our work.

An optical imaging study of 0.4 ≤ z ≤ 0.8 quasar host galaxies . II. Analysis and interpretation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Örndahl, E.; Rönnback, J.

2005-11-01

We performed optical imaging of 102 radio-loud and radio-quiet quasars at z=0.4{-}0.8, of which 91 fields were found suitable for host galaxy analysis after the deselection of saturated and otherwise flawed images. The data sets were obtained mainly in the R band, but also in the V and I or Gunn i band, and were presented in Rönnback et al.(1996, MNRAS, 283, 282) and Örndahl et al. (2003, A&A, 404, 883). In this paper we combine the two above-mentioned samples and also separately discuss additional hosts, extracted from data taken by Wold et al. (2000, MNRAS, 316, 267; 2001, MNRAS, 323, 231). The joint sample forms a sizeable fraction of the to-date total number of observed sources at intermediate redshifts and increases the number of resolved radio-quiet hosts at z>0.4 considerably. Equal numbers of radio-loud and radio-quiet objects were observed, resulting in a detection rate of 79% for the radio-loud hosts and 66% for the radio-quiet hosts. Profile fitting could only be carried out for a minority of the sample, but it results in predominantly elliptical morphologies. This is consistent with the mean values of the axial ratios, for which we find b/a⪆0.8 for both radio-quiet and radio-loud hosts, just as in the case of normal elliptical galaxies. The mean absolute magnitudes of the radio-loud and radio-quiet hosts is M_R=-23.5 in both cases. This similarity between the mean magnitudes of the two types of host galaxy is also seen in the other imaged bands. While the radio-loud host absolute R magnitudes are correlated with redshift, only a weak trend of the same sort is seen for the radio-quiet host magnitudes. Note, however, that the sample is not fully resolved and that the detection limit, in combination with the relationship between host and nuclear luminosity, may conspire in creating the illusion of an upturn in magnitude. The average nucleus-to-host galaxy luminosity ratios of the radio-loud and radio-quiet objects do not differ significantly in any band, nor is the difference between the average luminosity ratios of flat spectrum and steep spectrum radio-loud quasars larger than 1.5σ. Thus, no effect of beaming (as expected in the unifying scheme) is seen. The colours of both radio-loud and radio-quiet host galaxies are found to be as blue as present-day late-type spirals and starburst galaxies. These blue colours are most likely due neither to galaxy evolution over the range, which only gives rise to a colour shift of 0.2 mag, nor to scattered nuclear light, since colours determined from annular apertures yield very similar results. Since close companions in projection are not uncommon (and a few sources even exhibit tidal tail-like features and other signs of interaction), ongoing star formation is a reasonable explanation of the blue host colours. As multiple-band imaging primarily was carried out for quasars showing indications of the presence of a host galaxy, the colour analysis results are valid for host galaxies which are large, bright, have low nucleus-to-host luminosity ratios, and/or display large scale disturbances, but cannot however safely be generalised to hold for the quasar host galaxy population at intermediate redshift as a whole.

Quantifying the (X/peanut)-shaped structure of the Milky Way - new constraints on the bar geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciambur, Bogdan C.; Graham, Alister W.; Bland-Hawthorn, Joss

2017-11-01

The nature, size and orientation of the Milky Way's bar and `bulge' have been the subject of conflicting interpretations in the literature. Here, we present a novel approach to inferring the properties of the long bar, which extends beyond the inner `bulge', by using information encoded in the Galaxy's X/peanut (X/P)-shaped structure. We perform a quantitative analysis of the X/P feature seen in WISE wide-field images, at 3.4 and 4.6 μm, by measuring the deviations of the isophotes from pure ellipses and using the radial profile of their sixth-order Fourier harmonic (cosine term, B6). In addition to the vertical height and integrated `strength' of the observed X/P instability, we report an intrinsic radius RΠ,int = 1.67 ± 0.27 kpc, and an orientation angle of α = 37°+7°-10° with respect to our line of sight to the Galactic Centre. Based on X/P structures observed in other galaxies, we assume that the Milky Way's X/P structure is intrinsically symmetric, aligned with the long Galactic bar, and that its size is correlated with this bar. The implications for the Galactic bar are that it is oriented at a 37° angle and has a radius of ≈4.2 kpc, but possibly as low as ≈3.2 kpc. We have investigated how the Milky Way's X/P structure compares with analogues in other galaxies, and find that it is consistent with recently established scaling relations, though with a marginally stronger X/P instability than expected. We additionally perform a photometric decomposition of the Milky Way's major axis surface brightness profile, accounting for spiral structure, and determine an average disc scalelength of h = 2.54 ± 0.16 kpc.

Star formation quenching in quasar host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carniani, Stefano

2017-10-01

Galaxy evolution is likely to be shaped by negative feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGN). In the whole range of redshifts and luminosities studied so far, galaxies hosting an AGN frequently show fast and extended outflows consisting in both ionised and molecular gas. Such outflows could potentially quench the start formation within the host galaxy, but a clear evidence of negative feedback in action is still missing. Hereby I will analyse integral-field spectroscopic data for six quasars at z ˜2.4 obtained with SINFONI in the H- and K-band. All the quasars show [OIII]λ5007 line detection of fast, extended outflows. Also, the high signal-to-noise SINFONI observations allow the identification of faint narrow Hα emission (FWHM < 500 km/s), which is spatially extended and associated with star formation in the host galaxy. On paper fast outflows are spatially anti-correlated with star-formation powered emission, i.e. star formation is suppressed in the area affected by the outflow. Nonetheless as narrow, spatially-extended Hα emission, indicating star formation rates of at least 50 - 100 M⊙/yr, has been detected, either AGN feedback is not affecting the whole host galaxy, or star formation is completely quenched only by several feedback episodes. On the other hand, a positive feedback scenario, supported by narrow emission in Hα extending along the edges of the outflow cone, suggests that galaxy-wide outflows could also have a twofold role in the evolution of the host galaxy. Finally, I will present CO(3-2) ALMA data for three out of the six QSOs observed with SINFONI. Flux maps obtained for the CO(3-2) transition suggest that molecular gas within the host galaxy is swept away by fast winds. A negative-feedback scenario is supported by the inferred molecular gas mass in all three objects, which is significantly below what observed in non-active main-sequence galaxies at high-z.

Globular cluster systems and their host galaxies: comparison of spatial distributions and colors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hargis, Jonathan R.; Rhode, Katherine L., E-mail: jhargis@haverford.edu

2014-11-20

We present a study of the spatial and color distributions of four early-type galaxies and their globular cluster (GC) systems observed as part of our ongoing wide-field imaging survey. We use BVR KPNO 4 m+MOSAIC imaging data to characterize the galaxies' GC populations, perform surface photometry of the galaxies, and compare the projected two-dimensional shape of the host galaxy light to that of the GC population. The GC systems of the ellipticals NGC 4406 and NGC 5813 both show an elliptical distribution consistent with that of the host galaxy light. Our analysis suggests a similar result for the giant ellipticalmore » NGC 4472, but a smaller GC candidate sample precludes a definite conclusion. For the S0 galaxy NGC 4594, the GCs have a circular projected distribution, in contrast to the host galaxy light, which is flattened in the inner regions. For NGC 4406 and NGC 5813, we also examine the projected shapes of the metal-poor and metal-rich GC subpopulations and find that both subpopulations have elliptical shapes that are consistent with those of the host galaxy light. Lastly, we use integrated colors and color profiles to compare the stellar populations of the galaxies to their GC systems. For each galaxy, we explore the possibility of color gradients in the individual metal-rich and metal-poor GC subpopulations. We find statistically significant color gradients in both GC subpopulations of NGC 4594 over the inner ∼5 effective radii (∼20 kpc). We compare our results to scenarios for the formation and evolution of giant galaxies and their GC systems.« less

The SEDs and Host Galaxies of the Dustiest GRB Afterglows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kruhler, T.; Greiner, J.; Schady, P.; Savaglio, S.; Afonso, P. M. J.; Clemens, C.; Elliott, J.; Filgas, R.; Gruber, D.; Kann, D. A.;

The difference in age of the two counter-rotating stellar disks of the spiral galaxy NGC 4138

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pizzella, A.; Morelli, L.; Corsini, E. M.; Dalla Bontà, E.; Coccato, L.; Sanjana, G.

2014-10-01

Context. Galaxies accrete material from the environment through acquisitions and mergers. These processes contribute to the galaxy assembly and leave their fingerprints on the galactic morphology, internal kinematics of gas and stars, and stellar populations. Aims: The Sa spiral NGC 4138 is known to host two counter-rotating stellar disks, with the ionized gas co-rotating with one of them. We measured the kinematics and properties of the two counter-rotating stellar populations to constrain their formation scenario. Methods: A spectroscopic decomposition of the observed major-axis spectrum was performed to disentangle the relative contribution of the two counter-rotating stellar and one ionized-gas components. The line-strength indices of the two counter-rotating stellar components were measured and modeled with single stellar population models that account for the α/Fe overabundance. Results: The counter-rotating stellar population is younger, marginally more metal poor, and more α-enhanced than the main stellar component. The younger stellar component is also associated with a star-forming ring. Conclusions: The different properties of the counter-rotating stellar components of NGC 4138 rule out the idea that they formed because of bar dissolution. Our findings support the results of numerical simulations in which the counter-rotating component assembled from gas accreted on retrograde orbits from the environment or from the retrograde merging with a gas-rich dwarf galaxy. Based on observation carried out at the Galileo 1.22 m telescope at Padua University.

The Luminosity Function of the Host Galaxies of QSOs and BL Lac Objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carangelo, Nicoletta; Falomo, Renato; Treves, Aldo

A clear insight of the galaxies hosting active galactic nuclei is of fundamental importance for understanding the processes of galaxies and nuclei formation and their cosmic evolution. A good characterization of the host galaxies properties requires images of excellent quality in order to disentangle the light of the galaxy from that of the bright nucleus. To this aim HST has provided a major improvement of data on QSOs (Disney et al. 1995; Bahcall et al. 1996,1997; Boyce et al. 1998; McLure et al. 1999; Hamilton et al. 2000; Kukula et al. 2001) and BL Lacs (Scarpa et al. 2000, Urry et al. 2000).

Environmental dependence of star formation induced by cloud collisions in a barred galaxy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujimoto, Yusuke; Tasker, Elizabeth J.; Habe, Asao

2014-11-01

Cloud collision has been proposed as a way to link the small-scale star formation process with the observed global relation between the surface star formation rate and gas surface density. We suggest that this model can be improved further by allowing the productivity of such collisions to depend on the relative velocity of the two clouds. Our adjustment implements a simple step function that results in the most successful collisions being at the observed velocities for triggered star formation. By applying this to a high-resolution simulation of a barred galaxy, we successfully reproduce the observational result that the star formation efficiency (SFE) in the bar is lower than that in the spiral arms. This is not possible when we use an efficiency dependent on the internal turbulence properties of the clouds. Our results suggest that high-velocity collisions driven by the gravitational pull of the clouds are responsible for the low bar SFE.

Was the Milky Way Bulge Formed from the Buckling Disk Instability, Hierarchical Collapse, Accretion of Clumps, or All of the Above?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nataf, David M.

2017-09-01

The assembly of the Milky Way bulge is an old topic in astronomy, one now in a period of renewed and rapid development. That is due to tremendous advances in observations of bulge stars, motivating observations of both local and high-redshift galaxies, and increasingly sophisticated simulations. The dominant scenario for bulge formation is that of the Milky Way as a nearly pure disk galaxy, with the inner disk having formed a bar and buckled. This can potentially explain virtually all bulge stars with [Fe/H] ≳ -1.0, which comprise 95% of the stellar population. The evidence is the incredible success in N-body models of this type in making non-trivial, non-generic predictions, such as the rotation curve and velocity dispersion measured from radial velocities, and the spatial morphologies of the peanut/X-shape and the long bar. The classical bulge scenario, whereby the bulge formed from early dissipative collapse and mergers, remains viable for stars with [Fe/H] ≲ -1.0 and potentially a minority of the other stars. A classical bulge is expected from Λ-CDM cosmological simulations, can accentuate the properties of an existing bar in a hybrid system, and is most consistent with the bulge abundance trends such as [Mg/Fe], which are elevated relative to both the thin and thick disks. Finally, the clumpy-galaxy scenario is considered, as it is the correct description of most Milky Way precursors given observations of high-redshift galaxies. Simulations predict that these star-forming clumps will sometimes migrate to the centres of galaxies where they may form a bulge, and galaxies often include a bulge clump as well. They will possibly form a bar with properties consistent with those of the Milky Way, such as the exponential profile and metallicity gradient. Given the relative successes of these scenarios, the Milky Way bulge is plausibly of composite origin, with a classical bulge and/or inner halo numerically dominant for stars with [Fe/H] ≲ -1.0, a buckling thick disk for stars with - 1.0 ≲ [Fe/H

The Secret Lives of Galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The ground-based image in visible light locates the hub imaged with the Hubble Space Telescope. This barred galaxy feeds material into its hub, igniting star birth. The Hubble NICMOS instrument penetrates beneath the dust to reveal clusters of young stars. Footage shows ground-based, WFPC2, and NICMOS images of NGS 1365. An animation of a large spiral galaxy zooms from the edge to the galactic bulge.

Intrinsic alignments of galaxies in the EAGLE and cosmo-OWLS simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velliscig, Marco; Cacciato, Marcello; Schaye, Joop; Hoekstra, Henk; Bower, Richard G.; Crain, Robert A.; van Daalen, Marcel P.; Furlong, Michelle; McCarthy, I. G.; Schaller, Matthieu; Theuns, Tom

2015-12-01

We report results for the alignments of galaxies in the EAGLE and cosmo-OWLS hydrodynamical cosmological simulations as a function of galaxy separation (-1 ≤ log10(r/[ h-1 Mpc]) ≤ 2) and halo mass (10.7 ≤ log10(M200/[h-1 M⊙]) ≤ 15). We focus on two classes of alignments: the orientations of galaxies with respect to either the directions to, or the orientations of, surrounding galaxies. We find that the strength of the alignment is a strongly decreasing function of the distance between galaxies. For galaxies hosted by the most massive haloes in our simulations the alignment can remain significant up to ˜100 Mpc. Galaxies hosted by more massive haloes show stronger alignment. At a fixed halo mass, more aspherical or prolate galaxies exhibit stronger alignments. The spatial distribution of satellites is anisotropic and significantly aligned with the major axis of the main host halo. The major axes of satellite galaxies, when all stars are considered, are preferentially aligned towards the centre of the main host halo. The predicted projected direction-orientation alignment, ɛg+(rp), is in broad agreement with recent observations. We find that the orientation-orientation alignment is weaker than the orientation-direction alignment on all scales. Overall, the strength of galaxy alignments depends strongly on the subset of stars that are used to measure the orientations of galaxies and it is always weaker than the alignment of dark matter haloes. Thus, alignment models that use halo orientation as a direct proxy for galaxy orientation overestimate the impact of intrinsic galaxy alignments.

Near-infrared properties of quasar and Seyfert host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McLeod, Kim Katris

1994-01-01

We present near-infrared images of nearly 100 host galaxies of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). Our quasar sample is comprised of the 50 quasars from the Palomar Green Bright Quasar Survey with redshifts z less than or equal to 0.3. We have restricted the redshift range to ensure adequate spatial resolution, galaxy detectability, and minimal distance-dependent effects, while still giving a large sample of objects. For lower-luminosity AGN we have chosen to image the CfA Seyfert sample. This sample is composed of 48 Seyferts, roughly equally divided among types 1, 1.5-1.9, and 2. This sample was spectroscopically selected, and, therefore, is not biased towards Seyferts with significant star formation. Taken together, these samples allow a statistical look at the continuity of host galaxy properties over a factor of 10,000 in nuclear luminosity. We find the near-infrared light to be a good tracer of luminous mass in these galaxies. The Seyferts are found in galaxies of type SO to Sc. The radio quiet quasars live in similar kinds of galaxies spanning the same range of mass centered around L(*). However, for the most luminous quasars, there is a correlation between the minimum host galaxy mass and the luminosity of the active nucleus. Radio-loud quasars are generally found in hosts more massive than an L(*) galaxy. We also detect a population of low mass host galaxies with very low luminosity Seyfert nuclei. The low luminosity quasars and the Seyferts both tend to lie in host galaxies seen preferentially face-on, which suggests there is a substantial amount of obscuration coplanar with the galaxian disk. The obscuration must be geometrically thick (thickness-to-radius approximately 1) and must cover a significant fraction of the narrow line region (r greater than 100 pc). We have examined our images for signs of perturbations that could drive fuel toward the galaxy nucleus, but there are none we can identify at a significant level. The critical element for fueling is evidently not reflected clearly in the large scale distribution of luminous mass in the galaxy. We also present an infrared image of the jet of SC 273 and compare it to optical and radio images from the literature.

Near-Infrared Properties of Quasar and Seyfert Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McLeod, Kim Katris

1995-01-01

We present near-infrared images of nearly 100 host galaxies of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). Our quasar sample is comprised of the 50 quasars from the Palomar Green Bright Quasar Survey with redshifts z\\<= 0.3. We have restricted the redshift range to ensure adequate spatial resolution, galaxy detectability, and minimal distance-dependent effects, while still giving a large sample of objects. For lower-luminosity AGN we have chosen to image the CfA Seyfert sample. This sample is composed of 48 Seyferts, roughly equally divided among types 1, 1.5-1.9, and 2. This sample was spectroscopically selected, and, therefore, is not biased towards Seyferts with significant star formation. Taken together, these samples allow a statistical look at the continuity of host-galaxy properties over a factor of 10,000 in nuclear luminosity. We find the near-infrared light to be a good tracer of luminous mass in these galaxies. The Seyferts are found in galaxies of type S0 to Sc. The radio quiet quasars live in similar kinds of galaxies spanning the same range of mass centered around L*. However, for the most luminous quasars, there is a correlation between the minimum host-galaxy mass and the luminosity of the active nucleus. Radio-loud quasars are generally found in hosts more massive than an L* galaxy. We also detect a population of low-mass host galaxies with very low-luminosity Seyfert nuclei. The low luminosity quasars and the Seyferts both tend to lie in host galaxies seen preferentially face-on, which suggests there is a substantial amount of obscuration coplanar with the galaxian disk. The obscuration must be geometrically thick (thickness-to-radius ~1) and must cover a significant fraction of the narrow line region (r>100 pc). We have examined our images for signs of perturbations that could drive fuel toward the galaxy nucleus, but there are none we can identify at a significant level. The critical element for fueling is evidently not reflected clearly in the large scale distribution of luminous mass in the galaxy. We also present an infrared image of the jet of 3C 273 and compare it to visible and radio images from the literature. (SECTION: Dissertation Summaries)

GRB host galaxies with VLT/X-Shooter: properties at 0.8 < z < 1.3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piranomonte, S.; Japelj, J.; Vergani, S. D.; Savaglio, S.; Palazzi, E.; Covino, S.; Flores, H.; Goldoni, P.; Cupani, G.; Krühler, T.; Mannucci, F.; Onori, F.; Rossi, A.; D'Elia, V.; Pian, E.; D'Avanzo, P.; Gomboc, A.; Hammer, F.; Randich, S.; Fiore, F.; Stella, L.; Tagliaferri, G.

2015-10-01

Long gamma-ray bursts (LGRBs) are associated with the death of massive stars. Their host galaxies therefore represent a unique class of objects tracing star formation across the observable Universe. Indeed, recently accumulated evidence shows that GRB hosts do not differ substantially from general population of galaxies at high (z > 2) redshifts. However, it has been long recognized that the properties of z < 1.5 hosts, compared to general star-forming population, are unusual. To better understand the reasons for the supposed difference in LGRB hosts properties at z < 1.5, we obtained Very Large Telescope (VLT)/X-Shooter spectra of six hosts lying in the redshift range of 0.8 < z < 1.3. Some of these hosts have been observed before, yet we still lack well-constrained information on their characteristics such as metallicity, dust extinction and star formation rate (SFR). We search for emission lines in the VLT/X-Shooter spectra of the hosts and measure their fluxes. We perform a detailed analysis, estimating host average extinction, SFRs, metallicities and electron densities where possible. Measured quantities of our hosts are compared to a larger sample of previously observed GRB hosts at z < 2. SFRs and metallicities are measured for all the hosts analysed in this paper and metallicities are well determined for four hosts. The mass-metallicity relation, the fundamental metallicity relation and SFRs derived from our hosts occupy similar parameter space as other host galaxies investigated so far at the same redshift. We therefore conclude that GRB hosts in our sample support the found discrepancy between the properties of low-redshift GRB hosts and the general population of star-forming galaxies.

The Relation between Luminous AGNs and Star Formation in Their Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Lei; Rieke, G. H.; Egami, E.; Haines, C. P.; Pereira, M. J.; Smith, G. P.

2015-08-01

We study the relation of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) to star formation in their host galaxies. Our sample includes 205 Type-1 and 85 Type-2 AGNs, 162 detected with Herschel, from fields surrounding 30 galaxy clusters in the Local Cluster Substructure Survey. The sample is identified by optical line widths and ratios after selection to be brighter than 1 mJy at 24 μm. We show that Type-2 AGN [O iii]λ5007 line fluxes at high z can be contaminated by their host galaxies with typical spectrograph entrance apertures (but our sample is not compromised in this way). We use spectral energy distribution (SED) templates to decompose the galaxy SEDs and estimate star formation rates (SFRs), AGN luminosities, and host galaxy stellar masses (described in an accompanying paper). The AGNs arise from massive black holes (˜ 3× {10}8{M}⊙ ) accreting at ˜10% of the Eddington rate and residing in galaxies with stellar mass \\gt 3× {10}10{M}⊙ ; those detected with Herschel have IR luminosity from star formation in the range of {L}{SF,{IR}}˜ {10}10-{10}12{L}⊙ . We find that (1) the specific SFRs in the host galaxies are generally consistent with those of normal star-forming (main sequence) galaxies; (2) there is a strong correlation between the luminosities from star formation and the AGN; and (3) the correlation may not result from a causal connection, but could arise because the black hole mass (and hence AGN Eddington luminosity) and star formation are both correlated with the galaxy mass.

Supernovae in Early-Type Galaxies: Directly Connecting Age and Metallicity with Type Ia Luminosity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gallagher, Joseph S.; Garnavich, Peter M.; Caldwell, Nelson; Kirshner, Robert P.; Jha, Saurabh W.; Li, Weidong; Ganeshalingam, Mohan; Filippenko, Alexei V.

2008-10-01

We have obtained optical spectra of 29 early-type (E/S0) galaxies that hosted Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia). We have measured absorption-line strengths and compared them to a grid of models to extract the relations between the supernova properties and the luminosity-weighted age/composition of the host galaxies. Such a direct measurement is a marked improvement over existing analyses that tend to rely on general correlations between the properties of stellar populations and morphology. We find a strong correlation suggesting that SNe Ia in galaxies whose populations have a characteristic age greater than 5 Gyr are ~1 mag fainter at Vmax than those found in galaxies with younger populations. We find that SN Ia distance residuals in the Hubble diagram are correlated with host-galaxy metal abundance with higher iron abundance galaxies hosting less-luminous supernovae. We thus conclude that the time since progenitor formation primarily determines the radioactive Ni production while progenitor metal abundance has a weaker influence on peak luminosity, but one not fully corrected by light-curve shape and color fitters. This result, particularly the secondary dependence on metallicity, has significant implications for the determination of the equation-of-state parameter, w = P/(ρ c2) , and could impact planning for future dark-energy missions such as JDEM. Assuming no selection effects in discovering SNe Ia in local early-type galaxies, we find a higher specific SN Ia rate in E/S0 galaxies with ages below 3 Gyr than in older hosts. The higher rate and brighter luminosities seen in the youngest E/S0 hosts may be a result of recent star formation and represents a tail of the "prompt" SN Ia progenitors.

Triggering and Quenching: simulations and mock observations of Active Galactic Nuclei and their hosts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Ena

2015-10-01

The lives of galaxies and their supermassive black holes (SMBH) are probably intimately linked. Deep multi-wavelength surveys with HST are now providing detailed imaging of a statistically robust sample of obscured and unobscured AGN hosts, along with control samples of inactive galaxies, giving us an unprecedented opportunity to study the relationship between AGN and their hosts. However, so far these observations have uncovered more puzzles than they have resolved. Although mergers are considered a promising triggering mechanism for AGN activity, numerous studies have shown that AGN hosts are no more likely to appear morphologically disturbed than inactive galaxies. Studies of whether AGN hosts exhibit enhanced or suppressed star formation have also yielded conflicting results. We propose to run a suite of state-of-the-art simulations to study the AGN-host galaxy connection. These simulations will be post-processed with a radiative transfer code, a sub-grid model for torus-scale obscuration, and short timescale AGN variability. Using mock images created from the simulations, we will study the predicted morphologies and stellar populations of AGN hosts and normal galaxies with similar stellar masses. We will use our simulations to address two major science questions: (1) how is SMBH growth fueled and fed, and what triggers rapid feeding, and (2) how does AGN feedback regulate BH growth and the growth of the host galaxy? In addition, we will release our simulation outputs and mock images and catalogs to the community through MAST.

Type II supernovae in low luminosity host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gutiérrez, C. P.; Anderson, J. P.; Sullivan, M.; Dessart, L.; González-Gaitan, S.; Galbany, L.; Dimitriadis, G.; Arcavi, I.; Bufano, F.; Chen, T.-W.; Dennefeld, M.; Gromadzki, M.; Haislip, J. B.; Hosseinzadeh, G.; Howell, D. A.; Inserra, C.; Kankare, E.; Leloudas, G.; Maguire, K.; McCully, C.; Morrell, N.; E, F. Olivares; Pignata, G.; Reichart, D. E.; Reynolds, T.; Smartt, S. J.; Sollerman, J.; Taddia, F.; Takáts, K.; Terreran, G.; Valenti, S.; Young, D. R.

2018-06-01

We present an analysis of a new sample of type II core-collapse supernovae (SNe II) occurring within low-luminosity galaxies, comparing these with a sample of events in brighter hosts. Our analysis is performed comparing SN II spectral and photometric parameters and estimating the influence of metallicity (inferred from host luminosity differences) on SN II transient properties. We measure the SN absolute magnitude at maximum, the light-curve plateau duration, the optically thick duration, and the plateau decline rate in the V -band, together with expansion velocities and pseudo-equivalent-widths (pEWs) of several absorption lines in the SN spectra. For the SN host galaxies, we estimate the absolute magnitude and the stellar mass, a proxy for the metallicity of the host galaxy. SNe II exploding in low luminosity galaxies display weaker pEWs of Fe II λ5018, confirming the theoretical prediction that metal lines in SN II spectra should correlate with metallicity. We also find that SNe II in low-luminosity hosts have generally slower declining light curves and display weaker absorption lines. We find no relationship between the plateau duration or the expansion velocities with SN environment, suggesting that the hydrogen envelope mass and the explosion energy are not correlated with the metallicity of the host galaxy. This result supports recent predictions that mass-loss for red supergiants is independent of metallicity.

SDSS-II Supernova survey. An analysis of the largest sample of type IA supernovae and correlations with host-galaxy spectral properties

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wolf, Rachel C.; D’Andrea, Chris B.; Gupta, Ravi R.

2016-04-20

Using the largest single-survey sample of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) to date, we study the relationship between properties of SNe Ia and those of their host galaxies, focusing primarily on correlations with Hubble residuals (HR). Our sample consists of 345 photometrically-classified or spectroscopicallyconfirmed SNe Ia discovered as part of the SDSS-II Supernova Survey (SDSS-SNS). This analysis utilizes host-galaxy spectroscopy obtained during the SDSS-I/II spectroscopic survey and from an ancillary program on the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) that obtained spectra for nearly all host galaxies of SDSS-II SN candidates. In addition, we use photometric hostgalaxy properties from themore » SDSS-SNS data release (Sako et al. 2014) such as host stellar mass and star-formation rate. We confirm the well-known relation between HR and host-galaxy mass and find a 3.6σ significance of a non-zero linear slope. We also recover correlations between HR and hostgalaxy gas-phase metallicity and specific star-formation rate as they are reported in the literature. With our large dataset, we examine correlations between HR and multiple host-galaxy properties simultaneously and find no evidence of a significant correlation. We also independently analyze our spectroscopically-confirmed and photometrically-classified SNe Ia and comment on the significance of similar combined datasets for future surveys.« less

Kinematic Properties of Double-barred Galaxies: Simulations versus Integral-field Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Du, Min; Debattista, Victor P.; Shen, Juntai; Cappellari, Michele

2016-09-01

Using high-resolution N-body simulations, we recently reported that a dynamically cool inner disk embedded in a hotter outer disk can naturally generate a steady double-barred (S2B) structure. Here we study the kinematics of these S2B simulations, and compare them to integral-field observations from ATLAS 3D and SAURON. We show that S2B galaxies exhibit several distinct kinematic features, namely: (1) significantly distorted isovelocity contours at the transition region between the two bars, (2) peaks in σ LOS along the minor axis of inner bars, which we term “σ-humps,” that are often accompanied by ring/spiral-like features of increased σ LOS, (3) {h}3{--}\\bar{v} anti-correlations in the region of the inner bar for certain orientations, and (4) rings of positive h 4 when viewed at low inclinations. The most impressive of these features are the σ-humps these evolve with the inner bar, oscillating in strength just as the inner bar does as it rotates relative to the outer bar. We show that, in cylindrical coordinates, the inner bar has similar streaming motions and velocity dispersion properties as normal large-scale bars, except for σ z , which exhibits peaks on the minor axis, I.e., humps. These σ z humps are responsible for producing the σ-humps. For three well-resolved early-type S2Bs (NGC 2859, NGC 2950, and NGC 3941) and a potential S2B candidate (NGC 3384), the S2B model qualitatively matches the integral-field data well, including the “σ-hollows” previously identified. We also discuss the kinematic effect of a nuclear disk in S2Bs.

Missing GRB host galaxies in deep mid-infrared observations: implications on the use of GRBs as star formation tracers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Floc'h, Emeric; Charmandaris, Vassilis; Forrest, Bill; Mirabel, Félix; Armus, Lee; Devost, Daniel

2006-05-01

We report on the first mid-infrared observations of 16 GRB host galaxies performed with the Spitzer Space Telescope, and investigate the presence of evolved stellar populations and dust-enshrouded star-forming activity associated with GRBs. Only a very small fraction of our sample is detected by Spitzer, which is not consistent with recent works suggesting the presence of a GRB host population dominated by massive and strongly-starbursting galaxies (SFR >~ 100Msolaryr-1). Should the GRB hosts be representative of star-forming galaxies at high redshift, models of galaxy evolution indicate that >~ 50% of GRB hosts would be easily detected at the depth of our mid-infrared observations. Unless our sample suffers from a strong observational bias which remains to be understood, we infer in this context that the GRBs identified with the current techniques can not be directly used as unbiased probes of the global and integrated star formation history of the Universe.

The Formation Mechanism of Nuclear Rings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Regan, M. W.; Teuben, P. J.

2001-12-01

Nuclear star forming rings are found in many barred galaxies. In some of these galaxies the majority of the star formation is occurring in the ring. Although there is circumstantial evidence that an inner Lindblad resonance is required for the ring to form, very little work has been done on why this is so. In this talk we will present some of the first analytical work on why, where, and under what conditions rings form. By using both hydrodynamic simulations and numerically integrated stellar orbits we are able to show the relationship between the extent of the X2 orbit family and the nuclear ring radius. This provides the first clear evidence that the ring is formed by the conflict between gas on X2 orbits oriented perpendicular to the bar major axis and gas on X1 orbits oriented along the bar major axis.

Erratum: ``CO Line Width Differences in Early Universe Molecular Emission-Line Galaxies: Submillimeter Galaxies versus QSO Hosts'' (AJ, 131, 2763 [2006])

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carilli, C. L.; Wang, Ran

2006-11-01

It has been pointed out to us that in three dimensions the mean angle of randomly oriented disks with respect to the sky plane is <θ>=30deg, and not the 45° assumed in the original paper. This lower angle for the (assumed) random distribution of submillimeter galaxies, coupled with the factor of 2.3 lower mean CO line width for high-z, far-IR-luminous QSO host galaxies relative to the submillimeter galaxies, implies a mean angle with respect to the sky plane for the QSO host galaxies of <θ>QSO=13deg, as opposed to the 18° quoted in the original paper. We thank Pat Hall for bringing this to our attention.

A statistical study of H i gas in nearby narrow-line AGN-hosting galaxies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhu, Yi-Nan; Wu, Hong, E-mail: zyn@bao.ac.cn, E-mail: hwu@bao.ac.cn

As a quenching mechanism, active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback could suppress on going star formation in host galaxies. On the basis of a sample of galaxies selected from the Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA (ALFALFA) H i survey, the dependence of the H i mass (M{sub H} {sub i}), stellar mass (M{sub *}), and H i-to-stellar mass ratio (M{sub H} {sub i}/M{sub *}) on various tracers of AGN activity are presented and analyzed in this paper. Almost all the AGN hostings in this sample are gas-rich galaxies, and there is not any evidence to indicate that the AGN activity could increasemore » or decrease either M{sub H} {sub i} or M{sub H} {sub i}/M{sub *}. The position of the cold neutral gas cannot be fixed accurately based only on available H i data, due to the large beam size of ALFALFA survey. In addition, even though AGN hostings are more easily detected by an H i survey compared with absorption line galaxies, these two types of galaxies show similar star formation history. If an AGN hosting would ultimately evolve into an old red galaxy with low cold gas, then when and how the gas has been exhausted must be solved by future hypotheses and observations.« less

A new model for gravitational potential perturbations in disks of spiral galaxies. An application to our Galaxy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Junqueira, T. C.; Lépine, J. R. D.; Braga, C. A. S.; Barros, D. A.

2013-02-01

Aims: We propose a new, more realistic description of the perturbed gravitational potential of spiral galaxies, with spiral arms having Gaussian-shaped groove profiles. The aim is to reach a self-consistent description of the spiral structure, that is, one in which an initial potential perturbation generates, by means of the stellar orbits, spiral arms with a profile similar to that of the imposed perturbation. Self-consistency is a condition for having long-lived structures. Methods: Using the new perturbed potential, we investigate the stable stellar orbits in galactic disks for galaxies with no bar or with only a weak bar. The model is applied to our Galaxy by making use of the axisymmetric component of the potential computed from the Galactic rotation curve, in addition to other input parameters similar to those of our Galaxy. The influence of the bulge mass on the stellar orbits in the inner regions of a disk is also investigated. Results: The new description offers the advantage of easy control of the parameters of the Gaussian profile of its potential. We compute the density contrast between arm and inter-arm regions. We find a range of values for the perturbation amplitude from 400 to 800 km2 s-2 kpc-1, which implies an approximate maximum ratio of the tangential force to the axisymmetric force between 3% and 6%. Good self-consistency of arm shapes is obtained between the Inner Lindblad resonance (ILR) and the 4:1 resonance. Near the 4:1 resonance the response density starts to deviate from the imposed logarithmic spiral form. This creates bifurcations that appear as short arms. Therefore the deviation from a perfect logarithmic spiral in galaxies can be understood as a natural effect of the 4:1 resonance. Beyond the 4:1 resonance we find closed orbits that have similarities with the arms observed in our Galaxy. In regions near the center, elongated stellar orbits appear naturally, in the presence of a massive bulge, without imposing any bar-shaped potential, but only extending the spiral perturbation a little inward of the ILR. This suggests that a bar is formed with a half-size ~3 kpc by a mechanism similar to that of the spiral arms. Conclusions: The potential energy perturbation that we adopted represents an important step in the direction of self-consistency, compared to previous sine function descriptions of the potential. In addition, our model produces a realistic description of the spiral structure, which is able to explain several details that were not yet understood.

THE SWIFT GRB HOST GALAXY LEGACY SURVEY. II. REST-FRAME NEAR-IR LUMINOSITY DISTRIBUTION AND EVIDENCE FOR A NEAR-SOLAR METALLICITY THRESHOLD

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Perley, D. A.; Tanvir, N. R.; Hjorth, J.

2016-01-20

We present rest-frame near-IR (NIR) luminosities and stellar masses for a large and uniformly selected population of gamma-ray burst (GRB) host galaxies using deep Spitzer Space Telescope imaging of 119 targets from the Swift GRB Host Galaxy Legacy Survey spanning 0.03 < z < 6.3, and we determine the effects of galaxy evolution and chemical enrichment on the mass distribution of the GRB host population across cosmic history. We find a rapid increase in the characteristic NIR host luminosity between z ∼ 0.5 and z ∼ 1.5, but little variation between z ∼ 1.5 and z ∼ 5. Dust-obscured GRBs dominate the massive host population but are only rarely seen associated withmore » low-mass hosts, indicating that massive star-forming galaxies are universally and (to some extent) homogeneously dusty at high redshift while low-mass star-forming galaxies retain little dust in their interstellar medium. Comparing our luminosity distributions with field surveys and measurements of the high-z mass–metallicity relation, our results have good consistency with a model in which the GRB rate per unit star formation is constant in galaxies with gas-phase metallicity below approximately the solar value but heavily suppressed in more metal-rich environments. This model also naturally explains the previously reported “excess” in the GRB rate beyond z ≳ 2; metals stifle GRB production in most galaxies at z < 1.5 but have only minor impact at higher redshifts. The metallicity threshold we infer is much higher than predicted by single-star models and favors a binary progenitor. Our observations also constrain the fraction of cosmic star formation in low-mass galaxies undetectable to Spitzer to be small at z < 4.« less

Dynamics of the interstellar matter in galaxies : isolated barred spiral galaxies : cloud formation processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Helmuth, Kristen

1998-12-01

The dynamical components of six isolated barred spiral (SB) galaxies are investigated. No evidence is found supporting the hypothesis of a low amount of dark matter being characteristic of SB galaxies. The presence of companion galaxies is found to correlate with an increased statistical spread in the neutral hydrogen (HI) extent. It is concluded that the selection of galaxies with large HI extent may introduce a bias towards tidally interacting systems. The circumnuclear region of the SB galaxy NGC 1365 is studied with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Numerous bright "super star clusters" (SSCs) are detected, surrounding the active nucleus. The bright compact radio source NGC 1365:A is found to coincide spatially with one of the SSCs. We conclude that the source is a "radio supernova". In the [OIII] l 5007 line, the HST resolves individual clouds within the conical outflow from the nucleus, some of which gather in larger agglomerations. An in-depth study of the dynamics of the SB galaxy NGC 1300 is presented. Multi-wavelength data yield an estimate of the velocity field and gravitational potential. Subsequent hydrodynamical simulations are able to reproduce the morphology and kinematics in the bar region using a pure bar perturbing potential. To reproduce the spiral structure a weak spiral component has to be added, indicative of stellar spiral response to the bar and/or self-gravitating gas in the arms. Two separate models, differing mainly with respect to pattern speed and associated resonance structure, are found to reproduce the observations. We study numerically the linear polarization and extinction of light from background stars passing through molecular clouds, illuminating the intricacies of the derivation of the magnetic-field-line pattern in a cloud from the observed polarization pattern: Due to a higher gas-grain collision frequency within the cloud, the polarization caused by the cloud may well be dominated by background/foreground polarization. Furthermore, variations in field-orientation along the line-of-sight may cause notable differences between the observed polarization vectors and the true magnetic-field-line pattern. Small-scale, helical, interstellar filaments are discussed on the basis of optical observations of an "elephant trunk" structure in the Rosette nebula. The observed sinusoidal filaments are suggested to be helices lined up by magnetic fields. We propose that the Rosette elephant trunks form an interconnected system of rope-like structures which are relics from filamentary skeletons of magnetic fields in the primordial cloud. Stochastic mass fractionation of a molecular cloud is simulated numerically. It is found that geometry alone may constrain the resulting mass spectrum of molecular cloud clumps. We demonstrate that further fragmentation of the cloud clumps, under the assumption of a lower limit of the self-similar regime, produces a mass spectrum that has qualitative and quantitative similarities with the empirically determined stellar initial mass function.

The VIRUS-P Exploration of Nearby Galaxies (VENGA): spatially resolved gas-phase metallicity distributions in barred and unbarred spirals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaplan, Kyle F.; Jogee, Shardha; Kewley, Lisa; Blanc, Guillermo A.; Weinzirl, Tim; Song, Mimi; Drory, Niv; Luo, Rongxin; van den Bosch, Remco C. E.

2016-10-01

We present a study of the excitation conditions and metallicity of ionized gas (Zgas) in eight nearby barred and unbarred spiral galaxies from the VIRUS-P Exploration of Nearby Galaxies (VENGA) survey, which provides high spatial sampling and resolution (median ˜387 pc), large coverage from the bulge to outer disc, broad wavelength range (3600-6800 Å), and medium spectral resolution (˜120 km s-1 at 5000 Å). Our results are: (1) We present high resolution gas excitation maps to differentiate between regions with excitation typical of Seyfert, LINER, or recent star formation. We find LINER-type excitation at large distances (3-10 kpc) from the centre, and associate this excitation with diffuse ionized gas (DIG). (2) After excluding spaxels dominated by Seyfert, LINER, or DIG, we produce maps with the best spatial resolution and sampling to date of the ionization parameter q, star formation rate, and Zgas using common strong line diagnostics. We find that isolated barred and unbarred spirals exhibit similarly shallow Zgas profiles from the inner kpc out to large radii (7-10 kpc or 0.5-1.0 R25). This implies that if profiles had steeper gradients at earlier epochs, then the present-day bar is not the primary driver flattening gradients over time. This result contradicts earlier claims, but agrees with recent IFU studies. (3) The Zgas gradients in our z ˜ 0 massive spirals are markedly shallower, by ˜0.2 dex kpc-1, than published gradients for lensed lower mass galaxies at z ˜ 1.5-2.0. Cosmologically motivated hydrodynamical simulations best match this inferred evolution, but the match is sensitive to adopted stellar feedback prescriptions.

Discovery of a bright quasar without a massive host galaxy.

PubMed

Magain, Pierre; Letawe, Géraldine; Courbin, Frédéric; Jablonka, Pascale; Jahnke, Knud; Meylan, Georges; Wisotzki, Lutz

2005-09-15

A quasar is thought to be powered by the infall of matter onto a supermassive black hole at the centre of a massive galaxy. Because the optical luminosity of quasars exceeds that of their host galaxy, disentangling the two components can be difficult. This led in the 1990s to the controversial claim of the discovery of 'naked' quasars. Since then, the connection between quasars and galaxies has been well established. Here we report the discovery of a quasar lying at the edge of a gas cloud, whose size is comparable to that of a small galaxy, but whose spectrum shows no evidence for stars. The gas in the cloud is excited by the quasar itself. If a host galaxy is present, it is at least six times fainter than would normally be expected for such a bright quasar. The quasar is interacting dynamically with a neighbouring galaxy, whose gas might be feeding the black hole.

ALMA observations of feeding and feedback in nearby Seyfert galaxies: an AGN-driven outflow in NGC 1433

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Combes, F.; García-Burillo, S.; Casasola, V.; Hunt, L.; Krips, M.; Baker, A. J.; Boone, F.; Eckart, A.; Marquez, I.; Neri, R.; Schinnerer, E.; Tacconi, L. J.

2013-10-01

We report ALMA observations of CO(3-2) emission in the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 1433 at the unprecedented spatial resolution of 0.''5 = 24 pc. Our aim is to probe active galactic nucleus (AGN) feeding and feedback phenomena through the morphology and dynamics of the gas inside the central kpc. The galaxy NGC 1433 is a strongly barred spiral with three resonant rings: one at the ultra-harmonic resonance near corotation, and the others at the outer and inner Lindblad resonances (OLR and ILR). A nuclear bar of 400 pc radius is embedded in the large-scale primary bar. The CO map, which covers the whole nuclear region (nuclear bar and ring), reveals a nuclear gaseous spiral structure, inside the nuclear ring encircling the nuclear stellar bar. This gaseous spiral is well correlated with the dusty spiral seen in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images. The nuclear spiral winds up in a pseudo-ring at ~200 pc radius, which might correspond to the inner ILR. Continuum emission is detected at 0.87 mm only at the very centre, and its origin is more likely thermal dust emission than non-thermal emission from the AGN. It might correspond to the molecular torus expected to exist in this Seyfert 2 galaxy. The HCN(4-3) and HCO+(4-3) lines were observed simultaneously, but only upper limits are derived, with a ratio to the CO(3-2) line lower than 1/60 at 3σ, indicating a relatively low abundance of very dense gas. The kinematics of the gas over the nuclear disk reveal rather regular rotation only slightly perturbed by streaming motions due to the spiral; the primary and secondary bars are too closely aligned with the galaxy major or minor axis to leave a signature in the projected velocities. Near the nucleus, there is an intense high-velocity CO emission feature redshifted to 200 km s-1 (if located in the plane), with a blue-shifted counterpart, at 2'' (100 pc) from the centre. While the CO spectra are quite narrow in the centre, this wide component is interpreted as an outflow involving a molecular mass of 3.6 × 106 M⊙ and a flow rate ~7 M⊙/yr. The flow could be in part driven by the central star formation, but is mainly boosted by the AGN through its radio jets. Based on observations carried out with ALMA in Cycle 0.

A photometric analysis of Abell 1689: two-dimensional multistructure decomposition, morphological classification and the Fundamental Plane

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dalla Bontà, E.; Davies, R. L.; Houghton, R. C. W.; D'Eugenio, F.; Méndez-Abreu, J.

2018-02-01

We present a photometric analysis of 65 galaxies in the rich cluster Abell 1689 at z = 0.183, using the Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys archive images in the rest-frame V band. We perform two-dimensional multicomponent photometric decomposition of each galaxy adopting different models of the surface-brightness distribution. We present an accurate morphological classification for each of the sample galaxies. For 50 early-type galaxies, we fit both a de Vaucouleurs law and a Sérsic law; S0s are modelled by also including a disc component described by an exponential law. Bars of SB0s are described by the profile of a Ferrers ellipsoid. For the 15 spirals, we model a Sérsic bulge, exponential disc and, when required, a Ferrers bar component. We derive the Fundamental Plane (FP) by fitting 40 early-type galaxies in the sample, using different surface-brightness distributions. We find that the tightest plane is that derived by Sérsic bulges. We find that bulges of spirals lie on the same relation. The FP is better defined by the bulges alone rather than the entire galaxies. Comparison with local samples shows both an offset and rotation in the FP of Abell 1689.

Hubble "Crane-s" in for a Closer Look at a Galaxy

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

In 1900, astronomer Joseph Lunt made a discovery: Peering through a telescope at Cape Town Observatory, the British–South African scientist spotted this beautiful sight in the southern constellation of Grus (The Crane): a barred spiral galaxy now named IC 5201. Over a century later, the galaxy is still of interest to astronomers. For this image, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope used its Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) to produce a beautiful and intricate image of the galaxy. Hubble’s ACS can resolve individual stars within other galaxies, making it an invaluable tool to explore how various populations of stars sprang to life, evolved, and died throughout the cosmos. IC 5201 sits over 40 million light-years away from us. As with two thirds of all the spirals we see in the Universe — including the Milky Way — the galaxy has a bar of stars slicing through its center. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Resolving the host galaxy of a distant blazar with LBT/LUCI 1 + ARGOS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farina, E. P.; Georgiev, I. Y.; Decarli, R.; Terzić, T.; Busoni, L.; Gässler, W.; Mazzoni, T.; Borelli, J.; Rosensteiner, M.; Ziegleder, J.; Bonaglia, M.; Rabien, S.; Buschkamp, P.; Orban de Xivry, G.; Rahmer, G.; Kulas, M.; Peter, D.

2018-05-01

BL Lac objects emitting in the very high energy (VHE) regime are unique tools to peer into the properties of the extragalactic background light (EBL). However, due to the typical absence of features in their spectra, the determination of their redshifts has proven challenging. In this work, we exploit the superb spatial resolution delivered by the new Advanced Rayleigh guided Ground layer adaptive Optics System (ARGOS) at the Large Binocular Telescope to detect the host galaxy of HESS J1943+213, a VHE emitting BL Lac shining through the Galaxy. Deep H-band imaging collected during the ARGOS commissioning allowed us to separate the contribution of the nuclear emission and to unveil the properties of the host galaxy with unprecedented detail. The host galaxy is well fitted by a Sérsic profile with index of n ˜ 2 and total magnitude of HHost ˜ 16.15 mag. Under the assumption that BL Lac host galaxies are standard candles, we infer a redshift of z ˜ 0.21. In the framework of the current model for the EBL, this value is in agreement with the observed dimming of the VHE spectrum due to the annihilation of energetic photons on the EBL

Star Formation in the Central Regions of Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsai, Mengchun

2015-08-01

The galactic central region connects the galactic nucleus to the host galaxy. If the central black hole co-evolved with the host galaxies, there should be some evidence left in the central region. We use the environmental properties in the central regions such as star-forming activity, stellar population and molecular abundance to figure out a possible scenario of the evolution of galaxies. In this thesis at first we investigated the properties of the central regions in the host galaxies of active and normal galaxies. We used radio emission around the nuclei of the host galaxies to represent activity of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and used infrared ray (IR) emission to represent the star-forming activity and stellar population of the host galaxies. We determined that active galaxies have higher stellar masses (SMs) within the central kiloparsec radius than normal galaxies do independent of the Hubble types of the host galaxies; but both active and normal galaxies exhibit similar specific star formation rates (SSFRs). We also discovered that certain AGNs exhibit substantial inner stellar structures in the IR images; most of the AGNs with inner structures are Seyferts, whereas only a few LINERs exhibit inner structures. We note that the AGNs with inner structures show a positive correlation between the radio activity of the AGNs and the SFRs of the host galaxies, but the sources without inner structures show a negative correlation between the radio power and the SFRs. These results might be explained with a scenario of starburst-AGN evolution. In this scenario, AGN activities are triggered following a nuclear starburst; during the evolution, AGN activities are accompanied by SF activity in the inner regions of the host galaxies; at the final stage of the evolution, the AGNs might transform into LINERs, exhibiting weak SF activity in the central regions of the host galaxies. For further investigation about the inner structure, we choose the most nearby and luminous Seyfert galaxy with inner structure as an example. In this thesis, we present CO(3-2) interferometric observations of the central region of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC1068 using the Submillimeter Array, together with CO(1-0) data taken with the Owens Valley Radio Observatory Millimeter Array. Both the CO(3-2) and CO(1-0) emission lines are mainly distributed within ~5 arcsec of the nucleus and along the spiral arms, but the intensity distributions show differences; the CO(3-2) map peaks in the nucleus, while the CO(1-0) emission is mainly located along the spiral arms. The CO(3-2)/CO(1-0) ratio is about 3.1 in the nucleus, which is four times as large as the average line ratio in the spiral arms, suggesting that the molecular gas there must be affected by the radiation arising from the AGN. On the other hand, the line ratios in the spiral arms vary over a wide range from 0.24 to 2.34 with a average value around 0.75, which is similar to the line ratios of star-formation regions, indicating that the molecular gas is affected by star formation. Besides, we see a tight correlation between CO(3-2)/(1-0) ratios in the spiral arms and star formation rate surface densities derived from Spitzer 8 micron dust flux densities. We also compare the CO(3-2)/(1-0) ratio and the star formation rate at different positions within the spiral arms; both are found to decrease as the radius from the nucleus increases.

Investigating a population of infrared-bright gamma-ray burst host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chrimes, Ashley A.; Stanway, Elizabeth R.; Levan, Andrew J.; Davies, Luke J. M.; Angus, Charlotte R.; Greis, Stephanie M. L.

2018-07-01

We identify and explore the properties of an infrared-bright gamma-ray burst (GRB) host population. Candidate hosts are selected by coincidence with sources in WISE, with matching to random coordinates and a false alarm probability analysis showing that the contamination fraction is ˜0.5. This methodology has already identified the host galaxy of GRB 080517. We combine survey photometry from Pan-STARRS, SDSS, APASS, 2MASS, GALEX, and WISE with our own WHT/ACAM and VLT/X-shooter observations to classify the candidates and identify interlopers. Galaxy SED fitting is performed using MAGPHYS, in addition to stellar template fitting, yielding 13 possible IR-bright hosts. A further seven candidates are identified from the previously published work. We report a candidate host for GRB 061002, previously unidentified as such. The remainder of the galaxies have already been noted as potential hosts. Comparing the IR-bright population properties including redshift z, stellar mass M⋆, star formation rate SFR, and V-band attenuation AV to GRB host catalogues in the literature, we find that the infrared-bright population is biased towards low z, high M⋆, and high AV. This naturally arises from their initial selection - local and dusty galaxies are more likely to have the required IR flux to be detected in WISE. We conclude that while IR-bright GRB hosts are not a physically distinct class, they are useful for constraining existing GRB host populations, particularly for long GRBs.

Investigating a population of infrared-bright gamma-ray burst host galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chrimes, Ashley A.; Stanway, Elizabeth R.; Levan, Andrew J.; Davies, Luke J. M.; Angus, Charlotte R.; Greis, Stephanie M. L.

2018-04-01

We identify and explore the properties of an infrared-bright gamma-ray burst (GRB) host population. Candidate hosts are selected by coincidence with sources in WISE, with matching to random coordinates and a false alarm probability analysis showing that the contamination fraction is ˜ 0.5. This methodology has already identified the host galaxy of GRB 080517. We combine survey photometry from Pan-STARRS, SDSS, APASS, 2MASS, GALEX and WISE with our own WHT/ACAM and VLT/X-shooter observations to classify the candidates and identify interlopers. Galaxy SED fitting is performed using MAGPHYS, in addition to stellar template fitting, yielding 13 possible IR-bright hosts. A further 7 candidates are identified from previously published work. We report a candidate host for GRB 061002, previously unidentified as such. The remainder of the galaxies have already been noted as potential hosts. Comparing the IR-bright population properties including redshift z, stellar mass M⋆, star formation rate SFR and V-band attenuation AV to GRB host catalogues in the literature, we find that the infrared-bright population is biased toward low z, high M⋆ and high AV. This naturally arises from their initial selection - local and dusty galaxies are more likely to have the required IR flux to be detected in WISE. We conclude that while IR-bright GRB hosts are not a physically distinct class, they are useful for constraining existing GRB host populations, particularly for long GRBs.

Hubble Space Telescope Images of Nearby Luminous Quasars. 2; Results for Eight Quasars and Tests of the Detection Sensitivity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bahcall, John N.; Kirhakos, Sofia; Schneider, Donald P.

1995-01-01

Observations with the Wide-Field Camera of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) are presented for eight intrinsically luminous quasars with redshifts between 0.16 and 0.29. These observations, when combined with a similar HST study of the quasar PKS 2349-014, show that luminous nearby quasars exist in a variety of environments. Seven companion galaxies brighter than M(V) = 16.5 (H(sub 0) = 100 km s(sup -1) Mpc(sup -1), Omega(sub 0) = 1.0) lie within a projected distance of 25 kpc of the quasars; three of the companions are located closer than 3'' (6 kpc projected distance) from the quasars, well within the volume that would be enclosed by a typical L* host galaxy. The observed association of quasars and companion galaxies is statistically significant and may he an important element in the luminous-quasar phenomenon. Apparent host galaxies are detected for three of the quasars: PG 1116+215, 3C 273, and PG 1444+407; the hosts have an average absolute magnitude of about 0.6 mag brighter than L*. The agreement between the previously published major-axis directions in ground-based images and in the present HST images of 3C 273 and PG 1444+407 constitutes important evidence supporting the reality of these candidate host galaxies. Upper limits are placed on the visual-band brightnesses of representative galactic hosts for all the quasars. These limits are established by placing galaxy images obtained with HST underneath the quasars and measuring at what faintness level the known galaxies are detected. On average, the HST spirals would have been detected if they were as faint as 1 mag below L*, and the early-type galaxies could have been detected down to a brightness level of about L*, where L* is the Schechter characteristic luminosity of field galaxies. Smooth, featureless galaxy models (exponential disks or de Vaucouleurs profiles) are fitted to the residual light after a best-fitting point source is subtracted from the quasar images. The results show that smooth spiral galaxies brighter than, on average, about L*, would have been detected. These upper limits, or possible detections, are consistent with, for example, the eight luminous quasars studied in this paper, occurring in host galaxies that have a Shechter luminosity function with a lower cutoff in the range 0.01-0.1 L*. Tests are performed to determine if our failure to detect, in some cases, luminous host galaxies could be an artifact caused by our analysis procedures. These tests include comparing the measured point-spread function (PSF) for our HST observations with the PSFs used in previous ground-based studies of host galaxies, measuring the fluctuations in the sky signals that were subtracted from the quasar images, evaluating empirically the effects of using different stellar PSFs in the analysis, carrying out the subtraction of the stellar (nuclear) source in different ways, creating and analyzing artificial active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with known surface brightnesses, and fitting the observed quasar light to an analytic model that includes a host galaxy.

Satellite Alignment. I. Distribution of Substructures and their Dependence on Assembly History from N-body Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Y. O.; Lin, W. P.; Kang, X.; Dutton, Aaron; Yu, Yu; Macciò, Andrea V.

2014-05-01

Observations have shown that the spatial distribution of satellite galaxies is not random, but aligned with the major axes of central galaxies. This alignment is dependent on galaxy properties, such that red satellites are more strongly aligned than blue satellites. Theoretical work conducted to interpret this phenomenon has found that it is due to the non-spherical nature of dark matter halos. However, most studies overpredict the alignment signal under the assumption that the central galaxy shape follows the shape of the host halo. It is also not clear whether the color dependence of alignment is due to an assembly bias or an evolution effect. In this paper we study these problems using a cosmological N-body simulation. Subhalos are used to trace the positions of satellite galaxies. It is found that the shapes of dark matter halos are mis-aligned at different radii. If the central galaxy shares the same shape as the inner host halo, then the alignment effect is weaker and agrees with observational data. However, it predicts almost no dependence of alignment on the color of satellite galaxies, though the late accreted subhalos show stronger alignment with the outer layer of the host halo than their early accreted counterparts. We find that this is due to the limitation of pure N-body simulations where satellite galaxies without associated subhalos ("orphan galaxies") are not resolved. These orphan (mostly red) satellites often reside in the inner region of host halos and should follow the shape of the host halo in the inner region.

HUBBLE UNVEILS A GALAXY IN LIVING COLOR

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

In this view of the center of the magnificent barred spiral galaxy NGC 1512, NASA Hubble Space Telescope's broad spectral vision reveals the galaxy at all wavelengths from ultraviolet to infrared. The colors (which indicate differences in light intensity) map where newly born star clusters exist in both 'dusty' and 'clean' regions of the galaxy. This color-composite image was created from seven images taken with three different Hubble cameras: the Faint Object Camera (FOC), the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2), and the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS). NGC 1512 is a barred spiral galaxy in the southern constellation of Horologium. Located 30 million light-years away, relatively 'nearby' as galaxies go, it is bright enough to be seen with amateur telescopes. The galaxy spans 70,000 light-years, nearly as much as our own Milky Way galaxy. The galaxy's core is unique for its stunning 2,400 light-year-wide circle of infant star clusters, called a 'circumnuclear' starburst ring. Starbursts are episodes of vigorous formation of new stars and are found in a variety of galaxy environments. Taking advantage of Hubble's sharp vision, as well as its unique wavelength coverage, a team of Israeli and American astronomers performed one of the broadest and most detailed studies ever of such star-forming regions. The results, which will be published in the June issue of the Astronomical Journal, show that in NGC 1512 newly born star clusters exist in both dusty and clean environments. The clean clusters are readily seen in ultraviolet and visible light, appearing as bright, blue clumps in the image. However, the dusty clusters are revealed only by the glow of the gas clouds in which they are hidden, as detected in red and infrared wavelengths by the Hubble cameras. This glow can be seen as red light permeating the dark, dusty lanes in the ring. 'The dust obscuration of clusters appears to be an on-off phenomenon,' says Dan Maoz, who headed the collaboration. 'The clusters are either completely hidden, enshrouded in their birth clouds, or almost completely exposed.' The scientists believe that stellar winds and powerful radiation from the bright, newly born stars have cleared away the original natal dust cloud in a fast and efficient 'cleansing' process. Aaron Barth, a co-investigator on the team, adds: 'It is remarkable how similar the properties of this starburst are to those of other nearby starbursts that have been studied in detail with Hubble.' This similarity gives the astronomers the hope that, by understanding the processes occurring in nearby galaxies, they can better interpret observations of very distant and faint starburst galaxies. Such distant galaxies formed the first generations of stars, when the universe was a fraction of its current age. Circumstellar star-forming rings are common in the universe. Such rings within barred spiral galaxies may in fact comprise the most numerous class of nearby starburst regions. Astronomers generally believe that the giant bar funnels the gas to the inner ring, where stars are formed within numerous star clusters. Studies like this one emphasize the need to observe at many different wavelengths to get the full picture of the processes taking place.

An Optimal Strategy for Accurate Bulge-to-disk Decomposition of Disk Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Hua; Ho, Luis C.

2017-08-01

The development of two-dimensional (2D) bulge-to-disk decomposition techniques has shown their advantages over traditional one-dimensional (1D) techniques, especially for galaxies with non-axisymmetric features. However, the full potential of 2D techniques has yet to be fully exploited. Secondary morphological features in nearby disk galaxies, such as bars, lenses, rings, disk breaks, and spiral arms, are seldom accounted for in 2D image decompositions, even though some image-fitting codes, such as GALFIT, are capable of handling them. We present detailed, 2D multi-model and multi-component decomposition of high-quality R-band images of a representative sample of nearby disk galaxies selected from the Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey, using the latest version of GALFIT. The sample consists of five barred and five unbarred galaxies, spanning Hubble types from S0 to Sc. Traditional 1D decomposition is also presented for comparison. In detailed case studies of the 10 galaxies, we successfully model the secondary morphological features. Through a comparison of best-fit parameters obtained from different input surface brightness models, we identify morphological features that significantly impact bulge measurements. We show that nuclear and inner lenses/rings and disk breaks must be properly taken into account to obtain accurate bulge parameters, whereas outer lenses/rings and spiral arms have a negligible effect. We provide an optimal strategy to measure bulge parameters of typical disk galaxies, as well as prescriptions to estimate realistic uncertainties of them, which will benefit subsequent decomposition of a larger galaxy sample.

Star formation across galactic environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, Jason

I present here parallel investigations of star formation in typical and extreme galaxies. The typical galaxies are selected to be free of active galactic nuclei (AGN), while the extreme galaxies host quasars (the most luminous class of AGN). These two environments are each insightful in their own way; quasars are among the most violent objects in the universe, literally reshaping their host galaxies, while my sample of AGN-free star-forming galaxies ranges from systems larger than the Milky Way to small galaxies which are forming stars at unsustainably high rates. The current paradigm of galaxy formation and evolution suggests that extreme circumstances are key stepping stones in the assembly of galaxies like our Milky Way. To test this paradigm and fully explore its ramifications, this dual approach is needed. My sample of AGN-free galaxies is drawn from the KPNO International Spectroscopic Survey. This Halpha-selected, volume-limited survey was designed to detect star-forming galaxies without a bias toward continuum luminosity. This type of selection ensures that this sample is not biased toward galaxies that are large or nearby. My work studies the KISS galaxies in the mid- and far-infrared using photometry from the IRAC and MIPS instruments aboard the Spitzer Space Telescope. These infrared bands are particularly interesting for star formation studies because the ultraviolet light from young stars is reprocessed into thermal emission in the far-infrared (24mum MIPS) by dust and into vibrational transitions features in the mid-infrared (8.0mum IRAC) by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The work I present here examines the efficiencies of PAH and thermal dust emission as tracers of star-formation rates over a wide range of galactic stellar masses. I find that the efficiency of PAH as a star-formation tracer varies with galactic stellar mass, while thermal dust has a highly variable efficiency that does not systematically depend on galactic stellar mass. Complementing this study of normal star-forming galaxies, my study of quasar host galaxies utilizes narrow- and medium-band images of eight Palomar-Green (PG) quasars from the WFPC2 and NICMOS instruments aboard the Hubble Space Telescope. Using images of a point-spread function (PSF) star in the same filters, I subtract the PSF of the quasar from each of the target images. The residual light images clearly show the host galaxies of the respective quasars. The narrow-band images were chosen to be centered on the Hbeta, [O II ], [O III], and Paalpha emission lines, allowing the use of line ratios and luminosities to create extinction and star formation maps. Additionally, I utilize the line-ratio maps to distinguish AGN-powered line emission from star formation powered line emission with line-diagnostic diagrams. I find star formation in each of the eight quasar host galaxies in my study. The bulk star-formation rates are lower than expected, suggesting that quasar host galaxies may be dynamically more advanced than previously believed. Seven of the eight quasar host galaxies in this study have higher-than-typical mass-specific star-formation rates. Additionally, I see evidence of shocked gas, supporting the hypotheses presented in earlier works that suggest that AGN activity quenches star formation in its host galaxy by disrupting its gas reservoir.

GRB 080517: a local, low-luminosity gamma-ray burst in a dusty galaxy at z = 0.09

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanway, Elizabeth R.; Levan, Andrew J.; Tanvir, Nial; Wiersema, Klaas; van der Horst, Alexander; Mundell, Carole G.; Guidorzi, Cristiano

2015-02-01

We present an analysis of the photometry and spectroscopy of the host galaxy of Swift-detected GRB 080517. From our optical spectroscopy, we identify a redshift of z = 0.089 ± 0.003, based on strong emission lines, making this a rare example of a very local, low-luminosity, long gamma-ray burst. The galaxy is detected in the radio with a flux density of S4.5 GHz = 0.22 ± 0.04 mJy - one of relatively few known gamma-ray bursts hosts with a securely measured radio flux. Both optical emission lines and a strong detection at 22 μm suggest that the host galaxy is forming stars rapidly, with an inferred star formation rate ˜16 M⊙ yr-1 and a high dust obscuration (E(B - V) > 1, based on sightlines to the nebular emission regions). The presence of a companion galaxy within a projected distance of 25 kpc, and almost identical in redshift, suggests that star formation may have been triggered by galaxy-galaxy interaction. However, fitting of the remarkably flat spectral energy distribution from the ultraviolet through to the infrared suggests that an older, 500 Myr post-starburst stellar population is present along with the ongoing star formation. We conclude that the host galaxy of GRB 080517 is a valuable addition to the still very small sample of well-studied local gamma-ray burst hosts.

R-band host galaxy contamination of TeV γ-ray blazar Mrk 501: effects of aperture size and seeing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feng, Hai-Cheng; Liu, Hong-Tao; Zhao, Ying-He; Bai, Jin-Ming; Wang, Fang; Fan, Xu-Liang

2018-02-01

We simulated the R-band contribution of the host galaxy of TeV γ-ray BL Lac object Mrk 501 in different aperture sizes and seeing conditions. An intensive set of observations was acquired with the 1.02 m optical telescope, managed by Yunnan Observatories, from 2010 May 15 to 18. Based on the host subtraction data usually used in the literature, the subtraction of host galaxy contamination results in significant seeing-brightness correlations. These correlations would lead to illusive large amplitude variations at short timescales, which will mask the intrinsic microvariability, thus giving rise to difficulty in detecting the intrinsic microvariability. Both aperture size and seeing condition influence the flux measurements, but the aperture size impacts the result more significantly. Based on the parameters of an elliptical galaxy provided in the literature, we simulated the host contributions of Mrk 501 in different aperture sizes and seeing conditions. Our simulation data of the host galaxy obviously weaken these significant seeing-brightness correlations for the host-subtracted brightness of Mrk 501, and can help us discover the intrinsic short timescale microvariability. The pure nuclear flux is ∼8.0mJy in the R band, i.e., the AGN has a magnitude of R ∼ 13.96 mag.

Fitting and Phenomenology in Type IA Supernova Cosmology: Generalized Likelihood Analyses for Multiple Evolving Populations and Observations of Near-Infrared Lightcurves Including Host Galaxy Properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ponder, Kara A.

In the late 1990s, Type Ia supernovae (SNeIa) led to the discovery that the Universe is expanding at an accelerating rate due to dark energy. Since then, many different tracers of acceleration have been used to characterize dark energy, but the source of cosmic acceleration has remained a mystery. To better understand dark energy, future surveys such as the ground-based Large Synoptic Survey Telescope and the space-based Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope will collect thousands of SNeIa to use as a primary dark energy probe. These large surveys will be systematics limited, which makes it imperative for our insight regarding systematics to dramatically increase over the next decade for SNeIa to continue to contribute to precision cosmology. I approach this problem by improving statistical methods in the likelihood analysis and collecting near infrared (NIR) SNeIa with their host galaxies to improve the nearby data set and search for additional systematics. Using more statistically robust methods to account for systematics within the likelihood function can increase accuracy in cosmological parameters with a minimal precision loss. Though a sample of at least 10,000 SNeIa is necessary to confirm multiple populations of SNeIa, the bias in cosmology is ˜ 2 sigma with only 2,500 SNeIa. This work focused on an example systematic (host galaxy correlations), but it can be generalized for any systematic that can be represented by a distribution of multiple Gaussians. The SweetSpot survey gathered 114 low-redshift, NIR SNeIa that will act as a crucial anchor sample for the future high redshift surveys. NIR observations are not as affected by dust contamination, which may lead to increased understanding of systematics seen in optical wavelengths. We obtained spatially resolved spectra for 32 SweetSpot host galaxies to test for local host galaxy correlations. For the first time, we probe global host galaxy correlations with NIR brightnesses from the current literature sample of SNeIa with host galaxy data from publicly available catalogs. We find inconclusive evidence that more massive galaxies host SNeIa that are brighter in the NIR than SNeIa hosted in less massive galaxies.

The MUSE view of the host galaxy of GRB 100316D

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Izzo, L.; Thöne, C. C.; Schulze, S.; Mehner, A.; Flores, H.; Cano, Z.; de Ugarte Postigo, A.; Kann, D. A.; Amorín, R.; Anderson, J. P.; Bauer, F. E.; Bensch, K.; Christensen, L.; Covino, S.; Della Valle, M.; Fynbo, J. P. U.; Jakobsson, P.; Klose, S.; Kuncarayakti, H.; Leloudas, G.; Milvang-Jensen, B.; Møller, P.; Puech, M.; Rossi, A.; Sánchez-Ramírez, R.; Vergani, S. D.

2017-12-01

The low distance, z = 0.0591, of GRB 100316D and its association with SN 2010bh represent two important motivations for studying this host galaxy and the GRB's immediate environment with the integral field spectrographs like Very Large Telescope/Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer. Its large field of view allows us to create 2D maps of gas metallicity, ionization level and the star formation rate (SFR) distribution maps, as well as to investigate the presence of possible host companions. The host is a late-type dwarf irregular galaxy with multiple star-forming regions and an extended central region with signatures of on-going shock interactions. The gamma-ray burst (GRB) site is characterized by the lowest metallicity, the highest SFR and the youngest (∼20-30 Myr) stellar population in the galaxy, which suggest a GRB progenitor stellar population with masses up to 20-40 M⊙. We note that the GRB site has an offset of ∼660 pc from the most luminous SF region in the host. The observed SF activity in this galaxy may have been triggered by a relatively recent gravitational encounter between the host and a small undetected (LH α ≤ 1036 erg s-1) companion.

THE EXTREMELY RED HOST GALAXY OF GRB 080207

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hunt, Leslie; Cresci, Giovanni; Palazzi, Eliana

2011-08-01

We present optical, near-infrared, and Spitzer IRAC and MIPS observations of the host galaxy of the dark Swift gamma-ray burst GRB 080207. The host is faint, with extremely red optical-infrared colors (R - K = 6.3, 24 {mu}m/R-band flux {approx}1000) making it an extremely red object (ERO) and a dust-obscured galaxy (DOG). The spectral energy distribution (SED) shows the clear signature of the 1.6 {mu}m photometric 'bump', typical of evolved stellar populations. We use this bump to establish the photometric redshift z{sub phot} as 2.2{sup +0.2}{sub -0.3}, using a vast library of SED templates, including M 82. The star formationmore » rate (SFR) inferred from the SED fitting is {approx}119 M{sub sun} yr{sup -1}, the stellar mass 3 x 10{sup 11} M{sub sun}, and A{sub V} extinction from 1 to 2 mag. The ERO and DOG nature of the host galaxy of the dark GRB 080207 may be emblematic of a distinct class of dark GRB hosts, with high SFRs, evolved and metal-rich stellar populations, and significant dust extinction within the host galaxy.« less

How Common are the Magellanic Clouds

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Lulu; Gerke, Brian F.; Wechsler, Risa H.

2011-05-20

We introduce a probabilistic approach to the problem of counting dwarf satellites around host galaxies in databases with limited redshift information. This technique is used to investigate the occurrence of satellites with luminosities similar to the Magellanic Clouds around hosts with properties similar to the Milky Way in the object catalog of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Our analysis uses data from SDSS Data Release 7, selecting candidate Milky-Way-like hosts from the spectroscopic catalog and candidate analogs of the Magellanic Clouds from the photometric catalog. Our principal result is the probability for a Milky-Way-like galaxy to host N{sub sat} closemore » satellites with luminosities similar to the Magellanic Clouds. We find that 81 percent of galaxies like the Milky Way have no such satellites within a radius of 150 kpc, 11 percent have one, and only 3.5 percent of hosts have two. The probabilities are robust to changes in host and satellite selection criteria, background-estimation technique, and survey depth. These results demonstrate that the Milky Way has significantly more satellites than a typical galaxy of its luminosity; this fact is useful for understanding the larger cosmological context of our home galaxy.« less

Probing the Building Blocks of Galactic Disks: An Analysis of Ultraviolet Clumps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soto, Emmaris

The universe is filled with a diversity of galaxies; however, despite these diversities we are able to group galaxies into morphological categories, such as Hubble types, that may indicate different paths of evolution. In order to understand the evolution of galaxies, such as our own Milk Way, it is necessary to study the underlying star formation over cosmic time. At high redshift (z>2) star-forming galaxies reveal asymmetric and clumpy morphologies. However, the evolutionary process which takes clumpy galaxies from z>2 to the smooth axially symmetric Hubble-type galaxies in place at z˜0.5 is still unknown. Therefore, it is vital to make a connection between the morphologies of galaxies at the peak epoch of cosmic star formation at z˜2 with the galaxies observed in the local universe to better understand the mechanisms that led to their evolution. To address this and chronicle the progression of galaxy evolution, deep high resolution multi-wavelength data is used to study galaxies across cosmic time. This dissertation provides a detailed study of clumpy star-forming galaxies at intermediate redshifts, 0.5 ≤ z ≤ 1.5, focusing on sub-galactic regions of star formation which provide a mechanism to explain the evolution of clumpy galaxies to the spiral galaxies we observe today. We developed a clump-finding algorithm to select a sample of clumpy galaxies from the Ultraviolet Ultra Deep Field (UVUDF). The UVUDF was the first deep image (˜28 AB mag) ever taken with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) showing the rest-frame far-ultraviolet (FUV, 1500A) at intermediate-z. The rest-frame FUV probes the young star-forming regions which are often seen in clumpy galaxies at high redshift. We identified 209 clumpy galaxies (hereafter host galaxies) from 1,404 candidates at intermediate redshifts. We used the HST Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) and the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) broadband images from the UVUDF with observed near-ultraviolet, optical, and near-infrared photometry to determine their stellar properties via spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting. We estimated properties such as the mass, age, star formation rate (SFR), and metallicity of host galaxies. The deep high resolution WFC3 rest-frame FUV data allowed us to detect and measure the sizes of 403 clumps. The results provided evidence to support clump migration as a mechanism for galaxy evolution. We show that clumps make an average contribution of 19% to the total rest-frame FUV flux of their host galaxy. Additionally, individual clumps contribute a median of 5% to the host galaxy SFR and an average of ˜4% to the host galaxy mass, with total clump contributions to the host galaxy stellar mass ranging widely from less than 1% up to 93%. We showed that clumps in the outskirts of galaxies are typically younger, with higher star formation rates than clumps in the inner regions. The results are consistent with clump migration theories in which clumps form through violent gravitational instabilities in gas-rich turbulent disks, eventually migrate toward the center of the galaxies, and coalesce into the bulge.

The Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Host Galaxy Legacy Survey. I. Sample Selection and Redshift Distribution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perley, D. A.; Kruhler, T.; Schulze, S.; Postigo, A. De Ugarte; Hjorth, J.; Berger, E.; Cenko, S. B.; Chary, R.; Cucchiara, A.; Ellis, R.;

The role of black holes in galaxy formation and evolution.

PubMed

Cattaneo, A; Faber, S M; Binney, J; Dekel, A; Kormendy, J; Mushotzky, R; Babul, A; Best, P N; Brüggen, M; Fabian, A C; Frenk, C S; Khalatyan, A; Netzer, H; Mahdavi, A; Silk, J; Steinmetz, M; Wisotzki, L

2009-07-09

Virtually all massive galaxies, including our own, host central black holes ranging in mass from millions to billions of solar masses. The growth of these black holes releases vast amounts of energy that powers quasars and other weaker active galactic nuclei. A tiny fraction of this energy, if absorbed by the host galaxy, could halt star formation by heating and ejecting ambient gas. A central question in galaxy evolution is the degree to which this process has caused the decline of star formation in large elliptical galaxies, which typically have little cold gas and few young stars, unlike spiral galaxies.

The Swift GRB Host Galaxy Legacy Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perley, Daniel A.

2015-01-01

I introduce the Swift Host Galaxy Legacy Survey (SHOALS), a comprehensive multiwavelength program to characterize the demographics of the GRB host population across its entire redshift range. Using unbiased selection criteria we have designated a subset of 130 Swift gamma-ray bursts which are now being targeted with intensive observational follow-up. Deep Spitzer imaging of every field has already been obtained and analyzed, with major programs ongoing at Keck, GTC, and Gemini to obtain complementary optical/NIR photometry to enable full SED modeling and derivation of fundamental physical parameters such as mass, extinction, and star-formation rate. Using these data I will present an unbiased measurement of the GRB host-galaxy luminosity and mass functions and their evolution with redshift between z=0 and z=5, compare GRB hosts to other star-forming galaxy populations, and discuss implications for the nature of the GRB progenitor and the ability of GRBs to probe cosmic star-formation.

The intrinsic shape of bulges in the CALIFA survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costantin, L.; Méndez-Abreu, J.; Corsini, E. M.; Eliche-Moral, M. C.; Tapia, T.; Morelli, L.; Dalla Bontà, E.; Pizzella, A.

2018-02-01

Context. The intrinsic shape of galactic bulges in nearby galaxies provides crucial information to separate bulge types. Aims: We aim to derive accurate constraints to the intrinsic shape of bulges to provide new clues on their formation mechanisms and set new limitations for future simulations. Methods: We retrieved the intrinsic shape of a sample of CALIFA bulges using a statistical approach. Taking advantage of GalMer numerical simulations of binary mergers we estimated the reliability of the procedure. Analyzing the i-band mock images of resulting lenticular remnants, we studied the intrinsic shape of their bulges at different galaxy inclinations. Finally, we introduced a new (B/A, C/A) diagram to analyze possible correlations between the intrinsic shape and the properties of bulges. Results: We tested the method on simulated lenticular remnants, finding that for galaxies with inclinations of 25° ≤ θ ≤ 65° we can safely derive the intrinsic shape of their bulges. We found that our CALIFA bulges tend to be nearly oblate systems (66%), with a smaller fraction of prolate spheroids (19%), and triaxial ellipsoids (15%). The majority of triaxial bulges are in barred galaxies (75%). Moreover, we found that bulges with low Sérsic indices or in galaxies with low bulge-to-total luminosity ratios form a heterogeneous class of objects; additionally, bulges in late-type galaxies or in less massive galaxies have no preference for being oblate, prolate, or triaxial. On the contrary, bulges with high Sérsic index, in early-type galaxies, or in more massive galaxies are mostly oblate systems. Conclusions: We concluded that various evolutionary pathways may coexist in galaxies, with merging events and dissipative collapse being the main mechanisms driving the formation of the most massive oblate bulges and bar evolution reshaping the less massive triaxial bulges.

Photometric properties of intermediate-redshift Type Ia supernovae observed by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-II Supernova Survey

DOE PAGES

Takanashi, N.; Doi, M.; Yasuda, N.; ...

2016-12-06

We have analyzed multi-band light curves of 328 intermediate redshift (0.05 <= z < 0.24) type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) observed by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-II Supernova Survey (SDSS-II SN Survey). The multi-band light curves were parameterized by using the Multi-band Stretch Method, which can simply parameterize light curve shapes and peak brightness without dust extinction models. We found that most of the SNe Ia which appeared in red host galaxies (u - r > 2.5) don't have a broad light curve width and the SNe Ia which appeared in blue host galaxies (u - r < 2.0) havemore » a variety of light curve widths. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test shows that the colour distribution of SNe Ia appeared in red / blue host galaxies is different (significance level of 99.9%). We also investigate the extinction law of host galaxy dust. As a result, we find the value of Rv derived from SNe Ia with medium light curve width is consistent with the standard Galactic value. On the other hand, the value of Rv derived from SNe Ia that appeared in red host galaxies becomes significantly smaller. Furthermore, these results indicate that there may be two types of SNe Ia with different intrinsic colours, and they are obscured by host galaxy dust with two different properties.« less

Photometric properties of intermediate-redshift Type Ia supernovae observed by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-II Supernova Survey

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Takanashi, N.; Doi, M.; Yasuda, N.

We have analyzed multi-band light curves of 328 intermediate redshift (0.05 <= z < 0.24) type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) observed by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-II Supernova Survey (SDSS-II SN Survey). The multi-band light curves were parameterized by using the Multi-band Stretch Method, which can simply parameterize light curve shapes and peak brightness without dust extinction models. We found that most of the SNe Ia which appeared in red host galaxies (u - r > 2.5) don't have a broad light curve width and the SNe Ia which appeared in blue host galaxies (u - r < 2.0) havemore » a variety of light curve widths. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test shows that the colour distribution of SNe Ia appeared in red / blue host galaxies is different (significance level of 99.9%). We also investigate the extinction law of host galaxy dust. As a result, we find the value of Rv derived from SNe Ia with medium light curve width is consistent with the standard Galactic value. On the other hand, the value of Rv derived from SNe Ia that appeared in red host galaxies becomes significantly smaller. Furthermore, these results indicate that there may be two types of SNe Ia with different intrinsic colours, and they are obscured by host galaxy dust with two different properties.« less

Imaging the host galaxies of high-redshift radio-quiet QSOs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lowenthal, James D.; Heckman, Timothy M.; Lehnert, Matthew, D.; Elias, J. H.

1995-01-01

We present new deep K-band and optical images of four radio-quiet QSOs at z approximately = 1 and six radio-quiet QSOs at z approximately = 2.5, as well as optical images only of six more at z approximately = 2.5. We have examined the images carefully for evidence of extended 'fuzz' from any putative QSO host galaxy. None of the z approximately = 2.5 QSOs shows any extended emission, and only two of the z approximately = 1 QSOs show marginal evidence for extended emission. Our 3 sigma detection limits in the K images, m(sub K) approximately = 21 for an isolated source, would correspond approximately to an unevolved L(sup star) elliptical galaxy at z = 2.5 or 2-3 mag fainter than an L(sup star) elliptical at z = 1, although our limits on host galaxy light are weaker than this due to the difficulty of separating galaxy light from QSO light. We simulate simple models of disk and elliptical host galaxies, and find that the marginal emission around the two z approximately = 1 QSOs can be explained by disks or bulges that are approximately 1-2 mag brighter than an unevolved L(sup star) galaxy in one case and approximately 1.5-2.5 mag brighter than L(sub star) in the other. For two other z approximately = 1 QSOs, we have only upper limits (L approximately = L(sup star)). The hosts of the high-redshift sample must be no brighter than about 3 mag above an unevolved L(sup star) galaxy, and are at least 1 magnitude fainter than the hosts of radio-loud QSOs at the same redshift. If the easily detected K-band light surrounding a previous sample of otherwise similar but radio-loud QSOs is starlight, then it must evolve on timescales of greater than or approximately equal to 10(exp 8) yr (e.g., Chambers & Charlot 1990); therefore our non-detection of host galaxy fuzz around radio-quiet QSOs supports the view that high-redshift radio-quiet and radio-loud QSOs inhabit different host objects, rather than being single types of objects that turn their radio emission on and off over short timescales. This is consistent with the general trend at low redshifts that radio-loud QSOs are found in giant elliptical galaxies while radio-quiet QSOs are found in less luminous disk galaxies. It also suggests that the processes responsible for the spectacular properties of radio-loud AGNs at high redshifts might not be generally relevent to the (far more numerous) radio-quiet population.

Accreting SMBH in the COSMOS field: the connection to their host galaxies .

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merloni, A.; Bongiorno, A.

Using the rich multi-band photometry in the COSMOS field we explore the host galaxy properties of a large, complete, sample of X-ray and spectroscopically selected AGN. Based on a two-components fit to their Spectral Energy Distribution (SED) we derive rest-frame magnitudes, colours, stellar masses and star formation rates up to z˜ 3. The probability for a galaxy to host a black hole growing at any given specific accretion rate (the ratio of X-ray luminosity to the host stellar mass) is independent of the galaxy mass and follows a power-law distribution in L_X/M. By looking at the normalisation of such a probability distribution, we show how the incidence of AGN increases with redshift as rapidly as (1+z)4.2, in close resemblance with the overall evolution of the specific star formation rate. Although AGN activity and star formation appear to have a common triggering mechanism, we do not find any 'smoking gun' signalling powerful AGN influence on the global properties of their host galaxies.

Galaxy bias from the Dark Energy Survey Science Verification data: Combining galaxy density maps and weak lensing maps

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chang, C.; Pujol, A.; Gaztañaga, E.

We measure the redshift evolution of galaxy bias for a magnitude-limited galaxy sample by combining the galaxy density maps and weak lensing shear maps for a ~116 deg 2 area of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) Science Verification (SV) data. This method was first developed in Amara et al. and later re-examined in a companion paper with rigorous simulation tests and analytical treatment of tomographic measurements. In this work we apply this method to the DES SV data and measure the galaxy bias for a i < 22.5 galaxy sample. We find the galaxy bias and 1σ error bars inmore » four photometric redshift bins to be 1.12 ± 0.19 (z = 0.2–0.4), 0.97 ± 0.15 (z = 0.4–0.6), 1.38 ± 0.39 (z = 0.6–0.8), and 1.45 ± 0.56 (z = 0.8–1.0). These measurements are consistent at the 2σ level with measurements on the same data set using galaxy clustering and cross-correlation of galaxies with cosmic microwave background lensing, with most of the redshift bins consistent within the 1σ error bars. In addition, our method provides the only σ8 independent constraint among the three. We forward model the main observational effects using mock galaxy catalogues by including shape noise, photo-z errors, and masking effects. We show that our bias measurement from the data is consistent with that expected from simulations. With the forthcoming full DES data set, we expect this method to provide additional constraints on the galaxy bias measurement from more traditional methods. Moreover, in the process of our measurement, we build up a 3D mass map that allows further exploration of the dark matter distribution and its relation to galaxy evolution.« less

Galaxy bias from the Dark Energy Survey Science Verification data: Combining galaxy density maps and weak lensing maps

DOE PAGES

Chang, C.; Pujol, A.; Gaztañaga, E.; ...

2016-04-15

We measure the redshift evolution of galaxy bias for a magnitude-limited galaxy sample by combining the galaxy density maps and weak lensing shear maps for a ~116 deg 2 area of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) Science Verification (SV) data. This method was first developed in Amara et al. and later re-examined in a companion paper with rigorous simulation tests and analytical treatment of tomographic measurements. In this work we apply this method to the DES SV data and measure the galaxy bias for a i < 22.5 galaxy sample. We find the galaxy bias and 1σ error bars inmore » four photometric redshift bins to be 1.12 ± 0.19 (z = 0.2–0.4), 0.97 ± 0.15 (z = 0.4–0.6), 1.38 ± 0.39 (z = 0.6–0.8), and 1.45 ± 0.56 (z = 0.8–1.0). These measurements are consistent at the 2σ level with measurements on the same data set using galaxy clustering and cross-correlation of galaxies with cosmic microwave background lensing, with most of the redshift bins consistent within the 1σ error bars. In addition, our method provides the only σ8 independent constraint among the three. We forward model the main observational effects using mock galaxy catalogues by including shape noise, photo-z errors, and masking effects. We show that our bias measurement from the data is consistent with that expected from simulations. With the forthcoming full DES data set, we expect this method to provide additional constraints on the galaxy bias measurement from more traditional methods. Moreover, in the process of our measurement, we build up a 3D mass map that allows further exploration of the dark matter distribution and its relation to galaxy evolution.« less

Spiral Galaxies Stripped Bare

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2010-10-01

Six spectacular spiral galaxies are seen in a clear new light in images from ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) at the Paranal Observatory in Chile. The pictures were taken in infrared light, using the impressive power of the HAWK-I camera, and will help astronomers understand how the remarkable spiral patterns in galaxies form and evolve. HAWK-I [1] is one of the newest and most powerful cameras on ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT). It is sensitive to infrared light, which means that much of the obscuring dust in the galaxies' spiral arms becomes transparent to its detectors. Compared to the earlier, and still much-used, VLT infrared camera ISAAC, HAWK-I has sixteen times as many pixels to cover a much larger area of sky in one shot and, by using newer technology than ISAAC, it has a greater sensitivity to faint infrared radiation [2]. Because HAWK-I can study galaxies stripped bare of the confusing effects of dust and glowing gas it is ideal for studying the vast numbers of stars that make up spiral arms. The six galaxies are part of a study of spiral structure led by Preben Grosbøl at ESO. These data were acquired to help understand the complex and subtle ways in which the stars in these systems form into such perfect spiral patterns. The first image shows NGC 5247, a spiral galaxy dominated by two huge arms, located 60-70 million light-years away. The galaxy lies face-on towards Earth, thus providing an excellent view of its pinwheel structure. It lies in the zodiacal constellation of Virgo (the Maiden). The galaxy in the second image is Messier 100, also known as NGC 4321, which was discovered in the 18th century. It is a fine example of a "grand design" spiral galaxy - a class of galaxies with very prominent and well-defined spiral arms. About 55 million light-years from Earth, Messier 100 is part of the Virgo Cluster of galaxies and lies in the constellation of Coma Berenices (Berenice's Hair, named after the ancient Egyptian queen Berenice II). The third image is of NGC 1300, a spiral galaxy with arms extending from the ends of a spectacularly prominent central bar. It is considered a prototypical example of barred spiral galaxies and lies at a distance of about 65 million light-years, in the constellation of Eridanus (the River). The spiral galaxy in the fourth image, NGC 4030, lies about 75 million light-years from Earth, in the constellation of Virgo. In 2007 Takao Doi, a Japanese astronaut who doubles as an amateur astronomer, spotted a supernova - a stellar explosion that is briefly almost as bright as its host galaxy - going off in this galaxy. The fifth image, NGC 2997, is a spiral galaxy roughly 30 million light-years away in the constellation of Antlia (the Air Pump). NGC 2997 is the brightest member of a group of galaxies of the same name in the Local Supercluster of galaxies. Our own Local Group, of which the Milky Way is a member, is itself also part of the Local Supercluster. Last but not least, NGC 1232 is a beautiful galaxy some 65 million light-years away in the constellation of Eridanus (the River). The galaxy is classified as an intermediate spiral galaxy - somewhere between a barred and an unbarred spiral galaxy. An image of this galaxy and its small companion galaxy NGC 1232A in visible light was one of the first produced by the VLT (eso9845). HAWK-I has now returned to NGC 1232 to show a different view of it at near-infrared wavelengths. As this galactic gallery makes clear, HAWK-I lets us see the spiral structures in these six bright galaxies in exquisite detail and with a clarity that is only made possible by observing in the infrared. Notes [1] HAWK-I stands for High-Acuity Wide-field K-band Imager. More technical details about the camera can be found in an earlier press release (eso0736). [2] More information about the VLT instruments can be found at: http://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/vlt/vlt-instr.html. More information ESO, the European Southern Observatory, is the foremost intergovernmental astronomy organisation in Europe and the world's most productive astronomical observatory. It is supported by 14 countries: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. ESO carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities enabling astronomers to make important scientific discoveries. ESO also plays a leading role in promoting and organising cooperation in astronomical research. ESO operates three unique world-class observing sites in Chile: La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor. At Paranal, ESO operates the Very Large Telescope, the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory and VISTA, the world's largest survey telescope. ESO is the European partner of a revolutionary astronomical telescope ALMA, the largest astronomical project in existence. ESO is currently planning a 42-metre European Extremely Large optical/near-infrared Telescope, the E-ELT, which will become "the world's biggest eye on the sky".

Black Hole in Search of a Home

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2005-09-01

Astronomers Discover Bright Quasar Without Massive Host Galaxy An international team of astronomers [1] used two of the most powerful astronomical facilities available, the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) at Cerro Paranal and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), to conduct a detailed study of 20 low redshift quasars. For 19 of them, they found, as expected, that these super massive black holes are surrounded by a host galaxy. But when they studied the bright quasar HE0450-2958, located some 5 billion light-years away, they couldn't find evidence for an encircling galaxy. This, the astronomers suggest, may indicate a rare case of collision between a seemingly normal spiral galaxy and a much more exotic object harbouring a very massive black hole. With masses up to hundreds of millions that of the Sun, "super massive" black holes are the most tantalizing objects known. Hiding in the centre of most large galaxies, including our own Milky Way (see ESO PR 26/03), they sometimes manifest themselves by devouring matter they engulf from their surroundings. Shining up to the largest distances, they are then called "quasars" or "QSOs" (for "quasi-stellar objects"), as they had initially been confused with stars. Decades of observations of quasars have suggested that they are always associated with massive host galaxies. However, observing the host galaxy of a quasar is a challenging work, because the quasar is radiating so energetically that its host galaxy is hard to detect in the flare. ESO PR Photo 28a/05 ESO PR Photo 28a/05 Two Quasars with their Host Galaxy [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 760 pix - 82k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 1520 pix - 395k] [Full Res - JPEG: 1722 x 3271 pix - 4.0M] Caption: ESO PR Photo 28a/05 shows two examples of quasars from the sample studied by the astronomers, where the host galaxy is obvious. In each case, the quasar is the bright central spot. The host of HE1239-2426 (left), a z=0.082 quasar, displays large spiral arms, while the host of HE1503+0228 (right), having a redshift of 0.135, is more fuzzy and shows only hints of spiral arms. Although these particular objects are rather close to us and constitute therefore easy targets, their host would still be perfectly visible at much higher redshift, including at distances as large as the one of HE0450-2958 (z=0.285). The observations were done with the ACS camera on the HST. ESO PR Photo 28b/05 ESO PR Photo 28b/05 The Quasar without a Home: HE0450-2958 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 760 pix - 53k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 1520 pix - 197k] [Full Res - JPEG: 1718 x 3265 pix - 1.5M] Caption of ESO PR Photo 28b/05: (Left) HST image of the z=0.285 quasar HE0450-2958. No obvious host galaxy centred on the quasar is seen. Only a strongly disturbed and star forming companion galaxy is seen near the top of the image. (Right) Same image shown after applying an efficient image sharpening method known as MCS-deconvolution. In contrast to the usual cases, as the ones shown in ESO PR Photo 28a/05, the quasar is not situated at the centre of an extended host galaxy, but on the edge of a compact structure, whose spectra (see ESO PR Photo 28c/05) show it to be composed of gas ionised by the quasar radiation. This gas may have been captured through a collision with the star-forming galaxy. The star indicated on the figure is a nearby galactic star seen by chance in the field of view. To overcome this problem, the astronomers devised a new and highly efficient strategy. Using ESO's VLT for spectroscopy and HST for imagery, they observed their quasars at the same time as a reference star. Simultaneous observation of a star allowed them to measure at best the shape of the quasar point source on spectra and images, and further to separate the quasar light from the other contribution, i.e. from the underlying galaxy itself. This very powerful image and spectra sharpening method ("MCS deconvolution") was applied to these data in order to detect the finest details of the host galaxy (see e.g. ESO PR 19/03). Using this efficient technique, the astronomers could detect a host galaxy for all but one of the quasars they studied. No stellar environment was found for HE0450-2958, suggesting that if any host galaxy exists, it must either have a luminosity at least six times fainter than expected a priori from the quasar observed luminosity, or a radius smaller than about 300 light-years. Typical radii for quasar host galaxies range between 6,000 and 50,000 light-years, i.e. they are at least 20 to 170 times larger. "With the data we managed to secure with the VLT and the HST, we would have been able to detect a normal host galaxy", says Pierre Magain (Université de Liège, Belgium), lead author of the paper reporting the study. "We must therefore conclude that, contrary to our expectations, this bright quasar is not surrounded by a massive galaxy." Instead, the astronomers detected just besides the quasar a bright cloud of about 2,500 light-years in size, which they baptized "the blob". The VLT observations show this cloud to be composed only of gas ionised by the intense radiation coming from the quasar. It is probably the gas of this cloud which is feeding the supermassive black hole, allowing it to become a quasar. ESO PR Photo 28c/05 ESO PR Photo 28c/05 Spectrum of Quasar HE0450-2958, the Blob and the Companion Galaxy (FORS/VLT) [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 561 pix - 112k] [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 1121 pix - 257k] [HiRes - JPEG: 2332 x 3268 pix - 1.1M] Caption: ESO PR Photo 28c/05 presents the spectra of the three objects indicated in ESO PR Photo 28b/05 as obtained with FORS1 on ESO's Very Large Telescope. The spectrum of the companion galaxy shown on the top panel reveals strong star formation. Thanks to the image sharpening process, it has been possible to separate very well the spectra of the quasar (centre) from that of the blob (bottom). The spectrum of the blob shows exclusively strong narrow emission lines having properties indicative of ionisation by the quasar light. There is no trace of stellar light, down to very faint levels, in the surrounding of the quasar. A strongly perturbed galaxy, showing all signs of a recent collision, is also seen on the HST images 2 arcseconds away (corresponding to about 50,000 light-years), with the VLT spectra showing it to be presently in a state where it forms stars at a frantic rate. "The absence of a massive host galaxy, combined with the existence of the blob and the star-forming galaxy, lead us to believe that we have uncovered a really exotic quasar, says team member Frédéric Courbin (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland). "There is little doubt that a burst in the formation of stars in the companion galaxy and the quasar itself have been ignited by a collision that must haven taken place about 100 million years ago. What happened to the putative quasar host remains unknown." HE0450-2958 constitutes a challenging case of interpretation. The astronomers propose several possible explanations, that will need to be further investigated and confronted. Has the host galaxy been completely disrupted as a result of the collision? It is hard to imagine how that could happen. Has an isolated black hole captured gas while crossing the disc of a spiral galaxy? This would require very special conditions and would probably not have caused such a tremendous perturbation as is observed in the neighbouring galaxy. Another intriguing hypothesis is that the galaxy harbouring the black hole was almost exclusively made of dark matter. "Whatever the solution of this riddle, the strong observable fact is that the quasar host galaxy, if any, is much too faint", says team member Knud Jahnke (Astrophysikalisches Institut Potsdam, Germany). The report on HE0450-2958 is published in the September 15, 2005 issue of the journal Nature ("Discovery of a bright quasar without a massive host galaxy" by Pierre Magain et al.).

Examining an AGN Luminosity – SFR relation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stemo, Aaron; Comerford, Julia M.; Barrows, Robert Scott

2018-06-01

The relation between the star formation rate (SFR) of a galaxy and the accretion rate of its supermassive black hole is not well understood. Some observations show that active galactic nuclei (AGN) activity and SFR are correlated while other observations show no relation between the two. In this work we present a large, uniformly-selected catalog of HST galaxies that host AGN. Using available multiwavelength photometric data, we are able to determine AGN bolometric luminosity, host galaxy SFR, host galaxy stellar mass, and redshift for our sample. Using this catalog, we are able to compare AGN bolometric luminosity and SFR, while controlling for redshift and stellar mass. These comparisons will be used to make a statistically significant statement on the correlation between AGN activity and a host galaxy’s SFR.

The SAGA Survey. I. Satellite Galaxy Populations around Eight Milky Way Analogs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geha, Marla; Wechsler, Risa H.; Mao, Yao-Yuan; Tollerud, Erik J.; Weiner, Benjamin; Bernstein, Rebecca; Hoyle, Ben; Marchi, Sebastian; Marshall, Phil J.; Muñoz, Ricardo; Lu, Yu

2017-09-01

We present the survey strategy and early results of the “Satellites Around Galactic Analogs” (SAGA) Survey. The SAGA Survey’s goal is to measure the distribution of satellite galaxies around 100 systems analogous to the Milky Way down to the luminosity of the Leo I dwarf galaxy ({M}r< -12.3). We define a Milky Way analog based on K-band luminosity and local environment. Here, we present satellite luminosity functions for eight Milky-Way-analog galaxies between 20 and 40 Mpc. These systems have nearly complete spectroscopic coverage of candidate satellites within the projected host virial radius down to {r}o< 20.75 using low-redshift gri color criteria. We have discovered a total of 25 new satellite galaxies: 14 new satellite galaxies meet our formal criteria around our complete host systems, plus 11 additional satellites in either incompletely surveyed hosts or below our formal magnitude limit. Combined with 13 previously known satellites, there are a total of 27 satellites around 8 complete Milky-Way-analog hosts. We find a wide distribution in the number of satellites per host, from 1 to 9, in the luminosity range for which there are 5 Milky Way satellites. Standard abundance matching extrapolated from higher luminosities predicts less scatter between hosts and a steeper luminosity function slope than observed. We find that the majority of satellites (26 of 27) are star-forming. These early results indicate that the Milky Way has a different satellite population than typical in our sample, potentially changing the physical interpretation of measurements based only on the Milky Way’s satellite galaxies.

HUBBLE CAPTURES THE HEART OF STAR BIRTH

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

NASA Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) has captured a flurry of star birth near the heart of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1808. On the left are two images, one superimposed over the other. The black-and-white picture is a ground-based view of the entire galaxy. The color inset image, taken with the Hubble telescope's Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2), provides a close-up view of the galaxy's center, the hotbed of vigorous star formation. The ground-based image shows that the galaxy has an unusual, warped shape. Most spiral galaxies are flat disks, but this one has curls of dust and gas at its outer spiral arms (upper right-hand corner and lower left-hand corner). This peculiar shape is evidence that NGC 1808 may have had a close interaction with another nearby galaxy, NGC 1792, which is not in the picture Such an interaction could have hurled gas towards the nucleus of NGC 1808, triggering the exceptionally high rate of star birth seen in the WFPC2 inset image. The WFPC2 inset picture is a composite of images using colored filters that isolate red and infrared light as well as light from glowing hydrogen. The red and infrared light (seen as yellow) highlight older stars, while hydrogen (seen as blue) reveals areas of star birth. Colors were assigned to this false-color image to emphasize the vigorous star formation taking place around the galaxy's center. NGC 1808 is called a barred spiral galaxy because of the straight lines of star formation on both sides of the bright nucleus. This star formation may have been triggered by the rotation of the bar, or by matter which is streaming along the bar towards the central region (and feeding the star burst). Filaments of dust are being ejected from the core into a faint halo of stars surrounding the galaxy's disk (towards the upper left corner) by massive stars that have exploded as supernovae in the star burst region. The portion of the galaxy seen in this 'wide-field' image is about 35,000 light-years across. The right-hand image, taken by WFPC2, provides a closer look at the flurry of star birth at the galaxy's core. The star clusters (blue) can be seen (and many more are likely obscured) amid thick lanes of gas and dust. This image shows that stars are often born in compact clusters within star bursts, and that dense gas and dust heavily obscures the star burst region. The brightest knot of star birth seen here is probably a giant cluster of stars, about 100 light-years in diameter, at the very center of the galaxy. The other star clusters are about 10 to 50 light-years in diameter. The entire star burst region shown here is about 3,000 light-years across. This galaxy is about 40 million light-years away in the southern constellation Columba. The observation was taken Aug. 14, 1997, and was the last of 13 Hubble Space Telescope amateur programs. Credits: Jim Flood, an amateur astronomer affiliated with Sperry Observatory at Union College in New Jersey, and Max Mutchler, a member of the Space Telescope Science Institute staff who volunteered to work with Jim.

The Topsy-Turvy Galaxy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2006-11-01

The captivating appearance of this image of the starburst galaxy NGC 1313, taken with the FORS instrument at ESO's Very Large Telescope, belies its inner turmoil. The dense clustering of bright stars and gas in its arms, a sign of an ongoing boom of star births, shows a mere glimpse of the rough times it has seen. Probing ever deeper into the heart of the galaxy, astronomers have revealed many enigmas that continue to defy our understanding. ESO PR Photo 43a/06 ESO PR Photo 43a/06 The Topsy-Turvy Galaxy NGC 1313 This FORS image of the central parts of NGC 1313 shows a stunning natural beauty. The galaxy bears some resemblance to some of the Milky Way's closest neighbours, the Magellanic Clouds. NGC 1313 has a barred spiral shape, with the arms emanating outwards in a loose twist from the ends of the bar. The galaxy lies just 15 million light-years away from the Milky Way - a mere skip on cosmological scales. The spiral arms are a hotbed of star-forming activity, with numerous young clusters of hot stars being born continuously at a staggering rate out of the dense clouds of gas and dust. Their light blasts through the surrounding gas, creating an intricately beautiful pattern of light and dark nebulosity. But NGC 1313 is not just a pretty picture. A mere scratch beneath the elegant surface reveals evidence of some of the most puzzling problems facing astronomers in the science of stars and galaxies. Starburst galaxies are fascinating objects to study in their own right; in neighbouring galaxies, around one quarter of all massive stars are born in these powerful engines, at rates up to a thousand times higher than in our own Milky Way Galaxy. In the majority of starbursts the upsurge in star's births is triggered when two galaxies merge, or come too close to each other. The mutual attraction between the galaxies causes immense turmoil in the gas and dust, causing the sudden 'burst' in star formation. ESO PR Photo 43b/06 ESO PR Photo 43b/06 Larger View of NGC 1313 NGC 1313's appearance suggests it has seen troubled times: its spiral arms look lop-sided and gas globules are spread out widely around them. This is more easily seen in ESO 43b/06, showing a larger area of the sky around the galaxy. Moreover, observations with ESO's 3.6-m telescope at La Silla have revealed that its 'real' centre, around which it rotates, does not coincide with the central bar. Its rotation is therefore also off kilter. Strangely enough NGC 1313 seems to be an isolated galaxy. It is not part of a group and has no neighbour, and it is not clear whether it may have swallowed a small companion in its past. So what caused its asymmetry and stellar baby boom? An explanation based on the presence of the central bar also does not hold for NGC 1313: the majority of its star formation is actually taking place not in its bar but in dense gassy regions scattered around the arms. By what mechanism the gas is compressed for stars to form at this staggering rate, astronomers simply aren't sure. Probing further into NGC 1313's insides reveals yet more mysteries. In the midst of the cosmic violence of the starburst regions lie two objects that emit large amounts of highly energetic X-rays - so-called ultra-luminous X-ray sources (ULX). Astronomers suspect that they might be black holes with masses of perhaps a few hundred times the mass of our Sun each, that formed as part of a binary star system. How such objects are created out of ordinary stars cannot be conclusively explained by current models. NGC 1313 is an altogether very intriguing target for astronomy. This image, obtained with ESO's Very Large Telescope, demonstrates once again how the imager FORS is ideally suited to capturing the beauty and stunning complexity of galaxies by observing them in different wavelength filters, combined here to form a stunning colour image. A high resolution image (with zoom-in possibilities) and its caption is available on this page.

Age bimodality in the central region of pseudo-bulges in S0 galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Preetish K.; Barway, Sudhanshu; Wadadekar, Yogesh

2017-11-01

We present evidence for bimodal stellar age distribution of pseudo-bulges of S0 galaxies as probed by the Dn(4000) index. We do not observe any bimodality in age distribution for pseudo-bulges in spiral galaxies. Our sample is flux limited and contains 2067 S0 and 2630 spiral galaxies drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We identify pseudo-bulges in S0 and spiral galaxies, based on the position of the bulge on the Kormendy diagram and their central velocity dispersion. Dividing the pseudo-bulges of S0 galaxies into those containing old and young stellar populations, we study the connection between global star formation and pseudo-bulge age on the u - r colour-mass diagram. We find that most old pseudo-bulges are hosted by passive galaxies while majority of young bulges are hosted by galaxies that are star forming. Dividing our sample of S0 galaxies into early-type S0s and S0/a galaxies, we find that old pseudo-bulges are mainly hosted by early-type S0 galaxies while most of the pseudo-bulges in S0/a galaxies are young. We speculate that morphology plays a strong role in quenching of star formation in the disc of these S0 galaxies, which stops the growth of pseudo-bulges, giving rise to old pseudo-bulges and the observed age bimodality.

A UNIFIED FRAMEWORK FOR THE ORBITAL STRUCTURE OF BARS AND TRIAXIAL ELLIPSOIDS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Valluri, Monica; Abbott, Caleb; Shen, Juntai

We examine a large random sample of orbits in two self-consistent simulations of N-body bars. Orbits in these bars are classified both visually and with a new automated orbit classification method based on frequency analysis. The well-known prograde x1 orbit family originates from the same parent orbit as the box orbits in stationary and rotating triaxial ellipsoids. However, only a small fraction of bar orbits (∼4%) have predominately prograde motion like their periodic parent orbit. Most bar orbits arising from the x1 orbit have little net angular momentum in the bar frame, making them equivalent to box orbits in rotatingmore » triaxial potentials. In these simulations a small fraction of bar orbits (∼7%) are long-axis tubes that behave exactly like those in triaxial ellipsoids: they are tipped about the intermediate axis owing to the Coriolis force, with the sense of tipping determined by the sign of their angular momentum about the long axis. No orbits parented by prograde periodic x2 orbits are found in the pure bar model, but a tiny population (∼2%) of short-axis tube orbits parented by retrograde x4 orbits are found. When a central point mass representing a supermassive black hole (SMBH) is grown adiabatically at the center of the bar, those orbits that lie in the immediate vicinity of the SMBH are transformed into precessing Keplerian orbits that belong to the same major families (short-axis tubes, long-axis tubes and boxes) occupying the bar at larger radii. During the growth of an SMBH, the inflow of mass and outward transport of angular momentum transform some x1 and long-axis tube orbits into prograde short-axis tubes. This study has important implications for future attempts to constrain the masses of SMBHs in barred galaxies using orbit-based methods like the Schwarzschild orbit superposition scheme and for understanding the observed features in barred galaxies.« less

UPDATED MASS SCALING RELATIONS FOR NUCLEAR STAR CLUSTERS AND A COMPARISON TO SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Scott, Nicholas; Graham, Alister W.

2013-02-15

We investigate whether or not nuclear star clusters and supermassive black holes (SMBHs) follow a common set of mass scaling relations with their host galaxy's properties, and hence can be considered to form a single class of central massive object (CMO). We have compiled a large sample of galaxies with measured nuclear star cluster masses and host galaxy properties from the literature and fit log-linear scaling relations. We find that nuclear star cluster mass, M {sub NC}, correlates most tightly with the host galaxy's velocity dispersion: log M {sub NC} = (2.11 {+-} 0.31)log ({sigma}/54) + (6.63 {+-} 0.09), butmore » has a slope dramatically shallower than the relation defined by SMBHs. We find that the nuclear star cluster mass relations involving host galaxy (and spheroid) luminosity and stellar and dynamical mass, intercept with but are in general shallower than the corresponding black hole scaling relations. In particular, M {sub NC}{proportional_to}M {sup 0.55{+-}0.15} {sub Gal,dyn}; the nuclear cluster mass is not a constant fraction of its host galaxy or spheroid mass. We conclude that nuclear stellar clusters and SMBHs do not form a single family of CMOs.« less

VizieR Online Data Catalog: Type 2 AGN host galaxies in Chandra-COSMOS (Suh+, 2017)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suh, H.; Civano, F.; Hasinger, G.; Lusso, E.; Lanzuisi, G.; Marchesi, S.; Trakhtenbrot, B.; Allevato, V.; Cappelluti, N.; Capak, P. L.; Elvis, M.; Griffiths, R. E.; Laigle, C.; Lira, P.; Riguccini, L.; Rosario, D. J.; Salvato, M.; Schawinski, K.; Vignali, C.

2018-01-01

We investigate the star formation properties of a large sample of ~2300 X-ray-selected Type 2 Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) host galaxies out to z~3 in the Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey in order to understand the connection between the star formation and nuclear activity. Making use of the existing multi-wavelength photometric data available in the COSMOS field, we perform a multi-component modeling from far-infrared to near-ultraviolet using a nuclear dust torus model, a stellar population model and a starburst model of the spectral energy distributions (SEDs). Through detailed analyses of SEDs, we derive the stellar masses and the star formation rates (SFRs) of Type 2 AGN host galaxies. The stellar mass of our sample is in the range of 93), and grow slowly through secular fueling processes hosting moderate-luminosity AGNs. (1 data file).

Quasar Host Galaxies/Neptune Rotation/Galaxy Building Blocks/Hubble Deep Field/Saturn Storm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

Computerized animations simulate a quasar erupting in the core of a normal spiral galaxy, the collision of two interacting galaxies, and the evolution of the universe. Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images show six quasars' host galaxies (including spirals, ellipticals, and colliding galaxies) and six clumps of galaxies approximately 11 billion light years away. A false color time lapse movie of Neptune displays the planet's 16-hour rotation, and the evolution of a storm on Saturn is seen though a video of the planet's rotation. A zoom sequence starts with a ground-based image of the constellation Ursa major and ends with the Hubble Deep Field through progressively narrower and deeper views.

Numerical modeling of barred spiral galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moore, Elizabeth Mary

1992-08-01

A two-component, self-consistent computer code to model spiral galaxies was written and tested and a method of inducing and controlling bar formation is developed. This work presents a departure from former modeling work done at the University of Florida, which depended on the beam scheme, a hydrodynamical code with a number of limitations. In particular, only the gas component could be modeled, no self-gravitational forces were included, and the viscosity inherent to the code could not be controlled easily. These shortcomings are overcome in the new algorithm. Most importantly, an attempt has been made to keep the models self-consistent. No perturbing potentials are imposed or required to excite bar and spiral structure. The code can model both the stellar and the gaseous component of a spiral galaxy. The stellar component feels only gravitational forces, while the gas component feels both gravitational and viscous forces. In addition, a halo force can be imposed for the purpose of stabilizing the disk. The code is a hybrid grid/smooth particle code. The gravitational forces are calculated on a Cartesian grid using a Fast Fourier Transform, while the gas viscous forces are calculated in a smooth particle manner. A mechanism for creating warm, featureless, stable disks is developed by taking moments of the collision less Boltzmann equation. In order to induce and control bar and spiral arm formation, the stabilizing stellar velocity dispersions are reduced in the center of the disk, but maintained in the outer regions. A bar forms naturally in the interior and the rotation of this bar helps maintain spiral structure in the outer gas disk. Realistic-looking spiral features are maintained in the gas component for as long as the models are calculated. A wide variety of bar and spiral structure can be formed by varying the size of the unstable central region, the rate of 'turn on', of the heating and the halo mass. We would like to test the model results by comparing them with observations and so a second part of the thesis consists of observing and reducing 21 cm line data of NGC 1398 and NGC 1784 at the Very Large Array. Low (C/D array) and high (B/C) resolution data were obtained, calibrated and combined to make maps of the integrated column density and mean radial velocity of the neutral hydrogen.

Correlating The Star Formation Histories Of MaNGA Galaxies With Their Past AGN Activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonzalez Ortiz, Andrea

2017-01-01

We investigate active galactic nuclei (AGN) as a primary mechanism affecting star formation in MaNGA galaxies. Using the Pipe3D code, we modeled the stellar population from MaNGA spectra and derived the star formation histories of 53 AGN host galaxies. We seek to compare the star formation histories of the host galaxies of AGN with the ages of their radio lobes to better understand the role of AGN feedback in the star formation histories of MaNGA galaxies. MaNGA (Mapping Nearby Galaxies at APO) is one of the three core programs in the fourth generation Sloan Digital Sky Survey(SDSS). MaNGA will investigate the internal kinematics of nearly 10,000 local galaxies through dithered observations using fiber integral field units (IFUs) that vary in diameter from 12" (19 fibers) to 32" (127 fibers). In this poster, we present initial results on the star formation histories of MaNGA AGN host galaxies. This work was supported by the SDSS Research Experience for Undergraduates program, which is funded by a grant from Sloan Foundation to the Astrophysical Research Consortium.

PISCO: The PMAS/PPak Integral-field Supernova Hosts Compilation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galbany, L.; Anderson, J. P.; Sánchez, S. F.; Kuncarayakti, H.; Pedraz, S.; González-Gaitán, S.; Stanishev, V.; Domínguez, I.; Moreno-Raya, M. E.; Wood-Vasey, W. M.; Mourão, A. M.; Ponder, K. A.; Badenes, C.; Mollá, M.; López-Sánchez, A. R.; Rosales-Ortega, F. F.; Vílchez, J. M.; García-Benito, R.; Marino, R. A.

2018-03-01

We present the PMAS/PPak Integral-field Supernova hosts COmpilation (PISCO), which comprises integral field spectroscopy (IFS) of 232 supernova (SN) host galaxies that hosted 272 SNe, observed over several semesters with the 3.5 m telescope at the Calar Alto Observatory (CAHA). PISCO is the largest collection of SN host galaxies observed with wide-field IFS, totaling 466,347 individual spectra covering a typical spatial resolution of ∼380 pc. Focused studies regarding specific SN Ia-related topics will be published elsewhere; this paper aims to present the properties of the SN environments, using stellar population (SP) synthesis, and the gas-phase interstellar medium, providing additional results separating stripped-envelope SNe into their subtypes. With 11,270 H II regions detected in all galaxies, we present for the first time a statistical analysis of H II regions, which puts H II regions that have hosted SNe in context with all other star-forming clumps within their galaxies. SNe Ic are associated with environments that are more metal-rich and have higher EW(Hα) and higher star formation rate within their host galaxies than the mean of all H II regions detected within each host. This in contrast to SNe IIb, which occur in environments that are very different compared to other core-collapse SNe types. We find two clear components of young and old SPs at SNe IIn locations. We find that SNe II fast decliners tend to explode at locations where the ΣSFR is more intense. Finally, we outline how a future dedicated IFS survey of galaxies in parallel to an untargeted SN search would overcome the biases in current environmental studies.

On the Gas Content and Efficiency of AGN Feedback in Low-redshift Quasars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shangguan, Jinyi; Ho, Luis C.; Xie, Yanxia

2018-02-01

The interstellar medium is crucial to understanding the physics of active galaxies and the coevolution between supermassive black holes and their host galaxies. However, direct gas measurements are limited by sensitivity and other uncertainties. Dust provides an efficient indirect probe of the total gas. We apply this technique to a large sample of quasars, whose total gas content would be prohibitively expensive to measure. We present a comprehensive study of the full (1 to 500 μm) infrared spectral energy distributions of 87 redshift <0.5 quasars selected from the Palomar-Green sample, using photometric measurements from 2MASS, WISE, and Herschel, combined with Spitzer mid-infrared (5–40 μm) spectra. With a newly developed Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo fitting method, we decompose various overlapping contributions to the integrated spectral energy distribution, including starlight, warm dust from the torus, and cooler dust on galaxy scales. This procedure yields a robust dust mass, which we use to infer the gas mass, using a gas-to-dust ratio constrained by the host galaxy stellar mass. Most (90%) quasar hosts have gas fractions similar to those of massive, star-forming galaxies, although a minority (10%) seem genuinely gas-deficient, resembling present-day massive early-type galaxies. This result indicates that “quasar mode” feedback does not occur or is ineffective in the host galaxies of low-redshift quasars. We also find that quasars can boost the interstellar radiation field and heat dust on galactic scales. This cautions against the common practice of using the far-infrared luminosity to estimate the host galaxy star formation rate.

Hubble Sees a Silver Needle in the Sky

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-22

This stunning new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows part of the sky in the constellation of Canes Venatici (The Hunting Dogs). Although this region of the sky is not home to any stellar heavyweights, being mostly filled with stars of average brightness, it does contain five Messier objects and numerous intriguing galaxies — including NGC 5195, a small barred spiral galaxy considered to be one of the most beautiful galaxies visible, and its nearby interacting partner the Whirlpool Galaxy (heic0506a). The quirky Sunflower Galaxy is another notable galaxy in this constellation, and is one of the largest and brightest edge-on galaxies in our skies. Joining this host of characters is spiral galaxy NGC 4244, nicknamed the Silver Needle Galaxy, shown in this new image from Hubble. This galaxy spans some 65,000 light-years and lies around 13.5 million light-years away. It appears as a wafer-thin streak across the sky, with loosely wound spiral arms hidden from view as we observe the galaxy from the side. It is part of a group of galaxies known as the M94 Group. Numerous bright clumps of gas can be seen scattered across its length, along with dark dust lanes surrounding the galaxy’s core. NGC 4244 also has a bright star cluster at its center. Although we can make out the galaxy’s bright central region and star-spattered arms, we cannot see any more intricate structure due to the galaxy’s position; from Earth, we see it stretched out as a flattened streak across the sky. A number of different observations were pieced together to form this mosaic, and gaps in Hubble’s coverage have been filled in using ground-based data. The Hubble observations were taken as part of the Galaxy Halos, Outer disks, Substructure, Thick disks and Star clusters (GHOSTS) survey, which is scanning nearby galaxies to explore how they and their stars formed to get a more complete view of the history of the Universe. European Space Agency Credit: NASA & ESA, Acknowledgement: Roelof de Jong NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

An Optimal Strategy for Accurate Bulge-to-disk Decomposition of Disk Galaxies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gao Hua; Ho, Luis C.

The development of two-dimensional (2D) bulge-to-disk decomposition techniques has shown their advantages over traditional one-dimensional (1D) techniques, especially for galaxies with non-axisymmetric features. However, the full potential of 2D techniques has yet to be fully exploited. Secondary morphological features in nearby disk galaxies, such as bars, lenses, rings, disk breaks, and spiral arms, are seldom accounted for in 2D image decompositions, even though some image-fitting codes, such as GALFIT, are capable of handling them. We present detailed, 2D multi-model and multi-component decomposition of high-quality R -band images of a representative sample of nearby disk galaxies selected from the Carnegie-Irvine Galaxymore » Survey, using the latest version of GALFIT. The sample consists of five barred and five unbarred galaxies, spanning Hubble types from S0 to Sc. Traditional 1D decomposition is also presented for comparison. In detailed case studies of the 10 galaxies, we successfully model the secondary morphological features. Through a comparison of best-fit parameters obtained from different input surface brightness models, we identify morphological features that significantly impact bulge measurements. We show that nuclear and inner lenses/rings and disk breaks must be properly taken into account to obtain accurate bulge parameters, whereas outer lenses/rings and spiral arms have a negligible effect. We provide an optimal strategy to measure bulge parameters of typical disk galaxies, as well as prescriptions to estimate realistic uncertainties of them, which will benefit subsequent decomposition of a larger galaxy sample.« less

Hα kinematics of S4G spiral galaxies - III. Inner rotation curves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erroz-Ferrer, Santiago; Knapen, Johan H.; Leaman, Ryan; Díaz-García, Simón; Salo, Heikki; Laurikainen, Eija; Querejeta, Miguel; Muñoz-Mateos, Juan Carlos; Athanassoula, E.; Bosma, Albert; Comerón, Sebastien; Elmegreen, Bruce G.; Martínez-Valpuesta, Inma

2016-05-01

We present a detailed study of the shape of the innermost part of the rotation curves of a sample of 29 nearby spiral galaxies, based on high angular and spectral resolution kinematic Hα Fabry-Perot observations. In particular, we quantify the steepness of the rotation curve by measuring its slope dRvc(0). We explore the relationship between the inner slope and several galaxy parameters, such as stellar mass, maximum rotational velocity, central surface brightness (μ0), bar strength and bulge-to-total ratio. Even with our limited dynamical range, we find a trend for low-mass galaxies to exhibit shallower rotation curve inner slopes than high-mass galaxies, whereas steep inner slopes are found exclusively in high-mass galaxies. This trend may arise from the relationship between the total stellar mass and the mass of the bulge, which are correlated among them. We find a correlation between the inner slope of the rotation curve and the morphological T-type, complementary to the scaling relation between dRvc(0) and μ0 previously reported in the literature. Although we find that the inner slope increases with the Fourier amplitude A2 and decreases with the bar torque Qb, this may arise from the presence of the bulge implicit in both A2 and Qb. As previously noted in the literature, the more compact the mass in the central parts of a galaxy (more concretely, the presence of a bulge), the steeper the inner slopes. We conclude that the baryonic matter dominates the dynamics in the central parts of our sample galaxies.

IRAS observations of Shapley-Ames galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

De Jong, T.; Clegg, P. E.; Rowan-Robinson, M.; Soifer, B. T.; Habing, H. J.; Houck, J. R.; Aumann, H. H.; Raimond, E.

1984-01-01

A preliminary discussion of the infrared properties of a representative subsample of galaxies in the Revised Shapley-Ames Catalog (B less than about 13 mag) is presented. Of the 165 galaxies in the sample, 108 predominantly spiral galaxies, are detected in the infrared by IRAS. None of the elliptical galaxies and only about 25 percent of the lenticular galaxies scanned were detected. The range of infrared-to-blue luminosity ratios, a measure of the infrared excess of galaxies, is large, varying from roughly 0.1 to roughly 5. The data suggest that weakly infrared emitting galaxies are cool (100-60 micron color temperatures of about 25 K), while the more infrared luminous ones tend to be warmer (about 50 K). The rate of star formation in barred spiral galaxies is apparently higher than in normal spirals. About 1 solar mass/year of interstellar matter is converted into massive stars in the typical spiral galaxy.

Spitzer Observations of GRB Hosts: A Legacy Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perley, Daniel; Tanvir, Nial; Hjorth, Jens; Berger, Edo; Laskar, Tanmoy; Michalowski, Michal; Chary, Ranga-Ram; Fynbo, Johan; Levan, Andrew

2012-09-01

The host galaxies of long-duration GRBs are drawn from uniquely broad range of luminosities and redshifts. Thus they offer the possibility of studying the evolution of star-forming galaxies without the limitations of other luminosity-selected samples, which typically are increasingly biased towards the most massive systems at higher redshift. However, reaping the full benefits of this potential requires careful attention to the selection biases affecting host identification. To this end, we propose observations of a Legacy sample of 70 GRB host galaxies (an additional 70 have already been observed by Spitzer), in order to constrain the mass and luminosity function in GRB-selected galaxies at high redshift, including its dependence on redshift and on properties of the afterglow. Crucially, and unlike previous Spitzer surveys, this sample is carefully designed to be uniform and free of optical selection biases that have caused previous surveys to systematically under-represent the role of luminous, massive hosts. We also propose to extend to larger, more powerfully constraining samples the study of two science areas where Spitzer observations have recently shown spectacular success: the hosts of dust-obscured GRBs (which promise to further our understanding of the connection between GRBs and star-formation in the most luminous galaxies), and the evolution of the mass-metallicity relation at z>2 (for which GRB host observations provide particularly powerful constraints on high-z chemical evolution).

Grand Swirls from NASA's Hubble

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-06-06

This new Hubble image shows NGC 1566, a beautiful galaxy located approximately 40 million light-years away in the constellation of Dorado (The Dolphinfish). NGC 1566 is an intermediate spiral galaxy, meaning that while it does not have a well-defined bar-shaped region of stars at its center — like barred spirals — it is not quite an unbarred spiral either. The small but extremely bright nucleus of NGC 1566 is clearly visible in this image, a telltale sign of its membership of the Seyfert class of galaxies. The centers of such galaxies are very active and luminous, emitting strong bursts of radiation and potentially harboring supermassive black holes that are many millions of times the mass of the sun. NGC 1566 is not just any Seyfert galaxy; it is the second brightest Seyfert galaxy known. It is also the brightest and most dominant member of the Dorado Group, a loose concentration of galaxies that together comprise one of the richest galaxy groups of the southern hemisphere. This image highlights the beauty and awe-inspiring nature of this unique galaxy group, with NGC 1566 glittering and glowing, its bright nucleus framed by swirling and symmetrical lavender arms. This image was taken by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) in the near-infrared part of the spectrum. European Space Agency Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Acknowledgement: Flickr user Det58 NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

LOFAR-Boötes: properties of high- and low-excitation radio galaxies at 0.5 < z < 2.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williams, W. L.; Calistro Rivera, G.; Best, P. N.; Hardcastle, M. J.; Röttgering, H. J. A.; Duncan, K. J.; de Gasperin, F.; Jarvis, M. J.; Miley, G. K.; Mahony, E. K.; Morabito, L. K.; Nisbet, D. M.; Prandoni, I.; Smith, D. J. B.; Tasse, C.; White, G. J.

2018-04-01

This paper presents a study of the redshift evolution of radio-loud active galactic nuclei (AGN) as a function of the properties of their galaxy hosts in the Boötes field. To achieve this we match low-frequency radio sources from deep 150-MHz LOFAR (LOw Frequency ARray) observations to an I-band-selected catalogue of galaxies, for which we have derived photometric redshifts, stellar masses, and rest-frame colours. We present spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting to determine the mid-infrared AGN contribution for the radio sources and use this information to classify them as high- versus low-excitation radio galaxies (HERGs and LERGs) or star-forming galaxies. Based on these classifications, we construct luminosity functions for the separate redshift ranges going out to z = 2. From the matched radio-optical catalogues, we select a sub-sample of 624 high power (P150 MHz > 1025 W Hz-1) radio sources between 0.5 ≤ z < 2. For this sample, we study the fraction of galaxies hosting HERGs and LERGs as a function of stellar mass and host galaxy colour. The fraction of HERGs increases with redshift, as does the fraction of sources in galaxies with lower stellar masses. We find that the fraction of galaxies that host LERGs is a strong function of stellar mass as it is in the local Universe. This, combined with the strong negative evolution of the LERG luminosity functions over this redshift range, is consistent with LERGs being fuelled by hot gas in quiescent galaxies.

Discovery of a population of bulgeless galaxies with extremely red MID-IR colors: Obscured AGN activity in the low-mass regime?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Satyapal, S.; Secrest, N. J.; McAlpine, W.

2014-04-01

In contrast to massive, bulge hosting galaxies, very few supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are known in either low-mass or bulgeless galaxies. Such a population could provide clues to the origins of SMBHs and to secular pathways for their growth. Using the all-sky Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE ) survey, and bulge-to-disk decompositions from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7, we report the discovery of a population of local (z < 0.3) bulgeless disk galaxies with extremely red mid-infrared colors which are highly suggestive of a dominant active galactic nucleus (AGN), despite having no optical AGN signatures inmore » their SDSS spectra. Using various mid-infrared selection criteria from the literature, there are between 30 and over 300 bulgeless galaxies with possible AGNs. Other known scenarios that can heat the dust to high temperatures do not appear to explain the observed colors of this sample. If these galaxies are confirmed to host AGNs, this study will provide a breakthrough in characterizing the properties of SMBHs in the low bulge mass regime and in understanding their relation with their host galaxies. Mid-infrared selection identifies AGNs that dominate their host galaxy's emission and therefore reveal a different AGN population than that uncovered by optical studies. We find that the fraction of all galaxies identified as candidate AGNs by WISE is highest at lower stellar masses and drops dramatically in higher mass galaxies, in striking contrast to the findings from optical studies.« less

Sweating the small stuff: simulating dwarf galaxies, ultra-faint dwarf galaxies, and their own tiny satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wheeler, Coral; Oñorbe, Jose; Bullock, James S.; Boylan-Kolchin, Michael; Elbert, Oliver D.; Garrison-Kimmel, Shea; Hopkins, Philip F.; Kereš, Dušan

2015-10-01

We present Feedback in Realistic Environment (FIRE)/GIZMO hydrodynamic zoom-in simulations of isolated dark matter haloes, two each at the mass of classical dwarf galaxies (Mvir ≃ 1010 M⊙) and ultra-faint galaxies (Mvir ≃ 109 M⊙), and with two feedback implementations. The resulting central galaxies lie on an extrapolated abundance matching relation from M⋆ ≃ 106 to 104 M⊙ without a break. Every host is filled with subhaloes, many of which form stars. Each of our dwarfs with M⋆ ≃ 106 M⊙ has 1-2 well-resolved satellites with M⋆ = 3-200 × 103 M⊙. Even our isolated ultra-faint galaxies have star-forming subhaloes. If this is representative, dwarf galaxies throughout the Universe should commonly host tiny satellite galaxies of their own. We combine our results with the Exploring the Local Volume in Simulations (ELVIS) simulations to show that targeting ˜ 50 kpc regions around nearby isolated dwarfs could increase the chances of discovering ultra-faint galaxies by ˜35 per cent compared to random pointings, and specifically identify the region around the Phoenix dwarf galaxy as a good potential target. The well-resolved ultra-faint galaxies in our simulations (M⋆ ≃ 3-30 × 103 M⊙) form within Mpeak ≃ 0.5-3 × 109 M⊙ haloes. Each has a uniformly ancient stellar population ( > 10 Gyr) owing to reionization-related quenching. More massive systems, in contrast, all have late-time star formation. Our results suggest that Mhalo ≃ 5 × 109 M⊙ is a probable dividing line between haloes hosting reionization `fossils' and those hosting dwarfs that can continue to form stars in isolation after reionization.

Understanding the Progenitors of Short Gamma-Ray Bursts via their Host Galaxies: A Pilot Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cenko, S. Brad

2014-08-01

While massive star core-collapse is known to power long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), the origin of short GRBs remains unconfirmed. Studies of the host galaxies of short GRBs provide critical constraints on their progenitors, particularly if (as expected) short GRBs result from the neutron star mergers. Here we request deep Keck/LRIS imaging of short GRBs lacking securely identified hosts. By constraining the fraction of events that appear to have been 'kicked' out of their host galaxy in a more unbiased manner than past efforts, we aim to infer fundamental properties about the formation and evolution of binary neutron star systems.

Complete identification of the Parkes half-Jansky sample of GHz peaked spectrum radio galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vries, N.; Snellen, I. A. G.; Schilizzi, R. T.; Lehnert, M. D.; Bremer, M. N.

2007-03-01

Context: Gigahertz Peaked Spectrum (GPS) radio galaxies are generally thought to be the young counterparts of classical extended radio sources. Statistically complete samples of GPS sources are vital for studying the early evolution of radio-loud AGN and the trigger of their nuclear activity. The "Parkes half-Jansky" sample of GPS radio galaxies is such a sample, representing the southern counterpart of the 1998 Stanghellini sample of bright GPS sources. Aims: As a first step of the investigation of the sample, the host galaxies need to be identified and their redshifts determined. Methods: Deep R-band VLT-FORS1 and ESO 3.6 m EFOSC II images and long slit spectra have been taken for the unidentified sources in the sample. Results: We have identified all twelve previously unknown host galaxies of the radio sources in the sample. Eleven have host galaxies in the range 21.0 < RC < 23.0, while one object, PKS J0210+0419, is identified in the near infrared with a galaxy with Ks = 18.3. The redshifts of 21 host galaxies have been determined in the range 0.474 < z < 1.539, bringing the total number of redshifts to 39 (80%). Analysis of the absolute magnitudes of the GPS host galaxies show that at z>1 they are on average a magnitude fainter than classical 3C radio galaxies, as found in earlier studies. However their restframe UV luminosities indicate that there is an extra light contribution from the AGN, or from a population of young stars. Based on observations collected at the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope, Paranal, Chile (ESO prog. ID No. 073.B-0289(B)) and the European Southern Observatory 3.6 m Telescope, La Silla, Chile (prog. ID No. 073.B-0289(A)). Appendices are only available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

THE MOLECULAR GAS DENSITY IN GALAXY CENTERS AND HOW IT CONNECTS TO BULGES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fisher, David B.; Bolatto, Alberto; Drory, Niv

2013-02-20

In this paper we present gas density, star formation rate (SFR), stellar masses, and bulge-disk decompositions for a sample of 60 galaxies. Our sample is the combined sample of the BIMA SONG, CARMA STING, and PdBI NUGA surveys. We study the effect of using CO-to-H{sub 2} conversion factors that depend on the CO surface brightness, and also that of correcting SFRs for diffuse emission from old stellar populations. We estimate that SFRs in bulges are typically lower by 20% when correcting for diffuse emission. Using the surface brightness dependent conversion factor, we find that over half of the galaxies inmore » our sample have {Sigma}{sub mol} > 100 M {sub Sun} pc{sup -2}. Though our sample is not complete in any sense, our results are enough to rule out the assumption that bulges are uniformly gas-poor systems. We find a trend between gas density of bulges and bulge Sersic index; bulges with lower Sersic index have higher gas density. Those bulges with low Sersic index (pseudobulges) have gas fractions that are similar to that of disks. Conversely, the typical molecular gas fraction in classical bulges is more similar to that of an elliptical galaxy. We also find that there is a strong correlation between bulges with the highest gas surface density and the galaxy being barred. However, we also find that classical bulges with low gas surface density can be barred as well. Our results suggest that understanding the connection between the central surface density of gas in disk galaxies and the presence of bars should also take into account the total gas content of the galaxy. Finally, we show that when using the corrected SFRs and gas densities, the correlation between SFR surface density and gas surface density of bulges is similar to that of disks. This implies that at the scale of the bulges the timescale for converting gas into stars is comparable to those results found in disks.« less

ALMA and RATIR observations of GRB 131030A

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Kuiyun; Urata, Yuji; Takahashi, Satoko; Im, Myungshin; Yu, Po-Chieh; Choi, Changsu; Butler, Nathaniel; Watson, Alan M.; Kutyrev, Alexander; Lee, William H.; Klein, Chris; Fox, Ori D.; Littlejohns, Owen; Cucchiara, Nino; Troja, Eleonora; González, Jesús; Richer, Michael G.; Román-Zúñiga, Carlos; Bloom, Josh; Prochaska, J. Xavier; Gehrels, Neil; Moseley, Harvey; Georgiev, Leonid; de Diego, José A.; Ramirez-Ruiz, Enrico

2017-04-01

We report on the first open-use based Atacama Large Millimeter/submm Array (ALMA) 345 GHz observation for the late afterglow phase of GRB 131030A. The ALMA observation constrained a deep limit at 17.1 d for the afterglow and host galaxy. We also identified a faint submillimeter source (ALMA J2300-0522) near the GRB 131030A position. The deep limit at 345 GHz and multifrequency observations obtained using Swift and RATIR yielded forward-shock modeling with a two-dimensional relativistic hydrodynamic jet simulation and described X-ray excess in the afterglow. The excess was inconsistent with the synchrotron self-inverse Compton radiation from the forward shock. The host galaxy of GRB 131030A and optical counterpart of ALMA J2300-0522 were also identified in the Subaru image. Based on the deep ALMA limit for the host galaxy, the 3σ upper limits of IR luminosity and the star formation rate (SFR) are estimated as LIR < 1.11 × 1011 L⊙ and SFR <18.7 (M⊙ yr-1), respectively. Although the separation angle from the burst location (3{^''.}5) was rather large, ALMA J2300-0522 may be one component of the GRB 131030A host galaxy, according to previous host galaxy cases.

A Multiwavelength Study of POX 52, a Dwarf Seyfert Galaxy with an Intermediate Mass Black Hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barth, Aaron

2004-09-01

POX 52 is a Seyfert 1 galaxy with unprecedented properties: its host galaxy is a dwarf elliptical, and its stellar velocity dispersion is only 36 km/s. The stellar velocity dispersion and the broad emission-line widths both suggest a black hole mass of order 10^5 solar masses. We request HST ACS/HRC imaging to perform a definitive measurement of the host galaxy structure; STIS UV and optical spectroscopy to study the nonstellar continuum and the structure of the broad-line region; and Chandra ACIS imaging to investigate the spectral and variability properties of the X-ray emission. The results of this program will give a detailed understanding of the host galaxy and accretion properties of one of the very few known black holes in the mass range around 10^5 solar masses.

The Impact of Assembly Bias on the Galaxy Content of Dark Matter Halos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zehavi, Idit; Contreras, Sergio; Padilla, Nelson; Smith, Nicholas J.; Baugh, Carlton M.; Norberg, Peder

2018-01-01

We study the dependence of the galaxy content of dark matter halos on large-scale environment and halo formation time using semi-analytic galaxy models applied to the Millennium simulation. We analyze subsamples of halos at the extremes of these distributions and measure the occupation functions for the galaxies they host. We find distinct differences among these occupation functions. The main effect with environment is that central galaxies (and in one model, also the satellites) in denser regions start populating lower-mass halos. A similar, but significantly stronger, trend exists with halo age, where early-forming halos are more likely to host central galaxies at lower halo mass. We discuss the origin of these trends and the connection to the stellar mass–halo mass relation. We find that, at fixed halo mass, older halos and to some extent also halos in dense environments tend to host more massive galaxies. Additionally, we see a reverse trend for the occupation of satellite galaxies where early-forming halos have fewer satellites, likely due to having more time for them to merge with the central galaxy. We describe these occupancy variations in terms of the changes in the occupation function parameters, which can aid in constructing realistic mock galaxy samples. Finally, we study the corresponding galaxy auto- and cross-correlation functions of the different samples and elucidate the impact of assembly bias on galaxy clustering. Our results can inform theoretical modeling of galaxy assembly bias and attempts to detect it in the real universe.

A New Clue in the Mystery of Fast Radio Bursts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2017-06-01

The origin of the mysterious fast radio bursts has eluded us for more than a decade. With the help of a particularly cooperative burst, however, scientists may finally be homing in on the answer to this puzzle.A Burst RepeatsThe host of FRB 121102 is placed in context in this Gemini image. [Gemini Observatory/AURA/NSF/NRC]More than 20 fast radio bursts rare and highly energetic millisecond-duration radio pulses have been observed since the first was discovered in 2007. FRB 121102, however, is unique in its behavior: its the only one of these bursts to repeat. The many flashes observed from FRB 121102 allowed us for the first time to follow up on the burst and hunt for its location.Earlier this year, this work led to the announcement that FRB 121102s host galaxy has been identified: a dwarf galaxy located at a redshift of z = 0.193 (roughly 3 billion light-years away). Now a team of scientists led by Cees Bassa (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy) has performed additional follow-up to learn more about this host and what might be causing the mysterious flashes.Hubble observation of the host galaxy. The object at the bottom right is a reference star. The blue ellipse marks the extended diffuse emission of the galaxy, the red circle marks the centroid of the star-forming knot, and the white cross denotes the location of FRB 121102 ad the associated persistent radio source. [Adapted from Bassa et al. 2017]Host ObservationsBassa and collaborators used the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telecsope, and the Gemini North telecsope in Hawaii to obtain optical, near-infrared, and mid-infrared observations of FRB 121102s host galaxy.The authors determined that the galaxy is a dim, irregular, low-metallicity dwarf galaxy. Its resolved, revealing a bright star-forming region roughly 4,000 light-years across in the galaxys outskirts. Intriguingly, the persistent radio source associated with FRB 121102 falls directly within that star-forming knot.Bassa and collaborators also found that the properties of the host galaxy are consistent with those of a type of galaxy known as extreme emission line galaxies. This provides a tantalizing clue, as these galaxies are known to host both hydrogen-poor superluminous supernovae and long-duration gamma-ray bursts.Linking to the CauseWhat can this tell us about the cause of FRB 121102? The fact that this burst repeats already eliminates cataclysmic events as the origin. But the projected location of FRB 121102 within a star-forming region especially in a host galaxy thats similar to those typically hosting superluminous supernovae and long gamma-ray bursts strongly suggests theres a relation between these events.Artists impression of a gamma-ray burst in a star-forming region. [NASA/Swift/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith and John Jones]The authors propose that this observed coincidence, supported by models of magnetized neutron star birth, indicate an evolutionary link between fast radio bursts and neutron stars. In this picture, neutron stars or magnetars are born as long gamma-ray bursts or hydrogen-poor supernovae, and then evolve into fast-radio-burst-emitting sources.This picture may finally explain the cause of fast radio bursts but Bassa and collaborators caution that its also possible that this model applies only to FRB 121102. Since FRB 121102 is unique in being the only burst discovered to repeat, its cause may also be unique. The authors suggest that targeted searches of star-forming regions in galaxies similar to FRB 121102s host may reveal other repeating burst candidates, helping us to unravel the ongoing mystery of fast radio bursts.CitationC. G. Bassa et al 2017 ApJL 843 L8. doi:10.3847/2041-8213/aa7a0c

The Swift GRB Host Galaxy Legacy Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perley, Daniel

2015-08-01

I will describe the Swift Host Galaxy Legacy Survey (SHOALS), a comprehensive multiwavelength program to characterize the demographics of the GRB host population and its redshift evolution from z=0 to z=7. Using unbiased selection criteria we have designated a subset of 119 Swift gamma-ray bursts which are now being targeted with intensive observational follow-up. Deep Spitzer imaging of every field has already been obtained and analyzed, with major programs ongoing at Keck, GTC, Gemini, VLT, and Magellan to obtain complementary optical/NIR photometry and spectroscopy to enable full SED modeling and derivation of fundamental physical parameters such as mass, extinction, and star-formation rate. Using these data I will present an unbiased measurement of the GRB host-galaxy luminosity and mass distributions and their evolution with redshift, compare GRB hosts to other star-forming galaxy populations, and discuss implications for the nature of the GRB progenitor and the ability of GRBs to serve as tools for measuring and studying cosmic star-formation in the distant universe.

New Members in the Galaxy Group Around Giant Radio Galaxy DA 240

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Ru-Rong; Peng, Bo; Strom, Richard

2018-05-01

With new spectroscopic observations of group candidates around the giant radio galaxy DA 240, we have identified five new group members, increasing the number to twenty-five. While all the new members are located some distance from the host galaxy, two of them lie in one of the radio lobes, and the rest are found at a distance from the radio components. The new group members reinforce our earlier conclusion that the distribution of the DA 240 group with respect to the radio lobes is unusual among giant radio galaxy host environments.

Type Ia supernova host galaxies as seen with IFU spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanishev, V.; Rodrigues, M.; Mourão, A.; Flores, H.

2012-09-01

Context. Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) have been widely used in cosmology as distance indicators. However, to fully exploit their potential in cosmology, a better control over systematic uncertainties is required. Some of the uncertainties are related to the unknown nature of the SN Ia progenitors. Aims: We aim to test the use of integral field unit (IFU) spectroscopy for correlating the properties of nearby SNe Ia with the properties of their host galaxies at the location of the SNe. The results are to be compared with those obtained from an analysis of the total host spectrum. The goal is to explore this path of constraining the nature of the SN Ia progenitors and further improve the use of SNe Ia in cosmology. Methods: We used the wide-field IFU spectrograph PMAS/PPAK at the 3.5 m telescope of Calar Alto Observatory to observe six nearby spiral galaxies that hosted SNe Ia. Spatially resolved 2D maps of the properties of the ionized gas and the stellar populations were derived. Results: Five of the observed galaxies have an ongoing star formation rate of 1-5 M⊙ yr-1 and mean stellar population ages ~5 Gyr. The sixth galaxy shows no star formation and has an about 12 Gyr old stellar population. All galaxies have stellar masses larger than 2 × 1010 M⊙ and metallicities above solar. Four galaxies show negative radial metallicity gradients of the ionized gas up to -0.058 dex kpc-1 and one has nearly uniform metallicity with a possible shallow positive slope. The stellar components show shallower negative metallicity gradients up to -0.03 dex kpc-1. We find no clear correlation between the properties of the galaxy and those of the supernovae, which may be because of the small ranges spanned by the galaxy parameters. However, we note that the Hubble residuals are on average positive while negative Hubble residuals are expected for SNe Ia in massive hosts such as the galaxies in our sample. Conclusions: The IFU spectroscopy on 4-m telescopes is a viable technique for studying host galaxies of nearby SNe Ia. It allows one to correlate the supernova properties with the properties of their host galaxies at the projected positions of the supernovae. Our current sample of six galaxies is too small to draw conclusions about the SN Ia progenitors or correlations with the galaxy properties, but the ongoing CALIFA IFU survey will provide a solid basis to exploit this technique more and improve our understanding of SNe Ia as cosmological standard candles. Based on observations collected at the Centro Astronómico Hispano Alemán (CAHA) at Calar Alto, operated jointly by the Max-Planck Institut für Astronomie and the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (CSIC).Figures 7-15 and Appendices are available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

The Spitzer/Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Host Galaxy Extended Legacy Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perley, Daniel; Berger, Edo; Butler, Nathaniel; Cenko, S. Bradley; Chary, Ranga-Ram; Cucchiara, Antonino; Ellis, Richard; Fong, Wen-fai; Fruchter, Andrew; Fynbo, Johan; Gehrels, Neil; Graham, John; Greiner, Jochen; Hjorth, Jens; Hunt, Leslie; Jakobsson, Pall; Kruehler, Thomas; Laskar, Tanmoy; Le Floc'h, Emerich; Levan, Andrew; Levesque, Emily; Littlejohns, Owen; Malesani, Daniele; Michalowski, Michal; Prochaska, J. Xavier; Salvaterra, Ruben; Schulze, Steve; Schady, Patricia; Tanvir, Nial; de Ugarte Postigo, Antonio; Vergani, Susanna

2014-12-01

Long-duration gamma-ray bursts act as beacons to the sites of star-formation in the distant universe. GRBs reveal galaxies too faint and star-forming regions too dusty to characterize in detail using any other method, and provide a powerful independent constraint on the evolution of the cosmic star-formation rate density at high-redshift. However, a full understanding of the GRB phenomenon and its relation to cosmic star-formation requires connecting the observations obtained from GRBs to the properties of the galaxies hosting them. The large majority of GRBs originate at moderate to high redshift (z>1) and Spitzer has proven crucial for understanding the host population, given its unique ability to observe the rest-frame NIR and its unrivaled sensitivity and efficiency. We propose to complete a comprehensive public legacy survey of the Swift GRB host population to build on our earlier successes and push beyond the statistical limits of previous, smaller efforts. Our survey will enable a diverse range of GRB and galaxy science including: (1) to quantitatively and robustly map the connection between GRBs and cosmic star-formation to constrain the GRB progenitor and calibrate GRB rate-based measurements of the high-z cosmic star-formation rate; (2) to constrain the luminosity function of star-forming galaxies at the faint end and at high redshift; (3) to understand how the ISM properties seen in absorption in high-redshift galaxies unveiled by GRBs - metallicity, dust column, dust properties - connect to global properties of the host galaxies such as mass and age. Building on a decade of experience at both observatories, our observations will create an enduring joint Swift-Spitzer legacy sample and provide the definitive resource with which to examine all aspects of the GRB/galaxy connection for years and possibly decades to come.

Empirical Constraints on the Origin of Fast Radio Bursts: Volumetric Rates and Host Galaxy Demographics as a Test of Millisecond Magnetar Connection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicholl, M.; Williams, P. K. G.; Berger, E.; Villar, V. A.; Alexander, K. D.; Eftekhari, T.; Metzger, B. D.

2017-07-01

The localization of the repeating fast radio burst (FRB) 121102 to a low-metallicity dwarf galaxy at z = 0.193, and its association with a luminous quiescent radio source, suggests the possibility that FRBs originate from magnetars, formed by the unusual supernovae that occur in such galaxies. We investigate this possibility via a comparison of magnetar birth rates, the FRB volumetric rate, and host galaxy demographics. We calculate average volumetric rates of possible millisecond magnetar production channels, such as superluminous supernovae (SLSNe), long and short gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), and general magnetar production via core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe). For each channel, we also explore the expected host galaxy demographics using their known properties. We determine for the first time the number density of FRB emitters (the product of their volumetric birth rate and lifetime), {R}{FRB}τ ≈ {10}4 Gpc-3, assuming that FRBs are predominantly emitted from repetitive sources similar to FRB 121102 and adopting a beaming factor of 0.1. By comparing rates, we find that production via rare channels (SLSNe, GRBs) implies a typical FRB lifetime of ˜30-300 years, in good agreement with other lines of argument. The total energy emitted over this time is consistent with the available energy stored in the magnetic field. On the other hand, any relation to magnetars produced via normal CCSNe leads to a very short lifetime of ˜0.5 years, in conflict with both theory and observation. We demonstrate that due to the diverse host galaxy distributions of the different progenitor channels, many possible sources of FRB birth can be ruled out with ≲ 10 host galaxy identifications. Conversely, targeted searches of galaxies that have previously hosted decades-old SLSNe and GRBs may be a fruitful strategy for discovering new FRBs and related quiescent radio sources, and determining the nature of their progenitors.

Satellite accretion on to massive galaxies with central black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boylan-Kolchin, Michael; Ma, Chung-Pei

2007-02-01

Minor mergers of galaxies are expected to be common in a hierarchical cosmology such as Λ cold dark matter. Though less disruptive than major mergers, minor mergers are more frequent and thus have the potential to affect galactic structure significantly. In this paper, we dissect the case-by-case outcome from a set of numerical simulations of a single satellite elliptical galaxy accreting on to a massive elliptical galaxy. We take care to explore cosmologically relevant orbital parameters and to set up realistic initial galaxy models that include all three relevant dynamical components: dark matter haloes, stellar bulges, and central massive black holes (BHs). The effects of several different parameters are considered, including orbital energy and angular momentum, satellite density and inner density profile, satellite-to-host mass ratio, and presence of a BH at the centre of the host. BHs play a crucial role in protecting the shallow stellar cores of the hosts, as satellites merging on to a host with a central BH are more strongly disrupted than those merging on to hosts without BHs. Orbital parameters play an important role in determining the degree of disruption: satellites on less-bound or more-eccentric orbits are more easily destroyed than those on more-bound or more-circular orbits as a result of an increased number of pericentric passages and greater cumulative effects of gravitational shocking and tidal stripping. In addition, satellites with densities typical of faint elliptical galaxies are disrupted relatively easily, while denser satellites can survive much better in the tidal field of the host. Over the range of parameters explored, we find that the accretion of a single satellite elliptical galaxy can result in a broad variety of changes, in both signs, in the surface brightness profile and colour of the central part of an elliptical galaxy. Our results show that detailed properties of the stellar components of merging satellites can strongly affect the properties of the remnants.

ALMA observations of the host galaxy of GRB 090423 at z = 8.23: deep limits on obscured star formation 630 million years after the big bang

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Berger, E.; Zauderer, B. A.; Chary, R.-R.

2014-12-01

We present rest-frame far-infrared (FIR) and optical observations of the host galaxy of GRB 090423 at z = 8.23 from the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) and the Spitzer Space Telescope, respectively. The host remains undetected to 3σ limits of F {sub ν}(222 GHz) ≲ 33 μJy and F {sub ν}(3.6 μm) ≲ 81 nJy. The FIR limit is about 20 times fainter than the luminosity of the local ULIRG Arp 220 and comparable to the local starburst M 82. Comparing this with model spectral energy distributions, we place a limit on the infrared (IR) luminosity of L {sub IR}(8-1000more » μm) ≲ 3 × 10{sup 10} L {sub ☉}, corresponding to a limit on the obscured star formation rate of SFR{sub IR}≲5 M {sub ☉} yr{sup –1}. For comparison, the limit on the unobscured star formation rate from Hubble Space Telescope rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) observations is SFR{sub UV} ≲ 1 M {sub ☉} yr{sup –1}. We also place a limit on the host galaxy stellar mass of M {sub *} ≲ 5 × 10{sup 7} M {sub ☉} (for a stellar population age of 100 Myr and constant star formation rate). Finally, we compare our millimeter observations to those of field galaxies at z ≳ 4 (Lyman break galaxies, Lyα emitters, and submillimeter galaxies) and find that our limit on the FIR luminosity is the most constraining to date, although the field galaxies have much larger rest-frame UV/optical luminosities than the host of GRB 090423 by virtue of their selection techniques. We conclude that GRB host galaxies at z ≳ 4, especially those with measured interstellar medium metallicities from afterglow spectroscopy, are an attractive sample for future ALMA studies of high redshift obscured star formation.« less

Weak bump quasars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilkes, B. J.; Mcdowell, J.

1994-01-01

Research into the optical, ultraviolet and infrared continuum emission from quasars and their host galaxies was carried out. The main results were the discovery of quasars with unusually weak infrared emission and the construction of a quantitative estimate of the dispersion in quasar continuum properties. One of the major uncertainties in the measurement of quasar continuum strength is the contribution to the continuum of the quasar host galaxy as a function of wavelength. Continuum templates were constructed for different types of host galaxy and individual estimates made of the decomposed quasar and host continua based on existing observations of the target quasars. The results are that host galaxy contamination is worse than previously suspected, and some apparent weak bump quasars are really normal quasars with strong host galaxies. However, the existence of true weak bump quasars such as PHL 909 was confirmed. The study of the link between the bump strength and other wavebands was continued by comparing with IRAS data. There is evidence that excess far infrared radiation is correlated with weaker ultraviolet bumps. This argues against an orientation effect and implies a probable link with the host galaxy environment, for instance the presence of a luminous starburst. However, the evidence still favors the idea that reddening is not important in those objects with ultraviolet weak bumps. The same work has led to the discovery of a class of infrared weak quasars. Pushing another part of the envelope of quasar continuum parameter space, the IR-weak quasars have implications for understanding the effects of reddening internal to the quasars, the reality of ultraviolet turnovers, and may allow further tests of the Phinney dust model for the IR continuum. They will also be important objects for studying the claimed IR to x-ray continuum correlation.

DEMOGRAPHICS OF THE GALAXIES HOSTING SHORT-DURATION GAMMA-RAY BURSTS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fong, W.; Berger, E.; Chornock, R.

We present observations of the afterglows and host galaxies of three short-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs): 100625A, 101219A, and 110112A. We find that GRB 100625A occurred in a z = 0.452 early-type galaxy with a stellar mass of Almost-Equal-To 4.6 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 9} M{sub Sun} and a stellar population age of Almost-Equal-To 0.7 Gyr, and GRB 101219A originated in a star-forming galaxy at z = 0.718 with a stellar mass of Almost-Equal-To 1.4 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 9} M{sub Sun }, a star formation rate of Almost-Equal-To 16 M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}, and a stellar population age of Almost-Equal-To 50 Myr. We alsomore » report the discovery of the optical afterglow of GRB 110112A, which lacks a coincident host galaxy to i {approx}> 26 mag, and we cannot conclusively identify any field galaxy as a possible host. From afterglow modeling, the bursts have inferred circumburst densities of Almost-Equal-To 10{sup -4}-1 cm{sup -3} and isotropic-equivalent gamma-ray and kinetic energies of Almost-Equal-To 10{sup 50}-10{sup 51} erg. These three events highlight the diversity of galactic environments that host short GRBs. To quantify this diversity, we use the sample of 36 Swift short GRBs with robust associations to an environment ({approx}1/2 of 68 short bursts detected by Swift to 2012 May) and classify bursts originating from four types of environments: late-type ( Almost-Equal-To 50%), early-type ( Almost-Equal-To 15%), inconclusive ( Almost-Equal-To 20%), and ''host-less'' (lacking a coincident host galaxy to limits of {approx}> 26 mag; Almost-Equal-To 15%). To find likely ranges for the true late- and early-type fractions, we assign each of the host-less bursts to either the late- or early-type category using probabilistic arguments and consider the scenario that all hosts in the inconclusive category are early-type galaxies to set an upper bound on the early-type fraction. We calculate most likely ranges for the late- and early-type fractions of Almost-Equal-To 60%-80% and Almost-Equal-To 20%-40%, respectively. We find no clear trend between gamma-ray duration and host type. We also find no change to the fractions when excluding events recently claimed as possible contaminants from the long GRB/collapsar population. Our reported demographics are consistent with a short GRB rate driven by both stellar mass and star formation.« less

Multimessenger Signatures of Massive Black Holes in Dwarf Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bellovary, Jillian; Cleary, Colleen; Tremmel, Michael; Munshi, Ferah

2018-01-01

Inspired by the recent discovery of several nearby dwarf galaxies hosting active galactic nuclei, we present results from a series of cosmological hydrodynamic simulations focusing on dwarf galaxies which host supermassive black holes (SMBHs). Cosmological simulations are a vital tool for predicting SMBH populations and merger events which will eventually be observed by LISA. Dwarf galaxies are the most numerous in the universe, so even though the occupation fraction of SMBHs in dwarfs is less than unity, their contribution to the gravitational wave background could be non-negligible. We find that electromagnetic signatures from SMBH accretion are not common among most SMBH-hosting dwarfs, but the gravitational wave signatures can be substantial. The most common mass ratio for SMBH mergers in low-mass galaxy environments is ~1:20, which is an unexplored region of gravitational waveform parameter space. We discuss the occupation fraction of SMBHs in low-mass galaxies as well as differences in field and satellite populations, providing clues to search for and characterize these elusive giants lurking in the dwarfs.

SDSS IV MaNGA - Properties of AGN Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sánchez, S. F.; Avila-Reese, V.; Hernandez-Toledo, H.; Cortes-Suárez, E.; Rodríguez-Puebla, A.; Ibarra-Medel, H.; Cano-Díaz, M.; Barrera-Ballesteros, J. K.; Negrete, C. A.; Calette, A. R.; de Lorenzo-Cáceres, A.; Ortega-Minakata, R. A.; Aquino, E.; Valenzuela, O.; Clemente, J. C.; Storchi-Bergmann, T.; Riffel, R.; Schimoia, J.; Riffel, R. A.; Rembold, S. B.; Brownstein, J. R.; Pan, K.; Yates, R.; Mallmann, N.; Bitsakis, T.

2018-04-01

We present the characterization of the main properties of a sample of 98 AGN host galaxies, both type-II and type-I, in comparison with those of ≍2700 non-active galaxies observed by the MaNGA survey. We found that AGN hosts are morphologically early-type or early-spirals. AGN hosts are, on average, more massive, more compact, more centrally peaked and more pressure-supported systems. They are located in the intermediate/transition region between starforming and non-star-forming galaxies (i.e., the so-called green valley). We consider that they are in the process of halting/quenching the star formation. The analysis of the radial distributions of different properties shows that the quenching happens from inside-out involving both a decrease of the effciency of the star formation and a deficit of molecular gas. The data-products of the current analysis are distributed as a Value Added Catalog within the SDSS-DR14.

Rapidly star-forming galaxies adjacent to quasars at redshifts exceeding 6

PubMed Central

Decarli, R.; Walter, F.; Venemans, B.P.; Bañados, E.; Bertoldi, F.; Carilli, C.; Fan, X.; Farina, E.P.; Mazzucchelli, C.; Riechers, D.; Rix, H.-W.; Strauss, M.A.; Wang, R.; Yang, Y.

2017-01-01

The existence of massive (1011 Msun) elliptical galaxies by redshift z~4[1,2,3] (when the Universe was 1.5 billion years old) necessitates the presence of galaxies with star formation rates SFR>100 Msun/yr at z>6 (corresponding to an age of the Universe of less than 1 billion years). Surveys have discovered hundreds of galaxies at these early cosmic epochs, but their star formation rates are more than an order of magnitude lower[4]. The only known examples of very high rate galaxies at z>6 are, with only one exception[5], quasar host galaxies[6,7,8,9], i.e. galaxies that host an accreting supermassive (~109 Msun) black hole that likely affects the host properties. Here we report observations of the [CII] 158 μm line in 4 galaxies that are companions of quasars, with velocity offsets of less than 600 kilometres per second and linear offsets of less than 100 kiloparsecs. The discovery of these four galaxies was serendipitous; they are close to their companion quasars and appear bright in the far-infrared. Based upon the [CII] measurements, we estimate star formation rates of >100 Msun/yr. These sources are similar to the quasar hosts in [CII] brightness, line width and implied dynamical masses, but do not show evidence for accreting supermassive black holes. Similar systems have previously been found at lower redshift[10,11,12]. We find such close companions in 4 out of 25 z>6 quasars surveyed, a fraction that needs to be accounted for in simulations[13,14]. If representative of the bright end of the [CII] luminosity function, they can account for the population of massive elliptical galaxies at z~4 in terms of cosmic space density. PMID:28541326

First measurement of H I 21 cm emission from a GRB host galaxy indicates a post-merger system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arabsalmani, Maryam; Roychowdhury, Sambit; Zwaan, Martin A.; Kanekar, Nissim; Michałowski, Michał J.

2015-11-01

We report the detection and mapping of atomic hydrogen in H I 21 cm emission from ESO 184-G82, the host galaxy of the gamma-ray burst 980425. This is the first instance where H I in emission has been detected from a galaxy hosting a gamma-ray burst (GRB). ESO 184-G82 is an isolated galaxy and contains a Wolf-Rayet region close to the location of the GRB and the associated supernova, SN 1998bw. This is one of the most luminous H II regions identified in the local Universe, with a very high inferred density of star formation. The H I 21 cm observations reveal a high H I mass for the galaxy, twice as large as the stellar mass. The spatial and velocity distribution of the H I 21 cm emission reveals a disturbed rotating gas disc, which suggests that the galaxy has undergone a recent minor merger that disrupted its rotation. We find that the Wolf-Rayet region and the GRB are both located in the highest H I column density region of the galaxy. We speculate that the merger event has resulted in shock compression of the gas, triggering extreme star formation activity, and resulting in the formation of both the Wolf-Rayet region and the GRB. The high H I column density environment of the GRB is consistent with the high H I column densities seen in absorption in the host galaxies of high-redshift GRBs.

The fraction of AGNs in major merger galaxies and its luminosity dependence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weigel, Anna K.; Schawinski, Kevin; Treister, Ezequiel; Trakhtenbrot, Benny; Sanders, David B.

2018-05-01

We use a phenomenological model which connects the galaxy and active galactic nucleus (AGN) populations to investigate the process of AGNs triggering through major galaxy mergers at z ˜ 0. The model uses stellar mass functions as input and allows the prediction of AGN luminosity functions based on assumed Eddington ratio distribution functions (ERDFs). We show that the number of AGNs hosted by merger galaxies relative to the total number of AGNs increases as a function of AGN luminosity. This is due to more massive galaxies being more likely to undergo a merger and does not require the assumption that mergers lead to higher Eddington ratios than secular processes. Our qualitative analysis also shows that to match the observations, the probability of a merger galaxy hosting an AGN and accreting at a given Eddington value has to be increased by a factor ˜10 relative to the general AGN population. An additional significant increase of the fraction of high Eddington ratio AGNs among merger host galaxies leads to inconsistency with the observed X-ray luminosity function. Physically our results imply that, compared to the general galaxy population, the AGN fraction among merger galaxies is ˜10 times higher. On average, merger triggering does however not lead to significantly higher Eddington ratios.

Energy input from quasars regulates the growth and activity of black holes and their host galaxies.

PubMed

Di Matteo, Tiziana; Springel, Volker; Hernquist, Lars

2005-02-10

In the early Universe, while galaxies were still forming, black holes as massive as a billion solar masses powered quasars. Supermassive black holes are found at the centres of most galaxies today, where their masses are related to the velocity dispersions of stars in their host galaxies and hence to the mass of the central bulge of the galaxy. This suggests a link between the growth of the black holes and their host galaxies, which has indeed been assumed for a number of years. But the origin of the observed relation between black hole mass and stellar velocity dispersion, and its connection with the evolution of galaxies, have remained unclear. Here we report simulations that simultaneously follow star formation and the growth of black holes during galaxy-galaxy collisions. We find that, in addition to generating a burst of star formation, a merger leads to strong inflows that feed gas to the supermassive black hole and thereby power the quasar. The energy released by the quasar expels enough gas to quench both star formation and further black hole growth. This determines the lifetime of the quasar phase (approaching 100 million years) and explains the relationship between the black hole mass and the stellar velocity dispersion.

GALAXY ZOO: THE FUNDAMENTALLY DIFFERENT CO-EVOLUTION OF SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES AND THEIR EARLY- AND LATE-TYPE HOST GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schawinski, Kevin; Urry, C. Megan; Virani, Shanil

We use data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and visual classifications of morphology from the Galaxy Zoo project to study black hole growth in the nearby universe (z < 0.05) and to break down the active galactic nucleus (AGN) host galaxy population by color, stellar mass, and morphology. We find that the black hole growth at luminosities L[O{sub III}]>10{sup 40} erg s{sup -1} in early- and late-type galaxies is fundamentally different. AGN host galaxies as a population have a broad range of stellar masses (10{sup 10}-10{sup 11} M{sub sun}), reside in the green valley of the color-mass diagram andmore » their central black holes have median masses around 10{sup 6.5} M{sub sun}. However, by comparing early- and late-type AGN host galaxies to their non-active counterparts, we find several key differences: in early-type galaxies, it is preferentially the galaxies with the least massive black holes that are growing, while in late-type galaxies, it is preferentially the most massive black holes that are growing. The duty cycle of AGNs in early-type galaxies is strongly peaked in the green valley below the low-mass end (10{sup 10} M{sub sun}) of the red sequence at stellar masses where there is a steady supply of blue cloud progenitors. The duty cycle of AGNs in late-type galaxies on the other hand peaks in massive (10{sup 11} M{sub sun}) green and red late-types which generally do not have a corresponding blue cloud population of similar mass. At high-Eddington ratios (L/L{sub Edd}>0.1), the only population with a substantial fraction of AGNs are the low-mass green valley early-type galaxies. Finally, the Milky Way likely resides in the 'sweet spot' on the color-mass diagram where the AGN duty cycle of late-type galaxies is highest. We discuss the implications of these results for our understanding of the role of AGNs in the evolution of galaxies.« less

Host Galaxies Of Luminous Z ˜ 0.6 Quasars: Major Mergers Are Not Prevalent At The Highest Agn Luminosities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villforth, Carolin; Hamilton, T.; Pawlik, M. M.; Hewlett, T.; Rowlands, K.; Herbst, H.; Shankar, F.; Fontana, A.; Hamann, F.; Koekemoer, A.; Pforr, J.; Trump, J.; Wuyts, S.

2017-06-01

Galaxy interactions are thought to be one of the main triggers of active galactic nuclei (AGN), especially at high luminosities, where the accreted gas mass during the AGN lifetime is substantial. Evidence for a connection between mergers and AGN, however, remains mixed. Possible triggering mechanisms remain particularly poorly understood for luminous AGN, which are thought to require triggering by major mergers, rather than secular processes. We analyse the host galaxies of a sample of 20 optically and X-ray selected luminous AGN (log(Lbol [erg s-1]) > 45) at z ˜ 0.6 using Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 data in the F160W/H band. 15/20 sources have resolved host galaxies. We create a control sample of mock AGN by matching the AGN host galaxies to a control sample of non-AGN galaxies. Visual signs of disturbances are found in about 25 per cent of sources in both the AGN hosts and control galaxies. Using both visual classification and quantitative morphology measures, we show that the levels of disturbance are not enhanced when compared to a matched control sample. We find no signs that major mergers play a dominant role in triggering AGN at high luminosities, suggesting that minor mergers and secular processes dominate AGN triggering up to the highest AGN luminosities. The upper limit on the enhanced fraction of major mergers is ≤20 per cent. While major mergers might increase the incidence of luminous AGN, they are not the prevalent triggering mechanism in the population of unobscured AGN.

Host galaxies of luminous z ˜ 0.6 quasars: major mergers are not prevalent at the highest AGN luminosities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villforth, C.; Hamilton, T.; Pawlik, M. M.; Hewlett, T.; Rowlands, K.; Herbst, H.; Shankar, F.; Fontana, A.; Hamann, F.; Koekemoer, A.; Pforr, J.; Trump, J.; Wuyts, S.

2017-04-01

Galaxy interactions are thought to be one of the main triggers of active galactic nuclei (AGN), especially at high luminosities, where the accreted gas mass during the AGN lifetime is substantial. Evidence for a connection between mergers and AGN, however, remains mixed. Possible triggering mechanisms remain particularly poorly understood for luminous AGN, which are thought to require triggering by major mergers, rather than secular processes. We analyse the host galaxies of a sample of 20 optically and X-ray selected luminous AGN (log(Lbol [erg s-1]) > 45) at z ˜ 0.6 using Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 data in the F160W/H band. 15/20 sources have resolved host galaxies. We create a control sample of mock AGN by matching the AGN host galaxies to a control sample of non-AGN galaxies. Visual signs of disturbances are found in about 25 per cent of sources in both the AGN hosts and control galaxies. Using both visual classification and quantitative morphology measures, we show that the levels of disturbance are not enhanced when compared to a matched control sample. We find no signs that major mergers play a dominant role in triggering AGN at high luminosities, suggesting that minor mergers and secular processes dominate AGN triggering up to the highest AGN luminosities. The upper limit on the enhanced fraction of major mergers is ≤20 per cent. While major mergers might increase the incidence of luminous AGN, they are not the prevalent triggering mechanism in the population of unobscured AGN.

The Masses and Stellar Content of Nuclei in Early-Type Galaxies from Multi-Band Photometry and Spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spengler, Chelsea; Côté, Patrick; Roediger, Joel; Ferrarese, Laura; Sánchez-Janssen, Rubén; Toloba, Elisa; Liu, Yiqing; Guhathakurta, Puragra; Cuillandre, Jean-Charles; Gwyn, Stephen; Zirm, Andrew; Muñoz, Roberto; Puzia, Thomas; Lançon, Ariane; Peng, Eric; Mei, Simona; Powalka, Mathieu

2018-01-01

It is now established that most, if not all, massive galaxies host central supermassive black holes (SMBHs), and that these SMBHs are linked to the growth their host galaxies as shown by several scaling relations. Within the last couple of decades, it has become apparent that most lower-mass galaxies without obvious SMBHs nevertheless contain some sort of central massive object in the form of compact stellar nuclei that also follow identical (or similar) scaling relations. These nuclei are challenging to study given their small sizes and relatively faint magnitudes, but understanding their origins and relationship to their hosts is critical to gaining a more complete picture of galaxy evolution. To that end, we highlight selected results from an analysis of 39 nuclei and their early-type hosts in the Virgo Cluster using ten broadband filters: F300W, F475W, F850LP, F160W, u*griz, and Ks. We estimate masses, metallicities and ages using simple stellar population (SSP) models. For 19 nuclei, we compare to SSP parameters derived from Keck and Gemini spectra and find reasonable agreement between the photometric and spectroscopic metallicity: the RMS scatter is 0.3 dex. We reproduce the nucleus-galaxy mass fraction of 0.33 ± 0.08% for galaxy stellar masses 108.4-1010.3 M⊙ with a typical precision of ~35% for the nuclei masses. Based on available model predictions, there is no single preferred formation scenario for nuclei, suggesting that nuclei are formed stochastically through a mix of processes. Nuclei metallicities are statistically identical to those of their hosts, appearing 0.07 ± 0.3 dex more metal-rich on average — although, omitting galaxies with unusual origins (i.e., compact ellipticals), nuclei are 0.20 ± 0.28 dex more metal-rich. We find no clear age difference between nuclei and their galaxies, with nuclei displaying a broad range of ages. Interestingly, we find that the most massive nuclei may be flatter and more closely aligned with the semi-major axes of their hosts, suggesting that they formed through predominantly dissipative processes.

Evidence for a mass-dependent AGN Eddington ratio distribution via the flat relationship between SFR and AGN luminosity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernhard, E.; Mullaney, J. R.; Aird, J.; Hickox, R. C.; Jones, M. L.; Stanley, F.; Grimmett, L. P.; Daddi, E.

2018-05-01

The lack of a strong correlation between AGN X-ray luminosity (LX; a proxy for AGN power) and the star formation rate (SFR) of their host galaxies has recently been attributed to stochastic AGN variability. Studies using population synthesis models have incorporated this by assuming a broad, universal (i.e. does not depend on the host galaxy properties) probability distribution for AGN specific X-ray luminosities (i.e. the ratio of LX to host stellar mass; a common proxy for Eddington ratio). However, recent studies have demonstrated that this universal Eddington ratio distribution fails to reproduce the observed X-ray luminosity functions beyond z ˜ 1.2. Furthermore, empirical studies have recently shown that the Eddington ratio distribution may instead depend upon host galaxy properties, such as SFR and/or stellar mass. To investigate this further, we develop a population synthesis model in which the Eddington ratio distribution is different for star-forming and quiescent host galaxies. We show that, although this model is able to reproduce the observed X-ray luminosity functions out to z ˜ 2, it fails to simultaneously reproduce the observed flat relationship between SFR and X-ray luminosity. We can solve this, however, by incorporating a mass dependency in the AGN Eddington ratio distribution for star-forming host galaxies. Overall, our models indicate that a relative suppression of low Eddington ratios (λEdd ≲ 0.1) in lower mass galaxies (M* ≲ 1010 - 11 M⊙) is required to reproduce both the observed X-ray luminosity functions and the observed flat SFR/X-ray relationship.

QSO Narrow [OIII] Line Width and Host Galaxy Luminosity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonning, E. W.; Shields, G. A.; Salviander, S.

2004-05-01

Established correlations between galaxy bulge luminosity L, black hole mass MBH, and stellar velocity dispersion sigma in galaxies suggest a close relationship between the growth of supermassive black holes and their host galaxies. Measurements of the MBH - sigma relationship as a function of cosmic time may shed light on the origin of this relationship. One approach is to derive MBH and sigma from the widths of QSO broad and narrow lines, respectively (Shields et al. 2003, ApJ, 583, 124; Nelson 2000, ApJ, 544, L91). We investigate the utility of using the velocity of the narrow line emitting gas as a surrogate for stellar velocity dispersion in QSOs by examining host magnitudes and [OIII] line widths for low redshift QSOs. For our limited range of L, the increase in sigma with L predicted by the Faber-Jackson relation is substantially obscured by scatter. However, sigma([O III]) is consistent in the mean with host galaxy luminosity. EWB is a NASA GSRP fellow. GAS and SS are supported under Texas Advanced Research Program grant 003658-0177-2001 and NSF grant AST-0098594.

Dust lanes in backlit galaxies: first results from the STARSMOG survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keel, William C.; Bradford, Sarah; Holwerda, Benne; Conselice, Christopher; Baldry, Ivan; Bland-Hawthorn, Jonathan; Driver, Simon P.; Dunne, Loretta; Liske, Jochen; Robotham, Aaron; Tuffs, Richard

2017-01-01

STARSMOG is an HST WFC3 snapshot survey of dust attenuation in overlapping backlit galaxies, planned to span the range of morphological type and luminosity of dust-rich galaxies. The target list came from the Galaxy Zoo and GAMA catalogs, imposing a minimum redshift difference to guarantee large line-of-sight separations, virtually eliminating scattering corrections and avoiding potentially distorted interacting systems. These include the first flocculent spirals studied with the occulting-galaxy approach. We present results from the geometrically most favorable subset of 9 pairs from the 54 observed STARSMOG systems. The data quality and intensity of background light let us map dust features with attenuations of only a few per cent in the red F606W band. Organized dust lanes show sharp outer boundaries in disks, and are absent in galaxies of late Hubble type. Many Sb-Sc disks show a dusty web of criss-crossing lanes, some nearly at right angles to the overall spiral pattern. Particularly favorable cases constraint the scale height of starlight in the foreground disks, through comparison of the light loss in regions with and without background light. The covering fraction of dust at various attenuation levels is consistent between barred and nonbarred spirals, although dust features may be more concentrated in azimuth when a bar is present (and concentrated in an annulus when a stellar resonance ring is seen). Together with our previous data on much more limited samples or at lower resolution,these results add to a picture where galaxies of similar morphology may have quite different attenuation patterns with radius for both arm and interarm dust.

Multiwavelength Observations of the Dwarf Seyfert 1 Galaxy POX 52

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thornton, Carol E.; Barth, A. J.; Ho, L. C.; Rutledge, R. E.; Greene, J. E.

2006-12-01

POX 52 is an unusual narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy, having an estimated black hole mass of order 105 solar masses and a dwarf host galaxy with an absolute magnitude of only MV = -17.6, which gives us a unique opportunity to study black hole-bulge relations in the low-mass regime. We present new observations from a multiwavelength campaign to study its active nucleus and host galaxy. The data include observations from the Chandra and XMM-Newton Observatories, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Very Large Array. Chandra data show a highly variable point source with a 2.0 10.0 keV luminosity of 0.7 * 1042 ergs/s. We will also describe the X-ray spectral shape, the structure of the host galaxy as determined from GALFIT modeling of the HST ACS/HRC images, and the spectral energy distribution of the active nucleus.

Molecular gas in the host galaxy of a quasar at redshift z = 6.42.

PubMed

Walter, Fabian; Bertoldi, Frank; Carilli, Chris; Cox, Pierre; Lo, K Y; Neri, Roberto; Fan, Xiaohui; Omont, Alain; Strauss, Michael A; Menten, Karl M

2003-07-24

Observations of molecular hydrogen in quasar host galaxies at high redshifts provide fundamental constraints on galaxy evolution, because it is out of this molecular gas that stars form. Molecular hydrogen is traced by emission from the carbon monoxide molecule, CO; cold H2 itself is generally not observable. Carbon monoxide has been detected in about ten quasar host galaxies with redshifts z > 2; the record-holder is at z = 4.69 (refs 1-3). Here we report CO emission from the quasar SDSS J114816.64 + 525150.3 (refs 5, 6) at z = 6.42. At that redshift, the Universe was only 1/16 of its present age, and the era of cosmic reionization was just ending. The presence of about 2 x 1010 M\\circ of H2 in an object at this time demonstrates that molecular gas enriched with heavy elements can be generated rapidly in the youngest galaxies.

The Distribution and Ages of Star Clusters in the Small Magellanic Cloud: Constraints on the Interaction History of the Magellanic Clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bitsakis, Theodoros; González-Lópezlira, R. A.; Bonfini, P.; Bruzual, G.; Maravelias, G.; Zaritsky, D.; Charlot, S.; Ramírez-Siordia, V. H.

2018-02-01

We present a new study of the spatial distribution and ages of the star clusters in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). To detect and estimate the ages of the star clusters we rely on the new fully automated method developed by Bitsakis et al. Our code detects 1319 star clusters in the central 18 deg2 of the SMC we surveyed (1108 of which have never been reported before). The age distribution of those clusters suggests enhanced cluster formation around 240 Myr ago. It also implies significant differences in the cluster distribution of the bar with respect to the rest of the galaxy, with the younger clusters being predominantly located in the bar. Having used the same setup, and data from the same surveys as for our previous study of the LMC, we are able to robustly compare the cluster properties between the two galaxies. Our results suggest that the bulk of the clusters in both galaxies were formed approximately 300 Myr ago, probably during a direct collision between the two galaxies. On the other hand, the locations of the young (≤50 Myr) clusters in both Magellanic Clouds, found where their bars join the H I arms, suggest that cluster formation in those regions is a result of internal dynamical processes. Finally, we discuss the potential causes of the apparent outside-in quenching of cluster formation that we observe in the SMC. Our findings are consistent with an evolutionary scheme where the interactions between the Magellanic Clouds constitute the major mechanism driving their overall evolution.

Our Milky Way Gets a Makeover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

[figure removed for brevity, see original site] [figure removed for brevity, see original site] Click on image for Fully Annotated Version Click on image for Poster Version

Like early explorers mapping the continents of our globe, astronomers are busy charting the spiral structure of our galaxy, the Milky Way. Using infrared images from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, scientists have discovered that the Milky Way's elegant spiral structure is dominated by just two arms wrapping off the ends of a central bar of stars. Previously, our galaxy was thought to possess four major arms.

This artist's concept illustrates the new view of the Milky Way, along with other findings presented at the 212th American Astronomical Society meeting in St. Louis, Mo. The galaxy's two major arms (Scutum-Centaurus and Perseus) can be seen attached to the ends of a thick central bar, while the two now-demoted minor arms (Norma and Sagittarius) are less distinct and located between the major arms. The major arms consist of the highest densities of both young and old stars; the minor arms are primarily filled with gas and pockets of star-forming activity.

The artist's concept also includes a new spiral arm, called the 'Far-3 kiloparsec arm,' discovered via a radio-telescope survey of gas in the Milky Way. This arm is shorter than the two major arms and lies along the bar of the galaxy.

Our sun lies near a small, partial arm called the Orion Arm, or Orion Spur, located between the Sagittarius and Perseus arms.

The Extreme Hosts of Extreme Supernovae

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neill, James D.

2012-01-01

We present the results from a deeper survey of Luminous Supernova (LSN) hosts with the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX). We have added new, multiple kilo-second observations to our original observations of seventeen LSN hosts providing better constraints on their physical properties. We place the LSNe hosts on the galaxy NUV-r versus M(r) color magnitude diagram (CMD) with a larger comparison sample ( 26,000) to illustrate the extreme nature of these galaxies. The LSN hosts favor low-density regions of the galaxy CMD falling on the blue edge of the blue cloud toward the low luminosity end. The new observations provide tighter constraints on the star formation rates (SFRs) and stellar masses, M(*), and show that the LSNe result from regions of high specific star formation and yet low total SFR. This regime is of particular interest for exploring the upper end of the stellar IMF and its variation. If our understanding of the progenitors of the LSNe leans toward very massive (> 200 M_sun) progenitors, the potential for a conflict with IMF theory exists because the conditions found in the hosts producing the LSNe should not create such massive stars. If it also required that LSNe can only be produced in primordial or very low metallicity environments, then they will also provide evidence for strong variation in metallicity within a dwarf galaxy, since their masses are consistent with low, but not extreme metallicity.

METALLICITY GRADIENTS THROUGH DISK INSTABILITY: A SIMPLE MODEL FOR THE MILKY WAY'S BOXY BULGE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Martinez-Valpuesta, Inma; Gerhard, Ortwin, E-mail: imv@mpe.mpg.de, E-mail: gerhard@mpe.mpg.de

2013-03-20

Observations show a clear vertical metallicity gradient in the Galactic bulge, which is often taken as a signature of dissipative processes in the formation of a classical bulge. Various evidence shows, however, that the Milky Way is a barred galaxy with a boxy bulge representing the inner three-dimensional part of the bar. Here we show with a secular evolution N-body model that a boxy bulge formed through bar and buckling instabilities can show vertical metallicity gradients similar to the observed gradient if the initial axisymmetric disk had a comparable radial metallicity gradient. In this framework, the range of metallicities inmore » bulge fields constrains the chemical structure of the Galactic disk at early times before bar formation. Our secular evolution model was previously shown to reproduce inner Galaxy star counts and we show here that it also has cylindrical rotation. We use it to predict a full mean metallicity map across the Galactic bulge from a simple metallicity model for the initial disk. This map shows a general outward gradient on the sky as well as longitudinal perspective asymmetries. We also briefly comment on interpreting metallicity gradient observations in external boxy bulges.« less

Effects of spiral arms on star formation in nuclear rings of barred-spiral galaxies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Seo, Woo-Young; Kim, Woong-Tae, E-mail: seowy@astro.snu.ac.kr, E-mail: wkim@astro.snu.ac.kr

2014-09-01

We use hydrodynamic simulations to study the effect of spiral arms on the star formation rate (SFR) in nuclear rings of barred-spiral galaxies. We find that spiral arms can be an efficient means of gas transport from the outskirts to the central parts, provided that the arms are rotating slower than the bar. While the ring star formation in models with no arms or corotating arms is active only during around the bar growth phase, arm-driven gas accretion both significantly enhances and prolongs the ring star formation in models with slow-rotating arms. The arm-enhanced SFR is larger by a factormore » of ∼3-20 than in the no-arm model, with larger values corresponding to stronger and slower arms. Arm-induced mass inflows also make dust lanes stronger. Nuclear rings in slow-arm models are ∼45% larger than in the no-arm counterparts. Star clusters that form in a nuclear ring exhibit an age gradient in the azimuthal direction only when the SFR is small, whereas no notable age gradient is found in the radial direction for models with arm-induced star formation.« less

Supernova Cosmology Without Spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, Elizabeth; Scolnic, Daniel; Kessler, Rick; Rykoff, Eli; Rozo, Eduardo

2018-01-01

Present and future supernovae (SN) surveys face several challenges: the ability to acquire redshifts of either the SN or its host galaxy, the ability to classify a SN without a spectrum, and unknown relations between SN luminosity and host galaxy type. We present here a new approach that addresses these challenges. From the large sample of SNe discovered and measured by the Dark Energy Survey (DES), we cull the sample to only supernovae (SNe) located in luminous red galaxies (LRGs). For these galaxies, photometric redshift estimates are expected to be accurate to a standard deviation of 0.02x(1+z). In addition, only Type Ia Supernovae are expected to exist in these galaxies, thereby providing a pure SNIa sample. Furthermore, we can combine this high-redshift sample with a low-redshift SN sample of only SNe located in LRGs, thereby producing a sample that is less sensitive to host galaxy relations because the host galaxy demographic is consistent across the redshift range. We find that the current DES sample has ~250 SNe in LRGs, a similar amount to current SNIa samples used to measure cosmological parameters. We present our method to produce a photometric-only Hubble diagram and measure cosmological parameters. Finally, we discuss systematic uncertainties from this approach, and forecast constraints from this method for LSST, which should have a sample roughly 200 times as large.

The connection between globular cluster systems and their host galaxy and environment: a case study of the isolated elliptical NGC 821

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spitler, Lee R.; Forbes, Duncan A.; Strader, Jay; Brodie, Jean P.; Gallagher, Jay S.

2008-03-01

In an effort to probe the globular cluster (GC) system of an isolated elliptical galaxy, a comprehensive analysis of the NGC 821 GC system was performed. New imaging from the WIYN Mini-Mosaic imager, supplemented with Hubble Space Telescope (HST) WFPC2 images reveals a GC system similar to those found in counterpart ellipticals located in high-density environments. To put these results into the context of galaxy formation, a robustly determined census of GC systems is presented and analysed for galaxies spanning a wide range of masses (> M*), morphologies and environments. Results from this meta-study: (1) confirm previous findings that the number of GCs normalized by host galaxy stellar mass increases with host stellar mass. Spiral galaxies in the sample show smaller relative GC numbers than those of massive ellipticals, suggesting the GC systems of massive ellipticals were not formed from major spiral-spiral mergers; (2) indicate that GC system numbers per unit galaxy baryon mass increases with host baryon mass and that GC formation efficiency may not be universal as previously thought; (3) suggest previously reported trends with environment may be incorrect due to sample bias or the use of galaxy stellar masses to normalize GC numbers. Thus claims for environmentally dependent GC formation efficiencies should be revisited; (4) in combination with weak-lensing halo mass estimates, suggest that GCs formed in direct proportion to the halo mass; (5) are consistent with theoretical predictions whereby the local epoch of reionization did not vary significantly with environment or host galaxy type. Based upon data from the WIYN Observatory, which is a joint facility of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Indiana University, Yale University and the National Optical Astronomy Observatories. Also includes analysis of observations made with the Hubble Space Telescope obtained from the ESO/ST-ECF Science Archive Facility. E-mail: lspitler@astro.swin.edu.au

The Secular Evolution Of Disc Galaxies And The Origin Of Exponential And Double Exponential Surface Density Profiles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elmegreen, Bruce G.

2016-10-01

Exponential radial profiles are ubiquitous in spiral and dwarf Irregular galaxies, but the origin of this structural form is not understood. This talk will review the observations of exponential and double exponential disks, considering both the light and the mass profiles, and the contributions from stars and gas. Several theories for this structure will also be reviewed, including primordial collapse, bar and spiral torques, clump torques, galaxy interactions, disk viscosity and other internal processes of angular momentum exchange, and stellar scattering off of clumpy structure. The only process currently known that can account for this structure in the most theoretically difficult case is stellar scattering off disks clumps. Stellar orbit models suggest that such scattering can produce exponentials even in isolated dwarf irregulars that have no bars or spirals, little shear or viscosity, and profiles that go out too far for the classical Mestel case of primordial collapse with specific angular momentum conservation.

On the Supermassive Black Hole-Galaxy Coevolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hegde, Sahil; Zhang, Shawn; Rodriguez, Aldo; Primack, Joel R.

2017-01-01

In recent years, a major focus of astronomy has been the study of the effects of supermassive black holes (SMBH) on their host galaxies. Recent results have found strong correlations between SMBH mass and host galaxy properties, most notably in the bulge velocity dispersion and galaxy stellar mass. We utilize these relations along with a novel convolution method to construct number density models of different galaxy properties. Using these models, we compare two fundamental methods for constructing a black hole mass function (BHMF) with the M⊙-σ and M⊙-M* relations. With these methods, we estimate the redshift evolution of the BHMF and, based on that, compare mass growth histories of central black holes and their host galaxies. Additionally, we utilize a data compilation of over 500 galaxies with individual measurements of galaxy properties (BH mass, stellar velocity dispersion, stellar mass, etc.) and classify galaxies by their morphologies in order to shed light on the controversial Shankar et al. (2016) argument that observations are biased in favor of massive SMBHs. We find that such a bias has little impact on the SMBH-galaxy relations.We conclude that the galaxy sample is a fair representation of the local universe and argue that our BH number density and scaling relations can be employed in the future to constrain relevant mechanisms for galaxy formation. We emphasize that this is the most comprehensive and accurate study of SMBH-galaxy coevolution as of now. Most of this work was carried out by high school students working under the auspices of the Science Internship Program at UC Santa Cruz.

Cosmic ray antimatter and baryon symmetric cosmology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stecker, F. W.; Protheroe, R. J.; Kazanas, D.

1982-01-01

The relative merits and difficulties of the primary and secondary origin hypotheses for the observed cosmic-ray antiprotons, including the new low-energy measurement of Buffington, et al. We conclude that the cosmic-ray antiproton data may be evidence for antimatter galaxies and baryon symmetric cosmology. The present bar P data are consistent with a primary extragalactic component having /p=/equiv 1+/- 3.2/0.7x10 = to the -4 independent of energy. We propose that the primary extragalactic cosmic ray antiprotons are most likely from active galaxies and that expected disintegration of bar alpha/alpha ban alpha/alpha. We further predict a value for ban alpha/alpha =/equiv 10 to the -5, within range of future cosmic ray detectors.

WHEN DID ROUND DISK GALAXIES FORM?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Takeuchi, T. M.; Ohta, K.; Yuma, S.

2015-03-01

When and how galaxy morphology, such as the disk and bulge seen in the present-day universe, emerged is still not clear. In the universe at z ≳ 2, galaxies with various morphologies are seen, and star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 2 show the intrinsic shape of bar-like structures. Then, when did the round disk structure form? Here we take a simple and straightforward approach to see the epoch when a round disk galaxy population emerged by constraining the intrinsic shape statistically based on the apparent axial ratio distribution of galaxies. We derived the distributions of the apparent axial ratios inmore » the rest-frame optical light (∼5000 Å) of star-forming main-sequence galaxies at 2.5 > z > 1.4, 1.4 > z > 0.85, and 0.85 > z > 0.5, and found that their apparent axial ratios show peaky distributions at z ≳ 0.85, while a rather flat distribution at the lower redshift. By using a tri-axial model (A > B > C) for the intrinsic shape, we found that the best-fit models give the peaks of the B/A distribution of 0.81 ± 0.04, 0.84 ± 0.04, and 0.92 ± 0.05 at 2.5 > z > 1.4, 1.4 > z > 0.85, and 0.85 > z > 0.5, respectively. The last value is close to the local value of 0.95. Thickness (C/A) is ∼0.25 at all the redshifts and is close to the local value (0.21). The results indicate that the shape of the star-forming galaxies in the main sequence changes gradually, and that the round disk is established at around z ∼ 0.9. The establishment of the round disk may be due to the cessation of a violent interaction between galaxies or the growth of a bulge and/or a supermassive black hole residing at the center of a galaxy that dissolves the bar structure.« less

The role of host galaxy for the environmental dependence of active nuclei in local galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies, Richard I.; Hicks, E. K. S.; Erwin, P.; Burtscher, L.; Contursi, A.; Genzel, R.; Janssen, A.; Koss, M.; Lin, M.-Y.; Lutz, D.; Maciejewski, W.; Müller-Sánchez, F.; Orban de Xivry, G.; Ricci, C.; Riffel, R.; Riffel, R. A.; Rosario, D.; Schartmann, M.; Schnorr-Müller, A.; Shimizu, T.; Sternberg, A.; Sturm, E.; Storchi-Bergmann, T.; Tacconi, L.; Veilleux, S.

2017-04-01

We discuss the environment of local hard X-ray selected active galaxies, with reference to two independent group catalogues. We find that the fraction of these AGN in S0 host galaxies decreases strongly as a function of galaxy group size (halo mass) - which contrasts with the increasing fraction of galaxies of S0 type in denser environments. However, there is no evidence for an environmental dependence of AGN in spiral galaxies. Because most AGN are found in spiral galaxies, this dilutes the signature of environmental dependence for the population as a whole. We argue that the differing results for AGN in disc-dominated and bulge-dominated galaxies are related to the source of the gas fuelling the AGN, and so may also impact the luminosity function, duty cycle and obscuration. We find that there is a significant difference in the luminosity function for AGN in spiral and S0 galaxies, and tentative evidence for some difference in the fraction of obscured AGN.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Katkov, Ivan Yu.; Sil'chenko, Olga K.; Moiseev, Alexei V., E-mail: katkov.ivan@gmail.com, E-mail: moisav@gmail.com, E-mail: olga@sai.msu.su

We used deep, long-slit spectra and integral-field spectral data to study the stars, ionized gas kinematics, and stellar population properties in the lenticular barred galaxy NGC 7743. We show that ionized gas at distances larger than 1.5 kpc from the nucleus settles in the disk, which is significantly inclined toward the stellar disk of the galaxy. Making different assumptions about the geometry of the disks and including different sets of emission lines in the fitting, under the assumption of thin, flat-disk circular rotation, we obtain the full possible range of angles between the disks to be 34{sup 0} {+-} 9{supmore » 0} or 77{sup 0} {+-} 9{sup 0}. The most probable origin of the inclined disk is the external gas accretion from a satellite orbiting the host galaxy, with a corresponding angular momentum direction. The published data on the H I distribution around NGC 7743 suggest that the galaxy has a gas-rich environment. The emission-line ratio diagrams imply the domination of shock waves in the ionization state of the gaseous disk, whereas the contribution of photoionization from recent star formation seems to be negligible. In some parts of the disk, a difference between the velocities of the gas emitting from the forbidden lines and Balmer lines is detected. This may be caused by the mainly shock-excited inclined disk, whereas some fraction of the Balmer-line emission is produced by a small amount of gas excited by young stars in the main stellar disk of NGC 7743. In the circumnuclear region (R < 200 pc), some evidence of the active galactic nucleus jet's interaction with an ambient interstellar medium was found.« less

The Co-evolution of QSOs and Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coziol, R.; Torres-Papaqui, J. P.; Andernach, H.

2015-07-01

Using two large samples of QSOs detected in the mid-infrared (MIR) with WISE, we find that the change of W2-W3 colors with redshift suggests that star formation in their host galaxies increases by a factor of 3 from z = 0 to 2.7, then stays constant up to z = 4, and decreases above z=4. This behavior is slightly different from the best fits for the star formation history of field galaxies as deduced from the Optical-UV and IR, but is consistent with what is observed for sub-mm galaxies at high z. Our results constitute the clearest evidence, so far, that QSO host galaxies form their stars before field galaxies, and are in good agreement with the hierarchical biased structure formation paradigm.

Study of the influence of Type Ia supernovae environment on the Hubble diagram

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henne, Vincent

2016-06-01

The observational cosmology with distant Type Ia supernovae as standard candles claims that the Universe is in accelerated expansion, caused by a large fraction of dark energy. In this report we investigated SNe Ia environment, studying the impact of the nature of their host galaxies and their distance to the host galactic center on the Hubble diagram fitting. The supernovae used in the analysis were extracted from Joint-Light-curves-Analysis compilation of high-redshift and nearby supernovae. The analysis are based on the empirical fact that SN Ia luminosities depend on their light curve shapes and colors. No conclusive correlation between SN Ia light curve parameters and galocentric distance were identified. Concerning the host morphology, we showed that the stretch parameter of Type Ia supernovae is correlated with the host galaxy type. The supernovae with lower stretch mainly exploded in elliptical and lenticular galaxies. The studies show that into old star population and low dust environment, supernovae are fainter. We did not find any significant correlation between Type Ia supernovae color and host morphology. We confirm that supernova properties depend on their environment and propose to incorporate a host galaxy term into the Hubble diagram fit in the future cosmological analysis.

THE STELLAR AGES AND MASSES OF SHORT GAMMA-RAY BURST HOST GALAXIES: INVESTIGATING THE PROGENITOR DELAY TIME DISTRIBUTION AND THE ROLE OF MASS AND STAR FORMATION IN THE SHORT GAMMA-RAY BURST RATE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Leibler, C. N.; Berger, E.

2010-12-10

We present multi-band optical and near-infrared observations of 19 short {gamma}-ray burst (GRB) host galaxies, aimed at measuring their stellar masses and population ages. The goals of this study are to evaluate whether short GRBs track the stellar mass distribution of galaxies, to investigate the progenitor delay time distribution, and to explore any connection between long and short GRB progenitors. Using single stellar population models we infer masses of log(M{sub *}/M{sub sun}) {approx} 8.8-11.6, with a median of (log(M{sub *}/M{sub sun})) {approx} 10.1, and population ages of {tau}{sub *} {approx} 0.03-4.4 Gyr with a median of ({tau}{sub *}) {approx} 0.3more » Gyr. We further infer maximal masses of log(M{sub *}/M{sub sun}) {approx} 9.7-11.9 by assuming stellar population ages equal to the age of the universe at each host's redshift. Comparing the distribution of stellar masses to the general galaxy mass function, we find that short GRBs track the cosmic stellar mass distribution only if the late-type hosts generally have maximal masses. However, there is an apparent dearth of early-type hosts compared to the equal contribution of early- and late-type galaxies to the cosmic stellar mass budget. Similarly, the short GRB rate per unit old stellar mass appears to be elevated in the late-type hosts. These results suggest that stellar mass may not be the sole parameter controlling the short GRB rate, and raise the possibility of a two-component model with both mass and star formation playing a role (reminiscent of the case for Type Ia supernovae). If short GRBs in late-type galaxies indeed track the star formation activity, the resulting typical delay time is {approx}0.2 Gyr, while those in early-type hosts have a typical delay of {approx}3 Gyr. Using the same stellar population models, we fit the broadband photometry for 22 long GRB host galaxies in a similar redshift range and find that they have significantly lower masses and younger population ages, with (log(M{sub *}/M{sub sun})) {approx} 9.1 and ({tau}{sub *}) {approx} 0.06 Gyr, respectively; their maximal masses are similarly lower, (log(M{sub *}/M{sub sun})) {approx} 9.6, and as expected do not track the galaxy mass function. Most importantly, the two GRB host populations remain distinct even if we consider only the star-forming hosts of short GRBs, supporting our previous findings (based on star formation rates and metallicities) that the progenitors of long and short GRBs in late-type galaxies are distinct. Given the much younger stellar populations of long GRB hosts (and hence of long GRB progenitors), and the substantial differences in host properties, we caution against the use of Type I and II designations for GRBs since this may erroneously imply that all GRBs which track star formation activity share the same massive star progenitors.« less

PSFGAN: a generative adversarial network system for separating quasar point sources and host galaxy light

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stark, Dominic; Launet, Barthelemy; Schawinski, Kevin; Zhang, Ce; Koss, Michael; Turp, M. Dennis; Sartori, Lia F.; Zhang, Hantian; Chen, Yiru; Weigel, Anna K.

2018-06-01

The study of unobscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) and quasars depends on the reliable decomposition of the light from the AGN point source and the extended host galaxy light. The problem is typically approached using parametric fitting routines using separate models for the host galaxy and the point spread function (PSF). We present a new approach using a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) trained on galaxy images. We test the method using Sloan Digital Sky Survey r-band images with artificial AGN point sources added that are then removed using the GAN and with parametric methods using GALFIT. When the AGN point source is more than twice as bright as the host galaxy, we find that our method, PSFGAN, can recover point source and host galaxy magnitudes with smaller systematic error and a lower average scatter (49 per cent). PSFGAN is more tolerant to poor knowledge of the PSF than parametric methods. Our tests show that PSFGAN is robust against a broadening in the PSF width of ± 50 per cent if it is trained on multiple PSFs. We demonstrate that while a matched training set does improve performance, we can still subtract point sources using a PSFGAN trained on non-astronomical images. While initial training is computationally expensive, evaluating PSFGAN on data is more than 40 times faster than GALFIT fitting two components. Finally, PSFGAN is more robust and easy to use than parametric methods as it requires no input parameters.

Ram pressure stripping of hot coronal gas from group and cluster galaxies and the detectability of surviving X-ray coronae

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vijayaraghavan, Rukmani; Ricker, Paul M.

2015-05-01

Ram pressure stripping can remove hot and cold gas from galaxies in the intracluster medium, as shown by observations of X-ray and H I galaxy wakes in nearby clusters of galaxies. However, ram pressure stripping, including pre-processing in group environments, does not remove all the hot coronal gas from cluster galaxies. Recent high-resolution Chandra observations have shown that ˜1-4 kpc extended, hot galactic coronae are ubiquitous in group and cluster galaxies. To better understand this result, we simulate ram pressure stripping of a cosmologically motivated population of galaxies in isolated group and cluster environments. The galaxies and the host group and cluster are composed of collisionless dark matter and hot gas initially in hydrostatic equilibrium with the galaxy and host potentials. We show that the rate at which gas is lost depends on the galactic and host halo mass. Using synthetic X-ray observations, we evaluate the detectability of stripped galactic coronae in real observations by stacking images on the known galaxy centres. We find that coronal emission should be detected within ˜10 arcsec, or ˜5 kpc up to ˜2.3 Gyr in the lowest (0.1-1.2 keV) energy band. Thus, the presence of observed coronae in cluster galaxies significantly smaller than the hot X-ray haloes of field galaxies indicates that at least some gas removal occurs within cluster environments for recently accreted galaxies. Finally, we evaluate the possibility that existing and future X-ray cluster catalogues can be used in combination with optical galaxy positions to detect galactic coronal emission via stacking analysis. We briefly discuss the effects of additional physical processes on coronal survival, and will address them in detail in future papers in this series.

On the dynamical basis of the classification of normal galaxies

PubMed Central

Haass, J.; Bertin, G.; Lin, C. C.

1982-01-01

Some realistic galaxy models have been found to support discrete unstable spiral modes. Here, through the study of the relevant physical mechanisms and an extensive numerical investigation of the properties of the dominant modes in a wide class of galactic equilibria, we show how spiral structures are excited with different morphological features, depending on the properties of the equilibrium model. We identify the basic dynamical parameters and mechanisms and compare the resulting morphology of spiral modes with the actual classification of galaxies. The present study suggests a dynamical basis for the transition among various types and subclasses of normal and barred spiral galaxies. Images PMID:16593200

THE CLUSTERING OF ALFALFA GALAXIES: DEPENDENCE ON H I MASS, RELATIONSHIP WITH OPTICAL SAMPLES, AND CLUES OF HOST HALO PROPERTIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Papastergis, Emmanouil; Giovanelli, Riccardo; Haynes, Martha P.

We use a sample of ≈6000 galaxies detected by the Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA (ALFALFA) 21 cm survey to measure the clustering properties of H I-selected galaxies. We find no convincing evidence for a dependence of clustering on galactic atomic hydrogen (H I) mass, over the range M{sub H{sub I}} ≈ 10{sup 8.5}-10{sup 10.5} M{sub ☉}. We show that previously reported results of weaker clustering for low H I mass galaxies are probably due to finite-volume effects. In addition, we compare the clustering of ALFALFA galaxies with optically selected samples drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We findmore » that H I-selected galaxies cluster more weakly than even relatively optically faint galaxies, when no color selection is applied. Conversely, when SDSS galaxies are split based on their color, we find that the correlation function of blue optical galaxies is practically indistinguishable from that of H I-selected galaxies. At the same time, SDSS galaxies with red colors are found to cluster significantly more than H I-selected galaxies, a fact that is evident in both the projected as well as the full two-dimensional correlation function. A cross-correlation analysis further reveals that gas-rich galaxies 'avoid' being located within ≈3 Mpc of optical galaxies with red colors. Next, we consider the clustering properties of halo samples selected from the Bolshoi ΛCDM simulation. A comparison with the clustering of ALFALFA galaxies suggests that galactic H I mass is not tightly related to host halo mass and that a sizable fraction of subhalos do not host H I galaxies. Lastly, we find that we can recover fairly well the correlation function of H I galaxies by just excluding halos with low spin parameter. This finding lends support to the hypothesis that halo spin plays a key role in determining the gas content of galaxies.« less

[C ii] 158-μm emission from the host galaxies of damped Lyman-alpha systems.

PubMed

Neeleman, Marcel; Kanekar, Nissim; Prochaska, J Xavier; Rafelski, Marc; Carilli, Chris L; Wolfe, Arthur M

2017-03-24

Gas surrounding high-redshift galaxies has been studied through observations of absorption line systems toward background quasars for decades. However, it has proven difficult to identify and characterize the galaxies associated with these absorbers due to the intrinsic faintness of the galaxies compared with the quasars at optical wavelengths. Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array, we report on detections of [C ii] 158-μm line and dust-continuum emission from two galaxies associated with two such absorbers at a redshift of z ~ 4. Our results indicate that the hosts of these high-metallicity absorbers have physical properties similar to massive star-forming galaxies and are embedded in enriched neutral hydrogen gas reservoirs that extend well beyond the star-forming interstellar medium of these galaxies. Copyright © 2017, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Galaxy evolution. Isolated compact elliptical galaxies: stellar systems that ran away.

PubMed

Chilingarian, Igor; Zolotukhin, Ivan

2015-04-24

Compact elliptical galaxies form a rare class of stellar system (~30 presently known) characterized by high stellar densities and small sizes and often harboring metal-rich stars. They were thought to form through tidal stripping of massive progenitors, until two isolated objects were discovered where massive galaxies performing the stripping could not be identified. By mining astronomical survey data, we have now found 195 compact elliptical galaxies in all types of environment. They all share similar dynamical and stellar population properties. Dynamical analysis for nonisolated galaxies demonstrates the feasibility of their ejection from host clusters and groups by three-body encounters, which is in agreement with numerical simulations. Hence, isolated compact elliptical and isolated quiescent dwarf galaxies are tidally stripped systems that ran away from their hosts. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

2MASS J00423991+3017515: An AGN On The Run?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hogg, James

2016-09-01

We have discovered a peculiar AGN, 2MASS J00423991+3017515, in a local (z=0.14), disturbed galaxy whose optical spectrum has multiple broad lines that are consistently offset from the narrow line emission and host galaxy absorption by 1530 km/s. The morphology of the host galaxy and spectral properties thus suggest this AGN may be a recoiling supermassive black hole (SMBH). We propose high-resolution X-ray imaging and spectral follow-ups with the ACIS camera on Chandra to determine if the source of the kinematically-offset broad line emission is also spatially offset from the nucleus of the host galaxy. If a single, spatially offset AGN is detected, this source will be strongest candidate for a recoiling AGN candidate discovered to date.

Search For Star Cluster Age Gradients Across Spiral Arms of Three LEGUS Disk Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shabani, F.; Grebel, E. K.; Pasquali, A.; D'Onghia, E.; Gallagher, J. S.; Adamo, A.; Messa, M.; Elmegreen, B. G.; Dobbs, C.; Gouliermis, D. A.; Calzetti, D.; Grasha, K.; Elmegreen, D. M.; Cignoni, M.; Dale, D. A.; Aloisi, A.; Smith, L. J.; Tosi, M.; Thilker, D. A.; Lee, J. C.; Sabbi, E.; Kim, H.; Pellerin, A.

2018-05-01

One of the main theories for explaining the formation of spiral arms in galaxies is the stationary density wave theory. This theory predicts the existence of an age gradient across the arms. We use the stellar cluster catalogues of the galaxies NGC 1566, M51a, and NGC 628 from the Legacy Extragalactic UV Survey (LEGUS) program. In order to test for the possible existence of an age sequence across the spiral arms, we quantified the azimuthal offset between star clusters of different ages in our target galaxies. We found that NGC 1566, a grand-design spiral galaxy with bisymmetric arms and a strong bar, shows a significant age gradient across the spiral arms that appears to be consistent with the prediction of the stationary density wave theory. In contrast, M51a with its two well-defined spiral arms and a weaker bar does not show an age gradient across the arms. In addition, a comparison with non-LEGUS star cluster catalogues for M51a yields similar results. We believe that the spiral structure of M51a is not the result of a stationary density wave with a fixed pattern speed. Instead, tidal interactions could be the dominant mechanism for the formation of spiral arms. We also found no offset in the azimuthal distribution of star clusters with different ages across the weak spiral arms of NGC 628.

Dual Active Galactic Nuclei in Nearby Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, Mousumi; Rubinur, Khatun; Karb, Preeti; Varghese, Ashlin; Novakkuni, Navyasree; James, Atul

2018-04-01

Galaxy mergers play a crucial role in the formation of massive galaxies and the buildup of their bulges. An important aspect of the merging process is the in-spiral of the supermassive black-holes (SMBHs) to the centre of the merger remnant and the eventual formation of a SMBH binary. If both the SMBHs are accreting they will form a dual or binary active galactic nucleus (DAGN). The final merger remnant is usually very bright and shows enhanced star formation. In this paper we summarise the current sample of DAGN from previous studies and describe methods that can be used to identify strong DAGN candidates from optical and spectroscopic surveys. These methods depend on the Doppler separation of the double peaked AGN emission lines, the nuclear velocity dispersion of the galaxies and their optical/UV colours. We describe two high resolution, radio observations of DAGN candidates that have been selected based on their double peaked optical emission lines (DPAGN). We also examine whether DAGN host galaxies have higher star formation rates (SFRs) compared to merging galaxies that do not appear to have DAGN. We find that the SFR is not higher for DAGN host galaxies. This suggests that the SFRs in DAGN host galaxies is due to the merging process itself and not related to the presence of two AGN in the system.

The Host Galaxies Of UV-selected AGNs At z 2-3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hainline, Kevin; Shapley, A.; Greene, J.; Steidel, C.

2012-01-01

An important goal for studies of galaxy formation consists of tracing a direct evolutionary connection between the growth of supermassive black holes powering active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and the build-up of stellar mass in their host galaxies. In the local universe, AGNs are preferentially found in bulge-dominated galaxies, but the AGN demographics at earlier epochs are not as well understood. We present a rest-frame UV composite spectrum for a sample of 33 z 2-3 AGNs drawn from the UV-selected Lyman Break Galaxy (LBG) survey. This spectrum shows many emission and absorption features, such as HI Lyman-alpha, NV 1240, NIV] 1483, 1486, CIV 1548, 1550, HeII 1640, and CIII] 1907, 1909. Redshifted SiIV 1394 absorption provides evidence for outflowing high-ionization gas in these objects at speeds of 103 km/s. Finally, using optical, near-IR, and mid-IR photometry, which cover the rest-frame UV to near-IR portions of the galaxies' spectral energy distributions, we perform stellar population synthesis modeling of the sample. Based on these results, we explore the relationship in the host galaxy between AGN activity, maturity of the stellar population, and regulation of star formation.

Exploring Galaxy Formation and Evolution via Structural Decomposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelvin, Lee; Driver, Simon; Robotham, Aaron; Hill, David; Cameron, Ewan

2010-06-01

The Galaxy And Mass Assembly (GAMA) structural decomposition pipeline (GAMA-SIGMA Structural Investigation of Galaxies via Model Analysis) will provide multi-component information for a sample of ~12,000 galaxies across 9 bands ranging from near-UV to near-IR. This will allow the relationship between structural properties and broadband, optical-to-near-IR, spectral energy distributions of bulge, bar, and disk components to be explored, revealing clues as to the history of baryonic mass assembly within a hierarchical clustering framework. Data is initially taken from the SDSS & UKIDSS-LAS surveys to test the robustness of our automated decomposition pipeline. This will eventually be replaced with the forthcoming higher-resolution VST & VISTA surveys data, expanding the sample to ~30,000 galaxies.

Is Black Hole Growth a Universal Process? Exploring Selection Effects in Measurements of AGN Accretion Rates and Host Galaxies.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, Mackenzie

2018-01-01

At the center of essentially every massive galaxy is a monstrous black hole producing luminous radiation driven by the accretion of gas. By observing these active galactic nuclei (AGN) we may trace the growth of black holes across cosmic time. However, our knowledge of the full underlying AGN population is hindered by complex observational biases. My research aims to untangle these biases by using a novel approach to simulate the impact of selection effects on multiwavelength observations.The most statistically powerful studies of AGN to date come from optical spectroscopic surveys, with some reporting a complex relationship between AGN accretion rates and host galaxy characteristics. However, the optical waveband can be strongly influenced by selection effects and dilution from host galaxy star formation. I have shown that accounting for selection effects, the Eddington ratio distribution for optically-selected AGN is consistent with a broad power-law, as seen in the X-rays (Jones et al. 2016). This suggests that a universal Eddington ratio distribution may be enough to describe the full multiwavelength AGN population.Building on these results, I have expanded a semi-numerical galaxy formation simulation to include this straightforward prescription for AGN accretion and explicitly model selection effects. I have found that a simple model for AGN accretion can broadly reproduce the host galaxies and halos of X-ray AGN, and that different AGN selection techniques yield samples with very different host galaxy properties (Jones et al. 2017). Finally, I will discuss the capabilities of this simulation to build synthetic multiwavelength SEDs in order to explore what AGN populations would be detected with the next generation of observatories. This research is supported by a NASA Jenkins Graduate Fellowship under grant no. NNX15AU32H.

Evolution of LMC/M33-mass dwarf galaxies in the EAGLE simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, Shi; Cautun, Marius; Deason, Alis J.; Frenk, Carlos S.; Theuns, Tom

2018-06-01

We investigate the population of dwarf galaxies with stellar masses similar to the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and M33 in the EAGLE galaxy formation simulation. In the field, galaxies reside in haloes with stellar-to-halo mass ratios of 1.03^{+0.50}_{-0.31}× 10^{-2} (68% confidence level); systems like the LMC, which have an SMC-mass satellite, reside in haloes about 1.3 times more massive, which suggests an LMC halo mass at infall, M_{200}=3.4^{+1.8}_{-1.2}× 10^{11}{ M_⊙ } (68% confidence level). The colour distribution of dwarfs is bimodal, with the red galaxies (g - r > 0.6) being mostly satellites. The fraction of red LMC-mass dwarfs is 15% for centrals, and for satellites this fraction increases rapidly with host mass: from 10% for satellites of Milky Way (MW)-mass haloes to nearly 90% for satellites of groups and clusters. The quenching timescale, defined as the time after infall when half of the satellites have acquired red colours, decreases with host mass from >5 Gyrs for MW-mass hosts to 2.5 Gyrs for cluster mass hosts. The satellites of MW-mass haloes have higher star formation rates and bluer colours than field galaxies. This is due to enhanced star formation triggered by gas compression shortly after accretion. Both the LMC and M33 have enhanced recent star formation that could be a manifestation of this process. After infall into their MW-mass hosts, the g - r colours of LMC-mass dwarfs become bluer for the first 2 Gyrs, after which they rapidly redden. LMC-mass dwarfs fell into their MW-mass hosts only relatively recently, with more than half having an infall time of less than 3.5 Gyrs.

A Glimpse at Quasar Host Galaxy Far-UV Emission, Using Damped Lyα's as Natural Coronagraphs

DOE PAGES

Cai, Zheng; Fan, Xiaohui; Noterdaeme, Pasquier; ...

2014-09-16

In merger-driven models of massive galaxy evolution, the luminous quasar phase is expected to be accompanied by vigorous star formation in quasar host galaxies. In this paper, we use high column density damped Lyα (DLA) systems along quasar sight lines as natural coronagraphs to directly study the far-UV (FUV) radiation from the host galaxies of luminous background quasars. Here, we have stacked the spectra of ~2000 DLA systems (N HI > 10 20.6cm –2) with a median absorption redshiftmore » $$\\langle$$z$$\\rangle$$ = 2.6 selected from quasars observed in the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey. We detect residual flux in the dark troughs of the composite DLA spectra. The level of this residual flux significantly exceeds systematic errors in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey fiber sky subtraction; furthermore, the residual flux is strongly correlated with the continuum luminosity of the background quasar, while uncorrelated with DLA column density or metallicity. We conclude that the flux could be associated with the average FUV radiation from the background quasar host galaxies (with medium redshift $$\\langle$$z$$\\rangle$$ = 3.1) that is not blocked by the intervening DLA. Finally, assuming that all of the detected flux originates from quasar hosts, for the highest quasar luminosity bin ($$\\langle$$L$$\\rangle$$ = 2.5 × 10 13 L ⊙), the host galaxy has an FUV intensity of 1.5 ± 0.2 × 10 40 erg s –1 Å –1; this corresponds to an unobscured UV star formation rate of 9 M ⊙ yr –1.« less

A glimpse at quasar host galaxy far-UV emission using damped Lyα's as natural coronagraphs

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cai, Zheng; Fan, Xiaohui; Wang, Ran

2014-10-01

In merger-driven models of massive galaxy evolution, the luminous quasar phase is expected to be accompanied by vigorous star formation in quasar host galaxies. In this paper, we use high column density damped Lyα (DLA) systems along quasar sight lines as natural coronagraphs to directly study the far-UV (FUV) radiation from the host galaxies of luminous background quasars. We have stacked the spectra of ∼2000 DLA systems (N {sub H} {sub I} > 10{sup 20.6} cm{sup –2}) with a median absorption redshift (z) = 2.6 selected from quasars observed in the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey. We detect residual fluxmore » in the dark troughs of the composite DLA spectra. The level of this residual flux significantly exceeds systematic errors in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey fiber sky subtraction; furthermore, the residual flux is strongly correlated with the continuum luminosity of the background quasar, while uncorrelated with DLA column density or metallicity. We conclude that the flux could be associated with the average FUV radiation from the background quasar host galaxies (with medium redshift (z) = 3.1) that is not blocked by the intervening DLA. Assuming that all of the detected flux originates from quasar hosts, for the highest quasar luminosity bin ((L) = 2.5 × 10{sup 13} L {sub ☉}), the host galaxy has an FUV intensity of 1.5 ± 0.2 × 10{sup 40} erg s{sup –1} Å{sup –1}; this corresponds to an unobscured UV star formation rate of 9 M {sub ☉} yr{sup –1}.« less

The SLUGGS Survey: A Catalog of Over 4000 Globular Cluster Radial Velocities in 27 Nearby Early-type Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forbes, Duncan A.; Alabi, Adebusola; Brodie, Jean P.; Romanowsky, Aaron J.; Strader, Jay; Foster, Caroline; Usher, Christopher; Spitler, Lee; Bellstedt, Sabine; Pastorello, Nicola; Villaume, Alexa; Wasserman, Asher; Pota, Vincenzo

2017-03-01

Here, we present positions and radial velocities for over 4000 globular clusters (GCs) in 27 nearby early-type galaxies from the SLUGGS survey. The SLUGGS survey is designed to be representative of elliptical and lenticular galaxies in the stellar mass range 10 < log {M}* /M ⊙ < 11.7. The data have been obtained over many years, mostly using the very stable multi-object spectrograph DEIMOS on the Keck II 10 m telescope. Radial velocities are measured using the calcium triplet lines, with a velocity accuracy of ±10-15 km s-1. We use phase space diagrams (I.e., velocity-position diagrams) to identify contaminants such as foreground stars and background galaxies, and to show that the contribution of GCs from neighboring galaxies is generally insignificant. Likely ultra-compact dwarfs are tabulated separately. We find that the mean velocity of the GC system is close to that of the host galaxy systemic velocity, indicating that the GC system is in overall dynamical equilibrium within the galaxy potential. We also find that the GC system velocity dispersion scales with host galaxy stellar mass, in a similar manner to the Faber-Jackson relation for the stellar velocity dispersion. Publication of these GC radial velocity catalogs should enable further studies in many areas, such as GC system substructure, kinematics, and host galaxy mass measurements.

Velocity Dispersions Across Bulge Types

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fabricius, Maximilian; Bender, Ralf; Hopp, Ulrich

2010-06-08

We present first results from a long-slit spectroscopic survey of bulge kinematics in local spiral galaxies. Our optical spectra were obtained at the Hobby-Eberly Telescope with the LRS spectrograph and have a velocity resolution of 45 km/s (sigma*), which allows us to resolve the velocity dispersions in the bulge regions of most objects in our sample. We find that the velocity dispersion profiles in morphological classical bulge galaxies are always centrally peaked while the velocity dispersion of morphologically disk-like bulges stays relatively flat towards the center--once strongly barred galaxies are discarded.

Supermassive black holes and central star clusters: Connection with the host galaxy kinematics and color

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zasov, A. V.; Cherepashchuk, A. M.

2013-11-01

The relationship between the masses of the central, supermassive black holes ( M bh) and of the nuclear star clusters ( M nc) of disk galaxies with various parameters galaxies are considered: the rotational velocity at R = 2 kpc V (2), the maximum rotational velocity V max, the indicative dynamical mass M 25, the integrated mass of the stellar population M *, and the integrated color index B-V. The rotational velocities andmasses of the central objects were taken from the literature. Themass M nc correlatesmore closely with the kinematic parameters and the disk mass than M bh, including with the velocity V max, which is closely related to the virial mass of the dark halo. On average, lenticular galaxies are characterized by higher masses M bh compared to other types of galaxies with similar characteristics. The dependence of the blackhole mass on the color index is bimodal: galaxies of the red group (red-sequence) with B-V >0.6-0.7 which are mostly early-type galaxies with weak star formation, differ appreciably from blue galaxies, which have higher values of M nc and M bh. At the dependences we consider between the masses of the central objects and the parameters of the host galaxies (except for the dependence of M bh on the central velocity dispersion), the red-group galaxies have systematically higher M bh values, even when the host-galaxy parameters are similar. In contrast, in the case of nuclear star clusters, the blue and red galaxies form unified sequences. The results agree with scenarios in which most red-group galaxies form as a result of the partial or complete loss of interstellar gas in a stage of high nuclear activity in galaxies whose central black-hole masses exceed 106-107 M ⊙ (depending on the mass of the galaxy itself). The bulk of disk galaxies with M bh > 107 M ⊙ are lenticular galaxies (types S0, E/S0) whose disks are practically devoid of gas.

A Multiwavelength Study of POX 52, a Dwarf Seyfert Galaxy with an Intermediate-Mass Black Hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barth, Aaron

2004-07-01

We propose a comprehensive optical, UV, and X-ray investigation of the unique galaxy POX 52. POX 52 is a Seyfert 1 galaxy with unprecedented properties: its host galaxy appears to be a dwarf elliptical, and its stellar velocity dispersion is only 36 km/s. The stellar velocity dispersion and the broad emission-line widths both suggest a black hole mass of order 10^5 solar masses, placing POX 52 in a region of AGN parameter space that is almost completely unexplored at present. We request ACS/HRC imaging to perform a definitive measurement of the host galaxy structure; STIS UV and optical spectroscopy to study the nonstellar continuum and the structure of the broad-line region; and Chandra ACS imaging to detect the X-ray emission from the nucleus and investigate its spectral and variability properties. The results of this program will give a detailed understanding of the host galaxy and accretion properties of one of the very few known black holes in the mass range around 10^5 solar masses.

THE TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA RATE IN RADIO AND INFRARED GALAXIES FROM THE CANADA-FRANCE-HAWAII TELESCOPE SUPERNOVA LEGACY SURVEY

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Graham, M. L.; Pritchet, C. J.; Balam, D.

2010-02-15

We have combined the large SN Ia database of the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Supernova Legacy Survey and catalogs of galaxies with photometric redshifts, Very Large Array 1.4 GHz radio sources, and Spitzer infrared sources. We present eight SNe Ia in early-type host galaxies which have counterparts in the radio and infrared source catalogs. We find the SN Ia rate in subsets of radio and infrared early-type galaxies is {approx}1-5 times the rate in all early-type galaxies, and that any enhancement is always {approx}<2{sigma}. Rates in these subsets are consistent with predictions of the two-component 'A+B' SN Ia rate model. Since infraredmore » properties of radio SN Ia hosts indicate dust-obscured star formation, we incorporate infrared star formation rates into the 'A+B' model. We also show the properties of SNe Ia in radio and infrared galaxies suggest the hosts contain dust and support a continuum of delay time distributions (DTDs) for SNe Ia, although other DTDs cannot be ruled out based on our data.« less

ALMA Examines a Distant Quasar Host

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2017-04-01

The dust continuum (top) and the [CII] emission (bottom) maps for the region around J1120+0641. [Adapted from Venemans et al. 2017]A team of scientists has used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) to explore the host galaxy of the most distant quasar known. Their observations may help us to build a picture of how the first supermassive black holes in the universe formed and evolved.Faraway Monsters and Their GalaxiesWe know that quasars the incredibly luminous and active centers of some distant galaxies are powered by accreting, supermassive black holes. These monstrous powerhouses have been detected out to redshifts of z 7, when the universe was younger than a billion years old.Though weve observed over a hundred quasars at high redshift, we still dont understand how these early supermassive black holes formed, or whether the black holes and the galaxies that host them co-evolved. In order to answer questions like these, however, we first need to gather information about the properties and behavior of various supermassive black holes and their host galaxies.A team of scientists led by Bram Venemans (Max-Planck Institute for Astronomy, Germany) recently used the unprecedented sensitivity and angular resolution of ALMA as well as the Very Large Array and the IRAM Plateau de Bure Interferometer to examine the most distant quasar currently known, J1120+0641, located at a redshift of z = 7.1.A High-Resolution LookThe teams observations of the dust and gas emission from the quasars host galaxy revealed a number of intriguing things:The red and blue sides of the [CII] emission line are shown here as contours, demonstrating that theres no ordered rotational motion of the gas on kpc scales. [Adapted from Venemans et al. 2017]The majority of the galaxys emission is very compact. Around 80% of the observed flux came from a region of only 11.5 kpc in diameter.Despite the fact that the 2.4-billion-solar-mass black hole at the galaxys center is accreting at a high rate, the heating in the galaxy is dominated not by the black holes accretion, but by star formation.Theres no sign of the expected structure of a rotating disk on kpc scales.The authors estimate a dynamical mass of the host galaxy of 43 billion solar masses and the black hole at the galaxys center makes up 6% of that. This ratio is roughly 10x higher than the black-hole-to-bulge mass ratio in local early-type galaxies.In the very central region, the black hole accounts for around 20% of the galaxys dynamical mass, and gas and dust likely accounts for most of the remainder. This doesnt leave much room for massive stars in the center of the galaxy.ALMAs capabilities have enabled these first efforts to spatially resolve the host galaxy of the most distant quasar known, resulting new and unexpected information. The authors now look hopefully to the future, when even longer baselines of ALMA may allow us a still-higher-resolution look at this distant quasar, possibly providing answers to some of the questions it has raised.CitationBram P. Venemans et al 2017 ApJ 837 146. doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aa62ac

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xu, Siyao; Zhang, Bing, E-mail: syxu@pku.edu.cn, E-mail: zhang@physics.unlv.edu

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) have been identified as extragalactic sources that can probe turbulence in the intergalactic medium (IGM) and their host galaxies. To account for the observed millisecond pulses caused by scatter broadening, we examine a variety of possible electron density fluctuation models in both the IGM and the host galaxy medium. We find that a short-wave-dominated power-law spectrum of density, which may arise in highly supersonic turbulence with pronounced local dense structures of shock-compressed gas in the host interstellar medium (ISM), can produce the required density enhancements at sufficiently small scales to interpret the scattering timescale of FRBs.more » This implies that an FRB residing in a galaxy with efficient star formation in action tends to have a broadened pulse. The scaling of the scattering time with the dispersion measure (DM) in the host galaxy varies in different turbulence and scattering regimes. The host galaxy can be the major origin of scatter broadening, but contributes to a small fraction of the total DM. We also find that the sheet-like structure of the density in the host ISM associated with folded magnetic fields in a viscosity-dominated regime of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence cannot give rise to strong scattering. Furthermore, valuable insights into the IGM turbulence concerning the detailed spatial structure of density and magnetic field can be gained from the observed scattering timescale of FRBs. Our results favor the suppression of micro-plasma instabilities and the validity of the collisional-MHD description of turbulence properties in the collisionless IGM.« less

THE NUMBER OF TIDAL DWARF SATELLITE GALAXIES IN DEPENDENCE OF BULGE INDEX

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

López-Corredoira, Martín; Kroupa, Pavel, E-mail: martinlc@iac.es, E-mail: pavel@astro.uni-bonn.de

We show that a significant correlation (up to 5σ) emerges between the bulge index, defined to be larger for a larger bulge/disk ratio, in spiral galaxies with similar luminosities in the Galaxy Zoo 2 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the number of tidal-dwarf galaxies in the catalog by Kaviraj et al. In the standard cold or warm dark matter cosmological models, the number of satellite galaxies correlates with the circular velocity of the dark matter host halo. In generalized gravity models without cold or warm dark matter, such a correlation does not exist, because host galaxies cannot capture infalling dwarfmore » galaxies due to the absence of dark-matter-induced dynamical friction. However, in such models, a correlation is expected to exist between the bulge mass and the number of satellite galaxies because bulges and tidal-dwarf satellite galaxies form in encounters between host galaxies. This is not predicted by dark matter models in which bulge mass and the number of satellites are a priori uncorrelated because higher bulge/disk ratios do not imply higher dark/luminous ratios. Hence, our correlation reproduces the prediction of scenarios without dark matter, whereas an explanation is not found readily from the a priori predictions of the standard scenario with dark matter. Further research is needed to explore whether some application of the standard theory may explain this correlation.« less

Fossils of reionization in the local group

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gnedin, Nickolay Y.; /Fermilab /KICP, Chicago /Chicago U., EFI; Kravtsov, Andrey V.

We use a combination of high-resolution gas dynamics simulations of high-redshift dwarf galaxies and dissipationless simulations of a Milky Way sized halo to estimate the expected abundance and spatial distribution of the dwarf satellite galaxies that formed most of their stars around z {approx} 8 and evolved only little since then. Such galaxies can be considered as fossils of the reionization era, and studying their properties could provide a direct window into the early, pre-reionization stages of galaxy formation. We show that 5-15% of the objects existing at z {approx} 8 do indeed survive until the present in the MWmore » like environment without significant evolution. This implies that it is plausible that the fossil dwarf galaxies do exist in the Local Group. Because such galaxies form their stellar systems early during the period of active merging and accretion, they should have spheroidal morphology regardless of their current distance from the host galaxy. We show that both the expected luminosity function and spatial distribution of dark matter halos which are likely to host fossil galaxies agree reasonably well with the observed distributions of the luminous (L{sub V} > 10{sup 6} Lsun) Local Group fossil candidates near the host galaxy (d<200 kpc). However, the predicted abundance is substantially larger (by a factor of 2-3) for fainter galaxies (L{sub V} < 10{sup 6} Lsun) at larger distances (d>300 kpc). We discuss several possible explanations for this discrepancy.« less

THE RELATION BETWEEN GALAXY MORPHOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT IN THE LOCAL UNIVERSE: AN RC3-SDSS PICTURE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wilman, David J.; Erwin, Peter

2012-02-20

We present results of an analysis of the local (z {approx} 0) morphology-environment relation for 911 bright (M{sub B} < -19) galaxies, based on matching classical RC3 morphologies with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey based group catalog of Yang et al., which includes halo mass estimates. This allows us to study how the relative fractions of spirals, lenticulars, and ellipticals depend on halo mass over a range of 10{sup 11.7}-10{sup 14.8} h{sup -1} M{sub Sun }, from isolated single-galaxy halos to massive groups and low-mass clusters. We pay particular attention to how morphology relates to central versus satellite status (wheremore » 'central' galaxies are the most massive within their halo). The fraction of galaxies which are elliptical is a strong function of stellar mass; it is also a strong function of halo mass, but only for central galaxies. We interpret this as evidence for a scenario where elliptical galaxies are always formed, probably via mergers, as central galaxies within their halos, with satellite ellipticals being previously central galaxies accreted onto a larger halo. The overall fraction of galaxies which are S0 increases strongly with halo mass, from {approx}10% to {approx}70%. Here, too, we find striking differences between the central and satellite populations. 20% {+-} 2% of central galaxies with stellar masses M{sub *} > 10{sup 10.5} M{sub Sun} are S0 regardless of halo mass, but satellite S0 galaxies are only found in massive (>10{sup 13} h{sup -1} M{sub Sun }) halos, where they are 69% {+-} 4% of the M{sub *} > 10{sup 10.5} M{sub Sun} satellite population. This suggests two channels for forming S0 galaxies: one which operates for central galaxies and another which transforms lower-mass (M{sub *} {approx}< 10{sup 11} M{sub Sun }) accreted spirals into satellite S0 galaxies in massive halos. Analysis of finer morphological structure (bars and rings in disk galaxies) shows some trends with stellar mass, but none with halo mass; this is consistent with other recent studies which indicate that bars are not strongly influenced by galaxy environment. Radio sources in high-mass central galaxies are common, similarly so for elliptical and S0 galaxies, with a frequency that increases with the halo mass. Emission-line active galactic nuclei (mostly LINERs) are more common in S0s, but show no strong trends with environment.« less

Redshift distortions of galaxy correlation functions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fry, J. N.; Gaztanaga, Enrique

1994-01-01

To examine how peculiar velocities can affect the two-, three-, and four-point redshift correlation functions, we evaluate volume-average correlations for configurations that emphasize and minimize redshift distortions for four different volume-limited samples from each of the CfA, SSRS, and IRAS redshift catalogs. We present the results as the correlation length r(sub 0) and power index gamma of the two-point correlations, bar-xi(sub 0) = (r(sub 0)/r)(exp gamma), and as the hierarchical amplitudes of the three- and four-point functions, S(sub 3) = bar-xi(sub 3)/bar-xi(exp 2)(sub 2) and S(sub 4) = bar-xi(sub 4)/bar-xi(exp 3)(sub 2). We find a characteristic distortion for bar-xi(sub 2), the slope gamma is flatter and the correlation length is larger in redshift space than in real space; that is, redshift distortions 'move' correlations from small to large scales. At the largest scales (up to 12 Mpc), the extra power in the redshift distribution is compatible with Omega(exp 4/7)/b approximately equal to 1. We estimate Omega(exp 4/7)/b to be 0.53 +/- 0.15, 1.10 +/- 0.16, and 0.84 +/- 0.45 for the CfA, SSRS, and IRAS catalogs. Higher order correlations bar-xi(sub 3) and bar-xi(sub 4) suffer similar redshift distortions but in such a way that, within the accuracy of our ananlysis, the normalized amplitudes S(sub 3) and S(sub 4) are insensitive to this effect. The hierarchical amplitudes S(sub 3) and S(sub 4) are constant as a function of scale between 1 and 12 Mpc and have similar values in all samples and catalogs, S(sub 3) approximately equal to 2 and S(sub 4) approximately equal to 6, despite the fact that bar-xi(sub 2), bar-xi(sub 3), and bar-xi(sub 4) differ from one sample to another by large factors (up to a factor of 4 in bar-xi(sub 2), 8 for bar-xi(sub 3), and 12 for bar-xi(sub 4)). The agreement between the independent estimations of S(sub 3) and S(sub 4) is remarkable given the different criteria in the selection of galaxies and also the difference in the resulting range of densities, luminosities, and locations between samples.

The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. VII. The Intrinsic Shapes of Low-luminosity Galaxies in the Core of the Virgo Cluster, and a Comparison with the Local Group

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sánchez-Janssen, Rubén; Ferrarese, Laura; MacArthur, Lauren A.; Côté, Patrick; Blakeslee, John P.; Cuillandre, Jean-Charles; Duc, Pierre-Alain; Durrell, Patrick; Gwyn, Stephen; McConnacchie, Alan W.; Boselli, Alessandro; Courteau, Stéphane; Emsellem, Eric; Mei, Simona; Peng, Eric; Puzia, Thomas H.; Roediger, Joel; Simard, Luc; Boyer, Fred; Santos, Matthew

2016-03-01

We investigate the intrinsic shapes of low-luminosity galaxies in the central 300 kpc of the Virgo Cluster using deep imaging obtained as part of the Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). We build a sample of nearly 300 red-sequence cluster members in the yet-unexplored -14 < Mg < -8 mag range, and we measure their apparent axis ratios, q, through Sérsic fits to their two-dimensional light distribution, which is well described by a constant ellipticity parameter. The resulting distribution of apparent axis ratios is then fit by families of triaxial models with normally distributed intrinsic ellipticities, E = 1 - C/A, and triaxialities, T = (A2 - B2)/(A2 - C2). We develop a Bayesian framework to explore the posterior distribution of the model parameters, which allows us to work directly on discrete data, and to account for individual, surface-brightness-dependent axis ratio uncertainties. For this population we infer a mean intrinsic ellipticity \\bar{E} = {0.43}-0.02+0.02 and a mean triaxiality \\bar{T} = {0.16}-0.06+0.07. This implies that faint Virgo galaxies are best described as a family of thick, nearly oblate spheroids with mean intrinsic axis ratios 1:0.94:0.57. The core of Virgo lacks highly elongated low-luminosity galaxies, with 95% of the population having q > 0.45. We additionally attempt a study of the intrinsic shapes of Local Group (LG) satellites of similar luminosities. For the LG population we infer a slightly larger mean intrinsic ellipticity \\bar{E} = {0.51}-0.06+0.07, and the paucity of objects with round apparent shapes translates into more triaxial mean shapes, 1:0.76:0.49. Numerical studies that follow the tidal evolution of satellites within LG-sized halos are in good agreement with the inferred shape distributions, but the mismatch for faint galaxies in Virgo highlights the need for more adequate simulations of this population in the cluster environment. We finally compare the intrinsic shapes of NGVS low-mass galaxies with samples of more massive quiescent systems, and with field, star-forming galaxies of similar luminosities. We find that the intrinsic flattening in this low-luminosity regime is almost independent of the environment in which the galaxy resides, but there is a hint that objects may be slightly rounder in denser environments. The comparable flattening distributions of low-luminosity galaxies that have experienced very different degrees of environmental effects suggest that internal processes are the main drivers of galaxy structure at low masses, with external mechanisms playing a secondary role.

Impact of seeing and host galaxy into the analysis of photo-polarimetric microvariability in blazars. Case study of the nearby blazars 1ES 1959+650 and HB89 2201+044

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sosa, M. S.; von Essen, C.; Andruchow, I.; Cellone, S. A.

2017-11-01

Blazars, a type of Active Galactic Nuclei, present a particular orientation of their jets close to the line of sight. Their radiation is thus relativistically beamed, giving rise to extreme behaviors, specially strong variability on very short timescales (I.e., microvariability). Here we present simultaneous photometric and polarimetric observations of two relatively nearby blazars, 1ES 1959+650 and HB89 2201+044, that were obtained using the Calar Alto Faint Object Spectrograph mounted at the 2.2 m telescope in Calar Alto, Spain. An outstanding characteristic of these two blazars is the presence of well resolved host galaxies. This particular feature allows us to produce a study of their intrinsic polarization, a measurement of the polarization state of the galactic nucleus unaffected by the host galaxy. To carry out this work, we computed photometric fluxes from which we calculated the degree and orientation of the blazars polarization. Then, we analyzed the depolarizing effect introduced by the host galaxy with the main goal to recover the intrinsic polarization of the galactic nucleus, carefully taking into consideration the spurious polarimetric variability introduced by changes in seeing along the observing nights. We find that the two blazars do not present intra-night photo-polarimetric variability, although we do detect a significant inter-night variability. Comparing polarimetric values before and after accounting for the host galaxies, we observe a significant difference in the polarization degree of about 1% in the case of 1ES 1959+650, and 0.3% in the case of HB89 2201+044, thus evidencing the non-negligible impact introduced by the host galaxies. We note that this host galaxy effect depends on the waveband, and varies with changing seeing conditions, so it should be particularly considered when studying frequency-dependent polarization in blazars. Based on observations collected at the Centro Astronómico Hispano Alemán (CAHA) at Calar Alto, operated jointly by the Max-Planck Institut für Astronomie and the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (CSIC).

MAD Adaptive Optics Imaging of High-luminosity Quasars: A Pilot Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liuzzo, E.; Falomo, R.; Paiano, S.; Treves, A.; Uslenghi, M.; Arcidiacono, C.; Baruffolo, A.; Diolaiti, E.; Farinato, J.; Lombini, M.; Moretti, A.; Ragazzoni, R.; Brast, R.; Donaldson, R.; Kolb, J.; Marchetti, E.; Tordo, S.

2016-08-01

We present near-IR images of five luminous quasars at z ˜ 2 and one at z ˜ 4 obtained with an experimental adaptive optics (AO) instrument at the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope. The observations are part of a program aimed at demonstrating the capabilities of multi-conjugated adaptive optics imaging combined with the use of natural guide stars for high spatial resolution studies on large telescopes. The observations were mostly obtained under poor seeing conditions but in two cases. In spite of these nonoptimal conditions, the resulting images of point sources have cores of FWHM ˜ 0.2 arcsec. We are able to characterize the host galaxy properties for two sources and set stringent upper limits to the galaxy luminosity for the others. We also report on the expected capabilities for investigating the host galaxies of distant quasars with AO systems coupled with future Extremely Large Telescopes. Detailed simulations show that it will be possible to characterize compact (2-3 kpc) quasar host galaxies for quasi-stellar objects at z = 2 with nucleus K-magnitude spanning from 15 to 20 (corresponding to absolute magnitude -31 to -26) and host galaxies that are 4 mag fainter than their nuclei.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vaghmare, Kaustubh; Kembhavi, Ajit; Barway, Sudhanshu, E-mail: kaustubh@iucaa.ernet.in, E-mail: akk@iucaa.ernet.in, E-mail: barway@saao.ac.za

In this Letter, we present a systematic study of lenticular (S0) galaxies based on mid-infrared imaging data on 185 objects taken using the Spitzer Infrared Array Camera. We identify the S0s hosting pseudobulges based on the position of the bulge on the Kormendy diagram and the Sersic index of the bulge. We find that pseudobulges preferentially occur in the fainter luminosity class (defined as having total K-band absolute magnitude M{sub K} fainter than -22.66 in the AB system). We present relations between bulge and disk parameters obtained as a function of the bulge type. The disks in the pseudobulge hostingmore » galaxies are found to have distinct trends on the r{sub e}-r{sub d} and {mu}{sub d}(0)-r{sub d} correlations compared to those in galaxies with classical bulges. We show that the disks of pseudobulge hosts possess on average a smaller scale length and have a fainter central surface brightness than their counterparts occurring in classical bulge hosting galaxies. The differences found for discs in pseudobulge and classical bulge hosting galaxies may be a consequence of the different processes creating the central mass concentrations.« less

The host of the Type I SLSN 2017egm. A young, sub-solar metallicity environment in a massive spiral galaxy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Izzo, L.; Thöne, C. C.; García-Benito, R.; de Ugarte Postigo, A.; Cano, Z.; Kann, D. A.; Bensch, K.; Della Valle, M.; Galadí-Enríquez, D.; Hedrosa, R. P.

2018-02-01

Context. Type I superluminous supernova (SLSN) host galaxies are predominantly low-metallicity, highly star-forming (SF) dwarfs. One of the current key questions is whether Type I SLSNe can only occur in such environments and hosts. Aims: Here we present an integral-field study of the massive, high-metallicity spiral NGC 3191, the host of SN 2017egm, the closest Type I SLSN known to date. We use data from PMAS/CAHA and the public MaNGA survey to shed light on the properties of the SLSN site and the origin of star formation in this non-starburst spiral galaxy. Methods: We map the physical properties of different H II regions throughout the galaxy and characterise their stellar populations using the STARLIGHT fitting code. Kinematical information allows us to study a possible interaction with its neighbouring galaxy as the origin of recent star formation activity which could have caused the SLSN. Results: NGC 3191 shows intense star formation in the western part with three large SF regions of low metallicity. Taking only the properties of emitting gas, the central regions of the host have a higher metallicity, a lower specific star formation rate, and lower ionisation. Modelling the stellar populations gives a different picture: the SLSN region has two dominant stellar populations with different ages, the younger one with an age of 2-10 Myr and lower metallicity, likely the population from which the SN progenitor originated. Emission line kinematics of NGC 3191 show indications of interaction with its neighbour MCG+08-19-017 at 45 kpc, which might be responsible for the recent starburst. In fact, this galaxy pair has hosted a total of four SNe, 1988B (Type Ia), SN 2003ds (Type Ic in MCG+08-19-017), PTF10bgl (Type II), and 2017egm, underlying the enhanced SF in both galaxies due to interaction. Conclusions: Our study shows that care should be taken when interpreting global host and even gas properties without looking at the stellar population history of the region. The SLSNe seem to be consistent with massive stars (>20 M⊙) requiring low metallicity (<0.6 Z⊙), environments that can also occur in massive late-type galaxies, but not necessarily with starbursts.

Radio AGN in the local universe: unification, triggering and evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tadhunter, Clive

2016-06-01

Associated with one of the most important forms of active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback, and showing a strong preference for giant elliptical host galaxies, radio AGN (L_{1.4 GHz} > 10^{24} W Hz^{-1}) are a key sub-class of the overall AGN population. Recently their study has benefitted dramatically from the availability of high-quality data covering the X-ray to far-IR wavelength range obtained with the current generation of ground- and space-based telescope facilities. Reflecting this progress, here I review our current state of understanding of the population of radio AGN at low and intermediate redshifts (z < 0.7), concentrating on their nuclear AGN and host galaxy properties, and covering three interlocking themes: the classification of radio AGN and its interpretation; the triggering and fuelling of the jet and AGN activity; and the evolution of the host galaxies. I show that much of the observed diversity in the AGN properties of radio AGN can be explained in terms of a combination of orientation/anisotropy, mass accretion rate, and variability effects. The detailed morphologies of the host galaxies are consistent with the triggering of strong-line radio galaxies (SLRG) in galaxy mergers. However, the star formation properties and cool ISM contents suggest that the triggering mergers are relatively minor in terms of their gas masses in most cases, and would not lead to major growth of the supermassive black holes and stellar bulges; therefore, apart from a minority (<20 %) that show evidence for higher star formation rates and more massive cool ISM reservoirs, the SLRG represent late-time re-triggering of activity in mature giant elliptical galaxies. In contrast, the host and environmental properties of weak-line radio galaxies (WLRG) with Fanaroff-Riley class I radio morphologies are consistent with more gradual fuelling of the activity via gas accretion at low rates onto the supermassive black holes.

The host galaxy/AGN connection in nearby early-type galaxies. Is there a miniature radio-galaxy in every "core" galaxy?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balmaverde, B.; Capetti, A.

2006-02-01

This is the second of a series of three papers exploring the connection between the multiwavelength properties of AGN in nearby early-type galaxies and the characteristics of their hosts. We selected two samples with 5 GHz VLA radio flux measurements down to 1 mJy, reaching levels of radio luminosity as low as 1036 erg s-1. In Paper I we presented a study of the surface brightness profiles for the 65 objects with available archival HST images out of the 116 radio-detected galaxies. We classified early-type galaxies into "core" and "power-law" galaxies, discriminating on the basis of the slope of their nuclear brightness profiles, following the Nukers scheme. Here we focus on the 29 core galaxies (hereafter CoreG). We used HST and Chandra data to isolate their optical and X-ray nuclear emission. The CoreG invariably host radio-loud nuclei, with an average radio-loudness parameter of Log R = L5 {GHz} / LB ˜ 3.6. The optical and X-ray nuclear luminosities correlate with the radio-core power, smoothly extending the analogous correlations already found for low luminosity radio-galaxies (LLRG) toward even lower power, by a factor of ˜ 1000, covering a combined range of 6 orders of magnitude. This supports the interpretation of a common non-thermal origin of the nuclear emission also for CoreG. The luminosities of the nuclear sources, most likely dominated by jet emission, set firm upper limits, as low as L/L_Edd ˜ 10-9 in both the optical and X-ray band, on any emission from the accretion process. The similarity of CoreG and LLRG when considering the distributions host galaxies luminosities and black hole masses, as well as of the surface brightness profiles, indicates that they are drawn from the same population of early-type galaxies. LLRG represent only the tip of the iceberg associated with (relatively) high activity levels, with CoreG forming the bulk of the population. We do not find any relationship between radio-power and black hole mass. A minimum black hole mass of M_BH = 108 M⊙ is apparently associated with the radio-loud nuclei in both CoreG and LLRG, but this effect must be tested on a sample of less luminous galaxies, likely to host smaller black holes. In the unifying model for BL Lacs and radio-galaxies, CoreG likely represent the counterparts of the large population of low luminosity BL Lac now emerging from the surveys at low radio flux limits. This suggests the presence of relativistic jets also in these quasi-quiescent early-type "core" galaxies.

Photometric and kinematic studies of extragalactic globular cluster systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dowell, Jessica

Globular clusters (GCs) are old, luminous, compact collections of stars found in galaxy halos that formed during the early stages of galaxy formation. Because of this, GCs serve as excellent tracers of the formation, structure, and merger history of their host galaxies. My dissertation will examine both the photometric and kinematic properties of GC systems and their relationship to their host galaxies. In the first section, I will present the analysis of the GC systems of two spiral galaxies, NGC 891 and NGC 1055. I will discuss the photometric methods used to detect GCs using wide-field BVR imaging and to quantify the global properties of the system such as the total number of GCs and their radial distribution. My results for these two GC systems were compared to those of other galaxies. I will also present the results of spectroscopic follow-up for two giant galaxies: the S0 galaxy NGC 4594 (M104), and the elliptical galaxy NGC 3379 (M105). I measured the radial velocities of GCs in these two galaxies, and combined them with published results to determine the mass distribution and mass-to-light (M/L) ratio profile for each galaxy out to large effective radius (7-9 Re). For both galaxies, I found that the M/L profiles increase with radius and do not flatten, which suggests that the dark matter halos in these galaxies extend to the edge of my data. I also looked for evidence of rotation in the GC systems, and found that neither system exhibits significant rotation around the host galaxy. I examined the velocity dispersion profile of each GC system and found kinematic differences between the red and blue GC subpopulations. Finally, I compared my results to mass estimates for these galaxies from other kinematic tracers and considered them in the context of galaxy formation models.

Gaseous Vortices in Barred Spiral Galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

England, Martin N.; Hunter, James H., Jr.

1995-01-01

During the course of examining many two-dimensional, as well as a smaller sample of three-dimensional, models of gas flows in barred spiral galaxies, we have been impressed by the ubiquitous presence fo vortex pairs, oriented roughly perpendicular to their bars, with one vortex on each side. The vortices are obvious only when viewed in the bar frame, and the centers of their velocity fields usually are near Lagrangian points L(sub 4,5). In all models that we have studied, the vortices form on essentially the same time scale as that for the development of gaseous spiral arms, typically two bar rotations. Usually the corotation radius, r(sub c), lies slightly beyond the end of the bar. Depending upon the mass distributions of the various components, gas spirals either into, or out of, the vortices: In the former case, the vortices become regions of high density, whereas the opposite is true if the gas spirals out of a vortex. The models described in this paper have low-density vortices, as do most of the models we have studied. Moreover, usually the vortex centers lie approximately within +/- 15 deg of L(sub 4,5). In the stellar dynamic limit, when pressure and viscous forces are absent, short-period orbits exist, centered on L(sub 4,5). These orbits need not cross and therefore their morphology is that of gas streamlines, that is, vortices. We believe that the gas vortices in our models are hydrodynamic analogues of closed, short-period, libration orbits centered on L(sub 4,5).

Hydrodynamical simulations of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1300. Dynamical interpretation of observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindblad, P. A. B.; Kristen, H.

1996-09-01

We perform two-dimensional time dependent hydrodynamical simulations of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1300. The input potential is divided into an axisymmetric part mainly derived from the observed rotation curve, and a perturbing part obtained from near infrared surface photometry of the bar and spiral structure. Self-gravitation of the gas is not taken into account in our modeling. A pure bar perturbed model is unable to reproduce the observations. It was found necessary to add a weak spiral potential to the perturbation, thus suggesting the presence of massive spiral arms in NGC 1300. We find two models, differing mainly in pattern speed, which are able to reproduce the essentials of NGC 1300. The high pattern speed model has {OMEGA}_p_=20km/s/kpc, corresponding to a corotation radius at R_CR_~104"=1.3R_bar_. Furthermore, the adopted rotation curve for this model supports one ILR at R_ILR_~26" and an OLR at R_OLR_~188". The low pattern speed model has {OMEGA}_p_=12km/s/kpc, corresponding to a corotation radius at R_ CR_~190"=2.4R_bar_. The adopted rotation curve for this model, which differs from the fast pattern speed model, supports one ILR at R_ILR_~25" and an OLR at R_OLR_~305". Morphological features, like spiral arms and offset dust lanes, are basically reproduced by both models. They are driven by orbit crowding effects across various resonances, leading to density enhancements. The general velocity structure, as described by HI data and optical long slit measurements, is fairly consistent with the model velocities.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang Qiushi; Peng, Eric W.; Blakeslee, John P.

We study the azimuthal distribution of globular clusters (GCs) in early-type galaxies and compare them to their host galaxies using data from the ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. We find that in host galaxies with visible elongation ({epsilon} > 0.2) and intermediate to high luminosities (M{sub z} < -19), the GCs are preferentially aligned along the major axis of the stellar light. The red (metal-rich) GC subpopulations show strong alignment with the major axis of the host galaxy, which supports the notion that these GCs are associated with metal-rich field stars. The metal-rich GCs in lenticular galaxies show signs of beingmore » more strongly associated with disks rather than bulges. Surprisingly, we also find that the blue (metal-poor) GCs can also show the same correlation. If the metal-poor GCs are part of the early formation of the halo and built up through mergers, then our results support a picture where halo formation and merging occur anisotropically, and that the present-day major axis is an indicator of the preferred merging axis.« less

THE OBSERVED M-{sigma} RELATIONS IMPLY THAT SUPER-MASSIVE BLACK HOLES GROW BY COLD CHAOTIC ACCRETION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nayakshin, Sergei; King, Andrew R.; Power, Chris

We argue that current observations of M-{sigma} relations for galaxies can be used to constrain theories of super-massive black holes (SMBHs) feeding. In particular, assuming that SMBH mass is limited only by the feedback on the gas that feeds it, we show that SMBHs fed via a planar galaxy-scale gas flow, such as a disk or a bar, should be much more massive than their counterparts fed by quasi-spherical inflows. This follows from the relative inefficiency of active galactic nucleus feedback on a flattened inflow. We find that even under the most optimistic conditions for SMBH feedback on flattened inflows,more » the mass at which the SMBH expels the gas disk and terminates its own growth is a factor of several higher than the one established for quasi-spherical inflows. Any beaming of feedback away from the disk and any disk self-shadowing strengthen this result further. Contrary to this theoretical expectation, recent observations have shown that SMBHs in pseudobulge galaxies (which are associated with barred galaxies) are typically under- rather than overmassive when compared with their classical bulge counterparts at a fixed value of {sigma}. We conclude from this that SMBHs are not fed by large (100 pc to many kpc) scale gas disks or bars, most likely because such planar flows are turned into stars too efficiently to allow any SMBH growth. Based on this and other related observational evidence, we argue that most SMBHs grow by chaotic accretion of gas clouds with a small and nearly randomly distributed direction of angular momentum.« less

GalMod: A Galactic Synthesis Population Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pasetto, Stefano; Grebel, Eva K.; Chiosi, Cesare; Crnojević, Denija; Zeidler, Peter; Busso, Giorgia; Cassarà, Letizia P.; Piovan, Lorenzo; Tantalo, Rosaria; Brogliato, Claudio

2018-06-01

We present a new Galaxy population synthesis Model, GalMod. GalMod is a star-count model featuring an asymmetric bar/bulge as well as spiral arms and related extinction. The model, initially introduced in Pasetto et al., has been here completed with a central bar, a new bulge description, new disk vertical profiles, and several new bolometric corrections. The model can generate synthetic mock catalogs of visible portions of the Milky Way, external galaxies like M31, or N-body simulation initial conditions. At any given time, e.g., at a chosen age of the Galaxy, the model contains a sum of discrete stellar populations, namely the bulge/bar, disk, and halo. These populations are in turn the sum of different components: the disk is the sum of the spiral arms, thin disks, a thick disk, and various gas components, while the halo is the sum of a stellar component, a hot coronal gas, and a dark-matter component. The Galactic potential is computed from these population density profiles and used to generate detailed kinematics by considering up to the first four moments of the collisionless Boltzmann equation. The same density profiles are then used to define the observed color–magnitude diagrams in a user-defined field of view (FoV) from an arbitrary solar location. Several photometric systems have been included and made available online, and no limits on the size of the FoV are imposed thus allowing full-sky simulations, too. Finally, we model the extinction by adopting a dust model with advanced ray-tracing solutions. The model's Web page (and tutorial) can be accessed at www.GalMod.org and support is provided at Galaxy.Model@yahoo.com.

Host galaxy and environment of the BL Lacertae object PKS 0548-322: Observations with subarcsecond resolution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Falomo, Renato; Pesce, Joseph E.; Treves, Aldo

1995-01-01

We report on direct, subarcsecond resolution imaging of the nebulosity and spectroscopy of galaxies in the field of the BL Lacertae object PKS 0548-322. Surface photometry of the nebulosity is used to derive the properties of the host galaxy (M(sub V) = -23.4), which exhibits signs of interaction with a close companion galaxy at approximately 25 kpc. The radial brightness profile of the nebulosity is well fitted by the contribution of a bulge (r(exp 1/4)) plus a point source and a small internal disk. An analysis of the galaxies in the field shows that the source is located in a rich cluster of galaxies. Spectra of five galaxies in the field indicate that they are at the same redshift as the BL Lac object, thus supporting the imaging result of a surrounding cluster associated with the BL Lac. This cluster is most likely Abell S0549.

The first 62 AGN observed with SDSS-IV MaNGA - II: resolved stellar populations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mallmann, Nícolas Dullius; Riffel, Rogério; Storchi-Bergmann, Thaisa; Barboza Rembold, Sandro; Riffel, Rogemar A.; Schimoia, Jaderson; da Costa, Luiz Nicolaci; Ávila-Reese, Vladimir; Sanchez, Sebastian F.; Machado, Alice D.; Cirolini, Rafael; Ilha, Gabriele S.; do Nascimento, Janaína C.

2018-05-01

We present spatially resolved stellar population age maps, average radial profiles and gradients for the first 62 Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) observed with SDSS-IV MaNGA to study the effects of the active nuclei on the star formation history of the host galaxies. These results, derived using the STARLIGHT code, are compared with a control sample of non-active galaxies matching the properties of the AGN hosts. We find that the fraction of young stellar populations (SP) in high-luminosity AGN is higher in the inner (R≤0.5 Re) regions when compared with the control sample; low-luminosity AGN, on the other hand, present very similar fractions of young stars to the control sample hosts for the entire studied range (1 Re). The fraction of intermediate age SP of the AGN hosts increases outwards, with a clear enhancement when compared with the control sample. The inner region of the galaxies (AGN and control galaxies) presents a dominant old SP, whose fraction decreases outwards. We also compare our results (differences between AGN and control galaxies) for the early and late-type hosts and find no significant differences. In summary, our results suggest that the most luminous AGN seems to have been triggered by a recent supply of gas that has also triggered recent star formation (t ≤ 40 Myrs) in the central region.

ISW-galaxy cross correlation: a probe of dark energy clustering and distribution of dark matter tracers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khosravi, Shahram; Mollazadeh, Amir; Baghram, Shant, E-mail: khosravi_sh@khu.ac.ir, E-mail: amirmollazadeh@khu.ac.ir, E-mail: baghram@sharif.edu

2016-09-01

Cross correlation of the Integrated Sachs-Wolfe signal (ISW) with the galaxy distribution in late time is a promising tool for constraining the dark energy properties. Here, we study the effect of dark energy clustering on the ISW-galaxy cross correlation and demonstrate the fact that the bias parameter between the distribution of the galaxies and the underlying dark matter introduces a degeneracy and complications. We argue that as the galaxy's host halo formation time is different from the observation time, we have to consider the evolution of the halo bias parameter. It will be shown that any deviation from ΛCDM modelmore » will change the evolution of the bias as well. Therefore, it is deduced that the halo bias depends strongly on the sub-sample of galaxies which is chosen for cross correlation and that the joint kernel of ISW effect and the galaxy distribution has a dominant effect on the observed signal. In this work, comparison is made specifically between the clustered dark energy models using two samples of galaxies. The first one is a sub-sample of galaxies from Sloan Digital Sky Survey, chosen with the r-band magnitude 18 < r < 21 and the dark matter halo host of mass M ∼10{sup 12} M {sub ⊙} and formation redshift of z {sub f} ∼ 2.5. The second one is the sub-sample of Luminous Red galaxies with the dark matter halo hosts of mass M ∼ 10{sup 13} M {sub ⊙} and formation redshift of z {sub f} ∼ 2.0. Using the evolved bias we improve the χ{sup 2} for the ΛCDM which reconciles the ∼1σ-2σ tension of the ISW-galaxy signal with ΛCDM prediction. Finally, we study the parameter estimation of a dark energy model with free parameters w {sub 0} and w {sub a} in the equation of state w {sub de} = w {sub 0} + w {sub az} /(1+ z ) with the constant bias parameter and also with an evolved bias model with free parameters of galaxy's host halo mass and the halo formation redshift.« less

Mapping the Supernova-Rich Fireworks Galaxy NGC 6946

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Patton, Locke; Levesque, Emily

2018-01-01

Supernovae (SNe) are the spectacularly violent deaths of evolved young massive stars, which expel a shock wave into the intergalactic medium that in turn can spark star formation and disperse heavy elements into their host galaxy. While a SN event can be classified by its spectral signature, determining the nature of a SN progenitor depends upon chance photometry taken prior to the event. By turning to the study of SN host environments and their surrounding interstellar medium within the unique and rare population of galaxies that have hosted three or more SN events within the last century, we are granted the opportunity to study the locations and environmental properties of stellar populations prone to supernova progenitor production. Using moderate-resolution optical slit spectra taken with the Apache Point Observatory 3.5m DIS spectrograph, our goal is to map metallicity, ionization parameter, and star formation rates using emission line diagnostic ratios across each SN-rich galaxy. Dubbed the “Fireworks Galaxy” at a distance of 5.6 ± 1.5 Mpc, NGC 6946 is of particular interest as it has uniquely produced ten core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) and several other massive star transients within the last century. We present spatially-resolved metallicity and star formation rate (SFR) maps of NGC 6946, tracing fifty-five slit orientations which span the face of the galaxy and cover all CCSN host sites. Future work will include both stellar population synthesis modelling to determine stellar populations, ages, and SFR histories in NGC 6946 and a further expansion of this analysis to the other SN-rich host galaxies in our sample.

GLADE: A Galaxy Catalogue for Multi-Messenger Searches in the Advanced Gravitational-Wave Detector Era

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dálya, G.; Galgóczi, G.; Dobos, L.; Frei, Z.; Heng, I. S.; Macas, R.; Messenger, C.; Raffai, P.; de Souza, R. S.

2018-06-01

We introduce a value-added full-sky catalogue of galaxies, named as Galaxy List for the Advanced Detector Era, or GLADE. The purpose of this catalogue is to (i) help identifications of host candidates for gravitational-wave events, (ii) support target selections for electromagnetic follow-up observations of gravitational-wave candidates, (iii) provide input data on the matter distribution of the local universe for astrophysical or cosmological simulations, and (iv) help identifications of host candidates for poorly localised electromagnetic transients, such as gamma-ray bursts observed with the InterPlanetary Network. Both being potential hosts of astrophysical sources of gravitational waves, GLADE includes inactive and active galaxies as well. GLADE was constructed by cross-matching and combining data from five separate (but not independent) astronomical catalogues: GWGC, 2MPZ, 2MASS XSC, HyperLEDA and SDSS-DR12Q. GLADE is complete up to d_L=37^{+3}_{-4} Mpc in terms of the cumulative B-band luminosity of galaxies within luminosity distance dL, and contains all of the brightest galaxies giving half of the total B-band luminosity up to dL = 91 Mpc. As B-band luminosity is expected to be a tracer of binary neutron star mergers (currently the prime targets of joint GW+EM detections), our completeness measures can be used as estimations of completeness for containing all binary neutron star merger hosts in the local universe.

Satellite quenching time-scales in clusters from projected phase space measurements matched to simulated orbits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oman, Kyle A.; Hudson, Michael J.

2016-12-01

We measure the star formation quenching efficiency and time-scale in cluster environments. Our method uses N-body simulations to estimate the probability distribution of possible orbits for a sample of observed Sloan Digital Sky Survey galaxies in and around clusters based on their position and velocity offsets from their host cluster. We study the relationship between their star formation rates and their likely orbital histories via a simple model in which star formation is quenched once a delay time after infall has elapsed. Our orbit library method is designed to isolate the environmental effect on the star formation rate due to a galaxy's present-day host cluster from `pre-processing' in previous group hosts. We find that quenching of satellite galaxies of all stellar masses in our sample (109-10^{11.5}M_{⊙}) by massive (> 10^{13} M_{⊙}) clusters is essentially 100 per cent efficient. Our fits show that all galaxies quench on their first infall, approximately at or within a Gyr of their first pericentric passage. There is little variation in the onset of quenching from galaxy-to-galaxy: the spread in this time is at most ˜2 Gyr at fixed M*. Higher mass satellites quench earlier, with very little dependence on host cluster mass in the range probed by our sample.

The /a/m ratio of the baryonic matter and the black holes demography in galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Curir, Anna; Mazzei, Paola

2001-06-01

The last years have seen a big progress in establishing the existence of supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies. There are numerous very good cases [MNRAS 291 (1997) 219] where observations require a deep potential well. These observations raise the problem of when and how they formed and eventually when they gain most of their mass. The formation of a stationary black-hole is constrained by the conditions M>3 M ⊙ and cJ/ GM2≡ a/ m<1, J and M being the angular momentum and the total mass of the configuration which has collapsed to the hole. In this paper we analyze the behaviour of the a/ m ratio of the baryonic content in a protogalaxy, "primordial" scenario, and in a hot galaxy, "evolved" scenario, endowed with a suitable angular momentum distribution. In both the cases the baryonic matter is embedded in the gravitational potential generated by a cosmological Dark Matter (DM) halo. We deduce that the "primordial" scenario is less favourable to the black hole formation than the "evolved" one. Moreover, in the "evolved" scenario we find a twofold behaviour of the a/ m parameter which reflects the observed bimodal distribution of the central brightness in early-type galaxies and agrees with their corresponding degree of nuclear activity. As suggested by results of our SPH simulations of barred galaxies, the treatment of the dissipative processes and the inclusion of the star formation further improve the previous framework showing that barred galaxies provide very good environment for black hole formation.

The mass dependence of satellite quenching in Milky Way-like haloes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, John I.; Wheeler, Coral; Cooper, Michael C.; Boylan-Kolchin, Michael; Bullock, James S.; Tollerud, Erik

2015-02-01

Using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, we examine the quenching of satellite galaxies around isolated Milky Way-like hosts in the local Universe. We find that the efficiency of satellite quenching around isolated galaxies is low and roughly constant over two orders of magnitude in satellite stellar mass (M⋆ = 108.5-1010.5 M⊙), with only ˜20 per cent of systems quenched as a result of environmental processes. While largely independent of satellite stellar mass, satellite quenching does exhibit clear dependence on the properties of the host. We show that satellites of passive hosts are substantially more likely to be quenched than those of star-forming hosts, and we present evidence that more massive haloes quench their satellites more efficiently. These results extend trends seen previously in more massive host haloes and for higher satellite masses. Taken together, it appears that galaxies with stellar masses larger than about 108 M⊙ are uniformly resistant to environmental quenching, with the relative harshness of the host environment likely serving as the primary driver of satellite quenching. At lower stellar masses (<108 M⊙), however, observations of the Local Group suggest that the vast majority of satellite galaxies are quenched, potentially pointing towards a characteristic satellite mass scale below which quenching efficiency increases dramatically.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: CALIFA galaxies observational hints (Ruiz-Lara+, 2017)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruiz-Lara, T.; Perez, I.; Florido, E.; Sanchez-Blazquez, P.; Mendez-Abreu, J.; Sanchez-Menguiano, L.; Sanchez, S. F.; Lyubenova, M.; Falcon-Barroso, J.; van de Ven, G.; Marino, R. A.; de Lorenzo-Caceres, A.; Catalan-Torrecilla, C.; Costantin, L.; Bland-Hawthorn, J.; Galbany, L.; Garcia-Benito, R.; Husemann, B.; Kehrig, C.; Marquez, I.; Mast, D.; Walcher, C. J.; Zibetti, S.; Ziegle, B.; Califa Team

2017-05-01

Characterisation of the sample of galaxies under analysis in the paper. The sample comprises 214 galaxies from the CALIFA survey. For each galaxy the name, equatorial coordinates, morphological type, presence of a bar, surface brightness profile type, inner disc scale length (kpc), outer disc scale length (kpc), and break radius in units of the inner disc scale length are given. Columns (1), (2), (3), and (4) from the CALIFA general sample characterisation (Walcher et al., 2014A&A...569A...1W). Columns (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), and (10) from the 2D decomposition performed in Mendez-Abreu et al. (2017, Cat. J/A+A/598/A32). (1 data file).

An Intermediate-Mass Black Hole in the Dwarf Seyfert 1 Galaxy POX 52

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barth, A.; Ho, L.; Sargent, W.

2004-06-01

We describe new observations of POX 52, a previously known but nearly forgotten example of a dwarf galaxy with an active nucleus. While POX 52 was originally thought to be a Seyfert 2 galaxy, the new data reveal an emission-line spectrum very similar to that of the dwarf Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4395, with clear broad components to the permitted line profiles. The host galaxy appears to be a dwarf elliptical; this is the only known case of a Seyfert nucleus in a galaxy of this type. Applying scaling relations to estimate the black hole mass from the broad Hβ linewidth and continuum luminosity, we find MBH ≈ 1.6×105 M⊙. The stellar velocity dispersion in the host galaxy is 36 km s-1, also suggestive of a black hole mass of order 105 M⊙. Further searches for AGNs in dwarf galaxies can provide crucial constraints on the demographics of black holes in the mass range below 106 M⊙.

Galaxy interactions and strength of nuclear activity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simkin, S. M.

1990-01-01

Analysis of data in the literature for differential velocities and projected separations of nearby Seyfert galaxies with possible companions shows a clear difference in projected separations between type 1's and type 2's. This kinematic difference between the two activity classes reinforces other independent evidence that their different nuclear characteristics are related to a non-nuclear physical distinction between the two classes. The differential velocities and projected separations of the galaxy pairs in this sample yield mean galaxy masses, sizes, and mass to light ratios which are consistent with those found by the statistical methods of Karachentsev. Although the galaxy sample discussed here is too small and too poorly defined to provide robust support for these conclusions, the results strongly suggest that nuclear activity in Seyfert galaxies is associated with gravitational perturbations from companion galaxies, and that there are physical distinctions between the host companions of Seyfert 1 and Seyfert 2 nuclei which may depend both on the environment and the structure of the host galaxy itself.

The star-forming properties of an ultra-hard x-ray selected sample of active galactic nuclei

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shimizu, Thomas Taro

This thesis provides a comprehensive examination of star formation in the host galaxies of active galactic nuclei or AGN. AGN are bright, central regions of galaxies that are powered through accretion onto a supermassive black hole (SMBH). Through accretion and the loss of gravitational potential energy, AGN emit powerful radiation over all wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum. This radiation can influence the AGN's host galaxy through what is known as AGN ``feedback'' and is thought to suppress star formation as well as stop accretion onto the SMBH leading to a co-evolution between the SMBH and its host galaxy. Theoretical models have long invoked AGN feedback to be able reproduce the galaxy population we see today but observations have been unclear as to whether AGN actually have an effect on star formation. To address this question, we selected a large sample of local ( z < 0.05) AGN based on their detection at ultra-hard X-ray energies (14-195 keV) with the Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT). Ultra-hard X-ray selection frees our sample from selection effects and biases due to obscuration and host galaxy contamination that can hinder other AGN samples. With these 313 BAT AGN we conducted a far-infrared survey using the HerschelSpace Observatory. We use the far-infrared imaging to probe the cold dust that traces recent star formation in the galaxy and construct spectral energy distributions (SEDs) from 12-500 \\micron. We decompose the SEDs to remove the AGN contribution and measure infrared luminosity which provides us with robust estimates of the star formation rate (SFR). Through a comparison with a stellar-mass matched non-AGN sample, we find that AGN host galaxies have larger dust masses, dust temperatures, and SFRs, confirming the results of previous studies that showed the optical colors of the BAT AGN are bluer than non-AGN. We find that the AGN luminosity as probed by the 14-195 keV luminosity is not related to the SFR of the host galaxy suggesting global, large scale star formation on an individual basis is not affected by the AGN. However, after a thorough analysis comparing our AGN to star-forming main sequence, a tight relationship between the SFR and stellar mass of a galaxy, we discover that our AGN as a whole show systematically lower specific SFRs (SFR/stellar mass). We confirm that AGN host galaxies, as a population, are transitioning between the star-forming and quiescent populations. This result supports the theory that AGN feedback has suppressed star formation, but we also consider other models that could reproduce our observations. Finally we conclude with a summary of this thesis and describe several ongoing and future projects that will push forward the exciting field of AGN research.

The locations of cosmic explosions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fruchter, A. S.; Levan, A. J.; Strolger, L.; Vreeswijk, P. M.; Bersier, D.; Burud, I.; Castro-Ceron, J. M.; Consclice, C.; Dahlen, T.; Strolger, L.

2005-01-01

When massive stars exhaust their fuel they collapse and often produce the extraordinarily bright explosions known as core-collapse supernovae. Recently, it has become apparent that stellar collapse can power the even more brilliant relativistic explosions known as long-duration gamma-ray bursts. In some cases, a gamma-ray burst and a supernova have been observed from the same event. One would thus expect that gamma-ray bursts and supernovae should be found in similar environments. Here we show that this expectation is wrong. Using Hubble Space Telescope imaging of the host galaxies of long-duration gamma-ray bursts and core-collapse supernovae, we demonstrate that while the distribution of the supernovae in their hosts traces the blue light of young stars, the gamma-ray bursts are much more concentrated on the very brightest regions of their hosts. Furthermore, the host galaxies of the gamma-ray bursts are significantly fainter and more irregular than the hosts of the supernovae. Together these results suggest that long-duration gamma-ray bursts are associated with the very most massive stars and may be restricted to galaxies of limited chemical evolution. Our results directly imply that long-duration gamma-ray bursts are relatively rare in galaxies such as our own Milky Way.

Circumnuclear Structures in Megamaser Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pjanka, Patryk; Greene, Jenny E.; Seth, Anil C.; Braatz, James A.; Henkel, Christian; Lo, Fred K. Y.; Läsker, Ronald

2017-08-01

Using the Hubble Space Telescope, we identify circumnuclear (100-500 pc scale) structures in nine new H2O megamaser host galaxies to understand the flow of matter from kpc-scale galactic structures down to the supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at galactic centers. We double the sample analyzed in a similar way by Greene et al. and consider the properties of the combined sample of 18 sources. We find that disk-like structure is virtually ubiquitous when we can resolve <200 pc scales, in support of the notion that non-axisymmetries on these scales are a necessary condition for SMBH fueling. We perform an analysis of the orientation of our identified nuclear regions and compare it with the orientation of megamaser disks and the kpc-scale disks of the hosts. We find marginal evidence that the disk-like nuclear structures show increasing misalignment from the kpc-scale host galaxy disk as the scale of the structure decreases. In turn, we find that the orientation of both the ˜100 pc scale nuclear structures and their host galaxy large-scale disks is consistent with random with respect to the orientation of their respective megamaser disks.

The Redshift Completeness of Local Galaxy Catalogs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulkarni, S. R.; Perley, D. A.; Miller, A. A.

2018-06-01

There is considerable interest in understanding the demographics of galaxies within the local universe (defined, for our purposes, as the volume within a radius of 200 Mpc or z ≤ 0.05). In this pilot paper, using supernovae (SNe) as signposts to galaxies, we investigate the redshift completeness of catalogs of nearby galaxies. In particular, type Ia SNe are bright and are good tracers of the bulk of the galaxy population, as they arise in both old and young stellar populations. Our input sample consists of SNe with redshift ≤0.05, discovered by the flux-limited ASAS-SN survey. We define the redshift completeness fraction (RCF) as the number of SN host galaxies with known redshift prior to SN discovery, determined, in this case, via the NASA Extragalactic Database, divided by the total number of newly discovered SNe. Using SNe Ia, we find {RCF}=78{+/- }76% (90% confidence interval) for z < 0.03. We examine the distribution of host galaxies with and without cataloged redshifts as a function of absolute magnitude and redshift, and, unsurprisingly, find that higher-z and fainter hosts are less likely to have a known redshift prior to the detection of the SN. However, surprisingly, some {L}* galaxies are also missing. We conclude with thoughts on the future improvement of RCF measurements that will be made possible from large SN samples resulting from ongoing and especially upcoming time-domain surveys.

The Interplay of Star formation and Accretion in the Local Universe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Green, Paul

2010-09-01

Galaxy evolution and supermassive black hole growth are closely linked, but the inter-relationships between active accretion and star formation, AGN outflows, and host morphological trends remain poorly understood. We propose to study an unprecedented sample of 615 low redshift SDSS galaxies and AGN detected in archival Chandra fields. We will measure diverse optical and X-ray spectroscopic properties spanning the artificial galaxy/AGN divide, and provide detailed results of our model fitting. We highlight tests of (1) an evolutionary sequence from star-forming through AGN to passive galaxy modes (2) narrow line Sy1 galaxies and new parallels between the accretion modes of AGN and stellar mass X-ray binaries and (3) the relationship of host morphology and mergers to accretion.

Galaxy gas as obscurer - II. Separating the galaxy-scale and nuclear obscurers of active galactic nuclei

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buchner, Johannes; Bauer, Franz E.

2017-03-01

The 'torus' obscurer of active galactic nuclei (AGN) is poorly understood in terms of its density, sub-structure and physical mechanisms. Large X-ray surveys provide model boundary constraints, for both Compton-thin and Compton-thick levels of obscuration, as obscured fractions are mean covering factors fcov. However, a major remaining uncertainty is host-galaxy obscuration. In Paper I, we discovered a relation of {NH} ∝ M_{star }^{1/3} for the obscuration of galaxy-scale gas. Here, we apply this observational relation to the AGN population, and find that galaxy-scale gas is responsible for a luminosity-independent fraction of Compton-thin AGN, but does not produce Compton-thick columns. With the host-galaxy obscuration understood, we present a model of the remaining nuclear obscurer, which is consistent with a range of observations. Our radiation-lifted torus model consists of a Compton-thick component (fcov ∼ 35 per cent) and a Compton-thin component (fcov ∼ 40 per cent), which depends on both black hole mass and luminosity. This provides a useful summary of observational constraints for torus modellers who attempt to reproduce this behaviour. It can also be employed as a sub-grid recipe in cosmological simulations that do not resolve the torus. We also investigate host-galaxy X-ray obscuration inside cosmological, hydrodynamic simulations (Evolution and Assembly of Galaxies and their Environment; Illustris). The obscuration from ray-traced galaxy gas can agree with observations, but is highly sensitive to the chosen feedback assumptions.

Molecular Gas Excitation and the Evolutionary Connection Between Submillimeter Galaxies and AGN at z~2-3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharon, Chelsea; Riechers, Dominik Alexander; Carilli, Christopher; Hodge, Jacqueline; Walter, Fabian

2015-08-01

Theoretical work has suggested that active galactic nuclei (AGN) may play an important role in quenching star formation in massive galaxies. Due to sensitivity demands, direct evidence for AGN affecting the molecular ISM (the gas phase that fuels star formation) has so far been limited to detections of molecular outflows in low-redshift systems. Indirect evidence for an interplay between AGN and their host galaxies' cold gas phase may be provided by measurements of the gas excitation (and dynamics). At z~2-3, the peak epoch of star formation and AGN activity, previous observations of the CO(1-0) line revealed that submillimeter galaxies have substantial reservoirs of cold molecular gas. However, the molecular gas in AGN-host galaxies appears highly excited, potentially supporting an evolutionary connection between these two populations. We will present a new larger Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array sample that nearly doubles the number of CO(1-0) detections in z~2-3 submillimeter galaxies and AGN-host galaxies with existing CO(3-2) detections (from 13 to 23, plus four new upper limits) that allows us to better compare the low-excitation molecular gas properties of these systems and further investigate potential evidence for gas excitation due to active black holes.

Tidal Disruption Events Prefer Unusual Host Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arcavi, Iair; French, K. Decker; Zabludoff, Ann I.

2016-06-01

A star passing close to a supermassive black hole (SMBH) can be torn apart in a Tidal Disruption Events (TDE). TDEs that are accompanied by observable flares are now being discovered in transient surveys and are revealing the presence and the properties of otherwise-quiescent SMBHs. Recently, it was discovered that TDEs show a strong preference for rare post-starburst galaxies, (i.e. galaxies that have undergone intense star formation but are no longer forming stars today). We quantify this preference and find that TDEs are approximately 30-200 times more likely to occur in post-starburst hosts (compared to the general SDSS galaxy population), with the enhancement factor depending on the star formation history of the galaxy. This surprising host-galaxy preference connects the until-now disparate TDE subclasses of UV/optical-dominated TDEs and X-ray-dominated TDEs, and serves as the basis for TDE-targeted transient surveys. Post-starburst galaxies may be post-mergers, with binary SMBH systems that are still spiraling in. Such systems could enhance the TDE rate, but it is not yet clear if models can quantitatively reproduce the observed enhancement. Alternative explanations for enhanced TDE rate in post-starbursts include non-spherical post-merger central potentials and enhanced rates of giant stars.

AN OBSERVED LINK BETWEEN ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI AND VIOLENT DISK INSTABILITIES IN HIGH-REDSHIFT GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bournaud, Frederic; Juneau, Stephanie; Le Floc'h, Emeric

2012-09-20

We provide evidence for a correlation between the presence of giant clumps and the occurrence of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in disk galaxies. Giant clumps of 10{sup 8}-10{sup 9} M{sub Sun} arise from violent gravitational instability in gas-rich galaxies, and it has been proposed that this instability could feed supermassive black holes (BHs). We use emission line diagnostics to compare a sample of 14 clumpy (unstable) disks and a sample of 13 smoother (stable) disks at redshift z {approx} 0.7. The majority of clumpy disks in our sample have a high probability of containing AGNs. Their [O III] {lambda}5007 emissionmore » line is strongly excited, inconsistent with low-metallicity star formation (SF) alone. [Ne III] {lambda}3869 excitation is also higher. Stable disks rarely have such properties. Stacking ultra sensitive Chandra observations (4 Ms) reveals an X-ray excess in clumpy galaxies, which confirms the presence of AGNs. The clumpy galaxies in our intermediate-redshift sample have properties typical of gas-rich disk galaxies rather than mergers, being in particular on the main sequence of SF. This suggests that our findings apply to the physically similar and numerous gas-rich unstable disks at z > 1. Using the observed [O III] and X-ray luminosities, we conservatively estimate that AGNs hosted by clumpy disks have typical bolometric luminosities of the order of a few 10{sup 43} erg s{sup -1}, BH growth rates m-dot{sub BH}{approx}10{sup -2} M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}, and that these AGNs are substantially obscured in X-rays. This moderate-luminosity mode could provide a large fraction of today's BH mass with a high duty cycle (>10%), accretion bursts with higher luminosities being possible over shorter phases. Violent instabilities at high redshift (giant clumps) are a much more efficient driver of BH growth than the weak instabilities in nearby spirals (bars), and the evolution of disk instabilities with mass and redshift could explain the simultaneous downsizing of SF and of BH growth.« less

CO-ORBITING PLANES OF SUB-HALOS ARE SIMILARLY UNLIKELY AROUND PAIRED AND ISOLATED HOSTS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pawlowski, Marcel S.; McGaugh, Stacy S., E-mail: marcel.pawlowski@case.edu

2014-07-01

Sub-halos in dark-matter-based cosmological simulations tend to be distributed approximately isotropically around their host. The existence of highly flattened, co-orbiting planes of satellite galaxies has therefore been identified as a possible problem for these cosmological models, but so far studies have not considered the hosts' environments. That satellite planes are now known around both major galaxies in the Local Group raises the question whether they are more likely to be found around paired hosts. In a first attempt to investigate this possibility, we focus on the flattening and orbital coherence of the 11 brightest satellite galaxies of the vast polarmore » structure (VPOS) around the Milky Way (MW). We search for VPOS analogs in the ''Exploring the Local Volume in Simulations'' suite of cosmological simulations, which consist of 24 paired and 24 isolated host halos. We do not find significant differences between the properties of sub-halo distributions around paired and isolated hosts. The observed flattening and the observed orbital alignment are each reproduced by only 0.2%-2% of paired and isolated systems incorporating the obscuration of satellites by randomly oriented galactic disks. Only 1 of all 4800 analyzed realizations (0.02%) reproduces both parameters simultaneously, but the average orbital pole of this sub-halo system does not align as well with the normal to the plane fit as observed. That the MW is part of a galaxy pair thus does not help to explain the existence of the VPOS if the satellite galaxies are identified with sub-halos found in dissipationless simulations.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kruehler, Thomas; Malesani, Daniele; Milvang-Jensen, Bo

We present simultaneous optical and near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy of 19 Swift {gamma}-ray burst (GRB) host galaxies observed with the VLT/X-shooter with the aim of measuring their redshifts. Galaxies were selected from The Optically Unbiased GRB Host (TOUGH) survey (15 of the 19 galaxies) or because they hosted GRBs without a bright optical afterglow. Here we provide emission-line redshifts for 13 of the observed galaxies with brightnesses between F606W > 27 mag and R = 22.9 mag (median R-tilde =24.6 mag). The median redshift is z-tilde =2.1 for all hosts and z-tilde =2.3 for the TOUGH hosts. Our new data significantlymore » improve the redshift completeness of the TOUGH survey, which now stands at 77% (53 out of 69 GRBs). They furthermore provide accurate redshifts for nine prototype dark GRBs (e.g., GRB 071021 at z = 2.452 and GRB 080207 at z = 2.086), which are exemplary of GRBs where redshifts are challenging to obtain via afterglow spectroscopy. This establishes X-shooter spectroscopy as an efficient tool for redshift determination of faint, star-forming, high-redshift galaxies such as GRB hosts. It is hence a further step toward removing the bias in GRB samples that is caused by optically dark events, and provides the basis for a better understanding of the conditions in which GRBs form. The distribution of column densities as measured from X-ray data (N{sub H,X}), for example, is closely related to the darkness of the afterglow and skewed toward low N{sub H,X} values in samples that are dominated by bursts with bright optical afterglows.« less

Host galaxy properties of calcium II and sodium I quasar absorption-line systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cherinka, Brian

Many questions remain within the areas of galaxy formation and evolution. Understanding the origin of gas in galaxy environments, whether as tidal debris, infalling High Velocity Clouds, galaxy outflows, or as gaseous material residing in galaxy disks, is an important step in answering those questions. Quasar absorption-lines can often be used to probe the environments of intervening galaxies. Traditionally, quasar absorption-lines are studied independently of the host galaxy but this method denies us the exploration of the connection between galaxy and environment. Instead, one can select pairs of known galaxies and quasars. This gives much more information regarding the host galaxy and allows us to better connect galaxy properties with associated absorbers. We use the seventh data release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey to generate a sample of spectroscopic galaxy-quasar pairs. We cross-correlated a sample of 105,000 quasars and ˜800,000 galaxies to produce ˜98,000 galaxy-quasar pairs, with the quasar projected within 100 kpc of the galaxy. Adopting an automated line-finding algorithm and using the galaxy redshift as a prior, we search through all quasar spectra and identify Ca II and Na I absorption due to the intervening galaxy. This procedure produced 1745 Ca II absorbers and 4500 Na I absorbers detected at or above 2σ. Stacking analysis of a subset of absorbers at z > 0.01, with significances at or above 3σ, showed strong Ca II and Na I features around external galaxies. Using the same subset of absorbers at z > 0.01, we looked for correlations between absorber and galaxy properties and examined differences in galaxy properties between the absorbers and non-absorbers. We found no correlations with absorber strength or differences between many galaxy properties at the 3σ level. The lack of correlations and differences between absorbers and non-absorbers suggest a ubiquitous nature for Ca II and Na I around all types of galaxies, with the absorbers showing no geometric preference within galaxy halos. This suggests a possible origin as leftover debris from past mergers that has been redistributed within the halo over time. The main results are presented in Chapters 3 and 4, with complimentary work presented in Chapter 5.

The Host Galaxies of Fast-Ejecta Core-Collapse Supernovae

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kelly, Patrick L.; Filippenko, Alexei V.; Modjaz, Maryam; Kocevski, Daniel

2014-01-01

Spectra of broad-lined Type Ic supernovae (SN Ic-BL), the only kind of SN observed at the locations of long-duration gamma-ray bursts (LGRBs), exhibit wide features indicative of high ejecta velocities ((is) approximately 0.1c). We study the host galaxies of a sample of 245 low-redshift (z (is) less than 0.2) core-collapse SN, including 17 SN Ic-BL, discovered by galaxy-untargeted searches, and 15 optically luminous and dust-obscured z (is) less than 1.2 LGRBs. We show that, in comparison with SDSS galaxies having similar stellar masses, the hosts of low-redshift SN Ic- BL and z (is) is less than 1.2 LGRBs have high stellar-mass and star-formation-rate densities. Core-collapse SN having typical ejecta velocities, in contrast, show no preference for such galaxies. Moreover, we find that the hosts of SN Ic-BL, unlike those of SN Ib/Ic and SN II, exhibit high gas velocity dispersions for their stellar masses. The patterns likely reflect variations among star-forming environments, and suggest that LGRBs can be used as probes of conditions in high-redshift galaxies. They may be caused by efficient formation of massive binary progenitors systems in densely star-forming regions, or, less probably, a higher fraction of stars created with the initial masses required for a SN Ic-BL or LGRB. Finally, we show that the preference of SN Ic-BL and LGRBs for galaxies with high stellar-mass and star-formation-rate densities cannot be attributed to a preference for low metal abundances but must reflect the influence of a separate environmental factor.

The Evolutionary Connection Bewtween z~2-3 Submillimeter Galaxies and AGN as Probed by Molecular Gas Excitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharon, Chelsea E.; Riechers, Dominik A.; Carilli, Chris Luke; Hodge, Jacqueline; Walter, Fabian

2016-01-01

Theoretical work has suggested that active galactic nuclei (AGN) play an important role in quenching star formation in massive galaxies. Direct evidence for AGN affecting the molecular ISM has so far been limited to detections of molecular outflows in low-redshift systems and extreme excitation regions which represent a tiny fraction of the total gas. Indirect evidence for AGN's impact on their host galaxies' cold gas phase may be provided by measurements of the gas excitation and dynamics. At z~2-3, the peak epoch of star formation and AGN activity, previous observations of the CO(1-0) line revealed that submillimeter galaxies (SMGs) have multi-phase molecular gas, including substantial reservoirs of cold-phase gas. However, the entirety of the molecular gas in AGN-host galaxies appears highly excited, potentially supporting an evolutionary connection between these two populations. I will present a new VLA sample that nearly doubles the number of CO(1-0) detections in z~2-3 SMGs and AGN-host galaxies that allows us to better compare the cold gas properties of these systems and further investigate evidence for the effects of AGN on the star-forming molecular gas.

A Second Ladder: Testing for Bias in the Type Ia Distance Scale with SBF

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milne, Peter

2016-10-01

We propose obtaining Surface Brightness Fluctuation (SBF) distances to the hosts galaxies of 20 nearby type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia), resulting in a sample of 29 SNe Ia in 27 galaxies when combined with HST-SBF distances from the literature. This sample can then be compared with the existing 18 SN Ia distances from Cepheids. Through these comparisons, we will determine if there are any discrepancies between the SBF distance scale, which is extended into the Hubble flow using early-type galaxies, and the SNIa distance scale, for which local calibrators are scarce and host galaxy types and SN environments are heterogenous. Since recent measurements of UV-optical colors suggest that SN Ia properties do depend on galaxy type and environment, it is essential that SNe Ia in all galaxy types are included when extending SN Ia distances to the distant Hubble flow. Since the conclusion that universal expansion is accelerating was originally based on SNe Ia distances, and because recent measurements of UV-optical colors suggest that SN Ia properties do depend on galaxy type and environment, it is essential to measure the same types of SNe in the same types of galaxies. To meet this goal, we propose to measure high-precision SBF distances to all early-type galaxies that have hosted SNIa within 80 Mpc. We will therefore be able to distinguish between systematic offsets in the derived Hubble constant between galaxies and/or SNe of different types and correct for them. SBF is the only distance measurement technique with statistical uncertainties comparable to SN Ia that can be applied to the early-type of galaxies in which the majority of the high-redshift SNIa occur.

CONNECTING GRBs AND ULIRGs: A SENSITIVE, UNBIASED SURVEY FOR RADIO EMISSION FROM GAMMA-RAY BURST HOST GALAXIES AT 0 < z < 2.5

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Perley, D. A.; Perley, R. A.; Hjorth, J.

2015-03-10

Luminous infrared galaxies and submillimeter galaxies contribute significantly to stellar mass assembly and provide an important test of the connection between the gamma-ray burst (GRB) rate and that of overall cosmic star formation. We present sensitive 3 GHz radio observations using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array of 32 uniformly selected GRB host galaxies spanning a redshift range from 0 < z < 2.5, providing the first fully dust- and sample-unbiased measurement of the fraction of GRBs originating from the universe's most bolometrically luminous galaxies. Four galaxies are detected, with inferred radio star formation rates (SFRs) ranging between 50 and 300 Mmore » {sub ☉} yr{sup –1}. Three of the four detections correspond to events consistent with being optically obscured 'dark' bursts. Our overall detection fraction implies that between 9% and 23% of GRBs between 0.5 < z < 2.5 occur in galaxies with S {sub 3GHz} > 10 μJy, corresponding to SFR > 50 M {sub ☉} yr{sup –1} at z ∼ 1 or >250 M {sub ☉} yr{sup –1} at z ∼ 2. Similar galaxies contribute approximately 10%-30% of all cosmic star formation, so our results are consistent with a GRB rate that is not strongly biased with respect to the total SFR of a galaxy. However, all four radio-detected hosts have stellar masses significantly lower than IR/submillimeter-selected field galaxies of similar luminosities. We suggest that the GRB rate may be suppressed in metal-rich environments but independently enhanced in intense starbursts, producing a strong efficiency dependence on mass but little net dependence on bulk galaxy SFR.« less

VizieR Online Data Catalog: Multiwavelength photometry of CDFS X-ray sources (Brusa+, 2009)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brusa, M.; Fiore, F.; Santini, P.; Grazian, A.; Comastri, A.; Zamorani, G.; Hasinger, G.; Merloni, A.; Civano, F.; Fontana, A.; Mainieri, V.

2010-03-01

The co-evolution of host galaxies and the active black holes which reside in their centre is one of the most important topics in modern observational cosmology. Here we present a study of the properties of obscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) detected in the CDFS 1 Ms observation and their host galaxies. We limited the analysis to the MUSIC area, for which deep K-band observations obtained with ISAAC@VLT are available, ensuring accurate identifications of the counterparts of the X-ray sources as well as reliable determination of photometric redshifts and galaxy parameters, such as stellar masses and star formation rates. In particular, we: 1) refined the X-ray/infrared/optical association of 179 sources in the MUSIC area detected in the Chandra observation; 2) studied the host galaxies observed and rest frame colors and properties. (2 data files).

Most pseudo-bulges can be formed at later stages of major mergers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauvaget, T.; Hammer, F.; Puech, M.; Yang, Y. B.; Flores, H.; Rodrigues, M.

2018-01-01

Most giant spiral galaxies have pseudo or disc-like bulges that are considered to be the result of purely secular processes. This may challenge the hierarchical scenario predicting about one major merger per massive galaxy (>3 × 1010 M⊙) since the last ∼9 billion years. Here, we verify whether or not the association between pseudo-bulges and secular processes is irrevocable. Using GADGET2 N-body/SPH simulations, we have conducted a systematic study of remnants of major mergers for which progenitors have been selected (1) to follow the gas richness-look back time relationship, and (2) with a representative distribution of orbits and spins in a cosmological frame. Analysing the surface mass density profile of both nearby galaxies and merger remnants with two components, we find that most of them show pseudo-bulges or bar dominated centres. Even if some orbits lead to classical bulges just after the fusion, the contamination by the additional gas that gradually accumulates to the centre and forming stars later on, leads to remnants apparently dominated by pseudo-bulges. We also found that simple smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) simulations should be sufficient to form realistic spiral galaxies as remnants of ancient gas-rich mergers without the need for specifically tuned feedback conditions. We then conclude that pseudo-bulges and bars in spiral galaxies are natural consequences of major mergers when they are realized in a cosmological context, i.e. with gas-rich progenitors as expected when selected in the distant Universe.

Galaxias enanas: las voces de la mayoría

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cellone, S. A.

More than twenty years after photographic surveys of nearby clusters of galaxies revealed that low-luminosity, or ``dwarf'', galaxies (M_B ≳ -18 mag) are the numerically dominant population, research on these objects has been boosted by new instrumental and theoretical developments. Among several breakthroughs that have re-shaped our knowledge abut dwarf galaxies, we should point out: the detection of underlying spiral structure, disks/bars in dwarf ``elliptical'' galaxies; the possible evolutionary relation between (some?) dwarf ellipticals and spiral galaxies; the discoveries of ultra-compact and ultra-faint dwarfs; the universality of the color-luminosity relation extending along ˜ 10 mag. A brief review on these subjects is presented, with emphasis on early-type dwarfs and their possible evolutionary relations with other galaxy types. I will particularly address the controversy about which are the objects that extend the E sequence down to the lowest luminosities (if such objects really exist). FULL TEXT IN SPANISH

NICMOS FINDS A GOLDEN RING AT THE HEART OF A GALAXY

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

The revived Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) aboard NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has pierced the dusty disk of the 'edge-on' galaxy NGC 4013 and peered all the way to the galactic core. To the surprise of astronomers, NICMOS found a brilliant band-like structure, that may be a ring of newly formed stars [yellow band in middle photo] seen edge-on. In the visible-light view of the galaxy [top photo], the star-forming ring cannot be seen because it is embedded in dust. The most prominent feature in the visible-light image -- taken by the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) -- is the thin, dark band of gas and dust, which is about 500 light-years thick. NICMOS enables the Hubble telescope to see in near-infrared wavelengths of light, so that it can penetrate the dust that obscures the inner hub of the galaxy. The ring-like structure spied by NICMOS encircles the core and is about 720 light-years wide, which is the typical size of most star-forming rings found in disk galaxies. The small ring is churning out stars at a torrid pace. The Milky Way Galaxy, for example, is more than 10,000 times larger than the ring. If the Milky Way produced stars at the same rate, it would be making 1,000 times more stars a year. The human eye cannot see infrared light, so colors have been assigned to correspond with near-infrared wavelengths. The blue light represents shorter near-infrared wavelengths and the red light corresponds to longer wavelengths. The ring-like structure is seen more clearly in the photo at bottom. This picture, taken with a filter sensitive to hydrogen, shows the glow of stars and gas. Astronomers used this information to calculate the rate of star formation in the ring-like structure. The extremely bright star near the center of each picture is a nearby foreground star belonging to our own Milky Way. Rings of developing stars are common in barred spiral galaxies, which have 'bars' of stars and gas slicing across their disks. The bars funnel gas to the galactic cores. But gravitational disturbances near the cores cause gas to accumulate into a lane or a ring. The gas then condenses to form stars. Because NGC 4013 is seen edge-on, astronomers don't know whether a bar of gas or some other mechanism formed the ring-like structure. NGC 4013, which looks similar to our Milky Way Galaxy, resides in the constellation Ursa Major, 55 million light-years from Earth. The middle picture is a color composite image that was made by combining photographs taken with the J-band, H-band, and Paschen-alpha filters. The bottom picture was taken with the Paschen-alpha filter. The images were taken on May 12. Credits for NICMOS images: NASA, the NICMOS Group (STScI, ESA), and the NICMOS Science Team (University of Arizona) Credits for WFPC2 image: NASA, the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) and ESA

Dynamics of the Interstellar Matter in Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kristen, H.

The dynamical components of six isolated barred spiral (SB) galaxies are investigated. No evidence is found supporting the hypothesis of a low amount of dark matter being characteristic of SB galaxies. The presence of companion galaxies is found to correlate with an increased statistical spread in the neutral hydrogen (HI) extent. It is concluded that the selection of galaxies with large HI~extent may introduce a bias towards tidally interacting systems. The circumnuclear region of the SB galaxy NGC 1365 is studied with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Numerous bright ``super star clusters'' (SSCs) are detected, surrounding the active nucleus. The bright compact radio source NGC 1365:A is found to coincide spatially with one of the SSCs. We conclude that the source is a ``radio supernova''. In the [OIII] 5007 line, the HST resolves individual clouds within the conical outflow from the nucleus, some of which gather in larger agglomerations. An in-depth study of the dynamics of the SB galaxy NGC 1300 is presented. Multi-wavelength data yield an estimate of the velocity field and gravitational potential. Subsequent hydrodynamical simulations are able to reproduce the morphology and kinematics in the bar region using a pure bar perturbing potential. To reproduce the spiral structure a weak spiral component has to be added, indicative of stellar spiral response to the bar and/or self-gravitating gas in the arms. Two separate models, differing mainly with respect to pattern speed and associated resonance structure, are found to reproduce the observations. We study numerically the linear polarization and extinction of light from background stars passing through molecular clouds, illuminating the intricacies of the derivation of the magnetic-field-line pattern in a cloud from the observed polarization pattern: Due to a higher gas-grain collision frequency within the cloud, the polarization caused by the cloud may well be dominated by background/foreground polarization. Furthermore, variations in field-orientation along the line-of-sight may cause notable differences between the observed polarization vectors and the true magnetic-field-line pattern. Small-scale, helical, interstellar filaments are discussed on the basis of optical observations of an ``elephant trunk'' structure in the Rosette nebula. The observed sinusoidal filaments are suggested to be helices lined up by magnetic fields. We propose that the Rosette elephant trunks form an interconnected system of rope-like structures which are relics from filamentary skeletons of magnetic fields in the primordial cloud. Stochastic mass fractionation of a molecular cloud is simulated numerically. It is found that geometry alone may constrain the resulting mass spectrum of molecular cloud clumps. We demonstrate that further fragmentation of the cloud clumps, under the assumption of a lower limit of the self-similar regime, produces a mass spectrum that has qualitative and quantitative similarities with the empirically determined stellar initial mass function.

SPARC: MASS MODELS FOR 175 DISK GALAXIES WITH SPITZER PHOTOMETRY AND ACCURATE ROTATION CURVES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lelli, Federico; McGaugh, Stacy S.; Schombert, James M., E-mail: federico.lelli@case.edu

2016-12-01

We introduce SPARC ( Spitzer Photometry and Accurate Rotation Curves): a sample of 175 nearby galaxies with new surface photometry at 3.6  μ m and high-quality rotation curves from previous H i/H α studies. SPARC spans a broad range of morphologies (S0 to Irr), luminosities (∼5 dex), and surface brightnesses (∼4 dex). We derive [3.6] surface photometry and study structural relations of stellar and gas disks. We find that both the stellar mass–H i mass relation and the stellar radius–H i radius relation have significant intrinsic scatter, while the H i   mass–radius relation is extremely tight. We build detailedmore » mass models and quantify the ratio of baryonic to observed velocity ( V {sub bar}/ V {sub obs}) for different characteristic radii and values of the stellar mass-to-light ratio (ϒ{sub ⋆}) at [3.6]. Assuming ϒ{sub ⋆} ≃ 0.5 M {sub ⊙}/ L {sub ⊙} (as suggested by stellar population models), we find that (i) the gas fraction linearly correlates with total luminosity; (ii) the transition from star-dominated to gas-dominated galaxies roughly corresponds to the transition from spiral galaxies to dwarf irregulars, in line with density wave theory; and (iii)  V {sub bar}/ V {sub obs} varies with luminosity and surface brightness: high-mass, high-surface-brightness galaxies are nearly maximal, while low-mass, low-surface-brightness galaxies are submaximal. These basic properties are lost for low values of ϒ{sub ⋆} ≃ 0.2 M {sub ⊙}/ L {sub ⊙} as suggested by the DiskMass survey. The mean maximum-disk limit in bright galaxies is ϒ{sub ⋆} ≃ 0.7 M {sub ⊙}/ L {sub ⊙} at [3.6]. The SPARC data are publicly available and represent an ideal test bed for models of galaxy formation.« less

MAD ADAPTIVE OPTICS IMAGING OF HIGH-LUMINOSITY QUASARS: A PILOT PROJECT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liuzzo, E.; Falomo, R.; Paiano, S.

2016-08-01

We present near-IR images of five luminous quasars at z ∼ 2 and one at z ∼ 4 obtained with an experimental adaptive optics (AO) instrument at the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope. The observations are part of a program aimed at demonstrating the capabilities of multi-conjugated adaptive optics imaging combined with the use of natural guide stars for high spatial resolution studies on large telescopes. The observations were mostly obtained under poor seeing conditions but in two cases. In spite of these nonoptimal conditions, the resulting images of point sources have cores of FWHM ∼ 0.2 arcsec. Wemore » are able to characterize the host galaxy properties for two sources and set stringent upper limits to the galaxy luminosity for the others. We also report on the expected capabilities for investigating the host galaxies of distant quasars with AO systems coupled with future Extremely Large Telescopes. Detailed simulations show that it will be possible to characterize compact (2–3 kpc) quasar host galaxies for quasi-stellar objects at z = 2 with nucleus K -magnitude spanning from 15 to 20 (corresponding to absolute magnitude −31 to −26) and host galaxies that are 4 mag fainter than their nuclei.« less

AGN host galaxy mass function in COSMOS. Is AGN feedback responsible for the mass-quenching of galaxies?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bongiorno, A.; Schulze, A.; Merloni, A.; Zamorani, G.; Ilbert, O.; La Franca, F.; Peng, Y.; Piconcelli, E.; Mainieri, V.; Silverman, J. D.; Brusa, M.; Fiore, F.; Salvato, M.; Scoville, N.

2016-04-01

We investigate the role of supermassive black holes in the global context of galaxy evolution by measuring the host galaxy stellar mass function (HGMF) and the specific accretion rate, that is, λSAR, the distribution function (SARDF), up to z ~ 2.5 with ~1000 X-ray selected AGN from XMM-COSMOS. Using a maximum likelihood approach, we jointly fit the stellar mass function and specific accretion rate distribution function, with the X-ray luminosity function as an additional constraint. Our best-fit model characterizes the SARDF as a double power-law with mass-dependent but redshift-independent break, whose low λSAR slope flattens with increasing redshift while the normalization increases. This implies that for a given stellar mass, higher λSAR objects have a peak in their space density at earlier epoch than the lower λSAR objects, following and mimicking the well-known AGN cosmic downsizing as observed in the AGN luminosity function. The mass function of active galaxies is described by a Schechter function with an almost constant M∗⋆ and a low-mass slope α that flattens with redshift. Compared to the stellar mass function, we find that the HGMF has a similar shape and that up to log (M⋆/M⊙) ~ 11.5, the ratio of AGN host galaxies to star-forming galaxies is basically constant (~10%). Finally, the comparison of the AGN HGMF for different luminosity and specific accretion rate subclasses with a previously published phenomenological model prediction for the "transient" population, which are galaxies in the process of being mass-quenched, reveals that low-luminosity AGN do not appear to be able to contribute significantly to the quenching and that at least at high masses, that is, M⋆ > 1010.7 M⊙, feedback from luminous AGN (log Lbol ≳ 46 [erg/s]) may be responsible for the quenching of star formation in the host galaxy.

The effect of host cluster gravitational tidal forces on the internal dynamics of spiral galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayer, Alexander

2013-04-01

New empirical observation by Bidin, Carraro, Mendez & Smith finds ``a lack of dark matter in the Solar neighborhood" (2012 ApJ 751, 30). This, and the discovery of a vast polar structure of Milky Way satellites by Pawlowski, Pflamm-Altenburg & Kroupa (2012 MNRAS 423, 1109), conflict with the prevailing interpretation of the measured Galactic rotation curve. Simulating the dynamical effects of host cluster tidal forces on galaxy disks reveals radial migration in a spiral structure and an orbital velocity that accelerates with increasing galactocentric radial coordinate. A virtual ``toy model,'' which is based on an Earth-orbiting system of particles and is physically realizable in principle, is available at GravitySim.net. Given the perturbing gravitational effect of the host cluster on a spiral galaxy disk and that a similar effect does not exist for the Solar System, the two systems represent distinct classes of gravitational dynamical systems. The observed `flat' and accelerating rotation curves of spiral galaxies can be attributed to gravitational interaction with the host cluster; no `dark matter halo' is required to explain the observable.

Probing Cosmic Star Formation Using Long Gamma-Ray Bursts: New Constraints from the Spitzer Space Telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Floc'h, Emeric; Charmandaris, Vassilis; Forrest, William J.; Mirabel, I. Félix; Armus, Lee; Devost, Daniel

2006-05-01

We report on IRAC 4.5 μm, IRAC 8.0 μm, and MIPS 24 μm deep observations of 16 gamma-ray burst (GRB) host galaxies performed with the Spitzer Space Telescope, and we investigate in the thermal infrared the presence of evolved stellar populations and dust-enshrouded star-forming activity associated with these objects. Our sample is derived from GRBs that were identified with subarcsecond localization between 1997 and 2001, and only a very small fraction (~20%) of the targeted sources are detected down to f4.5μm~3.5 μJy and f24μm~85 μJy (3 σ). This likely argues against a population dominated by massive and strongly starbursting (i.e., SFR>~100 Msolar yr-1) galaxies as has been recently suggested from submillimeter/radio and optical studies of similarly selected GRB hosts. Furthermore, we find evidence that some GRBs do not occur in the most infrared luminous regions-hence the most actively star-forming environments-of their host galaxies. Should the GRB hosts be representative of all star-forming galaxies at high redshift, models of infrared galaxy evolution indicate that >~50% of GRB hosts should have f24μm>~100 μJy. Unless the identification of GRBs prior to 2001 was prone to strong selection effects biasing our sample against dusty galaxies, we infer in this context that the GRBs identified with the current techniques cannot be directly used as unbiased probes of the global and integrated star formation history of the universe. Based on observations made with the Spitzer Space Telescope, operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory under NASA contract 1407.

Dwarf Hosts of Low-z Supernovae

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pyotr Kolobow, Craig; Perlman, Eric S.; Strolger, Louis

2018-01-01

Hostless supernovae (SNe), or SNe in dwarf galaxies, may serve as excellent beacons for probing the spatial density of dwarf galaxies (M < 10^8M⊙), which themselves are scarcely detected beyond only a few Mpc. Depending on the assumed model for the stellar-mass to halo mass relation for these galaxies, LSST might see 1000s of SNe (of all types) from dwarf galaxies alone. Conversely, one can take the measured rates of these SNe and test the model predictions for the density of dwarf galaxies in the local universe. Current “all-sky” surveys, like PanSTARRS and ASAS-SN, are now finding hostless SNe at a number sufficient to measure their rate. What missing is the appropriate weighting of their host luminosities. Here we seek to continue a successful program to recover the luminosities of these hostless SNe, to z = 0.15, to use their rate to constrain the faint-end slope of the low-z galaxy luminosity function.

The Host Galaxy and Redshift of the Repeating Fast Radio Burst FRB 121102

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tendulkar, S. P.; Kaspi, V. M.; Bassa, C. G.

The precise localization of the repeating fast radio burst (FRB 121102) has provided the first unambiguous association (chance coincidence probability p ≲ 3 × 10{sup −4}) of an FRB with an optical and persistent radio counterpart. We report on optical imaging and spectroscopy of the counterpart and find that it is an extended (0.″6–0.″8) object displaying prominent Balmer and [O iii] emission lines. Based on the spectrum and emission line ratios, we classify the counterpart as a low-metallicity, star-forming, m{sub r′} = 25.1 AB mag dwarf galaxy at a redshift of z = 0.19273(8), corresponding to a luminosity distance ofmore » 972 Mpc. From the angular size, the redshift, and luminosity, we estimate the host galaxy to have a diameter ≲4 kpc and a stellar mass of M {sub *} ∼ (4–7) × 10{sup 7} M {sub ⊙}, assuming a mass-to-light ratio between 2 to 3 M {sub ⊙} L {sub ⊙} {sup −1}. Based on the H α flux, we estimate the star formation rate of the host to be 0.4 M {sub ⊙} yr{sup −1} and a substantial host dispersion measure (DM) depth ≲324 pc cm{sup −3}. The net DM contribution of the host galaxy to FRB 121102 is likely to be lower than this value depending on geometrical factors. We show that the persistent radio source at FRB 121102’s location reported by Marcote et al. is offset from the galaxy’s center of light by ∼200 mas and the host galaxy does not show optical signatures for AGN activity. If FRB 121102 is typical of the wider FRB population and if future interferometric localizations preferentially find them in dwarf galaxies with low metallicities and prominent emission lines, they would share such a preference with long gamma-ray bursts and superluminous supernovae.« less

The Host Galaxy and Redshift of the Repeating Fast Radio Burst FRB 121102

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tendulkar, S. P.; Bassa, C. G.; Cordes, J. M.; Bower, G. C.; Law, C. J.; Chatterjee, S.; Adams, E. A. K.; Bogdanov, S.; Burke-Spolaor, S.; Butler, B. J.; Demorest, P.; Hessels, J. W. T.; Kaspi, V. M.; Lazio, T. J. W.; Maddox, N.; Marcote, B.; McLaughlin, M. A.; Paragi, Z.; Ransom, S. M.; Scholz, P.; Seymour, A.; Spitler, L. G.; van Langevelde, H. J.; Wharton, R. S.

2017-01-01

The precise localization of the repeating fast radio burst (FRB 121102) has provided the first unambiguous association (chance coincidence probability p ≲ 3 × 10-4) of an FRB with an optical and persistent radio counterpart. We report on optical imaging and spectroscopy of the counterpart and find that it is an extended (0.″6-0.″8) object displaying prominent Balmer and [O III] emission lines. Based on the spectrum and emission line ratios, we classify the counterpart as a low-metallicity, star-forming, m r‧ = 25.1 AB mag dwarf galaxy at a redshift of z = 0.19273(8), corresponding to a luminosity distance of 972 Mpc. From the angular size, the redshift, and luminosity, we estimate the host galaxy to have a diameter ≲4 kpc and a stellar mass of M * ˜ (4-7) × 107 M ⊙, assuming a mass-to-light ratio between 2 to 3 M ⊙ L ⊙ -1. Based on the Hα flux, we estimate the star formation rate of the host to be 0.4 M ⊙ yr-1 and a substantial host dispersion measure (DM) depth ≲324 pc cm-3. The net DM contribution of the host galaxy to FRB 121102 is likely to be lower than this value depending on geometrical factors. We show that the persistent radio source at FRB 121102’s location reported by Marcote et al. is offset from the galaxy’s center of light by ˜200 mas and the host galaxy does not show optical signatures for AGN activity. If FRB 121102 is typical of the wider FRB population and if future interferometric localizations preferentially find them in dwarf galaxies with low metallicities and prominent emission lines, they would share such a preference with long gamma-ray bursts and superluminous supernovae.

Uncovering Dangerous Cheats: How Do Avian Hosts Recognize Adult Brood Parasites?

PubMed Central

Trnka, Alfréd; Prokop, Pavol; Grim, Tomáš

2012-01-01

Background Co-evolutionary struggles between dangerous enemies (e.g., brood parasites) and their victims (hosts) lead to the emergence of sophisticated adaptations and counter-adaptations. Salient host tricks to reduce parasitism costs include, as front line defence, adult enemy discrimination. In contrast to the well studied egg stage, investigations addressing the specific cues for adult enemy recognition are rare. Previous studies have suggested barred underparts and yellow eyes may provide cues for the recognition of cuckoos Cuculus canorus by their hosts; however, no study to date has examined the role of the two cues simultaneously under a consistent experimental paradigm. Methodology/Principal Findings We modify and extend previous work using a novel experimental approach – custom-made dummies with various combinations of hypothesized recognition cues. The salient recognition cue turned out to be the yellow eye. Barred underparts, the only trait examined previously, had a statistically significant but small effect on host aggression highlighting the importance of effect size vs. statistical significance. Conclusion Relative importance of eye vs. underpart phenotypes may reflect ecological context of host-parasite interaction: yellow eyes are conspicuous from the typical direction of host arrival (from above), whereas barred underparts are poorly visible (being visually blocked by the upper part of the cuckoo's body). This visual constraint may reduce usefulness of barred underparts as a reliable recognition cue under a typical situation near host nests. We propose a novel hypothesis that recognition cues for enemy detection can vary in a context-dependent manner (e.g., depending on whether the enemy is approached from below or from above). Further we suggest a particular cue can trigger fear reactions (escape) in some hosts/populations whereas the same cue can trigger aggression (attack) in other hosts/populations depending on presence/absence of dangerous enemies that are phenotypically similar to brood parasites and costs and benefits associated with particular host responses. PMID:22624031

The First VLBI Detection of a Spiral DRAGN Core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mao, Minnie Y.; Blanchard, Jay M.; Owen, Frazer; Sjouwerman, Loránt O.; Singh, Vikram; Scaife, Anna; Paragi, Zsolt; Norris, Ray P.; Momjian, Emmanuel; Johnson, Gia; Browne, Ian

2018-05-01

We present the first observation of 0313-192, the archetypal spiral DRAGN, at VLBI resolutions. Spiral DRAGNs are Double Radio Sources Associated with Galactic Nuclei (DRAGNs) that are hosted by spiral galaxies. 0313-192 is an edge-on spiral galaxy that appears to host a 360 kpc double-lobed radio source. The core of this galaxy is clearly detected at L, S, and X-bands using the VLBA, signifying an ongoing active nucleus in the galaxy. This rules out the possibility that the spiral DRAGN is merely a chance alignment. The radio core has L1.4 GHz ˜ 3.0 × 1023 W Hz-1. Radio components are detected to the South-West of the core, but there are no detections of a counterjet. Assuming a symmetric, relativistic jet, we estimate an upper limit to the inclination angle of θ ≲ 72 degrees. The VLBI-detected radio jet components are extremely well-aligned with the larger-scale radio source suggested little to no jet disruption or interaction with the ISM of the host galaxy.

The first VLBI detection of a spiral DRAGN core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mao, Minnie Y.; Blanchard, Jay M.; Owen, Frazer; Sjouwerman, Loránt O.; Singh, Vikram; Scaife, Anna; Paragi, Zsolt; Norris, Ray P.; Momjian, Emmanuel; Johnson, Gia; Browne, Ian

2018-07-01

We present the first observation of 0313-192, the archetypal spiral DRAGN, at very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) resolutions. Spiral DRAGNs are Double-lobed Radio sources Associated with Galactic Nuclei (DRAGNs) that are hosted by spiral galaxies. 0313-192 is an edge-on spiral galaxy that appears to host a 360 kpc double-lobed radio source. The core of this galaxy is clearly detected at L, S, and X bands using the Very Long Baseline Array, signifying an ongoing active nucleus in the galaxy. This rules out the possibility that the spiral DRAGN is merely a chance alignment. The radio core has L1.4 GHz ˜ 3.0 × 1023 W Hz-1. Radio components are detected to the south-west of the core, but there are no detections of a counterjet. Assuming a symmetric, relativistic jet, we estimate an upper limit to the inclination angle of θ ≲ 72 deg. The VLBI-detected radio jet components are extremely well aligned with the larger scale radio source suggesting little to no jet disruption or interaction with the interstellar medium of the host galaxy.

Cosmic Infrared Background Sources Clustered Around Quasars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, Kirsten R.; Zakamska, Nadia; Marriage, Tobias; Crichton, Devin; Gralla, Megan

2017-06-01

Powerful quasars can be seen out to large distances. As they reside in massive dark matter halos, they provide a useful tracer of large scale structure. We stack Herschel-SPIRE images at 250, 350, and 500 microns at the locations of 13,000 quasars in redshift bins spanning 0.5 < z < 3.5. While the detected signal is dominated on instrumental beam scales by the unresolved dust emission of the quasar and its host galaxy, at z 2 the extended emission is clearly spatially resolved on Mpc scales. This emission is due to star-forming galaxies clustered around the dark matter halos hosting quasars. We measure radial surface brightness profiles of the stacked images to compute the angular correlation function of dusty star-forming galaxies correlated with quasars. We generate a halo occupation distribution model in order to determine the masses of the dark matter halos in which dusty star forming galaxies reside. We are probing potential changes in the halo mass most efficient at hosting star forming galaxies, and assessing any evidence that this halo mass evolved with redshift in the context of "cosmic downsizing".

Gas-rich galaxy pair unveiled in the lensed quasar 0957+561

PubMed

Planesas; Martin-Pintado; Neri; Colina

1999-12-24

Molecular gas in the host galaxy of the lensed quasar 0957+561 (QSO 0957+561) at the redshift of 1.41 has been detected in the carbon monoxide (CO) line. This detection shows the extended nature of the molecular gas distribution in the host galaxy and the pronounced lensing effects due to the differentially magnified CO luminosity at different velocities. The estimated mass of molecular gas is about 4 x 10(9) solar masses, a molecular gas mass typical of a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way. A second, weaker component of CO is interpreted as arising from a close companion galaxy that is rich in molecular gas and has remained undetected so far. Its estimated molecular gas mass is 1.4 x 10(9) solar masses, and its velocity relative to the main galaxy is 660 kilometers per second. The ability to probe the molecular gas distribution and kinematics of galaxies associated with high-redshift lensed quasars can be used to improve the determination of the Hubble constant H(0).

Radio Source Morphology: 'nature or nuture'?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banfield, Julie; Emonts, Bjorn; O'Sullivan, Shane

2012-10-01

Radio sources, emanating from supermassive black-holes in the centres of active galaxies, display a large variety of morphological properties. It is a long-standing debate to what extent the differences between various types of radio sources are due to intrinsic properties of the central engine (`nature') or due to the properties of the interstellar medium that surrounds the central engine and host galaxy (`nurture'). Settling this `nature vs. nurture' debate for nearby radio galaxies, which can be studied in great detail, is vital for understanding the properties and evolution of radio galaxies throughout the Universe. We propose to observe the radio galaxy NGC 612 where previous observations have detected the presence of a large-scale HI bridge between the host galaxy and a nearby galaxy NGC 619. We request a total of 13 hrs in the 750m array-configuration to determine whether or not the 100 kpc-scale radio source morphology is directly related to the intergalactic distribution of neutral hydrogen gas.

Feeding and feedback in radio galaxies of the local universe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Couto, Guilherme dos Santos

2016-10-01

We present integral field spectroscopic data covering the inner kiloparsecs of four radio galaxies of the local Universe (z<0.07), Arp 102B, Pictor A, 3C 33 and 4C +29.30, obtained with the GMOS-IFU instrument of the Gemini telescopes. We use these data to analyze the gas excitation and kinematics via two-dimensional maps. Using the flux distributions of the emission lines, we identify extended emission in ionized gas up to the edges of the observed field, which corresponds to 1.7 kpc x 2.5 kpc for Arp 102B, 2.5 kpc x 3.4 kpc for Pictor A, 4.0 kpc x 5.8 kpc for 3C 33 and 4.3 kpc x 6.2 kpc for 4C +29.30. The extended line emitting gas displays structures resembling rotating disks, spiral arms and bars. Line ratios indicate that both photons from the nuclear source and shocks originated in the interaction of the radio jet with circumnuclear gas are ionizing mechanisms of the gas. Line ratio values are typical of Seyfert galaxies for 3C 33 and 4C +29.30, while intermediate values between Seyferts and LINERs are observed in Arp 102B. Pictor A galaxy, however, shows low values of [NII]/Ha=0.15-0.25, expected for HII regions. We suggest that these values are observed due to the low gas metallicity (12+log(O/H)=8.39). Centroid velocity maps show that the gas kinematics is dominated by rotation only in Arp 102B and 3C 33. Outflows are observed in the galaxies Arp 102B, 3C 33 and 4C +29.30. We obtain mass outflow rates of 0.32-0.49 Msun per year, but the outflow kinetic power is small, ranging 0.04-0.07% of the AGN bolometric luminosity, indicating that the feedback has little impact in the host galaxies evolution. The high masses of ionized gas, ranging from 7.4E7 to 4.6E8 Msun, and the fact that these galaxies are early-type, suggest an external origin of the gas. Indeed, it is observed evidence of interaction with companion galaxies in Arp 102B, Pictor A and 4C +29.30. We suggest that the capture of mass has triggered the nuclear activity in these galaxies, with the high masses feeding not only the SMBH but also being a possible source of star formation.

PEARS Emission Line Galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pirzkal, Nor; Rothberg, Barry; Ly, Chun; Rhoads, James E.; Malhotra, Sangeeta; Grogin, Norman A.; Dahlen, Tomas; Meurer, Gerhardt R.; Walsh, Jeremy; Hathi, Nimish P.;

The Lopsidedness of Satellite Galaxy Systems in ΛCDM Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pawlowski, Marcel S.; Ibata, Rodrigo A.; Bullock, James S.

2017-12-01

The spatial distribution of satellite galaxies around pairs of galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) have been found to bulge significantly toward the respective partner. Highly anisotropic, planar distributions of satellite galaxies are in conflict with expectations derived from cosmological simulations. Does the lopsided distribution of satellite systems around host galaxy pairs constitute a similar challenge to the standard model of cosmology? We investigate whether such satellite distributions are present around stacked pairs of hosts extracted from the ΛCDM simulations Millennium-I, Millennium-II, Exploring the Local Volume in Simulations, and Illustris-1. By utilizing this set of simulations covering different volumes, resolutions, and physics, we implicitly test whether a lopsided signal exists for different ranges of satellite galaxy masses, and whether the inclusion of hydrodynamical effects produces significantly different results. All simulations display a lopsidedness similar to the observed situation. The signal is highly significant for simulations containing a sufficient number of hosts and resolved satellite galaxies (up to 5 σ for Millennium-II). We find a projected signal that is up to twice as strong as that reported for the SDSS systems for certain opening angles (∼16% more satellites in the direction between the pair than expected for uniform distributions). Considering that the SDSS signal is a lower limit owing to likely back- and foreground contamination, the ΛCDM simulations appear to be consistent with this particular empirical property of galaxy pairs.

Revisiting The First Galaxies: The effects of Population III stars on their host galaxies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Muratov, Alexander L.; Gnedin, Oleg Y.; Gnedin, Nickolay Y.

2013-07-12

We revisit the formation and evolution of the first galaxies using new hydrodynamic cosmological simulations with the adaptive refinement tree code. Our simulations feature a recently developed model for H 2 formation and dissociation, and a star formation recipe that is based on molecular rather than atomic gas. Here, we develop and implement a recipe for the formation of metal-free Population III (Pop III) stars in galaxy-scale simulations that resolve primordial clouds with sufficiently high density. We base our recipe on the results of prior zoom-in simulations that resolved the protostellar collapse in pre-galactic objects. We find the epoch duringmore » which Pop III stars dominated the energy and metal budget of the first galaxies to be short-lived. Galaxies that host Pop III stars do not retain dynamical signatures of their thermal and radiative feedback for more than 10 8 years after the lives of the stars end in pair-instability supernovae, even when we consider the maximum reasonable efficiency of the feedback. Though metals ejected by the supernovae can travel well beyond the virial radius of the host galaxy, they typically begin to fall back quickly, and do not enrich a large fraction of the intergalactic medium. Galaxies with a total mass in excess of 3 × 10 6 M ⊙ re-accrete most of their baryons and transition to metal-enriched Pop II star formation.« less

REVISITING THE FIRST GALAXIES: THE EFFECTS OF POPULATION III STARS ON THEIR HOST GALAXIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Muratov, Alexander L.; Gnedin, Oleg Y.; Zemp, Marcel

2013-08-01

We revisit the formation and evolution of the first galaxies using new hydrodynamic cosmological simulations with the adaptive refinement tree code. Our simulations feature a recently developed model for H{sub 2} formation and dissociation, and a star formation recipe that is based on molecular rather than atomic gas. Here, we develop and implement a recipe for the formation of metal-free Population III (Pop III) stars in galaxy-scale simulations that resolve primordial clouds with sufficiently high density. We base our recipe on the results of prior zoom-in simulations that resolved the protostellar collapse in pre-galactic objects. We find the epoch duringmore » which Pop III stars dominated the energy and metal budget of the first galaxies to be short-lived. Galaxies that host Pop III stars do not retain dynamical signatures of their thermal and radiative feedback for more than 10{sup 8} years after the lives of the stars end in pair-instability supernovae, even when we consider the maximum reasonable efficiency of the feedback. Though metals ejected by the supernovae can travel well beyond the virial radius of the host galaxy, they typically begin to fall back quickly, and do not enrich a large fraction of the intergalactic medium. Galaxies with a total mass in excess of 3 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 6} M{sub Sun} re-accrete most of their baryons and transition to metal-enriched Pop II star formation.« less

Discovery of Super-Thin Disks in Nearby Edge-on Spiral Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schechtman-Rook, A.; Bershady, M. A.

2014-03-01

We report the identification of a super-thin disk (hz˜ 60 pc) in the edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 891. This component is only apparent after we perform a physically motivated attenuation correction, based on detailed radiation transfer models, to our sub-arcsecond resolution near-infrared imaging. In addition to the super-thin disk, we also find several structural features near the center of NGC 891, including an inner disk truncation at ˜3 kpc. Inner disk truncations may be commonplace among massive spiral galaxies, possibly due to the effects of instabilities, such as bars. Having successfully demonstrated our methods, we are poised to apply them to a small sample of nearby edge-on galaxies, consisting both of massive and low-mass spirals.

Our Chaotic Neighbor

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-09-01

This vibrant image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy to our own Milky Way galaxy. The infrared image, a mosaic of more than 100,000 individual tiles, offers astronomers a unique chance to study the lifecycle of stars and dust in a single galaxy. Nearly one million objects are revealed for the first time in this Spitzer view, which represents about a 1,000-fold improvement in sensitivity over previous space-based missions. Most of the new objects are dusty stars of various ages populating the Large Magellanic Cloud; the rest are thought to be background galaxies. The blue color in the picture, seen most prominently in the central bar, represents starlight from older stars. The chaotic, bright regions outside this bar are filled with hot, massive stars buried in thick blankets of dust. The red clouds contain cooler interstellar gas and molecular-sized dust grains illuminated by ambient starlight. The Large Magellanic Cloud, located 160,000 light-years from Earth, is one of a handful of dwarf galaxies that orbit our own Milky Way. It is approximately one-third as wide as the Milky Way, and, if it could be seen in its entirety, would cover the same amount of sky as a grid of about 480 full moons. About one-third of the whole galaxy can be seen in the Spitzer image. This picture is a composite of infrared light captured by Spitzer's infrared array camera. Light with wavelengths of 8 and 5.8 microns is red and orange: 4.5-micron light is green; and 3.6-micron light is blue. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA07136

A support vector machine for spectral classification of emission-line galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Fei; Liu, Yu-Yan; Sun, Guang-Lan; Li, Pei-Yu; Lei, Yu-Ming; Wang, Jian

2015-10-01

The emission-lines of galaxies originate from massive young stars or supermassive blackholes. As a result, spectral classification of emission-line galaxies into star-forming galaxies, active galactic nucleus (AGN) hosts, or compositions of both relates closely to formation and evolution of galaxy. To find efficient and automatic spectral classification method, especially in large surveys and huge data bases, a support vector machine (SVM) supervised learning algorithm is applied to a sample of emission-line galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) data release 9 (DR9) provided by the Max Planck Institute and the Johns Hopkins University (MPA/JHU). A two-step approach is adopted. (i) The SVM must be trained with a subset of objects that are known to be AGN hosts, composites or star-forming galaxies, treating the strong emission-line flux measurements as input feature vectors in an n-dimensional space, where n is the number of strong emission-line flux ratios. (ii) After training on a sample of emission-line galaxies, the remaining galaxies are automatically classified. In the classification process, we use a 10-fold cross-validation technique. We show that the classification diagrams based on the [N II]/Hα versus other emission-line ratio, such as [O III]/Hβ, [Ne III]/[O II], ([O III]λ4959+[O III]λ5007)/[O III]λ4363, [O II]/Hβ, [Ar III]/[O III], [S II]/Hα, and [O I]/Hα, plus colour, allows us to separate unambiguously AGN hosts, composites or star-forming galaxies. Among them, the diagram of [N II]/Hα versus [O III]/Hβ achieved an accuracy of 99 per cent to separate the three classes of objects. The other diagrams above give an accuracy of ˜91 per cent.

Do the Most Massive Black Holes at z = 2 Grow via Major Mergers?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mechtley, M.; Jahnke, K.; Windhorst, R. A.; Andrae, R.; Cisternas, M.; Cohen, S. H.; Hewlett, T.; Koekemoer, A. M.; Schramm, M.; Schulze, A.; Silverman, J. D.; Villforth, C.; van der Wel, A.; Wisotzki, L.

2016-10-01

The most frequently proposed model for the origin of quasars holds that the high accretion rates seen in luminous active galactic nuclei (AGN) are primarily triggered during major mergers between gas-rich galaxies. While plausible for decades, this model has only begun to be tested with statistical rigor in the past few years. Here, we report on a Hubble Space Telescope study to test this hypothesis for z = 2 quasars with high supermassive black hole masses ({M}{BH}={10}9{--}{10}10 {M}⊙ ), which dominate cosmic black hole growth at this redshift. We compare Wide Field Camera 3 F160W (rest-frame V-band) imaging of 19 point source-subtracted quasar hosts to a matched sample of 84 inactive galaxies, testing whether the quasar hosts have greater evidence for strong gravitational interactions. Using an expert ranking procedure, we find that the quasar hosts are uniformly distributed within the merger sequence of inactive galaxies, with no preference for quasars in high-distortion hosts. Using a merger/non-merger cutoff approach, we recover distortion fractions of {f}{{m},{qso}}=0.39+/- 0.11 for quasar hosts and {f}{{m},{gal}}=0.30+/- 0.05 for inactive galaxies (distribution modes, 68% confidence intervals), with both measurements subjected to the same observational conditions and limitations. The slight enhancement in distorted fraction for quasar hosts over inactive galaxies is not significant, with a probability that the quasar fraction is higher P({f}{{m},{qso}}\\gt {f}{{m},{gal}})=0.78 (0.78σ ), in line with results for lower mass and lower z AGN. We find no evidence that major mergers are the primary triggering mechanism for the massive quasars that dominate accretion at the peak of cosmic quasar activity.

THE HOST GALAXY OF THE SUPER-LUMINOUS SN 2010gx AND LIMITS ON EXPLOSIVE {sup 56}Ni PRODUCTION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Ting-Wan; Smartt, Stephen J.; Kotak, Rubina

2013-02-01

Super-luminous supernovae have a tendency to occur in faint host galaxies which are likely to have low mass and low metallicity. While these extremely luminous explosions have been observed from z = 0.1 to 1.55, the closest explosions allow more detailed investigations of their host galaxies. We present a detailed analysis of the host galaxy of SN 2010gx (z = 0.23), one of the best studied super-luminous type Ic supernovae. The host is a dwarf galaxy (M{sub g} = -17.42 {+-} 0.17) with a high specific star formation rate. It has a remarkably low metallicity of 12 + log (O/H)more » = 7.5 {+-} 0.1 dex as determined from the detection of the [O III] {lambda}4363 line. This is the first reliable metallicity determination of a super-luminous stripped-envelope supernova host. We collected deep multi-epoch imaging with Gemini + GMOS between 240 and 560 days after explosion to search for any sign of radioactive {sup 56}Ni, which might provide further insights on the explosion mechanism and the progenitor's nature. We reach griz magnitudes of m{sub AB} {approx} 26, but do not detect SN 2010gx at these epochs. The limit implies that any {sup 56}Ni production was similar to or below that of SN 1998bw (a luminous type Ic SN that produced around 0.4 M{sub Sun} of {sup 56}Ni). The low volumetric rates of these supernovae ({approx}10{sup -4} of the core-collapse population) could be qualitatively matched if the explosion mechanism requires a combination of low-metallicity (below 0.2 Z{sub Sun }), high progenitor mass (>60 M{sub Sun }) and high rotation rate (fastest 10% of rotators).« less

Host Galaxy Spectra of Stripped SN from the Palomar Transient Factory: SN Progenitor Diagnostics and the SN-GRB Connection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Modjaz, Maryam; Gal-Yam, Avishay; Arcavi, Iair

2012-02-01

Stripped core-collapse supernovae (Stripped SNe) are powerful cosmic engines that energize and enrich the ISM and that sometimes accompany GRBs, but the exact mass and metallicity range of their massive progenitors is not known, nor the detailed physics of the explosion. We propose to continue conducting the first uniform and statistically significant study of host galaxies of 60 stripped SNe from the same innovative, homogeneous and galaxy-unbiased survey Palomar Transient Factory in order to determine the environmental conditions that influence the various kinds of massive stellar deaths. By obtaining spectra of the immediate host environments of our sample of stripped SN, we will (1) measure local abundances in order to differentiate between the two progenitor scenarios for stripped SN and (2) derive stellar population ages, masses and star formation histories via detailed stellar population synthesis models. Moreover, we will test if natal chemical abundance has effects on basic SN characteristics, such as peak luminosity. Any observed trends will have ramifications on SN and GRB explosion models and imply important demographic SN considerations. Our dataset will provide a crucial complimentary set to host galaxy studies of long-duration GRBs and pave the way for host studies of transients and SN found via upcoming surveys such as LSST.

The Faint Optical Afterglow and Host Galaxy of GRB 020124: Implications for the Nature of Dark Gamma-Ray Bursts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berger, E.; Kulkarni, S. R.; Bloom, J. S.; Price, P. A.; Fox, D. W.; Frail, D. A.; Axelrod, T. S.; Chevalier, R. A.; Colbert, E.; Costa, E.; Djorgovski, S. G.; Frontera, F.; Galama, T. J.; Halpern, J. P.; Harrison, F. A.; Holtzman, J.; Hurley, K.; Kimble, R. A.; McCarthy, P. J.; Piro, L.; Reichart, D.; Ricker, G. R.; Sari, R.; Schmidt, B. P.; Wheeler, J. C.; Vanderppek, R.; Yost, S. A.

2002-12-01

We present ground-based optical observations of GRB 020124 starting 1.6 hr after the burst, as well as subsequent Very Large Array and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations. The optical afterglow of GRB 020124 is one of the faintest afterglows detected to date, and it exhibits a relatively rapid decay, Fν~t-1.60+/-0.04, followed by further steepening. In addition, a weak radio source was found coincident with the optical afterglow. The HST observations reveal that a positionally coincident host galaxy must be the faintest host to date, R>~29.5 mag. The afterglow observations can be explained by several models requiring little or no extinction within the host galaxy, AhostV~0-0.9 mag. These observations have significant implications for the interpretation of the so-called dark bursts (bursts for which no optical afterglow is detected), which are usually attributed to dust extinction within the host galaxy. The faintness and relatively rapid decay of the afterglow of GRB 020124, combined with the low inferred extinction, indicate that some dark bursts are intrinsically dim and not dust obscured. Thus, the diversity in the underlying properties of optical afterglows must be observationally determined before substantive inferences can be drawn from the statistics of dark bursts.

GAMMA-RAY BURST HOST GALAXY SURVEYS AT REDSHIFT z {approx}> 4: PROBES OF STAR FORMATION RATE AND COSMIC REIONIZATION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Trenti, Michele; Perna, Rosalba; Levesque, Emily M.

2012-04-20

Measuring the star formation rate (SFR) at high redshift is crucial for understanding cosmic reionization and galaxy formation. Two common complementary approaches are Lyman break galaxy (LBG) surveys for large samples and gamma-ray burst (GRB) observations for sensitivity to SFR in small galaxies. The z {approx}> 4 GRB-inferred SFR is higher than the LBG rate, but this difference is difficult to understand, as both methods rely on several modeling assumptions. Using a physically motivated galaxy luminosity function model, with star formation in dark matter halos with virial temperature T{sub vir} {approx}> 2 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 4} K (M{sub DM} {approx}> 2more » Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 8} M{sub Sun }), we show that GRB- and LBG-derived SFRs are consistent if GRBs extend to faint galaxies (M{sub AB} {approx}< -11). To test star formation below the detection limit L{sub lim} {approx} 0.05L*{sub z=3} of LBG surveys, we propose to measure the fraction f{sub det}(L > L{sub lim}, z) of GRB hosts with L > L{sub lim}. This fraction quantifies the missing star formation fraction in LBG surveys, constraining the mass-suppression scale for galaxy formation, with weak dependence on modeling assumptions. Because f{sub det}(L > L{sub lim}, z) corresponds to the ratio of SFRs derived from LBG and GRB surveys, if these estimators are unbiased, measuring f{sub det}(L > L{sub lim}, z) also constrains the redshift evolution of the GRB production rate per unit mass of star formation. Our analysis predicts significant success for GRB host detections at z {approx} 5 with f{sub det}(L > L{sub lim}, z) {approx} 0.4, but rarer detections at z > 6. By analyzing the upper limits on host galaxy luminosities of six z > 5 GRBs from literature data, we infer that galaxies with M{sub AB} > -15 were present at z > 5 at 95% confidence, demonstrating the key role played by very faint galaxies during reionization.« less

A dwarf galaxy's transformation and a massive galaxy's edge: detailed modeling of the extended stream in NGC1097

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cristiano Amorisco, Nicola; Martinez-Delgado, David

2015-08-01

Low surface brightness tidal features around massive galaxies are the smoking gun of hierarchical galaxy formation. These debris are informative of: (i) the evolutionary struggles of the progenitor dwarf galaxies, transformed and partially destroyed by the tides; (ii) the formation history of the massive host, its halo populations and the structure of its dark matter halo. However, extracting reliable measurements of the progenitor’s initial mass, infall time, host halo mass and density profile has so far been difficult, as the parameter space is too wide to explore with N-body simulations.We use new deep imaging data of the extended, X shaped stream in NGC1097 [1,2] and a new dynamical technique to quantitatively reconstruct: (i) the density profile of the massive spiral host (inferred virial mass M200=1012.25±0.1 M⊙) ; and (ii) the dramatic evolution of the progenitor galaxy; by modeling its stream within a fully statistical framework. I will show that the current location of the remnant coincides with a nucleated dwarf Spheroidal, with a luminosity of ~3.3x106LV,⊙ [3], and a predicted total mass of M(<0.45±0.2 kpc)=107.8±0.6 M⊙. This is the result of a strong transformation: at its first interaction with the host, 4.4±0.4 Gyr and three pericentric passages ago, the progenitor was over two orders of magnitude more massive, with Mtot(3.2±0.7 kpc)=1010.4±0.2 M⊙. Its orbit has a pericenter of a few kpc, but reaches out to 150±12 kpc. In this range the stream’s morphology allows us to see the total density slope of the host bending and steepening towards large radii. For the first time in a single galaxy (rather than on stacked data), both central and outer slope are constrained by observations and can be compared to LCDM expectations [4]. Finally, I will discuss prospects of applying this technique to more known streams, to map the structure of a wider sample of galaxy haloes and unveil the evolutionary histories of more individual dwarf galaxies.Refs.[1] Arp, 1976, ApJ, 207[2] Higdon & Wallin, 2003, ApJ, 585[3] Galianni et al., 2010, A&A, 521[4] Diemer & Kravtsov, 2014, ApJ, 789

Rapidly star-forming galaxies adjacent to quasars at redshifts exceeding 6

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Decarli, R.; Walter, F.; Venemans, B. P.; Bañados, E.; Bertoldi, F.; Carilli, C.; Fan, X.; Farina, E. P.; Mazzucchelli, C.; Riechers, D.; Rix, H.-W.; Strauss, M. A.; Wang, R.; Yang, Y.

2017-05-01

The existence of massive (1011 solar masses) elliptical galaxies by redshift z ≈ 4 (refs 1, 2, 3; when the Universe was 1.5 billion years old) necessitates the presence of galaxies with star-formation rates exceeding 100 solar masses per year at z > 6 (corresponding to an age of the Universe of less than 1 billion years). Surveys have discovered hundreds of galaxies at these early cosmic epochs, but their star-formation rates are more than an order of magnitude lower. The only known galaxies with very high star-formation rates at z > 6 are, with one exception, the host galaxies of quasars, but these galaxies also host accreting supermassive (more than 109 solar masses) black holes, which probably affect the properties of the galaxies. Here we report observations of an emission line of singly ionized carbon ([C II] at a wavelength of 158 micrometres) in four galaxies at z > 6 that are companions of quasars, with velocity offsets of less than 600 kilometres per second and linear offsets of less than 100 kiloparsecs. The discovery of these four galaxies was serendipitous; they are close to their companion quasars and appear bright in the far-infrared. On the basis of the [C II] measurements, we estimate star-formation rates in the companions of more than 100 solar masses per year. These sources are similar to the host galaxies of the quasars in [C II] brightness, linewidth and implied dynamical mass, but do not show evidence for accreting supermassive black holes. Similar systems have previously been found at lower redshift. We find such close companions in four out of the twenty-five z > 6 quasars surveyed, a fraction that needs to be accounted for in simulations. If they are representative of the bright end of the [C II] luminosity function, then they can account for the population of massive elliptical galaxies at z ≈ 4 in terms of the density of cosmic space.

Making Supermassive Black Holes Spin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2016-12-01

Where does the angular momentum come from that causes supermassive black holes (SMBHs) to spin on their axes and launch powerful jets? A new study of nearby SMBHs may help to answer this question.High-mass SMBHs are thought to form when two galaxies collide and the SMBHs at their centers merge. [NASA/Hubble Heritage Team (STScI)]High- vs. Low-Mass MonstersObservational evidence suggests a dichotomy between low-mass SMBHs (those with 106-7 M) and high-mass ones (those with 108-10 M). High-mass SMBHs are thought to form via the merger of two smaller black holes, and the final black hole is likely spun up by the rotational dynamics of the merger. But what spins up low-mass SMBHs, which are thought to build up very gradually via accretion?A team of scientists led by Jing Wang (National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences) have attempted to address this puzzle by examining the properties of the galaxies hosting low-mass SMBHs.A Sample of Neighboring SMBHsWang and collaborators began by constructing a sample of radio-selected nearby Seyfert 2 galaxies: those galaxies in which the stellar population and morphology of the host galaxy are visible to us, instead of being overwhelmed by continuum emission from the galaxys active nucleus.An example of a galaxy with a concentrated, classical bulge (M87; top) and a one with a disk-like pseudo bulge (Triangulum Galaxy; bottom). The authors find that for galaxies hosting low-mass SMBHs, those with more disk-like bulges appear to have more powerful radio jets. [Top: NASA/Hubble Heritage Team (STScI), Bottom: Hewholooks]From this sample, the authors then selected 31 galaxies that have low-mass SMBHs at their centers, as measured using the surrounding stellar dynamics. Wang and collaborators cataloged radio information revealing properties of the powerful jets launched by the SMBHs, and they analyzed the host galaxies properties by modeling their brightness profiles.Spin-Up From Accreting GasBy examining this sample, the authors discovered an intriguing relationship: the radio power of jets launched by an SMBH appears to be dependent upon its host galaxys bulge surface brightness. Specifically, Wang and collaborators found that more powerful radio emission comes from SMBHs associated with less-concentrated bulges, i.e. those that are more disk-like.The authors findings allow them to rule out many common explanations for the radio-loudness of such galaxies with small SMBH masses. Instead, they argue that the tendency for galaxies with more disk-like bulges to host SMBHs with more powerful jets is evidence that low-mass SMBHs are spun up by the accretion of surrounding gas.In this scenario, the angular momentum of gas with significant disk-like rotational dynamics provides the spin to the SMBH, and this rotational energy can then be extracted to launch the powerful jets. If this explanation is correct, it strengthens the dichotomy between low-mass and high-mass SMBHs, supporting the idea that the two categories of black holes are indeed formed and spun up via completely different mechanisms.CitationJ. Wang et al 2016 ApJL 833 L2.doi:10.3847/2041-8205/833/1/L2

What Can We Learn By Observing Supernova Neutrinos?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beacom, John

1999-10-01

A core-collapse supernova emits of the order of 10^58 neutrinos of all flavors over about 10 seconds, with an average energy of about 11 MeV for ν_e, 16 MeV for barν_e, and 25 MeV for ν_μ, ν_τ, barν_μ, and barν_τ. The present and near-term solar neutrino detectors can readily observe a supernova anywhere in our Galaxy. The expected supernova rate in our Galaxy is about 3 per century. What can we learn by observing the neutrinos from the next Galactic supernova? Besides the nuclear and astrophysical aspects of the collapse mechanism, there will be an unprecedented opportunity to measure neutrino properties, in particular their masses. The ν_μ and ν_τ masses can be measured by time-of-flight relative to the νe and barνe neutrinos, with a nearly model-independent sensitivity down to about 30 eV. If the time development of the supernova neutrino luminosities were better known from theory, this could be reduced to 10 eV or less. In either case, it will be essential to map out the neutrino energy spectra by measuring the signals on several different nuclear targets. Direct information on the absolute scale of the neutrino masses is especially crucial now since the apparently positive signals from neutrino oscillation experiments indicate nonzero differences in neutrino masses, with no information on the overall scale.

Orbital and escape dynamics in barred galaxies - III. The 3D system: correlations between the basins of escape and the NHIMs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zotos, Euaggelos E.; Jung, Christof

2018-01-01

The escape dynamics of the stars in a barred galaxy composed of a spherically symmetric central nucleus, a bar, a flat thin disc and a dark matter halo component is investigated by using a realistic three degrees of freedom (3-d.o.f.) dynamical model. Modern colour-coded diagrams are used for distinguishing between bounded and escaping motion. In addition, the smaller alignment index method is deployed for determining the regular, sticky or chaotic nature of bounded orbits. We reveal the basins of escape corresponding to the escape through the two symmetrical escape channels around the Lagrange points L2 and L3 and also we relate them with the corresponding distribution of the escape times of the orbits. Furthermore, we demonstrate how the stable manifolds, around the index-1 saddle points, accurately define the fractal basin boundaries observed in the colour-coded diagrams. The development scenario of the fundamental vertical Lyapunov periodic orbit is thoroughly explored for obtaining a more complete view of the unfolding of the singular behaviour of the dynamics at the cusp values of the parameters. Finally, we examine how the combination of the most important parameters of the bar (such as the semimajor axis and the angular velocity) influences the observed stellar structures (rings and spirals), which are formed by escaping stars guided by the invariant manifolds near the saddle points.

The suppression of star formation by powerful active galactic nuclei.

PubMed

Page, M J; Symeonidis, M; Vieira, J D; Altieri, B; Amblard, A; Arumugam, V; Aussel, H; Babbedge, T; Blain, A; Bock, J; Boselli, A; Buat, V; Castro-Rodríguez, N; Cava, A; Chanial, P; Clements, D L; Conley, A; Conversi, L; Cooray, A; Dowell, C D; Dubois, E N; Dunlop, J S; Dwek, E; Dye, S; Eales, S; Elbaz, D; Farrah, D; Fox, M; Franceschini, A; Gear, W; Glenn, J; Griffin, M; Halpern, M; Hatziminaoglou, E; Ibar, E; Isaak, K; Ivison, R J; Lagache, G; Levenson, L; Lu, N; Madden, S; Maffei, B; Mainetti, G; Marchetti, L; Nguyen, H T; O'Halloran, B; Oliver, S J; Omont, A; Panuzzo, P; Papageorgiou, A; Pearson, C P; Pérez-Fournon, I; Pohlen, M; Rawlings, J I; Rigopoulou, D; Riguccini, L; Rizzo, D; Rodighiero, G; Roseboom, I G; Rowan-Robinson, M; Sánchez Portal, M; Schulz, B; Scott, D; Seymour, N; Shupe, D L; Smith, A J; Stevens, J A; Trichas, M; Tugwell, K E; Vaccari, M; Valtchanov, I; Viero, M; Vigroux, L; Wang, L; Ward, R; Wright, G; Xu, C K; Zemcov, M

2012-05-09

The old, red stars that constitute the bulges of galaxies, and the massive black holes at their centres, are the relics of a period in cosmic history when galaxies formed stars at remarkable rates and active galactic nuclei (AGN) shone brightly as a result of accretion onto black holes. It is widely suspected, but unproved, that the tight correlation between the mass of the black hole and the mass of the stellar bulge results from the AGN quenching the surrounding star formation as it approaches its peak luminosity. X-rays trace emission from AGN unambiguously, whereas powerful star-forming galaxies are usually dust-obscured and are brightest at infrared and submillimetre wavelengths. Here we report submillimetre and X-ray observations that show that rapid star formation was common in the host galaxies of AGN when the Universe was 2-6 billion years old, but that the most vigorous star formation is not observed around black holes above an X-ray luminosity of 10(44) ergs per second. This suppression of star formation in the host galaxy of a powerful AGN is a key prediction of models in which the AGN drives an outflow, expelling the interstellar medium of its host and transforming the galaxy's properties in a brief period of cosmic time.

Star formation and gas flows in the centre of the NUGA galaxy NGC 1808 observed with SINFONI

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Busch, Gerold; Eckart, Andreas; Valencia-S., Mónica; Fazeli, Nastaran; Scharwächter, Julia; Combes, Françoise; García-Burillo, Santiago

2017-02-01

NGC 1808 is a nearby barred spiral galaxy which hosts young stellar clusters in a patchy circumnuclear ring with a radius of 240 pc. In order to study the gaseous and stellar kinematics and the star formation properties of the clusters, we perform seeing-limited H + K-band near-infrared integral-field spectroscopy with SINFONI of the inner 600 pc. From the MBH-σ∗ relation, we find a black hole mass of a few 107M⊙. We estimate the age of the young stellar clusters in the circumnuclear ring to be ≲10 Myr. No age gradient along the ring is visible. However, the starburst age is comparable to the travel time along the ring, indicating that the clusters almost completed a full orbit along the ring during their lifetime. In the central 600 pc, we find a hot molecular gas mass of 730 M⊙ which, with standard conversion factors, corresponds to a large cold molecular gas reservoir of several 108M⊙, in agreement with CO measurements from the literature. The gaseous and stellar kinematics show several deviations from pure disc motion, including a circumnuclear disc and signs of a nuclear bar potential. In addition, we confirm streaming motions on the 200 pc scale that have recently been detected in CO(1-0) emission. Thanks to the enhanced angular resolution of <1″, we find further streaming motion within the inner arcsecond that had not been detected until now. Despite the flow of gas towards the centre, no signs of significant AGN activity are found. This raises the question: will the infalling gas fuel an AGN or star formation? Based on observations with ESO-VLT, STS-Cologne GTO proposal ID 094.B-0009(A) and ESO archival data, proposal nos 074.A-9011(A) and 075.B-0648(A).

Calculating binding free energies of host-guest systems using the AMOEBA polarizable force field.

PubMed

Bell, David R; Qi, Rui; Jing, Zhifeng; Xiang, Jin Yu; Mejias, Christopher; Schnieders, Michael J; Ponder, Jay W; Ren, Pengyu

2016-11-09

Molecular recognition is of paramount interest in many applications. Here we investigate a series of host-guest systems previously used in the SAMPL4 blind challenge by using molecular simulations and the AMOEBA polarizable force field. The free energy results computed by Bennett's acceptance ratio (BAR) method using the AMOEBA polarizable force field ranked favorably among the entries submitted to the SAMPL4 host-guest competition [Muddana, et al., J. Comput.-Aided Mol. Des., 2014, 28, 305-317]. In this work we conduct an in-depth analysis of the AMOEBA force field host-guest binding thermodynamics by using both BAR and the orthogonal space random walk (OSRW) methods. The binding entropy-enthalpy contributions are analyzed for each host-guest system. For systems of inordinate binding entropy-enthalpy values, we further examine the hydrogen bonding patterns and configurational entropy contribution. The binding mechanism of this series of host-guest systems varies from ligand to ligand, driven by enthalpy and/or entropy changes. Convergence of BAR and OSRW binding free energy methods is discussed. Ultimately, this work illustrates the value of molecular modelling and advanced force fields for the exploration and interpretation of binding thermodynamics.

On the formation mechanisms of compact elliptical galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferré-Mateu, Anna; Forbes, Duncan A.; Romanowsky, Aaron J.; Janz, Joachim; Dixon, Christopher

2018-01-01

In order to investigate the formation mechanisms of the rare compact elliptical (cE) galaxies, we have compiled a sample of 25 cEs with good SDSS spectra, covering a range of stellar masses, sizes and environments. They have been visually classified according to the interaction with their host, representing different evolutionary stages. We have included clearly disrupted galaxies, galaxies that despite not showing signs of interaction are located close to a massive neighbour (thus are good candidates for a stripping process), and cEs with no host nearby. For the latter, tidal stripping is less likely to have happened and instead they could simply represent the very low-mass, faint end of the ellipticals. We study a set of properties (structural parameters, stellar populations, star formation histories and mass ratios) that can be used to discriminate between an intrinsic or stripped origin. We find that one diagnostic tool alone is inconclusive for the majority of objects. However, if we combine all the tools a clear picture emerges. The most plausible origin, as well as the evolutionary stage and progenitor type, can be then determined. Our results favour the stripping mechanism for those galaxies in groups and clusters that have a plausible host nearby, but favours an intrinsic origin for those rare cEs without a plausible host and that are located in looser environments.

A Search for Molecular Gas in the Host Galaxy of FRB 121102

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bower, Geoffrey C.; Rao, Ramprasad; Krips, Melanie; Maddox, Natasha; Bassa, Cees; Adams, Elizabeth A. K.; Law, C. J.; Tendulkar, Shriharsh P.; van Langevelde, Huib Jan; Paragi, Zsolt; Butler, Bryan J.; Chatterjee, Shami

2018-06-01

We present Submillimeter Array and Northern Extended Millimeter Array observations of the host galaxy of FRB 121102 in the CO 3–2 and 1–0 transitions, respectively. We do not detect emission from either transition. We set 3σ upper limits to the CO luminosity L CO < 2.5 × 107 K km s‑1 pc‑2 for CO 3–2 and L CO < 2.3 × 109 K km s‑1 pc‑2 for CO 1–0. For Milky Way–like star formation properties, we set a 3σ upper limit on the H2 mass of 2.5 × 108 M ⊙, slightly less than the predictions for the H2 mass based on the star formation rate. The true constraint on the H2 mass may be significantly higher, however, because of the reduction in CO luminosity that is common for low-metallicity dwarf galaxies like the FRB host galaxy. These results demonstrate the challenge of identifying the nature of FRB progenitors through study of the host galaxy molecular gas. We also place a limit of 42 μJy (3σ) on the continuum flux density of the persistent radio source at 97 GHz, consistent with a power-law extrapolation of the low-frequency spectrum, which may arise from an active galactic nucleus or other nonthermal source.

Large-scale clustering as a probe of the origin and the host environment of fast radio bursts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shirasaki, Masato; Kashiyama, Kazumi; Yoshida, Naoki

2017-04-01

We propose to use degree-scale angular clustering of fast radio bursts (FRBs) to identify their origin and the host galaxy population. We study the information content in autocorrelation of the angular positions and dispersion measures (DM) and in cross-correlation with galaxies. We show that the cross-correlation with Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) galaxies will place stringent constraints on the mean physical quantities associated with FRBs. If ˜10 ,000 FRBs are detected with ≲deg resolution in the SDSS field, the clustering analysis with the intrinsic DM scatter of 100 pc /cm3 can constrain the global abundance of free electrons at z ≲1 and the large-scale bias of FRB host galaxies (the statistical relation between the distribution of host galaxies and cosmic matter density field) with fractional errors (with a 68% confidence level) of ˜10 % and ˜20 %, respectively. The mean near-source dispersion measure and the delay-time distribution of FRB rates relative to the global star forming rate can be also determined by combining the clustering and the probability distribution function of DM. Our approach will be complementary to high-resolution (≪deg ) event localization using e.g., VLA and VLBI for identifying the origin of FRBs and the source environment. We strongly encourage future observational programs such as CHIME, UTMOST, and HIRAX to survey FRBs in the SDSS field.

Tracing the Arms of our Milky Way Galaxy

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-06-03

Astronomers using data from NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, are helping to trace the shape of our Milky Way galaxy's spiral arms. This illustration shows where WISE data revealed clusters of young stars shrouded in dust, called embedded clusters, which are known to reside in spiral arms. The bars represent uncertainties in the data. The nearly 100 clusters shown here were found in the arms called Perseus, Sagittarius-Carina, and Outer -- three of the galaxy's four proposed primary arms. Our sun resides in a spur to an arm, or a minor arm, called Orion Cygnus. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19341

VizieR Online Data Catalog: SAMI Galaxy Survey: gas streaming (Cecil+, 2016)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cecil, G.; Fogarty, L. M. R.; Richards, S.; Bland-Hawthorn, J.; Lange, R.; Moffett, A.; Catinella, B.; Cortese, L.; Ho, I.-T.; Taylor, E. N.; Bryant, J. J.; Allen, J. T.; Sweet, S. M.; Croom, S. M.; Driver, S. P.; Goodwin, M.; Kelvin, L.; Green, A. W.; Konstantopoulos, I. S.; Owers, M. S.; Lawrence, J. S.; Lorente, N. P. F.

2016-08-01

From the first ~830 targets observed in the SGS, we selected 344 rotationally supported galaxies having enough gas to map their CSC. We rejected 8 whose inclination angle to us is too small (i<20°) to be established reliably by photometry, and those very strongly barred or in obvious interactions. Finally, we rejected those whose CSC would be smeared excessively by our PSF (Sect. 2.3.1) because of large inclination (i>71°), compact size, or observed in atrocious conditions, leaving 163 SGS GAMA survey sub-sample and 15 "cluster" sub-sample galaxies with discs. (3 data files).

The Merger-Free Growth of Galaxies and Supermassive Black Holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simmons, Brooke; Smethurst, Rebecca; Lintott, Chris; Martin, Garreth; Kaviraj, Sugata; Devriendt, Julien; Galaxy Zoo Team

2018-01-01

There is now clear evidence that the merger-driven pathway to black hole and galaxy growth is only half the story. Merger-free evolution contributes roughly equally to the overall growth of black holes in the Universe and is also responsible for a significant amount of galaxy growth over cosmic time. A recent study examining the growth of black holes in unambiguously disk-dominated galaxies shows these black holes reach quasar-like luminosities and black hole masses typical of those hosted in bulge-dominated and elliptical galaxies with major mergers in their evolutionary histories. However, while there appears to be no correlation between the size of the black hole and upper limits on the host galaxy bulges, the fitted correlation between black hole mass and total galaxy stellar mass in these merger-free systems is fully consistent with the canonical relationship based on merger-driven systems. There is further evidence via comparison between observed populations and cosmological simulations confirming that bulgeless systems are generally consistent with having merger-free histories. If bulgeless and disk-dominated galaxies are indeed signatures of systems with no violent mergers in their formation histories, the same correlation between black hole and galaxy in these systems versus that seen in elliptical galaxy samples indicates the black hole-galaxy connection must originate with a process more fundamental than the dynamical configuration of a galaxy's stars.

Two New Calcium-rich Gap Transients in Group and Cluster Environments

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lunnan, R.; Kasliwal, M. M.; Cao, Y.

We present the Palomar Transient Factory discoveries and the photometric and spectroscopic observations of PTF11kmb and PTF12bho. We show that both transients have properties consistent with the class of calcium-rich gap transients, specifically lower peak luminosities and rapid evolution compared to ordinary supernovae, and a nebular spectrum dominated by [Ca ii] emission. A striking feature of both transients is their host environments: PTF12bho is an intracluster transient in the Coma Cluster, while PTF11kmb is located in a loose galaxy group, at a physical offset ~150 kpc from the most likely host galaxy. Deep Subaru imaging of PTF12bho rules out anmore » underlying host system to a limit of M R > -8.0 mag, while Hubble Space Telescope imaging of PTF11kmb reveals a marginal counterpart that, if real, could be either a background galaxy or a globular cluster. Here, we show that the offset distribution of Ca-rich gap transients is significantly more extreme than that seen for SNe Ia or even short-hard gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs). Thus, if the offsets are caused by a kick, they require higher kick velocities and/or longer merger times than sGRBs. Finally, we also show that almost all Ca-rich transients found to date are in group and cluster environments with elliptical host galaxies, indicating a very old progenitor population; the remote locations could partially be explained by these environments having the largest fraction of stars in the intragroup/intracluster light following galaxy-galaxy interactions.« less

Two New Calcium-rich Gap Transients in Group and Cluster Environments

DOE PAGES

Lunnan, R.; Kasliwal, M. M.; Cao, Y.; ...

2017-02-08

We present the Palomar Transient Factory discoveries and the photometric and spectroscopic observations of PTF11kmb and PTF12bho. We show that both transients have properties consistent with the class of calcium-rich gap transients, specifically lower peak luminosities and rapid evolution compared to ordinary supernovae, and a nebular spectrum dominated by [Ca ii] emission. A striking feature of both transients is their host environments: PTF12bho is an intracluster transient in the Coma Cluster, while PTF11kmb is located in a loose galaxy group, at a physical offset ~150 kpc from the most likely host galaxy. Deep Subaru imaging of PTF12bho rules out anmore » underlying host system to a limit of M R > -8.0 mag, while Hubble Space Telescope imaging of PTF11kmb reveals a marginal counterpart that, if real, could be either a background galaxy or a globular cluster. Here, we show that the offset distribution of Ca-rich gap transients is significantly more extreme than that seen for SNe Ia or even short-hard gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs). Thus, if the offsets are caused by a kick, they require higher kick velocities and/or longer merger times than sGRBs. Finally, we also show that almost all Ca-rich transients found to date are in group and cluster environments with elliptical host galaxies, indicating a very old progenitor population; the remote locations could partially be explained by these environments having the largest fraction of stars in the intragroup/intracluster light following galaxy-galaxy interactions.« less

Heavily Obscured AGN: An Ideal Laboratory To Study The Early Co-Evolution of Galaxies And Black Holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Circosta, Chiara; Vignali, C.; Gilli, R.; Feltre, A.; Vito, F.

2016-10-01

Obscured AGN are a crucial ingredient to understand the full growth history of super massive black holes and the coevolution with their host galaxies, since they constitute the bulk of the BH accretion. In the distant Universe, many of them are hosted by submillimeter galaxies (SMGs), characterized by a high production of stars and a very fast consumption of gas. Therefore, the analysis of this class of objects is fundamental to investigate the role of the ISM in the early coevolution of galaxies and black holesWe collected a sample of six obscured X-ray selected AGN at z>2.5 in the CDF-S, detected in the far-IR/submm bands. We performed a multiwavelength analysis in order to characterize their physical properties, as well as those of their host galaxies (e.g. column density, accretion luminosity, stellar mass, SFR, dust and gas mass). I will present the results of the X-ray spectral analysis of these sources based on the 7Ms Chandra data - the deepest X-ray observation ever carried out on any field - along with their broad-band spectral energy distributions (SEDs), built up using the public UV to far-IR photometry from the CANDELS and Herschel catalogs. By comparing the column density associated with the ISM (estimated measuring the size of the system) with that obtained from the X-ray data, it is possible to understand whether the ISM in the host galaxy may be able to produce a substantial part of the observed nuclear obscuration.

Long gamma-ray bursts and core-collapse supernovae have different environments.

PubMed

Fruchter, A S; Levan, A J; Strolger, L; Vreeswijk, P M; Thorsett, S E; Bersier, D; Burud, I; Castro Cerón, J M; Castro-Tirado, A J; Conselice, C; Dahlen, T; Ferguson, H C; Fynbo, J P U; Garnavich, P M; Gibbons, R A; Gorosabel, J; Gull, T R; Hjorth, J; Holland, S T; Kouveliotou, C; Levay, Z; Livio, M; Metzger, M R; Nugent, P E; Petro, L; Pian, E; Rhoads, J E; Riess, A G; Sahu, K C; Smette, A; Tanvir, N R; Wijers, R A M J; Woosley, S E

2006-05-25

When massive stars exhaust their fuel, they collapse and often produce the extraordinarily bright explosions known as core-collapse supernovae. On occasion, this stellar collapse also powers an even more brilliant relativistic explosion known as a long-duration gamma-ray burst. One would then expect that these long gamma-ray bursts and core-collapse supernovae should be found in similar galactic environments. Here we show that this expectation is wrong. We find that the gamma-ray bursts are far more concentrated in the very brightest regions of their host galaxies than are the core-collapse supernovae. Furthermore, the host galaxies of the long gamma-ray bursts are significantly fainter and more irregular than the hosts of the core-collapse supernovae. Together these results suggest that long-duration gamma-ray bursts are associated with the most extremely massive stars and may be restricted to galaxies of limited chemical evolution. Our results directly imply that long gamma-ray bursts are relatively rare in galaxies such as our own Milky Way.

POWERFUL RADIO EMISSION FROM LOW-MASS SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES FAVORS DISK-LIKE BULGES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, J.; Xu, Y.; Xu, D. W.

The origin of spin of low-mass supermassive black holes (SMBHs) is still a puzzle at present. We report here a study on the host galaxies of a sample of radio-selected nearby ( z < 0.05) Seyfert 2 galaxies with a BH mass of 10{sup 6–7} M{sub ⊙}. By modeling the SDSS r -band images of these galaxies through a two-dimensional bulge+disk decomposition, we identify a new dependence of SMBH's radio power on host bulge surface brightness profiles, in which more powerful radio emission comes from an SMBH associated with a more disk-like bulge. This result means low-mass and high-mass SMBHsmore » are spun up by two entirely different modes that correspond to two different evolutionary paths. A low-mass SMBH is spun up by a gas accretion with significant disk-like rotational dynamics of the host galaxy in the secular evolution, while a high-mass one by a BH–BH merger in the merger evolution.« less

Correlation between the Total Gravitating Mass of Groups and Clusters and the Supermassive Black Hole Mass of Brightest Galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bogdán, Ákos; Lovisari, Lorenzo; Volonteri, Marta; Dubois, Yohan

2018-01-01

Supermassive black holes (BHs) residing in the brightest cluster galaxies are over-massive relative to the stellar bulge mass or central stellar velocity dispersion of their host galaxies. As BHs residing at the bottom of the galaxy cluster’s potential well may undergo physical processes that are driven by the large-scale characteristics of the galaxy clusters, it is possible that the growth of these BHs is (indirectly) governed by the properties of their host clusters. In this work, we explore the connection between the mass of BHs residing in the brightest group/cluster galaxies (BGGs/BCGs) and the virial temperature, and hence total gravitating mass, of galaxy groups/clusters. To this end, we investigate a sample of 17 BGGs/BCGs with dynamical BH mass measurements and utilize XMM-Newton X-ray observations to measure the virial temperatures and infer the {M}500 mass of the galaxy groups/clusters. We find that the {M}{BH}{--}{kT} relation is significantly tighter and exhibits smaller scatter than the {M}{BH}{--}{M}{bulge} relations. The best-fitting power-law relations are {{log}}10({M}{BH}/{10}9 {M}ȯ )=0.20+1.74{{log}}10({kT}/1 {keV}) and {{log}}10({M}{BH}/{10}9 {M}ȯ ) = -0.80+1.72{{log}}10({M}{bulge}/{10}11 {M}ȯ ). Thus, the BH mass of BGGs/BCGs may be set by physical processes that are governed by the properties of the host galaxy group/cluster. These results are confronted with the Horizon-AGN simulation, which reproduces the observed relations well, albeit the simulated relations exhibit notably smaller scatter.